Messages From The MotherShip

Healthy (ish) Eating With Just a Microwave

2012-02-13T12:41:00.000-08:00

Between ballet, graduation and our graduation celebration trip, our family will be spending a lot of time eating away from the kitchen this spring. It would be easy to try a new fast food place three times a day, every day, but is that what we want? "Not I," said the Little Red Hen. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good burger just as much as the next guy, but I'd rather it be a treat than a way of life. Because we will be demanding a lot of our bodies--especially the dancer--I want to make sure we are putting things in them that will give us strength and energy instead of sapping it away. In other words, I don't want our diet to make us tired. Plus, it is expensive for seven people to eat out that much! How to do this without pots and pans and a stocked spice cabinet?

Well, at least not all of the time!

Many of our hotels will have a microwave in the room and a coffee pot which I can use to boil water. If I am careful, I think we can eat pretty well as we travel. However, being one who doesn't use the microwave for much more than re-heating, I started to study.

My anticipated kitchen, plus a cutting board, knife and glass bowl with a lid.

Here we are on the cusp of travel season (okay, we aren't really on the cusp, but it makes February feel so much less dreary if I think the tulips are just around the corner) and I know many people are planning vacations. There is also a fair number of people who eat from the microwave every day on their lunch break. This isn't an article for Eat Raw magazine, but it is definitely better than fast food. Plus, it is all food my family will eat. Maybe my research can give you new ideas.

Vegetables/ Sides

Sweet Potatoes
Acorn Squash--actually it is easy to steam pretty much all vegetables
Green salad "kits", fruit salad, and other "no cook" salads
Potatoes (to make a meal of it, add chili)
There are some boxed sides that aren't too unhealthy such as stuffing and rice.
Cold vegetables with (limited) Ranch

Main Entree
Rotisserie Chicken (chicken salad or just the meat)
Those BBQ pulled pork buckets for sandwiches
Chicken salad (using the rotisserie or canned chicken)
Sandwiches with whole grain breads, turkey and veggies
Hot Ham and Swiss
Soup
Quesadillas and wraps

Breakfast
Oatmeal
Yogurt with Granola and berries
Bagels and Cream Cheese
Egg McMuffin

Snacks
Hummus and fresh vegetables
Fruit, both fresh and dried
Nuts
Tomato with basil, mozzarella and balsamic vinegar
Tortilla with cream cheese and smoked salmon
Popcorn
Cocoa

I'm sure we'll have our fair share of Fig Newtons and Pringles, but if we keep those things as treats and not as meals, we'll be doing pretty good.

What other healthy on-the-road food ideas to you have?

Cleaning Up the Diet

2012-02-10T16:36:00.000-08:00

It started with the January seed catalogs. I slowly searched every picture on every page. Corn on the cob.

I need corn on the cob. Ohhh, fresh raspberries.

Doesn't that juicy goodness sound perfect right now? Look at all the varieties of green beans!

Some of them aren't even green.

Then I read this short and simple article in the Ensign. I almost skipped it because, heck, I know about nutrition. But, I read the captions to the pictures which got my attention enough to make me read the couple of paragraphs that made up the article. Then I thought about it for the next couple of days. The point about eating fruits and vegetables "in the season thereof" reminded me of the seed catalogs.

A few days later, I had a conversation with my mom about the article. I told her about the need to be more sparing with meat. When I really thought about it, though, I realized that I do use meat sparingly. I'll use one pound of hamburger in a huge stock pot of vegetable beef soup. I can make one whole chicken spread out over three meals and that is just the meat; I also boil the bones and get six to eight cups of chicken stock to use in recipes later. We haven't had bacon in probably six months because I refuse to pay those prices. If beans will work just as well, I use beans. I don't think meat is our problem.

Then I saw this picture on Pinterest. The caption said The Way to Store Fruits and Vegetables. I took it as a mild tongue-in-check joke. Yes, the fruits and vegetables should fill the fridge. When I clicked on the link, it actually was a practical source on effectively storing fruits and vegetables. Useful, I s'pose, but that is not why I loved the picture and the joke the pinner didn't know they were making.

While waiting for my daughter at piano lessons, I was looking through a Real Simple magazine spread about healthy snacks. The ideas looked so delicious.

Orange and Walnuts

I had this for my snack today and it was as delicious as it looks.

Tomatoes, mozzarella, basil and balsamic vinegar.

There are a whole bunch of great ideas in that article so go check it out.

I firmly believe that our bodies tell us what we need. I need more fruits and vegetables. I need less sugar . . . way less sugar. I'm not going to cut out sugar, but I know I have a little problem with the sugar.

This diet of mine needs a little spring cleaning. The vegetable garden planning has commenced!

Me and the Phone--My Inner Demons

2012-02-09T20:18:00.000-08:00

I'm weird about the phone. Always have been. When I left home for college, I couldn't order a pizza over the phone. (Too much pressure to come up with the topping and the crust and the deal all at once.) I am much better, cured even, regarding that kind of phone usage. Heaven knows I can talk to my grandma, mom or sister for well past the point of my ear feeling funny or, in the case of talking while folding laundry or washing dishes, until my neck starts having spasms of I-can't-hold-this-position-for-one-more-minute.

I don't have a cell phone. I don't have Caller ID or even Call Waiting, for that matter. Frankly, I don't like being that available. But, it is also because I'm weird about the phone.

It's not that I don't like to talk to people. I am always the last person out of church on Sunday and the one still visiting ten minutes after I've given the five minute warning to my children. I would say that I am a social person.

But if I need to call someone for a real reason, I put it off. I have no great reason. I know making the call will release some of the tension on my shoulders. I know that making the call will result in an answered question or a duty delegated.

Today, I had a bunch of phone calls to make. Some of them I had put off for a while--I kept finding excuses not to make the calls. I planned out the perfect time. I couldn't call between 3 and 5 because some people were at work and others were helping with homework and making dinner. I couldn't call between 5 and 6 because that is dinner time. 9 is too late.

7 PM on a Thursday night. You can't pick a better time. I made a date with myself and grit (gritted?) my teeth. I began dialing.

Out of my list of calls, only one person was home. Do you know what this means? It means I have to battle my weirdness AGAIN and do this AGAIN. Since I put if off until Thursday, that means tomorrow is Friday and no one will be home at 7 PM because they will all be out on the town. The after school time and dinner time is still out. What shall I do?

Email. That is the answer. Email will save me. Right? (In a small, hesitant voice.) Unless I don't have their address. Or they don't respond to emails.

Oh, fine. I'll try again.

How to Sew Reverse Applique

2012-02-08T22:11:00.000-08:00

Shirt #2 for our upcoming trip. I decided to try a reverse applique. It was super easy and made me want to try it with a more complicated pattern. Here is the How To.

Materials: Craft store t-shirts--one to wear and one to cut up. These were on sale for $2.50. Also, cloth scissors and paper scissors, thread, a template and a marking pen (crayon works, too).

For our purposes, I wanted a simple silhouette of Mickey. I printed a couple of sizes so I could experiment. Cut it out with those paper scissors.

At this point, I put on my shirt so I could figure out where to put the applique. I put a pin at the top and bottom of the location. You don't need to pin the paper, you are just marking the spot.

One time, I was working in the Emergency Room as a Unit Coordinator and someone brought in a bunch of left-over corsages from something. They were supposed to be given to patients, but it was a slow night. They sat there looking longingly at me. I decided to put one on--because nothing says classy like fresh flowers on generic blue scrubs! I kept getting weird looks through the night, but I figured it was because I was wearing a corsage with scrubs. At the end of my ENTIRE shift, I saw myself in the mirror of the staff room. I had pinned that thing too low and it had fallen a bit. It looked like I had some kind of floral torpedo coming out of the center of my breast. From then on, if I can't look in the mirror while pinning anything on my chest, I always err on the side of too-high.

So, make sure you look in the mirror to mark your spot. You do not want it to look like a Mickey "eye" patch.

Turn the to-be-cut-up shirt inside out and trace your template. Cut it out with room to sew.

The arrows are pointing at the pins I put in my shirt earlier to mark the place.

Pin it in place and remove your marker pins. You do not need a broken sewing machine needle today. Make sure the wrong side is facing up.

Stitch all the way around your marked Mickey and turn it right-side-out. It should look like this.

Carefully, and I really mean carefully, cut out the top. Do not cut through the piece sewn in place. This would have really been easier with smaller scissors.

That's it. (I am expecting it get a little rougher after it is washed.)

The boys' shirts are done as is, but I'm adding a couple of feminine touches to the girls' shirts. When you divide that extra shirt by the seven I used it on, each shirt cost $2.85. Not a bad price, eh? That is worth a little time at the sewing machine.

A Day

2012-02-07T21:59:00.000-08:00

When I woke up this morning, there was no milk. No cereal. No eggs. No bread. No juice. No fruit. I could have come up with something, but nothing was working for me. Pancakes must be accompanied by a big glass of milk, see. So, the girls made peanut butter and jelly wraps with tortillas. I had a cup of cocoa and some of the molasses cookies I had made last night.

The dog somehow grabbed my purse and chewed through the strap. I was just glad he hadn't accessed the contents.

I went running for the first time in about a week (it had been dangerously icy) and my dang dog pulled me the entire way. It is like two workouts in one--running and trying to teach my spazzy dog to heel.

School was a flop.

My girls were invited to Valentine's Parties. This is the first time they will get to hand out Valentines. We usually make them for grandparents and friends, but this time they will experience a Valentine Exchange. I am so excited for them. (This is one of the hard things about home school for me.) We found some cute ideas and decided to go get materials.

We are far enough away from town that I like to combine errands whenever I can. We obviously needed groceries as well as pink and red paper. I went through the newspaper and all of my coupons and made a plan.

I threw a frozen lasagna in the oven and turned on the heat a little lower than suggested since we would be gone for a while.

We went to the craft store first. Knowing what is inside a craft store, I prepped my girls. "We will only be buying the things on our list. I know there are a lot of REALLY cool things in there, but we can't buy them. Please don't ask. We will wander around and look, though, because I know that is fun for you. Everybody understand?" Unanimous nods.

They were all perfectly wonderful. My three year old was gathering things as we walked, but she was being very sweet and promised that she knew we weren't buying anything. As we got in the check-out line, I explained that it was time to put everything back. She slowly began to do it. She had a little heart shaped box that was on clearance--one dollar and she had been so good. I told her I would get it for her. We bought everything and started to head out the door. She started to resist. I told her the box was in the bag and I would give it to her when we got to the car. Inexplicably, she began throwing the biggest tantrum she has thrown. Ever. She was kicking (literally) and screaming (literally) all the way to the car. She had her little back arched so far that I almost could have buckled her in her seat backwards. I still had no idea what happened.

There was a candy necklace at the checkout.

I couldn't believe it. I finally tricked her into buckling up and we pulled out onto the highway.

She, still screaming and kicking, unbuckled. Her big sisters are doing everything they can, but you don't know strong until you know a tantrum-throwing three year old. I'm scolding from the front seat--completely ineffective.

I pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store with my organized list. You know that wasn't going to happen. I talked her down. Slowly, slowly, everyone calmed down. We put her hair back together and put her shoes back on her feet. I told everyone that we would just get the basic essentials.

Made it through the store with relatively little trouble. Rang out the groceries and asked the girls to hand me my purse (I thought one of them was sitting on it in the cart). No purse. Because the dog chewed through the strap, I hadn't had it slung over my shoulder where I didn't have to think about it. I had left it in the car which was on the far side of the parking lot.

Cancel the order. Plead with the girls to stay Right Here and I ran to the car.

Come back, re-check it all. Pay and race to the car. We are now late for another appointment.

I hate being late.

But, the three year old had worn herself out and slept in my arms through the whole thing.

And, when we made it home, the lasagna was perfectly done. I had picked up bread and greens and we sat down to a lovely dinner.

Someone said "something really gross" so my eight year old couldn't eat. She couldn't just tell me that, though, she had to fall apart and have a breakdown.

I finished my dinner and turned on Netflix for the girls. I closeted myself in my room and haven't left for two hours. They have been in here, tattling, cuddling, crying, laughing, in turns.

In the quiet, my three year old cuddled up next to me and said, "We're best friends, huh, Mom." I loved her and talked to her about how important it is that she stay buckled in her seat. "I know, Mom, but I just wanted to hug you!" It was kind of true. That is part of what she was screaming at me in the car.

Some days it all works, but most days, some things work and some things, well, it don't. And that's okay. Because at the end of the day, everyone falls asleep. And they are so beautiful when they sleep.

Bedtime is a time of forgiveness.

Actual Instructions

2012-02-07T09:46:00.000-08:00

I know you are probably sick of hearing about a trip you won't be taking, but I have to share with you one more thing.

Last night I was getting information off of the Disney website. There was a FAQ link. Since those are usually helpful and since I've read everyone's advice except Disney's and since I believe in going to the source for accuracy, I decided I should read it. I was not disappointed. With something like 3 Billion visitors per year, they have seen everything. You can tell by the following items that are not permitted in the park:

Not in Disneyland

String Bikinis
G-Strings
Bullet Belts
Wedding Dresses
Scooters--non-motorized and motorized
Motorcycles
Tricycles
Unicycles
Pogo Sticks
Sporting Equipment (and they specify: baseball bats, hockey sticks, golf clubs, and bows and arrows)
Weapons (and they specify: nun-chucks, brass knuckles, billy clubs, guns, knives, stars and other martial arts equipment)
Self-defense Equipment (please leave home your pepper spray, mace and stun guns)

It keeps getting weirder . . . (I'd better remember to take this stuff out of my purse. You just never know when you'll need these things!)

How paranoid do you have to be to bring a
fire extinguisher with you on
vacation?

Restraining Devices (hand cuffs, zip ties)
Suspicious Items (box cutters, razor blades, duct tape, wire)
Items that may be disruptive (stink bombs, sling shots)
Cremated Remains
Miscellaneous Items (fire extinguishers, musical instruments, pots and pans)

And the final warning:

This information is subject to change without notice.

I believe in the goodness of people. Despite the wicked who make headlines, I believe that most people are good and kind.

But many of those same people? Well.

People are weird.

Vacation Eating

2012-02-06T08:36:00.000-08:00

Based on the comments on my last post and the person-to-person comments based on my last post, I felt I should clarify our dining plans.

While in Anaheim, our hotel (within easy walking distance--so no parking fees) has a microwave and small fridge. Before we check in, we will hit the grocery store and fill 'er up. My dear friend, who also has five children, goes to the park annually. She gave me some great tips. One point she made was that it is hard enough to get everyone up, dressed, hair fixed and teeth brushed. If you had to enter a hot breakfast in the lobby into the schedule, forget getting to the gates when they open. She suggested doing easy, cold breakfasts in the room (bagels, yogurt, juice) that the girls could eat while I'm fixing their hair.

Our hotel has a small continental breakfast, but many of the items are prepackaged. We'll stuff some apples, granola bars and Little Debbie snacks into our bags as we walk out the door.

One suggestion for consideration is a fanny pack. She said to get everyone a fanny pack to keep a water bottle and snacks. A fanny pack wouldn't fall off on the rides and it wouldn't get squashed every time you leaned back. BUT, I would have to wear a fanny pack.

Another tip was to go back to the hotel in the early afternoon. Go to the hotel for lunch (we could just do peanut butter, but we could also have microwaved fare--burritos, baked potatoes). Then, the small ones take a nap and the parents take turns swimming with the older kids. If we are getting up early, moving constantly during the day, and going to bed late, we will be exhausted. Taking a short timeout each afternoon just sounds rejuvenating.

AT the park, we will share a few special treats--like the turkey leg and churros--and we will eat dinner. The one exception will be the Character Breakfast. That day, we will eat two meals in the park.

So there you have it. I think some of you were concerned that we would be spending as much on food as we would be on tickets. I hope your fears are assuaged.

Disneyland Food

2012-02-03T09:03:00.000-08:00

Today I am thinking about food; specifically, Disneyland Food. I don't want to super-schedule our vacation, but I do want to make sure we don't miss a Don't Miss. Also, some of these places require reservations.

One of the things I am discovering is that Disney doesn't do anything half-way. They aren't going to have a tidy park, they are going to have a spotless park. They aren't going to have nice rides, they are going to have amazing rides. They aren't going to have good food, they are going to have supreme food. We aren't talking about Denny's chefs here. We are talking about the best.

And I haven't eaten breakfast yet.

In no particular order, this is what is on my list so far.

The Monte Cristo Sandwich from Blue Bayou. I know this is an expensive restaurant, but it is one of my favorite memories. Being from a northern most point of a western most state makes the deep south environment very exotic.

The turkey leg. I don't know what is so amazing about it, but it is on everyone's list.

Apparently there are some massive corn dogs from this little truck that are not to be missed. Since I love crappy corn dogs from Zips, you know I'm getting one of these!

Since my mother is a true gem and because she wants the kids to have the experience, she is buying the family a character breakfast. Can I just say that I am super excited for this? We are not just going to Disneyland for the children!!

More for the entertainment than the food, we've been told to dine at The Golden Horseshoe.

Though, the chocolate cake is supposedly delicious and gigantic.

Another "experience" dinner will be the Rainforest Cafe.

*Update: In wondering what to eat at the Rainforest Cafe, I did a Google search. It seems that the consensus of the internetted peeps is that it is a Do Miss. Apparently, the place is great, but the food is overpriced AND crappy. Anyone have a comment about that?

Of course, you can't go to the Tiki Room without getting a Pineapple Whip.

One of the things we are going to try is the Picnic for the Color of the World show. You buy this picnic dinner and it comes with fast passes to the show. Anytime I can save waiting in line, I'll do it. The dinners look pretty good, too.

I'm sure we'll share churro or two and probably one of those cream cheese pretzels because they are so Disneyland.

What else? What do we need to make sure we don't miss?

Check List

2012-02-01T15:40:00.000-08:00

Done today:

Make bed. Check.
Clean room. Check.
Clean living room. Check.
Vacuum. Check.
Give the dog a bath. Check.
Workout. See #5.
Clean bathroom because of #5. Check.
Buy Disneyland tickets. Check.
Cook and tend to the children. Check.
Wait. What did #8 say?

That's right. I bought our tickets for Disneyland today!! Hip-hip-hooray!! We may be eating Top Roman and Peanut Butter sandwiches, but we will be going to Disneyland!

Truly, a great Wednesday.

How to Make a Little Girl's Dress From a T-Shirt

2012-01-30T19:21:00.000-08:00

As you know, we are planning a family trip to Disneyland. When you have five young children, keeping track of everyone is a real issue. My parents took our family to Disneyland when we were young and one of the tactics they used was matching shirts. If we are all wearing the same shirt, we can train our eye to watch out for that shirt in the sea of people. I have been on the lookout for matching shirts for several months with no success. I could find shirts for all of the girls, but none for our teenage son or for my husband and I. We're also trying to avoid using our entire Disney budget on shirts before we even leave (we're getting the five day pass).

Solution Part A: Vistaprint. It was hard to beat the $4.50 price tag! I uploaded a free Mickey picture and had the shirts printed and shipped for free. To get the deal, I had to order all men's sizes.

Solution Part B: Make the Men's T-shirt into a little dress (for the small girls) or a tunic (for the big girls).

It was so easy and could be made out of any adult tee. Here is the tutorial!

Materials needed: T-Shirt (this is an adult small), 7/8" ribbon, cord, and matching thread.

Lay out your t-shirt and measure a length of 7/8" ribbon--enough to wrap all of the way around the shirt plus a little extra.

To avoid fraying ends, fold over the ends of the ribbon and pin it in place.

Then, pin the whole ribbon on the shirt. I left a gap between the ends of the ribbon because you will have a draw string tied there. Make sure that you don't pin the front of the shirt to the back!

View from the back, pinned loosely in place.

Stitch one side in place, being careful to stay close to the edge of the ribbon.

Now, stitch the other side of the ribbon in the same way.

You've just made a casing for your draw string. Good job!

On the ends of each ribbon, I stitched the opening so it was a little smaller. This way, I can tie a knot on the ends of my draw string and it won't pull out as easily.

Here is another view from inside the t-shirt.

Next up, pulling the t-shirt inside-out, put it on the cutest little girl you can find. The neckline of the t-shirt was too big, so I put a couple of simple darts in the back. Measure and pin . . .

and stitch it. Try to make them the same. If they don't end up same, fix her hair down when she wears this dress.

Okay, now that we have a waist and a collar that fits, lets do something about those ginormous sleeves. Go pick a shirt that fits nicely from your daughter's drawer. None of the seams are going to be the same. Don't worry. Line up the collar as closely as you can.

Here is another view. Smooth out the two shirts so the tops of the sleeves are flush.

Use a crayon to trace the shirt that fits onto the soon-to-be dress. Bump the crayon markings out just a bit for a seam allowance.

If your niece bought your daughter Minnie Mouse crayons for Christmas, use one of those.

Now, take a deep breath and cut. I wanted the fullness of the shirt so the skirt could be full, but I didn't want baggy armpits. That is so 1995. I know 'cause that was when I graduated. We were all about huge t-shirts in those days. And waistbands that went around our waist. But, I digress. My point is that I took off much of the sleeve, then angled the bodice a bit.

Fold the shirt in half and cut it the exact same way on the other side. Hem the sleeve and sew up the sides. Do it in that order so you don't have to fight with trying to sew a super small arm hole in knit without stretching it.

This is what your garment should look like at this point.

Does it look like that? I know there are a few things are aren't exactly perfect, but the waist will be cinched so you won't be able to see the little wobbles.

Finally, thread the cord through your ribbon casing and knot the ends.

Here it is on the little girl. We will probably add leggings for our trip.

And here it is on the big girl. The biggest difference between the tunic and the dress is how far down you put your draw string.

I still need a couple more matching shirts for the whole family and I have a couple more ideas on how to alter them. The Michael's ad that came in Sunday's paper advertised t-shirts for $2.50 each. I'll post the altered designs soon!

Paying Attention

2012-01-29T22:06:00.000-08:00

I noticed my little girl making hash marks while the speaker was at the podium at church today. I didn't think much about it. I know I need to repent, but I do have to admit that I laughed out loud when she explained the reason for the marks.

She was keeping track of every time the speaker said, "Uh."

Still Happy Home Schooling

2012-01-27T09:08:00.000-08:00

We were a lot late getting started with school after Christmas Vacation. I have some good excuses, but the long and short of it is that I just didn't get it done. One night, after I finally felt like I had my feet back under me, I proclaimed to the girls, "We are having school tomorrow!"

They cheered.

Preschool Cutting Practice

Sometimes I get really sick of teaching my kids. There are some days when they do not want to learn. There are days when the pressure from some people outside of my home feels too great. There are days when I want to have only one child at home and let someone else take care of educating the older ones. There are days when I would like my house to stay clean for a few minutes together. Public school sounds really nice on those days.

But then, something will happen that will remind me how lucky I am (and how lucky the kids are) that I home school my children.

A few days ago, I was talking with the mother of an eight year old boy. He hates to read. He hates school. He fights homework. He grumbles about everything school-related except recess. Once you account for riding the bus, sitting at his desk, doing his homework, eating, and completing his required at-home reading, he has precious little time to play. Why don't we let our children play anymore? Isn't that one of the great benefits of our age?

The "big" girls were at the table, too, but the house behind them was too messy to show their picture.

Our one-room school leaves plenty of time to play--the whole afternoon, in fact. (Of course they have their family work as well.) So, even if we do someday opt for public education, I am glad that my children get to have the best of both worlds right now.

And I'm still happy to be home schooling so they can play.

Someday House Computer Nook

2012-01-24T18:47:00.000-08:00

In my attempt to make sure I have a place for everything (so everything can be in its place), my next focus is on the computer/office area.

As you know, the internet can be a dangerous place so the computer must be in plain site and in a busy area of the house. I can't have a desk in my kitchen because I know me--it would be stacked shoulder high at all times with who-knows-what. Our library will have outlets and a large table for research and study, but the nature of a library is not conducive to the scream-inducing activities of bill paying and website maintenance.

My favorite solution is a nook in the living room.

Since I will have a mail center in another part of the house and plan to have an organized office area, I am hopeful that I can make this a tidy, manageable place. I'll have the filing cabinets there as well as all of the necessary "parts."

It is for this reason that I like the idea of a curtain or closet doors that can be closed when the area is not in use.

Because, let's face it, computers have a lot of ugly parts (printer, blinking routers, and wires upon wires that never show up in magazine photos) that attract dust like a moth to the flame. It would be lovely to be able to shut that away when needed.

As a woman of the computer age, I know this must be a planned space. As much as it will be used, it can't be left to happenstance.

Thoughts?

First Tooth

2012-01-22T22:33:00.000-08:00

She lost her first tooth. Is there anything cuter?

Don't Be Fooled

2012-01-21T10:53:00.000-08:00

Generally, I like Newt. Maybe not all of his ideas are great, but at least he has ideas. However, I have a beef with precisely the thing his supporters are praising.

A few days ago, his second wife gave an interview with a news outlet. She said many salacious things and all were timed to derail Newt's campaign. I won't give total credence to the comments of a disgruntled ex. One fact, however, is certain: Newt is an adulterer. And it was not just once, though that is enough to deserve the title.

Soon after the interview, there was a debate. The moderator asked Newt if he would like to address the topic. What he said may have been thought politically ~~slick~~ smart, but I'm afraid I saw right through his fiery response. Here is the clip, if you care to watch.

So what is my beef?

It was not the moderator's fault that Newt committed adultery. It is not the moderator's fault that Newt is running on a "family values" platform.

It is Newt's fault.

Maybe the media should stay out of the private life of politicians (I do partially agree with that).

Maybe the presidential debates should contain more of the issues of the state (I think the disintegration of the family is our most important national issue).

Maybe if more of the good people Newt claims won't run for office because of the blood-thirsty media really led the lives they claim to live, they couldn't be caught in scandals (I do believe our leaders should be held to a higher standard than the general population--at least up to the standards I have for myself).

Do people make mistakes? Yes. Is there such a thing as repentance? Yes. Do we still have to deal with the consequences of our sins even after we repent of them? Yes.

Dear Mr. Gingrich,

Do not blame the consequences of your actions on someone else.

Sincerely,

A Voter

Spy

2012-01-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

I can't give you details. Too many people read my blog (namely, my children) and it is meant to be a surprise. But, I can tell you a bit without giving it away.

We are doing a spy thing in Primary for the next few months. We wanted to have our bulletin board reflect the activity. Since it involves all of our Primary Children, we decided to take pictures of them spying.

Don't worry, it doesn't involve being a creepy spy! It is church, after all! I had a small pile of props and told the children to use them and to pose like they thought a spy would pose. I really want to show you all of the children, but I didn't ask anyone's parents. SO, I am showing you mine! The kids were very inventive and the pictures turned out so cute.

Wouldn't you love to be caught choosing the right by these little spies?

For Ariel

2012-01-18T19:06:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to write a post about having an empty fridge right on the heels of a post about dream vacations all over the world. Why? Because that is the way life works. When you have an empty fridge, you dream. It is a survival mechanism. Besides, this post is not for you, it is for my niece. (Background: she and her husband are newly-wed students, expecting their first baby.)

My Dear Ariel,

You told me the other day that you were washing clothes in your bathtub because you didn't have any money for the laundromat. My first reaction was that I wished I had $50 to stick in an envelope. My second reaction was probably better: I was grateful that you were washing your clothes in your bathtub.

My husband has been in school for over six years now. Last year, we didn't earn enough money to qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit (and that has a VERY low bar). This was my fridge a couple of weeks ago--a few days before our student loan disbursement.

That is a lemon, jam, garlic (nearly gone), mayonnaise (nearly gone), yeast, one cube of margarine, a brick of cream cheese and condiments.

Don't you dare pity me. I took this picture because I thought it was funny. It looks like this for at least a couple of weeks before the end of every semester. HOWEVER, not only did we not starve, we had good meals. How is that possible? Over the years, I have learned skills I never even could have thought up B.S. (before school). And, even though I am sick to death of not having enough money, I would never trade these lean times.

That is the temporal tale. The spiritual tale is more profound.

We have seen miracles. I can tell you true stories, the likes of which you only read in the back of the Ensign. I have witnessed fellow mortals respond to messages from heaven in angelic ways. I've been humbled . . . again and again. I have learned to value the command to pay a full tithe, I've learned how sincere prayer looks, and I have learned what it means to rely on my Savior.

So, while the mother in me would like to save you from your current fiscal crisis, the person I've become wouldn't think of stealing away this to-be-treasured part of your character. While you are eating rice and beans that are still crunchy, don't think, "These are gross. I can't live like this." Instead, think, "Next time I'll need to soak these a little longer." Because during this time of without, you are becoming a woman with.

With all my love,

Aunt Emily

Traveling with My Little Friends

2012-01-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

One of my new friends in my new neck of the woods took her eleven year old daughter to France last year. Just the two of them. Amazing, right? What is the story? I have been wondering about this for a while and finally had the chance to ask her.

Here is a picture of the two of them.

She didn't post many pictures on her blog (probably because of creeps like me). But as I was looking through them, don't laugh at me, I teared up. What a beautiful experience to have together! What a lasting memory, one of love and time alone. No little sisters allowed.

Now, here again, writing about it and I'm crying.

Here's how it worked. She and her husband had decided long before that they wanted to have an individualized vacation like this with each child and wanted to have the added bonus of an amazing cultural experience. (Kind of like the Passport to Purity Weekend on steroids.) They were supposed to go when her daughter was twelve, but when they discovered another baby was on his way (and knowing baby's can't be away from Mom for many months after the baby comes) they decided to go early. She explained how they carefully build up airline miles and how she cuts out many other luxuries so she can afford to travel. Good tips for another post. Suffice it to say, they work hard to make travel a priority in their budget.

Guess what I did for much of the morning.

My oldest girl wants to go to Italy. Okay by me! Let's look into Italy!

Costco has these amazing packages. I'll need a few years to save up, but she is still only ten.

My next daughter wants to go to Brazil.

South America? :et's do it! I'm so excited!

The reality is that we'll probably be following Isaac around the globe. If I can take just one child with me each adventure, that will be amazing enough. Got a Summer Intensive in Romania?

Well do a tour of the castles before we pick you up. What about Vienna.

Twist my arm.

I know you have a great opportunity with the Danish Ballet.

I could possibly swing that,

but only if I can bring one of your sisters.

Naughty, Funny Three

2012-01-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

On her first day of Primary.

This child is currently making me crazy and delighting my soul. What is it about the age of three that they can accomplish such a seemingly opposing feats? She is a flurry of destruction: If I've just carefully placed the books on their shelf with the spines flush, she will hurry over and toss the books haphazardly over her shoulder. "Hmmm, not this one, not this one . . ."

If I give her a pile of folded socks to put away, she will undo all the sock balls and put them on to make a beefy layered cotton boot. With her eyes rolled back, she sighs, "Oh, I these are so soft!"

Yesterday, she fell while doing something she shouldn't have been doing and was crying the hold-your-breath cry. I ran to her and picked her up telling her quietly, "Breathe, honey. You are turning blue." Once she got control of herself, she opened her eyes really wide, trying to see around the tears, to inspect her hands. "I'm not blue!" Then, she laughed and laughed while the tears of hurt turned to tears of delight.

I don't know the mind of the Lord and she may be my last child. She comes in to my bed during the night just about every night and it makes me so happy. I love her warm, soft skin and the way she sandwiches her cold behind into my lower back. I love her waking up in the morning with her cooing, "G'morning, mama." I know I can't let her get away with bad behavior, but I also know that I can't get too uptight about things that she'll grow out of. She will eventually be four and many of the naughty things that make me pull out my hair now are things that I will miss.

When I am someday coloring with a box of unbroken crayons, I will long for my little trouble-maker to come and break them in two.

Someday House Game Room

2012-01-14T09:21:00.000-08:00

I have lately been thinking about our Someday House Game Room and thought I would share my ideas with you.

There has been an insurgence of Home Theaters in the past few years. They usually have a huge TV (or projector), a popcorn machine, and rows of chairs--on risers. Like this:

Perfectly Imperfect Blog

I am tempted by such a room. It would be super cool to have such a set-up. Seating would be comfortable, everyone would be able to see, and the audio/visual would be fantastic. The problem with such a room is its lack of versatility. You would use it to watch movies. Period. There isn't enough room in front of the chairs to play video games, you can't easily rearrange furniture for some other activity and you probably wouldn't even end up watch "regular" television in here because you wouldn't want to use up expensive projector bulb time. So, I have decided to branch out.

Our game room would have two distinct areas: TV and Gaming.

First, the viewing area. I don't really know anything about televisions, so I'm not super passionate about what kind of this or that to buy. I know I'd like a good sound system (but not a million dollar system), a rather large screen, and plentiful, comfortable seating. I also want the windows to be carefully placed so we aren't fighting the glare, since summer afternoons are the best time to sit in the cool basement to watch a movie.

As for seating, the stadium seats aren't the best idea for our family. I think I'd go with something like this:

or this:

Room to lay down and cuddle up or sufficient space for many behinds. I especially love the round, though I'd take out a couple of those sections so we could "Just Dance" in front of it.

The other side of the room would house one of these:

because I can't play pool, foosball, or air hockey. We would get (make) a folding version so we could do other things with that space--tape out hopscotch or spread out Twister, for example.

We love board games and card games, but the kitchen table isn't always the best place to play. A square table is usually best so I'd go with card tables. BUT, card tables aren't quite big enough. If you have your Monopoly board spread out, there is barely room for your money and forget trying to spread out your properties for easy viewing. I would custom make card tables that add about four inches to each side. Two of them, so if we wanted to play a game involving more than four people, we could push the tables together and lay down a felt tablecloth to cover the crack between.

How about storage for those scores of games and movies and blankets?

I propose two closets that are the size of mini-pantries. Double doors open up to carefully placed shelves. The most important feature? These closets will be locked.

Carpeted floor. NO wet bar, though the popcorn machine (or better yet, a microwave with a case of popcorn next to it) would be welcome. Most of the room will be bright and fun, but the viewing area will be a darker corner.

What else? What would you have in your basement game room?

Toning Tips

2012-01-13T08:34:00.000-08:00

I'm finally back into my pre-pregnancy jeans. I was about five pounds close for several months and could get them on, but then couldn't really sit or bend or, you know, move in them. I tried them on yesterday and, voila! They fit. The problem is that my body looks like a deflated balloon. Everything is saggy and soft and floppy. Plus, there is dog poo all over my yard--despite my VERY determined go at getting the dog to use an out-of-the-way area. I decided to end both of those problems with one activity and took the dog for a run.

It solved one problem--the dog did his business far away from my front lawn. The other? When I got home, I really wanted a Hostess Cup Cake*.

They weren't on sale and I couldn't force myself to pay full-price.

So I got these:

Yes, I think that'll firm me up right away.

*Okay, I just proof read this and saw the mentioning of the poo right next to the mentioning of the cup cake. They didn't really come that close together, though that may have ruined Ding Dongs for me. Probably not, but maybe. I apologize for any reflexive gagging that may have occurred.

Sucking Saga

2012-01-11T10:33:00.002-08:00

Sometimes I feel like the only thing I write on here are my confessions. Whelp, you know I'm not perfect, so why try to disguise the fact?

Today, I will tell you the story of the vacuum.

We had been married about three weeks when we knew it was time for a vacuum cleaner. We went to Sears with the budgeted money in our pockets and began testing out vacuum cleaners. We hefted and handled, read and asked questions. We even vacuumed up a trail of rice that the sales lady spread out for us. (This, parenthetically is why I shop at Sears for as many appliances as possible: they actually have a knowledgeable staff.) We narrowed it down to two options. The winner was chosen because it was blue and the other was brown. Who wants to look at a brown vacuum cleaner every day--at least once per day--for the next many years?

We were the proud owners of a vacuum cleaner. The first appliance purchase made as a married couple. It was a good'un.

About twelve years later, the handle broke. My son duct taped it back together and it kept plugging along.

Finally, as we my friends were moving us out of the house, the dear thing finally bit the dust (look at me being accidentally funny!). After nearly fourteen years of dedicated service, it was left by the garbage can as we pulled away.

Fast forward a couple of months. We finally moved into our new house and I began vacuum shopping. I am a researcher by nature, so I read Consumer Reports and every vacuum review on the internet. I determined an acceptable budget and presented my findings to my husband.

No go. We were out of money.

My sister-in-law (Hi, Lindsey!) gave me her old vacuum. She warned that it wasn't anything fancy, but it would basically get the job done. Fine with me. She also warned me that the belt needed to be replaced. No problem, right?

Over the next several weeks, my husband and I checked Best Buy, Walmart, Sears, Shopko, Target, Fred Meyer, and Kohls. We could not find a replacement belt. Meanwhile, we were vacuuming the whole stinking place with the hose. The job was frustrating, time consuming and woefully inadequate.

Today, I had had enough and I went shopping. I repeated my research with a much smaller budget in mind and determined to keep wearing this bra for another 18 months--and any other financial sacrifice that was required--to find the cash to pay for it. I even had the vacuum cleaner in the virtual shopping cart.

Then, I realized I had never searched online for the replacement belt. Duh, right? Don't make fun of me.

$5.99 later, TWO new belts are on their way and for the first time in six months, my floors will receive a thorough vacuuming.

The End

A Bit of Nothing

2012-01-09T22:31:00.003-08:00

I feel like I should write. I haven't written much in the past couple of weeks, though I've started posts, realized what I was writing was offensive and deleted it. Humph.

The morning cuddle.

Winter has fizzled, which is great because our tires are bald. But, also, it is not great because this brown, muddy business is not beautiful.

Whenever people say, "I've just found your blog!" or "I read your blog," I panic. While I sincerely want you here, my mind instantly flashes to recent posts. What did I write? Would that have offended her? Did I spell-check? Are they going to notice my long lists of books on the sidebar and know that there is a mound of lint behind my dryer?

I'm sick of having a puppy. I know, I know; several more months of this, but seriously! Does he have to chew everything . . . in the front yard?? He has chew toys, he has chewing bones, but he would rather chew up plastic, paper, and foam. Did I mention that all of this is done in the front yard? Of my single-wide trailer? I'm ready for him to be a dog.

Yesterday was my birthday and my people took good care of me. My mother was making dinner and she told me she was making Navajo Tacos. It's kind of like scones with taco fixings on top--a recipe she learned from the mother of a Navajo foster boy we had once. It is delicious, except that my mom always puts lentils in the meat. I hate lentils. I had made up my mind to be a good sport and not say anything, even though it was my birthday. Guess what! My mom left out the lentils! She loves me, I just know it!

She was also making my birthday cake and I really wanted an angel food cake, but I didn't want to be a pain so I didn't say anything. Guess what! Mom made angel food cake with strawberries on top. Oh, I love her!

I want to be creative with the small things (embroidery, cute little paper things), but I can't FOCUS on those same, tiny movements over and over and over again. If you ever get anything like that from me, know that the making of it is half of the gift.

I have been wearing the same bra every day for the past eighteen months. It doesn't work anymore.

I have been called to a new position in the church and it has been a very rewarding experience. I love my Heavenly Father and am grateful for the life-experiences He has offered. It is not always easy to grow, but from my current vantage point, I can see how they have all helped me grow closer to Him and become a better tool in His hands.

There is a new boy dancing at the academy where my son dances. He wanted to learn to dance after seeing Isaac in the Nutcracker.

I recently read my architect's entire blog. I want to dig a big hole in my back yard just to get started building! Maybe by the time I dig the whole foundation by hand, we'll be able to start.

My husband wants to learn how to use a Ham radio. He has few hobbies and I really think I should support and encourage this one. But, it probably means there will be a huge, ridiculous antennae in my garden.

And that is all. Am I out of words?

Thank You

2012-01-06T23:16:00.001-08:00

I have much to say and have been trying to say it for a couple of days, with no success. How about this way:

By allowing our son to live away from us to pursue his ballet dreams, we are ridiculed on every side. As if this weren't challenging enough, and as if we didn't question and wonder and hope continually about our decision, we get the added burden of explaining ourselves ~~to everyone who thinks it is their business to be involved in our parenting~~. It happens all of the time. I'm beginning to think I'm not the conventional person I thought I was!

You let your child go down the slide by himself? You are letting her walk to the movie theater alone? You think you are smart enough to home school? Your husband is going to college even though you have . . . how many kids? You want to have more children? You let your eight year old cook--with a stove and everything? You let her climb the tree, read Hunger Games, and use power tools? You are living in a 40 year old single-wide? And now, you let your son dance ballet . . . in another city?

Then, it comes . . .

I would never do it.

It is pretty much the ultimate insult. People say that to me a lot; probably without really thinking about what they are saying.

I would never do it. = You are a fool because you are doing it.

Honestly, it is one of the most painful experiences for me to have people I love express their judgement in this way. I'm sure you wouldn't necessarily want to do something that you might think was outrageous, but you don't always get to pick!

When you see someone drowning, it is usually a good idea to toss out the life saver, rather than lecture them on water safety.

Which is why your donations mean so much to me, my husband and our son. You will never know how much your generous votes of support have buoyed us. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Our boy lives away from me three weeks out of the month not because it is something we want, but because it is right. I hate it. I hate it every day. I can promise you that we want our son home more than the naysayers do. But, you know what? We have an amazing child (many of them, actually) with talents far beyond my comprehension. He will have opportunities available to him that his peers, whose parents wouldn't let stand next to the campfire, will never know. His life will not be the one I pictured, but that is only because I didn't know it was possible. And you will always get to say that you helped him get his start.

Sincerely and with the greatest appreciation,

Emily

P.S. To be fair, there are several people in my life who are loving and supportive of us as parents, even though they don't necessarily understand our decisions. You know who you are. <3

Have You Sponsored a Male Ballet Dancer Before?

2012-01-02T00:06:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends,

I am pleased to present a guest post from our boy. We are getting right down to it and our numbers do not add up. If you would like to help him out, it would mean so much. There is a donation tab in the upper left sidebar.

Not my son. Not yet.

**********************************************************************
To the Public,
From The MotherShip's Son

I hope you all had a good time over the holidays and enjoyed the nice long break.

Dance is a healthy thing to do--although it brings its injuries and pains. Dance has so many nice things about it for me personally; so many joys and surprises. Ballet is FUN. It has jumps and spins, especially during the Russian dance in the Nutcracker. But then there is the more artistic side of it, the partnering, adagio and is pretty to watch. I love ballet for the calming barre in the beginning, I love ballet for it’s huge jumps and all types of pirouettes. I love ballet for the friendly competition between me and other dancers. I love it for the fun and challenging teachers and coaches. I love the long 5-6 hours of staying in the stinky, stuffy classroom. Ballet is my passion, it’s my soul-mate/wife/girlfriend. (Emily here: ha ha ha! Great girlfriend for a twelve year old, eh?)

As a ballet dancer, competitions and performances come up. They can be expensive when the final price is set upon you. In February, I will be attending an international ballet competition in Denver, Colorado. It is called Youth American Grande Prix. The opportunities in this competition would be great for any dancer, but especially for me as it will be my competitive debut. I will be performing two variations: Giselle Peasant Male Variation and Satenella Male Variation. Both of these are classical and contain no modern or contemporary choreography.

This competition is a BIG deal and can influence my future as a professional ballet dancer. I will have judges from many big schools. If they notice me, I could have an opportunity to travel to New York City for finals. If not, they may still take notice for the potential I have for the future. If I go again next year, they will most likely recognize me and then give me serious attention when I dance.

I am not saying these things to boast, I am simply being aware of what my talents are and what I enjoy doing. It would be a great career to have.

This wonderful new year, I want to ask for donations to assist me in this great opportunity. Not out of charity, but to be able to help me in this life changing experience.

Thank you SO much, and if you just can’t donate, think of what I wrote as a real understanding for a ballet dancer’s life.

Sincerely,
Isaac Sanders

Grandma's Fudge

2011-12-29T10:51:00.001-08:00

This is me with my wonderful grandmother. I love her so much and I will treasure this picture for the rest of my life. It is a pretty good indicator of what I will look like in my eighties!

Just before Christmas, our family went to see her. She is a remarkable lady--and she makes wonderful fudge. She made a batch of fudge while we were there, so I grabbed my camera and followed along. This post is mostly for me, my siblings, my cousins, and all of our children, but if you want to learn how to make Grandma's Fudge, here you go.

First you need the right pan. Grandma told me she got this pan when she was a newly-wed--from a woman who had just purchased a whole new set. I wonder if the new set lasted longer than the sixty+ years this one has been going!

2 Cups of Sugar

2 Tablespoons of Baking Cocoa ("One tablespoon of cocoa per cup of sugar.")

Mix thoroughly.

Add 1 Cup of Milk. ("Oh, any kind of milk will do. I always use skim milk because that's the only kind I buy.")

Now, move to the stove and set it on High.

Grab a kid to stir. Next time, cut his hair before you let him out the door.

You'll need to stir constantly until it starts to boil.

Then, turn down the heat to about 7.

And let it really boil away. It will grow a lot so make sure your pot is big enough at the beginning. It will need to boil for "6 or 7 or 8 minutes."

In the meantime, gather the last of your ingredients: vanilla, butter, peanut butter and walnuts (optional). Grandma likes this foil pan and reuses it until it falls apart and then gets out another just like it.

My grandparents served a mission in 1989 to Corpus Christi, Texas. They bought all of the Mexican Vanilla they could and brought it home as souvenir. She thought she had run out a couple of years ago, but found this last bottle at the back of the cabinet over the refrigerator. It is the best vanilla.

Toward the end, Grandma says to really stick with your fudge. She says it's easy to get to doing other things and not realize how much time has passed. You'll need to get a cup of water for this last part (DO NOT dump the water in your fudge!).

You'll be dropping little drops of fudge into your water. This is too soft. She let it boil a little longer.

Try again.

It is getting closer, but there should be no tails. Here is a better picture of the little tails that we don't want.

When they form a nice ball, remove the fudge. This all happened really fast and I was in the road with my camera so I didn't get a picture of the perfect ball. Sorry.

Next, you'll put 1 Tablespoon of Butter ("a pat about the size you would get at a restaurant"), a splash of vanilla, and a scoop of peanut butter (I would guess it was about 3/4 Cup of Peanut Butter). "I never measure this part," said Grandma as she plopped in a heaping spoonful of peanut butter. After it is all whipped together, toss in your walnuts.

Poor it into the pan and give the spoon to the kids.

I'm telling you, it is wonderful and super easy--and there are no fancy ingredients or tools so you can make it any time of the year!

Thank you, Grandma.

Grandma Anderson's Fudge

2 Cups Sugar

2 Tablespoons Cocoa

--Mix thoroughly--

Add:

1 Cup Milk

Cook on High, stirring constantly until fudge boils. Turn the heat down to medium-high and let boil rapidly for about 6 or 7 minutes. Test in water 'til at soft ball stage and remove from heat.

Stir in:

3/4 Cup Peanut Butter

1 Teaspoon Vanilla

1 Tablespoon Butter

Walnuts

Poor into pan. Let set-up and cut into small bites. Enjoy! (And you will!!)

Christmas 2011

2011-12-27T12:11:00.000-08:00

Santa "found" the ring she got for last Christmas, but that had fallen into a meat case at the grocery store--it slipped between a crack and was gone forever.

A piggy bank (Lucky) so she doesn't have to keep her money in a jar with a slot cut in the lid.

Excitedly watching her siblings open presents.

That poor sick one on the couch made aprons for all of the girls and a draw-string bag for the boys. My mom was the tutor as she worked and worked and worked on these sweet gifts. I was so proud of her.

I didn't get a picture of all of them, but my dear mother helped all of my girls make gifts this year. One of the quiet pity parties I've had for myself over the years is that, as a home schooling mom, I never get home made gifts from my kids--unless I help them make it! It was so wonderful to open home made candles from the 3 year old, a decoupaged "love letter" box from the 6 year old, a painted and decoupaged tray from the 8 year old and an apron from my 10 year old. I will always treasure these gifts.

The big boy drew her name for Christmas. I was so proud of him when we went shopping for her because he carried this VERY pink sequined purse all over the store! Brave.

A book!

Family coloring time in our new pajamas.

After many years of asking and wishing and hoping, we finally got the kids a wii for Christmas. Since a new one is coming out this year, we got a super steal. We are so behind the times that the kids don't even care that it is nearly outdated! We played a Christmas Story trick on them and pulled the gift out last. We had warned them that it was going to be a small Christmas--just a couple of gifts each. After they were all opened, they were so happy with the small gifts. I will never forget their positive attitudes and thankful hearts. What good children. But when we spotted the semi-hidden box, even the super sick sweethearts were clapping their hands and squealing. After their sweet responses to the small Christmas, then the incredulous response to the wii, my heart nearly burst.

Snow White

Most of the girls received a Hogwarts' Christmas from Grandma.

We went to my parent's house after church--about 4 pm. The big kids were feeling a bit better and could participate in the gifting a little more.

All of the girls got a stuffed magical pet. Here she is opening Fluffy, the three-headed hound.

Pumpkin Juice, in her hand. (Mixed reviews. Most thought it was good, but I didn't like it much.)

Hogwarts' cousins.

All decked out--complete with wand carved by her grandmother.

Despite the sickness, we had a wonderful Christmas. I was asked to sing a song at church, one my Papa always sang. I was so nervous, I could literally feel my dress moving from my heartbeat. But, Joette was at the piano, so that helped a lot. Justin got a wonderful gift from his boss which brought great relief to us both. We are near our families again and our windows look out over the most beautiful scenery the Lord has to offer. Our kids were sick, but not in a life-threatening way. Our advent tradition was a joy each night of December as we read about and discussed the miraculous events surrounding the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

It was indeed, a Merry Christmas.

A Christmas to Remember

2011-12-26T22:08:00.000-08:00

This was how much of Christmas was spent:

A stomach flu attacked on Christmas Eve and spoiled the party a bit.

But, they will never forget this Christmas!

It stinks to be sick on Christmas, but they were such good sports. Luckily, the bug seems to be a twelve hour one and since Justin and I got it today, it should be gone from the house by tomorrow.

And it will be the last sickness of this year.

Insights

2011-12-24T22:54:00.000-08:00

A one-man band--created by herself.

This pod, age six, called for my attention from the back of the car tonight.

"Mom? The Wise Men each only brought one present to Jesus and He was grateful for what He got. If Jesus can be thankful for His gifts, then I can be thankful for the gifts I get."

Oh, bless her heart. Sweet profundity from such a small person.

I got the attention of all of my pods and repeated her insight; I wanted to make sure they all heard her.

Then, this one piped up.

"Yeah! And THEY were TWO YEARS late!!"

I love being a mother to these precious and hilarious souls.

Lights Cruise

2011-12-24T12:15:00.001-08:00

We live in a lake-y area. (Thirty lakes within thirty miles.) One of the largest lakes has a fleet of cruise ships. They are really just great big house boats, but they are cool. My three little girls and I went on a cruise in the fall when the trees were showing off. Even though my husband and I grew up here and had heard about the Christmas Lights cruises, we had never been before. This year, we decided to go.

It was a cold night and it was even colder on the water.

There was a semi-heated cabin, though, so we survived.

Actually, we didn't just survive. We had a great time.

There was a fabulous display . . .

And across the lake, there was a surprise!

Now, my kids all know about Santa. They know that he has workers that play Santa during this very busy time of year, but that they bring messages back to the North Pole.

But, guess what! This was the real Santa. They all know that it was because he KNEW THEIR NAMES!

It was a magical night and will be a new tradition for our family.

As I look back over the year of pictures, I discovered that I am not in very many pictures. I have decided to make sure that there is a record of me being involved in my life! So, yes, I was on the cruise, too.

Merry Christmas, friends.

Looking Ahead

2011-12-23T09:38:00.001-08:00

I opened a Christmas card yesterday and this is what I read:

How the Heck are you! We better have lunch before we both kick the bucket!
Love,
Val

I know a couple of Vals, so I looked at the front of the envelope to see who wrote that strange greeting. Oops, a letter to the former occupant of this house had gotten through and I'd opened it without looking. Barbara was an older lady and I assume that her friend Val was older too.

Is this what Christmas card greetings look like when you are a great-grandmother?

The Nutcracker 2011

2011-12-19T11:01:00.002-08:00

Am I smiling too big? I couldn't help it.

Over the weekend, Justin and I had the chance to watch our son dance. He had three roles this year: Soldier Doll, Nutcracker Doll, and Russian Candy Cane. He was phenominal.

With his ballet instructor and mentor, Sergiu Brindusa.

It was so good to see him and again and to be reminded why we are making the sacrifice we are making.

After the performance, we were bombarded by dancers, their parents and audience members. He made a splash, to say the least. We had a pow-wow with his instructors and heard sentences like, We need to send a video to the Royal Ballet and He has a rare gift.

This "rare gift" is a life-changer. You know, we had a plan! While it makes me sad that our plan has changed, I think we have many amazing years ahead.

I couldn't copy the pictures here, but if any of you are interested, here is a link to the photography. A still doesn't do justice to the movement, but you can get an idea.

Soldier Doll
Nutcracker Doll
Russian Candy Cane

Now, to keep his head small, today he will be cleaning toilets, picking up after the dog and otherwise engaged to be reminded that he is just one of the Sanders' kids.

Chew or Bury

2011-12-14T12:48:00.000-08:00

Our puppy is now 6 months old. He chews on everything. While he hasn't destroyed anything of significant value, he has chewed up a lot of things with a little value . . . which adds up to a significant value. He has chew toys and ropes and a towel octopus thing, but he would rather chew paper cups, ball point pens, pine cones and Polly Pockets. The other day, I decided to get him some of those rawhide bones.

I bought a pack of six. When I got home, I gave him one and he immediately took it outside to chew in the front yard. Later, I couldn't find the first, so I gave him a second. He went straight to the door and whined to go outside. Realizing the probable sentence of the first bone, I wouldn't let him take the bone outside. I even put him in his kennel, thinking that once he was in there he would begin to chew and understand its advantages over cardboard. He put it in a corner and left it there.

Somewhere along the way, he came out of his kennel and someone (probably me) let him out without checking to see if the bone was in his mouth. It must have been.

I just gave him his third bone.

And what did he do? Went to the door and frantically pawed at the glass. Even though my daughter followed him and tried to see what he was doing with the bones, it has disappeared.

Guess I need to just buy more paper cups.

Must. Keep. Reading.

2011-12-12T23:05:00.004-08:00

My daughter just said to me, "I'm going to make a cup of cocoa and go read Little House in my bed." Honestly. Some of my favorite words.

This one has been reading like crazy lately--probably because we've been without a television for six weeks now. She just finished Hunger Games and, like the rest of us, couldn't put it down. I thought it might be too heavy or dark for her, but she devoured it. Ha! Pun. She found her brother's old bow, packed a backpack with some essentials, called for Patches and played "Hunger Games." She has spent the past two days in the woods. We have talked a lot about the harder themes presented in the book. I love books that make me think about it for days (even years, in some cases). And, like her, I love books that make me want to be a part of the story (not that I want to hunt humans or be hunted by other humans for a reality TV show).

Movies, on the other hand, make me nervous. I know they've made a movie out of Hunger Games and I'm a ~~little~~ lot worried. Now that she has read the book, she can't wait for the movie to come out. The problem is that the movie rarely lives up to the book. (I would say never, but there are a couple of fantastic exceptions.) Then, the crappy visual version is the one that sticks in my brain--forever tainting a marvelous story.

But the movie doesn't come out for a while. I think I will go make myself a cup of cocoa and go read Little House. Or maybe Hunger Games again.

Breakfast

2011-12-12T10:03:00.001-08:00

We didn't get enough of Thanksgiving dinner on Thanksgiving--or maybe it was that our left-overs didn't last as long as we wanted. Whatever it was, yesterday I made a modified Thanksgiving dinner all over again. Turkey, stuffing, green beans, yams, mashed potatoes, gravy, custard pie and pumpkin pie.

We usually eat the big feast around lunch time and then consume left-overs throughout the rest of the day. The next day, there often isn't a whole lot left. Yesterday, however, I served the dinner in the evening then packed the leftovers in plastic.

This morning, I told the children they could have whatever they wanted for breakfast. I had yams. Another made a whole big plate of everything for herself. Two had pumpkin pie. The last had a bowl of dry cereal (out of milk).

Is that bad?

White Elephant

2011-12-08T21:07:00.001-08:00

Let's talk about the Christmas tradition of the White Elephant Gift Exchange. Many of you are confused.

A White Elephant gift is, basically, a gag gift. It can be humorous or odd or useless, but it cannot be a chenille blanket, a set of lovely candles, or anything from Hickory Farms.

Too many people think that a White Elephant gift exchange is when a group of people get together and exchange gifts. That is wrong. If you want to give a pretty ornament or bath salts, you need to call it a gift exchange, Yankee Swap or Secret Santa. You cannot call it a White Elephant.

Don't believe me? Here.

Because the animals were considered sacred and laws protected them from labor, receiving a gift of a white elephant from a monarch was simultaneously both a blessing and a curse: a blessing because the animal was sacred and a sign of the monarch's favour, and a curse because the animal had to be retained and could not be put to much practical use, but cost a significant amount to maintain.

To keep with the spirit of the white elephant, the gifts are often gifts the participants have received outside of the game but do not want.

This problem is becoming more widespread. If you have been invited to a "White Elephant" gift exchange, you'd better call to clarify. They may be confused about the correct usage the the term. All of the gifts in the pool might be from Restoration Hardware while you brought a used sandwich maker.

And, please. Tell your friends.

The Cutting Room Floor

2011-12-08T11:57:00.001-08:00

Now is the Christmas Card time of year. I am not sending out cards this year (I don't know how to address the loss of our baby and I can't leave it out so I am skipping the tradition altogether), but I hope that you will still send me your cards and letters. There are some of you whose letters only outline the good things in your family and lives. Since the less-than-perfect parts are often left out, we are left thinking that you are perfect--thus implying that we are not. Well, not here at Messages From the MotherShip. Here, I will tell you the grossest thing of all.

My daughter has worms.

I saw them.

I know. I told you. It is the grossest thing of all! I have seen a lot of gross things, but I have never been so wigged out.

She goes to nursery at church where there are 16 children aged 18 months to 3 years. They all share toys. I have also been taking her to our local Fred Meyer play center. She could have picked them up from one of those places--or from who knows where else because she bites her fingernails all of the time.

We all had to take the grody medicine. Even though I just washed all of the bedding after we passed around the flu and strep throat, I am washing all of the bedding again. Pinworms are sensitive to sunlight so there are cushions and other difficult to wash items strewn all over the yard. I'll be washing down the house with Clorox, again. Everyone has become obsessed with washing their hands. One child who has been struggling to stop sucking her thumb is so grossed out by the possibility of getting worms that she has stopped.

And even though all of the literature emphasizes that having worms is not a sign of bad hygiene or poor house-keeping, everyone knows where those little buggers come from. Let's just say, someone didn't wash their hands.

So, while you are reading those happy, everything is great, we are smart and talented and well-traveled Christmas letters, don't get too down in the dumps. Remember, things like worms don't usually make the missives.

New Functions, No Spaces

2011-12-06T22:48:00.001-08:00

One of the things I've learned from Susan Susanka, author of the Not So Big House books, is that our houses have not kept up with our lifestyles. This is true in many ways, but one of the most practical is to find spaces for "new" parts of our lives. In other words, we have new functions, but no place to practice those functions.

Look at your kitchen counter. What is it that is cluttering that space ~~besides the dishes that actually do have a space, you just have to get off the dang computer and get. it. done.~~? If you are like me, which I know you are NOT because I know you DID do your dishes today and you DON'T allow your children to cook, your counters have things like unsorted mail and a pile of phones and chargers. Also, there is a bag of dog food in your coat closet. You have a place for your garbage can, but you have another can sitting right in the road because there is no where to put the recyclables.

Many of these functions (recycling, charging cell phones, the need the shred mail) are relatively new, but our houses have not made the transition. In my Someday House, I hope to plan smart spaces for these recently developed life functions.

Mail. I envision a mail sorting center, not in the kitchen, but right off it. In the mudroom, say. It will consist of a small, standing-height shelf/desk; not big enough to really sit down and dig in, but big enough to sign a quick note, write a check or address an envelope. I'd love to have an outlet there because I can see-- someday--a small netbook living there where bills can be paid upon arrival. Under the shelf is a shredder to instantly satisfy the desire to shred those credit card offers. Next to the shredder, a basket for paper recycling--especially for the catalogs and unneeded ads. Above the shelf, appropriately tagged mail slots and a place to write messages or pin permission slips.

And a phone . . . with a cord . . . that is attached to the wall . . . where it can't be misplaced. Just one phone in the whole freaking house that is always where it is supposed to be!

Device Charging. I saw this idea in a magazine once and have never been able to find it again. It was a small cabinet with a row of outlets hidden inside. Every night, every device sits inside the cabinet, plugged in. It is tidy, everyone knows where to look for the thing, it keeps the cell phones out of the teen's hands late at night and it gets the job done.

Dogs. It is hard to "have every thing in its place" if there isn't "a place for every thing." Ta Da! No more tripping over, and spilling, water bowls and food dishes.

No more having the entire pantry or coat closet smell like pet food. Though, honestly people, what is with the white kitchens? Don't you have anything better to do than to clean and clean and clean? Even if you don't have children, you obviously have pets and they are even dirtier than children!

Garbage Center. I keep referring to this because it makes me excited. It makes me happy to think that I can do my part without the clumsy way of doing it! It doesn't have to be fancy, but it would be SO useful! Here is another example. What a cinch.

What function do you keep moving around, looking for a place for it to go?

Christmas Videos

2011-12-05T08:57:00.001-08:00

Last night was the annual First Presidency Christmas Devotional. There was such a spirit of love and of our Savior in our home while we watched it. The church has begun a series of Bible videos that are absolutely beautiful. Later that evening, after our own little advent, we again gathered again around the computer. I logged on to lds.org and searched for Christmas videos. There are more, but here are a few we loved. It doesn't matter your religion, these are for everyone. (Double click for Full Screen.)

Merry Christmas Season, friends.

Hosting

2011-12-02T08:47:00.001-08:00

No, this post will not be about vampires or parasites. I'm sorry if that's what you were wanting this morning.

Last night was my first time having anyone over to our house--at least in a planned way. The first official visit to our home from anyone besides family came after we had lived here about two weeks. It was a Sunday evening and I was already in my nightgown--no bra and all. My husband and I were wandering around our meadow when a car slowed down and then turned into our driveway. Without explanation to my husband who hadn't seen the car and who was dressed in actual clothes, I breathed, "Oh, NO!" and sprinted for the house, nightgown flowing about me.

Upon entering the house, the children told me that someone was at the door. I whisper-barked out orders while I threw on some clothes. Pick up the blankets. Hurry, get all of the dishes. Just shove these boxes in your room and close the door. Quickly, you guys. Help pick up these toys. After we frantically tidied the living room, I finally opened the heavy drapes that hang across our sliding glass door (which is the front door). The door was open and there stood a man from our church, sporting a wide grin. Caught.

Well, that first impression was probably accurate.

So last night I had known for a month that people were coming. It was my turn to host book club. We had been passing around the flu earlier and the flu is a crappy hostess gift. I cleaned every surface of my house, the most touchable parts like doorknobs and light switches, with Clorox.

We put up most of the Christmas decorations, though we held off on the tree for lack of space. I had a few refreshments on the table and the girls were spending the night with my parents. There was space for twelve. It was going to be close.

7:30 they came and didn't leave until 11:40. There was one extra chair. Everyone laughed and no one cried--though one new girl told a really sad story. (She was in another book club until they voted her out--right in front of her! I couldn't believe it. What Junior High cruelty.)

My little trailer was lovely and inviting. I wasn't in my pajamas this time, though I did notice later that I had forgotten to put on my make-up that morning. Well, what can you do?

Housecleaning tip #48: If you want to get your house clean, host a party.

Random Bits

2011-11-30T00:07:00.001-08:00

Remember these trees? I recently transplanted several onto my property from under the power lines. We walked back out to the lines just a few days ago and the trees are gone--shredded. I don't know what they used to cut those trees, but I think it was some crazy Russian vehicle like the one in the new Indiana Jones movie. You know, the one with the two big blades cutting down the Amazon Rain Forest (or wherever they were)? There was nothing left. I transplanted just in the nick of time.
Even though I didn't listen to his advice to get a flu shot, I'm glad I have an almost-pharmacist in the house. He explained to me why children's medication is so carefully dosed by weight, but once you are 12, it is all the same. "Why," I wondered, "Does you son, who weighs half as much as you, take the same amount of medicine that you do?" If you need to understand the answer, ask him. It has more to do with body function maturation and less to do with dead weight.
There is a massive difference between a three year old throwing up and the same action by an eight year old. The eight year old will nearly always make it to the toilet. This is another reason I am a better mother to older children.
It is 12:10 am and I just heard a gun shot. I do not live in the city--the opposite in fact. Are there hunters hunting at this time of night--on a school night?
Yes, we had a major bug at this house, but the good news is that we were sick before Thanksgiving and after Thanksgiving, but no one was sick on the actual holiday.
Perks of being sick: puppet shows at the foot of my bed, luke-warm tea in a half-filled mug, frequent (and varying degrees of skill) hair brushings, well-intention, full of love, ineffective foot rubs, lots of gentle I-love-you's spoken from sincere little faces--right before they bury their pointy elbows into your guts while trying to cuddle your wilted body, and my husband finally coming home from work and saving me.
Also, I had a super good book to read. Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea by Gary Kinder. Non-fiction. It was like reading a Ken Burns documentary.
For the first time ever, I shopped on Black Friday. I was expecting a miserable experience so I arrived two hours late. I got a perfect parking spot, snagged the very thing I wanted at an incredible deal and, even though I could feel the Dopamine pumping through my veins and I really, really wanted to do some major splurge shopping, I didn't find any other deals on things we needed. That made me feel even better on the drive home!
I have had several requests to build websites for other companies, based on the one I designed in trade for ballet lessons. I have no idea what to charge.
Living on a dirt road is great for traffic control, but I think my car will always be dirty from this time forth. I think the next car shall be the color dirt.
I am in love with my kids' new pediatrician. He is a little older than my parents and the first thing he did was pick up my littlest one, kissing her on top of the head while he plopped her gently on the exam table. Before he began any of the five exams, he asked the children if they were kind to each other, if they obeyed their mother and if they worked hard in school. He told my oldest that he is to be the example. That God put him at the first of the line for a reason. What? A doctor enforcing good behaviors and had the gumption to discuss God in a public setting? By the way, no where on the thirty-six pages of history/contact information I had to fill out (no, that number is not an exaggeration) was my religious preference asked. He reminded my oldest children that they should abstain from sex until married. No, I'm serious. He had the little ones repeat songs, nursery rhymes and poems. They were stumped on Take Me Out to the Ballgame. Their mother doesn't care much about sports. I could go on. Oh, he also checked their ears, spine, and etc. I've seen many doctors and have never had an experience like this. Amazing.
In high school, my mom and I tried this experiment with an over-the-counter teeth whitener. They were these plastic trays that you squeezed a gel into and placed on your teeth. It worked fairly well. I read recently that you could swish hydrogen peroxide and it would whiten your teeth. Well, I thought, nothing to lose. I tried it. It tastes exactly the same as that gel stuff. I'll bet that gel that my mom probably paid way too much for was just hydrogen peroxide! Tricky tricksters. I'll let you know how my experiment goes with the $1 bottle.
Last year I really pared down my Christmas decorations. I still won't fit everything in my little house. Hey, unless I decorate bedrooms, too! I think I shall!

Always and Forever,
The MotherShip

Size 9 Boot

2011-11-25T08:49:00.001-08:00

Maybe it will be funny next year.

Someday House Master Bedroom Location

2011-11-22T08:59:00.001-08:00

Since I recently mentioned planning for when we are grandparents, you know I'm also thinking of when we are elderly. Both Justin and I have some strong long-lived genes and most of those were happy and hoppin' right up to the end, but there is no promise that one of us won't get to ride around in a wheelchair all day. That noted, I have a conundrum. Do we put the master bedroom upstairs or down? Here are the arguments.

Main floor bedroom:

For the future, main floor makes sense. If stairs ever become too difficult, we are established there. If we build a walk-in shower, extra wide doors and put the laundry on the same floor, we could theoretically stay in this house until we croak.

Second story bedroom:

The view, the view, the view. My 84 year old grandmother's laundry is in the basement. She considers it part of her exercise to haul her baskets up and down the stairs. We could always build a master bedroom later as an addition if our knees stopped working.

I don't know. What would you do?
----------------------------------------------------
Please take these pictures with a grain of salt. I never expect to have white anything in my house and I do not want a master "wing." Mostly, I like the massive beams.

I Just Can't Get Over This!

2011-11-19T09:35:00.001-08:00

THIS is where we LIVE.

When I was growing up, we spent many days (and not a few nights) in the snowy mountains. We started cross-country skiing when I was about 9 or 10 and these kinds of trees were a main part of the scenery. We had to drive for what felt like all morning to get to these trees and NOW they are just out my windows!

This is the view from my front window. At our old house, when I looked out the front window, I saw Crazy Tom's dog pooping. Now, this!

And this is the view out of the back window. All day yesterday I kept finding myself staring out the window in astonishment.

They may come a day, say in March, when I'll be ready for less of this white powder, but right now I am thanking my lucky stars. Next year I will have a guest room and you can come see it for yourselves.

My Prayer Experiences, Part Two

2011-11-18T13:23:00.001-08:00

Funny and handy child seat at a rest stop.

After our miraculous arrival at the gas station, we continued on our journey. Everything was fine, but it was starting to get late. There is a place I usually stop to sleep. It is a bit off the freeway and I always feel safe sleeping there. Once I turn into the lot, I have a little routine to help me sleep. First, I blast the heat until I have our makeshift beds put together. I remove my shoes, put the car seat back all of the way, lock all the doors and turn off the car. By this time, I can usually fall asleep fairly quickly. I planned on getting at least five hours that night.

Day Two

Even though I was feeling tired when I pulled off the freeway, I could not relax--even after trying all of my insomnia tricks. The night was cold, so I had to keep turning on the car to heat us up. The whole time I had this prodding in the back of my mind to get back on the road. I had one more major pass to get over and I couldn't stop thinking that I needed to get over it before I settled down to rest. I tried to rationalize away the prompting with no success. Finally, after a couple of hours of trying to force sleep, I buckled my little one back in and we ventured on. (After I was over the pass, I did crash for a couple of hours in a church parking lot).

Without taking time out for the extra sleep, I arrived at my destination early and we got back on the road early. Incidentally, the storm I was trying to outrun on the way down had come after we arrived (though didn't affect that town). There was a section of road where a crazy dust storm had reduced visibility drastically. It was pretty bad, but by going slowly, it was passable. About halfway home, I had my dad check the passes for me. He told me that the section of the freeway we had just covered had been closed due to the dust storm. If I hadn't responded to the prompting to get back on the road and had slept instead, I would have been stuck behind the barricade of a closed freeway.

With the exception of twenty miles of snow on one of the passes, our return drive was uneventful. Much of the road was totally dry.

Look what started just after we got home.

Justin measured 8 inches on the garbage can that was sitting out for morning collection.

All of those small promptings added up to a much safer, less stressful drive.

Can we be guided by the Holy Ghost? Is Heavenly Father actively involved in our lives?

Unequivocally, yes. This I know.

My Prayer Experiences, Part One

2011-11-18T08:16:00.001-08:00

Getting ready for family prayer--many, many years ago!

Two Days Ago

It was time for my monthly run to pick up our son, a round-trip drive of 1000 miles, over three mountain passes. The plan was for me to leave when Justin got home from work, around 6 pm. Earlier in the day, I heard a news report that warned of a snow storm coming in to town at around 5 o'clock. Because of an appointment, the earliest I could leave was 4, but I figured that was better than leaving later. I went to Justin's work and swapped cars (his gets much better gas mileage and has snow tires), explaining that I was trying to outrun a snow storm.

Each time I make this trip, I try to bring just one of the girls. It makes for a good, long date. This time, it was the three-year old's turn. I buckled her in and we took off for the mountains. In my hurry, I went through two towns and was half-way up the first pass when my glance took in the gas gauge.

Empty.

Not the at-the-E empty, but the below-the-E empty. Justin had planned to fill it up for me on the way home from work. I was 35 miles from the nearest town. It was very cold outside.

The human side of me dismissed prayer, reasoning that it was my fault for not checking and Justin's fault for not mentioning the empty tank. I thought of my little girl in the back seat. I did think to pack some blankets and we had some trail mix. We would have survived, but it would have been a cold night--especially when that storm caught up with us.

Then the divine side of me kicked in and I thought of the widow who fed Elijah the last of her oil and meal. And yet, the scripture says:

And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah. 1 Kings 17:16

Dear Father, I prayed. I know that thou art a God of miracles. I know that thou didst cause that the cruse of oil should not fail. Please, expand the gas in my tank. If it be thy will, help us through.

Putting my trust in the Lord, I did what I could 1. I held down the clutch whenever I was going down hill. I had heard that 55 is the most fuel efficient speed, so even though the speed limit was 75, I slowed it down. Then I prayed that my faith would also hold.

Long after that little car should have run out of fuel, we pulled into a gas station. Never a sputter, never a cough.

Do you believe our Heavenly Father is a God of miracles? For me, there is no doubt.

-------------------------------

1 "If you have a difficult task before you, Heavenly Father is pleased when you get on your knees and ask for help and then get on your feet and go to work. He will help you in all your righteous pursuits, but He seldom will do something for you that you can do yourself." Reference Link

Someday House Size

2011-11-16T10:38:00.001-08:00

Any of you who have been reading my blog for a while know that I love small homes and am especially enamored with the Katrina Cottages.

They are tiny, but I love that they have just about everything you need, with a super small footprint. In my head, I have tried to make them work for my family. Now that I am actually living in a single-wide trailer, I am living in a space that is similar to the Katrina Cottages (only poorly insulated and not energy efficient). I am realizing that it will not work in a long-term situation. As much as I love the Ingalls and try to emulate them, we do not live in a two dress society, we have to take more than one bath per week, and we have creature comforts that were not possible in their time (personally owning a library of books, for instance). A small cottage will not do. *Sigh.*

Where to go after that? I have two anecdotes that will help illustrate my house size boundaries.

Number One:

There are two families, both with nine grown children. One family has no where to go for family gatherings. Though they all have nice homes--what I would call "normal" suburban homes--there is no living room in the family that is big enough to set up the long tables required for large families to dine.

The second family's mother built this kitchen:

When I saw this picture on my friend's blog after a family reunion last summer, it was like a revelation to me. Even if it is only for once or twice a year (in the unlikely event that my children do not live on my street), it would be worth having the space to gather.

In addition, I would never want my grown children to delay or never plan a trip to visit me because they couldn't afford a hotel.

Is it weird that I am already planning for when I am a grandmother?

Number Two:

Last year, my niece married a Tongan man. His family came here for the wedding and stayed with my sister. They don't really, but compared to the living standards in the United States, his family lives in a grass hut. My sister has a lovely home, again what I would consider a "normal" suburban home. When her daughter's new in-laws came, Mollie was so glad that she lives modestly. She would have felt embarrassed if she had lived in an ostentatious home.

There is the formula: A house with a large enough kitchen and great room to welcome home my adult children and their families, but not so huge that I would be embarrassed by it.

What do you think about this change of heart?

Autonomy

2011-11-14T09:59:00.001-08:00

This has nothing to do with the post, but I think it is a sweet picture.

There is this strange thing that happens at garage sales: if you don't have something marked, the buyer will often offer more than you were thinking to ask. I have something like that happening at my house right now.

My girls know they are going to get jobs every day. I've never established regular chores; no one does the same chore for the whole week nor do they have assigned "dishes" days, for instance. I think that since we are all home all of the time, traditional chore organization doesn't work. Although, who am I kidding? There is nothing traditional about the way I keep house! I have never done the Laundry Monday, Ironing Tuesday approach. My great-great grandmother would be astonished at my lack-of-routine routine.

Back to my girls. Lately, they have been making their own chore lists. Doggone it if they don't assign themselves way more jobs than I would ever have given! I think I have discovered a new secret to parenting girls.

And, no. I will not let them read this post! (:

Beautiful Winter

2011-11-12T08:05:00.001-08:00

I feel very blessed this morning. Last night we went to bed during a howling rain storm. Our little trailer has a metal roof and metal walls so a storm is an interactive experience. The wind blew all the remaining leaves off the trees and this morning, we woke up to this:

This is actually a long while after I initially went outside. The first time, there was this glorious pink blush in the sky, but my camera battery was dead. This is what it looked like after the battery was charged AND the girls were all in their snow clothes (a massive undertaking).

Patches is having a marvelous time in the snow! He and the other children are leaping and running and jumping and falling in the snow. Every time one of the girls lays down to make a snow angel, they are attacked by a jolly puppy.

"Patches, give me my hat back!!" Doesn't he look please with himself?

What a gift to be able to live here--yes, even in my trailer--and to get to wake up to this kind of a vision.

Have a beautiful weekend.

Love,

The MotherShip

New Town, New Dentist

2011-11-10T10:45:00.001-08:00

One of the things I don't like about moving is finding all the new people you need: doctors, dentists, mechanics, donut shop, etc. It is risky and can be frustrating if changes are needed. Today is our first day with the kids' new dentist.

I have had a wide range of experiences with dentists. When our oldest was two, I took him to the dentist I had been seeing since I was a little girl. He poo-pooed me with a, "You don't need to bring him in for a couple of years yet." Since that wasn't what the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry was telling me, I decided to go to my sister's kids' dentist.

If it is possible to love a dentist office, this one was worthy of it. A great waiting room, the most delightful staff, professional care, and my children loved to go to the dentist. A perfect score.

Then, we moved.

The next dentist was going to have big shoes to fill, but he didn't even kind of do it. I won't tell you about the nightmare experiences we had there (and I am a pretty easy-going mom). It was BAD.

Next, we tried out the family dentist our librarian recommended. He was good. Nice, clean office, competent and lovely staff, completely acceptable experience all around . . . except that he made me feel like a terrible mother at each visit. No, we don't brush enough. No, we don't floss at all. No, I don't brush my kids' teeth until they can write their names in cursive--they brush their own. Yes, we eat candy. Yes, we eat sugar. Yes, a couple suck their thumb. Yes, one bites her nails.

Look, they are at the freaking dentist every six months and they are dressed appropriately for the weather. What more do you want from me, man?!

With this most recent move, I began looking for recommendations. You really want to hit the nail on the head the first time around because of the rigmarole of the first visit. What a pain. I started with the most recommended and . . .

they don't accept medicaid.

Second office doesn't either.

Third office only accepts medicaid patients under the age of eight. Exasperated, I said, "That only covers half of my children!" Once I explained the situation, they kindly scheduled all of my people.

This is a point I try to make with local businesses: we are a good investment. If you get one of us, you're going to get six more (and we won't always be on state insurance).

So, we're off. ~~Off to fill out general information, medical history worksheets, dental history worksheets, HIPPA forms and Emergency Contact paperwork for them all.~~ Wish me luck. I honestly hope we get a hole-in-one.

***

Got another trip planning poll for you. Top left corner.

My First Time

2011-11-08T09:09:00.000-08:00

I have fair, freckly skin. Very freckly. In fact, I don't look as fair as I really am because of my number of freckles--kind of like a red and white striped shirt which, from a distance, looks pink.

But if you could see my stomach, you would realize that Nicole Kidman and I are sisters.

Anyway, because of this fair and freckly skin, I have always been super nervous about skin cancer. I also haven't had insurance for most of my adult life. (Well, I've had insurance to have babies, but none for other kinds of doctor/dentist visits.) Since I also don't have money, I've always had to worry about my skin.

Many of you probably have some kind of issue like this. If your husband has a dangerous job, you worry about his safety. If you live on a busy street, you worry about your kids and the traffic. If your mom had breast cancer, you check your ta-ta's a lot. For me, it is my skin. This issue keeps me up at night--wondering if something is wrong and not having the money to find out.

This summer, a small sore developed on my forehead. I thought it was a bug bite or a zit or something. It didn't go away--in fact, it got bigger. It was making me sick. With all my nerves have been through this year, it was pushing me over the edge. I finally told Justin I had to go to a dermatologist or I would go crazy from worry.

Yesterday, I took a credit card and I went. I had him look at every one of my worry spots. He looked me over carefully with a practiced eye. He measured the dark spot under my eye that was a gift from my first pregnancy. He felt the odd lumpy spots and he completely reassured me that I was cancer free.

Then he looked at the spot on my forehead and called it Actinic Keratosis. Pre-cancerous cells. (I'm not going to show you a picture because it's gross.) It was a quick procedure of burning it off with liquid nitrogen. (Yes, it hurt, but not for long.) Then, they commended me over and over for coming in. That this kind of thing can become dangerous. That this quick procedure was simple, but it could become complex if let go for too long.

I left his office and cried . . . from relief and gratitude. I am 34 years old so I know there will be many more visits like this, but I now I know what to look for!

Thank you, VISA. I will pay you back. My peace of mind is worth every penny--including interest.

Looking for a Job

2011-11-06T19:22:00.000-08:00

Dear Dad and Mom,

Don't let this post panic you. It is not for real.

Love,

Your Finally-Home Daughter

Should we move here?

For the last few days, my husband was at Pharmacy Fair. Basically, it is an opportunity for student pharmacists to get together with recruiters. Despite the fact that Justin had several promising interviews, there was a prevailing feeling of dispair among his classmates. The job market for pharmacists has depleted over the past couple of years. Many older pharmacists, who would have retired and left an opening, lost much of their retirement savings in the sluggish stock market. Pharmacists who were part-time have gone to work full-time because their spouse lost their job or has had drastic pay cuts. And, more students were graduating nationwide. The thing that many of the almost-graduates don't seem to understand is that there are plenty of jobs; you just might have to move to get one.

Justin is actually in an area where he has a pretty good chance of getting a job. But if he can't, I say, Let's not move to Anywhere, USA. Let's go somewhere amazing! Here are a few places where they are seeking pharmacists--or where I would be willing to go when they do need a guy.

US Virgin Islands

Washington DC

Hawaii

Maine

Alaska

Vermont

Basically, my first choice is here. But, you never know (a lesson we've learned well over the past few years). None of these would be for longer than a couple of years, a foot in the door, while we waited for a position to open up in our area. It would be a great family adventure, wouldn't it?

Bad Books

2011-11-04T15:44:00.001-07:00

Couldn't put it down--even to eat. It has sorcery, but I'm not afraid of her becoming a witch. Is that naive or its exact opposite?

Last night was Book Club. We read Brom Stoker's Dracula. It is a classic by everyone's definition, but it is not a "good" book. No, I'm not talking about the writing, I'm referring to the content. It contains gruesome characters, yucky rituals and disturbing superstitions. That is not all it contained. I didn't like it, but I'm glad I read it. I feel the same way about The Great Gatsby, The Jungle, Crime and Punishment and Tess of the D'Urbervilles. One of the women shared an experience that has had me thinking ever since.

She was reading Dracula on the sidelines of one of her kids' sporting event. There was another mom there who was also reading, only she was reading a book called, I think, This Book Says the Same Thing as the Bible, Only Worse. (Wow, look how Christian of me to belittle the work of Christian authors!) Anyway, the lady asked how we could read a book that was so evil and full of the devil. Unlike me, I don't think she was trying to be condescending or rude. I think she really wanted to know why a good woman would read an evil book.

Yes, good question. Why do we read difficult books? Why do we explore the pages of Frankenstein's journal, why do we read too-real accounts of slavery, or voluntarily slip quietly behind the gates of Auschwitz or the Tower of London. For that matter, why do we wander the halls of the Death Star or peek into the Pits of Mordor? Why not only surround ourselves with the Heidi's and the Pollyanna's?

First, how does she know Dracula is an evil book? He might be an evil character, but he is not the only character. If you haven't read it, you cannot be the judge of that. (If you are given a trustworthy review by someone who has read it or if you put it down because of the dark feelings it gave you, that, in my book, counts.) Some people say that a book I consider scripture is evil, but they haven't read it! How can you, literally, judge a book by its cover--or its movie?!

Furthermore, this is the story of lives, only, our lives are not works of fiction. We have been given this world, so full of goodness with such a source of happiness, that has a major antagonist. There is an adversary even worse than Dolores Umbridge or any Wicked Step-mother. Books with a believable villain can give us experiences, albeit theoretical. I would much rather experience a negative or evil situation through the second hand knowledge lent by a book. We have to believe that good conquers evil to give us hope that we can conquer the villains in our own lives--and if it doesn't, we need to understand why. Otherwise, we may not avoid falling into the same traps. Yes, we have God. We also have Satan. If we don't know about both of them, we can be in big trouble. Parenthetically, I am NOT suggesting we study and learn all there is to know about Satan, so don't take this too far. I do believe you can read too much about evil people or topics.

I propose that the question, Why didn't you like this book (or character)? is often more important than Why did you like this book (again, or character)? Is it possible that we can discover who we do not want to be--and who we don't want to have for friends--from the safety of our living room? Can we, sometimes for the first time, see social ills that we can help change? Would slavery ever have been denounced by a nation were it not for people reading about its evils in Uncle Tom's Cabin? Think about those books that have most changed you. Was it a thornless rose?

Weigh in.

Someday House Bedrooms for Girls

2011-11-02T22:19:00.002-07:00

With four girls, it is easy to do the math: two per room. I think one in a room is lonely--despite what the ten year old thinks. I also think two in a room is safer--physically and morally, if you know what I mean. It's harder to get away with any hanky-panky if your sister is two feet away!

I also know, through hard-won experience, that one and three must be bunk mates, and two and four, roomies. Any other combination and we have screaming. From me.

After a great deal of consideration, I am leaning toward attic bedrooms for the girls. We can easily put two bedrooms in the attic without having to add dormers--which I'd rather do without, if possible.

Can't you imagine a couple of best-friend sisters enjoying their quiet pillow talk here?

There is the possibility of adding skylights, too. What a fabulous view from bed--the stars of the 47th parallel, far from any cities!

This is a cute option, too. A small loft! If one room had a loft and the other had skylights, the girls could switch rooms every once in a while. What fun! OR the loft could be over the doors on the other end of the bedrooms. Oooo, great idea.

The next two don't have the beds as close, but by tucking the beds into the eaves, it does allow for a little more privacy. Although, it would be hard to make those beds . . . and you know who has to be putting the sheets on for the next few years!

Look at that darling water closet! Love it!

And there you have it, my vision for all of my sugar and spice sweethearts. I don't believe in desks in bedrooms, so we don't need to find a place for them. Dressers, closets, and the rest will find a space. And if not, well, I will give them two hooks: one for their second dress and one for their nightgown. I'm sure they will love those kinds of options when they are teens!

The TV

2011-11-02T04:59:00.000-07:00

I am rather laissez faire about the television. We do not get actual TV reception, so when I say "TV," I'm really talking about movies. I usually don't let the kids watch TV until after school (about 1 o'clock), but that is not always true. Sometimes, the easiest way to keep the youngest from interrupting school is by putting on a some Elmo action, you know? I have lots of tricks up my sleeve for accomplishing that, it just that TV is the easiest. The rest of the TV watching is generally under the kids' own discretion. I do have to say that, for the most part, it is not abused.

This goes to one of my most basic parenting philosophies: let them choose for themselves as much as possible while you are there to give suggestions and provide protection.

For instance, I have always let the kids play freely during their play time. I think I heard you just say, "Wow, so generous of you!" You would think that was a common thing, but it's not! I know people who do not let their kids climb the ladder to the slide. Jumping from a high-ish platform is warned against and climbing trees is simply not allowed. Children can not come into the kitchen because there is hot water there and knives and a stove. I have to be there to give directions and to sometimes lay down the law, "No, you cannot use that huge knife to make a cardboard ship." Usually, though, kids are smart--often, smarter than we give them credit. I never want my children to be too timid to try something completely safe and fun. The backyard is a great place to learn to listen to your body; when it is okay to push yourself and when your senses say, "Not this time."

This is obvious in a playground or kitchen scenario, but it goes for the dinner table, the entertainment we choose and the friends they pick as well. Though I am not perfect at this, I try to provide good options and then try to let them choose.

Isn't that pattern we were given?

Anyway, for the last little while, the TV has been on too much. When it gets to the point where the kids are whining because they would rather watch the boob tube than go outside on a beautiful autumn day, I know we need a respite. On October 29th, I warned the family that I was going to be taking the TV away on November 1st. On October 30th, one girl was yelling at another one because, "I want to go outside and you want to watch the stupid TV! I'm sick of that thing!" And on October 31st, they all decided it was time to get it out. They unplugged all of the wires and put the DVD player in Dad's closet. Getting into the spirit of things, I picked up the television and hauled it out to the garage. Everyone cheered! Given a little direction, they themselves chose to unplug.

A few minutes later, my oldest daughter came to me and said, "Mom, you have to see this." I walked into the living room. The girls had a card game spread out over the table where the TV used to sit. I loved her recognizing this as much as I loved seeing the girls use their brains during play.

But, at the end of the month, we'll get it back. After all, I like my movies, too!

Planning the Trip

2011-10-30T20:25:00.000-07:00

Justin started college when our oldest was seven and our then youngest was just a few weeks old (we've grown since then). It wasn't the time to go to Disneyland. We have been promising the children for all those years that we would go when Dad graduates from school.

In our matching Mickey shirts. I'm on the left, in front of my Mom.

When I was eight years old, my parents took our family to Disneyland. We each saved for a year so we could go. Instead of a straight drive down and back (from the northern border of the US to the southern), my parents planned a loop for us. We went to many of the National Parks (Redwoods, Zion), visited national symbols (Golden Gate Bridge, Salt Lake Temple) and saw natural features outside our familiar home-base habitat (desert, Great Salt Lake). It was two weeks of exploring many of the Western States of our great country. Needless so say, it was the trip of a lifetime. Disneyland was the pinnacle, but the rest was awesome.

Flying seven people to California, renting a car for while we are there, and sleeping in a hotel the whole time would be more expensive than us taking a longer car trip (and spending most nights in a tent). So, with a few exceptions, we will be repeating the epic journey of my childhood.

I have just begun planning for this trip. There is so. much. to think about! I know many of you are travelers and I have lots of questions. For the next little while, keep your eye on my sidebars. I am going to have regular polls with some of those questions.

First up? Should we visit Death Valley? It would add about three hours to our trip. I've never been there and it looks cool to me. Have you been there? Do you think it is interesting? We would be going at the beginning of May, so we are to expect temperatures in the high 90's, but we would try to arrive in the evening and we would leave before it gets too hot (May = longer days). Feel free to add comments if you have something to add, but don't forget to vote.

Thanks, dears!

The MotherShip

Recital

2011-10-29T20:32:00.000-07:00

Tonight was my girl's first piano recital. It was a Halloween theme so the students picked a song to match their costumes. She played Home on the Range and did a superb job, especially considering she has only had four lessons! There were going to be several cowgirls, so she went with scarecrow.

Joette asked me to sing a couple of songs with her. Since all of the performers were dressing up, I decided I would look silly if I didn't!

Sorry about the fuzzy picture.

A little Mary Poppins action. Can't wait until Monday when we add an angel, Peter Pan, a Doctor and Dorothy! Have a great weekend.

Robbed

2011-10-28T23:54:00.000-07:00

We were dancing in the kitchen tonight. I think it was the new floor. Maybe it wasn't such a waste of money after all! Anyway, Justin was playing random songs from our childhood (apparently I know every word to Bon Jovi's Bad Medicine) and the girls and I were dancing. I am really no good, but it is fun and has managed to help keep me thinnish all these years.

Looking around at my laughing little beauties, my heart felt that familiar wrench:

Our son wasn't there.

There are some days when I really hate ballet. I feel robbed, cheated, ripped off. I was supposed to get at least eighteen years with him. I'm sure this feeling is compounded by the loss of our baby Eowyn earlier this year, but that doesn't lessen its magnitude for me. I just want him home. I want him picking on his sisters and drinking all of my eggnog. I want him alternately rolling his eyes at me and laughing with me. It's those little things that don't translate well on Skype or over the phone.

And isn't it always about those little things?

The Kitchen Floor

2011-10-28T10:11:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had buyer's remorse? Have you ever had buyer's remorse before you even bought the thing? I had that experience two days ago. Here is the story.

You all know that I am a lousy housekeeper. I work at it, but I would much rather tackle the bigger projects like building an outdoor fireplace. Floors offer their own special challenge. The kitchen floor in our mobile home was carpet. Not only is carpet in the kitchen difficult to keep clean, but when you add that the said carpet was CREAM colored, you will understand why this was a serious problem. I could not keep that thing clean. I know many of you would have done a fabulous job with the situation, but I don't have the wherewithal to keep food off of a cream kitchen carpet. Also, one of the reasons I wanted a dog is because they cut down on the cleanup of even the most egregious food spills. With the carpet, my dog wouldn't even consider the bounteous treats on the floor--he would lick the lotion of my legs instead (dogs are gross).

On Wednesday, I got a bee in my bonnet and ripped the carpet out of the kitchen. I was kind of hoping that the linoleum under the carpet would be okay. It was, for the most part, but there was this super bad gash right in the center. Plus, it had all the carpet glue living forever on it's surface.

Off to Home Depot. They had some acceptable laminate flooring on clearance for $1.08 per square foot plus about $30 prep expense. They had some really great, inexpensive flooring that my sister used with great success. Not much prep expense, but it was $1.79 per square foot. I looked at the sticky vinyl squares, and they actually had a design that was decent for $0.88 per square foot. Finally, they had sheet vinyl for $0.48 per square foot with about $15 in application expense. I looked and felt and thought and watched videos and looked again.

You know how when you go shopping when you are thirsty you end up with milk and juice and apples and oranges and grapes and pop and pineapple? Just like I should have had a long drink of water before I went to the grocery store to balance my desire for liquid, I think I should have slept on this decision. I was so desperate to get a new floor down in my kitchen that night that I really didn't take the time to decide what I wanted.

I bought the sheet vinyl. It was the cheapest option by far and it achieved my goal of having a washable surface in my kitchen.

After the nice man in the orange apron cut it, I picked it up. The roll bent. "Oh, don't let that bend. It is cheap and it will crack." RED FLAG! At that point, I should have put it down and run, but I did not. I brought it home.

I have done a lot of home improvement projects. This was one of the hardest. I won't go into trying to cut the "cheap" vinyl floor without sufficient space (there couldn't be anything under it that could puncture the thin surface). I won't bore you with the details of trying to keep the large roll under control while I spread the adhesive. I won't expose myself with how I kicked my family out of the house under threat of removal of the little toes that kept trying to sneak into the very messy glue. Basically, Wednesday evening was a disaster.

But, Thursday morning, I woke up with a floor that the dog would help clean--and one that I could run a mop over after he was done. It doesn't look great (there are some bubbles that I was too exhausted to prevail upon), but it looks fine. My biggest worry, though, is that it won't last very long and I'll still have to pick one of the more expensive options before we are finished with this house. I don't know if I just wasted that money.

Oh, well. It is done. Lesson learned. And, I suppose, the floor is clean, after all.

Quaking Aspens

2011-10-26T10:15:00.000-07:00

Immediately behind our property line, there are a few dozen acres of undeveloped forest. It is an area that was subdivided into five acre building plots. The developer, who lives in Arkansas, improved the land (built a road and put in water and electricity), and sold one plot. Then the economy tanked and he pulled it all off the market. There are, therefore, no backyard neighbors. I doubt the Arkansas guy would care that we are using this horse trail (we see horses on it frequently).

Take this trail, preferably with your canine companion. Go past the Order of the Phoenix Club. Next time you write Phoenix on anything in permanent marker, be sure to make sure whether the e or the o comes first!

When the forest starts to thin, you will be in the right place!

Here we have a wide expanse cleared of the forest. One look up and you understand why:

Power lines.

On one edge of the clearing, the forest has begun to creep back in. I know the electric company will be here sometime in the next year to clear these trees away. They are getting too close to the buzzing lines overhead.

I dug out eight Quaking Aspen saplings and transplanted them to my yard. I'm hoping to eventually have a small grove butting up to the pine tree forest behind it.

Under the Aspens, I'm going to cover the ground in this natural growing Kinnikinnick. I'm hoping it will maintain a wild feel, but more manicured than the crazy patch of everything that is there now.

Imagine this (Kinnikinnick):

Growing under this (Aspens):

Kinnikinnick is a deep, glossy green and has the added bonus of these gorgeous red berries in the fall.

(When I was looking up the spelling of Kinnikinnick, I discovered that it makes an effective tobacco.

Is there an income potential here?? )

I love the colors of fall and I can hardly wait to see the golden fire of these Aspens here next year.

But for now, I need to go haul eight buckets of water to the trees because I don't have irrigation out that far. At least they are native plants so they should maintain themselves soon!

Outdoor Fireplace Reveal

2011-10-25T14:41:00.000-07:00

The fireplace is near the back of our property. Eventually, we will landscape around it, but, like my dad said the other night, he likes that it has a Lamppost in Narnia appeal as is.

And . . . Ta Da!

See that tiny pile of rocks in the background? That is all that is left of our huge pile! Hard to believe how many rocks went into this thing. From ground to capstone, it is over eight feet tall.

Grasses, berries and leaves from our meadow. Big stump seat from Joette's backyard. Squash from my parent's garden.

The pumpkins from Safeway.

As you can see, it is only generally square. I didn't want it to look like masonry and I didn't cut any of the stones. It has a pioneer quality about it, doesn't it?

I am not in love with the capstone, but with this much forest around us, it is a safety precaution worth looking a little off for. It was obvious during our first fire that it nearly eliminated embers from escaping the chimney.

There you have it. Took long enough, huh?

Lost Tool

2011-10-24T09:08:00.003-07:00

When I bought my latest digital camera, I liked everything about it (considering its $100 price tag) except the battery system. It is a specific to the camera kind of battery so I can't go to the Walgreens to buy a replacement. It has a long battery life and recharges quickly, but I worry about times when I have my camera on for extended periods of time and I can't recharge the battery (like on a vacation). I have considered purchasing a backup battery. ($30.)

Today's problem is not that one, though. Today's problem is my children. One of them took the recharger off of a high shelf and LOST the thing. ($30.) I have a battery, I have time to recharge it, but I can't get the task done.

And it's really a bummer because my fireplace is done.

*******
Update: It has been found. The battery is charging. Pictures of the fireplace coming soon.

Plaid and Pinecones

2011-10-23T09:31:00.000-07:00

I know this is a little early. We are having a most glorious fall--maybe one of the best I've ever seen. Today I will be transplanting some wild aspens into my garden so next fall we can enjoy their golden show. But, I have to admit, there is some Christmas on my mind. So, to whet your pallet:

Nature and Plaid.

A restored schoolhouse--all decked out.

This is the add that started it all. Love the Christmas-y plaid and the birch bed.

Yummm. Wassail, gingerbread cookies, and natures bling. Grab some of that plaid and you're set!

Can't handle the oxblood red door. Amazing.

You've seen this picture a few times. It is one of my all-time favorites.

I love the gentle Christmas hints. The bows seem to fit into this home's year-round decor.

How about you? Do you have Christmas on the brain?

Carving Jack-O-Lanterns

2011-10-22T08:22:00.001-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Eight and All That That Implies

2011-10-21T09:25:00.000-07:00

It was a very busy day. It was the Primary Program. It was her birthday. The grandparents came over for dinner. Finally, in the evening, she was baptized and confirmed.

The program I typed up was all wrong (printed upside down, wrong names), we forgot to tell one person that she was on the program, the cake that always turns out, didn't turn out quite right, and two trips home were required to obtain forgotten items. It felt chaotic and aggravating. It was obvious that there were opposing forces at work--someone didn't want this to be a good experience.

Sorry, Opposer. It was a wonderful night.

This little girl is a gem. She has a spirit about her that is undeniable. She asks difficult and intelligent questions about religious topics. And she is fun to have around.

For the past several weeks, she has been feeling the Spirit and trying to do righteous things. One of ways she has shown this desire is by copying verses out of the Bible. Most of the time they are nice verses, even if they are random. A few days ago, she brought me yet another copied verse. I tried to be supportive and proud of her efforts, but I'm afraid I could not see through my tears. She wrote:

Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper? The glory of his nostrils is terrible.

Ha ha ha ha!! What???

After much searching, we found this verse. Job 39:20

A couple of days later she had an interview with the bishop. Afterward, I asked her how it went. She told me, "He asked me who the Holy Ghost was. Mom, I couldn't remember everything so I just said, 'He's a ghost that's not scary.'"

Her baptism and confirmation were wonderful. Her funny little personality came out frequently like when she was asked how she felt, "Weird and cold and wet and happy, kinda'."

I love this girl and am so blessed to be her mother. It is going to be great fun watching her grow.

Someday House Windows

2011-10-20T09:39:00.000-07:00

This post will not outline the type of windows (wood, steel, vinyl, paned, double hung, or stained glass). Most of those kinds of decisions won't be made until we're talking with the architect. This post is more for the mom and gardener in me.

The front of the house faces south, so we'll want windows there. However, I don't want my view focused on who is coming up the driveway or who is checking their mail or passing on their 4-wheelers.

The neighbors on the east side of the house have three, big pole buildings. All of them are sided in a brilliant white metal--too bright for this area, I think. So, I really want windows on the eastern side, but I think we'll focus more on transom windows and skylights so I don't need to look at the neighbors garages all of the time.

West is . . . well . . . west. We'll want some windows on the west side for the winter (again, long cold season around here), but western facing windows are tricky during the summer. I'll have to plan the plantings carefully so they let in heat during the winter, but effectively block the sun in the summer.

That leaves the northern side. Usually, they suggest that you don't have many windows on the northern side because of the heat loss. That is a factor, but I think the house will be close enough to the wind-blocking forest that most of the most intense heat-loss potential will be drastically reduced. It is also the prettiest view--the forest, much of the meadow and the fireplace are behind the house. There are no neighbors to spy and no direct sunlight to roast us out.

I would love for this to be a wall of glass. Something like this:

There is one glaring problem with this, however: the children. I had full-length windows in our first house and I was ALWAYS washing those windows. The base of all windows in our house will be higher.

Higher even than these, but this gives you an idea.

In order to get to that inviting back yard, we need doors. One other must not, is a sliding door. Our front door in our trailer is a sliding door. Between the kids and the dog, it is constantly grimy. Also, for some reason, it is impossible for children to close a sliding glass door. This is a big pet-peeve of my husband's--that door is continually being left open. Grrrr. Instead, I'd rather go with something like this:

It has a large window, but has a solid wood bottom (although that doorknob would be difficult for my pods to negotiate).

I haven't gotten to a kitchen post yet, but I have to show a couple of images here. The kitchen will be on the north-east corner of the house--like the bottom of an L shape. I'd like the north and west sides of the kitchen to be all glass. This should be the view into the kitchen:

I'll get more into this in a later post, too, but suffice it to say that extending out from those kitchen doors will be a long, vine-covered pergola over a patio.

Of course, there will have to be a few window seats:

In short, lots of windows, but not clear to the floor, and the glass doors must have hinges!

The Someday House Laundry Room

2011-10-18T12:22:00.002-07:00

For me, the aesthetic of the laundry room matches that of bathrooms: clean and bright. I think this comes from the fact that my mom's laundry room is in a partially finished, poorly lit basement room and, until now, my own laundry rooms have been dreary, basement spaces. A mother spends so much time in a laundry room. It really should be a happier place!

On to the details.

1. A utility sink is a must have. I am sick of soaking clothes in my kitchen sick. Also, now that we have a pet, I love the idea of a big galvanized tub with a shower nozzle!

2. A fold-down ironing board. My grandmother has one of these in her kitchen and I've always thought it was so smart! Mine will have a shelf for the iron and an outlet right in there so I can plug it in easily.

3. Tons of storage. I would actually like a couple of floor to ceiling cabinets. This would be our linen closet for sheets, extra blankets, and table clothes, though towels would be stored in the bathrooms. If there is room, this would be an excellent place to have bins for the kids' off-season clothing.

4. A place for sorting. A good friend of mine has a set-up for this and she loves it. The family all has laundry baskets in their rooms. When the baskets are full, they bring them into the laundry and sort them for washing. Then, when the whites basket is full, she can simply toss in the load.

5. Location, location, location. Main floor. (If I am customizing a forever home, I want to be able to access things when I am 90 as well as when I am 35.) If I could have my first pick, it would be on the east side of the house (prettiest sunlight) and right next to the kitchen.

6. Above all, Utility. This room needs to be a workhorse and I want it to look like a laundry room. I am okay with being able to see my monster-sized Tide box, the Windex bottles and the spare rolls of paper towels, BUT, there must be a place for everything.

7. Easy care floor. Laundry, by it's nature, makes for a littered floor--at least at my house. Between sand falling out of the rolled up pant legs, lint from the dryer and the muddy shoes fresh from the meadow, there is always something on the floor. In the laundry room, I am completely happy with a good sheet linoleum. No grout, no warping, deals well with moisture and dirt.

8. Drying Rack Drawers. I always have sweaters laying this, that and the other way all over my laundry. I really like this solution. A couple of pull-out drying drawers would really help keep the laundry room tidy.

Your turn. What did I forget? What would you recommend?

Autumn Evening

2011-10-17T19:05:00.000-07:00

This Morning

2011-10-15T08:45:00.000-07:00

My boy had a scout activity this morning. It wasn't super early, but daylight is coming later and later now that it is October. It was a particularly beautiful morning. The fog was low and thick, the colors were vibrant and it smelled so good!

See? Beautiful. (I am generally happy with what I can get with my point-and-shoot, but it did not capture the colors this morning. The mountains should be green.)

Then, I saw this:

I got closer.

Wild Turkeys. Perfect.

I had already dropped the boy off at Scouts so I was alone in the car. I felt bad that there wasn't anyone else to see this. Then, I remembered that I happened to have my camera in my purse.

Today is a super busy day and this was a wonderful start to my day. I love my town!

Someday House Master Bath

2011-10-14T10:34:00.001-07:00

I can't have white cabinetry in the kitchen. We had it in our old house and I found myself washing the fronts of the cabinets as often as I was washing the counter-tops! A bathroom, however, is a different beast altogether. While I prefer color everywhere else, white is my favorite option in the bathroom (except grout . . . we'll have to come up with a creative solution there). That is not to say I wouldn't be okay with some color, I just want the major features to be white. I want to walk into a bathroom and know it is clean.

I don't have a definite master bathroom layout, but I do have some definite criteria. I do not want a crazy-big whirlpool tub. I'd rather spend money on a deep soaker. If you're going to take a bath, at least make sure your whole body fits in the water, I say.

The shower is the show-stopper for me. We are showerers, so that would be more used than an expensive tub. I would love to have a glass shower--with two shower heads. They don't have to be fancy shower heads, but there must be two of them.

I don't have much of an opinion about the toilet. It just has to flush every time. If there is room to put it in its own closet, great. If not, oh well.

I would like to have this little smart feature:

Just make a closet in between the studs. Great use of space!

I would like to not have to go through the bathroom to get to the closet. (I'll cover closets more in another post.) Two sinks would be nice, but not essential. Sufficient counter space and good storage is essential, however.

I do apply my makeup in the bathroom, so I do need to have good lighting. And Justin would love to shave in the shower, but even the no-fog shower mirrors, fog. I'd like to get him a heated shower mirror so it actually IS fog free.

That's about it. Did I forget anything?

My Dear Friend

2011-10-13T09:18:00.000-07:00

After I first dropped off my son to live in another town, I cried the whole way home. The whole nine hours home. At one moment, I even cried a little in self-pity because I had no friends in our new city who would cry with me when I got home!

Then, I thought of Joette. I knew she lived somewhere near our new place, though I didn't know quite where.

I met Joette in the 9th grade--at a time when both of us needed a good friend. She and I became peanut butter and jelly; I was better when I was with her. I loved her and I knew she loved me, even with all of my foibles. My best friend, my go-to gal, my confidant. High school was an absolute joy and a lot of that is because Joette was always with me. One of our favorite activities included music. Joette played piano--she was always at the piano. She played for solos, small groups, and choirs. She even helped me win a student body campaign by playing the tune to Ave Maria while I sang, Vote for Emily. Joette sat at the piano in our living room while our whole family sang around her. She would play for us while we hung wallpaper! How many, many hours did I sing to Joette's music. After high school, life took us in different directions and, though we had brief re-connections, we were never really in each other's lives.

Call Joette, I thought to myself in the middle of my tears during that long drive. Just the thought of her calmed me down and buoyed me up.

The next day, Joette showed up at my door. She claimed that, as the Stake Organist, she was visiting the new people. Ha. I had not called, she just knew I needed her and she came. She has always been that way.

She has been in this area for a while and knows a lot of good people. As soon as our schedules allowed, she planned a dinner party so I could start to make friends. She brought me Lemon Thyme so I could have something green in my kitchen window. She gave me some massive old logs to use as seating around our fireplace. Joette is the definition of thoughful.

Within a few weeks, our oldest girl started taking piano lessons from her. Now I get to see my Joette at least once a week.

Yesterday, Joette sat at the piano as I sang behind her. Tears sprang to my eyes as we, once again, made music together. It was a sweet, to-be-remembered moment.

There is a reason we are here and I often think that it is because of what we are to do. I forget that our loving Heavenly Father also has a few gifts in store--Joette is certainly a gift to me.

Someday House Milieu

2011-10-12T16:31:00.000-07:00

I learned that word, Milieu, in college. My roommate and I did a word-of-the-day thing. We picked a new word, then had to use it at least once during the day. Milieu is the environment or atmosphere of a place or time. These pictures have the milieu I'm looking for in the new pad.

Warm, cozy colors. A lot of natural light. Natural materials like wood, rock and and brick. Simple, clean lines with a dose of romantic. Nine months out of the year are cold here, so indoors must be a sanctuary from the chill. We live in the garden in the summer. Well, that and the basement.

Do you like the way this feels?

Someday House Planning

2011-10-10T20:59:00.001-07:00

I know it's hard to believe (at least it is hard for ME to believe), but it is actually time to begin real-time planning for our Someday House. Life gives us unexpected paths, so there is always a chance that this plan will never come to pass. If I want to move out of our single-wide anytime soon after Justin's graduation, however, I have to start planning now.

So.

I have wondered about hiring an engineer or a drafter or an architect. Obviously, the last is the most expensive. I did a ton of asking around, looking online, and devouring library books on the subject. The area in which we live has a lot of large lots whereon people have built custom homes. One of the worst mistakes I see is when people have designed the homes themselves and didn't quite pull it off. The dormers are too big or the windows are too small or they are dealing with problems an architect would have spotted during the planning phase. I can come up with a floor plan. I can specify features or a color palette, but I would be sick if we spent all of the time and money it takes to build a dream home and always be mad when I drove up to the house because it was . . . wrong. In twenty years, I won't miss the money and I won't have spent twenty years cursing a poorly planned house.

After consulting the American Institute of Architects website, I found several licensed and reputable architects in our area. I looked at their websites, references, gallery and other telling information and narrowed it down to one guy. We haven't met in person, but we have corresponded by email several times. I like that he is matter-of-fact, responds quickly and has a family (he will understand when I want a garbage center in the kitchen, for instance. His blog has pictures of houses and buildings he saw on vacation. If you are taking pictures of architecture on your vacation, you love architecture! Then, I saw this:

He has designed a series of whimsical cabins. That was when I knew he was the guy for us! Can you believe how darling this is? I can hardly wait to see what he comes up with for the Sanders Fleet!

One other thing: since I have to have a good outline of what I want, I'm going to use this forum to air my ideas. I'll do one area per post ("Green" house? Kitchen layout? Laundry location? Flooring?) for a several piece series. Believe me, I will be relying on your feedback, so stay tuned.

Feedback?

For the Love of Star Trek

2011-10-10T09:26:00.001-07:00

It all started one night when the TV was left on after the "watched" show was over. My parents were sitting in the basement visiting. The TV was on, but they weren't paying any attention to it. The children came in and asked what they were watching. "Eww. Star Trek??" Then, we left. My parents were hooked. A show the children would not watch meant an hour of quiet, uninterrupted couple time.

We had always like the Star Trek movies and Mom's brothers had loved the TV series when they were younger. There is a touch of nerd in many of us--though, admittedly, there is more of a streak of nerd in a few.

Gradually, my younger brother Levi and I started watching. Then, we began recording the episodes so the four of us could watch together. It was the first time we had ever recorded TV--it was a great novelty for our family, in those days, to fast-forward through the commercials! The more we watched, the more we appreciated the intelligent plots, thought-provoking situations and interesting (endlessly interesting!) characters. It became a loved family activity that all four of us looked forward to.

Fast-forward many years. We recently borrowed a season of Star Trek from my parents. My husband, too, has always loved the movies and he loved the old TV series. He had never watched much of the New Generation. I have been telling him for years that they really were good shows. Every night, we have watched one episode. It is the right amount of time to settle everyone down, but doesn't require the commitment of a whole movie. Justin is slowly converting and the kids are enjoying the funny costumes and make-up. It is nostalgic for me and I have loved introducing this to my family.

How do you feel about Star Trek?

Out of Money . . . Again

2011-10-06T09:27:00.001-07:00

My husband's final year of school is a set of eight, six-week rotations. One of those rotations is "off"--in other words, he could work for actual money during those six weeks. That rotation ended three weeks ago. We paid off some things, stocked up on some things, went camping a couple of times and bought some needed (and some wanted) things.

It was a lovely couple of months. It wasn't like we were suddenly rolling in it, but I did feel a little more like a normal shopper. If one of us wanted donuts, we bought donuts. If one of us wanted to go for a Sunday drive, we went. If one of us wanted a fruit that wasn't on sale, we bought it anyway. It was probably frivolous, but, after six years of constantly scrimping, finding the best deal or doing without, it is nice to, once in a while, not always think about it.

Now things are back to normal. We will have enough (we are stocked up, after all). Just, please little car, keep going for a few more months. And, hot water tank? Please don't give up the ghost. And puppy? Don't chew up anything important or valuable. And, aging computers, please don't give me the blue screen. And body? Don't get need-a-doctor sick. In other words, if nothing catastrophic happens, we will be okay!

Family History

2011-10-05T08:31:00.001-07:00

I love history of any kind. From reading historical novels, decoding mythology or sitting in the living room while the grandparents tell stories about their grandparents, I love it. In fact, one of the things I always wanted to do was volunteer at a Senior Center so I could listen to the old people tell first hand stories about now historical events (though another major reason was so I could play Pinochle).

My Grandparents

I love to look through photographs and search for familiar features or wonder at their mode of dress or muse over the uniform and the stories it could tell. It is interesting for me to look at these pictures and then attach some long-ago family legend to the face on the card. I'm not the only one, either, because genealogy is a long-held tradition in my family. Granddad Derrick, for instance, would be my third great grandfather, but his name is as familiar to me as that of my own grandpa. We have been telling these stories for a long time.

One of the major missions of our church, is to perform ordinance work for those who have passed on, but who never had a chance to receive the ordinances while living. Heavenly Father is a merciful God and loves all of His children. He could never deny one of His children exaltation simply because she never had the chance to be baptized. At the same time, all must be baptized (See Mark 16:16). Herein lies one of the reasons for our temples. We can perform those ordinances for our ancestors by proxy. But first we have to find them.

As much as I love genealogy and believe in the blessings of temple service, I have been busy. Between bearing children, raising a young family, home educating those little people, putting my husband through school and the myriad of other immediate tasks, I felt I couldn't do one more thing. I presented my dilemma to the Lord and received, through personal revelation, permission to forego family history work for a season. It was the lifting of a great burden. (I know this is not the rule for everyone with a young family and busy life. This was a very personal communication.)

Recently, I have begun feeling the prodding from the Holy Ghost that that temporary release was over. My youngest living child is now three. I am not expecting another. I'm kind of an old hat at home schooling (though it doesn't get easier, I'm better at it after all these years). My husband is nearly done with his university experience and I am no longer cleaning offices in the middle of the night.

Parenthetically, I am currently reading Winds of War about World War II. Did you know that 60 Million people died during that great war? We often talk about the 6 Million Jews who were killed and though they were killed in a horrific way, they were not the biggest casualty of the war. Russia lost (or purposely killed) over 23 Million alone. We have a lot of work to do!!

The other day, I watched this address by Elder David A Bednar. (He is one of the Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.) That was the final straw, so to speak.

Though I still don't have a lot of spare time to dedicate to Family History work, I can make an effort. My goals are:

Register and learn to navigate my way around new.familysearch.org
Transfer as much information as I have from paper and old computer files to the online family tree
Verify the temple-ready status of my family
Prepare the records for about ten ancestors for ordinance work
Attend the temple once a month to personally see to the completion of the work for those ten people. (For those who have eyes to see, that is one session of initiatories, ten endowment sessions and one sealing session.)
Teach my family

These are not magnificent goals, but, like the starfish story, it will be magnificent to those ten.

My Fingers Hurt

2011-10-04T08:43:00.002-07:00

I have several post ideas rattling around in my otherwise empty skull, but I can't type very well right now because my fingers hurt. I've put in about eight more hours on my fireplace and I've rubbed the tips of my fingers raw. They are skinned--you know, like when you skinned your knees after falling off the bike? I left a really long comment over at Brandi's blog and now the tips of my fingers are throbbing. You can go read her post and boil up some righteous indignation.

I'll be back later.

When my fingers feel better.

Fireplace IV

2011-09-28T12:31:00.000-07:00

Still pluggin' along.

It's looking more like a fireplace! All that is left is the chimney and capstone. How much that little word encapsulates: all.

Well, someday it will be finished.

Rattling Around in My Head

2011-09-27T10:43:00.004-07:00

My husband sent me an email in the middle of the day yesterday. I responded by telling him what had been gumming up the gears in my mind that day.

Aged brass:

To me, the most timeless and warm finish, but it is a little out of vogue so it is more expensive. Also, most brass comes super shiny so I would have to Drano all of the hardware for our house.

Oil-rubbed bronze:

This is my favorite finish, but we can't afford real bronze and the fake stuff starts to rub off after a while and starts to look coppery orange.

Chrome:

Chrome is the least expensive and most available. The shiny looks great when it is clean, although I'm not sure the shiny would fit in to the image I have going in my mind.

Brushed nickel:

Brushed nickel is pretty common right now so it is less expensive and available. It doesn't show the water spots or fingerprints as well as chrome. I don't really like it.

There you have it. I asked my husband how he would like to be in my head for a day. He said he thought he would go crazy. "I don't know how you can stand it in there!"

Ha ha ha! Some days I wonder the same thing!

Having an Affair is NOT Okay!

2011-09-26T20:03:00.000-07:00

I am reading a wonderful book right now. The writing is smooth, there are several words I've had to look up, and the historical part of the historical novel is spot on accurate. The plot revolves around a fictitious family. The author has done a stupendous job of creating this family. They are completely real--so much so that you feel yourself falling in love with each character (in a Greek philia kind of way). I think part of the reason his characters are beloved is precisely because we are shown their faults alongside their traits of good repute. I have believed in these men and women, trusted them to make the right choice even (and maybe especially) when it difficult to choose the right.

Until today. Today there was adultery. I put down the book. It wasn't elicit and didn't go into detail. It wasn't the sex that made me mad. It was the infidelity.

And I'm sorry world, but having an affair is not okay! It is never okay. I don't care that you just lost 200 pounds and feel sexy for the first time in your life. Give that to your husband! I don't care that your spouse travels a lot and you miss the physicality of marriage. Wait! I don't even care if you loved him and then you thought he was dead so you married the wrong guy and then he actually wasn't dead so you screwed him because you never stopped loving him. You chose the man you chose. Period. If you absolutely can't keep your pants up when you are with someone else, then you need to divorce your husband and marry the other guy. (This is not the action I would suggest, but it is better than cheating.)

I get mad when there are affairs in books or movies, but I get LIVID when we are supposed to be cheering for the adulterous relationship rather than the married relationship.

Remember King Arthur, Guinevere and Sir Lancelot? This movie made me furious.

Am I alone in this?

By the way, I will probably finish the book. I put it down as soon as it said, "Rhoda slept with Kirby when she went to Connecticut." I am hoping that Rhoda will admit her gross violation of her husband's trust and it will end up being an inspiring story of repentance and forgiveness.

A Thought on this Sabbath Day

2011-09-25T18:04:00.000-07:00

Last night was the annual Relief Society General Conference. I went with a full and needy heart. The entire conference was an answer to prayer, but this specific message was so needed. It is about twenty minutes long, but I encourage you to watch it. Don't read it, watch it.

I can't tell you what this meant to me as I watched it last night. Earlier in the broadcast, Sister Beck said that sometimes our struggles have the potential to bleach the bones of our faith. This year has been incredibly difficult. While I still have faith, I do feel "bleached" . . . spiritually exhausted. When President Uchtdorf shared this message of love, I felt that sweet confirmation of truth from the Holy Spirit. I testify that we have apostles here on the earth, with the same authority and power as Peter, James and John. I know the message that this apostle shared was, in very fact, the message our Savior wanted us to hear.

If you didn't have a chance to watch the entire conference, you can see it here. You will find it a rewarding 90 minutes.

Getting Lost in Trends

2011-09-22T10:23:00.003-07:00

Every once in a while, I get great ideas. One of my great ideas is that I want to lay brick in my kitchen. I have loved that look for many years, but haven't been able to use it yet! It is one of the oldest kitchen floorings out there so I thought it would have that never-dated, antique look. I planned for the brick to be only in the kitchen and mudroom because it would be great with the water issues that come with kitchens and melted snow coming in on the boots.

Now, The Lettered Cottage people have just posted their idea of putting brick in their kitchen.

Here is the problem. If they do brick, they who have so many followers, will it become a trend? When you come into my kitchen, will you know immediately the year we built our house?

I want to pick timeless finishes and architectural features. I know that trends come and go and I'll allow for that in things like paint colors, rugs, and throw pillows, but I don't want the whole house to scream 2012!! for the next fifty years.

So, how do you decide on things that are fresh and new, but not so fresh and new that everybody is doing it (think mauve of the 90's and owls of the 70's)???

Fireplace III

2011-09-21T08:50:00.001-07:00

After making the walls of the base of the fireplace, I had to fill the great space in the middle. The kids and I hauled gravel and small rocks to the back of our property to do that job. After watering it overnight to make sure it was settled, I placed the firebrick (found at the local cement place!?). The actual fire-building area is 30" x 18". That little grill in there was found somewhere on our meadow and was placed there by one of my helpers. Eventually, I will have my dad (Dad?) build me a custom grill to fit the bricks. That way, we can use it as a charcoal grill during an emergency (or an adventure, whichever).

Here is another view. I started putting stones up the back to begin the chimney, but ran out of steam. I have put on my work clothes to motivate me to get out there. Although, I will have to enter my garage to obtain tools and, not knowing the status of the mom and pop mouse, I don't know if I have the courage!! I wish I had a hazmat suit.

2319!!