i guess i had a birthday …or somethin’ like that

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36. i am now 36. i feel old. and i feel young. in different ways.

i started out the day (Monday – Martin Luther King Day) in a bit of a grouchy funk. I kinda tried. I got up with Lizzy at 6:30. Jimmy was at basketball. Hannah decided to make me a fabulous breakfast which was nice and all. But vegetable oil ended up down the cupboard and on the floor. So when Jimmy came home from b-ball with some roses, I was cleaning up vegetable oil and dealing with tots. I wasn’t very cheerful… like at all. Wow – I’m fun.

So we figured out breakfast… waffles with raspberries, peaches, whip cream, and syrup. They were tasty.

Then i went and hid in bed for a few hours… hoping to – ya know – hide. It didn’t really work.

Then i decided to cheer up. My parents came and brought very glorious New York Cheesecake (Choc Mousse and Raspberry). It was quite divine. They cheered the afternoon. Then we got some stuffed pizza and some movies from Redbox to watch.

overall… it was … a day. I’m glad for all the nice messages I got from people. Gracias.

the roses are still lovely. The lego heart and people (me and Abe) were from Abraham. Hannah gave me a tangerine-colored cooty catcher… with some treats inside. It was sweet. Max gave me a big hug and a big kiss.

So glad my birthday is over… now – onto the rest of the year!

in the SALVATION business

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can’t wait to get the pdf of this message. oh, there is so much more that WE can BE… as a sisterhood… as mothers… as a Relief Society. Onward and Upward.

inner stillness & whisperings of the Spirit

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One of the things I’ve realized lately is how important it is to have the Holy Ghost with me as much as possible. Especially as a mother and in my calling as R.S. President, I’ve recognized that I NEED the Spirit to guide me for I just can’t know everything on my own (yes, my callings in life humble me). In the first part of January I knew I needed to make mucho changes to visiting teaching routes. Wow – what a job! It takes so many hours… and thought… and guidance. The prayer in my heart that came to mind all that week was this:
This song took on new meaning to me. It was no longer about me teaching my kids… it was about the Lord guiding me… His child. The “I know I don’t know it all, so please guide my thoughts, my actions, my decisions for my family and for the sisters in my ward” prayer.

I’ve tried to listen to these whisperings. It’s hard, because there is rarely silence in my life. I’ve tried to be aware of feelings. If I keep feeling weird about a decision or something going on in r.s., I finally realize maybe it is the Spirit teaching me that I need to take action and change something.

I remember the book Forest Born that I read a few years ago. I loved the message. It is a book about the journey Rinna takes to learn to create a stillness and peace inside herself despite all the chaos around her.

Anyhoo… just some Sunday night ramblings about what goes on inside of me. Thoughts from the past few weeks. I’m so grateful for the Holy Ghost to guide us. So grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who doesn’t leave us alone on our journey back to Him. I certainly need those quiet whisperings.

Color in the Bleak mid-Winter

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“It looks bleak outside” said I the other day.
The kids said, “What does bleak mean?”
Said I, “oh… i’m not sure of the definition… but look outside and you’ll know.”

Well kids… here is the definition from websters for ya.

bleak:
: exposed and barren and often windswept
: cold, raw
: lacking in warmth, life, or kindliness : grim
: not hopeful or encouraging

Yep. It’s bleak… without snow of course, because why would it snow in Utah in the winter… it’s not like we claim to have the best snow on earth or anything.

What will help in the bleak mid-winter?

color. go to target and look at the clearance rack in the kid’s section … tangerine… raspberry… turquoise… it’s fun. then go to the plasticware section… grass, tangerine, red, teal… it’s bright and full of delight.

This is what is helping me through the blahs of January… COLOR & CREATIVITY.

These are my new upcoming PRODUCT LINES (ha-ha… it makes me laugh to act like I have a real business or something). Think “United States of America” … and “LDS Espanol Art”…. not mixed together, mind you.   I’m Lovin’ It!

p.s. Did you know about the poem “In the Bleak Midwinter” by Christina Georgina Rossetti. I decided to look it up to see if it was as BLEAK as it sounded. It’s rather good. It’s a Christmas poem… and ends in this familiar way:

What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
I would bring a lamb,
If I were a wise man
I would do my part,
Yet what I can I give Him,
Give my heart.

Now that is a bit of cheer.

It’s AMAZing

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I didn’t know that one without tonsils could get strep throat. I guess my body is that AMAZing to beat the odds and get sick with Strep. Aren’t you glad I found such a fun picture of Streptococcus Bacteria cells?

During the Summer of 2006 – at age 30, I found an ENT who would take my tonsils out. Yay! It was a really, really hard recovery for 10 days. But since then I’ve been 1,000 times healthier. This is my first major sore throat. I knew it was different than just a sore throat from a cold. So I headed to the doctor. Strep was +. Man! Then I took Abe to the doctor since he had a sore throat. Strep was + (for the second time in a month). Hurray for antibiotics. Just don’t give me amoxicillin… my body doesn’t like it and I get the worst hives ever.

Anyhoo… so now we’re eating lots of Orange Creamsicles. They slip, slide, and freeze that sore throat. We just have to snuggle up by the heater so we don’t freeze.

Thanks goes to mother for saving us all yesterday and watching the tots so I could go to the doctor (and then wait for 2 hours for my prescription… seriously?! Don’t go to Walmart for your prescription… ever!). A big thanks goes to Hannah who put ZuZu down for a nap while I was waiting for my tylenol to kick in so I wouldn’t be achy. Thank you Truman for taking a long nap and then watching UP next to me in bed so I could rest. Thanks to Jimmy for making tomato-almond-pesto dinner with zucchini that was tasty and slipped right down. Thanks to advil and benadryl which helps me sleep better.

p.s. anyone know the secret to getting blood out of tennis shoes? Hannah just had to be picked up from school from a major bloody nose. aaak. we’ve got blood on jeans, sweatshirt, coat, shoelaces, tennis shoes… sigh. good thing my mom is the best in the world at getting out stains… i’ll call her right away.

p.p.s. i love my beautiful, ordinary life??

Be filled with JOY

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My sister Janers gave me this print… oh, like 2 years ago as payment for a project or something of the sort. I love it! But it was an odd size and I had trouble figuring out a frame size. Well this week Michaels had frames 50% off so I found a size that would work. What cheer! I love seeing the print.

Speaking of being filled with JOY. Here are 2 tots who like each other… who are cheerful little tykes. Max says things like, “Oh, sweetie, sweetie, sweetie. It will be okay.” Then he squints his eyes & grins like an inch away from her face.

Cute little bugsy having some tummy time. She better not start crawling soon. I want her to stay little. Sigh…

Jimmy clipping nails. She was sucking on his arm. She’s at the stage when she’ll suck on anything. Oh Eliza!

I could sit and hold Eliza all day. She fun to snuggle & play with. Her cheeks are so squishy & kissable. She’s starting to learn to gab & it’s sweet. Cute little bug. Thank you photographer Max for cutting off most of my double chin.

I love that tots are so good at being filled with JOY.

let’s talk paint

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i really, really, really want to repaint my entire house. the walls are looking dingy. several things need to be repaired (ya know… we have kids and all). and I really, really want to use this color..

Behr… Castle Path…

You know… because my sister Mary has it on her walls and I really like it.

The tan on my walls now is too peachy for me. This Castle Path has more grey in it. You know how I love grey (Hannah always rolls her eyes at me about grey!).

And the blue wall in my dining room has gotta go. I’ve never liked it… never.

Can I paint my house? Ugg… seems like a forever long chore. But perhaps a good winter project?

ups and downs

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Truman spilled an entire (yes… a very full) pitcher of lemonade all over the kitchen table… through all 4 cracks… all over the base… to the floor… all over the chairs… everywhere…. oh, like 5 minutes before dinner. A downer.

We now have a cleaner table (at least between the cracks). The floor may still need some scrubbing. Still… on the Up and up.

The kids seemed to be screaming at each other or melting down whenever someone came to my door today. A downer.

They understood and said they’d “been there.” Up and up.

Pretty much don’t like talking about the budget. A downer.

Talked with sisters and mom today. Up and up.

Dinner was a bit dried out since we had a big mess to clean up before we ate it. A Downer.

At least we had food to eat. Up and up.

I made Pioneer Woman apple dumplings for dessert. Really on the Up and up.

Goobs stuck on the counter. A downer.

Hannah helped load the dishwasher without being asked. Up and up.

A sweet lady named Faith gave us a homemade crocheted steel-wool pot scrubber. Up and up and a major smile.

Seriously – 3 members of my family let it rip within 30 seconds. Seriously people? They laughed their heads off.  A funny Downer.

Jimmy bought Gas-x today. Up and up.

Trying to figure out companionship changes for Visiting Teaching. A Downer because it’s quite complicated and takes hours and hours.

We finally got all the reports in from the vt supervisors. Up and up.

Maybe spent time on the computer when I should have been doing the dishes or folding laundry. A Downer.

But am lovin’ doing my etsy shop. It is fun and fills up my creative spot inside. Up and Up.

Here are a few orders I’ve done this past month.

p.s. i love the etsy lovelies at the top of this post … sorry i don’t have links for them all.

2012 One Little Word

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1st up… review One Little Word 2011… which really turned out to be 3 little words = 1 big idea… CREATE POSITIVE CHANGE.

Yah… I don’t know if I did very well at that. I think I hibernated in my bed for 4 months feeling like puking every minute. Thank you pregnancy for that! Then we made it through the summer … had a baby… and called as R.S. President. I think Survive… and try to Thrive… would have been a better ‘One Big Idea’ for me.

But I did create a bit of change. We had Family Morning Devotional more often. We memorized more scriptures as a family. We taught the kids how to clean bathrooms and sweep the floor. We sure tried. And in my world… trying counts for something. I don’t know what – but something.

On to 2012…Our ward R.S. theme is “May Christ Lift Thee Up.” Moroni 9:25.

So going along with that… my word is UPLIFT. Meaning I want to remember to turn to Christ… to recognize the strength and joy that comes from Him… to understand the Atonement better… that comfort and healing and lifting up from Christ.

And then in turn, help UPLIFT others around me… my husband, my kids, friends, neighbors, ward members… help testify and share and LIVE that JOY and healing that comes only from Christ.

p.s. color of the year… tangerine. lovin’ it. cheer. color. vitamin c. bright. fun. go tangerine!

Gifts – Life – Healing

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p.s. so much going on this week. finally wrapped up The Giving Tree for the ward. huge job! Doctor’s appointments today for Eliza and Max. Shots. Ouch. Mostly trying to keep the house and family together. Love this new quote up in the shop… perfect encouragement for today.

Tomorrow: get the home and family in order so we can actually enjoy the weekend. major tidying going on. major laundry and dishes. happy-happy-joy-joy.