Happy 2014!!

Sure, I’m a few days late in wishing you a Happy New Year, but I am of the opinion that well wishes are better late than never!

So, with the wishes out of the way, I’ll share with you what’s on my mind…  We had a great final three days of 2013, saying good-bye to the hardest year of our lives.  With the exception of the year Matt’s dad passed away, we have never had a more difficult season than 2013. We were more than happy to see it leave.  Our family was also very excited to see a new year arrive, a clean slate, new adventures (some fun, some heartbreakingly bittersweet).

The other day I was running and had a thought pop into my mind.  I felt like 2013 was a longhorn prodding me in the tail with its horns but that 2014 is a bull I have by the horns. Ironically, yesterday our family ran across a herd of copper cattle and Matt and I couldn’t help but take pictures of each other with the bulls by the horns!

We anticipate having a much better year than the one we just farewelled.  Here are a few of the things we look forward to:

• Completing our second deployment with success;
• Saving up to replace my older van with a much newer one;
• Possibly a Space-A trip to Germany;
• A cross-country trip to NC for some special weddings;
• Lots of ministry using Financial Peace University both in the US and Afghanistan;
• Great homeschooling adventures with some new curricula as we practice for high school (which Hayden will enter in May of 2015, still planning to homeschool);
• Matt’s return after his deployment (those are always very special!);

I also feel that this is the right time to admit to you that I didn’t exactly complete my 2013 New Year’s Resolution.  I did great with my studies until our move, at which time I went from studying five days a week to two.  A few months after we arrived here, I quit altogether.  It was a tough year on all fronts.  So, while I didn’t succeed last year, I’m going to pick up where I left off and keep going.  Christy sent me a supplementary Spanish program that I will include in my studies and I will report back to you later.

I still love resolutions and the purpose behind them.  Failing at them doesn’t discourage me, because I can assure you, without them I wouldn’t have gotten as far as I did last year. When I’m in public and I hear Spanish being spoken I listen in to see if there are words I can understand.  While shopping last week I overheard a conversation between a mother and her teenage daughter and I was able to determine that the daughter was doing her best (whining) to convince her mother that she “needed” whatever it was she was holding in her hands.  Yes, I just publicly admitted to eavesdropping, but I assure you… I knew so little that any details were still lost in translation.  I’m proud of myself for what I did accomplish and I’m excited to learn more.

In addition to learning Spanish, this year I have resolved to drink no carbonated drinks.  I made an exception yesterday when we visited the Dr. Pepper Museum in Waco… I even allowed myself a whole Dr. Pepper to enjoy alongside my jalapeño, ham, and cheese kolache from the Czech Stop in West, TX.

I have several blog posts floating around in my mind that I never got around to writing in 2013, some of our favorite days even, so be looking for those to come out at random times in the next few weeks.

Tomorrow I’m going to post an update on the breakdown of the chores in our home.  We keep chores for a year at a time for a variety of reasons, and January is when everyone gets their new assignments.  This year is exciting because Parker gets his very own ChorePack!

I’ve got this bull by the horns!