Pay it Forward Tag......

I've been playing 'Tag' again!! My friend Annemarie had a 'Pay It Forward' Tag and I was one of the lucky winners!! See the cute things I got in the mail from her!

Now it's your turn to play. The first three people to comment on this blog will get a treat in the mail from me!! As Annemarie said....I have no idea what it is yet, but you will love it! Remember, if you comment and get a surprise, you HAVE to play and 'pay it forward' to 3 other people!!

Happy Halloween!

A Halloween Story.......

A long time ago (think early 70's) I was involved in the youth group at my church. (Minneapolis First Ward anyone??) The youth group was for youth from 12-18 year olds and, at the time, was known as MIA. This stood for Mutual Improvement Association. Today it is simply known as 'Mutual'.

One year, as Halloween approached, it was decided that we would have a Halloween Party (or maybe it was a dance......I'm old, you know, I can't remember ALL the details...) We had decorations, games, food and fun. Some of the girls made cookies, some made pies, some made cupcakes. My friend Julie and I were in charge of carameled apples. Yummy!!

I guess we were maybe 14 or so at the time. And there were some boys that we wanted to impress. Or maybe we just wanted to get back at them for something. I don't recall which. We decided to make some 'special' carameled apples just for them. Two of the boys in question were Tommy Russell and Kenny Killebrew. We had known Tommy since we were toddlers. Kenny was fairly new to our group, but had been there long enough that he, too, deserved a 'special treat'.

When it came time to serve the treats Julie and I made sure to give the biggest and best carameled apples to Tommy and Kenny. They were thrilled that we would have saved the biggest ones for them. Until, that is, they bit into them.

You know.....you really can't tell a carameled apple from a carameled onion until you bite into it!!

Oops!! Sorry, boys.

What if the horse is an 'aquaphobic'???

Random Thoughts on:

"You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink."

What if you know that he's thirsty?

Do you suppose he's holding out for kool-aid?

Will the horse drink if someone else leads him?

Does the horse know something I don't?

After leading said horse to said water multiple times without result, I am ready to do one of three things: shoot the horse.....turn him into glue.....put him out to pasture. I really am at my wits end with this horse. Any and all advice will be appreciated as I am about ready to be fitted for a straight jacket. Be sure to come and visit me down at the funny farm!

(FYI: Horse=kid, Water=Homework)

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom Not My Own.....

I looked through my blog to see if I've used this one before and I couldn't find it. So, if I have used it before.....sorry......otherwise....enjoy!

“We can easily manage if we will only take, each day, the burden appointed to it. But the load will be too heavy for us if we carry yesterday’s burden over again today, and then add the burden of the tomorrow before we are required to bear it.”
John Newton

I'm generally pretty good about letting go of yesterday. I mean, it's over and done. Whatever happened, happened. I can't do anything about it now. But I am really bad when it comes to worrying about tomorrow.

Here's to taking life one day at a time!!

Things that used to be.....'The Post Card'

For those of you younger than, say........most of us, this is a picture of a 'Post Card'. Come on, say it with me....'post card'. Very good.

A post card was a form of communication used a long-long-long time ago.

It usually had a picture on one side (sometimes of a great vacation spot) and the other side was divided into two sections. The left hand section was used for writing a note of some kind. Something like "wish you were here", or "missing you", or some other short message. The right side was for the address of the recipient and the stamp.

People used post cards instead of letters for a number of reasons. Maybe you wanted to say 'hello' to someone, but didn't want to write an entire epistle. Maybe you only had enough money for a post card stamp, which was invariably cheaper than a stamp for a letter. Maybe you didn't really care who read your message, because, as you can see, there is NO privacy associated with a Post Card. Everyone, from the writer, to the mailman, to the nosy neighbor, to the recipient, can read whatever message is written there.

Whatever the reason, post cards used to be a very popular form of communication in the 'olden days' when I was young.

Why am I bringing this up?? Let me tell you a short story. I was at Target the other day. I was in the checkout line when this (older) man walked up and asked the (younger) cashier if they carried 'Post Cards'. She looked at him blankly before asking "What?" "Do you carry Post Cards?", he asked again. "Post...what?", was the reply. I jumped in to explain to her that a Post Card is like a card that you send somebody. You write a note on the back of it, then put it in the mail. She still looked pretty blank, but said, "Well, if we did have anything like that it would be over by the greeting cards." I saved the man the trouble of walking over there and told him that, NO, Target does not have post cards. Then I directed him to the only store in town that I know of that does carry them.

He went happily on his way. The cashier's face returned to it's previous unknowing, blank look. And I came home, wondering all the way about things that used to be.

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom Not My Own.....

Sometimes.....life beats us up.

Sometimes.....we don't feel like getting out of bed to face the day.

Sometimes.....we feel like we've failed. Our children, our husbands, our friends, ourselves.

That being said, I love this quote by Mary Anne Radmacher:

“Courage doesn't always roar.

Sometimes courage is the quiet voice

at the end of the day saying,

"I will try again tomorrow.”

10 Things Tag......

I've been tagged by Annemarie to do this '10 things I can't live without' blog.....so here you go.... (please note: these are in no particular order, so I don't want to hear about what YOU think I should have listed first!))

1. My first thing is Prayer. No, really! I first saw this quote at Girl's Camp a couple of years ago, and I just love it! It is SO true!! If I don't start my day with prayer NOTHING goes right. Prayer is my prozac. It keeps me sane.

2. Blogging. It started out as just a fun little thing to do and has quickly become very therapeutic. I can tell anyone who cares (and probably some who don't!) about my kids, my worries, my joys, my sorrows, my frustrations, and anything else that comes to mind. And it's SO much cheaper than therapy! Not to mention the great advice and input I get from friends and strangers!

3. Ibuprofen. Yes, ibuprofen. I get these headaches....they render me useless. Ibuprofen makes me functional again. I love my ibuprofen.

4. NCIS. My break from reality. My 1 hour of the week when I can sit back, relax, and just be entertained.

5. My husband and my kids. (and grandkids) Yes, they make me crazy sometimes, but I don't know what I'd do without them!

6. My brother, Peter. He is my best friend. We've weathered many storms together. I would be lost without him.

7. Take 5 Candy Bar!! It has pretzels, caramel, peanuts, peanut butter, and chocolate! What more could you ask from a candy bar!! They are my most recent candy addiction.

8. My jeans. They are a staple of my vast (HA!!) wardrobe. They are the required uniform for my job of motherhood. What else can you that will take whatever the kids dish out? I love my jeans!

9. Sleep. Essential to my survival. And if I don't get enough at night I've been known to make up for it after lunch. Just call it a 'siesta' and pretend you're in Mexico!

10. My computer. It is my lifeline to the world. (I don't get out much!) I can check my e-mail, my blog, my bank account, your blog, watch General Conference, movies, and do countless other things. It really is an amazing thing.

So, there you go. More information about me than you ever cared to have. I am tagging NOBODY as they are all still mad at me for the last time I tried to play tag with them. If anyone wants to play, please do, but don't feel obligated because of me!

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom Not My Own.....

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things."
--Robert Brault





Think about it.

Stupid, Stupid, Stupid.......

Did you ever know someone and think 'how stupid can you get????'

I have this 'friend'. I will call this person 'Fred'. (Don't bother to ask, I won't tell you who it really is!) Fred has gone through some really tough times over the course of the last several years and, from my perspective, things have kind of been looking up as of late.

So, what does Fred do??? Why, complicate things again!!

Fred is one of those people. You know the kind....you see their life situation and think: 'If they would just do (fill in the blank) their life would be so much easier. They are the people who can't learn from other people's mistakes...they have to make them all, just in case it turns out differently for them. They are the ones who, if they would just slow down and relax, and THINK about what they're doing, maybe they would be able to make a decision that would NOT screw up their lives!!


I have answers for Fred, but he won't ask the questions. He won't listen to advice because he doesn't see a problem in his behavior, yet he wonders why his life is so darn hard!! He creates these situations for himself, without knowing that he is doing so. He can take the dumbest idea ever and say to himself: "Hey, what a great idea!"


I can help you, Fred. I can help you make your life easier.....pleasant, even. I love you, Fred. I wish you could see the pain that you are causing. Not just for yourself, but for those around you. I wish you would soften your heart, admit that you DON'T have all the answers, and let others help you. It's hard to sit by and watch this train wreck that you call your life. I hope that you get it together soon, and that the lessons you have to learn won't be too costly for you. I'll be here for you when it's over, though, to help you pick up the pieces. And I will always love you, no matter how many stupid choices you make. Because you are, after all, my friend.

And the Gold Medal Winner is.........

This blog was inspired by this blog. My friend's husband apparently has a thing about running in marathons. I think that's an amazing thing. It takes a special person with a special personality to run marathons. My oldest son is currently training to run a half-marathon later in the month. And my youngent son is in the middle of the Cross Country season at his high school and loves to run. Me?? Not so much.


But lest I become discouraged and think that I am 'out of the running' as a medal contender.....I've decided to do something about it.


I am NOT taking up running. What kind of fool do you think I am, anyways?? No, I've decided to create a few new medal categories just for women like me all over the globe. It will be called the Homemaker Games. Maybe it will even be more fun for us if we consider what we do every day 'competition'.



My first category is laundry. I will get a bronze medal for even thinking about doing laundry as that in itself tires me out. If I actually do any, I will qualify for the silver. I get gold for being caught up. There will very few gold medals given out in this event.






Next will be cooking. Feeding my family on a daily basis will earn a bronze (even if dinner happens to be Cheerios.) If I plan a menu and refer to it on occasion I will earn the silver. Planning a monthly menu, purchasing ahead of time and actually following said plan will be a gold medal performance. (again, these will be few and far between)



Another category could be children. If a day goes by where I don't threaten any of them with bodily harm I get a bronze. A day with everyone out the door on time, in clean clothes and jeans with no holes in the knees and their hair combed gets me a silver. If I survive the homework wars without thoughts of military school dancing in my head, homework actually gets finished, and the child is still speaking to me when we're done. I get the gold. I've NEVER gotten a gold.



The final category is ME. If I shower before 10 AM I get the bronze. If I shower, remember my prayers and do personal scripture study I get the silver. If I happen to do all of the above and still get the kids in bed early enough to have some 'me' time to relax in the evenings (and then actually spend the time on me, reading a book, bubble bath, whatever, instead of doing dishes/laundry, then I earn the gold.






You will note that in all categories the gold is hard to earn. It takes practice and patience. You will also note that there is NO competition between me and anyone else. They are all individual events. (Molly Mormon is in her own over-achiever category which I don't even qualify to enter!)


Let the games begin!!

Dare I Say It?

I am probably dooming myself to eternal misery by saying this, but.....today has been a really good day!

I'm always suspicious of good days. They are so random and sporadic. I don't really trust them. I know that it's only lunchtime, which leaves endless hours for things to go wrong, but today, I think I could handle it.

Don't tell me that it must be that good night's sleep I had. I didn't get to bed until after 11 and after a restless/worrying night the alarm went off at 4:45. Maybe it was the 20 minute walk that I did at 5 AM. Maybe it was reading my scriptures while the kids were in Seminary from 6:15 until 7. It certainly wasn't that gourmet breakfast that I had. That was Dunkin Donuts after hitting the grocery store with two 3 yr. olds at 9:15. That's the thing about good days. I can never figure out what causes them, so I can never replicate them. Does anyone else feel like that?

It's just past lunchtime. The kids have been fed and one is asleep. I have finished my grocery shopping, made a meatloaf to put in freezer and browned two pounds of gr. beef to freeze for later use. Dinner is planned (chicken roll-ups) and I've only got two loads of laundry to do to be caught up. I'm sure that later things will be hectic again. We may have some Algebra challenges to work through and I have a meeting at Sam's school that I should probably go to, but probably won't. But for now, life is good, my house is quiet and I just may make it through the day.

So, here's to a great day! Maybe those 'happy points' are working after all.

Wednesday's Words of Wisdom Not My Own.....

Here is my quote for the day.......pretty much says it all. (We'll talk later.)

The world is full of women blindsided by the unceasing demands of motherhood, still flabbergasted by how a job can be terrific and torturous.

Anna Quindlen