Knucklehead News

Joseph Smith Movie

2011-04-03T06:19:00.006-06:00

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is making the movie Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration available as a download. This is the movie that plays at the Legacy Theater in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, because of this option it will not be release as a DVD.

BBC book list

2011-01-13T16:12:00.002-07:00

This is a book list I found on one of the blogs I like to read. The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here. I have read about 1/3 of them, how about you?

Instructions: Copy this into your NOTES. Bold those books you’ve read in their entirety, italicize the ones you started but didn’t finish or read an excerpt.

1 Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen

2 The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien

3 Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte

4 Harry Potter series – JK Rowling (all)

5 To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee

6 The Bible

7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte

8 Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell

9 His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman

10 Great Expectations – Charles Dickens

11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott

12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy

13 Catch 22 – Joseph Heller

14 Complete Works of Shakespeare—does reading some of them count?

15 Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier

16 The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien

17 Birdsong – Sebastian Faulks

18 Catcher in the Rye – JD Salinger—my brother said this is the best book of all time

19 The Time Traveller’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger

20 Middlemarch – George Eliot

21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell

22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald

23 Bleak House – Charles Dickens

24 War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy

25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams

26 Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh

27 Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky

28 Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck

29 Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll

30 The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame

31 Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy

32 David Copperfield – Charles Dickens

33 Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis

34 Emma – Jane Austen

35 Persuasion – Jane Austen

36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis

37 The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini

38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin – Louis De Berniere

39 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden

40 Winnie the Pooh – AA Milne

41 Animal Farm – George Orwell

42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown

43 One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez—

44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving

45 The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins

46 Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery

47 Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy

48 The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood

49 Lord of the Flies – William Golding—hated this book

50 Atonement – Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi – Yann Martel

52 Dune – Frank Herbert

53 Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons

54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen

55 A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth

56 The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon

57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens –2^nd best book of all time

58 Brave New World – Aldous Huxley

59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon

60 Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck

62 Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov

63 The Secret History – Donna Tartt

64 The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold

65 Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas

66 On The Road – Jack Kerouac

67 Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy

68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding

69 Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie

70 Moby Dick – Herman Melville

71 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens

72 Dracula – Bram Stoker

73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett

74 Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson

75 Ulysses – James Joyce

76 The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath

77 Swallows and Amazons – Arthur Ransome

78 Germinal – Emile Zola

79 Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray

80 Possession – AS Byatt

81 A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens—it’s all about the food

82 Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell

83 The Color Purple – Alice Walker

84 The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro

85 Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert

86 A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry

87 Charlotte’s Web – EB White

88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom

89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

90 The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton

91 Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad

92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery

93 The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks

94 Watership Down – Richard Adams

95 A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole

96 A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute

97 The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas

98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl

100 Les Miserables – Victor Hugo

I found the list at this blog

Anniversaries

2010-12-04T08:37:00.006-07:00

I just noticed today that my last post was posted on our anniversary and I didn't say anything. We have been married for nine years. It sure does not seem like long ago that we were married, but with Miss M being almost seven it must be true. We have both come a long way and I am very happy. Tomorrow is the day we look forward to and celebrate more. Miss Mae will have her golden birthday and we were sealed in the Salt Lake temple four years ago. That was a great day. What a tough road that was to get to, but as I found out it was not the end that I thought it would be, but only the beginning and the years since have been some of the best and most annoying years of my life, after all, I am one half of the married partners. I have made many mistakes and will certainly make many more, but thankfully my wonderful man is so forgiving and has a really bad memory for the wrong things I do. I am thankful to be a part of a family and to be a part of the lives of these wonderful people. There may be memories I would give up, but I would not change where we are for anything. Here is a picture of our wedding day. Tomorrow I will post a picture of our family at the temple.

Erin taking steps

2010-11-20T22:09:00.001-07:00

Matthew took some liberties with the camera sorry!!

More Fun School Stuff

2010-10-20T12:56:00.007-06:00

We have been having so much fun with school lately. We read about the enslavement of the Isrealites and how they made bricks, so we made our own mud bricks. We used a little bit of flour, some dirt and grass, and enough water to make a paste. They baked at 200 degrees for a long time. We shaped them into bricks and decided that we would like to have a mold if we were going to be doing this every day. Here is a picture of Sister Sue making a wall with the bricks we made

Next we read about the Phoenecians. One of the things that these brave explorers were known for was the purple dye they made. We made our own purple dye from blueberries. We put them in a pot with water and boiled them for a half an hour then soaked our fabric for at least 5 minutes and now we have purple fabric. Here are the girls holding up their fabric, now we have to decide what we are going to make with it.

Today as we studied about explorers who discovered America we talked about what it was like to be a sailor. One of the things they did for fun and function is tie knots. We learned to tie a bowline knot. This is a rescue knot so it should come in handy. Here is a picture of them rescuing their dolls from after they had fallen off the ship at sea.

Miss M tied hers all by herself, Miss Mae tied hers with my help, and I tied Sister Sue's knot.

I love homeschool. We have so much fun.

Here is another random picture. This is one of the reasons that I taught Miss M to read....

So I would only have to read Green Eggs and Ham once a day instead of multiple times.

This is a well used book at our house!

Fun music finds

2010-10-19T11:47:00.006-06:00

For music this year we are studying "The Story of the Orchestra" where we isolate individual orchestral instruments and learn to hear their sounds. I am amazed at how we are able to hear the different instruments when listening to a whole orchestra after isolating it for a whole week. In our quest to vary the songs we use to learn the instruments I have found some really fun videos on youtube that I thought I would share
This one is just weird:

This one is so pretty:

Did you know that if the french horn was stretched out it would be 12 feet long?

I fell in love with the oboe:

I also now love the bassoon:

If the contra-bassoon were stretched out it would be 16 feet long!!!

This song is beautiful and the dancing/skating is amazing:

There are many more, but I am short on time and you don't watch to sit and watch videos all days. We are having so much fun with this. I love to hear my children in the car trying to pick out the different instruments as we drive down the road listening to music. I would rather hear an argument about oboe vs. bassoon than about the toys they would like to bring.

Finished a McGuffey's book!!!

2010-09-13T21:04:00.003-06:00

Miss M finished another McGuffey's Reader. There are six books total; a pictoral primer, a primer, then first through fourth. She started learning to read with these about six months ago. We learn phonograms and then read short stories or sentences that utilize them. Sometimes there are lists of words that I assume are supposed to be spelling words, but I didn't use them as spelling words. She is slowly learning the rules of spelling and didn't want to put any pressure on her. Nevertheless, she learned to read all of the words and to read with out using monotone. She was so excited to have a reading lesson today because she got to use the first reader which she thinks is the first "real" reading book.

Family Proclamation Photo

2010-09-06T20:29:00.004-06:00

We declare that God's commandment to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force.

Four children may not seem like a large family to some, but to many of the people we know, we are crazy. When we announced that we were having our first everyone was happy, our second people thought it was o.k., but when it came to the third and fourth we endured many comments along the lines of why? and how are you going to afford another baby? These made us very sad because we know that each and every child is a miracle and a sacred trust from God. I feel privileged that he has entrusted us with four daughters to guide through this life safely back home to him. We will gladly accept any blessings He chooses to send our way (yes I have come to terms with having another baby) and will be excited to meet any other members of our family.

Family Weekend

2010-09-05T22:01:00.004-06:00

We had a great family weekend. My husband went on a trip to the temple with the youth in our ward, they met at the church at 6:30 am. I love this time and the only way it could be better is if it were earlier. My girls love it when they wake up and their daddy is home, they miss him so much when he is at work. Even though he wasn't there when they woke up, they knew he would be there for lunch.

We did nothing the rest of the time. We sat around and played with each other Saturday afternoon, ate dinner with Grandma, then had church today. I even got my husband to read a scene from Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew with me. He was Petruchio and I was Kate. I think he really liked pretending to throw food around and be mean. We do not have very many weekends like this. Usually my husband has some youth commitment or work or we have so many errands to run on Saturday that we can't wait for Monday so that life can slow down again.

I used to want to be going somewhere all the time, but now I just want to stay home. I love being here at my house especially if I can just relax with my family. After spending so much time having to be somewhere, I am incredibly grateful for my time at home and really look forward to weekends like this.

Beauty and the Beast

2010-09-02T20:26:00.005-06:00

We are really into fairy tales at our house. This may be an understatement. We read fairy tales, we draw fairy tales, we act out fairy tales, we even live a fairy tale sometimes (many days I really feel like Cinderella with all my work and somedays like the Step-Mother with all my barking). Most every day we are watching the clock and the driveway for our handsome prince to come and take us away to our happily every after, usually just the backyard, but it seems much more fun when we are entertaining him rather than just each other....but I digress, back to the post.

We read multiple versions of each fairy tale and usually pick a favorite to keep as "our" telling of the story. I have only read two Beauty and the Beast stories and that is because I did not read this one first. I can't bring myself to read another one. This one is not easy to read and it is very long, we usually spend three or four days reading it, but we are never disappointed. I know the story and how it ends, yet I still cry every time I read it. Beans (aka Miss Mae, more on this later) is especially touched when I read this book. She tells me that she is not scard of the Beast anymore just sad for him. My girls always beg me to start it over again as soon as we finish, so we will take a long time to look at all of the gorgeous paintings that illustrate the book. We just finished reading this book again this week.

The Beast in this story is very mean and very scary, but the more time we spend with him, the more we see that he is really just very sad and very lonely. He has learned to be kind and loving despite his curse, but has been rejected so much because of how he looks and how he used to act that he is feels that no one will ever know the real him because no one wants to anymore. He is very hard on himself.

Luckily for the Beast he meets Beauty Fortune. He falls in love with her and eventually she grows to care for him as well, just not romantically because she is waiting for a prince to come along for her. By the time that she realizes that she does love him it may be too late.

I have been this Beast at times in my life and sometimes I still find him creeping into my thoughts from time to time. Luckily for me I have five Beauty Fortunes who love me no matter what I sound like, look like, or if I act crazy sometimes.

Families are like that though, at least they should be. A good friend of mine always tells me that "home should be the safest place for people to make mistakes." This is because it is a wonderful place to learn from mistakes without having to feel humiliated because we make them. This is my goal everyday, that my home can be a place where those who are here feel safe making mistakes and then learning from them, including myself.

One sentence that's it!

2010-09-01T20:56:00.002-06:00

I started off my month long celebration of the family by using the Proclamation in our devotional. I was so excited to share this with my children because they have heard us talk about this document, but I don't think that we had ever taken the time to explain what it is, where it came from, and why it is important. We spent much more time this morning doing the "spiritual message" portion of our school morning and we only got through one line. I am not really surprised by this because it is about my girls' second favorite topic, marriage (first is princesses).

They are still young enough that they think that they can marry their daddy. I had to explain to them this morning that he was already married to me and that they would have to find another man to marry. We talked a little bit about the kind of man that they should look for to marry; they don't know any boys right now that they could marry, none of them have jobs. I was able to testify of the importance of not just marriage, but marrying right, in the temple and to the right person. It was a great experience and I am so excited to study this with my girls.

Celebrating the family this month

2010-08-31T21:24:00.002-06:00

I am going to be participating in a month long celebration of The Family Proclamation. This will celebrate the 15 year aniversary of the prolamation.

We really love being a family and love to celebrate this fact. I also don't think that I use this document enough and know that my children don't appreciate it enough. I am going to use the proclamation everyday for our devotional lessons and spending as much time together as a family as we can.

Here is a link where you can get all of the detail about what this is.

My Home Library

2010-08-16T13:28:00.003-06:00

I recently catalogued our home library. This took me weeks of taking books off of shelves, piling them on the couch and typing them into the computer. Only one person could sit on the couch for three weeks and if you did you had to worry about one or two mountains of books falling on you (which would have messed up the (dis)organization I had set up). This is something I have wanted to do for a really long time. A few years ago I read an article called "Our Refined Heavenly Home" by Elder Douglas L. Callister of the Seventy, it was reprinted in the June 2009 Ensign. There were many things in this article that caused me to pause, but because we are such a book loving family, one part especially stuck out

"There was a fine library in the home of President Gordon B. Hinckley's youth (1910-2008). It was not an ostentatious home, but the library contained almost 1000 volumes of the rich literature of the world, and President Hinckley spent his early years immersed in these books"

We have lots of books, at least I thought we had lots of books. When all of the books were listed we have over 500 books, some of which are picture books. I am not sure if there were many picture books in the Hinckley home, but even if there were, my children have only half as many books available to them. I seriously need to work on that.

This year we also got rid of books (this at first seemed a sin to me), but we set a standard in our family of what is an acceptable book and what is not. We defined those that are acceptable as Classics or Living Books. These are books that are worth reading more than once. The ones we got rid of were what we (and Charlotte Mason) call Twaddle. These are books that don't have moral value, didn't inspire us, or were just plain dumb (or dumbed down). I am so glad that we did this, now I know that whenever one of my children picks a book from a shelf she has an opportunity to be inspired and to learn. More importantly they can never be accused of wasting their time just reading.

Along with increasing the number of books we have also made it our goal to replace as many of our favorite paperbacks with hardcover books. I am also having a hard time with this because even though my copy of Jane Eyre is held together with a rubber band and I am so worried about losing pages every time I pull it out, it has all of my notes in it. I guess getting a new copy will just give me the opportunity to re-learn from the book. I will be able to start fresh with, hopefully, a new set of epiphanies. Just writing that makes me want to leave this post and order a new copy from Amazon. As Matthew would say, just put down the keyboard, walk away, and no one will get hurt.

10 things I am thankful for today

2010-08-11T15:39:00.004-06:00

I just wanted to write about some things that I am thankful for. We were counting our blessings today and this is my top ten list (not in any particular order):

My awesome husband. He just keeps going and going no matter what and he tries really hard to make my life easier and me happy.
Six braids for three girls. My three girls let me brush and braid their hair today, they look so cute when they don't have orphan hair.
Eight teeth for my almost eight month old. She is finally back to her smiling happy self, no more constant, nerve grating crying.
My homeschooling/parenting mentors. I have learned almost all of what I know about raising my girls from some very smart people. Now I just need to more consistently apply it.
The Good News of the Gospel. This really should be number one. My testimony and my membership in the Lord's true church are my most prized possessions. This is what I most want my children to learn from me.
Air conditioning. It is really hot outside and I don't like to be sweaty. Yesterday Matthew came home from work with heat stroke, (headache, weakness, vomiting, etc) this proves to me that I am supposed to stay inside where it is cool.
Books, Books, Books. I love to read, and am so thankful to my parents, my Aunt Peggy, and Mrs Loop for teaching me this and cultivating a love of learning in me.
My daughter loves to read. One of my biggest fears is that my children will not love books like I do, but Miss M does. I have to force her to stop our reading lessons so the others won't feel neglected.
Grocery stores. Because I don't have to work so hard to get my food I have more time to read.
My bed. I have an awesome bed and it feels so good to climb into it every night. I have been so tired lately and love the soft warm place to recover. 10a is that I am not tired because I am pregnant, I am tired because I have been eating too much junk food (cookies are too good to pass by, luckily they are all gone), too much sugar really is bad for your brain.

Does Anyone Else Think This is a Bad Idea?

2010-08-06T20:34:00.004-06:00

We needed to trim some branches off of our power lines today. They were too tall for our ladder and Matthew had the brilliant idea to stand on top of our Suburban, in the wind, and use a saw on the end of a ten foot pole to cut them down. It is a good thing that we are not unionized in this house or OSHA would be shutting us down right now (on second thought maybe that wouldn't be so bad).

my extraordinary girls

2010-06-28T17:55:00.003-06:00

40 Bag Challenge Update

2010-04-30T13:56:00.003-06:00

I am up to 20 bags. I can't believe how much stuff we have!! I said that I didn't really notice a difference, but I was wrong. Our house is so much less messy all the time. Even at its messiest lately it is still pretty straightened up. It has been a lot easier to keep on top of it. I can't wait to finish. I did our bedroom, except under the bed. Hopefully I will have time to do that this weekend. Then on to the shelf in my dining room. All of that goes, then I can move our dog crate to that side of the room and it will look so much better. I need to do the bathroom bad! I have had to stay more on top of our laundry lately (which is easy because it is never more than three loads) and I have found out that we have too many towels, they all do not fit in the closet.

My children do not miss the toys we got rid of, nor do they play with the ones we kept anymore than before. It is still books, dolls, blocks, and anything that belongs to me that they want to play with.

40 Bag Challenge

2010-04-20T15:12:00.002-06:00

A few months ago just before Lent I participated in a discussion about what to give up. Of course I suggested that I would like to give up sweets knowing full well that I would fail after a few days, I know the weaknesses that I have that I am ready to work on and chocolate is not one of them. One of the women gave us a challenge she called The 40 Bag Challenge. In this we would commit to taking one bag of "stuff" out of our house each day of Lent until we had taken out 40 bags. I really wanted to do this, but my baby was just too small to start a project like that then, but I am ready now.

I started this weekend by going through our clothes and then I slimmed down our toys today. So far I am up to 9 1/2 bags of "stuff" and 1 1/2 bags of garbage, I don't mean the small grocery store bags, but the large outdoor garbage bags. I only kept a few toys that my children really play with; dolls, art supplies, dress up clothes, and a hopscotch. I am still on the fence about the Mr. Potato head toys. I really love that family of spuds, but my children only like them. Next will be the shoes and then onto my bedroom. I am saving my books for last in hopes that my 40 bags will be full or almost full before I get to them. How do I choose which ones to keep and which to not. It is too much for me to think about right now.

I have some pictures of what all of this stuff looks like, it is amazing because there is not a lot of difference in our house yet, except that I can now remember the color of the carpet in the girls' room (ugly orange) and why I wanted to forget it in the first place. I have 11 bags of stuff in my dining room that we don't need, I am amazed and embarrassed at the same time.

Tiddely Pom

2010-03-31T11:01:00.005-06:00

Late last night, 8:45 pm, Daddy-O put the last of the swnigs on the set and this morning we were ready to go. We were momentarily disappointed when we saw the snow. We sang Tiddely Pom, got our snow clothes on, and headed outside. Even Our Angel had her snow suit on. It was a blast The girls were out for almost two and a half hours before they were cold enough to come in for hot chocolate. I will not complain about the snow because I thank God everytime he blesses us with life sustaining water, so thank you God for the snow this morning and for warm clothes so we could still have fun on the swing set.

Tiddely Pom

The more it snows

(Tiddely pom),

The more it goes

(Tiddely pom),

The more it goes

(Tiddely pom,

On snowing.

And nobody knows

(Tiddley pom),

How cold my toes

(Tiddely pom),

How cold my toes

(Tiddley pom),

Are growing.

A.A. Milne

A week off and my Suburban tried to kill me

2010-03-30T13:54:00.007-06:00

We are taking this week off of school and although it is only Tuesday, I know that this is not the lifestyle for me. I need more direction in my day. I feel like we are just floating around waiting for something, but I don't know what. Next week we are going to get back on it. We are half way through our first official term of Kindergarten (We call it Year 0.5). It is very casual and simple. We (Mallorie and I) are learning how to do school so in September when we start Year 1 we will be ready.

Yesterday we picked up our new swing set from Pitcher Sports. I almost died doing this. I pulled our trailer with our Suburban into Sandy to get it. When I got off the freeway at 106Th South I could not stop. I pushed as hard as I could on the brakes and still could not stop. I ended up pulling up onto the rocks in the middle of the off ramp and came to a stop about three cars in front of where I should have stopped. It was so scary and I am sure all of the those drivers thought I was a maniac. I figured I must have just been going too fast (it is a very heavy trailer), but it turns out that my gas pedal was stuck under the floor mat. I was still shaking almost 1 hour later when I met up with Matthew to trade vehicles. My Suburban tried to kill me and some complete strangers!!!! That may be a little dramatic, but you didn't see the faces of the drivers in front of me.

The set is all put together and if the wind ever stops we will cement it in place so we can play. It has a huge slide, monkey bars, and six swings. I think before the summer is over we will change out two of the swings for rings or a bar and add a fireman's pole.

Miss M and Miss Mae went to the doctor this morning for a checkup. The doc told me what I already knew, that they are perfect. She did say that it was perfect weight and height, but I know that was code for all around perfect. Miss Mae did get immunizations, I have mixed feelings on this (Sis. Sue had a really bad reaction to immunizations and became like a newborn at six months old). She is doing alright so far, but is taking a nap, which is very abnormal. I have been praying for and will ask Daddy-O to give her a blessing when he gets home.

By the way, we ended up with two extra really nice American flags. If anyone wants one just let me know.

WARNING: Proud mother gushing

2010-03-18T15:27:00.002-06:00

I am going to gush about my daughter. Miss M spent all day (8:00 am until 5:30 pm) on a Saturday auditioning for Annie. She is usually not a very patient person or easily entertained, but she really wanted this. Her hard work paid off and she was selected to be one of the orphans. Everyday she asks me if it is the day to start rehearsals. We are so proud of her and can't wait to see her perform in June.

Also, kudos to Matthew for spending his Saturday with her because Erin and I would not have been so patient.

Princess Projects

2010-03-14T21:04:00.004-06:00

As part of school we do handicrafts that we call Princess Projects. This is a time when I teach them anything that I think they will need when they (the princesses) become Queens of their own kingdoms (their houses). Some of the things on this list are sewing, cooking, cleaning, organizing, budgeting, and the list could go on forever.

This week I got serious about teaching the girls how to sew. I sew all the time (at least I would like to) and Miss Mae and Miss M always beg me to teach them. I ordered some books by Winky Cherry to use in school next fall, but pulled them out now. I am so glad that I did. These books are very simple they use rhymes to teach things and have some great ideas that I just never thought of. Now they are sewing all the time. They are working hard to make all of the animals so they can move on to learning how to embroider so then they can make the dolls.

So far they have made birds, unicorns, a bear, a moon, and are currently working on an alligator and cat.

Updates

2010-03-05T08:12:00.003-07:00

It has been so long since we have had anything really interesting to post, but I will update. Miss M turned six and had a fun party with family. She had a 3 tier cake decorated with white frosting and candy fish. Her favorite presents were a new doll and accessories and a veterinarian kit for her many animals. We have officially started lessons with school. These are practise lessons to help her be ready and in a routine when we start Year 1 of school late this summer.

We are reading from a bible story book, memorizing poems, nursery rhymes, and poems.
She is honing her reading skills with the McGuffey's Primer.
Math is with Rod and Staff workbooks (not ideal, but they were free so we are using them). Geography is a cute book called "The Seven Little Sisters Who Live on a Ball That Floats in the Air"
History: "Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans"
Nature Study: "Handbook of Nature Study" and "Among the Farm-Yard People"
She also does Copy work and literature almost everyday

We are having fun and learning that all important narration skill.

Miss Mae has been so responsible since she turned four. She has always told us that when she is four she will do things like put on her own seat belt all the time, make her bed by herself, and give herself a bath, but we had to stop calling her Beans. I really miss calling her Beans, but she does not like the nickname. She has been faithfully doing all of these and many more since her birthday.

Sister Sue has recently decided that she is ready for panties. We have only had about 3 or 4 accidents in the last week. She even made it through church and an all day shopping trip in Salt Lake without an accident. I love having only one in diapers and she loves to wear panties.

Angel (the baby, we are trying this name out for her) is getting so big. She is already 11 weeks. That means that it has been almost three months since she was born. I think she weighs almost 15 lbs. (for perspective Mallorie was 18 lbs. at 2). She sleeps all night, but still will not tolerate anyone but Mama holding her for more than a few minutes, but as long as Mama has her she is happy and smiling at everyone. We call her our cartoon baby because her facial expressions are so animated and exaggerated. When she is getting upset she tucks her upper lip behind her lower lip which sticks out farther than I thought possible until she can't hold the cry in any longer and it bursts out of her whole body.

I am excited about the warm weather because the girls are wanting to play outside a lot. I have been spending most of my free time getting things together for school next year. I love to plan and to have a plan so starting early for me is a must, plus I have to buy books and it is better for me to buy them over time rather than get them all at once.

The most exciting thing for Daddy-O is that he finally got the trailer he has wanted for a few years. Three years ago we bought a small super trailer to haul all of our camping stuff for us, but we have outgrown it so we now have a mega trailer that the super trailer will be attached to and leave us lots of room for bikes and whatever else we want to bring with us.

This was long, but it has been a long time. Thanks for reading.

Our New Baby

2009-12-30T13:58:00.003-07:00

Our baby is finally here. She was born early on a Sunday morning, so early in fact that if we had been closer to home we could have made it to church that morning. She was 8lb 1 oz and 21 inches long.

I used to think that Sis Sue was my baby and that she was so little, but she seems enormous now!

She looks just like Sis Sue did as a newborn, like her Daddy

Benjamin Franklin's 13 steps to perfection

2009-11-10T11:16:00.004-07:00

I have been reading the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. It is very interesting and entertaining. At one point in his life he set out to be morally perfect and he really thought that he could accomplish this. He set up a system where he would perfect one at a time a list of 13 virtues. He, obviously, never became perfect and he wrote that "I was surpris'd to find myself so much fuller of faults than I had imagined;but I had the satisfaction of seeing them diminish." I too have, upon serious examination, found myself "so much fuller of faults than I had imagined" but I have yet to see many of them diminish significantly. I have made progress, but still have a long way to go. I wanted to list his 13 virtues and his explanations as a list that I too would sometime like to perfect, or see improvement in my life.

TEMPERANCE: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
SILENCE: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation (I should probably start here).
ORDER: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
RESOLUTION: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
FRUGALITY: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.
INDUSTRY: Lose no time; be always employ'd in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
SINCERITY: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
JUSTICE: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
MODERATION: Avoid extreams; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
CLEANLINESS: Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
TRANQUILLITY: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.(I need to work on this second)
CHASTITY: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dulness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation. (ignoring this council every now and then would be ok, right?)
HUMILITY: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

I love what he wrote about humility:

In reality, there is, perhaps not one of our natural passions so hard to subdue
as pride. Disguise it, struggle with it, beat it down, stifle it, mortify it as
much as one pleases, it is still alive, and will every now and then peep out and
show itself; ... even if I could conceive that I had compleatly overcome it, I
should probably be proud of my humility.

I would probably do the same and so I feel it is probably best to just not worry about this virtue, right?

The New Yorker Article

2009-10-18T15:55:00.002-06:00

I read an article from the New Yorker that is about how parents and children are portrayed in modern picture books. They are weak and the children are in charge. I have seen this in many of the books we bring home from the library. I always knew that I would have to preview books when my children are older, but never thought that I would be previewing picture books. When I first read the article I laughed, but the more I thought about it the more it disturbs me.

Read it here: http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2009/10/19/091019crat_atlarge_zalewski

Why I Home-Educate Part 2

2009-10-15T08:02:00.003-06:00

This year my daughter was supposed to register for kindergarten. The thought of this made my heart ache. The main reason I am home schooling is because I am not ready to share my children with strangers. I just got them, why would I want to send them away? We have so much fun together and learn so much here, why would I want to give them to someone else for a while? God sent them to me and has given me charge for their upbringing; I want to make sure that it is done in the way the Lord would have it done. I am able to receive inspiration concerning what they need. Teachers may love them and truly want what is best for them , but only my husband and I can know what that best actually is.

Another reason I have chosen this route is that public school is set up in a way to guarantee failure. The students there are not learning for the sake of learning. They are being prepared to take tests designed to measure how well they can take the test. An education is so much more than test prep. At the beginning of my home school journey I decided prayerfully on eight attributes I wanted my children to have when they left my home, they are, not in order of importance:
1. A strong testimony
2. Budgeting skills
3. Skills necessary to be a good wife/mother or husband/father
4. A love for the United States of America
5. A love of literature, art, and music/ to love learning
6. A love of the outdoors
7. Confidence and worth
8. Know how to work hard
These are not things that can be tested and therefore could not and would not be taught in public schools., these are traits that I feel will make them be responsible and successful adults.

Lately, as I have been interacting with people I realized there are many additional skills the world needs them to learn. I hadn’t been able to put them to paper until I recently read an article by Deborah W. Meier called Undermining Democracy “Compassionate Conservatism” and Democratic Education. In it she lists skills that can not be tested, but are necessary. They are; meeting deadlines, accepting responsibility, speaking clearly, weighing evidence, working with others, and trying stuff out. She implies that these are necessary, but tells us they aren’t being taught anymore because they do not count on tests.

These skills are not only hard to test, but also difficult to teach in a public school setting. They are mostly taught by example, especially by parents’ example. A teacher can only reinforce lessons taught at home or what is called by some the actual “real world”. I feel best equipped to teach my children how to be the best adults they can be by giving them models of these traits and limiting their exposure to the examples of people who demonstrate the opposite qualities.

Deborah Meier gives ways that we can teach these lessons to children, which are situations that naturally happen in a proper home school. “…kids must see that adults care about getting things right for reasons beyond scores… they must live with adults who take responsibility for decisions and stand by them…they need schools that provide safe opportunities to explore their own life-sustaining and joyous powers under the guidance of adults the world respects… they need schools that belong to their communities and families and know them well.” Her and I disagree on at least one point, the world does not need to respect me for me to provide these opportunities to my children, in fact I know that the world doesn’t respect me as a mother, homemaker, and home educator, and I am happy about that. When I look at what gets respect in this world I don’t want to be the kind of person that belongs to that category.

The opportunities listed above are what I have always imagined my home school would become. These are the goals of our home, even if I was unaware of them. She sums it up this way “They must, in short be surrounded by grown-ups whom the young can imagine becoming and would like to become.” This is why I have chosen to follow a classics/living books approach to home schooling. By doing so my children will not only be surround by living examples of what to become, but also examples of people from history and literature as well.

I want more for my children than to be prepared to take tests. I want them to be able to receive three gifts from God mentioned over and over in the scriptures; knowledge, understanding, and wisdom. This will be accomplished as we meet the goals we have outlined for our home school. It is nearly impossible in public school. There children learn some knowledge, but they do not get the skills necessary to understand that knowledge. This is contrary to God’s plan. Giving children knowledge before they have the skills to understand it will never lead to wisdom and is in my opinion dangerous.

Why I Home-Educate.

2009-10-12T15:43:00.003-06:00

I wrote an essay to myself about this subject about a year ago and thought that I would share it for the benefit of those who love us and want to undestand why we are keeping our girls in our home instead of sending them to school. It is a little long for a blog post so I will break it up into parts.

America’s children are in trouble. The education system in this great country is creating adults who are ill prepared to live and thrive in this world. In an effort to “keep up” with the rest of the world the power over our children’s education has been handed to a federal government that is so large there isn’t anything to compare it to. Not only is the government large, but it is so far removed from the actual children they have control over that those who have the power can no longer (if they ever could) be considered a judge of what is best for them. They do not think of our children as individuals; there is no John or Mary or Susan, just students, no names just numbers, like in prison.

The state of education in America is not solely the fault of those who are in control of it, it is by and large the fault of those who gave that power away to something that had no right to it in the first place; the same people who have the right and responsibility to take that power back.
I am speaking of the parents. By taking the decision making power away from parents and communities and relying on the Federal Government to decide what is right we have forced our children to get a cookie cutter or assembly line schooling. It may be more efficient, but it is definitely not what is best. Of course it is cheaper this way (if anything about the American School system can be considered cheap). It is standardized. This also makes it easier to measure and hold teachers and administrators and the students themselves accountable. Accountability is necessary because there is no trust within the system; parents don’t trust the teachers, the teachers don’t trust the administrators, and no one trusts the students, including the students themselves.

In my opinion trust is the biggest barrier I as a home educator have to break. I have to get the government to trust me, then the administrators, then the teachers, and then I have to somehow trust myself. Following this I have to gain the trust of my extended family and my friends. My children’s trust is the only one I don’t have to work for. Being taught by their parents, and especially their mother, is natural to children. Attempting this has left me tired even before I begin teaching.
If home schooling is so much extra work and so tiring why am I even doing it. This is a question I have been asking myself lately, not because I am thinking of giving it up, but because soon I will have to start answering the hard questions of my family and friends. I want to be prepared to answer them in a way that will seem non combative, yet informative. I do not plan on trying to talk them into home schooling, but I want to be prepared when they try to convince me that public school is the best for my children.

More of the essay to come soon.

So many emotions......

2009-09-09T08:05:00.004-06:00

I read a post on a blog today that touched me to the core of my soul. I sat there eating my bowl of cheerios wondering what to make for dinner and stopped almost dead trying to imagine the suffering of these children. I am sobbing again just thinking about it. You can read it here . My life has had trials that I thought were just the worst, but I truly have suffered nothing. I went to the website of her organization and I am really impressed. I didn't read it all or research it very much, but on the surface it seems really good. You should go and read it too, especially the stories part.

24th of July Canoe Trip

2009-08-31T07:58:00.004-06:00

On the 24th of July we went to Muddy River Outfitters to go canoeing. These are the people who rented the canoes to the Varsity Scouts for their week long trip. They let us stay on their beautiful property which is right along the river. Right off of their dock is a nice, not too deep reservoir with very little current. We had such a good time. We are hoping to make it a yearly event. Hopefully next time we can stay for more than one night, but we had to come back for church.

Here are the girls warming up after a swim in the river.
Here we are eating our yummy dinners.
This is daddy and Miss M and Beans in the canoe. They both did very well in the canoe and were great paddlers. Sis S was kicked off the boat more than once for moving too much.

Sis S after having been kicked off the boat one time.

Lagoon

2009-06-11T08:51:00.007-06:00

This weekend we went to Lagoon. It could not have been better. The temperature was perfect. It was overcast so no hot sun on us. There was a slight breeze every now and then. The girls were all brave and went on rides I never expected them to, even Sis S liked riding the Puff roller coaster. Tubbs also won a $50 gift certificate to Costco in the drawing for his work party. Now I can't wait until next year when I might even get to go on a few rides.

No parental rights, could this happen in the US?

2009-04-29T08:32:00.002-06:00

I read this article and several related to it this morning and I am sick to my stomach. I have already written to my senators in opposition, and I encourage all to do this too.

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=90111

here are a few quotes:

U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child would mean every decision a parent makes can be reviewed by the government to determine whether it is in the child's best interest.

Fox News reported the standing U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child, an 18-member panel in Geneva, would review the rights of children in all disputes.

The decisions would not even be made by officials we elect!!!!

The pedicure and mud puddle diet

2009-03-30T13:33:00.005-06:00

I have found what I think is the secret to weight loss. Pedicures and mud puddles! I have been reading O Pioneers! during the last month and there is a character in the book that I love. His name is Ivar, he is an old man that every one thinks is crazy. He won't talk to anyone who has been hunting or has killed an animal. He lives in a cave because to build a house, even a sod house, would change the landscape too much. He has fits where he runs around like a crazy man hollering at night because he thinks that the Lord is going to destroy him. He is always worried about the temptations he faces. He also will not wear shoes, even in the middle of winter they would more often than not find him barefoot. Finally at the end of the book one of the maids gets the courage up to ask him why and his response is so wonderful that I thought that I would share it.

It is for the indulgence of the body. From my youth up I have had a strong, rebellious body, and have been subject to every kind of temptation. Even in age my temptations are prolonged. It was necessary to make some allowances; and the feet, as I understand it, are free members. There is no divine prohibition for them in the Ten Commandments. The hands, the tongue, the eyes, the heart, all the bodily desires we are commanded to subdue; but the feet are free members. I indulge them without any harmm to any one, even to trampling in filth when my desires are low. They are quickly cleaned again.

I guess after that I have only one thing to say why don't I get more pedicures or step in more mud puddles, they will help me curb the desire to indulge the rest of my body and I will then start to lose weight?

2009-02-27T10:47:00.007-07:00

Here is a beautiful video about creating from Pres. Uchtdorf's talk from the General Relief Society meeting last October. It is very inspiring. Here is a link to it.

Some new toys

2009-02-15T19:17:00.002-07:00

I think we have finally resolved ourselves to the fact that the Lord does not want us to move out of our small house. For about a year now I have been looking for an opportunity to move, but the Lord keeps telling me to stay. I am going to do as he wants and make our house work. Our stove has not been working very well, along with our washer and dryer. This weekend we finally did something about it. We bought a new stove, a washer and a dryer. The stove is already in and the washer and dryer will be here in about a week.

I have, also, been wanting a laptop for a long time. I had one for school and loved it. The only problem was that they are all so big and expensive. I finally found a solution, it is a little mini laptop called a netbook. We also bought one of those this weekend. I am so excited about all of my new toys. Now if only the washer and dryer will fold and put away the clothes too life will be close to perfect.

A birthday idea

2009-01-31T15:18:00.004-07:00

My birthday is coming up in a few months. I was browsing on the internet for ideas for a present from my hubby and came across a few books I would like. Now Matthew refuses to buy me any more books, so I am putting a link for everyone else to look at just in case you are wondering what to buy for me to celebrate me and my glorious birth.

By the way, I think that birthdays are over rated. Shouldn't we as children be celebrating our parents, with special emphasis our mothers, and bring them presents; didn't they already give us enough by giving us life and allowing us to keep on living, especially during the teenage years? Why do we still expect people to treat us special on that day, we didn't really do anything to deserve such treatment.

A pig, a duck and a half gallon of milk

2009-01-29T07:54:00.004-07:00

Last night Miss M and I made sock creatures with my cousins. Usually I don't get to make one because I spend all of the time helping everyone else figure out how to make thier own, but we have done this enough times now that they did most of it themselves. I was so proud of my little sewing students. I was able to make a little pig and Miss M made a little duck. I sewed the button eyes on for her, but she sewed all the rest of hers.

We have started going to a new farm for milk and now it comes in half gallon glass jars instead of gallon plastic jugs. Janet delivered four jars to us yesterday just before Ann called to see if I needed lunch because my power was out. Well our power was on and so I said no thanks. I took two jars into the kitchen to put away and left two on the table. Sis S climbed up,picked up a jar, and smashed on the table at just the perfect angle for it to shatter. I got her out of the mess before she got cut and stripped off her clothes. After she calmed down I went about the task of cleaning up. A half gallon of milk doesn't seem like much, but if you spead it out 1/16 inch all over the table and floor it is huge. It took six bath towels to sop it up and then I had to move everything and mop. By the time I was done it was almost 1:00 and we had not had lunch, so we got in the car to go buy something quick. I drove up and down mains treet and everywhere was closed because the power was out. I then had to come home and cook something anyway. I was not happy.

2009-01-27T07:41:00.003-07:00

The last two and a half weeks have been horrible. First all three girls got sick. They took turns throwing up for a day. Then Matthew and I got sick, only we just felt like throwing up and couldn't. It is funny to me how sicknesses can affect adults and children different. Matthew even came home from work early, this never happens. Then they (the girls) all got colds (not at the same time), so of course I get a cold too. Matthew missed this opportunity. We finally got to get everyone back to church this week. It was nice to actually attend like I am an active member of the church. Now I am trying to get caught back up on my house work and laundry. The plus side of all this is that I got to read a ton. I finished two books and now have less than 14 hours left of listening to Les Mis, this audio book is over 50 hours.

THe Outdoor hour

2009-01-07T21:44:00.004-07:00

We started our outdoor hour today as a way for us to study nature. We planned on taking 15 minutes to be outside and just explore. I thought that it would be fun to play in the snow. We have been cooped up too much. We spent more than an hour outside and the only reason I came in was because I had to start making lunch. It helped that I was so hot that I was sweating. We played with the snow and made a snowman. We fed our extra carrots to the horses who live behind us. Miss M was very into the horses. She though it was pretty cool that their hair grows long to keep them warm. Here are a few pictures.

A fort night

2009-01-06T18:59:00.010-07:00

Tonight is mutual and Tubbs had to leave early to go on splits with the missionaries. So I am left to figure out what to do for fun. It is usually Tubbs' job to come up with ideas to entertain in the evening. I had no ideas (I am tired today, we had an outing to the Salt Lake library today). Luckily he is such a great dad and his suggestion tonight was that we build a fort for the girls to sleep in. This was sneaky, because in order to build the fort we had to clean up the girls' room, which they did willingly so they could get to fort building. Here is our masterpiece.

The girls are planning to sleep in it tonight. I am a little pessimistic about their ability to actually fall asleep right next to each other, we have tried and failed on other occasions. I will add to this tomorrow with an update about the sleep.

Neti Pot

2008-12-28T18:46:00.003-07:00

As you may know Sis S and I have colds. Luckily Sis S is not very stuffed up, but I am completely plugged. I can't breathe and sleeping is miserable. Saturday, I wanted to take some cold medicine, but I am still nursing Sis S, only about two times each day, but still I do not take medicine at all while I am nursing or pregnant, I rarely even take Tylenol and Motrin. I told Tubbs that I was just going to cut her off completely and take some medicine. Well, he had heard about something called a Neti Pot on the radio just that day. Lynette had told me about this a while ago and I thought that she was nuts. Nevertheless I went to Wal Greens and bought one. I made Tubbs go first because he is more brave than me. He thought it was great so I tried it. I went from completely stuffed to breathing freely in about 4 minutes!!!! I stayed clear all night and slept deeply for the first time in a week and Sis S does not have the trauma of being weaned before she is ready. I also could taste food again. Here is a link to a video that demonstrates it.

Christmas

2008-12-25T19:39:00.007-07:00

This was the best Christmas ever. Santa really came through for the girls. Here is a picture of Sis S on her rocking horse, Beans with her baby and stroller, Sis S's is the same but moving much faster, all three in their robes (there are slippers that match), and Miss M with her pink violin. I am also including a picture of Tubbs holding the violin so everyone can get an idea about the size of this thing. It is a 1/8 size.

We had a such a nice day. We stayed home for most of it and ate lunch/dinner with my parents and my grandma. We got lots of presents there too!!!! Now it is snowing and I am so excited. Matthew does have to go to work tomarrow and I have to go to Orem for milk (if the snow is not too bad), but he will be home all day saturday.

I couldn't believe the wind today. We lost a huge branch out of the tree in our backyard, but the dumb dead one that hangs precariously over our kitchen is still there. I wish that thing would fall, I would really like to redo our kitchen with Allstate paying the bill. I guess if it didn't fall today it is never going to fall.

Santa visit and sledding

2008-12-24T12:38:00.004-07:00

We were able to go see Santa a few days ago. Everyone was so excited, well Sis S didn't really care, but if her sisters are doing it she has to also. Miss M asked for a pink violin and Beans asked for a baby and a stroller, which just happens to be the exact presents we bought for them. The Santa wasn't the best, he was not jolly enough for me, but the girls were satisfied and have stopped asking when we were going to see him. I can't wait for tonight when he gets to come to our house, assuming I can get it all cleaned up (he doesn't come to messy houses), I already spent 3 hours cleaning the girls' bedroom.

AFter the snow Tubbs took two of the girls and the dog out for some sledding. We didn't have snow boots that fit Miss M so she had to wear big socks, plastic bags and her rubber boots. She did not complain once, even though her feet were frozen when they got home.

Draper Temple Dedication

2008-12-03T07:20:00.003-07:00

The tickets for the Draper temple dedication are available for reservation. Here is a link with all the information and a way to reserve your tickets online.

2008-11-11T17:44:00.005-07:00

I got tagged by Stacee and I love this picture. I will let people guess who this is.....

Next I tag... Ann, Emily, and Liz.

God does answers prayers!!!!

2008-11-07T20:39:00.003-07:00

I was having a rough morning this morning and said a prayer for some comfort, about 5minutes after I finished a woman walked into my yard. When I went out to meet her I found out she was handing out pamphlets for a Christian church different than mine. My first reaction when this happens is usually to say no thank you, but I had the feeling that this might be the answer to my prayer. We talked for a few minutes about Christ and the wonderful hope that faith in him brings. We ended up sharing a hug before she left and I felt so much better. After going back inside I was so happy that God answer prayers and I learned that he will use anyone who will listen to accomplish this.
This experience stuck with me all day and when I had time in the afternoon to really study the scriptures and ponder what had happened I realized that part of why I was comforted was what this woman was actually doing. The only hope I see for our country to become the great nation it once was is for the people to turn to God and forsake sin and this woman was actively trying to make that happen. What an inspiration and a wake up call this was for me! I will no longer be hesitant about sharing my testimony and I hope that believers in Christ everywhere will begin to share the gospel whenever they have a chance.

A few laughs to brighten your day

2008-10-23T08:49:00.003-06:00

I found a great book at the DI the other day. It is called Ten Copycats in a Boat and Other Riddles. I just thought I would share a few of the gems that are in it.
What is the longest word in the world?
.
.
.
.
.
Smiles. There is a mile between the first letter and the last letter.

Why shouldn't you tell secrets on a farm?
.
.
.
.
.
The corn has ears. The potatoes have eyes. And the beanstalk.

Where does Friday come before Thursday?
.
.
.
.
In the dictionary.

There are so many more, but I am having a hard time seeing the computer screen through the tears.

New dresses and Tubb's big mouth

2008-10-19T19:53:00.007-06:00

I love to sew for my girls. We have a hard time finding dresses that are long enough for Miss M and so I told her that I would take her to pick out material for new dress that I would make. She felt bad that the others were not getting one so we found material for all three of them. I love what they picked out. Miss M and Beans picked thier material and I picked Sis S's to match. They looked so cute and I was so disappointed that Sis S and Beans had to come home sick from church. So here is a picture of their dresses and hopefully I can get them clean for next week.

Our latest exciting news is that I am pregnant. I am due in the middle of June. I wasn't going to tell anyone yet because it is so early, but apparently Tubbs could not keep a secret in the meeting this morning. We found out before conference sunday morning, so needless to say I was not really paying too close attention to at least the morning session. By the way Bugs, I am sorry, I totally lied to you when you aked me about being pregnant a few weeks ago when you came visiting teaching. Your question caught me off guard.

Welcome to the 20th Century

2008-10-09T07:43:00.004-06:00

I am finally here (there). I mean in the 20th century. I finally got a dishwasher!!!!! I am washing dishes as I type, it is amazing. Tubbs and I have been going back and forth about one for as long as we have lived in this house. Here is a picture of the blessed thing.

Muppet Treasure

2008-10-01T12:42:00.005-06:00

For family movie night this week I let Beans pick a movie from the library. She picked Muppet Treasure Island. I love the Muppets. I was so excited that she picked that. I was really hoping they would like it. Well, they didn't love it, in fact I didn't either. It was so dark and gloomy most of the time. The one great part was the professional pirate song. It was available for posting which makes me happy. My favorite Muppet movie is Muppet Christmas Carol. I put some of those songs on too.

I never thought I would be so happy to change a poopy diaper!! (tear, sniff)

2008-09-27T11:50:00.004-06:00

I believe we have reached a new milestone in one of the most highly anticipated goals in motherhood. For the last three days Abby has brought me the bag of baby wipes and begged me until I change her when she poops. This has filled my head with dreams of a potty trianed 14 or 15 month old!!!! I daydream this as I mechanically change the diapers. Stop laughing, I have heard of it happening. Lynette even sent me a link to a website that promises potty training by six months (now that is a lot of pressure). I was diaper free for two months before Lola was born. I said STOP LAUGHING!!!!!

The kitchen table

2008-09-26T21:32:00.004-06:00

I found this essay as I was reading about family traditions today. This is one of the things my parents were pretty good at. We always had dinner together no matter what, there was not an option as long as you were in the state. You also had to make conversation at least once or you could not leave, sometimes this was really hard, but I have so many fond memories that somehow include the table. In fact, after the fire, my mom would not settle on any kitchen table except one that looked exactly the same as the old one. It is the only thing that is the same in their house now. What Marianne Jennings describes is what I am trying to create for my family. It may be a little long, but read it, it is worth it.

The story of Cinderella told by Disney is the plan of salvation

2008-09-21T08:39:00.006-06:00

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As I was watching Disney's Cinderella for the upteenth time for family movie night I was thinking that there has to be some deeper meaning, some lessons I could teach my daughters besides waiting for their Prince Charming. About half way through the movie I found the hidden message. The story of Cinderella told by Disney is the plan of salvation. Everything is there. Christ, God, Satan, the temple, the celestial kingdom, earthly trials, sin and even repentance. My children might seem a little young to grasp this deeper meaning, but I think Abby was getting it. This shows me that Disney can't be the anti-christ everyone tells me it is.

How young is too young to have your tongue pierced?

2008-09-16T18:33:00.003-06:00

Yesterday for family home evening we went on a hike and when we were done we played on the playground in the canyon. Abby fell off of the equipment. She bit her tongue so hard that there is a hole in it. I had to take her to the emergency room so we could figure a way to make it stop bleeding. She is lucky that she only has a few teeth or she would have bitten it off. The doctor suggested we get a pediatric dentist to come in and look at it to see if she needed stitches. They usually stitch when the hole is big enough to put a cheerio through, you could put at least one and half through hers. I did not want them to stitch her up because they would have to put her to sleep to do it. She didn't need to have it stitched up mainly because she would have just chewed off the stitches because she would not understand us telling her not to. We thought about just putting a ring through it because she has already gone through the pain of getting it pierced she might as well get some jewelry out of it. So she is going to have a major scar on her tongue, but the good news is that we don't have to worry about her getting her tongue pierced for real because scar tissue is hard to pierce.

Something to think about

2008-09-13T08:31:00.005-06:00

I read something very interesting this morning. Edward Gibbon in The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, identifies the 5 main causes of their decline and fall.

1. the breakdown of the family structure
2. the weakening of a sense of individual responsibility
3. excessive taxes and government control and intervention
4. seeking pleasure that became increasingly hedonistic, violent and immoral
5. the decline of religion

Why can't we wake up and learn from the past!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday Sister Sue

2008-09-12T23:19:00.003-06:00

Today is my baby's birthday. I can't even remember what our family was like without her. It seems as if she has always been here. Abby is my snuggly, huggy, kissy baby. She is very affectionate and loving. She loves her big sisters more than anything. They can make her laugh anytime. They love her too, and try to include her in as much of their playing as they can. Even when she is destructive they sometimes pretend that it was part of the plan all along. She is the first thing asked about by both when they wake up. Abigail loves to tease and to be teased, she loves excitment and thrills. She has taken to the water faster and with more intensity than the other two. She loves to be held and will let you hold her as long as you are willing. Toby is probably her favorite member of the family. I often find her curled up with him or using him as a chair or back rest. Her most recent new skill is spinning with her sisters. She loves to dance and loves music almost as much as Lola does. I am so excited to see her accomplishments and feel so blessed to be able to be the one who gets to witness them. I am lucky to be her mother. Happy birthday baby!!!!

The state fair

2008-09-09T22:07:00.005-06:00

We went to the fair on friday. We love the fair and look forward to it all year. It is the one time we can get Lola to be brave enough to touch some animals. Of course our favorite part is the dairy cows. Abby went crazy over the goats though. I guess she doesn't know better yet. I was disappointed to not see any cows from Redmond Farm where we get our milk, that is OK I just pretended that some of the ones that were there were them.
Another favorite part is the kid's farm. The kids get to gather eggs in a chicken coup and feed the chickens corn. They get to milk a cow and do lots of other fun farm stuff. At the end they sell their veggies and wool for a dollar to spend on a treat at the store.

We let them each pick a ride to go on. Mallorie chose the trampolines. I was suprised that she did so well. She even managed to do a back flip once. She was so light that I had to help her bounce almost the whole time.

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Lola wanted to ride on the airplanes (helicopters). She is my play it safe chick. We stayed until after 9:00 pm (I can't remember the last time my kids were out that late). I can't wait for next year. Next year Mallorie wants to enter something, I may make this a family goal for each of us.

The state fair

2008-09-09T22:07:00.001-06:00

Painting

2008-09-09T21:58:00.003-06:00

We finally took some time and put a primer coat of paint on our playhouse. Matthew took Lola and Mallorie for help. Lola would dip her paintbrush into the paint all the way up to and sometimes beyond her wrists. They were messy, but had a good time. Hopefully it will not take so long for us to get motivated to finish the next step (cutting the windows). We started this playhouse when I was pregnant with Lola. We are debating what color to paint it. Mallorie's vote is blue (of course), Lola's is purple (of course), Matthew's vote is camo, and I have no opinion (except not camo).

The Simple Truths of Service

2008-08-19T12:28:00.005-06:00

Last night and this morning I have been reading up on the new Ben Stiller movie Tropic Thunder. I didn't believe that what I was hearing about it was true or that it was such a big deal. Well I have been wrong and was so touched by many of the things that I read, but this in particular brought me to tears. I just can't believe that this movie is what passes for entertainment now.

Not even at $10 per gallon?!?!?!

2008-08-11T11:05:00.004-06:00

This video is an exchange between the Republican Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell and Democrat from Colorado, Ken Salazar. It shows me that the Dems are not open to considering all options. I don't believe that domestic drilling will solve our gas crisis, but it should at least be an option. I am all for alternative fuels and coserving, but gasoline is never going to be obsolete. I watched this and just shook my head!!!

My picks

2008-08-10T12:13:00.002-06:00

I found a way to easily post my favorite books and stuff from Amazon. Someday when I have more time to think this will also work as a wish list for Matthew, making gift buying easier!!!

Les Miserables update

2008-08-06T22:20:00.003-06:00

The most frustrating thing just happened. I was reading along in my Les Mis book and a sentence that was on two pages didn't make and sense at all. On examination, I discovered that 70 pages have been left out of my book!!!! And that 93 pages have been printed twice. The Tooele library has one copy and it is checked out (it is the abridged version anyway). The full text is available online and I tried to read it, but our computer chair is not very comfortable. I am really bummed. If anyone has a copy that they would let me borrow for the 70 pages I would appreciate it.

The best new game

2008-07-26T09:48:00.002-06:00

My girls just came up with the best game. They are the mommies and I am the daughter. It is bed time and I have to pretend to be asleep while they cover me with blankets, read stories to me, and sing to me. I told them we should play this every day. I was forced to lay down with my eyes closed for twenty minutes!!!!

I got to climb again!!!!

2008-07-25T21:02:00.005-06:00

I know this might be silly, but I think it is unfair for Matthew to leave me home for three days and two nights while he is off doing everything I love to do: camping, hiking, climbing. I just had to have a little fun. I could not pass this opportunity up (I am done with the whining now).

So this morning the girls and I snaked in on some of the Varsity Scout's climbing time. I love to rock climb and I have very little opportunity to go because I always have these children around (fast running water and unsupervised little ones is never a good combination). This was perfect. The scouts enjoyed playing with Mallorie and Lola because almost everything they say is so funny to those boys, I don't know why. Also we have not had a harness that would fit me (thank you very much three pregnancies), but it just so happens that most of our harnesses fit me now (thank you very much a little bit of exercise and not so much pigging out). I was scared today, almost like I was the first time. Once I got started it all came back to me and I was again amazed at what my body is capable of doing as long as I don't let my mind interfere. I am feeling it tonight though. It surprises me every time I go how much you use your hands for this and how weak mine are, they ache.

Mallorie took a turn and climbed higher than I have ever seen her go and would have continued on, but I was afraid she wouldn't be able to get back down. That girl is deceptively strong and flexible (and not to mention daring). Lola tried, but it is still very scary for her (she is a very cautious child, I am thankful for that, because neither of her sisters are). The harness did not fit Abby so she was left out of the fun, next year will be her year. Another good thing we found out is that the smallest climbing shoes we can buy are one size bigger than what Mallorie wears, I am guessing this is what she will be getting for her birthday.

Sorry no pictures. Climbing pictures are very unflattering anyway; just a bottom shot from down below with that silly looking harness on and no one wants to see that!

New Swing

2008-07-22T07:26:00.003-06:00

We put a new swing in a tree in our back yard. The girls loved it. They didn't want to come inside. We were going to make it into a tire swing, but they like the seat better.
Mallorie was so high it made me nervous, but she didn't even care.

I thought that Lola would hate it. She is not the most adventurous two year old.

Even Matthew had a good time. Notice how he let my grass die. He didn't water it while we were gone to Yellowstone. It came back some, but I think we have to wait for the weather to cool down a little before I get my lawn back. Most of it is still good and we still play on it, still he is not forgiven, yet!!!

two articles

2008-07-11T18:46:00.004-06:00

Here are links to two articles I recently read. The first is written by Frederic Bastiat and is called What Is Seen and What Is Not Seen (click on the nubmer 1 in the table of contents). Bastiat is a mid-nineteenth century economist. I found it very relevant to what is happening in our country today.

The second is written by John Taylor Gatto. He is a teacher in the New York public schools and has won their Teacher Of The Year award several times. This speach was given on the occassion of him being named teacher of the year in 1990. I heard him give this speach in Salt Lake City about two years ago and decided to read it again. It is called The Seven Lesson School Teacher.

I enjoyed both of them and thought others might as well.

To judge or not to judge

2008-07-09T14:24:00.002-06:00

I was reading in the New Testament today and want to see what you think about this. I hear people quote part of this scripture all the time and I think they are using it wrong.
Luke 7:37 "Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not and ye shall not be condemned: forgive and ye shall be forgiven:"
I hear people all the time say that we should not judge, but I think that we should. If we didn't judge then why would we not invite child molesters to our homes. I think that it really is a bad thing if we are not judged by God. I think we want to be judged because that is the only way we can be declared clean and enter into his rest. We just don't want this to happen until we are washed clean through the blood of Christ.
If you use the cross reference in the footnotes you look up Moroni 7:18 "And now my brethren, seeing that ye know the light by which may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge ye shall also be judged."
This makes more sense to me because we have to make judgements all the time. God does excommunicate people from the church for sin, but requires repentance and a long probation before it is behind them. Just like everything else from God we should also apply this to our lives. To me this means if we judge the way God judges (applying justice and mercy) then we are right, but if we make judgements any other way he will no longer judge us mercifully as he has promised.
Tell me your thoughts.

What a week!!!

2008-07-03T19:11:00.004-06:00

We have had such a busy week. We went to Lagoon on Saturday and then left really early to get to Yellowstone before church started at 4:30pm. We spent monday and tuesday cruising around the park looking at the wierdest stuff (God is so amazing) and had to come home early because Abby was unhappy about not being able to crawl around at all for 5 days. We drove home through Jackson Hole, WY. We left our camp at 9:30 AM and didn't pull into our driveway until 10:15 PM. Yes that is almost THIRTEEN hours of driving in one day, NEVER AGAIN!!!! We had so much fun. I guess that the biggest thing to come out of this trip is that Lola is not wearing diapers anymore. She announced the day before we left that she no longer needed a diaper and would be wearing panties from now on and has had about two accidents (one during the 13 hour drive). I guess that it is true that they are ready when they are ready and not until. It is so Lola to wait until the day before a vacation to make a major change. I didn't think she could do it, but she proved me wrong (she likes doing that).

Also Heather sent me an email with this video and I just wanted to make sure that every one got to see it. Thanks Heather.

While there we also found this lovely little website. Bugs you be waiting for the Chuck Norris one for your birthday.

Camping

2008-06-24T08:29:00.003-06:00

This weekend we did a trial run of all our new car camping equipment. We are going to Yellowstone next week and have bought a lot of new supplies. We tested them out and it was a good thing, there are some things that we are still missing. We have never done much car camping, we have always gone backpacking so this will be a new adventure for us. We had a good time and had a great spot. The small creek was running really fast right behind us so we got to fall asleep to the sound of running water. I was surprised at how well the girls slept. I thought they would have more trouble. We only stayed one night and came home early so we could be sure to make it to the ward birthday party and now we can't wait for next week.

Mallorie and Lola loved "their bedroom". We have two tents that zip together.

We had bacon and eggs for breakfast.

This is Abby trying to escape from the tent. The only place she could be set down was in the tent because she was very facinated by the campfire and I have a thing about her not falling into the fire pit, especially when there is a fire in it.

2008-06-20T08:35:00.006-06:00

Most of my parents photographs were destroyed in their house fire last year. Some were salvagable, but they smell too bad to keep. I have spent a lot of time looking through other family members' photos for ones of us for my mom and through the stinky ones. The ones that I found I scanned into the computer this week and I am now using Shutterfly to make a photo book for her. Here are a few of the gems I found.

I love that red couch, it is one of my earliest memories!!

Here is me about 3 years old.

Here is our family

My brother was a really cute little kid!

Disney Princesses evil?

2008-06-13T15:39:00.004-06:00

I found this article and I am posting it for all to read. I got a kick out of it and I knew that Ann would too. I have put a moritorium on Disney Princess purchases at our house a while ago because they seemed to have become an obsession with my girls. My feelings on this are neutral. I am just helping people be informed about our children's toys. WARNING: This website is very liberal, in fact they describe themselves as "the flagship of the left." I read there every now and again for entertainment, most of what I find there I just laugh at.

Little Girl Blue

2008-06-10T12:39:00.004-06:00

Miss M has a blue marker that is her favorite and has had for a while now. Some times she forgets to put the lid back on and leaves it out. Sis S gets a hold of it and turns herself blue, usually this irritates me, until about a week ago. I fed her, she got the marker, I cleaned her up, and Tubbs came home all within about 20 minutes. Matthew was playing with her and she spit up, like normal, except it was blue. He freaked out a little bit. I was laughing at him so much that I couldn't tell him what happened. Well, she got it again today. I laughed again thinking about the blue spit up.

Cake decorating contest

2008-06-09T20:11:00.003-06:00

This weekend Mallorie and Lola participated in a cake decorating contest by The Purple Cow (the new book store in town). The contest had them decorate a cake like their favorite book, Mallorie chose "The Sneetches" and Lola wanted the pale green pants from "What was I afraid of". Here are some pictures of thier cakes.

Concert in the park

2008-06-07T12:37:00.004-06:00

The friday night concerts on the park started again last night. It was cold but we took a blanket and had a good time. The music was by an inspirational band called Joshua Creek. It was guitar and I loved it.

Havard Commencement

2008-06-06T07:13:00.013-06:00

I just read the commencement speach given by JK Rowling at Harvard last night and thought she did a pretty good job and some of her ideas are worth listening to. Here is a link where you can listen to, watch, or read her speach.

I especially liked what she had to say about failure:

"Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way. I discovered that I had a strong will, and more discipline than I had suspected; I also found out that I had friends whose value was truly above rubies."

Like Rowling, I don't remember anything about the commencement speach from college, but I wish I had heard something like this then. Maybe I would have been better prepared for failures I experienced and not have been so devastated by some of them. Certainly I will make sure my children are better prepared for life than I was.

A family bike ride

2008-06-02T08:15:00.002-06:00

We went for a family bike ride on saturday. Matthew always has Mallorie attached to his bike, but today Lola wanted her and Abby to be attached to him as well. So, he got to pull everyone and all I had to do was drag myself around. It was fun. Matthew looked like a train going down the road.

Our grass is growing

2008-05-30T09:21:00.003-06:00

Last fall we planted some grass seed in our back yard and a few weeks ago we planted some more. The grass is finally starting to grow. In fact it is beautiful. There are a lot of thistles in it, but less now than there was. Here are a few pictures:

Look how thick it is!!! I am so happy!!!

This weekend

2008-05-30T09:13:00.004-06:00

We painted our dining room and the girls' bedroom this weekend. Our dining room is a yellow and the girls' room is a a light purple. We will be getting new carpet in the next few weeks. I can't wait for that. Here are some picutures of the Malllorie and Lola hard at work.

Abby pooped out!!!

Bishop's Chat

2008-05-26T10:55:00.002-06:00

After Matthew got home from Bishop's Chat last night he told me about the things they talked about. We discusssed it and we are going to limit who can access our blog or take it off. I don't have very many of your address so please email me or call me and I will add you.

Patio Furniture

2008-05-16T13:38:00.004-06:00

This week I was going to buy a patio table and four chairs but the store was sold out of the one I wanted. My husband, who is so much more genius than me, suggested I look at KSL classifieds for a used one. I found something even better. This is what I originally wanted, but all of the ones I like are over $500.00 new. I found this and it was even less than the original table and four chairs, which I was just settling for. Now I just need the other half of my picnic table and wait for the grass to grow in a little better and we will be set.

(sorry about the quality of the picture. The leaves of my trees are just begining to emerge and it is not full yet and made shadows and sun, click on it and it is better)

My new hair cut

2008-05-11T10:44:00.004-06:00

I finally got my hair cut yesterday. I was able to donate 13 inches to Locks of Love!!!!!! Then she cut another 2 inches off to shape it. Matthew was really taken back by it at first, he really likes long hair. Mallorie didn't like it, Lola had no opinion, adn Abby was just happy I wasn't gone forever. I am still not sure, I have never had my hair this short. My hair has always been long.

As a Man Thinketh

2008-05-09T06:45:00.005-06:00

I just read this book by James Allen and I think everyone should read it. Here is a link so you can download it online and print it out (it is only 19 pages).

http://jamesallen.wwwhubs.com/think.htm (you will have to copy and paste it)

James Allen wrote 19 books in 9 years and he is often quoted in General Conference.
Here is the opening paragraph of the foreword:

"This little volume (the result of meditation and experience) is not intended as an exhaustive treatise on the much-written upon subject of the power of thought. It is suggestive rather than explanatory, its object being to stimulate men and women to the discovery and perception of the truth that - 'They themselves are makers of themselves'"

Here is the last paragraph and invitation from Mr. Allen:

"Tempest-tossed souls, wherever ye may be, under whatsoever conditions ye may live know this - in the ocean of life the isles of Blessedness are smiling, and the sunny shore of your ideal awaits your coming. Keep your hand firmly upon the helm of thought, In the bark of your soul reclines the commanding Master; He does but sleep; wake Him. Self-control is strength; Right Thought is mastery; Calmness is power. Say unto your heart, "peace, be still!"

She has reached a whole new level, literally

2008-05-05T17:02:00.003-06:00

Abby pulled herself all the way up all by herself today. This is actually the second time she did it. The first time she pulled herself up on our fireplace and while I went to get the camera she fell and hit her eye. She was not happy and has a little bruise. She's a trooper though and got right back on the horse, so to speak, and tried again at the chair.

My dog sprained what?

2008-05-03T23:15:00.003-06:00

Here is Toby. He is normally not allowed to be on our furniture, but we made an exception tonight. This afternoon he started to be really whiney and then he started to bite at and lick his tail. Matthew called the vet to find out what we should do. The vet told him that our dog (the dumbest dog in the world) sprained his tail. I started laughing and laughed for 15 min. I still laugh when I think about it. Apparently this is common, dogs get too excited and go wild with their tails. Believe it or not, this is more common in Labs. Who'd of thunk? We have to give him baby aspirin and let him rest (wherever he chooses). I know this is serious, but it could only happen to our dog. Now when he gets excited he wags his tail and it hurts so he stops, then he is excited that it doesn't hurt so he wags it again. He spends about a minute or so every once in a while in this viscious little cycle (this proves that he really is the dumbest dog in the world). To top it all off, Major left yesterday and he is lonely.

My first finished knitting project

2008-05-01T19:29:00.004-06:00

I finished the purse that I was knitting. I recently learned how to knit again. I find it very relaxing and it reminds me of the French Revolution, about which I have been studying lately.

Abby can crawl!!!!

2008-04-29T20:39:00.003-06:00

Abby started crawling today!!!!! She still goes backwards sometimes. It makes her mad because she can't figure out why what she wants get farther away from her. The only bad part is that I spent a lot of time today looking for her. I can't just set her down and walk away anymore. She also drove the other two crazy, I did enjoy that!!

Why study the Constitution?

2008-04-28T14:34:00.004-06:00

Matthew and I have a few friends who get together and study about government. We have decided to take the next two months and study the constitution, which is good because I don't think I have ever read it before. While reading something entirely unrelated today I found a quote be Pres. McKay that I felt impressed to share. He was speaking the 1966 April General Conference about the threat of Communism and secret combinations. He said:

"We therefore commend and encourage every person and every group who is sincerely seeking to study Constitutional principles and awaken a sleeping and apathetic people to the alarming conditions that are rapidly advancing about us. We wish all of our citizens throughout the land were participating in some type of organized self-education in order that they could better appreciate what is happening and know what they can do about it."

If anyone is interested in participating with us let me know and I will get you more information. We meet on a random friday night and treat it like a date.

I love being a part of a family

2008-04-25T07:28:00.003-06:00

Sometimes we have moments here that remind me how much I love being a part of a family. This morning I got up before everyone else to read my scriptures a little while later Lola woke up. She snuggled on my lap for a little while until she finally woke up all the way. Lola has always been a cuddly person which is so much fun, but this was not my only happy moment this morning. The next one up was Abby. I brought her out to the living room where Lola was, they noticed each other at the same time. They both were so exicted to see each other, Abby almost jumped out of my arms and Lola scooted over to make room for Abby to sit next to her on the chair. She put her arms around her so she would not fall out. They both had huge smiles on their faces. This made me so happy. I am so grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed me with my very own family.

My princesses

2008-04-16T09:27:00.003-06:00

These are my princesses. We played dress up this morning. Mallorie always is the blue princess, but Lola changes each time. She also can't make up her mind what she wants to be. You can't see it very well, but she has a cheerleader skirt on under her pink ballet outfit. This is why I love having girls!!!!

For the record Matthew "hates these things"

2008-04-14T10:14:00.006-06:00

Here is our new toy. We put it together on saturday. This was Mallorie's and Lola's christmas present from Grandma and Poppy. This morning I was feeding Abby in my room and I looked out my window and saw two little stinkers going out the back door. I knew exactly where they were going. I finished feeding Abby and went outside to scold them. They were having so much fun that we just stayed outside for the next half hour taking turns jumping, even me. Abby looks completly thrilled doesn't she?

What does the Devil think?

2008-04-10T23:07:00.003-06:00

I met with a group of ladies tonight for a discussion night. We were talking about current events and something came up that I think was very thought provoking. One of the women quoted from Sheri Dew's book (she thought it was "No One Can Take Your Place"). Someone came to Sister Dew and said "I bet that every morning the Devil sighs and says 'Oh great SHE'S up again'." What a compliment to her and that is now my goal, to be the kind of person Satan hopes will sleep in instead of rubbing his hands together wondering what he can get me to do today.

Piggie tails for Abby

2008-04-08T09:52:00.003-06:00

After the girls' bath this morning I thought of you Stacee. I looked at Abby's boring hair just flat and decided to put pig tails in. She hated it because when I first started to comb her hair there was a tangle in it. She cried the whole time and wiggled. I kept telling her it was Stacee's fault, so if she cries when she sees you again that is why.

A night alone :(

2008-04-05T08:00:00.002-06:00

Matthew went camping with the boy scouts last night. In the past I have been excited for him to go. It is impossible for us to take our children camping in the spring and winter. It is too cold at night, I know that makes me a wimp, but I am. I was not excited about it last night. I had to work to fight the urge to tell him to stay home. I am so over him working with the youth. The silly boys did a horrible job picking a weekend to go because they have to basically get up this morning and leave so that Matthew can be home for conference, which is a good thing for me.

So far today I am feeling down. I don't spend many nights without my Matthew. He will be home soon though and hopefully make me happy again.

Happy conference!!!!

Mormons and Muslims

2008-04-02T08:54:00.005-06:00

I just read an article about Mormons that disturbs me a little. The premise is that Mormons and Muslims are the same and that Mormons are a big supporter of Muslims. Here is a quote:

Scattered throughout the Internet are numerous tracts, many by evangelical Christians, comparing the two religions in less-than-complimentary terms. "Modern Mohammedanism has its Mecca in Salt Lake," reads one. "Clearly the Koran was Joseph Smith's model, so closely followed as to exclude even the poor pretension of originality in his foul 'revelations.'

Other than some out and out lies there was very little I could dispute, but I still feel a little disturbed by it. It seems that they only looked at how Mormons work with Muslims and didn't mention that this is how we treat everyone.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-morlims2apr02,0,123230,full.story

I found an article written by H. David Burton, the presiding Bishop about the church's humanitarian efforts that sums up our policy on helping people. He quoted Pres. Hinckley:

Our beloved President Gordon B. Hinckley has been instrumental in the development of this great humanitarian work. "We must reach out to all mankind," he has said. "They are all sons and daughters of God our Eternal Father, and He will hold us accountable for what we do concerning them. . . . May we bless humanity with an outreach to all, lifting those who are downtrodden and oppressed, feeding and clothing the hungry and the needy, extending love and neighborliness to those about us who may not be part of this Church."

Here is a link to his talk.

http://www.lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,49-1-602-2,00.html

My Birthday

2008-03-31T06:14:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was my birthday. I am not twenty something anymore. I think this makes me officially an adult now. (I guess I should start acting like one). Saturday was great. I got to go shopping for my new shoes with Ann (I could hardly stop laughing most of the time). I got my new running shoes and can't wait to use them. They are pink and Ann and I are matching. I got a new craft project to start on (don't tell Matthew, he does not approve of ME starting a new project with others not finished). We had a get together for cake and ice cream with my fam last night and my own birthday dinner. All in all it was a good birthday!!!!

2008-03-25T16:11:00.004-06:00

Here are pictures of the girls in their Easter dresses. They love dresses and wear them all the time so this was not anything special to them . They couldn't figure out why I was taking thier picture and complained the whole time. I couldn't get them to all look at me at the same time. They are silly girls, but they are beautiful. We had them stand on the clothes line that Matthew built last summer. He is so proud of it. It is industrial strength too. It will last through the Mellenium. The Salt Lake Temple and my clothes line will be all that is left standing.

Well Done Sister Suffragette

2008-03-25T15:58:00.002-06:00

Mallorie had to get immunizations today and she is milking it. So she is laying on the chair with her "owies" and is now watching Mary Poppins. This inspired me to add the funniest song in the movie to my playlist. Mostly, Ann, this is for you my sister suffragette.

When is it ok for a man to cry?

2008-03-24T08:28:00.003-06:00

We had dinner last night at my mother's house like we do every week. This time because of Easter she made a beautiful meal; ham, taters, string beans, and strawberry shortcake. We brought home the leftover ham and taters for Matthew's lunch and for snacks here. Our lovely foster dog got on the table and took it while we were getting the children out of the van. We came inside and saw that it was gone. Matthew's was mad (he loves food)!!! He went all through the house and couldn't find the dog or the ham. He was getting so upset, he wasn't sure what to do. I told him to check outside. Major had taken the ham and was hiding in the back yard having a feast. Needless to say our beautiful ham is now in the garbage. After it was all done Matthew sat down and said "There are three reasons for a man to cry; the death of someone you love, the birth of your children and when your dog eats your ham on Easter." Next time you see him give him your condolences.

A new blog

2008-03-22T15:14:00.002-06:00

I started a new blog. this is for keeping track of great and even not so great things that I read. Hopefully some will even read with me. http://hospitalforthemind.blogspot.com/