Can't believe its the last week of July!
My talk on the pioneers went pretty well...not my best, but acceptable. Very glad its over! I really like writing talks, but delivery is getting harder and harder as I get older. I feel so nervous and like I can't catch my breath. But, so far, I don't think anyone in the congregation can notice.
Had a great afternoon yesterday at the new and improved Elm Creek Park playground. Gideon and his buddy and Christy and hers and I, along with pb&j's, apples, pretzels and homemade pickles.....and my knitting :) Yeah, love knitting outside at the park. It was a perfect day...warm, but breezy...great in the shade. And really what summer is all about. I'm glad we could finally have a day like that.
Great dinner last night. I'm trying to have us eat healthier and also trying to bring something new to the table. I found a recipe in Debbie Macombers Cedar Cove Cookbook. It was bowtie pasta with white beans, roasted peppers, garlic and spinach, with a splash of balsamic vinegar at the end, and a parmesan cheese sprinkle. And I roasted the peppers myself (which was really cool, btw). It was a little time intensive, but delicious.
What's for Dinner
Heading out to dinner tonight with my dear friends of 18 years, Anna and Emily, so the fam is having:
frozen pizza. (So, sue me...the healthy lasted one day). They are excited...which I'm trying to not let hurt my feelings :)
Today
Gid's buddy Josh is here all day, regular housework day, driving sister missionaries around for awhile, dinner with my friends.
Have a Blessed Day...be a blessing in someone else's life!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Friday, July 22, 2011
Friday Night Lights
Made it to Friday!! A good day...wrote my talk on the pioneers and focused on three pioneer spirit qualities: hope, courage and the spirit of inclusion. It's maybe a seven on the scale. Have some time to mull and hopefully improve it.
I went shopping with Gabby for Girls Camp. I love spending one-on-one time with Gabby. She is a joy. And she finished driver's ed...will try for her permit the Monday after camp. oy vay
Gideon's first baseball tournement game was tonight. He got a hit and a run!! I was so happy for his success. Christy is babysitting for the first time outside of home tonight. The eighteen month old is asleep so she is just needed to do is literally sit, so I let her. I'm four an a half minutes away. I timed it. Why is everyone growing up so quickly?
Dropped of six bags of donation to Goodwill today. I take bag after bag out of here and yet there is still too much here????? Why??!!!?? Oh well, progress not perfection.
Mother Moment today...Allie wrote about her feelings about Gabby on her blog. Very wonderful.
Dinner was leftover Stouffers Lasagne (thanks Grandpa!).
And the best thing about the weekend is......... Tomorrow I get RYKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ryker is my nephew, Adam's son...therefore, my great nephew...which works cuz I am a GREAT Aunt!! haha. He is seven months old and perfect and I get him overnight!!!!!!! We are soooooo excited!! And Christy gets a crash course in Diaper Changing 101.
Have a Blessed Day...be a blessing in someone else's life!
I went shopping with Gabby for Girls Camp. I love spending one-on-one time with Gabby. She is a joy. And she finished driver's ed...will try for her permit the Monday after camp. oy vay
Gideon's first baseball tournement game was tonight. He got a hit and a run!! I was so happy for his success. Christy is babysitting for the first time outside of home tonight. The eighteen month old is asleep so she is just needed to do is literally sit, so I let her. I'm four an a half minutes away. I timed it. Why is everyone growing up so quickly?
Dropped of six bags of donation to Goodwill today. I take bag after bag out of here and yet there is still too much here????? Why??!!!?? Oh well, progress not perfection.
Mother Moment today...Allie wrote about her feelings about Gabby on her blog. Very wonderful.
Dinner was leftover Stouffers Lasagne (thanks Grandpa!).
And the best thing about the weekend is......... Tomorrow I get RYKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ryker is my nephew, Adam's son...therefore, my great nephew...which works cuz I am a GREAT Aunt!! haha. He is seven months old and perfect and I get him overnight!!!!!!! We are soooooo excited!! And Christy gets a crash course in Diaper Changing 101.
Have a Blessed Day...be a blessing in someone else's life!
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Hump Day
Nothing interesting today. Still too hot and humid. Still working on upstairs. Nothing new and/or amazing on this ol' hump day. Sorry, dear readers.
What's for Dinner
Chicken stir fry
Today
drivers ed, cub scouts, watching a friends two little ones, Young Womens (youth group), soccer game that we desparately hope is cancelled. (Baseball tourney was indeed postponed til this weekend). Laundry, the great bedroom re-do.
What's for Dinner
Chicken stir fry
Today
drivers ed, cub scouts, watching a friends two little ones, Young Womens (youth group), soccer game that we desparately hope is cancelled. (Baseball tourney was indeed postponed til this weekend). Laundry, the great bedroom re-do.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Comment on Comments
I love all the comments...I really, really do!! But....I can't figure out how to comment on your comment yet. So...comment-ors: Know I love and appreciate you and I'll try to figure it out!
Life in the jungle continues. There is condensation on the doors and windows (like reverse of winter) and my glasses fog up when I walk out the door or get out of the car in my mad-dash towards indoors. Here is why I like winter more than summer:
1. you can always put on another layer when you are cold
ie., sweater or blanket
2. you cannot keep peeling off layers until you are comfortable when you are hot
ie., you can't walk around naked and my layers of subcutaneous fat are unfortunately
unpeelable (believe me...I've tried!).
3. I don't shovel, so I don't know the pain of snow, but I do water the garden and weed, etc., so I know
the pain of heat.
But, it's all good...our A/C holds on, God Bless It!
So, I'm still working on Christmas...spent some time yesterday scouring Etsy.com for ideas. I think I got some cute ones. I'd share them here, but some of you are on my Christmas list and alas, I would like you to be surprised.
I've been asked to speak in Sacrament Meeting on Sunday. Pioneer Day, don't cha know. Topic: "Faith out our Fathers." I'm in my "think about while procrastinating" phase of talk writing. Prayers appreciated.
What's for Dinner
Alas (wow...i'm really alas-ing today), the taco salad of last night was not meant to be. Circumstances changed and I got backed up. I did stick to theme, however, and brought home Taco Bell. I try.
Tonight it's gonna be chicken salad sandwhiches. I put up (as in pressure-can) chicken breasts and it's so wonderful to just pop open a jar (looks likes brains) and add some onion, ranch dressing and maybe a grape or two. It's really delicious, everyone loves it and it won't heat up the kitchen tonight.
Today
Driver's Ed, lunch with my good friends Cheri and Debbie from AZ, extensive work on the much neglected bedrooms of this house, laundry, friend Rebecca coming over to discuss homeschooling, and Gideon's first baseball tournement game...which I hope they just go ahead and play instead of cancel and reschedule because my SOUL needs baseball to be done, complete, over this week.!!!!!
Have a blessed day...be a blessing in someone else's life!
Monday, July 18, 2011
Seriously...we live in the Amazon...seriously
It's crazy hot and humid...which I despise...but my garden loves!! My deck is a jungle. So much so that I feel totally claustrophobic out there and which doesnt' matter cuz it's too hot to be out there anyway. But, its a lovely and sunny day!
I went Visiting Teaching this morning. For those not of my faith, our womens organzition at church, the Relief Society, is organized by companionships, two sisters, who look out for the needs of two or three other sisters, by visiting atleast once a month to share a spiritual message, and fellowshipping them always. It's a nice way to look out for one another and some of my most cherished friendships have come from my visiting teaching assignments. The gal I visited today (I went alone, as my companion is just about to have a baby) is a wonderful young mother with the three cutest little children. I so enjoyed sitting on her couch, surround by toys and children and noise. It brought back memories of those days in my life...constant motion is how I recall it. So, while I went to strengthen her, I left edified. Isn't it great how the Lord works? It's impossible to serve without being served in return.
What's for dinner?
Since the lettuce in the kitchen garden is insane because of the jungle weather, its Taco Salad tonight!
Today
For Gabby, it's driver's ed (last week, hurrah!) and a party with friends in Andover (thankfully found someone to carpool with). Gideon conned Grandpa (meaning cute-ly asked) into a trip to Walmart to spend his birthday money on Lego Harry Potter for the Wii. He's had the money for awhile, but I wanted him to wait a week or so to make sure that's how he wanted to spend his $30 and to teach delayed gratification, which is not something I'm good at or been so good at teaching. He'll get to play it a few hours this afternoon since it's the first day and then only half hour a day from here on. He says he fully understands, so...we'll see. Then tonight it's the Art Show for last week's art lessons. Circus theme, so the kids have to share any "freak show" talents they have...and of course my kids have some. Christy will bend her thumb all the way back (gross) and Gideon plans to share the peculiar noises he can make with various parts of his body. I made him show me all of them, and the worst has to do with arm pits, so I'm just letting him glory in his abilities. Gabby is showing some of her AMAZING photography at the show too. Michele Holcomb is a gifted and talented artist and teacher!
Have a blessed day...be a blessing in someone else's life!
I went Visiting Teaching this morning. For those not of my faith, our womens organzition at church, the Relief Society, is organized by companionships, two sisters, who look out for the needs of two or three other sisters, by visiting atleast once a month to share a spiritual message, and fellowshipping them always. It's a nice way to look out for one another and some of my most cherished friendships have come from my visiting teaching assignments. The gal I visited today (I went alone, as my companion is just about to have a baby) is a wonderful young mother with the three cutest little children. I so enjoyed sitting on her couch, surround by toys and children and noise. It brought back memories of those days in my life...constant motion is how I recall it. So, while I went to strengthen her, I left edified. Isn't it great how the Lord works? It's impossible to serve without being served in return.
What's for dinner?
Since the lettuce in the kitchen garden is insane because of the jungle weather, its Taco Salad tonight!
Today
For Gabby, it's driver's ed (last week, hurrah!) and a party with friends in Andover (thankfully found someone to carpool with). Gideon conned Grandpa (meaning cute-ly asked) into a trip to Walmart to spend his birthday money on Lego Harry Potter for the Wii. He's had the money for awhile, but I wanted him to wait a week or so to make sure that's how he wanted to spend his $30 and to teach delayed gratification, which is not something I'm good at or been so good at teaching. He'll get to play it a few hours this afternoon since it's the first day and then only half hour a day from here on. He says he fully understands, so...we'll see. Then tonight it's the Art Show for last week's art lessons. Circus theme, so the kids have to share any "freak show" talents they have...and of course my kids have some. Christy will bend her thumb all the way back (gross) and Gideon plans to share the peculiar noises he can make with various parts of his body. I made him show me all of them, and the worst has to do with arm pits, so I'm just letting him glory in his abilities. Gabby is showing some of her AMAZING photography at the show too. Michele Holcomb is a gifted and talented artist and teacher!
Have a blessed day...be a blessing in someone else's life!
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Beautiful Sabbath Day
From the inside of my air conditioned house, it is a beautiful Sabbath Day...outside it is the climate of the jungle. ugh...but I'm so very grateful for the air conditioned church in which I will be spending the afternoon! My heart goes out more and more to the pioneers and the hardships they endured...I'd be hard pressed to go to church without the A/C.
I teach the nine year olds at church. They are a great bunch of kids and they are deep in my heart. I have a great team teacher, Rebecca, but today is my turn. We are discussing the Savior's parable of the sheep and the goats, Matthew 25. Great lessons about the just and final judgement which awaits us all, as well as the value of a service-filled life. It's a great parable, that's for sure.
What's for Dinner
Crock pot Sunday and it's the famous recipe from my friend, Jill Brown, "Creamy Chicken Over Noodles". A family favorite and super super easy. (Thawed chicken breasts, cream of chicken soup, sour cream and a packet of dry onion soup mix served over egg noodles). It will be nice to come into our blessed air conditioning and have that ready when we get home from church.
Today
Choir practice this morning (Gabby is the new choir pianist!!!), Church from 1-4, family dinner and then Family Movie Night. On Sunday evenings we rotate who chooses a movie for our family to watch together. Last week Christy chose "Secretariat," which was awesome. Tonight it's Gabby' turn. It's always a surprise. No baking cookies or brownies tonight...too HOT...icecream or popcicles it is.
Have a blessed day...be a blessing in someone else's life.
I teach the nine year olds at church. They are a great bunch of kids and they are deep in my heart. I have a great team teacher, Rebecca, but today is my turn. We are discussing the Savior's parable of the sheep and the goats, Matthew 25. Great lessons about the just and final judgement which awaits us all, as well as the value of a service-filled life. It's a great parable, that's for sure.
What's for Dinner
Crock pot Sunday and it's the famous recipe from my friend, Jill Brown, "Creamy Chicken Over Noodles". A family favorite and super super easy. (Thawed chicken breasts, cream of chicken soup, sour cream and a packet of dry onion soup mix served over egg noodles). It will be nice to come into our blessed air conditioning and have that ready when we get home from church.
Today
Choir practice this morning (Gabby is the new choir pianist!!!), Church from 1-4, family dinner and then Family Movie Night. On Sunday evenings we rotate who chooses a movie for our family to watch together. Last week Christy chose "Secretariat," which was awesome. Tonight it's Gabby' turn. It's always a surprise. No baking cookies or brownies tonight...too HOT...icecream or popcicles it is.
Have a blessed day...be a blessing in someone else's life.
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