4/4 time

No, I'm not starting my own marching band. I just have awesome in-laws who know how much my family likes to dress up.

Although I do like a good marching band. Could be that I was drum major in high school. Betcha didn't know that lil' tidbit, did ya?

Just imagine big white hat with a plume, and white go go boots.

Oh yeah, it was awesome.

Sorry, I, um, don't, um, have any pictures of myself in that get up. That's right, no clue where any are. *ahem*

Oh, and can I just say how glad I am that blogger is finally working? For a week we couldn't log out of Kate's account, so I couldn't post. And before that it was losing my posts. Hopefully everything is all worked out.

Cuz I sure missed you all!

Sore

This last weekend, I got the bright idea to ask my brother if he wanted to hike Mt. Si with me.

I've hiked little Si, which is about a 4 mile round trip and it has it's fair share of steepness and fatigue inducing trail but it has plenty of areas that are level so that you can catch your breath.

Mt. Si is 4 miles up and 4 miles back down. But the up part is literally like climbing 4 miles worth of stairs. I exaggerate not.

But I figured I could handle it. I knew it would be hard, but I've lost 30 pounds, I've been running and weight training some so I thought I was up for the challenge.

I didn't really factor in the fact that Keno climbed Mt. Rainier and is really more like a mountain goat when it comes to stamina and speed. And his two oldest boys who went with us are exactly like him.

So imagine me, huffing and puffy, legs burning, while they patiently wait up ahead and/or slow down for me.

There were several times that I gave serious thought to quitting and telling them I would wait for them in the truck. But I couldn't lose face with my brother or my nephews and everytime I would consider quitting, I'd see the mile markers that told me I was that much closer.

Eventually my breathing and my heart rate evened out, and just my legs felt like jello, but I pressed on.

And of course, my brother and his sons are super scouts so they used the, "It's just up ahead, I promise." line on me for about a mile. It worked though, and I made it.

And when I reached the top, this is what our view was.



It was pretty cloudy so it's not as breathtaking as I imagine it is on clear days. But to give you perspective, that town you see is 20 miles away.

Yeah, we were up pretty high.

It has an elevation climb of 3700 feet. And like I said, it's like being on a stair climber for 4 miles.

And for the next two days it hurt to walk down stairs or to sit or stand or pretty much exist.

But it was totally worth it. And now my goal is to increase my speed a little and not breathe so loudly on the way up.

We'll see. But for now I feel pretty good about my accomplishment. And when it did get really hard I just kept repeating over and over in my mind, "I can do hard things."

Yes I can.

Little Ears/Big Ears

Many a year ago, when my oldest two children were starting to get, well, older, I began to switch the type of music we listened to.


I had never loved country music, but as I listened to the words and lyrics I really had to think twice about what was going into my precious, innocent girls' ears.


That was about 10 years ago and I have never looked back. We are fed on a steady diet of Disney music, LDS artists and country.


But lately I have been noticing a shift even in country music. It's more subtle as it's mixed in with banjos, fiddles and words about country roads and tractors.


But it really hit home the other day when Henry was singing the following words from a song currently on the radio:


"Country girls shake it for me girls, shake it for me girls, shake it for me."


And then in the McDonald's bathroom on Saturday he was singing a Tim McGraw song, that goes something like, "I wanna go crazy, wanna go crazy with you!"


So if we think that our 4 year olds aren't internalizing and apparently memorizing the words to the songs they hear, then we are living in a fantasy world.


And then I thought of my 9 year old son, and of course my older girls (Nora is still oblivious).

Do I want Charlie thinking girls should shake it? Or do I want my older girls thinking that boys want them to shake it? NO!!!


Not to mention the amount of songs that are slowly showing up talking about one night rodeo's and such.


So if country music is slowly failing me, what is left? Bach? Mozart? I've never been much of a classical music fan. I like good beats and fun songs. Does that mean we're left only with Disney and LDS/christian artists?


I think it does.


Am I unrealistic? Yes. And I like it that way. My kids are inundated daily with bad language, bad music, skimpy clothing and immoral behavior. So they are getting their dose of reality. I can't protect them from everything (which is a big argument from parents who say that anything goes).


But I don't have to invite it into my car or home. Our kids need a place where their minds, bodies and spirits can rest from the world.


And I'm not going to forbid their personal tastes in music. That only backfires on people. But I don't want to be the one introducing it to them, you know?


So it looks like I will be setting my radio dial to Radio Disney and classical stations and what we have on our Ipod.


I think this will be good for me too. I mean, I don't want to think about country girls shaking it either, now do I?

I had a post disappear. I've never had that happen before. Blogger was acting super weird, and then my post from yesterday was just gone.

Anyone else have this happen to them before? It makes me nervous.

averted

Julia came to me yesterday with Nora in hand and said the dreaded words, "Nora cut her hair!"

I have been fretting that this day would come. It seems that all of my children are drawn to cutting their own hair.

In panic I looked her over, waiting to see the missing chunks of soft blonde hair.

But quickly Julia put me out of my misery. "I caught her right away, so she only cut her bangs a little."

Biggest sigh of relief ever!

Now I know it's just hair. But it's pretty, fluffy, blonde Nora hair. And it would make me cry.

Just as it was pretty, fluffy Kate, Julia, Anne Marie, Charlie hair. And I was so sad about them as well.

So thankfully, Nora just has a new angle to her bangs. I told Jeff I thought she was trying to give herself a mullet.

Ponytails still work, with a little help from a barrette. But luckily, we are both happy about it.

aaahhhh

When Henry was born, I called these two my bookends. They both had red hair, and they were my first and last child. Or at least I thought that until a little blondy named Nora showed up:)

They both have very similiar personalities. They are very sweet and tender, but HILARIOUS! They surprise me constantly with the funny, quirky things they say and do.

Finding them like this when Jeff and I got home from a date the other night just confirmed to me that I am the luckiest mom in the world.

I really feel that as long as my children love and adore eachother and us, that life is more full of joy than I could have ever imagined.

I'm grateful that my children bring me joy. And as I'm cleaning and scrubbing and wiping chocolate off of faces I repeat that thought over and over in my head.

What brings you joy?

In the meantime

A while back I was invited to be an instructor for a workshop being offered on a wide variety of do it yourself type stuff.

Presenters ranged from repurposing furniture(me) to photoshop, starting a business from home, refashioning your wardrobe as well as a wide variety of make and take classes.

The workshop was postponed, but not before I found this awesome 5 dollar 1950's kitchen chair at goodwill that I had planned on showcasing in my class and then giving away.

(this picture is mid take apart after I realized I should probably have a before picture.


You get the picture though. Ugly vinyl, goldish metal.

But I had a vision for it. Oh yes I did.

Part of my class was to teach people that anyone can do great things with old or outdated furniture and do it for little money and little time. Usually.

I am not a perfectionist when it comes to the things I redo. I don't have time for perfection. I have time for good enough and get it done.

So this afternoon I got the make something over bug. Since I have to wait on my bedroom, I decided to tackle the chair. Even though I now won't be teaching a class or giving the chair away. But it added some spice to my afternoon for sure.

I started by unscrewing the seat and back. I didn't bother taking the old fabric off because if the padding was questionable (which it probably was) I didn't want to spend time or money replacing it. So I just left the old vinyl on and recovered it.

I used the scraps left over from my laminated cotton table cloth which I talked about here. And I just used a staple gun to staple the edges of the fabric.

(Sorry, I don't have midway pictures)

I then spray painted the chair with Krylon Blue Ocean Breeze.

When the chair was all dry, I screwed the seat and chair back onto the chair frame.

And voila!!

It's pretty amazing what some left over paint and fabric can do. I just like looking at it. It makes me happy.

Sorry this isn't a real tutorial. Mostly cuz I just kind of made it up as I went. But that's the way I roll.

I just like to get stuff done within a relatively short amount of time from start to finish.

Mostly it works out cuz I'm not concerned with it being perfect. And it doesn't have to be to be beautiful.

Sort of successful

So Nora is well on her way to being toilet trained. Well, sort of. We have the peeing in the toilet down.

She stays dry all night.

But for some reason, we have not been that successful at the all important pooing in the toilet.

I'm trying to not stress about it. Just let her go at her own pace. But I'm also kind of super ready to have number 2 be a breeze.

But at least I did not have to buy diapers for the first time in 13 years. That's certainly something to celebrate, don't ya think?

Moving on

So I have realized finally, that the headboard and master bedroom I labored on over a year ago, just have to go.

I still think it's lovely, but it's just not me. At the time I had found some ideas for these elegant, do it yourself bedrooms that I thought I wanted.

But lets face it, I am not elegant. And I don't feel badly about it, so don't feel bad for me.

I am more eclectic, quirky, beach cottage-y and bright.

And so the headboard and curtains must go.

I already have them listed on Craigslist and I'm sure they will make someone who is elegant, very happy.

But I will be using the money from their sale to purchase a white wrought iron bed. I will be moving some things around the house and creating a bedroom that's more me.

The grey walls will be gone, and when I'm done, I will reveal it all to you.

It will be a little while because I must sell things to fund this project, but I am all in a tizzy with excitment. Brimming with ideas for the bedroom I should have created a year ago.

Yes, to answer your question, it is quite crazy in my head sometimes.

More ideas than I could ever fulfill, constantly switching things around to ease my quickly bored brain.

Luckily I am married to the most patient and supportive man on the planet.

He probably is able to be that way because he doesn't attempt to try and get inside my head to figure out what in the world I am thinking.

It's a good thing too. I think it would cause insanity in some people.

So if you're looking for a lovely blue fabric tufted headboard with 4 matching curtains, let me know. You'll be a doing a public service by helping me get passed my latest craze more quickly.

Oh, and the sun is shining today! Yippee!!!!

Ending my internet silence

I have been quiet this week. Not because I didn't have things to say or blog about, but because in the busy-ness and happiness of my life the blog kind of slipped down to the bottom of my priorities.

It happens occasionally.

But so many great things happened this week. So many wonderful moments of learning and joy in the blessings I have been given.

One of those moments was coming down the stairs and beholding this completely unposed picture. A genuine moment of love between a brother and a sister.



I actually almost cried when I saw this. Not because love and affection doesn't happen between them, because it does. But because their obvious comfort in being with eachother was almost more than my mother's heart could bear.

Another set of unbelievable moments came during a field trip that I chaperoned for Charlie's class. He was so happy that I was there. And on the bus ride, as he sat across the aisle from me with his friend, he held my hand. Across the aisle!

Which meant that everyone could see him holding his mother's hand. And he didn't care!

Granted, they're third graders, but he is a boy. And I've always worried that he would grow out of showing me affection in public before his sisters.

But as I left to go home, I asked him to give me a kiss. He hesitated for a moment because in our family my kids and I all kiss on the lips. And I knew he didn't want to do that in public, so instead he kissed me on the cheek. In front of his friends!

Holding my son's hand and him kissing me are still high up there in the blissful department.

The third thing was Time Out for Women. This is a two day event where about 2500 women gather to listen to inspirational talks, music and general uplifting.

I went with my mom and sister, which was a blast all in itself, but I came home renewed and refocused on what is most important in my life.

A few things I realized for myself:

Lately I've been feeling selfish. Thinking things like "is this all my life is meant to be? Folding clothes and doing dishes?" And I was feeling more and more discontent, as if there was something bigger and better out there for me than being "just" a stay at home mom.

Now if you know me, being at home with my kids has always been my dream, my goal, my ultimate ambition. So for me to feel out of sorts about it was weird.

But I really felt the spirit as I sat listening to some talks. The talks weren't specifically about motherhood, but they touched my soul in a way that reminded me that I am doing what I've always wanted to do, and I've always loved it. And that external forces (could it be Satan?) have been at work trying to convince me that I shouldn't be happy in my current situation.

Well, bye bye stupid thoughts. I am back in the game, and so grateful that I am a mom, and that my life revolves around serving my family. Even if that means a lot of laundry and dishes!

The other thing that really stuck with me was a quote by C.S. Lewis. It's pretty self explanatory. But after hearing it, I've had to do some real soul searching as to who I REALLY am. Especially when it comes to the way I react to my children sometimes.

Enjoy. And have fun examining your own reactions to life.



“We begin to notice, besides our particular sinful acts, our sinfulness; begin to be alarmed not only about what we do, but about what we are. This may sound rather difficult, so I will try to make it clear from my own case. When I come to my evening prayers and try to reckon up the sins of the day, nine times out of ten the most obvious one is some sin against charity; I have sulked or snapped or sneered or snubbed or stormed. And the excuse that immediately springs to my mind is that the provocation was so sudden and unexpected: I was caught off my guard, I had not time to collect myself. Now that may be an extenuating circumstance as regards those particular acts: they would obviously be worse if they had been deliberate and premeditated. On the other hand, surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of a man he is? Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth? If there are rats in a cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats: it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way the suddenness of the provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man: it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am. The rats are always there in the cellar, but if you go in shouting and noisily they will have taken cover before you switch on the light.”

C.S. Lewis