Renewable energy

There has been a lot of talk of "renewable energy". We sure love our two sources and wish that we could bottle up some of it and run a car or air conditioner off of it.
( you may want to turn down the volume before watching this)

Wisdom from an 8th grader

It's been a while since I've updated. We had a crazy month of 3 different crazy throat cultures, 3 different crazy infections, and lately an anti viral to help that poor mouth finally heal after a month of eating on one side. Luckily we were back in business and ready to roll--or fly, just in time for a visit to the in-laws for a few weeks. (That will be a future entry)
I actually started this entry and a couple of others, but have had a hard time getting them posted, so here is a bit of catch up entries.
Daddy worked out of town most of the month before we left. It was hard, but luckily he was usually accessible via cell phone when the kids missed him and cried because they wanted to talk to him. Sara likes to call him whenever I tell her "no", when she sees something that is his (shirt, hat, etc) lying around, and at bedtime. One of the days, when I handed the phone to Gary the first words he said were, "Daddy come to our house..." It about broke our hearts, especially knowing we still had a while of that schedule. I couldn't help but think that when my husband was Gary's age is when his father left for good. It must have been hard for my mother-in-law to explain to her little ones... I feel blessed that this is only temporary.



While he was away we had simple dinners and I tried to use some of the extra time to clean out and organize. I found some fun things. One of which was an old journal I kept in 8th grade. Some of the entries surprised me--for instance #1 on my list of 10 things that make me feel of worth --when my friend tells me I have great eyelashes--Hello--I've come a long way since then. But there is an entry about the "perfect boyfriend or husband" I enjoyed reading. I typed it exactly as it read:

"I think the perfect boyfriend (or husband) is...One who is

• sweet
• kind
• generous
• humble
• good with children and babies, (loves kids)
• is LDS and has a testimony
• isn't rude
• will do things for others
• isn't greedy
• laughs a lot
• makes me laugh
• has a good self-esteem
• is enjoyable to be around
• is neat and clean (to a certain extent)
• doesn'thave to have name brands, etc.
• says "I love you" often
• is gentle
• cares about you
• doesn't think he is better than somebody else
• would help me be a better person
• someone who I can get married in the temple to
• is attractive (maybe only in personality)
• likes to be with me
• likes to have fun, go places, etc.
• To summarize I would like to marry someone like my dad..."

I guess it surprised me that I thought about so many things in 10 minute journal assignment, but I also can see that I pretty much got just what I wanted! I am very grateful for my huysband and for the person that he is, and living with my in-laws, speaking a second language, and living a culture not my own again, I appreciate him even more. I forget how hard it is to live outside of your comfort zone, to get 90% of a conversation, to have people understand about 50% of what you do, and to be so far from those who do love and know you. He really is amazing. I love him.

Smile!

So Gary had to get some dental work done and while waiting for the anestesia to set in he chomped down on his lip. He didn't realize it was his lip he was biting on, by the time the numbness wore off it had bled several times. He kept asking me to take it off. I showed him in the mirror it was just his lip, but it was so big by then he wasn't convinced.

He was apprehensive about going to school today, but he went anyway he's a good sport.

Never fully dressed without.....SHOES!

Anyone who has been around Sara much has probably had their shoes taken off, switched with another person in the room, or tried on by Sara. She has a major shoe fettish! Don't ask me where she got it, she just came that way. Since she could scoot around the room on her belly she has collected shoes. When we were staying in Romania, we were constantly pulling slippers, boots or flip-flops out of her mouth.

When we go to McDonald's to play she has more fun playing with the shoes in the Sneaker Keeper that on the playground. She loves Ronald's big red shoes.
Now she has learned to take her shoes on and off by herself--mostly. She still gets furious if she can't quite get it on. We're working on the word & sign for "help please".
She doesn't consider herself dressed unless she has shoes on--in fact, that is all she needs on to feel ready to go out on the town.

Preschool

Gary finally started preschool. He likes it, but I still think the most exciting part for him is riding on the big school bus! It is a good thing he is so excited about it or it would be a lot harder to watch him get on and off.

Childhood Experiments

I have heard something about "muscle memory" with violinist and gymnasts, that they do something so often, that their muscles remember and do it precisely each time. As a mom I have acquired a muscle memory of my own. My hand muscles have how to bury a syringe into a medicine bottle and with amazing accuracy remove 1tsp of liquid without looking. I have been shocked each day this week as I administer the latest meds how accurate I can get it each time.

Another new skill I am working on this week is that of ice smashing. Gary found my bundt cake pan and his eyes got big, his mouth opened wide and then he said, "I got idea!!! Lets make ice, a big huge one! That be great?" I agreed and we filled the pan about 1/3 the way full and put it in the freezer. Ten minutes later he checked and there was an icy crust around the edges. While I was making a sandwich after he got home from preschool he pushed a chair over to the freezer and instead of a Popsicle pulled out the huge ice cube. We put water on it and I handed the ice ring back to him. He wasn't sure what to do with it, then it dropped and shattered all over! "That was cool!" We picked up the pieces and threw them outside shattering them on the cement wall and stairs it was fun. We drew on the hot cement and watched it disappear, and then went back in and filled it 1/2 full. First thing this morning Gary & Sara were pulling out the ice and we played again. Now we have one full to the brim in the freezer.

Later huge seed pods were found at a neighbors and used as swords. Gary likes to cut things, so we cut one in half to see what it was like inside. Even I was surprised at what we found. It is fun being a part of the childhood discoveries and experiments again.

Perspective

Some days when things get tough all we need is a little new perspective

--you know, if you chance to meet a frown...

Here are some cute pictures of Sara...

house shopping like daddy.....

Re-living the first birthday...

Mmmmm Chocolate!...

And making up for it!

County Fair

When we were newlyweds we knew some guys that were building demolition derby cars and racing them, so we went to watch at the County Fair. We had a great time and ended up with 13 gold fish (keep as many as you can catch for $.50). I think it has become a family tradition. Last year we went on Family Night when all the rides are $1 and Ionut, Gary & Sara all went on their first rides on the merry-go-round.
This year we went twice; once on family night, (this year for the ferris wheel)and once with the cubscouts. We had a great time! Gary loved it, he keeps asking if we can go see the animals on the farm, and can't understand why the "farm" is there but no more animals.

They had a tent of activities--one was a competition who could build the tallest tower with 100 blocks--mine is on the left!!!!

There were dress-up pictures

Turtles & Snakes with the other farm animals
On the way out we had to stop and use the port-a-potty, but it was muddy from the rain. This is what we found when we got home. Gary had unloaded the mud off his shoes and fingerpainted on the window, then flung the rest all over the car--he was probably wise to fall asleep at that point...

Daddy & Gary on the ferris wheel

Cow roping try-outs (key word being TRY)


They all got a chance to drive a lego Wall-e robot

achaeologist dig for toys

We braved the rain & beat the crowds.

Gary also loved watching the Jr. Rodeo, the bull-riding machine, motorcycle stunts, and the local bands.

Oh, and can't forget, the best corn dogs we have ever tasted!!
We can't wait til next year!

Ratatouille

With work being slow, and food/gas prices going up, we have been trying to watch our spending and use our garden and food storage as much as possible. I was trying to figure out what I could make with our eggplant and found this recipe for Ratatouille. It turned into a fun night. I put on the movie for the kids to watch while I cooked it, and then we served it over mashed potatoes (fake potatoes from food storage) I actually had everything in our garden except the Garlic & olive oil.
Sara has incredibly adult tastes (she ate only the raw onions and mushrooms off of the hamburger I fixed her the other night) so she was , but Gary liked eating it because it was like the movie. Too bad I didn't take a picture--I guess you'll just have to make it yourself to find out what it is like!
Ratatouille
4 Tbs olive oil
1 large clove garlic chopped
1 large onion sliced
1 medium (about 1 ½ lbs) eggplant cut in half lengthwise and then in 1/4 inch thick half moons
2 medium green peppers cut in thin strips
3 small zucchini (about 1 lb) cut in rounds
4 medium tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise, then sliced thin
1 tsp. Salt
pepper
Heat 3 Tb oil in a skillet and saute garlic for 1 minute to soften. Layer vegetables in the order listed, sprinkling the layers with salt and a generous amount of pepper. Drizzle remaining 1 Tb oil on top. Cover pan and cook over low heat for 35 to 40 min. until tender. Uncover and cook 10 min longer to evaporate some of the liquid. Serve warm, or cold. This dish reheats well and improves with time.

Milk jugs in the cupboard

It's 3:46 a.m. and I am up. I slept hard and like a baby until just about 20 minutes ago when I woke from a stressful dream in which I was screaming at everyone- including distant relatives and others who I normally wouldn't about picking up toys, and turning off lights, locking doors, etc....So I decided after it became clear that sleep wouldn't be happening anytime soon to write about my day--Maybe--I hear Sara now in the other room calling for me...(3:53 drink of milk, blankie, and back in bed, we'll see. Today's agenda included an 11:30 a.m. home visit from the person who comes twice a month to help us with Sara's development. I have been canning peaches and pickles all week and so my sticky kitchen needed to be mopped and wiped down good before then. After breakfast and after daddy went to work the kids asked to play on the spinning chair, (See video) an old barber chair my mom has kept for 15 years for her grandkids to play on since my brothers loved it so much--and now, so do the grandkids. (4:06 a.m.-- Sara's crying again--maybe I'll finish tomorrow)...... Now it is a few days later, Gary is napping, and I have a minute to finish.

Then they played the drums....

That brought Bryce downstairs and left the kids an escape route upstairs. (10 a.m.)Gary wanted to watch a movie upstairs. I told him no, but that he could watch one downstairs while I cleaned the kitchen. That wasn't what he wanted and he started a "meltdown" (Now I realize it may have been intensified by the excessive spinning vestibular stimulation followed by the loud drums) At 11:44 a.m. (Yes--nearly two hours later) He was still going strong and Sara and I were exhausted when our friend showed up for Sara's visit. Since it didn't seem a good time for a visit, information was handed to me, and we rescheduled.

However, the visitor was enough of an interruption, and Gary was tired enough, that I was able to get him calmed down. We talked about it and then had some fun fingerpainting with pudding with Sara. To sum up, it was a "Bitter-Sweet" morning.

Honestly, now I cannot remember what else went on, but I know it was a bit stressful....Oh yeah, Scouts. I had to hurry and get dinner ready before Scouts, which included a stressful grocery shopping trip (The kind where I am seen more than once calling for Gary, wandering through the store, while he is tucked away between clearance bins or running 3 aisles away. I wish they would keep the seat belt buckles working on those car carts! Next time any of you see a mother in a public place, with kids that seem out of control--please be kind! (I had a harsh encounter this week). Anyway, I got dinner done, peach cobbler cooked, (No time for eating)hurried and got the kids ready and over to pack meeting just a couple of minutes late. By the time we got home from Pack meeting it was bedtime. We ate our cold dinner & warm cobbler and then Sara was more than ready for bed. I looked for the milk she was crying for, and couldn't find it. I hurried and got out the powdered milk, made some, put her to bed, and came back to clean up some of the mess from the rushed dinner. When I went to put the flour bin away--there was my milk, in the cupboard (too high to blame the kids). It is days like this that give mom's a bad rep for doing things like losing keys, purses, leaving for church in their slip or curlers, or putting milk in the cupboard!

Hymns that speak to our Souls

The Relief Society that I visited last week spent the whole lesson time going around the room asking people to share hymns that they loved and tell why, and then we sang them. It was a great experience. I noticed that there have been many hymns that have meant different things to me at different times in my life, but here are some whose lyrics stand out to me now for comfort, and I thought I would pass them on as a refresher to all of those who seek comfort too.
"...The darkness deepens Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, Lord abide with me. Earth's joys grow dim; its glories pass away. Change and decay in all around I see; O thou who changest not, abide with me. I need thy presence every passing hour. What, but thy grace can foil the tempter's power? Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be? Thru cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me."
"...Within my heart a welcome guest, within my home abide, O Savior stay this night with me; Behold 'tis eventide. Thy walk today with me, made my heart within me burn, as I communed with thee. Thy earnest words have filled my soul and kept me near thy side. O Savior stay this night with me, behold tis eventide-- and lone will be the night if I cannot commune with thee nor find in thee my light. The darkness of the world, I fear, would in my home abide. O Savior stay this night with me."
"I need thee every hour. Stay thou nearby. Temptations lose their power when thou art nigh."
"Be still my soul: the Lord is on thy side. With patience bear thy cross of grief or pain. Leave to thy God to order and provide; In every change He faithful will remain. Be still my Soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend thru thorny ways leads to a joyful end. Thy God doth undertake to guide the future as he has the past. Thy hope, thy confidence, let nothing shake; All, now mysterious shall be bright at last. Be still my soul: The waves and winds still know His voice who ruled them while he dwelt below."
"God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform...Ye fearful Saints, fresh courage take; The clouds ye so much dread are big with mercy and shall break in blessings on your head. "

"Fear not I am with thee O be not dismayed, for I am thy God and will still give thee aid. I'll strengthen thee, help thee and cause thee to stand, upheld by my righteous omnipotent hand. The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose, I will not, I cannot desert to his foes. That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake, I'll never, no never forsake." ( I found myself humming this tune every time we went tracking--without ever knowing the words)

Which hymns have spoken to your soul, and why?

The Last Lecture:Celebration of Life

I just watched a cool thing on abc.com I thought worth sharing.
http://abc.go.com/player/ It is called The Last Lecture: A Celebration of Life. I think the full lecture is on youtube too. It is just a good reminder about how precious our time on earth is, and how we choose how our lives will be--regardless of the things that happen to us that we cannot control.

The atonement through the eyes of a parent

I found this entry I wrote over a year ago and thought since I have a blog now I would post it.

May 23, 2007
If I had a blog, here would be my entry for last week:

Some memories of some things that happened shortly after I was baptized have been haunting me for the past several months. I have felt several times that I needed to talk to my dad about it. Because he is the bishop, I was afraid that meant that I had not fully repented. It took me a long time to finally talk to him, but when I did I had a sweet experience. I got a confirmation that I was on good terms with my Heavenly Father, that I had been forgiven, and I got some good advice and a father's blessing. I went away feeling relieved and lightened. But that evening after my dad got home, I watched him. He was exhausted. I have seen him spiritually drained, or burdened by problems in the ward many times, but this time I knew that I had a part in that. It seemed unfair--I go away feeling so much better, and he feels the weight. It made the role of my Savior taking upon him my sins so much more real to me. Do we realize when we feel better it is because He is carrying the burden? I felt so sorrowful.

Then I had the following experience:
A few months ago my two year old found a pen and scribbled in all the white squares of my mom's patchwork quilt on the spare bed. When I first noticed it I thought--the blanket is ruined--yet another thing we are going to have to replace! (my mom's glasses, a portable dvd player, blinds, and several others have already been replaced). When we removed the bedding, I decided to try and wash the blanket and maybe we could get out some of the ink and save the blanket. So I got some spray and wash and a tooth brush and started scrubbing the first square that had just a few lines. After some good scrubbing, it lightened and eventually disappeared. I was thrilled! Maybe I wouldn't have to replace it after all.
But as I kept scrubbing the squares, I thought about the atonement--it occurred to me that the Savior could have felt like I did. Because of my love for my son, I gladly "suffered" (scrubbing) that his mistakes would be erased and we could all forget what he had done.
I have also been noticing lately how often I have been taught by the withdrawal of the Spirit. For instance, I was teaching the youth Sunday School class, feeling the Spirit and the lesson was going well, then I mentioned a movie I had seen about an atheist who nearly died on a mountain--even when he thought he was going to die he still said he didn't believe in God. He survived, but gave God no credit--even though to me it seemed obvious how many times God had saved him.
As I told the story, I felt the Spirit withdraw. My first thought was--Oh, I deviated from the lesson material--oops. Then later realized--the spirit would not remain and confirm what I was saying (as I quoted the atheist's view)-- it could not. I have noticed several similar experiences where I have felt the Spirit withdraw and then as I evaluate the situation, I am taught where I went wrong. I have also learned a lot from hind sight where I now see I was being prompted to do something and didn't follow. Example, I bought groceries at Smiths and had a 5 cents off coupon for gas and thought, "I should fill up here now." After debating the idea in my head, I decided to go to Costco and fill up. Later, I found out that Costco was the same price, so I went back to fill up at Smiths--only to find that gas prices had raised 10-15 cents a gallon all over town including Smiths (which is significant when filling a large tank like we have).
In all of these experiences, I have felt a strong feeling of love from my Heavenly Father. How can we be chastised and feel loved at the same time? Then I thought of my son. Most of the time I tell him "no," I am training him. I know that he doesn't know, or that he is learning and so I feel no anger as I direct his paths--often by telling him what he shouldn't do. When he was younger he would look at me as he put his hand on something-- asking for my approval. If I said no sometimes he would do it anyway, but most of the time he would leave it and go for something else. Now when I tell him no, often he will stop or not repeat it. But it is not unusual that he has to be reminded many times before he learns what he should not do. Only when he KNOWS something is wrong and does it intentionally, do I feel any anger or disappointment.
The subject of excommunication came up in my sunday school class recently, and I realized that I have a strong testimony of the love of the Lord for the person who is brought before a disciplinary council. The reason that those councils exist is for the good of that person. It breaks those covenants to save them from further damning themselves and allows them a chance to start afresh. Then he still isn't left alone, there is one who is assigned to watch over him (the one) and bring him safely back to the fold.

The writing on the wall

Yesterday while using a public restroom my 3 year old noticed the writing on the wall and called me to come see.

"See mommy--heart!" Then he began to read the writing, "It says I love mommy", and then pointed to another line of writing scratched into the paint, "I love daddy, and this one says, 'I love Sara!'"

Wouldn't the world be a different place if we all read the vulgur writing on the bathroom walls that way?

Kissing it better

One of the best superpowers a mother is endowed with is the ability to kiss just about any "owie" better. It will be a sad day when my children either don't want me to kiss it better, or when it just doesn't have the same effect anymore, but until then, I love every chance I get to magically make it all go away.

Sara has learned to make audible kissing noises. As soon as she hurts you, and hears "ouch!" she immediately kisses it better. The other day I was in a waiting room and she just kept kissing my arm repeatedly. I thought it was cute, but didn't know why the sudden display of affection. Then I realized that she was kissing each of my freckle "owies" better.

My mom told me that yesterday Gary showed her his latest "owie" and when she went to kiss it better, he stopped her and said, "Sara already did!" I guess moms aren't the only ones with magic kisses!

Grandma Honey

As long as I can remember, I have loved to be with my Grandma. Some of my earliest memories are of playing with her under a crib, swinging around a lamp-post, making a tent with a blanket under a piano, racing matchbox cars down cookie sheet ramps, etc. with her. Because I lived close to her most of my life, I can list about a thousand fun memories including a month long trip on which I got engaged. I have always cherished our relationship, and appreciated the way she always made me feel so loved and important. As a parent, I have understood the need for grandparents and great-grandparents on a new level. When my son was just learning to talk, my grandma came to visit. When she went to the bathroom, he would stand at the door and knock incessantly calling, "huh eee!" We realized he was calling her "honey" because that is what she called him, and the name stuck. Those two have such a special bond. He has a real need for her. When he is having a "melt-down" he often calls out "Grandma!" through the tears. Looking back on my life I realized how important it was to me that I had her unconditional love. She is a person who freely expresses her love and I never doubted that she loved me and believed in me.

Earlier this month my feelings were hurt by some comments made about my son's behavior and the way I parent. I get that kind of thing frequently from strangers or others who see tidbits and make judgements, but this one came from someone I love and respect and it hurt. Just like my son, I found myself wanting to escape and run to my Grandma Honey. There I knew I could find the love, acceptance and understanding that I needed--even as an adult.

I learned a few things from the experience: 1) We need to be careful of the judgements we make based on the little bit we see of others--rarely do we know the whole picture. 2) A grandparent's role is important and special because they do not have to discipline, freeing them up to love and support at all times 3) When my son calls out for grandma, he is asking for reassurance that he is loved. 4)Each of us, no matter what age, need love and acceptance & the best source is really our Heavenly Father and Savior. It is only they that know the whole picture, and it is only their opinion that matters in the end.

Phone Fun

We have had some fun experiences with telephone calls in this family. There was the fast sunday when we were getting ready to pray over dinner when the phone rang. Standing right next to the phone I instinctively picked it up and quickly said, "Dear Heavenly Father, we're so thankful for this foo......ahhhhh!!! and then hung up not wanting to know who it was. Moments later the phone rang again and it was handed to me, "Well I'm not the real thing, but I'll pass the word along," came the smug reply from my uncle.

A couple of years ago Gary was playing with the phone and we could tell he had called someone, so we took it away and hung it up. Gary responded by flailing himself back and hitting his head on the headboard. A few seconds later the phone rang---uh oh, it was the 911 operator asking if there was an emergency. Apparently that is who he had called. My mom assured her that it was just the baby playing and that everything was okay--even though there was a baby screaming in the background because we took the phone away. After she hung up I wondered how they know if it just wasn't an abusive parent pretending like everything was ok. About 20 minutes later, I got my answer as a policeman appeared in the bedroom doorway with my husband who had been outside washing the car and knew nothing about the phone call. We both pointed to the little caller, assured everything was okay, he left. Over the next hour or so our phone rang several times more as each curious neighbor called.
We have a business line that rings in the office. On more than one occasion, I have happened to walk by and notice my son chatting away on the office phone, usually to someone who has called for the business. Once I found out that they had chatted for several minutes. He is pretty quick, so anytime I hear the business phone ring and cannot locate my son, there is a race to get there first! Anyone need an answering service?

Wanna-be potty trainer

It has only been a few months since we finally got Gary potty trained, but Sara thinks she's got it down, piece of cake! A couple of weeks ago she started the whole routine. She goes into the bathroom, walks up to the toilet, raises her shirt and pinches her tummy. After standing there a couple of seconds she turns around and bends over and touches her toes waiting for assistance.

Then about a week ago, she learned to slide her diaper down and step out of it. (Usually after it was wet). Then a couple of times when I've asked her if she has a stinky diaper she just slips it off and hands it to me.

Oh if only it would be that easy to potty train--and this early!!!

Water babies

Sara has always loved being in the water

But with the Summer weather fully upon us, we are all thankful for water--anywhere, any kind! (I even caught Sara sipping up a puddle on the sidewalk--missed that kodak moment, but here are some others of our summer water activities.

Sara isn't as excited about running in the water as Gary

But she has always loved the pool

More rock throwing water activities Here is that shark & Sea horse game I mentioned--Can you guess which one he's being?Cute face--we are also grateful for wide-brimmed uv protective hats
Doesn't all this water make you thirsty?
Loading up....

Aim....
Fire!


Don't let her fool you, she's just making her plan of attack!