Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Monday, March 29, 2010

Doctrine and Covenants 89:22-24

If the Lord were to write me a verse of scripture in relation to the Word of Wisdom, it would read something like this:

And to my servant, Helena Durrenberger, I say: caffeine is not for the body, and is not for use in cold or hot drinks, and is not for candy or sweets of any kind, even if only found in a cookie, bar, or cake.

And it is pleasing unto me that it be used only for the healing of the brain in times of severe migraines, to be used with judgment and skill; nevertheless it is to be used sparingly and is not pleasing unto thy breastfed children.

And, again, caffeinated beverages are not for the body or thy children, but for healing purposes only to be used with prudence and thanksgiving.

And then, in the margin of the scriptures I would write my note: NO Coke or chocolate while lactating!

General Conference Packet, 2010

Try clicking on this link for a packet of fun things for the kids to do during conference. It's in a google doc that I did not create. I'm not that computer literate. I only know how to open them when people send them to me. I never understood why people didn't just create this stuff in a word document and attach it, but now I'm quite impressed that I don't have to forward this to everyone I think might like it via email.

Anyway, the activities look like they cover a wide range of ages. I believe that both of my girls will have some fun things to do. Some of them are old ideas (conference bingo where you listen for the words that are said), and some are new (I've never seen pictures of ties to color in to match the speaker, cute!), or maybe they are all old and I'm just out of the loop.

Happy Family Week!

Sunday, March 28, 2010



Charming, yet deadly in Clear and Present Danger.

Just plain charming in Only You. I should own this movie! It's fun and silly and he's irresistable.

Mr. Almeida makes me want to be into foreign films, but I don't think I'll take it that far. I believe I'll try to find out if 24 is on hulu before I start reading subtitles. Although, I could just listen to his voice for hours...


Saturday, March 27, 2010

"Once Upon A Time..."

There was a girl who was born into a family.

They had some trials and not everything was perfect, but life went on.

The girl grew up and got married and had a family of her own.

They had some trials and not everything was perfect, but life went on.

The girl had some great friends and some great family members come and go through her life. There were good times and there were bad times. She met some adversity and had some sadness, but she perservered. And life went on.

The Savior was an important part of her life. He was always there for her.

The girl was happy most of the time. She could forget her troubles and embrace the good times. She could let things go and focus on the positive. She laughed, a lot. She wasn't a worrier, about most things. She seized the moment and enjoyed the things that life threw at her. She loved, a lot. And life went on.

"...and she lived happily ever after."

Because she was an eternal optimist.

Thank you President Uchtdorf for your inspiring words to the young women in the world. We will all live happily ever after! And we will "Be strong and of a good courage." (Joshua 1:9)

Earth Hour, 2010

I wrote my post about Earth Hour last night and set the options to put in on my blog this morning so I could say, "tonight..." Well, I forgot. I had not been on the computer all day and it didn't even enter my mind. I plopped down in the living room, booted up the laptop, and had a great post in my head reflecting on the Young Women's broadcast that I had attended earlier this evening. The Google homepage came up and there it was, "Help the world. Turn off your lights tonight."




"Aaah!" I scream. I glance down to the little timestamp at the bottom of the screen. 8:30, exactly. Really? I look again. Yep, it's 8:30 on the nose. "Babe, turn off the TV and the lights. We'll play Canasta by candlelight."



And do you know what? He did it. I closed the laptop up before it could hit 8:31, Bill turned off the TV and started making the rounds on the lights (including the festive Ikea leds that have been burning since Christmas 2008), and I pulled out the candles. Kyra got irritated when she had to stop reading, so Bill decided a bit later to let her get out of bed and play cards with us.

Before Kyra came out Bill made several observations.
Bill: Really? Cards by candlelight? I can hardly read them as it is.
H: Sorry, babe.
Bill: If we had planned this better we could be doing something better...
H: (Since Kyra was still up and Payton had just fallen asleep on our bed) Well, we could make it Earth 2 hours and keep the lights out later.
Bill: You sure have your hopes up.
H: Maybe even Earth 3 hours then.
Bill: OK. We'll play cards for 2 hours and 45 minutes then.
H: Nice.
Bill: (after dealing the cards and adjusting the candle lights) Ya know, all we really need now are some mallows...



Happy Earth Hour everyone! What'd you do?

Join in For Earth Hour

Tonight, March 27th from 8:30-9:30pm, turn off your lights. That's it. That's all you have to do. That's local time, so if you're in Utah or New Mexico or where ever, do it when your clock says 8:30. Shut 'em off and turn it down. Enjoy the dark. Maybe even get out a candle and read a scripture or two... perhaps about the resurrection. Happy Earth.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Whirlygigs

I read somewhere that it takes an intelligent person to do assembly line work. It has something to do with being able to focus on your task at hand and yet not get caught in the monotony of it all. You know, kind of like walking and chewing gum at the same time. An assembly line person should be able to get their job done well, while at the same time being able to think about or talk about other things so their mind doesn't turn to mush. Get it?

So does the same hold true for motherhood? Like when you are outside for the umpteenth time in a week calming your sad, sick baby and you need to think of something other than the spit up on your shirt and the laundry that needs to be folded. Your mind wanders. To the whirlygigs on the top of all your neighbors roofs. And then, because you don't know what they really are, you make up a story about what they are, why some people's are shinier and spinnier than others, and what, in fact, they are for.

  • My immediate neighbor has old, rusty looking whirlygigs. One kind of spun a little during my half hour stroll. Nothing exciting was going on there. She kind of lives an old, rusty life. Nothing interesting to be learned from her one person abode.
  • My neighbor across the street has various types of whirlygigs, and I believe has 3 instead of the standard 2. They are renters. People are always coming and going and you never know who is going to be there. There has to be a variety of whirlygigs...just in case. One of them was moving off and on.
  • The Norwegian neighbors have bran new, shiny whirlygigs. They were spinning like crazy. There is a lot of information to be intercepted from that house.
  • Bob has 2 whirly gigs. They are very prominent. He has covered them with black plastic bags. Apparently black plastic interferes with the reception.

Have you figured out my story yet? It's a conspiracy theory. The whirlygig is the governments way of spying on it's citizens and gathering information. Forget the Internet, credit card transactions, phone records...they go straight to where it all goes down...the home. We all know that the home is where all the learning takes place, so that's where the government wants it's eyes and ears.

I'm so silly. Don't talk ill of me. Don't think I'm a fruitcake. I'm just messing around here to prove that I would be able to handle an assembly line job. Doesn't it take sheer intelligence to concoct a goofy story like that? Intelligence or boredom? I'm pretty sure it's the latter. Maybe Bill will have me committed soon. Please come visit on the weekends.

What I find most interesting is this:

We have no whirlygigs on our roof.

(I had them removed)

(Shh...don't tell)

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

A Plug For Indoor Plumbing

What? You don't need to be convinced that indoor plumbing is a good thing? I do. I've been against it since I cleaned my first toilet. I believe that outhouses are a great idea and all toilets should have remained far away from the inside of my home. Of course, I have always lived in a moderate climate and would never have to run through zero degree weather to sit on an icy cold seat with my bare bum. That doesn't really sound like fun. So, I relent and agree that indoor plumbing is a good thing.

Bathtubs and showers and all their grime... Again, who needs it? Who wants it? Not me. I've always thought that shower curtains in the backyard would be nice. Biodegradable soap and shampoo, water the lawn, get some good vitamin D, a-na-ture-al... But yesterday I was convinced that indoor showers are really good for one thing: STEAM!!! The natural remedy for a stuffy nose. Sweet steam, how I love you. How great you are. How you have saved my sweet baby boy these past 2 days. Four showers in the past 48 hours keeps this little boy sleeping at night and cleans his nose in the morning. Without steam Payton would have a raw nose, gagging on snot and be overtired and cranky. Ah, sweet steam, I love you. Will you marry me?

Sunday, March 21, 2010

NTS: Take Easter Pic. at Christmas

Walgreens has some stinkin' cute Easter cards and I didn't send out Christmas cards (again!) this year. Why not just skip the chaos of Christmas and wait for Easter to do it, right? It's seems like I've thought this before so maybe now that I've written myself a little note here, I'll do it. Christ's resurrection is just as good as time as His birth to say, "hey there, I miss you".

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Surfaces

My friend wrote recently that she had devoted her day to cleaning off the surfaces of her house. All of us clutter freaks know exactly what that means and envy the task that she has completed. Of course she confesses and even shows a picture of the laundry basket full of the stuff she pulled off the surfaces that she dejunked. These items are still awaiting relocation. I personally, have at least 2 laundry baskets of these types of items.

I guess my thoughts turned to the surfaces of our lives that we either clutter with unnecessary stuff, or declutter and think we're good. But do we just shove that clutter into a laundry basket and let it sit somewhere awaiting the attention that it deserves? Is it really clutter, or is it the stuff that matters most? By decluttering our lives, do we actually suck the life out of life? I guess I'm always afraid that if I throw something out that I will need it later. It's happened before. Or, worse yet, I'll throw something out that really meant something to someone else in my house.

As with anything, I think our surfaces just really need a lot of work. Friends and family can help in this area, but we mostly need to do the work ourselves. It's helpful to have someone point out to us, "hey, ya know you really don't need that 20 year old broken plate even if your 3rd cousin twice removed made it for you", but ultimately we are the ones that have to make the decision to get rid of it. And then sometimes I think we need others to say, "I know that has been hidden at the bottom of that basket for a while, but it's important to take care of that." Let's face it, you know it's there and you treasure it or you would have thrown it out a while ago.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

And For the Record...

Estimated Time of Departure: 9am

My mom's arrival: 9:15am

Actual Time of Departure: 9:30am

I got on the computer while I was waiting for everyone to, well...pee.

I'll let you know what I forgot when we get back!

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

That's The Way I Like It

I'm going up to my mom's house in Forest Lakes tomorrow. We're supposed to leave in the morning.

I haven't packed and the clothes are still drying.

I have no idea where the snow gear is. I should have borrowed a sled and I want to take a few shovels but don't know where one would be.

None of this stresses me out. It's just life.

I COULD have stayed home all day doing all these preparations, but I didn't. There was more fun to be had elsewhere.

I COULD have spent my night doing these things, but I didn't. Again, there was more fun to be had doing other things.

I did get dinner made, a bit late...Bill ate when he was done home teaching.

I did try a new recipe for his Irish Pot Luck tomorrow. It's kind of tasty, for potatoes.

The dishes are done. Well, one is soaking.

BUT the kids are happy and I'm happy. Therefore, all is well.

I'm just not a "get it done" kind of person. I'm about people and they were more important to me today than a check list of things that needed doing. It will happen tomorrow and things will be a little frantic and some things might get missed. Our trip might not be as great as it could have been, but I wouldn't trade it for the good of today.

Live in the now...appreciate the small stuff...cease the moment...

That's the way I like it.

Monday, March 15, 2010

My Boy...

Likes a good stroller ride. His littlest sister likes to take him on them. His mother will soon let her do this on her own.

Likes to be on his tummy. He'll flip over from his back to do this. His mother needs to remember this when she leaves him on the bed.

Likes to chat early in the morning. His mother likes this too. As long as it's not too early.

Likes to be outside. He has a farmer's tan to prove it. His mother has extra freckles to confirm it.

Adores his sisters. He lights up when seeing either of them.

Wants to dye all his clothes yellow. He's using an organic yellow dye and is currently concentrating his efforts on the areas around the opening of his diaper. His mother is not happy about this.

Has a super grip. Both his mother and youngest sister have lost some hair due to his grip.

Has a super bite. Everyone he knows is thankful that he doesn't have teeth. He likes to chew on his own fingers and thumb as well, but it doesn't look like he uses such force on his own hands.

Is four months old and weighs 19 pounds.

Wears 6-12 month old clothes. His oldest sister and mother decided that one piece outfits are not his style. They think he looks better in a onesie and jeans. He doesn't really care, he's a guy.

Has an "outy" belly button. His family thinks it is disgusting but continually push on it to poke it back in. His family also calls this particular body part a "peeko". They don't really know how to spell it because it's a Hawaiian word (it's probably "piko").

Has an extraordinarily long tongue.

Has stinky feet.

Has a birth mark over is right eye (it looks like eye shadow), and one between his eyebrows. They are more prevalent when he is crying or has been outside.

Keeps his mom going some days.

Is going to be a great man, if he is just half the man his father is.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Win a Toyota Prius

Our school, Desert Marigold, is holding a raffle to win a Toyota Prius. To this date, I have not solicited sales from any of my family or friends because I did not know when the deadline for this raffle would be, if ever. Now I know, so here you go...they are giving away this baby at the end of the school year so we'll know who wins it. Now's your chance. If you would like to give our family credit for the sale, that would be great. Just note Kyra's name on your paypal purchase. If you want me to pick up a ticket for you, I can do that too. Here's the spiel:

Tickets are only $20 to win a brand new Toyota Prius (color of your choice, tax & license included!). Tickets are available through the DMS website www.arizonawaldorf.org via PayPal or in the school office and are non-refundable. All of the proceeds raised from the raffle will go to help build our new Enchanted Garden School Store and Café, a Parent Council supported venture. Parent Council uses the majority of its funds to support our faculty in further training and development. There is no per person limit- the more you buy... the better your chances of winning!

Prius Tickets sold to date: 1175

Sales will be capped at 2,000

A Friend's Craft Site...

If anyone is interested in another Super-Saturday type craft night see this link for a night out on March 26th. I'm going to go and make these cute blocks for spring/Easter. I'm also going to see how they make the Scrabble Tile necklaces that would be cute with the kids initials on them. Anywho, she's way out in Gilbert so if you're flexible and want to carpool, let me know. I'll have Payton with me and am debating taking Kyra to help with either the craft part or the babysitting part. She was a great help at softball last week and has earned the right to stay up every Thursday night for the purpose of letting her mother play ball. Everyone should have an eleven year old!

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Just Phaffing Around A Bit

I was phaffing around a bit, pretending to look at recipes and the like, and came upon a word I had never heard of. In a description of what this woman liked to do she put "faffing". I kind of guessed what it was, but decided to look it up. A friend of mine introduced me to the online urban dictionary so I gave it a go. Sure enough, there was "faffing". There were several entries and the final two were sort of unsavory and most of them alluded to the fact that it was sort of a synonym to the other f word. But there was also this alternative word, "phaffing." Of course, being the phonetic genius that I am, I recognized that this was indeed the same word. This definition of phaffing was much softer and what I was looking for:

Activity that looks (to the casual observer) like work (or another task) but is not really all that productive, and in fact may be time wasting.

This dictionary gives examples on how to use the word, and/or a sentence with it being used. It will quote famous people using the word as well. So, I'm done phaffing around now, and will get to bed because I have things to do tomorrow...

But, I'll leave you with this challenge (and it's not that tough): give me a word to update my vocabulary, because obviously I'm behind in the times. You might be hip, or maybe you need to visit the urban dictionary for yourself. Either way, go phaf around a bit and make me laugh.
Q: What is better than a hundred random readers commenting on your blog?
A: Having just a few close friends that you care about noticing that you need a little lift.

Thanks to everyone that has emailed, commented, hugged, or said nice things lately. You're all great and you know who you are. I appreciate every one of you and didn't even know I was sending off the sad vibe. So, I sit here this Sunday evening, being grateful. Grateful to know super people like you, and you, and you. Sometimes the love of your Heavenly Father is enough, other times he sends great friends and family to your doorstep or computer screen. Amen to both. I've been pretty blessed.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

More Random Conversations

April gave me a shirt for Payton because "every little boy needs a Hawiaan shirt". I put it in the van...

Tasha: Can I see the shirt so I can show it to Payton?
Me: Sure. (give her the shirt)
Tasha: It's so cute. Do you like it buddy? (showing it to Payton, then taking it back)
Tasha: Oh, it smells like Tyler's skin.

The dress code at DMS is that the children are not allowed to wear shirts with words on them, or logos, etc. Patterns are fine as long as they are all over and not just one big image. The exception to this is the shirts they get when they go on class trips and events. Today was one such day as Kyra wore her Medieval games shirts...

Bill: Do you see that shirt?
Me: Yeah.
Bill: He's killing that man.
Me: So.
Bill: He's stabbing him in the chest with a sword.
Me: I know.
Bill: They can't wear a shirt with a Nike swoosh on it, but they can wear a shirt depicting a man dying in the most grusome way possible?
Me: Yep.
Kyra: What?
Bill: It's just not right.
Kyra: My pentathalon shirt has a picture of a naked guy on it...
Me: AWESOME!


As we're loading up cars and getting ready to leave for a mutual activity...

YW #1: Bro F has the good music.
YW #2: Yeah, he does.
YW #1: All the girls in Bro F's car!
Bro F: Wow. This is completely the opposite of what it was like in high school.

I was in the kitchen and Tasha had strategically crammed her body in between an ottoman and the the wall. Her dad and sister are not very helpful. This is what I hear...

Tasha: Help.
Kyra: Dad, I think Tasha needs your help. She can't move.
Bill: What? Tasha is still?! Now, if we could just figure out something to keep her quiet.
Kyra: Duct tape.

This morning. Bill is taking breakfast orders and cooking. Kyra and I are eating. Tasha is searching the kitchen for something. Next thing I know Tasha is standing on the countertop in her saggy pajama bottoms and sweater from last night because she was too tired to change, reaching to the very top shelf of the cupboard for a Christmas glass because it was pretty.

Me: Why is Tasha standing on the counter?
Bill: Because she's a expert at overcoming limitations.

More on breakfast...

Tasha: Can I have french toast?
Bill: Yes.
Me: I didn't know we could have french toast.
Bill: I asked what you wanted.
Me: I didn't know it was on the menu.
(he made it as I was typing...)
Bill: Now, do we have powdered sugar?
Me: Yeah. Maybe. I think. Probably not.

But we did, so now I'm going to have some french toast. Have a good Saturday everyone!

Friday, March 5, 2010

"Totally Obsessed"

Julie declares this statement, "I'm totally obsessed", when referring to Julia Child and her new cooking venture. I'm a little obsessed myself, with a few things. One of them is this movie. The other one is cooking (more on this in a later post). The other is shameful, and will hopefully last only a day.

My media-free day backfired. I guess if you're not totally obsessed with television, computers, and the like then when you take a day off and focus on that, then you focus on just that...media. I missed television, and I don't even like television! All day long all I could think about was plugging in a Glee DVD or the Julie and Julia DVD that I've had sitting around from Netflicks for WAY too long. I had to check my email to coordinate a presidency meeting, and felt a gigantic pull to read some fan fiction that a friend sent me. And I don't even read fan fiction. So, there you have it, what you focus on, you want or get. If you focus on no media, then, what you really, really want is media.

So, here I sit. One day post-media free with my bowl of broccoli cheese soup, parked in front of the TV watching Julie and Julia and plugging away on the laptop. Ah sweet media, how I love you. I'll get over my obsession tomorrow, but for this baby-free moment, I'll absorb all of you that I can.

All you Glee fans will appreciate an appearance by Jane Lynch (Sue Sylvester). She plays Julia Child's very tall sister. There is some good tall banter between the family and she is very un-Sue like in this film. There is also one of the most realistic fights between a husband and wife in this movie that I have ever seen. It could have come straight out of our house, only I probably would have been louder.

Here are some of my favorite lines...

"Pearls. The woman is wearing pearls in the kitchen." (Julie, on Julia)

"And let me say this, is there anything better than butter?...you can never have too much butter." (well, there's no arguing this one)

"Don't crowd the mushrooms." (this is actually good advice, I tried it)

"I've never had an egg egg. I was a very willful child." (anyone know one of those?)

"Ritual Cobb salad lunch. Dreading, dreading, dreading."... (then later)...
"What do you think it means when you don't like your friends?"
"Men like their friends."
"We're not talking about men."

"By the way, did you know that if you don't dry meat it won't brown properly?" (I haven't tried this one)

"It's hotter than a stiff cock." (JC while tossing a cooked cannelloni from hand to hand)

"Man up, just kill the damn thing." (see below)

"Lobster killer...lob-stah kill-ah!" (see above)

"Do you two know each other? You should." (And then they were friends. Don't you wish it was that easy?!)

"The bitch lied." (Julie about Julia on flipping a gross meat jello onto a plate.)

"I can't even truss...(crying)...I'm a mess" (While sitting on the kitchen floor after dropping the duck. I'll be using this line often, while a mess. Can't you just hear me exasperated, declaring, "I can't even truss!"? Yep, it will happen.)

"Just for once, could you not look on the bright side?" (How very non-optimistic, but sometimes you need to just wallow in your misery.)

"Say cheese, duckie." (JC, to the duck she's trussing.)

"This little thing of yours on the Internet. I don't want to end up on it." (Julie's boss, about her blog.)

"I am. A bitch. I am Sara. I'm a bitch." (self realization)
"I know you are...but who isn't?"
"Julia Child."

"You are...a terrible human being and very difficult to live with." (Julie, to her husband, because he doesn't like being called a saint.)

"No one here but us servantless American cooks." (yep, that's me)

Monday, March 1, 2010

Media-Free Dry Run

Isn't there a week coming up sometime soon where the country is encouraged to go media free? You know, actually turn off your computers and TVs and interact with people the way they did in the old days? I think I need a dry run before I go all out for a week. I'm shooting for Thursday. I don't have to shut off my cell phone since it is my only phone, right? What about texting? I think I have to give that up, which is why I chose Thursday instead of Wednesday. If I can't text my young women, none of them will know what to do for mutual Wednesday night. Silly girls, you need a media free day too!

Dear "pami51",

I enjoy the recipes at allrecipes.com. If there is one that sounds tasty but something looks odd I will read the reviews. Like you, I get frustrated when people say how great it was BUT... and then they go on to list all the changes they made. This makes it a different recipe entirely. Anyway, I loved your comment on Jenn's Out Of This World Spaghetti and Meatballs. You said:

"IF YOU ARE MAKING MANY CHANGES TO THIS RECIPE THEN IT IS NOT THE SAME RECIPE. IF YOU DO NOT USE ALL THE CANS OF TOMATO PASTE YOU CERTAINLY WILL NOT NEED ALL THE SUGAR. IF YOU DOAN'T MAKE IT EXACTLY AS IT IS HERE THEN YOU SHOULDN'T BE REVIEWING IT. SUBMIT YOUR OWN RECIPE AND LEAVE THIS ONE ALONE. "

You make me laugh. I'll cook with you any day. I will however, omit some of the sugar in this sauce because I "doan't" like me a sweet sauce. That's the kind of change I feel should be made since we all know our own taste buds.

Fondly,
H

P.S. I'll forgive your spelling error because when one is on a good rant, one can not be stopped to use spellcheck, check for typos, or other such nonsense. Way to let them have it!