2011 Goal Recap: the one with all the pictures and too many words

You can read more about my 2011 mothering/homemaking goals in this post.

This goal is a process and I feel like 2011 was full of progress. I want to continue with the idea of doing everything with love. Care taking with love, cooking with love, teaching with love, cleaning with love. One of the best ways we can show our families that we love them is through serving them. Changing diapers, doing dishes, and helping my children to get along don't always feel like "service" to me...they often just feel like chores.

I know that greater blessings will come to my family if I serve with a cheerful attitude. When I remember that every day tasks of mothering are forms of service, I know I can increase the ways that I bless my family if I do these tasks with love. My friend, Sarah (hollah!) is a very good example to me of showering her family with love, from serving meals to planning vacations, or purchasing a birthday gift, I love that everything is presented with her best effort when she wants to tell her family how much she loves them.
Another friend of mine, Emily, made a goal to quit using the cheap plastic plates when she has a a cabinet full of beautiful dishes to eat from. I love this.

Our nice dishes aren't too good for us, and our best efforts aren't too good for our families. I don't want to be the person who saves the good dishes to use only when company comes, and I don't reserve my best Mothering for only when others are around to see it. My kids are good enough for my best self, all the time.

I went to the temple with a couple girlfriends on Saturday, and on the way home, we talked about how Eve didn't have any physical example of a wife or mother to emulate. She had to learn how to create a home, raise a family, and deal with numerous trials without a mother to teach her. I know there are lot of women out there that had terrible mothers, but they can still find SOME other wonderful woman to look up to and learn from. Eve had no one around to copy.
I am so blessed to have been raised by a good mother. My husband has a good mother. I am surrounded by good mothers and good women that I look up to. Their best is not the same as my best, but I can learn and grow from the good examples I have around me.

So that's what I'm shooting for. Serve with love. Serve better.

There were, of course, many many failures and shortcomings, last year but here are some success from 2011:

Knowledge:
-Earned my Associate of Arts Degree from Boise State University-Learned how to make homemade cheese and yogurt
-Read the books and attended book club every month

Community:
I learned that I cannot control whether or not others choose to use vaccines, but I can share information that will help them make a more educated decision. I decided to make an effort to be an advocate for vaccine use in my community, using the many resources available.
In 2011, I was an advocate for vaccines:
-Researched and wrote several informative blog posts about vaccine immunity. (click here to read them)
-Donated to and participated in two Purple Pinkie Events.
-Kept my pinkie painted purple for an entire month to spread vaccine awareness. -Ran a 10 mile race in San Juan Bautista to support Rotary Club and the End Polio Now Campaign.-Contacted the humanitarian aid committee at Welfare Square in Salt Lake City about getting a committee together in NWA to raise funds for the Measles Initiative.
-Gave a 15 minute speech about vaccine safety at Northwest Arkansas Community College.
-Got flu shots with my family and a dtap booster.
-Was brave and shared my personal testimony of vaccine effectiveness with 3 of my close friends and 1 relative who choose not to vaccinate.
-Joined Sounds of Pertussis.
-Posted articles and videos about communicable diseases on facebook.
-Sent an email to Delta Airlines and signed a petition asking the airline to stop showing anti-vaccine commercial propaganda on their flights.
-Volunteered to babysit for parents while they got their flu shot or boosters.

Recreational:
Did something crafty at least once a month. I have more happiness and more motivation when I make time to do something creative. Here are a few things from last year:

A cheese press from local maple.

A lemonade stand (I couldn't find a photo of the finished, painted product. it's really cute.)

The chicken coopBaby shower decorations for Tia and Britney.

I learned how to make cheesecake from scratch, this year.

Halloween costumes and Pilgrim and Indian costumes.Handmade valentines with the children for their classmates.

Physical:

Ran the 2nd Annual Bentonville Half Marathon and PR'd at 2:17 Ran my first FULL Marathon!

26.6 miles of pure awesomeness. I couldn't have done it without kasey by my side, and the support of Aaron and my children.

Self Reliance:

-Canned peaches and tomatoes, and froze a bunch of vegetables and berries from the garden.

-We became chicken farmers! This adventure was probably one of the best things that happened to our family, all year. We have all enjoyed the process and have learned so much. Aaron's occasionally asks to buy eggs from the girls and they love that they are making their own money. They are saving for a trip to build-a-bear. -I started composting our food waste. Our veggies will thank me in the spring.

-Attempted Seasonal Gardening and learned how to time planting for months of harvests.
Mothering:
-Take Corbin to regular story time at the library.-play in the snow (those of you who know me well know exactly how I feel about the snow.) -In 2011, I got more enjoyment out of playing with my kids. During the weeks trapped inside during ice storms, and throughout the long and unbearably hot days of summer, I made an extra effort to plan activities that would not just entertain the kids, but enrich them. Unlike a degree or marathon that can just be checked off the list, this is a continuing process and I am still trying to improve. 2011 was full of wonderful memories made with my little children.

I hope that 2012 will be filled with more moments like these:

Marriage:
2011 was definitely the year we learned about feeding our marriage and making sacrifices. Some of our very best friends got divorced this year, and it was an incredibly hard thing to experience. We realized, among other things, that our relationship is not indestructible.

The months that followed my miscarriage were indescribably difficult for me. I am grateful for the time Aaron and I had spent fortifying our relationship before the hormonal storm of sadness slammed us, in the fall. Our added efforts to strengthen and uplift one another and our trips to the temple were like rays of sunlight piercing through a hovering dark cloud of sadness. Our togetherness offered us unlimited hope in a time of trial.
I am so grateful for Aaron. He is a source of light and happiness in my life. One of our favorite dates in 2011 was to see Mama Mia....which ironically destroys and mocks the institution of marriage, but we loved the music and dancing. I'm grateful that Aaron enjoys live theater as much as I do. 2012 is off to a great start and we are having fun planning out our "2 dates a month" for the year. Dates are really important to me, but it isn't the date that has preserved us for 10 years, it is living the gospel, and being present and intentional with our love for one another. Be more frugal and green:
-I cloth diapered for a few months.
It was both awesome and super gross and it didn't last long, but I stuck it out for as long as I set out to when I started and I learned that I don't NEED disposable diapers to take care of my baby. To me, that is a success.

-I started making my own household cleaner. It is superior to every other cleaner I have used, and it is supa cheap. Win.

Keep in mind that what I only posted wins. Life is not perfect in the Willy House (um, see also: August, Sept, October, and part of November...) 2011 reminded me in a very physical way that Satan is very real and that he is trying to destroy my happiness and eliminate anything that brings me closer to God.

2012 is about celebrating good things, and trying a little harder to be a better me. A better wife, mother, missionary, daughter, friend, teacher, granddaughter, servant, whatever the Lord needs me to be.

It doesn't always have to be as difficult as my Type A personality makes it out to be. I could look back at this post and say, "WOW! I ran a marathon this year!" But what I want to remember is that when I started running 2 1/2 years ago, I most certainly did NOT set out to run a marathon!
I progressed one step at a time. Diligence and a few small steps led me to accomplishing something that once seemed impossible for me.

This year, I will try a little harder to be a little better, because "...by small and simple things are great things brought to pass..." (Alma 37:6)