Happy Father's Day to our Big Daddy

Top reasons (and pictures) why these kids have the best daddy ever:

He shares his snacks, introduces them to new treats, and has taught them that he's the one who is easily persuaded- not mom.

He has a natural ability with animals, and gives them the same confidence and understanding of them.He is a willing diaper changer. And laughs at the dads who gag and whine about it.

He's an explorer, and always willing to have a side kick tag along for an adventure.

He teaches them, and pauses to observe them mimmick and try their hardest to be just like him.

He holds them more than just to keep them still, but really holds them and loves them.

He cuddles, kisses, plays, reassures, instructs, and listens. He's firm when they need him to be, and he's got arms big enough and strong enough to make them feel safe. He's the man behind the scene most of the time, but without him the show can't go on. He's always willing to sacrifice for them. And because he's honorable, respectable, and dependable, that makes them the luckiest kids on earth. I'm pretty lucky too, because he loves me through all of my shenanigans, but that's another tribute for another time ;^)

Movin' on up

Spontaneity seems to work for us. Any big decision that we've made in our life has been quick, and has usually worked out to fit very nicely into our life. Like deciding to get married and doing it within 18 days. Or cancelling a builder's contract (after paying $2,000 deposits) to move across the country into unknown possibilities.

I'm hoping this decision follows this pattern.

I found a house that I looooooove for the potential of it. The mortgage wouldn't be much different than what we are in now, but we'll gain about 1,100 sq ft! James and I both keep saying how this house is getting too small for all of the things we want to do as a family, such as homeschool, and food storage. But we haven't actually locked down an idea of how long we would stay here. So we finally talked some serious ideas, and decided to sell this house, and look for another.

I'm making a wish. Holding out hope. Putting it to the universe. This newer house is perfect for our family without changing too much, and still having space for potential things like gardening, and fruit trees. 4 bedrooms, a school room, a dining room, a wooden pen ready for chickens, adorable neighborhood, $108,000 below tax value!.... oh I couldn't dream anything more perfect for us.

But we need to sell this house if they accept our offer! No... They WILL accept our offer with contingency! How does this sound for a listing: New ceramic floors, new wall to wall carpet, new roof, 6 fruit trees and various fruit bushes, vegetable garden, stone bbq, matching stone strawberry bed, playground, 3 bedrooms, new Craftsman bathroom vanities, 2 car garage attatched, pull down attic access, 3 acres, tool shed, small creek along wooded property line, secluded cul-de-sac lot.

Like it? It could be yours!

Garnish your thoughts unceasingly

A friend keeps telling me that what happens in her life is just because it is her lot, not because of what she thinks first. This friend belongs to the same religion that I do, and it never ceases to amaze me how differently people can and do interpret scripture. I know the spirit speaks to us and teaches us little by little, and in our hearts so that we may understand in our own capacities... but still...

In my house "can't" is a dirty word. Not the kind that will earn a drop of hot sauce for saying it, but one that doesn't earn any sympathy because it's absolutely false, so don't tell a lie! There is only "doing" or "not doing." And when you tell a child that "can't" isn't an outcome to pursue, and leave them to their creativeness, they will show you how determined and resourceful they can be to find a solution, and always proves their whines of "I can't do it" to be totally false. Even if they realize instead they just might need to ask for a little help.

Why are these two thoughts related? Let me explain.

I gave a talk in church back in January, and it couldn't have been more perfect for my outlook, totally my cup of tea. It was based on the talk by President Uchtdorf of the LDS church called "Love of God" Here is my favorite quote:

No, God does not need us to love him, but oh how we need to love God!

For what we love determines what we seek.

What we seek determines what we think and do.

What we do, determines who we are, and who we will become.

Makes sense, right? But why do we only selectively apply that? It applies to everything!

If my children grow up with the excuse of "I can't do that," they will apply it. And an excuse is evidence of a contemplation. There are a lot of excuses, like not enough money, too old, too young, it's not my lot in life, etc. The more of those you fill your life with to reason with your mind about your reality, the more time you are spending contemplating things contrary to God's will.

My favorite person to listen to in my car is Wayne Dyer. He was sharing his thoughts about this in relation to the Wright Brothers. Whether they were the first to take flight or not, isn't the point, but that they didn't achieve it by contemplating staying on the ground. They contemplated flying! And ultimately what we seek (contemplate) determines who we are and who we will become.

I struggle to apply this, but I'm working on it. I grew up with a lot of "can't" and a lot of worries because of it. And sometimes that has been a stumbling block in my path. But one thing I say is "I am saving my money for something better" instead of saying "I can't afford that." I don't want to spend my life thinking about the things "I can't afford." Why would I? Can anyone answer that? Anyone? Anyone?

I want my children to grow up with the ability to dream big. And work hard. And say "Not yet, I will keep working and moving forward." Knowing sometimes the things you dream about, or think about, don't always come into fruition of how you expected them to, but as long as God is at the helm of their ship, those things they contemplate will turn out to be better than they expected them to be, even if they turn out differently. But don't every say "I can't. "

Part time furniture refinisher

The only heirloom that I have from my Granddad (father's side) is a bookshelf that he had built and stained a cherry color. My dad gave it to me 6 years ago, and it wasn't in the best condition. But the wood has these cool knots that give the shelf character, and I've always loved it. So I decided to refinish it so that it was still something from him, but fit more for me.

I have to say, I love the finished piece! I have plans for a cute lamp and some old nursery rhyme books that were from James's childhood for this bookshelf, but Max would destroy said items, so it might just remain empty for a little bit, haha!

It's a colonial blue color with a brown toner to give it an old rustic look. I'm going to coat it with a topcoat wax finish, but I wanted a picture first without the sheen so the color would show better in a picture. I was so worried that I'd mess it up, but I think it turned out pretty good!

Ballet recital 2010

The theme this year was "Dancing on Air" where they showcased the theme songs from TV shows, cartoons, movies.

Kellan's class (the little boys) did "The Andy Griffeth Show", and I have to say, the cutest one who stole the show was Kellan. He's so precocious, and just has a natural ability to make doing his own thing look like it's done on purpose, and oh so cute.



Maren was in two dances this year, her ballet routine was to "A Cinderella Medley" and I loved that she finally got to wear a traditionally classic ballet costume, complete with tiara, nothing says "So totally girly" like this picture.

Maren is in the front of the girls making a circle around, her head is turned, so it's not the best shot.

She is on the far left in this modern dance, they performed to "The Bear Necessities" from the Jungle book.

On the right

Being boys! Pretending to go fishing, instead of going to school.

See? Doing his own thang, and absolutely cute about it too.

All in stride

I don't take myself too seriously, so it's curious to me when someone who is up to date on the happenings in my life ask a question like "I thought you were trying to be vegan" as I am eating a oh-so-non vegan turkey burger.

I mean, I am consistant on a few things here, I'm not going to leave one son uncircumcised and then circumcise the next, so that was a weird question too when I was asked if I would be doing that for my second son. Uh, no?

I try to eat organic as much as possible. But I will happily eat at friend's home when invited, and not expect them to have to bend over backwards to accomodate me. What I do with my money when I buy food is a choice that, I feel, impacts not just my health but the environment, the economy, and my children's future on this planet too. Your choices are your own, and in trying to accomodate mine you might learn something in the process, but it is never expected. I'm no diva here.

I do see the benefits and praise the people I know who commit to living a vegan lifestyle. And in my humble opinion, that is like putting only the best fuel into your car. Obvious long term benefits don't need to be stated about that. But nothing detramental is going to happen short term to my car if I use crude instead of fully synthetic. (Or if I eat a turkey burger.)

I'm not an animal activist, but I do think that we as "Men given dominion over all living things" will be held accountable for their lives on this planet. So to eat an animal, or not, I do feel that we should contemplate the life of it, and be sure that we are prepared to stand accountable for its life before we eat it. For me, I try to buy local, free range, and occassionally. So I know it was treated well, it lived naturally how it was intended in its creation, and it was respected and appreciated for the nourishment I take into myself. But, I would like to get to a place where eating meat is even more less frequent because naturally I just don't agree that our bodies were meant to eat it.

I do cloth diapers, because even if it's a small dent on this earth, I can make a consious choice to do something to leave it a little bit better than how I came to it. But I also use disposables from time to time, especially at night. For an infant who goes through 8 diaper changes a day, that amounts up to 2,920 diapers a year. If I threw that in my backyard, that's a huge mountain of crap, literally. "Throwing something away" is throwing it in someone ELSE'S backyard. We all share this planet. But like I said, I don't take myself too seriously, I do still have to function in the world, and sometimes a cloth diaper is just a juggling act that I'm not able to accomodate in an 'on the go' life that I have sometimes.

I treat ailments naturally, but I'll take an antibiotic if it requires intervention. I breastfed my babies but they all had a bottle at some point because I had to be flexible. I have a huge testimony in the Word of Wisdom and scriptural direction to maintain a higher law of health, and every choice that I make in my life is reflective of it. Even if it is Chic-Fil-A when life is busy, because there are still choices I make and abstain from.

In short, no I'm not a hypocrite. I am making choices out of awareness for the impact that they have, and I am doing the best that I can with all of the possible resources to make the most of it. Instead of watching my choices with such judgement and scrutiny, stand in judgement on your own and find out if you're prepared to be accountable for them. If so, let's be friends!

Be careful what you step in

Or what you step near, rather.

I've stepped in fire ant hills before, causing thousands of the miniature devils to scurry at warp speed, and if I happen to get a bite or 10, I will usually have a little swelling around the area, for a few hours.

But this bite (see on the back of my ankle?) happened when I raked over a fire ant hill when I was laying mulch outside on Saturday.

By the evening, it was irritating and burning, and I had groceries to get anyway so I headed to Walmart to get some benadryl when the Vitamin C wasn't reducing the allergic reaction. It became so painful to walk, and there seemed to be a million people waiting to check out with carts full like mine, so I literally sat down on the tile in line while I waited.

I actually had a man (possibly drunk) tell me that I should consider two trips so that I don't inconvenience people like him by having such a full load. (So, inconvenience myself? Great logic, thought that one out didn't ya buddy?)

So this was my ankle and side of foot, swollen and throbbing Saturday night after the fun times at Walmart. James wrapped it with a wet pack of steeped plaintain herb (which draws out toxins from things like bites or infections.)

I woke up from the washcloth causing pain from indentations when the wrap became too snug from my foot swelling even more over night. See the indentations on my right ankle? This is two hours after I had ripped the wrap off and tried to go back to sleep. Nice sausage links for toes too.

But the swelling has gone down much more today, I can even walk mostly normal again. I've never had muscle pain associated with a fire ant bite before. My theory is that I likely broke the blood vessle in my ankle from the swelling, I break them from time to time in other areas and it was similar pain.

After seeing my white cankles at an angle like this, I'm feeling very motivated to lay out and suntan. That will help with the white part, but laying around might not help with the fat ankles part. What's a girl to do?