NBA Playoff Update

Utah Jazz: 1, Houston Rockets: 0
Happy DH: 1, Grumpy DH: 0
Happy Family: 1, Frustrated Family: 0

We're BACK!

Time Out was a blast! We had so much fun. The only thing even semi-negative or not-like-imagained was that we were kind of rushed much of the time. Otherwise, it really lived up to the expectations I'd been building for months. In a nutshell: no kids, uplifting and inspirational music and speakers, and great company. What more could you ask for in a weekend out. I am EXHAUSTED! Due to that, I am posting a couple pictures, but will probably post more tomorrow about all the wonderful things I learned.

Friends, Hail, and a few more Hours! :)

Today, the kids had many of the neighbors come over to play in their "park" that they'd set up. It looked like a tour of the backyard to me...but I wasn't out interfering, so who knows what it really was. It turned into a boys versus girls "fight," from which no one got hurt (amazingly, since it seemed pretty intense).

Then, tonight...the sirens started going off. There weren't tornadoes in our area, but there was hail the diameter of a nickel. It was coming down so hard that I couldn't even see an inch out of the window. We did go to our "safe place" for a little while, as there was a possibility of tornadoes forming. DH was still at work and his car really got hit. It was too dark to check for damage, but without a doubt there will be some. He is so depressed about this. Here they are in the bathroom waiting out the storm:
Finally, there are just a few more hours until my friends and I leave for Time Out for Women! I am so excited! This is what DH gave me for my birthday. We leave in the morning, drive to another city, grab a quick dinner, go to Time Out (a religious seminar for women), go back to the hotel (hot tub? dessert?), talking until we're exhausted, sleep?, breakfast at the hotel, more Time Out all day long, leave and come home to see how the husbands fared with all the kids! I was a little stressed today with all I needed to do before I could leave, but now that the kids are in bed...I am so excited. And, they are, too! C, especially, can't wait to have Daddy time. He almost couldn't eat or sleep tonight since he is so excited. LD doesn't understand and I think he will miss me the most, but he will be just fine. I'll have to post pictures after we return!

Bad Rash

Poor LD. He has a bad, bad diaper rash. Both K and C never got rashes at all. LD is much more sensitive. If I don't catch a messy diaper immediately, he might have a little redness and if he eats certain foods (like grapes) it causes him problems. But, I use Desitin and it clears up within hours.

Not this time. I think it began with eating a few raisins last week so his little bum was already sensitive. Then, we had a babysitter on Friday and I don't think she changed him right away. Then, I've had a pretty bad cold and cannot smell anything...so I just check his diaper every hour or so, but I can't just go by smell to alert me of a problem.

Now it is really bad. The poor guy cries when I get ready to change his diaper. Last night I got a couple different kinds of ointments..including "Butt Paste" and some new Organic wipes. I also got him some underwear (cute boxers, huh?) to give him a little more air, but not completely exposed. He loved them. He even sat on the potty a couple of times. I am NOT training him yet, but since I bought him underwear...I thought we'd go through the motions. (Oh..in the picture...yes, he has pen on his belly. He is so mischievous! He is my only kid that writes on things...walls, books, himself...the little turkey!)

I just hope the rash is cleared up before I go out of town this weekend. DH hardly ever changes a diaper and dealing with a rash and a squirmy baby who doesn't want to be changed would be a challenge for him.

New Calling

Gee. It doesn't seem so long since I last posted about a new calling...less than a year. For those of my blogfriends that aren't members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a calling is like a "job" at church. All teachers and leaders in our local congregations are non-paid volunteers. We are asked to perform a certain job by the leader of our congregation. We have the option to accept or decline. If we accept, we are then presented to the entire congregation for a sustaining vote. No position is sought after or campaigned for, but most choose to accept, no matter how difficult the "job" might be.

My new calling is 2nd Counselor in the Relief Society Presidency. Again, for those not of my faith..the Relief Society is the women's organization in our church. Every sister (woman over the age of 18) is a member of this organization. Our mission is to serve others and bring each other closer to Jesus Christ. This organization, like all others in our church, is led by a President and two counselors.

I have so many thoughts and feelings about this calling. First of all, I KNOW it was from the Lord. Before I went to meet with the Bishop on Wednesday night, I knew who the President was going to be and I knew that I would be called as her counselor. No one told me. The Spirit just bore witness to my heart that that was what would happen. Isn't that awesome?

I am so excited to serve with the president and other counselor. They are both amazing women that I love so much. I do feel overwhelmed, but my main feeling actually is that I should be more overwhelmed than I am. Am I doing something wrong to not be too stressed or overwhelmed at this new call?

This is actually what is bothering me the most...that I'm not too bothered. I guess it is because I was Home, Family, and Personal Enrichment Leader for two years just recently so...while it is a lot of work...I sort of know the expectations of this aspect of the calling. Then, I have been Compassionate Service Leader for the last 11-months or so...so I have been working closely with the Relief Society President to fulfill the needs of the families in our ward. Also, I have complete faith and trust in our new president. I love her so much. She has always been such an example to me and I have longed to get to know her better. This is my chance! In addition, I have really been working hard at keeping my "houses" in order. I feel that I have the other aspects of my life under control enough right now that I can serve and spend more time doing it. Finally, I know that Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers (even mine!).

Perhaps it is okay to feel peaceful about this call. I do worry some about coming up with ideas for Enrichment. The counselor that got released today was outstanding at doing that. I know I will spend more time in meetings than I did. Hmm...it still worries me that I don't feel completely overwhelmed. Is something wrong with me?

Footprints

I've been missing (from Blogland) during the last few days. I'm not sure why. Life is always busy and this week wasn't nearly as busy as some. I've had a silly cold or allergies that is causing me a lot of congestion. We had huge storms a couple of nights in a row, including a 7-8 hour power outage and a 45-60 min outage. In fact, here's a cute picture of our breakfast by candlelight. Other than that...who knows why I haven't blogged lately. Oh, and it was symphony night again last night! It was so beautiful...the best one yet. I LOVE going and I LOVE having a set date with DH. It is the best!

A couple of neat things that juxtaposed themselves, though.

First, LD decided one morning to dump the baby power on the floor. Then he walked in it. At first, it annoyed me as another one of his messes. He just is so destructive. But, then K brought it to my attention how very cute his little footprints were and I realized that I will certainly miss those little feet as they grow. (It also reminded me of the first book in the Spiderwick Chronicles!)

Then, C had to do a timeline of his life for school. It turned out really neat. I guess those footprints are already bigger for him. Ahhh! It goes too fast!

Profound Lawn Mowing Thoughts

Sometimes I find that mowing the lawn gives me ample time to think and really ponder. There are basically no distractions and I can just pause and ponder life. Today, I had a really profound (at least to me) insight. I am so proud of my backyard right now. I have been working on it for approximately an hour a day and it has really been paying off. Today, I realized that practically no one else would feel that it was anything special or anything to be proud of. You only feel that if you know where it has come from.

When we first moved into our home five years ago, we took good care of the yard. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was well-maintained, mowed, watered, edged, etc.. Then, about three years ago, we started the tedious process of opening our own business. If you have never opened your own business, you have NO idea how much work it is. We thought we knew...nope. It is a 24-hour-a-day process. So, three years ago, it started to get neglected. Then, two years ago, we had a brand-new business and I was pregnant with LD. More neglect (something just had to give). Last year, the business was more stable (still a TON of work), but I also had a newborn (also a TON of work). During all this, DH worked approximately 65 hours a week out of the house. This meant the yard (along with the kids, the house, and my duties for the business) was left to me. Long story...short point: the yard was a mess. It was full of weeds and very neglected.

Now...can you understand how proud I am of the nicely trimmed grass, the freshly weeded vegetable garden, and the new storage bench for all the basketballs?

I realized, though, as I was mowing, that this is very much like people. Sometimes we only look at where they are right now, not knowing how far they've come. If we could just see where they were five years ago or two months ago or whatever, we would probably be so proud of them for how far they've come instead of so judgmental for how far they have to go.

There you have it: Profound Lawn Mowing Thoughts by me.

Amazing Session

I typed up the last post between sessions of General Conference and I meant to just add a couple more quotes at the conclusion of this session to that last post. But, this session was so awesome that it deserved its own post! The spirit was so strong. The speakers bore such powerful witness. The counsel was so inspired. How wonderful that I got to see and hear this session! While the spirit felt is intangible and unable to put into words, I can share a few of the truths that touched my heart during the last two hours:

• Elder David A. Bednar: "Simply saying prayers is a far different thing than engaging in meaningful prayer." We are full-time "finders." Prayers should not be a wishlist.
• W. Craig Zwick: "Do I need to lower my standards to keep my friends?" "Are we willing to fight the unpopular battle?"
• Lance B. Wickman: "Life is a time for giving and becoming not getting and accumulating."
• Elder M. Russell Ballard: The informative years of a children's life is about 1/10th the lifespan of their parents. Focus on CHILDREN during the short time they are with us. If the simple things are being attended to, a mother's life is more rewarding.

And...isn't President Monson awesome? It is true that he now has that mantle of prophet.

Hooray for General Conference!

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved General Conference. I literally look forward to it for six months! This time has been no exception. In fact, I have been looking even more forward to it as it will be my first time to hear President Monson speak as prophet of the Lord.

How very grateful I am for the gospel. I am so grateful to have a living church where the Lord speaks to prophets and where we have a 12 apostles just like in the bible. How lucky I feel to be able to sit at the feet of the prophets and listen to the words of the Lord.

Even Little Dan has been enjoying it. I captured him during the sustainings raising his hand, too. The cool part is that you can see President Uchtdorf in the background on the TV. It was so cute. And, he loves to say "Amen." That is his favorite part of a talk or prayer.

This conference I was feeling like nothing was jumping out at me as dramatically as it has in the past. As I pondered this, I was touched by the Spirit's answer as to why. It is because I don't NEED anything right now. Life is relatively good and I am, in general, choosing the right and striving hard to be on the right path. So...the only thing the spirit needs to tell me at this conference is that I need to work a little harder, be a little kinder, and be a little more diligent. But, unlike some other conferences, I am not needing major comfort, I am not needing inspiration over a major decision, and I am not needing to make major changes. I know it is true that the Spirit touches each of us with what we need. What a wonderful blessing to have the Gift of the Holy Ghost to know this!

Nevertheless, there were many things that still touched me from conference, including:

• Sister Cheryl C. Lant: "Are we consciously creating righteous traditions or is life just happening to us?"


• Elder Joseph C. Worthlin: Speaking about how the church is full of imperfect people..."The Lord knows we will make mistakes-that's why he atoned for our sins."


• Elder Dallin H. Oaks: We have a duty to speak out and declare our doctrine when there are misrepresentations.


• Gerald N. Lund: The spirit carries things UNTO our hearts, not INTO. We get to choose what we let in or keep out.


• Elder L. Tom Perry: Create a clear picture of Eternal Life and that will help us want to do what we need to do!


• President Dieter F. Uchtdorf: Peter said of Jesus, "He went about doing good." Can it be said of me?


• Elder D. Todd Christopherson: "Don't retain some disposition to do evil."


• Sister Susan W. Tanner: "When we delight to serve Him, our Heavenly Father delights to bless us!"


• President Boyd K. Packer: "My shoes are like my life, worn out in service."


• President Thomas S. Monson: Each of us can feel the Lord's inspiration. "Take literally the Lord's invitation to 'Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden.'"

I guess there is actually much that I gained from conference this year! Six more months until the next one! :)

Haircut

Today, I got my haircut. It always feels good to have it done so nice and cute. I am lucky to have one of my best friends that cuts hair. I don't think this picture is the best representation, but considering that we had to hurry really fast since I had a meeting at the school, so she didn't even get to style the cut, I have been working and wrestling with the kids, etc....it looks pretty cute. My sister got her hair done at the same time and it looks so super cute. Way cuter than mine even. My friend is so talented. Amazing, though, how long a day can get with two highlights, two haircuts, and four children three and under. I am exhausted. (I don't think it has anything to do with the fact that I was up quilting past midnight, went shopping before eight this morning, and mowed the front and back yards before we left for our 11:00 haircuts!)

Family Day

DH took yesterday off! If you don't know us (since we opened the clinic, at least), this is a rare event and we all love it. We went hiking in a local nature preserve. It was the perfect weather. It had rained over night, but wasn't too muddy. It was cloudy, but not too muggy. It was cool, but not freezing. We hiked about four miles then had a picnic lunch by the lake. It was really fun. DH and I were talking about how perfect it was: free (since we have a pass), the whole family together, nature, exercise, and close to home. It was a really nice time. I can't wait to go again.

Some kids don't look good with....

Short hair. I gave my boys haircuts last night. It is only the third time that I've cut LD's hair. C looks super cute in an almost buzz. It looks so springy/summery and he's always looked cute with it. So, last night, I decided to cut LD's hair the same way. Big Mistake. It does not look good on him at all. Maybe it is that his hair is lighter or his head is shaped funnier...I don't know the reason. I just know I don't like it and I can't wait for it to grow out. DH doesn't really like it on LD either, but likes it on C. Oh well. Thank goodness it grows back. But never again.

Speaking of LD, he is either sick, has allergies, or is teething (or all three). I know his molars are coming in, but his nose is runny like a fountain. It is all clear, but the poor dude can't breathe, which means he doesn't sleep well, which means...guess who else didn't sleep well!?!

Another Funeral

I am in charge of another funeral luncheon for 100 people. Crazy. How awesome, though, to see all the service people are willing to do on a moment's notice. That is the blessing of my calling.

This one sure has touched me as it is another untimely death and she was a woman so close to my age. The worst part is that she leaves a beautiful 10-year-old motherless. This also strikes close to home, as K will turn 9 in a couple of months. My heart aches for the little girl. I know that Heavenly Father will comfort her and that time will lessen the pain, but, oh, how it must hurt right now.

One thing it has done is make me really want to have my "houses" in order. I want to be spiritually on the right path when called home. I want to have the finances for both our business and our home neatly organized with explanations so that DH or someone else could take over if needed. I want my home to be organized so that someone else doesn't have to sort out all my junk. I want the kids' to be fully aware of how much I love them...that if anything happened to me that they'd have many fond memories of a mom that loved them, not a mom that was so busy with the home, the business, the yard, church, etc...that she didn't have time for them.

The fragility of life has just been so evident lately. Besides this funeral, we have another sister that could've potentially had a fatal illness (preliminary tests are good, though! :) ). It reminds me that I am not invincible and I need to be ready at any time. Good lessons to learn.

Happy Easter!

Ever since K was a baby, we've politely asked the Easter Bunny not to make an appearance at our house. Neither of us grew up with the Easter Bunny--our parents had made the same request--and we didn't feel it necessary for our children. I do, however, ALWAYS buy them a new Easter dress / shirt & tie. It has been very important to me. I think originally it came from always feeling so bad that I didn't even want to go to church when all the other little girls had brand new pretty dresses and I got to wear the same one that I'd been wearing every week to church for months. I don't ever want my kids to feel that. So, even when we were in school and had no money, I found gorgeous dresses at thrift stores or super dirt cheap sales or yard sales, but they always have had a new outfit.

This year is no exception. K has a new dress and both my boys have new shirts with matching ties. Yet, this year, I pondered what in the world this tradition has to do with Easter. I realized that it actually has a lot to do with it. New clothing is like a new beginning. With Easter and the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ, we are afforded a new beginning. We can repent. It is like being able to take off our old clothes and put on nice clean new ones. How grateful I am for my Savior. I know He lives. I know he died and was resurrected for you, me, and all mankind. I

Happy Easter everyone!

Sorry. So Sorry.

I HATE the verifications on commenting on blogs. What a waste of time and energy. So, that said, I have been the target of two spams (or whatever they are called) on my comments in the last week and thus I must turn on the verification to prevent this from occurring. So, I am sorry for the inconvenience. Truly, I am so sorry! :(

Spring Break - Day 5

We had a fun way to wrap up the break. We went and picked up breakfast and took it to the park to eat. Then we played and played and played. I didn't put a time limit on it...we just played and played. The weather was gorgeous, although still a little chilly since it was morning. Then we went to the library and to buy groceries. Just as we got home, DH called and said that he'd like to go to lunch with all of us....so out we went again. The food wasn't that good, but it was so fun to be all together in the middle of the day. (Oh, and the kids bought themselves drinks and Popsicles to use up the remainder of their money while grocery shopping).

Budget Summary: $20ish- $16ish - $4ish = $0 (ish!)

Spring Break 2008 - Day 4, Part B

So, after getting up at 5:45 am, showering, working, and cleaning until 9, putt-putting, etc. until 1:30....AFTER all that, we left for Jumping Party at 2:30. CRAZY. I am one tired Mama. But, my kids had a great time and we had budgeted $10.50 (using a coupon, of course) and had to pay nothing but a birthday present (I already had it...so it didn't come out of the budget). I am thinking that tomorrow will be much more laid back! :)

Budget Summary: $20.59 - $0 = $20.59

Spring Break 2008 - Day 4, Part A

What do you get when you let your kids all stay up past 11 pm and then get up early for a huge day of fun? These lovely sleeping beauties:Yep, they are currently all three asleep (forced naps for all). (Note to self: sleep when the kids sleep! Hint. Hint.) So, this morning started bright and early with "Done Before Fun" services. They whipped those babies out as they were so excited for today. Since we didn't get to have friends a couple of days ago, we worked into the budget having friends AND Putt-Putt together. K's friend got here at 9 and then we immediately went to pick up C's friend.

We headed out to a different Putt-Putt course. I was hoping it wouldn't be as crowded as last year's. We were the only ones on any of the three mini-golf courses, so I guess I made the right choice. It ended up being much older and kind of rinky-dink, but also so much calmer that I guess it was worth it. With us being the only ones outside and LD in the stroller, we couldn't follow them around very well....I guess there weren't any ADA requirements when they built this one! But, no one else was out there, so the boys played by themselves and the girls played by themselves and I just observed, taking pictures now and again. LD sat there so good. I am glad I trapped him in the stroller or he would have been torture to keep track of.

Oh, and a budget blessing happened there. We chose Putt-Putt since both K and C had gotten free passes for doing well in school. C's friend, G, had brought a pass of his own. When we got there they said that C didn't have to pay since he was still 6 and they used his pass for K's friend. I didn't golf...so that meant we were all free! We'd allotted $14.00 for this part! What a blessing.

After golf, we came inside to the video game part. I always get a little nervous since it is hard to watch all four of them at once, but I found a spot where I could see almost the whole floor and LD still stayed in his stroller. Since we had money, we used $10 to buy 80 more tokens (we still had a bunch from last year that we'd divided.). They had a blast and (imagine the coincidence) C and K ended up with the EXACT same amount of tickets: 165.

When we left from there, we stopped at a McDonald's on the way home, technically for ice cream, but there was a lot more playing in the playland than eating. The four of them had a blast together and LD wasn't too bad here, either. (cost: $5.41)

We came home and I made lunch of bagel pizzas, chips, carrots, apples, and water. Then, they played outside briefly and the friends went home.

But....our plan tomorrow was to go to Jumping Party. However, my good friend, JK's, little boy is having a birthday party there today. They can have up to 20 people, but only think 10 or so are going so they invited us along....this will save us even more on our budget, but will make for even more tired kids. I'll have to post part B when we get home.

Budget Summary: $36.00 - $0 -$10.00 - $5.41 = $20.59

Spring Break 2008 - Day 3

Today was such a fun day. I just had no idea how much I would love having my sister this close to me. We haven't lived this close since I went away to college and I was 17 and she was 11 1/2. I love it. Well, today, the kids planned to go to their house (30 minutes away) and play and teach them "school."

On a side note, I actually prompted them to eliminate this outing as we see them all the time and they might want to use their spring break days for other things. Both of them were VERY adament that this is what they wanted to do. Well, it turns out that my sister is not feeling well, her hubby is out of town, her baby was up a lot of the night, her bigger kids were being crazy and there couldn't have been a more perfect day for us to come up there! My big kids entertain her big kids and LD is also pretty happy so we just get to sit and visit and hold the baby. It was so fun. Anyhow, when I mentioned to C and K that perhaps Heavenly Father was prompting them to keep this day at their house, Little C's eyes welled up with tears. I mentioned that the feeling he was feeling was the spirit and he just grinned from ear to ear. It was such a nice experience.

We had such a great time. They played "school." We all played wii. I hadn't ever played before. Loved the concept, but I'd never tried it out. It rocked! Sis and I talked. We ate lunch. It was just a perfect time. I'm so glad that we went up there.

Budget Summary: $36.00 - $0 = $36.00

Spring Break 2008- Day 2

Well, amidst all the rain...we planned and planned and planned. I love how the kids have to figure things out on their own with just a little help from me. It is so fun. We knew it was supposed to rain...that's why today was library and friends day...but no such luck. So, we ended up waiting until after LD's nap when the rain let up a little (off and on). We then went to the library (free, of course!) and to McDonald's for dessert and playland time. I was bummed, though, since my memory card was still in my computer from this morning's post and so I couldn't take many pictures as my internal memory is full! UGH. They spent an extra $0.50 to play air hockey, and they had a wonderful time doing it. It turned out really fun. They loved both and they loved watching the flooded streets and yards that we drove by, especially since we had to take a different route to avoid the worst of the flooding. It was just so nice to be out of the house. They had been playing so happily together in the morning, that it was also so nice to be forced home as well.

Budget Summary: $39.75 - $3.25 -$0.50 = $36.00