A New Way to say I LOVE YOU

These are my toes.

Brett's artwork.

Weekend Weather Report

Whoever said that tornadoes don't touch down in UT very often haven't been to my house.

I'm pretty sure that they touch down EVERY weekend here.

So, here I am. Monday morning, and I'm dealing with the aftermath. Lucky for me - my kids and my husband weren't hurt. We're all in one piece. Well, I'm not really in one piece - I think one can only deal with so many tornadoes before they fall into piece(s).

Here's to holding it together.

Maybe I should put an ad in the newspaper for some serious super glue.

or

Maybe I should have a talk with the weather man. Maybe he could help.

My Husband, My Friend

It's midnight.

I'm sitting in the front room watching Survivor on the computer with Brett.

He's so handsome.

He is in the line of sight for the computer.

So, really I am watching my husband, and Survivor is in the background.

Brett and I have been through a lot with each other. We spent many nights in a hospital room early in our marriage fighting for Ryan's life. We were each other's lifeline. I guess we still are.

Following our fight with Ryan, we supported each other. Together we had another child. A beautiful baby girl.

We parent together, always discussing how we can better our family's relationship, meaning ourselves and our kids. We are responsible for their raising, and our relationship with each other.

We've been misunderstood. Both of us.

That which doesn't kill you makes you stronger right?

I love Brett. I love that he tells it like it is. You never have to guess where he's coming from. You always know, even if you don't want to know :).

He makes me laugh. I've said that before I know, but he does. If I weren't so darned sensitive, I'd laugh a lot more.

I love that Brett gives everything his ALL. He is a great leader for youth. He is a great father. He comes home from work every day, and every day he plays with the kids. He reads with them, gives them baths.

There is never a question as to who will watch the kids if I need to go somewhere. It is a given that he will take the kids, and I know I can trust that they will be well taken care of.

He's my friend. A true friend. I love that.

Deep Thoughts not by Jack Handy....by me

I have a lot on my mind tonight so I'm just going to share it. After all, this is my blog, and I write to express myself. So, there you have it.

- A kid is a loser until it is one of your own. Then he or she is a child that has made some bad choices. I can't get that off my mind. I have thought so much about the kids around the neighborhood that in a previous state of my mind I would have called losers. Heck, I was probably a loser once, but then deep down I was just a young lady who made some super poor choices, needing to be accepted. That's what we all want right? To be accepted.

- I love the spiritual enlightenment given by Elder David Bednar regarding being offended. It is a choice you know. It's hard sometimes not to be offended. I've had my share of experiences, but for sure it is a choice. When we consciously choose NOT to be offended, it's amazing the peace that can be found in our lives.

- Spring is almost here! I can look out my window and see the beautiful orange breasted birds peck at the berries on our flowering pear tree. Dang they make a mess, but man are they beautiful.

- Why is it that some people can just get out on the road and run? I like to think I can do the same but dang it, my hip hurts this week. Makes me want to swear. Of course if I did that I wouldn't feel any better about my hip hurting. I'm pretty sure that swear words don't take away pain.

- I love living where I live. Another view out my window: snow capped mountains. Breathtaking.

- Good friends are extremely hard to come by. A good friend is one that you can pick up where you left off, no matter how long it has been since you have seen them last. I have a few of those. Thanks Erin, Emily,Jolayne, and Danille....to name a few.

- I love my kids. I love that they love each other. Today Sydney hit a milestone. Two whole weeks with only ONE night accident. We rewarded her with HS Musical's Wii game. We've had it for a long time, it's been in the closet. Both Ryan and Sydney sang to their hearts content. It was classic, and they unlocked ALL of the songs. They were so proud.

A Tribute

I would like to pay tribute to one said miracle...

Bone Marrow

Dear Bone Marrow

While you may be taken for granted by some, and not known by others, you are a special lifeline for our family.

Eight years ago, you were harvested from my hip (and ever so painful might I add), modified by sheep's blood, and then infused into my miracle of a son,

You gave us a little scare, but allowed us to trust in God and have faith that you would come through for us.

You have proven that you are accountable. You are accountable for saving a life, and creating cells that build immunity to all of the illnesses that come our way.

You has proven over time that there is joy to be had, and that miracles do happen.

So, on this day of reflection, I say Thank you to the doctors and nurses at Children's Hospital Los Angeles who helped us find you.

I say thank you to those who came before who,through you, paved the way for our family.

I give hope to those who are still fighting the disease of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Syndrome.

Of course I would be ungrateful if I left out the creator of all things.

So, I Thank our Heavenly Father for allowing us to have Ryan, and for allowing us to learn and grow through the process of a Bone Marrow Transplant.

We have been blessed. There is purpose in life, and whether or not we always feel that way, we know that Ryan has a purpose here and we are ever so grateful that he is in our home.

Happy Birthday Bone Marrow. Happy Birthday.

Fire vs. Water

Fire vs. Water
By Ryan Berger

(Fire and Water are the only people on earth.)

Fire loved France, speaking French and art. Water on the other hand, liked putting out fire in fire land.

One day Fire and Water went on a walk. Then they met on a corner. "Bonjure madamonzelle" exclaimed Fire.

"I'm not a girl you weirdo," yelled Water. "Stop talking or I..." "Will put you out like the others."

Fire got so mad and scared he made more little fire guys and ran to his little home.

Then he thought of an idea. If fire could scare water away into a creek he would be trapped. No that's too hard. So he thought and thought. Then he had an idea! The idea was...To turn into the sun and vaporize him. That was a better idea.

So as usual they met at the corner. So Fire turned into the sun and Water said "Noooo!!! I'm melting!" And in five seconds he was gone. Fire restored everybody in fire land.

The End

50 LB Celebration - Skin n Bones

The other day I heard a "Woo Hoo" coming from the bathroom.

Then I heard a "Hey Mom - I've finally hit 50 lbs"

After which I heard, "I bet it's just muscle."

To which I replied, "I'm sure it is muscle son."

Then I heard - "Yeah, that's the nice thing about skin and bones. When you gain weight, it's just muscle."

To which I thought "Must be nice." (As the top of my muffin is overflowing)

Over or Under

Since it is an unspoken rule around my house that I am the only one that can change out the toilet paper roll, I just thought I'd pose the question...

Does the toilet paper go Over or Under?

If you don't know...

It's UNDER.

Now you know. Don't be scared to change it out. It's really not that hard, and it is much appreciated by most tell-them-how-to-wear-their-pants(ers). (We're called that because we don't wear the pants in the family. We just tell them how to wear them)

Me...on life

I realized the other night that there are MANY jobs in this world that I would NOT like. One would be working in the Lab at a hospital. Yes, I could sort through blood samples to see what, if any, problem there might be. It's the stool samples that I couldn't handle. It's one thing to take care of your own family. You know, changing your own kids' diapers, cleaning up your own child's mess, but others? Nope. Actually, I could probably clean up another person, it's the 'sorting through' that I don't suppose I could stomach.

Yesterday I went on the bicycle maiden voyage of 2009. Ahh, it was nice to get back on the bike. It was a slow ride, -- I was along side Sydney the first time out, and Ryan the next time out.

I wondered while out in the beautiful weather just why life isn't fair.

Why isn't it fair you ask?

Well, when a boy/man rides a bike, his 'package' is protected up front. When a girl/woman rides a bike, she sits right on top of her 'package'. Well, what there is of a package. Thus causing quite an uncomfortable ride, not only on her tail bone, but on ahem...that too. Padding just isn't enough.

So, to you men out there that just get on the bike and ride....

Next time you straddle the saddle, try tucking your tail (you know what I mean) between your legs and have a seat. ride around the block and be thankful that you don't have to ride that way each time you go out.

More installments later....

Noble Women

Today my cup was filled. Sometimes it just seems to dump itself on the counter and spread onto the floor, but today it was refilled.

I went to an Enrichment on temples, and then Cherie Call, an LDS music artist shared her talents. Both women that addressed us were amazing. It was an experience that Cherie spoke of that I would like to dedicate this post.

She talked of a time that she found out that one of her ancestors was on the Mayflower. She wanted to know more about this woman. She wanted to know if she was like her. She talked of how her mother used to iron everything, and how she was NOT going to be like that. Then she found herself ironing her her jeans and t-shirts while in college. When she started asking around, she learned that the women in her family used to iron clothes to make money. So, this ironing had been passed from generation to generation.

As she told her story, I started thinking about the women in my life that I could readily trace back. What was it about me that could be traced back to things that have been done for generations. I haven't talked to anyone, but I can see things that I do in my life that were done by my mom, that were learned by my grandmother. I can only imagine that these things were learned perhaps from my great grandmother.

For example, I learned to cook from my mom and my grandma. I am thankful to each of these women for the skills that they taught me. Both my mom and my grandma sew. I don't suppose I will ever be like my mom or my grandma with my sewing skills. My mom can do anything, but when we were shipped puppets the day before Halloween instead of a Halloween costume, I had to use my sewing skills to make Ryan a Pirate Costume. It wasn't the Jack Sparrow that we had ordered, but Ryan loved it and was proud to say that it was hand made. I attribute this to my mom. It was something she would have done. I wouldn't have been without a costume. Matter of fact, because of a George Washington coat she made for my brother when he was a young boy, I had a Pirate's coat for Jack Sparrow.

I remember bottling vegetables and fruit with my grandma as a kid. This is something that I love to do today. I am so blessed to be able to have these skills.

I have noble women in my family. Women of faith. Women who make something out of nothing to provide for their families. Women that I hope that one day I will be more like.

Thank you Mom and Grandma Bowers for helping to mold me to who I am today.

Angels

It has been said that Angels minister to mortals on earth. Just recently in a conference address Elder Jeffrey R Holland spoke of just that.

He stated that "God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face".

This week I have thought a lot about the Angels that are here. They may be in the form of a smile from someone, even a cashier at a grocery store. They may be in the form of a neighbor looking out for you.

Tonight I experienced an angel in my home. Sydney is very sick. She has fought a fever all day, along with aches and pains. Ryan was her angel. He has been so concerned that she is not ok. I have shared his concern, but the fact that he wants to eat by her bedside to make sure she doesn't get worse shows his angelic nature.

I have felt the Angelic spirit of my sister recently. I haven't been able to get her off my mind for the past couple of days and it makes me weepy. I put the CD of her funeral in and I heard an angel sing. Thank you Jamilyn Slade for your angelic voice. I have always loved it. I remember as a child I just wanted to grow up and sing like Jamilyn. Now I hardly even sing for people.

I remember the day after Azure returned to heaven we were in Sacrament Meeting. I don't know that it was a good idea to go to church that day. I'm not sure we got too much of the messages. I recall Tiffani Martineau leading the music. I don't know that we were fair to her. We couldn't even sing for the abundance of tears that were shed. Thank you Tiffani for being able to get through those songs with us on the front row.

I guess we needed the angels of Heber, AZ that day.

Sometimes it is hard to look around at what is going on and realize that there are angels seen and unseen.

Sydney has not been feeling well for a while. She is having some sort of stomach trouble. I have an appointment for her on Friday to hopefully find out what the problem is. I pray for angels to watch over her. I pray for her doctors that they may use their knowledge to get to the bottom of her ailments....angels.

Parent Projects

I've decided that I'm not a fan of projects that the kids have to do for school.

Today Sydney was supposed to go to school with 100 'things' on her shirt. Goodbye to the baggies of marshmallows, cheerios, etc. Now they want stuff attached to a shirt. Brett's idea was to actually write '100 THINGS' on a piece of paper and attach it to her shirt. Clever. I actually decided that we would make a necklace that has 100 things on it. I read somewhere that some parents were gluing popcorn kernels on shirts, or 100 pennies, etc. My friend had the idea of safety pins on a shirt. I had a bazillion of those, so I decided we would string them on as a necklace. That took much less time than actually 'pinning' them on. Except that when I went to put the necklace on Syd I dropped one end and 1/2 of the pins went scattering so I had to re-string them.

At Christmas the kids were supposed to come to school dressed as elves for elf day. Luckily for me I had some scrap fabric that I could put a little costume together. What do parents do that can't sew? Stimulate the economy?

The school is having a contest tomorrow too. Each grade has a 'theme' for Valentine boxes. Sydney's is Nursery Rhymes, and Ryan's is Simple Machines. I had a bright idea late last night that we could make a Wheel Barrow for Ryan. That is a Simple Machine. He informed me this morning that his teacher told them that if their box looked like a Simple Machine, they wouldn't win, but if it had a Simple Machine 'in' it they might win. I highly doubt we will win. We never do. This is project is more for parents than it is for the kids. It is something that Ryan really wants to do though. He has his vision. I just don't know that I can help him execute it.

I'd like to be in on the "bright idea" meetings that the teachers have so that I can offer a 'parent' perspective. I have two kids. What the heck to people do that have more than two--those that have 4 or 5 or more, all in different grades.

I'm an A/B

Ok, I know what you're thinking....however, I'm not talking about my bra size here. I only wish I was that...

I'm talking about my personality.

I've been reading some running books. I checked 3 out of the library. I always like to get multiple opinions on what I need to be doing. When I read several opinions, I can take what is consistent and usually make it work for me. Consistency usually means that it is more than an opinion - it's usually facts from studies that have been conducted.

Anyway.

All of the books have talked about people with Type A personalities that don't warm-up/cool-down after a run. Hmm, I think I'm a little 'A' here. I've read so much about Type A personalities that I started searching the Internet to see what it was that made a person have a 'Type A' personality. Well, there were quizzes to be taken. So I took one.

I found that I a middle of the packer. I tend to be a middle of the packer in many things. I'm not great, but I'm not at the bottom of the totem either.

Now you know. I'm an A/B trying to become more of a B when it comes to warm-ups and cool-downs so that I don't pay my physical therapists next mortgage.

Blessed

I have been so blessed to have a good family.

Tonight I made stew for dinner. Actually it was more like lunch as we get out of church at 12pm and we ate around 2:30.

We went to a meeting at the church and when we got home I had some leftovers. They were so good. I was reminded of the stew that my grandma would make when my parents were building their house. It would be cold outside and grandma would make a pot of stew and come cornbread.

I was taken back to a time in my life that I cherish the memory of.

Grandma and Grandpa Bowers were living in our small town helping build our new home, the home my parents still live in.

I remember staying with them.

On fast Sunday, they often wouldn't eat until 10pm because they had worked so hard the day before and had eaten at 10pm then and they were observing a 24-hour fast. I was always impressed by that.

Grandma could make anything. I remember well taking baths in their home and having a little net bag full of small pieces of soap. I loved that. Looking back now I realize that she was just using it up. Frugal.

Grandpa Bowers like his eggs the way I do. Scrambled soft.

I miss him. He was such a fun grandpa.

I am thankful to be a part of such a family.

I'm Blessed.

Shavin'

I made my goal of 15 miles this week. I had to run 6 on Friday so that I could get them all in because I knew that I wouldn't have time Saturday, and I spent 2 hours at the dentist on Thursday with Sydney so I couldn't go then.

When I ran into the yard I looked down at my running application on my phone and it said 6 miles - 9:34 min/mi. Whoo Hoo.

I'm gonna keep on shavin' that time off.

8:30 min/mile - here we come.

A Fraction

This morning I cleaned out Ryan's backpack and found an assignment that he completed at school on fractions.

The top reads "My Family"

He drew a picture of all of us. I think my shoulders have been dislocated/hyper extended, something...

Anyway, here is how our family ranks in the mind of my son.

1/4 - has no fat (I'm not sure if I should be offended on this one.)

4/4 - love playing the Wii

1/4 - like cleaning the house (Is this me? He's SORELY mistaken if I am the numerator here.)

2/4 - like guitar hero (The other 2 just have no rhythm, thus we get booed off the stage and are not allowed to continue - Poor me. Poor Sydney.)

2/4 - like legos

1/2 - are girls

There you have it - just a fraction

I'm back

Last week Brett and I went to the temple. As I was getting ready, I slipped on a skirt and realized that my midsection had grown slightly. Knowing that I couldn't be pregnant (thank heavens), I came to the realization once again that my laziness had caused this growth.

I'm great at doing EVERYTHING for everyone else and using that as my excuse to not walk out the door and exercise for myself.

Brett has been bugging me to do the Salem Triathlon again this year.

I have ignored him.

Well, my little skirt incident made me decide that I really did need to have something to work for. (I know Brett, you've been telling me that for weeks...I just needed it to be my own idea :).

So, I broke it to Brett on Thursday that I would in fact sign up for the race.

He smiled.

He knows me.

On Friday, I decided that I needed to just clean the house. After all, we did have a tornado plow through our residence.

At about 10:15 I sat down to the computer to read blogs and saw a post on a blog that I belong to. The post was about a mom, a mom like me, that went running 7 miles. The first 2 1/2 miles were hard for her, and then she said after that it felt good. I looked at the clock and decided that it was time that I get off my butt and get out there.

So, I got dressed and ran just over 3 miles. My time was just under a 10 minute mile. I reasoned that I was allowed a turtle pace. I hadn't been running for at least 2 months, maybe 3.

It felt good. So good that I went back out on Saturday, and again on Monday. I have to go tutor a boy at the school today for a while, but then I'm going to go back out today.

My goal for this week - 15 miles.

I'll shoot for the same goal next week. Then I'll increase my mileage, and hopefully by June when I run the Ragnar Relay with my cousins, I'll not be the slowest on the team.

I'm back. It feels good.

Destroyed in Seconds

Ever seen that show "Destroyed in Seconds" on Discovery Channel?

I hate it!

Why don't they call it "Killed in Seconds"? I'm pretty sure that most of the people in the show die in what they show.

Brett thinks it's cool--Not that they die - Just the Destroyed part. I don't.

I've Been Watching You

Have you heard the song that goes something like this...

"I've been watching you Dad, aint that cool
I'm you're buckaroo, I want to be like you
Eat all my food, and grow as tall as you are..."

I don't know who sings it, but it is cute. The little boy wants to be just like his dad.

Well, for the past few nights I have realized that I have a little one that wants to be a lot like ME.

She's cute. (No, I'm not saying I'm cute...She is!)

Anyway.

The boys (Ryan and Brett) play Guitar Hero, and the girls (Sydney and myself) fix dinner.

I remember being very young and wanting to help in the kitchen. Sydney is actually really good in the kitchen. The other night we made Cream Cheese Chicken. It is a recipe that is supposed to be made in a crock pot, but I rarely plan ahead, and I am a 30 minutes MAX to the table type of gal, so this is what we did...here's the recipe....then the directions...you get it.

1 8oz pkg cream cheese
1 pint jar of chicken (we canned these a couple of weeks ago) - Other canned chicken will do, or boil a couple chicken breasts (that takes longer though)
1 can cream of chicken soup
A little bit of chicken broth from the jar, or water/milk....you choose - you'll want the liquid just to make a nice consistency
1 pkg of italian dressing (the powder) or 1 pkg ranch dressing (the powder) - or 3 T ranch powder - whatever is in your kitchen.

Mixy all together and Heat thoroughly. I like to put the cream cheese in the microwave for a few seconds to soften it.

In a separate pan, boil water, add some pasta and cook until al dente and VOILA - Dinner. It's good. It's probably more fattening than I should eat since I am not a regular excersizer - Ok, so maybe that isn't a word...

But...

It is 30 minutes to the table

Oh yeah, back to Sydney. She did almost everything with this meal. I do a little supervising, but she does most of it and she is proud to help.

I am proud to let her. She's been watching me.

Random Thoughts

So, I've been laying in bed most of the day today. I fear what tonight will bring as far as sleep goes.

You know the drill...

Get Sick
Lay around in bed all day
Sleep a little, or a lot
Bedtime rolls around, can't sleep
Repeat tomorrow

Anyway...

What does a girl do when there is nothing else to do but lay in bed?

She blog surfs, reads message boards, comments on blogs, etc, makes some amazing soup....all from food items that can be stored long term....recipe to follow

As I spent countless hours reading what people had to post, I thought "Is it just me that gets what people post?"

Follow me here.

Say a girl with a blog writes something about her little family, an experience perhaps.

Is it the duty of the people who might stumble across this blog to let the author know that she is self-centered or that the post was out of line or that they are concerned about the post?

I must say that I do not believe so. It is kind of like the people who call in to the radio and rant and rave about the topic of discussion.

TURN THE DIAL PEOPLE!!!

If you don't like a post from a PERSONAL Blog - Move on your merry way. Don't comment to the author about how terrible they are.

Tell yourself that a few times and see how it feels. If comments are allowed on a blog, be kind. There is enough rudeness in this world. People don't need to hear the effects of your bad day.

Ok, on to the recipe, whew!

This one came from a neighbor from an Enrichment activity we had with recipes that come from food storage. I would add a little salt to this recipe, probably not as many carrots, and a little more water/beef bouillon. It is delicious.

Beef Barley Stew
1 - 14 1/2 oz can beef chunks (I did not have this, but I did have stew meat. I browned it in some olive oil and cooked it in a pressure cooker for an hour at 15lbs pressure, mmmm)
7 cups water (I ended up using about 13 cups water...I'll explain)
3/4 c. dried diced carrots
3 T dried minced onion
3 T dried celery
2 T dried red peppers or green (I had a mixture of both...that's how they came)
2 T dried parsley
1/2 t. basil
1/8 t. black pepper
1 bay leaf
3/4 c. pearled barley

Combine all ingredients except barley in large pot and bring to a boil. Add barley and simmer, covered, for 45-55 minutes until barley is tender. Remove bay leaf before serving. Serves 4-6

Ok, to my explanation. Since I didn't have beef chunks canned, and I used stew meat, I needed water to cook it in. I added 4 cups of water to my pressure cooker, along with two teaspoons of beef bouillon granules. As I said before I cooked it in the pressure cooker for 55 minutes at 15lbs pressure. It came out so tender.

In a second pot I put 7 cups of water and the other ingredients and cooked it for 45 minutes. When the beef was done, I added the two together and added some more liquid to make it go farther. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy.

A Day Off

Today Brett and I both have felt under the weather. It's not that often that we have both started with symptoms at the same time....the same symptoms.

So, for the day we lounged around in our VERY cluttered house. How can you clean up the clutter if you don't even want to get out of bed?

We dropped Ryan and Sydney off at a friend's birthday party just before 5pm. On our way home I ordered Chinese. I have the number programed into my phone you know.

As we were eating our meal, Brett handed me a fortune cookie and said "Whatever yours says you have to add 'in bed' at the end." I opened mine, all the while thinking of what I could say.

I said, "Take the night off from your labors."

I couldn't stop laughing....

Of course, that's not what it said, so he said - Read it!

I read it. It said "A nice surprise will come to you soon."

Translation: You can take the day off ;)

he he

Full Activity

Ryan signed up for Basketball this winter. I am proud of him for wanting to be active. He always talks about how skinny he is. One day he told me, crying, that he didn't want to be fat. I asked him why he would worry about that.

His reply, "Well, if I was fat, I wouldn't be able to feel my shots as much, but I don't want to be fat just for that." Ahh, good thinking.

Anyway...

Back to basketball.

He is so proud of himself. He has confidence. He has set goals to become a better player. It's good for him and our family.

He's OPEN - Too Bad none of his teammates will pass to him.

In Ryan's league, they each wear a colored arm band and can only guard that person. Scroll down...you'll see Ryan's first match up...

Ryan's 2nd match up is #32. He said it was a much 'fairer battle'. I agree.

Science, Cells, and the like

It seems that many of our conversations around her have something to do with science, cells, you name it...

All things Science.

Well, tonight was no different. You remember when I told you that we were made out of molecules? Well our latests conversation went a bit like this:

Ryan: "Mom, you know all LIVING things are not made mostly out of water."

Me: "Oh, they're not?"

Ryan: "Nope. Take Stitch for example. If he were made out of water, his cells couldn't handle it."

Me: "Very Observant."

Shhh, don't tell Ryan - He thinks this guy is really ALIVE! You know, come to think of it, he probably is.

I'm a Model

Tonight Brett went to Young Men's so I had the kiddos to myself. While I cleaned the kitchen, the kids ran around the room playing. I asked them to get their jammies on and Sydney came up the stairs and said "Mom, look - I'm a model."

I present.

Sydney.

My Model.

Intellectual Conversations

Ryan: "Mom, have you ever had a tooth ache?"

Me: "Yes, Ryan I have had a tooth ache."

Ryan: "Do you know where they come from?"

Me: "Yes, I think so."

Ryan: "Well, they start with a cavity and the pain travels to your bicuspids."

Me: "Hmm."

A lesson in life, my own....

Last night I spent quite a few hours going through old journals. I was looking for things I had written about a friend and her kids. I knew I had written a story, and I couldn't find it. What I did find however was a look into a life that I didn't realize I had.

With that said, if I die soon and you read my journal, and it has all things negative, maybe even about you, please know that I don't mean what was said.

It's amazing what stress can do to a person. It seems that when I would write in my journal it was almost undoubtedly a stressful moment where the actions of others around me where making my insides want to scream.

On one hand I want to go through and 'edit' my journal, taking out the negative and leaving the positive. If I did that, I would be editing hundreds of pages.

It is amazing to me what my words have taught just in the few hours since I read them.

Life is meant for joy.

I will work towards that joy.

I feel it more now.

Wounds have healed, and scar tissue has built up a wall that will likely protect me from future ailments as I have learned to react different. To love more, to judge less.

What we are made of

Tonight Ryan let me know that we aren't really made out of water, we are made of molecules. Water is formed by several molecules forming together, thus making our bodies made of molecules.

Just thought you'd like to know.

Dehydration

Tonight as we were starting to gather around the table for dinner Ryan came into the dining room and proclaimed - I NEED A DRINK QUICK - I'm dehydrated!

He then went on to explain that he was seeing stars.

So, naturally he needed a drink - right?

2009 - Year of the Dad

As we were preparing for bed the other night Brett informed me that Ryan has decided that 2009 is going to be "Year of the Dad". I asked Ryan what that meant and he said that it meant that he was going to spend more time with DAD and let DAD do more for him.

I hereby delegate the following to DAD

- Making lunches in the morning
- Changing sheets when accidents happen
- Running forgotten homework to school - Hope work doesn't mind you coming home a few times a week to do this
- Following up on homework
- Making sure the table is set for dinner

I think I can handle the rest since it falls under the umbrella of the MOM job

Ahh....

A toast...

to 2009 - Year of the DAD

Balance

How do you do it all?

1. Primary Meetings
2. Scout meetings
3. Ward Council
4. Cleaning house
5. Breakfast
6. Lunch
7. Dinner
8. Cleaning house
9. Exercise (what's that)
10. Volunteer time at the school
    
11. Time with kids
12. Time with husband
13. Alone time (is that possible without neglecting any of the above?)

Oh how I need to find Balance. Do they sell that in stores? I've heard that Calgon will take you away, but I haven't found a product called Balance yet. If you're out there and you have a product, let me know....I need it!

If you have done it unto the least of these...

Yesterday Brett stayed home from work in the morning as he had a Doctor's appointment and I had some errands to run so we thought it would be best if we just went together.

Sydney was being naughty and had a couple of warnings to stop or else get a spankin' from Dad. Well, the behavior didn't stop, so she got a big whack on her bum. I have found that time-outs work out much better for me when I am disciplining her, but until today, I don't think Brett has completely shared in that. Not because he disagrees, but he really doesn't have to discipline her a lot because he is working.

Anyway...

After the crying had stopped, Sydney came upstairs and into my room to get ready to go. Her face was flushed from crying and I asked her what had happened. (I was in my room when all of this happened so I didn't know the details).

She explained to me that she was being naughty and that Dad had spanked her. Then the conversation went something like this:

Sydney : "Mom, it's like he spanked Jesus."

Me: "What?"

Sydney: "You know, when we do things to people it is like we are doing them to Jesus. So, it's like he spanked Jesus."

Ouch!

Making Memories

Today is Ryan's 3rd Grade class party. I am the room mom for his class and since we have VERY few mothers who signed up to help, I signed up for the Christmas party.

Let me just preface my comments by, yes I know I am an idiot.

Ahem,

I made the suggestion that we might want to make gingerbread houses. I did that for Ryan's class in 1st Grade, and I've learned some things since then so thought it might be fun.

Well....then I found out that I only had one other mom helping. Ahh, good for me! I e-mailed the teacher and let her know with such little help, doing gingerbread houses probably wasn't a great idea anymore.


Well...then I called the other mom that signed up to help and she really wanted to do gingerbread houses, and maybe we could get more help

and....

Then I got another e-mail from the teacher saying that she could get more help....

So, I asked Ryan when he got home from school what he thought we should do for his Christmas part at school and he said "My teacher said we were decorating gingerbread houses."

So....

Over the past week I have baked, cut out and assembled 25 gingerbread houses. It was not a cheap endeavor. It took a LOT of my time.

And...

It's all about Making Memories.

Magic and Tradition

I'm a little behind in updating my blog, so here go a few updates Enjoy.

For years my family has had the tradition of taking Santa to needy girls and boys, families, elderly, friends, etc. There has only been one year out of probably 20 that I haven't had Santa to take around to my heart's content.

Sometimes our visits are the last a person ever gets from Santa Claus.

This year we were able to pick up our tradition and take Santa to some friends. I always love getting the special visit. Sometimes I get to enter the homes with Santa, but most of the time the fun comes when Santa gets back into the car with us and tells us of the fun he had inside. Since we live far away from Santa's home, many people don't know who he is, thus making the joy even better.

I know who he is though, and I know the families in our neighborhood. It's all about the Magic and the Tradition.

Thanks Santa.

Turkey

Tonight I did some mindless TV watching. I enjoy watching the 'how it was made' shows. Well, tonight it showed all of the things you can do with turkeys.

I had no idea you could use nearly EVERY part of a turkey. They even fry up the turkey version of Rocky Mountain Oysters. They say they taste like popcorn shrimp. Surprisingly not chicken.

I'll stick to the traditional turkey breast, Brett can have the legs, and no thanks on the turkey left overs.

Felt Prayers

I don't know that I have ever really 'felt' the effects of prayers being offered in my behalf. At least not until the past 24 hours.

A nasty rumor was started and spread, and originated with something that I said that was taken out of context. While I don't make it a habit of talking smack about people, especially smack that could ruin a reputation, this week sure hasn't proved that to be true if you don't know me.

It is true that gossip can feel like a double-edged sword that pierces your heart. I have felt that this week. I don't suppose I have ever felt such a darkness surround me. Even though I have met with all parties involved, there are still some that believe that I am a person of no worth. It's amazing.

I have actually 'felt' the prayers that have been offered by friends in my behalf. Peace is beginning to return to my existence. A couple of days ago, I didn't even know that this day would even come.

Well, that's dumb

Today Ryan came home from school with MANY questions about the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

One question he asked was if we caught the terrorists. I explained to him that they were the pilots of the planes that hit the Twin Towers.

He promptly replied, "Well, that's dumb. Those terrorists are dumb."

Yes, they are my fine son. Yes, they are.

Forwards

Can I just tell you how bad I hate Forwards?

What are forwards you ask? - Let me tell you....

They are e-mails that get sent from heaven knows who that I really don't want to read. Many people don't know who the heck they are even sending them too, just their address book that they have acquired.

Most people don't clean up the e-mail before they hit the 'Forward' button, thus giving me a 10 page e-mail with the world's e-mail addresses in it. I hate them. If you are sending them to me...DON'T!

If the e-mail is funny enough, do the courtesy of copying it and pasting it into a new e-mail and send it directly to me.

I am now on an e-mail list that I'd rather not be on and I get multiples of the SAME E-MAIL from different people on that list.

I don't care about politics and I don't think the world is ending tomorrow either.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

The End

I KNOW WHO IT IS

Yesterday our bishop announced in sacrament meeting that we needed to come to church next week to sustain a new bishopric. Huh - they don't usually announce such things....oh well....

With the release of our bishop, I thought it appropriate that we have our bishop come into primary during the last hour to present him with some art work that some of the children had done. We were talking about things we are thankful for, building a "Thankful tree" with beautiful, colorful leaves. We invited our bishop to tell us things he was thankful for in Japanese. He served his mission there.

We had a very sweet spirit in the room. At the end of the hour, we invited the bishop back up and we sang a song to him. I offered to have him give the last words to the children. He told them of things that he learned while being a bishop.

Then it happened.

A little 8-year old boy on the front row raised his hand, and with a smile firmly stated "I know who the next bishop is!"

He turned back to look at his mom with that same smile on his face and....the smile was not returned....

Hmmm, I think I might know who it is :).

One Down...

Well, we did it! The Primary Program is finally over WOO HOO! While the stress of of the whole thing could have been done without, I don't suppose I have ever been to a primary program that I liked so much. The kids were amazing, they sang as they should have and nothing like the practices. All kids were in line for the parts, much better than anticipated. Nobody fell back on their chairs causing blood blisters, and my daughter sang like an angel.

One of the kids that had a solo part came down with strep throat and Sydney really wanted a part in the program, so we asked her if she would be willing to step in and sing for him. She willingly did so.

5 years old.

Solo part in front of a couple hundred people.

Priceless.

Of course this doesn't compare to my cousin who sang the Star Spangled Banner in front of thousands at a Diamond Backs game when she was the mere age of 3.

Not the point.

I surrounded myself with angels yesterday. They ranged from ages 3 to 11 going on 12. I generally don't do well with the noise. I like reverence. They are all reverent for me. Not so much for others, but for me they are.

In a season of giving thanks I am ever so thankful for these angels, even in the midst of their noise.

You're a BH for doing that

Today I helped Brett and his dad put some fertilizer in our garden spots. I didn't do too much work, but one of my tasks was to put a bag of steer manure on one of our garden spots. I opened up the bag and started pouring it in the correct spots. I got the 'crap' all over my hands. I HATE having my hands dirty. When I looked up and Brett's dad was smiling at me.

I could just read his mind....ha ha ha, Deni has crap on her hands....

Okay, so he probably wasn't thinking that, but it felt as if he was thinking it. This took my thoughts back to an experience I had when living in Springville.

We were remodeling our kitchen and our good friend Jake Woodland was helping us with the electrical work. Jake's hands cannot feel the electric current like most people feel it so he had me do an experiment. He had me touch the two 'live' wires together. Nothing happened, so I thought - Hey, I must be like Jake. Then he had me lick my fingers....go ahead...laugh now - and you guessed it...it shocked the crap out of me!

Jake, you're a BH for doing that!

If you need to know what BH stands for, ask Ryan...he knows.

In My Defense

Since Brett doesn't allow comments on his blog, I have to post a rebuttal to his latest post

I WAS IN THE BATHROOM!!!!

Answered prayers--or lack of

I'm not sure how this is supposed to make me feel, but my kids are always praying that I can clean the whole house, just like their friends' mom. It is a daily occurrence around here for at least one of the kids to say that in their prayers.

I digress, I am not the best housewife. I hate laundry, I hate cleaning the dinner dishes, after all, I slaved away making dinner - I'm tired when I finish eating. There always papers stacked from Hell to Breakfast, and heaven forbid if anyone put their stuff away.

I think I might start praying that the kids help a little better. That'll teach 'em.

Projects

It's not often that I get to do a project that I really like, but making rag quilts does something for my psyche. Even though nothing is cheap anymore, I wanted to do something special for my secretary, who just had twins. So, here are the final products.

FUN!

New Dress

The Children's Place recently had a sale on some clothing so I bought Sydney a new dress. She was in desperate need of one and this was like $5, not too bad--Can't even buy fabric for that anymore.

Here she is. Isn't she pretty.

Halloween Fun

This year for Halloween Ryan wanted to be a pirate. We got his hat/wig at his birthday party at Boondocks, so we just needed to get a costume to go with it. We ordered a costume and the package arrived safe and sound on Thursday afternoon. I let Sydney open it, and SURPRISE - there wasn't a costume. Just a package full of Baby Einstein puppets. So, I went to work sewing a costume.

I will probably tack the boot covers to the actual pants. They don't stay up on Ryan's stick legs. He was pleased with his costume, after a night of drama and sadness. He let everyone know it was 'hand made' too.

Thanks to my mom for making a billion costumes for us when we were young. That is where the black coat came from. Who knew that George Washington was once a pirate?

Sydney was Giselle from Enchanted (Thanks Uncle Ben for help with that). She also wore some Cinderella slippers that lit up when she walked. It was great for trick or treating because we could see her up ahead.

A Lesson in Fast Offering

This morning we were filling out our Fast Offering check and Ryan was in the room. He expressed the desire to pay Fast Offerings, so we told him he was welcome to do that. He said "Great!" Then he proceeded to grab MY checkbook and look for a pen. I said, "Uh, are you going to write a check out of my checking account?" He said, "OH, does this come out of your account?"

Umm...yes, it does.

Good Bye Freedom

Well,

The day has finally arrived! Our kids have figured out how to pick the lock on our door.

Last night we were going through a box of things I had ordered and deciding which would be for Christmas, Summer, etc when all of a sudden I turn to Brett and say - "They've figured out the lock"

In comes...RYAN and SYDNEY

Ryan declared "Bullseye! I got ya!"

I quickly jump on the bed to cover what is uncovered and Ryan looks up - deer in the head lights look - and says "Oh Sorry!"

Lucky for them I wasn't covering up anything else

You know it's bad when you have to buy flip locks for your own bedroom

Around the World and Back

I have felt a need lately to be sure that Sydney knows that I love her. I learned very recently in a training I went to that we all need love. Our families are no different. As I lay down with her at night I make sure to have her look in my eyes as I talk to her. I tell her how I love her beautiful blue eyes, her beautiful body, her beautiful smile. I tell her that I love her more than the world. To which she replies, "Mom, I love you Around the World and Back."

Best Friends

I don't know what causes a good friendship in siblings, but I feel very blessed that my children are friends. Not only friends, but best friends really.

Last night I was getting ready to go Visiting Teaching and Ryan told Sydney he wanted to play with her. They both got their socks, shoes, and coats on and went outside.

I watched out the window and was filled with love and admiration for both of my kids. The ball they were throwing went across the street and the both took each other by the hand, walked to the front of our yard, looked both ways, and then crossed the street to get the ball. I love my kids. They bring so much joy into our home.

Last week while I was away at another scout training, Brett took the kids up the canyon and took some pictures.


This one depicts what I see so much:

Super Powers

Today Sydney announced that she wished she had SUPER POWERS


On inquiring why, she firmly declared that if she did, she would change her age to 3 when McKaylyn came over, and she would be 5 when Kayla came over, and she would make me 5 and her dad 5 and Ryan 5 when she needed someone to play with. If she wanted to hold a baby, Ryan would then be made an infant, of course Dad would change the diapers she mused, to which I agreed with an astounding YES, he would


I'm not sure why it is so hard to revert back to 5 some days. After all, I could play with Barbies for hours without worrying about what things in the house weren't getting done. I could watch High School Musical a million times and squeal when I saw such things in stores without a care in the world.

I think I need to give Sydney SUPER POWERS for a day. She might feel like she has conquered the world.

Conversations with Ryan...

Yesterday I spent the day at my neighbor's office doing some work for them. I took both kids as they were out of school. Sydney got bored so she was drawing in a notebook I had there. She is learning to read so she was writing some of her sight words, ever so proudly.

Now, let me invite you into my conversation that came next...

Ryan: I can't wait until Sydney is in 1st grade.

Me: Oh, why is that.

Ryan: Because, then she will see all of the hard work that I have been doing all these years.

Me: Giggle

Ryan: Mom, did you know that there is a kid in 2nd grade that still can't spell WAS?

Me: Ryan, you are a very lucky kid because these things come easy to you.

Ryan: Yeah, I bet if they did studies on my brain, they would see that it is working really hard.

Me: Yes Ryan, I am sure they would see that it is.

The End

You're MORE fun than SWIMMING

Tonight we were going to take the kids swimming. They have been begging us to go, and Brett needed to help some boys get their Swimming Merit Badge for scouts, so we thought it was a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

WELL....there were too many boys for our kids to be able to fit, so we were unable to let Ryan and Sydney go. Needless to say, they were both devastated. Sydney whined most of the evening. I told her we could make cookies, hoping that the thought might turn the whine-o-meter OFF. (I hate whining!)

As I finished the dough, and we were rolling it out on the bar for our Halloween Cookie Cutters, Sydney found the HS Musical 1 CD, so we of course had to BLAST it and sing at the top of our lungs.

Did you know that rolling pins make for great microphones? I'm pretty sure they could go head to head with any technology out there!

Sydney turned to me as we were putting the last of the cookies on the pan and said "Mom, you're much more fun than swimming!"

What?

Me?

WHOO HOO!

More than Love

A few years ago I was counseling with a friend and he said "the goal you want in your marriage is that it becomes more than love." He related a story about serving an older couple for some time. The wife was starting to deteriorate in health and the husband was caring for her. He posed the question "You love her, don't you?" The gentleman replied, "Oh, it's much more than love now." So, to me, the friend said, "You'll know when you're on the right track with your relationship when it becomes more than love."

So, this morning the realization came to me that "it's much more than love."

Last night was a bad one. I think I went through all of the stages of grief in one night. Sadness, anger, all of it.

My kind husband sat quietly, and unknowingly I'm sure, buoyed me.

It was after midnight before my mind stopped reliving the events of a year ago and comfort set in enough for me to go to sleep.

I awoke this morning at 7:23am in somewhat of a panic. I could hear Brett in the other room, and I knew I needed to hurry and help get the kids ready for school and Brett off to work. I got dressed and walked out of the bedroom and to my surprise Brett was still in his pajamas. I asked him if I could help him hurry and get to work and he said he had taken the day off to spend with me.

I know he stayed home because he knew I would need someone today. He helped me get the house completely cleaned.

This my friends is More than Love

Reflection

The day after Azure's funeral we took a walk to the cemetery with Eric. I didn't notice Brett taking pictures, but when we got home he showed me this one. It is a picture that very much shows the separation of temporal and spiritual life. It's taken me a year to think of what we could name the picture, but I think Reflection best describes what is happening here.


The baby in the picture is Eric, Azure's little guy. He was almost 5 months when she passed away....Man I miss her.

More Funnies

Azure was always doing things to make us laugh. One day I came around the corner in our home to This:

What is it you ask? - Why, it's Eeyore...and Dad. Definitely picture worthy.

Funny Memory

My sister Azure lived with us from October 2002 - May 2003. For much of that time she didn't have a job. She got a job some time in the spring at Wendy's. It was her first day of work and she had to come home for something and she locked her keys in the car. Brett and I were standing outside, along with a friend while the Police officer unlocked the doors. Azure forgot something in the house and Brett thought it would be funny to put a key on the driver's seat and hold a key and then lock the doors. WELL, when Azure came back outside she went to open the door and SURPRISE - it was locked! She turned around to Brett and Said - "YOU @* IDIOT" - You locked my keys in the car. We all laughed and Brett pulled out the 'spare' key. Well - little did he/we know that the key that he was holding was for the IGNITION. The key that opened the doors was sitting on the seat locked inside the car. We all felt really stupid when the officer had to come back a couple of minutes later and get the key out of the car, but we still laugh.

The end.

M-O-M

This morning just before 7am Sydney climbed in bed with me for a little snuggle. I love those mornings, and they rarely happen with her. She normally wants DAD.

Well, this morning she wanted ME!

As we lay in bed together, she looked up and said "I love you M-O-M." So, with a smile on my face I say, "Oh, I love you too S-Y-D-N-E-Y."

SURPRISE

Well, I got an e-mail today yesterday from my Primary Secretary stating that she had her baby. Then I opened the e-mail and she said, well - babies! There were 2 of them. How she was carrying 2 babies is all a mystery to us. She is so tiny and made it almost full term (only 12 days early). She told us from about 7 months on that they couldn't tell in the ultrasound if it was a boy or a girl. Well SURPRISE - She got one of each. The doctors were surprised and so were mom and dad, and yes so is the rest of the world who knows them.

Congratulations Lucille and Scott! We still can't believe it!

Who Says Adults Can't Have Fun?

As I said in my previous post, Brett and I spent a week at a scout training called Wood Badge. I don't suppose I have laughed so hard so many days in a row for a VERY long time. While a lot of instruction was given, a lot of fun was had too. Here's to the staff and all of the participants of the W7-591-11-08 Wood Badge Course. Thanks for a GREAT time!

This is Hal, our course director. He did a great job picking the staff and leading them for a wonderful experience to be had by all.

I am so happy I shared this experience with Brett.

food (fd)n.

1. Material, usually of plant or animal origin, that contains or consists of essential body nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals, and is ingested and assimilated by an organism to produce energy, stimulate growth, and maintain life.

2. A specified kind of nourishment: breakfast food;

Thanks Quartermasters

fun (fn)

n.

1. A source of enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure.

2. Enjoyment; amusement: have fun at the beach.

3. Playful, often noisy, activity.

intr.v. funned, fun·ning, funs Informal

To behave playfully; joke.

adj. Informal Enjoyable; amusing

This picture portrays independence to me. We put our camp together on our own, and we were on our own. It was a beautiful experience! Way to go ladies!

Update

Whoa - did I end on a sour note or what? Sorry to all you blog reading friends. I must have been having a bad week last time I posted.

Much has gone on in the past week and a half. Brett and I just got home from a scout training called Wood Badge. It was a wonderful week and I know more than ever why the LDS church uses BSA as their activity arm for the young men. I think there is a huge misconception among church members regarding this program. I must say thought that Lord Baden Powell had a vision that would help mold good men if followed.

It is good to be home. I'm convinced that I need a maid. I'm also convinced that I need to learn how to say no to people. One of my good friends told me that I needed to say no to housework. Well, if you were to see my house today, you would pretty much know that I do that quite well.

I had my 31st birthday on Sunday. It wasn't quite as traumatic as last year's birthday. It was a chaotic day at church with classes missing teachers and misbehaving kids hitting me more than I like being hit, but other than that it was a pretty good day. Brett made dinner, which was a very nice thing.

Not much else going on around here. Maybe I'll come up with something good for my next post.

An About Face

Brett is on another camp out tonight and I have to admit, although I probably shouldn't, but I was happy to see him head out. I guess it has been one of those days. While I looked forward to him leaving so I could have a break, I quickly realized how much I needed to change.

I took the kids to eat tonight so I didn't have to make dinner and as while were standing in line I was observing the people around me. There was a man behind us and several people in front of us. A woman quite a bit ahead of us spoke over the top of us (to the man behind us). She said, "There wasn't anyone in line when I got here so I didn't order your food." I looked back and he kind of shrugged his shoulders. We went about our business and ate our dinner. Just before we were done eating I looked over and noticed this couple that had their previous exchange in line. To my surprise the woman stood up and said, "I'm done eating so I'm going." Hmmm... These two were MARRIED!!!

I immediately felt horrible for being glad to have a break for the evening. I can't imagine meeting my husband at a place to eat, ordering without him, and then leaving after I was done eating. I'm grateful for Brett. He works hard for our family. He magnifies his calling and I know that we are in his best interests. He would never think of doing any of the things that I mentioned above. So, here's to an about face for me. It's crazy sometimes that it takes something so small to help us realize what we really have.

One More Day

Grief is such a crazy thing. You can go hours, days, weeks, possibly even months without feeling down and then a memory, or a thought can up and consume you.

We are nearing the 1 year anniversary of Azure's death. I feel somewhat selfish as I want my family here to surround me. I think back on this time a year ago. I was attending a funeral for a dear friend, and trying to understand what it was that caused him to take his life. Little did I know that I would be grieving the loss of my sister.

So, to that end, Azure, this is what we would do if we had just One More Day....

If you were here we would take another walk in the park with Eric and marvel at the miracle of life just one more time
We would lay on the bed laughing at our feet
We would go and get Chinese, only this time we would not do take out. We'd sit and talk and share advice
We would take pictures, pictures and more pictures and we would take the time to write about them
I would say 'I love you' just a little bit more
I would Thank you for doing my laundry, such a selfless service that meant so much

Oh how I wish I just had one more day, one more moment to tell you that I Love You and let you know how important you are in my life.

For now I just pray that I live my life to merit the blessing of spending eternity with you. I marvel at this life and our purpose here. I picture you wrapping your arms around the young children who have lost their lives recently in your home town. I can see you teaching many spirits about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. You were like that, always happy, eager to share your testimony of Christ.

If only I had One More Day, I would be the better person. I miss you Razz. Here's to One More Day....

The Funny Things Kids Say - Part 2

Before I forget... My kids have been pretty funny the past couple of days, so I thought I'd share.

Yesterday, Sydney and I were having lunch together and it was her turn to pray. Her prayer went something like this, "Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the bodies and the food, please bless the laundry..." So, everyone, please pray that Sydney's prayers come true. I'm pretty sure if they do I won't have to do laundry.

Last night as I was putting the kids to bed and we had just finished a book about a wimpy dog that exercised and at the end he looks into the mirror and sees a buff dog. Ryan said "Mom, I wish I could gain weight. Not the eat and get fat weight, but I wish I could gain muscle weight." Ahh, me too Ryan. I wish that I could gain muscle, and not the flab that is ever so present around my midsection. I like to refer to it as my 'muffin'. That's right, just call me blueberry.

Early Birthday

Well, I treated myself to an early birthday present. I sold our bike trailer and canceled my gym membership to be able to swing it, but I'm pretty sure it is one of the best birthday gifts a girl can buy herself.

What is it you ask, why, it is a Bosch Universal Plus Mixer, and a Wonder Mill Wheat grinder.





Let the bread making begin....


Brett made some mashed potatoes in the mixer tonight and it only took a couple of minutes. Bread went from taking 4 hours to make to taking 1-2 hours to make. It goes directly from the bowl into the pans and it is light and delicious.

Thank you Self for buying a mixer. May your days be full of yummy bread.

Baptism Day

Well, our day finally came for Ryan to be baptized. I have been so busy with my calling that I have taken only one day at a time. Of course we were running around like chickens with our heads cut off and I had trouble with the program, so I ended up being 10 minutes late. Lucky for me others were walking in as I entered the chapel.

Our baptismal service was very special. I could hardly control my emotions. It is one thing to have to speak to children on behalf of the Primary Presidency. It is another thing to speak to my own children. I am so very proud of Ryan for making the choice to be baptized. I know that he has a special spirit and that he wants to make good choices. We love him very much.



When Brett was 8-years old his grandfather confirmed him and gave him the gift of the Holy Ghost. We decided that we would continue that tradition so Brett's dad did that for Ryan. It was a special experience.


After the baptism, we had family and friends come over for Navajo Tacos. It was fun to have everyone at our house. We did miss having Rob and Jami Martinsen for lunch. Jami was Ryan's 2nd grade teacher and has become a really good friend. They were able to make it to the baptism, but had to go home. Ben and Emily Williams and family were also there, but their kids were in the house and they were the ones taking the pictures...thanks to them. Here is the rest of the crew. We are so fortunate to have so many loving friends and family support us.

First Day of Kindergarten

Well, I am officially old. My baby is now in Kindergarten.

Sydney started Kindergarten today and she loves it! She is my VERY independent child and she did NOT want me to walk her to school. She said her brother Ryan could do it. So, I agreed. Well, DAD didn't like that idea, so he stayed home from work this morning to walk her to school, and then he drove the van.





It is hard to believe that by next year I will have a full day to myself. For now, I have 2 1/2 hours to exercise and do whatever I desire. Ahh, the life :).

Just in case you didn't know

Just in case you didn't know...

We're Gardeners - yes, we grew those onions, AND those peppers

The Berger's really aren't German. I'm pretty sure we're more Native American. Check out the tribal headdress here.

I turned around this morning in the kitchen to this sight. Yet more proof that we are Native American. We start them early by teaching them these calming rituals

First Day of School

Ryan had his first day of 3rd grade yesterday. It's hard to believe he is growing so fast. We are so very proud of him and all that he has done in his lifetime. He is a sweet boy with a tender heart. We love you Ryan. Good luck in 3rd grade!

Lego Star Wars

A few weeks ago I sent Brett to Wal-Mart to get some ant traps (we were having serious ant problems), and he found some great things on sale. We got a Lego Star Wars ship for $15 (regular retail $50). That's what Ryan got from us for his birthday and he was thrilled. It took us about 6 hours all together to put it together. It had 575 pieces. It was a fun thing to do together. Ryan isn't much of a puzzle person. He likes legos, but he would rather we put it together and let him play with it. Sydney on the other hand loves puzzles, so she was a great help. I don't have a picture of the finished project...hmm, guess that will come in another post.