Learning my A,B, C's

Today, I decided Collin needed to start getting himself an edumacation.

He knows how to sing the alphabet song, but that's about it.

I decided to do a letter a day. (And I should probably throw numbers in there too since he always starts counting with 2 [who really needs 1?] and always skips 10, ending with eleven [that 10 is funny business anyway])

After Weston went down for his morning nap, I told Collin it was time for his first day of "school"! He was giddy with excitement. We sat at the kitchen table and went over the alphabet song and I told him that today he was going to learn all about the letter "A".

First, we practiced writing an A on the magnadoodle, then tracing it on paper. We made A's with our finger in a box of salt and rolled an A out of playdough. We talked about how A is the beginning of ape, apricot, and apron. Then we put on our Home Depot apron to remind us. He was thrilled.

We pulled out a magazine and searched for A's, circling them with a highlighter. He actually did really good finding them too.

Then we made an "A" ape craft out of a toilet paper roll.

We spent a good 20- 30 minutes on our "A" lesson. When it was all over I asked him, "So what letter did we learn about today?!" To which he very confidently and happily responded, "C!".

*insert shoulder slump from Mom*

Don't worry, it wasn't a slip. All day long he will randomly ask me, "Mommy, where is my C?" (Meaning the paper he drew that is now on the fridge) or, "Mommy, help me make a C." (out of playdough)

(Mental pep talk.... he's only two, he's only two.)

New Year's Resolutions

I love New Year's Resoultions. I've been making them for as long as I can remember. And even though I don't usually complete them all, 100%, I find that a little introspection, followed with a bit more determination, written on paper, can go a long way. Sometimes it's a goal to be better in an area continually, and sometimes it a project that I just really need to buckle down and get done. (And I do love checking something off a list.)

This year I feel like my list is pretty elementary. But this past year, following a new baby, has left a lot of fundamenal things in my life, lacking.

I resolve to:
*go to the temple at least every other month,
*read my scriptures 15 min. a day,
*finish Weston and Collin's baby books,
*finally print all pictures I've taken in the past 5 years. (I know, I am the WORST for not having done that all along)
*re-upload all missing pictures from my blog, THEN
*print blog books for all years
*don't forget exercise! I'll try for 4x a week

When printing off these resolutions, Collin asked me what I was doing. So I told him I was printing off my new year's resolutions. Of course he asked “Why?” So I said, “Because I want to be a better person”. To which he matter of factly responded, “No, Daddy’s a better person.” My mouth dropped open and I said, “You don’t think Mommy is a good person?” “No,” he said, “Daddy’s a good person.” All with a smile playing on his lips. That stinker.

Now added to the list, *try harder to brain wash Collin into thinking I'm a better mommy.

A New Floor

In years past when I've gone home earlier than Trav for Christmas, it's been in part because he has finals and is basically MIA for the week anyway. Well this year, he didn't have finals, just clinic (but I still wanted to go home early!) so I wondered what he'd be doing all week long without us!

Ta Da! He put in a new bathroom floor. I couldn't have been happier. We probably should have taken a "before" pic of the nasty, broken up, green tile that was probably as old as the house, but I'll just let your imagination cover it. I had even sliced my foot pretty good on that hazardous mess. Well, no longer! I'm starting to worry about my "normalness" for how much I love the new floor. I was tempted to drop to my knees and stroke it. (And maybe I did for just a minute.)

Another huge bonus when I walked in the door after flying home....??? A spankin' clean house. I had left it a disaster. Trav vacuumed (even the stairs. wowzers) mopped the kitchen, cleaned the bathroom and left it basically spotless. A wifes dream. Spanks babe. :)

And last, but not least. While we were gone, the results of Trav's part II boards came in the mail. We literally walked in the door, set down all the luggage, saw the huge pile of mail on the table, looked at each other, paused ever so slightly, and pounced on it. When he found the envelope, he stepped back a few steps to open it "by himself".  

He passed!! And with an 81. Not too shabby! I was so proud of him. He studdied his keister off for that thing and it payed off. (We may also have a thank you card to write to some church in Texas that apparently was praying for Trav to pass. I have no idea what denomination it is, but Trav's parents are friends with a lady named Lori that heard them talking about Trav's board exams. Well I guess Lori has a friend in Texas and she told her about it for some reason and she got her whole church to pray for Trav! Hysterical. Thank you Texas!)

Now the only thing left is for him to finish this semester's requirements and then take his licensing exam in March. We are on the home stretch!