I've already fallen off the wagon with my New Year's goals but today is the day to try again. It's been more than a week since my last posting and I've gotten behind in the reading for my classes. So on the agenda for today (beside's Avery's doctor's appointment at 4), are this quick post and a buttload of reading. :)
Avery learned this really cute thing from Joey where she will just exclaim, "I goh-ween!" (I'm growing!) Then she'll stretch her arms up high and smile big to illustrate the point. It melts my heart every time. She also counted all the way to ten last night! twice! She's so smart. She loves the little mermaid and all things "Pwincess!" related. I think for our home evening activity tonight we're going to make homemade playdough. (She loves cooking in the kitchen with me so I think this'll be a fun thing to do together.) Oh, speaking of cooking, the other morning we were making pancakes together (she was standing on a chair next to the counter) and I turned away for a minute to wash a dish. I turned back and she was using the wire wisk to mix black pepper into our pancake batter! She looked up with a big smile and exclaimed, "I cooookeen!" (I'm cooking!) I couldn't help but laugh as I mixed a different bowl of batter. She got to play cook with her batter and I made breakfast with the new, un-peppered batter.
Last Monday we went to Temple Beach to walk on the beach and play in the sand, but the waves scared Avery (they're a lot bigger this time of year). So we decided to go to Shark's Cove on Saturday because there are no waves inside the cove to scare her. We packed a picnic lunch (complete with SPAM Masubi - yummy), then played in the water for a little while. We had a good time. Avery kept yelling, "I sim-een!" (I'm swimming!) while I was helping her kick her way across the water.
Little Miss has had a cold since Thursday of last week but I think it's starting to get better. She wasn't sleeping very will those first few days of it, but last night she slept ALL NIGHT in her crib. That's the first time she's ever done that. I was stunned when I woke up in the morning because normally I'm up with her at least twice each night. I've been trying to teach her how to self soothe when she wakes up at night, but if she stands up in her crib and calls for me then I bring her into Erik's and my bed. I've very proud of her. Well, it's Avery's nap time and I have a lot to do, but I'll keep updating! :)
Oh, and School of Education applications are due by February, so I've got to get working on that too! Erik's already a good part of the way through his.

Sorry, no pictures yet

So school is going well so far. I love my classes and my teachers. I'm still caught up in my homework and my goal is to stay that way. This is Erik's last semester. He is also a student supervisor at the Reading and Writing Center so he has a lot of responsibility there. He's been working on their new schedule (he and another guy at work finally finished it last night.) They had to change everything around because of the new class schedules for everyone. BYUH went from a 16 week semester to a 13 week semester and added a 3rd term in order to push kids into getting their degrees faster. To compensate for the loss of 3 weeks in the semester, the powers that be changed the 50 minute classes to 60 minute classes. So, as an example, instead of starting class at 7am, getting out at 7:50, having a 10 minute break between classes and starting again at 8am; they've changed it to where the first class starts at 7am, lasts until 8am, and the next class goes from 8:10-9:10. So you have classes starting at 7, 8:10, 9:20, 10:30, 11:40, etc. So many people have been late to class and work because of the change in schedules. Not that I'm complaining. This is a big and difficult change that will not be benefiting most of us who are attending now. However, after the new system is in place and everyone starts getting used to it, the newer students will be able to graduate faster. It's just getting used to it, that's the key. I hope they don't lynch President Wheelwright before this plan can prove to be a success. A lot of people are really annoyed with this decision. Ah well.
Avery is doing great. She loves getting babysat because she gets to go play with her friends. We've changed to where I'm babysitting Lilia and Corban at 5pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays because the fitness center doesn't open back up until 5. :) Avery doesn't know yet. I'm going to just let her see them come over first before I tell her that they're coming to play. She's going to be so excited. She's talking so much now. She says "pweeze" (please) and "dane doo" (thank you) all the time and she starts her own little prayers all by herself now. "Heb-wee Faw-ber, dane doo ..." That's as far as she gets by herself. :) She just woke up so I think we'll start making breakfast now. :D

New class, lots of homework

I just thought I would write a quick update. It turns out, in order to keep my scholarship, I have to take at least 14 credits each semester. It used to be just 12 credits. So I added an Early Modern European History class and I am really excited about it. I'm actually really excited about all of my classes. Well, except for SPED 200. It's not my favorite but it will be okay. I'll make the most out of it. I have a ton of homework already but after day 3 of school I'm still caught up. Haha. So far so good.
Avery is being babysat for at least an hour a day, Monday through Friday. On Tuesdays and Thursdays it's an hour and a half. It makes me kind of sad, but it could be so much worse and she loves going over to her friends' houses to play. I'm swapping babysitting services with two sisters in our ward. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I'm going to start watching Lilia and Corban for a while so their mom can go to the gym. (She watches Avery for an hour every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). I don't have a set time every week to watch Avery's other friend, Bria. It'll just be whenever her mom needs it. All of them are very sweet and they play nicely, so I'm excited. I'll be watching Bria in about twenty minutes so I should get my living room picked up and get Avery and I a little more presentable. :) Erik is at work until 1pm or 3pm today. (He had a meeting this morning that threw off his work schedule. Normally he works until 1. I don't know if he'll try to make up the hours or not.) He is such a sweet, wonderful man. I'm very fortunate to have him.
Amy

New Year, New Semester, New Developments

So I have a New Year's Resolution to update this blog at least once a week. If I slip up somebody chastise me through email, okay? :) The Christmas break was amazing. I can't believe I lived an entire year without seeing anyone in my family. It makes me sad. It was so great to be back in Snowflake. Avery had the best time. She learned so much from Joey and Brenna. She's forming sentences and phrases like crazy and now she wakes up in the middle of the night calling "Papa?! ... Nana?! ... JoJo?!" It makes me sad to explain that they are in Arizona and we are back in Hawaii. I need to get a web cam so they can see each other. She's calling for them right now as I'm typing this. :( And, every time she asks for something she tells me, "Peeezee. Nana?" That's it, everyone should just move to Hawaii. ... Or come visit. :)
Well, classes start today. Erik is already in his first class. This semester should go well. I'm trying to get motivated about it. I'm taking my Junior Tutorial in History (even though I'm a senior), American History since 1865, Principles in Microeconomics, and Education of Exceptional Students. They all seem like they'll be fun. I've heard horror stories about the Education class though. ... Oh well, I'll make the most of it.
Well, I'd post some pictures but I haven't unpacked the camera yet, so that will have to wait. But at least I've written. :)
Amy