Reflection on 2015 and thoughts on 2016

The 2015 was a good year for our household. We went from a family of 3 to a family of 4. Our bundle of joy has brought so much more to our family than we could have imagined.

We also added 2 cats, by accident. Both wandered into our backyard as kittens, about a month apart, and we kept after no one claimed. They have made the perfect addition to our little family.

We actually survived several family road trips with less issues than the year before. Traveling with littles is, um, challenging to say the least.

When I quit working full time (now work extremely part time), I made a promise to my family to continue to find ways to cut down our expenses. This was a good year for that, with most of our savings made in the kitchen. I converted to freezer meal planning, learned to make more food items from scratch (bread, hot cocoa, oatmeal, pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce, and tomato sauce). We also continued to throw any extra money towards our mortgage and we are starting to really feel the progress. We still have a ways to go though, with anticipated pay off to be in 2020.

Thoughts on 2016:

In the past, I have loved making resolutions and want to share a few goals for 2016. My first and foremost being that I want to give up coffee. Since having my daughter, I found coffee to help me keep up with her. I have had periods of time where I went without coffee and I personally feel better overall when I'm not relying on coffee. Last month, I was drinking 1 cup a day and then I transitioned to only having coffee when I felt too tired to go on. My hope is that when I run out of coffee I won't feel the need to buy more. 

Despite traveling going well in 2015, we are contemplating staying home for the holidays in 2016. We think it may be time to start our own holiday traditions as a family. Of course, everyone is welcome to join us in our home if they want.

The last major goal I have for our household is to focus on a diet change. We eat almost all meals at home and I make most foods from scratch, but I have noticed some foods (homemade bread, brownies, cakes) are adding a bit to our waistlines. At the beginning of the year we were eating much healthier than we ended the year, so I'm planning to stay on the healthy track this time around. This goal is getting kicked into high gear this month as I take a clean eating course.

Finding time to exercise is just as challenging. With 2 kids, it's hard to find the time and energy. I don't think getting up before the kids (I see bloggers getting this in at 5:30am) is right for me. I'm currently working out with my kids in the mornings and plan to keep that up as long as it continues to work.

Bring in 2016!

What are your resolutions for this year?

Christmas and New Years Recap

This season always goes by too quickly! This is one of my favorite holiday seasons. I've learned it's even more fun when you have kids.

We spent Christmas with my family in my hometown. The kids swam, played with every toy grandma owns, met our new baby cousin, and laughed like crazy. I caught up with several friends from high school and I can't deny it but I laughed a lot, too.

My 10 year high school reunion will be the summer of 2016... So, in about 6 months. That blows my mind! Yikes. I'm getting old.

Anyways, we made it back home and have spent the week lounging and enjoying having the hubby home. He took 2 whole weeks off of work and it's been amazing!

We spent New Year's Eve at home as a family. Since there is no way our littles will make it to midnight, we celebrated in the middle of the afternoon. We had cake, sparkling grape juice, fireworks, silly string, noise makers, and confetti. It was fun. It was loud. We made so many memories my husband and I will treasure always.

After putting the kids to bed, we popped the champagne and dug into more cake.

We are relaxing today and have friends coming to stay with us tonight. We hope you enjoyed ringing in the new year and are relaxing today as you contemplate your resolutions.

Happy New Year!

Sleep Smiles

As I'm enjoying a piece of dessert, I was able to catch a very beautiful moment. I even got it on camera. How perfect is a sleeping baby giving the biggest smile?

So sweet. I apologize to him now for always having him in or with pink items. Sorry, Riley. Your big sister loves sharing with you though and you truly do know how to rock a frozen themed blanket!

I love the holidays as it reminds me of what's really important in life. In the midst of how crazy the holidays get, I find myself taking extra long moments to just slow down, breathe in my kids, and soak up the beautiful life God has gifted me.

I hope your holidays are shaping up as well as ours are. If not, be sure to take a note from my daughter and grab yourself a treat. That will be sure to cheer you up.

Our 5 Month Old

Riley, my love, you are one of the best things to have ever come into my life. Hands down. I love how in one moment you can be so serious and in the next you are so silly. 

I can't believe I still haven't figured out how to slow time down. You are growing fast. Too fast. Please, give me time to enjoy you at each age. 

At 5 months, you roll over, babble talk like crazy, sleep well at night, recognize your family, and you hold yourself up very well. You will be sitting with no assistance very soon. Your sister and I love to watch every move you make and are 2 of your biggest cheerleaders.

Your family loves you more than words could ever describe. Thank you for choosing us to be your family!

Meeting Santa

It only took us 2 1/2 years to take our daughter to meet Santa. Sad, I know. We don't really have an excuse for why we haven't made it before, but it was definitely worth the wait. Payton was so excited and talked all week about this day.

We anticipated a full blown meltdown when we tried to hand her over to the guy in the red suit. She shocked us all when she shed no tears! Riley questioned the Claus briefly before locking his hands in his beard. He had no issues after that.

This really is the best time of the year. We love all the festivities, lights, laughter, and love that comes with this season. We hope you are enjoying this time as much as we are.

I'm Still Here

I have taken a break from blogging while I get my health back on track (I have been battling pneumonia for a few months) and to enjoy the holidays with my family. I plan to get back to regular posts as the holiday season wraps up. 

Until then, I will be resting with my babies and sledding my life away as much as possible.

Happy Holidays!

Baby 1 to Baby 2

I don't think children should be compared to each other as we are raising them, but we should instead embrace the positive uniqueness that each individual child brings to the world. That being said, it can still be interesting to compare how each of our babies are similar and dissimilar to each other. It seems natural for my husband and me to make comments about how much our second child is like our first and comparatively how they differ. Here are a few things we have found when I think about Payton and Riley as babies:

Similar

*Happiness: both babies are generally very happy

*Love Baths: coincidentally, they put you both to sleep. I happen to have no problem with that.

*Dark Features: You both had dark hair and dark eyes at birth. Now, Payton has hazel eyes and blonde hair. Only time will tell with Riley what he will end up with. I'm hoping the dark features stay!

*Cuddly: With Payton, I didn't think a child could want more constant affection than Payton does. Cue Riley. Both kids loved to be held 24/7, rocked to sleep, holding hands, and holding our constant attention.

*Tummy Time: Both babies have had a huge dislike for tummy time

*Eating: Both babies were breastfed and, despite a learning curve with each, there haven't been any major issues for either child. Payton struggled initially with a good latch, but we were able to correct that relatively quickly. I, on the other hand, have battled mastitis at some point both times.

Different

*Sleep: Payton struggled with sleeping, both at night and with naps. She is a rockstar sleeper now, but those newborn/infant nights were hard! Riley has been a great sleeper overall. At 4 months, he typically only gets up 1 time.

*Ticklish: Payton was not very ticklish but Riley is. He loves to be tickled by his chin, sides of his belt, and the bottoms of his feet.

*Watching TV: Payton had really no interest in the TV. Riley learned to roll over and spin himself around in his exersaucer so he had prime positioning to see the TV. So, despite how turned away I keep him from the TV, he finds a way to watch!

*Size: Payton was our petite baby and almost always fell below the 20th percentile at check-ups. Riley is not so tiny and at (almost) 5 months is weighing in close to 17 pounds and ranks closer to the 65th percentile.

*Traveling: Although traveling is hard for both of you, Riley seems to have a higher tolerance for road trips than Payton did as an infant.