I heart four day weekends!!

Thanks to a goal day (a free day off from our base commander) and Martin Luther King I am enjoying a four day weekend. Aaron and I have been able to get so much done this weekend with regards to researching additional areas to look for an OMS practice, baby-proofing our house, organizing, etc. So, today I am enjoying a day off from any sort of "labor". Actually, that is one of my new years "resolutions". To embrace the Sabbath Day. It really falls under a broader category in which I really want to focus on my Spritual/Christian development not only as an individual, but as a wife and mother. I am blessed to have a believer for a husband and, with rare exception, we go to church every weekend. However, lately, I have neglected my daily scripture time. For a while there, I was waking up an extra 30 minutes early and doing my "Bible in a Year" daily reading and spending quiet time in reflective prayer. It was remarkable how serene my life became on a daily basis with this "me and God" time. Unfortunately, after traveling back to MN for my mom's surgery and the US for our business trip, I have been neglectful of this. So, I am bringing it back in.

My other resolutions involve making healthier choices for my family with regards to eating less processed foods. We have greatly improved on this since I started planning a weeks worth of meals each weekend and going shopping once. I started doing this when I returned from work after my maternity leave. Not to mention, it greatly cuts down on all the "What are we doing for dinner?" thought/energy. But, my sweet tooth too often makes decisions during the day...LOL. In addition, I want to get my body back to "half marathon shape" by running 4 days a week and doing my nightly core exercises.

Most of my resolutions involve my spritual/physical health. Before Elsa, I was in really good physical shape (thanks to my bff and running buddy Jessica, who has now moved away :( ) and was able to spend time daily reading the Bible, various Christian non-fiction, etc. I felt unstoppable. Now, I think I would collapse if I ran over 2 miles and let's just say my Bible has a layer of dust. However, my life is more rich today than it has ever been. Raising a daughter with a man I adore is an incredible experience I would never trade. However, I want to make sure we raise her in our Catholic faith and that we are healthy enough to keep up with her!

Here are some pics from this weekend. Being overseas and away from family and friends is hard. But, thanks to technology, our families can check in on us and see Elsa when ever they want. Elsa is alreay more technologically savvy than her paper planner owning and old school flip phone using mom. We put our macbook on the floor so the grandparents can see her crawling and she loves to crawl up to the screen. The only problem is that she loves pushing all of the buttons!! Here is her talking to Grandma Anderson. Everytime we load up Skype, she gets excited when she hears the noise the program makes as it is loading.

Here is Elsa this morning at Mass with Father Max. He will be leaving this summer when we move too. He baptized Elsa.
Daddy and his little girl. I must say we don't always dress Elsa up this much for Church. She is wearing a dress Aaron bought for her before she was born. He wanted it to be her Easter dress. However, it is 6-9 months. Let's just say, she won't probably be wearing it on Easter if you know what I mean. It barely fit her today. I love that Aaron thought of her wearing it before she was even born! It melts my heart.
And, we are all changed and ready to watch the Vikes hopefully beat the Cowboys!!

Have a great rest of the weekend!!