Moving on

I think it's time to move on, don't you?

The 365 thing was great, but I think the idea of doing for another year was too much.

And this last year (at least this summer) was a bit of a bust.

So I'm changing things up.

This year will be about what I'm getting done.
I have lots of goals.
In lots of areas.
Admittedly, it makes me a bit scattered.
But my brain is full of possibilities.  So this year I'm going to concentrate on bringing some of that to reality. 

So -

New Blog.
http://whatididtodayhurray.blogspot.com/

It is still very much under construction.  I just wanted to get a few things down.
Pictures and prettiness to come.

I'll post here again to let you know when it's all spiffied up in case you want to wait until then to read.

Mood Theory

From a presentation on mood theory this weekend.

People tend to disproportionately believe negative statements other people make about them as compared to positive ones.  Or, in the words of one presenter.

"When people are told they did a good job or are patted on the back, they tend to brush it off and not believe it.  When someone tells them they did a bad job, they think, you're right, I suck."

All 12 presentations this weekend were on theory.  I felt like a far side cartoon by the end.  My brain was full!

So - I've been wondering a little.  Why do we do that?  One statement is NOT truer than the other.  And why do we let anyone else influence our mood anyway?  We all impact each other. And it's hard not to let those nasty voices get in.  Sometimes we feel like they are the voice of reason.  And they are NOT.

So - I always talk to my children about tone.  About how the way we say something is equally as important as what we say.  The feelings behind our words are as important as what we say.

So then when I hear unharmonious clashing in the background of my house, I cringe.  I flinch.  I DO NOT LIKE IT Sam I am.
Well, the other day I took a little listen to myself and realized that maybe, just maybe, some of those clashing noises were not solely the responsibility of the little psyches that were perhaps mirroring some parental tonal behavior.  (Frustration leads to fussing leads to, well, battle of the tones.)
It seemed like everyone was just trying to be the mother.  To everyone else.  And that was not going to work.

So I set my goal to be more gentle. To modify my tone.  To realize that I had practically grown up people here that I was treating like they were still three and needed things repeatedly repeated.
I have shaped up my tone.  And I think it's working.  Our house is getting progressively calmer.  And I am hearing the "dulcet tones" of my children in cooperation more and more often.

Luckily I am blessed with a very mature and wise oldest child who takes her own way and just radiates love and common sense no matter what I am doing.

And the S-Train. Well, I need to remind myself that he is almost 8.  He is ready for a more grown up role and more grown up conversation. (And probably has been for awhile, but, well, he's the youngest and sometimes that makes that maturity harder to notice.)

Anyway.  I have decided to be GENTLE.  That is my new watchword.  Because gentle with my children will continue to be reflected, I hope, in what I hear around me.

Oh Bleck!

Well that was fun.  The whole groove thing lasted a whole oh, three or four hours.

If I'm generous it may have been almost 24.

It was such a nice feeling.  On top of things.  Accomplishing. 

And..... we're back.


I know your just supposed to fake it til you make it.  I will.  Eventually.

Mananged to get through the presentation this weekend without quite killing my partners.

They came through in the end.  One by the skin of his teeth.

I rated his work as satisfactory on our peer review.

I was nice.

But then, he does do well on presentations.


Meanwhile I missed hanging out with friends who were celebrating each other.  YUCK!

I miss just doing things with people.  Fun things.

My whole life right now is taken up with my kids' activities and other activities, at least in the evenings.
I'm cutting some back.  But really I think that will just take things back to a dull roar.
Although it's true the time I'm saving will probably go into exciting things like actually having clean laundry and dinner made.

I feel like I'm on the edge of about four groups of people. Need to make time to make those more in depth.

And I'm not very good at keeping up social things for the kids either.  I wish I was.


Next topic - Had a meeting with the kids.  Trying to come up with ways to save so that we might possibly make it to a family reunion this summer.  Probably no swim team this summer unless the girls want to pay for it themselves. Though I really want to make that work.  As long as the roof and the car hold out it will probably work.  They are going to have to hold out until I'm done with this grad school thing.
 If it's possible I'll will them into staying put and in good working order.

Think Vulcan Mind Meld. You. Will. Be. Fine.

Mr. C. walked around on the roof last week because he was looking at fixing gutters.
They'll have to stay not fixed.
The roof was bowing under him a little.

I don't think that's a good sign.

The next night I had a dream about taking down soft sheetrock in an attic.

Luckily we don't have a working attic.  So it must have been another house.

Right?

I do really feel that this is the right thing for me to do right now.
So I'm having faith that all will work out.

We gave everyone responsibilities to help out.  Things like getting up early and making breakfast that's not cold cereal.  Making sure we walk to school whenever possible, etc.

We have a plan. Now we have to work the plan.

Anyway, cheerier stuff tomorrow.

Cheerio!

It's a Groove Thing

Ok, this entry is just boring to anyone else.  It's just so I'll remember things are working!

17. Hitting my Groove.  I feel like I'm finally getting a handle on moving quickly from one thing to another that I've got going.  Finally.  Of course that would happen just as they're all wrapping up! 

I think that inside of me there is the scared 12 year old who just got called as Beehive President and has to call girls she's never met to let them know about activities.  I was terrified I'd mess up the phone calls.  I'm still just worried I'll screw things up, so I procrastinate.  (And since lots of times waiting works out better, I keep doing it. Right now, that works with nothing I'm in the middle of.)

Well, a while ago I hit the point where I could cold call just about anyone.  I'm no longer scared I'll mess up a phone call.  And it looks like I've finally hit the point where procrastination definitely messes things up more than just getting it done.  So, I am.  And it's working.  Now if I can just keep this up through the next phase.

I'm going to. . . And then I might. . .

There are studies out now that say multitasking is bad for your brain. 
The more you multitask, the worse you get at doing all your tasks.
Trying to do too many things at once doesn't work and hurts your ability to function quickly mentally.

By the end of May, I'm going to be toast.

The Weekend

10. Spring.  Spring is coming up all over.  Except for a little extra snow blown in a couple of weeks ago, we might be done.  The snow boots got put away, then taken out, then worn to church.. . . well, it might be time to actually retire them for the summer!!!!!!!!  !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I typed those first few exclaimation marks, then felt the urge to keep going.  It was 88 last weekend.  88.

Unfortunately that helped me remember how well the car air conditioning works.
Luckily the next few weeks look open-the-windows-wide perfect!

Here are a few spring pictures.

 These are from our last snow.  These flowers are all gone now, blown away by the crazy wind we've been having.

11.  Soccer soccer soccer. The S-Train did a LOT of running this weekend.  Several kids on his team were missing this week, so everyone had to play the whole game.  And they still won!  The night before he had a birthday party at an inflatable jumping place.  (Or what ever you call those places.).  By Saturday night he was so worn out.  He was great in class on Sunday.  Connection. . . .?


12. Trains.  Mr. C. just took the train out west for the first time.  He's never been on a train.  We thought it would be fun since it goes through high wild areas with (cross your fingers) lots of wildlife.  He says it was a good experience.  He also says it seems slow compared to a car, but you just read and watch the scenery go by.  He said he didn't see tons of wildlife, but herds of 30 deer and 30 elk are a heck of a lot more than we would see in a car!
He went out for a mission reunion.  Apparently it was a small group, but the timing was right for him to go out.  He got to catch up with some MTC companions and share stories for hours.  We think he so deserved a break after working so hard the last month to finish up a big project.  Now we are smiling because there is . . .

13. No government shut down.  Yeah for finally compromising!  So Mr. C. gets to go back to work this week and the food storage breathes a huge sigh of relief, still safe in the basement.

14.  Solo and Ensemble.  Ah. Talented Children.  The oldest went to play with her crazy quartet this weekend.  They got a two.  If only they had started a bit earlier I think they would have had a one.  It was close.
They work so hard to find music for this crazy group.  (Baritone, French Horn, Bassoon, Clarinet) We went to find music at a VERY good sheet music shop. The people there absolutely know music and know what they are talking about.  One man there would look for music and then say, "Now, what's the instrumentation?"  then look a bit more.  "What's that instrumentation again?"  They helped us for what seemed like a very long time.  Then he said, "It's the baritone that's the problem."
(We think she's very nice!)
They went with Fugue by Mozart. They did a great job.

15.  Social Children.  Keep my life from being boring.  We had three birthday parties. (And originally thought it was four!) A soccer game, soccer pictures, (that are now rescheduled) and solo and ensemble. We ended up spending an hour at one of Lou's friends houses as we dropped her off.  I so needed the social time, too! She delightfully showed me her newly reorganized pantries!  (They are beautiful, and I'm slightly covetous.)  And her daughter's recently painted room.  So fun.  Then I took oldest out for a little shopping.  (We need to get her ready for all her summer fun.) and got her back just in time to babysit.   Then we all watched The Voyage of the Dawn Treader until bedtime.  (great movie).

16.  Great Deals.  Got a cute on clearance skirt for even more on clearance!  The oldest says she'll wear it.  But she didn't jump up and down, so the jury's still out.

ps.  Things I wonder about. While shopping we saw lots of girls out prom shopping.  Why are there so many girls determined to wear short dresses that just don't have the legs for it?  (I mean mid-thigh short). And why do their friends tell them they look great when the dress doesn't flatter them, or doesn't fit right, or she obviously isn't comfortable and is going to spend her entire prom night adjusting the dress?  AAACK! 

(And then the girl who looks spectacular in the dress she is in says it isn't her favorite and you know she's going to go for something that makes her look like a stuffed sausage.  Double AAACK!)

Side Trips into Childhood

What a difference even half an hour can make.  Venting over.

Now we'll get back to smiling.

7. Walking home from school again.  After that little vent yesterday I went to walk and pick the kids up from school.  It was wonderful.  Talked to two of my favorite teachers in the whole world.  And the kids had a great time on the way home.  The air is that perfect spring temperature of cool but not cold and warm but not hot.  The S-Train grabbed a handful of sand out of the gutter and started sprinkling it around him.  Then he and B pretended that everything it touched was alive.  So we joined in and swayed when the sidewalk came alive and waved at the trees when they were supposed to come alive. 

Everything can be better with a little side trip into childhood.

Here are a couple of other fun side trips we've taken recently.

8. First Grade Grins (picture to come)

9.  Soccer Games we actually win.

and

10.  Green fingernails for Mason. (picture also to follow)

Vent

This is not something that makes me smile.  This is a vent.  I am in charge of Chat n Chew at our school this year.  I did it last year too.  Last year things seemed to go fine.  This year everything is running smoothly except 2nd grade.  2nd grade has a cloud over its head.  Especially one poor teacher's class.  I don't understand it.  Everything that can possibly go wrong has gone wrong - in her class.

In every other grade I am hearing how smoothly things are running.  I am hearing how neatly it is working.  I hear the kids are having a great time.  In 95% of the school all is well. (Or at least, that's what they tell me.)

Meanwhile, for school I have a group project and one of our three members is MIA.  The other took a week to get back to me.  I'm ready to scream.

And - well.  I could go on and list things, but I think I'm tired and crabby.  I'm going to bed tonight at 6.

The funeral (life celebration) for Mason was yesterday.  Lou was upset because I wouldn't let her go since she'd been throwing up the night before.  She did her own thing to say good-bye on her own at the house.  It was sweet and beautiful.

Finishing Up the Time sucks

6.  The first of the last.  This week we have the first Chat n Chew Pizza parties!!!  The beginning of the end.  Yeah!  Also - Deadlines for scouts are this week.  And we hit the beginning of the end of scout camp deadlines.  I feel behind in my schoolwork. (I'm actually right on, but I'm not far enough ahead to be comfortable.)  And we are working on working on garage sale stuff - which will probably be at the end of April.  So I am SO EXCITED to get to the beginning of the end of the mental diaspora that has been my life this last month.  Maybe by June. . .

But then, I'm not sure if I'll know what to do without an overwhelming lot on my plate.  I want to learn how.  I'm cutting out PTA for next year in an effort to choose best over good and refocus on essentials.  I feel a little busy for busy sake, and that needs to be fixed.
So - Yay for the beginning of the wrapping up of this school year!

My 7 year old has informed me there are only 7 more weeks til summer.

YIKES!

Happy Cleaning Shows

5.  Cleaning to Decorating Shows.  This doesn't necessarily apply today, because I'm mostly taking the day off except for a few key things that need taking care of, but -

I like to watch HGTV while I clean the kitchen. 
It's so motivational.
How do I do that since I don't have cable, you ask?

It's this lovely invention called "watch full episodes" on the internet. 

My new favorite is called "Sarah's House."  You can find it here.

Oh, her style is so my style.  I love pretty much everything she does.

(Of course there's stuff I'd change, but you know what I mean.  She actually thinks about the practical side off stuff.  Most don't, which is a beef I have with most TV designers.)

If only her budget was my budget too, I'd be in business.


Sometimes, if I run out of new episodes of a show I like, I try to find episodes of hoarders or something like it to watch.
That's very motivational too.

Competent Children are Awesome

4. Medical Genes Kick In.  I always knew Lou had a lot of R genes.  I saw them come out last night.  She definitey had that decisive, calm-under-pressure thing going on.

Mr. C. had the older two at church, and our youngest two were going to stay with a neighbor while I was at writing group.  Our neighbor's work had gone long and she would be a few minutes late, so we told them to put on a movie until she could get there.  They are almost 11 and 7.  That should be fine for 15 minutes, right?  If they needed anything we have other awesome neighbors they could get help from.  But what could happen in 15 minutes?

At my group I get a call.

"Mom. . . The S-Train's throwing up."

I wait for the hysteria and prepare myself to dash for the car.

It never came.  "I've got him on the couch with a bowl." (and had the couch covered with a sheet and a towel under his head.)

"Why don't you get him. . . "

"I got him some sprite and he's watching a movie."

Situation under control.  Anything I was going to suggest, she'd already done.  She even had the whole hand washing thing wrapped up.
I felt confident enough about how she was handling things to stop at the library on my way home and pick up movies we had on hold for the S-Train so that he could have them for his sick day.

I did get another call on the way home.  "He's throwing up again."  She just put the used bowl in the bathroom for me and got him a new one.


I told we'd be enrolling her in nursing school when I got home.

We'll do medical school next year.
Good thing she played Clara Barton in her class play.

I brought her brownies.

Community and Personal Coping

The children in Mason's class wrapped the trees at the school with green ribbons.  It was his favorite color.  My kids decided to wear green today in his honor.

What do you do when children ask you questions like, "Was Mason afraid to die?"

I said, "Probably sometimes, because no one gets to come back and tell us what it's like. But this is what we do know.. . ."

And we had a great conversation about the spirit world and life after death and the things we know for sure.  It reminded me of my grandmother talking about when her father died.  Her mother would always say, "It's not like he's gone.  It's like he just stepped into the next room."

I hope I can give my children an assurance like that.  That when we die it's like we just step into the next room until we can see each other again.

At the same time, my heart is breaking for this beautiful family because the time ahead is long before that joyful reunion.

It already feels like a week since yesterday.

Life interrupted

A fourth grader at our school passed away this morning.  I've written here about their family before.  They have made their journey this last year one of inspiration and laughter and hope and treasuring the small sweet moments of life.  They have held up with more grace and love than I can say.  They are loved and supported by a great school community.  I read the comments on their blog this afternoon after I found out with tears running down my face.  I met people at school who couldn't talk, they had just pulled themselves together.

I find myself wishing I would just enjoy my children instead of fussing at them. Why do I find myself scolding when I don't mean to?  I need to just let go of the need to whip them into responsible people a little and enjoy. (that whole tiger mother thing notwithstanding) I'm hugging them a little tighter today.  I'm trying to remember to smile and laugh with them.

Mostly I'm crying inside for this sweet family.



On another note, if you read this before noon or so, say a prayer for Mr. C.  He has until two to finish the fine tuning on the big document he has been working on for the past couple of years.  He has been working Saturdays and 8-11 hour days for the past couple of weeks.  He worked all weekend and is still up there tonight.  I think he'll just catch some sleep up there.  Pray it all goes well and that his memory and the computers are working at peek efficiency.

Road Trip - Cars Visual Effects

3. Trip pictures.  We went on a quick whirlwind two day spring break trip to Nauvoo. (More on that later.)  And we had SO MUCH FUN with drive by photography!.  The oldest sat in the front seat and took pictures of interesting things.  Here are a couple of my favorite.  They didn't look like much on the back of the camera, but boy were they cool when we got home and all that yummy detail came out!

She said she had the song from Cars that plays when Lightning and Sally go for a drive playing in her head.
I guess it was inspirational.
I think the dirty windshield actually gave her some fun effects! She has a good eye, doesn't she?

Round Two

OK, the six of you who stopped by were no help on the format question.
So - I've decided to just go for round two.  The number format helps keep me going.

And who know, maybe I'll even actually finish this in a year this time.

(Laughing behind my hand.)

It's doable.

Right?

Right?

Everyone nod your head if you think I'll finish at least by a year from this coming August.

Yea.  Me too.

So - even though I should have started on


1.  Proceed Day. Which is March 4th.
(It's a joke.  March 4th.  Proceed.

OK, never mind. My word play humor gene is showing.)


I'll start today and keep going with

2. Spring Blossoms.  I looked out the window and what did I see. . .




One of my children reading in our front tree.


Note the bare feet.
It was cooling down, but she was determined to hang on to that summer feeling.

The weather has been so blissful.
*sigh*

The Last Round Up

It's been over a month since my last post.  I should be able to come up with at least 10 things for this post to finish out the 365.  And Hmmmmm.  What then?  I'm wondering.  I have no idea.  This 365 was supposed to take a year.  It's been a year and a half with some nice big month-long breaks in the middle.  So.  Should I keep up with the 365 idea?  Which worked so well as a daily thing last time. . .not. Or should I just keep going and see how long the next 365 things take?  Change the title to things that make me smile and use dates for numbers?  Or something else all together?  Let me know what you think.

356.  Spring.  This is not in order - but Hallelujah!  A nice warm spring wind blew in this last week and blew the crocuses in the yard up out of the ground.

They have such happy little faces.


I so needed the weather this week, even if I didn't get to get out in it much.  Long winters are really hard.  But lately I have a sort of theory. That maybe we are like bulbs.  There is  energy that gets stored up and lots of growing and struggling that takes place underground, where no one sees it.  It seems dark and there isn't much evidence of growth, but under there somewhere we are still alive and trying to make this whole life thing work.  And then, suddenly, when you just about can't hold on any more, when you wonder if another freeze or set back might just kill you, there is a beautiful burst of growth and energy that makes it into view.  And suddenly, we can see what was being worked on all that time in the subzero pit.  Perhaps it's like giving emotional birth, or, obviously, like bulbs finding their way into the sun.  For so long there doesn't seem to be anything there, but we keep trying, until - our eyes are opened wide in wonder- because a whole lot happens at once.

Maybe no one else has this experience.  I feel it every spring.  Ahhhh.  Sun.  Now if it would stay like this until fall. . . or next spring?


357.  Sue had a birthday!  We took her and a few friends to IHOP for breakfast in their pajamas. I love this picture because it shows how excited she was!  People are so nice!  No less than three people offered me their 20% off your total order coupons.  We made cute gift bags with our own homemade pancake mix and a few goodies to take home.  We love pancakes.

358.  Holes in our ears.  After that we kept the big day going by getting Sue's ears pierced!  The oldest still hasn't decided about the whole jewelery thing.  Sue wanted this done ON her birthday!  A little nervous.  And the lady's gun got stuck on the first ear.  But we did go on to do both ears.  Here we are half-way through. Earring on one, little black dot on the other.

Later on the ears got infected a bit, but you have to love neosporin!  We dipped the posts in it and the ears cleared up pretty quickly.  So now we are past time to be able to take out her first pair.  I've been putting her off because the new skin under there looks so baby brand new and thin.  I'd hate for cheap metal to send us back a step.  But she has her box of homemade earrings ready to go (from a short-lived let's sell jewelery experiment a few years ago.).  They are mostly too danggly.  We are supposed to stick with small earrings for about the first six months so the holes don't stretch out.  Which means earring shopping. And Sue can't WAIT!

359.  Lou was Amelia Earhart.  She was chosen to represent her school for a big assembly.  And she sang in the district choir.  It was 15 minutes of district-wide fame.  She did a great job giving her one minute speech. She has enough charisma to light up the stage. 

360.  We are almost Chinese if you please. Sue and Lou got to sing at a big Chinese New Year extravaganza.  Kids from our school Chinese club sang while a tape of students from our sister school in China singing played behind them.  It was so sweet.

(side note- skippable - We've actually gone to this new year's celebration four or five times with our neighbor before.  Each year it gets bigger.  But this year I'll admit to being a bit sad that it was mc'd in English.  The first year we went there was NO English.  We just watched the acts, but had no idea what was being said.  Last year for the first time it was announced in both languages.  And this year the announcing was all English.  I guess they are trying to attract a wider audience, but I kind of miss the days where we were trying to figure out what was going on.  I thought it must be like a piece of home for those who only spoke Chinese.  I know if I was in another country I'd love to have a celebration I could go to where I understood everything they said.)

361.  Multipiano. The oldest played at a multipiano contest.  Her design even won the cover of the program!  I'll see if I can get a video to post here of one of her pieces.  So far no luck, but I'll try again.



362.  Heart day.  Heart shaped pizza was our nod to heart day this year.

 

And Sue had a great Valentine's box!  We also blatently stole from other bloggers and heart-attacked the house.  Everyone wrote something they loved about each other on hearts and we covered the kitchen and part of the dining room in them.  So sweeet to look up from the computer or making dinner and read why one of your kids loves you.  Ahh.

363. A new table.  Mr. C finished the table!!!!

 

It was put on hold for a few years.  But it's in the living room now.  It's very beautiful.  Mr. C was so proud. He finished it just in time to have a few friends over for a family home evening birthday dinner. 

It's big enough that even if we don't have enough floor space, the S-Train will be able to spread out his creativity quite nicely.

364.  An annual labor of love.  I made German Chocolate cake for Mr. C's birthday.  I used to get burned.  That frosting splatters while it cooks, you know!  Until one of my smart children suggested a long handle and an oven mitt.  Now it's easy peasy.  And the photo I took makes me smile.

365.  Getting to 365!!  I can't believe I made it the whole way.  And here I am.  Wow.

And what now?  I still have more events to post.  (Some of the daily fun gets lost when you wait a month to post and it all boils down to events instead of funny moments.)  But what format?  Thoughts?

Ode to Joy (or the fourth movement of the fifth)

355.  Fun Video.  A friend just sent this to me.  It made me smile :) .  So here it is.

And here's a link to where it was. Fun comments. 

S-Train Valentines and a visit from the G-parents.

352.  Strategies. The S-Train was reading a Frog and Toad story to me this morning.  There were robins telling the friends to give up and not to fly their kite.  The S-Train said, "I would shake that bush."  To get rid of the robins.  Hadn't even occured to me.  Good strategy, though.

353.  Early Valentines.  The S-train has been working hard on early Valentines for me.  He gave me the best gift the other day.  It's a Mom's card - Or an S-Train club card. I run it down the scanner that is his hand, and he does what ever I ask!!  He was in bed in record time! :)
 
354.  Grandma and Grandpa!!  Came through a couple of weeks ago on their way out to their mission. It was so fun to spend time with them.  The timing was perfect and they got to go to one of the oldest's band concerts.  How awesome was that!  Grandpa got to take some pictures he'd been wanting to, and we took him to see cool buildings and then went out to dinner.  Cherry limeades!  YUM! Then we played games and stayed up til midnight talking.  I love being around my parents.  We laugh the whole time!  I love laughing, it's so good for you.

354.  SDKD. And for all parents dropping their kids off at school. - When I went to drop my kids off at school while the G-parents were here I actually saw a man shake his head and then drop his head into his hands at the school drop off at some idiot driver who had tried to cut in and thus stopped two lanes of traffic behind them.  I'm not sure, but I think someday they may find a few parents out there just stopped - having committed hari kari in the drop off lane.  I CAN'T WAIT until they combine another school with our in two years and the traffic doubles.(voice syrupy with sarcasm.)  We may be walking to avoid that even if it's minus 2!  (I don't care if you can't feel your fingers!  Walk faster, you'll warm up!)  I showed my parents this post and we all had a good laugh.

Silly things

350. More Puns.  The oldest to the S-Train, "You need to put away your legos."
The S-Train, "I'm Legolas,  I don't have any legos."  
(Legolas, from Lord of the Rings, Lego-less),
Grooooan.

351.  Pianists.  A few weeks ago we had some sweet college student helping play the piano in Primary.  I looked over, one was playing the right hand and one was playing the left hand.  Funny girls!  If only we could have them in Primary now!  We seriously need a full time pianist.

What's for dinner?

Right now I have three speeds for dinner.
Chili or some sort of bean soup - sometimes with rice
Chicken and rice
Tacos or taco salad

HELP!

Any ideas I have seem like a variation on these themes.  I think my family is getting bored.  Heck, I am getting bored.  Any ideas?  What have you had for dinner lately?

Laughing Out Loud

I like laughing out loud.  I want to laugh out loud more often.  I think it's good for me.  Here are a couple of things that cracked me up today.

348.  Church Shoes.  We got half-way to church before I turned around enough to realize what the S-Train was wearing on his feet.  Blue Moon Boots. Bright blue moon boots.  I said, "Do you have Sunday shoes?"  He looked at me guiltily and shook his head.  I said, "That's what you're wearing?"  He sort of nodded.  I rolled my eyes. "Well, then you'll have to keep them on all of church.  You might get hot.  But that's what happens when you wear boots to church."  Then I turned around.  And caught Mr.C's eye.  And totally cracked up.  I tried to stop, really I did.  I'm not sure how to teach appropriate church-wear, when I think it's so funny I can't keep a straight face.  Later I found out he didn't even have socks on.  Can you say, "stinky feet?"  I guess I need to make sure I look this kid over before we leave the house. Oh well,  I think I'm just glad he had a coat and there were no light sabers involved.  At least no socks means they matched!

349.  The Prairie Home Companion Joke Show.  Apparently I like knock knock jokes.  (Mostly because they're the ones I remember.)  New favorites.

Knock Knock
Who's There?
Owl's go.
Owl's go who?
Yes they do.

Knock Knock.
Who's There?
Cow's go.
Cow's go who?
No, cow's go moo.

I know.  I know.  I'd groan myself if I didn't giggle when I heard them.

A full weekend

342.  Class - Went to orientation and my first grad school weekend of classes.  Talked about so many interesting things that my head is still spinning.  Met lots of interesting people and got a lead on some organic eggs.  Met a girl who does bookbinding and someone I had in a previous class.  Lots of good connections made.  Plus, went to Chipotle for lunch.  YUM.  Being in school feels so right right now.

343.  Seeing old friends - There were a few good friends in town for the weekend, or at least part of it, and some who are always here that we don't get to see often.  Got to see most of them and catch up at a wedding reception.  It feels good to renew old relationships. 

344.  Wedding Receptions - I was so disappointed that I didn't get to go to the wedding.  I had it worked out with my teacher that I could go to the wedding in St. Louis and then come to class late.  I had been nervous to ask about it, because I didn't want to come across as the slacker, uncommitted student, but when I woke up dreaming about it, I decided I needed to ask.  Well, the S-Train got strep and had to wait until he'd been on antibiotics for 24 four hours before he could go back to school.  Of course, that was just before time for class orientation.  And Mr. C could NOT take off work - lots to do there.  So - Sick child trumps all - and we stayed home for the morning.  In reality, it was probably better for my school career that I was there, and having to stay with my boy just made it so that I felt sad about not being able to go - but not guilty.  I think that was probably a tender mercy.  It was still hard to see a picture of the bride with all her former YW leaders except me.
 
At least I got to be there for the reception.  Beautiful.  So many came together, once again, as they always do at these things.  And  I got to see the

345.  Fabulous photography.  The wedding pictures were gorgeous, and now I know who I want to do my children's weddings.  WOW.  Stunning shots.

And I got to hear that my 

346.   Crazy Wedding present - (part of it was an anatomy coloring book.  I saw it at the book store and thought of the bride because she was dreading an anatomy class) was actually appreciated and not just silly. (She was going to go buy one!  Who knew?)


347.  More missionary farewells.  There was one two weeks ago. The latest soon to be elder even flew in from Abu Dabi to speak to us. By the end of June there will be 12 full time missionaries out from our ward. After that there will be a lull.  I'll miss hearing that joyous "Called to Serve" chorus coming at me for awhile.

Random thoughts about my crazy life

I have so many thoughts swirling around in my brain today.  And I'm trying to figure out what they all mean.  I think there may be a bit of me that is letting my "sphere of concern" get bigger than my "sphere of influence."  So that I'm worried about things I can do absolutely nothing about.

But with the internet making the world smaller, I can do so much about so much more than I used to be able to.  But here's the question - what should I be doing with my time now?  And how?  And what should my sphere of influence be?  So much of the time I end up paralyzed.  I will admit that I spend far too much time on the computer or reading - and sometimes it's just because the choices ahead of me are so overwhelming.  And there is so much to do just here in my own corner that I don't know where to start. I feel overwhelmed by keeping up on my housework, let alone saving the world.  And then you get those who tell you to forget the housework and enjoy your family.  Well, it's hard to enjoy them if you can't find them under all the clutter!  So I keep chipping away, and trying to pat myself on the back when the main floor is kept up.  And trying to enjoy my family at the same time.

But then - there is a boy at our school in third grade with terminal cancer.  We have all tried to help with the load. And they keep on finding laughter in everyday. This family has handled the whole thing with more grace than I can imagine.  They are a beautiful example.

And an old friend whose blog I read has just found out that her father's cancer is progressing far more quickly than they thought.  Her mother is dealing with dementia and he is her primary care giver.  She is far away, though going out to be with them.

And Haiti is still in rubble and Australia is flooded, and why haven't we heard how they are recovering after those floods last year in Pakistan?

And then my daughter - who has been sitting alone in her room listening to a book on tape - wants a big family project because she's not feeling as close to the rest of us as she would like.  (I'm not taking responsibility for that one, as she's been choosing to sit up there by herself.)  She also wants to put on a play and walk to raise money for some cause, and, and, and. . .  (All of which will involve her mother TO THE MAX if she's to pull it off.)

But just after that I read about this mother who took her kids to help at an orphanage in Thailand for three weeks.  And articles about intentional mothering.  And meanwhile, back at the ranch, I have a kid getting over strep, a class to get ready for, cookies to make and a present to finish for a wedding reception (missing the wedding because of school and needing to be home while the sick kid finishes up his 24 hours on anibiotics before he can go to school! Missing this big day is breaking my heart), two Christmas packages still not mailed, sharing time and sharing time choosing sticks to get together, a crib to drop off, A child I need to help with fund raising because she desperately wants to go on a band trip and all the family money is tied up in Mom's grad school classes or other important things, A child with a huge birthday next week, VISITING TEACHING, and oh, by the way, chat n chew, that I'm in charge of needs to start soon, my parents are coming through on their way to their mission in a little over a week, and my hair is driving me nuts because I really need a hair cut. WHEW.  (And somewhere in here with sun shining through sparkling clean windows I'll take brilliant pictures of my family that I put in the world's cutest scrapbooks and everyone will have clean, folded, ironed clothes, I'll exercise everyday, read my scriptures, and have planned (and, sure, why not, cooked AHEAD), healthy menus that have variety and add joy to my life.)   There is more to my actual list, but my head is full. I think it's pizza night.

One friend a couple of weeks ago looked at me and shook her head.  "Too busy.  Too many things going on."  That might just be true.  The truth is, if I were more organized and proactive I can handle what I've got. I've just got to get in there and "get'r done"  Priorities.  And more doing.  Less thinking.  I'll go do now.

341. Here are a few posts that make me smile.  I'll leave you to read them while I go try to get unbusy by quickly knocking four or five things off my to do list.

I read this and felt the need for routine!

The Beauty of Routines


Then I read this, and laughed, and knew we were all alike.

Don't Get Cocky

So that's the way you do it.

340. The Money is for nothin.'
Mr. C and the S-Train were listening to car talk on the way home one night. A lady was talking about how she lost a ring in the heating system of her car. They asked her if it was very valuable. She said it was about $250, and they were debating if it would cost more to get it out than it was worth.
The S-Train asked his dad why the ring cost so much. Mr. C told him the ring was probably made out of gold and might have a diamond.
The S-Train asked if his dad's ring was made out of gold.
Mr. C said yes.
The S-Train got very excited and said, "Then you should put it in an envelope and send it away, and you'll get lots of money!"

Mr. C and I totally cracked up when he told me this story. Ah, the mind of a little boy. Always thinking.

I guess the incessant commercials have done their job. Hopefully we can teach him what a scam is before he gets old enough to get ahold of one of those envelopes!

LONG Christmas season wrap up

325. Christmas Cards done by the oldest. Aren't they pretty? We're lucky to have such a talented girl.


326. Bokeh. I just learned this term this year. It means the blurred lights you get in the background when you shoot a close up picture with lights behind it. Here are a couple of my best efforts.

I tried to get the lights to make shapes, but I haven't quite figured that out yet. Mine just looked like I stuck an outline around the lens.

Which is what I thought you were supposed to do. . .

Anyway, it was fun to experiment.

327. Cookie parties. Adult and kid.

Adult party. A friend I met in PTA has an annual cookie party, and I was invited again this year! The girls and some of their friends helped me make lots of cookies to bring, and I went and enjoyed adult conversation and fun. There is such a good group of ladies at school. I enjoy being with them so much. So many of them have kids that are friends with my kids, and by now I've been on a dozen committees with most of them. I appreciate that they do get togethers like this. It's fun to see each other outside of school functions.

Kid parties. We tried so hard to make this happen before Christmas break, but things just kept coming up and not quite working out. So we finally called people the day before we had a free day or two. It worked out perfectly! Sue had friends over one day to make cookies, and the next day was Lou's turn. We didn't do anything fancy, just made sugar cookie dough ahead of time. The girls made peppermint bark, (smashing candy canes is the highlight!) and then made, cooked and decorated their sugar cookies. We sent everyone home with some of each kind of cookie and a new cookie cutter. I'm so glad that my girls have some good groups of friends at school. I know it will make all the difference in years to come. It was fun to watch the different groups and how they did things. Here is the aftermath, so you know they had fun.


328. Unexpected visitors. We had good friends show up who had just moved away. They had come up to take care of a few things. They had a couple of prearranged playdates, but the kids spent most of the day hanging out here. Luckily they came on a day that was almost completely free of anything scheduled, and we didn't have anything pressing. The kids were in heaven. We've missed them so much, and it was good to see them again.

329. Helping. Sometimes it's hard to know how to help out. I'm grateful for friends who are thoughtful and help organize those opportunities. It was so much fun to clean together.

330. Neighborhood Caroling party. We will definitely do this again any year we are in town! And having it the 23rd was genius. All the last minute decorating got done, (Including this fun and crazy wreath by Mr. C.) (Mantle by the oldest.)


the house was clean - and stayed that way! And we still had another day before Christmas to finish up. Lots of neighbors couldn't come with us, because of health or other reasons, but we caroled to them anyway. We ended up with about 15 people caroling to the neighborhood and joining us for hot chocolate. The warm glow of Christmas was beautiful. (Table by Sue.)


My favorite was our sweet Russian neighbor. He came out to listen, but said his wife stayed in because she didn't speak much English. He said "Merry Christmas! Thank you so much for coming!" We asked him if he had a favorite Christmas song he'd like us to sing before we left. He said, "Merry Christmas! Thank you so much for coming!" We just chose one more song ourselves before we left. He was so cute.

331. The Nutcracker. Lou was invited to go to the Nutcracker with a friend. One of the Moms couldn't go and they invited Lou. She was in heaven. Those lights in her eyes were amazing! After the performance they went to eat dessert at a revolving restaurant! She couldn't stop talking about it. Apparently she ate a dessert half her size. We are so grateful for sweet friends who are willing to include us in new experiences and memories.

332. Christmas jokes. What do you call the 23rd of December? My kids went around calling the day Christmas Adam. Because that's what comes before Christmas Eve.

333. Mr. C and Christmas Eve Day projects. Mr. C was done with his Christmas preparations mostly, so for one of his Christmas presents to us all he continued with the back basement reorganization. He added two more shelves to the back wall so that we don't have to stack the green beans and cans of tomatoes three high in order to get it all in. He surprised me with this project when I came home from running errands. :)

334. The Perfect Gift. It's great when an all purple backpack of the right brand drops from heaven at a place where Santa has a gift card on the night before Christmas. In fact, three backpacks to replace three that were on their last legs showed up. Hallelujah for Christmas miracles!

335. Christmas morning picture. I love the glow of tree lights. And I know it's time to take them down. We just had 12th night. But I'll miss them dearly. And maybe I'll leave a string of lights up just to keep that glowing feeling.


336. Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. We spent some time reflecting on the true meaning of Christmas. We ate dinner with friends. We read the Christmas story. We jumped up and down about Christmas pajamas, and wore them when we came downstairs in the morning.


We spent time excitedly opening presents from each other and from family. We sat around all Christmas day in our pajamas and enjoyed being just us. I talked to my parents and asked them what they were going to be doing on Christmas Day. My mom said, "Not much." My dad thought that might be overstating what they were going to do. I think we were all on the same page for that!

337. Kids and presents for each other. The kids had so much fun with their presents for each other this year. Lou was particularly thoughtful. She made a great pillow case for the oldest. I've written about how the oldest uses vegetable names instead of swear words. Well, Lou and I went to the fabric store to look for fabric with green beans or pickles on it. We couldn't find any, but found a lot of other vegetables: asparagus, mushrooms, carrots, peppers. So Lou sewed them together into a pillow case, and gave it to the oldest with a note. "In case you run out of vegetables, here are a few suggestions. . . "

338. Christmas morning legos. Love Christmas legos. This year I got to build the Buzz Lightyear spaceship with the S-Train! I am quite the expert on that ship now. I repaired it at least a dozen times. It was so fun working together. The S-Train can really follow the diagrams himself, so mostly I let him do it and was just there for guidance. But every so often I couldn't help myself and built a wing without him.

339. Being people people over the holidays. My goal this year was to do things with people over the break. We've decided that what really makes it feel like Christmas is spending time with others. Many years we spend it with my family. It's easy to spend time with people when the house is always packed with 20-30 people, and sometimes more! So this year since we were far from family we went out of our way to include friends and neighbors. I know we didn't get everyone over that we wanted to (we eventually ran out of time!) but we did some festive things that I think the kids will remember.