Happy New Year friends!!! If you are reading this then this is my Christmas card to you! You’ll get recent pictures and updates on each member of the family. There’s also a few fun questions that I like to use to reflect on the year gone by and look forward to the next! For this post we're already in the "Next year"! Haha but none the less, look forward to the rest of 2026!
2025 felt blazing fast. We had so much fun and made so many great memories, but there were also a lot of bumps along the way that really got in the way of us making any sort of progress on good routines. Time flew by faster than I've ever felt and even all the kids agreed that this year felt super fast. January was lots of fun, especially with the snow fall, and was pretty smooth, but then at the very end we were hit by pink eye that slowly moved through the whole family with week or two breaks in between. Every time I thought it was truly behind us another person would go down with it or I would get it again! Finally by mid April we made it out of the pink eye plague. But then the cat got a UTI in May and took a while to get better enough from his antibiotics for me to let him back inside from the garage. Also, my car was in and out of the shop for almost a month trying to get the A/C fixed. (I almost forgot Sam's car was also in the shop at the same time as my van for a couple of days! Crazy!) In June Cambria got sick and went down hill quickly. For the whole 11 days Cambria was showing symptoms of decline, until the day the vet strongly recommended we put her down, my car was in the shop. God knew I needed to spend more time at home with her. July brought Yuna home to us!! She was just 7 weeks old. Training a puppy engulfed the rest of my summer! By the time Yuna was feeling mostly trained it was October and I was leading a co-op class and decorating for a trunk or treat the same week! In November the cat declined again to the point I thought he might not recover, but he did!! At the end of October-November my washing machine stopped working and it was a few weeks of it being fixed again and breaking again before we finally ended up just buying a Speed Queen. November brought us the biggest change to our house since we moved in! We had our inoperable for 8 years master shower completely remodeled and we love it so much. Then of course December is always busy with holiday fun with very little signs of regular routine. Phew! That is a bunch of extra unplanned things for one year! Throughout the year we kept busy with our weekly or biweekly events, Discovery Crew co-op, Family night, Park day and Brains & Brawn club. We love them all! They are the highlight of each week. Thankfully God was there through it all and even though I didn't make the progress I wanted on my routines and accomplish some of my goals, I don't feel like I slid backwards in any way. So I'll call it a win. No matter where we were or what we were going through for 2025, we were feeling very very blessed by the wonderful family and friends we have around us.
2025 family member updates! Oldest to youngest
I have a health update for Sam and this might be the last one for a while. At Sam's appointment this year they moved his blood clot (located in his leg) from the acute category to the chronic category. So at this point they are not seeing much difference in the blood clot's size over the past year, but it's also not big enough to cause any issues anymore. So just to manage it and make sure it doesn't become a problem again, he is still on blood thinners and wears compression socks as the doctor advises. I am so grateful it doesn't bother his daily life anymore and that we are as passed it as possible! Sam is still working hard as a Copier Shop Technician Manager for Xerox. He works hard, but plays hard too. He has many video games he's enjoying playing now and enjoys watching movies on the weekends. I believe he's playing ARC Raiders mostly now. A couple other favorite games of this past year were Ghosts of Yotei and Clair Obscur: Exhibition 33. He is a big Magic the Gathering fan! This year he's enjoyed collecting the Final Fantasy and Avatar card sets. He plays with his coworkers on lunch break often and goes once a month for a Guys Night Out to a card shop to play with his friends. He agreed that reading through the Bible together was great last year and was ready to start on a new reading plan for 2026 together right away! We're also both enjoying playing catch together since we both got new baseball gloves recently.
Jane is 11 and seems to be looking older everyday! She's officially a middle schooler which blows my mind a little bit. She has surpassed me in shoe size and is only a couple inches shorter than me now at around 5' 1". She is 2 1/2 years into her orthodontic treatment plan and we should be done very soon! She has come such a long way with a very complicated orthodontic journey. She just got a very big appliance out and maybe getting the braces off in a few months! Jane has been reading Manga lately and really tore through the Demon Slayer series. She enjoys the I Survived... graphic novels and she really loved the Rema Chronicles this year, also a graphic novel series and she can't wait for the next installment. We moved away from Roblox this year. She's been playing Pokemon Sword lately and building her strong Eevee Evolution team. She's also enjoyed Little Kitty, Big City and West of Loathing lately. Watching anime is still her fav. Her favorites to watch haven't changed much from last year. Frieren, Campfire cooking in another world and Spy Family. She finished Assassination Classroom and just started Demon Slayer. When she's not watching anime or playing video games, Jane likes to write and build legos in her free time. She is writing a story now called The Gang of Kids Who Saved the World. She has a big Lego goal of saving enough money to buy the Lego Avengers Tower. With her babysitting money from me and saving some birthday and Christmas money, she's about halfway! Jane loves going to Brains & Brawn club and now has a strong enough arm for me to watch out for her in dodgeball! We started trying the Ninja courses at the Middle schools nearby and Jane loves it!! She always surprises me how fast she'll learn a ninja skill. I'm trying to keep up! When she learned a lache on her own, I was inspired to try! We're hoping the Ninja gym opening soon has some open gym times!
Atlas is 9 (Almost 10!) and in 4th grade. He speeds through school to get to video games as fast as I will let him. He was thrilled to find out we acquired a Switch 2 in the summer. His favorite video games this year were Hello Neighbor 1 & 2, Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza, Mario 64 and Pokemon Sword. Atlas is a nighttime reader and is disappointed if I don't have something new for him to read. He finished all 42 volumes of the My Hero Academia manga and has moved on to Sonic the Hedgehog graphic novels. He also reads game guides often. He loves Brains & Brawn club and will never say no to a game of dodgeball. We got him a rebounder net because he always wants to throw the dodgeball with me and improve his skill and I love to as well, but I do have other responsibilities. ;) Recently we were watching the Squid Game Challenge reality tv show and he saw the Korean game of Gonggi being played and was super interested to try it. We started with dice and now he bought his own set of real Gonggi pieces and he plays all the time. He loves it. He told me just the other day, "Gonggi is the best because it's not a screen and I can play it anytime!!" Atlas enjoys the Ninja courses as well and one of his favorite places to go is Iron Sports. The warped wall is his favorite obstacle.
Alexandria is 7 and in 2nd Grade. She is still my animal loving girl. Losing Cambria this year hit her the hardest of the kids. She really really loves Yuna. She can't go to bed without giving her a hug goodnight. <3 Alexandria really grew in her reading skills this year!! She was reading just Elephant and Piggie books last year and now she's in regular graphic novels. Her favorite is Wings of Fire by far! She is going through a build your own dragon world book and loving it. She also enjoys The Dragon Kingdom of Wrenly, Jellaby and City of Dragons. Alexandria used to play a lot of Roblox because there was a Wings of Fire simulator on there, but now she's playing Pokemon Sword and Draconia and loving both of them. Alexandria doesn't struggle with school at all. The only thing she has trouble with is focusing to get it done in a good amount of time. The world of pretend play is always at her fingertips and her imagination is always running! Bringing a stuffy or other animal toy along to school to instruct in school will help her get things done though. Obviously, dragons are still number 1 for Alexandria. I wonder if anything will ever knock them down from the top spot. Xan loves Brains & Brawn and our trips to the Ninja courses as well! I think half of the fun for her is the friends we get to hang out with at those places. :)
Flynn is a new 6 year old and in Kindergarten! We take our Kindergarten days very easy. We will skip whole days if it's just not going to work out with schedules or attitudes. I'm ok with repeating Kinder for Flynn as well since he was 5 when we started and his ADHD can make things more of a challenge at times. He's super hard on himself when he can't get writing a letter or number correctly as fast as he would like, but he's still getting the hang of it! He can read a few really simple bob books, but otherwise he loves it when I read him any book with pictures that is related to disasters. We are reading flap book called wild weather and he loves it!! Volcanoes, tornados and tsunamis still fascinate him and he says he wants to be a storm chaser when he grows up. Recently he's really been enjoying Mark Rober videos and all the science behind the fun! Flynn is not into regular video games at all. He does like playing games of the Kindle though! When we go to Brains & Brawn Flynn is not quite ready to be a good sport to play the games. He will play from time to time, but he would rather run around the park with his buddy Ranger for now. Flynn really loves Ninja! He asked to go to Iron Sports for his birthday. Because he is light and determined, he can get farther on the cliff hanger than all of us!
Piper is 3 years old and I guess she's in preschool?? Haha, I will give her a book to follow letters in but that's about all for now. Piper has grown up so much this year!! She's officially potty trained and just now started buckling herself in the car. She gets dressed and puts shoes on by herself. She also learned to swim all on her own this summer!!! She was so resistant to swim without holding my hand. I kept telling her she could swim faster without holding on. She finally believed me and got it down super fast! Piper is my little helper. She wants to help me with everything!! I have to tell her there are just some things she can't help with yet. She's so so sweet and tells me, "You're my best mom ever." often. Toddler temper tantrums still happen, but thankfully less often than they were a year ago! Piper wants to play all the video games, but her skill is not quite there to really play most games. She likes to play Paw Patrol, but asks for my help for the harder jumps. She also plays Wrestledunk sports with us and laughs so much. Piper stays with Marmee for Brains & Brawn, but a couple times I've needed to bring her and she likes to play along with the games and share a book. Maybe in another year she can start coming each time. Funny thing is Piper loves the Ninja courses even though she can't do much on them. She asks when we're going next all the time!
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| Although we didn't place for best trunk, we had a blast doing a Kpop Demon Hunters trunk this year! |
I have so enjoyed the tradition of asking these 4 questions at the end of each year! I love the reflection and forward thinking it brings.
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| Some of my B&B regulars! |
1. What are you most grateful for in 2025?
This is really cool actually. My word for the year last year was "Connection" and for 2025 I am most grateful for the connections I made. They aren't necessarily new connections, but deepened connections or a reconnection. I've gotten really close to a few of my homeschool mom friends who consistently show up to Park Day and B&B, (what makes it extra amazing is the kids enjoy each other too!) I had some really enjoyable mom lunches through the year, I have loved staying connected to friends and family even through distance. A monthly video chat or just a regular call to stay up to date in each other's lives and prayer requests. Another way of staying connected we've done with friends and family is sending snail mail letters and sending recent pics/videos and sharing ninja wins with each other. Sam and I have reconnected more this year by getting on the same page with our budget and priorities and completing a chronological one year Bible plan.
Honorable mentions: Being blessed with Yuna, B&B & park day continuing to be such a joy for us, our new shower, my Sunday routine of rest and recharge, Piper being potty trained and learning to swim!
2. What was your favorite moment of 2025?
Going to Camp Tejas for labor day weekend has been a favorite memory of the last three years for all of us. This year we had friends join us at Tejas and it made it even more special. I grew up going to Tejas with family and friends, so adding the friend piece for my kids was super cool. My cousin and her fam joined us as well which was also very cool because we grew up going together. I was able to attend the Tejas Staff Reunion in November and it was different than going for the Labor Day Retreat, but soooo much fun!!
Honorable mentions: The kids at B&B starting a game of step on toes on their own, my birthday at B&B, Landing my first real lache at KMS and my longest lache at Iron sports, both of our Great Wolf Lodge trips (winning a one night stay for one of them!) and our trip to visit my brother and fam.
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| Great Wolf Lodge giveaway trip |
3. What are you looking forward to in 2026?
Moving farther away from the stage of having babies! I'm looking forward to this year being completely in the later years of toddlerhood as my youngest age. Enjoying things like everyone being potty trained and able to buckle themselves in the car and family trips becoming easier.
Labor day at Tejas as always or any time we will get to spend at Tejas this year. The kids ask me how long until Tejas all the time!
Honorable mentions: Mostly maybes here, Maybe getting to go to a Ninja gym more often since one is opening nearby! Maybe things being a bit calmer this year(God willing) and getting back to good routines.
4. What goals do you hope to accomplish/habits to form in 2026?
1. Prioritize health. Still work on a better bedtime, exercising consistently and eating well. All this banks on self control. I really gotta work on that fruit of the spirit this year! Habits to implement - Same as last year: getting ready for bed when the older kids go to bed and having dinner done before 7pm to have the younger kids in bed at a better time. Sticking to a nighttime routine for myself that includes putting my phone to bed at 10:30pm and being in bed before 11:30pm.
2. Complete a pull up! Habit: Do a pull up work out at least every other day. Look into getting an indoor pull up bar.
3. Train Yuna to quiet her bark on command. Habit: Each time Yuna barks inside, call her to my side and have treats nearby to teach the commands Quiet and Enough.
4. Make it up this ninja wall without the help of the side bar. Habit: Get back to my track drill workouts at least every other day and get my recovery slide/walk down when I don't make it so I'm not scared to try at 100%.
Accomplished goals from 2025, Piper can swim and is potty trained! YAY! I have a strong community through B&B and Park day. <3 but I'm still searching for a way to make it deeper and more intentional.
I'm a bit disappointed in myself for not accomplishing my biggest goal for 2025 which was a better bedtime, but I will put a quote from C.S Lewis here to encourage myself! "Failures, repeated failures, are finger posts on the road to achievement. One fails forward toward success." Here's to failing forward toward success! Hopefully this will be the year!
Kids answers 2025
Grateful
All - Life
J - Her friend Sammy
A - The Switch 2
X - Her cousins
F - His gumball machine
Moment
All - both Tejas trips
Looking Forward to
All - Time at Tejas or any trip
Goal
J - Save enough for the big Lego set
A - try more foods
X - improve her drawing skills
F - become the best scientist
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| The Daniels side of the family was all together for the first time in many years! |
We said goodbye to Cambria and hello to Yuna in 2025. We miss Cambria so much, but Yuna is such a joy. Milo has had some UTI issues this year but he's pulled through and seems healthier than he's been since May of this year.
Just for funzies.
Most said phrases by me this year:
"I love you"
"Why??"
"Go to bed."
"Yuna! No!"
Word for 2026:
Last year my word for the year was Connection. And as I explained earlier in my gratefulness for 2025 question, it was definitely appropriate for the year! For this year I'm really feeling:
"Consistency"
Goodbye 2025!!!!! Hello 2026! Happy New Year Everybody!
