Zavoral Villa!

There are a lot of bloggers out there talking about the modern challenges of motherhood and parenthood. A few of my favorite blogs are  Daddy Doin Work  and  Capturing Motherhood Moment by Moment . And of course, the Huffington Post has hundreds of articles that come out every week. One I read recently was:  5 Mom-Shaming Trends That Need to Stop Now As you can see, I have a lot to say about this article! The author's main point is to stop judging other mamas. I agree! Believe me, the challenges that I've faced with motherhood so far have taught me that you never know how much someone is actually struggling. While the article is trying to gain acceptance from moms, I think it ends up becoming pretty un-accepting of any mom that has had success with certain aspects of motherhood. The writer describes several experiences where moms were very angry about challenges they had with motherhood, directing much of their anger toward other moms. That's not okay with me. I thin...

Between Christmas and New Year's, we had some great vacationing. Jeremy worked on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve (cuz they are slower days), and then took off Mondays. So he had a much needed relaxing two weeks. And we loved it, too, because we got to see lots of Daddy! The boys played while Daddy snow-blowed, and then Jeremy took them around the yard a few times in the sled. Tanner is getting very creative with his imaginary drum sets. One day, he used the remote controls for percussion instruments. We went to the Minneapolis Zoo on one of Jeremy's days off! (Thanks, Uncle Steve and Aunt Katie for the giftcard!) You might be wondering, "Why go to the zoo in the winter? Isn't it freezing there?" The answer is yes, it is actually colder than freezing. We wanted to go to the zoo because of the huge indoor tropic exhibit they have! Dallin and I enjoyed the toddler playroom.  Dallin kept finding the trickiest ways to climb on the exhibit. He didn't want to g...

Christmas day was so fun!  It was a perfect culmination of all the JOY we felt during the season.  In case you're not aware, we don't do Santa in our home. Naturally, many friends and family have been concerned for our children's happiness, haha. I appreciate this concern because it means that so many people care about my kids. Well, those people need not fear. Here's proof that the absence of Santa doesn't take away any of the excitement from Christmas morning. Here are the boys waiting anxiously to come downstairs to see their surprises. Tanner could not contain himself! And why should he? It's Jesus' birthday, afterall! No imaginary character can outdo the awesomeness of that! Tanner loved his little doctor set from us. We gave Dallin a little train. These gifts from us to the kids involved a Christmas miracle. I wanted to shop for the boys in November. If I had, I would have gone crazy with presents because there were so many things I wanted for them. I...

5 Days Before Christmas: We took care of Leighsa's girls and helped their family move (family Christmas service). We were greatly blessed! The girls kept the boys very well entertained. Tanner sang on the toilet (he does this almost every time he goes #2) And we gave the boys a much needed haircut. Look at all that hair on Dallin! 4 Days before Christmas was Christmas Sunday! Getting a decent picture of the boys was difficult. But we ended up with some good smiles, thanks to Jeremy! It was hard getting a selfie of the two of us, but we managed. At church, I conducted the choir. It was a beautiful Christ-centered service. Tanner sang the ABC's during each hymn, like usual. On his good days, he is such a funny kid. 3 Days Before Christmas: Jeremy bought a new car (used), which was a huge undertaking. He researched and bought all within a matter of days. We did not plan to do this right before Christmas, but it was time to say goodbye to the Chevy Malibu. I used that car for 5 yea...