as i have been thinking about a new year starting i have not been focusing on any new year resolutions, but rather all the things that 2010 brought us! god was so good!
we started the year off right with a visit to a financial coach we found through dave ramsey. we had both read dave ramsey’s book, ‘total money makeover’ which was a christmas gift last year. by mid january we had a budget and were on our way to a small emergency fund (something we always wanted to have but never did), paying off thousands of dollars worth of debt and saving thousands for expenses we knew were coming. (auto, homeowner’s expenses, gifts, medical..). we have done SO good. but only good because of our dedication and faithfulness. god has been awesome and taken care of us! we are by no means done but looking forward to the day we can be debt free (not including a mortgage). it was a great way to start off the year. i thought i would hate the budget and paying cash for basically everything but monthly bills and gas but, it’s been great! when the cash is gone…it’s gone! i thought i did pretty good at ‘budgeting’ before…ha!
our kids are healthy, safe, growing, learning…all too fast!
this past year layla was accepted into the gifted & talented program through her school! we are so proud of her! she is quite the 6 year old and we love her to bethlehem and back 500,000 times!! (this has been the kid’s saying this christmas. we just change the number to out beat who said it first! 🙂 ) layla has a wonderful 1st grade teacher and has been getting all A’s. she is an excellent reader, a great friend, compassionate, always thinking and she remembers a lot! we are so proud of her and are proud to be her parents!
seamus started pre-school. i just can’t believe it! he’ll be a kindergartener in the fall! AHHHH! he is doing so well and they love having him in class. he has a buddy named, jake…apparently, they are inseparable! seamus still writes with both hands but hopefully we can get him to pick one here soon! i see him learning and its so wonderful. the stress of starting pre-school with a severe peanut allergy was pretty difficult and i’m not looking forward to kinder and the stress of the public school. god has protected his little life each and every day and he has never had a close call for which we are beyond grateful! daddy did have to take him to the ER on thanksgiving night because he was having trouble breathing. that was the worst of the sickness for 2010. it was so hard letting them leave at 2:00am while i stayed home with layla. we followed up with the pediatrician and now have an asthma action plan. not that seamus has asthma but he does start to develop asthma symptoms when he gets sick. there had been a bit of suspicion about the way he gets sick and his reoccurring symptoms. i am glad we have a plan i hope he only gets better and NOT worse! i love him to china and back 589,000 times! he can be quite the challenge at times for me but i luv him!
seamus loves to play the ipod and is always wanting to be on the computer at http://www.pbskids.com! the boy knows his way around that website! (so does layla)
being a parent to these precious children is…well…just wonderful! i can’t really describe it. there are so many times when i wish what i was seeing, feeling, experiencing would be a memory forever! it’s impossible to remember it all and sometimes that makes me sad. there are many challenging days, of course raising these precious babies, but i wouldn’t trade it for anything! not even for a house on the beach where the water is turquoise in color! i’m so thankful i can be a stay at home mom.
the year also brought us closer together as a family! geoffrey and i have only grown stronger over the last year and i can’t wait to spend another year with him. he is the best! he works hard for us and loves us “terribly”! he is so dedicated to us and always does whatever is needed. he is a great provider, supporter, father, best friend, husband, leader. i knew i was marrying a wonderful guy but i didn’t know about this man he would become. my life is truly wonderful and i am so blessed! he was so worth the wait! geoffrey, i love you!
(don’t let this face scare ya – i don’t! aahahaha!)
this past year was full of many things…trips to the beach, trips to the children’s museum, and the zoo of course! we began raising chickens in our backyard, spent a couple weeks in VT with our family and friends (which included a trip to NY, milking a cow, 4-wheeling in the mountains), camping in bastrop & edna, texas, ongoing steps toward sustainable living, a job change for geoffrey at new hospital right around the corner working days and SO much more!
looking forward to another year with my precious family!
goodness, i love them!!
i love us!
Smith Family Living 