our family: January 2010 Archives

I'm typing this while Reid naps and all the others are at church. Reid has been dealing with a very persistent virus/cold all week, so I opted to keep her home and let her rest. The snow is falling outside (again), but despite the cold weather, today is a great day, because our friend Shawn has accepted the Lord into his heart and is being baptized this morning! The angels are singing!!

The kids marked their 100th day of school last Wednesday! Their school kind of makes a big deal out of the 100th day, and I was able to join Addi's class in their celebration by helping out with their learning stations. My station consisted of stringing together 100 Fruit Loops to create an edible necklace. Addi had hers eaten by the time she had completed the next two learning stations! I also stayed and had lunch with Hale & Addi, but this mama decided it was too cold to stand around on a playground for recess this time! I'm looking forward to helping with the Valentine's party in Hale's class in a few weeks as well! I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be in their classrooms, getting to know their teachers and peers.

I need to be flipping through recipes and making preparations for next Sunday's Super Bowl Party...so until next time, STAY WARM!

Let's see... the last time I did any predictions it was 2 years ago and here's what I said:

+ we will have a baby girl and she'll be our last for at least many, many years
+ Jill will have a new vehicle by the end of the year
+ Sydney will walk by February
+ baby Reid will sleep through the night in the first two weeks she's home
+ we will have a snowfall of over 18" in one day this winter
+ we will have a terabyte of storage for photos and movies by the end of the year (currently we have about 1/4 of that)

Going down the list, we did have a beautiful baby girl, Reid, who has been our last. Jill did get a new vehicle, Homer, the Honda Odyssey. I can't remember if Sydney walked by February or if Reid slept through the night during those first 2 weeks. I'm pretty sure we didn't get the 18" snowfall in one day. We did and do have the terabyte of storage thing, which just seems so huge to me. Between movies and pictures it really eats up the hard drive space.

Now for this year, I predict:
+ I'll loose 20 pounds
+ Reid and Sydney will both be able to make it all night without going potty (almost there!)
+ Jill will start work on her book that I've encouraged her to write
+ We'll get our first solid state drive for a computer
+ We'll get a car paid off
+ Addi will become a great reader
+ I'll be challenged with more opportunities to lead others to Christ than ever before
+ Hale will write his first computer program

Mama J could NOT be more excited....yesterday I booked our 2nd consecutive family vaca!!! We had such a wonderfully relaxing and fun time in St. Augustine, FL last summer, so we are going back! Last year, my mom was willing and able to go down with us. Apparently our many pictures and stories made PaPo quite jealous, because this year they are BOTH going with us! We are so very excited that they are going! The big kids are beside themselves with anticipation of the good times we will have with Nannie & PaPo on the beach, in the pools, visiting the historic sites of the city, and just chillin' in the condo(s) with a fantastic, grilled, FRESH seafood dinner!

I see KJ has yet to post his 2010 predictions. In his defense, he has had a ridiculously busy schedule lately. The kids & I have seen very little of him this past week. I am going to do my best to pin him down to complete this task tomorrow. He will have a little time after he & Hale go to the barbershop for much-needed haircuts, and to our church to give blood (Kevin, not Hale!).

HOT OFF THE PRESSES! Hale & Addi received their report cards today for the second grading period. As my dad often says, they are just so boring (tongue in cheek)...straight As again for Hale and all Ss for Addi. YAY!!!!!!!!! Hale has been working really hard this grading period. His teacher spoke with us about challenging him more, and she stuck to her word! His homework has certainly been stepped up, but he is hanging right in there and doing great work! Likewise, Addi had done a remarkable job! She is reading books to Sydney & Reid that I STILL can't believe she actually can read by herself! We are certainly thrilled with their accomplishments!

Reid will celebrate her 2nd birthday next Thursday! It's hard to believe, but then again...the Terrible Twos are quite evident to prove her age! She leans toward the side of what you might call "high maintenance," although she has very recently begun to cling to us like a little monkey when she wants some lovin'. Her communication skills are amazing for a girl her age...there isn't a thing she can't or won't say/repeat, so WATCH YOUR MOUTH when you're around her!

I think the kids & I will bake some cookies tomorrow. We are having friends over for the Colts game tomorrow evening, and even though the kids will already be in bed by the time the game starts, they can at least celebrate a little pre-game activity! Hmmmm...wondering if I can free-hand some horseshoe cookies?? And where can I find BLUE sprinkles in this town?

WOW - 2010 is here! I have already heard it many times from others...this past decade seemed to fly by! We've stayed busy the past 10 years! I graduated from Purdue, we've lived in two states, bought three homes, Kevin earned his Masters Degree, adopted and have managed to keep up with two dogs & two cats, had four beautiful healthy babies, collectively have had five jobs, have stayed connected to dear old friends and have made lots of new wonderful ones...to God be the Glory for all of those blessings, and for what is to come!

I will have to remind Kevin to post his predictions for the year 2010. I don't think he's done that for the last year or two, so it will be interesting to see what he comes up with for this year. Some things we're looking forward to this year are: SPRING AND SUMMER, Reid turning two on January 21st, Colts winning another Super Bowl Championship, Boilermakers winning their first NCAA Championship, our 10th wedding anniversary in May, all the kids growing and learning new things, perhaps a family vacation with my parents this summer and most importantly, being a light for Jesus every chance we get!

I saw how one friend put 10 years into perspective and I will copy that here by saying that another 10 years from now, we will have a 17-year-old, a 16-year-old, a 13-year-old, and a 12-year-old. YIKES!!!!!