Deja Vu All Over Again

Stationery card

2011-05-10T16:30:00.001-04:00

Memories Montage Gold Graduation Announcement

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Traditions....anyone?

2010-10-25T16:02:00.003-04:00

Last night we watched home movies....well, more like home "movie" singular because youngest child (who isn't so young anymore now that she's 18) can't get enough of herself. For the umpteenth time we watched "The year of My Birth" narrated off camera by said daughter.

It was a happy/sad moment for me to see her as a tiny baby and realize that those days are gone....forever.....not that I won't ever hold a baby again, I do have two of the most adorable grandchildren on the planet and more to come i hope....no, it's because no matter what I do I won't have MY babies to hold. I wish I could go back and do it all over again....with all of the knowledge that I have now at the tender age of 54....it would be so much more fun the second time.

It was fun to see all of the traditions included in that one two hour DVD though. I feel like we have lots of things that are so meaningful to us simply because we've always done them. I'm going to give you a sampe of some of our fall traditions to get you started and then I hope you share your special traditions with me!

1) Carving fantastically intricate pumpkins one for each of us....this tradition includes it's own embedded traditions .... saving all the seeds for roasting, lighting all the pumpkins, lining them up on the counter with "ourselves" behind them and getting a great picture in the dark, and of course emergency repair techniques that we are sure we invented such as toothpicks hold broken jack-o-lantern teeth in place perfectly (at least for the picture!)

2) A gratitude journal hanging around the house for the month of November...just a place to jot down things you are thankful for all month leading up to Thanksgiving.

3) Overdecorating for Halloween, and fall....it was really fun when the girls were still all at home. They came up with some gruesome stuff for girls.....like the headless barbie body covered in ketchup and dangling from the mouth of the bear rug....haha good times!

Living with Lindsay: Librarians, Please Avert Your Eyes

2010-02-23T17:13:00.001-05:00

There simply are no words but this is BEAUTIFUL! What a great gift for friends who read...unless they'd be horrified by book destruction! : )

Living with Lindsay: Librarians, Please Avert Your Eyes

A Year of Slow Cooking: CrockPot 5 Layer Brownie Recipe

2010-02-08T15:29:00.000-05:00

I found this site....admittedly long after a million other people did and when I saw the picture for this first recipe I knew I had to read every single one of her 365 days of crockpot cooking....check it out....mmmmmm A Year of Slow Cooking: CrockPot 5 Layer Brownie Recipe

"J" is for January...and Organization......ummm ok so it isn't really for Organization...

2010-01-23T06:40:00.002-05:00

January seems to be the month when everyone, I mean EVERYONE is thinking...I need to clear out some stuff. (Probably due to that massive chore of putting away all those Christmas decorations!) At any rate there are lots and lots of magazine articles to read through (of course then you have piles of magazines!) and much clutterbusting to be done.

Yesterday I stumbled upon a great idea....why didn't I think of this before? When putting away your sheet sets after washing...simply fold them then put the whole pile (including ONE pillowcase) inside one of the pillowcases...voila! Instant organization in your cabinet, you don't have to worry about stacks of sheets falling over OR the pillowcases getting separated from the sheet set....

Oh you're welcome!!!

What a great idea!!!

2010-01-21T07:37:00.005-05:00

Have you ever wondered how to keep a record of the "little" things you do each day without it becoming a chore...? Well, I can't take credit for the idea but it was brilliant!!! I saw it in a magazine and I'll give credit to the family who submitted it....

"Hi, Nonas Family of Glen Rock, New Jersey! Thanks for the great idea!!!"

They've taken a stack (say 365) of 4x6 blank index cards and a cute little box to store them in like this:

Then each night at the dinner table they take on card date it and write something interesting,funny,remarkable, etc. ....something short and sweet .... What makes this really special is that they write on the same cards each year....for instance they'll write this year's Valentine's Day entry on last year's February 14 card....when that card is full they just add another and file it right behind or in front of the original. This makes it easy to read old memories ...

I suppose you don't have to do it at dinnertime, it just happens that this family found that was when they were all together and it provided good dinner conversation coming up with something to write for the day.

I Great Ideas!!!

Thougts on 2009

2010-01-10T18:46:00.003-05:00

My Thoughts On The Last Year

What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before? Rode in an ambulance with me as the patient!
Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I really don't make resolutions but I do pick things to work on...I said I would try to 1) call my parents more...I have; 2)make amends with my sisters...um, I sort of have, 3) be more positive in the things I say...not so much complaining....well, lets just say some days are better than others!

Did anyone close to you give birth? YES!  Patti (my oldest "baby") brought sweet little Evalyn Brodi into the world on July 13 as a present for Lila : )   We all love her!

Did anyone close to you die? A lot of wonderful people from my ward...Neomi, Janie, Pansy and of course Bro Leslie who we will miss so very much.

What countries did you visit? Costa Rica for our 25th anniversary...it was great!

What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
A Left knee that works perfectly, a larger,very faithful seminary class, a hobby that I really enjoy and have time for.
What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? July 13 Evalyn was born, December 9 Stewart and I took a wonderful vacation together just the two of us, April something....Hannah graduated from college.

8. What was your biggest personal achievement of the year? .....ummmm can't even think of one thing! Better make that a priority for next year!

9. What was your biggest failure? Calling it quits on TSI...I'm just too old to help Stewart do really hard physical labor....

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? December 26...fell on ice and totally wrecked my knee (MCL) resulting in missed shopping trip that day and weeks of no driving, no fun, no patience and plenty of pain and expense.

11. What was the best thing you bought? Oh good grief....probably the water softener : )

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Afton and Stewart....they have been my faithful minions during the weeks of recuperation.....I am SO grateful to them....
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? My own on several occasions!
14. Where did most of your money go? Gas, Insurance, Taxes and Medical expenses....well, then there were two trips to Disneyworld and one to Costa Rica : )

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Getting a new granddaughter....Getting Skype....celebrating 25 years of marriage....having Hannah home with us for awhile.....getting Patti to bring herself and the girls to our house....I loved showing snow to Lila!

16. What song will always remind you of 2009? Where Do We Go .... Sandrine (from the movie Last Chance Harvey)
17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder?  b) thinner or fatter?  c) richer or poorer?
a) Sadder....I can't walk
b) Fatter. enough said.
c.) Richer.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Falling

20. Did you fall in love in 2009? at least a few times...always with the same man : )

21. What was your favorite TV program? Survivor, Deadliest Catch, reruns of the first season of Newhart

22. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? I cant think of anyone that I hate.
3. What was the best book you read? The Uglies,Pretties, Specials and Extras, Edgar Sawtelle, The Geurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Little Stranger, The Book Of Mormon

24. What was your greatest musical discovery? Sandrine

26. What did you want and not get? out of debt

27. What was your favorite film of this year? Julie and Julia

28. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? Nothing special...I turned 53.

29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Paying off some bills.

30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? Hoodies, T Shirts and anything large enough to hide the epanding waistline of a midlife menopausal woman....btw there really is nothing that does that : )

31. What kept you sane? Reading good books, talking almost daily with one daughter or another, exercise, being healthy and feeling gratitude for all those things.
32. When you think about 2009, what sticks out in your mind? My children and how proud I am of them, the blessing of family, how great it is to be a grandma, the joy of working for yourself.

33. Best moment of 2009? Riding a zipline through a rainforest...., holding a new granddaughter, sitting in church with my husband and children and grandchildren, there are so many....

Interval Training

2009-08-21T10:23:00.004-04:00

A few years ago ... in April of 2000 I faced a health crisis in my life. I decided I needed to take better care of myself and I committed to exercise 6 days a week, resting only on the Sabbath day.

It was hard at first to keep to the schedule but over a few months it became easier and easier. I lost a lot of weight but that was never my goal. I just wanted to be healthy and have my heart last until I was tired of using it

After a couple of years I heard about interval training....a way to make your workouts even better without necessarily spending more time....I didn’t have more time to devote to exercise than the one hour a day I was already committed to.

Basically interval training is working at a very high level for a few minutes followed by a short period of less intense exercise. I found this worked well for me and again I lost weight and gained more energy. I felt stronger, and good about what I was doing.

The following year I was still using the “interval” training method but it became easy for me....I had obviously been doing the same thing for too long...even the “strenuous” periods were getting way too easy. It was hard to get my heart rate elevated....a sign that it had become very healthy and strong.

It was about this time that I read an article about cycling and how it is a great form of interval training if you can find a course with enough hills. Lucky for me I live in an area where I can make a daily 12-14 mile ride with lots of hills along the way. The first day nearly killed me!!!
In fact I only made it because once I was 5 miles from home I had no alternative but to ride back.

The last two hills before my house that day I had to “walk” my bike up....very embarrassing. The next day I barely made it up ....only by gearing my bike to the least possible amount of exertion. I knew that over time I would get stronger and then I’d be able to make it up the hills without using the gears for assistance.

Months went by....no matter how hard I tried the hills on the way home were just too hard. I could never make it to the top without shifting to an easier gear. This went on for almost a year and then I got a job as a teacher of teenage youth...an early morning class .... my class was smallish...only 13 students and I found I loved both teaching and being with them each day.

As I prayed for them each day, and for myself...that I could be a good teacher....I began to feel the weight of their problems and the difficulties they faced each day not only at school but at home and in other social settings. I felt a deep compassion for them and a desire to help. One day I was riding my bike....the normal 13 mile route....and I was thinking a lot about one of my students. I silently prayed to Heavenly Father that he would help this wonderful young person face the challenges they were having.....before I knew it I was home.....the first thing I thought to myself was “Hey, I made it....I never had to use my gears on the hills”. I was elated!!! I did it!!!

Later that day I was still thinking about how that had happened and suddenly I received the distinct impression that my Heavenly Father was teaching me something. Just as interval training can make our heart stronger....so can our trials, sometimes they will last for what seems to be an eternity but as long as we keep “pedaling” we are building strength slowly but surely and eventually we will be strong enough to make it all the way. Secondly I recognized that I was able to complete the ride with ease once I quit focusing on the hills! That day my mind had been focused on things of the Spirit....the physical pain had been non-existent as I spoke silently with my Heavenly Father.

I gained a great testimony that day of two things....it’s important to keep pedaling when the hills never seem to end, and ... if we focus only on the hardships we may never feel we have the strength to get through it and we’re in danger of giving up. I will always be grateful for that day and my newfound testimony of the Lord’s Interval Training Plan...

Still money for all the really good things....

2009-03-23T18:15:00.004-04:00

Yes the economy is poor, my wallet is thin, and I know better (much better) than to spend unnecessary money on frivolous items. BUT THIS is not friviolous...it is absolutely, completely and totally necessary.

It began with my discovery of this site and her totally incomparable bread recipe, which somehow led me to this site where I watched a man (A MAN!!) make bread using the tool you see above. As he made it he barely even mentioned the cool little gadget but after the 6 minute video I was completely hooked and knew I had to have one for my very own (I know, what kind of sick person covets another person's whisk?)

Anyway, amazingly enough this wonderful little miracle only costs $8.00! However when I tried to order one they were completely sold out and I've been on a waiting list for two months. Today they e-mailed me that a new shipment of the Danish Dough Whisk (Large) has arrived....two are now on their way to my doorstep....

I've learned a lot over the past few weeks while waiting for my whisk to arrive. First of all that the "sponge" is the secret when making really fantastic 100% whole wheat bread, and second that his no-knead method is wonderful, and last but not least I am no longer a slave to my bread machine. I always thought if the electricity went out I'd have to do without bread (although we would have a myriad of doorstops). No more! This bread (using the recipe from the first site and the mixing method from the second site) is fantastic!

Feel free to ask for specifics if you feel so inclined....if not....order one of these just as a conversation starter....oh, and be sure to watch the bread video....it's inspiring!

The world is troubled...

2008-11-30T19:01:00.002-05:00

But we need not fear...

Ever wonder how to handle today's problems? Sometimes we all do and this past few months has seen more world turmoil than we are used to. It's an unsettling time but thank goodness we can trust our Heavenly Father to give us help and advice whenever we are in need. As always if you watch the video scroll to the bottom of this page and stop the music player first (unless you like listening to two things at once).

Stole this idea from Patti!

2008-11-10T16:10:00.003-05:00

What's the 4th picture in my fourth folder? Hmmmm.....let's see (I'm going to die if it's food! but here goes anyway.....)

Hey, at least it's a timely "fall" picture.....good grief my life is boring....who takes pictures of a pile of burning leaves.....and then actually SAVES it for posterity?!

Hot Chocolate I've dreamed of....

2008-11-03T12:43:00.009-05:00

Quite a few years ago my sister Brenda gave my daughter a book for Christmas....The Polar Express. This became our favorite book to read on frosty wintry nights. The pictures are awesome and the descriptions are so vivid......I simply loved the story but what I dreamed about....what has haunted my thoughts night and day since the first day I read that book was the phrase "hot chocolate so thick and rich it tasted like melted chocolate bars".....since that first reading I have searched for this chocolate.

Today.....I found it!

Polar Express Hot Chocolate for 1 (or 2)

1 1/4 cups milk (I even used skim but I'm sure whole or 2% would be best)

1 egg yolk

1 Tbsp Cornstarch

Stir all above ingredients together in a glass dish and microwave one minute at a time for about 4 minutes until it is thickened slightly then add:

dash salt

1/4 cup sugar

Microwave again 1-1/2 minutes to dissolve the sugar completely then add:

Grated good quality unsweetened chocolate until you get the desired depth of flavor. You can use sweetened chocolate if you prefer but leave out the sugar in the above step.

Add vanilla, orange extract, almont extract, or peppermint if you want (I love it plain) and top with real whipped cream. It's the real thing!

WARNING! This is not your average drink, it really is kinda thick and very rich...it's a dessert in itself, not a beverage....you're gonna love it!!!!

(Note if you want to play the song "Hot Chocolate" below, scroll down to the bottom of the page and stop the song player first.....much better experience!)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

2008-10-31T09:31:00.005-04:00

(Wish I could say this was my front porch but ..... alas, it's from Martha Stewart's Halloween show....coool!)

I watched Martha's special yesterday and absolutely loved the pumpkin snake....it has a string of christmas lights inside to provide the perfect illumination. I would so love to do this next year (unfortunately I don't have an entire staff to hollow out 30 pumpkins of various sizes so it probably won't happen)....anyway, great idea.

Last night was "Trunk or Treat" at church. After looking for oh, about 29 days for a trunk decorating idea on the web I actually ended up with one of my own design, prompted by Afton's costume.....even at 16 her greatest dream is to be a princess .... in this case ... Mulan (on the left....she's so cute huh!?)

Sooooooo you know the saying "Behind every Mulan ....is a great MuShu!" Voila!

That was fun. Had I been thinking ahead (remember it took me 29 days to even get an idea) I would have gotten one of those fog machines and set it inside the trunk so MuShu would be showing his MoJo! Oh, and the best part!? We won most creative trunk!!!! Yay for us!!!!! (The prize......a two pound Hershey bar....Afton was stoked!)

Oh, and one more thing.....in case you were planning on making that plastic jack-o-lantern your "personal feed bag" (as "Hungry Girl" calls it) here's something REALLY SCARY for Halloween!

Tootsie Roll Midgee

1 Midgee = 23 calories, .5g fat

Milky Way

1 Fun Size = 75 calories, 3g fat
1 Mini = 38 calories, 1.4g fat

Three Musketeers

1 Fun Size = 63 calories, 2g fat

1 Mini = 24 calories, 0.7g fat

Individually Wrapped Twizzlers

1 twist = 40 calories, 0.25g fat

Smarties

1 roll = 25 calories, 0g fat

Mini AirHeads

1 Mini = 45 calories, 0.5g fat

It's all about attitude...

2008-10-28T10:17:00.005-04:00

Sunday was a particularly trying day...disappointing since that's the day I look forward to ...just for some peace, uplifting thoughts, etc.

I know times are tough but does talking about how terrible it is really make any sense? I mean you can be financially strapped and grouchy or financially strapped and trying to see the good things in your life.....both are hard but one has significantly more appeal.....right?

Last night we had a family home evening and one of the quotes (attributed to "unknown") was particularly meaningful to me:

"From guidelines given to us in the scriptures and by the words of prophets, we learn that life is a teaching experience. Self-pity and discouragement do not come from the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But life can be both bitter and sweet. It is up to us to choose whether we want to reflect the voices of gloom or gladness."

Anyway, I agree times are tough, budgets are tightening, jobs are scarce, the land of plenty may be less plentiful but there are lots of happy things around also and I'm going to enjoy life regardless! (That's my vow and I'm sticking to it!)

Along that line I've been trying to think of how to save money....live with less, cut back, etc. After a long discussion with my wise daughter I think my first step will be planning meals.....this probably seems ridiculous to most.....(I know everyone else already does it but I'm not one of them). After reviewing slightly over a month of expenditures yesterday I discovered we spent over $1,000 last month on "groceries!" THAT has got to be a record. I mean it's not like we eat caviar for breakfast or anything. The biggest problem for me I think is just not planning what we're going to eat and then cooking based on the latest dish Food Network presents.

This morning I tried to make out a menu for a week.....so far I have two days and that was the two days we just passed......I simply don't know how people think up what they want to eat a week or even a day ahead of time......(sigh) it's going to be a challenge....

An easy blog : )

2008-07-28T10:21:00.002-04:00

I have found it almost impossible to blog (obviously) but this time Patti made it easy on me.....

MEME'S THE WORD.......

I Have a Memory:Here are the directions:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty cool (and funny) to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. :)

Is life too short?

2008-03-04T15:13:00.002-05:00

Good question.... My mother-in-law called me this morning sad and terribly upset because they have called in hospice for her mother who is in a nursing home. "Great Grandma" is going to be 93 on the 24th of this month!!!!! She has been in the nursing home for the past 5 years. Amazingly enough she has done pretty well considering she has advanced Alzheimer's.

Aaaahhh the "blessings" of a disease such as this. I know it can be so traumatic for some families but in Great Grandma's case it didn't present a problem until she was well into her 80's and since being in the nursing home it has been sort of a good thing. Many times Grandma thinks she's on a cruise (if you think about it all those long hallways with rooms on either side do kind of look like a ship's passageway), when we'd ask if she was eating her vegetables she'd smile and say "Oh, yes, they're feeding you all the time on these trips! The food is so good!"....no complaining about the fact that a meal of pureed grilled cheese, tomato soup, and red velvet cake results in three compartments of relatively the same texture and color sitting in front of you at dinner.

Overall she has seemed to tolerate her time there well, due, I'm sure in part, to the fact that time is pretty meaningless given her state of mind. She is able to carry on a conversation and especially likes to tell us about her younger life. We play games with her trying to get her to tell us the name of every dog she owned or the first boyfriend she ever had. Once we asked her if she fell in love with Grandpa when she first saw him and she actually blushed! I don't think she has suffered too greatly although I'm sure there are times when she is lonely. A few times she has asked us to take her home (when she remembers she's not there), or to please come and visit more (we only see her a couple of times a month) but overall she seems content and just happy to have visitors.

We will miss her of course and I worry most about her daughter (my mother in law).....can a daughter ever say goodbye to her mom without worry about how she'll get along without her? I'm thankful to know that when Great Grandma does leave she will also leave this crippled useless body that has held her prisoner for far too long and return to that man she loves ... the one whose memory can make her blush at the tender age of 93.

Sometimes maybe life isn't too short at all.....sometime, I'm sure I'll feel like I imagine she does....that it's entirely too long. We love you Grandma!

A wonderful experience

2008-03-02T15:29:00.003-05:00

Per my last post, I'm simply blogging because I feel the need to put down on "paper" (cyber paper though it may be) thoughts that seem to important to let slip by unmentioned....

Saturday evening I was the "chaperone" for a youth activity. The purpose of said activity was to create a video that would be shared next Saturday at a Stakewide meeting. No real direction was given other than that....create a video to share with the rest of the Stake at next week's "Movie Night".

That leaves a lot to the discretion of the youth and they went at it with a vengeance. Wierd costumes came out of closets...I think we had a Fairy Princess dress, a "Great Pumpkin" costume (adult size), two swords, two cheerleader outfits complete with pom-poms (most cheer squads don't even use those anymore, and absolutely no idea for a script.

After almost an hour they came up with an idea "The Thirteen Articles of Our Ward" and a list on the chalkboard of things like:
1. We believe in having fun.
2. We believe in paying attention.
3. We believe in service.
4. We believe in eating at every activity.

then the list got worse:
5. We believe in sleeping through Seminary
6. We believe in choosing the wrong.

As the list got longer (I didn't put all the things here) there was a great deal of contention (only LDS people use this word but it means they were arguing, pouting, yelling, and generally behaving badly).

Without a single prompt from either of the two adults present my Seminary Class President stood up, made everyone be quiet and pointed out what a terrible atmosphere had developed in the room. He reminded them that they were there to create something worth sharing and then said "We didn't even begin with prayer, I think we should have one now, before we go any further". He said a beautiful prayer, the spirit in the room instantly changed and the video they decided to make was one in which each of them introduced themselves (we have recently changed stakes so the youth of this stake barely know us) told a little bit about themselves and then bore their testimony if they felt inclined. Before they did all this the Class President made a little statement (on the video) about what they had learned and how the prayer had made a difference in their attitude and then he explained they were simply going to use this opportunity to let the other Youth of the Stake know who we are.

It was a beautiful transformation from a group of "teenagers" into a group of "young adults", I was so pleased to have been there to see them struggle and then find the answer....the right answer.....to their problem. They found a way to turn a bad situation into a beautiful experience and I was never prouder of them in my life.

They truly exemplify Youth of the Noble Birthright!

P.S. Today in testimony meeting ten of those youth rose as a group and walked to the front to bear their testimony of what they had experienced last night. I've never left a testimony meeting that was more spiritual and uplifting than the one we had today!

I guess I'll blog about....

2008-03-02T15:18:00.002-05:00

I spent the day with a dear friend on Saturday. She's a recovering alcoholic and has just achieved four years of sobriety. I am so proud of her. It was good to be there with her and feel her spirit and truly to learn from her. It was a strong testimony to me of how we never really know what people are going through in their lives. We judge others so quickly and so casually without having any clue of what could be happening in their minds and hearts or what struggles they could be dealing with on a minute by minute basis. I am so proud of her!

One of the things she asked me when I was there was "Have you blogged lately?"... I'm sure I sounded quite the mean person when I said "No, and don't pressure me!" I don't know why something like blogging every became a pressure but for the past few months it's seemed like a dagger hanging over my head. Something I feel guilty for not doing .... which is wierd since I started it as a cathartic way to put down thoughts and feelings. It used to be fun and pleasant.

Anyway, as I tried to defend my position I realized that the only reason, the ONLY reason, I haven't been blogging is because my life is so centered on one thing right now......my relationship with my Heavenly Father. It became clear to me as I started teaching Seminary that I needed help, and lots of it, from Him. I am no Bible scholar, in fact it could honestly have been said of me that "she doesn't even really like the Old Testament" let alone feel knowledgeable enough to teach it to a room full of teenagers.

With that discovery came deep humility borne of desperation as I came to know that I couldn't possibly read the Old Testament and hope to understand it on my own, I need daily prayer and of course I most desperately need my Heavenly Father's inspiring guidance as I try to teach.

That brings me back to the original question "Why aren't I blogging?" .... quite simply because the things my mind is most often occupied with I'm afraid will be boring to whoever reads this silly little page of mine. As of today though, I'm going to write for me.....as I originally intended. These thoughts of mine may not be entertaining to anyone but I hope they are enlightening to me as I try to sort through all my impressions, emotions, my ups, my downs, my mind's crazy wanderings....and wonderings.

Perhaps I'll remove the dagger from it's precipitous position above my head and feel free once more.....

"Expletives Deleted"

2008-01-21T09:18:00.000-05:00

In the past 12 months I've thrown out at least 4 books after reading only a chapter or two because the language was so bad I couldn't justify reading it anymore.

Although I loved "Shopaholic" I had to "edit" my copy so I could feel good sharing it with friends and ....most of all....my daughter. The really frustrating thing for me is that there doesn't seem to be anyplace to find this information out BEFORE you spend the money on the book.

Had I the time I'd be setting up a website for just such a purpose...giving ratings to books. Under the category heading : Books that might have been good based on all I've heard but couldn't read because of language, I'd list these:

"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" Haddon
"Love in the time of Cholera" Marquez
"Water for Elephants" Gruen
"Shopaholic" (Although I did read this one....)
"A Thousand Splendid Suns" Hosseini
"World Without End" Follett
"Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" See

Admittedly some of these contained more "gratuitous sex" than bad language nevertheless I was disappointed to have spent money on them only to throw them in the trash ... I couldn't even in good conscience sell them to the used book store....I didn't want to be responsible for other people reading them!

If anyone has some solution to this I'd love to hear your comments. It's unfortunate to find oneself unable to purchase any book before having someone else read and review it for you. (BTW Amazon's reviews do sometimes give a hint but not always)

Good reading.....

The days of Christmas Past....our Tree Farm

2007-12-06T08:51:00.000-05:00

Until the year 2000 we sold Christmas trees every December from our front yard. We don't grow the trees ourselves....our "tree farm" is of a different sort....confusing to most people, unless you live in Indiana. My dear HH is a professional forester, his work is diverse to say the least, but in terms of tree farms his services are provided on a consultant basis to private landowners here in Indiana. Nothing grows better in Indiana than trees! They pop up whereever there's a bare spot of ground and a month without disturbance. In our yard the spring thaw shows a yard full of inch high maples and oaks with one leaf apiece.....trying to stake their claim before I mow them off when the grass begins to grow.

Farmers here would say that the major Indiana crop is corn, or soybeans, but in truth the entire state would be a forest, and a smattering of cranberry bogs, if left to it's own natural devices. Only years of clearing and cultivating keep the woods in check. It's a beautiful place. Not, I might mention, a good place for a garden.....we have far too much shade for that (and of course the deer think my garden is the corner grocery).

Tree farms here in Indiana are nothing more than a formal "governmental" designation for land that is allowed to grow it's natural crop.....trees! We live on a tree farm....but not a Christmas Tree farm. The trees weren't planted in straight rows and we don't sell them one at a time for someone's yard. Our "crop" is harvested when the tree grows big enough to be useful for beautiful furniture (oak,walnut), cabinetry (oak, maple, poplar), or flooring (all of the above plus some hickory and other miscellaneous species). Some of the most beautiful wood in the nation comes from our Indiana hardwood forests (which, I might add is a "renewable" resource).

Though our tree farm doesn't have much of a connection to Christmas, our yard does. Every year from the time our oldest was 5 or 6 we used to haul in a truckload of Christmas trees grown by another Forester we know in Indiana.

We did a booming business because we sold a unique tree.... a Christmas Tree that wasn't painted green! (Can you imagine!) Frankly, until I married my forester husband I had no idea they were painting the trees! I was shocked! We gained notoriety and a modest following among people who were just as surprised as I. Our girls have fond memories of the smell of fresh cut pines staked to fill our front yard entirely...here in the middle of a hardwood forest. I can't say we made buckets of money but we always made a nice profit, (right at Christmas time!) and for us it was a tradition that provided the girls with a way to earn some Christmas money and learn the value of work.

Once our oldest daughter graduated from High School in 2000 we found it too difficult to keep up with the small Christmas Tree business while also running our own Forestry Consulting company. We had to give something up. It was a sad decision and the two girls left at home were very sad the first Christmas that our yard was left naked all December.

As for me I have fond memories of the trees, the time spent together as a family, the wonderful people we met, and the fun of living "among the pines" for a time. I don't really miss being tied to the house for 4 weeks before Christmas while everyone else is out catching good sales!

I miss the nightly tradition of walking down our quarter mile drive and lighting 20 or so kerosene lanterns, and feeling that our little log cabin was the ultimate Christmas setting. But when I really think about it all the things that make Christmas special are still here.........in my heart.....even without a yard full of Christmas trees.

Awaiting the first snow...

2007-12-04T20:03:00.000-05:00

(Last year's spectacular snowfall at our house!)

Yup, I sit here on the eve (assuming all the weathermen are correct) of our first big snowfall here in Indiana. I really prefer all seasons to winter EXCEPT during December when I get excited at the prospect of "new fallen snow" (and not just because Seminary might get cancelled!)

It has been perpetually dreary here for the past few days, even daring to rain in buckets for two days in a row which is decidedly UN-WINTER like. I used to love dark winter days because I could bake and create wonderful comfort foods to feed my husband who never gained a pound and would eat with abandon stopping only to proclaim my excellence as a wife and chef! Alas, two years ago despite his 32 inch waist, he was diagnosed with diabetes. It completely ruined all my fun....now if I bake I have to eat it...thus he has lost some 50 pounds and I have gained 13! (Life is so unfair!)

I just read Amazed's account of her travels to France and find myself craving a croissant (she tell you to say it with a French accent), a wonderful hotel, ....in short a great vacation! Our next vacation won't be until the day after Christmas when we travel to Disneyworld and meet our sweet grandaughter (and of course her parents) to celebrate her very FIRST birthday!

I have created the most wonderful first birthday present for her and I'm bursting with excitement to give it to her. It will be hard for me to wait! No trips after that until the last week of March when HH and I will travel to Santa Fe for the week of my birthday! I really think I'd be a much happier person if I could have a week long vacation once a month (however I'd probably also be poor!).

Tomorrow I may post another installment of gifts I've discovered! I'm going to have to add people to my list....I keep finding fun things!

If you love to know what you're getting for Christmas....this blog's for you!

2007-11-29T10:43:00.001-05:00

I have seen some great things this year that I know I'm giving to someone.....it might be you! (new installments as I think of them : )

Udon Noodle Bowl

I love how it holds the chopsticks!

or....maybe you like this one better.... The Buddha Bowl

this dish nestles naturally in your palm and allows you to enjoy rice, soup, cereal and hot cocoa with ONE HAND! So Cute!

Candle Carver

You can make a candle out of anything!

I've been tagged!

2007-11-29T10:09:00.000-05:00

The Pink Factor has tagged me with a meme (thanks..cause I needed the incentive !) so here goes......

Rules:
Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
Share seven random and or weird things about yourself.
Tag seven random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.
Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

SEVEN RANDOM/WEIRD THINGS ABOUT MYSELF:

1. During the first 1o years of our marriage (including during the birth of two of our daughters) my husband never saw me without makeup.

2. I aspire to healthy food choices but I'm a closet McDonald's hamburger/fries lover (sorry girls .... I'm so ashamed).

3. When I wrote this list initially, 9 out of 10 things had to do with food!

4. If I had a choice between living in the tropics and living in Alaska I'd pick Alaska even though I hate cold weather.

5. I secretly wish I had been born a Greek (cause as a grandma my name would be Ya Ya!)

6. I only dust when company's coming : )

7. I sat in the hall from 2nd through 5th grade because the teachers thought I talked too much.....(Punishment? HA!!! They should have heard me in the hall!)

So now I tag:

Tiny
http://presenceofmind.typepad.com/
Amazed
Grammy
Sweet Mama

Have you ever been inspired....

2007-11-08T16:18:00.000-05:00

(I feel like the next line should be "do you wiggle to and fro...do your ears haaaaang low!) Okay, enough of that silliness...

I heard an author interviewed on the radio yesterday and my mind has been skipping along thinking about all he said. I know I'm usually ten steps behind the rest of the human race so many of you may have already heard that Will Bowen is out to change the world one person at a time. His website http://www.acomplaintfreeworld.org/ explains his idea and gives you a good overview of the program.

Basically he believes that if we each became more positive in our thoughts, i.e. not complaining, gossiping, fault-finding, criticizing, etc....the world would be a better place. How can you argue with that beautiful thought?

I, myself, am a big complainer. I complain about the weather, I whine about my weight, I've been known to criticize my husband and nag my daughters....nothing positive in any of that. Mr. Bowen has the answer to my problem.....how to stay focused for more than two hours at a time in my effort to become a better me.

On the website he sells bracelets stamped with the slogan "A Complaint Free World". Assuming that, as modern behavior analysts have said, we can change a habit in 21 days, here are Mr. Bowen's instructions:

Begin to wear the bracelet, on either wrist. When you catch yourself
complaining, gossiping or criticizing (it’s ok, everyone does) move the bracelet to the other arm and begin again. If you hear someone else who is wearing a bracelet complain, you may point out their need to switch the bracelet to the
other arm; BUT if you’re going to do this, you must move your bracelet first! Stay with it.

It may take many months but when you reach 21 days without having to move the bracelet you will find that your entire life is happier, more loving and more enjoyable.

I love, love, love this idea. You can order the bracelets fairly cheaply, or he even offers up to three per household at no charge at all....that's how committed he is to changing the world.

I want to be part of a better world ... I'm committed to this. If you love this idea add it to your blog and pass the word along. Here are some more inspiring words from his website:

“Complaining is not to be confused with informing someone of a mistake or deficiency so that it can be put right. And to refrain from complaining doesn’t necessarily mean putting up with bad quality or behavior. There is no ego in telling the waiter your soup is cold and needs to be heated up—if you stick to the facts, which are always neutral. ‘How dare you serve me cold soup…?’ That’s complaining.”—Eckhart Tolle, “A New Earth”

"If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change your attitude; Don't Complain." -Maya Angelou

Time to Kill or What to do with the next several hours....

2007-10-11T19:13:00.000-04:00

Okay my lame little "I love this or that " blogs have been TOTALLY outdone by this website! It's so much fun.....someone with way more time than me has already found all the cool stuff and put it on her blog! Check it out (no, it's okay really, I don't mind.....sniff)

www.rarebirdfinds.typepad.com

Kudos to "Tiny" for finding this (HEYYYYY Wait a minute.....how does she find time to surf the net when she's in college?!!!)

Wow! I love this stuff Wednesday!

2007-10-10T10:30:00.000-04:00

QUITE some time ago I had a weekly blog entry called "Things I love Thursday". Well, with the onset of my new calling as Seminary teacher I can hardly find time to blog once a week and I certainly can't begin to plan when that day will be! (To all of you Seminary teachers out there ....I admit it, I'm a dismal failure in the competency department! It takes me hours to get ready!)

Aaaanywaaaay.....here are some new "Things I love"....!

DID YOU KNOW?

That this handy little gadget measures exactly two tablespoons? (And you thought it was only for cookies or giant melon balls!) Why would you need one you ask? Well to measure things like HONEY, MOLASSES, even CRISCO or PEANUT BUTTER! They are notoriously messy to measure and this makes it so EASY!!!! (By the way there are 8 of these in a cup, 4 in a half cup, and 2 in one-quarter cup!)

And while we're at it this one (at least mine...you may have to check yours) measures exactly 1/3 cup! (I know some are 1/2 cup capacity). Trust me I NEVER measure Crisco in a cup anymore! I used to line a measuring cup with saran wrap so it would come out easier but this is even better....no spooning (or knifing) the stuff into the cup you know?

Next on the list......because I'm LDS I don't drink coffee but I do like a good cup of Pero (my daughter prefers Postum) now and then. Sometimes I make it taste like dessert....I add the creamer and then pumpkin pie spice or 2 tablespoons of hot cocoa mix but I discovered THIS at Walmart the other day ....EGGNOG Flavored Coffee Creamer......and it is YUMMY!!!

They also had Gingerbread and Peppermint but I haven't tried them yet.....if you have let me know!

Have a great week!

Sure Love Ya!

What I learned in Seminary Toooodaaaaay!

2007-09-27T10:11:00.001-04:00

I learned Never, Ever, under any circumstances finish the lesson and

Let

Your Students

Beat you

To the Parking Lot.....!

(And let me mention .....being a 52 year old woman driving a car that says I love Mormon Boys certainly gives one cause to pray for heavy fog!)

Gotta Luv Those Kids!!!

Pay It Forward Meme

2007-09-20T14:45:00.000-04:00

I've requested something, so:

Pay It Forward:

I will send a handmade (or internet) gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment here on my blog. I don’t know what that gift will be yet, but you will receive it within 365 days. The only thing you have to do in return is "pay it forward" by making a similar agreement on your blog.I will either:
1. Make and mail to you within 12 months a physical object of my choice.
2. Write out in a style of my choosing (journal style, poem, spy novel, fairy tale, whatever) a memory of the two of us together.

Thanks to The Pink Factor for this great opportunity!

Challenges come with blessing attached!

2007-09-18T20:22:00.000-04:00

Well I could be talking about Seminary....it IS a lot of work but I LOVE it! I hesitate to even say that because every time I've LOVED a calling something happens and I get moved! Oh well I can't help myself.....I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT!!!!

What I really meant by challenge was my new exercise regimen. I had to totally revamp my routine since I can no longer exercise a) at home before Seminary, or b) in the gym while I'm waiting for D3 to get out of Seminary. Soooooo...I decided I had to try something new and different than what I'm used to and that means running. I am NOT a runner. I HATE running, I don't like gasping for air. BUT.......when I went to Girls Camp this spring I tented with two leaders who had taken up running, both of them had been regular exercisers just like me but once they started running they won the weight battle........that's what I want....VICTORY, SWEET VICTORY!

Anyway, I started last Thursday and I've been running 2.5 miles every morning (I know it's only 4 days ....I don't run on Sunday.....but for me this is a breakthrough of gargantuan proportions!). Next week I'll try to make it 3 and eventually work up to 5 every day. I've done it before on the treadmill but real running is SO different! Anyway I am quite proud of myself because 1) I'm not dead, and 2) there's a blessing with this challenge and I've discovered it!

I don't think I ever really appreciated the setting I live in until I started running the 1/2 mile circuit on our driveway........frankly how could you NOT enjoy this:

AAAAAAHHH The Beauty of Nature! (Almost makes me forget my thighs are rubbing together!) : )

Cheat blogging....

2007-09-17T22:08:00.000-04:00

Okay right now after only one actual day of being Seminary teacher my face looks like this:

My Brain looks like this:

"I don't know......Abby someone.......oh yes, Abby Normal!"

And my desk looks like this!:

We can only hope things improve.....quickly!
Until then I thank my dear friend Penny for her answer to all my problems! Read on.....

In this life I'm a woman. In my next life, I'd like to come
back as a bear. When you're a bear, you get to hibernate. You do nothing but
sleep for six months. I could deal with

with
that.Before you hibernate, you're supposed to eat yourself stupid. I could deal
with that, too.When you're a girl bear, you birth your children (who are the
size of walnuts) while you're sleeping and wake to partially grown, cute, cuddly
cubs. I could definitely deal with that.If you're mama bear, everyone knows you
mean business. You swat anyone who bothers your cubs. If your cubs get out of
line, you swat them, too. I could deal with that.If you're a bear, your mate
EXPECTS you to wake up growling. He EXPECTS that you will have hairy legs and
excess body fat.Yup, gonna be a bear!

I'm just a little happy-sad

2007-09-12T11:38:00.000-04:00

I messed with my blog yesterday and broke it.....I think I fixed it now but given my current state of sleep deprivation I can't really be sure. Yesterday was the sad part of my happy-sad experience. I had to say goodbye to Tiny, Nutella and, our favorite granddaugter (just so you don't think I'm a terrible grandma I have to note she's our ONLY granddaugter as yet).

We had just the most wonderful 4 days with them, what beautiful girls they all are! It did my heart so much good to see all three of my daughters together and find that they really are good friends as well as good people! They made me laugh........a lot, cry.........a little, and enjoy the visit....totally! I am a lucky mom!

HH left this morning at 4:00 for another fire and I was awakened at 3:30 when his alarm went off....no sense going back to bed since I'd have to get up at 4:30 for Seminary......Yawn! I'm TIRED!

Yesterday I got a call informing me that I'll be the new Seminary teacher beginning.....NEXT MONDAY!!! I'm more than a little scared. I've substituted before and I really like Seminary but still it's pretty scary to think you're responsible for an entire year of instruction for 12 sleepy teenagers at 6:00 each morning. I'm sure the real panic has yet to set in.....if you have any extra prayers please say them for me.

Yesterday was D3's birthday, she turned 15. Just another element of my happy-sad day.
On top of all these things, I find that when HH left he took with him the file with most of the pictures we had taken while the girls were here.....no posting those for a while I guess!

After all the crying was over last night I pondered again the question I've asked myself at least 100 times over the years. Do the happy mom moments outweigh the sad ones.....? I've loved every minute of raising my girls, they have been wonderful...... but when they grow up and move away.......... frankly it hurts a little!!!

Obviously my blue funk hasn't improved with only 5 hours of sleep last night.....I'm going to go sleep it off...... see you tomorrow!

Just ask for help if you can't do it.....

2007-09-06T14:44:00.001-04:00

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did....the 911 operator is great with this little boy! (Can't say the same with his mom! : )

Senility...my old friend...it's good to see you again!

2007-08-31T09:30:00.000-04:00

Oh gosh I had the worst experience of my life....well maybe the worst of my day....it went something like this:

After a long and busy day I decided to double-task (I'm not quite up to multi-task level yet) and brush my teeth while checking my e-mail before bed. I have one of those high tech electric toothbrushes (the dentist talked me into it) ......anyway I was reading and brushing and after the 2 minute cycle was up the toothbrush shut off but I wasn't done reading so I restarted it (I guess so I'd have something to do while reading (wierd).

Anyway a few seconds later, I got up, went into the bathroom to rinse and spit, and the toothbrush wouldn't shut off. The problem being that you can't take it out of your mouth until it stops or it will fling toothpaste hither and yon (trust me, I know!). I kept pushing the button, pushing the button, it just wouldn't go off (I had visions of brushing my teeth to smooth little stubs).

About the time I was ready to give in to the urge to swear I noticed that the button I was pushing wasn't the button.............it was the light switch!!!! I KNOW!!!! HOW can a person confuse a switch on the wall with a button on a toothbrush.........I have no idea!!! My synapses are obviously hopelessly tangled......

The really wierd thing is it didn't even register that the light was going off an on....this is SO terribly SAD!!!!

Enough laughing at me.....check out this lady's predicament (and thanks to The Pink Factor for providing comic relief) At least my embarrassment was entirely my own....not a witness in sight!

Sure love ya!

MY SHIP HAS COME IN!!!!!

2007-08-28T10:15:00.000-04:00

Well, I must say, it’s been a pretty productive day so far. I probably shouldn’t be telling you (my two fans) this (I know I can count on you to keep my secret)...... today I’ll become a millionaire....perhaps with careful investment even a billionaire! Yes, today my ship, so to speak, came in.

I opened my e-mail and Mr. Frank Otto a VERY senior employee of the Department of Mineral and Energy Resources of South Africa( SOUTH AFRICA....Everyone knows about South Africa....ask Ms. South Carolina!) , wrote to ask my help in redeeming an investment interest. Apparently his client.....is currently missing, so very sad really. He has a sizeable sum of money coming to him and since they have been unable to locate him (despite their repeated extensive attempts) to send the vast amount of cash and other holdings to which he is entitled, they have contacted me..... Amazing though it may seem, we have the same last name and they presume we are, therefore, the "next of kin" to Mr. Nelson insert applicable surname here".

In addition I have also been notified that I have access to many important drugs to enhance my sex life " at such a reduced price I would have to be stupid to pass up this important opportunity" after all "once the women at work find out I’m taking this drug they will all be HOT for me" (.....actually since I’m a girl I’m not sure why I want other women HOT for me but the e-mails promise me joy and happiness if I order in the next 24 hours).

As if all this happy news weren’t enough, I received a "blessing’ from one Raj Darfur (no kidding) who promised me health, wealth, and never ending happiness (I mean NEVER ENDING!!!!) if I would pass along the e-mail address of 23 of my dearest friends (no matter how tempted I am I must not send more....these blessings are only for me and my very closest friends and nothing to trifle with) .......of course each of them will have the opportunity to receive the same "blessing"

Hmmmmm.....one simply must wonder if part of the blessing includes numerous e-mails from total strangers with opportunities to sit at home doing nothing...."Working each day in your robe and slippers" and earning money beyond your wildest dreams! Did you KNOW George and Jenny Partridge used to worry about how to pay their light bill but now they have three homes, a private jet, and invitations to have cocktails with the rich and famous!

I do hope your day is filled with as much good fortune as mine.
Many Blessings to You!!!!

(Keep checking your e-mail, maybe today is YOUR day!)

Public Outrage Ensues (at least at my house)...

2007-08-23T10:22:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I was all about positive today, well....I'm sure I'm sending out some angry vibes. Where do I begin...

First of all Daughter #3 can't take driver's education at school any more....the school cut the funding for this "non-essential" program. Now she will be taking the class at a private driving academy 20 miles away. Oh, and have I mentioned (Yeah, I have.... "For the Love of a Sport" ) that her High School has decided they can't possibly fund a sport like ..........soccer, because they already have sports like....football. (UH......they're completely different!)

Then today we hear from one of D3's friends (a cheerleader) that because the school principle finds the cheer squad lacks uniformity, the school will be hiring a professional stylist to come to the school early on Fridays (game day) to do the hair and makeup of the cheerleaders....all 13 of them!!! AAAAAANNNNNNDDDDD the school will be renting 2 (that's TWO) black convertibles to drive the girls around the track and onto the field at home games. You have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!

Okay, Now I'm really going to have to find the duct tape, my head is going to explode!!!!

Law of Attraction 102

2007-08-21T12:20:00.000-04:00

I have XM radio in my car.... (aka my home away from home). Frequently I listen to the "Oprah and Friends" channel. My favorites are Dr. Oz and Bob Greene but I listen to others occasionally. All summer long Oprah has had "The Summer Soul Series" as her show. She interviews authors, ministers, spiritualists etc. Most of it is just a little bit "out there" for me but sometimes I think it's interesting how closely their theories parallel what I've experienced in my life.

This week she's been featuring "The Law of Attraction" which in simple terms has something to do with your vibrations creating like vibrations around you i.e. if you're in a bad mood pretty soon everyone around you will be too, either because you cause them to be, or because only other people in a bad mood want to share your space : ) The way they explain it is too "other-worldly" for me but I guess I've noticed in my life that sometimes things do appear to fall into this pattern.

For instance Oprah said that when she journals she used to spend every day outlining all the problems and disappointments of her day but then she intereviewed a guest on her show that said if she just made one change and instead of writing negative things she wrote what she was grateful for her life would change for the better. She now makes it a point every night to write a list of 5 things she was grateful for during that particular day.

I've tried this myself, in many different ways....one of them was just like Oprah, always expressing gratitude each day for the blessings in my life.....I don't always write them down but I sure do express them....to the person to whom I owe that gratitude....my Heavenly Father/. It has made me realize how much I have. Because of that I believe I've become happier and more content. Where I used to worry about lack of money, lack of friends, lack of recognition, lack of fulfillment I find I hardly ever have those feelings anymore because I really do feel I live a life of abundance.

Positive thinking/speaking proved to be extremely powerful in my life when my first husband and I divorced. Because I had a very young daughter in my home I didn't want her to ever hear me speaking negatively about her daddy. I tried to remain positive about his love for her and his many good qualities and leave whatever personal complaints I had unspoken.

I'm sure I wasn't always perfect at it but I have observed over the course of the last 30 years or so that most of the people I associate with who are divorced spend so much time complaining about their ex, or reliving their disappointments, or re-telling all the details of the hurts and pain inflicted that they NEVER regain any measure of happiness in their lives. In several of those cases, when they remarried, that marriage failed too. I don't know if that is law of attraction but it does seem to bear out the theory that whatever you give your focus to is going to inevitably grow and become bigger.

In keeping with THAT idea I vow from this day forward to quit talking about my big butt and flabby thighs! (I certainly don't need my focusing on them makin' them any darn bigger!)

Sending good vibrations your way!

Pillow Talk

2007-08-20T10:18:00.000-04:00

Funny that I wrote this blog last week and never posted it. This morning Nutella re-opened her blog and reminded me I had actually written something….might as well keep up with her (she’s so often my inspiration to do things…..read, blog, cry….).

One of the few pleasures (among the weeks of boredom) that comes with a summer of HH being gone on fires is that I get to relive the joys of sleepovers…..EVERY night!!! No I don’t invite all my “over 50” girlfriends to bring their jammies to my house. I just have one special friend…..my youngest daughter. She has made it her personal mission to keep me from being lonely (or getting any sleep before midnight) while her daddy’s gone. She sleeps with me.....each and every night..….let me tell you a queen sized bed is not NEARLY big enough to share with a 14 year old!

It amazes me that once we turn out the lights….or rather once I turn out the lights (she refuses to get up once her side of the bed is warm), she thinks of a million conversations we should have. There’s lots of laughing, cover snatching and “middle of the bed line-wars). As sleep deprived as I am, I enjoy this time immensely and I’m trying to store up these memories for the day when she goes off to college and I’m REALLY alone!

A couple of nights ago she was pretty entertained by the terms I used when I was a teenager:

-Cool: Obviously still in use and much the same meaning.

-Groovy: Yup we really did say that!

-Bush: Nothing to do with a President….just something we used to describe the “interesting” things in life i.e. “Wow, that dress is so bush!” Go Figure….

-Neat: Also still in use but mostly by tweens.

-Far Out: As in “Man, your room is so far out!”

-Peace: "Hello", "goodbye", "I love you", "You're cute", "See ya later".....a very versatile word! (I had one teacher who forbade the Peace sign in his classroom....he considered it vulgar and controversial.....

-Tuff: Back then we didn’t have “Hot” guys, we had Tuff ones!

-Fuzz: Weird but we called policemen “the fuzz”….

-Oh guy: I don’t know why but this is what we said instead of “Oh gosh”

-Melvin: What we called the “dorks” "He's such a Melvin!"

-Boss: Wow he is so boss! (just another word for “Hot”)

Her conclusion? Mom, you were so totally retarded! (as in Mom, you are NOT Far Out!)

And this? My dream Hairstyle when I was in High School.....Boss, huh!!!

The Written Word...

2007-07-29T21:44:00.000-04:00

I had forgotten how much I enjoy, really enjoy a good book. Until the past year it had been SEVERAL years since I sat down to read anything except my scriptures, or self-help books (how sad is that!). It seemed like I just got out of the habit of reading just for the joy of reading.

Nutella got me started again when she began telling me about books she was reading with her book club, the more she told me the more I wanted to read what she had read ...... I am so grateful to her for helping me rekindle my love of this cheap, easy, totally indulgent form of entertainment!

Thanks to her I've discovered:

1. She, my middle daughter "Tiny", and I have opened up a wonderful new connection....it's like our own little book club, I enjoy hearing their thoughts on what we read and finding out what really great people they both are. It keeps me from talking to them only as "mom" ....it's been so much fun!

2. There are actually books out there that I can't put down! When I read "The Thirteenth Tale" I stayed up till 2:00 in the morning reading! (I haven't stayed up that late since HH and I were dating......unless I was waiting for a child to come home from Prom).

3. There is value in escaping into a world outside the one I see each day. I've gained new perspectives on so many things.....how had I forgotten that these things can happen?

4. There's a much better, much more entertaining way to spend my evenings than watching television or movies! My own imagination is so much better than I remembered.

Some of my favorites this summer have been:

1. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
2. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
3. The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas
4. The last of Harry Potter..... : ) (I'm not done with it yet but I've loved it)

My only regret of the summer is that I've not been able to come up with one good book on my own. My forays into the shelves have brought me disappointment at every turn. It seems I'm doomed to read only those books which come highly recommended by one of my daughters who preview them for too much sex, violence or language.

No matter though.....I'm loving this re-entry into the world of books! I don't know how I went so long without it!

P.S. Feel free to send me all your suggestions for a perfect read!

Sure Love Ya!

Aaaahhhh for fan mail!

2007-05-29T19:18:00.000-04:00

Today I got a nice little e-mail from Amazed asking where I'd gone....I feel so guilty! And Ashamed! I've been avoiding my blog. In fact I talked about it to DH not two weeks ago. I told him I worry about not blogging.

His advice: "Stop making a production out of it" Blogs don't have to be witty (really?), entertaining (For sure?), or Profound (I'm not sure I'm buying this)......they're for you, just write what you feel and don't make a big deal out of it.

Well, let me honestly say that having lurked on many sites that were witty, entertaining AND profound, the pressure just gets to me. My life is honestly nothing short of boring on most days. A little housecleaning, the occasional book, a soccer game now and then, church, eating and sleeping.....that's it for 90 percent of my days. (I'd like to think the other 10% is actually consumed with something meaningful so God will give me credit for 10% of my time).

So there you have it. I'm here, not dead (though the above description makes it sound like I'm close to it), just not inspired.

I'm leaving on vacation in two days to go see my BEAUTIFUL grandaughter and her equally beautiful parents. Need I mention that I'm driving alone because DH is currently on a forest fire in Florida? Technically I'm not driving alone....just "driving" alone. I'll have two 14 year old girls in the back seat the whole 15 hour drive......I'm just assuming they won't be talking to me : )

I'm sure the trip will provide blog fodder of one sort or another. In the meantime thanks to "Amazed" for the nudge!

Happy Birthday to Meeeeeeeeeeeeee~

2007-03-29T15:25:00.000-04:00

For the fifth time today I’ve answered the question "Do you feel any older?" the same way.........

"I don’t know , it’s so hard to really know how one feels when one is so totally
consumed with just getting through a day without breaking a hip."

Honestly, I don’t feel all that bad....even at my "advanced" age I can still feed myself, drive my own car, navigate a room without the use of a walker, and miracle of miracles----remember my own name on almost every occasion.

I thought I’d cheer myself up and relive a few accomplishments of the past year, let’s see now.....

Well......... there was that time last summer...... I won the Happiest Camper award when my outhouse (as in "mine at that particular moment") was picked up by a forklift and loaded on a truck....yup, I was one Happy Camper!

I became a grandma....I know, you might be saying "Well now sweetie, technically that’s not your accomplishment ....it’s your daughters’..... but I say......just try getting a baby without having a mother yourself!! (Never thought about it that way did you? I didn’t think so.) As I said.....major accomplishment!

I lost 26 pounds ... I think that’s right.....ummmm, let’s see now, .... 2 pounds X 13 times = Yup! 26 pounds! Move over Kirstie!!!

I gave up coloring my hair......now I just go ahead and color all of them.

I decided to spend the year coming to terms with my limited memory and now I just go with it and enjoy those little surprises each day.........."Oh my gosh, we have three children?!"

Oh yeah, I also became a devotee of Yoga........and, (not so) coincidentally, the hot tub!

All in all life at 51 isn't so bad and I guess I’ll just keep on living it in spite of all the anti-aging products out there (I can’t for the life of me figure out why someone would want to stop aging at 25......I mean, and I totally might be missing something here but, wouldn’t that mean you died?)

Sure love ya!

For the love of a sport....

2007-03-13T13:06:00.000-04:00

Last night we did our civic duty and attended the school board meeting where they held a public forum to discuss the possibility of adding soccer to the school's athletic program (junior high and high school level). What? You thought every school in America had soccer as an option....nope, this is Indiana...here we have a wide variety of sports.....it's just that they only include Football, Basketball and Baseball. Really the High School Football coach stood up and expressed his opinion that while "we may not have the broad variety of sports" we do have a very "in depth" athletic program which is unrivaled by other schools.

He went on to explain that this meant we have Football and Basketball from 6th through 12th grade AS WELL AS (I know, this is truly amazing) JR. VARSITY teams for each! He also said that instead of adding a new sport we should probably concentrate on adding more lockers to the Football locker room because many of the boys have to share a locker on game night (that's because we have the original team members and approximately FORTY FIVE bench sitters).

Truly it was frustrating to have to sit there on my hands and listen to a million and one reasons why the school could simply NOT consider adding soccer (we currently have 300 soccer players who play in an adjacent county because we can't play here) because there simply isn't enough interest.....and get this.....IF soccer were added it would take valuable players out of the other sports (I thought there wasn't any interest?!)

D3 plays soccer, she's played for several years now but will be entering High School next fall. At that time she is no longer eligible (due to age) to play in the league. Its a shame that these kids build up skill for 4 years and then have to just drop the sport because it isn't available at their school.

The school boards "decision" was that they would study what's been said and then "come up with something" but in the paper they were quoted as saying that it would be impossible to fund a new sport when so many other items are needed for the sports we currently have.....doesn't sound too promising......so to all 300 players....sorry, guess you'll have to learn to love Football (unless you're a GIRL of course!)

51 and just beginning the really hard work....

2007-03-09T18:58:00.002-05:00

Okay, technically I'm still only 50 but I'll be 51 soon and I'm slowly working my brain around the number so it doesn't come as a shock when it really gets here.

I've been reading Bob Greene's Best Life book, as well as Dr. Oz's (I love that guy!) book.."You, on a Diet!" No matter how hard I try I just can't fool myself any longer. Oprah and I have a lot in common.....you wouldn't think so would you.....I mean she's a gazillionaire and I'm secretary to my husband, she's famous, I"m.....well, Not!, she's wise and in touch with her inner self and I'm struggling to understand even the tiniest things about myself but....what we really have in common (I've learned from these two books) is that we both have emotional "issues" that we solve by eating. According to my good friends "Bob" and "Mehmet" there's a lot of hard work ahead of me if I ever want to understand my never ending weight issues.

About 6 years ago I thought I'd gone to heaven when I lost 58 pounds in 6 months going from my all-time lifetime high of 178 pounds (yes, that was on my 5'4" frame), to 120 pounds. I thought life had begun for me at last and I vowed never to revisit that "me" again. Over these 6 years I've learned a few things:

1. I am TOTALLY able to continue a regular daily (except for Sunday) exercise program....I don't like it exactly but I'm able to be committed and steady. I never miss my workouts unless I'm just physically in a place where I can't do it.....i.e. an airplane!

2. I still have food issues. I've steadily, albeit slowly, regained and lost pounds over and over again for the past 6 years. I currently weigh in at 150 pounds which is so frighteningly close to my REALLY FAT self that I can see her lurking around the corner. I can honestly say I havent' willingly looked in a mirror, (or at my reflection in a window!) in over a year, I just can't face myself.

3. This is the important realization......I still have NO idea what those issues are!

According to Bob I'm self-medicating, or using food to fill some empty space inside, or using food to push down some emotion I don't want to feel, or filling some need with food that could be filled in another way.....okay, then what is it and how do I find this out?

I've thought about when I eat....generally it's when I'm upset, nervous, jealous, or angry. Why I turn to food I have no idea unless it's simply that I haven't learned any other way to deal with those emotions. Come to think of it, those emotions are the ones I've tried to conquer appropriately my whole life.

My mother-in-law told me that my sister-in-law had been "starving herself" and was now so thin that we wouldn't recognize her.....I went home and ate a bowl of ice cream. My husband went on a diet to reduce his blood sugar and cholesterol and lost A LOT of weight in a relatively short time......I quit eating good food, stopped counting calories and simply gave up my formerly good eating habits entirely, when money is tight I eat, when I feel lonely I try a new recipe, when I'm worried about my children I want nothing but chocolate.

It seems like I have a good handle on when I eat but I have no idea why food has become the answer for me. I also have no idea how to handle those feelings more appropriately. When I lost the weight before I ate one salad a day....approximately 300 calories.....and NOTHING else except water from April to September. I also ended up in the hospital, my hair fell out, and I couldnt' sleep at night......somehow I don't think that was totally the way to do it and frankly I don't want to try it anyway..... it was painful.

This blog was started over a year ago as a "creative" outlet for me....somewhere for me to write down the humorous happenings in my life, since that time (sorry to those of you who were ...at least moderately entertained) I've felt the humor slowly disappear, most days are filled with anxiety of one sort or another....some imagined, some self-inflicted, some simply unavoidable ......

I'm not sure what the answer is but I know I'm tired of the struggle. I hate what my life has become.....a minute by minute struggle with food. You know what really bothers me? That old saying...."You are what you think about"......Perfect!....that makes me "The fat old slice of chocolate cake covered in ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry on top"!

What I've learned from a college student....

2007-03-04T12:12:00.000-05:00

This past four days I've been lucky enough to be in Rexburg Idaho with "Tiny" ....as her guest for Mom's Weekend at BYU. At 50 I'm living the life of a college student. I have been so impressed with these girls. Their home is filled with the spirit. There are reminders in every room and on every wall of the divinity that is within each of them.

I have thought so much about what a special experience they are having here. How different it is from the world's view of what a college girl's life is like. There are no conflicts in this home over parties that go on too long into the night or roommates that invite boys to spend the night thus making the other girls feel uncomfortable. There is no question about what movies will be viewed or what music is appropriate. Their dress is always modest and ....to be honest....beautiful. The young man who dates these girls is expected to be everything good and virtuous. The attitude here is that "I should be able to date someone who has lived his life the way I have....with integrity, purity and honor"

I wish every girl could experience the happiness that comes to these girls from living their lives in harmony with God's laws. They take what they have been given and magnify it, they reach out to love others, they spread happiness and goodness, they truly can change the world....I am so happy and proud that my Daughter is here.

I watched the special on TV the other day about Oprah's Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. I thought often as I watched the program about the standards they are expected to keep and the reasons given....because by learning to live good, virtuous, worthy lives they will be able to move out into the world someday and make a difference. That is what the girls in the church have been taught all their lives, to be different, to be unique, to stand out .... even to stand apart when necessary, but always to stand above the base and crude, and to to make a difference.....every day.

This is truth....goodness and light begets goodness and light. I am not a college student, but I can make a difference by the way I choose to live my life. I can work hard with integrity, I can provide for myself never expecting the government to sustain me. I can raise my children to Love .....the Lord, others and of course themselves. I can be positive and happy, I can try to speak kindly and reach out to those who have need of help, I can choose my words carefully trying to uplift and encourage.....

Yes, there's a lot to be learned from these girls.....they are......WONDERFUL!!

The me you see vs. the me I want to be....

2007-02-01T10:56:00.000-05:00

The other day I heard someone say the most beautiful thing. She said "If, when we look at another person, we could take the most perfect snapshot they've ever shown us of themselves and remember that, we would have just a glimpse of the person they truly are".

What she was getting at is something I hope I can remember for the rest of my life.....that the person we show to others is such a limited view of who we really are that we should never, ever, judge someone (even ourselves) on what we see at first glance or what we see in any one moment of time....say that moment when we're losing our temper, or our patience, or that moment when the wrong words escape our lips....

This made so much sense to me. I know the person I want to be....I have a vision of that person in my head and heart, unfortunately I dont' think many people see her when they look at me. Some of that personality is simply not well enough developed for me to get it out, some of it I'm afraid to share, and some of it is still a "project" under construction. Nonetheless it's there, it's who I really aspire to be, it's who I feel, deep inside, is the "real" me.

Frankly if I thought for one minute that I was the only me I could ever be, that there wasn't a hope for change or improvement, I'd just give up......or be completely demoralized because frankly I'm not at all satisfied.....I know I have a lot more work to do on "me" and I just hope I get enough time in my life to accomplish it!

In the meantime I think maybe we should give each other a break, maybe not be so quick to take offense, maybe realize that very rarely is anyone out to really hurt us....more often than not when we get our feelings hurt it has more to do with us and how we feel about ourselves than what someone else has said.

Yup, there's a lot of work to do and as the song says......let it begin with me!

Scrambled thoughts....sleepless nights

2007-01-29T06:37:00.000-05:00

Great idea....getting up later....not pushing myself to go out an exercise and the crack of dawn because there was no reason to....HA! It only worked for one day. The last three days I've been wide awake at 5:00 a.m., I've tried, really I have, to stay in bed but it's no use. I can fall asleep only to wake up minutes later to look at the clock again. Today I gave up and just got up! (I'm still not going out to the garage until later because it's only 16 degrees out there this morning and there's nothing worse than an old woman covered in goosebumps....why do they call them that anyway?......trying to get an hour of exercise while wearing gloves, ski mask, and down parka!)

Anyway, I'm still on the look out for great ideas to change up my rather dull winter existence. After having thought about it I think it's the withdrawal after living in Florida for three weeks with Nutella and being able to enjoy the outdoors. To think I actually used to believe I'd like living in Alaska because the winter clothing was so much less revealing!

We're headed to the Home Show today to check out all the latest things and see what the Model home looks like. We're certainly not in the market for a new home (I'll die here in my little log cabin thank you very much) but I can always find things I'd like to have and we're getting ready to remodel the downstairs bath.....maybe we'll win a free whirlpool tub! At the very least I'll get to leave the house and not freeze to death....honestly cabin fever in January is the worst!

I got lots of suggestions about things to do to keep from being bored and I've decided to take a Yoga class. I took one once a few years ago with "Tiny"....it was a lot harder than I imagined but it was fun and gave me something new to try, I've just about talked D3 into being my partner this time.

I considered taking piano lessons....I wonder if not being able to read music would be a problem? I also need to get a LOT of geneology done. HH and I are heading to Phoenix for a week the middle of February and while he's in meetings I could go to the temple and get a lot of work done.....so far I haven't succeeded in getting any of my files successfully transferred to the Ward Family History Library to get them ready, I always just give up but a talk in Church yesterday left me inspired and feeling somewhat guilty for my lack of effort so I'm determined to try again.

I'm also struggling with a dilemma regarding the payment of an allowance to D3. She's 14 and the only child still at home. We pay her a quarterly salary .... through our business....to answer the phones when she's home (and take legible messages), handle our mass mailings and file when I need her to. I watched a program the other day that said every child should have an allowance, along with the allowance should be a list of chores that the child should accomplish in order to "earn" the allowance, and a "matching" system for money saved. This teaches them a work ethic, how to budget money from week to week, and that money saved is money earned.

It sounds so great but when HH and I sit down to come up with a list of chores it becomes more than complicated for me. When the other girls were at home I worked all day......outside the home....coming up with a list of chores for them to do every day was not only easy it was necessary. Now however, I find myself almost physically ill thinking of assigning her chores to do after school that I have more than ample time to do myself. On top of that I (this is really sick) actually enjoy things like doing laundry, mopping floors, cleaning out cupboards, etc. I don't know if this is because I never had time to do it before, or because it's so instantly gratifying (this really IS sick). Anyway, I don't have any problem changing D3 from a "salaried employee" to an allowanced teen except for the chore thing. I know I'll feel guilty watching her do the laundry, for instance, when I know I've had all day to do it myself....AND I'll probably resent the fact that I couldn't do it myself......

Lots of pondering ahead I'm afraid....

It's the middle of winter, and I must be getting old...

2007-01-24T06:52:00.000-05:00

I reached an epiphany yesterday when I felt tired all day long. It occurred to me that I get up every morning at 5:45, exercise for an hour, then try to fill a very long day with meaningful activities....sometimes I succeed, most times I don't.

I'm not sure if it's the winter.....no gardening, mowing, raking, sweeping porches, organizing the barn, etc.; or if it's my age and I just have little to do every day but I find myself bored, unable to find anything to fill my time. I'm sure I could find something to do but honestly, it seems to take more effort than I have.

SO....I remembered my Grandma telling me once not to call her before 8:00 in the morning. I was surprised and asked her why (she had always been an early riser....5:00-6:00 a.m.) she told me she had suddenly realized that she had been retired for over 15 years ... there was NO reason she should be getting up so early.

Well, today I didn't set my alarm for 5:45, I got up only when I hear D3 hit the snooze alarm for the third time. I didn't go right out to exercise....I can do that after I put her on the bus. I used the hour to make her lunch (usually done in a rush 10 minutes before she gets on the bus after I take the fastest shower possible), take out the trash (also done in a rush every Wednesday morning), type a little (my blog has been sorely neglected), and read my scriptures (usually done whenever.....but my favorite time is always before I get too far into the day).

Now I can exercise at my liesure, and when I get done I can have breakfast ..... or not....I don't need it, I'm trying to lose weight. Skipping breakfast (I know....it's a sin) is the easiest way for me to cut calories....I don't enjoy it that much and if I don't get done exercising till 9:00 or so then it's too close to lunch time anyway.....

Maybe, just maybe, the 8 hours of sleep will make me feel a little more energized during my day. I hope my outlook will be a little brighter and I'll have more of a spring in my step. Frankly life right now feels a little dull and boring, I need to extend myself somehow, maybe I'll take up karate! (Okay, maybe not....)

Becoming a grandma takes time...

2007-01-11T17:20:00.000-05:00

Well, actually, becoming a grandma is no excuse for being gone for so long but it just seemed that all my thoughts were consumed with the welfare of "nutella" and the upcoming birth of her first baby.

She did a great job producing one of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen!

I've been lucky enough to be able to be here with her for the past week and a half, I go home next Tuesday and I know I will be so sad : (

I'm fine tuning my Grandma muscles though and getting prepared for years of spoiling! Nutella's sweet little girl was named after my Grandma who I loved so MUCH! If she lives up to her name she's going to be wonderful!

The other nice thing about being here for the baby is I get to be out of Indiana which is wet and cold......living here in Florida is great! I need to find a way to buy a winter home here, it is so nice to look out and see the sun every day and have leaves on the trees and flowers blooming! In January!!! Having lived in Wyoming much of my life the Florida climate is so nice!

We had a funny moment the other night when Nutella was feeding "bean" (a nickname that has stuck).....we'd been trying various techniques to get her to sleep longer and decided to try the "tight swaddle" that they do in the hospital. Nutella fed her, got her to sleep and carefully wrapped her up in the tightest, best produced swaddle ever done without a nurse.....we were so proud! After tiptoeing carefully to the crib she laid bean down and slowly, every so slowly, stood up......almost

It was about this point that she realized she had "swaddled" the tie to her robe inside the baby's blanket......oh, how we needed that laugh! A few nights of little sleep made us somewhat punchy but the laugh was completely rejuvenating.....the hardest part was giggling quietly enough to not wake the sleeping, perfectly swaddled, baby!

Thank Heaven for Little Girls!

Mommy's.....they're the greatest!

2006-11-18T17:54:00.000-05:00

I got this in an e-mail from my dad.....it made me laugh so, although it technically isn't a post from me, I hope it makes your day!

THE MOMMY TEST
I was out walking with my 4 year old daughter. She picked up somethingoff the ground and started to put it in her mouth. I took the item away from her and I asked her not to do that. "Why?" my daughter asked."Because it's been laying outside, you don't know where it's been,it's dirty and probably has germs" I replied. At this point, mydaughter looked at me with total admiration and asked, "Wow! How doyou know all this stuff?"

"Uh," I was thinking quickly, "All moms know this stuff. It's on the Mommy Test. You have to know it, or they don't let you be a Mommy."

We walked along in silence for 2 or 3 minutes, but she was evidently pondering
this new information.

"OH...I get it!" she beamed, "So if you don't pass the test you have to be the daddy.""Exactly" I replied back with a big smile on my face and joy in my heart.

Oh, and thank goodness for little children, who make us laugh in spite of ourselves!...........

"Dear Lord," the preacher began with arms extended and a rapturous look on his upturned face, "without you we are but dust..." He would have continued, but at that moment one very obedient little girl (who was listening carefully) leaned over to her mother and asked quite audibly in her shrill little girl voice, "Mommy, WHAT is butt dust?"
Church was pretty much over at that point...

Have a great day!

I am so sorry I've become a lurker....NOT by choice

2006-11-14T15:01:00.000-05:00

There are some of you out there that haven't yet switched to Beta Blogger....little did I know that when I switched over I would no longer be allowed to comment on your "Non-Beta" blogs......I am so sad!

Anyway I still read you, wish I could tell you I love your blogs......

Thwart Global Cooling!

2006-11-13T15:28:00.000-05:00

Well, in spite of many mixed reviews on the new "Beta Blogger" I've given in to screen pressure (I got a message from them 10 times a day!) and switched to the new version. I'm hoping for good things, but I won't be surprised at just "average".

I've been away from my "post" (no pun intended) for some time it seems. I'd love to say I've been visiting far away ports and seeing the sights but frankly, I've just had a little "blogger block" and enough things to keep me busy that I just didn't get around to writing. (That was a wordy way of saying that my life is rather dull and boring and even I don't want to read about it!)

I've been readying myself and my house to host a baby shower for "Nutella" the Saturday after Thanksgiving (WHAT WAS I THINKING!!!!). As if having an occasion like that right after a major holiday isn't bad enough I invited 50+!!!! (What can I say "Nutella" is popular). I even pared the list down to just those whom she knew well when she lived here plus relatives that can't be ignored (whether she knows them well or not!)

My little log cabin is exactly that.......little, I think we have just over 2000 square feet.....I counted available seating and if I pack every chair we have I think 23 of those 50 people will be able to sit down, I plan on stacking the rest of them on the stairway and kitchen counter (just kidding!....I'm hoping they won't all be able to attend and I'm assuming a lot won't just because of the day).

Nutella and Tiny are naturals when it comes to entertaining, I ......well, let's just be honest here......I'm not. I love to have company once they get here, it's the planning that kills me. I guess I need to do it more often. HH and I have gotten into a rut in our old age, we socialize with family and that's about it.

We've nothing to say for ourselves except "we just like our own company" ....that is SO sad!!!! I read a great article the other day about "global cooling" in which the author explains the demise of "neighborhoods", at least as we knew them....read this excerpt:

"In the age of cell phones, email, and text messages—literally unlimited, constant communication—we seem to have lost our ability to make friends. We have neatly fenced yards and locks on all our doors, but who are we keeping out? It is quite possible in suburban America to never see or speak to our nearest neighbors—a situation that in an earlier age would have meant that we would have no help bringing in the crops or threshing the wheat or raising the new barn. While most of us no longer need our neighbors’ help to sustain the basic necessities of life, when we don’t know our neighbor, we miss out on life-enriching relationships, and we contribute to the trend of “global cooling”—the world is indeed a cold place without friends."

-Whitney Johnson

I wouldn't go so far as to say HH and I don't have friends, but our friends cosist mostly of family, and church members. After reading this article I'm determined to do better. We took our first step toward combatting "global cooling" last week when we ventured over to meet our neighbor....the one who moved onto the property adjoining ours over a year ago! It was a nice visit and I feel good to know that we at least made an effort.

Living in the country has it's only special problems when it comes to getting to know your neighbors but when I take time to think about it how hard is it ...really.....to drive a quarter of a mile and meet a new friend?

Vacation's coming!

2006-10-24T12:28:00.000-04:00

We're off to Florida!!! Day after tomorrow! What does that mean? In general it means I'm excited to see "Nutella" and family (with a little side-trip to Disneyworld) but specifically it means......I'm a mess! I always feel overwhelmed just before vacation. It seems there are so many things to get done before I go. We hadn't even done our Visiting Teaching yet this month!!!

I NEVER pack till the day before, I just can't face it.....so I'll do that tomorrow (no sense changing my old annoying habits now, they've become like good friends!). So, today I cleaned the fridge, took care of the bills, deposited checks, caught up on office work and laundry. Tomorrow I'll clean the catbox (eeeewww!), pack for myself, make lists of what D3 should pack, stop the mail, clean the leaves off the pond, clean out the car, buy any last minute necessities, get my nails done and then I can panic!

I don't have the slightest idea why leaving affects me this way but I feel anxious most of the time. Once I'm on the plane the feeling leaves but till then ...Oh the nerves!

Last night for Family Home Evening we carved our pumpkins......kind of a theme thing in honor of visiting Disneyworld this week.....really this was totally unplanned but I think they turned out great...

Mickey (by HH), Cinderella (by D3) and Cinderella's Castle (by Moi!)

What's the gospel centered theme here you ask?

Well , let me tell you what our "treat" was.....Chocolate Lava Cakes.

Now can you guess?.....No?.............okay, here goes!

"Real Beauty comes from inside!"......huh? It is too gospel oriented!!! Okay, maybe not so much, but that's the best we could do......

It seems we've been so busy for weeks, lots to do but not much to show for it once you're done, if you know what I mean. It doesn't exactly bode well for the upcoming holidays. They seem to come on so quickly and there's so much going on that you barely have time to enjoy them. If there's ever a seminar given about how to get through the Holidays and actually enjoy every minute then I'm going to be the first one to sign up. There are so many things I love about the Thanksgiving and Christmas but that's generally the whole problem....so many things.....not enough time to do them all, let alone do them all in a meaningful way.

Nutella called this morning and they had record lows in Florida last night....the coldest night in 100 years or some such nonsense.....wouldn't you know, just when I'm hoping to go there for vacation the weather turns decidedly "Indiana-like". I don't care, I'm just going to pack my earmuffs and brace myself for the cold water at the end of Splash Mountain!

See you all soon.....Oh, and I may just have to write a "favorite things Wednesday" blog tomorrow since I won't be here on Thursday.....

Sure Love ya

You are what you think about......

2006-10-14T09:01:00.000-04:00

One of the things I have done for the past few years is keep a small notebook with my scriptures. In it I write inspiration I receive as I read, thoughts I have as I listen to talks given in Sacrament Meeting or Confernce, favorite scriptures, and little "words of wisdom" I glean from hearing others. I have pages and pages of good things recorded in my little book....I thought I'd share a few of them with you.... (where I know the source I have included it, sometimes it is only my own thoughts recorded)

What matters most is what lasts longest.....the family. M. Russell Ballard
A sincere apology never includes the word "but" as in.....I am so sorry, but...."
The Lord has blessings for us that we may not get because we do not ask. Elder Boyd K. Packer
Why do leaders of the church have so many opportunities in their lives where they experience the hand of the Lord? Because they look for it. High Councilman, Marion Ward
No message appears in scripture more times, in more ways, than "Ask and ye shall receive". Elder Boyd K. Packer
Happiness is like jam....you can't spread it evenly without getting a little on yourself." Kate Curran, speaker Marion Ward
If we teach our children how to observe a meaningful fast we will open up to them access to great spiritual power that they will need. Stake High Councilman, Jacksonville, Florida
Avoid the spirit and attitude of mockery and cynicism. Cease to find fault one with another. In a world beset by wrath we should not be a party to evil speaking of each other no matter the circumstances. Elder Robert S. Wood
Don't be bitter.....be better! John Bytheway
As you submit your will to the Lord you are giving him the only thing that is actually yours to give. Elder Neal A. Maxwell
There is no limit to the amount of good a man can accomplish if he doesn't care who gets credit for it. President David O. McKay
A beautiful woman has a glow of health, a warm personality, strength of character, love of learning, integrity, and the Spirit of the Lord. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
At the Chicago Temple the Temple President was asked how temple attendance could be increased or by what efforts it coud be accomplished. He replied "It cannot be done....the people will come or they will not, by their own desire. These are the last days -- the days of weeding out". After hearing his remarks my only thought was this... "Dear God, please bless me not to be a weed!"
"I Really Lived" by Sister Marjorie Hinckley... I don't want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there with gras stains on my shoes from mowing Sister Schenk's lawn. I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbor's children. I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone's garden. I want to be there with children's sticky kisses on my cheeks and the tears of a friend on my shoulder. I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really LIVED."

Integrity, where has it gone?

2006-10-12T12:03:00.000-04:00

Oh I am in a baaaaad mood! We have been working on getting a "brick" (actually a paver stone) patio put in. It's been a lot of work. First we had to excavate through the lovely clay soil of Indiana to remove about 400 square feet 3" deep. That was back breaking, but nothing compared to shoveling, by hand, 5.5 tons of crushed stone into the hole (yup, filling it up again) . Once that was all done "all" we had to do was get a ton or so of sand and wait for the stones to be delivered on ............. oh, yeah..... last Tuesday.

They never arrived so I called at about 8:00 Tuesday night and they said the truck was still out making deliveries and we were scheduled for an evening delivery so they'd more than likely be here any time......no such luck.

SO yesterday bright and early, I called the store and the manager of the delivery department said the truck had broken down but it was being fixed and they'd "have those stones" out to us by nightfall.......surprise!.....no stones AGAIN.

Lucky man, got to talk to me again at 8:00 this morning, he said they'd been delivered....I asked him where (since I sure didn't see them in the driveway) and things just went downhill from there.....to make a long story short our stone is still sitting in the Garden Department at Lowe's an hour away from our house.....they've never even been loaded on the truck! No real explanation just, "hmmmm, I guess they're still here, we could "maybe" get them to you on Sunday afternoon if that would be convenient. "

Needless to say Sunday is not only "not convenient" it's also a week late and I want them NOW!!! On Tuesday it was beautiful weather, even yesterday it was in the 60's .....today it's 40 and they're predicting snow.

I'm just so frustrated. It seems that more often than not, when we hire a job to be done it goes like this, the workers show up....or not, the work gets done on time......or not, and there's nothing at all we can do about it. You wouldn't dare pay a contractor up front because you might well never see him again but since you haven't paid (or not more than a small deposit) they really don't care when, or whether, they get the work done.....I really feel like I'm at their mercy.

I try to be understanding but honestly if we ran our business like this we wouldn't be IN business. I just don't understand how anyone can even feel good about doing this to people. When we put in our fireplace they brought most of the supplies in August and the stone mason came out .... he said they'd be done in about two weeks with good weather. Well, the weather was beautiful but I didn't see him again until the middle of September and the fireplace didn't get finished until 2 days before Thanksgiving!

Okay, I'm done venting, I'm going to find something better to do with my time today than dwell on this.....hope your day is going well! : )

Sure Love Ya!

Sometimes you need a reminder....

2006-10-09T10:07:00.000-04:00

I got a beautiful e-mail from a friend the other day and felt like it was something worth sharing....indulge me a little lazy blogging....just for today

The Blind Horse

Just up the road from my home is a field, with two horses in it.

From a distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing. Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him. This alone is amazing. If nearby and listening, you will hear the sound of a bell.

Looking around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field. Attached to her halter is a small bell. It lets her blind friend know where she is, so he can follow her.

As you stand and watch these two friends, you'll see how she is always checking on him, and that he will listen for her bell and then slowly walk to where she is, trusting that she will not lead him astray. When she returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, she stops occasionally and looks back, making sure her friend isn't too far behind to hear the bell. Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges.

He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need. Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we are the guide horse, helping others see.

Good friends are like this ......... You don't always see them, but you know they are always there

Please listen for my bell and I'll listen for yours.

Quoting a favorite song of mine......"have you done any good in the world today, have you helped anyone in need, have you cheered up the sad, or made someone feel glad....if not, you have failed in deed"

Inside a mother's fevered brain.....

2006-09-29T07:29:00.000-04:00

Okay, so "Tiny" has been back at college for just about a month. Every couple of days I get a phone call that starts out with "Mom, guess what I did today!!!"

After the first one I learned to be careful.....the conversation went like this....

Tiny: "Mom, guess what I did today?!"

Me: "Oh, I don't know...tell me" (first mistake)

Tiny: "I jumped off a bridge"

ME: 'YOU WENT BUNGEE JUMPING?!"

Tiny: "Sheesh, no mom, we didn't use bungee cords we just jumped!"

Me: "Oh....." (I'm sure I said more but at this point it would have been my mouth in automatic as my mind frantically pictured this..........)

Next phone call?

Tiny: "Mom, guess what I did today"

Me: "...........You jumped off another bridge?" (You'd think I'd learn the first time).

Tiny: "NO....silly, ......I went Kayaking!"

Me: "Oh....." (my mind takes off.....)

Today she sent me "her" pictures (the above were ...thank goodness.....only in my imagination.....)

Bridge jumping:

And, of course, Kayaking:

From now on our conversations are going to go like this:

Tiny: "Guess what I did today mom?"

Me: "No time to talk honey, just send me a picture! : )"

Okay, a little cold but definitely worth it in terms of sleep and the length of my daily prayers!

Mom out!

A letter to my daughter....

2006-09-27T09:06:00.000-04:00

Poor "Tiny" lost her wallet this past weekend....having lost mine only last month I could totally commiserate. In an attempt the cheer her up ...... a short letter.....

Dear Tiny:

I am sorry that you lost your wallet. I'd like to tell you it's the last time you'll ever do that but ....well, you're my daughter and that entitles you to certain um.......rights and privileges.

Because you are my daughter you will be blessed with the gift of being able to forget almost everything. When people hurt your feelings you will only remember it for a short time and then it will be over. When you go to a movie you will be able to enjoy it not just once, but every time you see it because you will have forgotten how it goes. You will enjoy the simplest of drives because it will always seem new.....to this day I can't drive to the temple without saying to myself "This road doesn't look at all familiar to me".

You will have more than one child because you will forget that pregnancy is hard, labor is no fun and raising children is expensive. You will forgive the faults of others because you won't remember what they are until they remind you. And yes, you will leave your purse, your wallet, your glasses, your shoes, your keys, your jackets and sometimes even your mind in all the many places you will go. This will be a vexation to you but it will teach you tolerance for others, understanding and believe it or not it will teach you patience with yourself.

Just like the good fairies in Sleeping Beauty I bestowed upon you gifts, the gift of being like your mom in at least a few things so that I could look at you and say to myself "Yes, she is beautiful, and yes, she is truly my daughter".

I love you (in spite of the crummy gift of forgetfulness!)

2006-09-21T12:48:00.000-04:00

Gosh I honestly don't know how a week can go by so fast! I've been blessed to have my mom visiting me so of course the time flies even faster than normal. We even baked a pie together see?

We could have made LOTS of pies since we have an apple tree in our yard that produces hundreds of apples but we have one (million) little four-legged bushy-tailed problem.......squirrels! You know I wouldn't mind them eating the apples....I suppose they have to eat something (instead of my log cabin.....which, come to think of it, they do!) but they don't eat them they just pick them! Once the apple gets about the size of a ping pong ball they randomly pick them off and throw them on the ground.....truly it's maddening. I wasn't totally out of luck this year because they missed 13! Just enough for me and my mommy to make a pie and it was delish!

I've tried to make my peace with the fauna of the woods but honestly, although they were here first, I'd just as soon see them all move away to the neighbor's house and never let their furry little presence(s) darken my window (door, deck, rooftop, garbage can, gas grill, hot tub) again! .....if you know what I mean.

When we moved here I was (insert sweet girlish voice here) simply enchanted by the racoons. They were so CUTE! That was before they vandalized all the bird feeders, ate the hoses off the gas grill (on more than one occasion) and generally wreaked havoc upon my abode. They are very bold and will come right up on the back deck to stare in at us through the french doors (they don't seem to mind that I'm saving up to make my own racoon fur coat!) I've never known them to be outwitted by any contraption we think up to try and save the bird food for the birds. At one point HH hung the feeders from the eaves of the house so they couldn't climb the pole and get them anymore.

HA! As if this would stop the rascals.......the following night we saw one burly fellow eating the seeds off the ground as his "friend" hung by one hind leg from the roof, reaching out with his "hand" to bat at the feeder which caused immense quantities of the seed to fall as it swung wildly to and fro......yup, they're smart.

The squirrels are not nearly as clever but twice as fast and there must be millions of them! They destroy the apple tree, hide nuts in my dryer vent, chew on the dormers of the house, harvest "nesting material" from the canvas cover of the gazebo and frankly.....drive me crazy.

All I wanted was a little house in the woods among the peace and quiet of nature.....what did I get? A little lesson or two (most every day) on exactly WHO is in charge around here......and need I say it.......it certainly ain't me!

Sure Love ya!

Wow! Did you know?......

2006-09-13T16:28:00.000-04:00

I am totally, and constantly, amazed at the amount of information you can get on the internet. Remember how happy I was that fall was (sort of) here? Well I got right out there and cleaned out the flower beds so I could plant my mums. HH's last words of advice to me that day were "Watch out for the poison ivy"
"Uh-Huh, sure honey (little voice in my head "I don't get poison ivy")
Well the next day I smugly told him that I had cleaned the flower beds and voila! no poison ivy (just as I thought, HA!)

Unfortunately what I didn't know is that poison ivy sometimes takes oh......say about 48 hours after you say you don't have it.....to show up (bummer....I hate the taste of my own words!) Anyway, I got it....the first time ever. Everyone has given me advice about it, the most common being encouraging words like "You know once you've had it you get it more easily than ever!" Gee Thanks friend! : )

Guess what? It itches! Terribly! Another piece of advice I got? "Don't scratch it because it will spread and be worse than ever" Oh,.....thanks again, wish you'd told me that yesterday.

So with a terribly itchy, ugly (now I understand the meaning of the words "an angry red rash), oozing mess on my arm I find myself constantly surfing the internet in search of self-help regarding stupidity, I mean poison ivy. Most of the advice I've already heard, and tried but then I find a gem....something that miraculously works!

Up till now my chief complaint has been the constant itching no matter what I put on it but I find this little tidbit on a website...."Try the hair-dryer treatment, it truly is the only thing that works to relieve the itching". So I begin my treatment, setting the hairdryer on medium and focusing the air on my tender but very itchy forearm. Immediately my arm begins to itch more than ever (luckily this was covered in the website so I continue), and get awfully red. It felt like a million little scratching fingers all over my arm, (I think I started to purr!), after 5 minutes the itching was completely gone! It lasted almost 4 hours! I did it one more time before I went to bed last night and didn't even wake up once to scratch......I'm so relieved! Ha Ha!

I have to say this method was 1000 percent better than some of the others I read about (and dare I say tried?......hey I was desperate)

slap the itch till you can't stand it any more
use a mixture of bleach and soap to wash it...after the initial sting it doesn't itch as much
take a freezing cold shower then apply ice to affected areas (note: they forgot to say the ice may actually stick to wet skin......ouch!)
chew a crushed poison ivy leaf to trigger your body's own immune response (duh!.....I don't think I'm trying that you idiot!)
Rub affected area with rubbing alcohol, nail polish, nail polish remover, windex (hey, isn't that from Big Fat Greek Wedding), hairspray, denorex shampoo.....(the list goes on and on....obviously people are trying anything!)
Apply duct tape to the area (this obviously controls the scratching, I wonder how you get the tape off?)

And last but not least I discovered the "Poison Ivy Rash Hall of Fame Slideshow".....not for the faint of heart but definitely made me feel better about my own relatively minor case!

I'm so ashamed of myself....

2006-09-12T14:41:00.000-04:00

I belong to a book club (we post on blog "Been There Read That") and I had to pick the book for this month. I chose "Without a Net" by Michelle Kennedy. It's a true story about the author's encounter with homelessness. Through a serious of unfortunate events (no pun intended) she finds herself living with her three small children in a small Subaru wagon.

The entire story was sad and I felt sorry for both her and her children. Much of what caused the situation I felt was truly preventable but after reading Suzy Q's review I realize that I have lived a life relatively free of serious problems and now I sit here sad because I think I may not be as Christlike as I thought. Somehow I've forgotten to "think the best and overlook the worst" in people. From the beginning of the book I didn't like the author because she used language I can't stand.....very judgemental on my part, I know not everyone has been taught the things I have, nor have they had opportunities to be taught those things.

I have been very blessed in my life, this is not because I have deserved to be, it is because I live with people who deserve it.....lucky me I get the fallout! I have many many faults and each night when I kneel to say my prayers I feel deeply my own inadequacies. I am just ashamed that I could have been so judgemental about this poor woman when I have certainly had many mercies extended to me.

I think I had better take some "humble pills" before I find myself in the midst of a hard lesson that I don't want to learn. I hereby apologize to the world for being so darned full of myself! : )

If you care to visit our book club site and read the reviews of the book feel free www.beentherereadthat.blogspot.com

Another good book along those lines is "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich

It was the best of days, it was the worst of days.....

2006-09-11T13:25:00.000-04:00

Five years ago today our world was shaken as the twin towers fell and our country faced terrorism in a vivid, violent, and personal way. I still remember how I felt watching the scenes unfold that day. It was the most frightening time I have ever personally faced. The safety I had known every day of my life as a citizen of the greatest country in the free world was in question and I cried. I cried for the people who had lost loved ones, I cried for our country gripped in the clutches of terror without a face, I cried most of all for my children as I knew the world would never be the same.

September 11 is a date that brings all kinds of memories and feelings, and in most households it marks a solemn occasion of suffering and loss. In our house it is a difficult paradox. On the one hand it brings, of course the tragic memories of the attacks, the very personal involvement as my husband served at ground zero as part of the National Incident Management Team mobilized to deal with the overwhelming task of restoring order to a city in immense chaos, and all the feelings of fear, frustration and endless questions that couldn't be answered.

On the other hand nine years before that September 11 our youngest daughter was born, that day we realized it would be the last time we would bring a child into the world. She was born before the towers fell, born into a world of peace and security. She was beautiful and a miracle to us. We couldn't have been happier to have an addition to our family of girls. We named her after the town in Wyoming where I was born....a name that conjures up beautiful images in my mind of family and love and all things beautiful.....she's lived up to her name in every way, bringing a sunny disposition, cheerful attitude and loving nature to bless our home.

So as I sit and listen to the many comments made this day I have mixed feelings. Loss and sadness, worry and questions mingle with intense feelings of love for this country, pride in my citizenship, gratitude for a husband who deals with these crises every time they arise,but most of all, and foremost in my mind on September 11 I feel love for my daughter, the one really important thing to me this day....first and foremost her birthday, a little thing that brings great happiness to my little corner of the world on September 11.

Happy Birthday Afton!!

Things I love Thursday!

2006-09-06T09:02:00.000-04:00

I love this weekly sharing thing! Some of my greatest finds were by accident but a lot of them were because one friend or another shared her find with me.....I'm just trying to do my part and pass the word on good stuff!

WoodWicks Candles....have you seen these yet?
I just LOVE them.

These candles are unique in
that they have a wood wick which gives you a
beautiful slow burn AND the best part...it crackles
like a wood fire! What could be better for fall
than a crackling fire that smells good! I found mine
at Cracker Barrell but I know you can get them
on-line. The scent is strong and lasting! Enjoy!

CHOCOLATE!

As always at least one of my favorite things has to
be food.....what IS it with me and food anyway!
For this one you have to love dark.....really DARK....chocolate
I buy Green & Black's Dark 70% organic chocolate at Target....mmmmmmm!

If you want a real treat use it to make a truffle cream and
use THAT to bake inside a "Molten Lava Cake".....yup...it's heaven!

Cake Batter Ingredients:

7 ounces Dark Semi-Sweet Chocolate

8 T Butter

1 tsp vanilla

3 eggs separated - room temperature

1/3 cup sifted cake flour

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp cream of tartar

1/3 c sugar

Chocolate Lava Centers

2 oz Dark Semi-Sweet Chocolate

1/5 oz heavy cream

1 tsp butter

1Chop the dark semi-sweet chocolate into pieces. Place into a metal bowl, add butter. Melt over a simmering waterbath. Remove from heat.

2) Add vanilla extract and (3) egg yolks. Whisk together until chocolate mixture is smooth.

3) Add well sifted cake flour, and gently incorporated into the above chocolate mixture.
4) Place the (3) egg whites into a clean metal bowl, add salt and cream of tartar. Using a whisk, whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Continue to whisk while slowly sprinkling in the sugar.

5) Using a rubber spatula, carefully fold 1/3rd of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Then fold-in another 1/3rd of the egg whites. Then fold-in the last 1/3rd of the egg whites. see picture #3 below
6) Deposit the batter into large "non-stick" muffin tins - fill 3/4 full. Ramekins can also be used simply butter insides and dust with cocoa powder. see picture #4
7) Push a Chocolate Lava Center into the center of each cake batter. This creates the molten lava center!see picture #4
8) Bake at 375F degrees for 15 minutes. Do not over bake! see picture #5
SERVE THIS IMMEDIATELY....WHILE CENTER IS STILL LIQUID!

Blondes have more fun.......And they provide the rest of us with a good laugh!

2006-09-05T09:03:00.000-04:00

I have a dear friend, she's a blonde through and through and her name is Joanie. I can count on her to cheer me up on a moment's notice and this weekend was no exception. We have been having an on-going conversation about whether or not it's difficult to get up on Sunday and go to church.

Mind you I'm a morning person, always have been. I do my best work in the morning, I'm coherent, happy, enthusiastic, and intelligent until 9 p.m. at which time the word non-functioning best describes me. Getting up for church is simply not an issue with me, it's easy.

Blondie, aka Joanie, is not..... a morning person. She freely admits this, as well as the struggle it is for her to get up and go to church. She has tried on numerous occasions to convince me that she has an illness, a strange illness that seems recur on a weekly basis. It usually hits her in the wee hours of Sunday morning and by the time the alarm goes off she's got a full blown case of .......whatever it is. The symptoms range from general malaise and joint pain to headaches, ringing ears and slight nausea. Occasionally she convinces herself to stay at home in bed rather than attend church so that she doesn't spread the "disease" to the elderly and infirm among the congregation (she is so thoughtful this way). Luckily, so far as I can tell, the symptoms usually subside sometime after the last meeting of the three hour block and she can resume her sabbath day activities.

This past Sunday she explained that as she had been sick the previous week she was determined to get up and go to church (in other words a weeks worth of guilt had set in). Of course she woke up experiencing some dizziness and aching muscles, her symptoms seemed to get worse as she got ready for church but, to her credit, she was determined.

As she arrived at church she said her feet hurt so badly she could hardly make the walk from the car to the building and she really planned to bear her testimony, now it appeared she wouldn't be able to make it to the pulpit. She was honestly embarrassed and felt ridiculous hobbling along like a 60 year old woman (waaaiiiitttt a minnnuuuttteee............she IS a 60 year old woman!) nevermind, anyway back to the story, where was I? Oh yeah, her feet hurt.....

Anyway, sometime after the invocation but before the sacrament was passed she said she discovered a possible cause of the extreme pain.......her shoes were on the wrong feet!

Joanie, I love you! You're the best! Thanks for being brave enough to let us all laugh at you and feel a little better about our own little problems!

Christmas Creep

2006-09-01T09:31:00.000-04:00

You may assume from the title that I’m talking about The Grinch, or Scrooge, or maybe even the surly department store santa..…..nope, “Christmas Creep” is apparently (where have I been?) the buzzword referring to an instatiable appetite for all things Christmas…..so much so that retailers begin displaying said holiday wares earlier and earlier each year. So far I’ve seen Christmas displays in two local department stores, the mall ( the Christmas Store is open for business as of today), and Cracker Barrell where summer merchandise has been cleared away to make room for the three fully decorated trees!

Although I absolutely abhor this trend, I leniently give myself permission to indulge in a little Holiday hurry where Fall is concerned. As of Monday, August 28, when I suddenly realized only 3 days stood between me and September, I began having mysterious dreams of my favorite pumpkin dishes and yesterday I had to buy an “Autumn Spice” candle. I’ve resisted going to the attic to take down my fall decorations but I seriously doubt if I’ll make it through the weekend.

I know it’s technically not “Fall” until September 21 but I can’t seem to help myself. I just love the season. I love the colors (and, I look particularly good in brown!), I ADORE the food (pumpkin pancakes with homemade warm applesauce and whipped cream……oh MY GOSH!), and the decorating of my house easily rivals Christmas. There’s nothing better than the sight of a little log cabin surrounded by the colors of Autumn, a little smoke coming out of the chimney (okay I’m going to have to wait a bit for the first fire…..it’s still 80+ and humid here), and hot apple cider in the morning.

The whole thing just makes me feel good! Today I'll clear out the last vestiges of summer from my garden to make room for the mums which are just beautiful. If I ever discover a decorating scheme as gorgeous for summer I might learn to enjoy it just as much…..if I had a little Victorian house with a wraparound porch for instance…..I just love it when you see one with all the white wicker furniture and floral cushions, big baskets of purple hydrangeas, and a white porch swing…..

somehow I think HH would resist the idea of purchasing different homes for different seasons…..

Did I mention D2 is studing design? I’m no designer, nor do I have any aspirations in that direction, but I do recognize the impact of surroundings on mood, and how easily influenced we are by tradition. I just happen to associate Fall with happiness, it’s the season during which HH asked me to marry him, the season of Nutella’s wedding, the time of year when D3 was born, the fire season is winding down so HH will be home again, and it's time for long walks in the woods among crisp leaves surrounded by the wonderful smells of autumn .

I’m no “Christmas Creep” but I’ll cheerfully accept the label of “Fall Fanatic”!

P.S. In case I made you hungry here’s the recipe for pumpkin pancakes which just happen to be low fat and low calorie!

Teeth, they are SO useful!!!

2006-08-30T15:43:00.000-04:00

As you may remember D2 has been here all week suffering mightily in the aftermath of wisdom tooth extraction. For obvious reasons I've become obsessed with finding ever more attractive soft food fare. I stocked up on pudding, popsicles, applesauce, and ice cream only to discover that after a few meals this somewhat sugary diet becomes less than desirable.

We have moved through the pureed food phase (have you EVER SEEN a pureed hot dog?) and tested the waters today at McDonalds where she tried her hand, .....um rather mouth.......at eating a Sausage, Egg and Cheese biscuit. After discovering she couldn't get her mouth open wide enough to get it into her mouth, let alone try the chewing part we created the first ever McDonald's Sausage Egg and Cheese Panini....(don't ask). The smile on her face said it all, life is good!

The whole week has reminded me of how hard it is going to be to get old and quite possibly lose my teeth. A couple of months ago we visited HH's grandma in the nursing home and helped her with her lunch of pureed grilled cheese, tomato soup, and red velvet cake. The thing that caught my attention was that everything.....including the grilled cheese sandwich......had roughly the same color and texture, kind of a light peachy pink blob too thick for a straw and too thin for a fork.

Frankly I've come to the conclusion that I'm not going to enjoy the life of a toothless old person, I've therefore decided to request all my teeth be pulled sometime around the age of 80 so I can get myself a shiny new set of false ones!

As long as I'm going through the pain of tooth removal I may go ahead and spring for a chin-tuck, cheek implants, and botox......yup, I'm gonna be the Hot Old Lady down in 142B !

As they say, life has it's ups and downs.....

2006-08-24T09:08:00.000-04:00

Point in fact............short study of my recent life:

HH stays home for a full week (AND long enough to see D3's first day of school) before being called out to another fire.

HH leaves for new fire the day before D3 has her first soccer game and 4 days before D2 comes home for a visit (he hasn't seen her since Christmas)

New "Toto"model basket arrives for my bike, along with speedometer to gauge my success in terms of distance and speed! Day one finds me making a 10 mile ride to the hardware store to save gas.....and amazingly enough I made it!!!

While on said ride I lose my wallet containing one credit card, my ATM card, my Mastercard Debit, and almost worst of all.....my Driver's License (making the well thought out statement "Ask for I.D." on every card completely useless! ) I can't help picturing the commercials for CitiBank.........and wondering if some large tattooed man is buying a new Harley.

Although person who finds wallet is not honest enough to return it, he IS quick and immediately opens an Ebay account using my stolen credit card....Ebay sends me an e-mail so I can cancel cards in time.

Ever hopeful that my new Driver's License can be procured BEFORE I have to pick up D2 at the Airport , I rush to DMV only to discover I haven't worn much makeup,.......once again my I.D. will serve as deathrow mugshot should I ever need one.

D2 arrives safely and my pretty much empty nest is a little less empty for the next week.........here's to the intermittent joys of motherhood!

I struggle after reading through the talk I'm giving in Sacrament Meeting this Sunday realizing it seems boring and uninspired.

D1 calls to chat and we discover she's giving a talk in Sacrament Meeting this Sunday too and.........I couldn't believe it.......she has the same topic! (I'm saved!) Not that I'd ever steal her talk.....but inspiration can come from anywhere right? : ) Hurry up with those notes honey!

Unfortunately one of the reasons D2 is home is to have her wisdom teeth pulled .....we take her in for the "preliminaries" and get the happy news that since this is a straight forward routine procedure and there are no foreseeable problems the cost will only be $1500 ....I am SO glad! (I force myself to be quiet and not explain that I assume for that price we also get pain free surgery,immediate recovery, and lip plumping!)

Church has a VERY successful blood drive and they happily accept my formerly anemic, now acceptable sample. .... I get a free T-Shirt in XXXXXL and this little badge of honor for my efforts (I do mention to them that they'd get much more business if they provided on-site pedicures, free cholesterol screening and a neck massage while you wait......those people have NO humor).

Take D2 on bike ride this morning, nearly kill her and have to bike home "on the double" to get the car and pick her up. (Did I mention she's a 110 pound weakling!) All the exertion makes my blood letting wound from yesterday hurt and my fingers go numb (I hope I haven't sprung a leak!)

Arrive home from above rescue mission to find FedEx in my drive with 3 dozen roses from my sweet HH who knows the ups and downs sometimes seem overwhelming! I love you honey!!!

Exactly what are you comfortable with?

2006-08-16T08:54:00.000-04:00

I'm just wondering.......does it concern anyone that ground cinnamon is OK if it has fewer than 400 insect fragments and fewer than 11 or more rodent hairs per 50 grams? What about cornmeal? The FDA (and I always trusted them!) says avoid it if it has more than one rodent excreta fragment (huh? I think that's rat poop!) per 50 grams. (Uh,..... well okay if you really think that would be a problem .......duh!)

You may be wondering what brought on this question.....you weren't? Too bad because the basis of my blog begins here......

Way back when HH became the wonderful cook that he is today (that would be about two months ago when he graduated from cooking fried spam and potatoes to whatever the American Heart Association included in their free on-line recipe book). Anyway, I digress......in one of his lates epicurian adventures he prepared for us a delectable dish called Lemon Barbequed Chicken.

I might just add here that the wonderful thing about new cooks is that they follow the recipe to the letter, right down to actually TOASTING SESAME SEEDS! (This is the point in any recipe when I, in my great wisdom borne from years of dedicated cookery, decide that they've got to be kidding if they think I'm going to spend "approximately 10-15 minutes toasting the sesame seeds over a low flame while stirring constantly") In a word, or two, it was absolutely delicious! And worth every minute he spent toasting those seeds.....thanks honey!

The next morning however, I opened the drawer containing my measuring cups to find he had evidently been a little, shall we say......cavalier, with the sesame seeds, as there were two "well toasted" ones in the bottom of my measuring cup. I washed them out and decided to be a good wife and not nag him about two little sesame seeds.....I mean really, I'm not THAT picky!

Then my life, and everything I know and hold dear, was turned upside down, inside out and backwards with a few little words from HH.........."Helen, can you come and look at this?" Which was followed by my screams when I beheld within my favorite mixing bowl 5 or 6 small little.....toasted sesame seeds? .........

No, I think not........those are,..... those are,..... those aren't ....gulp.....mouse poTTY ARE THEY!?!?! To answer my own question, yes, they most definitely were and I don't give a(excuse my language) rat's gray hair what the good old FDA has to say about the maximum allowable number of

.........WHATEVER........allowed in any one dish I, Bright One, will accept NONE! Not one, not a half of one, not even a small rodent SIZED ONE!!!!!!

Yesterday was spent emptying every last cupboard in my kitchen, washing every dish, every appliance, every towel, washcloth, sponge and surface. Disinfecting, reapplying shelf paper, tossing all non-sealed packages, and just about everything else you can think of short of sanding and refinishing the cabinets.

I went to bed exhausted only to wake at 12:30, 2:10, 3:05 and finally just giving up and getting up at 3:30 to check the mousetraps and every cupboard for evidence of .....well, you know what.

I know, you're probably saying...."Hey, doesn't she have a cat?".....Well, technically yes I have a cat, but in any practical sense relating to the actual benefits of cat ownership (chief among them being rodent control), NO!

This is a cat who will not eat anything, I mean anything except

1. Dry Cat Food (Purina only), and
2. Peel and eat shrimp (peeled of course)

The only way this cat is going to take care of any rodent problem is if I catch each mouse and tie a shrimp to it's back!!! (Sorry if I sound a wee bit sarcastic!)

We managed to catch one mouse overnight......is that the one, THE ONLY one? I'd like to think so but how will I ever know? I'm thinking there are sleepless nights ahead for me...........oh, and no more toasted sesame seeds on my food thank you!

Things I love Thursday!

2006-08-10T14:54:00.000-04:00

How can I possibly come up with things I love EVERY SINGLE THURSDAY you might ask? Well, I don't know, I guess because I have a lot of things......and the things I have I tend to love, and there seem to be more and more things all the time. Who knew there would be so many wonderful things?

But today I don't want to write about any of them because I have to tell you the most interesting news! Have you heard about McDonald's new line of light hamburgers? Ahhhh, I thought not, neither had I but I've had one, it was light and I feel obligated to share the news.

Actually, I have to admit that I'm not really a McDonald's fan....(although the french fries always make me think fondly of my grandma and grandpa) I have read way too many articles about the dire consequences of a Mickey D's diet and I'm not into commercials enough to know when they offer anything new so I"m probably McDonalds deficient......

You can imagine my surprise then to find something this innovative! I was on may way (in a hurry) to pick up D3 and I hadn't eaten in about 18 hours (too busy, nothing in the house, etc) I WAS STARVING! Bad position to be in anyway for a person trying to watch her caloric intake. Well, there was a McD ....right on the way! I wrestled with myself trying to decide whether to eat, or risk a possible car accident when I dropped dead at the wheel from starvation.

I make a quick decision and pulled into the drive through only to realize, too late, that I didn't have a dime on me! I dug around in the console of the car and under the floor mats and came up with 83 cents! Perfect, a hamburger only costs 69!!! I made my guilty little purchase and drove happily away. I'd driven only a short distance when I took that first bite. It tasted, well, different, ..............so I peeked inside the bun to be greeted by two and a half pickle slices, ketchup, mustard and ...I think chopped onions. No meat. Hm. What did I expect for 69 cents? I don't know, for some reason it nagged at me.....I just had to turn around (spending probably 45 cents in gas) and drive back to ask about this one.

When I walked up to the counter I was greeted by a cheery little McD employee who asked if she could help me. I laid open the bun and smiled.....she looked at it, looked at me, and smiled back! I asked if this was the "diet"burger. She hollered over her shoulder to the kitchen "Hey, who made that last hamburger in the driveup?!" A little black face peeked out from behind the wall then quickly disappeared but it was too late, we'd seen him. Salesgirl grabbed him and asked for an explanation....he just said "Sorry lady, you know...... this stuff'll kill you" (my worst suspicions confirmed). I got a new, fully loaded, calorie laden burger at no charge, justice prevails!

Just thought I should pass the word that contrary to popular rumors, McDonald's IS concerned about our waistlines and they're bold enough to do something about it! (Better check those buns!)

Is this me?

2006-08-09T15:18:00.000-04:00

Have you ever found yourself slipping, ever so slowly and subtly, into a world completely NOT like you?

I have always eschewed brand shopping, name dropping and ladder-climbing in favor of loyalty to the good and reliable. When everyone else was buying Cuisinart I was still using, and praising my 1984 Oster Kitchen Center, I used cloth diapers instead of disposable preferring the "natural fiber feel" for my baby, I refused to put down sod and grew my grass from seed, and then I woke up and realized something.......

Not only did I purchase a Motorola Razr V3 phone (I managed to resist buying a pink one) but today I found myself sliding the debit card out of my wallet in pursuit of ..........I almost can't say it......a, ummmm, a................(if I say it fast it won't hurt as much) Bluetooth hands free device.

There, it's out, I've said it, and as they say, admitting it is half the battle. It's killing me, I used to absolutely go bananas when I saw people walking around the mall, the grocery store, walmart....wherever.....wearing their little multi-colored ear candy and talking business while doing their shopping and now ............ am I one of them? If I am one of them is it okay?

How did this happen to me? It started with my phone malfunctioning on vacation. At odd and random times my phone would ring, I'd answer, and there'd be no one there.....just silence. It was only after a few days and several of these calls that I determined my phone was NOT working. Apparently the person on the other end of the line could hear me (probably saying wierd things like...."If you don't stop calling me and hanging up I'm going to track you down and strangle you in your sleep!") but I couldn't hear them UNLESS I put in the earphone (the old-fashioned wired type). It was all very frustrating and since I was at the end of my contract period (wierd how that happened JUST when I qualified for a new phone......conspiracy?Hmmmmm....) I went into the Verizon store and fell prey to the salesperson. Before I knew it I had purchased a cute little, trendy little, made for teenage girls type phone...the Razr....yippee.

I had resigned myself to the fact that it's just a phone, at least I knew I wasn't buying it for any reason other than the fact that I needed a phone. Then I found out that a Razr only has one kind of hands free capability and that's "Bluetooth" AAAAAGGGGHHHHH! The dilemma has been whether to break down and join the masses or give up hands-free which is so much safer/easier in the car.

So here I am, one of the crowd, just another fad following, cash spending, brand flashing showoff. I'm so depressed!

Second Honeymoons...I get about 4 a year!

2006-08-06T23:24:00.000-04:00

Now that I'm about to be reunited (as of tomorrow at 4:29 p.m. via United Airlines) with my dear HH whom I haven't seen in over 6 (count 'em SIX) weeks, the wierdest thoughts keep popping into my head

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder" or was it "Absence makes the heart go yonder" ?

"If I'd put those six weeks to better use I'd be a size 8 by now and he'd be so happy to not see me!" : )

"Tomorrow I'd better clean or it will appear I've been doing nothing but shopping, reading, sunbathing, shopping, eating, shopping, and blogging while he's been gone". (Which would be completely unfounded!)

"Was there anything he asked me to do before he got back?" (If so, it appears I've forgotten it).

"Should I take out the trash or make him feel needed when he gets home?"

"If there's a heat wave this week and the world catches on fire it can just burn and it'll have to do it without him!!!" (I know, not very compassionate but I'm a lonely woman and that's just never good)

"I suppose I'm going to have to redo the menu" (current offerings: cheerios, raisin bran, lucky charms or lean quisine, oh yeah I think there's something in the vegetable drawer but I've been afraid to look).

"Now where did I put that lawn mower?"

"Whew, I thought I was going to have to pay to get the oil changed!"

and of course I'll admit I have pondered a time or two on the truth of the old adage:

"If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you,
catch it quick.......................................hey, it had its chanceI"

Miss you honey see you soon! : )

Things I love Thursday (AGAIN!).....

2006-08-03T18:24:00.000-04:00

Wow I have no idea where the days are going but someone told me this morning that it was Thursday! (Honestly I thought, hey, no way, I mean it’s gotta be Tuesday at the most!) Anyway, time for another list of my favorite things! (And spurred on by your comments last week I had to go out and buy more spice tins to give as gifts!)

When I consider things for my list I try to have some sort of criteria. Number one I want it to be something that either a) knocked my socks off when I saw it the first time, b) makes my life easier, or c) gets used almost as often as my anti-wrinkle cream. Any item that falls into at least one of these categories is fair game….

I’ve been going through my things in anticipation of
a grandbaby! I still have so many things that I thought
might be good to send to Nutella….high chairs, bassinettes,
you know. Anyway I came across our “Baby Sitter” we
used this CONSTANTLY when our children were little.

It’s just a “high chair” that hangs on the side of any table.
It has a fairly deep seat and a little safety harness (necessary
under the best of circumstances). It was so handy to have it
at restaurants where the high chairs were often too big, too open,
(or too dirty!), it was also nice when we were visiting someone
who didn’t have small children….I’ve carried this all over the
country as we traveled. LOVED IT!!! (Disclaimer: the model
pictured here is NOT the original “BabySitter” but is very
much like it. I don’t think our model is made anymore!)

LDSAUDIO.COM Maybe you have discovered this site already
in case you haven’t…..I’m sharing it with you. From this site you
can download any of their LDS books or music CD's in MP3 format to
your IPod, Mp3 player, the hard-drive of your computer or burn
it to a CD. The software which allows you to download and store

the files on your computer is free and the cost of the downloads
themselves are MUCH cheaper than buying the CD versions in
stores. I have used this site so much I should own stock! It’s
great in a pinch. I have been known to download a book to CD
and give it and hour later as a gift. Trust me on this one, it’s a
GREAT site! No going to the mall, no mail or shipping costs, no
delay....it's instant! Also, the great thing is that once you purchase
a title it remains in your on-line library so you can download it again
anytime you wish. (I wish they'd come up with a video version!)

Due to "pressing business" it's only a short list this week....feel free to share some of your favorites with me though!!! (In fact I'm compiling a list of recommended books to read.....tell me your favorites!)

Sure Love Ya!

I know it's hot, but how do you "really" feel?

2006-07-31T16:48:00.000-04:00

I'm just wondering, once it gets to 97 degrees and 94% humidity, why they have to make it worse by telling you it feels like 110? I don't remember in all my days growing up ever ONCE hearing the words "heat index". For heaven's sake, it's not like you have to tell me it feels hotter, anything over 80 in this kind of humidity not only feels HOT, it REALLY IS HOT! Good Grief, if I can't tell could you please just let me be blissfully ignorant?!

I don't know, I just found it odd (and somewhat irritating) this morning when the weathermen kept saying "Well folks, the high today is going to be 99 but it's going to feel like 109!" Maybe they were just talking to the "old" people so they know not to jog out to get the paper this morning, or the "very young" people so they know not to expect a walk at the park with mommy, or the "infirm" so they know that if they die of heatstroke it will be perfectly understandable. Sorry, it's just that 97 degrees makes me cranky, and with the "heat index" I feel downright evil!

When I was pondering the overused term "heat index" it made me think of all the words and phrases that are so common today that I'd never heard of as a child.

For instance I was oblivious to the title "drama queen" although a sibling who shall remain nameless was most certainly an early prototype.

If I'd ever heard the term couch potato I would have thought it was like a TV dinner (which came in an aluminum tray covered with foil and we only got to eat once a year when "The Wizard of Oz" came on), and the other day I heard mouse potato which, thank the good heavens, has NOTHING to do with food but is just a more tech savvy kind of couch potato.....one referring to spending one's days in front of a computer (blogging?) instead of exercising.

Bird Flu would have been something we made up when the parakeet died suddenly, rather than the newest version of impending doom (back then impending doom was communism and the moral decline of children.....wierd huh?)

I played my summers away on swingsets, skates, bicycles and pogo sticks never dreaming of anything like water parks, wave pools, X-Box, or DVD's.

Big-Box was the coveted packaging from the neighbor's new refrigerator, and mall was something a bear did to you if you weren't careful in the woods.

We didn't have fast food so supersizing hadn't been invented (in food or in people), the closest we came to supersizing was getting seconds if mom thought our "eyes weren't bigger than our belly".

Ringtones, caller-id, and 1411 were unnecessary because the operator could tell you anything you wanted to know. (Added benefit, if you got bored after school and she wasn't busy she'd talk to you ..... if you were really lucky you had a "party-line" you could listen to if you covered the mouthpiece so they couldn't hear you breathing).

Now that you know I'm older that dirt at least you can understand why the heat makes me cranky!

Sure Love Ya!

I need some help ....

2006-07-30T23:39:00.000-04:00

I know many of you who read my blog are LDS and I'm hoping maybe you can help me in a quest.....

We (my Bishop and I) are looking for a picture that shows a young .... perhaps deacon aged boy....who is dressed in a white shirt and putting on a tie. He is looking into a mirror and his reflection shows him putting on armor .....as in "the whole armor of God". It's a wonderful picture but we only have a photo copy and can't even make out the artist although it might be Christensen. He got this copy as a handout at scout camp last week but doesn't know who gave it out.

If any of you have seen a picture like this and know where I can get an originalcopy could you let me know. I'd offer money but, well, I don't have any!

Thanks for any help you can give me and please forgive the unimaginative use of blog space!

Sure Love Ya!

Things I love Thursday!

2006-07-27T07:19:00.000-04:00

I'm always anxious to get to Thursday so I can share ..... SO here are a few of my favorite things (are you singing along with Julie Andrews in your head...?)

Magnetic spice tins....I LOVE these things. They hang right on the side of my refrigerator next to the stove. They actually come with a little countertop rack but half the reason I REALLY loved them was because they didn't have to take up countertop space. The lids twist on and off AND have a sift or pour feature so you don't have to take the lid off at all except to refill. An added bonus?....they're beautiful! (I got mine at Lowe's but you can find them on-line too, be sure to check the lids for the sift and pour feature as some don't have it).

How about an zero-gravity chair for total relaxation?
I have seen these around for years but the prices were ridiculous. I'm glad I waited (I just got two on sale at Target for an unbelievable price!). Besides, I kept telling myself they weren't that much different from the lounge chairs I already had on the deck. Boy was I wrong! My dad got one for Father's Day and when I tried it I was IN HEAVEN. Mine are a beige mesh which is great because water dries quickly (I think the picture here is a canvas type) Two great things about them......one, the adjustable pillow....this chair is comfortable for everyone! Two, unlike lounge chairs, these sit high up, you don't have to crawl into them, they feel just like a recliner....LOVE them! (P.S. This, unfortunately, is NOT my pool...I don't have a pool, but if I did my chairs would look great next to it!)

And finally, I think I remember establishing the fact that favorite things could include food.....well THIS is my favorite. I have been known to fly to Wyoming and bring back tubs of this in my luggage! Cox's Creamed Honey. It's the best honey in the world.....really!

I now buy it on-line (because it's cheaper than buying an airplane ticket) but I'd drive out there if I had to. Try it if you can find it, if you can't check it out on-line here and remember it's the creamed honey you want!

Enjoy! (P.S. Share with me some of your favorites!)

Vacation Leftovers...

2006-07-26T11:08:00.000-04:00

I didn't say much about my vacation, it was three weeks long so by the time I'd returned home I'd forgotten what I did the first two weeks (I'm sure you know me by now and that's not only completely normal, but also completely predictable).

The first week I spent three days with "Tiny" in her apartment in Orem, Utah.....

<
Tiny in her apartment actually I spent three days in the apartment, unfortunately being a struggling college student she had to work 16 out of every 24 hours, but I loved seeing where she lived,
The place Tiny calls homegetting acquainted with her roommates, and meeting the unauthorized "Stinky"...
"Stinky" and Daughter #3
When she initially told me about "Stinky" becoming a part of their little apartment family I warned her that his name may be portentious.....I wasn't wrong. However in spite of his stinkiness Daughter #3 and I learned to like him. It was funny to see the lengths to which these 4 girls would go to keep Stinky hidden from management. Being a "purse dog" has it's advantages!

After spending some time with Tiny we traveled north to Star Valley Wyoming where my mom lives .... we had a family reunion for her side of the family and three of her brothers and one sister were able to come along with much of their families. It was nice to see everyone under these circumstances (the last few times it's been to attend one funeral or another).

My nephew, Daughter #3, me, my mom, my aunt, my middle sister and her boyfriend.....hey where's my youngest sister?......holding the camera!

Me, my youngest sister, my middle sister, and my mom!
Star Valley is just my favorite place on the planet (I probably should even mention it as the multitudes of the world have already started decending upon the place). I was born there, as were both my mother and father.

Daughter #3 riding horses in Star Valley at grandma and grandpa's ranch.

It has the most beautiful scenery, a wide green valley flanked on the East and West by mountains. The days can get quite hot but the nights are always cool....even in July when I was there it was only 40 degrees some mornings yet got as warm as 87 during the day. If there were some way to transport our business there, and some way to cut their nine-month long frigid, snowbound winter to something reasonable like 4 months then I'd be there! Come to think of it so would everyone else! Until just a few years ago the population was still 90 percent LDS, the streets were quite and quaint, and there wasn't a fast food place to be seen. As nearby Jackson Hole has grown and become impossible to afford the population has almost doubled and horror of horrors (and against the best efforts of the townfolk) they now have a Burger King.....my mom swears Wal-Mart is looming on the horizon and it'll be all downhill from there.

From Star Valley I went to spend a few days with my Dad in Cody, just outside the east entrance to Yellowstone Park.

A grizzly in Yellowstone Park -- rare sight!

Daughter #3 with Grandma and Grandpa in Cody
Next to Star Valley I think Cody is probably my favorite Wyoming town. There is lots of tourist trade there as you can imagine, what with it being Buffalo Bill's homeland and all. I love the shopping there and we manage to be there around the 4th of July every year because the parade is just wonderful.

Love those miniature horses!!!

I can remember back when I was in High School (yeah, I know...that's a long time ago) Cody was frequently honored by the presence of famous people. John Wayne was the Grand Marshall of the parade one year. Robert Redford showed up to announce the relocation of Jeremiah Johnson's grave, and Candice Bergen came to dine at "Irma's". Cody has grown too though and I hardly recognize it as the same town ..... my dad says it's being overtaken by "Californians". This has driven property values through the roof just like Star Valley so I probably won't be retiring there either.

After leaving Cody I went back through Star Valley and stopped long enough to drop off Daughter #3 at Grandma's for 10 days then went on to Florida to see Nutella and her hubby in Jacksonville.

Nutella and Jonathan in Florida
This was my first trip to Jacksonville though we've spend innumerable vacations in Florida. It is a HUGE city. I was thankful to have Nutella and her husband as guides. It was extremely hot and humid there but being from Indiana I felt right at home. I did end up with an "altitude adjustment headache" from spending the previous two weeks in the Rockies but it didn't slow me down much. Nutella lives in a very nice condo that's more like a resort than anything. I loved it. They also have a beach house in Flagler Beach where we spent one day, Nutella and I bobbing around on our boogie boards in the waves while watching her husband surf.

Jonathan going out to catch a wave......

Nutella Sunbathing

Me sunbathing!
It's a beautiful little beach and the house there is so cute. My only regret was that dear HH, Tiny and D3 couldn't be there too. AND of course that I had to leave.

I came home with so many treasures, none of them purchased at stores. I have two boxes of pictures from my mother's family that I'm going to scan to CD's, loads of memories of the time spent with Mom, Dad, Tiny,Nutella, my sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews and that good feeling you get when you are privileged to witness the happiness of your extended family.

Glad to be home but missing all of my loved ones!

Babies, sweet, all sorts....

2006-07-25T16:21:00.000-04:00

For over two months we've been watching a small wren patiently build and rebuild her next, then finally settle in among the leaves and flowers of my Martha Washington Geranium (beautiful setting if I do say so). For the longest time there were only 4 tiny white eggs, today we got a surprise....three have hatched!

The eggs are only the size of my thumbnail and the babies are so small!! They don't have any feathers yet as you can see ....just all naked pink baby bird with oversized beaks. They don't make any sound yet but hold their little mouths wide just in case mom's bringing dinner.

I'm surprised that this little wren would make a nest in a plant that hangs right there on our porch at just about 4 feet....it doesn't seem like she'd feel safe there but she must trust us and now maybe we'll get to see the little birds learn to fly.....I hope the raccoons don't get to them first.

Nature is just miraculous you know? And of course seeing these tiny little babies so dependent upon their mom reminded me of sweet Nutella who is bound to be the best mom EVER and her little egg.....yup, we have a picture of that too!

(top 1/4 of picture head to the right, feet to the left!....as if you couldn't tell : )

Oh what a beautiful morning!!!.....Oh, what a .....nevermind!

2006-07-21T17:36:00.000-04:00

I should have known it would be "one of those days" when I got up this morning....

I, and daughter #3, decided last night we would have a little "sleep over" at my place (which means she slept with me in my bed after we watched a movie that scared us both) AND that we would "sleep in" which to her means waking at noon and for me means getting up after my internal alarm goes off and I hit the snooze button 6 or 7 times (don’t ask).

ANYWAY, I’d made it from 5:45 (when I first woke up and looked at the clock) to 7:00 (the last time I remember looking at the clock) when I heard someone knocking on the door. In any normal neighborhood this would be no cause for alarm....the neighbor might want sugar for their coffee, or the paperboy might want paid for the paper he sometimes delivers on time.

In my neighborhood, however, a knock on the door at 7:00 a.m. can only mean one thing...... well, maybe two things....either someone is lost, (I live in the country and have a 1/4 mile long driveway through dense woods ..... sometimes mistaken for Lover’s Lane by college students) OR it’s a burglar checking to see if we’re home before he breaks in.

Since I’m in my nightgown, my hair is a mess, and I have no makeup on I figure I’ll take my chances on scaring the burglar as bad as he’s scared me and I head downstairs.

I was only half right.....the burglar turns out to be the telephone company (I do, at times, feel they are crooks!) who are doing their duty and coming "promptly" to bury the new phone line they put in TWO months ago after the original model was chewed by some woodland creature who was apparently NOT a particularly picky eater. I did succeed in scaring the poor man half to death (you’d think he’d never seen a woman in an oversized blue t-shirt, black socks and flip flops before!)

After trapsing around the "slightly" overgrown yard, .....what’s that saying about knee high by the fourth of July?.....Oh, I think that may be for corn.....anyhooooo.......he tells me the message he got says he’s to follow the paint lines to trench in the new phone line. Well, why didn't you just say so?..................................Funny......there’s all of a sudden more paint in that yard than you can shake a stick at. We find blue lines, red dots, flourescent orange arrows and something that could either be brown paint or.......something we don’t want to imagine.

I finally resort to telling a "white lie" and go inside to "consult" with my husband (who, as it happens is not upstairs, but is in Montana right now on a forest fire). Thank goodness he had his cell phone and the two hour time difference didn’t seem to bother him.......thanks honey,......oh, it’s the BLUE line we follow.

The dear little men finish their appointed task and leave so I take advantage of the still relatively cool temperature of 77 (this is July in Indiana! oh, I guess it's probably July where you live too huh? Tee Hee Hee) to go to the garage and exercise. I manage to work up a good sweat in only 15 minutes and am halfway through an episode of "Small Spaces, Big Style" when the electricity goes off.....(bummer 45 minutes to go and no treadmill......also no TV).

I try to plod along on the old fashioned eliptical machine which requires no electricity (only batteries for the display) but find it somewhat inconvenient to not be able to see my hand in front of my face, or do anything but listen to my own panting for diversion. I make it 15 minutes and give up to go outside and walk the driveway for 30 minutes.

During the first 5 minutes I’m attacked by a mother bird who mistakes me for some kind of threat so I end up jogging, ...though not fast enough to elude the deerflies, which of course I’m allergic to (one manages to bite me right behind my left ear ....I now look like I have a case of the mumps), but plenty fast enough to miss seeing tree roots which I swear seem to jump up out of nowhere ...... a 50 year old woman can break a hip with a fall like that!!! I give up and decide to go home.....

After a boring hour and a half in the dark (did I mention we live in a dense woods....it won’t be light in our house until roughly 1:00 p.m. when the sun is directly overhead) I’ve managed to cook two eggs for myself on the barbecue (another don’t ask) , read the remaining 60 pages of my book club book by half light while sitting on the floor by the patio doors, knitted two rows of Afton’s project (I hope she doesn’t notice....she hates it when I do that), and used up all the ice we had trying to reduce the baseball now looming from the left side of my head.

In total frustration I decide to call the electric company to see when the electricity will be back on, it’s been off since just after 8:00 and I’m dying here! Luckily I have a cell phone as obviously the phone won’t work without electricity (Drat!) Unluckily, we get poor reception in our "little cabin the dense woods" (we have a signal booster in the house but guess what......it works on electricity).

I find I can almost get a signal upstairs, so I rightly assume higher is better, and climb on the file cabinet in the loft to make my call.....Miss Helpful at the electric company tells me the electricity will soon be restored, it’s only a temporary outage while they install a traffic light . In her sweetest voice she tells me it should be restored by ll:30 a.m. and asks if there is anything else she can do for me......(probably sensing my distress when I start sobbing).....it’s only 9:10!

I'm going back to bed and when I wake up it had better be tomorrow!!!!

(Oh, and a side note....I STILL CAN'T UPLOAD PICTURES TO BLOGGER!!!!! AAAAAGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!)

Oh my goodness it's been a long time!....

2006-07-20T13:25:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm back from my many, and varied, family escapades. I had a wonderful trip with lots of .....ummmmm.....interesting happenings.....you probably thought nothing could be more interesting than a traveling porta-potty but check out my dumpster adventure! (Please click here to read Tiny's description of the event......why use up space and brain power needlessly?)

While spending time with "Tiny" I attended her award ceremony where she was presented with lst place (AND a $1000 check!) in the Intermountain Design Awareness Event for her original area rug design. She won lst place!!! It was wonderful, I was so glad I could be there with her. I called to tell HH the news and he immediately told me to find out how to buy one.....

"In fact, we might want to buy two of them so we can give one to her"

(he's so generous!) I told him I thought it might be as much as $500......he still thought it was worth it.

After all the press pictures were taken of her standing before the rug (they sent her design to Nepal to have it reproduced in 100% wool and silk) I snuck up and looked at the label on the back.....it just so happened to also include the retail price for the 4' X 6' rug...... to make a long story short I called HH right back and asked how he would feel about buying 1/2 a rug! Obviously I shop in an entirely different world (Target, Bed/Bath/Beyond, etc) because they nearly had to sweep me from the floor when I saw the $1400+ price tag. I hope some wealthy families enjoy it immensely!.......you can purchase Hannah's rug from "Artifacts" in Salt Lake City...(please call me to come visit!)

Also spent a wonderful week in Jacksonville, FL with Nutella and her sweet husband, I felt like I was at a resort. Their condo is beautiful, they have a gorgeous pool and a gym so I could work off all the calories from SIL's "real" italian cooking. We got to see a picture of the baby too....Nutella had her first sonogram ..... didn't find out whether it's a boy or a girl but it's definitely got all the necessary and expected parts otherwise!

We (Daughter #3) and I came home to an empty house (HH got called to a forest fire in Montana 4 days before we got back...: ( , lots of mail, a lawn that needs mowed, an extremely fat cat (I thought she was normal till I saw regular cats!), and an assignment from the Bishop to talk on the 27th of August so I have plenty to keep me busy.

I have missed reading all your blogs and plan to catch up on that ASAP in my "spare" time.

Sure Love Ya!

AAAAHHH Summer "Vacation"

2006-06-24T20:39:00.000-04:00

Well, I've returned, but only for two days then I'm off to Utah, Wyoming, and Florida!!! (which means I probably won't get to blog for about three weeks but when I get back I'll have good stories (and hopefully pictures!)

I've been gone all week .....you know relaxing, living the good life, getting a massage twice a day, eating great food, and being pampered ................in MY DREAMS!!! Actually, I was at Girls Camp eating food cooked over a fire by 14 year olds, sleeping.... but just barely, relaxing.....but only during bathroom breaks, wearing the same outfits two days in a row because my clothing rations were whittled down to nothing in the pudding/cool whip "incident", fighting off mosquitoes the size of Manhattan, and having adventures you thought only happened in cartoons!

I got to camp early on Monday hoping to score the best place for a tent before the "crowd" got there. I'd been drinking pop all the way up there so by the time I arrived I was about to pop! I was relieved (hehehehe pardon the pun) to see porta-johns right across camp.

There was a lot of work going on by the maintenance crew, spreading mulch on the paths and filling in potholes in the road with gravel but I managed to cut through all the "traffic" and make it to the potty in time. It's hard to tell this part delicately so just bear with me. I entered what would soon be dubbed by fellow campers as PortaStink #1, locked the door and had no more than seated myself when a HUGE commotion began outside.....CLOSE! Within seconds I felt my little abode moving sideways....at first I thought the fumes were making me dizzy but I could see through the little vent thingy that the earth was definitely moving beneath me.

I heard an engine rev and then Thump, Bump, AAAAGGGHHHH! The entire porta-potty was lifted into the air. I started screaming but the engine noise was so loud they couldn't hear me. In my minds eye I could see those big flat bed trucks driving down the highway carrying their load of porta-potties.......I was sure they were going to be loading me up any second......we were bouncing along down the road me screaming and pounding on the door as we went.

When I finally managed to get "decent" enough to open the door (wouldn't you know I'd be wearing my "ModesTee", great invention....but there's no hurrying it) we'd gone quite a little ways, I threw open the door and looked right into the eyes of a 20 something young man driving the bobcat that was carrying MY toilet away with ME in it! I was scared but trust me ........he nearly had heart failure! I'm not kidding.....true story!

Today I'm trying to recover a little before we leave tomorrow to go out West. Every year I think this will be my last at camp but it's a little like having a baby......hard, uncomfortable, and you swear you'll never do it again but when some time has passed you feel like it was all worth it and next thing you know you're 9 month's pregnant (or in my case sleepin' in a tent!).

Here's to summer vacation! Sure Love Ya! (P.S. More camp adventures to follow!)

Things I LOVE Thursday....

2006-06-15T09:30:00.000-04:00

(Yeah I know last week it was Tuesday but....I'm getting ready for Girls Camp....need I say more?)

1. Flip N Fold - This may seem unnecessary but I got mine on a whim at Wal-mart over a year ago when they had them marked down to $4. I have an extremely narrow cabinet that I store towels in and I thought this might make it easier to fold the (MOUNTAINOUS) load of towels I do every day in a way they'd actually fit on the shelves. What I didn't expect was how GREAT it is for folding T-Shirts. My dear HH has TONS of T-Shirts. Being a wildland firefighter means you amass a boatload of T-Shirts which are emblazoned with the name of each and every fire. I can fold and stack 30 in the space of half that many when I use this little thing and they're perfect! Just like in the store! I love it!

2. Can "Things I love" be food? Sure....it's my blog and my list!!! These brownies are my cure for any sad day, the treat for any celebration and the basis for my reputation as a good cook (only in small geographic circles of course!).

The great thing about them is you make them in one pan....not a bowl, a pan.....no mixer, no mess and they're the perfect texture between cakelike brownies and fudgy brownies........mmmmmmm Now I'm hungry!

Indiana Brownies
1 cup butter (or margarine)
2 cups white sugar
4 Eggs
2 Tsp real vanilla (Mexican Vanilla is the BEST!)
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder

Preheat Oven to 350. Grease and flour a 13 X 9 inch pan (I like glass the best). In a large saucepan melt butter then remove from heat. Stir in sugar, vanilla, and cocoa powder. By now it will be cool enough to stir in the eggs one at a time till well blended. Then just add the flour, salt and baking powder and spread in the pan. Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes (I always get perfect brownies at 25 minutes but every oven is different) DO NOT OVERBAKE! If you want to frost these (totally unnecessary!) do it while they are warm because they're very tender. We use these to make a Death by Chocolate Trifle that's to die for!

3. One more thing I LOVE for this week.....my most visited website? ..... www.usps.com! Did you KNOW you can create a password protected account there and store payment information, create an address book of your most used addresses, and then just print AND PAY FOR postage right from your computer?!!! It's great. I ship things all the time (care packages to two far away girls that I miss) and this means absolutely NO standing in line at the post office. I just print out the pre-paid, pre-addressed label, stick it on the box and drop it at the post office (you can even request package pickup on-line and not go to the post office at all!). The other great thing is that I can get the priority mail boxes for free (either at the post office or order them dropped at my house....also free!) and pay only $8.10 for ANY WEIGHT that I can fit in the box! This is a great site.....there are lots of things you can order on-line there and just have your postman drop it off with the mail. I also just sign on and have my mail held when we're on vacation ....You gotta LOVE IT!!!!

Pass me them there power tools Harv....

2006-06-09T13:42:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I, (me, by myself, without permission!)used power tools!!!! (well just one actually but hey, it's a start!)

HH was gone for the day at a meeting and I decided to rearrange my breakfast nook. We have a watercooler, which I love.....(probably some deep meaning related to my 23 year tenure in Federal Government!). The only problem with it really, is that there was no "place" for it. I mean we had it someplace, obviously, but I never felt comfortable with it. It blocked the view from my kitchen into the breakfast nook (which isn't a breakfast nook anymore....it's a piano nook....but I digress).

ANYWAY, night before last while lying awake in bed not able to sleep (again!) I was thinking up new places to put the water cooler and came up with the idea of putting it in my pantry. This would mean I'd have to give up some shelf space but the more I thought about it the more I liked the idea.

SO.....I took down the shelves, took them right out to the garage and used the table saw to cut them down to make a water cooler sized space!!! I couldn't believe how good I was. (Of course I've watched HH do it a million times, just last week in fact, so it was fresh in my mind).

HAHAHAHA, scared you didn't I girls?! .....anyway see that hair on the arm!!! It's not mine (don't think I didn't worry about something like that happening!)

You know what? ....I now know why guys like power tools....AND why they're called "power" tools. It's not because they work on power (silly girl!) .....it's because they GIVE you power! Wow! I felt like I could do anything! (Hey, am I just imagining it or are my biceps bigger today!?)

My advice.....go out and saw something to pieces if you really want to feel good about yourself! Arh, Arh, Arh! (Go on-- you know you wanna say it....give it the old Tim Taylor Try!)

Sure Love Ya!

Sisters, there were never such devoted sisters.....

2006-06-08T09:01:00.000-04:00

That's me, my middle sister, and my baby sister

...my favorite picture

(except for that wierd color I died my hair....is that magenta!?

We're obviously sisters huh? Let me just say that my sisters are two of the most accomplished women I know....both are very successful career women that I totally admire. We don't get to see each other often, I live in the Midwest, the baby lives in the Rockies, and middle sister lives in California. I miss them a lot and often wish they were close enough to share lunch with once in a while....

People ask me occasionally if I'm sad that I never had any boys....I tell them that with the childhood I had I wouldn't have a clue how to handle one anyway so it's probably just as well.

Here's to sisters!!! Sure Love 'em!

Sweet Memories....

2006-06-07T11:07:00.000-04:00

Hahahaha, today's post from "Tiny" was enlightening to say the least...I always knew she was afraid of E.T. but never knew it was because she thought her closet looked like Elliott's,.... anyway her description of her (somewhat irrational ) fear is hilarious so take a look..

She made me think back to some of my favorite things when I was a .....well, younger person (I know my kids think I've always been old but ....nope!....I was actually born young!)

One of my favorite memories was getting a nickel every Saturday. I could use that nickel for anything! Anything people!!!! Just imagine what that means to a 5 year old! .....Yup, the good life was just a nickel away back then.....I could save it, invest it in my future, or spend it.....I'm sure you know me well enough by now to know that I SPENT it....immediately!!! We lived across the alley from the creamery.....does anyone even know what those are anymore?

Well, they were like "Coldstone" except they only had vanilla, chocolate, and strawberrry AND the most important difference?.....they got their delivery of fresh cream (I mean, for goodness sake it was right from the COW!) every morning from a big truck. It even smelled like cows in there!

I spent my weekly nickel on a strawberry ice cream cone....just one dip (if I could have saved up for 2 weeks I could have had a DOUBLE dip!!!!). Ahhhhh, those were the days. Sometimes my kindergarten teacher would walk us down to the creamery and they'd give us all a little jar of cream to shake and make into butter (I had a weak shaking arm so usually just put the cream on my oatmeal for breakfast).

We also had "milk men" back then. We had a little silver insulated box that sat on the porch and mom would leave the order slip inside and voila! when we got up the next morning the "milk man" had filled our order....milk, eggs, butter, cream....mmmmmm!. It was like the tooth fairy (only I'm pretty sure mom and dad had to pay for it). Magical!

Funny how so many of my good childhood memories revolve around.....food! I mean Gosh, we had penny candy, for real! (Now they have penny candy that costs 5 cents.....what the.....?) Every cent I made babysitting went into bags of penny candy that I'd hide as "scavenger hunts" for my sisters.

You know what else we had? We had movies that cost a quarter!!! (Add an extra dime for the popcorn unless you brought your own from home in a bag that you hid under your sweatshirt! Thanks mom!) In one of the towns I lived in we were close enough for my friends and I and to walk to the theatre on Saturday mornings for the matinee....and guess what? They had CARTOONS before every movie!!! No previews of nasty, scary adult movies, no wierd hollywood trivia, no ads for local hair salons, just.......CARTOONS....the kind that made you laugh...it was great!

I guess my favorite outfit back then would have been that wild and crazy thing called a "sunsuit".... kind of a little one piece thing with ties at the shoulder and elastic at the waist......my mom was a great seamstress so I had them in every color and fabric imaginable.....I was lookin good!!!

As for scary things in my young life.....well there was one thing.....it was.....the "incinerator"! I don't remember having one at any of our houses but my cousins had one in their backyard, it was this square concrete thing (like a big trash can) with a steel flap on the lid...you put all your burnable trash in there and then lit it somehow.....I was absolutely terrified of it....everything that went in came out ash and that LID!!! It was heavy and scary!

I was so afraid that I'd push it open and flames would shoot out of it and burn me up, but you had to push it open to put in trash, oh, the dilemma..... I'd stand there on the brink of tears, scared to death, then push in the trash real fast and run.............honestly, I hated that thing! (I vaguely remember Grandma talking to Grandpa about a person burning up a body in one.....that story stuck with me forever!!!!) That's no INCINERATOR, that's a MURDER WEAPON!!!!

(And on a side note, can I just say I'm SICK of not being able to upload pictures!!! Blogger what are you doing to me!!!!!!)

Things I love Tuesday....

2006-06-06T08:55:00.000-04:00

Actually I was going to write this post on Thursday (Things I Love Thursday sounds better) but because I'm lacking in interesting life experiences I thought I just go ahead and use it today......maybe I should call it Top of my List Tuesday!

Sometimes there are things in your life that you just know you'd miss if you didn't have them.....like "Tiny" I am easily influenced by commercials so I usually try something once but it takes something great to make me a loyal fan!!! Here's a few of my favorites....

1. Ceiva Digital Receiver! I got this from my husband for Christmas (or maybe it was a birthday....anyway) and it's become one of the things I'd save if the house was burning down (okay, after the kids, HH, the cat, my pictures, and my makeup!) Basically it's a way to share digital photos without a computer over the phone line. Since I got mine we've bought one for both daughters, my dad, Stewart's Mom and Dad, and both of my sisters! There's nothing better than getting new pictures from someone far away! Here's a link to their site if you're interested...Ceiva Logic, Inc

2. ROOMBA!!!! I love my roomba! When HH and I got married I told him not to EVER buy me anything practical and try to pass it off as a present. That meant I had to beg and beg to get him to even consider buying me this for Christmas two years ago. It was one of my favorite presents! What could be better than having a vacuum that comes out at night, vacuums the living room and then puts itself away before you even get up!!! Love it, Love it! (P.S. They have a new "Scooba" now that MOPS!!!! Can you believe it!)

I know this makes me sound terribly unambitious but if you can give up vacuuming just think what you can do with that time......skydiving, painting a masterpiece, writing a novel....

3. My last thing for this week.....(I may have shared this before but I can't help touting it again)....There's something wonderful about climbing into bed when the sheets smell fresh and clean.....wouldn't it be great to get that EVERY day (without the washing and remaking part?).....

I discovered at my local K-Mart, something called "ironing spray" (in some places it's now labeled linen spray). I don't iron my sheets every day but I do spray the top sheet (the part nearest my face) and both sides of the pillow. (My favorite scent? Serene Dawn) Trust me it's wonderful! One bottle costs about $5.99 at K-Mart but it lasts me almost a month. Mmmmmmm, Magnifico!!!

Have a happy day!

Clean internet?....

2006-06-05T09:11:00.000-04:00

Whew! After three days I'm able to get back into my blogger account which was blocked by my filtering service "NetMop" for "Pornographic or Recreational Nudity Content".....(you're shaking your finger at me aren't you.........well believe it or not I couldn't get into any of yours either!)

Some weeks after I began my blogger account and let Daughter #3 open one on the Xanga site we discovered it could be pretty scary to look for google images to put on our blogs, it happened more than once that we were "surprised" at the images that came up when searching for a seemingly innocent picture.....(don't ever search for old woman washing .... I was hoping for a picture of a grandma type with a washboard or even a rock in a stream but .....well, as I said I got surprised!)

Anyway, in response I immediately signed up for a filtering service called "NetMop" that was recommended by LDSLiving. It did seem to block a lot of things but there were also some images that came through and when we couldn't get into our accounts at all last week I decided I would have to do something else.

Basically I'm going to be reduced to posing for my own pictures ............hmmmm "Old Woman Washing?.....I could totally do that!" It is a sad thing when there is so much free filth out there huh? I guess that's why we hear over and over from our church leaders about the dangers of the internet. Very frustrating that it can be so hard to control.

Speaking of graphic images, my dad, concerned for "Nutella" in her new Florida digs (aka Alligator Alley) has forwarded this little item......

Vicious Dog Pack Kills Gator in Florida --

Dogs savage Florida alligator

At times nature can be cruel, but there is also a raw beauty, and even a certain justice manifested within that cruelty. The alligator, one of the oldest and ultimate predators, normally considered the "apex predator" in it's natural ecosystem, can still fall victim to implemented 'team work' strategy, made possible due to the tight knit social structure and "survival of the fittest pack mentality", bred into the canines over the last several hundreds of years by natural selection. Scroll down to see the attached remarkable photograph courtesy of Nature Magazine... Note that the Alpha dog has a muzzle hold on the gator preventing it from breathing, while the remainder of the pack prevents the beast from rolling.

Warning: Not for the squeamish!

Click Here for Picture

History, it's a Family (Home Evening) thing!

2006-06-02T07:57:00.000-04:00

I was reading Sweet Mama Entropy this morning, she wrote about memes and how she's used them to come up with questions to use for a family reunion she just had.

It reminded me of some special family home evenings that we did a few years ago. Each Monday night when we held family home evening we would end the lesson and then hand out a "My History" page. The page had three sections.....Then, Now, and My Spiritual Life. Under each heading I would type a question for each person to answer, or a statement for them to finish with their own thoughts. As time progressed I started sending the "My History" page by e-mail to our extended family and they would e-mail it back so I could add it to our Family Home Evening Book.

Here's an example:

Then....
I consider myself an optimist (or pessimist) because......

Now...
If satisfied with your present attitude explain how you maintain it (optimism), if not satisified list some ways to improve your outlook.

My Spiritual Life....
I'm counting my blessings....here are some of them...
1.
2.
3.
4.
etc...

And here's another example ...

Then...
Some of the best advice I ever got was...

Now...
A piece of advice I'd like to pass on to my children, friends, etc. is....

My Spiritual Life....
I am grateful for so many things but a few of them are.....

It was like a meme for family home evening. We kept all the pages in our Family Home Evening Notebook which includes:

Monthly calendar pages with FHE assignments written on the appropriate night,
An Outline Page for the night stating the title and objective of the lesson, who gave the lesson,prayer, scripture, and activity,
Notes about the lesson and any family discussion
Pictures taken if we had an activity, and
Recipes for the refreshments, etc.

(I actually have pictures to share of our family home evening book but for some reason can't upload them....I'll keep trying)

Getting the "My History" pages from extended family members really added something special to our Family Home Evenings and gave us something to look forward to during the week. We only did it for a year (now that I've looked back through the book I want to do it again) but it gave us pages of Family History that we wouldn't have gotten any other way.

If you only have young children at home consider asking the questions out loud and then just writing down what they say, or if they are really young, just fill out the pages for yourself and your spouse.....someday those young children of yours will LOVE reading about your family home evenings and getting to know mom and dad by reading what you've written!

Cravings...

2006-05-30T12:09:00.000-04:00

I remember reading somewhere that when you crave a particular food it's because your body is missing something (like stores of fat perhaps?). Anyway it's a nice thought when you're craving chocolate, ice cream and Raisinettes

but I'm not so sure when you're craving .....mmmm say, Mustard!

Betcha Nutella's mouth is watering right now!

I had a great, funny conversation with Nutella over the weekend (and I am no doubt ruining her next post as we speak), about the unusual food cravings she's experiencing as a SAHPP (stay at home pregnant person) She's been a fairly strict vegetarian for the past 3 years but has begun eating a little meat, I mean poultry, ....I think partly because she needs the protein as a PP and partly because she'll eat anything that sounds good right now and since that's hardly anything, meat or no meat she's going to eat it. I think she is now up to about 3 grilled chicken sandwiches in a month which is a HUGE thing for her but the really wierd craving is for Mustard.

Her biggest problem right now may be that, although she craves Mustard, she doesn't crave anything that you would put Mustard on (she has admitted to licking some off a hamburger pattie the other day) so may have to resort to just eating it right out of the jar with a spoon. I say, "Whatever Works Sweetie!"

It made me remember (fondly as you might imagine) being a PP myself. With Nutella I craved pickled vegetables, of any and all kinds, but most especially pickled cherry peppers which I bought in huge gallon jars.......mmmmmm, mmmmm, good!

With "Tiny" it was green olives. I'd take them to work with me in a little baggie ... okay, several little baggies......I worked in a government office and I remember one client coming in at 8:30 in the morning and telling us she thought our office smelled like a delicatessen...they made me remove them from my desk drawer and keep them in the lunchroom....oh well, more breaks for me!!!

Along came "Afty", and my cravings finally became sensible. I desired nothing more than a bag or two of chocolate chips a day which resulted in a whopping 42 pound weight gain for me and a dainty baby girl that weighed in at 9 pounds 3 1/2 ounces ....Isn't it funny how we have to tag on the 1/2 ounce.....like it makes a difference at that point......but in the competition between mothers (you know the one "Well yes, that is a big baby but my baby weighed 9 pounds 4.2 ounces!") it can make all the difference......I digress....

So now I'm just trying to figure out what nutrient my body finds in deficit when I crave Three Musketeers Bars for breakfast, ice cream for lunch, and McDonald's french fries for dinner (probably the aforementioned fat stores feeling threatened as we try to eat healthy food......which by the way has resulted in an 11 pound weight loss over the past 5 weeks and nightmares about worldwide famine).

Sure Love Ya!

P.S. You just HAVE to visit "Tiny's" (aka daughter #2) post from yesterday.....you'll get to know all about her in a nutshell!

Crowning "glory?"....or "Time Will Tell?"...

2006-05-29T16:09:00.000-04:00

Okay, so Daughter #3 ("Afty" as she calls herself) wants to have her lovely locks cut off in the tradition of Kelly Pickler (if you’re an American Idol fan you’ll know what I mean, if not….here’s her new style).
Daughter #2 ("Tiny") says it's a big mistake....and me? I'm staying out of it. My track record with hair....well, it isn't so hot ....

Until I was seven I had curly hair ….VERY curly hair, I blame this on my mom, who subscribed to the notion that little girls needed something called a permanent wave…I still remember the boxes of Toni Milk Wave (heaven only knows why they called them that because they sure didn’t smell like milk!). She bought them by the cartful whenever they went on sale….little girls must have curls!!! I love you mom but really……! (as you can see we also needed a handbag to go with our dress and perfect coiffure!)

I still remember in lst grade someone saying “Fuzzy, wuzzy was a bear, fuzzy wuzzy had no hair but Helen does and it IS fuzzy!!!” Kids are cruel…..

Anyway from 2nd grade through 6th I bravely sported a “pixie” (and took NO pictures I guess...) so that I wouldn’t have to have the dreaded lst day of school perm.

Once I got into Junior High I spent hours drying my hair with a hairbrush and the brisk Wyoming wind doing it’s best substitute for the, not yet invented, desperately needed, hand held blow-dryer…..actually it worked pretty well and I eventually declared my hair "naturally straight" and sported the typical hippie hairdo of the 60’s and 70’s……

Then there was the "Farrah Fawcett period"

Followed by the ever popular "mommy with a mullet" look.....(my kids are dying right now)

and the "I can't do anything with my hair in this humidity" do....

I have since made friends with the hair straightener (so much more convenient than laying my head on an ironing board) and have given up style in favor of ....well, I guess it's just neutrality at this point..

If "Afty" wants to cut her hair I won't say no but I thinks she's perfect the way she is.....

(Besides I don’t want her writing a blog someday about how her mom made her wear her hair long and straight when she wanted it short!)

P.S. I'm having a particularly bad hair day today....it's 90 degrees and 85% humidity!

"M" is for.....

2006-05-23T23:09:00.000-04:00

(Thanks Gabriella for giving me a letter! I have such a hard time thinking of blogworthy items .... okay, so yesterday wasn't blogworthy.....anyway THANKS!)

Ten Things that start with "M" .....

1. Menial, as in menial labor..... i.e. tree planting, tractor driving, and being Ward Librarian....(all things I'm intimately acquainted with).

2.Millers: the kind that fly into your hair and get trapped, also the kind that some people find beautiful but I find absolutely terrifyingly freaky .... WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS ON THEIR HEAD!?

3.Miracle Worker: what my children insisted I be, often at a moments notice. .......able to find lost clothing articles instantaneously, work advanced mathematical equations, without a calculator, over the phone; and construct meals out of kid friendly items like peanut butter, chocolate and chicken nuggets; all with a happy smile and sunny disposition (M is also for Mary Poppins!)

4. M is for MoreMom: The religion Daughter #2 used to tell people we belonged to.....it made perfect sense to her.

5. Mattress: The inanimate object that beats me to a pulp nine out of ten times I try to flip it .... when they call them innerspring they're not kidding!

6. Mickey Mouse: The only rodent I would ever call "friend", chiefly because he lives at our home away from home, Disneyworld! (And because he wears those cute little red shorts!)

7. Matilda, Minerva, Morticia: Names I can think of that would be worse than my own ("Helen" ).

8. Marriage: an alliance entered into by a man who can't sleep with the window open, and a woman who can't sleep with the window shut.

9. Mental: the kind of work you're doing when everyone insists you're sleeping

10.Mule: what men believe to be a cross between a horse and a donkey but women know is a VERY cute shoe!

"The Contractor" is in control.....

2006-05-22T21:09:00.000-04:00

I never thought I needed a maid. I always knew if I ever got one it would just mean I had to clean earlier in the day to make sure everything looked nice when she got here....obviously not worth the money.

Seriously, I don't know how I ever worked full time and kept my house clean (I know right now Nutella and Tiny are saying......we know how she did it.....she had us!) Okay, maybe. I've only been planting trees for 4 weeks and I feel like I'm losing control of my surroundings. I guess the difference now is that when I come home from "work" I'm dead tired and don't want to clean. For the most part the house stays pretty much picked up because we're all gone all day. I have a Roomba that does the vacuuming for me every day and I always get the dishes done before we leave because I'm obsessive about that but the things that I'm losing the battle on are things like....dusting, toilet cleaning, mirror cleaning, and OH MY GOSH....the lawn, you should see the lawn!

We leave early in the morning so I don't notice it then but when we get home at night I swear it brings tears to my eyes. It's a good thing we live in a woods and the neighbors can't see it......they'd probably assume we were dead inside the house or something, we NEVER let our grass grow like this. The only days we aren't working are #1...when it's raining, and #2 on Sunday.....neither one offers any possibility of mowing. (I have a headlight on the mower but I'm not at that point yet!)

Adding to my stress at the moment is the ...... shall we call him ....."The Contractor". The contractor was hired in August last year to do two jobs, #1 build a rock fireplace to complete our Log Cabin....we'd been looking for 12 years for someone who could do real masonry work and finally found him.....and his #2 job?.....to re-roof our house which received some damage in a big hail storm last spring. The fireplace was projected to take 10 days to 2 weeks -- it took them 2 months to get started and SIXTY TWO DAYS to finish! I was ready to scream.

Well, when you build a fireplace like that there is a lot of ..... mess......inside and out. The inside I took care of, the outside ..... which consists of piles of leftover mortar, cement blocks, wooden pallets, cigarette butts (amazingly those are part of constructing a fireplace.....huh? who would've thunk), pop cans, styrofoam cups, bottles, metal strapping, tarps, plastic, wood, etc. etc. etc.

All of this stuff was left when the fireplace was finished just before Thanksgiving. "The Contractor" said that when they started the roof (in the next two weeks, weather permitting ....that was in NOVEMBER!) they would bring in a big dumpster for the roof stuff and all the mess would be picked up then.

Fast forward to May 2006. They started the roof (after constant nagging) about two weeks ago, they only finished the back of the house because it then began raining. They haven't been back. We called "The Contractor" on Friday last week and he said the next two consecutive sunny days (which is what they need....supposedly) would be "next" Monday and Tuesday (that means today and tomorrow). We left for another day of tree planting at 7:30 this morning and when we got home guess what.....NO ROOF! AAAAAAGGGGGHHHH!

Now we are living with a yard full of rubble from the fireplace, a roof that is half done, (including rain gutters half torn off and boards nailed to the roof from when the worked on the chimney LAST FALL!) and a HUGE dumpster the size of a rail car parked next to my porch! It's totally driving me crazy. I feel stressed enough just trying to keep up with the laundry and things I have to do inside, but to have the "public" side of my house look like this is more than I can handle.

To answer my own question, ....no I don't need a maid (they don't clean yards), I need a miracle!

A little support, please....(and I don't mean hosiery!)

2006-05-19T21:28:00.000-04:00

Okay, if anyone who reads my blog did not get here by linking from Ciao Bella!
(aka Nutella) then I'll tell you now that she's my daughter and if you've been reading her blog then you know she's pregnant!!!! I'm trying not to be TOO excited because I don't want to "pressure" her ... BUT as I told her I learned how to be a grandma from my grandma and she was the BEST,......I just know I'm going to be so great at it!!! Visit her blog and give her support okay? (Cause from you it won't be pressure!)

AND Daughter #2 announced today that she has her own blog! I am so happy.....she was too busy as a college freshman but now working full time at one job and part time at another she has found time!!! YAY! Give her your support too cause I love her too.

Daughter #3 has a blog but I'm not sharing hers with the world cause she's only 13 and I don't want to get her a stalker or something.

Thanks for your congratulations everyone.....it was easy for me.....becoming a grandma that is......I can't wait! Grammy, I'm going to have to change my blogger name now huh? AND I'm going to quit complaining about being 50 because as a Grandma that's the perfect age!

Sure Love Ya! Life is great today!

You'll laugh!!!

2006-05-19T07:32:00.000-04:00

Okay, once again no time to blog except that I did think I could share this.....if you didn't get it on Mother's Day in your spam e-mails you really should see it....it will make you laugh! Click here!

Sure Love Ya! (And thanks to Brenda for sharing it with me in the first place!)

A few thoughts...

2006-05-17T20:17:00.000-04:00

I hardly have time to blog today, just a minute or two while the water tank is filling on the truck.

I was thinking last night about the little "thoughts" I've collected over the course of my 50 years, some from friends, some from lessons at church, some from my own little head in response to some situation or other...here's a sampling:

If you don't have anything good to say.....think harder!

You're always an example, to someone.

Good deeds always come back to you, bad ones have a way of spreading out further and further from you (sobering thought huh?)

If you act happy pretty soon you will be.

If you want to have a friend, be a friend.

Nothing is harder than trying to take back something you said.

You will never be happier than you expect to be.

.....along those same lines:

People generally live up to your expectations of them, good or bad!

Hope you all have a great day today.....and that you contribute to someone else having a great day!

Sure Love Ya!

Helen

Landmarks....

2006-05-16T08:47:00.000-04:00

I laughed at Gabriela's post yesterday, you really need to see it....I laughed not only because the landmark for her town is a giant shrimp (is that possible....a "giant" shrimp?) but because a landmark in my "Smalltown" is a giant.....well, what do you think it is?

This is located on the edge of our local University's campus....as far as I know no one really knows what it represents but you can imagine the kind of guesses.

(I have driven past the above "sculpture" at least twice a day every day for 12 years.....TODAY when I went to take the picture it was gone!! No kidding, in it's place at the entrance to the University is now this one.....apparently they heard I was going to publish the fact that they were represented by the infamous "Big Brown ****!".....I had to walk through campus and finally found the original tucked away in the center ....not visible anymore from the main thoroughfare...go figure : )

Next to that, the most famous landmark is Ivanhoe's, a local ice cream place that people come from far and wide to visit, weeknights it's not unusual to have over 50 people waiting patiently in line to get their "fix". Unfortunately for my waistline we partake of Ivanhoes fare at least once a week. Here's a sampling of their 100 shakes and 100 sundaes menu....

My Favorite: Trojan 1 Shake
Blended peanut butter, frozen yogurt, chopped nuts and chocolate chips.

HH's Favorite: Peanut Butter Crazy Shake
Ice cream blended with peanut butter, chopped nuts, topped with a scoop of hand-dipped chocolate ice cream, more peanut butter and lots of Spanish peanuts.

My Mother-in-law's Favorite: Fudge Crumb Deluxe Sundae
Chocolate nut brownie topped with hand-dipped French vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, a cloud of whipped cream and a maraschino cherry.

Nutella's Favorite (before she moved away and got healthy!) Black Forest Shake
A whirlwind of chocolate cookie crumbles and maraschino cherries in a vanilla yogurt shake.

My "old" favorite : Trojan II Shake
Blended mint chocolate chip ice cream swirled with delicious cookie dough pieces, topped with a scoop of hand dipped chocolate ice cream.

Everyone's favorite: Incredible Edible

Cookie dough pieces, crushed Reese's Cup blended in a vanilla yogurt shake with Hot fudge and Hershey bars stirred in, more hot fudge and spanish peanuts served on the side! YUM!

Daughter #2 liked anything fruity but never settled on one thing, she's kind of a health nut so doesn't indulge much

Daughter #3 just graduated from her five year run of nothing but "Clown Sundaes" (favorite flavor of ice cream topped iwth a sugar cone hat, a collar of whipped cream dressed up with candies, cookies and nuts) to a "Dirt Cup Shake" which is nothing but a vanilla shake with crushed oreos and gummi worms on top......which will probably last another five years before she decides to try something new.

Great!, it's only 9:20 in the morning and I'm craving ice cream! Have a great day!

P.S. (Let me know your thoughts on our sculpture(the original) .... and Gabriela -- aren't you glad you have a shrimp?)

You are what you think......now I'm worried!

2006-05-15T15:29:00.000-04:00

Today was one of those days when I got to actually have lunch with people I like! Unfortunately I've fallen into this habit of taking people to lunch when I don't really want to go anywhere with them but I have to see them for some reason or other......this has done nothing for my digestion!

Anyway today I had lunch with Beth, a great friend, AND someone who I know will make me laugh out loud at least once during lunch....it feels so good to laugh and she can make anything funny...what a great quality..... thanks Beth, I needed that!

On to today's musings....

While trying to wake up this morning I had quite the conversation with myself about going out to exercise....it was a long process but the "Good Helen" finally won out and kicked the "Bad Helen" out of bed. All the way to the garage I was laughing about how often I have these conversations with myself. Every morning it's the same conversation and every morning the outcome is the same but the script continues.....

I've also noticed that if I walk to the mailbox to get the mail I automatically count my steps (it's 900 roundtrip....only 11 trips a day and I get in my 10,000 steps to good health!) Oddly enough even if I get distracted my subconscious is still counting!!! Really! Sometimes I'm thinking about something totally different and....."I wonder if I resubscribed to Better Homes and Gardens Magazine I don't remember getting one for a........97, 98, 99, ....while", "Maybe we'll have sunshine tomorrow it sure is ........547, 548, 549, 550,........ gloomy!" I know that's wierd but it just happens, sort of, automatically...... the side benefit is that it saves me from looking for the pedometer I bought but can never find when I need it.

When I fold the laundry I mentally count the number of items of each color .....4, no 5 black, 3 green, 2 pink .......no ONE pink and one maroon. I never do it when I sort, or put away, only when I fold. I am seriously wierded out by this and haven't ever admitted it to anyone but you....I have no idea where this started and I only hope I can keep the voices inside my head ......I worry constantly about what I'll be like as an Alzheimer's patient....

Then there's that really annoying habit of spelling backwards. If anyone ever asks me to spell a word I spell it, but then in my secret "inside" voice, I have to "re-spell" it backwards.....I can only assume this behavior comes from competition with my dad as I was growing up. He could spell backwards as fast as he could spell forwards.....it drove me crazy as I could NEVER beat him at it.

Most of my little "running thoughts" revolve around counting though, ....... the swipes of the windshield wipers, the revolutions of the eliptical machine ...divided into revolutions per minute, the number of trees planted in a row (while driving the tractor).....you know the normal stuff.

Am I crazy (probably) ....... 212, 213, 214......or just "mentally exercised?"

Mom's Day......(or so they say!)

2006-05-14T18:41:00.000-04:00

A Mother's Love

I meant to write this yesterday but I was busy cooking all day so I wouldn't have to cook today!

I thought it might be fun to remember all the little "lessons" I learned from my mom (I know you've read those funny little e-mails that have made the rounds...."Things my mother taught me" this may not be as entertaining but it's true!)

1. I learned that if you sew on Sunday you'll have to pick every stitch out with your nose when you get to Heaven.
2. I learned that if you're mean to your sister you're gonna have to hug her AND kiss her before the day is up.
3. I learned that trying to read late at night by the light that comes under the crack of the bedroom door is going to cause a terrible headache....one way or another.
4. I learned that homemade bread with butter and honey is the PERFECT thing to make a bad day seem better (probably why I constantly battle my weight issues).
5. I learned that if you add tomatoes and tuna fish to Kraft Macaroni and Cheese you can call it homemade .
6. I learned that if you're too sick to go to school you're also too sick to play, read, watch tv or have ANY fun.
7. I learned that anything that can be purchased from J.C. Penney can be made by my mom for half-the price.
8. I learned that patience is a virtue and for some reason mom was always "running out of it" when she was dealing with me.....
9. I learned that the quickest way to clean house was not make a mess in the first place (unfortunately I never understood that one until I had a house of my own).
10. I learned that girls can do anything boys can do.
11. I learned that helping someone was the best feeling in the world.

12. I learned that when you're tired you work anyway.
13. I learned that lots of people have bigger houses, newer cars, and fancier clothes but nobody has more love.

And most of all I learned that when you're a mom sometimes you wait a long time for your kids to come and tell you how much you mean to them and how important your influence has been. But when they do it's the best thing in the world!

Mom.....I love you.....thanks for all you've done for me!

Happy Mother's Day to all, here's hoping you can rest tomorrow : )

Sure Love Ya!

I love the rain....

2006-05-11T21:28:00.000-04:00

It's been raining here since yesterday....I got to sleep all night with the windows open and the sound of rain on the roof......a perfect night! I'll admit it, I even like thunderstorms at night, they're just so .....powerful and awe-inspiring. I think I passed my love for them on to Daughter #2 cause she used to head outside at the first rumble wrapped in a quilt ..... she'd sit there in a porch rocker and read while the storm raged.... I on the other hand like to BAKE when it's raining.......bread, chocolate chip cookies, mmmmmm! (Oh heck! I forgot we have to eat good around here now RATS!)

And of course there's a little side benefit .... I DIDN'T HAVE TO DRIVE THE TRACTOR AND PLANT ANY DARNED OLD TREES TODAY!!!! (I know I'm pathetic, unambitious and appear to be lazy as well....what can I say?)

Anyway, here in my part of the world rain in the spring (and fall too) is just part of life. It's okay, it makes things green and I keep telling everyone from my old home state of Wyoming that they'll have wrinkles before me cause it's so dry and here it's anything but! (I suppose that should mean my wrinkles would be outies not innies eventually huh?)

I had a few things to learn about rain when I moved here. Number one.....when it rains for days and days you get floods.....they actually cancel school here because so many country roads get flooded. Unfortunately, having never experienced it before, water flowing across a street was a unknown commodity for me and I met my first "puddle" with exhuberance.....it seemed to me that going fast through the deep parts would be the best (so as not to let water run in the doors) but I learned that when you go fast through water over a foot deep it stalls the engine....bummer!

I"ve also noticed that out West where I'm from, the thunderstorms lose a lot of their rain as they cross over the mountains, they also seem to lessen in intensity. BOY of BOY the thunderstorms here are downright AWESOME! I never experienced the level of noise and longevity that we get with our storms here. Luckily I've never been afraid of them so didn't pass on some wierd thunderaphobia to my kids.

....on a sidenote I have to laugh at my sister-in-law who would don a football helmet, force all her kids to do the same, and spend 4 hours in a coat closet if there was even distant thunder. Noone out here has basements, the water table is just too high and that means a wet basement......so for protection you have the old coat closet. I don't know why thinking about all my neighbors in their closets strikes me as funny, I feel bad laughing about it....really......... HaHaHaHa (okay, I'm better now).

Anyway it's supposed to rain today, tomorrow, and all weekend....I plan on taking lots of naps and sitting by a toasty fire! Aaaaahhhh, now this is the life! (I suppose I'm going to wake up and find it's all a dream.......hopefully I'm not on the tractor driving!)

Hey you know the other great thing about rain? Rainbows!

Daughters......

2006-05-09T20:37:00.000-04:00

Daughter #3 reminded us the other day that she would be driving in ONLY two years and four months! She told us, not so much because she knew we'd be excited, but rather to give us ample time to save up for her chosen car which she has informed us is the Mitsubishi Spider. (Right, honey.....I'll just put that on my "To Buy" list for September 2009 : )

First of all, any car with a name like "spider" doesn't exactly conjur up thoughts of teenage girls driving safely and sanely down the road at slightly under the posted speed limit.

Secondly, unfortunately for Daughter #3, the parents in this household have learned a thing or two from Daughters #1 and #2.

When Daughter #1 (aka Nutella) approached driving age I believe we were in our 30's.....pretty smart about just about everything in life (really......I think we actually said that!). We did our research and came up with a little "contract" for her to sign prior to receiving, and driving, her first car. It covered just about everything.......well, maybe not everything....

Unfortunately, it did not cover any of the circumstances that would result in FOUR, count 'em FOUR, wrecks she would have between age 16 and age 18 when she would (finally) leave our home sans car and go off to college.

She reminds us often that it could hardly be her fault when someone at school drives a monster truck and somehow managed to drive OVER the front of her car which was parked next to him (he said he didn't see it...........no kidding!). Nor, does she think, that it is her fault that she stops at the stop sign leaving school, but the person behind her doesn't, and slams into her, knocking the back bumper off. Likewise the late night accident where she slid off a city street in an ice storm, unhurt, no damage but stuck in a small ditch........then while being towed out of the ditch, a college student came along, made the same mistake she did and slammed into the jeep pulling her out....bounced off and smashed into her car completely totalling it. She has no excuse for the other accident in which SHE was the car that didn't stop in time.

Anyway, after Daugher #1 we modified the car contract ..... for Daughter #2....

1. You MUST park as far from everyone else at school as is possible and still make it to class on time......the extra walking will save you money at the gym.
2. We never thought we'd ask this, but from now on we want you to linger after school (in a non-obvious kind of way so as not to appear suspicious) to make sure you're the LAST kid driving out of the parking lot (okay, if the jocks are practicing you can leave before them).
3. NO passengers in your car for the first six months of driving solo! (Unless it's your sister and then only if she doesn't talk to you).
4. IF you manage to graduate from High School without any accidents (regardless of fault) we will pay for you and a friend to take a trip wherever you choose (I might as well just admit it here that this one was a BIG mistake!!!)

Well, Daughter #2 didn't let us down, she didn't have a single accident, ........not one! We were so proud.......well, sort of. The fact is that although she didn't have ANY accidents she DID have tickets.....several of them. She got tickets for speeding, reckless driving and running stop signs!!!!! (Unfortunately, a contract is a contract and we only specified she remain accident free, so she compromised and went with a friend to Hawaii "on us" instead of France....her first choice!)

You guessed it..... this is daughter #2 in action at the wheel!

Need I say more? Daughter #3, I love you dearly so.......

A. You're not getting a Mitsubishi Spider, but all is not lost...I'm considering a Oldsmobile Delta 88.....nice, sensible and reliable (also made of real STEEL, not fiberglass......TAKE THAT MONSTER TRUCKS!)

B. You'll get a trip too, but only if you never get a ticket OR have an accident and then only to a location somewhere in the lower 48.....
C. No passengers until you turn 21 (unless it's your mother).
D. You may drive to school but only if you park in the teacher's parking lot next to that really old lady that teaches science.....
E. A car is not a toy so we won't expect to see you enjoying it too much.....

Parting thought..............Yup, it's probably a really good thing we don't have a Daughter #4

Sure Love Ya!

Huh?

2006-05-07T15:54:00.000-04:00

I don’t usually take time on Sunday to blog but I will today as I have finished some studying and don’t want to take a nap (very weird for me!). I miss having the time to write each day and find the longer a span between writing the harder it is for me to come up with anything good to write about, Anyway....

I had a little laugh the other day when Grammy told me she hadn’t been posting much as she was busy with RS in her ward. It made me chuckle because if we didn’t belong to the same church I’d probably not even have a clue what she was talking about. It’s funny how Latter Day Saints have a language all their own, by way of translation here’s a little cheat sheet:

Ward: Not the loony bin in the local mental hospital (although could pass for that in some locations!) but rather the name for a group of us "Mormons" who live within a designated boundary and meet at the same church building.

Stake Center: Not "STEAK" center, and certainly not anything like Outback (kind of disappointing to our friends when we invite them to come with us for a fun evening at the stake center). Just a larger building where several "Wards" (see above) get together for food, fun, inspiration/instruction, service, and ....did I say food?

Saints: Another term for a group of "mormons", since our name is really not mormons at all, but "members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" we sometimes refer to ourselves (loosely in most cases) as just "Latter Day Saints", or "saints" . (Never let it be said we don’t think well of ourselves).

RS: Acronym for Relief Society, organization of "sisters" who meet together to learn about Jesus Christ, and how to serve their family, friends, neighbors (and to make/eat food).

YM/YW: Acronym for Young Men/Young Women, the youth program of the church formerly known as Mutual, MIA (Mutual Improvement Association), .....and in some "wards" those rowdy young people.

Primary: Not the election kind.....but rather youth not old enough to go to YW/YM ..... they meet in Primary to learn about Jesus Christ, Heavenly Father, the prophets and oh yes.....the Holy Ghost (aka to Sunbeams as "The holey goat"......sorry one little girl really said that ......too cute......).

Sister: The proper way to address any woman of the church (except when shouting at her from across Walmart........in which case everyone turns to see if there’s a nun in the store).

Brother: The address for men in the church.....as in.....Brother Hanson is married to Sister Hanson (you know the one we shouted at in Walmart?).

BOM: Book of Mormon, only the best book ever, not to mention the only way to understand other well used terms like 1 Ne, 2 Ne., 3 Ne., etc.

Sunbeams: Not streaming through the windows......more like screaming through the halls....aka three year olds trying to master "Primary".

FHE: Family Home Evening ....a night for spiritual instruction, fun, and what else....Food! Usually on Monday night, it's designed to help families have at least one night a week JUST to spend together. This is also known (depending on the age and hearing/speaking ability of your children) as Family Home Eating, Family Home Eviling, Family Home Meeting, or Family, our meeting!

And just for fun..... here’s something I read that illustrates the point.........

"I remember while I was serving my mission in Ohio (90-92) we received a memo from somewhere (I don’t remember if it was the COB) stating that we were to do away with acronyms in the mission field. No more DL, ZL, ZDM, AP, DA and so forth. So we tried not to use them in the MTC or at BYU or FHE. We encouraged the YM and YW not to use them, as well as the RS and MP; especially not in
PEC"

Sure Love Ya!

For Instance, did you know....

2006-05-06T17:15:00.000-04:00

Thanks to my friend Suzie Q I've been tagged for this one(so actually have something to blog about and can do it in the short amount of time I have available)....

For instance, did you know...

Four jobs I have had...
1. Typist in a typing pool (the olden days)
2. Dispatcher for aircraft (forest fires)
3. Human Resources Assistant (Federal Government)
4. Vice-President (of HH's company : ) )

Four movies I would watch over and over...
1. Message in a bottle.
2. Any of the Harry Potters
3. Planes,Trains and Automobiles (Clean Films Version)
4. Holiday Inn

Four places I have lived...
1. Cody, Wyoming
2. Sheridan, Wyoming,
3. Afton, Wyoming (see a trend here......?)
4. Indiana

Four TV shows I love to watch... (now you'll know I'm a reality TV junkie...sorry)
1. Little People, Big World
2. Dangerous Catch
3. Survivor (I'm so sorry.....I can't help myself)
4. Small Spaces, Big Style

Four places I have been on vacation...
1. Mexico
2. Disneyworld (a million times)
3. Hawaii (I wanna go back!)
4. New York City

Four places I would like to go on vacation...
1. Italy (with Nutella and JD!)
2. Australia
3. Book of Mormon Central American tour
4. Japan

Four web sites I visit often:
1. The Pink Factor
2. Sweet Mama Entropy
3. Grammy Rules
4. Ciao Bella!

Four favorite foods:
1. Ice Cream
2. Chocolate (IT IS TOO A FOOD!)
3. Sweet potatoes
4. Lobster Bisque

Where I would like to be right now:
1. Hawaii
2. Florida
3. In bed
4. Driving home from the last tree planting job of the season! : )

Now to tag you:
1. Grammy Rules
2. Gabriela
3. Ciao Bella
4. Sweet Mama Entropy

(and anyone else who wants to share......tell me so I can get to know you!)

I have a bone to pick with someone...

2006-05-02T15:44:00.000-04:00

Okay, I do appreciate most (but certainly not ALL) of the differences between men and women. For instance, I really like the fact that HH seems inately adept at fixing all manner of broken objects, killing really ugly bugs without flinching, diagnosing the cause of the "noise" coming from the front of the car or the back of the washing machine, and generally being extremely handy for just about any of my many (and varied) needs.

However, I DO not appreciate that cruel twist of nature that causes HH to drop 14 pounds in 9 days eating "sensibly" while I lose a mere 4. I also do not appreciate the fact that although I exercise religiously 45 minutes to one hour EVERY SINGLE DAY OF MY LIFE except Sunday (and have for over 4 years now) I can eat no more than 1000 calories a day (950 of which must be undigestible fiber) without gaining weight.

Several years ago I lost a whopping 48 pounds over the course of 6 months (April to October) .... how did I do it you ask? Well, frankly after not losing one single pound for the first two weeks eating 1200 calories a day, I became eating challenged and dropped my calorie intake to 300 calories a day. That's right....an eating disorder. I didnt' think it was an eating disorder, I simply skipped breakfast and lunch and ate a HUGE salad with hard boiled egg and cheese on top with vinegar for dressing for dinner(every single night), that's pretty normal isnt it?

Okay, of course it isn't, even writing it down makes it sound wierd and sick and I can't imagine what I was thinking.....it just became habit and I was so desperate to lose weight. At the same time I exercised 30 minutes every morning, 30 minutes at lunch, and one hour in the evenings if I had time.

Now according to all the medical journals I should have lost about ONE HUNDRED and forty eight pounds, not just forty eight, but nevertheless I was happy with those forty eight. I am five foot four inches tall and at the time had actually gotten to a gigantic 174 pounds before dropping down to 126 (I think some stupid insurance chart even says my "ideal" weight is 116!!!!!).

I have never put all of the weight back on which I am happy about and proud of, but I have regained about 24 of those original 48 which is really really not fun. I hate my entire life to be centered around food, and yet it sometimes seems that just that way. I just don't think this is what Heavenly Father wants for me and yet, here I am, in competition with dear HH who is trying to just be healthy (high cholesterol and high blood sugar) while I only care about being thin (low blood pressure, normal blood sugar, normal cholesterol levels, and yes normal thyroid function.....my body is just VERY VERY efficient at using those calories!)

HH and I had a conversation this morning about my inability to be happy about his weight loss.....it makes me sad that I can't get excited about it but I'm not that "big"hearted......(forgive me, I'm trying).

Anyway, if the time ever comes that anyone asks my opinion I'm going to suggest that the next humans that are created should at least be imbued with the same metabolism!!!

Okay, I'm so over it! Sure love ya....: )