Last Days of 2010...Happy New Year!

I love the week between Christmas and New Years because all the craziness of Christmas is over and normally it is the time to just enjoy family and be low-key!! It is after New Years when it is time to put away all the Christmas decorations and re-organize the house that I do not look forward to! This last week of the year I was able to spend most of it with my parents and my sister Kelsy and my sister Amy's family who is moving to Japan (again) for the next year to teach English. Spending time at my parents house always makes me feel nostalgic and it is so good to spend extra time with family! Shayla loves her grandparents and they and Kelsy are magical with making Mitchell happy too, so we had a great time! Here are a few of my favorite photos from the week and a slideshow of more too.

Bath time for the cousins!

Shayla building towers

Mitchell on the swing zipline my dad set up for the kids!

A final goodbye get together with Tommy's family as well at my Grandma Betty's house - here are all the gals who were there! (L to R - Sister Kelsy, Shayla and Me, Mom, Kalea, Amy, Coco, and Christine)

Shayla was sick on New Years Eve and so we stayed in and the kids were both asleep by 6:30 pm. Jon and I enjoyed a nice fondue dinner and movie and watched some of the New Years festivities on tv. Here is M in his 2011 shirt declaring "My First New Year's". It has definitely been the highlight of my year to have this adorable, precious boy in our lives and go through the many firsts with him and see Shayla blossom into a sweet young girl and loving sister!

Jon and I both are of the mind that rather than make resolutions at the New Year you should be making and working on resolutions all year long which is something we try to do - when we recognize something that we need to change or better in ourselves we try to work on it right away (like organizing my office, working on Mitchells First year photo book, reading my scriptures daily, trying a new recipe every week, etc) . I like to call them intentions vs goals or resolutions because they feel more likely to be accomplished in that manner. I read something recently that summed up why I feel that way - If I say, "a goal of mine is to xyz..." vs. "I intend to do xyz..." The later feels much stronger and has more conviction and a greater chance of happening . Although I do love the idea of using the new year as a fresh start for your intentions and do push harder on the ones I am working at this time of year! So for those of you who have made resolutions or have intentions you are currently working on - good luck - you can do it!

Many blessings to you and yours for the new year and health and happiness too!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!