Ending of an old year, beginning of a new year 2010

I have been good at keeping New Years resolutions, sort of. Mostly, I (and Ammon) have resolved to create new family traditions for our household, so that our children will be able to look back and have fond memories. We have also taken into our marriage some of our old family customs. Interestingly enough, most of our traditions currently involve food of some sort. For example, on New Years Eve, the Barton family usually eats shrimp and cocktail sauce, which we have carried into this year's festivities. I was especially excited for it because it has been a long time since I was daring enough to eat sea food.



We watched the Chick-fil-a bowl, and witnessed Virginia Tech dominate Tennessee, 34-17. Ammon made delicious barbecue chicken, which we had to actually bake in the oven at his friend Cameron's house because the grill was out of gas (and grocery stores close early on New Years Eve). Ammon was a bit bummed by that, but we enjoyed great brown sugar yams, roasted veggies, and asparagus. Elena surprised us by promptly falling asleep and staying that way for most of the evening in her car seat. With some tricky maneuvering I was able to get her nestled into her car seat while still asleep for a safe ride home. Elena is nearly 4 months now.

As I reflect back on the last year and all that has happened I find myself being grateful for the way that we receive blessings as we need them. We needed a part time job for me, to transition into domestic life and I found a position that was very accommodating with the Church Office Building,in the Welfare Department. We needed an apartment that was affordable, and we found a small one bedroom that suited us. We needed the means to fill that apartment with items to begin a new home, like a couch, tables, etc. We were led to find great deals when we needed it. Next, we needed good benefits, which Ammon got through his job. After that we found out we were expecting Elena and needed more room at an affordable price. We negotiated for and found a great 2 bedroom in our same apartment complex and moved when I was 7.5 months pregnant. During that time we found out just how expensive this little girl was going to be and just when we needed it, somehow we were able to find a bassinet, baby clothes, money for formula, a crib, rocking chair, and other baby amenities. These are just some of the temporal items that were found/donated/purchased, etc. This says nothing of the emotional and spiritual opportunities that we experienced over the last year.

We have learned much this year. It seems as though when our joy became extreme, extreme sorrow and frustration followed, and vice versa. But through it all, Ammon and I are looking to the future with optimism, knowing that the experiences we faced made us stronger.

We attribute the wisdom we gained this year to the people who are close to us, as well as from literary sources. For family history's sake, I have included a list of a few of the books that Ammon and I read this year.

2009 Books
1. Miracle of Forgiveness- Spencer W. Kimball
2. Imperial Grunts- Robert D. Kaplan
3. The Hawk and the Dove: Paul Nitze, George Kennan, and the History of the Cold War- Nicholas Thompson
4. Julius Caesar by Philip Freeman
5. American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House by Jon Meacham
6. Empires of the Sea: The Siege of Malta, the Battle of Lepanto, and the Contest for the Center of the World by Roger Crowley
7. Eleanor of Aquitaine: Queen of the Troubadours by Jean Markale
8. Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Weissman
9. The Crisis of Islam by Bernard Lewis
10. Legacy of Ashes- Tim Weiner
11. Post War by Tony Judt
12. April Blood: Florence and the plot against the Medici By Lauro Martines
13. Bleeding Afghanistan by Sonali Kolhatkar and James Ingalls
14. American Lion- Jon Meacham
15. Dereliction of Duty- HR McMaster
16. The Italian Renaissance - JR Plumb
17. Team of Rivals- Doris Kearns Goodwin
18. Einsten- Walter Isaacson
19. Hiroshima- John Hersey
20. The Emotion Code- Bradley Nelson
21. What to Expect When You're Expecting- Heidi Murkoff
22. The Mormon Way of Doing Business- Jeff Benedict
23. How to Build a Business Warren Buffett would Buy- Jeff Benedict
24. The Caine Mutiny: A Novel by Herman Wouk
25. In Triumph's Wake: Royal Mothers, Tragic Daughters, and the Price They Paid for Glory- Julia P. Gelardi