Random Thoughts Again

We had our monthly family birthday party last Sunday. Unfortunately I forgot it was Melissa's birthday this month and didn't have a card for her, so I didn't give the girl's their cards. So now I have two birthday cards that I can only use on the 25th of the month. Hope I don't forget. (I can't find my calendar that Melissa made up for the birthdays and summer cookouts. I'm going to have to look harder - I know it is somewhere here as I put it in a special page cover to keep it clean.)

I've been having some pretty serious dizzy spells lately. Dr. Brown has been slowly decreasing my Savella dosage and I haven't had a bad one since the Girl's Night Out (better known as GNO) three weeks ago. I shouldn't be driving as one of my co-workers pointed out to me this week. I'm going to have to work out some arrangement to get to and from work Monday. I think by next Wednesday I should be ok to drive since I will have been off the Savella by then for several days.

Our trees are finally getting leaves on them. My poor little lilac bush is doing it's best to "bloom where it's planted" but for some reason every August something happens to it and all the leaves curl up and practically die before fall. But every Spring it comes back to life as if nothing happened during the last year. It has never been able to grow big at all but has remained stunted all these years (eight) So, I am going to try to transplant it and see if that will make any difference (if it doesn't kill it first.)

Our roses are all getting buds on them and we haven't pruned them yet. Well I take that back, we did prune the two that grow over the arch in the front yard's trellis. We have a cherry tree and a plum tree that also need to be pruned Both of them are getting quite big and have never been pruned so it will take some work to get it done. We bought three new fruit trees this year and planted them in the garden along the back fence so they won't have to be mowed around every week. I still need to buy some bushes to replace the ones that died last year. If I time it right I can get them at Home Depot for $10.00 a bush. That is a huge savings from the regular price in a nursery.

That reminds me, Joe had a man from our ward who is a landscaping contractor come and look at our yard and suggest some ways we could improve it. He didn't charge us for it but asked if we buy some bushes we buy them from him. I hope that doesn't include the bushes I had already planned to buy at Home Depot.

I have been asked to complete the LDS Church Membership Survey 2010 (much like a census only has questions about church activity for ourselves and each of our children.) This is the third time in the last 30 years or so that I have been asked to do something like this. It is amazing to me because I'm sure the church doesn't do this kind of survey but every few years and out of all the millions and millions of members of the Church I should be asked to do it three times. I've never heard of anyone else but me who has been asked to do this kind of survey. The last one asked about our food storage and if we held family home evenings and those kinds of questions. This one asked about family size and the activity level of ourselves and each child. It also asked about each child's marriage (whether it was in the Temple, whether any of us had ever been divorced) and also about what office in the priesthood each of the men in the family hold, missions served, etc.

I'm wearing a bracelet Janice gave me for Mother's Day a year or two ago. It has small pearls, crystals, amethysts and tiny, tiny circles of diamonds, with charms that say "Love," "Mother," "Forever" and a small heart at the end of it. The tiny diamonds aren't real, of course, but it is very pretty anyway. It's so like Janice to make something like this bracelet. I love it. Most of my jewelery is from my children, Karla, or Melissa. I have a lovely Mother of Pearl brooch from Karla and some beautiful black pearls and also fresh water pearls from Melissa. Then I have several pearl necklaces that have little pearls spaced about an inch and a half apart on one strand and then they are combined with other strands that are staggered to make it look like the pearls are almost floating in space. Janice also gave me necklace with a mustard seed in a tiny glass box. It has a tiny gold page that has the quote about having faith as the grain of mustard seed. I tried putting it on a longer chain that I had but over the years since she gave it to me the chain has discolored. I need to get a new chain for it but just haven't found a place that sells gold chains for a price I can afford. I rarely wear much jewelry but everything I have, I love.

I just finished watching a Sherlock Holmes movie with the Guy's Game Night sons and son-in-law (Steve, Michael, Adam and Seth and Joe of course) It was a very entertaining movie but it is late now 10:00 and I am getting up at 4:30 now days so I need to go to bed.

Night All,

Love, Mither

Christmas?

I am a total ingrate! It should have been like Christmas on the 15th but since I only lost 4 lbs. I was seriously disappointed. I guess since I lost 24 lbs the first month and my eating hasn't changed at all I have expected greater weight loss than I've been having. Last month I only lost 8 lbs.

Still 12 lbs for the last two months is better than gaining weight and I am grateful for that, but I don't understand why it is slowing down so much. Still I am committed to this program and will continue my efforts and leave the weight loss results in Heavenly Father's hands.

It's a good thing we only weigh once a month.

If I lose more next month I'll title my post "Merry Christmas," then you won't have to read my blog, you'll just know I am happy.

Two Highs and a Low

Melissa had the neatest idea (as usual-she always comes up with something fun to do) for a girls night out which became a reality this last Friday and Saturday. We (Jenn, Jan, Emilee, Karla, Janelle, Melissa and I) had a slumber party! She has a brother and sister who own a cabin (read really large house) in a canyon East of Heber City. We all stopped at a restaurant in Heber and had dinner and then drove up to the cabin. Up being the defining word for the last two hundred feet of the drive. The hills was steep and very muddy with large ruts that almost devoured Karla's car.

Jenn was hyperventilating by the time they made it to the cabin. (Just kidding, Jenn) We all had to give her a bad time about how scared she must have been even though we weren't there in the car with her (she and Janelle were in Karla's car which doesn't have 4 wheel drive. The rest of us were in Melissa's Jeep which does.) Somehow Jenn has gotten the reputation of being the one to "freak out" at things like that. It was all in good fun and she was good to go along. Karla did and amazing job of driving that little car up such a steep and bad hill. She said her Dad(?) had taught her how to drive like that and she had no doubt that she could do it, and she did! She has an amazing repertoire of talents.

We spent the night playing a couple of games which had some of us feeling very smart and others feeling somewhat less so ;) Then we sat around on big comfy couches and chairs (except for Karla who uncomplainingly sat on the carpet) and just talked for a long time about all kinds of things, ending up with how blessed we were to live where we lived and have the lifestyle we have -- especially compared to most of the people of the world. Then we all went to bed (11:15, not one of those late, late night parties we might have had if we were younger.)

I slept in a bed that was so high that I literally had to get a step stool to get up in. I slept really well most of the night. I did wake up and read my scripture for a little while and then went back to sleep and didn't wake up until about 8:00!(really late for someone who usually gets up at 5:00) Then everyone had a big breakfast of eggs pancakes and bacon(?) (I had two cheese sticks and an apple which weren't as filling, maybe, as there's was but it's worth it for the weight loss)

I fell asleep again in one of the big chairs and when I woke up I heard Melissa cleaning the bathroom right off the main room. I asked her if I could help her but she insisted that I go downstairs and watch the movie everyone else was watching. I have felt guilty ever since that I didn't just start helping out regardless of her insistence. The least I could have done is suggested that we pause the movie and all of us go up and help out with the work. I don't really feel guilty, now days, compared to what I used to. Since I came to understand the atonement I usually handle my guilt feelings by repenting pretty quickly, but this time I felt really guilty all day yesterday, and wished I could go back and do it over again the right way. I don't quite know how to make up for it. I'll have to pray about this one.

We took Joshie out for lunch to celebrate his receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost when I got home from the sleepover. He was really excited. We gave him a little book that talked of all the feelings, warnings and guidance we get from this member of the Godhead and read it while we were waiting for our food to come. We went to I-Hop (International House of Pancakes) He loved the pancakes and on the way home in the car, he asked us about some of the things we read. I told him the story of Heber J. Grant (?) being warned not to go in a shack out in a field by an audible voice and about my sister, Annette, having an audible voice tell her that she could pray about a problem she was having. She hadn't yet thought of doing it so it was a real surprise to hear a voice telling here that. She even looked around her bedroom to see where the voice came from but of course there was no one there.

Joshie was fascinated by the stories and asked if they were true. I reassured him that they were. He asked if that would happen to him and I said it could at some point in his life but he would have to keep the commandments. Then he asked what the commandments were Joe and I both mentioned some of the ten commandments and talked about repenting when he hits his brothers or sister or does something else wrong. It was a priceless "Sunday School" lesson given in answer to his questions, probably one of the best he will have in his young years for that very reason. It was all I could have asked for to teach him about the Holy Ghost. It was a direct answer to my prayers for Joshie.

Today I am really, really down in the dumps. I don't know why. I didn't go to Church today. I felt extremely tired last night and it has hung over to this morning. I did get up at my usual 5:00 o'clock time but went back to bed at 8:00 because I was just so tired. Maybe I'm coming down from such and emotional high that in comparison I'm feeling the down time more.

Anyway, at least I am writing in my blog/journal. Well I have a headache so I'll go take something for it and see if I can concentrate enough to read my scriptures or watch KBYU. They usually have Conference talks or devotionals all day on Sunday.

Well, Cheers,

Mither

Life Goes On....

The flareup has flared down. I can't believe it! It's so good to feel good. I have been on the fibro. medication for about a week and a half now and I think that, a priesthood blessing that was given me a couple of weeks ago, and some very strong pleadings with the Lord in prayer have given me back my life.

I went to my mission yesterday for the first time in almost two weeks. I was thinking on the drive in to work (mission) that I was doing very little work there - I only answer the phone - that I really wasn't needed there. I began praying about it in the car to know the Lord's will and get some guidance. I thought maybe the Lord wanted me to try harder to get the computer skills to do the work with the "candidates" (people who come in for help).

I've had other callings in the Church that in hindsight could have used the kind of prayer I felt impressed to pray right then. Anyway, after praying about it and having different thoughts come to mind, the one that seemed to be from the Lord and not me was --are you I willing to do a "lowly" job that wouldn't be something your ego would benefit from?

Yeah, that was humbling.

I am glad to say that I am more than willing. I have decided to bring good books or my scriptures to work with me so I will have something to do between phone calls.

We celebrated Easter (bunny and candy) last night so it wouldn't interfere with Conference either Saturday or Sunday. We had a barbeque (sans barbeque) after the "hunt" which turned out really well. It has helped to have the two empty bedrooms for the kids to play in even though there aren't very many toys in there to play with. And I wasn't even nervous about food getting spilled which was weird because in all the cookouts we've had indoors (cookouts, indoors?) we've never really had anything spilled. But last night someone spilled a full glass of rootbeer on the tile and carpet and I wasn't even phased by it. Who would have guessed? Maybe all my stressing about it over the years has finally worn off and left me calm and collected. I haven't even checked today to see if there is a big spot on the carpet from it. So what if there is? It was worth it to have all my children and grandchildren there.

We had two broken hearts (with tears) last night. One was Jenni, who didn't get very much candy compared to some of the littler kids who got more time and opportunity to hunt. That one was saved by some candy I bought that wasn't put out for the hunt. I was going to put one chocolate egg in my purse so I would have something if my hypoglycemia ever acted up (or my blood sugar dropped suddenly as it has been known to do.) But I decided later that if my purse was ever left in a hot car I could have a mess on my hands. Anyway Joe absconded with the whole bag and had it up in the bonus room where, thankfully, we had Jenni go to get some.

The other broken heart (with tears) was when Joshie found out that Ethan was going to Conference with Jennifer and he couldn't go because they didn't have enough tickets. That was resolved by Janice giving up her ticket so he could go in her place. I don't think Joshie really knows what he's in for even though everyone tried to tell him it was like a really long Sacrament meeting and he'd have to be quiet the whole time. At least he felt better.

Thanks, Janice, for once again making a sacrifice for someone else's happiness. And thanks again for being the one who stayed longer and cleaned up the mess after everyone. You're an amethyst (my favorite jewel ;) I hope your work wasn't too taxing today and that you get a lot of sleep and rejuvenation tonight. Would you like to come and watch conference with us tomorrow? We'd love to have you.

Well that's all for now,

Cheers!

Mither