I really am living the dream

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I beseech of you in words of soberness that ye would repent, and come with full purpose of heart, and cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you. And while his arm of mercy is extended towards you in the light of the day, harden not your hearts. " Jacob 6:5
Any other scriptures come to mind?

He loves the earth decoration.

We had a great time decorating the Christmas tree this year because the boys actually remembered doing it last year. But what do you think of my sweats and bed hair? While I was watching our children put up the decorations, I really felt I was living the dream, and am truly thankful for all the things Christmas brings: a closeness to the Savior, and remembering all the tender mercies of the Lord.

Something besides getting ready for Thanksgiving

Anakin

Luke

Luke and Gypsy Girl

I love when my kids are this happy!

After school on Tuesday in celebration of Thanksgiving vacation, we went to a huge play area. The boys love being able to fun and climb. Now this is similar to McDonald play places, only bigger and cleaner. They have two sections: a huge three story with slide, tunnels, and jumping area, and a small one for toddlers. Gypsy Girl would only go on the big one--so after an hour of crawling, climbing, lifting, and following her around, I was exhausted. We all had a great time, and we want to do it again next Tuesday. We all need a little exercise!

So for my Thanksgiving post, I am thankful for these three beautiful, healthy, happy, smart, spiritual children. I was married for almost seven years before we had our oldest son, and he was well worth the wait. Luke will sit up at night underlining the word Lord in his Bible, Anakin has a keen sense of knowing right and wrong, and usually choosing the right, and Gypsy Girl loves Jesus! It will be fun to see them grow up and mature in the gospel.

Addicted to Backyardigans and other ramblings

So my youngest is addicted to Backyardigans. She will plop herself in front of the TV and watch for hours. It is so tempting just to let her watch it again and again, but then again she wouldn't get anything done, but I might.

I finished my spelling paper, whew. I think that I might actually become a better speller. For those of you interested things that will help young spellers: word sorts, word patterns and word meanings. (Why is composition and competition spelled with different vowels even though they sound the same: composition comes from compose and competition from compete). Another interesting bit of information: we spell with how words are formed in our mouths, not by sight or hearing. There is a great text book called Words Their Way which identifies different spelling stages (there are six) and how to give instruction, activities, and support for each of those stages. Needless to say there should not be one word list for the entire class as this will only help students at one particular level. Because students in the same class will be at various levels, develop a spelling program that can fit the different abilities of your students. Still no grade, but I am getting an A in the class.

I actually took a nap today, while studying, and as I was falling asleep it was if I would look at myself at the bed, and have and actually teach myself what was in the textbook. I was super intelligent at the time--very cool. It's the closest thing that I have ever had to an out of body experience. I wonder what would have happened if I was reading my scriptures.

I love teaching PowerPoint--we are having a really fun class. On Mondays, I lecture, on Wednesday it is a lab day, then on Friday the students present their PowerPoints to each other. I hope the students are learning about PowerPoint. It certainly is interesting to see what they come up with. (They pay their adjuncts only 300 a credit hour, now it costs 600 to take the class, do you see a discrepancy, but I am getting 6 credits a year for free--yeah--no loans yet on my Masters!)

Yesterday I had a terrible day. Luke my five year old kept trying to cheer me up by asking me to play with him. Once I figured it out-- I was amazed how caring he was to his mommy.

Anakin and Luke are doing great on their work jobs. Today as we clean up the living room we played a game: I close my eyes while they put things away then I have to guess what they put away. The best is when Anakin comes up to me and says, "Mommy where does this go?" Kind of defeats the purpose, but they did pick up the entire living room.

I thought I was going to teach Sunday School on Sunday, but both of us had prepared the lesson. (Better both than neither) It was about Mormon, and I was going to talk about how he had the Gift of Discernment. Elder Bednar gave a great talk about his ability to be quick to observe. I've notice that Anakin is only bringing home good qualities from school. He will say "I'm a happy helper!" He learned that phrase from school. (Think of what he could be learning at school.) Anakin is discerning and noticing good things. I am glad that I prepared because I love that talk, and I noticed that Anakin is also quick to observe. (Part of discerning is noticing the good in yourself and others and being able to bring that good out.)

It snowed a little this week, so we got out the sleds, boots, pants and played in the inch of snow for about an hour. The boys even shoveled the entire driveway! Gypsy Girl hadn't woken up, so I was running in and out of the house checking to see if she was awake.

Working with their dad!

While I was making dinner, all the boys were outside working in the garage. I love that you can capture moments like these on a camera! I asked them what they were working on, and they said that it is a secret, but it just looks like they are just playing with tools.

Work Jobs

My boys and I do work jobs everyday together, and Thursdays is garbage day. I used to hate taking out the garbage, and not do it until Friday morning when I would hear the garbage man come by. I would run out in my slippers and coat chasing the garbage man with my recycling. But now I love it! Luke, Anakin and I go through the entire house emptying all the trash cans then taking it out the big garbage and recycling. Last night Anakin took out the kitchen garbage (it was heavy, but he is so strong!) Luke took out the house garbage, and I took the last of the recycling to the garage. Then Anakin pushed the recycling out to the curb and Luke and I took the big garbage. It was so fun to watch Anakin and Luke get so excited about taking the garbage out. In fact, as I was telling them how proud I was of their accomplishment, I started to cry. My little boys are growing up. When we first moved here, Luke was not even two, and Joshua 2 1/2 months old. Now they are taking the garbage out! My favorite part about the whole experience: it made an unhappy chore turn into a great family activity!

Happy Birthday Dad!

On his mission--giving himself a discussion!

72 and still looks great!

Some famous quotes by my dad:

Before driving to a concert with my 2 older brothers and one older sister his words of wisdom, "Now, no talking! And I'm serious!" Well, we thought that was so funny, that we broke out in laughter, and haven't stopped laughing yet.
Talking about people that are difficult: "People will be people."
When he was a Branch President: "People who are willing to walk to Missouri tomorrow aren't willing to be scoutmaster today."
During my wedding ceremony, my dad's back had gone out, and sitting was very painful for him, so he stood in the sealing room until the actual ceremony began. When the sealer asked him if he wanted to sit, he replied, "No I'll just stand."
After pushing my son on the swing for an hour, "That was wonderful, just wonderful!"
When my oldest son was about a year old, "He's just a regular boy, just a regular boy."

Top 10 list

1. Honest
2. Loving
3. Sure and Steady
   
4. Proud of his kids and grandkids
5. Greatest Pole Vaulter (In his days it was with metal poles and saw dust pits)
6. A man without guile
7. Hard Worker
8. Positive
9. Great Researcher
10. Willing to serve others, always!

Some of my favorite memories:

1. When I was in half day kindergarten, my dad stayed home with me in the mornings. We watched price is right together, everyday! We planted the garden, raspberries, and did all sorts of things together. It was heaven!
2. The Merrie-Miss Daddy daughter date. We danced the night away! What fun!
   
3. We worked at the same University, even the same department, and for a short time shared an office together. It was fun walking around campus with him--he would always introduce me to his colleagues with so much pride. Thanks dad!
4. After I had my oldest son, we would do a quick babysitting exchange. He would watch Luke during my first class, and office hour. Then I would pick up Luke from the house, and bring him to his office so he could watch him while I taught my second class. Isn't that amazing!
5. Watching him play the Editor while he was on his mission in Nauvoo. I never thought of him as an actor because he always is just himself--never hides who he is, but he was wonderful in the play.
6. One time on the phone, I said, "I love you dad." No response, he later called me up to tell me that he loved me. I broke down in tears!
7. Going to all the church history sites along the Susquehanna River. It was really neat to walk down to the river to see where the Priesthood was restored. A great day, one of the best!

It's really hard to describe my dad to people unless you have met him. He is such a mixture of honesty without finesse, that you just love him. Thank you Mom for making him a better dad. I do know that you bought the beautiful corsage for the daddy daughter dance, had him call me back to say, "I love you!", and the most important--I wouldn't have ever had the opportunity to work with my dad if you hadn't gotten dad to talk to Leo about my teaching position.

The only flaw my dad has, is you can't buy gifts for him. One year I really tried to buy him the perfect gift, and he had always bought himself the present before I gave it to him. For his birthday, I bought him an electric toothbrush, and then I walk into the bathroom to find a brand new one plugged in. Christmas that same year--I wanted to buy him some "extras" for his new canoe, and I went in the local canoe store. At the store, the owner proceeded to tell me that he had already bought everything. The final straw, I had gathered money from all my brothers and sisters to buy him a laser printer for his retirement. (This was only six months after the electric toothbrush incident.) I had just bought the printer, and was about to deliver it to him, and I walked into his garage, and there was the exact, yes exact printer we had bought for him. Frustrated---yes! I should have known he would beat me to the punch because as a child he would often say, "Have you bought me a present yet?" My answer would be no. Then he would hand me a new pair of winter gloves he had bought for himself, and say, "Why don't you wrap these up for me."

Anyways, since I can't buy you any gifts---Thanks for being my Dad, & Happy Birthday!

By the way, it's also my half birthday. I always thought that was so cool, to have my half birthday on my dad's birthday!

Anakin's day: started out rough, but ended up sweet

I really need how to use photo shop and all add cool backgrounds because then you would never see the mess in the background--now on to the real post.

Yesterday, was a tough day for Anakin. Everyone got loaded up in the car and on the way to school. When we got to school, we realized that I had forgotten his backpack. Anakin would not get out of the car, he was heartbroken. I had to carry him into school, letting him know that he was not going to get in trouble, people forget their backpacks all the time, and it was going to be OK. Luckily, Luke and the playground workers backed me up. My plan was to go his classroom and tell teacher that we had forgotten his backpack, but when we got to the main door of the school, there she was. He was still really sad, but was reassured that they would give him a bag to take home with him. He made it, and when I picked him up, he had his grocery bag with all his papers in it. Hopefully, we will never forget his backpack again. (I mean I will never forget the backpack again!)

Mike was home last night, so he read to the boys, then I came in and gave the boys a big hug. I said, "Oh Anakin, you are so special!" Then he replies, "You're special too!" Now I was feeling really wonderful, especially after the backpack incident, until he goes, "Everyone is special!" It's true that everyone is special, but just for a moment it was just me. It was a sweet nanosecond of time, and it made up for the failings of the morning. So maybe the post should read: Mommy's day --started out rough, but ended up sweet.

Can you spell?

Because I can't, I have to memorize each individual word in order to spell it correctly. I finally figured out how to spell calendar correctly because its vowels have an a/b pattern associated with it. I have to write a ten page paper on spelling. The paper is interesting: we interview elementary age kids, give kids tests, read interesting articles on invented spelling (if only we could still use invented spelling). I personally think either you can spell, or you can't, kind of like math. But as a soon to be teacher, that's probably not the best approach, but with the right methods it can be learned. Maybe I could spell in Japanese, Chinese, or easier languages like Spanish, but really I've learned foreign languages, and I couldn't even spell in those. Thankfully, we have spell check everywhere, and I can just blame my spelling on my poor typing ability. I guess I better get back to my paper!

Stay Awake, Stay Awake, Stay Awaaaaaaaake

Yesterday, we went to the Library before school, then it's lunch, and drop off at the school. I didn't want Gypsy Girl to fall asleep in the car between the library and school--so the boys and I worked really hard at keeping her awake. We came up with this song, "Stay awake, stay awake, stay awake, then a loud with our hands in the air----stay awaaaaaake." (My hands were on the wheel, I promise!" It kept Gypsy Girl wide awake, and she took a nap for me that afternoon.

Now after a late night (dinner at my sister's and a school concert), I told the boys that it would be OK if Gypsy Girl fell asleep. They then wanted to sing her the lullaby: "Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleeeeeeeeeeep!" They didn't like any of my ideas of singing any normal lullabies. Needless to say everyone was still awake when we arrived in the driveway.

The Good, The Bad, and Hopefully not the Ugly

We will start of with the good: Anakin and Gypsy Girl snuggled together while watching Backyardigans. I have proof that they really do love each other. Part 2: I took the three kids and voted. When I voted in the past, Mike was home, so I just went alone. I could have also gone when the boys were at school, so it would be just one child instead of three, but I wanted the boys to see the whole process. We walked in, GG in the backpack, and the two boys in tow. I showed Anakin and Luke the voting sheet, and showed them all the names: McCain, Obama, and the other candidates. (I feel a little uninformed because the only other name I recognized was Ralph Nader). I also showed them where you could write in a candidate. We filled out all the circles, and fed the voting sheet into the machine, got our stickers and walked out. I love those teaching moments. They had already voted at school: Luke for McCain, and Anakin for Obama. (He always calls him President Obama, isn't that so cute!) Whereas Luke liked McCain because he was a good man and a fighter pilot.) So it was nice to take them to an actual voting station. When I was a kid the voting took place at my elementary school, so we saw the lines, the booth, but here we vote in churches, fire stations, ect. I'm glad the voting was a good experience becasue it could have been a nightmare, and maybe even ugly.

The Bad: Last night we had Family Home Evening, that isn't bad, it is just what happened. I was actually pretty excited because I had a fun game planned! I loved it when I was a kid, and I guess that I still love it, therefore the excitement! So here is the game, in case you want to try. You have a die, a hershy's minature chocolate, mittens, scarf, hat and knife. The winner gets to eat the chocolate, and here is how you win: you have to put on the mittens, scarf, and hat on, open the chocolate, cut the chocolate in half and eat the chocolate before anyone rolls a six. (You can choose any number that you want). If someone rolls a six, you have to take off all the winter aparatus, and hopefully roll a six before someone gets to eat the chocolate. Well Luke went into hysterics as he was just about to reach for the chocolate bar to open it when Anakin rolled a six. That was the bad--I just can't stand temper tantrums. It was off to time out, and there was hitting (Luke's not mine) all the way. He finally calmed down (after about 30 minutes), and the game was put away (much to my disappointment).

Hopefully not the ugly: later on that night after Luke had calmed down, I asked him if he just didn't understand the rules of the game. He did understand the rules, but said that the game is "boring." Next time he wants to play Payday, which of course is boring to me! Hopefully in a few years we can play the chocolate game without the hysterics, but until then......Payday it is!

Conversation before Church

Me, "Luke, remember last time that we went to Stake Conference, and we learned that Jesus was real."

Luke responds, "Mom, I already knew that."

Me: "Well, sometimes we forget."

Luke, "Mom, I always remember Jesus."

Well I want you to listen to see if you learn anything else.

Stake Conference (two hours of sitting quietly with three small children) is no easy task, and it went reasonably well. Mike had just left on a trip, but we made it through. The boys played on the Etch and Sketches, colored, ate Halloween candy, and fishies. GG, just wandered up and down the rows of the gym (we were all the way in the back), stealing toys from other kids. I would clue the boys into the talks if there was something that they might understand. Last time we had Elder Snow visit us, and the boys wanted to meet him because he had such a cool last name. So this time we had to go all the way up to the front to shake the Stake President's hand. My boys are so shy, that they don't talk to anyone. They just smile, or growl. But we made it.

My First Tag, and Hopefully My Last

A- Attached or Single?

Attached.

B- Best Friend?
My husband and my three sisters.

C- Cake or Pie?

Pie. I love pie--all kinds!

D- Day of Choice?

Any day that my husband's home. He travels for a living, so it constantly changes.

E- Essential Items?

Computer, books, and modern day plumbing. I would have hated latrines!

F- Favorite Color? Red

G- Gummy Bears or Worms?

I don't like either, too squishy and chewy.

H- Hometown?

Oneonta, New York. It was a great place to grow up! We walked and biked everywhere, and my mom never had to be a taxi driver.

I- Favorite Indulgence?

Well, this week it is Nutella Chocolate Spread.

J- January or July?

July, it's too cold in January, but on the other hand it's too hot in July. They should have done this for the letter M--I love May!

K- Kids?

Two boys and a girl. Yes, I finally got my girl.

L- Life isn't complete without?

My family.

M- Marriage date?

August 15, 1996

N- Number of brothers and sisters?

3 of each -- I'm was the baby for six glorious years, and then I got to be the big sister to a younger brother and a younger sister.

O- Oranges or Apples?

I like both of them.

P- Phobias and Fears?

I am afraid of heights.

Q - Quiet time, what do you like to do?

Work on the computer.

R- Reason to smile?

I have a great smile!

S- Season of choice?

Actually, I love fall. It is an amazing season. I grew up in the north east, so it was especially amazing. You would turn a corner, and it would be breathtaking.

T- Ticklish?

Yes, Very! My older brothers and sisters tickled me relentlessly, until I cried.

U- Unknown fact about me?

I'm my dad's favorite, well that's not actually unknown. You can ask him if I was his favorite, and he'll say, "Yeah, she is pretty special." Other unknowns: I'm a Democrat, born and bred! I even went to a couple of Young Democrat meetings at BYU. There were at most 10 people at the meetings.

V- Vegetable?

Does corn on the cob count as a vegetable? I really like this aspargus/carrot dish with a lemon, pepper, butter sauce. Yummy!

W- Worst Habit?

Not putting things away after I've done them.

X-ray or Ultrasound?

I love Ultrasounds, but that's only because I've had them when I was pregnant. It was so amazing to see the life inside of you. It was my favorite part about being pregnant, probably the only thing I like about being pregnant.

Y- Your favorite food?

I love food, good food, great food. Some of my favorites: chicken pot pie, homemade chimmichaugas, belgian chocolate. I went on my mission to Belgium where I loved eating Frites (Fries, they were invented in Belgium, not France), the chocolate, waffles, and many other amazing things. I can't believe I didn't gain weight while in Belgium. It must have been all the biking!

Z- Zodiac Sign?

Taurus

I really won't be offended if no one ever tags me again! Because I don't like being tagged, I won't tag anyone. (If you really want to be tagged, let me know and I can tag you.) Next time someone tags me, I'm going to be like my boys and go into stealth mode, so you can see me to tag me).