A New Look

I was having a particularly trying day last week, and of course told Rob all about it that night.

The low point came when it was time to pick up Emma from school and the little girls did not want to come without shoes on. In spite of the fact that it is literally around the corner, and I was driving there, so shoes were really not necessary. Hannah finally found a matching pair she liked, but Sabrina could only find one of every shoe she has. Hannah put her shoes on the wrong feet, but at least she was ready to go. I finally handed Sabrina a pair of dress up shoes and said, “just wear these.” As soon as Hannah saw that, she had to have dress up shoes too.

“Mom! I don’t want these shoes! I want dress up shoes!”

“No, Hannah. You already have shoes on, I’m not going to look for dress up shoes right now.”

“Mom! I don’t want these shoes!” Wailing and flailing of limbs follows.

“You can look when we get back. Let’s go!”

Hannah is following behind me and Sabrina in bare feet repeatedly yelling, “I want princess shoes!” with tears and stomping as we head through the garage to the van. Sabrina slips and loses her shoe. “Gwass Swipper” she wimpers and starts to cry. Do you think I enjoyed the irony of her losing her glass slipper just like Cinderella? nope. I started my angry Mom voice.

“That’s it! Nobody is wearing any shoes.” And I pick up Sabrina, take her other shoe off and throw it on the ground next to the one that just fell off.

I buckle the girls in their seats while muttering to myself, and we drive the two blocks to the school. Both girls are crying and yelling out various things regarding their shoes, and I am seething. Emma isn’t quite out yet, so we wait a few minutes while the screaming continues and I start telling myself to calm down so I can be pleasant to Emma when she gets in the van. After all, it isn’t her fault. I manage to calm down and be normal to Emma and we have a brief exchange about her day while trying to ignore the noise behind us.

As soon as we pull in the driveway, I inform Hannah and Sabrina that they are both going straight up to their beds for naps, and there will be no stories. I walk them to their beds, watch them get in and close the doors to more screaming. I hear Hannah yell, “Mommy is so mean today!” And I say to myself, “That’s right, and I don’t feel bad about it…”

The next morning Rob gave me strict orders not to look at any emails from Amazon, and then on Mother’s Day I found out why. He ordered me a new camera lens. I’m not sure what it was about my experience that motivated him to get it, but I have been trying it out, and just love it. Maybe he knew I would be taking pictures of the kids and hoped I would remember why I love them so much. So here are some samples. I think I take pictures the same way I was before, but this lens makes them look better. Not sure why or how, but it’s cool:

What are your comfort items?

I have a friend who needs some cheering up. She has had many difficult circumstances in her life and does not have much money to support her family. She is a single mother with sons ranging in age from 13-28. Her home is small and she doesn’t have extra money for luxuries. I, along with my parents and siblings, have been raising money to surprise her with some things for her home that will help her feel more relaxed and comfortable. We raised almost $400.00 and I don’t know how to spend it. What would you want someone to surprise you with? I was thinking along the lines of the same things you would give for a wedding shower. Many of her possessions are hand-me-downs and I have already bought some fluffy bath towels, mixing bowls with heavy duty spatulas, and drinking glasses. I have been donated some nice picture frames, a wicker basket, books and toys (for her toddler grandson that visits her on weekends), a large area rug, and I’m working on finishing up a quilt with my mom in cheerful blue, yellow and white colors. I’d like to do what is most helpful but would have to spoil the surprise to find out what she can use. Should I do gift cards for the boys and her to Target or a grocery store? Would cash be better so she could spend it where she picks? I just don’t want her to spend it all on practicalities because the idea is to offer her some visual comforts and bit of luxury in her home. All ideas are welcome!!

Totally Ready Clearance Sale

There is a clearance sale going on now at Totally Ready. Everything in the store is 25% off. Here are some of my favorite deals:

Adult Executive Kit

A ton of stuff for less than $100.00

Child A+ Kit

Everything a child needs for just over $50.00

Ten Light Sticks

We use these all the time for ordinary power outages

School Kit

Even if your school doesn’t require kits, these are great mini one-day kits for the car or if your budget is tight.

Introspection

I have felt a bit like a leaf in the wind this week; Blown around by the will of the wind, feeling like life is out of my control as it continually blows me one direction when I clearly want to go another. I think I usually do pretty well at going with the flow, but at other times I feel a need for a clear purpose and get so frustrated when the plans I make for myself are upset.

As I’m trying to pull myself out of my blogging slump, and my emotional somberness, I have been searching for a topic that is relevant to my current situation. Only, I just can’t seem to decide what my current situation is. Lack of motivation? Loss of interest? Generally overwhelmed? Selfishness? Stubbornness? Impatience? Rebellion?… So I thought I would look back on the General Conference just before Hunter was born. I’m not sure why, but I wondered if I might remember some of those things that inspired me before I entered into motherhood. I am still a bit lost, and this week I hope to get back on track by being more diligent in my scripture study. That is one thing I haven’t done much of, if any (wince), lately and I can feel that I have lost the guidance of the spirit that comes from it.

This talk struck a chord with me, I’m not really sure how to process it yet, but I thought I would share:

The Time to Prepare – Joseph B Wirthlin

…It has been said that “life is such a precious gift, it should be guarded from needless dilution. . . . ‘Each day is not just another day but more like a falling drop of water, a golden moment of life’s span adding to an increasingly rich pool of living.'”
Indecision can immobilize or paralyze us, hindering our preparation in mortality. We can become like the people of Nineveh whom the Lord described to Jonah as “persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand.” The Apostle James observed that “a double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” An old Swiss saying describes such indecision in these words:

With one foot in,
with one foot out,
You can’t be in,
you can’t be out–
Not warm, not cold,
not square, not round,
More poor than poor
and always bound.
For such a man
will never know
where to begin
or where to go.

We cannot be double minded in our relationships with husband or wife, parents or children. Are we going to savor the enjoyment of our children after they are a little older and we are not so busy? What about the valued friendships that fade because of the thoughtful, lengthy letters we plan to write but never finish and send? Are we faithful in going to our temples regularly? Consider the books we are going to read, the impulses to kindness we are going to act upon, and the good causes we are going to espouse. Are we always packing our bags with the things we value most in life but never leave on the trip? Does tomorrow never come? Let us resolve to begin to live today–not tomorrow, but today–this hour while we yet have time.

We know that death is a necessary transition. It will come sooner or later to each of us. Our mortal bodies will return to earth, and our spirits will return to the spirit world. By virtue of the Savior’s atoning sacrifice, we all will be resurrected. Each of us will stand before the judgment bar of the great Jehovah and be rewarded according to our deeds in mortality.

If we make every earthly decision with this judgment in mind, we will have used our mortal probation wisely and its days will give us peace in this life and eternal life in the world to come.

My Second Birthday

I was lucky enough to have two birthday celebrations this year. One at my parents’ house with Erica and her kids, (and also lunch with Grandpa and Dorothy.) And another party at home with the kids and Rob. It was a great one, thanks everybody!

Cub Scouts? Really?

Recently I was asked to be an assistant den leader for Hunter’s Bear den. I don’t know how it happened, but I accepted and I have the shirt to prove it. We just received six new boys and that boosts our numbers up to eight. At the last den meeting we discussed finances, and figured out how much it costs to feed a family (“Stop poking that… Now divide the total you spent on your meal by the number of … hey, are you listening?… people in your family.”), how to look for a new car (“I want the pickup truck” “How many people are in your family?” “Five.” “That would only work if some of you rode in the back.” “Okay!”), and played “Monopoly Junior” to practice our entrepreneurial skills (“But I wanted to be green!”.)

At the last pack meeting we had a Raingutter Regatta where the boys raced their wooden boats; And at our next pack meeting we will have the infamous Pinewood Derby. Hunter has a plan for making an awesome car. So now I have figured out the difference between a den meeting and a pack meeting, and I mostly understand how the Achievements work. The Arrow points and Belt loops are still a bit mysterious, but with the help of MaryAnne the seasoned scout leader, I should be up to speed soon.

Pirates from Grammar Island

Hunter’s class put on a play called Pirates of Grammar Island. It was very fun to see all of the kids talking and singing about all of the different parts of speech. Hunter was one of the imperative pirates, so he liked to order people around. My favorite line was when the other imperative said to Hunter, “don’t put carrots in your nose!” and of course Hunter had a nice orange carrot to stick in his nose for that part. Believe me, since doing this play we have all been more aware of the imperatives being barked out in our house –especially by Mom and Dad.