2016 - Year in Review

As 2016 finally comes to a close (thank goodness) it's always nice to look back and reflect. On a personal and family level, it's been a good year for us. We've had more good things than bad happen and 2017 looks to bring even better things. But it's been a hard year in many other ways because of individual set-backs and national and global events. And yet, I remain optimistic for the future. For all the bad, I still see so much good in the world and am grateful for everything we have.

January - David started a new job, still with SunTrust, but in a different side of the bank. It was a good move--he's great at what he does and he has much better hours and quality of life. Adelaide graduated to a "big bed girl bed."

February - David and I celebrate our birthdays by doing something probably. Maybe. I can't remember. Started potty training Adelaide which took forever and she still tries to hold it as long as she can and Zara was so much easier. Wait! We went to a Persian restaurant called Rumi's Kitchen for our birthdays and it was delicious. I definitely want to go back there again. Finally got our camera fixed. Took Zara to the Sleeping Beauty ballet for Valentine's Day. I take all the kids to the aquarium by myself. Bad idea.

My best Facebook status all year: "Zara, after eating my homemade minestrone soup: "This soup is disgusting. I'm not saying you didn't make it well, I'm just saying it tastes disgusting. It doesn't mean I don't love you. I'm not trying to hate you. I ate a carrot. It tastes like government. Can I have more pineapple?" Verbatim. I'm typing as she's saying this."

March - Signed Zara up for gymnastics and as soon as she was old enough, I signed up Adelaide as well. Both are loving it. I start running along the Chattahoochee River on a regular basis.

April - Took a mini two-day vacation to Chattanooga, Tennessee which I loved. Seriously, people. Chattanooga is awesome.

May - David and I celebrate 10 years together as a couple. We celebrate Adelaide's third birthday. She got a bike for her birthday which she still refuses to ride because it doesn't have pedals. Zara finishes her kindergarten year. I give a talk in Sacrament Meeting on Mother's Day about women in church history.

June - Celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary. We went to Gunshow which sadly did not live up to expectations.  Zara has her second dance recital. She loves performing on the stage and who's kid is she? (David claims this is a Malone thing.) Discover the stray cat I had been feeding had a litter of four kittens under our house and we take them in because we crazy. We name the mama Louisa May Alcott and her kitties Jo, Teddy, Bhaer, and Meg (who turns out to be a boy).

July - Went to Colorado (by myself!) for my dear friend Whitney's wedding and reunited with my high school friends. Seriously, the best weekend. Benjamin celebrates his first birthday. We visit the Tellus Science Museum and the Chattahoochee Nature Reserve. My sister visits from Rhode Island and we go to the MLK NPS site.

August - Zara starts first grade and celebrates her sixth birthday. She picks a scooter for her birthday present and I take her out for a day of pampering--hair cut and pedicure. I walk a full mile on a popular trail with a diaper stuck to my butt before someone tells me. My brother visits from New Jersey.

September - David and I get to go to a Braves game together. Alone. Like on a date. Benjamin FINALLY starts walking. Zara loses her first tooth. Adelaide got nurse maid's elbow but it was quickly (though not inexpensively) fixed. Adelaide started attending a cute co-op preschool group. Find homes for all our kitties except Bhaer who I just couldn't part with. Go on a weeklong vacation to Charleston, SC which was simply lovely.

October - Had family photos taken. Went on a preschool field trip to the fire station. Went as Firefly characters for Halloween. We go on our annual apple picking trip in Blue Ridge. My parents come for a short visit and we go to the World of Coca Cola.

November - Ran my first 5K. Voted. My friend Christa visits and we go to the Gone With the Wind Museum.

December - Christmas vacation to Asheville, NC. David put his condo in Hawaii on the market and we got an offer almost right away and for a great price. We were just hoping to break even so to even get any money back was a great blessing. It took forever to close (as these things do) but the proceeds helped us pay off David's student loans so that was a happy bonus.

Christmas 2016

We had a very merry Christmas this year, full of many blessings both big and small. As strange as it may seem, one of my favorite things was sending out Christmas cards (my first time ever!) and seeing how wide our network of friends and family spreads.

Our celebrations began on Christmas Eve, which we spent with David's family as is their tradition. We ate dinner and opened presents and the kids decorated cookies. As per our tradition, the kids (and us adults) got new pajamas as well.

This was the best shot I got of the kids in their pajamas. Zara insisted that she wanted footie pajamas so I returned the ones I had already purchased for her and got her the last remaining size 6 (because there were no size 7s) they had in any footie pajama at the Carter's store. She loves them even if she complains that they are too hot.

After the kids finally went to bed, David and I went to work finalizing the Christmas gifts. I'd wrapped most of the presents in the week leading up to Christmas and mostly had to dig everything out of their hiding spots. David built many of the toys--the car took a particularly long time.

But Benjamin was thrilled with his new car and Adelaide loves her shopping cart. Zara got a toy cash register (for some reason, she really wanted one) and a whole boxfull of new art supplies.

Since church was on Sunday, we only opened stockings in the morning before having our traditional breakfast of scones and then getting ready for church. I got the kids new church clothes as well but it proved to be mighty difficult to get a good picture of them wearing them.

After church we finished opening up our gifts, ate cookies and watched TV, and then had a nice dinner of pot roast with potatoes and carrots. 

Benjamin's been working on his high fiving. 

So all in all, it was a nice Christmas.

Favorite Books of 2016

I have, for the majority of my life, been a voracious consumer of books. But in the last few years, that consumption has dwindled precipitously. There are many things to blame for this sad turn of events--motherhood, online consumption rather than print, diminishing attention span. This year I vowed to read more and decided to keep a spreadsheet to track my progress. In addition to title, author, and a short summary, I kept data on multiple categories including book length, year published, and the gender, race, and ethnicity of the author. Since I doubt highly that I will finish another book before the end of the year (thanks Christmas!) I'm ready to report my year end totals and findings.

Total Books Read: 40
Total Pages Read: 12,706
Fiction: 27
Young Adult Fiction: 3
Non-Fiction: 9
Stageplay: 1

Written 2010-2016: 27
Written 2000-2009: 6
Written Before 2000: 7
Oldest: Written in 1926

Female Authors: 32
Male: 9

Americans: 30
British: 4
Irish: 1
Nigerian: 1
Pakistani: 1
Japanese: 1
Indian: 3

Favorite Books - Fiction
1. Jane Steele - Lyndsay Faye
2. Under a Painted Sky - Stacey Lee
3. Americanah - Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche
4. The Martian - Andy Weir
5. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire-Saenz

Favorite Books - Non-Fiction
1. Alexander Hamilton - Ron Chernow
2. When Breath Becomes Air - Paul Kalanithi
3. The Price of Motherhood - Ann Crittenden
4. Between the World and Me - Ta-Nehisi Coates
5. Modern Romance - Aziz Ansari

Least Favorite Book: Fates and Furies
Movie that was actually better than the book: Brooklyn
Best Guilty Pleasure Read: The Suffragette Scandal
Favorite Re-Read: The Blue Castle by LM Montgomery


So what are your favorite books that you read this year?

Preschool Nativities

I taught Adelaide's preschool class this week and since it was the week before Christmas, we focused on Christ and Christmas. After wandering around Michael's for about an hour, I came up with this little craft for us to do--a little nativity set with Mary and Jesus in his manger. I may have had a lot of fun doing this with the kids. 

I wouldn't call myself an inherently crafty person, but every so often, I find them delightful and fun. 

Lollipop Face

I took the kids to the mall on Monday to do a little Christmas shopping and to let them play in the kid's area since it's been cold and rainy most of the week. On our way out, we stopped at the See's Candy kiosk. We don't have any See's Candy stores in Georgia and we only get small kiosks during the holiday season with pre-packaged boxes of chocolates. 

See's is the very essence of Christmas to me. We would get See's (or at least a gift certificate for See's) every year in our stockings. I can't not have a box of See's Candy during the holidays. 

After purchasing a pound of chocolate, the cashier gave Benjamin and Adelaide a chocolate lollipop which I let the kids open and eat as we made our way to the car and then home. When I pulled up in our driveway and went to get Benjamin out of his seat, I discovered him looking like this. 

I'm not even sure how he got his lollipop all over his face like that but it was too cute not to snap some pictures of. This boy makes me smile even when he's naughty. 

Here Comes Santa Claus

We are our annual ward Christmas brunch thus morning and the kids got to meet Santa Claus.

I didn't know how the kids would react--Benjamin especially--but the girls were excited and the boy was well-behaved. 

That's about the best you could ask for. 

They sent out photos that were taken during the brunch and I found this one of our family. Obviously, I had no idea this photo was being taken at the time. It makes me laugh.