Savor This Moment

A goal without a daily plan of action is just a wish.

2010-01-09T20:35:00.003-06:00

That quote from Dave Ramsey was sent to me by my friend Susan, and I think I will post it where I can read it every day.

Now that it's a new year in Primary, I'm really trying to get organized. I've run across some good blog posts on that subject.

Marie Ricks has some ideas on how to organize in order to magnify your calling.

Here is a funny post from Normal Mormon Husbands: A tribute to Primary Music Leaders everywhere! Love the "down in the River Jordan" visual aid he came up with. I've been a PML enough to know how much you have to deliver every Sunday.

Just a couple of things...

2009-12-15T12:14:00.005-06:00

I made it a little bit easier to find the blog. If you type in "www.savorthismoment.com" you will be able to get here without adding the 'blogspot' in there. Don't worry if you have savorthismoment.blogspot.com favorited or saved on your computer, you don't need to change it, you can still get here that way.

Like I've said before, I love cranberries. And it's not just because our friend has a cranberry farm, either. (but that helps!) Heidi at 101 Cookbooks has a great idea for sugared cranberries. They're beautiful on the buffet or plate, and sweetly tart to the taste. Or maybe they're tartly sweet. But either way, they say Christmas to me!

Now, this is not to be missed. For the past few Christmases, Ro from ScrapGirls has written a Christmas story that is told in 12 days. I am linking to her home page here, and if you scroll down to the bottom section "What's Happening At Scrap Girls?" and look at the right hand box, there are links to her newsletters.

Starting from the December 13 newsletter, she begins to share the new story, "Here I Raise My Ebenezer". The title comes from a line in the song "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing", which I wrote about in this blog post. You can click here and listen to the beautiful song while watching the slideshow of images from "Reflections of Christ".

This Christmas she is dedicating her story to all of the men and women in uniform. Remember them in your prayers this Christmas, and every day throughout the year.

God Bless America!

Job Description

2009-12-11T11:05:00.001-06:00

This is from an e-mail my dad sent me.

The cost of parenting 4 kids to adulthood? Priceless.

POSITION : Mom, Mommy, Mama, Ma Dad, Daddy, Dada, Pa, Pop

JOB DESCRIPTION : Long term, team players needed, for challenging, permanent work in an often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities! Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES : The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5. Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf. Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers. Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects. Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks. Must be a willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next. Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices. Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.. Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product. Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION : None. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE : None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION : Get this! You pay them! Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent. When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS : While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth, unconditional love, and free hugs and kisses for life if you play your cards right.

GOLDEN PARACHUTE Grandkids!

More Cheap and Easy Christmas

2009-12-10T14:50:00.003-06:00

Here is an idea for the Christmas tree lights. Guess I have to get mine to work first!

This article from the LDS Living archives about managing Christmas has some good organizational tips. Simplify!

Opossum Sally has a list of 103 quick and easy Christmas gift ideas here. My favorite is 20. A juice pitcher filled with candy canes- "We pitcher you raising a little "cane" during the holidays!" Have a merry Christmas!!

Fairytales

2009-12-10T13:08:00.004-06:00

Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Actually, I would give this 3.5 stars.

Julie is the daughter of Rapunzel, but doesn't know her father at all. (That is the opposite of all of the Disney movies; they usually have a father and no mother.) Her grandmother is the now reformed wicked witch who put Rapunzel in the tower to begin with. Julie feels like she doesn't belong anywhere. She is so different from her schoolmates, but also doesn't know how to relate to the other fairytale characters in her everyday life.

This was a fun, modern-day meets fairytale-land. Natalia recommended it to me, since she read it for school, and I can't wait to read the sequel "Out of the Wild".

View all my reviews >>

These are a few of my favorite things...

2009-12-04T13:34:00.005-06:00

The kids were watching "The Sound of Music" last week. I love the simple list of things in the song "Brown paper packages tied up with strings, Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes", etc.

With Christmas ON THE HORIZON, I was thinking of some of my favorite things.

When I was a kid, Christmas was really a simple holiday. Lots of baking and visiting, singing carols and circling all of the toys we wanted in the Sears Wish Book. I actually don't recall getting any of those toys that I actually indicated I wanted, but it never bugged me at all.

Some of the favorite gifts that I DID receive were books. I would read whatever I could get my hands on! The best gift ever was the boxed set of Little House on the Prairie books. I was about 8 or 9 years old, and I read them all, one by one, then started them right back over again! I still have them; they're sitting on my dresser right now. Thanks, mom!

Anyway, I'm always looking for tips to make Christmas easier, more simple, and cheap. Here are some tips that I've come across this year.

The US Catholic site has this post: ’Twas the fight before Christmas : A survival guide to a fairly happy holiday. Of course, what's a family get-together without a little drama?

I love homemade gifts, so etsy is a great go-to website to find unique gifts, and support the indie crafters at the same time. This is one of my faves right now. It makes me laugh. And it's cheap, too!

Here are a few ideas on Mahalo, and BellaOnline has some frugal Christmas ideas, too.

Craftbits has some cute and simple crafts for gifts and decorations. I think I'll try out the stamped candy bar wrappers. Cute, yummy, and cheap! (I think I see a pattern forming.)

And when all else fails, Martha Stewart will always come through with ideas and inspiration.

Some good music...

2009-11-05T14:59:00.003-06:00

These guys are the real deal, and I'm so glad their single is out! I saw Matt Lopez and Brad Hull when they performed with Jason Deere to promote his "Joseph" CD, and they were great musicians and their harmonies were...uh, harmonious! Add Tim Gates' voice to the mix, and I think they're here to stay.

I love this!

2009-10-27T18:08:00.006-05:00

Online shopping is one of the best thing ever invented. Now, with my customizable Blastoff page, I can shop online and get cash back, discounts, and special offers.

I can shop stores like Target, Barnes & Noble, and even Bass Pro Shop.

From my Blastoff page I can search Hulu to find the most recent Medium episode. You know, the one I missed because I was too busy yelling at the kids to go to bed to be able to watch it.

I can also update my Facebook status. I know you want to hear what I had for dinner last night.

So, why just surf the net when you can Blastoff into cyberspace?

Blastoff is your personal launch pad into the best of the web. A fully customizable homepage that puts news, games, videos, music, and more right at your fingertips. Blastoff also pays you cash back on every online purchase, and when you invite your friends to join, you get paid every time they shop online too. As your network grows, so does your income.

Blastoff is completely free, tons of fun, and easy to use.

So don't delay-Click here to Blastoff today.

CRAZY!

2009-10-01T14:46:00.003-05:00

And then it was October. I think I missed September. Really. I don't even remember it!

I've been busy with, well: kids, chickens, Mellisa's kids, PTO, and it still feels like I'm more behind than ever.

But, since I should be doing something productive, I'll forget about work and share some of my new favorite things:

The Black Apple is awesome. I love Emily Martin's art! Now Jenny Hart from Sublime Stitching has Black Apple patterns. Makes me want to take up embroidery.

This is my favorite song right now. Something about the guitar. Mmm.

Sunflower seeds. I just read in a magazine that if you crave something salty, eat sunflower seeds. The magnesium in them gives you a natural energy boost. I can totally justify my addiction to seeds now. Need I say more?

When I'm in a scrapbooking rut, I go here to PageMaps. Love it!

Can't wait for conference!

First Day of School. Whew!

2009-08-25T15:17:00.002-05:00

Now, I can take a deep breath and just feel my blood pressure going down...

My Summer by Natalia

2009-07-26T22:22:00.010-05:00

Agua?

That's Matteo swinging in their backyard.

Abrahm riding his bike.

Here's Demi Lovato at the concert!!

David Archuleta!!!!!

Here he is again.

And again. Okay, this is how close Carmen and i got when we ran up to the front of the stage.

Hi. This is Natalia. I just wanted to tell you about my summer. The best part of summer was going to a Demi Lovato Concert with aunt Mellisa, aunt Emily, and Carmen. The concert was at the Sprint Center in Kansas City. We got seats 16 rows from the stage! It was cool! For the first part of the concert, a band called KSM performed. They were good. Then David Archuleta performed!! He was awesome!! And then they had a 20-minute intermission and Carmen and I had to run out TWICE because we forgot something the first time. We were sooooo glad we didn’t miss Demi Lovato coming out on stage! When she did she was Amazing!!!! It was SO much fun!! We didn’t get home until about 1:00 the next morning and we had left at 3:45 Wednesday afternoon. Besides going to the concert, baby-sitting is pretty much all I have done this summer. And some video from the concert, but not by me.

Music...it soothes the savage beast.

2009-07-19T20:09:00.002-05:00

Natalia loves Taylor Swift, and I love Coldplay. Jon Schmidt figured out how to put them both together, and I think it's awesome. Love Story that morphs into Viva La Vida.

I'm a lone, lonely loner.

2009-07-13T18:51:00.001-05:00

We quote Sid the Sloth a lot at our house. The kids and I went to see this movie on Friday. They love Ice Age 1 and 2, and even though we rarely go to the theater, we had to see what those crazy pre-historic mammals were up to. It was pretty funny, but the best character was crazy Buck. He cracked me up. Maybe it was his underbite.

Anyway, Sid was feeling bad because Diego wanted to move on and Ellie and Manny are expecting a mini-mammoth, so Sid says, "I'm a lone, lonely loner." That's my new Sid line.

We miss you! Happy Anniversary.

2009-07-12T18:41:00.001-05:00

Grandpa is a cowboy. Grandma is a teacher. They met 58 years ago on the fourth of July, and went on their first date the next night. The problem was, they were paired up with other people.
Grandpa was working on a ranch near the badlands in South Dakota, and the ranch owner also owned a restaurant. He told some of his cowboys that he had three new girls coming in to waitress there on their break from college, and he would make sure that these cowboys got the first dates with his new waitresses.

So, Grandpa and Swede, who was an older (thirties) ranch owner, took a couple of girls out in Swede’s old Ford. Grandpa was driving, and he came up to a river, and Swede told him to go right through it. Grandpa gunned it, and promptly got the car stuck in quicksand. They all got out, and Grandpa said to Grandma, "Come on, let’s go to the next ranch to borrow a jeep to pull the car out!" (Actually, when Grandpa told the story he said, "I said, ‘Rose Ann, let’s go—'" and Grandma interrupted him with "Oh, no, you said to me,‘Come on!’ because you didn’t even know my name!")

The rest is history. Guess Grandpa knew a good thing when he saw it. And Grandpa eventually remembered Grandma’s name.

Clean is a dirty word

2009-07-09T08:17:00.002-05:00

When the chickens are shipped to be turned into the chicken nuggets that you may have just ordered at your local Mickey-D's, it's time for clean-up at the farm.

Adam has spent the last couple of days power washing the fans, etc., in the barns. But in order to do that, he gets covered in water and dirty feathers. So, the fans might sparkle, but the washer looks and smells like a wet chicken.

And apparently I've gotten a little bit of a reputation around the farm. I was looking for the thing-y (that's a technical term, you know) to put on the drill to raise and lower the brooders, and Adam asked if I knew how to use the drill to wind up the winch automatically. He said, "You have to be careful, though." Then he looked at me and just put that drill bit away. Hmm.

I did a little bit of mowing yesterday. Andy's been working long hours, and now that Brian is big and old, he's working on another farm full-time this summer. That means, with Grandpa gone, the mowing is falling behind. I like to mow, and I would help Andy with it sometimes, but Grandpa is definitely the resident mower. I miss looking up or out the window to see him bouncing around on the mower and then I would sometimes send the kids out with a tall glass of kool-aid, since he doesn't drink water straight, you know.

Storms

2009-06-19T18:26:00.002-05:00

It's really been storming this spring. We've had a couple of them go through in this last week or so, but just with a few limbs and branches down. The town of Norborne, MO, was hit harder during the last storm, and a group from our church went to help clean up. My dad and brother included. If you watch this video, Dad is in the burgandy T-shirt with the chainsaw, and Ben in the orange T with cut off sleeves and a chainsaw.

Un-venting.

2009-05-28T16:33:00.003-05:00

Grandma is still sick, but Andy and I are not.
Aren't these tool boxes just adorable? I think they're going to be my next project.
Summer school started and all of the kids are going.
Getting ready for a garage sale takes a bit of time.
I'm hosting my book club for June and this is the book we're reading.
Brian has a baseball game tonight, and I'm ready to scrub the mud off his pants, cuz it's been raining ALL week!

VENTING...Warning. Reading the following post may be hazardous to your health.

2009-05-13T17:06:00.002-05:00

My grandma is sick, and there is nothing I can do about it but pray.

I'm sick.

Andy's sick.

Bad weather.

Kids with attitude.

Out of control.

AHHHH!

Check out my review at Steals and Deals...

2009-04-24T16:32:00.003-05:00

It's right here. If you love books, or know someone who does, this is a fun way to keep track of all of your favorites, and all of those books you loan out and hope you'll see again.

Plus, they're doing a giveaway, so enter at Steals and Deals! Contest ends on 4/27/09.

It's madness, I tell you...

2009-04-16T15:08:00.004-05:00

My kids are funny. I know every mom thinks that, but really, mine are funny. And a little irreverent. I don't know where they get that from, though.

Monkey always has something funny to say. Last night it was just him and I, and we were watching a little TV. The show was very appropriate until the actor said, "Damn, she's good". Which, of course, Monkey repeated. As I opened my mouth to tell him that it wasn't a nice word, etc., etc., he said, "Damn, I farted." How could I not laugh? I know, I should have used it as a teaching moment, but he caught me off guard!

One Sunday, Emily waved me over her in Primary and said, "Monkey has three Books of Mormon that he checked out of the Library. I just wanted you to know so you make sure he gets them all back there."

I sat down next to Monkey and asked him if he checked the extras out for his friends in class. He said, "No, I wanted three so I could have a triple!"

Joe has turned into a real food expert. We were at a potluck dinner at the preschool, and Joe cut a bite from a meatball, then chewed it up, tilted his head and pointed his fork at me and declared, "Homemade!"

Another day, he was helping me make pasta for dinner. We cooked and drained the pasta, then he added the pesto and tossed it around. He then informed me, "Mom, I need to taste the pasta, cuz that's what all of the professional cookers do!"

Watch out for this crazed bunny

2009-04-12T15:14:00.005-05:00

Oh, I guess she might be OK.

Looks like trouble just hatched.

She even likes a Monkey.

Got Eggs?

Nauvoo Women's Retreat

2009-03-31T11:21:00.007-05:00

This past weekend my mom treated Emily and I to the Nauvoo Women's Retreat. It was really wonderful and uplifting. We did not sign up for the first day's sessions since we travelled in that morning, hitting a couple of thrift stores on different towns on the way up. When we finally arrived, we met up with my sister Monie and my aunt Ramona. They were both involved in the Re-enactment of the first meeting of the Female Relief Society of Nauvoo. I took the pictures she put on her blog post, so I'll steal them and add them here with a little more information.

This first picture is of Monie and the actors who portrayed Joseph and Emma Smith. They are married in real life, and were very nice. His name is Stewart Peterson. Does he look at all familiar? He didn't to me, either. But I have see him in movies before and didn't realize it. He was in Where the Red Fern Grows and Seven Alone , along with some others films, when he was young.

This is upstairs in the Red Brick Store, where the original meeting was held 167 years ago. Monie portrayed one of our ancestors, Nancy Naomi Alexander Tracy, and had a small speaking part. They all look funny because they were in the middle of singing a song! Monie is in the middle, and Ramona is on the far right without the bonnet. She took hers off to give to a baby behind her to play with.

I'm going to have to blog about the retreat with several posts, since the presenters were so amazing! For a tiny little conference (about 150 women were there) I was so amazed at the wonderful speakers and talent who participated.

Go visit some others at Talk About Tuesday!

New(ish) books for the youngsters

2009-03-22T08:00:00.014-05:00

The kids will be having a week’s worth of testing starting the 30th, and the school is suggesting that each family live TV-free for that week. I think that’s a great idea, but it will take a lot of selling. We don’t watch a lot of TV since we only have an antenna but the kids like to come home from school and do their best couch potato impersonation for a little while. I’m on the lookout for some ideas for activities, especially since summer break is coming up so fast. I want the kids to be reading, working, etc. this summer, not spend those weeks tuned out of life and tuned into the television.

I spent last weekend at a conference for Early Childhood Educators, and a couple of the sessions I attended were on books and literacy. So, when we have the TV turned off, hopefully we’ll be doing a lot of reading.

Here is a list of some new(ish) books that I’ve discovered:

1. Wave by Suzy Lee
This is a wordless book that has beautiful illustrations covering the two-page spread. It’s lovely as a picture book, or the reader can make up a story to go with the pictures.

2. Potato Joe by Keith Baker
A take-off of the rhyme “one potato, two potato”, with simple but cute graphics.

3. Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox
Don’t babies just love to look at other babies? Even though these babies aren’t photos, they’re illustrated, they are so cute you can’t resist! Mem Fox has a style all her own, and it shows up in this sweet book about those ten little fingers and ten little toes that babies all over the world have in common.

4. Puff, The Magic Dragon by Peter Yarrow and Lenny Lipton
Yes, it’s the Peter, Paul and Mary song as a children’s book. (Will this finally dispel the rumor that it’s about smoking weed?) I’ve always loved this song since my Grandpa Hall would play it on the guitar and the rest of us harmonized our way through it. Again, the illustrations are awesome in this book, too!

5. On The Farm by David Elliot
Of course, I can’t resist a farm book! This one consists of short poems about farm life. The woodcut and watercolor double-page illustrations are, not to be redundant, awesome.

6. Playtime Rhymes for Little People compiled by Mary Finch
This book includes classic rhymes, and again, the illustrations are amazing. The artwork was prepared in antique fabric and felt collage, and have to be seen to be appreciated. Have I mentioned that I love fabric?

7. Here’s A Little Poem collected by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters
Over 60 poems are included in this huge volume. And, of course, great illustrations, too!

8. The Boy Who Wouldn’t Share by Mike Reiss
Edward is stingy with his sister Claire. He hoards toys in a heap so mountainous that he gets stuck under it. Good book for siblings who don’t share. Maybe they’ll get it without having to nag? Would be great to read while eating a plate of fudge. Come to think of it, wouldn’t every book be better with fudge? Funny illustrations done by the same artist who did the great illustrations for I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More.

9. Truck Stuck by Sallie Wolf
When a truck gets stuck under a low-hanging bridge, quite a scene develops as the traffic backs up. This is a rhyming book, and is perfect for truck lovers.

10. The Little Yellow Leaf by Carin Berger
Other leaves turn red and flutter around the little yellow leaf and down to the ground, but he’s not ready to let go of his branch. Love the collage art illustrations!

11. To Be Like the Sun by Susan Marie Swanson
This is a great “Spring” book, and includes a packet of seeds if you buy the book, and not check it out of the library like I usually do.

13. Ish by Peter H. Reynolds

Ramon loves to draw: "Anytime. Anything. Anywhere." When his older brother laughs at one of his pictures and points out that it does not look like a real vase of flowers, a dejected Ramon crumples up all of his efforts. However, he soon learns that his younger sister has hung the discarded papers on her bedroom walls. When he declares that the picture of the vase doesn't look like the real thing, she says that it looks "vase-ISH." The child then begins to produce paintings that look "tree-ish," "afternoon-ish," and "silly-ish." His "ish art" inspires him to look at all creative endeavors differently. I love this book! My kids have always had a hard time accepting that they can't make the "perfect" art, or drawing, or whatever, on the frist try.

The Ultimate Blog Party

2009-03-20T14:45:00.005-05:00

The Ultimate Blog Party is going on at 5 Minutes For Mom! Go check it out. There are great Mom Blogs to explore and tons of prizes up for grabs! What prizes would I love to win?

1. Decorative Pillow, Country Primitive Style, Says “Family”Provided by: Beautiful2God (#85) It's so adorable! If I don't win it, Monie, could you embroider me one?

2. Blog Makeover BLOGGER platform only Provided by: Busy Mama Blog Design (INTL#23)

3. The Jillian 30 Day Shred DVD and The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook from Pudget: Losing Weight on a Budget (#49)

4. $30.00 gift card to Amazon.com. (INTL#61) I could spend this and then some!

5. $40 gift certificate to Carrabba’s Italian Grill Provided by: The Divine Miss Mommy. (#88) Maybe Andy and I could go on a date?

Those are only a tiny taste of the awesome prizes at 5 Minutes for Mom. I'll see you there!

Monkey Moments

2009-03-18T15:09:00.002-05:00

Monkey has really been saying some funny things! He's been known to do that here and there.

Here are some recent conversations:

Natalia: Monkey, are you going to sleep in my room tonight?

Monkey: Hmm, my mind says no, but my heart says yes.

Natalia: (Trying not to crack up) Which one are you going to pick?

Monkey: I'm going to have to go with my brain.

*******************************************************

Joe: (After putting his tie on for church) Dad, do I look like a missionary?

Dad: Yeah, Joe, you do!

Monkey: (Hearing their conversation) Dad, do I look like a prophet?

Dad: Like a mini-prophet!

---Later on, while getting out of the car at church and Joe was pushing Monkey out ahead of him...

Monkey: Joe, you can't shove a prophet!