For some reason this one was hard for me. I spent a week thinking about what five things i would like to do more. There are not enough hours in the day for all things i wish i could do more, but for the sake of this blog, I'll just choose five that are hopefully achievable over this next year, and beyond.
The following is in no particular order. . . .
1. One on One time with the kids (kids dates).
Our family has always spent a lot of time together. I feel we are pretty close compared to a lot of other families out there. I have always prided myself on the family life my kids have experienced, from the little things like eating meals together at a table, to the big things like moving halfway across the country together. But one thing i would really like to do more, especially now that the kids are getting bigger every day, and what feels like at a faster speed lately, is one on one outings.
I've heard of other families doing this and i think it's a great idea. Taking the kids out to do activities without the other siblings for some more quality mommy time.
There are definitely some activities that Donovan may like that his sisters wouldn't, or a place Kira might want to go that her siblings are not big enough for etc. so this would also be a good opportunity for us to get a little more variety in our lives exploring activities that don't necessarily accommodate all six of us!
2. Adult Adventures without the kids.
This one is is a little more difficult to accomplish now that we have Bea. But I would love to get out more with just Brandon or adults in general. The last few months before Beatrix was born was the first time in 9 years where there was a period of time during the week (while the kids were at school) that Brandon and i could go do things without any kids. This past year we went out more without kids than i think we probably have in the past
several years. There is something to be said for being able to simply leave the house without getting a whole bunch of kids ready, or to be able to go to a grown up movie. Having this little bit of freedom to go out and do stuff, has been a lot of fun. I hope we can continue with these outings, even if we have a baby in tow.
3. Exploring Colorado.
We are coming up on two years in Denver this spring. It's been a lot of fun exploring new place, but for as much exploring we have done, we have so much more to do! Moving is a lot of work and it's quite expensive,
so we have had a lot of things we simply could not afford to explore yet, as well as a lot of things we simply havn't had the time to explore. That being said the things we have gone out and done have been a ton of fun. I started a Colorado/Vacation bucket list when we first made it out here. I love researching trips and activities, so my list quickly grew. I have countless restaurants, museums, towns, trails and activities that are unique to Colorado on my list, and this year i hope we can start checking more of those places off my list. As of today 1 year 8 months into living in Colorado i don't think we have traveled more than about 25 miles in any direction from Denver (aside from our drive in), this year we can start to explore further.
4. Baking and Cooking.
Once upon a time i did a ton of baking and cooking at home. The kids love to help, and i think it's a good life skill for them to have. Over this past year however between working 50ish hours a week, and trying to keep up with pregnancy exhaustion cooking and baking outside of simple meals sort of took a step to the wayside.
While i was on maternity leave i started baking and cooking a lot more again, this kids enjoyed it as well. I have a list of recipes i would love to try. I also have a cookbook of recipes from around the world that belonged to my aunt. When i was young my aunt taught me to cook a lot of things. I would come over every week and she would teach me how to cook something. One of my earliest memories was myself standing on a chair in my grandmothers house, while my aunt taunt me how to make spaghetti sauce from scratch. there are ton of pages that my aunt marked in this cookbook of recipes she wanted to try. My goal is to make every one of those recipes for my family. It will definitely be a nice feeling to sit down with my family to eat some delicious food and think about a meal made from a list of recipes my aunt wanted to try.
5. Do Things for Me.
I live for my family looking back i know i get this from my mom. When I was a kid there was never a doubt that my sisters and I were the center of her world. She would get us something nice, and then go sew holes in her socks. We were always put first. In my family now that i'm grown, this sometimes just comes out. I work really hard, and have for a really long time to be able to have nice things for my family. Nothing brings me more joy than to get something someone in the family. Brandon, the kids, even the pets, i'm happy to get little surprises here or there, or go to the store and wander through their sections and skip past my own to find them clothes, or a new toy. Before kids i'd get my hair done, wax my eyebrows, where make up, buy cute new outfits etc. Now going on 10 years later, i dont' think i have been to get my hair done by a professional in that whole period of time, i've done my eye brows a handful of times. I havn't had a single shopping trip where i treated myself to something. I let myself go without to give more to my family and i'm happy i am that way. However Brandon is constantly fighting with me to do something for myself, and this year i'd like to do that.
So that's it My list of 5 things that not only would i like to do more of, but that i think i can realistically make happen, without finding a way to cut sleep completely out of my life, hehe.
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