January = COLD!

The New Year kicked off with some unseasonably warm weather (as in it was in the 40s), so we got to keep our tradition of a first day of the year hike! Though it was really more of a walk, the sunshine and blue skies were good for the soul. 

We got to enjoy a few more days of relative warmth and time outside. 

Roller blading has been a BIG thing for these three lately. They realized the sidewalk around the little playground by our house is the perfect "speed skating" track!

But then, Iowa winter hit in earnest! It was COLD! Cold enough to cancel school on a day when the HIGH was -15 (with wind chills MUCH lower), and cold enough that going outside really wasn't an option for over a week. So we hunkered down and tried to entertain ourselves inside. 

The girls hosted a game night that was a blast!

We played at the library...

And up in the attic...

We played in the tub. Walter is in a phase where he LOVES to play pretend. One minute he's a monster, the next Captain Hook, then a dragon, then Bluey, then Buddy from Dinosaur Train, and the list goes on and on. Here he is pretending he's a swamp monster with mud dripping of his "scary claws"!

Lenora and I competed in a Puzzle Competition with a sister in our ward and her father. It was a blast and we won third place! 

We skated on the outdoor rink. It was COLD but a lot of fun! 

One Thursday, we went on a field trip to a nature center with our homeschool co-op. Again, the outside portion was frigid, but SO cool. We learned how to identify trees in winter and how to determine the age of saplings. Luckily they had tons of fun indoor exhibits too. Mostly, it was great to get out of the house. 

Meanwhile, Eliza kept BUSY with wrestling. She worked SO hard at practice every day after school. She wrestled in a few more meets and cheered on her team at others. During a home tournament, she sadly hurt her shoulder. What she thought would heal up in a few days persisted for over a week. She eventually saw a doctor who diagnosed her with a sprain to her AC joint. Luckily it wasn't major and just need some PT and time to heal. So while her season didn't end ideally, it was a huge success in our books. She worked so hard and never game up. Way to go EE! 

We ended the month with a super fun afternoon ice skating as a family. It was honestly a bit of a long, dull, lonely month. But life has seasons. Those cold winter days sure make the warm sunshine feel all the more amazing! 

Safety Knees!

Lenora's Golden Birthday!

Our beautiful, wonderful Lenora celebrated her golden birthday turning 12 on January 12th. Much like gold, Lenora is a light and a strength in our home and family. She radiates goodness and silliness and fun, and we just adore her! 

Lenora was so excited to finally start Young Women's! With an early January birthday, she missed the cut off last year by just 12 days. She gracefully completed her final year of Primary, but was so excited to move on to Young Women's. She was called as the class secretary for her class, and I know she'll do a fantastic job. 

Starting Young Women's means Lenora is also old enough to attend the temple. We wanted to make sure she got to attend with family before going with the youth, so Michael took the girl to Nauvoo one really cold morning. Lenora reports loving the peace inside the temple. 

A possibly less desirable "privilege" of entering the youth program is being asked to speak in Sacrament meeting. Lenora not only accepted the invitation to speak, but also put a lot of thought in to her talk. She shared the story of "Mary Mango" the citrus juicer in the shape of a troll which Jamie gave to us when Lenora was young. She LOVED that juicer and would even sleep with it. Of course she wouldn't allow us to use it as an actual juicer. Lenora related this story to how we treat our bodies when we see them as our Heavenly Father does. While listening to Lenora give her talk, I was blown away. She spoke clearly, confidently, and with the Spirit. It was a beautiful talk!

Outside of church, Lenora loves spending time reading and playing with anyone and everyone in our family. I'm beginning to realize that one of Lenora's unique gifts is finding joy in the moment. She gives her all to whomever she is with, and finds true joy in each relationship she nurtures. She happily spends hours helping with the little boys, giving baths, playing Bluey or Mr. Fork or any number of Walter's imaginative games. It's no wonder those little boys adore her (and Walter freely admits she's his favorite sister).

Then she's off with the older boys roller skating, building forts, creating silly pajama people, playing games, sledding, and more. She can be quite a "tom-boy" while chasing Orson and Conrad around. 

But she's not afraid to get fancy, dress up, enjoy tea parties, and watch period dramas with the older girls. She seamlessly joins teen game nights and jokes right along with the big kids. 

I think much of her confidence with so many different people comes from looking outward at how she can lift others. Thanks Lenora for always helping everyone have a good time and feel loved! 

Lenora's always loved food and enjoyed cooking. Recently she's been doing more baking and cake decorating. She's getting to be really good at it too! 

To celebrate Lenora's golden birthday, we made sure she had golden gifts - a book with gold leaf, gold jewelry, a golden butterfly puzzle, and diamond art with gold accents. Each person also gave her a golden ticket coupon. These ranged from slobbery kisses from Lionel to help sewing a project of her choice from Hazel. I hope it was a great day and she felt loved. 

Lenora, you are one extra special girl. We LOVE you! We love your deep laughs, your kindness to each of us, your willingness to cheerfully serve in our home, your confidence, and your wonderful calming demeanor. Thanks for being such a GOLDEN example to us all. LOVE YOU!!!