Oh, January....

I guess I shouldn't have made a resolution to blog more often in JANUARY.

Because a big-fat-nothing exciting happens in January.  I checked my camera and I have taken about 5 photos all month long.

I'm sorry.  My anniversary is in January!  That being said, note to any engaged girls out there:  Do not get married in January.  Your anniversary is always overshadowed by post-Christmas exhaustion and poverty!  And it is always cold and you want to dress up and wear heels to go out for a fancy dinner, but then you don't want to freeze to death.... ;) 

Anyhow, this year my parents sent us out to a restaurant they really liked (ie, PAID and babysat).  Don't laugh at me but I tried scallops for the first time.  See?  I AM learning to be more courageous.  :)  But I did get it WITH the filet so at least I had that on my plate in case I thought the scallops were ew.  But I actually loved them!  (patting myself on the back for stepping out of the box....)

Other than that....it has been COLD here.  (If you live here of course this is no news flash to you....)  The kids have been stuck inside for long periods of time which makes for a lot of wrestling and chasing and craziness in our 1700 square feet.  Yesterday out of desperation I stuck in a CD the kids liked and told them to dance.  Chloe, my party girl, threw on a princess dress (with about 6 dress changes along the way) and went to town.  I think she danced hard for about 30 minutes.  I was taping her and she was hamming it up....and it was so worth it because last night as I was reading her a story, she said and I quote: "I want to go to bed now."  She has NEVER told me she wants to go to bed.  Partying a little too hard, were we??

Speaking of the cold, I have a new unfavorite pastime called "trying-to-get-Carter-to-wear-a-winter-coat".  He claims he does not like his winter coat because "he wants a coat with 2 colors on it."  I refrained from giving him a speech about how some kids would be glad to just have ANY coat.  (But I sure wanted to.)  He has a fuzzy fall jacket that he has been able to get away with wearing for most of the winter, but now that the wind chill is in the single digits, I have put my foot down about the winter coat.  But wowie, wow, wow.  Who knew how big a deal this could be - how many tears he would shed over it....or how many times I would have to count to ten to keep from blowing my stack?  (Which, admittedly, I have done a few times unfortunately....)  The semi-compromise he and I have come to is that he can wear his lighter jacket to run errands (since we aren't outside for long) but he HAS to wear his winter coat to school, since it involves standing outside at the bus stop and waiting. After a week of struggling, I think we have overcome the hurdle.

Keep reading, it just gets more exciting!  Or not....

In other interesting Smith news, our couch is officially trashed and we are looking for a new one!  Yay for furniture shopping!  Well, last weekend we went to a furniture store to look at a few sofas....with the kids in tow.  I bet you can guess how well that went.  And we still don't have a new sofa.  But we're working on  it.  I even had a friend come over to give me decorating advice because I just feel stuck and she is the bomb at decorating and organizing.  So she says "Once you get your new couch, I'll come back and we'll just start moving stuff around."  I looked at her with my mouth agape.  She said - "What, does that scare you?"  And I said, "You are freaking me out here!"  We just started cracking up because she is someone who rearranges her furniture seasonally or daily, dependent on her mood, and I am someone who rearranges my furniture....never.  I find a way I think it works and I stick with it.  But I am going to be have COURAGE and just do it.  It's only moving it around, right?  We can always move it back if we want to....oh my.  I need help.

Next week is Carter's birthday, so I guess January isn't all bad.  He is very excited to be turning six!  Just writing that makes my head spin - SIX??  Already? 

We are going to celebrate by getting donuts & munchkins in the morning to share with his little friends at Bible study.  Then he has to go to school, which in kindergarten is still a fun thing to do. :) Then we are going to take him out for dinner and to go bowling, which he loves.  On the weekend we will celebrate with our local extended family.  No kid party this year.  I kind of didn't want to plan one, and he didn't ask for one, and he seemed very happy to have family coming over for a party.  So it's win-win. 

January can be kind of a blah month.  But in all seriousness, I have to add that I am so thankful that I have been able to spend a lot of time with friends this month.  I have a few friends that I usually meet up with on Mondays and we take our kids to Dunkin Donuts and to the library.  I have had the chance to spend time just hanging out at home with a friend of mine who has a 6 month old sweet little boy.  It is so fun to see him grow up and to enjoy a little one (yet not have to get up in the middle of the night to feed him....)  I have started exercising more regularly so I have been meeting a few people at the Y for a class and to just work out on the machines.  There is also Bible study on Wednesdays which I love.  I even had a long visit from an old lifelong friend that I haven't seen in a few years!  It has all served to help me keep my sanity in a month that can often be filled with lonely days stuck in the house.  I am so grateful for the community of people God has placed in my life! 

And hopefully I will have a more interesting post next time....haha!