New Year's Resolutions

*Disclaimer: I didn't proofread this blog. Lucy woke up from her nap so I'll have to edit it later.

2011 was another good year. We made it to the temple every month. We reached our goal of saving up for and purchasing a home. Ben met his goal of exercising more by joining a softball team, doing ultimate Frisbee, and he went jogging with Lucy. He lost 15 pounds. I met my goal of reading more. I focused on the Top 100 Novels list that I found online. I read 24 books off of it (some on the list were part of a series), 1 self-help book, and for scripture study I read the Doctrine and Covenants. All of that reading really helped me with Jeopardy!

I wrote a book journal for all the books off of the Top 100 list that I read. It included the plot and whether I liked it or not. I copied the journal onto here (excluding the plot summary). I put stars next to the ones that were my absolute favorite.


*Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain (January 2010)
Likes and dislikes: Loved this book! It was humorous to read all the little situations the boys would get themselves into and to read the way little boys think. It was adventurous and suspenseful. The author of the book wrote it for little kids but the writing is sophisticated enough for an adult. There is one curse word near the end of the book but it may have been a term they used in a different way back then. Worth the read.
1. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (January 2011)
Likes and dislikes: This story was good. However, it was a disappointment after reading Tom Sawyer. It wasn’t as adventurous or captivating. It took me a long time to read because it seemed too similar to Tom Sawyer. I don’t like book series because of that. For people who like series, it’s a good book. I don’t recall any swearing in this one.
2. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee (February 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I liked the story enough to read it once. It uses some profane language. The ending was a little unclear to me and I had to read it twice. It teaches about human dignity and how all men are created equal.
3. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (February 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: This novel was all about adultery, and selfish people who just cared about money. Most of the people were dishonest and fake. The ending was an exciting twist but other than that it wasn’t very good. There was swearing and crude language throughout.
4. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (February 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: It was okay. It was an easy read and its worth it to read at least once.
5. Siddartha by Hermann Hesse (February 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: Siddartha thinks way too hard about things. He tries to make everything an “ah-ha” moment. I really didn’t like the book in the section where he was living a carnal lifestyle. It was a little inappropriate. Once he gets past that it’s not horrible. He does share some insight that makes a little sense. It’s a quick read and only 150 pages. It’s probably not the greatest book for kids.
6. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (February 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: The book wasn’t worth reading. Most of it was swearing. It was crude and disrespectful. The ending didn’t even conclude any of the story. He never learned his lesson. There was one page worth reading. It was when he visited an old teacher who gave him advice. The advice was really profound but Holden didn’t even take it.
7. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (March 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: It was a quick read and very entertaining. It felt very familiar to me because of all of the religious references. I liked it more than the first book in the series.
8. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey (March 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: It curses and is crude at moments. For the most part it isn’t that bad of a read. It’s a little longer than I would like and the chapters are really long too.
9. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Horse and His Boy (March 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: See below.
10. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (April 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I do not like books that are part of a series. Even though all of these stories are very different from one another I am starting to get bored reading about the same characters and location. It’s a good read though and full of fantasy.
11. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (April 2011)
Likes and dislikes: I like the story a lot. However, it’s too long (616 pages). I do not like the last chapter. It leaves the reader hanging and it is a terrible chapter.
12. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (April 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: The ideas are too extreme and are creepy. There is a lot of sex and drugs. I did not even understand what happened in the end.
*13. Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier (May 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I loved this story. It was a romance novel but very thrilling and suspenseful. It was full of twists and turns. There is not any cursing in it or inappropriate innuendos.
*14. Animal Farm by George Orwell (May 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I liked it. It was very short, less than a hundred pages. It is a quick, easy read. It was very interesting and presented thought-provoking theories about the human race. I would read it again.
15. 1984 by George Orwell (June 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I did not enjoy this book. I have read it twice so far and both times it was a struggle to get through. The ideas are outrageous and the topic does not interest me.
16. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (June 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: It is a good book. Easy read. Same as the other Narnia books.
*17. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (July 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I LOVED this book. The writing was so powerful and elegant. I loved all of the characters. It was very adventurous, suspenseful, romantic, and action-packed. It was long, 511 pages, but it was totally worth it. Language was clean.
18. Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis (August 2011).
Likes and Dislikes: I actually liked this Narnia book more than I liked the others. It was a quick read and better plot.
19. Sense and Sensibility: Jane Austen (August 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: The book was written very well with beautiful language. It’s pretty difficult to understand at first with the different language and the many different characters. I had to reread online summaries in order to keep the characters straight. I liked the story.
20. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis (September 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: This had a slow start, okay middle, and slow ending. It was my least favorite of the Narnia books. Easy read.
*21. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (October 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: Loved the eloquent language and romantic story. Austen is becoming one of my favorite authors. The story is very complicated with several characters and social circles to keep straight but it’s a great read!
22. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (November 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: It was a short book and a quick read. The story was good. There were a lot of swear words and a few sexual innuendos. It’s for a more mature audience.
23. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad (November 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: I understood the story okay. It was kind of boring. It’s a short read, only 72 pages. The story itself wasn’t very good but I know that it is supposed to be one big metaphor for something. I never did get what the metaphor was supposed to be.
24. Emma by Jane Austen (December 2011)
Likes and Dislikes: It is very long. It has a good plot but it seemed to be slow. I would read again.



2012 Goals
This year I set A LOT of goals but I am confident that it is possible.

1. We want to save up for a family car.
2. We want to be more fit and toned so that means I have to exercise (Boo!). But I have been doing okay so far. I've been working out to Jillian Micheals videos. I quit because it was too hard (haha) and then started up again yesterday.
3.We want to put in our front lawn and build our utilities room. We are going to try to finish the utility room this Winter.
4. We want to go on more dates, at least once a month. We scheduled out our dates for the year and figured out how much those dates would cost so we can put the money aside. I learned from a fellow Grantsville-an that babysitting is only $2/hour per kid. Not too shabby. I'm sure we can afford that.
5. I want to completely stop complaining/criticizing. This one's a toughy. I'm pretty good at keeping my glass half empty. I've been reading talks on the topic, listening to devotionals and praying every night to stay positive.
6. I want to continue to read like I did last year and continue going to the temple every month. I'm currently reading Uncle Tom's Cabin.

Christmas 2011

The week before Christmas Lucy got Croup. She was fine when she went to bed but she woke up sounding like a barking seal. I thought it was Croup, but when I called the nurse she said that it was probably nothing and we should wait. Lucy then got a fever a little over 101 and so I took her in to the doctor. The receptionist said it was probably nothing so we left without seeing the doctor. On the way home, Ben and I both felt like we should turn around and go back. We did and found out Lucy had Croup and would have to be under house arrest for the next five days. I wish I had listened to my instincts the first time I had them. She loved the medicine that the doctor said she would loath. She cried when there was no more “num nums,” as she called it. Thankfully she was fully recovered by the time Christmas came around.

We got to spend the end of the year with my sister and her family and my parents. I love when my sister comes. I wish we lived closer than we do. We ate a lot of yummy food and opened lots of presents. Christmas morning and afternoon was just us. It was so relaxing to wake up when we wanted, eat what/when we wanted, go to church, and then come home and open presents as we pleased. Lucy even got in a nap before my family came.