A New Year

Well, it's a new year and hopefully I will be better. There are many areas I would like to be better, and blogging is one of them. Life in our house has been crazy but it seems to finally be settling into a routine of sorts. I'm sure that will change soon into a different routine as Ben adjusts and changes his sleeping routine. For now, I will enjoy the schedule we're on. I have been reading a lot lately. Some really great novels as well as some inspiring books. Now that I am done with school I am hoping to read books that teach me something new. I enjoy novels for fun, but I feel like I should continually try to improve and learn and grow. Afterall, isn't that our purpose on this earth? So, if any of you have books that you think were inspiring or educational for you please pass the titles to me and I will start my list of books to read.
Speaking of reading, Denny is reading!! It is so exciting to watch our first-born learn to read and see how much self confidence he is gaining. He was afraid to read. When I mentioned to him that we should start Hooked on Phonics he said "Isn't reading for six-year-olds? I think I am too young for reading." Of course, it was his fear of not being able to do it that gave him this idea. Now that he sees he can he is soaking up the information and constantly asking for more. It's AWESOME!! He is asking to do more school all day long. It's wearing me out but I'm so glad he feels challenged and isn't afraid of being challenged.
Emily is doing school as well and picks up on things really quickly. She is good at coloring between the lines and is starting to learn the sounds the letters make. She is always wondering what is going on with "Baby Ben" and has to be reminded often to stay out of his face. (She thinks she needs to be within an inch of his nose to talk to him.) She is a Sunbeam this year and is so excited about being in Primary. She is always wanting to be older than she is. She wants to do what Denny does. So, while I don't want to get her involved in school too early she would be so hurt if I didn't include her. It's cool to watch her learn so many things I would have thought she wouldn't understand.
Jakey is our challenge. He is so hard-headed (not unlike his mother) and unless you convince him to do something he will not do it. There is no forcing this boy, he must do it freely of his own free will or he will throw a HUGE tantrum and likely throw whatever he has in his hands. This is not fun to see in restaurants especially. While we were out to eat a week ago he got upset and threw a plate (a small one with no food on it) under the table and it shattered. How embarassing but even more frustrating!! We have learned that if you talk calmly with him and patiently wait for him to agree then all will go well but sometimes this is not possible (when he has scissors in his hand for instance) so there are tantrums most days and no way around it. He is so smart and will be a genius I'm sure, but we hope we can turn this stubbornness into stubbornness for good things and not for bad things. He sits with us at the school table most days (usually with trains in hand) and "learns" along with the others. I like to think he's soaking it all in like a little sponge. He really surprised me the other day when he watched an alphabet show and then afterward was able to tell us what most of the letters "say". Wow! So, although he isn't talking still and is almost two he is learning in that head of his and some day he will allow us to know what he's thinking through talking to us. I can't wait!
Benjamin is a beautiful blessing to all of us. We each adore him and love to hold him. The kids come up often to kiss him or give him a toy. They are so excited for him to reach the age of being able to play more. Of course, the arguing over toys will likely come shortly after. Ha ha! He is sleeping pretty well at night (from 9ish to 8ish). He loves Christmas lights so we have hung a few over his crib which seems to calm him to sleep. We have had struggles with nursing and I almost gave up (which has never happened for me before). I love nursing and having that time with my babies so it was really hard to deal with. But, when I went to see the doctor for my 6 week follow up she told me about nursing guards that protect you from the baby's inability to latch properly. I didn't know what was causing him to latch improperly. I did the same things I did for the previous children but for some reason he wouldn't latch properly and it became excrutiatingly painful to nurse him. When I took Ben for his two month check-up we found the answer. He is tongue-tied, meaning he has a little piece under his tongue that needs to be clipped in order for him to be able to raise his tongue up to the roof of his mouth properly and nurse correctly. So, while the guard is helping and I have healed and am able to nurse with no pain, he will be going in Feb. 3 to have his tongue clipped and then I'll begin the process of teaching him to latch properly so I won't need the guard any longer. Yeah! Despite the difficulties, he is gaining weight and weighed 12 pound 8 ounces at his appointment. He is 24 inches long as well.
Dennis is doing well at work. He is applying for a special duty position-type assignment. Not really clear on all the details, but if he gets selected I'll tell you more about it. He is going to a class up in Washington DC for a few days in February. It won't be fun to have him gone but it's only a few hours away and only for a few days so we'll have him back before the weekend. He is teaching in Elder's Quorom at church and seems to enjoy it. He also has a great home teaching companion and they go most Sundays to visit someone on their list. Funny that his companion and my visiting teaching companion are married. So, we try to work together so that my visiting teaching can get accomplished around their home teaching since Sundays seem to be the only days that work for us. The weekdays are impossible with homeschooling and 4 kids in tow and Saturdays are usually busy with family time.
I am teaching in Primary. I haven't been in Primary in many years but am enjoying it now. The first week was rough for me, but it's getting better and I'm getting more confident. I am teaching the 11 year olds. It is a challenge but it is causing me to study the scriptures more in depth and I'm learning quite a bit from my study. I have never read the New Testament through all the way, but hopefully I will this year.

I found this great idea for a desk on the ContainerStore.com and showed it to Dennis. It was a great space saver and we decided to go ahead and do it. It consists of shelves on the wall. It allows for the kids' workboxes for school to be under the "desktop" and it opened up the room so much as well as give me vertical storage that is out of reach of little hands. I am loving it! I feel much more organized and able to accomplish homeschool without the stress and chaos that existed before. I have learned I do not do well with a chaotic house. I need things to be organized and neat. So, I find I spend a lot of time each day cleaning up just for the kids to mess it up a few moments later but I feel better so I suppose I'll keep up the cycle and hopefully in the process teach them to clean up as they go. Well, Ben is waking so I will end for now, but hopefully I'll be on here again soon.