Fall 2010 in Review

• Project lead in an upgrade at work
• My mom in hospital 3 weeks (ICU 2 weeks)
• One 30 page paper on the transgender population
• Husband grew a beautiful garden
• Myriad of other assignments
• New cute nephew
• Anemia
• Elder's Quorum secretary
• Lots of reading As a Man Thinketh
• Funeral for an excellent grandmother
• Fall and Christmas parties for hundreds of people
• Hundreds of pages of textbooks read
• Husband worked on basement bedroom
• Not enough games of solitaire
• Son B class president
• Internship
• Week in Arizona
• Fire drills for Son A
• Best spaghetti sauce ever
• Son B wrote a 30 page book
• Daughter and Son A made waffles from scratch
• Excellent report cards Son B
• Funeral for a wonderful grandfather
• Shorts everyday for Son A
• Homemade car, bank teller station, and Mighty Mug Hot Chocolate Shop from daughter
• Son B finished all the Percy Jackson series
• Surprise lunch dates at Crown Burger
• Son A finished Diary of a Wimpy Kid series
• Lots of wacky bus drivers
• An 3.9 GPA
• A husband who kept us all on track
• 2 beta fish
• 2 beta fish burials
• Working TV
• Despicable Me
• Cafe Rio with sisters
• Lots of stomach aches from daughter
• Very little sleep
• Lots of caffeine
• Lots and lots of blessings

Pac-Man and Other Gospel Truths

I just love Family Home Evening. Especially because no matter how awesome you planned the lesson, you never know how it will turn out.

Take last night, for instance. Darin had a great lesson: evidences of God. We started by listing (or drawing) ways we know that God exists. We all went around the table and explained. Darin was last, and explained, among other things, the water cycle. The water cycle (rain, lakes, evaporation, etc) is so perfect, it would be hard to believe that it happened without a God. He went on to explain other cycles that are perfect in nature.

My last-born son, demonstrating that he understood this concept of perfect cycles and the existence of God, mentioned how it's like Pac-man (the bad one, not the good one). Pac-man eats things. If we let him eat too many things, he'll eat the Holy Ghost.

Um, yeah. So we ended and called it a night.

Over It

So last night, one hour into my almost 6 hours of classes, with watery, blood shot eyes, I wondered:

WHY DID I QUIT CAFFEINE AGAIN?

And I couldn't come up with an answer.

So I had a Diet Coke.

The End.

(I made it 5 days.)

See no Sugar, Eat no Sugar

So I'm trying the no-sugar-no-caffeine diet again.

image from myyearwithoutblogspot.com/2008_04_01

Wish me luck.

My Life

full time job

part time internship

part time graduate school

four church callings

three kids

two cats

one husband

sometimes life's greatest challenges are also the greatest blessings

Life...

It's so hard sometimes, no?

Yesterday these kiddos went back to school. Why was that so sad? Why do they have to grow up anyway?
Life is also good, though. Yesterday for FHE we talked about this picture:

Somehow, our discussion went from the blessings of the sacrament, to "would we act differently if the Savior was with us?" to "the Savior is always with us - through prayer" to "You can pray anytime, anywhere, for any reason."

And isn't that great?

Manic Monday

A few things happened today:

1. The train engine died on my way to work. Boo.

2. Two mice in the last week were caught in the office right next to mine. Double Boo.

3. The vending machine candy went from 90 cents to 1 dollar. Boo Hoo. I refuse to spend a dollar on a peanut butter Twix.

Here's my Five:
1. I still wasn't late to work. Yay!
2. There are no mouse "tracks" (aka poo) in my office. I checked all my drawers. Double yay!
3. I could use some cutting back in the vending machine department. Yay?
4. FHE tonight: going to the unveiling of the Utah Jazz jerseys. Go Jazz!
5. My internship people gave me LOTS of work today! I can't wait to get started (and finished!). Sigh of relief...

cRaZy bUs

I have a new favorite bus driver. I think he's crazy, but that's what makes it fun.
It's not the fizzy long hair that's sort of in a pony tail that I like.
It's not the way he turns corners at lightening speed, either.
It's not even the way he's lead-footed on the brakes at red lights.

No, it's his love affair with the speaker that makes me laugh.

He has a quiet, mumbling, barely audible, rambling voice, but he uses it whenever he can.

He wishes every passenger getting off a nice summer ("Have-a-nice-summer-Have-a-nice-summer-Have-a-nice-summer-Have-a-nice-summer-Have-a-nice-summer").

He plays tour guide to downtown Salt Lake City ("Coming-up-on-your-left-is-Wells-Fargo-across-the-street-is-the-copy-shop-then-there-is-that-hotel").

He even forecasts what's going to happen next ("As-soon-as-the-light-turns-green-we-will-go-straight-at-about-40-miles-per-hour-I-suspect").

Other passengers roll their eyes and start furiously texting. Or they turn up the volume on their IPOD and fake sleep. Or they watch Star Trek on their laptop.

But me, I smile.

Have a nice summer.

Easy as Pie Monday Five

1. I made the BEST looking turkey pot pie for dinner last night. The crust didn't taste great, but my boys raved and raved anyway. It made my day. (Yes - I'm choosing to ignore what my daughter said about it.)

2. Truly - it had a little turkey pie crust cookie on top. And little heart pie crust cookies around the turkey.

3. And the pie crust was from scratch even.

4. I love cooking.

5. And the Lagoon trail. We went twice over the weekend.

Count Your Many Blessings

Hi,

Yesterday my car wouldn't move after work. It started up just fine, but wouldn't shift out of park. I called my Knight in Shining Armor and he said he'd be right over to pick me up.

In the meantime, I went back into my office and did what any person would do under the circumstances: asked my facebook friends for advice. The response: "um, walk."

So I did the next best thing: I listened to BYU radio (yes - I was listening to BYU radio while at the UofU. My son thought I was a traitor).

I searched for a talk on happiness (because I absolutely wasn't happy at that time), and came up with a talk by Jeffry Larson, and the basic gist of it was to lower your expectations, quit being a perfectionist, and count your blessings. Whatever.

Once I got home, life resumed as normal: fighting kids, my daughter's phone broke, lost some homework assignment, basically a rotten night. After reading scriptures as a family, we decided to count our blessings. It was actually quite fun. After listing a few, my son kept mentioning his name as a blessing (because he is a blessing, you know). He kept saying it over and over. Then the rest of the kids did the same.

And you know what? They are right.

My Five:
1. Fresh cucumbers from the garden. My lunch today consists of a cucumber and salt. Mmmm.
2. My Knight in Shining Armor.
3. The three kiddos. My boys waited up until I was done getting ready for bed last night because they forgot to give me a hug goodnight, and they know I LOVE them to give me a hug goodnight.
4. My boys for giving flowers to their sister to help her feel better.
5. An alternative form of transportation to get to work: the train.

Gone Fishin'

Darin took the kids fishing yesterday. This is the summary I got when the kids got home. They saw:

25 cows
6 deer
1 black bear

But no fish :(

My Five:

1. The black bear didn't see my kids (they were in the car on their way back)
2. My brave daughter: she got her first set of stitches the other day. On the bottom of her foot no less. And she still went fishing yesterday!
3. My morning walk. I decided not to run. Walking is so much more enjoyable.
4. Brian Tracy wisdom. That guy is smart.
5. The book on tape that makes me like my commute: The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. So far it is SO good.

Overwhelmed

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed. This is one of those times.

Even though my life isn't busier than it normally is.

Aaaaahhhhhh!


My Five:
1. My daily salad. I am so much like my mother that way: I need my greens.
2. Hair cuts: mine and my boys.
3. Lindsay Lohan is out of jail (kidding - just seeing if you are paying attention)
4. My brother Ed. It was his birthday yesterday. He truly is such a great guy, and I'm lucky to be his sister.
5. My sister Jess. She's moved to Ohio, and who knows when I'll see her again. Love you Jess!

Feel the Burn, Love the Burn

I didn't wake up at 5 this morning and run, like I usually do. Instead, I hit snooze and dreamt that I watched a Jennifer Aniston workout video. She wore a black rain poncho over her denim frayed miniskirt (to keep modest when bending), and worked out at Red Butte Gardens. She did all of three shakey squats, bent down to rub her ankle, and said, "I love the burn you feel after doing squats."

Then I woke up.

My Five:

1. Water, water, water. To drink, to swim in, to clean with.

2. Blogging. I'm glad I'm back into it.

3. My son, who provided my desk with new art: a pencil drawing of various Hero Factory Lego guys.

4. Chocolate. Even though I haven't had any for a disturgingly long amount of time. Hmmm.

5. It's Friday!

The Mom/Woman/Worker Bee Mantra

Call me a nerd/awesome human being/weirdo, but I'm always looking for ways to be better/smarter/skinnier. One thing I hear over and over is to say self affirmations - positive words to yourself. If you say/write/think positive sayings over and over, they will come true. Actually, if you say/write/think negative things over and over, they also will come true. But let's stick with the positive.

I have never found/made up a self affirmation statement that I liked as much as this one. I got it from Hannah Keeley's website. The trick is to say/write/think it as many times as you can, with positive emotions (i.e. excitement). At least that's what the books/websites/CD's I've read/watched/listened to have said. I'm gonna try it - so watch out world!

Here it is, for you to enjoy/mock/learn from:

I am blessed beyond belief.
I am beautiful beyond compare.
I have the greatest career on earth and I will perform it to the best of my God-given ability,
With gratitude, not grumbling;
With determination, not defeat.
I will rise to every challenge.
I will overcome every obstacle.
I will be productive and positive with every moment and minute I am given.
My words will bless;
My actions will build;
My thoughts will empower;
And my life, my family, and my home will be abundantly blessed as a result.
I am strong enough, smart enough, and creative enough to squeeze every bit of juice out of this ripe, delicious day.

Yes - I think the last sentence is corny, too. But the rest is great, no?

My Five:

1. Pea pods and baby carrots. Part of this delicious lunch.
2. Graham crackers and peanut. See number one.
3. Diet Coke - only because I have a THREE hour meeting this afternoon. THREE HOURS! I'm NOT grateful for that, but thankfully, Diet Coke will help me.
4. My daughter's back. Thanks to my sister for giving her fun, work and excitement for three days. She slept like a log last night. I missed her, and am glad she's back.
5. Tomorrow is Friday!

Throwing Blueberries and Other Sports

So last night was family night. Without every member of the family, though. My daughter is staying with my sister for a few days and I miss her terribly. Her brothers, on the other hand, are enjoying the girl-free time (read about it here).

But I digress. We decided to go take a walk in the park and visit the library for FHE. A nice, pleasant walk, right? To see the ducks, enjoy nature, spend quality time together. Enjoy each other's company. Enjoy some leisure time. You get the picture.

But did you know that the city park has juniper berries and wild blueberry bushes? Neither did I until I got a blueberry thrown down my shirt. And my son had a juniper berry bounce off his head. Soon, we had an all out war. Picture two adults and two boys frantically picking berries and thowing them at each other. First everyone was against Dad (he started it, after all). Then adults vs. kids. Then every man (and mom) for themself. Eventually I had to call it to a halt because I realized I was wearing a white shirt.

The four of us, sweaty and laughing, then headed off to the library for some culture. There are no wild berries in the library.

What has been your favorite FHE?

My Five:

1. Families
2. Meetings are over for the day.
3. Our FHE treat: berry jello (notice a theme?)
4. No stains on my white shirt.
5. Journals.

Movies seen and missed

Hi,

Hope you all had a great 24th of July holiday. I know we did.

It started out by going on a double date with my sister and her husband. We sneaked Blizzards into the theater, left our kids home with their kids (and there were no broken bones - just a broken laundry holder), and saw Inception. The most I got out of it was that Leonardo De Caprio looks like my brother in law. Except my brother in law looks better.

Then we went to see Despicable Me, but long story short - we only made it to the curb of the movie theater before ruining the kids life and going home.

Anyway, have you seen any good movies lately?

My Five:

1. A double date!

2. Dinner at Red Robin with the kids. We're not that mean of parents, after all. It was my first time going, and I really liked my fish and chips.

3. I. Am. Not. Tired. Seriously. It must have been my iron, because now I'm taking supplements. I even tried to take a nap yesterday afternoon, and didn't fall asleep. Instead I closed my eyes on the couch and enjoyed snuggling with my husband.

4. Snuggling with my husband.

5. Artwork from my kids. My daughter made the cutest flower out of pipe cleaner and sprayed it with perfume so it smelled like a flower. It came with a note apologizing for using my perfume.

Got Cats?

Another guest post by my blog partner:

this is my cat we have two cats and we got them a couple of years ago.

and this is my cat again and she is very playful.

Success

What's your definition of a successful day? When I was a stay at home mom, it was clean counters and the laundry done. I knew with three toddlers the floor would never be clean, but the counters I had control of.

At work, the definition varies. Sometimes I judge a successful day by the amount of problems I find. For example, yesterday, a report I ran printed in wingding font. A problem! Yesterday was a success. One week I kept track of all the problems I found: 16. Success!

Sometimes I judge success by how many problems I solve. If that's the case, yesterday was also a success (never got the wingding problem figured out, but solved a few others). Today would be a complete failure, though.

Sometimes if I just stay awake, it's a successful day. Failed today, then, too.

But the day is not over. Maybe the wingding problem will get solved today. Success!

What's your definition of a successful day?

My 5 for today:

1. The third and fourth floor balconies of my building. Lately they accommodate my naps when I take my breaks.

2. Finally a doctors appointment tomorrow! I'll figure out why I'm so tired. And cold. I'm freezing lately.

3. A homework-free three day weekend. What a treat.

4. Darin, who patiently waits it out when I give him the silent treatment. Patience is a great quality.

5. This talk. I love Henry B. Eyring.

success!

If I Were a Rich Woman

I'm on my lunch break and watching Fiddler on the Roof while I blog. I'm talented like that. I blame it on the Dr. Pepper. Which I blame on the tiredness. Which I haven't figured out yet. Why am I so tired? I've gone to bed at 8:30 the last two nights in a row and am still tired.

But no matter, what matters now is that Zidel is engaged to her sewing-machine-wanting lover instead of the old, ugly butcher. That's what matters: love. I love Fiddler on the Roof.

Here are my Five for Today:

1. My walks in the mornings.

2. Todays salad: beets, mozzarella cheese, lettuce, raisins, croutons, chives, and a homemade balsamic vinegar dressing. I wouldn't say it goes great with the Dr. P, but - wait a minute - EVERYTHING goes great with Dr. P - what am I thinking?

3. Cheesy musicals, including but not limited to: Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, and the High School Musical series. Also VeggieTales.

4. A three-day weekend.

5. Taking a nap in the sun. (I tried that before I succombed to the Dr. P. It didn't help, but I still enjoyed it.)

back from fishing

My son is guest posting today:

this is me burping.

i am holding some of my grandpa's fish that he caught

this is a picture of the lake that we fished in

Gotta Hurry - I'm on Break

1. Cherries

2. Watermelon (or Wa-Wa-Melon as my toddlers used to say)

3. Speaking of toddlers and saying things - one of mine used to say "decor-recor-recor-ation" whenever he was asked to say decoration. It's one of my favorite words now.

4. Fresca - my non-caffeine fix

5. Cough drops. I think I'm getting a cold.

It's About Time!

I'm back, but only for my sister Jess. You see, for five short months she worked in my office, and we spent nearly every lunch break together.


She quit.


For a good reason, really: her and her husband are headed to Ohio soon for medical school. And because I am going to miss her, and I have my lunch breaks to myself, I will blog so she knows what's going on here in Utah.


Plus, it's good for me to remember to be thankful for 5 things a day. So here are my 5 for today:


1. Salad fresh from the garden, peas fresh from the garden, grilled chicken breast, Ranch dressing and fiber buds (trust me - they are sooo good on salads!). That's today's lunch. I am thankful today for my daily salad.


2. My family. I just love my husband and kids. And thanks to my sister for taking our family pictures!


3. Another class finished! I need to finish my current summer class, and then I only have 4 more to go until graduation! It's within sight!


4. Books on tape. Sure makes the long commute better.


5. Fresh flowers.


Here are more family picts. You enjoy them while I enjoy my Ranch-covered fiber buds...

Technologically Challenged

I know, I know: I work with computers all day. My JOB is to work with technology. ALL day. I'm great at it, too. Promise.

So the other day, when my pay-as-you-go phone didn't work, I thought all the minutes must have been used up. I charged it. Still didn't work. I waited a couple of days. Still didn't work. I didn't know how to pay for more hours, so I did what any loving parent would do: gave it to one of my kids. After all, the best thing next to a real, working phone, is an old, non-working phone. Right? Shortly thereafter I went to work, taking Darin's phone with me.

And then I got a TEXT MESSAGE!!!

...From my son!

A) HOW DID HE GET MY BROKEN PHONE TO WORK?

B) WHERE DID HE LEARN TO TEXT? (Not from me...)

And then he called. To tell me the phone works after all.

What Has Become of Me?

A: I no longer blog a lot

B (and most importantly): I put a picture of a cat as my screensaver at work.

I don't even know myself anymore...

Slow Learner...

Seriously, I just learned that I can change the font type on my blog, and the size and the color.

To Celebrate, here's my 5:

1. Color

2. Innocent questions, like "Mom, does the prophet say we can't give wedgies?"

3. The scarves I got for Christmas.

4. Taylor Swift music (sorry Darin..and sons....)

5. This