6 Reasons why I think I will stick with exercising this time...

1. I have already made it longer than any other time I have started. Do not ask me how long that is, because I am too ashamed to admit it.

2. I can already feel the difference. I increased my speed and duration quite a bit within the first week, and that was really motivating.

3. I am doing it with a friend, which is pretty much 45 minutes of free therapy.

4. By doing it with said friend, there is the whole "I can't ditch this morning because Julie is waiting for my sorry butt" factor.

5. I no longer have to feel bad thinking about my sister-in-law (who runs marathons) saying, "I just love how everyone in this family has fitness goals!" Because now I do, too.

6. Children are not allowed anywhere near me during this time. I shouldn't have to explain this reason. In fact, it really should count as 2 reasons. Some days, 3.

Quote of the week...

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time."

~John Lubbock

I can't help myself...

Just had to share one more.

More cuteness overload...

I got to go over today and take pictures of some more family. I am feeling SO lucky! I am pretty sure this one will make my sister cry with happiness. And, let's face it...most portrait photographers kinda like it when that happens.

Quote of the week...

"Failure means to succeed in a way that doesn't really matter."

--Patrick M. Morley

I got to take pictures this weekend...

Is this one of the sweetest and cutest families or what? I had so much fun getting to try some new things with them. They are such wonderful people, inside and out. I hope I am just like them when I grow up.

Quote of the week...

"A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for."

--Author Unknown

Little things that make me happy...

...an adult with braces. It shows such a willingness to be patient to get what you want that I just admire it. Plus, there is something so incredibly funny about hearing a woman who has grandchildren say, "I can't wait 'til I get my stupid braces off."

...the garbage man. I have a special little dance for when I see the garbage truck and know he is headed for my street. And if I actually look out the window while my garbage is being dumped...oh, that does it. I must jump up and down like it's Christmas. I hope I never get over what a lovely thing it is to have someone come to your house and take away all your gross stuff.

...someone out running for exercise on the street. Double happy points if the weather is cold, triple happy points if there is snow on the ground. It just makes me so joyful to see someone out, working hard in unglamorous conditions, to do something good for themselves. When it's a woman, I have a nearly overwhelming desire to scream out my car window, "You GO, Girl!!" However, I stop myself because I cannot pull that exclamation off--for many reasons which we will not cover at this time. So I just think it. Happily.

...finding a parking space right in front. This is especially wonderful if it's a busy day at a store that is almost always crowded, and I have all my little ones with me. I have been known to decide that if I have the kids with me and I find a space right up front, that it is a sign from God that He loves me and wants me to have a good day.

...thank you notes. I am not one to be offended if I send something and don't get a thank you note. I know the age we live in and that sending those, for many, is a lost art. I also know that there are many times good intentions but no follow through. Maybe that's why getting a thank you note is SO lovely to me. I recently realized that I have not taught this art to my children, and have changed my ways. I am embarrassed to think of all the thank you's that haven't gotten said, and knowing the smile it puts on my face to get one makes me all the more determined to say it in writing a lot more often.

Take moment today, if you like, and think about the little things that make you happy!

Quote of the week...

"Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language."

~Henry James

One down, Six to go...

I didn't cry when her name was read. I didn't cry when I saw her face on the ju

mbo screen, singing

.

I was SO proud of myself. I thought, see? I am not going to be one of THOSE moms who gets all weepy and teary and says things like "my baby!"

Then, I looked through the viewfinder and took this picture.

Always thought of these two as my "starter kids". They were my first girl and first boy, then there is a large spread between them and my "little ones." And so I snapped the picture, and then laughed as I couldn't control the tears. I think I may have even said, "My babies."

I am SO not as cool as I thought I was.

Quote of the Week...

"Each new day that dawns can be a new day for us to begin to change. We can change our environment. We can change our lives by substituting new habits for old. We can mold our character and future by purer thoughts and nobler actions."

--James E. Faust

Apparently I don't handle my stress well...

Yeah. There's a shocker.

We have been doing major home improvement projects, and getting the daughter graduated. [mission accomplished--pictures and more in an upcoming post]

We also had company, which I enjoy, although I always want to have everything "perfect". This required much in the way of cleaning and painting and preparing food and blah blah blah. All very important and earth shattering things, I assure you.

The house looked wonderful, the guests were fun, and the food was yummy and plentiful. We got through all the events with very little complications, and had a great time.

But something was lurking beneath the surface, waiting to strike.

Saturday afternoon, I started getting a little rash on my neck. Just kind of red and itchy. Didn't really even think too much about it until late in the evening when it started to spread a bit and get more itchy. Went to the store and got some cream to calm it down and went to bed. The next morning it was about the same. Didn't worry about it, went on with the day.

I woke up early the next morning with something all over my neck and part of my face WAY scarier than anything I have ever seen on Discovery Health Channel. Should they choose to approach me for a documentary, my working titles for it are: "Dermatology Nightmares: When Rashes Go Mutant." OR "Swelling, Oozing, and Blisters: The Triple Threat The Government Doesn't Want You To Know About."

After several trips to the ER and Urgent Care, which included something like 15 prescriptions and some really mean stinging shots to my rear... I am almost healed. It has gotten down to where I just look like I am recovering from a burn, and the pain involved is MUCH more manageable. After I finish the 15 prescriptions in a few weeks, hopefully it will be all gone.

The doctors tell me that this kind of thing usually manifests when the body and mind are under extreme stress and the immune system is worn down. It also has something to do with having the chicken pox virus in my spinal fluid, but I won't bore you with all the details. Suffice it to say, my mind stressed my body into a mother of a reaction.

It has been an interesting experience. I think I had kind of a revelation this week. I take things WAY too personally. I worry about things that are not only beyond my control, but silly and insignificant in the big scheme of things. I really try hard to make everything in my surroundings "perfect" because somehow I think it will distract others (or perhaps more truthfully, me) from the ways in which I feel I fall short as a person. I work far too hard at making things look the way I want them to rather than just enjoying and accepting things (including me) as they are. I am grateful that I didn't let these habits ruin all the fun of the events...but judging by my body's reaction, I just internalized it to be dealt with another day.

I've got some changing to do. I'm going to ask myself some tough questions and be willing to either work with or live with the answers. It's time to let go of certain things before I look back and realize that I really didn't embrace my life and live it with my whole heart.

Wish me luck.

Not to complain, but...

I want my house back! I am blessed with a husband who not only CAN do major home improvements, but actually LIKES to do major home improvements. He amazes me.

However...(this is the totally whining part) I always get all jazzed up and excited and then about the 4th day into it, when there is dust on every surface in my house and we have eaten outside or on the floor for days and as I go room to room all I see is STUFF piled up in stacks that seem to grow by the hour...I start to forget that this was my bright idea. To have him install, and sand, and finish hardwood floors. The week before we have family and friends coming. For our daughter's graduation.

What was I thinking??

Seriously...

I was in the dentist's chair with headphones on, cranking Chorusline and Les Miz to keep my mind off of the fact that the dentist was stabbing me with a needle repeatedly and drilling into my teeth down to the gum line.

[See what I did there? I could have just said that he numbed me up and filled a cavity in one tooth and fit a permanent crown on another, but where's the fun in that?]

So, trying to keep my mind off of the moment, I got to thinking about how I get stuck on using certain words. Lately, my big "go to" word is seriously. I say it at least several dozen times a day. It's a good word, kind of all purpose. It can be exclamatory: "Seriously! That was the best book I've read in years!" or given as a warning: "Seriously?? If you don't stop bouncing that ball right by my head, bad things are going to happen." or just inserted into an average sentence: "I am seriously going to make dinner. Seriously. I am making it right now."

Apparently, I am serious about many things.

It's funny how I go through stages using expressions, and then they will just drop out of my vocabulary. I went through a long phase after my 5th child was born where everything made me say "and now my head is going to explode." One of my sisters commented that it seemed a fairly understandable reponse from a woman learning to be the mother of five. For a month or so, every one I found ignorant and/or obnoxious was a tool. And of course everything cool in the 80's to me was "sweet". That one still slips out from time to time, but you gotta love a classic.

One of the expressions I have used for years that seems like it is going to stick around is "The other day..." to begin a story. Since I was a teenager, I have used this opener regardless of when the story I am about to share actually happened. It could have been the other day, or it could have been several days ago...or months...or years. Nevertheless, I find myself involuntarily saying, "Oh, yeah, the other day..."

Who knows if this latest word will stay around or leave just as quickly as it came. In the meantime I'll just tell you that, seriously? I have to go and get some sleep or I will be really tired in the morning.

Seriously.

Quote of the week...

"Violence is not strength, and compassion is not weakness." --King Arthur

Quote of the week...

"The only thing better than singing is more singing."

--Ella Fitzgerald

Why is it...

...that when pretty much any song that was even relatively popular in the 80's comes on the radio, I can sing the lyrics with immediate clarity and startling accuracy, and yet it takes me 10 minutes to remember where I left my keys?

Memories...

A few years ago, when we started telling people that we were expecting our 7th child, somebody at the state patrol office anonymously left a condom in hubby's mailbox. Nice.

A few days later, my brother-in-law came through town. He is a doctor and gets all kinds of random promotional items from drug companies, and he brought a bunch to give out to the family.

So the next day, hubby left a little gift in all his buddies' mailboxes at the patrol office...big bright blue pens that said "VIAGRA".

irresponsible breeders: 1
anonymous dillholes: 0

Quote of the week...

"No misfortune is so bad that whining about it won’t make it worse."
--Jeffrey R. Holland

Quote of the week...

"The sad fact is that some people cannot be pleased. You can give some people a million dollars, and they’ll complain that the bills are wrinkled."

--Kathryn H. Kidd

Quote of the Week...

"I think marriage is the most mysterious covenant in the universe. I'm convinced that no two are alike. More than that, I'm convinced that no marriage is like it was just the day before."

--Anita Shreve, The Weight of Water

Rest in Peace...

I am so grateful to have known you and to have been your granddaughter-in-love. Thank you for your place in my husband and children's lives. You will be greatly missed.

Give Grandpa hugs and kisses for us.

Quote of the Week...

"Life is not so much about beginnings and endings as it is about going on and on and on. It is about muddling through the middle."

--Anna Quindlen

Quote of the Week...

"When I get a little money, I buy books...and then if there is any left over, I buy food and clothes."

--Desiderius Erasmus

Quote of the Week...

"It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer."

--Albert Einstein

I didn't need to know that...

I took my daughter to her first enrichment night (activity night at church for the adult women) last night. We were playing a game called "Love Your Neighbor".

It's where you all sit in a circle on chairs and one person is in the middle of the circle as "it" and she approaches people in their chairs and asks, "Do you love your neighbor?" The person asked the question may then answer "Yes, I love my neighbor" and then the people to her immediate right and left must rush to trade seats, while the person who is "it" tries to take one.

OR...the person asked the question may answer, "No, I don't love my neighbor, but I do love people who _____." (it could be, "have green eyes", or "have been to Hawaii") Then, the people who apply to the statement all have to get up and find a new chair. Whoever can't find a seat is then "it" and has to ask someone else if they love their neighbor.

So, one of the more adventurous ladies offered, "No, I don't love my neighbor, but I do love people who have gone skinnydipping."

Imagine my surprise when my lovely 18 year old daughter jumped up and rushed to find a new seat.

Good times.

To the gentleman I encountered on I-25 today...

I'm just going to pretend that you were rushing to the hospital, where your wife is in labor with your child--a child that you two have tried for years to conceive, and now the joyous moment of this child's birth has arrived.

Yup, that's what I am going to pretend.

Because, otherwise...you're just a gigantic tool.

Quote of the Week...

"It's not our job to raise responsible kids. Our job is to consistently do the things that give kids an opportunity to become responsible."

---Foster W. Cline, M.D.

If you own stock in Lysol or Clorox...

I just made your day.

We have been sick to some degree or another for FOUR WEEKS. Every one of us. Sniffling, coughing, sore throats, head and body aches, and then throw in some random vomiting just for fun and you've pretty much got a picture of what life has been like at my house.

Now normally I don't use anything with lots of chemicals. Simple Green, a mild glass cleaner, and a vinegar solution is usually the extent of what I am comfortable using. But today I was on a mission. I wanted every germ within a 6 mile radius of me either dead, or out of their mind with fear.

So I opened every window in my house, and then went to the local Stuff Mart. I then beelined it to the cleaning supply aisle and proceeded to throw anything that said 'disinfectant' or 'anti' anything on its label into my cart. I don't even want to tell you how much I spent but let's just say that a presidential candidate probably could have campaigned for at least a week or two on it. Luckily, I think all the major candidates are dipwads, so no big loss there.

As of tonight, pretty much every surface in my house has been sprayed, soaked, wiped, scrubbed, and otherwise pummeled into what I hope is a germ-free surrender.

And if you do have stock in Lysol or Clorox...you're welcome.

Finally, a campaign I can really support...

I love feed the pig. Go watch the video spot of the guy trying to buy a tv.

Love, love, love.

Quote of the Week...

"It is well, when judging someone, to remember that he is judging you with the same godlike and superior impartiality."

--Arnold Bennett

Some stuff to help you spend too much time on the computer...

Because, you know, we all need that.

Here are a few sites that I am really liking:
Abi Jones has this fun little blog where she reviews frozen foods. Few things are more annoying to me than when I take some of my precious grocery money to buy some frozen dinners and then find I'd rather just have eaten the box they came in. What's really great is that all the nutritional facts (including weight watchers points, if that's your thing) are included in the review. And most importantly, she is really funny. Anyone who can slide in a reference to sesame seeds falling into their bra during a review is my kind of gal.
Becky Higgins has long been a huge name in the world of scrapbooking. I have loved her for years. Her blog is filled with layouts and videos and recipes and lots of yummy goodness. What I love about Becky is her "anyone can do it" mentality. Despite the fact that she is enormously talented, she is so about everyone just enjoying the process. When you watch her videos, you feel like one of your girlfriends just sat down to chat for a few. If you don't like scrapbooking (or, in fact, feel it's the Devil) you'd at least probably enjoy her recipe section. Pictures for every recipe, and so far everything I have tried from it has been really good.
Google Earth may already be a favorite at your house. My kids came home from school talking about it one day, so I went and downloaded it (the basic version is free) and now we are hooked. The kids love to "fly" to our house and then "fly" to Grandma's house. It is amazing and a little bit creepy that photos from space show our cars parked in the driveway and the dead patches of grass in my lawn. But, it is still really cool. You could also use it to look up people you know to see what kind of neighborhood they live in, to see if they live better than you do. No...that would be wrong, and who would even be twisted enough to think of that?? Geesh.

Quote of the Week...

“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.”
---Jack Handey, Deep Thoughts

Just sit anywhere, for the love of Pete...

How come my kids wanna fight to the death over who gets to sit in certain places?



It's not like their dad and I model this behavior. They've never once seen me burst into tears because their Dad sat down at a particular chair at the dining room table. They haven't ever walked in on Dad and Mom pushing and shoving each other for a place on the couch. And I'm pretty sure their Dad hasn't ever thrown himself to the ground and kicked and screamed because Mom was riding shotgun.



And yet, here's an actual conversation:
"I call pistol!" (pistol is the seat behind shotgun. the fact that they've taken it upon themselves to name it that shows you just what kind of freaks we are dealing with)
"Too late!! I already called it!"
---weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth---
"No way!!! I was totally here by the door and I called it!!!!"
"Ahhhhhh, but see?? I called it first, IN MY MIND."

Quote of the Week...

"You can only be young once. But you can always be immature."

--Dave Barry

Hope hubby isn't jealous...

I love Lost.

Every week drags by until my lovely little addiction stops in and gives me some attention. I giggle like a school girl when I realize it's Thursday night...and I keep my past seasons' DVDs right by my television should I need a good Jack/Locke/Sayid fix to get through the day.

Lost, I don't understand you. I can't even pretend to. You tease and taunt me and even though you mock me with your mysteries I can't give you up. All I know is that I need you the way Sawyer needs to give people nicknames...

Quote of the Week...

"We must constantly remember it is not our situation or problems that make us unhappy; it is our failure to properly resolve them."

--Marvin J. Ashton

I just don't get it...

I hate those shows where they show people falling down, or tripping, or in some other way doing something embarrassing. I never get it when people laugh at stuff like that. It never even occurs to me to think that it's funny.

I'm not saying that it isn't funny. I am just saying that it isn't funny to me.

I have always been oddly sensitive that way. I find it very uncomfortable to see people in painful or embarrassing situations, whether physical or emotional. If someone falls down in front of me, my first impulse is to make sure they are okay, whereas many people (including, quite possibly, the person who fell) can't help but laugh.

Emotional pain is even more of a problem. I wouldn't watch "Napoleon Dynamite" for ages because I thought it was a movie where a geeky kid got bullied and made fun of the entire time, and the thought of watching that made me unbelieveably uncomfortable.

I was never bullied-much-as a kid. But I remember watching other kids get bullied and trying to seek them out and be friendly to them and make them laugh. The times I have stooped to being hurtful and unkind, I ended up feeling like such an awful person. As I look back over my younger years, it's the times I was sarcastic or openly distainful of someone else that really come back and haunt me. The times I thought I was being clever or going for a laugh are not remembered with fondness.

So now, as an adult, I guess that has stayed with me. I never want to be responsible for another person feeling humiliated or ashamed. I find that the older I get, the more deeply I empathize with people. The more I wish that it was in all our natures to be more tender with one another's trips and falls.

Now, please don't think I don't have a sense of humor. And please don't think that I look at people who DO laugh at things like as though they are bad or wrong. I don't.

I just don't get it.

Quote of the Week...

"It's the most unhappy people who most fear change."

--Mignon McLaughlin

Quote of the Week...

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing."

--Walt Disney

Quote of the Week...

"Now... in closing I plead with you to control your tempers, to put a smile upon your faces, which will erase anger; speak out with words of love and peace, appreciation, and respect. If you will do this, your lives will be without regret. Your marriages and family relationships will be preserved. You will be much happier. You will do greater good. You will feel a sense of peace that will be wonderful." --Gordon B. Hinckley

Farewell, dear man...

President Gordon B. Hinckley

I am ever grateful to have been led by such a humble, tender, witty, and gracious follower of Christ. It was a joy to have learned by his example. I know that he was a Prophet of God, and that he led and guided with love and distinction.

What a reunion there is in Heaven right now...

Another good one...

I have been so exhausted lately. Feels like I am walking through mud. But I finally got some good sleep the other night, and had this dream:

I was at a children's touch football game. I was cheering for the team that was playing against the team Ward Churchill was playing for. Every time Mr. Churchill would get the ball taken away or his flags would get pulled as he ran the ball, he would jump up and down and pitch a little boy fit. I found this amusing, and not the slightest bit surprising, in spite of the fact that his 10-12 year old teammates seemed to be able to keep their emotions in check.

As I was enjoying the game, my newly adult aged daughter came up and sat next to me.

"Here you go, Mom. There's that list I was telling you about."

"List?" I asked, confused.

"Yeah, the list. The list of all the things I don't like about you. For convenience, I alphabetized and categorized it for you."

I gotta tell you...I think I liked my Hillary Clinton dream a lot better.

Quote of the Week...

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear."

--Martin Luther King, Jr.

Quote of the Week...

"It is important to have the courage not to deny in the darkness what you have seen in the light."

--Coventry Patmore

Just so you know...

I'm kind of obsessed with organizing.

In fact, I dream about being a professional organizer. I would LOVE to go into people's homes and help them let go of things they don't need and find the joy of living with less. (ala my quote of the week)

Part of the obsession, no doubt, stems from being the mom of many. You can't really fly by the seat of your pants when you have a family of 9...well, you CAN...but it's not gonna be pretty. I went through a few years of digging for permission slips and blank stares when the kids ask what's for dinner and impaling myself on Legos and Bionicles when I go in to kiss my kids goodnight. Somewhere along the line, I realized that if I wanted to live this life, I'd better get my act together. I haven't lived in an unorganized house since.

Family life always requires course correction. What worked for a while may not work anymore. So you adjust. You adapt. And you can't adapt well when you are buried in stuff. In fact, being buried in stuff is sort of the manifestation of being unwilling or unable to adapt. To adapt and change your family's schedule and way of living, you have to be willing to let go. And clearly, if your house is overrun with stuff, letting go is not your strong suit.

I spent yesterday in my kitchen. I emptied every drawer, every cupboard. Got rid of everything that didn't help us function as a family and make us happy. Switched some things around since they weren't helping us get the most out of our time and space. Cleaned every nook and cranny. It was SO fun.

I love the way I feel whenever I do this. I feel lighter, more calm, and like I have less to worry about. Because, well, I DO have less to worry about. I feel like a more grateful person, because I am treating the things we have been blessed with in a way that shows respect. And because I am not hanging on to things that we don't use or need when those things could be blessing the lives of someone else.

So, until I can become a professional organizer, could you at least humor me and go clean out a drawer or something?

Quote of the Week...

"Wanting less is a greater blessing than having more."

--unknown

Quote of the Week...

In light of all the political pundits I have listened to this past week:

"People demand freedom of speech to make up for the freedom of thought--which they avoid."

--Soren Kierkegaard

18 years ago today...

I became a mother.

And it really does feel like yesterday. I can, with very little effort, close my eyes and remember the day she was born. Every sight, every sound is vivid to me. I can see her being placed on my stomach just as she was born and remember reaching for her tiny hand--and how she grasped onto my finger and held so tightly.

Happy Birthday, Brianne!

You are my first...
the first to come from my body
the first to make me lose sleep
the first to need me

the first to run into my arms
the first to call me "mom"
the first to make my heart swell with joy

the first to remind me of your dad
the first to help through braces and driving
the first to ache with a broken heart

the first to watch on stage performing
the first to grow up right in front of me
the first to be like me and yet so much your own person

the first to amaze me with your talents
the first to crack me up with your humor
the first to stun me with your beauty

the first to become (almost) an adult
the first to be making plans of your own
the first to need me less

the first to teach me
the first to challenge me
the first to let me see the world through your eyes

I am so grateful.

Quote of the Week...

"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can."

--Arthur Ashe

Quote of the Week...

"I want it said of me by those who knew me best, that I always plucked a thistle and planted a flower where I thought a flower would grow."

--Abraham Lincoln

Things you'd never think you need to say to your children, #247

"Do NOT repeatedly dunk your head into the toilet!! Ever. Ever. EVER."

Quote of the week...

"How you respond to the challenge in the game will determine what you become after the game, whether you are a winner or a loser."
--Lou Holtz


GO WOLVES!!! Take State!!!

Happy Thanksgiving...

...from the happy--and thankful--mommy to these wonderful people.

May you all feel blessed and loved today.

Quote of the Week...

"Be glad of life, because it gives you the chance to love and work and to play and to look up at the stars; to be satisfied with your possessions; to despise nothing in the world except falsehood and meanness, and to fear nothing except cowardice; to be governed by your admirations rather than by your disgusts; to covet nothing that is your neighbor's except his kindness of heart and gentleness of manners; to think seldom of your enemies, often of your friends...and to spend as much time as you can, with body and with spirit. These are the guideposts on the footpath of peace."

--henry van @#!*%

Tacky, tacky, tacky...

To Person Who Called Me Back Wednesday:

Please don't return my call to you and ask me to attend an "expensive things that I don't need and can't afford anyway" party, at the last minute because you didn't catch me in the hall at church last week to invite me. And then, don't add that you are having a baby shower for yourself immediately following the expensive things party. And then after that, don't add that the only thing you really want to get for your shower, nobody can afford unless they go in together for it as a group.


I'm just saying.

Random things tag...

Cindy tagged me for this meme.

Here are the rules: 1. Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself.
3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post.
4. Let each person know that they've been tagged.

My 7 random things:

1) I don't like animals. It's nothing personal, they're nice enough. I watch people who talk baby talk to their dogs and love on their cats and I...just don't get it. I'm not saying I won't pet an animal should I find myself within petting range, I'm just saying that if I am never in petting range, well...that's OK.

2) I have recurring dreams about a guy I dated for a while in high school. The dreams are never boyfriend/girlfriend in nature, and nothing ever happens that I couldn't tell the hubby about. My best guess as to why this fellow pops up every once and awhile is that he was very smart, very witty, and he just had a great way of saying things. Those are still some of my favorite qualities in a person.

3) Right now I have Enrichment Night hangover. I am currently in charge of a program called "Home, Family, and Personal Enrichment" in our women's auxiliary at church. Last night was our final quarterly activity for the year, which means I (with lots of help) spent the last 2 months planning, the last 2 weeks running errands and having meetings, and the last 24+ hours setting up, cooking, cleaning, hosting, troubleshooting, etc. for this evening of entertainment for 50+ women. So glad the next one's not until March.

4) I would sleep until noon if I could.

5) I went to Donny Osmond's wedding reception. I was 8 years old at the time and it was the thrill of my young life.

6) I always come home after an evening with friends or family and analyze everything that was said. I go back over the conversations in my head and worry that I said something wrong, or that I talked too much, or that I didn't listen to and understand everyone correctly. I have been known to do this for hours. This kind of social self analysis has not only proven to be unproductive, but also stupid. And yet, I do it anyway.

7) Nothing--and I mean nothing--will send me off the deep end more than people who talk while at the movies. If I can shut up for 2 hours, anybody can.

I tag Brittany, Carly, Jason, "Vern", Ketchup Queen, MamaHen, and Mean Mommy.

Quote of the Week...

"Life is an occasion. Rise to it."

--Dustin Hoffman, Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium

Lonely Friday night...

Well, my mouth is feeling better. And don't think I'm not just a little sad at losing my excuse to pop Vicodin...I have long said that being a clean living Mormon just makes drugs all that more fun when you get to take 'em. But, now it's back to real life and bye bye to drug fogs...

Hubby is on night shifts the next few months and I am sitting here remembering why that's not my favorite. I get bored around 7 pm or so...the kids are sprawled across the floor and furniture in the family room, watching High School Musical 2 for the billionth time, my teenage son is sleeping, and my almost old enough to vote daughter is at work.

[I get to be diverted by going and picking her up in an hour or so but that isn't as fun as one might think. I might as well be in the car alone, because she won't talk to me on the way home...she's all ticked about the injustices of having to do things she doesn't want to do. Which, at this point in her young life, is pretty much anything her father and/or I ask of her. She thinks we sit up nights plotting evil and mayhem just for HER. Please. We spread our works of evil and mayhem out liberally on all seven children, thank you very much.]

So, I'm lonely. I can't call anyone, because this is prime family bonding time for the majority of people. There is never anything on T.V. on a Friday night. I am too tired to consider going out some place, and besides--that would require waking the teenager sleeping on the couch and that is a hill I just DON'T feel like climbing. And my teeth are still super tender, so I can't even EAT for entertainment!! How rude.

My hubby loves to work nights...he says its "where all the action is".

Not from where I'm sitting, it ain't.

Quote of the Week...

"Having an abscessed tooth really, really sucks."

--happy mommy (wish me luck getting my root canal tomorrow)

Numerology...

I stole this idea from Brittany.
5 loads of laundry I have done today
9 loads left to be done
1 child at a birthday party
75 dollars, amount I spend each week on gasoline
30 minutes since I called my dentist, begging for pain meds
3 children asleep on the couch
800 mgs of ibuprofen I have taken in vain
16 times I have answered the phone today
2 children outside playing
14 conversations with myself about whether or not the pain in my teeth is actually teeth related, or a sinus infection
5 trips in the suburban to drop off or pick up kids
3 calls from hubby urging me to "hang in there"
1 child at a football game
4 1/2 gallons of milk we drink in a week
2,145 pieces of candy left from Halloween
879 how many times I've said today, "If you ask me for another piece of candy, it's all going in the TRASH!!!"

Car conversations....

Me: Ok, let's go to the store!

3 year old daughter: Ok, Mama.
(she calls me Mama. and don't think that I don't melt every time she says it, because I do...)

3 yo: Mama? Are we going to shop in Sam's Club?

Me: No, sweetie, we are just going to drop off our film at Sam's. Then we're going to go to the Commissary to shop for food, then we'll drop off these clothes to Goodwill, and then we'll go back to Sam's to pick up our pictures.

3 yo: Mama? Are we going to go home after?

Me: Yes, baby, we will.

3 yo: Well, that's good! Because, I'm pretty sure I'll be tired after doing all of that...

Amen, sister.

Quote of the Week...

"Many of life's circumstances are created by three basic choices: the disciplines you choose to keep, the people you choose to be with, and the laws you choose to obey."

--Charles Millhuff

The fun of teenagers...

Red shirt & trimming for daughter's Olive Oyl costume: $17
Faux pipe & sailor cap, and shirt created by Popeye's Mom: $11
The smiles on their faces as they head out to win first place
at the Halloween dance: Priceless

Quote of the Week...

"Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it."

--P.J. O' Rourke

Hosting preschool...

So, my daughter has been doing preschool with the children of several moms that decided to start up this fall. I am sure at some point I said I really, really wanted to do this...but right now I'd deny it to the death.

Mostly because now it's my week to host it. Crap.

Quote of the Week...

"A word of encouragement during a failure is worth more than an hour of praise after success."

I love this face...

Even though sitting through a game makes me want to bite all my nails off; and every time he receives the snap I have to practice my Lamaze breathing; how can I not love the happy face he gets whenever it is game day??

oh, and get this: He chose the #9 because it's how many people are in our family.

Dang, I love this kid.

Quote of the Week...

"He that is discontented in one place will seldom be happy in another."

--Aesop

My favorite day...

If you'd ask me what my favorite day of the year was, you might be surprised at my answer. It isn't my birthday, or Thanksgiving, or even Christmas.

It's Pajama Day.

Many years ago, life started feeling a little too crazy. When you have lots of children, and a father/husband/super hero who works odd and varied hours, it can start to get to the point where you meet up with family members in the hallway and introduce yourselves. "Hi, I don't believe we've met..."

And thus, "Pajama Day" was born.

There are only 3 rules for Pajama Day: 1. all members of the family must be there, 2. all participants must wear pajamas for the entire day, and 3. there is no answering the phone or leaving the house.

We spend this day together. We play board games, we watch movies, we wrestle, and we eat green apples with caramel dip. We nap and we laugh and we tell horribly embarrassing stories about ourselves and each other. We sing and dance in the kitchen. We steal each other's snacks, blankets, and spots on the couch. We are together. We are a family, with no distractions.

I highly recommend adding this holiday to your calendar. Schedule it, and then make that day's schedule sacred. If you don't, it's not going to happen. And believe me, you want it to happen. Many of you probably have something similar that you do from time to time...my suggestion? Make it official. Write it down on your calendars. Look forward to it. Make it as much an event as any other holiday you celebrate.

Now, if you'll excuse me...I have an important day coming up...and I have to make sure my favorite pajamas are washed.

Last night...

OK, so when the insomnia finally left to go find some other innocent victim, I was savoring my 3 precious hours of sleep when I had this dream:

I was driving around in this delivery type truck (similar to a UPS truck, only white and covered with advertisements for all different kinds of things) and every time I pulled into a parking lot, which was at least a dozen times, Hillary Clinton would come find me and happily shout to me:

"You're a GENIUS!!! A GENIUS!!!"

Quote of the Week...

"Sometimes God calms the storm. Sometimes, He lets the storm rage...and calms His child."

5 AM is going to hurt...

I hate it when I can't sleep at night.

Actually, I don't so much mind the not sleeping. I can get some stuff done with no little ones underfoot, and that is never something to gripe about. It's also quiet, a near impossible feat to accomplish in my house. No, the being awake part is not too bad.

It's the insomnia hangover I get the next day that really bites. The whole "stumbling, brain on autopilot, can't finish my sentences if they have hard words like 'dishwasher' in them, why don't you kids just have cheetos for lunch while mommy rests her eyes" thing.

The worst is when I know well ahead of time that this will be a "no sleep" night. Like tonight. It's only 9 ish...but I can feel the ol' body, plotting evil and chaos.

"Let's see...looks like Miss Fancypants [my body has cute little nicknames for me. Don't ask me how I know this. I just do.] has plans to go to the history museum tomorrow...we can't possibly let her do that clear eyed and rational. Oh, no, no, no. We must exhaust her to the point that she is a weepy, blathering idiot. It'll be fun!"

But sometimes, the no sleep night sneaks up unexpectedly. I can be in bed dozing off after a long day, completely exhausted, when all of the sudden my body goes off like a panicked captain on a crashing airplane. "Mayday, mayday!!! All nerves to attention!!! There has been an unacceptable breach of relaxation!!! We've got to get her up, people...move, move MOVE!!"

It's annoying when my body decides to pull an all-nighter without consulting me first.

Quote of the Week...

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me.' "

--Erma Bombeck

8 things...

8 Things I'm Passionate About

1-optimism
2-laundry
3-being a good mother
4-organization
5-the way people talk about and to each other
6-choosing joy
7-proper usage of "then" and "than"
8-life being about people, not about things

8 things I want to do before I die

1-go to England
2-hug my grandchildren
3-finish more scrapbooks
4-become comfortable in my own skin
5-watch my husband retire
6-become a "real" photographer
7-see my children live the lives that make them happy
8-learn to sew

8 Things I say often

1-"Well, where is the last place you remember having it?"
2-"Dear Heavenly Father..."
3-"I know I came in here for a reason..."
4-"Food." (in response to 'what's for dinner?')
5-"In case you haven't noticed, Mommy's losing it!!!"
6-"Talitha. T-a-l-i-t-h-a."
7-"Well, crap."
8-"Bye, babe. I love you!"

8 Books I've recently read

1-Here If You Need Me
2-Twilight
3-Life and Death in Shanghai
4-Language Report
5-The Very Hungry Caterpillar
6-Keeping it Together in a Pull Apart World
7-The Great Divorce
8-Parenting Teens with Love and Logic

8 Songs I Could Listen to Over and Over

1-I Had a Dream, from Les Miserables
2-Remember When, Alan Jackson
3-Celebrate Me Home, Kenny Loggins
4-Sometimes, Nicole C. Mullins
5-Samson, Regina Spektor
6-Nothing, from A Chorus Line
7-How Can I Keep From Singing?, Shaker hymn
8-Life is a Highway, Rascal Flatts

8 Things that Attract Me to My Best Friends

1-how they make me laugh
2-that they notice the little things
3-the way they see the world
4-their commitment to becoming the best people they can
5-the gentle ways they help me
6-how they choose to focus on what's good
7-the way they parent their children
8-the acceptance I see in their eyes

8 things I've learned in the last year

1-children grow up in a moment
2-how to use my husband's electric drill
3-there is no greater blessing than a good marriage
4-white vinegar and apple cider vinegar are VASTLY different things
5-my 15 year old needs me to say I love him before he can leave the house
6-I might actually like pushing myself
7-people just want to be listened to
8-I'm not 18 anymore

8 People that I think should do "8" (in no particular order)

Please, anyone who feels like doing this:
If you have a blog, put it there.
If you don't have a blog, email it to me, I'd LOVE to read yours.

Quote of the Week...

"You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him."

---Leo Aikman

Quote of the Week...

"It's too bad I'm not as wonderful a person as people say I am, because the world could use a few people like that."


--Alan Alda

What did she just say?

I was picking up teenagers at church after an activity and some boys ran out in front of my car, just being silly. From her car seat behind me, I hear my 3 year old daughter shout:

"MISCREANTS!!!"

Seriously, where does she GET this stuff???

Quote of the Week...

For Labor Day: (hey, I know it's late...you don't need to make me feel bad, geez)

"It does not seem to be true that work necessarily needs to be unpleasant. It may always have to be hard, or at least harder than doing nothing at all. But there is ample evidence that work can be enjoyable, and that indeed, it is often the most enjoyable part of life. "
--Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Do you ever feel...

totally stupid?

There are days when I just sit and think about everything I don't know.

• how to grind wheat
• what all the settings do on my camera
• quantum physics
• Barack Obama's position on illegal immigration
• where my tweezers are
• my kids' orthodontist's first name (I think it starts with a "T")
• how much a postage stamp costs
• the occupations of pretty much every one of my friend's husbands
• why milk is so flippin' expensive
• how many miles I still have left after my gas gauge reads "empty"
• whether or not there is mustard in our food storage
• who the president of our PTO is
• how to take apart my dvd player
• what purpose the "Farmer's Almanac" serves
• when my entertainment book coupons expire
• what my point was starting this post to begin with...

Quote of the week...

"The secret of being miserable is to have leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not. The cure for it is occupation."


--George Bernard Shaw

I just figured out that...

I can never run away from home.

Well, okay. I can. I am physically capable. Let's not get all 8th grade English teacher about it.
(totally just had a flash of Mr. Houghton at Payson Middle School... Me: "Can I go to the restroom?" Mr. H:"I don't know, CAN you?" Good times.)

But the thought came to me last night that if I were to run away, as attractive as it may sound, it would probably end up being a bad idea. Why, you ask? I submit the following:

1) Nobody in my family knows where anything is.

So, I wouldn't be 5 miles from home before the cell would start ringing. Things like where Mom keeps the scissors, masking tape, gum, garbage bags, food, water, and other necessities...these are mysteries to my children. And Dad, well...Dad knows where the things that Dad cares about are. So, if you want to know where the air compressor and nail gun are, he's your guy. Your Pretty Pretty Princess game, not so much.

2) I love my home.

My hubby is always saying, "Hon, go out and just be alone and have some time." But, the thing is, I like being at home. I am a homebody. I really don't even WANT to leave...I want EVERYONE ELSE to leave and let me enjoy myself in peace. And--let's face it. I am the only one who really cares if this house is clean. So, I leave, and it's Lord of the Flies up in here.

3) I'd have to pack.

I really don't think this needs a whole lot of explanation. Packing to me is about as much fun as [insert something nobody finds fun].

4) I like my husband.

We always joke that if we got divorced we'd drive the new people in our lives crazy with always needing to talk to each other. It's one of the annoying side effects of being married to someone you find genuinely interesting. So, even though I'd enjoy the first few hours of freedom, more than likely I'd be on the phone with him by day's end, having one of our legendary "What are you doing?" "Nothing, what are you doing?" conversations.

5) Gas prices.

Hello?? I'd spend a week's paycheck and get to, like, Grand Junction.

6) Fine, I'll say it. I'd miss my kids.

I'm not going to get all motherly, but, dang it, they are pretty amazing. That's the thing, isn't it? There's the stuff that drives you crazy, but it never even comes close to the stuff that fills your heart and makes you happy. And there's that pull--that pull to be there--to protect, to comfort, to listen, to guide, to love.

So. I'm not going anywhere. But I'm still going to fantasize about it, and you can't stop me.

Quote of the Week...

An oldie but a goodie:

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."

--Benjamin Franklin

(This one came to me as I lovingly pushed my two teenagers out the door at 5:45 am for Seminary this morning.)

A great read...

It's been awhile since I have read something that really knocked my socks off.

Here I am, sockless, after reading Here If You Need Me: A True Story by Kate Braestrup. Kate is a wonderful writer who tells the story of losing her husband (a Maine state trooper) in a car crash, and how she works her way through it. She became a chaplain for the Warden Service after his death, and she intertwines stories of some of the many search and rescues she has attended with the story of her moving on as a mother of 4 after her beloved's death.

Now, I'll admit that I have an instant affinity for the themes of this book. My husband is in the same profession as hers was. Her job is quite similar to that of a victim's advocate--the job I will take when my youngest goes to school. They had a large-ish family. So perhaps I have a personality suited to find significance to her story. Fair enough.

But you know what? A story well told is a story well told. And she really does tell this story painfully, tenderly, optimistically well.

Put it on your "to read" list. If you live near me, I might even let you borrow my copy.

Quote of the Week...

Well, look at me, posting a quote. This one is meaning a lot to me these days:

"Learn to be what you are, and learn to resign with good grace all that you are not."

--Henri Frederic Amiel

Quote of the Week...

I got this from a quote thread at my home away from home internet board:

"Doing the right thing is fun. If nothing else, it surprises people."

--Thomas Sowell

Two of my favorite faces...

This was Em's baptism day, posing with her proud papa. It was one of those days that you just tuck in the center of your heart to remind yourself what life is all about.

What a blessed life we live.

Quote of the Week...

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."

---Mahatma Gandhi

Belated Quote of the Week...

" To laugh often and much: to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."


--Ralph Waldo Emerson

Gasoline: $140
Sunscreen: $8
Snacks for the road: $25

Getting to spend the weekend with my extended family: Priceless

Why I haven't been here...

*our sweet daughter was baptized
*I started a new "good enough for now" job
*I had a special musical number to rehearse and perform
*my husband and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary (IWLYSFA, babe)
*aforementioned hubby turned 39...hanging on to those 30s by the skin of our teeth, man!
*I am continuing to work through the hiring process for "the one I'd really love" job
*my wonderful sister and her equally wonderful husband were in town
*I went to a funeral where a cell phone rang...loudly. Seriously, people. Is this what things have come to??? We can't even lay someone to rest without some cheesy island congo ringtone interrupting?? Sometimes I am so embarrassed to be human.
*it's the last few weeks of school for my older kids
*the weather has been insanely warm, requiring my children to whine to be taken all manner of outdoorsy places
*the quarterly activity for our women's auxiliary group that I am in charge of was this week
*we are gearing up for a family reunion which is a) out of state; and b) hubby cannot go to since he will be out of state for Army Work (that's what the kids call it).

Here's a quote, and fingers crossed for my improved ability to come here and write. I miss it.

"All my possessions for a moment of time." --Elizabeth I

Quote of the Week...

"If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep the streets even as Michelango painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well."

--Martin Luther King, Jr.

Quote of the week...

"We can do no great things, only small things with great love."

--Mother Teresa

It was 82 degrees yesterday...

So, we went to the water spouts and had some fun. It was such a gorgeous day, and after a long winter and a very wet spring, it felt really good to come out and just PLAY.

As usual, little man just wanted to survey the action at a safe distance. But the other kids surprised me with their fearlessness! Even the little ones just ran right in and giggled and splashed. At first, Dad and I tried to tell them not to get "too wet". Yeah, right. We realized quickly that if they were going to have any fun, they had to just let loose and go for it.

So they did.

They had such a ball. And they got SOOOOO wet!! They'd run around in it til they couldn't take it anymore and then would lay on the ground in the sun to try and warm up. I am so ready for summer, now. Sitting outside, watching the kids play like this, reminded me of what is so terrific about this time of year.