Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all of my blog readers!  I'm really looking forward to the coming year and hope to be able to keep everyone up-to-date in a better way than "just pictures."

Words!!  We need more words!

I didn't really make any "yearly" resolutions for 2011.  I mean, I have a list of things I've been wanting to get done since 1979!... paint the wall shelves, re-vamp the corner hutch, rebuild the pantry, but I think that if I say to myself "This year I want to... blah, blah, blah" it'll never get done.  I'll just make up a good excuse to put it off until next month.

Rather, I decided to make daily goals.  I'm keeping a list everyday.  Three things.  Three priorities.  Simple things.  Mop the floors.  Laundry.  Change the sheets.  Clean the fridge.  All very do-able.  I've been going to bed every night feeling very accomplished that I achieved my daily goals!  I love this plan.

One of my Friday goals is to blog for the week.  Catch everyone up on the little special things that we've experienced in our lives.  So, here we go.  Week 1 of 2011.

Macy

Our little love!  Our pride and joy!  Every week, there is something new with her!  She is a little chatterbox... she talks, and talks, and talks... Sometimes we don't even know what she says, but we try our best...  This week, she has adopted the phrase "Mmm, mmm, mmm, dewiwish (delicious)!" as she shakes her head back and forth in awe... If you know Macy, you'd find this rather funny since she typically doesn't really like anything except her B's consisting of Blueberries, Blackberries, Bread... and Yogurt, mostly Berry Blend... j/k, any Yogurt will do.

Macy is growing up to be a very big helper.  We try to allow her to help us in all of our adult responsibilities and chores, such as laundry, making dinner, dusting, and the latest is helping us unload the dishwasher.  She can almost flawlessly put away all plastic bowls with lids, all of her bowls and cups and the silverware!  Seriously, she's awesome at it!

I like to work with her on a daily basis with little activities... teaching her colors, shapes, counting, ABC's... I'm amazed at what she learns and the skills that she gains!  And she's not even 2!  Can't say that much longer... :o(

Here is an example of where we were learning about the color green.  She pulled the green marker, all by herself, from the stack of markers and filled in the circle.

Now, this is what amazed me!  I asked her to draw a line from the Circle to the Star.  She drew this line all by herself, with absolutely no guidance!   ...typical parent amazement...

 

And I am super proud at how she is learning to focus on small objects to color.

And her imagination is sure developing!  I caught her playing with her dollhouse the other day (which we got for $10 at Target after Christmas!... I didn't know Target had such great toy deals after Christmas)... and she had seated "Mommy" and "Daddy" at their dining table and was serving them food with her fingers from the stove.  So PRECIOUS!  I can hardly stand it!

I guess they had to go potty after dinner... :o)

Clay

Clay was very lucky to have a long Christmas break... plus Monday! Yay!  It's always so hard (for all of us) when he has to go back to work... we are SPOILED!  Monday was a nice addition to his vacation time.

He got a nifty remote control helicopter for Christmas, which he loves.  It has become a special activity every evening for him and Macy to play "airplane truck."  That's what she calls airplanes, or anything that flies in the sky for that matter.  They have the system all worked out.  Clay fly's the helicopter and when it crashes, Macy retrieves it and places it back on the "helipad."

 Did I mention that the helipad was her dollhouse??!

Earlier this week, Clay worked on a Thank You video in lieu of a more traditional card, to be sent via email to all his students' families who gave him a Christmas gift.  The video was completely impromptu and turned out very cute and pretty comical.  We laugh every time we watch it!

One of Clays new favorite mugs.  It's very cool!  You can unscrew the bottom and there are slots that you can put individual packs of VIA in.  Yea, you know he stole this "joint gift" for himself!!

Angie

I started knitting around October and have fallen in-love with it.  I simply love to knit.  With that said, I decided to open an Etsy store... we'll see how that goes.  I only have one thing posted right now, maybe two by the time you read this, but I will post more as I make more.  I have several other grand ideas of things I want to make and sell.  You can check my shop out at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/TickledMePink

My creative side really got a hold of me this week, because I also made Macy a pillowcase, after being so frustrated that you cannot buy one single, CUTE, pillowcase for a little girl!

  The Nitty and the Gritty

It can't all be good, right?  This week, we have been working hard to get healthy and back on west coast time.  Macy has gone from waking up at 4AM to about 6:30AM (finally!) this morning.  She also has had a cough and runny nose since our Virginia trip... as well as I have.  I struggled with a three day headache this week (Clay says from the knitting), and Clay has had some kind of weird skin rash on his face that he had to go to the doctor for.  Sheesh!!

Sigh... by the end of the week though, things are looking up.  We have tons to look forward to in the next few months.  Macy's birthday, as well as mine... a trip to Disneyland... AND a trip to Lake Arrowhead at the end of February!  Slopes, here we come!