10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BLASTOFF!!
Friday, November 30, 2012
Walmart Saves the Day
I never thought I'd say this, but this afternoon Walmart saved the day! I had about zero ideas running through my head about how to entertain the children for the afternoon. Plus, I was exhausted. Next thing I know, the doorbell rings and it's a Christmas present I'd ordered off of Walmart.com packaged into a box about 5 times bigger than the present itself. Ivan's eyes lit up immediately when he saw it and he begged me, "Mom, can I please have the box to build a rocket?! Please!" And suddenly, I knew what we were going to do for the rest of the afternoon.
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BLASTOFF!!
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, BLASTOFF!!
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Boys' Room Story Time
Adelia and I had girls' room story time, and when I'd finished up with her I walked by to peek in on boys' room story time and saw this. I have no idea why they are sitting on the dresser, but I love it.
A Note From Dad
Lincoln came running into my bedroom this morning saying that Dad had left him and Ivan a note and if they cleaned up the toy room they would get a treat. Sure enough I found this little paper trail just inside the toy room door...
It took them quite awhile, and I had to sit in the room with them and direct traffic and help keep them motivated, but at long last...
Mission accomplished. Good thinkin' Love.
It took them quite awhile, and I had to sit in the room with them and direct traffic and help keep them motivated, but at long last...
Mission accomplished. Good thinkin' Love.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
The Liebster Blog Award
I've been nominated for the Liebster Blog Award by my friend Marci. And, to be honest (and nerdy) I actually like these kinds of blog posts because it's a chance for me to document some random facts about myself that might not ever come up otherwise.
Rules.
1. Each person awarded must post 11 facts about themselves.
2. Answer the 11 questions the nominator has set for them.
3. Choose five bloggers to nominate.
4. Create 11 more questions for those five bloggers.
5. Let the lucky bloggers know!
11 Facts About Me, Myself, and I
1. I'm a sucker for gift-giving. (And since I've been doing a lot of Christmas shopping this fact is becoming readily apparent.) I care more about getting someone the "perfect" gift, than I do about staying within my budget. Don't get me wrong, the budget is important, and I try to stick to it, but if my budget is say, $30, and the perfect thing happens to be oh, $40...I'm likely to spend the $40. My husband doesn't love this personality feature so much.
2. I will never give up sugar. I'll die a slow and chocolatey death first.
3. I'm pretty opinionated about most things, but I also hate confrontation. So I'm more likely to either, agree with you to your face and disagree with you in my journal later, or sit quietly in the background and say nothing. And usually, before I start spouting off my deepest feelings about subjects I feel strongly about, I make sure that I know that whomever I'm talking to feels similarly, so that they won't take offense. It's not that I'm bothered that other people have differing opinions, because I'm not at all; I'm glad of it actually. But what I don't want is for people to think I dislike or think less of them because I have a strong opinion on the other end of the spectrum.
4. I would rather give a talk in church than stand up and make an announcement. Weird, I know. Talking in church doesn't bother me; I even kind of enjoy it (depending on the topic). When you give a talk, you can prepare, you can practice, their is a certain flow, you have an opening, the middle meaty part, and a conclusion at the end. With announcements, I'm all over the place, and I feel like I always say too many words that are jumbled and confusing. I always feel like an idiot afterwards.
5. I am not a morning person. Never have been, never will be. Those moms that get up and get showered and dressed and scriptures read and a hundred other things before their kids get up in the morning...ya, that's not happening around here anytime in this lifetime. You want a morning person? Go talk to Aaron. I don't believe that time exists before, oh, 7:30am. And that's only when it has to. :) I am a creature of the night. My creative juices flow better after everyone else is in bed. I have my deepest, most profound thoughts when it's late, and quiet, and I can run the day's events through my head and work them out slowly.
6. If I had to give myself a label, I'd probably say I was a foody. I like to go out to nice restaurants and have nice food. I'm pretty certain I get this trait from my Dad, and I'm also pretty certain that he spoiled me rotten as a child by taking me nice places and letting me try all kinds of nice (read expensive) food. Since I've been married, it's been a little bit of an eye-opener/let-down not to go out to eat very often; also when we do we don't order cool drinks, and appetizers, and whatever else. And when I found out that Aaron didn't like calamari, I almost cried.
7. I'm realizing that according to #1 and #6 I kind of sound like I just spend money like I have it to burn. I don't. (Spend money like that, or have enough to burn.) So I'll tell you some things I'm stingy about. Clothes. I'd rather be comfortable than cute, and it's a lot cheaper to be comfortable. Wrapping paper. I've been known to wrap gifts in newspaper from the recycling bin, and plastic Walmart sacks tied with a knot. :) Haircuts. I refuse to pay more than about $15 for a haircut. Probably because growing up my mom did hair, so I never paid a dime for it. I still have her cut my hair on occasion, but it's hard when she lives 2 hours away. It blows my mind that people will spend $40-who knows what on just a hair cut alone, and then another $100 or so on color. No hairstyle is worth $150, I'm sorry, or even $75. There are SO many other things in this world I would rather spend that money on...like food and Christmas presents. :)
8. I like cinnamon-fire jolly ranchers, and I really wish I had some right now.
9. I try my best to eat healthy, but I still really like sugar cereals, and sneak a box of Captain Crunch whenever I can get away with it.
10. Fact. It is taking me a long time to come up with 11 semi-interesting facts about myself. :)
11. I miss myself sometimes. Does that even make any sense? Ha! I feel like as a mom, I'm a little bit up-tight, or on edge, or something. I don't think I'm as much fun as I used to be. I think twice about saying or doing things, and sometimes I miss just being able to let go.
My Answers to 11 Questions from Marci
1. What character from a movie or book do you feel is most like you? Ha! I actually think about this a lot, nerdy hu? And I can think of lots of examples of who I think other people are. My brother Kyle, for example, is Flynn Ryder. But I have a harder time with myself, probably because they don't make movies or books with characters like me, because I don't stand out in any way. I'm kind of a background character. But I can tell you who I'd like to be...I want to be bold and honest like Sarah from These Is My Words, and steady like Abilene from The Help, and positive and forgiving like Corrie from The Hiding Place, and funny like Juliet in The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and confident like Amy Chua in Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, and on and on and on.
2. What is your least favorite food of all time? mashed potatoes, hands down.
3. What is one of your biggest goals/dreams in life?
4. Most incredible experience of your life summed into one paragraph. Go! Child birth. Nothing else I've ever done has been as hard, or rewarding, or made me feel closer to the Savior (in the sense that I would suffer it all over again to bring my children into the world because of the deep and instant love I felt for them as soon as they came out). It really is an incredible, indescribable experience.
5. Favorite cookie recipe?
Ginger Bread Boys
1/3 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
2/3 cup coconut milk
6 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
Combine spices with flour and add sugar to shortening. Add molasses, eggs, milk. Mix all together and knead until thick and all flour is absorbed. Roll dough 1/2 inch thick cut out with cookie cutter. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Let cool, store covered to keep soft.
6. What is your dream career? (besides being a momma of course) I would love to be a writer and write some deeply thought provoking, inspiring, life changing, instant classic.
7. Top five books? Only 5...hmmm...this might be tough. Here are some favorites, but not in any certain order. I keep a running list of books I love under my Recommended Reads tab.
1. These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner
2. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
3. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
4. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom
5. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
8. Who is your greatest role model or someone who has greatly influenced your life? I think I'm turning out to be most like my mom, so that's pretty good evidence that she is having a pretty strong influence. :) But that's ok, I like my mom. But I also feel like there are so many other wonderful women...relatives, friends, teachers, employers, book characters...that have had an impact at different places along the way.
9. If you could only eat one vegetable for the rest of your life which one would it be? Asparagus
10. Dream vacation? I've got my sights set on ten beautiful, blissful day in Hawaii, just Aaron and I and the beach. If I ever accomplish that, I'll dream up something else.
11. Do you hate me now? :) No, I should thank you actually, for giving me something to do tonight while Aaron was at Elder's Quorum meeting.
The lucky nominees are...
All three of you (minus Marci, so I guess that makes two of you) who read this blog. :)
Your questions are:
1. What was the best Christmas present you ever received?
2. What is your philosophy on naming children?
3. Pets or no pets?
4. What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow? (Sorry, couldn't resist.)
5. Favorite form of chocolate?
6. What makes you different from most people you know?
7. What books have you read over and over and over again?
8. What is something that you find challenging?
9. If you could go back and live in any time period, which one would you chose?
10. What is your comfort food?
11. Favorite iphone app?
Rules.
1. Each person awarded must post 11 facts about themselves.
2. Answer the 11 questions the nominator has set for them.
3. Choose five bloggers to nominate.
4. Create 11 more questions for those five bloggers.
5. Let the lucky bloggers know!
11 Facts About Me, Myself, and I
1. I'm a sucker for gift-giving. (And since I've been doing a lot of Christmas shopping this fact is becoming readily apparent.) I care more about getting someone the "perfect" gift, than I do about staying within my budget. Don't get me wrong, the budget is important, and I try to stick to it, but if my budget is say, $30, and the perfect thing happens to be oh, $40...I'm likely to spend the $40. My husband doesn't love this personality feature so much.
2. I will never give up sugar. I'll die a slow and chocolatey death first.
3. I'm pretty opinionated about most things, but I also hate confrontation. So I'm more likely to either, agree with you to your face and disagree with you in my journal later, or sit quietly in the background and say nothing. And usually, before I start spouting off my deepest feelings about subjects I feel strongly about, I make sure that I know that whomever I'm talking to feels similarly, so that they won't take offense. It's not that I'm bothered that other people have differing opinions, because I'm not at all; I'm glad of it actually. But what I don't want is for people to think I dislike or think less of them because I have a strong opinion on the other end of the spectrum.
4. I would rather give a talk in church than stand up and make an announcement. Weird, I know. Talking in church doesn't bother me; I even kind of enjoy it (depending on the topic). When you give a talk, you can prepare, you can practice, their is a certain flow, you have an opening, the middle meaty part, and a conclusion at the end. With announcements, I'm all over the place, and I feel like I always say too many words that are jumbled and confusing. I always feel like an idiot afterwards.
5. I am not a morning person. Never have been, never will be. Those moms that get up and get showered and dressed and scriptures read and a hundred other things before their kids get up in the morning...ya, that's not happening around here anytime in this lifetime. You want a morning person? Go talk to Aaron. I don't believe that time exists before, oh, 7:30am. And that's only when it has to. :) I am a creature of the night. My creative juices flow better after everyone else is in bed. I have my deepest, most profound thoughts when it's late, and quiet, and I can run the day's events through my head and work them out slowly.
6. If I had to give myself a label, I'd probably say I was a foody. I like to go out to nice restaurants and have nice food. I'm pretty certain I get this trait from my Dad, and I'm also pretty certain that he spoiled me rotten as a child by taking me nice places and letting me try all kinds of nice (read expensive) food. Since I've been married, it's been a little bit of an eye-opener/let-down not to go out to eat very often; also when we do we don't order cool drinks, and appetizers, and whatever else. And when I found out that Aaron didn't like calamari, I almost cried.
7. I'm realizing that according to #1 and #6 I kind of sound like I just spend money like I have it to burn. I don't. (Spend money like that, or have enough to burn.) So I'll tell you some things I'm stingy about. Clothes. I'd rather be comfortable than cute, and it's a lot cheaper to be comfortable. Wrapping paper. I've been known to wrap gifts in newspaper from the recycling bin, and plastic Walmart sacks tied with a knot. :) Haircuts. I refuse to pay more than about $15 for a haircut. Probably because growing up my mom did hair, so I never paid a dime for it. I still have her cut my hair on occasion, but it's hard when she lives 2 hours away. It blows my mind that people will spend $40-who knows what on just a hair cut alone, and then another $100 or so on color. No hairstyle is worth $150, I'm sorry, or even $75. There are SO many other things in this world I would rather spend that money on...like food and Christmas presents. :)
8. I like cinnamon-fire jolly ranchers, and I really wish I had some right now.
9. I try my best to eat healthy, but I still really like sugar cereals, and sneak a box of Captain Crunch whenever I can get away with it.
10. Fact. It is taking me a long time to come up with 11 semi-interesting facts about myself. :)
11. I miss myself sometimes. Does that even make any sense? Ha! I feel like as a mom, I'm a little bit up-tight, or on edge, or something. I don't think I'm as much fun as I used to be. I think twice about saying or doing things, and sometimes I miss just being able to let go.
My Answers to 11 Questions from Marci
1. What character from a movie or book do you feel is most like you? Ha! I actually think about this a lot, nerdy hu? And I can think of lots of examples of who I think other people are. My brother Kyle, for example, is Flynn Ryder. But I have a harder time with myself, probably because they don't make movies or books with characters like me, because I don't stand out in any way. I'm kind of a background character. But I can tell you who I'd like to be...I want to be bold and honest like Sarah from These Is My Words, and steady like Abilene from The Help, and positive and forgiving like Corrie from The Hiding Place, and funny like Juliet in The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and confident like Amy Chua in Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, and on and on and on.
2. What is your least favorite food of all time? mashed potatoes, hands down.
3. What is one of your biggest goals/dreams in life?
4. Most incredible experience of your life summed into one paragraph. Go! Child birth. Nothing else I've ever done has been as hard, or rewarding, or made me feel closer to the Savior (in the sense that I would suffer it all over again to bring my children into the world because of the deep and instant love I felt for them as soon as they came out). It really is an incredible, indescribable experience.
5. Favorite cookie recipe?
Ginger Bread Boys
1/3 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
2/3 cup coconut milk
6 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
Combine spices with flour and add sugar to shortening. Add molasses, eggs, milk. Mix all together and knead until thick and all flour is absorbed. Roll dough 1/2 inch thick cut out with cookie cutter. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Let cool, store covered to keep soft.
6. What is your dream career? (besides being a momma of course) I would love to be a writer and write some deeply thought provoking, inspiring, life changing, instant classic.
7. Top five books? Only 5...hmmm...this might be tough. Here are some favorites, but not in any certain order. I keep a running list of books I love under my Recommended Reads tab.
1. These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner
2. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
3. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
4. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom
5. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
8. Who is your greatest role model or someone who has greatly influenced your life? I think I'm turning out to be most like my mom, so that's pretty good evidence that she is having a pretty strong influence. :) But that's ok, I like my mom. But I also feel like there are so many other wonderful women...relatives, friends, teachers, employers, book characters...that have had an impact at different places along the way.
9. If you could only eat one vegetable for the rest of your life which one would it be? Asparagus
10. Dream vacation? I've got my sights set on ten beautiful, blissful day in Hawaii, just Aaron and I and the beach. If I ever accomplish that, I'll dream up something else.
11. Do you hate me now? :) No, I should thank you actually, for giving me something to do tonight while Aaron was at Elder's Quorum meeting.
The lucky nominees are...
All three of you (minus Marci, so I guess that makes two of you) who read this blog. :)
Your questions are:
1. What was the best Christmas present you ever received?
2. What is your philosophy on naming children?
3. Pets or no pets?
4. What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow? (Sorry, couldn't resist.)
5. Favorite form of chocolate?
6. What makes you different from most people you know?
7. What books have you read over and over and over again?
8. What is something that you find challenging?
9. If you could go back and live in any time period, which one would you chose?
10. What is your comfort food?
11. Favorite iphone app?
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Today...
I've been working on our 2011 blog book for the last few nights. I love going back and rereading old posts and remembering what my kids were like when they were tiny. I've been noticing that in my older posts I gave a lot more detail about our day-to-day lives, and I've been missing that lately. I feel like recently I haven't had a lot of time to do much more than dump a bunch of pictures on the blog and briefly tell about what they are. But, in my rereadings, I'm finding that it's the little daily-life details that I find interesting and humorous. So my new goal is to try and be better.
So today...
I woke up feeling really stiff and achy, which is pretty normal for this pregnancy. The first thing I have to do every morning is waddle (yes, waddle, like a duck. I'm serious.) to the bathroom to ease the pressure on my bladder, which is one of the reasons I walk so funny. And the next thing is a hot bath, so loosen up my muscles and get my body to a point where it's willing to start the day.
By the time I got out of the tub and dressed today, it was time to run Aaron to work, so I went with wet hair, and saved the blow-drying until we got home. While I was blow-drying my hair, these three adorable super-heroes decided the best place to practice their take-offs and landings, was on my bed. I had to stop and watch for awhile, and just soak the moment in. I love that they asked me to safety pin dish towels around their necks for capes.
Lincoln has been wearing his cape all day long, even to my Dr.'s appointment and to WalMart. He's insisting that I call him Batman. When we got out of the car at the doctor's office, I said, "Linc don't run out into the parking lot, stay by the car." He replied, "Mom, I've told you a hundred times, and you keep forgetting to call me Batman!" I don't know why I can't remember, since he's got Ivan and Adelia calling Batman. I'm not sure where this fixation on Batman comes from. He's certainly never seen the movie. Maybe the super-hero thing is just hard-wired into little boys. I'm fine with it.
I probably shouldn't call it a doctor's appointment...since I'm seeing a group of midwives. Either way, the appointment went well today. She said Oliver sounds good, and he was being sneaky and sliding away from the Doppler, so it took us a minute to find his heart beat, but you could hear him sliding around in there. Ivan thought it was hilarious that the midwife called Oliver sneaky. Ivan has been doing little silly acts of sneakiness lately, like snitching a spaghetti noodle out of the bowl before dinner. But he does it really obviously, so that I will "catch" him in the act and call him sneaky, and then he laughs and laughs and thinks it's so funny. So I'm sure that the fact that Oliver is sneaky, has elevated Oliver up a few notches in Ivan's mind. Maybe having a little brother won't be so bad, eh?
Ollie is a low rider. I feel like all the time he is just so low inside me that he might fall out. I asked the midwife about it, and she said it's because he's my fourth, so my muscle tone just isn't what it used to be. That makes sense. Lincoln and Ivan always felt like they lived right underneath my rib cage, and I could barely breath. Adelia not so much. And now Ollie is all the way down. Makes my trips to the bathroom extremely frequent.Why is it that there is no happy medium in pregnancy? No matter how you slice it, the fact is that you are going to be uncomfortable for nine very long months. But then I scroll back up to that picture of my little super heroes, and I know it's worth it. I need to make Oliver a cape. :)
We did some good school work this morning. We did our devotional and read aloud. Right now we're reading the Junior Classics version of The Jungle Book, and the kids are loving it. Aaron and I pretty into it too. I know this, because if one of the other of us reads a chapter without the other one present, we always ask what we missed. I think I'd be interested to read the original one of these days. I like the Junior Classics for Young Readers series, #1 because you can usually find them in the Target dollar bin for a dollar, and #2 because they have a picture on almost every single page. The Jungle Book is the third or fourth one we've read. We've also done Dr. Dolittle, Peter Pan, and one other that's not coming to mind.
After read aloud, we did our handwriting, some math, cutting, name writing, and our preschool activity. We are slightly behind in the alphabet, because we did a lot of Halloween and Thanksgiving related lessons, so we're trying to get back on track, and are doing a quick couple of Letter H activities. Today we did magnet sheets. It's been a while since we did one of these, and I had forgotten how much my kids enjoy them. And they are so simple. Google search "Letter H cookie sheet magnet page" find one you like, hit print, give the kids a cookie sheet, the paper, and a stack of round magnets (you can find packs of 50 at WalMart for a couple bucks), and you're good to go.
When the kids got tired of the papers, they just set them aside, and kept playing with the magnets. At first they built different letters, and at one point Lincoln showed me that on his cookie sheet he'd made the trail of footprints the children of Israelite left in the dust as they were walking for 40 years in the wilderness (we talked about them being in the wilderness for 40 years in devotional today, so that idea isn't as random as it might come across).
Here's the (blurry) Letter H craft we did yesterday. It's not my favorite, and Aaron made fun of me because he said it looked like we made Valentines, but it was easy, and I already had all the materials, so it was also fast, which is a win-win in my book.
On a completely different note, my Otter Box case for my iphone came in the mail today! Hooray! Now I can stop being scared to death that I'm going to drop my phone and have it break into a million pieces. Have I mentioned that Aaron and I got iphones yet? They were a birthday/thanks-for-all-the-work-you've-put-into-the-website gift from Ryan and Melissa. It was Aaron's birthday, and Aaron who did all the work on the website, but I'm very happy to be a beneficiary of such a spectacular gift! I love my iphone already. Especially how easy it is to take and share pictures and videos. The kids love that we can facetime with Aaron on his lunch break. Yay for technology and all the cool apps that come with it!
I'm almost finished Christmas shopping and it's not even December yet. Thank you Amazon Prime and your free 2-day shipping! The only things I have left to get are presents for Aaron's parents (but I think that's in the works), stocking stuffers for the kids, and Aaron and I have to decide what we're doing for each other, whether we want to combine and get something big, or get each other separate small things. AND THAT'S IT! Oh, and Christmas cards...but our friends are taking our family pictures on the 8th, so I'll probably wait on that and use one of those photos. But seriously, I'm practically done Christmas shopping! I might get to sit back and enjoy December.
I'm so excited about what we're getting the kids, I can't wait. I'm also very excited because this is the first year since we've been married that we are not traveling anywhere for Christmas! Wahoo! That means we don't have to load all the presents and luggage into our van, haul it somewhere, and then turn around and load it all again and haul it back. And since Aaron's parents live in Springville now, we'll still get to see family, so we aren't missing out on anything. I can have a slow Christmas morning watching my kids open and enjoy their gifts without a lot of chaos, and still be with family in the afternoon.
I have big plans for our Christmas Eve dinner. I'm hosting a meal like
the Savior would have eaten in his time. I want the evening to be
different, and simple, and most importantly focused on the Savior. I'm
going to try and get all wooden tableware (plates, cups, bowls, etc.),
and serve foods that we can eat mostly with our hands. Smoked salmon,
grapes, olives, cheese, dried apricots and dates, nuts, grape juice, and
pita bread. My sister-in-law is going to make homemade humus, and
Aaron's mom is bringing some sort of salad that I can't remember the
name of. We will be eating by candle light. I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS.
I have been trying to years, literally, to think of a way to bring
Christ more into our Christmas celebration. And while this isn't the
only way we'll try to do it, I think it will be different enough from
our regular routine that it will be something our family will really
remember and get into. I hope so. And if not, hey, at least the kids
will enjoy being allowed to eat with their hands (since they mostly do
that anyway).
Speaking of Christmas...I finally turned on the Christmas music today, even thought technically it's been allowed since last Friday. :) I needed the kids to help me clean up a little bit, and they were resisting, so I told them I'd turn on some music and we could dance while we cleaned. They loved it. I think they did more dancing than cleaning, but at least we were all in a good mood. I think Barenaked Ladies version of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is going to be a big favorite in our house again this year. But one song has really been catching my attention, I think because the idea behind it has been on my mind for awhile. The song is Through Heaven's Eyes from The Prince of Egypt
A single thread in a tapestry
Through its color brightly shine
Can never see its purpose
In the pattern of the grand design
And the stone that sits on the very top
Of the mountains mighty face
Does it think its more important
Than the stones that form the base?
So how can you see what your life is worth
Or where your value lies?
You can never see through the eyes of man
You must look at your life
Look at your life through heavens eyes
Lai-la-lai...
A lake of gold in the desert sand
Is less than a cool fresh spring
And to one lost sheep, a shepherd boy
Is greater than the richest king
If a man lose everything he owns
Has he truly lost his worth?
Or is it the beginning
Of a new and brighter birth?
So how do you measure the worth of a man
In wealth or strength or size?
In how much he gained or how much he gave?
The answer will come
The answer will come to him who tries
To look at his life through heavens eyes
And thats why we share all we have with you
Though theres little to be found
When all youve got is nothing
Theres a lot to go around
No life can escape being blown about
By the winds of change and chance
And though you never know all the steps
You must learn to join the dance
You must learn to join the dance
Lai-la-lai...
So how do you judge what a man is worth
By what he builds or buys?
You can never see with your eyes on earth
Look through heavens eyes
Look at your life
Look at your life
Look at your life through heaven's eyes
Isn't it funny how sometimes one topic seems to pop up again over and over. I swear every Relief Society lesson, every conference talk I've listened to or read, and many random daily occurrences, have been bring to my mind thoughts about our eternal perspective. Sometimes it seems like my life and the tasks I fill it with are so small and meaningless, and it's really frustrating. And I wonder if any of the things I do even matter, and if they matter, why do they matter? But I keep coming back to this eternal perspective...if we "look through Heaven's eyes" then things look a lot differently. We do matter, our actions matter, their is a reason, and a purpose, and a time. The Lord's time might be different than ours, the Lord's way is very likely different than ours, and the Lord's outcome is far better than anything we could envision for ourselves. And "we must learn to join the dance" and trust in Him.
And, on a completely different note...I'm craving a chocolate orange so bad I could kill someone. Good thing I have one stashed away. :) I'll be going to scarf that down now...
So today...
I woke up feeling really stiff and achy, which is pretty normal for this pregnancy. The first thing I have to do every morning is waddle (yes, waddle, like a duck. I'm serious.) to the bathroom to ease the pressure on my bladder, which is one of the reasons I walk so funny. And the next thing is a hot bath, so loosen up my muscles and get my body to a point where it's willing to start the day.
By the time I got out of the tub and dressed today, it was time to run Aaron to work, so I went with wet hair, and saved the blow-drying until we got home. While I was blow-drying my hair, these three adorable super-heroes decided the best place to practice their take-offs and landings, was on my bed. I had to stop and watch for awhile, and just soak the moment in. I love that they asked me to safety pin dish towels around their necks for capes.
Lincoln has been wearing his cape all day long, even to my Dr.'s appointment and to WalMart. He's insisting that I call him Batman. When we got out of the car at the doctor's office, I said, "Linc don't run out into the parking lot, stay by the car." He replied, "Mom, I've told you a hundred times, and you keep forgetting to call me Batman!" I don't know why I can't remember, since he's got Ivan and Adelia calling Batman. I'm not sure where this fixation on Batman comes from. He's certainly never seen the movie. Maybe the super-hero thing is just hard-wired into little boys. I'm fine with it.
I probably shouldn't call it a doctor's appointment...since I'm seeing a group of midwives. Either way, the appointment went well today. She said Oliver sounds good, and he was being sneaky and sliding away from the Doppler, so it took us a minute to find his heart beat, but you could hear him sliding around in there. Ivan thought it was hilarious that the midwife called Oliver sneaky. Ivan has been doing little silly acts of sneakiness lately, like snitching a spaghetti noodle out of the bowl before dinner. But he does it really obviously, so that I will "catch" him in the act and call him sneaky, and then he laughs and laughs and thinks it's so funny. So I'm sure that the fact that Oliver is sneaky, has elevated Oliver up a few notches in Ivan's mind. Maybe having a little brother won't be so bad, eh?
Ollie is a low rider. I feel like all the time he is just so low inside me that he might fall out. I asked the midwife about it, and she said it's because he's my fourth, so my muscle tone just isn't what it used to be. That makes sense. Lincoln and Ivan always felt like they lived right underneath my rib cage, and I could barely breath. Adelia not so much. And now Ollie is all the way down. Makes my trips to the bathroom extremely frequent.Why is it that there is no happy medium in pregnancy? No matter how you slice it, the fact is that you are going to be uncomfortable for nine very long months. But then I scroll back up to that picture of my little super heroes, and I know it's worth it. I need to make Oliver a cape. :)
After read aloud, we did our handwriting, some math, cutting, name writing, and our preschool activity. We are slightly behind in the alphabet, because we did a lot of Halloween and Thanksgiving related lessons, so we're trying to get back on track, and are doing a quick couple of Letter H activities. Today we did magnet sheets. It's been a while since we did one of these, and I had forgotten how much my kids enjoy them. And they are so simple. Google search "Letter H cookie sheet magnet page" find one you like, hit print, give the kids a cookie sheet, the paper, and a stack of round magnets (you can find packs of 50 at WalMart for a couple bucks), and you're good to go.
When the kids got tired of the papers, they just set them aside, and kept playing with the magnets. At first they built different letters, and at one point Lincoln showed me that on his cookie sheet he'd made the trail of footprints the children of Israelite left in the dust as they were walking for 40 years in the wilderness (we talked about them being in the wilderness for 40 years in devotional today, so that idea isn't as random as it might come across).
On a completely different note, my Otter Box case for my iphone came in the mail today! Hooray! Now I can stop being scared to death that I'm going to drop my phone and have it break into a million pieces. Have I mentioned that Aaron and I got iphones yet? They were a birthday/thanks-for-all-the-work-you've-put-into-the-website gift from Ryan and Melissa. It was Aaron's birthday, and Aaron who did all the work on the website, but I'm very happy to be a beneficiary of such a spectacular gift! I love my iphone already. Especially how easy it is to take and share pictures and videos. The kids love that we can facetime with Aaron on his lunch break. Yay for technology and all the cool apps that come with it!
I'm almost finished Christmas shopping and it's not even December yet. Thank you Amazon Prime and your free 2-day shipping! The only things I have left to get are presents for Aaron's parents (but I think that's in the works), stocking stuffers for the kids, and Aaron and I have to decide what we're doing for each other, whether we want to combine and get something big, or get each other separate small things. AND THAT'S IT! Oh, and Christmas cards...but our friends are taking our family pictures on the 8th, so I'll probably wait on that and use one of those photos. But seriously, I'm practically done Christmas shopping! I might get to sit back and enjoy December.
I'm so excited about what we're getting the kids, I can't wait. I'm also very excited because this is the first year since we've been married that we are not traveling anywhere for Christmas! Wahoo! That means we don't have to load all the presents and luggage into our van, haul it somewhere, and then turn around and load it all again and haul it back. And since Aaron's parents live in Springville now, we'll still get to see family, so we aren't missing out on anything. I can have a slow Christmas morning watching my kids open and enjoy their gifts without a lot of chaos, and still be with family in the afternoon.
Speaking of Christmas...I finally turned on the Christmas music today, even thought technically it's been allowed since last Friday. :) I needed the kids to help me clean up a little bit, and they were resisting, so I told them I'd turn on some music and we could dance while we cleaned. They loved it. I think they did more dancing than cleaning, but at least we were all in a good mood. I think Barenaked Ladies version of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is going to be a big favorite in our house again this year. But one song has really been catching my attention, I think because the idea behind it has been on my mind for awhile. The song is Through Heaven's Eyes from The Prince of Egypt
A single thread in a tapestry
Through its color brightly shine
Can never see its purpose
In the pattern of the grand design
And the stone that sits on the very top
Of the mountains mighty face
Does it think its more important
Than the stones that form the base?
So how can you see what your life is worth
Or where your value lies?
You can never see through the eyes of man
You must look at your life
Look at your life through heavens eyes
Lai-la-lai...
A lake of gold in the desert sand
Is less than a cool fresh spring
And to one lost sheep, a shepherd boy
Is greater than the richest king
If a man lose everything he owns
Has he truly lost his worth?
Or is it the beginning
Of a new and brighter birth?
So how do you measure the worth of a man
In wealth or strength or size?
In how much he gained or how much he gave?
The answer will come
The answer will come to him who tries
To look at his life through heavens eyes
And thats why we share all we have with you
Though theres little to be found
When all youve got is nothing
Theres a lot to go around
No life can escape being blown about
By the winds of change and chance
And though you never know all the steps
You must learn to join the dance
You must learn to join the dance
Lai-la-lai...
So how do you judge what a man is worth
By what he builds or buys?
You can never see with your eyes on earth
Look through heavens eyes
Look at your life
Look at your life
Look at your life through heaven's eyes
Isn't it funny how sometimes one topic seems to pop up again over and over. I swear every Relief Society lesson, every conference talk I've listened to or read, and many random daily occurrences, have been bring to my mind thoughts about our eternal perspective. Sometimes it seems like my life and the tasks I fill it with are so small and meaningless, and it's really frustrating. And I wonder if any of the things I do even matter, and if they matter, why do they matter? But I keep coming back to this eternal perspective...if we "look through Heaven's eyes" then things look a lot differently. We do matter, our actions matter, their is a reason, and a purpose, and a time. The Lord's time might be different than ours, the Lord's way is very likely different than ours, and the Lord's outcome is far better than anything we could envision for ourselves. And "we must learn to join the dance" and trust in Him.
And, on a completely different note...I'm craving a chocolate orange so bad I could kill someone. Good thing I have one stashed away. :) I'll be going to scarf that down now...
Sunday, November 25, 2012
The Bump
25 weeks
Here's the first official picture of Oliver as a bump. By the way, can I just mention my new maternity dress? Because I love it. It's probably the most comfortable piece of maternity wardrobe I own. Too bad I only wear dresses on Sunday. But I love it. Just sayin'.
Friday, November 23, 2012
Aaron's 29th Birthday
Aaron's bday was on Black Friday this year. We had no desire to go shopping, but we didn't really want to sit around the house all day either. Mom and Kerry to the rescue! They took us up to Hill Air Force Base to go bowling.
After bowling, we left the kids with a baby sitter and went out for birthday dinner. Mom and Kerry have a tradition to take out each child and spouse on their respective birthdays. Aaron chose Ruby River in Riverdale. It's one of my favorite places to get steak. And their sour dough bread and home brewed root beer is to die for.
Aaron, Krysta, Tami, Kerry, Grandpa Sparks, Grandma Sparks at Ruby River
After dinner, we packed up the kids and headed home to Springville. Aaron wanted to take advantage of the nice Saturday weather forecast to work on our sprinklers. They're almost done!
Adelia singing If You're Happy and You Know It
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Thanksgiving 2012
Starting with me going counter clockwise: Krystal, Lincoln, Ivan, Adelia, Aaron, Kyle, Kelsey, Grandpa Sparks, Grandma Sparks, Tanner, Jackson, Emree, Gramma Tam, Papa Kerry, Steph, and Kirk.
We spent Thanksgiving up in Hooper this year. As always, it was great to see family. Thanksgiving morning, Aaron, Kyle, Kels, Jackson, Tanner, and I took the kids to the park. It was nice to get outside, but it was a little bit chilly. I'm not sure what the kids enjoyed more, the big metal slide, or the giant pile of leaves.
Tanner, me, and Kels snuggling on the park bench to keep warm.
After that we snacked and hung out around the house. I chatted with Mom while she made her famous rolls, Adelia played with Emree, and Tanner and Juicey B watched some football. After dinner was over the older boys had their own Turkey Bowl (two-hand touch football in the yard), and Aaron says he's going to be sore. When it got dark outside, Aaron took our boys exploring around Gramma's yard with flashlights...they were so impressed.
Dinner was fantastic as always. Kyle took the panoramic shot above, so that we could get everyone in the picture. (Ya, sorry family, I'm obsessed with record keeping, and I wouldn't let us eat until we'd documented the event.)
And I'd like to end this post with the Swan family turkey list (the things we've been writing down all month that we are grateful for), at first I tried to color coordinate the responses so that I would know who said what, but by the end it got a little hectic, I'll specify who said it if I can remember, but otherwise we're all just very thankful, so here it is...
Grateful Gobbler List 2012
Journaling
Snow plows
Friends
Email
New Socks (Linc)
Pie
Bedtime (Krystal)
Garage we can park in
All my preschool friends (Ivan)
Basketball hoop (Ivan)
Quiet Time (Krystal)
Homemade rolls (Aaron)
Jesus (Lincoln)
Chocolate
Able-bodied husband (Krystal)
Calm music
The car's traction control (Aaron)
Electricity
Hats
Lunch
New boots (Ivan)
Washer/dryer (Krystal)
Naps for me (Krystal)
Sunshine
Girls' night out (Krystal)
Snow shovel (Lincoln)
Aaron's job
Blankets (Ivan)
Hard-working husband (Krystal)
Balls
Book Club
Quality children's books
Aaron
Lincoln
Ivan
Adelia
Oliver
Chocolate
Thanksgiving (Ivan)
Holy Ghost (Lincoln)
Holy socks (Aaron)
Simple pleasures
Warm winter clothes
Our home
Potato Salad (Aaron)
Preschool co-op
Great ward
Puzzles
The baby in Mommy's tummy (Ivan)
Bathtub
Feeling good inside (Lincoln)
My visiting teachers
Books
Grandmas and Grandpas
Snowman building (Lincoln)
Sandwich (Ivan)
Internet
Garden Salad (Aaron)
Basketball hoop (Ivan)
Hugs from our kids (Aaron)
Heat
Computer savvy husband (Krystal)
My drill (Aaron)
Cheese (Ivan)
Conference talks
Fresh homemade bread
Glasses
Stuffed animals (Ivan)
My bouncy ball (Adelia)
My sister and brother (Lincoln)
Turkey (Adelia)
2-day shipping
Cousins
The day (Lincoln)
Jackets (Ivan)
Cell phones
The Holy Day (Lincoln)
Winter stuff we wear when it's snowing (Ivan)
Google maps
peaceful music
Scriptures
Running water
Comfortable beds
Extended family
Grocery stores
Cars
Traditions
Also, here are some cute videos of my kids telling the story of the first Thanksgiving.
Also, here are some cute videos of my kids telling the story of the first Thanksgiving.
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
The Rack is Finished
Aaron finished putting up the rack tonight! Happy early birthday to him. After we put the kids to bed, he and I spend the rest of the night organizing the garage and putting things up on the rack. The garage looks FAN-TASTIC! And there is so much space yay! We can park our van in there again, and we could probably even park a second car in there if we had one. It's great. I'll try to post a picture of it all clean when I can get a shot in the daylight.
Aaron's Early Bday Present
I found a killer deal on an overhead garage rack and decided to get it for Aaron for his birthday. Unfortunately he's had to tweak our garage a bit to make the I-beams strong enough to support the weight. It's been a great project for him the last few days. He's almost done with it.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Adelia's Church Hair
Adelia rarely leaves her hair-does in for more than a few hours. So I wanted to snap some pictures of her "church hair" today just so it's on the record that I do, in fact, do her hair. I have several different styles that I like to do; most of which involve trying to keep her hair out of her eyeballs. But on Sundays, I tend to get a little bit fancy. I leave her hair long, or only pull up part, and then use my teeny-tiny barreled curling iron to give her little ringlets. Since her hair is curly, it holds the ringlets really well (something my hair has never been able to do). Then we find a bow that matches her dress, show her her hair style in the mirror (that's her favorite part, she always says, "I beautiful!"), and then hope she leaves it in at least long enough to make it to Sacrament meeting. She's kind of adorable, don't you think?
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Thanksgiving Preschool and Some Other Things
Wow, I am tired today. Could be the late book club movie get together from last night...ya, it's probably that. But I love my book club friends, so it was worth it. But I am dragging butt today...
It was my turn to host the preschool co-op this morning. I taught about Thanksgiving. First we read a book called The Story of Thanksgiving. It is a nice, simple story that explains why we have Thanksgiving.
Then we made some pilgrim hats for the kids to wear. They turned out really cute. I think I'm going to have Lincoln's class make them at Friday Fun this week.
After the hats we made Indian (Native American?) necklaces out of yarn and dyed pasta noodles. I'd never died pasta noodles before this week. It's so easy, and makes the necklaces look so much cooler than just using regular pasta. So I think we will also make Indian necklaces with Lincoln's class. (Sweet! Lincoln's class is practically planning itself. It's sounding like, for once in my life, I am going to be able to reuse an idea and save myself some time!) Here are the preschool kids in their hats and necklaces:
After they had dressed the part, we had a small popcorn snack. Then we read another story that had to do with how we celebrate Thanksgiving today. It's called Thanks for Thanksgiving. I really love this book. It's cute and rhymes, but the illustrations are the best part. All the pictures are drawn from the perspective of a child watching preparations being made for the Thanksgiving feast. So the scenes look like you are looking at them from about knee height. I love it. And it talks about the things kids are thankful for. It's really cute. Read it.
Then we went back to the table and made our own thankful turkeys. We talked about the things we were thankful for and the different traditions each family had for expressing the those things. I had a few pictures cut out that they could glue onto their turkeys to show they were thankful for their house, food, family, and books. I let the kids go wild, and glue their feathers on any way they wanted, so things got pretty interesting. But I think they still turned out cute. Here's Ivan's, along with his cutting sheet (which was pretty simple to make in Word), and our dyed pasta.
How to Dye Pasta Noodles
1. In a ziplock bag, put 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol, 10 drops of food coloring, and 1 cup pasta.
2. Let sit a couple hours, then turn the bag over, and let sit a couple more.
3. Dump the pasta our onto cookie sheets covered with a layer of paper towels and let dry 24 hours.
So that was preschool today. I thought it turned out ok...a little heavy on the arts and crafts side, but oh well.
Lincoln and I did some good school work today too. Last week he finished his Primer (Kindergarten level) book in Math U See. He liked it, and did well, so I went ahead and ordered him the Alpha (first grade) book to start working through. We started at the first of the week and the first lesson was on place value. Math U See has this cool idea called Decimal Street, that works really well for explaining place value. For the last couple of days, Lincoln and I have been building our own Decimal Street our of poster board, and playing with our manipulatives to make all kinds of numbers, and showing where they live on Decimal Street.
The idea is this, basically you have a street with houses on it. The little green house is the units (ones) house. Nine little unit blocks can live there, but as soon as a tenth one comes along, they all have to move to a bigger house if they want to stay together. The tens house. The tens house is the tall blue house that holds the tens. Nine tens can live in the house, but as soon as a tenth one comes along, they have to move into a bigger house if they want to stay together...the hundreds house, which is the red castle house.
We can play two ways. #1 I put different numbers of manipulitives in each house, and Lincoln has to knock on each door and ask how many are home. He knocks on the units door, three units are home. Five tens are home and one hundred is home. Then he looks at what he has written down and tells me the number is 153. Then I clear the board and put our more manipulatives. #2 I give him a number, say 396, and he has to put the correct number of manipulatives in each house and tell me the number. Linc has been really enjoying this game. I think we played for about an hour today while the other kids napped. So Math U See is going well, and that makes me happy.
And this child...
I don't even know. Yes. She's climbing in the window seal in her monster snow hat and Snow White underwear. I have no idea why. Because she's two? The only reason she's in underwear is because we are going through a stripper phase. She refuses to keep a diaper (or clothes, for that matter) on her body. So, as an alternative to getting pee everywhere without my knowing, we have entered into some sort of potty training phase. She runs around in underwear and is occasionally agreeable to trying to sit on the potty. She's probably pooped in the potty at least 8 times though. Not on any kind of regular, or trust-able basis, but at least the idea is getting across, maybe? I can't count the number of times I've gone to wake her up in the morning and found her butt-naked on her soaking wet bed. This means a lot of laundry for me, and a safety pin through the zipper of her jammies for her. But it wouldn't surprise me in the least if she figures out how to get the safety pin off pretty quickly. She's figured out how to get around all our greatest parenting tricks so far. I keep telling myself that I'm happy she's smart. Stinker.
After preschool, and lunch, and naps, and school, all I really wanted to do was lie in bed and read my book club book. We're reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for November. Of course the kids didn't want to entertain themselves and let me read in peace; but instead of giving up, I just invited them to join me. They brought in stacks of their books, and we all piled in my bed and cuddled up under the covers and had a books in bed party. Surprisingly, I actually got a decent amount of reading done. I'm sure we were quite the site when Aaron came home from work.
It was my turn to host the preschool co-op this morning. I taught about Thanksgiving. First we read a book called The Story of Thanksgiving. It is a nice, simple story that explains why we have Thanksgiving.
Then we made some pilgrim hats for the kids to wear. They turned out really cute. I think I'm going to have Lincoln's class make them at Friday Fun this week.
After the hats we made Indian (Native American?) necklaces out of yarn and dyed pasta noodles. I'd never died pasta noodles before this week. It's so easy, and makes the necklaces look so much cooler than just using regular pasta. So I think we will also make Indian necklaces with Lincoln's class. (Sweet! Lincoln's class is practically planning itself. It's sounding like, for once in my life, I am going to be able to reuse an idea and save myself some time!) Here are the preschool kids in their hats and necklaces:
After they had dressed the part, we had a small popcorn snack. Then we read another story that had to do with how we celebrate Thanksgiving today. It's called Thanks for Thanksgiving. I really love this book. It's cute and rhymes, but the illustrations are the best part. All the pictures are drawn from the perspective of a child watching preparations being made for the Thanksgiving feast. So the scenes look like you are looking at them from about knee height. I love it. And it talks about the things kids are thankful for. It's really cute. Read it.
Then we went back to the table and made our own thankful turkeys. We talked about the things we were thankful for and the different traditions each family had for expressing the those things. I had a few pictures cut out that they could glue onto their turkeys to show they were thankful for their house, food, family, and books. I let the kids go wild, and glue their feathers on any way they wanted, so things got pretty interesting. But I think they still turned out cute. Here's Ivan's, along with his cutting sheet (which was pretty simple to make in Word), and our dyed pasta.
How to Dye Pasta Noodles
1. In a ziplock bag, put 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol, 10 drops of food coloring, and 1 cup pasta.
2. Let sit a couple hours, then turn the bag over, and let sit a couple more.
3. Dump the pasta our onto cookie sheets covered with a layer of paper towels and let dry 24 hours.
So that was preschool today. I thought it turned out ok...a little heavy on the arts and crafts side, but oh well.
Lincoln and I did some good school work today too. Last week he finished his Primer (Kindergarten level) book in Math U See. He liked it, and did well, so I went ahead and ordered him the Alpha (first grade) book to start working through. We started at the first of the week and the first lesson was on place value. Math U See has this cool idea called Decimal Street, that works really well for explaining place value. For the last couple of days, Lincoln and I have been building our own Decimal Street our of poster board, and playing with our manipulatives to make all kinds of numbers, and showing where they live on Decimal Street.The idea is this, basically you have a street with houses on it. The little green house is the units (ones) house. Nine little unit blocks can live there, but as soon as a tenth one comes along, they all have to move to a bigger house if they want to stay together. The tens house. The tens house is the tall blue house that holds the tens. Nine tens can live in the house, but as soon as a tenth one comes along, they have to move into a bigger house if they want to stay together...the hundreds house, which is the red castle house.
We can play two ways. #1 I put different numbers of manipulitives in each house, and Lincoln has to knock on each door and ask how many are home. He knocks on the units door, three units are home. Five tens are home and one hundred is home. Then he looks at what he has written down and tells me the number is 153. Then I clear the board and put our more manipulatives. #2 I give him a number, say 396, and he has to put the correct number of manipulatives in each house and tell me the number. Linc has been really enjoying this game. I think we played for about an hour today while the other kids napped. So Math U See is going well, and that makes me happy.
And this child...
I don't even know. Yes. She's climbing in the window seal in her monster snow hat and Snow White underwear. I have no idea why. Because she's two? The only reason she's in underwear is because we are going through a stripper phase. She refuses to keep a diaper (or clothes, for that matter) on her body. So, as an alternative to getting pee everywhere without my knowing, we have entered into some sort of potty training phase. She runs around in underwear and is occasionally agreeable to trying to sit on the potty. She's probably pooped in the potty at least 8 times though. Not on any kind of regular, or trust-able basis, but at least the idea is getting across, maybe? I can't count the number of times I've gone to wake her up in the morning and found her butt-naked on her soaking wet bed. This means a lot of laundry for me, and a safety pin through the zipper of her jammies for her. But it wouldn't surprise me in the least if she figures out how to get the safety pin off pretty quickly. She's figured out how to get around all our greatest parenting tricks so far. I keep telling myself that I'm happy she's smart. Stinker.
After preschool, and lunch, and naps, and school, all I really wanted to do was lie in bed and read my book club book. We're reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for November. Of course the kids didn't want to entertain themselves and let me read in peace; but instead of giving up, I just invited them to join me. They brought in stacks of their books, and we all piled in my bed and cuddled up under the covers and had a books in bed party. Surprisingly, I actually got a decent amount of reading done. I'm sure we were quite the site when Aaron came home from work.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Close to Home
This is sort of how I imagine Krystal thinks I feel when I stay home (we both thought it was funny). -Aaron
Saturday, November 10, 2012
A Day in the Snow
It snowed! A lot. All day yesterday and on and off today. My kids begged and begged yesterday to go out and play in the snow. But my pregnant self wasn't up for it, plus there's the dilemma that underneath our snow is mud, and I did not like the thought of having to wash an entire pile of muddy snow clothes. By the time Aaron got home last night it was too dark to go out anyway.
Luckily this morning it was still snowing, and we had an idea! Aaron's parents live across town, and they have grass under their snow. They are out of town so we wanted to go over and shovel their driveway anyways, so it didn't ice over, and we thought while we were there, we might as well build them a welcome home snowman.
The kids had a great time, although I think Aaron pretty much built the snowman single handedly. We bought the boys these cute little $5 snow shovels and they had a ball with them, and they were fairly helpful getting the snow off the driveway and stairs too. Adelia was content to make snowballs and taste test them. Happy Snow Day! And thanks G&G Swan for letting us borrow your snow.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Old Journal Entry
I don't write in my journal super often anymore. I figure that I blog enough to keep more than sufficient record of my family. But occasionally when there is something I don't want to share with the world, I'll pull out my old journal and jot some things down.
I have a testimony of the fact that we are commanded to write things down. The other night I was laying in bed with a headache, and my mind was going a million miles a minute. I pulled my journal out of the night stand drawer and started to read some old entries. One in particular caught my eye. I'd forgotten all about writing it, but felt like the things I had written down then, were things I needed to be reminded of now. I want to share the entry.
Sunday, March 2011
I stayed home from church today with Ivan and Adelia because Ivan was up in the middle of the night with croup-sounding symptoms. It was Aaron's week to teach in Sunday School so he had to go and he took Lincoln with him. Lincoln just started Sunbeams this year and loves it. While they were gone, I listened to a conference talk by Elder D. Todd Christoffersen called Reflections on a Consecrated Life. We had a lesson on this a few weeks ago at church, and I've been feeling kind of like a huge failure at consecrating my life ever since, because I feel like all I do all day is try to entertain/teach kids and do house work. I wanted to read the talk again today to see if I could come up with any ideas for how I could make my life more consecrated.
First of all, what a great talk. Last month my visiting teachers gave me a challenge to study up on a restored principle of the gospel in the latter-days (any one of my choice) and I decided to pick the principle of the modern prophets speaking the will of the Lord. I have always had a testimony of the prophets and apostles, but I've been really bad lately about going back and really studying the things they teach about in general conference. So I chose to learn more about the principle of living prophets by making an effort to hear and ponder their words. My goal is to watch on-line/read one conference talk every day during Ivan and Adelia's nap while Linc is having quiet time. I started my goal last week, and I am not doing perfectly...I only watched 2 talks last week, but I'm trying. I have loved those few minutes spent listening to the prophets. It's never a waste of time.
Anyways, back to the talk I listened to today. One thing Elder Christoffersen said has been sticking with me, he said something to the effect that when we do the work of the Lord we are consecrating that work to Him, and, any honest work that we do is the work of the Lord. To me this was a comforting statement because it means when I do my laundry for our family it is the work of the Lord. So is doing dishes, and cooking dinner, and reading story after story to my kids, bathing them, dressing them, cleaning up after them, stopping my chores to listen to or play with them. It's all honest work, so it's the work of the Lord.
There were also a lot of things he said in his talk that are things I need to work on, and will try to work on. But I came away from the talk this time not feeling like I was too far behind to catch up. Instead I feel like I am making some progress, and that I still have a lifetime to go, but that I can keep taking little steps forward.
-Krystal
I always sign my journal entries at the end...I have no idea why. I'm so glad I reread this entry. For myself, personally, I find that I seem to need very frequent reminders that the things I do during daily motherhood are meaningful. I needed to be reminded that the work of a mother is honest work. Sometimes very monotonous, repetitive work, that rarely doles out any form of instant gratification; but honest work. And honest work is the Lord's work.
I read another talk tonight from October's conference by Elder Perry entitled Becoming Goodly Parents. In the first part of his talk, he reads an excerpt from a letter he wrote to his mother when he was in the military. I hope to the be kind of mother that is someday worthy of receiving that kind of letter from my kids. I hope they can remember mostly the good and forget the bad, as I stumble trying to find my way through this parenting business. I want to fortify our home with the gospel. And make our family relationship a rock that our children can anchor on. They are going out into a scary world, and I have no idea which angle Satan will try to tackle them from. I hope I can teach them, and I hope I can love and support them when they make mistakes.
I have a testimony of the fact that we are commanded to write things down. The other night I was laying in bed with a headache, and my mind was going a million miles a minute. I pulled my journal out of the night stand drawer and started to read some old entries. One in particular caught my eye. I'd forgotten all about writing it, but felt like the things I had written down then, were things I needed to be reminded of now. I want to share the entry.
Sunday, March 2011
I stayed home from church today with Ivan and Adelia because Ivan was up in the middle of the night with croup-sounding symptoms. It was Aaron's week to teach in Sunday School so he had to go and he took Lincoln with him. Lincoln just started Sunbeams this year and loves it. While they were gone, I listened to a conference talk by Elder D. Todd Christoffersen called Reflections on a Consecrated Life. We had a lesson on this a few weeks ago at church, and I've been feeling kind of like a huge failure at consecrating my life ever since, because I feel like all I do all day is try to entertain/teach kids and do house work. I wanted to read the talk again today to see if I could come up with any ideas for how I could make my life more consecrated.
First of all, what a great talk. Last month my visiting teachers gave me a challenge to study up on a restored principle of the gospel in the latter-days (any one of my choice) and I decided to pick the principle of the modern prophets speaking the will of the Lord. I have always had a testimony of the prophets and apostles, but I've been really bad lately about going back and really studying the things they teach about in general conference. So I chose to learn more about the principle of living prophets by making an effort to hear and ponder their words. My goal is to watch on-line/read one conference talk every day during Ivan and Adelia's nap while Linc is having quiet time. I started my goal last week, and I am not doing perfectly...I only watched 2 talks last week, but I'm trying. I have loved those few minutes spent listening to the prophets. It's never a waste of time.
Anyways, back to the talk I listened to today. One thing Elder Christoffersen said has been sticking with me, he said something to the effect that when we do the work of the Lord we are consecrating that work to Him, and, any honest work that we do is the work of the Lord. To me this was a comforting statement because it means when I do my laundry for our family it is the work of the Lord. So is doing dishes, and cooking dinner, and reading story after story to my kids, bathing them, dressing them, cleaning up after them, stopping my chores to listen to or play with them. It's all honest work, so it's the work of the Lord.
There were also a lot of things he said in his talk that are things I need to work on, and will try to work on. But I came away from the talk this time not feeling like I was too far behind to catch up. Instead I feel like I am making some progress, and that I still have a lifetime to go, but that I can keep taking little steps forward.
-Krystal
I always sign my journal entries at the end...I have no idea why. I'm so glad I reread this entry. For myself, personally, I find that I seem to need very frequent reminders that the things I do during daily motherhood are meaningful. I needed to be reminded that the work of a mother is honest work. Sometimes very monotonous, repetitive work, that rarely doles out any form of instant gratification; but honest work. And honest work is the Lord's work.
I read another talk tonight from October's conference by Elder Perry entitled Becoming Goodly Parents. In the first part of his talk, he reads an excerpt from a letter he wrote to his mother when he was in the military. I hope to the be kind of mother that is someday worthy of receiving that kind of letter from my kids. I hope they can remember mostly the good and forget the bad, as I stumble trying to find my way through this parenting business. I want to fortify our home with the gospel. And make our family relationship a rock that our children can anchor on. They are going out into a scary world, and I have no idea which angle Satan will try to tackle them from. I hope I can teach them, and I hope I can love and support them when they make mistakes.
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