Reading in 2026

One of my goals for the year is to read more books than I have in the past few years now that I don't have assigned reading for school anymore. For many people, reading 24 books in a year is not that hard to do. For me, it is a challenge because I don't know if I have done it when not reading children's books (which I am also reading for my part-time job). I am a bit of a slow reader, but I savor what I'm reading and don't see that changing any time soon. 

One way that I am doing this is by reading at least one nonfiction book each month. So far, this is going really well. I read 7 Habits of Highly Effective People in January, Atomic Habits in February, and I am currently reading Old Fashioned on Purpose which should be done by the end of the month without a problem. These books have definitely added to my knowledge and helped me make some positive changes in my life. 

I have also joined a book club through my local library to help me expand my reading into other genres, keep me accountable with my reading goals, and help me socialize. So far, this book club is helping in all of those ways. Both books we have read so far pushed me a bit outside of my comfort zone. The first book was Then She Was Gone. The story telling was decent in this book but reading about a teenager being tortured and killed gave me nightmares. The next book was The Rose Code. This was a very long book, but I really liked reading the historical aspects of it. I googled parts of the story more than once to see if it was real or fiction and was elated when they were real. When I found out that the main location in the book was not only real but became a museum, I told my husband we need to find a way to go to England to see it. The book we are reading now is Clytemnestra. All I know about it is that it is Mythological fiction. I'm dreading it a bit because I'm not really a fan of mythology, but I will make myself read it all of the way through by next month's meeting (we meet on the third Thursday of each month). I have told myself that I will read each book assigned no matter what for at least a year. If at the end of the year, I decide the book club is not for me, I will just stop going. There are plenty of people on the wait list willing to take my spot if I decide to walk away. Until then, I will enjoy expanding my horizons, learning about subjects I know very little about, and talking to a group of ladies who I would probably not have met in any other way. 

A funny thing has happened as I have worked on reading more along with my other goals for the year. I have been on my phone less, watched TV less, and enjoyed life more. It is amazing how much of life can be enjoyed when I'm not constantly bombarded by the news! I also feel like I am learning more about myself and the world by simply experiencing what it has to offer. I am excited to see how things change as I make these simple adjustments in my life that add up to significant changes in the long run. 

A Bit Odd

 I have always been a bit odd. I don't fit into a lot of boxes. In elementary school, I was the quiet kid that was older and bigger than most of the other kids. As I teenager, I was one of the few people I knew with divorced parents, and I was definitely the only person who had a mother in a relationship with a woman. (It was the 90s. The world was different.) As an adult, I have always been socially awkward and constantly wondering if someone was being nice to me because they actually cared of if they were just being fake. (I have been around so many fake people that I have gotten better at figuring this out quicker.) This made social situations hard for most of my life, but I am caring less and less over the past 5 or 6 years. 

I sit at home working Monday through Friday with little interaction with the outside world during working hours. This has caused me to feel like I'm going crazy more than once. I am constantly on the lookout for things that may indicate I'm mentally ill like my mother. So far, I have only been diagnosed with situational depression. After a while of my husband doing his best to get me out of the house, I started finding my own ways to interact with other people, and I was determined to not change for anyone. 

I joined a virtual book club a few years ago that fizzled out before we finished discussing the first book. (We were reading one chapter a week and discussing it.) The book chosen made me think about myself and my habits differently and helped me embrace the things that made me different. I started knitting and crocheting in church that summer. You know what happened? People started asking me what I was making and complimenting me on my work. There have since been other people, adults and children, knitting and crocheting at church. I wasn't as weird as I thought with this desire. 

About a year later, I started working in the temple. I was worried that I would struggle to learn the things I needed to learn. I was worried that being a divorced and remarried person would make me stand out. I was worried that I would struggle with social situations. None of this was a problem. I learned at the same pace as the other ladies who started around the same time. There are other women who have been divorced and remarried. No one cares that I say odd stuff and talk about death more than the average person. I am accepted and have made friends. 

Doing magic with children has really taken me out of my comfort zone, but kids don't care. They just want to learn magic and play. I have said it many times and feel it even more now that my kids are all grown up: little kids are amazing! I love how even the smallest things are exciting and new to them. Best of all, they just see me as an old lady teaching them magic and have no other judgements of me. 

I have also joined a book club at my local library. When I did this, I worried that the books I like would be too odd for them. It's not. Not everyone likes the same genres, and no one seems to judge others for their likes and dislikes. We are all reading the same book at the same time and expanding our likes and dislikes together. It doesn't matter that I don't know as many literary terms. I just don't talk when they talk about those parts of the books. I will probably understand and be able to talk that way after a few months. For now, I am just another person in the group that has read the book and has opinions.

I know that I make choices that are odd sometimes, and I will continue to do so. The thing is, I don't care anymore. If you don't like my garden in my front yard, don't look at it. If you don't like that I read non-Fiction every morning, that's ok because you aren't the one reading it. If the fact that I have a Barbie display in my bedroom puts you off in some way, who cares? It makes me happy. If you don't like that I'm religious, it doesn't bother me. I will respect your beliefs as long as you respect mine. You don't like that I am politically more in the middle and won't choose who or what I vote for without research? Oh, well. I am don't changing who I am to appease other people. I am different, but everyone should be different. We weren't made to be the exact some. That would make for a very boring existance. 

Magic Money

I have accrued more debt than I want to admit since the pandemic. It's not as much as some people have confessed to, but it is more than I am comfortable having. This debt doesn't count the car or house. It also doesn't include Chad's student loans. (Chad and I have been paying car payments and his student loans through an account that only pulls money from his paychecks for most of our marriage, and that will continue for the foreseeable future.) I am talking about credit cards in only my name. Cards that have been used to pay for trips, clothing, Noel's dental work, and who knows what else. At the beginning of the year, I finally opened my eyes to what I had been doing and calculated how much I owed and how much I paid in just minimum payments. I was shocked! I knew that we would be doing better financially if I hadn't done this, so I prayed for a way to attack this debt. 

During one of my shifts at the temple last month, I took advantage of the quiet moments to pray for guidance. The thought that I had broken something with this debt was dominating my thoughts. As I sat in relative silence, the thought that I should work for my bishop came to my mind. I knew he had started a business teaching kids magic after school and during the summer, but I didn't think he would hire someone for this. I thought that I was crazy for even considering this. I told myself that maybe I should work for his sister who owns a pickleball facility, but I didn't really want to have to drive that far to just make a bit of money to pay off debt. I tried to put it out of my mind and think of other part-time jobs that I could work around my full-time job and the work I do in the temple. (I don't get paid to work in the temple.) A week after I felt prompted to ask the bishop for a job, he and his wife both posted that he was hiring for after school clubs. I knew this was a sign that I needed to do this. I applied right away and was hired the next day. 

Now, I get to learn and teach magic to elementary school kids. It is so much fun! It doesn't even feel like a job! I couldn't have asked for a better way to pay off bills and work in the public. I can't believe I am so lucky to have this job!

Anniversary Florida Trip

This year for our anniversary, Chad and I went to visit friends that moved to Florida a little over a year ago. We were hoping that we would be escaping the cold when we booked the flights about 6 months ago, but that was not the case. In Colorado, we have had a fairly warm winter with a few exceptions. We left nearly 60-degree weather to go to temperatures in the 40s and 50s. When factoring in the humidity and the breeze, it felt cooler than that, and we were not prepared. The good news is that there are fun things to do even in cooler weather. 

On Sunday after church, we went to Blue Springs state park to see the manatee. They congregate around the springs which are consistently 72-degrees because they can't be in water less than 68 or they will die. With Sunday being in the 40s, there were over 800 manatees in and near the spring. This made for great viewing! It was fun to watch them swim around and see the groups of moms and babies. 

Monday, we went to Sea World and Disney Springs. We had a lot of fun at Sea World. We went to all of the shows, viewed the aquariums and habitats, and rode the few rides they had going. (It was too cold for most of the roller coasters.) This was my first time going to anything like this. I haven't even been to the Denver Aquarium. The shows were amazing! I clapped and squealed in excitement multiple times. Going to Sea World was not on our original list of things to do. I'm glad the weather didn't cooperate to do the other things because I loved seeing everything there. 

Disney Springs wasn't that big of a deal to me. This part of Disney has no entry fee. It is kind of like an outdoor mall area with shops and restaurants lining the "streets." We went to a cookie shop, hat shop, the Star Wars shop, Marvel shop, and a chocolate shop along with the restaurant we ate at. The restaurant was way overpriced for what we got. I had a club sandwich with fries and a Cherry Coke. Chad had a grilled grouper sandwich with fries and a coke. It was good, but not something particularly memorable. Of course, we may just have a problem with fancy food. Who knows? The cookies were ok. Again, they were a bit overpriced for something that wasn't particularly memorable. At the chocolate place, we got a big s'more to share. That was fairly good. It was definitely fresh and had a hint of cinnamon. This was the only Disney type thing we really saw, too. I would say, I'm glad I went to know what it was, but it's not something I would really seek out now that I know what it really is. 

Tuesday morning, we went to a French bakery, bought a variety of pastries, and brought it back to the house where we all shared them. They were so good! It was a wonderful breakfast!

Then, we ended our trip with a boat tour of De Leon Springs where we learned about a lot of different birds. We say how the trees adapt after storms and how interconnected the water systems are. I wouldn't say it was the highlight of the trip, but it was fun to learn about the vegetation and wildlife in Florida. It was a good, calm way to end our trip before heading to the airport for the long trip home. 

Next Steps

Chad and I have written our mission statement as a couple. We are going to be working towards being prepared. I know it is a scouting thing, but it fits in with our goals as a couple and helps calm our fears. We are going to go back to our homesteading goals we started work on 2 years ago. We know that our yard is not big enough to do it all, but it is big enough to get a good start as we pay off our debt and work towards getter jobs or the possibility of owning our own business. 

After watching several YouTube videos, we made a garden plan and bought some seed for a few items that we learned needed to be planted in January inside because they have a longer germination time. We will also be clearing out some of our backyard for raised garden beds over the next few months and deciding what we will be starting as seed and what we will buy as starters. All I know is that I do not see a time of me ever trying to plant tomatoes from seeds again. I was really successful with the starter I got last year and am hoping to duplicate that result this year. As we wait for our garden, we will be buying extra canned fruit and vegetables to build up our storage. 

I am also going to finish some of the unpaper towels that I started a few years ago. I like the group that I made 2 years ago, and I don't know why I stopped midway in the batch I was making that had a towel on one side and fleece on the other side. They will be completed soon. To go with that, I am also working on making some hot pads to replace my old, ratty sets and an apron to match. When I finish all of that, we will see if I still feel like sewing. Unlike my daughter, I don't always love sewing. 

Of course, bread making will always be a cooler weather hobby for both Chad and me. We are currently working on baking twice what we need for the week so we can freeze some to have in the summer when it is too hot to bake. 

Lastly, we were given a 10-gallon water drum a few years ago when a friend of ours was moving. We will be filling that when the temperatures get warm enough that we feel comfortable hooking the hose up to the house. Then, we will look into other options for water storage. 

Things are getting scarier and more uncertain. Every day the news is filled with horrifying images and stories. The only way to combat the fear is to prepare for the worst. This is our start of that preparation. 

Trying to Write Mission Statements

Chad and I have been reading 7 Habits of Highly Effective People together. He has it on his Kindle, and I bought a 30th Anniversary Edition on Ebay a few months ago. Since we were each in the middle of other books, we agreed to wait until January 1 to start. Since then, we have been reading about 10 pages a day. At times, I have to read more because the anniversary edition has some bonus material at the end of each chapter, but I don't mind because it gives more clarity to the concepts.

Earlier this week, we read about mission statements when reading about the second habit, begin with the end in mind. The point of a mission statement to give you, your family, or an organization direction. It helps set priorities that will guide you. We both read this concept and just kept reading on thinking we could get to this step later. As we moved on to reading about the next habit, put first things first, and it became obvious that we needed to work on our personal mission statements. I finished mine but was not completely happy with it. Chad didn't finish his because he got overwhelmed and didn't know what direction he wanted to go with it. As we talked about our issues with trying to wright our personal mission statements, we realized that we have similar values and goals (no wonder we are so good together). We have decided that tonight or tomorrow after church, we will sit down and decided a couple's mission statement. The hope is that aby working on a mission statement as a couple, we can make personal mission statements that we are happy with for a while. 

I'm not sure if we are doing this properly. All I know is that we need to have focus as we continue on our journey self-improvement. We let so many things go in the wrong direction over the years (finances, cleanliness of the house, our weight). It is time to get things cleaned up our lives and environment. 

French and Ukelele Learning Update

Learning French again is a lot harder than I thought it would be. I am working in a workbook I bought from Amazon after Christmas. It is set up to help people learn in 30 days, but I have to do it a bit differently because of my schedule. I am working on French 2 days a week for now. Once I get into the swing of things with one of my commitments, I will hopefully be able to work on it at least 3 days a week. Right now, it is kicking my butt, though. It's a bit discouraging to know that I used to know this stuff and not be able to access that information in my brain any longer. I know that the lessons I am doing were spanned over about a week when I was in school, and now I am trying to cram it into one evening. I'm doing it, but I have to go back sometimes because I know I didn't learn everything I needed to the first time. Thankfully, I unlocked some bonus materials by finishing the first chapter and will be able to practice with some recordings and flash cards. I think this workbook is going to take me at least the first quarter of the year to get through. Then, I will decide where to go from there. My plan is to get to the point where I can read the Book of Mormon in French. 

I knew learning the Ukelele would be hard. I have learned a few songs a while back when I got my ukelele (when Sean was still in school), but that has been too long. I am starting all over on this subject, too. Chad gave me a book for Christmas to help with this goal. Most of it has been how to pick one out and how to tune it. I read it, but I already have one and have the app to help me tune it. I have also been reading a book about the history of the ukelele from the library that I have to finish this weekend so I can return it. I am working on this two nights a week as well and may need to add another day, too. A few nights ago, I finally got to the chapter about chords and learned the first one. Today, I veered off my plan a bit and found the YouTube videos I was learning from back in 2021 or 2022 and spent about an hour learning "You are My Sunshine" and "Riptide." I still need to get better at my strumming and the G cord to move on to the next lesson, but I know I can do this. My goal is to have at least 6 songs that I can play well and have memorized. 

January 2026 Bullet Journal and Planner

 

I had way too much fun making my bullet journal spreads for January, but I had fun making them. I basically spent New Year's Eve on them. For the most part, I decided to go with a general winter theme. I have one page that is still winter themed but doesn't use the same materials. I love the way it turned out, but I wish it matched the others a bit better. I have been tracking with them since the first. I've already missed some tasks, but I never said I was perfect. I am better at working towards my goals when I do this in combination with my day planner, though. 

I used my day planner as a to do list of sorts. I have found that using a standard day planner to write down my daily tasks helps me to keep track of what I have and haven't done as well as motivates me to do it. Now that we aren't watching as much TV, I am finding more and more time to get things done and feel like I have really accomplished something with my days. I'm not going to copy my planner pages into this blog each week. It will basically look the same each week up to our trip at the month. 

Goodbye 2025, Hello 2026

I definitely saw some big ups and downs in 2025. Mentally, it was a tough year for me mentally. I struggled with a lot of what was on the news. At times, it felt like it couldn't get worse. Then, something else happened. I also struggled with my cousin's death more than I thought I would. I didn't even know him and couldn't even remember the last time I saw him in person. Eventually, I realized it brought back memories of when my mom would lay in my bed crying telling me it would be easier if she would just run her car into a tree and end it all. (It was one of these interactions in which I learned that her telling this to professionals was the cause of her being admitted to mental hospitals multiple times.) Trying to work through my feelings of my suicidal mom and her eventual death in a different way than ever before has been a whole new experience. 

It wasn't completely a horrible year, though. I had may good experiences as well. I went on my first cruise with one of best friends. This trip included many first such as my first time in Florida, first time really seeing the ocean, first time in the Bahamas, and my first time snorkeling over the coral reef. I hope to be able to experience something like this again. I also finally graduated from BYU Idaho after 10 years of taking online classes. It was a long journey, but I am glad I kept with it. (I am so thankful to be married to a man that supports me in my efforts to improve myself.) Chad and I also took a trip to Colorado Springs for our anniversary and another one to Grand Junction in which we hiked Rifle Falls and went to the Grand Junction Temple open house. 

I am determined to make 2026 a good year. I can't do anything about newsworthy events. I don't see the awfulness calming down anytime soon. I can control what I do, though (hopefully). Chad and I are going to visit our friends in Florida for our anniversary this year, and we will go camping over the summer. We are also going to make a better effort to do our Come, Follow Me studies regularly. Personally, I will be working on relearning French, learning to play the ukelele, cleaning and organizing the house, and get back to running. 

Christmas 2025

 

This year, we had a good Christmas. Eric came over around 9am, and we opened presents together. I think everyone was happy with the gifts they received. I know that I worked hard to try to make sure to buy things that Eric, Sean, Noel, and Chad wanted or needed. We also do a not-so-secret-Santa, and I think everyone did a good job finding something for the person they needed to buy for which was decided in a drawing of names on Thanksgiving. My favorite reaction of the day was Noel when she opened her ironing board. I got her a small tabletop ironing board that she could easily tuck under her bed or in her closet because she doesn't like mine when she is sewing. Who knew that was exactly what she was wanting. Eric seemed to be most excited about the Dune box set. He lost his love of reading in elementary school, but he has found it again now that he can really choose which books he reads. Sean was happy about the video games he opened, but he also got a chuckle out of the shirts I gave him. Chad was excited about the cookbooks he got because they are not only filled with recipes, they also have the historical content behind the recipes. One of them even has the historical recipe and modern recipe. I was most excited about getting Elenor Roosevelt's autobiography. After presents, we played Clue for a while and ate a roast dinner before we went our separate ways. (Eric went home. Sean and Noel went to their dad's house. Chad and I took a nap.) 

Christmas Day 24

 

“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:10-14

Christmas Day 23

 “As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth.” The Living Christ - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

Christmas Day 22

 

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” Matthew 1:23

Learning New Things

Last week, I watched a YouTube video about developing a personal curriculum. The idea is that people are meant to continually learn throughout our lives. We don't have to follow a curriculum set by a school and pay the money required to do so. We can learn about anything from the resources provided by the library and online. After watching this, I got so excited that I sent the link to my husband and my sister. Chad texted me back a little while later asking me what I wanted to learn and when I wanted to get started. I decided that I want to relearn French and finally learn how to play the ukelele. 

I learned French in middle school and high school. I knew enough that my friend and I used to speak to each other in French when we didn't want my boyfriend (her friend) to know what we were talking about. They were simple conversations, but it was fun at the time. I wouldn't say I was fluent, but I was on my way there. Since then, I have not used French at all except a few phrases here and there. Because of this, I have lost almost all of the knowledge that I had in this subject. It is one of my biggest regrets. I am determined to relearn as much as I can over the next year. 

Me wanting to learn to play the Ukelele came about in a slightly odd way. In 2021, Chad and I were on our way to church, listening to the radio, when John Tesch chimed in with his "Intelligence for Your Life" segment. This one was about the power of music. I don't remember everything he said, but I do remember that he said the ukelele was the easiest instrument to learn. For Mother's Day that year, I asked for a purple ukelele and got one. I learned to play a few songs that summer, but I haven't played it since. I am going to learn more about it and learn more songs this year. Maybe I can be as musical as my kids. Who knows? 

Of course, we will continue the learning paths we have been on for the last few years. We have a concrete plan for our spiritual learning together. It is the actual curriculum provided by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, "Come, Follow Me." We have worked on it off and on separately and together every year since it started. We have committed with each other to study it each night we are home. I think this will elevate our spiritual study and bring us closer together. We, also, will continue to read our ever-growing pile of lifestyle/self-help books/biographies. Our interests haven't changed. We just want to have more directed learning. 

I'm excited to get started on learning and relearning skills that I have wanted to work on for a while. This coming year will be my year to do so!

Christmas Day 21

 

"And in despair I bowed my head:

“There is no peace on earth,” I said,

“For hate is strong and mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good will to men.”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:

“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,

With peace on earth, good will to men.”

Till, ringing, singing, on its way,

The world revolved from night to day,

A voice, a chime, a chant sublime,

Of peace on earth, good will to men!"

~"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Christmas Day 20

 "...we rejoice that He who was called from the beginning, He who was anticipated for centuries, He who was the Only Begotten of the Father, He came—in the meridian of time, in the humblest of conditions—He came. And because He came, the billions who have lived upon this earth will live again and may, if they choose, inherit eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God." ~Elder Neil L. Andersen

Christmas Day 19

 

“Lift up your head and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on this night shall the sign be given, and on the morrow come I into the world, to show unto the world that I will fulfil all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets.” 3 Nephi 1:13

Christmas Day 18

 

"This Christmas, let us do more of what matters and much less of what doesn't. Let us seek to do the works of Jesus of Nazareth - lift up the sorrowing, heal the brokenhearted, visit the prisoners, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and give voice to the voiceless, the marginalized, the forgotten, and the despised." 

~Patrick Kearon

Hold On the Light Will Come (Book Review)

 At some point when I was growing up, my mom started listening to Michael McLean's music. I didn't really like it at the time. I think it was because it was my mom's music. When she died, I inherited her cassette tape collection by default. (I was the only one that wanted it for some reason.) I worked my way through each tape as I drove around as a way to connect to her. I ended up gravitating to Michael McClean more than any of the other artists for many reasons. 

Over the next few years, I was given a few more of his tapes that I truly enjoyed, and the person I was married to by this had more that I didn't have. As we switched over towards CDs, we included Michael McClean in the mix. He asked for "The Forgotten Carols" book and CD. His mom helped me find the special anniversary edition that year for Christmas. I loved listening to this CD as well as the others we collectively had for a while. When I was pregnant with Noel, his mom and I went to "Time Out for Women" and had the privilege of listening to Michael McClean speak and highlight this book. She bought it for him at the end of the conference. Lucky for me, one of the books left behind when that dude moved out was Hold On, the Light Will Come. (I wish he would have left "The Forgotten Carrols," as well.)

In October, I bought tickets to a production of "The Forgotten Carrols." (Unfortunately, it was canceled because they didn't sell enough tickets.) A few weeks after buying the tickets, I started reading this book, and I loved each chapter. 

"Hold On, the Light Will Come," is a book about Michael McClean's songs. Each chapter talks about a different song and why he wrote it. This unique format gives a peak into his life at the time he wrote the songs highlighted. After I read each chapter, I searched the songs on Spotify. I was able to listen to most of them giving a richer experience. (I wish the ex would have left the CD with all of the songs.) 

I loved everything about this book! You can judge me for taking so long to read it, but I took my time to enjoy each chapter. 

Christmas Day 17

When Christmas time is over and presents put away, don't be sad
There'll be so much to treasure about this Christmas day and the fun we've had
So may happy feelings to celebrate with you
And, oh, the good times hurry by so fast
But even when it's over there's something you can do to make Christmas last
Keep Christmas with you
All through the year
When Christmas is over
You can keep it near
Think of this Christmas day
When Christmas is far away
Keep Christmas with you
All through the year
When Christmas is over
Save some Christmas cheer
These precious moments
Hold them very dear
And keep Christmas with you
All through the year
Christmas means the spirit of giving
Peace and joy to you
The goodness of loving
The gladness of living;
These are Christmas too
So, keep Christmas with you
All through the year
When Christmas is over
Save some Christmas cheer
These precious moments
Hold them very dear
And keep Christmas with you
All through the year.   (Sesame Street)