Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Thank You Pinterest and Lookout Martha!!
Well, it’s Halloween. This specific holiday is not my favorite (but I don't hate it) and I have never been a huge fan of dressing up, except maybe when I was younger. I get confused why grown women dresses in ¼ of what they would wear normally for this holiday and look like their teenage daughters. I missed the memo that standards are not applicable during this holiday! (End of rant) However, over the years I have grown to find this holiday to be fun. I’ve never been a fan of body parts in the yard, and cheesy stuff from Walmart and the decorations I like, that are found at boutiques is ridiculously priced. Hence, me never getting into the decorating spirit! My mom always went all out for any holiday when it came to decorating our house and fun activities during the weeks before, so sometimes people are a bit confused as to why I am not that way. Side note: My mom is amazing. If I can be half of the woman/mother she is, I would consider my life a success.
This year, thanks to sites like Pinterest, I decided to perk up my Halloween decorations. I have a few friends in my neighborhood who go all out and I love their decorations!! They have sparked my creative juices (Thank you Karen!!). So…I’m trying to turn my kitchen into a Witches’ Kitchen, thanks to the help of the gals in my neighborhood. We had a recent Girls Night Out, craft night. We made potion bottles, which were absolutely darling!! I ended up making 25. You should have seen Brandon’s face when I came home with 25 wine bottles turned into potion bottles!! Laura helped me put glitter on a couple of skeleton heads and we put the new décor up this weekend. I also got an idea for a wreath off of pinterest. I dyed some monk’s cloth a burnt orange color, cut into two inch strips and twisted and glued to a wreath. Slapped a bow on that baby and VIOLA! I got through this craft project with only one battle wound. I was caught off guard by my glue gun. But my thumb is healing and I shall survive.
Yet another cool thing about living in Plain City? I bought 7 pumpkins for $5.00 from a neighbor. There are many people out here who grow pumpkins, then set up a little stand on their front lawn where you can buy them. Pumpkins at Walmart are $3.88. Each. Take that, Walmart!! So I wrapped some of those in tulle and Laura and Liz helped me paint two of them. While Brandon was at the priesthood session of general conference, we finished the pumpkins and put them outside.
The three of us decided to put out the rest of my decorations. I had a new and unexpected item in my Halloween box. It was a mouse. About half way through putting things out, I reached my hand in the box and all of a sudden the unexpected addition ran across the box right by my hand. EEEEKKK!! Ok, I don’t really freak out over mice. Or spiders. But this little guy totally scared me. We took the box out back, I finished emptying it and then got Jerry and dropped him in. Ha! Take that! Looks like I need to put out more mouse poison in the garage, or is it mice poison??? (This is one downside to living in Plain City….there are little critters)
Once we were done, Laura, Liz and I hit the Maverick for a treat. We made it moments before the priesthood session ended and so needless to say, missed waiting in a long line of men and boys for our coke’s and treats! WHEW!
I walked into the twin’s room and found one of Elizabeth’s craft projects on the wall. She is constantly leaving notes to each of us about how much she loves us and her family. I had to throw a picture of one of her recent posters in.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
End of Summer
Summer is over. It was a fun summer and very low key. I decided to throw up a few pictures from us playing around...I did not do a very good job of keeping up with our blog this summer. My excuse would be is that I've been busy having too much fun! We hope that everyone had a good summer!
Mercy River performed in Brigham Young Historical park in SLC this summer. My good friend Amber and I were going and Brandon and Laura came along. It was a lot of fun. We got carmel apples and sat on the grass and enjoyed one of our favorite groups!
One of my good friends had surgery and so her little girl, also known as my little BFF, came to stay overnight over the weekend. We roasted marshmallows and made s'mores and we took her fishing for her first time!! We went up to a city pond in Brigham City that is stocked with fish. It's a great place to go with kids, you are almost guaranteed to catch fish. Mak loved it! You are allowed to take home two fish each. So, with a plan in mind, we kept a hold of 12.
Over the summer several "pets" Luke and Duncan caught ended up at Duncan's house. One of them was a catfish. When that catfish was returned to the wild, I told Mike and Amy to not be too sad. That I would get them another. So, while they were at church, Laura and I drove over to their home. We filled the bathtub and kitchen sink with water and we introduced the catfish to their new home.
Mercy River performed in Brigham Young Historical park in SLC this summer. My good friend Amber and I were going and Brandon and Laura came along. It was a lot of fun. We got carmel apples and sat on the grass and enjoyed one of our favorite groups!
One of my good friends had surgery and so her little girl, also known as my little BFF, came to stay overnight over the weekend. We roasted marshmallows and made s'mores and we took her fishing for her first time!! We went up to a city pond in Brigham City that is stocked with fish. It's a great place to go with kids, you are almost guaranteed to catch fish. Mak loved it! You are allowed to take home two fish each. So, with a plan in mind, we kept a hold of 12.
Over the summer several "pets" Luke and Duncan caught ended up at Duncan's house. One of them was a catfish. When that catfish was returned to the wild, I told Mike and Amy to not be too sad. That I would get them another. So, while they were at church, Laura and I drove over to their home. We filled the bathtub and kitchen sink with water and we introduced the catfish to their new home.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
CTR, Remember Who You are. Don't do drugs and stay away from weird men/women!
With the start of school here...I wanted to write to the beautiful girls in our ward (boys, you count too but I'm not friends with a lot of you on facebook and that is where this will be posted), my nieces and nephews, my cute step kids and all the teens and kids getting ready to start another year of school where so many of your best memories will be formed but where you will be faced with real adversity... I always say, jokingly (yet, I'm not joking), when the kids get out of the car or leave the house, "Choose the Right! Don't do drugs! Remember who you are! Stay away from weird men/women!"
I want to share a few things from a book I recently read, When Life Gets Hard by Meg Johnson:
"Being spiritually "able" requires very simple steps - the kind of answers always given in Primary. Praying, reading scriptures, and being nice to others all invite the Holy Ghost and spiritual ability. Likewise, spiritual paralysis happens with similar simplicity."
"Being spiritually paralyzed is not a disability I can handle."
"Those who are spiritually disabled look at us as "self-righteous" and "haughty" when we refuse to join them in their unfair judgements, gossip, parties, movies and every other activity that would numb us spiritually. They wallow selfishly in their spiritual paralysis. They know where the path is but choose to stay spiritually disabled. They do not wish to join us, instead, despise us for our valiance and humility - and ability."
This is so hard!! How do we know if it is our pride or if it is someone else's insecurities/anger or spiritual paralysis?? And when we make a mistake, what do we do? That is something that others sit and wait for us to do, to use as a tool to drag us down and to hopefully pull us off our path. To point out what hypocrites we are. We all make mistakes, and if you are me you make mistakes, A LOT (like, daily). I don't have a deep, profound answer. I have to always go back to the Primary answers above and have found that those, simple things, are the true answer. If it is my pride, I ask for help to humble myself and apologize. Apologies are not always accepted, but you have done your part in it, allow the Savior to do the rest.
A part in the book, she talks about being in a movie that does not align with her standards and that she knows she needs to leave....and asks the question that I find myself asking, all the time. What do I do?
"As a modern-day Daniel, you have two places to pray- hidden in your closet or right in front of the window. Sometimes it is right to pray in your closets, but in this instance, being subtle about your standards and still keeping them - like closing your eyes during the bad scenes - may not be enough. But if you "pray in front of the window" and stand up in the middle of the show to crawl over everyone in the audience to get out, people might not be so happy with you.
Sometimes when we "pray in front of our window", we're considered arrogant and self-righteous. Sometimes our friends won't understand our standards. Sometimes our family will be angry at us for reminding them of our standards. God does not always close their mouths.
Sometimes those who see our righteous example are not softened, sometimes they are hardened against us."
"As modern-day Daniels, what do we say in our prayers? Do we ask that the lions' mouths will be closed? Or do we ask for thicker skin?"
"....courage is not the same as bravery. When we're brave, we are fearless and confident. But I rarely feel that way. Like you, I know people who dislike it when I pray at my window. I fear that those lions may eat me and that the fires will burn me - but I fear God more. In my fear, I have little room for bravery.
But I have room for courage. Courage is not the absence of fear. Rather, it is the willingness and determination to do what needs doing anyway - despite how we feel. With courage, we can fall down on our knees right in front of our window, standing tall in our commitment to righteousness, and let the lions eat us.
With courage, we can walk through the fires that burn, and as we do, we will walk with God. As we are courageous, we will know that if lions eat us, we're going to taste good because the fruits of the Spirit are sweet!
So let the lions eat us as we bear our testimony with our actions and pray in front of our windows. Let the fires burn us to a standard-waving crisp! There is nothing on our trail - no lion, no fire, no rock - that we can't handle when we walk with God, even if we can't walk."
Please remember to include everyone. Gossip, talking poorly about others, bashing on facebook, that all hurts. I know because I have been guilty of doing it and hurting people in the past and it has been done to me. Words cut deep and being left out hurts. I have few regrets in life, but when I have allowed emotion to take control and I have vented on social media, or said things that were hurtful, I have felt true regret. It is hard to repair that kind of damage. Look out for one another, and include one another. Have fun and have courage. If you won't, who will?
And most importantly, choose the right! Remember who you are! Don't do drugs! And stay away from weird men and women!!
I want to share a few things from a book I recently read, When Life Gets Hard by Meg Johnson:
"Being spiritually "able" requires very simple steps - the kind of answers always given in Primary. Praying, reading scriptures, and being nice to others all invite the Holy Ghost and spiritual ability. Likewise, spiritual paralysis happens with similar simplicity."
"Being spiritually paralyzed is not a disability I can handle."
"Those who are spiritually disabled look at us as "self-righteous" and "haughty" when we refuse to join them in their unfair judgements, gossip, parties, movies and every other activity that would numb us spiritually. They wallow selfishly in their spiritual paralysis. They know where the path is but choose to stay spiritually disabled. They do not wish to join us, instead, despise us for our valiance and humility - and ability."
This is so hard!! How do we know if it is our pride or if it is someone else's insecurities/anger or spiritual paralysis?? And when we make a mistake, what do we do? That is something that others sit and wait for us to do, to use as a tool to drag us down and to hopefully pull us off our path. To point out what hypocrites we are. We all make mistakes, and if you are me you make mistakes, A LOT (like, daily). I don't have a deep, profound answer. I have to always go back to the Primary answers above and have found that those, simple things, are the true answer. If it is my pride, I ask for help to humble myself and apologize. Apologies are not always accepted, but you have done your part in it, allow the Savior to do the rest.
A part in the book, she talks about being in a movie that does not align with her standards and that she knows she needs to leave....and asks the question that I find myself asking, all the time. What do I do?
"As a modern-day Daniel, you have two places to pray- hidden in your closet or right in front of the window. Sometimes it is right to pray in your closets, but in this instance, being subtle about your standards and still keeping them - like closing your eyes during the bad scenes - may not be enough. But if you "pray in front of the window" and stand up in the middle of the show to crawl over everyone in the audience to get out, people might not be so happy with you.
Sometimes when we "pray in front of our window", we're considered arrogant and self-righteous. Sometimes our friends won't understand our standards. Sometimes our family will be angry at us for reminding them of our standards. God does not always close their mouths.
Sometimes those who see our righteous example are not softened, sometimes they are hardened against us."
"As modern-day Daniels, what do we say in our prayers? Do we ask that the lions' mouths will be closed? Or do we ask for thicker skin?"
"....courage is not the same as bravery. When we're brave, we are fearless and confident. But I rarely feel that way. Like you, I know people who dislike it when I pray at my window. I fear that those lions may eat me and that the fires will burn me - but I fear God more. In my fear, I have little room for bravery.
But I have room for courage. Courage is not the absence of fear. Rather, it is the willingness and determination to do what needs doing anyway - despite how we feel. With courage, we can fall down on our knees right in front of our window, standing tall in our commitment to righteousness, and let the lions eat us.
With courage, we can walk through the fires that burn, and as we do, we will walk with God. As we are courageous, we will know that if lions eat us, we're going to taste good because the fruits of the Spirit are sweet!
So let the lions eat us as we bear our testimony with our actions and pray in front of our windows. Let the fires burn us to a standard-waving crisp! There is nothing on our trail - no lion, no fire, no rock - that we can't handle when we walk with God, even if we can't walk."
Please remember to include everyone. Gossip, talking poorly about others, bashing on facebook, that all hurts. I know because I have been guilty of doing it and hurting people in the past and it has been done to me. Words cut deep and being left out hurts. I have few regrets in life, but when I have allowed emotion to take control and I have vented on social media, or said things that were hurtful, I have felt true regret. It is hard to repair that kind of damage. Look out for one another, and include one another. Have fun and have courage. If you won't, who will?
And most importantly, choose the right! Remember who you are! Don't do drugs! And stay away from weird men and women!!
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Thank you, Pinterest
So I like Pinterest. I actually use it. Mainly for recipes and hairdo ideas. Recently, I saw a hilarious picture of a dog with penciled on eyebrows. Monday, I did it to Charlie and Jerry. Truly, mid conversation with Brandon and Laura, I reached under the bed and grabbed out a cheap, old eye liner....Here is the result. I find it hilarious. Hoping no one reports me to the ASPCA.
They both held completely still, I must not be the only one who likes getting my makeup done. Jerry, seemed a tad bit ticked off when I was done.
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| Before... |
They both held completely still, I must not be the only one who likes getting my makeup done. Jerry, seemed a tad bit ticked off when I was done.
Box Spring: 1 Brandon and Jill: 0
The story I am about to tell is completely true. There is a good possibility that Brandon won't talk to me for at least a week after posting this. Thing is, I know we have all "been there done that" in a similar situation, and I happen to think this is very funny. Unfortunately for Brandon, he's married to someone who is incredibly open and has zero problem laughing at her antics and her husbands....
It was 4 o'clock, one hot summer afternoon. Brandon and I started to move a queen size box spring down stairs to Lilly's room. The stairs in our cottage, to our basement, are narrow and kinda steep (Cottage = old house).
We got the box spring part way down and then, it stopped moving. The corner of the box spring, literally was sitting on the very edge of the stair it needed to pass. I am positive there is no measurement in existence, small enough, to describe how close we were to getting it down this one stair.
With it being so close, we made the conclusion that most would make. We can do this. It just needs a little "coaxing". Right? Coaxing is code for force. Let's cut to the good part. We could not shove it down the stairs, and trust me, we tried. A million different ways, one which included me throwing (literally) all my weight on the box spring. I will let your imagination run with that one. Not ready to give up, we decided that if we took apart one of the corners of the box spring, it would give the wood frame the ability to move and twist just a little, and just enough, so that we could maneuver it over this last, stupid, stair.
We did the wrong corner the fist time. Moving on....
We get the right corner undone and are able to fold the boards up into the frame and were able to maneuver the box spring! Apparently, there is a measurement in existence for where the box spring was originally stuck because we were able to move it. But not off the stair.
Those of you who know me, know I'm someone who sweats. Always have. Regardless of what shape I am in. Brandon, however, does not, sometimes that is super irritating. At this point, he is drenched in sweat. So that says a lot to the state I am in.
I need to backtrack....Yes. We measured things. According to my ladybug tape measure, the box spring would fit down the stairs. And really and truly, we were so so so so so so so so close to having it down that one stupid stair that stood in our way.
Ok, so if we take apart all four corners, surely it will give us the little flexibility we need. Right? We unwedge the box spring and take it out back and take apart all four corners so we can fold the boards up in the frame.
We stood at the top of the stairs, ready to conquer. Filled with determination and covered in sweat. This box spring was going downstairs.
We lost. The box spring had other ideas and after many more comical minutes we conceded and literally threw the box spring off our deck. I plan to roast marshmallows over it for my revenge. Take that!
The kids were pretty confused about the state of the back yard and wanted to know what had happened. I simple told them, "We got into a fight. With a box spring. It won."
I hope you found this as funny as we have. I think we all have a story where we can relate. Because clearly we know better, right? A square block will fit in a round hole if I force it. Tthis time, just this once, we were wrong.
What about Lilly's bed??? Brandon made a low bed frame. Thank goodness it is "in" to have low beds!
(Brandon is unaware that I had Laura take pictures of the box spring for evidence of our fight)
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Random Summer Moments...
This summer has been laid back. I continue to like living in Plain City and the kids really like that we are closer now. The kids have made some friends in our ward here and Luke, in particular, has become good friends with a boy not far from us. Luke and Duncan have spent their time hunting for frogs, fish, and snakes. Having lemonade stands, running between houses, playing in water and having late nights. They are fun to watch. They recently caught a huge tad pole with their other friend, Seth. Luke even gave Duncan a catfish he had caught when he went fishing with Brandon one morning. Luke and Duncan explained to me that Duncan needed to keep it at our house because he needed to have a pet at our house. Brandon and I let him know that there was no room at the inn and the fish would have to go back to the wild. Little did I know, Duncan took it home. He took the tadpole home too. Amy and I remain friends despite the critters that make their way from our house to hers! Whew!
Liz has been practicing doing hair and Brandon has become her model. He is so pretty!
We had s'mores at Brian and Andrea's house one night while David and Olga were in town. Andrea, I love you. Those were the worst s'mores. Ever! Who knew that a gram cracker could go stale??!?? So I have yet to have had my summer fix of s'mores and summer is almost over!!!
Little Lincoln tends to have the same facial expression. He is such a sweet and mellow baby. We love playing with him, especially the kids. I get zero holding time with him with our kids around! Brandon realized the other day that his facial expression reminds him of Zoolander (which happens to be Andrea's (Lincoln's mom) favorite movie!). So we now refer to it as "Blue Steel".
Brandon got a pedicure at Girls Camp and we had quite the time getting all the glitter off his toes. But he wore his badge of honor, proudly. Love my B!
Charlie is huge. Kind of going through a rebellious stage. Trying to figure out how to nip that in the bud. ASAP!
One night, I sent out a text to the numbers I had in my phone for girls in my new ward to meet up at the Maverick for a coke. We were there til 2 a.m. and a sort of tradition has formed. Brandon has named it the "Summer Special". There are over 20 girls on the list to get the text now. I send it out about 30 minutes before and we meet up after everyone's kids are in bed and grab a coke, snow cone or some treat and sit and gab and laugh. It has become such a fun for thing for us to do! Best stress relief, ever!
Liz has been practicing doing hair and Brandon has become her model. He is so pretty!
We had s'mores at Brian and Andrea's house one night while David and Olga were in town. Andrea, I love you. Those were the worst s'mores. Ever! Who knew that a gram cracker could go stale??!?? So I have yet to have had my summer fix of s'mores and summer is almost over!!!
Little Lincoln tends to have the same facial expression. He is such a sweet and mellow baby. We love playing with him, especially the kids. I get zero holding time with him with our kids around! Brandon realized the other day that his facial expression reminds him of Zoolander (which happens to be Andrea's (Lincoln's mom) favorite movie!). So we now refer to it as "Blue Steel".
Brandon got a pedicure at Girls Camp and we had quite the time getting all the glitter off his toes. But he wore his badge of honor, proudly. Love my B!
Charlie is huge. Kind of going through a rebellious stage. Trying to figure out how to nip that in the bud. ASAP!
One night, I sent out a text to the numbers I had in my phone for girls in my new ward to meet up at the Maverick for a coke. We were there til 2 a.m. and a sort of tradition has formed. Brandon has named it the "Summer Special". There are over 20 girls on the list to get the text now. I send it out about 30 minutes before and we meet up after everyone's kids are in bed and grab a coke, snow cone or some treat and sit and gab and laugh. It has become such a fun for thing for us to do! Best stress relief, ever!
Wright's and Sandall's, together again!!
Last weekend, we got an invite to go up to a cabin with our good friends, the Wright's. Needless to say, we were all so excited!! We met up during the afternoon on Friday and headed off over the North Ogden Divide. Honestly, I'm not exactly sure where this cabin was. Ha! I had never been camping in this area before. Once we got to the cabin, we did a little exploring. Found a beaver dam and a beaver that was about 70% rotted. PEE-EW! We headed off to the pond close by to go fishing and explore some more.
We did a little fishing and headed back when it got dark. We just hung out, the kids played games and Cody, Kari, Brandon and I relaxed and hung out. Brandon and Kari kept Cody and I up, way past our bedtimes! So much, that I did not hear anyone leave at the crack of dawn that morning to go fishing and slept through the morning til 9:00 a.m. Liz stayed back and so did Kari. Once everyone got back, Cody and Brandon got to making breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes, eggs, bacon and fish!!! Right from the lake (pond). YUM!!
The older girls cleaned up and then it was off to fish, canoe and relax by the water. Brandon and Cody took the four younger kids out on the water and the four older girls blew up a little raft and hooked tubes to it to go out in the water in. As the girls were getting out into the water Kari and I heard screams and giggles. We looked just in time to see the last of the four kids in the canoe jump into the water. I think those sounds just might be the best sounds on earth. Cody and Brandon did some fishing in the canoe and the kids had a blast playing in the water and hunting for frogs and water snakes. Luke hung on to his first water snake til his dad came in from being in the canoe. Let's just say that required him hanging onto it for more than just a few minutes. Lunch and then more swimming!! Sam caught a snake and was pretty set on taking it home, same for Luke. Eventually, and with some tears, the snakes were returned to the wild and there were no new pets taken home. WHEW!
We watched the Princess Bride after dinner and hung out for as long as we could. Cody was speaking in Sacrament meeting and both Brandon and I were teaching at church the next day, so we needed to get home before Sunday. Right before leaving, Brandon shared a couple of songs that we love. It's a blessing to have friends that you can share life with. We had a blast hanging out and laughing but also got to share something that brought tears to all of our eyes and feel of the spirit. It was a perfect way to end our little adventure to.
Sunday, was spent recovering from our adventures. Recovery involved many naps and little movement. Thanks to the Wright family for inviting us! As Luke and I would say; "We love you! To the moon and back!"
We did a little fishing and headed back when it got dark. We just hung out, the kids played games and Cody, Kari, Brandon and I relaxed and hung out. Brandon and Kari kept Cody and I up, way past our bedtimes! So much, that I did not hear anyone leave at the crack of dawn that morning to go fishing and slept through the morning til 9:00 a.m. Liz stayed back and so did Kari. Once everyone got back, Cody and Brandon got to making breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes, eggs, bacon and fish!!! Right from the lake (pond). YUM!!
The older girls cleaned up and then it was off to fish, canoe and relax by the water. Brandon and Cody took the four younger kids out on the water and the four older girls blew up a little raft and hooked tubes to it to go out in the water in. As the girls were getting out into the water Kari and I heard screams and giggles. We looked just in time to see the last of the four kids in the canoe jump into the water. I think those sounds just might be the best sounds on earth. Cody and Brandon did some fishing in the canoe and the kids had a blast playing in the water and hunting for frogs and water snakes. Luke hung on to his first water snake til his dad came in from being in the canoe. Let's just say that required him hanging onto it for more than just a few minutes. Lunch and then more swimming!! Sam caught a snake and was pretty set on taking it home, same for Luke. Eventually, and with some tears, the snakes were returned to the wild and there were no new pets taken home. WHEW!
We watched the Princess Bride after dinner and hung out for as long as we could. Cody was speaking in Sacrament meeting and both Brandon and I were teaching at church the next day, so we needed to get home before Sunday. Right before leaving, Brandon shared a couple of songs that we love. It's a blessing to have friends that you can share life with. We had a blast hanging out and laughing but also got to share something that brought tears to all of our eyes and feel of the spirit. It was a perfect way to end our little adventure to.
Sunday, was spent recovering from our adventures. Recovery involved many naps and little movement. Thanks to the Wright family for inviting us! As Luke and I would say; "We love you! To the moon and back!"
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Summer Time
I was recently recently reminded that not EVERYONE is on facebook (Gasp!). I commit to doing a better job of updating our blog!
Summer has started and it seems to be flying by. I worked "School Days" at Lagoon (local amusement park) this year. It's 9 days over three weeks that you work while local schools come to Lagoon in May to celebrate the end of the school year. For doing it, I got paid minimum wage and 5 season passes. Woot Woot! I worked on the Sky Ride. It's basically a ski lift that takes you from the North end of the park to the South end. Rumor has it that we would walk roughly 15 miles a day, walking back and forth to let guests off the carriers. I made it through the three weeks, barely! Had you asked me if it was worth it during that time or the week after, my response would have been a resounding NO! But now, it is a yes and I do plan to do it next year. Thank you to my friend Heidi for telling me about it!! We have enjoyed going to Lagoon and had a couple of what are now called "Lagoon Thursdays" which were a lot of fun. We hit Lagoona Beach (their water park) first and after lunch we go on to the rides. My good friend Amber went with us and the kids love being around her. So do I. She is fun and I'm lucky to call her my friend. Amber and I have "quirky" personalities, however the kids find me embarrassing but not Amber. I asked Laura why that was, since we did the same things. Laura's reply? "Because Amber is cool". There ya go. I have to agree, she is cool. Liz rode wicked (one of their crazy roller coasters) with her hands in the air, the whole way. Luke went on the new ride that goes upside down and I suffered through the dumbest ride, ever. The Wild Mouse. Seriously, stupid. I think I have whiplash. But the kids love it.
The kids were with us for the Memorial holiday. We love to fish and turns out Brigham City (which is 15 minutes North of us) has this pond at a park that they stock with fish. It has been a fun, quick little fishing spot when we have our spur of the moment fishing adventures and not a lot of time. Liz did NOT want to go fishing that day, the only thing that was getting her through it was the fact that we were going to Grandma Connee's after to BBQ and swim with Pookie and the Lyon family, and Grandma Connee too!
Liz was bored, so she decided to fish. And? She caught the first fish! HA! For someone who claims to not like fishing, she is really good at it and has a lot of fun doing it. Luke has amazing patience when fishing on a lake or pond. I do not. I prefer fishing in rivers, there is more to do. But I'm happy fishing anywhere as a family. After fishing, we did go down to Connee's to swim and eat. Paul's friend, Mike, moved here last year with his family to attend school. Paul and Mike served in the Army together and did one of their tours in Iraq together. Angie and I became fast friends and her darling 3 year old Mak has become my little BFF. It was fun swimming and hanging out.
Brandon, Laura and I went to the Bountiful Temple to do Baptisms for the Dead. It was fun to take her there and introduce her to the people we worked with when Brandon and I were volunteering there washing dishes every other Saturday. We got to introduce her to the manager of the cafeteria, Maria, and show her the security office and the first aid room. Laura has what is called a limited recommend, which means she can only be there to do Baptisms for the Dead and can only go in certain parts of the Temple, like the cafeteria. While there, a couple of women sitting next to me leaned over to me while Brandon was baptizing her and asked if we were there as a family or with a youth group. When I said we were there as a family, they responded with how cool it is that we brought her. I clarified that it is Laura who brought us. Which is true. Brandon and I love attending the temple but Laura is who asked to go this time. The two women commented that they were impressed right away by how beautiful Laura is but that they were impressed even more and admired a 12 year old girl who is just as beautiful on the inside. Lilly wasn't there that time, she was having a sleep over and day with friends. I have had very similar comments about her when we've been in the temple together. Lilly and Laura both have a love of the Temple and do not wait to go with their youth group, they go every chance they get. I am blessed to be their Step Mom.
I found one of Brandon's flys (or is it flies???) in the car. Thankfully, for him, it was not due to injury. Charlie is HUGE and loves the back seat of our van. He is kind of a pain in the van....he has too much room to move around. But I love taking him places with me. He has also taken puppy farts to a whole new level! His training is coming along, I need to focus on it more. Brandon started a job at Davis Hospital and is loving it. Yes, he is still full time with WSU and doing Home Health. He seems to be gone a lot but home a lot too. This is one of the perks of having a college education and in the Nursing and education fields. He is able to work these jobs but not be gone ALL THE TIME.
Brandon spoils me. We went down to Farmington last weekend to get the kids some summer clothes and we spent the day wandering around and grabbing lunch at Harmon's. The Harmon's in Farmington is AWESOME, we tried a bunch of cheeses (I tried a true stinky cheese and thought I ate mold, I guess technically I did) and got salads and sushi. We walked around and just enjoyed being together. I love that he makes that time for me. I'm not sure I could do it, working three jobs. I came home from working at Lagoon and was beat. Maybe I'm married to Superman? Just an imperfect version? I state that he is imperfect because I have found that sometimes I come across as though I think things or people are perfect. They are not. The honesty, communication, effort, and a marriage and family founded on principles of the Gospel are what makes my life so perfect. (Just to clarify)
Well, there ya go! A quick (quick in the sense of me typing and uploading) but long update on our antics!
Also, I find Brandon to be the funniest man ever. Sometimes, I think I might be the only one who finds him funny, which makes him all that more funnier to me....here is a recent funny moment with him....he tends to like to mess around when in a drive thru. My apologies to all the fast food employees in Weber and Davis county but I find it hilarious!
Summer has started and it seems to be flying by. I worked "School Days" at Lagoon (local amusement park) this year. It's 9 days over three weeks that you work while local schools come to Lagoon in May to celebrate the end of the school year. For doing it, I got paid minimum wage and 5 season passes. Woot Woot! I worked on the Sky Ride. It's basically a ski lift that takes you from the North end of the park to the South end. Rumor has it that we would walk roughly 15 miles a day, walking back and forth to let guests off the carriers. I made it through the three weeks, barely! Had you asked me if it was worth it during that time or the week after, my response would have been a resounding NO! But now, it is a yes and I do plan to do it next year. Thank you to my friend Heidi for telling me about it!! We have enjoyed going to Lagoon and had a couple of what are now called "Lagoon Thursdays" which were a lot of fun. We hit Lagoona Beach (their water park) first and after lunch we go on to the rides. My good friend Amber went with us and the kids love being around her. So do I. She is fun and I'm lucky to call her my friend. Amber and I have "quirky" personalities, however the kids find me embarrassing but not Amber. I asked Laura why that was, since we did the same things. Laura's reply? "Because Amber is cool". There ya go. I have to agree, she is cool. Liz rode wicked (one of their crazy roller coasters) with her hands in the air, the whole way. Luke went on the new ride that goes upside down and I suffered through the dumbest ride, ever. The Wild Mouse. Seriously, stupid. I think I have whiplash. But the kids love it.
The kids were with us for the Memorial holiday. We love to fish and turns out Brigham City (which is 15 minutes North of us) has this pond at a park that they stock with fish. It has been a fun, quick little fishing spot when we have our spur of the moment fishing adventures and not a lot of time. Liz did NOT want to go fishing that day, the only thing that was getting her through it was the fact that we were going to Grandma Connee's after to BBQ and swim with Pookie and the Lyon family, and Grandma Connee too!
Liz was bored, so she decided to fish. And? She caught the first fish! HA! For someone who claims to not like fishing, she is really good at it and has a lot of fun doing it. Luke has amazing patience when fishing on a lake or pond. I do not. I prefer fishing in rivers, there is more to do. But I'm happy fishing anywhere as a family. After fishing, we did go down to Connee's to swim and eat. Paul's friend, Mike, moved here last year with his family to attend school. Paul and Mike served in the Army together and did one of their tours in Iraq together. Angie and I became fast friends and her darling 3 year old Mak has become my little BFF. It was fun swimming and hanging out.
Brandon, Laura and I went to the Bountiful Temple to do Baptisms for the Dead. It was fun to take her there and introduce her to the people we worked with when Brandon and I were volunteering there washing dishes every other Saturday. We got to introduce her to the manager of the cafeteria, Maria, and show her the security office and the first aid room. Laura has what is called a limited recommend, which means she can only be there to do Baptisms for the Dead and can only go in certain parts of the Temple, like the cafeteria. While there, a couple of women sitting next to me leaned over to me while Brandon was baptizing her and asked if we were there as a family or with a youth group. When I said we were there as a family, they responded with how cool it is that we brought her. I clarified that it is Laura who brought us. Which is true. Brandon and I love attending the temple but Laura is who asked to go this time. The two women commented that they were impressed right away by how beautiful Laura is but that they were impressed even more and admired a 12 year old girl who is just as beautiful on the inside. Lilly wasn't there that time, she was having a sleep over and day with friends. I have had very similar comments about her when we've been in the temple together. Lilly and Laura both have a love of the Temple and do not wait to go with their youth group, they go every chance they get. I am blessed to be their Step Mom.
I found one of Brandon's flys (or is it flies???) in the car. Thankfully, for him, it was not due to injury. Charlie is HUGE and loves the back seat of our van. He is kind of a pain in the van....he has too much room to move around. But I love taking him places with me. He has also taken puppy farts to a whole new level! His training is coming along, I need to focus on it more. Brandon started a job at Davis Hospital and is loving it. Yes, he is still full time with WSU and doing Home Health. He seems to be gone a lot but home a lot too. This is one of the perks of having a college education and in the Nursing and education fields. He is able to work these jobs but not be gone ALL THE TIME.
Brandon spoils me. We went down to Farmington last weekend to get the kids some summer clothes and we spent the day wandering around and grabbing lunch at Harmon's. The Harmon's in Farmington is AWESOME, we tried a bunch of cheeses (I tried a true stinky cheese and thought I ate mold, I guess technically I did) and got salads and sushi. We walked around and just enjoyed being together. I love that he makes that time for me. I'm not sure I could do it, working three jobs. I came home from working at Lagoon and was beat. Maybe I'm married to Superman? Just an imperfect version? I state that he is imperfect because I have found that sometimes I come across as though I think things or people are perfect. They are not. The honesty, communication, effort, and a marriage and family founded on principles of the Gospel are what makes my life so perfect. (Just to clarify)
Well, there ya go! A quick (quick in the sense of me typing and uploading) but long update on our antics!
Also, I find Brandon to be the funniest man ever. Sometimes, I think I might be the only one who finds him funny, which makes him all that more funnier to me....here is a recent funny moment with him....he tends to like to mess around when in a drive thru. My apologies to all the fast food employees in Weber and Davis county but I find it hilarious!
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
My first time at the temple...
Hi this is Laura. I am going to be blogging this time.
Two Saturdays ago, I got to go do baptisms for the dead for the first time. I was able to pick which temple I wanted to go to. I chose the Salt Lake Temple.
So that morning, Jill, my dad, Lilly, and I, all got ready to go. On our way there, we had to stop at Bountiful to drop the twins off at Grandma Connee’s. Then we headed to Salt Lake. When we were driving around, we were talking about how there were underground tunnels for the prophet and other people to use. I thought that was pretty cool. We parked underneath the Conference center.
Then we walked across the street to the temple to do baptisms. We walked in the front doors, and they told us that we had to go to the back of the temple, and find the flagpole. He told us that it would be pretty easy to find. We looked all over the place, and finally found the hidden door. We rang the little doorbell and the door unlocked. We walked in, and down the hall to a man dressed in all white. We showed him our recommends. Then he put a small orange sticker on my jacket. Then we went and got our clothes. Then the man showed us where our dressing rooms were.
We walked into the dressing room and walked into the little stalls. I took one of the keys and unlocked the locker. I put all my clothes in the locker, and put on my jumpsuit and white socks. Then I pinned the key to my clothes. Then we took a quick bathroom break. The bathroom there was really small. It sort of looked like a spiral. It was really cool. When we were in the hall, Jill was telling me about how when the people built the temple, they put in elevator shafts, and air conditioning vents. They put those in without knowing why.
Next, we met my dad in the chapel, (waiting area). We told him that we were ready, and we went across the hall to a small room. We were going in to do the confirmations. I was first. A man told me that I was doing four girls from Hungary. They were from the 1800’s. It was really cool to know that. When I sat in the chair, I literally sunk into the chair. It was so soft and squishy. My dad sat behind me and said the prayers. He, and another man, put their hands on my head and my dad started to say the prayers. After each girl that we did, they would lift their hands off my head, and quickly put them back on my head.
After I was done, Lilly was next, and then Jill went. It was really cool to watch.
Once we were done, we headed to the baptismal font. My dad had to sit on the opposite side of Me, Lilly, and Jill. When we walked into the room, it felt really peaceful. I asked Jill what the 12 oxen stood for, and she explained it to me.
As we sat there, I listened to the other people get baptized. Lilly went first, so I could see what she did, and how my dad would do it. When Lilly went into the font, I walked up the stairs and sat in a chair. I took my socks off and waited. When she was done, she walked up some stairs on the opposite side of me, and went into the dressing room. Then it was my turn. The water in the font was really warm. My dad baptized me four times. In front of us was a screen. My dad read what was on the screen. After I was baptized each time, a man would put a check mark in a small box. When I was done, my dad kissed me on the head, and I walked up the stairs to the dressing rooms. We all took a quick shower and got ready to leave. I combed my hair, and Jill blow-dried my hair. Once I was done, I met my dad In the Chapel, (waiting room) and we waited for Lilly and Jill to be done.
After we left the temple, we went to the New City Creek Mall. After that, we went to Olive Garden.
It was a really great experience to be able to go to the temple, and I hope I can go back sometime soon.
Two Saturdays ago, I got to go do baptisms for the dead for the first time. I was able to pick which temple I wanted to go to. I chose the Salt Lake Temple.
So that morning, Jill, my dad, Lilly, and I, all got ready to go. On our way there, we had to stop at Bountiful to drop the twins off at Grandma Connee’s. Then we headed to Salt Lake. When we were driving around, we were talking about how there were underground tunnels for the prophet and other people to use. I thought that was pretty cool. We parked underneath the Conference center.
Then we walked across the street to the temple to do baptisms. We walked in the front doors, and they told us that we had to go to the back of the temple, and find the flagpole. He told us that it would be pretty easy to find. We looked all over the place, and finally found the hidden door. We rang the little doorbell and the door unlocked. We walked in, and down the hall to a man dressed in all white. We showed him our recommends. Then he put a small orange sticker on my jacket. Then we went and got our clothes. Then the man showed us where our dressing rooms were.
We walked into the dressing room and walked into the little stalls. I took one of the keys and unlocked the locker. I put all my clothes in the locker, and put on my jumpsuit and white socks. Then I pinned the key to my clothes. Then we took a quick bathroom break. The bathroom there was really small. It sort of looked like a spiral. It was really cool. When we were in the hall, Jill was telling me about how when the people built the temple, they put in elevator shafts, and air conditioning vents. They put those in without knowing why.
Next, we met my dad in the chapel, (waiting area). We told him that we were ready, and we went across the hall to a small room. We were going in to do the confirmations. I was first. A man told me that I was doing four girls from Hungary. They were from the 1800’s. It was really cool to know that. When I sat in the chair, I literally sunk into the chair. It was so soft and squishy. My dad sat behind me and said the prayers. He, and another man, put their hands on my head and my dad started to say the prayers. After each girl that we did, they would lift their hands off my head, and quickly put them back on my head.
After I was done, Lilly was next, and then Jill went. It was really cool to watch.
Once we were done, we headed to the baptismal font. My dad had to sit on the opposite side of Me, Lilly, and Jill. When we walked into the room, it felt really peaceful. I asked Jill what the 12 oxen stood for, and she explained it to me.
As we sat there, I listened to the other people get baptized. Lilly went first, so I could see what she did, and how my dad would do it. When Lilly went into the font, I walked up the stairs and sat in a chair. I took my socks off and waited. When she was done, she walked up some stairs on the opposite side of me, and went into the dressing room. Then it was my turn. The water in the font was really warm. My dad baptized me four times. In front of us was a screen. My dad read what was on the screen. After I was baptized each time, a man would put a check mark in a small box. When I was done, my dad kissed me on the head, and I walked up the stairs to the dressing rooms. We all took a quick shower and got ready to leave. I combed my hair, and Jill blow-dried my hair. Once I was done, I met my dad In the Chapel, (waiting room) and we waited for Lilly and Jill to be done.
After we left the temple, we went to the New City Creek Mall. After that, we went to Olive Garden.
It was a really great experience to be able to go to the temple, and I hope I can go back sometime soon.
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Funnies
Brandon says that I am the only one who finds this funny. Which is ok. The last part of the video is the best. We were at the Baptism of my cousins daughter, Lilly, when out in the hall my brother Brian showed me one of the new games he plays with his son, Lincoln. I enjoy watching my brothers hair and ears get pulled, along with the occasional eye gouging. I think the reason I find it funny is it is happening to my brother. Does that make me a good sister???
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Prayers of a Young Woman
Well, Jill-a-palooza has come and gone. What is Jill-a-palooza you ask? It's my birthday month. I celebrate all month long. I gave it this name a few years ago when a co-worker was teasing me about being taken out for lunch for my birthday, three weeks after my birthday. Have you noticed that as you become an adult, having a party with all your friends becomes less likely? So, I get to have lots of mini-parties or lunch and dinner dates with my girlfriends. With kids, work and our hectic schedules, it works out for us to sometimes push the date out a bit. So that has led to my birthday month. (I think my co-worker was just jealous that I have such amazing friends! ha ha ha)
My birthday often falls over the LDS General Conference weekend. Laura who was turning 12 in April had never been to conference. I was able to get some tickets for the Sunday afternoon session. We were both excited to be going. We left our home about two hours early, leaving plenty of time to get to SLC, park and get in our seats. We were on the freeway and almost out of the Ogden area, when we came to a complete stop on the freeway. After 10 minutes, I turn the car off. There we sat. Both sides of the freeway had been shut down and the cars around us had turned off their engines as well. People were out of their cars talking and trying to get a better view of what was going on. My heart sank. Not just because of the accident but because I knew how important it was to Laura to attend conference. We decided to offer a prayer. Laura asked me to say it, and after praying for those involved in the accident we asked that the Lord to somehow make it possible for us to be able to attend conference. Laura got on my kindle and began reading some fairytale out loud to distract us, one we had never heard of....they were weird!!
While Laura was reading I kept praying in my heart. I glanced in my rear view mirror and noticed many cars backing up and literally turning around on the shoulder and driving the wrong way down the freeway. Maybe I could do this? Maybe if I back tracked, I could get off the freeway and get us to SLC, a different way. I realized that I didn't know what would happen if I turned around and tried to back track and go "my way", I might get lost or even get a ticket, or maybe worse. I did know, that the road I was on, even though we were not moving, led me straight to SLC and I knew it would get us to the conference center. There was no doubt. I had a choice. I could do it my way and turn around or I could be patient and take the route I knew would get me there. We stayed on the freeway and continued to wait patiently.
Soon, we began to move. We were on our way!!! I felt the urge to speed, to get us there fast so that we might be able to attend the session. Through my mind the thought, "It will all be ok", was repeated. I felt that it was important to obey the speed limit, to be an example not just with the law but to trust in our prayer. After all, It would all be ok. Right? We got to SLC, found parking rather fast and began the speed walk of our life to the conference center. Typically, there are huge lines to get in. But when we got there, there were none. We walked up with a small group to the door. I knew there was a good chance that we would not get in. But I did know that "everything would be ok". We were five people away from security when the woman stopped us and said they had to do a count to see how many more of us could go in. I felt Laura's heart sink with mine. The volunteer helped to pass the time by telling us trivia about Temple Square and the Conference Center. I can't really tell you what was said. Neither can Laura. Come to find out, we were both praying quietly and fervently that we would get in. It never once crossed my mind to try to use the fact that it was my birthday as a way to get in or that Laura's was coming up, or the fact that I had a missionary badge on. I stood there, with my arm around Laura, and waited. As patiently as I could. Both of us praying silently in our hearts. I knew it would be ok. I knew that did not necessarily mean we would attend conference but that we could wander the grounds and still learn and draw closer to our Heavenly Father. Regardless of attending the session, I knew things would be ok.
We were the last two admitted into the Conference Center. The prayers of a faithful young woman were heard and answered that day. She was the real example. This was a special day one that included a tender mercy from the Lord. I always have the option to turn around. To take control of my life, my will and my agency and do things my way. I didn't know then and never will know, where the road will lead me when I decide to do things my way. I do know that if I am patient, turn my will and my agency over to a loving Heavenly Father, I will get there. As I pace myself and follow the laws that have been set by Him and by the land, things will be ok. I will return home to him one day. I know this because I have been shown the exact route to take to get there. Sometimes, I try it my way and when I find myself off course, I know how to get back on course. I know to lean on my Brother and access his sacrifice of the atonement that I can just as quickly get back on the right route as I got off it. That the peace and joy will come rushing back into my life as I do so, that it will be ok. I will be ok.
My camera died before we got to SLC...but we got some pictures on the freeway and when we got to my mom's. My brother Brian thought he would be funny and be in the pictures....I asked him to take one of our outfits, which he did. I should have been more specific and requested our faces be in the picture too. I wanted a picture of Laura's hair, Brian missed the part about it being Laura's hair, and got in the picture too. Luke gave a gift that day. It was all the money he had in an envelope that said, "Happy Birthday to you! Hay!". That is how he sings the birthday song. He is a thoughtful boy.
I am blessed to be the step-mom to to these amazing kids. I am grateful that my Father sees fit to teach me constantly and to put righteous examples, like Laura, in my life. This birthday, was by far the best. Not because of a party or a gift but because I got to be taught by the Lord. I got to be in attendance with my beautiful step-daughter at General Conference and here the Prophet and Apostles speak. I felt the spirit and got to draw closer to my Father in Heaven and His Son.
My birthday often falls over the LDS General Conference weekend. Laura who was turning 12 in April had never been to conference. I was able to get some tickets for the Sunday afternoon session. We were both excited to be going. We left our home about two hours early, leaving plenty of time to get to SLC, park and get in our seats. We were on the freeway and almost out of the Ogden area, when we came to a complete stop on the freeway. After 10 minutes, I turn the car off. There we sat. Both sides of the freeway had been shut down and the cars around us had turned off their engines as well. People were out of their cars talking and trying to get a better view of what was going on. My heart sank. Not just because of the accident but because I knew how important it was to Laura to attend conference. We decided to offer a prayer. Laura asked me to say it, and after praying for those involved in the accident we asked that the Lord to somehow make it possible for us to be able to attend conference. Laura got on my kindle and began reading some fairytale out loud to distract us, one we had never heard of....they were weird!!
While Laura was reading I kept praying in my heart. I glanced in my rear view mirror and noticed many cars backing up and literally turning around on the shoulder and driving the wrong way down the freeway. Maybe I could do this? Maybe if I back tracked, I could get off the freeway and get us to SLC, a different way. I realized that I didn't know what would happen if I turned around and tried to back track and go "my way", I might get lost or even get a ticket, or maybe worse. I did know, that the road I was on, even though we were not moving, led me straight to SLC and I knew it would get us to the conference center. There was no doubt. I had a choice. I could do it my way and turn around or I could be patient and take the route I knew would get me there. We stayed on the freeway and continued to wait patiently.
Soon, we began to move. We were on our way!!! I felt the urge to speed, to get us there fast so that we might be able to attend the session. Through my mind the thought, "It will all be ok", was repeated. I felt that it was important to obey the speed limit, to be an example not just with the law but to trust in our prayer. After all, It would all be ok. Right? We got to SLC, found parking rather fast and began the speed walk of our life to the conference center. Typically, there are huge lines to get in. But when we got there, there were none. We walked up with a small group to the door. I knew there was a good chance that we would not get in. But I did know that "everything would be ok". We were five people away from security when the woman stopped us and said they had to do a count to see how many more of us could go in. I felt Laura's heart sink with mine. The volunteer helped to pass the time by telling us trivia about Temple Square and the Conference Center. I can't really tell you what was said. Neither can Laura. Come to find out, we were both praying quietly and fervently that we would get in. It never once crossed my mind to try to use the fact that it was my birthday as a way to get in or that Laura's was coming up, or the fact that I had a missionary badge on. I stood there, with my arm around Laura, and waited. As patiently as I could. Both of us praying silently in our hearts. I knew it would be ok. I knew that did not necessarily mean we would attend conference but that we could wander the grounds and still learn and draw closer to our Heavenly Father. Regardless of attending the session, I knew things would be ok.
We were the last two admitted into the Conference Center. The prayers of a faithful young woman were heard and answered that day. She was the real example. This was a special day one that included a tender mercy from the Lord. I always have the option to turn around. To take control of my life, my will and my agency and do things my way. I didn't know then and never will know, where the road will lead me when I decide to do things my way. I do know that if I am patient, turn my will and my agency over to a loving Heavenly Father, I will get there. As I pace myself and follow the laws that have been set by Him and by the land, things will be ok. I will return home to him one day. I know this because I have been shown the exact route to take to get there. Sometimes, I try it my way and when I find myself off course, I know how to get back on course. I know to lean on my Brother and access his sacrifice of the atonement that I can just as quickly get back on the right route as I got off it. That the peace and joy will come rushing back into my life as I do so, that it will be ok. I will be ok.
My camera died before we got to SLC...but we got some pictures on the freeway and when we got to my mom's. My brother Brian thought he would be funny and be in the pictures....I asked him to take one of our outfits, which he did. I should have been more specific and requested our faces be in the picture too. I wanted a picture of Laura's hair, Brian missed the part about it being Laura's hair, and got in the picture too. Luke gave a gift that day. It was all the money he had in an envelope that said, "Happy Birthday to you! Hay!". That is how he sings the birthday song. He is a thoughtful boy.
I am blessed to be the step-mom to to these amazing kids. I am grateful that my Father sees fit to teach me constantly and to put righteous examples, like Laura, in my life. This birthday, was by far the best. Not because of a party or a gift but because I got to be taught by the Lord. I got to be in attendance with my beautiful step-daughter at General Conference and here the Prophet and Apostles speak. I felt the spirit and got to draw closer to my Father in Heaven and His Son.
Time Flys
Time is flying like crazy!! I have been so busy but I feel like I can't say with what! We have been having a fun couple of months. I've been organizing and throwing stuff out like crazy. We have enjoyed being with friends and family and having fun with the ones we love....This post is just a little one to show some of the stuff we have been up to!
I got to make my new little BFF Mak her birthday cake!! Mike and Angie moved here with their darling Mak last summer. Mike and Paul served in Iraq in the Army together. Angie and I became friends when they moved here. I'm forever grateful for Mike and Paul's service and sacrifice. I'm known for saying that if you want to see what a real man is like, look at the men who serve our country. Mike and Paul are good examples. I had a lot of fun doing the Minnie Mouse cake. Mak got sick the actual day of her birthday and had to cancel her party. But you can't skip birthday cake on the actual day!! So I got to make a second one for the party the following week. Angie thought I was nuts, but I love doing it and it gives me a chance to practice more without having to eat the cake!!! Liz and Laura were a big help in getting the cake ready.
I was recently called to be one of the Young Women's Camp Directors...Lilly and Laura have been having a lot of fun coming up with ideas for that as well with me. I'm not posting pictures as we don't want to ruin the surprise of what we are planning!
I got to make my new little BFF Mak her birthday cake!! Mike and Angie moved here with their darling Mak last summer. Mike and Paul served in Iraq in the Army together. Angie and I became friends when they moved here. I'm forever grateful for Mike and Paul's service and sacrifice. I'm known for saying that if you want to see what a real man is like, look at the men who serve our country. Mike and Paul are good examples. I had a lot of fun doing the Minnie Mouse cake. Mak got sick the actual day of her birthday and had to cancel her party. But you can't skip birthday cake on the actual day!! So I got to make a second one for the party the following week. Angie thought I was nuts, but I love doing it and it gives me a chance to practice more without having to eat the cake!!! Liz and Laura were a big help in getting the cake ready.
I was recently called to be one of the Young Women's Camp Directors...Lilly and Laura have been having a lot of fun coming up with ideas for that as well with me. I'm not posting pictures as we don't want to ruin the surprise of what we are planning!
Hoppy Easter!!
We got to celebrate Easter multiple times this year! Brandon and his brothers have a tradition of going to the LDS General Priesthood Session of Conference together and afterwards go to dinner. With the men gone, the kids and I invited our aunts and cousins over to make "bunny cakes". MaCayla, my niece, had shown me a video on YouTube for these really cute bunny cakes. We had decided months ahead of time to do them. So everyone came over to our house to do so!!
That morning, I was going up to Logan to help my brother clean his condo since he was moving out, the twins and my Mom went with me. Laura spent the morning and afternoon baking 15 cakes (yes you read that right)!! Granted, they weren't 9 inch cakes, they were a smaller size (not a whole lot smaller), but still it was a TUN of work....what an awesome girl!!! Each cousin was able to decorate their own cake!! Lilly had a friend over and so she and her friend, Laura and I made more frosting than we care to think about. The three girls ran the show and did a great job of helping the younger kids and making sure everyone had a good time.
On a side note, Liz and Luke worked their butts off at Paul's with me!! Liz even accidentally slammed her finger in the car door but never once complained, she got it bandaged up and went right back to cleaning with Grandma Connee and I. Luke was a huge help to Paul. We had a fun morning working together in Logan.
Anyways, we made a massive pot of Mac and Cheese, ate and then got down to the business of decorating. It was a lot of fun!! I am blessed with good family, this includes my "in-laws". Since there tends to be a negative connotation with that name, they are simply and truly, my family.
The kids were with their mom for Easter this year, so we celebrated with Grandma Connee the following weekend. Grandma Connee, Pookie, Brian, Andrea and Lincoln, came up to our house. We dyed eggs and had an Easter egg hunt. Andrea, my mom and I, have come to the conclusion that celebrating the week after a holiday is actually quite fantastic!! For starters, everything goes on sale. Big time! Wahoo!! And it is a lot less stressful. Brandon and I enjoyed our Easter at home and we had celebrated it the Saturday before with his family. We both noticed that by spreading it out a little, we got to really enjoy our time over the holiday. It made the time spent with our families more fun, less stressful.
Grandma Connee gave the kids water guns for when we go swimming. Pookie and Brian decided to teach the kids how to put their hands on the end where the water squirts out and push so that it makes a very annoying farting noise. Paul, Brian and Luke formed a boy band that they call, The Flatulent Fellows. UGH
Also, while dying eggs, I walked into the kitchen to see Laura's hand FULLY submerged in one of the cups of dye. Stopping dead in my tracks I instantly look to Pookie. "She is sacrificing for the sake of Egg Dying", he says. Apparently, Paul asked Laura if she wanted to help make the best egg, ever. Of course she agreed. He asked what color she wouldn't mind her hand being for a while....she of course said orange. "This is why you are my favorite" was Paul's response and so, he and Laura set out for the coolest egg ever, which apparently required the dying of one of her hands....which was an orange color for several days. While we had a wonderful Easter and enjoy the fun parts to holidays. Brandon and I are eternally grateful to our brother and Savior. For his ultimate sacrifice which allows us, such imperfect people, to return to him. Over the past couple of years, the atonement has become something new and more tender than either of us could imagine. All we can say to that is, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is True! Amen!
On a side note, Liz and Luke worked their butts off at Paul's with me!! Liz even accidentally slammed her finger in the car door but never once complained, she got it bandaged up and went right back to cleaning with Grandma Connee and I. Luke was a huge help to Paul. We had a fun morning working together in Logan.
Anyways, we made a massive pot of Mac and Cheese, ate and then got down to the business of decorating. It was a lot of fun!! I am blessed with good family, this includes my "in-laws". Since there tends to be a negative connotation with that name, they are simply and truly, my family.
The kids were with their mom for Easter this year, so we celebrated with Grandma Connee the following weekend. Grandma Connee, Pookie, Brian, Andrea and Lincoln, came up to our house. We dyed eggs and had an Easter egg hunt. Andrea, my mom and I, have come to the conclusion that celebrating the week after a holiday is actually quite fantastic!! For starters, everything goes on sale. Big time! Wahoo!! And it is a lot less stressful. Brandon and I enjoyed our Easter at home and we had celebrated it the Saturday before with his family. We both noticed that by spreading it out a little, we got to really enjoy our time over the holiday. It made the time spent with our families more fun, less stressful.
Grandma Connee gave the kids water guns for when we go swimming. Pookie and Brian decided to teach the kids how to put their hands on the end where the water squirts out and push so that it makes a very annoying farting noise. Paul, Brian and Luke formed a boy band that they call, The Flatulent Fellows. UGH
Also, while dying eggs, I walked into the kitchen to see Laura's hand FULLY submerged in one of the cups of dye. Stopping dead in my tracks I instantly look to Pookie. "She is sacrificing for the sake of Egg Dying", he says. Apparently, Paul asked Laura if she wanted to help make the best egg, ever. Of course she agreed. He asked what color she wouldn't mind her hand being for a while....she of course said orange. "This is why you are my favorite" was Paul's response and so, he and Laura set out for the coolest egg ever, which apparently required the dying of one of her hands....which was an orange color for several days. While we had a wonderful Easter and enjoy the fun parts to holidays. Brandon and I are eternally grateful to our brother and Savior. For his ultimate sacrifice which allows us, such imperfect people, to return to him. Over the past couple of years, the atonement has become something new and more tender than either of us could imagine. All we can say to that is, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is True! Amen!
Friday, March 23, 2012
Growth
For a long time now, my favorite flower has been tulips. I love them. I have always wanted to go down to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point, and I got to go for my first time when Brandon and I were dating. He took me last year and we plan to go this year. I love walking the grounds and seeing all the Tulips. The air is crisp and it just fills my heart with joy.
This year, with the move to our house, we have a yard and some flower beds. In October, Laura, Liz and I worked hard cleaning out the beds and planting tulips. I have never planted tulips before and was so excited. The tulips have started coming up and with spring here, I planted a few pansies for some color yesterday. My love for flowers and gardening started at a young age. I would work every summer for my Papa, taking care of his yard and the yards of my aunts and uncles. All the cousins did it. His yard was always beautiful and he took great pride in it. I can remember being ever so careful as we weeded to not step on the flowers. He was like the foreman and oversaw his grand kids as we worked. Some may see this as cheap labor...we did get paid. However, it was countless summers of teaching and lifetime experience. He taught us how to work. And how to work hard. After working hard in the yard all morning, he always went off for a round of golf with the "nooners" at the Davis Golf Course. He taught me to work hard and then play hard. He taught me the importance of friendships. He had many friends. He taught me the importance of growth and of learning from mistakes. I learned the power of the words "I'm sorry" and "I love you". He taught me the importance of being who you are and not hiding yourself. He loved the Lord and had a testimony greater than anyone I knew. He had his faults too. He smoked. So what? He still went to church he did not hide the fact that he smoked, he worked hard, he loved his family and took care of them. He was a good neighbor and friend. Men like him are rare. He wasn't perfect, he was an honest and upstanding man.
To this day, the best smell on this earth is the smell of dirt and concrete mixed with cigarette smoke. He worked in construction and started a cement company. His truck always smelled of dirt, cement and smoke. When I get the chance to ride around in one of those company trucks it makes my heart so happy. I smell my Papa.
Yesterday, as I planted Pansies, I thought of Papa. I still feel him with me. I have felt him in the worst times in my life. Loving me. Today, I went out to show Brandon my little garden and as I was thinking of my Papa, I started to think of something else close to my heart. The atonement. The girls we serve in our mission at the Women's Recovery Center and the men and women in the Addiction Recovery Program. Brandon's and my own recovery. I thought of growth.
My tulips are all growing at different rates. Some are in clumps, they were planted years before and have a stronger root. Others are taller and some are thicker. Some are barely coming peeking out of the ground. Some are exploding out of the ground reaching for the sun. My pansies add color, a smile, to the garden that is striving to grow and change from a bulb into a flower.
We are each at a different point in our growth, much like my tulips. Some of them have roots firmly planted in the ground from years of care and growth, much like some of us from years of learning and striving. Some are newly planted and striving to grow for the first time, one day at a time. Some of the tulips are in groups and others stand on their own. But they are all in the garden, together. Growing and striving to be the best tulip they can be. Some of my tulips may die. A deer might eat them, the wind blow them over, some kid may rip it out of the ground. Some might just give up. Maybe they just won't have the strength to grow as much as they would like. But they are out there, growing anyways. Trying. Despite what may happen. And next year, they will try again. As long as they have the nourishment they need, they will continue to try and grow every spring into my favorite flower.
My tulips are a lot like us. Some of us have our roots firmly planted from several years of hard work, service and recovery. Of coming unto our Savior despite our short comings and failures. No matter how broken we may have felt we were. Some of us may feel as though we have disappointed the Lord so much that we let him go rather than cling to him more than ever before. Some of us are newly planted in our faith. Still trying to overcome challenges and our own personal deamonds. We look up to the ones who went before us and are firmly planted in their faith and beliefs. Some of feel as though we are standing alone. Not knowing where to turn or who to trust. But if we step back, we can see that we are not alone. That there are groups of us striving and some of us alone as well. We are all in the same garden. Striving to grow and change and be better.
Much like the Tulip has the chance to grow each year with the proper nourishment. So do we. With the basics of prayer, scripture study and faith...no matter how small that faith may be, we can grow. Because of the atonement, we can continue to try and to grow. To fight our way through this life. And we don't have to do it alone. We are surrounded by others fighting just as hard to change and grow. We all will stumble and make mistakes but we all have the chance to change and grow again.
Today, I am grateful for growth. I am grateful for the atonement of my savior, Jesus Christ. I happened into the amazing experience of being a Service Missionary in the Addiction Recovery Program...the 12 Steps are the steps to the atonement. As I have been on this path, I have healed. I have watched others heal. I have witnessed marriages and families saved. I have seen the devastation of families falling apart but even those families are ok, because they have leaned on atonement with all they have, even with a divorce they heal from the pain of loved ones choices and are able to let it all go. I have watched women heal from their spouses addiction to pornography or drugs and to love themselves. I have watched men recover from pornography addiction. I have seen men and women fight their way out of addiction to drugs and alcohol. Weekly, I witness women fighting for their very lives and families. To come to their higher power and change. I thought that Brandon and I had so much to teach and help with, but we have been taught and helped. I have watched my husband heal from addiction and literally transform into a new and different man. Someone different from the night I met him, it's like night and day. Still with faults but with a different countenance and a desire to keep trying and a new approach to life. I have healed from things I never thought were possible. I was able to forgive myself and then see myself. As the Lord sees me. To love myself as the Lord loves me. It has been several years of work and growth, much like the tulips that have been in my garden for a while. I am no where near where I want to be, but that is the beauty of it all. I never will be. I get to grow, over and over through this life as I learn from my savior. I'm going to continue to make mistakes ad fall over and be weak but I always have a way to try again.
I'm grateful for this important life lesson and the new joy I have in gardening. Now as I think of my Papa, I think of the men and women I have served with and who have taught me. I think about my Savior and his sacrifice that I might continue to grow and make it through this life through him.
This year, with the move to our house, we have a yard and some flower beds. In October, Laura, Liz and I worked hard cleaning out the beds and planting tulips. I have never planted tulips before and was so excited. The tulips have started coming up and with spring here, I planted a few pansies for some color yesterday. My love for flowers and gardening started at a young age. I would work every summer for my Papa, taking care of his yard and the yards of my aunts and uncles. All the cousins did it. His yard was always beautiful and he took great pride in it. I can remember being ever so careful as we weeded to not step on the flowers. He was like the foreman and oversaw his grand kids as we worked. Some may see this as cheap labor...we did get paid. However, it was countless summers of teaching and lifetime experience. He taught us how to work. And how to work hard. After working hard in the yard all morning, he always went off for a round of golf with the "nooners" at the Davis Golf Course. He taught me to work hard and then play hard. He taught me the importance of friendships. He had many friends. He taught me the importance of growth and of learning from mistakes. I learned the power of the words "I'm sorry" and "I love you". He taught me the importance of being who you are and not hiding yourself. He loved the Lord and had a testimony greater than anyone I knew. He had his faults too. He smoked. So what? He still went to church he did not hide the fact that he smoked, he worked hard, he loved his family and took care of them. He was a good neighbor and friend. Men like him are rare. He wasn't perfect, he was an honest and upstanding man.
To this day, the best smell on this earth is the smell of dirt and concrete mixed with cigarette smoke. He worked in construction and started a cement company. His truck always smelled of dirt, cement and smoke. When I get the chance to ride around in one of those company trucks it makes my heart so happy. I smell my Papa.
Yesterday, as I planted Pansies, I thought of Papa. I still feel him with me. I have felt him in the worst times in my life. Loving me. Today, I went out to show Brandon my little garden and as I was thinking of my Papa, I started to think of something else close to my heart. The atonement. The girls we serve in our mission at the Women's Recovery Center and the men and women in the Addiction Recovery Program. Brandon's and my own recovery. I thought of growth.
My tulips are all growing at different rates. Some are in clumps, they were planted years before and have a stronger root. Others are taller and some are thicker. Some are barely coming peeking out of the ground. Some are exploding out of the ground reaching for the sun. My pansies add color, a smile, to the garden that is striving to grow and change from a bulb into a flower.
We are each at a different point in our growth, much like my tulips. Some of them have roots firmly planted in the ground from years of care and growth, much like some of us from years of learning and striving. Some are newly planted and striving to grow for the first time, one day at a time. Some of the tulips are in groups and others stand on their own. But they are all in the garden, together. Growing and striving to be the best tulip they can be. Some of my tulips may die. A deer might eat them, the wind blow them over, some kid may rip it out of the ground. Some might just give up. Maybe they just won't have the strength to grow as much as they would like. But they are out there, growing anyways. Trying. Despite what may happen. And next year, they will try again. As long as they have the nourishment they need, they will continue to try and grow every spring into my favorite flower.
My tulips are a lot like us. Some of us have our roots firmly planted from several years of hard work, service and recovery. Of coming unto our Savior despite our short comings and failures. No matter how broken we may have felt we were. Some of us may feel as though we have disappointed the Lord so much that we let him go rather than cling to him more than ever before. Some of us are newly planted in our faith. Still trying to overcome challenges and our own personal deamonds. We look up to the ones who went before us and are firmly planted in their faith and beliefs. Some of feel as though we are standing alone. Not knowing where to turn or who to trust. But if we step back, we can see that we are not alone. That there are groups of us striving and some of us alone as well. We are all in the same garden. Striving to grow and change and be better.
Much like the Tulip has the chance to grow each year with the proper nourishment. So do we. With the basics of prayer, scripture study and faith...no matter how small that faith may be, we can grow. Because of the atonement, we can continue to try and to grow. To fight our way through this life. And we don't have to do it alone. We are surrounded by others fighting just as hard to change and grow. We all will stumble and make mistakes but we all have the chance to change and grow again.
Today, I am grateful for growth. I am grateful for the atonement of my savior, Jesus Christ. I happened into the amazing experience of being a Service Missionary in the Addiction Recovery Program...the 12 Steps are the steps to the atonement. As I have been on this path, I have healed. I have watched others heal. I have witnessed marriages and families saved. I have seen the devastation of families falling apart but even those families are ok, because they have leaned on atonement with all they have, even with a divorce they heal from the pain of loved ones choices and are able to let it all go. I have watched women heal from their spouses addiction to pornography or drugs and to love themselves. I have watched men recover from pornography addiction. I have seen men and women fight their way out of addiction to drugs and alcohol. Weekly, I witness women fighting for their very lives and families. To come to their higher power and change. I thought that Brandon and I had so much to teach and help with, but we have been taught and helped. I have watched my husband heal from addiction and literally transform into a new and different man. Someone different from the night I met him, it's like night and day. Still with faults but with a different countenance and a desire to keep trying and a new approach to life. I have healed from things I never thought were possible. I was able to forgive myself and then see myself. As the Lord sees me. To love myself as the Lord loves me. It has been several years of work and growth, much like the tulips that have been in my garden for a while. I am no where near where I want to be, but that is the beauty of it all. I never will be. I get to grow, over and over through this life as I learn from my savior. I'm going to continue to make mistakes ad fall over and be weak but I always have a way to try again.
I'm grateful for this important life lesson and the new joy I have in gardening. Now as I think of my Papa, I think of the men and women I have served with and who have taught me. I think about my Savior and his sacrifice that I might continue to grow and make it through this life through him.
Cooking, chores and fun
I recently bought a deep fryer. I got my hands on a recipe for deep fried s'mores. I love s'mores. A lot. I was quite excited to try this out. The deep fried s'mores were and epic fail. They were gross, nothing like an actual s'more, and just down right disappointing. I'm now left with a min-deep fryer. Now what? Doughnuts!! Thanks to Pinterest, I found a recipe for Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Those were a complete success!! Seriously so yummy when saved overnight for a fantastic breakfast. Thankfully when I made them the kids were here so I didn't have to eat them all alone. Brandon and Lilly then had the idea to make fries with the fryer. Those too, were amazing. Only Brandon or Lilly can make them right. I tried but it did not work. I think Lilly and Brandon were making fries for all of us all weekend long!! Alas, the deep fryer has died. We haven't made doughnuts or fries since but the few times we made them were a lot of fun. Big thanks goes out to the person who gave me a gift card to Kohls where I bought the deep fryer on sale. It was awesome while it lasted!
Once Liz turned 8, she could participate in what is called Activity Days at church. She gets together with girls her age in their ward a couple of times a month and do activities together...hence the name! She recently had her first Daddy Daughter Date. It had a 50's theme, so she busted out my old poodle skirt from my competition days and Brandon did his best to throw together a 50's look. I have never seen a more excited girl. The weeks leading up that night she would talk often about it. When she came home from the date she was glowing. She gave me the low down...Dad CANNOT hula hoop. "It was funny" were her exact words. However, Dad did win the bubble gum blowing contest at their table and Dad pulled her around on this cart with wheels and a rope and apparently that was "so fun!!!". Liz also did the hula hoop, she is "much better than Dad".
Brandon started a part time job in Home Health. He really likes it. He is not away from us too often and it has been a huge blessing. We are very grateful. Something neat has come of it for the kids and Brandon. On Saturday and Sunday mornings, he sees a patient pretty early in the morning. Each morning he takes one of the kids with him. They stop for a drink and they ride with and even get to meet his patient. Maybe this doesn't seem neat or like a big deal, but to Brandon it is. I think to the kids it is too. Nothing miraculous happens, just a drink and drive with Dad.
Charlie has GROWN!! He is still a puppy but not the size of one! He is doing really good with learning his commands. He struggles when the kids are here because he is just so excited to have them around and he just wants to play with them. When they go back to their grandpa's he wanders to each of their rooms. At first I didn't notice til I watched him one day. It's like he is checking to see where they are. Then he sits at the back door with a look of "where did they go??". He also gets excited when company comes over. He is 99.9% house trained (knock on wood) so I cleaned all our carpets and couches. WAHOO!! I'm trying to enforce a 'No Shoe' rule...Brandon said "Good Luck with that..." We'll see how it goes.
Well, I'm loving Plain City. We have a fantastic ward and I have made some really neat friends. It's nice. It's nice to get to know these girls up here and feel included. It is a huge blessing for me. We had a girls night out...Luke wanted to know what we talked about at those....My lips are sealed shut. Ha! Today I am just so grateful for our new home, our new ward, our new friends. Life is quite the chaotic storm for us but right down the center runs a thread of peace and stillness that I love and cling to.
So there are some of our adventures. Brandon and I are getting super excited about this great weather...we are itching to go fishing!! Wahoo!!!
Last Friday, the kids were out of school and so they were at our house. Liz and Luke decided they wanted to get their chores done Friday so they didn't have any big chores to do on Saturday...Luke had the kitchen. Luke is such a smart boy. I love how he makes what could be boring tasks fun. Check out how he did our dishes and kept hydrated as well!!
Once Liz turned 8, she could participate in what is called Activity Days at church. She gets together with girls her age in their ward a couple of times a month and do activities together...hence the name! She recently had her first Daddy Daughter Date. It had a 50's theme, so she busted out my old poodle skirt from my competition days and Brandon did his best to throw together a 50's look. I have never seen a more excited girl. The weeks leading up that night she would talk often about it. When she came home from the date she was glowing. She gave me the low down...Dad CANNOT hula hoop. "It was funny" were her exact words. However, Dad did win the bubble gum blowing contest at their table and Dad pulled her around on this cart with wheels and a rope and apparently that was "so fun!!!". Liz also did the hula hoop, she is "much better than Dad".
Brandon started a part time job in Home Health. He really likes it. He is not away from us too often and it has been a huge blessing. We are very grateful. Something neat has come of it for the kids and Brandon. On Saturday and Sunday mornings, he sees a patient pretty early in the morning. Each morning he takes one of the kids with him. They stop for a drink and they ride with and even get to meet his patient. Maybe this doesn't seem neat or like a big deal, but to Brandon it is. I think to the kids it is too. Nothing miraculous happens, just a drink and drive with Dad.
Charlie has GROWN!! He is still a puppy but not the size of one! He is doing really good with learning his commands. He struggles when the kids are here because he is just so excited to have them around and he just wants to play with them. When they go back to their grandpa's he wanders to each of their rooms. At first I didn't notice til I watched him one day. It's like he is checking to see where they are. Then he sits at the back door with a look of "where did they go??". He also gets excited when company comes over. He is 99.9% house trained (knock on wood) so I cleaned all our carpets and couches. WAHOO!! I'm trying to enforce a 'No Shoe' rule...Brandon said "Good Luck with that..." We'll see how it goes.
Well, I'm loving Plain City. We have a fantastic ward and I have made some really neat friends. It's nice. It's nice to get to know these girls up here and feel included. It is a huge blessing for me. We had a girls night out...Luke wanted to know what we talked about at those....My lips are sealed shut. Ha! Today I am just so grateful for our new home, our new ward, our new friends. Life is quite the chaotic storm for us but right down the center runs a thread of peace and stillness that I love and cling to.
So there are some of our adventures. Brandon and I are getting super excited about this great weather...we are itching to go fishing!! Wahoo!!!
Last Friday, the kids were out of school and so they were at our house. Liz and Luke decided they wanted to get their chores done Friday so they didn't have any big chores to do on Saturday...Luke had the kitchen. Luke is such a smart boy. I love how he makes what could be boring tasks fun. Check out how he did our dishes and kept hydrated as well!!
Thursday, March 22, 2012
A Husband and Father's point of view . . .
Social media provides for interesting opportunities. Tonight I choose to participate in this medium in a way that I never have before. Nope, this is not Jill blogging, this is Brandon, Jill's husband. All words to follow are mine. I alone am responsible for this entry. I believe this is my first entry in this little family blog. It may be the only entry I create. Tonight I wish to speak as a husband and a father.
My personal experience with social media allows me conclude that blogging, tweeting, facebooking, etc., can truly provide an appropriate and powerful medium to entertain, uplift, support, worship, bear testimony, and provide service (to name but a few). Unfortunately, I also feel these mediums far too often are used in a way that is superficial, hollow, and empty, where false, hateful, and unwise words, thoughts and opinions are used to create anger, confusion, and sadness. Social media is limited and imperfect. Tone, intent, and meaning often get lost, misunderstood and misinterpreted. Yet we are quick to cry, "It’s only entertainment". After my grandmother died, I received a portion of her journal writings. Written with a typewriter on nice stationary, I can feel her spirit each time I read her words. I sometimes wonder if similar writings provided in an online environment can as effectively capture the essence of one's soul. Maybe. The issue of cyberstalking in its various forms adds a worrisome element to our social media. I am the only one who has access to my grandmother's writings. But almost anyone anywhere may potentially have access to this blog. Sometimes, those who are mean-spirited use social media to gather data, twist and manipulate information for selfish gain. To say the very least, we often put ourselves at risk by participating in social media. Its a sign of our times.
Tonight I wish to direct my words to each one of you who have stumbled upon this little family blog. Whoever you are, welcome! I hope you understand that anyone who “steps foot” here is able go get a little glimpse of our family as presented by an angel.
You see, just over two years ago I met an angel. Seriously. At that particular time in my life, I was very literally at my lowest point. I won't elaborate on the specifics of what was going on at that time, but it is sufficient to say that in a very real way I was homeless, and soulless. I called my parent's couch home. Stripped of my identity, I stood in chaos. Character weaknesses in one hand, addiction in the other, I was introduced to Jill.
As part of the problem at this time of my life, I was trying to take upon myself the full weight of something that I did not truly own alone. I tried to own the fault, the blame, the dark cloud that seemed to hover over my family. In this, my extreme ignorance, God sent me an angel that would eventually help me see me for who I am.
I want to tell you about my angel. She has blond hair, beautiful eyes, shapely curves, and a smile that instantly pierced through my plight. She has the softest touch and offers the kindest words. She is funny and smart, quirky and talkative. When we met she knew I was a broke divorcee with 4 children. She knew of my character weaknesses and the addiction with which I tried to cover my flaws. She should have ran away. I wanted her to go away.
We first met at the invitation of my little sister. To be honest, it was nice to get off my parent’s couch for the night. That alone contributed to us going out a couple more times. But I felt the need to get away. I had to run because as I spent more time with her it became obvious that she, like me, was flawed also. Two screw-ups finding each other in the midst of chaos? It couldn't be. It shouldn't be. But somewhere along the way, on a path of fear and insecurity, my angel simply and honestly suggested something that has since become the foundation of our relationship: "Let's pray". Real words. Powerful words.
In spite of my fears and concerns, giving heed to those two words allowed for a friendship to develop, then a courtship, later a marriage. Shortly after our marriage, this blog came to be. The Sandall family blog with the silly title. Happily, eagerly, proudly, and humbly, Jill began to “shout from the rooftops” about our new little family. You have all witnessed much of it if you have spent any significant amount of time here. If you have paid attention, you have been able to recognize that Jill not only loves me, but she also loves my four children. Jill has graciously accepted the role of “step-mother”, with all the negative stereotypes and connotations this title often possesses. Always respectful of my children’s biological mother, Jill is called “Jill” as her heart and soul yearns to be called “mother”. Recognizing that our personal situation may never produce children of her own, Jill nevertheless has proudly, lovingly, appropriately, righteously, and excitedly put herself, me, and my children on display on this very blog.
I invite you to continue to take a look at this blog. Read Jill's entries. See my kids. I am proud of them. I am proud of her. Though I have made many mistakes in life, and will continue to do so, I am a very proud husband and father. I love my children. I love my wife. Where I fall short in expressing how I love being a parent, Jill shines. Where I lack personality, Jill provides laughter, silliness, and fun. Where I am shy, Jill, through her writings, does her best to describe experiences that we have as a family in a way that is open, honest, and appreciated. Where I sometimes forget to express words of kindness and love, Jill’s heart explodes with both throughout this blog. Simple yet effective expressions of love through writings and photographs posted here. She loves to post pictures. It sometimes drives me nuts how many pictures she takes. She is not a writer (neither am I). Her grammar isn’t the best, but she unapologetically expresses her love to me, my children, our God, and others, and then meekly asks me to go back and fix her grammatical errors.
My angel isn’t perfect. She makes mistakes. Hallelujah! She sleeps in too late. She’s often late to appointments. She gets pouty and often takes on way too many projects. She can be loud. She has offended people at times. She can talk and talk and talk and talk. But she is my angel. I sometimes listen to her breath as she sleeps at night just to feel of her wonderful spirit.
So here we are. Together. Married. A family. Maybe not the "ideal" nuclear family, but WE ARE A FAMILY. My relationship with Jill is based on prayer and faith. That is really all we have. We are broke. We donate plasma twice a week just to keep gas in the one vehicle we own. We try to pay the rent on time when we can, and we scrounge for change to buy a Coke when we can’t. Too often we borrow from parents and loved ones to keep the lights on, but in her honest, blunt way, Jill is constantly reminding me that she loves her life. She loves me. She loves our family. She absolutely adores our children even though she has to share them. She, in a very real way, took a chance on a broken man. We don’t stand a chance on our own, so with a “let’s pray” attitude, we invite God into our lives and try each day to follow Him. It’s hard at times. We often seem to struggle to figure out where the heck God is. But my angel is patient, so I can be too.
Some say, “reach for the stars”. Others claim that if such an attempt leads you only to the moon, than that’s pretty good too. For Jill and me, we reach for the sun, more specifically, the Son. Jill showed me her dependence on Him when she uttered the simple words, “let’s pray”. She recognizes that in her weakness she is nothing, and I choose to follow her hand in hand because of her faith that in the Lord’s strength all things are possible, including being my wife with all the mess that entails.
I post this entry this night because for a brief moment Jill shut down our blog because of some recent misguided comments about the entries and the hurt feelings it caused. Ignorance tried to clip the wings of my angel. As Jill’s husband, I will not let that happen! This is our blog. A blog about our family. A blog that helps put a little sparkle on me and my wonderful children, on my wonderful wife. A selfless act of my angel. There are no ulterior motives here, no hurtful words, no expressions of condemnation. I honor my wife in part this night by insisting that this blog stay put, open to our friends, family, and loved-ones. If you happen to be someone who is offended by what is here, then you are free to leave and I assure you your offense is a result of your own ignorance, not Jill's intent. If you are someone who would take her honest, kind, and loving words and try to manipulate them for selfish “gain”, to to attempt to tear down rather than build up, then please do it far from this little blog. Do it far from my family.
The only purpose that I see this blog serves is for Jill to lovingly and appropriately attempt to express love to me as her husband and to Lilly, Laura, Liz, and Luke, our children. She also expresses kindnesses to family and loved-ones. She expresses faith here and acknowledges our God and his infinite mercy. She has opinions and thoughts that she has a right to express here and as her husband, I fully support her efforts in spite of some of my personal opinions about social media.
I am a husband and a father. As such, the Lord has seen fit to also send me an angel to help me get through this thing called life. Jill you are my angel. If anyone, I mean anyone ever tries to clip your wings, you can be sure I will be right by your side following your wise counsel: “let’s pray”. I love you Jill, forever.
My personal experience with social media allows me conclude that blogging, tweeting, facebooking, etc., can truly provide an appropriate and powerful medium to entertain, uplift, support, worship, bear testimony, and provide service (to name but a few). Unfortunately, I also feel these mediums far too often are used in a way that is superficial, hollow, and empty, where false, hateful, and unwise words, thoughts and opinions are used to create anger, confusion, and sadness. Social media is limited and imperfect. Tone, intent, and meaning often get lost, misunderstood and misinterpreted. Yet we are quick to cry, "It’s only entertainment". After my grandmother died, I received a portion of her journal writings. Written with a typewriter on nice stationary, I can feel her spirit each time I read her words. I sometimes wonder if similar writings provided in an online environment can as effectively capture the essence of one's soul. Maybe. The issue of cyberstalking in its various forms adds a worrisome element to our social media. I am the only one who has access to my grandmother's writings. But almost anyone anywhere may potentially have access to this blog. Sometimes, those who are mean-spirited use social media to gather data, twist and manipulate information for selfish gain. To say the very least, we often put ourselves at risk by participating in social media. Its a sign of our times.
Tonight I wish to direct my words to each one of you who have stumbled upon this little family blog. Whoever you are, welcome! I hope you understand that anyone who “steps foot” here is able go get a little glimpse of our family as presented by an angel.
You see, just over two years ago I met an angel. Seriously. At that particular time in my life, I was very literally at my lowest point. I won't elaborate on the specifics of what was going on at that time, but it is sufficient to say that in a very real way I was homeless, and soulless. I called my parent's couch home. Stripped of my identity, I stood in chaos. Character weaknesses in one hand, addiction in the other, I was introduced to Jill.
As part of the problem at this time of my life, I was trying to take upon myself the full weight of something that I did not truly own alone. I tried to own the fault, the blame, the dark cloud that seemed to hover over my family. In this, my extreme ignorance, God sent me an angel that would eventually help me see me for who I am.
I want to tell you about my angel. She has blond hair, beautiful eyes, shapely curves, and a smile that instantly pierced through my plight. She has the softest touch and offers the kindest words. She is funny and smart, quirky and talkative. When we met she knew I was a broke divorcee with 4 children. She knew of my character weaknesses and the addiction with which I tried to cover my flaws. She should have ran away. I wanted her to go away.
We first met at the invitation of my little sister. To be honest, it was nice to get off my parent’s couch for the night. That alone contributed to us going out a couple more times. But I felt the need to get away. I had to run because as I spent more time with her it became obvious that she, like me, was flawed also. Two screw-ups finding each other in the midst of chaos? It couldn't be. It shouldn't be. But somewhere along the way, on a path of fear and insecurity, my angel simply and honestly suggested something that has since become the foundation of our relationship: "Let's pray". Real words. Powerful words.
In spite of my fears and concerns, giving heed to those two words allowed for a friendship to develop, then a courtship, later a marriage. Shortly after our marriage, this blog came to be. The Sandall family blog with the silly title. Happily, eagerly, proudly, and humbly, Jill began to “shout from the rooftops” about our new little family. You have all witnessed much of it if you have spent any significant amount of time here. If you have paid attention, you have been able to recognize that Jill not only loves me, but she also loves my four children. Jill has graciously accepted the role of “step-mother”, with all the negative stereotypes and connotations this title often possesses. Always respectful of my children’s biological mother, Jill is called “Jill” as her heart and soul yearns to be called “mother”. Recognizing that our personal situation may never produce children of her own, Jill nevertheless has proudly, lovingly, appropriately, righteously, and excitedly put herself, me, and my children on display on this very blog.
I invite you to continue to take a look at this blog. Read Jill's entries. See my kids. I am proud of them. I am proud of her. Though I have made many mistakes in life, and will continue to do so, I am a very proud husband and father. I love my children. I love my wife. Where I fall short in expressing how I love being a parent, Jill shines. Where I lack personality, Jill provides laughter, silliness, and fun. Where I am shy, Jill, through her writings, does her best to describe experiences that we have as a family in a way that is open, honest, and appreciated. Where I sometimes forget to express words of kindness and love, Jill’s heart explodes with both throughout this blog. Simple yet effective expressions of love through writings and photographs posted here. She loves to post pictures. It sometimes drives me nuts how many pictures she takes. She is not a writer (neither am I). Her grammar isn’t the best, but she unapologetically expresses her love to me, my children, our God, and others, and then meekly asks me to go back and fix her grammatical errors.
My angel isn’t perfect. She makes mistakes. Hallelujah! She sleeps in too late. She’s often late to appointments. She gets pouty and often takes on way too many projects. She can be loud. She has offended people at times. She can talk and talk and talk and talk. But she is my angel. I sometimes listen to her breath as she sleeps at night just to feel of her wonderful spirit.
So here we are. Together. Married. A family. Maybe not the "ideal" nuclear family, but WE ARE A FAMILY. My relationship with Jill is based on prayer and faith. That is really all we have. We are broke. We donate plasma twice a week just to keep gas in the one vehicle we own. We try to pay the rent on time when we can, and we scrounge for change to buy a Coke when we can’t. Too often we borrow from parents and loved ones to keep the lights on, but in her honest, blunt way, Jill is constantly reminding me that she loves her life. She loves me. She loves our family. She absolutely adores our children even though she has to share them. She, in a very real way, took a chance on a broken man. We don’t stand a chance on our own, so with a “let’s pray” attitude, we invite God into our lives and try each day to follow Him. It’s hard at times. We often seem to struggle to figure out where the heck God is. But my angel is patient, so I can be too.
Some say, “reach for the stars”. Others claim that if such an attempt leads you only to the moon, than that’s pretty good too. For Jill and me, we reach for the sun, more specifically, the Son. Jill showed me her dependence on Him when she uttered the simple words, “let’s pray”. She recognizes that in her weakness she is nothing, and I choose to follow her hand in hand because of her faith that in the Lord’s strength all things are possible, including being my wife with all the mess that entails.
I post this entry this night because for a brief moment Jill shut down our blog because of some recent misguided comments about the entries and the hurt feelings it caused. Ignorance tried to clip the wings of my angel. As Jill’s husband, I will not let that happen! This is our blog. A blog about our family. A blog that helps put a little sparkle on me and my wonderful children, on my wonderful wife. A selfless act of my angel. There are no ulterior motives here, no hurtful words, no expressions of condemnation. I honor my wife in part this night by insisting that this blog stay put, open to our friends, family, and loved-ones. If you happen to be someone who is offended by what is here, then you are free to leave and I assure you your offense is a result of your own ignorance, not Jill's intent. If you are someone who would take her honest, kind, and loving words and try to manipulate them for selfish “gain”, to to attempt to tear down rather than build up, then please do it far from this little blog. Do it far from my family.
The only purpose that I see this blog serves is for Jill to lovingly and appropriately attempt to express love to me as her husband and to Lilly, Laura, Liz, and Luke, our children. She also expresses kindnesses to family and loved-ones. She expresses faith here and acknowledges our God and his infinite mercy. She has opinions and thoughts that she has a right to express here and as her husband, I fully support her efforts in spite of some of my personal opinions about social media.
I am a husband and a father. As such, the Lord has seen fit to also send me an angel to help me get through this thing called life. Jill you are my angel. If anyone, I mean anyone ever tries to clip your wings, you can be sure I will be right by your side following your wise counsel: “let’s pray”. I love you Jill, forever.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Pretty Darn Funny
At Time Out For Women, they had a booth from Pretty Darn Funny. They wanted us to share our funny stories...Brandon and I had a recent funny moment. Watch the video below, if you think it's funny please go to www.prettydarnfunny.com and enter Jill Sandall in the search bar on the left. On my video there is a "# likes" and an orange thumbs up sign, click on that to vote for me. I could win a cruise!!! I'm pretty excited to just be famous now. If you would like an autograph, let me know. :)
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Some funny moments
Not a whole lot has been going on, which is nice for a change. The other day, when the bathroom mirror was all steamed up, this showed up...it says "Luke Stinks". We are pretty sure the culprit is Liz. Brandon and I died laughing. How funny
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Love Notes
I went to Time Out For Women a couple of weeks ago. It was my first time there and I could not believe how amazing it was!! As I was getting ready to leave on Friday, Luke told me he was sad I was leaving and asked if he could ride with Dad to drop me off. Edna, a fellow service missionary that Brandon and I serve with had bought a bunch of tickets and we were having a pajama party at her house Friday night, so I wouldn't be back til late Saturday afternoon. Luke went into the store with me to get some treats and he got himself some pringles potato chips.
In my overnight bag was this note from Luke. He wrote it on the safety seal of his pringles and slipped it into my bag. I'm not sure that I will ever be able to articulate my experience as a Step Mother, this little love note made my weekend. I love you Luke!!
Funny how I post this and then see this article on TOFW....crossing my fingers I win!!
In my overnight bag was this note from Luke. He wrote it on the safety seal of his pringles and slipped it into my bag. I'm not sure that I will ever be able to articulate my experience as a Step Mother, this little love note made my weekend. I love you Luke!!
Funny how I post this and then see this article on TOFW....crossing my fingers I win!!
Friday, January 27, 2012
The Holidays
It is amazing at how little time I have for the "fun" stuff, like blogging anymore. We had a really good Christmas this year. Brandon and I are humbled at just how blessed we are. The kids were with us for the first half of their Christmas break this year. The first night we were all together the Wright's came over. Sometimes we go a few months without getting together, but when we do it's as if it's only been a few days. We had fun eating, catching up, and letting the kids party late into the night. A couple weeks after Christmas, we got together again for a sleepover in a home they are trying to sell. We stayed up late goofing around, playing games, having dance parties in this great empty house. I am in love with the home they are selling. Cody wouldn't take $50 for it. Hmph! All of my brothers were in town for Christmas. It was so great to be together and just hang out. My Dad was supposed to come up but due to health concerns will be coming in February. During the break, the girls also had friends over. They went caroling while in the middle of facials. Yes, you read that right. Covered in green mud.
Brandon and I were on our own for New Years Eve this year, and so I took him to a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight in downtown Ogden and then we went to a fancy dinner. Yes, you read that right, MMA fighting and fine dining.
Prior to the evening activities Brandon and I went flyfishing, a new hobby I have started with Brandon. It was my second time ever (the first time was about 10 years ago). We fished the Weber river. I have loved learning to fish with Brandon. I love all of it. Getting up at the crack of dawn, breakfast in the car, the drive, the day fishing, lunch after in small town and the drive back. It really is so fun and I am glad he and the kids have introduced me to it. My favorite moment of our New Year's Eve night was when we were walking back to the car and Brandon says, "Did I just go to an MMA fight wearing a scarf???" Yes, babe. You did.
Let's see, what else? Lilly turned 14 in the beginning of January. I am still a volunteer advocate at Safe Harbor and have just started on at the YCC in Ogden as a volunteer advocate as well, working in their women's shelter one day a week. Elizabeth lost a tooth. Brandon is busy with work and loves teaching for Weber State. Lilly made the school musical. The twins had their baptism, what a special day. We were so overcome with the spirit. Liz and Luke are such great examples. Laura is getting ready for a busy few months of competing in dance. Charlie is growing so fast and doing well with the potty training til last night....he peed on Laura's coat. UGH He and Jerry continue to be best buds.
The days seem to blur into weeks for me lately...I never knew I could be this busy and not be working. Our mission continues to be a source of great strength for Brandon and I, we enjoy every minute of it.
Here are a bunch of pictures from Christmas and January....We hope everyone had as good of a holiday as we did!!!
Brandon and I were on our own for New Years Eve this year, and so I took him to a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight in downtown Ogden and then we went to a fancy dinner. Yes, you read that right, MMA fighting and fine dining.
Prior to the evening activities Brandon and I went flyfishing, a new hobby I have started with Brandon. It was my second time ever (the first time was about 10 years ago). We fished the Weber river. I have loved learning to fish with Brandon. I love all of it. Getting up at the crack of dawn, breakfast in the car, the drive, the day fishing, lunch after in small town and the drive back. It really is so fun and I am glad he and the kids have introduced me to it. My favorite moment of our New Year's Eve night was when we were walking back to the car and Brandon says, "Did I just go to an MMA fight wearing a scarf???" Yes, babe. You did.
Let's see, what else? Lilly turned 14 in the beginning of January. I am still a volunteer advocate at Safe Harbor and have just started on at the YCC in Ogden as a volunteer advocate as well, working in their women's shelter one day a week. Elizabeth lost a tooth. Brandon is busy with work and loves teaching for Weber State. Lilly made the school musical. The twins had their baptism, what a special day. We were so overcome with the spirit. Liz and Luke are such great examples. Laura is getting ready for a busy few months of competing in dance. Charlie is growing so fast and doing well with the potty training til last night....he peed on Laura's coat. UGH He and Jerry continue to be best buds.
The days seem to blur into weeks for me lately...I never knew I could be this busy and not be working. Our mission continues to be a source of great strength for Brandon and I, we enjoy every minute of it.
Here are a bunch of pictures from Christmas and January....We hope everyone had as good of a holiday as we did!!!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Quick Update
Things have been so hectic. Christmas was great. Brandon and I spent the last week of our break together playing and having fun, it was such a fun break for us. I've started back to school and he has started back to work. The twins were baptized last weekend. We are so very proud of them. Aunt Natalie took some pictures of the twins the weekend before. Hopefully I will have time to do a real update soon!
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