car conversations...

Me: Honey, you really need to get over this whole "not liking to talk to people" thing.

16 year old (completely serious): Human contact is overrated.

when sisters attack...

My poor son. His sisters got bored the other night and decided to play beauty salon with him. He tried to run away so I couldn't take his picture...but then finally just crumbled, defeated into the corner. Nice eye shadow, huh?

quote of the week...

"The test of a man or woman's breeding is how they behave in a quarrel."

--George Bernard Shaw

just in case I forget to tell you, #2

Dear Children:

I think you'll come to discover that much of what you get out of this life will have to do with your perspective, and what you choose to focus on. You know how I love Abraham Lincoln, and one of my favorite quotes from him is, "Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." I believe that.

Let me give you an example that I believe is powerful. Here are 2 women's lives.

The first woman:

grew up in a very unhappy home
was abused in every possible way
could not trust the people in her family
learned not to have faith in herself
was parented with spiritual and emotional manipulation
watched her entire family fall apart when she was 17
had to move out with no family to speak of when she was 18
had no sense of what a relationship with God could be
lost both parents to death
struggled to build her own sense of worth
didn't know what a healthy relationship was
had no idea how to parent in a good way

The second woman:

was taught as a child that God loved her and knew her
had a deep belief from a very young age that life was meant to be wonderful
had opportunities to develop love and compassion for others
was blessed with a sense of humor
had experiences placed in her life that required her to learn and grow
sensed within her the chance to make her life anything she wanted it to be
was given a learning and willing heart
had amazing people put in her path that showed her that it was possible to succeed
came to rely on God because she knew He wouldn't let her down
was blessed with a man who saw her for who she was, and loved her
came to mother incredible people in the ways that she had hoped to be mothered herself
is creating a life of purpose, happiness, and value

And of course, you know that both of these women...are me. But just as I have separated the experiences in this post, I also separate them in my mind. Because the truth is that I choose which woman I am. I did not choose all of my circumstances, but I choose what I learn from them. And I can define myself by the good or the bad. I choose the good.

As you go through life, I'm not sure what other challenges and experiences you will face. Of course as your mother, I will wish all your lessons to be gentle ones. However, the wiser person in me will remember that it was through the fire that I came to be refined.

Whatever happens, choose good. Choose happy. Choose blessed. Because you are.

love, mom

This is your big chance to tell me what to do...

Well, the store stopped selling the bread we like.

I love good bread. It is a food group to me. When Jesus says He is the bread of life, I totally get it. And the fact that I now have to pay close to $4 a loaf for something that just tastes like somewhere to put the peanut butter and jelly just feels...wrong.

So, I was talking to The Hubby and we want to buy a bread maker. But this is a big area of knowing nothing for me. I haven't got the first clue of what to look for, what to avoid, what brands are reliable, what features are the best, blah blah bread maker information blah.

So, I appeal to my friends who stop by here. If you have any knowledge on this, please feel free to comment and point me in the right direction. If you know someone who knows everything there is to know about breadmakers, ask them to stop by. I promise to, well, pretty much do whatever I'm told. Because thinking about researching and picking a bread maker right now just makes my head hurt.

Oh, and just to be clear...you can only tell me what to do about buying a bread maker. All the other things that you wish to change or improve about me will just have to wait for another day. Sorry.

on our 21st anniversary...

21 reasons I am so glad I married The Hubby:

1) the way he looks in uniform
2) that he dances shamelessly in front of his children
3) how no one works harder than that man
4) that he makes up words to songs and then sings them with such commitment
5) because when I say my head/back/whatever hurts, he goes and gets me medicine
6) he can fix--or build--just about anything. I dream it, he makes it happen.
7) he has never once given me a reason not to trust him
8) that in spite of the fact that he never plays it, he still thinks he might win the lottery
9) how he still calls me from work just to say "hi"
10) Brianne
11) Spencer
12) Connor
13) Emma
14) Walker
15) Marin
16) Cooper
17) the fact that he would welcome another child in a heartbeat
18) he mops the floor because he knows I hate to do it
19) how he always knows what movie or tv show I am quoting
20) did I mention the uniform? Army, law enforcement...doesn't matter which. Hotness.
21) he was crazy enough to marry me twice--once for life, and once for always

you can stop looking, I have found @#!*% ...

...and it is 16 days in a family of 8 without a clothes dryer.

(fyi: that sound you hear is my will to live sllllooooowwwly seeping out of me)

quote of the week...

"Nowhere in scripture does it say, 'God is an accident' or 'God is death.' God is justice and kindness, mercy, and always--always--love. So if you want to know where God is in a bad situation or in anything that happens, look for love."

--Kate Braestrup

things you think you'd never have to say to your children, #29

"Honey, you can only buy KidsBOP CDs if you live in Canada. Sorry. No, it's true. YEAH, huh!

Okay, sweetie, I didn't want to tell you this but something really bad happened at the factory where they make the KidsBOP CDs and they were all destroyed...yeah. It was totally on the news last night. Really sad. But they said maybe in about 5 years they will rebuild and start to make them again.

So, what else would you like to use your birthday money for?"

quote of the week...

"If my life wasn't funny it would just be true, and that is unacceptable."

--Carrie Fisher

happy mother's day...

...to my friends in the trenches of motherhood with me. It is a joy and a blessing to learn with--and from--you all.

And...I miss you, Mom. Both what you were, and what you never got the chance to become.

Fabulous prizes...

A while back, I entered a little contest that Miss Randi was having over at her blog. She promised fabulous prizes, and really, who doesn't want that?

All we had to do was post a quote from the LDS Church's General Conference, and if you were the first person to post her favorite quote from the conference, BOOM. Fabulous prizes for you.

So, I happened to be the one who ended up commenting first with her favorite quote. Yeah, me!

Now, Miss Randi is a busy chick. I'm not going to get into ALL the details, but I'm pretty sure that she is squeezing 3-4 more hours out of every day than the average woman. So, when the fabulous prizes didn't show up, I knew that she had it on her 'to do'' list, but that her 'to do' list was about 7643 things 'to do' long. She even wrote a post about how it was on her mind. In it, she calls me gracious. And, she is so right. I mean, seriously.

Hey...I don't laugh at you when you're deluding yourself.

Well, guess what I got in my mailbox on Friday? That's right--fabulous prizes! How fun is that? Now Miss Randi can take me off her 'to do' list. Now go and get some sleep, girl.

this may sound stupid, but...

...I have no idea what I have cooked for dinner for, like, the last 20 years.

What's up with that? It's like every time I sit down to make a menu, I'm reinventing the wheel. If you calculate it (here, let me) that's something in the neighborhood of 6000 times I've made dinner...subtracting around 1300 for the times I just threw my hands up and ordered something. Or let the kids just have cereal. Or tried to trick them that their after school snack was actually dinner. Or the times after I had a baby and someone else brought us dinner. Or the times when someone was actually insane, I mean, nice enough to invite our family over for dinner.

Umm, yeah...you see what I'm getting at. That's a lot of foodage.


And yet, as I sit down here (AGAIN) to make this month's menu...stumped. I have a vague recollection of some sort of pasta thing...and maybe hamburgers. But beyond that, I've got nothing.

quote of the week...

"He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still."

--Tao Te Ching