Deception

This boy has given me the worst night's sleep for the last 4 nights in a row.

He screams bloody murder and will not stop for anything unless I give him a bottle, but I know he can't be hungry and that he can sleep for 11 hours without eating.  He's done it before, though not consistently.

I feel like tearing my hair out.  He's such a little terror.

Don't you believe me?

2010 in Review

Time for the yearly look back at the events of the whole last year!

What did you do in 2010 that you'd never done before?
Became a military wife, and my kids became military brats.  Not something I was ever expecting!

Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Yes!  This is the first time that I have even remembered what my resolutions were and I kept them all!  I'm trying again for this coming year.  I'm going to learn to can/preserve, read at least 2 religious books (not including the Bible and Book of Mormon), and make and stick to an exercise program.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
Me!  Noah was born in March.  I also had some cousins and friends, like Rachel who just had adorable little Elinor, who gave birth too.

Did anyone close to you die?
Once again, I am happy to say no.

What countries did you visit?
No different countries, but we moved to a new state this year that I had never spent any time in!  Yay for Oregon!

What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
A 3 bedroom place.  It was ridiculous having only a 2 bedroom with 2 kids.

What dates from 2010 will remain etched in your memory, and why?
February 2 - Brett went into boot camp
March 23 - Noah was born
March 26 - Brett came home from boot camp
End of April - We pulled into Brookings, our new home for a couple of years, for the first time
End of July - My dad got married

What was your biggest personal achievement of the year?
Giving birth without my husband there.  The other would be losing all of the weight I gained with Noah and then some.  Also, getting out of debt completely and building up a 6 month supply of savings.

What was your biggest failure?
Not being grateful enough to my parents, sister, and sister-in-law for everything they did for me while I was big and pregnant and without my husband for 2 months.  They really made a huge difference for me.  Thank you.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing out of the ordinary, although I'm sitting here sniffling right now.

What was the best thing you bought?
The computer that I'm typing this on right now.

Whose behavior merited celebration?
Brett's, just like last year.  He went through boot camp and excelled, even though it was hard.  He has made some serious life changes in the past year, and he has done it with grace.

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Lucy.  She won't go potty in her litter box anymore and it's driving me crazy!

Where did most of your money go?
Into savings.

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Brett coming home from boot camp and Noah coming into our family.

What song will always remind you of 2010?
I've Got a Feeling by the Black Eyed Peas.

Compared to this time last year are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?
Happier, thinner, richer - the trifecta!

What do you wish you'd done more of?
Reading to Noah, camping, taking the kids to the park.

What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worrying

Did you fall in love in 2010?
Of course, with Brett, who I spend so little time with now, with Kennedy, who is growing up so fast, and with Noah, who is so sweet and I love having him in our family.

What was your favorite TV program?
Doctor Who by far.  But I enjoyed finishing up Lost too.

What was the best book you read?
Mockingjay and Stiff. (See previous post for a full account of what I read this year.)

What was your greatest musical discovery?
I only just now found Vampire Weekend.  They are way fun.

What did you want and get?
A Dutch oven!  And a safe move.

What did you want and not get?
A 3 bedroom place with a backyard.

What was your favorite film of this year?
I saw so few, but I really loved Harry Potter.

What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
I turned 25, and my dad took me out to lunch with the babies and my mom made me dinner that night.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
If Brett had been there when Noah was born.  That was hard on both of us.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?
Nothing special, although in the past few months I've realized that I still dress like a teenager, so I'm working on fixing that.

What kept you sane?
Brett, as always.  My family and Kennedy while Brett was in boot camp.

Books Read 2010

I just finished a book, and I think it will be the last before 2011 begins, so here are the books I read this year and my reviews.  I read a grand total of 20 this year.  For reviews on the first 6 that I read this year, see this post.

Mockingjay: If you haven't read the Hunger Games series, please do, and do it soon.  It is only behind Harry Potter in my favorite series.  This was the final book, and it did not disappoint.  Just wonderful.

The Book Thief: This book takes place in Nazi Germany and is about a little girl who is an innocent bystander and how the war affects her.  I was not as impressed by this book as others have seemed to be.  I thought the writing style was annoying, not innovative.  That being said, there were some nice moments, and the story as a whole was moving, but it was rather slow in parts.  I would still recommend it, but I wouldn't get my hopes up for it being the best book you've ever read.

The Talented Mr. Ripley: A book about a man who has some psychological issues.  It was written in the 50s, and it's really obvious.  There are some serious cultural differences between then and today which were really interesting.  It was a fast read because it was short, slightly interesting, but all in all I didn't feel that it was worth my time.

The Maze Runner & The Scorch Trials: These are the first two books in a trilogy about a boy named Thomas who can't remember who he is and awakes to find himself in a dangerous maze with no way out.  Awesome.  Creative.  Fast reads that had me turning the pages like no other.  I loved them and can't wait for the third book to come out so that I can figure out exactly what's going on!

Uglies, Pretties & Specials: This was a trilogy (which actually does have a 4th book that I haven't read) that I had heard a lot about.  It's about a world where everyone has an operation at 16 to make them extremely beautiful.  I was not impressed.  I actually really enjoyed Uglies, but it went way downhill from there.  Pretties was just filler and it felt like almost nothing happened.  Specials was a complete and total let down.  On top of that, I felt like the author was trying to make some political statements through all the books, but he kept contradicting himself, so I wasn't really sure where he was trying to go.  I wouldn't recommend the series.

Vixen: I got an advanced copy of this book through the Barnes & Noble First Look program.  I read it an participated in online discussions with the other readers, the author, and the editor.  It takes place in the 20s and is written in the point of view of 3 teenage girls.  It was interesting enough, but I'm not holding my breath for the sequel.  I also thought that the themes were a little bit too adult for it to be billed as YA.

Mere Christianity: Classic CS Lewis.  I enjoyed most of the insights, but didn't agree with everything he had to say.

The Tao of Pooh: A cute little book that uses Winnie-the-Pooh to make the explanation of Taoism accessible to Westerners.  I thought it was helpful, but didn't appreciate how the author seemed to put his own viewpoints into the religion.

Incarceron: The beginning of another dystopian, YA series. (Are you seeing a pattern?  I'm actually starting another dystopian novel right now, although it's not YA and not a series.)  This one is written from the point of view of 2 people - a boy who is inside a prison so vast it seems as though there is no outside world, and a girl who lives on the outside and is the warden's daughter.  I loved this one.  Once again, quite creative.  The end seemed a little bit rushed, but there is a sequel, so we'll see what happens.

The Twin's Daughter: A girl opens the door one day to see her mother's identical twin who she didn't know existed and her life changes forever.  Excellent.  I fell for all the traps, and I even knew that there were traps before I started reading.  My heart actually sped up while I was reading at one point.

I am Number Four: This is the one I finished today.  It's about 9 aliens who came to Earth as their own planet was being destroyed.  They have super powers and are waiting until they develop so that they can fight the race that destryed their planet.  I thought it was awesome.  Good characters, good relationship building, and good action that kept the storyline moving.

Kennedy Wennedy

Kennedy in the dryer with Rosie

Kennedy is getting to be such a big girl.  It's crazy how much she can learn and all of the things she can do.  Here's a rundown.

She can sing her alphabet (perfectly in tune) and recognize all the letters in upper and lower case.

She is finally learning to share her toys, sometimes, with Noah.

In Eugene with her beloved umbrella.

She counts up to 10 perfectly.  When she tries to go to 20, it sounds something like this: ten, twelve, firteen, eighteen, nineteen, twelve....

She tried to clean her room by snapping her fingers, just like Mary Poppins. (I'm not kidding.)

She hasn't had a potty accident for I don't know how long.  She gets everything in the potty and is completely night trained.

In her tutu and crown watching over the kitchen.

She loves to help mommy in the kitchen.

She loves to dress like a princess and has been asking for ballet lessons.

She loves to read and has many of her books memorized word for word.

Scrunchy Nose

Please excuse my horribly long absence from the blogging world.  To make it up to you, here's a rather cute video of Noah's new favorite thing to do.  Sometimes he's so cute I can't stand it.