according to my camera

With the first full week of 2015 behind us, I'm wondering:  How are you doing with your resolutions/aspirations/goals for the new year? I know we're only 12 days in but I feel like it's easy to fall off the wagon right off the bat. I'm doing pretty well with mine so far although they're not all things that I'll do every single day. One of the big things I'm focusing on this year is how I spend my time. Am I enjoying the present moments/hours/days or am I worrying about things that happened in the past or things that may or may not happen in the future? I'm pretty great at thinking about tough days gone by or frustrating/nerve-wracking/scary/unknown days ahead and not so great at making things better today, right now, in the only moment that I can actually do something about. In 2015, I hope to switch my focus from the "what-if" to the "right now." Wish me luck!

Today, in an attempt to focus on the small wonders of my days, I thought I'd share the most recent photos from my camera, if you'd like to see.

Cousins at Christmas

 On Christmas Day we hosted Will's family at our house which I've been wanting to do forever. We loved having everyone here, cooking for a crowd, and having all the cousins together. We love having Grayson and the triplets close by now! From the left in the photo, that's Charlie, Grayson, Sydney, Annabel, Isla, and Tommy.

 I always love going home and seeing my parent's beautiful Christmas tree. It brings back so many magical memories of past years, not to mention a million hilarious memories of trees falling over, lights mysteriously going out, trees so tall that they scraped the ceiling, and ridiculous amounts of time trying to get the massive trees into the tiny tree stands. My dad seriously deserves a medal for "Most Time Spent Wrestling/Fixing/Standing Up/Tying Down/Lighting Up/Repainting After a Christmas Tree."

 Cute cousins warming up on the heater at Mimi and Pa's house.

 Tommy got a great gift from Dani this year - a hot chocolate kit! He got a new mug, two boxes of hot chocolate, a bag of marshmallows, and a yummy chocolate/marshmallow stir stick. He loved it! And he also got an awesome new haircut from our good friend, Miss Sarah!

Annabel got her hair cut, too! Bangs! 

 For Christmas, Will and I gave Tommy a book called The Dangerous Book for Boys by Hal Iggulden. It shows you how to make "The Greatest Paper Airplane in the World" and a bunch of other cool stuff.

 We've had some great, cold sunrises around here lately. 

 With all the downright cold days we've had over the last week, Annabel has been setting up shop right next to the heating vent in the kitchen while I make dinner.

 Sleepy girl after preschool.

 A sweet little note that my girl "wrote" to her cousin the other day.

 Love starting my day with this beautiful view.

 In line with my 2015 aspiration to "organize" I got going with this little corner in our family room. Now I can find all of my yarn and needles and notebooks whenever I need them.

And lastly, this one was taken just yesterday. After church and breakfast at our favorite little restaurant in the village, Annabel and I warmed up by the fire with puzzles and knitting while the boys headed upstairs to play a level or two of their new Lego Batman game. 

Hope you're enjoying these first weeks of the new year and taking advantage of your time. Wishing you a lovely week!