Back when I was pregnant with my oldest son, Mac, I worked on computers all day in a small shop that printed T-shirts. I signed up for a weekly email that gave me an update on what was going on with the little one who was growing in my belly. Each week that email came and told me wonderful things... week 6, your baby's heart is now beating and blood circulation is evident....week 8, your baby is the size of a cherry and the cells that will become either testes or ovaries arrive... week 10, your baby will have verifiable fingers and toes... week 14, your baby even has fingerprints... week 19, permanent teeth buds are forming... and at week 23, his or her fingernails are now completely formed.
Week after week these emails came and I read, awestruck, in front of my computer. So many things could potentially go wrong, yet such a small percentage of all pregnancies do. What a wonder we, as women, are capable of. What a miracle!
As I sat there reading about which cell was dividing at which time and what organ began working properly at what week and how the tiny human-being inside me could now see the difference between light and dark with it's freshly opened eyes I couldn't help but wonder how anyone who had ever been pregnant could possibly not believe in a grand design. In short, how could one not believe in God and participate in that, the miracle of life?
Monday, January 12, 2009
Friday, January 9, 2009
Friday's Fabulous Five
Friday!!!!
1- I love Friday's the most, and today happens to be Friday! Sweet!!! (Dustin's home!)
2- Dustin gave me a gift card to Down East Outfitters and I got two pairs of pants and three shirts and I only spent $13.08 extra (above the gift card)! AND the pants are freakin' sweet! Love them! I ranted about fashion the other day, and I've thought about it alot since then. What I realized is that I haven't had a favorite pair of pants in a long time. You know the ones... where you feel like you look cute in them and they are really comfy? The ones you want to wear everyday and sometimes do? Ya... those kind. My last pair of favorite jeans I got at a yard sale for about a quarter. They were American Eagle jeans and I loved them, but they've now got a big hole in the knee and the bottom cuff at my heel has worn away. It's those kind of jeans that fly in the face of everything I wrote last Tuesday. I FEEL cute in them so it doesn't matter whether they are fashionable or not. And, yesterday I might have just found a new pair! Big Stars! Oh so comfy, and I feel oh so cute. (if they don't look so cute, don't tell me. I like the illusion...) It's all rather fabulous!
3-;Tomorrow is a warehouse sale for Modbe. I don't know you've heard of Modbe, but I bought several of their shirts a few years ago and I've worn one of those several almost every day for these few years. Time for some new ones, don't ya think? So, I'm going to see if I can score some sweet deals on the shirts I might wear for the next few years. (Rohan was a baby when I bought the last ones... 3 years ago!) If anyone wants to come and play with me tomorrow, let me know!
4- We've been remodling our basement for several months now (very slowly, mind you) and the two bedrooms now have finished sheetrock! We just need to paint and hang doors and do trim and get carpet. (that sounds like a lot when I put it that way!) But. The end is near. My children will soon have lovely new bedrooms complete with walls. I'm embarrassed to say that Mac and Ella have been sleeping in sleeping bags in Rohan's room. I won't tell you that it's been since the end of August.
5- Did I mention I have new pants! Yep. I did. Our sick house is not so sick anymore and I'm so grateful! And I washed all my dishes, put them away and scrubbed the sink today. And I gave Dustin a haircut in record time... about 30 minutes... and I didn't even cry at the end. AND it looks pretty good! K, this is turning into more than five, but oh well.
6- Bonus round... my dad replaced (I purchased) our thermostat from the old mercury kind to a digital gas-saving kind and then dad went home (last night). I was setting the cycles for time and temp and got all done. Big deal, right? I thought it was awesome until I realized that the furnace wouldn't shut off. It just kept blowing and blowing. I switched the thermostat's temperature... like an override, but that didn't work. I flipped the switch on the side from "heat" to "off" and that didn't work either. I called my dad. He told me that the only thing it could be was the wires were put in the wrong places, which wasn't likely as the diagram said, Yellow wire into Yellow slot, Green wire into green slot, but our house is really old and we had a yellow and a red wire. So, yellow with yellow, right? But, that was the only other option so I took the thing apart, crossed the wires and tried again. No deal. Furnace was still blowing madly and it was now 87 degrees in my house. So, I talked to my dad again and, rather that have no furnace all night or have the furnace be on all night, we decided I should put the old thermostat back on. Dad coached me on how to put it on and.... I DID IT!!! I felt so handy. ;)
Happy Friday!
1- I love Friday's the most, and today happens to be Friday! Sweet!!! (Dustin's home!)
2- Dustin gave me a gift card to Down East Outfitters and I got two pairs of pants and three shirts and I only spent $13.08 extra (above the gift card)! AND the pants are freakin' sweet! Love them! I ranted about fashion the other day, and I've thought about it alot since then. What I realized is that I haven't had a favorite pair of pants in a long time. You know the ones... where you feel like you look cute in them and they are really comfy? The ones you want to wear everyday and sometimes do? Ya... those kind. My last pair of favorite jeans I got at a yard sale for about a quarter. They were American Eagle jeans and I loved them, but they've now got a big hole in the knee and the bottom cuff at my heel has worn away. It's those kind of jeans that fly in the face of everything I wrote last Tuesday. I FEEL cute in them so it doesn't matter whether they are fashionable or not. And, yesterday I might have just found a new pair! Big Stars! Oh so comfy, and I feel oh so cute. (if they don't look so cute, don't tell me. I like the illusion...) It's all rather fabulous!
3-;Tomorrow is a warehouse sale for Modbe. I don't know you've heard of Modbe, but I bought several of their shirts a few years ago and I've worn one of those several almost every day for these few years. Time for some new ones, don't ya think? So, I'm going to see if I can score some sweet deals on the shirts I might wear for the next few years. (Rohan was a baby when I bought the last ones... 3 years ago!) If anyone wants to come and play with me tomorrow, let me know!
4- We've been remodling our basement for several months now (very slowly, mind you) and the two bedrooms now have finished sheetrock! We just need to paint and hang doors and do trim and get carpet. (that sounds like a lot when I put it that way!) But. The end is near. My children will soon have lovely new bedrooms complete with walls. I'm embarrassed to say that Mac and Ella have been sleeping in sleeping bags in Rohan's room. I won't tell you that it's been since the end of August.
5- Did I mention I have new pants! Yep. I did. Our sick house is not so sick anymore and I'm so grateful! And I washed all my dishes, put them away and scrubbed the sink today. And I gave Dustin a haircut in record time... about 30 minutes... and I didn't even cry at the end. AND it looks pretty good! K, this is turning into more than five, but oh well.
6- Bonus round... my dad replaced (I purchased) our thermostat from the old mercury kind to a digital gas-saving kind and then dad went home (last night). I was setting the cycles for time and temp and got all done. Big deal, right? I thought it was awesome until I realized that the furnace wouldn't shut off. It just kept blowing and blowing. I switched the thermostat's temperature... like an override, but that didn't work. I flipped the switch on the side from "heat" to "off" and that didn't work either. I called my dad. He told me that the only thing it could be was the wires were put in the wrong places, which wasn't likely as the diagram said, Yellow wire into Yellow slot, Green wire into green slot, but our house is really old and we had a yellow and a red wire. So, yellow with yellow, right? But, that was the only other option so I took the thing apart, crossed the wires and tried again. No deal. Furnace was still blowing madly and it was now 87 degrees in my house. So, I talked to my dad again and, rather that have no furnace all night or have the furnace be on all night, we decided I should put the old thermostat back on. Dad coached me on how to put it on and.... I DID IT!!! I felt so handy. ;)
Happy Friday!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Yeah, Write....
Remember the other week when I asked for writing prompts... and then I said I'd write the next Thursday? Well, the next Thursday was Christmas and I neglected this blog over the holidays. Then the next Thursday was New Years Day and I was still on vacation, for the most part. So. It's Thursday again and I'm doing it, so help me!
Well... since there were five prompts, I've decided I can squeeze them all into one post. Sorry Ginny... I decided randomly to pick all of you even though you were the one that won in the ACTUAL RANDOM number draw! ;)
The smog was thick in this part of the valley. So thick that you could taste it on the back of your tongue, acrid and bitter. My nose twitched as I tried to breath through it, a sneeze threatening to burst out. I held it back. With how aloof he was acting, I didn't dare make a noise.
I looked at him dubiously as he lifted the smoking hood. This was not good. One time in high school I did take shop class, but despite that fact, neither of us knew very much about engines and we were helplessly stranded, that was clear. The highway was crowded with cars, and there were apartments just 100 yards away. I was wondering why no one was stopping or why we weren't walking to a phone, but I wasn't about to ask.
To be honest, he scared me. A lot. Yes, I had been "with" him for more than a year, but I never could anticipate him, and he was getting worse. The last few weeks had brought, at first, brooding. I often watched him with his furrowed brow, and I wondered where his mind was. It was like he was looking through me through some severe memory. He had also started sleeping more and more in the day, but when he was awake, his brooding gradually turned into seething... like a pot of water just before it boils.
It wasn't even eleven and he'd already flipped out twice today. The first one was when he realized he'd forgotten his cell phone. He swore and clenched his teeth, and as he fumed I watched the wiry muscles up and down his arms twitching. I flinched in reaction. I don't know if it was my flinch or the fact that his cell phone was sitting on his nightstand, but he lost it. He bellowed something that seemed like another language and swung his fist, ripping the rear view mirror off the windshield. It flew across the car, hitting my face, and clattered to the floor. Holding my jaw and leaning my forehead against the window, I wished I could ball up some of those snowflakes that were falling outside and cool the throbbing I felt under my sweaty hand. He didn't even notice me crying. The second explosion was less severe, but the look in his eyes made me sure I was going to loose the cold lasagna that I had eaten for breakfast.
A horn on the freeway brought me back to the hissing engine in front of me. My jaw still ached and it was getting harder to move. I was just starting to wonder if it was broken when he shifted his weight and grunted. He stood up and looked at me for what seemed like the first time that day and, as he did, his eyes flicked toward my jaw and a look of horror crossed his face for a brief second, almost too fast to notice. Clearing his throat, he turned away and started pacing, kicking an empty applesauce cup out into the rush of cars.
As I watched him I wondered why he wasn't trying to get some help. Though my heart was pumping like a galloping horse, I finally worked up the courage to say something.
"So, ummmm... what's your plan?" I ventured timidly.
He stopped and glanced first at me and then at the nearby apartments. His eyes looked tight, strained and almost vexed. He didn't say anything. He simply turned around and walked around the car and dropped out of sight. I followed, my breath coming in little puffs as I walked around the car. He was sitting on the ground, staring at nothing.
Irritated and worried, I opened the door and climbed back in the car. I'd never seen him act so distraught. Enraged, yes. Exasperated, yes. Distraught and even confused, no. His confidence was one of the things that drew me to him and kept me here, despite his unpredictability. He felt like a shield between me and the life I second-guessed my way through. He always knew what to do.
My apprehension was getting the better of me as I sat back in my seat. We're totally freezing, but he acted like he had no desire to leave! I didn't get it. It seemed like he was praying that no one would stop or desperately trying to figure out a way to stay away from the apartments and anyone that might emerge from them. I couldn't understand what the problem was. So we were broken down!? Big deal! Let's pick an apartment, knock on a door and use the phone!
Pain flared in my jaw again as I realized I was grinding my teeth. With him safely outside the car, I reached for the rear view mirror to see if there was any visible marks on my face and, seeing the mirror gone, remembered it was on the floor somewhere. After a minute of groping, I found it, held it up to my face. The cold air seared my lungs as I gasped and dropped the mirror. 'That couldn't be right!' I thought wildly.
Gently, I brought my hand up where the mirror had hit me. I couldn't feel much since my hands were getting numb from the cold. But I could feel a lump. There wasn't anything to feel aside from that. Nothing told my fingers about the weird mark I saw there, a half inch across, solid black in the center and gradated into my pink skin at the edges. It was creepy, and I didn't understand how a mirror could leave a mark like that.
When I had seen the mark, I had dropped the mirror so fast I was not sure it was real. Fingers trembling slightly, I picked it back up and turned it over, my face becoming visible once again. Sure enough, the black mark was there, but the first time I looked I had only seen one, and then there were two. I felt panic rise in my chest. I was breathing fast and felt a little dizzy. 'Could I have just missed the second one, or did it show up just now?' I thought to myself. My mind was spinning and I realized I needed to be out of that small car.
I turned to open the door and I screamed as his face loomed in the window. I didn't know how long he had been watching me, but his eyes scrutinized my face, and as he saw the black marks, his face crumpled and he began to cry quietly. I climbed out of the car slowly, unsure of how to react. I had never seen a hint of vulnerability in him before, and here he was crying.
He turned his red rimmed eyes toward me and grabbed me gently by the shoulders. "There's something I should tell you" he whispered.
Well... since there were five prompts, I've decided I can squeeze them all into one post. Sorry Ginny... I decided randomly to pick all of you even though you were the one that won in the ACTUAL RANDOM number draw! ;)
The smog was thick in this part of the valley. So thick that you could taste it on the back of your tongue, acrid and bitter. My nose twitched as I tried to breath through it, a sneeze threatening to burst out. I held it back. With how aloof he was acting, I didn't dare make a noise.
I looked at him dubiously as he lifted the smoking hood. This was not good. One time in high school I did take shop class, but despite that fact, neither of us knew very much about engines and we were helplessly stranded, that was clear. The highway was crowded with cars, and there were apartments just 100 yards away. I was wondering why no one was stopping or why we weren't walking to a phone, but I wasn't about to ask.
To be honest, he scared me. A lot. Yes, I had been "with" him for more than a year, but I never could anticipate him, and he was getting worse. The last few weeks had brought, at first, brooding. I often watched him with his furrowed brow, and I wondered where his mind was. It was like he was looking through me through some severe memory. He had also started sleeping more and more in the day, but when he was awake, his brooding gradually turned into seething... like a pot of water just before it boils.
It wasn't even eleven and he'd already flipped out twice today. The first one was when he realized he'd forgotten his cell phone. He swore and clenched his teeth, and as he fumed I watched the wiry muscles up and down his arms twitching. I flinched in reaction. I don't know if it was my flinch or the fact that his cell phone was sitting on his nightstand, but he lost it. He bellowed something that seemed like another language and swung his fist, ripping the rear view mirror off the windshield. It flew across the car, hitting my face, and clattered to the floor. Holding my jaw and leaning my forehead against the window, I wished I could ball up some of those snowflakes that were falling outside and cool the throbbing I felt under my sweaty hand. He didn't even notice me crying. The second explosion was less severe, but the look in his eyes made me sure I was going to loose the cold lasagna that I had eaten for breakfast.
A horn on the freeway brought me back to the hissing engine in front of me. My jaw still ached and it was getting harder to move. I was just starting to wonder if it was broken when he shifted his weight and grunted. He stood up and looked at me for what seemed like the first time that day and, as he did, his eyes flicked toward my jaw and a look of horror crossed his face for a brief second, almost too fast to notice. Clearing his throat, he turned away and started pacing, kicking an empty applesauce cup out into the rush of cars.
As I watched him I wondered why he wasn't trying to get some help. Though my heart was pumping like a galloping horse, I finally worked up the courage to say something.
"So, ummmm... what's your plan?" I ventured timidly.
He stopped and glanced first at me and then at the nearby apartments. His eyes looked tight, strained and almost vexed. He didn't say anything. He simply turned around and walked around the car and dropped out of sight. I followed, my breath coming in little puffs as I walked around the car. He was sitting on the ground, staring at nothing.
Irritated and worried, I opened the door and climbed back in the car. I'd never seen him act so distraught. Enraged, yes. Exasperated, yes. Distraught and even confused, no. His confidence was one of the things that drew me to him and kept me here, despite his unpredictability. He felt like a shield between me and the life I second-guessed my way through. He always knew what to do.
My apprehension was getting the better of me as I sat back in my seat. We're totally freezing, but he acted like he had no desire to leave! I didn't get it. It seemed like he was praying that no one would stop or desperately trying to figure out a way to stay away from the apartments and anyone that might emerge from them. I couldn't understand what the problem was. So we were broken down!? Big deal! Let's pick an apartment, knock on a door and use the phone!
Pain flared in my jaw again as I realized I was grinding my teeth. With him safely outside the car, I reached for the rear view mirror to see if there was any visible marks on my face and, seeing the mirror gone, remembered it was on the floor somewhere. After a minute of groping, I found it, held it up to my face. The cold air seared my lungs as I gasped and dropped the mirror. 'That couldn't be right!' I thought wildly.
Gently, I brought my hand up where the mirror had hit me. I couldn't feel much since my hands were getting numb from the cold. But I could feel a lump. There wasn't anything to feel aside from that. Nothing told my fingers about the weird mark I saw there, a half inch across, solid black in the center and gradated into my pink skin at the edges. It was creepy, and I didn't understand how a mirror could leave a mark like that.
When I had seen the mark, I had dropped the mirror so fast I was not sure it was real. Fingers trembling slightly, I picked it back up and turned it over, my face becoming visible once again. Sure enough, the black mark was there, but the first time I looked I had only seen one, and then there were two. I felt panic rise in my chest. I was breathing fast and felt a little dizzy. 'Could I have just missed the second one, or did it show up just now?' I thought to myself. My mind was spinning and I realized I needed to be out of that small car.
I turned to open the door and I screamed as his face loomed in the window. I didn't know how long he had been watching me, but his eyes scrutinized my face, and as he saw the black marks, his face crumpled and he began to cry quietly. I climbed out of the car slowly, unsure of how to react. I had never seen a hint of vulnerability in him before, and here he was crying.
He turned his red rimmed eyes toward me and grabbed me gently by the shoulders. "There's something I should tell you" he whispered.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
What Can I Say!?
Three posts in one day?! Amazing.
No, really I'm just a sucker for a good Mortgage Company and a giveaway. My new pal, Elena, sent me to this company's site. They're giving away a free iPod! I want an iPod, but I also love a good Mortgage Company. I haven't had personal contact with them, but I have perused their website and I must say, I'm impressed. Options are good. If you're looking for a mortgage, you might want to check them out. They seem like a really cool and laid back group with integrity. So. Check it out, if you wish! :)
No, really I'm just a sucker for a good Mortgage Company and a giveaway. My new pal, Elena, sent me to this company's site. They're giving away a free iPod! I want an iPod, but I also love a good Mortgage Company. I haven't had personal contact with them, but I have perused their website and I must say, I'm impressed. Options are good. If you're looking for a mortgage, you might want to check them out. They seem like a really cool and laid back group with integrity. So. Check it out, if you wish! :)
Just For the Record...
I went to bed before 11:00 pm last night. I was so excited and wondered why I don't do that more often...
From The Jar... #28
Dude. I've only done 27 of these babies and I'm pretty sure the Jar holds 365 (or did when I started). I hope your in for it for the long haul cuz if I do these every week, correct me if I'm wrong, I'll be doing Wednesday Jar posts for seven years! Holy crap! I thought it was three for some reason. I'll be thirty-seven years old when I finish them! Mac will be fifteen, Ella will be thirteen and Rohan will be ten! Long haul indeed. I hope I'm in it for the long haul! Do you think I'll really have enough stuff to blog about for seven years, I mean aside from on Wednesdays? AHHHH!! I have to stop thinking about this now. It's hurting my brain. (did I mention SEVEN years? Dustin will be forty-two!!!!!!!!)
And the Jar says...
Did you go camping? Tell about experiences doing it.
Did I go camping? Ha! We were campers to the max! Well, maybe not the max... but we did it alot. I LOVED camping! I still love it, in fact, but I've found out that camping as a mom makes you a little more tired and grouchy than camping as a kid did.
We had this big tent... remember there were five of us kids. My dad called it "The Tent of Many Poles" and there were always swear words heard while trying to get this particular tent up. There were two main sets of poles that held up the very tall roof of this tent. These sets of poles would always come apart as you were trying to get it all looped in the right places. Finally, after several years of this silliness, my genius parents bought bungee cord and bungeed them all together. The swear words decreased significantly when this idea was brought to pass.
My mom was the coolest camper-mom ever. She had (still has, I think) a book called Roughing It Easy wherein you could read about numerous ways to camp, build fires, cook in non-traditional ways, food, recipes and a zillion other things to do with camping. This book had all these great cooking ideas... eggs cooked in a brown paper sack over the campfire, ash cakes (dough thrown on the ashes and cooked on them), a tin foil cookstove heated by the sun or the fire or something... details are vauge on some things, but the memory is clear about how cool my mom was and how fun it was to try all these neat things.
As soon as we arrived at our campsite, my dad would send us out in search of "Red". If you don't know what "Red" is when you're camping, I'll tell you. Red occurs on a pine tree when part or all of it has died and the needles are all crispy and have turned red instead of green. It's the best firestarter ever. It was always the coolest to go hunting for Red. I remember seeing huge trees where the top was covered in Red and I would wish so bad that I could get to it and bring it to my dad. I always hoped to find the big cache and be the "Red" hero for the trip. To this day, when I drive through a canyon, I find myself seeking out Red. The best Red is always at the top of those huge, unreachable trees. *Sigh*
My dad would sometimes bring his guitar and we'd sing around the campfire. Camping was elation in a bottle, or in a forest or desert as the case may be. My heart was always sad when it was time to leave and I always had a raging headache on the drive home. Still get that headache, in fact. Weird.
I always remember the phenomenon of campsite arrival. You get there and it doesn't look any different from the rest of the landscape, but as you pitch your tent, park your car, get all the coolers out all over the place, and set up camp the space begins to take shape and significance. It becomes familiar. It becomes home for those few days. I always marvel at this. I always look back at the site as we're leaving and remember just a day or two or three before when it all looked so foreign to me. As I'd watch it shrink out of sight I felt like I left a piece of my heart there in the forest because, for those few days, that was my home and I loved it.
Big Cottonwood Canyon, Hoop Lake, Flaming Gorge, Bear Lake area, Dillon Colorado, The Uintah Mountains, City of Rocks, Canyonlands, Moab, Lake Powell, Yellowstone, the Teton area and so many other sites that were before my awareness of our destination. I have been to some great places. It sounds cheesy, but my favorite place could be any of them, as long as I was with my family.
And the Jar says...
Did you go camping? Tell about experiences doing it.
Did I go camping? Ha! We were campers to the max! Well, maybe not the max... but we did it alot. I LOVED camping! I still love it, in fact, but I've found out that camping as a mom makes you a little more tired and grouchy than camping as a kid did.
We had this big tent... remember there were five of us kids. My dad called it "The Tent of Many Poles" and there were always swear words heard while trying to get this particular tent up. There were two main sets of poles that held up the very tall roof of this tent. These sets of poles would always come apart as you were trying to get it all looped in the right places. Finally, after several years of this silliness, my genius parents bought bungee cord and bungeed them all together. The swear words decreased significantly when this idea was brought to pass.
My mom was the coolest camper-mom ever. She had (still has, I think) a book called Roughing It Easy wherein you could read about numerous ways to camp, build fires, cook in non-traditional ways, food, recipes and a zillion other things to do with camping. This book had all these great cooking ideas... eggs cooked in a brown paper sack over the campfire, ash cakes (dough thrown on the ashes and cooked on them), a tin foil cookstove heated by the sun or the fire or something... details are vauge on some things, but the memory is clear about how cool my mom was and how fun it was to try all these neat things.
As soon as we arrived at our campsite, my dad would send us out in search of "Red". If you don't know what "Red" is when you're camping, I'll tell you. Red occurs on a pine tree when part or all of it has died and the needles are all crispy and have turned red instead of green. It's the best firestarter ever. It was always the coolest to go hunting for Red. I remember seeing huge trees where the top was covered in Red and I would wish so bad that I could get to it and bring it to my dad. I always hoped to find the big cache and be the "Red" hero for the trip. To this day, when I drive through a canyon, I find myself seeking out Red. The best Red is always at the top of those huge, unreachable trees. *Sigh*
My mom would make all sorts of awesome food. We kids would play non-stop. My memories of camping hold some of the most imaginative times of my childhood. My brothers and sisters and I would explore, pretend, laugh and sing. We were Red Sonja and Kalidor with our swords which were large sticks. We were hikers who got "lost" and would call for help. We would play in creeks with sticks, leaves, and rocks. 
We kids, camping above Flaming Gorge, UT. This happens to be the very trip we played Red Sonja on.
We kids, camping above Flaming Gorge, UT. This happens to be the very trip we played Red Sonja on. My dad would sometimes bring his guitar and we'd sing around the campfire. Camping was elation in a bottle, or in a forest or desert as the case may be. My heart was always sad when it was time to leave and I always had a raging headache on the drive home. Still get that headache, in fact. Weird.
I always remember the phenomenon of campsite arrival. You get there and it doesn't look any different from the rest of the landscape, but as you pitch your tent, park your car, get all the coolers out all over the place, and set up camp the space begins to take shape and significance. It becomes familiar. It becomes home for those few days. I always marvel at this. I always look back at the site as we're leaving and remember just a day or two or three before when it all looked so foreign to me. As I'd watch it shrink out of sight I felt like I left a piece of my heart there in the forest because, for those few days, that was my home and I loved it.
Big Cottonwood Canyon, Hoop Lake, Flaming Gorge, Bear Lake area, Dillon Colorado, The Uintah Mountains, City of Rocks, Canyonlands, Moab, Lake Powell, Yellowstone, the Teton area and so many other sites that were before my awareness of our destination. I have been to some great places. It sounds cheesy, but my favorite place could be any of them, as long as I was with my family.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Tue Pose a Question
Am I alone? No. I know I'm not alone, but for the last little while I've had a problem and I'm wondering if I'm alone in my problem... all by myself, standing in the wilderness with the wind blowing dust in my eyes, starving and thirsty. That was called melodrama, just now. My problem is really not such a big deal and it only plagues me occasionally. Like when I get dressed every morning.
Problem: I don't know what's cute anymore. My fashion sense has turned into a man and is lost in a car and refuses to stop and ask for directions. It's true that my fashion sense never has been sharpened like one of those GPS ladies. You know the one. "Make. A. Right. Turn. In. Three. Hundred. Yards." If I had that lady, she was telling me I passed the street... "You. Went. Too. Far. Make. A. U-Turn."
I have always been fairly laid back about fashion. Not too cutting edge. Simple and relaxed for the most part. Comfort is a large contributing factor, but I like to look like I care too. I don't know... I feel like I'm talking to a Doctor. Which reminds me... you should read my friend Larrie's blog. She's hilarious and I like tangents.
Anyway... this problem seems to have been coming for a year or so. Right now it's flaring up and it's rather debilitating. There is a little problem within the problem that I rarely want to spend any money on clothes. Hmmm...
I have new earrings though. I like them alot. Dustin gave me them for Christmas after he read my blog post. It's the "these" in the post in case you are wondering. I told you I like tangents. I am especially tangenty tonight and I think it's because I have headphones on. I stole Mac's MP3 player and I'm being pulled in every direction in this post as I sing along to Jack Johnson's Sing-alongs and Lullaby's from the Curious George soundtrack. Such a great bunch of songs.
Yes. Problem. Back on task. So... I was just wondering for my Tuesday question if anyone else feels this way. Is anyone else fashionally lost? Do you think it's because I turned thirty in August? I don't know.
I wish I had a spare allotment of cash each month and I could take my sister-in-law, Tricia, shopping with me. She's a chic, fashionista kind of girl... she's also a size 1 or 2 and wears tiny shoes... a size 6, I'm guessing. All shoes look cute when they're a size 6, don't you think?
Anyway. Enough rambling. This problem is only a big deal when I'm feeling vain, which is more than it should be, to be sure. I have lots of clothes that are perfectly fine. I am blessed and I'll stop my whining right now!
Problem: I don't know what's cute anymore. My fashion sense has turned into a man and is lost in a car and refuses to stop and ask for directions. It's true that my fashion sense never has been sharpened like one of those GPS ladies. You know the one. "Make. A. Right. Turn. In. Three. Hundred. Yards." If I had that lady, she was telling me I passed the street... "You. Went. Too. Far. Make. A. U-Turn."
I have always been fairly laid back about fashion. Not too cutting edge. Simple and relaxed for the most part. Comfort is a large contributing factor, but I like to look like I care too. I don't know... I feel like I'm talking to a Doctor. Which reminds me... you should read my friend Larrie's blog. She's hilarious and I like tangents.
Anyway... this problem seems to have been coming for a year or so. Right now it's flaring up and it's rather debilitating. There is a little problem within the problem that I rarely want to spend any money on clothes. Hmmm...
I have new earrings though. I like them alot. Dustin gave me them for Christmas after he read my blog post. It's the "these" in the post in case you are wondering. I told you I like tangents. I am especially tangenty tonight and I think it's because I have headphones on. I stole Mac's MP3 player and I'm being pulled in every direction in this post as I sing along to Jack Johnson's Sing-alongs and Lullaby's from the Curious George soundtrack. Such a great bunch of songs.
Yes. Problem. Back on task. So... I was just wondering for my Tuesday question if anyone else feels this way. Is anyone else fashionally lost? Do you think it's because I turned thirty in August? I don't know.
I wish I had a spare allotment of cash each month and I could take my sister-in-law, Tricia, shopping with me. She's a chic, fashionista kind of girl... she's also a size 1 or 2 and wears tiny shoes... a size 6, I'm guessing. All shoes look cute when they're a size 6, don't you think?
Anyway. Enough rambling. This problem is only a big deal when I'm feeling vain, which is more than it should be, to be sure. I have lots of clothes that are perfectly fine. I am blessed and I'll stop my whining right now!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Manic Monday: Sale
The word sale brings many random thoughts...
Random thought#1
I do love a good sale. I don't go shopping much, but it seems that whenever Old Navy has their clearance items at an additional 50% off the clearance price, I just happen to walk through their too-loud-and-obnoxious-music doors. I can't tell you how many good deals I've gotten during those sales. $3 shorts, $4 pants, $2 shirts... I always stock up for my kids for the next season (summer clothes on sale in fall or winter...etc.). I love spending $40 and getting ten or fifteen items of clothing!
Random thought #2
I'm looking forward to the purchase I just made at Mag's Etsy shop. She's got her goods for sale and I bought myself a very merry un-birthday present!!!
Random thought #3
I hate it when adorable foreign college students come knocking at my door in the summertime and give me their sales-pitch and try to get me to buy really "awesome" educational books for my kids... just $40 for one book or $400 for the whole sh'bang!!! Ugh. I hate saying no, but I sure do... every time. The last girl was from Estonia and I thought she was adorable. She was pretty and I thought I should hook her up with my little brother. She sold herself a whole lot better than she sold the books!
End of random sale thoughts. Whatever other random thoughts I had are now gone. That's all I've got for today and I keep not posting thinking something insightful or witty will come to me, but I'm letting that go. This is my post for this day.
The end.
Random thought#1
I do love a good sale. I don't go shopping much, but it seems that whenever Old Navy has their clearance items at an additional 50% off the clearance price, I just happen to walk through their too-loud-and-obnoxious-music doors. I can't tell you how many good deals I've gotten during those sales. $3 shorts, $4 pants, $2 shirts... I always stock up for my kids for the next season (summer clothes on sale in fall or winter...etc.). I love spending $40 and getting ten or fifteen items of clothing!
Random thought #2
I'm looking forward to the purchase I just made at Mag's Etsy shop. She's got her goods for sale and I bought myself a very merry un-birthday present!!!
Random thought #3
I hate it when adorable foreign college students come knocking at my door in the summertime and give me their sales-pitch and try to get me to buy really "awesome" educational books for my kids... just $40 for one book or $400 for the whole sh'bang!!! Ugh. I hate saying no, but I sure do... every time. The last girl was from Estonia and I thought she was adorable. She was pretty and I thought I should hook her up with my little brother. She sold herself a whole lot better than she sold the books!
End of random sale thoughts. Whatever other random thoughts I had are now gone. That's all I've got for today and I keep not posting thinking something insightful or witty will come to me, but I'm letting that go. This is my post for this day.
The end.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Friday Freebie
Here's some lovely pictures of Christ... the first one is my favorite. I love to see pictures of Jesus when he's smiling because that's how I like to think of him. Joyous! Check it out...
David Bowman: has had a passion for art ever since he could pick up a pencil. He loves creating images of the Savior that inspire and uplift. Along with his Christian fine art, David has also written and illustrated a series of scripture storybooks for children titled "Who's Your Hero". Check out his website at www.bowman-art.com to see more of his precious art.
"Innocence"
The Savior tells us we need to become as little children to inherit the kingdom of God. I've often wondered what it is about little children Jesus loves most, and I think its their innocence. They are clean slates, seeing the world and others through untarnished eyes. Their hearts are pure, without the baggage of cynicism and self-doubt. In this piece, I've tried to imagine how a child would act upon meeting the Master for the first time. Without reservation or inhibition, I think he would simply want to play with Him. He would be at complete ease, allowing his pure little heart to soak in the love and laughter of His pure, infinite heart. Its no wonder Christ delights in these little ones and sets them up to be our examples.
"Security"
One of the greatest human needs is a sense of security. In all aspects of life, we naturally gravitate towards anything that makes us feel safe. In this piece, I wanted to convey a sense of complete peace and calm like only the Savior can provide. It's a security that allows us to rest assured, without fear or worry, when we put ourselves trustingly in His arms. Little children have that inherent kind of trust in their parents, so it's fitting that the man and girl who modeled for "Security" are actually father and daughter. They generated
the exact feel I was looking for.
"My Child"
This piece conveys an intimate, up-close-and-personal feeling of the Savior's love. Notice how all the lines draw your attention and point towards Jesus' face in the center. I chose the name "My Child" because the only thing that could compare (even remotely) to Christ's compassion for us is the love of a parent for his/her child. This image is also intended to put things in perspective. Above all, we are God's children first. He allows us the privilege of experiencing parenthood for ourselves and we are entrusted to be the mothers and fathers of His children here on earth.
David Bowman: has had a passion for art ever since he could pick up a pencil. He loves creating images of the Savior that inspire and uplift. Along with his Christian fine art, David has also written and illustrated a series of scripture storybooks for children titled "Who's Your Hero". Check out his website at www.bowman-art.com to see more of his precious art.
"Innocence"The Savior tells us we need to become as little children to inherit the kingdom of God. I've often wondered what it is about little children Jesus loves most, and I think its their innocence. They are clean slates, seeing the world and others through untarnished eyes. Their hearts are pure, without the baggage of cynicism and self-doubt. In this piece, I've tried to imagine how a child would act upon meeting the Master for the first time. Without reservation or inhibition, I think he would simply want to play with Him. He would be at complete ease, allowing his pure little heart to soak in the love and laughter of His pure, infinite heart. Its no wonder Christ delights in these little ones and sets them up to be our examples.
"Security"One of the greatest human needs is a sense of security. In all aspects of life, we naturally gravitate towards anything that makes us feel safe. In this piece, I wanted to convey a sense of complete peace and calm like only the Savior can provide. It's a security that allows us to rest assured, without fear or worry, when we put ourselves trustingly in His arms. Little children have that inherent kind of trust in their parents, so it's fitting that the man and girl who modeled for "Security" are actually father and daughter. They generated
the exact feel I was looking for.
"My Child"This piece conveys an intimate, up-close-and-personal feeling of the Savior's love. Notice how all the lines draw your attention and point towards Jesus' face in the center. I chose the name "My Child" because the only thing that could compare (even remotely) to Christ's compassion for us is the love of a parent for his/her child. This image is also intended to put things in perspective. Above all, we are God's children first. He allows us the privilege of experiencing parenthood for ourselves and we are entrusted to be the mothers and fathers of His children here on earth.
Friday's Fabulous Five
This is the First Fabulous Friday of 2009 and it's off to a less than fabulous start! I had a horrible dream this morning wherein I was crying and crying and Dustin woke me up telling me 'It's ok!' because I was whimpering and crying while saying, "My heart! My heart hurts, my heart..." More on that later, perhaps. Ella woke us up at about 5am saying that she threw up on the floor. Mac has a fever and an incredibly sore throat and won't even eat, and Rohan has a mild fever!!! It's a party at Clancy's house! Anyone want to come over?
Despite all that, there is so much fabulousness I can hardly stand it...
1- Dustin is home for the eleventh day in a row, and we still have the weekend! :) YAY! I love it! Monday will be brutal for me... school for my kids and Dustin at work again, but that's ok! I LOVE having my husband around. Especially after his long working out of town months!
2- We had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's. I love being with family more than I love anything on this green (or white) earth.
3- We have plugs, lights, sheetrock and the first two coats of mud on my kid's room. It's so sad to me that they haven't had beds for as long as they have, but soon, their rooms will be done and they will sleep in a sqishy bed once more!
4- My wonderful Grandma Carol gave me and all of her grandchildren a gift a few days ago. Bless her. I have been missing her an extra-lot, and she reached out and said hello. It's absolutely amazing how someone can bless your life long after they leave this earth.
5- Ella is the nicest little sick person a mom could ever hope for. (not that a mom hopes for sick kids, but when they come, life's a little easier if they aren't whining all the time!) She's so sweet. She hardly complains and is happy to just lay on the couch, be sick, and watch a movie. Love that kid.
Despite all that, there is so much fabulousness I can hardly stand it...
1- Dustin is home for the eleventh day in a row, and we still have the weekend! :) YAY! I love it! Monday will be brutal for me... school for my kids and Dustin at work again, but that's ok! I LOVE having my husband around. Especially after his long working out of town months!
2- We had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's. I love being with family more than I love anything on this green (or white) earth.
3- We have plugs, lights, sheetrock and the first two coats of mud on my kid's room. It's so sad to me that they haven't had beds for as long as they have, but soon, their rooms will be done and they will sleep in a sqishy bed once more!
4- My wonderful Grandma Carol gave me and all of her grandchildren a gift a few days ago. Bless her. I have been missing her an extra-lot, and she reached out and said hello. It's absolutely amazing how someone can bless your life long after they leave this earth.
5- Ella is the nicest little sick person a mom could ever hope for. (not that a mom hopes for sick kids, but when they come, life's a little easier if they aren't whining all the time!) She's so sweet. She hardly complains and is happy to just lay on the couch, be sick, and watch a movie. Love that kid.
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