The Best Date EVER!

Pat would probably be disappointed knowing that I thought this was one of our most awesome dates, but honestly, I'm so blessed to have a husband who knows me and who supports me and does nice things to make me happy.
Friday was our date night, and instead of our usual fun, he suggested we get a quick bite to eat and then return home to tackle some serious spring cleaning. This was music to my ears! It was so nice to get some help in the process and be able to get so much done without A and S under foot. We went to town.
Papers were shredded. Colored pencils were sharpened. Broken crayons were thrown away. (Addie's art supplies were organized/relocated- hence the crayons and colored pencils). Kids Meal toys were chucked (and I firmly believe they multiply like rabbits- I really wish they'd start donating that money to charitable causes and quit giving toys out!) Three storage closets plus the laundry room were all reorganized. Three boxes were filled with things to get rid of. Sandwiches were eaten. Smoothies were consumed. It was fun to blast the tunes and work side by side. Totally romantic in an "I love it when you help around the house" kind of way (which he's good about anyway, but earned major points with this date!). I love my husband.

Thankful Thursday

1. Thanks to Tiburon for this great plan and for even being kind enough to share your banner to go with it. Who doesn't need to express a little more gratitude?
2. I'm thankful for my visit to the temple this morning. It seems like I'm always giving myself 101 reasons not to go when I actually get a chance, but then I realize it's actually the adversary listing those reasons, not me. Initiatories are so beautiful and peaceful. I'm also thankful I live close to a temple.
3. I'm thankful for my sister-in-law and the sweet set-up we have so we can go to the temple and go on dates and do anything else we may need to. She's always got my back and I really appreciate it. I wish she'd blog!
4. I'm thankful for some spring weather. Even though today is freezing, it's been great to be out and about some this week enjoying sun and warmth!
5. I'm thankful for Pat's job, and more specifically, for every other Friday off. Tomorrow is his off Friday+pay day. It's bound to be a great weekend!

Book Tag

I was tagged by Lorinda.

from "The Book Thief", page 123, sentence 5
"and revenge in the shape of mixed candy"

Don't you feel enlightened? Hopefully, at least intrigued. This book was readily at hand from book club last night. It didn't work so well for this exercise, though, because page 123 was the beginning of a section, so I chose the 5th "phrase" since that's all that this page contained.

a)Pick up the nearest book.
b)Turn to page 123.
c)Find the 5th sentence.
d)Post sentence.
e)Tag 5 people.

As far as tagging 5 others, feel free to play along, but I won't force you. Hopefully your page 123 sentence 5 will prove a little more coherent. ;)

A Milestone and the rest of Easter recap

I almost forgot to blog about this totally blog-worthy event! On Sunday, Addie gave her I gave Addie's first talk. It's great to give a talk on a holiday, because you instantly have a topic! Her talk was about Easter, and Jesus visiting people he loved like Mary and the Apostles after His resurrection, and the fact that one day He will visit us again. It worked in the weekly theme quite well, if I do say so myself. Although we had practiced tons and she knew it so well, as soon as she got to the podium she put her head down on it so she wouldn't have to face all of the bright eyes looking at her. I felt terrible for her, but I think I saw the writing on the wall that it may go that way. She's got plenty of time to conquer her fears of public speaking, and I don't expect her to have worked through it by age 3 but definitely by age 4 .

The Easter Bunny made a little pre-stop on Saturday before the big day Sunday. We got Addie a new bike and Sam a Thomas the Tank Engine ride on toy, but we don't usually play with things like that on Sundays so they were delivered Saturday to give everyone a chance to play. Sam's toy was missing pieces, so we trekked back to Hell- Wal-Mart and fought the masses to get a working Thomas (only to have one of the buttons break yesterday- I'm not sure if I'm taking it back again). Saturday night was busy prepping for Easter bunny duties plus my lesson Sunday plus making two batches of rolls for Easter dinner. My lesson was not my favorite, but I think was passable despite the high number of elderly ladies snoring . Easter dinner was with Pat's family and was totally delicious. Ham, turkey, asparagus with avocado, carrots, caramelized green beans, rolls, obligatory jell-o salad, followed by dessert after dessert- two varieties of lemon cakes, panna cotta, multiple varieties of cookies, and tons of Easter candy. It was a nice day, and I definitely got some time to think about the things that were most important.

It feels so good to tie up loose ends like that. Now that Easter 2008 has been documented for posterity, I can return to blogging about totally banal and inane interesting and provocative topics. Can you tell who just learned how to do strike throughs?

Out and About

Today is a busy day at our house, which means if I'm commenting on your blog during the middle of the day, I shouldn't be. I have book club at my house tonight which translates to some big cleaning to do, plus treat making, plus I need to make dinner for my family. And I need to make a run to Costco. And we have playgroup this morning. And I need to attempt to get myself presentable. And my kiddies are in need of baths, especially due to the time we spent outside yesterday. And I'm really sore today from my hour long walk/jog with the kids (I'm really strongly thinking about that 5k in May). And Sam is still teething. Hope your Tuesday is full of fun and getting things done!

“And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!” -Doctrine and Covenants 76:22

This is the miracle of it all- that the tomb was indeed empty. That He who once was dead lives again. I know He does. And I am so grateful. Happy Easter!

Shall I Order a Canvas?

It moved on the scanner and I haven't had time to straighten it out. If I were to send you an Easter card, a copy of this just may be sent along.

Full Days

This week has been full, and I'm so ready for the weekend! Here's a little recap of what we've been up to.

-Ward playgroup is coming along (I'm helping with the planning and we held our 2nd successful playgroup this past week). Yesterday we made these cute little numbers, followed by an Easter egg hunt where the eggs were filled with fun little activities like play Simon Says or sing Popcorn Popping.
-After play group, Addie's cute little friend Abby came over with her little brother and her mom, and while the boys napped and the girls played we successfully cut out 95% of my quilt project! My friend is hoping I'll get it done before they move mid-May (and I kind of hope so too so I can have her help along the way!). We'll see if I can make that deadline!
-In the past two days I've had personal visits with all four of the sisters I visit teach. It's so nice to actually have good, spiritual, personal visits with all of our sisters in one month! I don't know if I could love visiting teaching any more than I already do.
-Last night I went to dinner with a friend I haven't seen in 14 years. We were good friends during our childhood in PA while her family was stationed there with the military for a couple of years. It's hard to try to fill each other in on everything when so much has happened, but it was so much fun discovering who we've turned into over the years, reminiscing about different things, and realizing that the gospel is still the center of both of our lives. It was a great visit!
-I've been busy addressing and sending out the most adorable Easter cards containing the most adorable pics of my kids you've ever seen. I'll scan both soon for your viewing pleasures.
-I think Sam is teething. He's only got 4 teeth so far, so he really does have some work to do in this department, but it has my usually happy boy a little on the cranky/needy side, with a lot of drool to boot.

Those are just a few of the highlights. I'm so happy for Easter weekend! Look for at least one, if not multiple posts on the subject. ;)

Dad's Day?

Yesterday, like any good mom of a pre-school aged child, I tried to communicate to Addie that it was a holiday. As we got dressed we made sure we were all wearing green. Throughout the day Addie kept drawing pictures of "those rocks" referring to shamrocks. We found a pattern game with shamrocks and rainbows and leprechauns and pots of gold and had fun arranging the pieces into patterns after she colored them. My favorite part of the day was when I told her that the name of the holiday was St. Patrick's Day, she looked at me and asked "so it's Dad's day?" How could I argue with that, since Dad is indeed Patrick. I wish I'd had more time to plan with this spin on the holiday, but I think next year special preparations will be made so we can celebrate St. Patrick's Day/Dad's Day. When does he not deserve a little extra family love? I think it will be a fun spin on the tradition for us.

A Full Heart

This weekend has been so spiritually quenching I honestly didn't know I was thirsty until I was filled. Yesterday morning our old stake invited us back since our ward was moved to another stake two weeks ago for stake women's conference. In January stake leaders asked us to start preparing for the conference by reading the most recent conference edition of the Ensign cover to cover. That exercise in and of itself was a great boost, but I really do think it helped prepare us for the presentations we participated in yesterday.
The main speakers at the conference were church service missionaries who work with the church's addiction recovery program along with a few sisters who are recovering addicts. My eyes were open to the pain of addiction and the plague that it truly is on the earth today. The stake Relief Society president said that if we ever wanted to feel an abundance of the Spirit we should attend one of the church's addiction recovery meetings, and after yesterday, I have no doubt. The missionaries who shared experiences as well as those in the program were so full of the Spirit. The part that affected me the most was the reminder I was given of the power of the Atonement. To hear sisters talk about hitting rock bottom and rebuilding their life was such a testament of the Atonement to me. Any thoughts of judgment were gone. Any doubts of how they could come so far were gone. The love and hope and faith contained in the Atonement were so palpable as we were able to see it in action. There was truly no other way for these sisters to get to where they were than through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I can tend to be pretty hard-nosed and tough at things like this, but I couldn't hold back my emotions throughout the presentation. I suddenly had such a clear understanding of some people in my life. I felt in a small way the pains that the sisters who shared were feeling, and I mourned for the pain that so many have felt as their agency has been robbed through addiction. I don't know if I've ever left a meeting feeling more desire to love those around me, to serve in a very real and involved way, and to use the Atonement more in my life.
Today the theme of our ward conference was also the Atonement. I think I've learned more in this weekend about the Atonement than I have in a long time. In our combined Priesthood/Relief Society Meeting, we discussed the parable of the prodigal son and how it relates to the Atonement. It really is two stories, the first discussing the son who squanders his inheritance, or in other words leaves the gospel, and then returns. The verse in Luke 15:20 when he returns is so beautiful and symbolic.

And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

His Father didn't just rejoice when the son got to the house, but as soon as he saw him on his way back, he ran to him and welcomed him back. Repentance is such a miracle. The love of our Heavenly Father and Savior is beyond comprehension.
The second story contained in the parable is one that reflects my attitudes all too often, the story of the older son who is angry when the father rejoices over the return of his brother. It seems so natural for those feelings of anger to come to the older brother and to all of us. We all feel that way when we perceive we've been wronged. Really, he is choosing to be angry and rationalizing the reasons his feelings are justified. How often do we fall into that trap?
I feel like this post is more for me today than for anyone reading it, but I needed to reflect on the feelings for my Savior which have my heart so full. I'm so grateful for this Easter season and the chance to reflect on my Savior. I have so much to learn about his sacrifice for me and for all of us, and I need to spend more time focused on the Savior. Everything else about the gospel is just an appendage to our testimony of the Savior, according to Joseph Smith. There is so much about the gospel that I love, and I think sometimes I forget, or maybe just neglect that He is who it is all about. I hope to spend more time following the counsel of 2 Nephi 25:26,

And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.

I don't want my children to ever doubt that Jesus Christ and His gospel are the foundation of our family. I think I just planned FHE for tomorrow. Happy Sunday.

Pizzeria 712

We finally made it here for our date on Friday night. Can I just tell you how in love I am with this place? I'm glad we beat the dinner rush because it's a small restaurant with no plans/desire to expand, and we got one of the last two tables at about 5:45 on a Friday night. The beef shortrib with polenta appetizer was melt in your mouth good. The pizza margherita which we shared was delicious. Pat is not easily impressed with places (meaning he just doesn't enjoy food as much as I do), and he thought it was ok, but wasn't as enamored as I was. My biggest regret is not getting dessert. It truly doesn't feel like you're in Utah when you're there. It's in a newer shopping/living area- actually I think it's the first thing to open in the whole place. I can't wait to see what else it fills up with. You can read the P712 blog here. If anyone wants to go for lunch, let me know. I'm already dreaming about my next trip.

No Scale Love

Although I'm "petite", I wouldn't consider myself small. I've had periods of my life as someone small, and I'm not currently in one of them. I'd like to be, though. I've gone for a few more walks with my kids. Sam lost a sock on one. Today it seems like the planets are aligning to make me take stock of my body.
First, I had my "annual" exam today. I had to step on a scale, and know that it was probably accurate as opposed to my bathroom scale that I'm always giving myself the benefit of the doubt with. I figure bathroom scales aren't always that accurate. But today at the doctors office, I realized my home scale is indeed pretty accurate. Bad news.
Second, I read Hannah's post about her first 5k. My first was last summer for my friend's wedding. They held their own 5k the day of the wedding entitled "Fit to Be Tied." I always love a clever catch phrase, and this one didn't disappoint. I had run further distances before, but not for a long time, so I was happy I completed this one. I walked the first half and then ran the rest of the way. It felt great!
Third, I realized that this is about the weight I was when I got pregnant with Addie. And it made for a terrible pregnancy. I was at least 15 pounds lighter when I got pregnant with Sam, and it made the biggest difference! We're not planning on a baby anytime soon, but I've realized that when we do feel it's time again, I don't want to have to put it off to feel healthier before I'm ready. I want to feel ready physically for whenever it is that I feel ready spiritually.
I used to run. When in high school, I took various summer school classes to make room for electives/seminary/AP classes in my schedule. P.E. was one of the classes I opted for in summer school, and since it was 4 hours every morning for a month to complete one semester worth of credit, I did it twice, spread out over two summers, to fulfill my P.E. requirements. Because the class was for 4 hours, it was broken down into 4 1-hour segments, rotating between 4 different teachers, and one hour was devoted to running. By the end of each session I was running up to 5 or 6 miles at a time. I experienced the runners high and really enjoyed it- quite a feat for someone without an ounce of athleticism or coordination.
I loved running again after my freshman year of college. I had definitely put on the freshman 15 and needed to get back into shape, and I enjoyed running in the warm summer evenings. Until I broke my foot on my birthday while on a trip back to Utah.
Since then, I've had a love/hate relationship with running. I'm really hoping to get back into it and cross the threshold back into loving running. Maybe I'll even get inspired like Hannah and sign up for a 5k. There's one really close to me in a picturesque location in May. If I start now, I think I could do it. I need to shed the extra 15 to 20 pounds I'm hanging on to post-Sam. It's been almost 14 months, I think it's time to give them the boot.

Spring Cleaning

I don't know about you, but I'm itching to start some spring cleaning. I feel like my house just needs to breathe! At the same time, I'm totally overwhelmed by it all. I feel like I'd love to just send my kids away for a couple days to tackle it all, but that's pretty much totally unrealistic.

Yesterday, I happened across this site that I'm hoping will make it easy for me! It's called mom advice (honestly, what mom doesn't need some advice, because I sure do) and the woman behind it all also blogs on the site. On her blog, she's giving readers printables you can download with daily tasks to do. All that is required is to set aside one hour daily for cleaning- it seems so much more doable that way, at least to me! And to help you be even less overwhelmed, she's including recipes for each day so you can get dinner started and forget about it since you'll be busy cleaning for an hour. Today is only day 2, but really, I don't think it matters if you start this week or next or whenever you feel so inclined. I'm thinking about printing everything out and putting it in a cute binder as my own manual for getting my spring cleaning done every year. I guess we'll see how I fare this time around, first. Happy cleaning!

I Need a New Day

I'm ready for this one to be over. Man oh man, I've been unbearable. Well, my kids have been unbearable, which has made me unbearable, and we just kind of continue to escalate with each other. I'm remembering so clearly how hard this age/stage was for me with Addie. And now Sam is right in the middle of it. I'm tired of piles of unrolled toilet paper. Splashes in toilet water. Every book off the shelf, every movie out of the drawer, every pot, every pan, every piece of tupperware out of it's respective cupboard. He grins while he does it, and while he's just so dang cute, it's still so tiresome. Addie has been out of sorts lately too. Lots of sass. Not lots of obeying. Early bedtimes because she's not eating dinner. So demanding for things she wants instead of using the manners we've worked hard at. Pushing/yelling at/hitting Sam when he comes within a 2 foot radius of her. Wow, do I sound whiney enough?

I truly love my kids. But I think we all have spring fever. We have a busy week ahead, but I hope some of it will involve putting on sweaters and heading outside, because we're driving each other crazy. Families teach us oh so much. I have so much to learn. I have little to be proud of today as a parent as far as how I've treated my kids. I have oh so so much to learn.

I found a little gem of an article while perusing the conference issue this past week. It was probably the last article/talk written by President Faust, and they included it in the conference issue. Although much of it deals with addiction, the article entitled The Power to Change really can apply to all of us. This quote sticks out to me today:

"Each one of us has been given the power to change his or her life. As part of the Lord’s great plan of happiness, we have individual agency to make decisions. We can decide to do better and to be better. In some ways all of us need to change; that is, some of us need to be more kind at home, less selfish, better listeners, and more considerate in the way we treat others." (I added the italics and the bold- the parts that really registered with me)

I am grateful for the power to change. I am ready to embrace a new day tomorrow. Monday is full of possibilities and full of hope and full of exactly what I fill it with- I need to fill it with good things. I'm ready to embrace Monday for the beauty contained in a new week instead of the drudgery I sometimes greet it with.

Kids Say the Darnedest Things

Addie has been cracking me up lately. It's so fun to hear some of the funny expressions they use all the time, and sometimes everything is just cuter in 3-year-old speak. Thought I'd share some of my latest favorites from Adalicious.

-Every time we pass McDonald's, she refers to it as Old McDonald's. She made the connection between the song and the restaurant entirely on her own, and it always cracks me up.
-Yesterday she and her cousin were building a fort in the living room. They'd stripped her bed to get more blankets and had quite the set up going. When I walked in and asked what they were doing, instead of saying they were building a fort, she informed me they were building a "fourteen century." Who knows where she came up with that one!?! Maybe a little too much Antiques Roadshow...
-A few days ago we bought a new movie while at Target. She's in love with Barbie as the Island
Princess, but they didn't have it, so instead we bought Barbie as The Princess and the Pauper. Addie has taken to calling it The Princess and the Hopper. "Look, Mom, there's the princess, and there's the hopper!" Too funny.

I'm sure there are more, but those are just a few of my latest chuckles from her. Three is highly entertaining.

Montezuma's, I mean Melissa's Revenge

If you read Melissa's blog, you'll know that she was pretty upset about her leftovers from our date the other night. Just for a little background, she brought them in to my house while we played games, and then forgot them. I forgot my cell phone, so was unreachable for her to get them that night. I said I should be home the rest of the weekend, but when she came to get them Sunday, we'd gone to Pat's parents' house for an hour, and I'd forgot my phone yet again! Sadly, Melissa's leftovers were captive in my fridge. I think it was fairly fortuitous for her as we fast forward to yesterday.

I was perusing the fridge at lunch time when I decided I'd eat my leftovers from that night for lunch. I had no sooner stopped eating than I felt exhausted and the room was spinning. It wasn't long before I was barf barf barfing it up. Food poisoning is a beast. Addie kept asking "Mom, why are you throwing up all that food?" I was rendered useless for the rest of the day. I called Pat's parents who came over and sat with the kids while I alternated between sleeping, barfing, and being dizzy.

So, Melissa, I think I was protecting you. Unknowingly, but protecting all the same. What are friends for if not to get food poisoning to protect the pregnant? I'm still wiped out today, but feeling much better than yesterday meaning no dizziness or barfing. Hope your week is going well!

Pay It Forward Gift-O-Rama

Just in case you don't read the blogs of Natalie or Leslie who have both now received and blogged about their prizes, thought I'd fill you in on the goodies that graced their mailboxes.

Because I'm not the hand-made queen, I turned to my favorite Etsy who is full of hand-made queens (and kings I suppose) for some inspiration. Gift #1: lovely note cards from Irene Suchocki. These were so lovely upon arrival that I contemplated not sending them on, and decided if I were the end recipient of this gift, I may frame them instead of using them for their intended note card purpose. Leslie received a floral variety, Natalie some landscapes.

Gift #2: gift tags from elfrida. I love that these are dainty like doilies, but still have a slight graphic flair. I think they'd pretty up any gift and was happy to share this treasure.

Gift #3 was different for Natalie and Leslie. Leslie received a year-long subscription to Family Fun magazine, something I thought would provide inspiration for fun with her cute family, and what girl doesn't love a magazine?
Natalie received a note pad from Curly Girl Design (one of her favorites) with a quote that I thought totally fit her theme for the year. Hope she loved it!

I had fun shopping for gifts for these blogging friends, attempting to find things just for them discovered via blog. So fun!