Hope you all had a great feast day. We spent Thanksgiving with all of Ben's family except for big brother Chris who is still in Taiwan teaching and taking care of his dogs. We have a "Weenie Roast" planned for 3:00pm today, but it's rain/snow/slush-ing here, so I'll keep you posted. Nothing but 10 grandchildren creating enjoyable moments and conversations about everything under the sun, including facebook. (I hadn't been able to find Ben's sister, Jen, because she facebooks as "Jenny Vos" and she's been known to punch those who call her Jenny to her face.) Facebook will be cool for you in about a decade, Dave. In Ben's family I'm the youngest, so that's been fun!
I'm thankful for YOU!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Early Birthday Present
(photo by amylynnsmith.com)Ben's 38th birthday is tomorrow and he's got the week off (I know!). We have some fun and surprising surprises planned to distract him for a while from his plans for a week of focusing on the basement. [Furnace update: We've got gas!]
But this afternoon and evening have been an early birthday present. When he got home from church at about 2:00pm (an eight hour day, in case you were wondering) he changed into casual clothes and has had a relaxing evening. No meetings, no phone calls, no nothing! Just a little reading, a little napping, and a little college ball. Hey, when did college teams start playing on Sundays?
Only Aaron (and Kim) had a better Sunday afternoon, I'd bet! My condolences to Scott (and JaNae). They reorganized the Elders Quorum in our ward. . .
Ever Do a Little Wondering/Worrying?
I won't mention exactly what provoked the thoughts, but I've recently been worried about how I'll teach my children, who will be teenagers all too soon, what I believe in as far as morality. All forms of media seem to want them to learn something else entirely. I want to protect my children, and all children, and help them make good decisions. How impossible is that?
I like this quote: "I think we should put more of our tax dollars into educating poor girls and boys, and give them information about contraception that can prevent unwanted pregnancies, lower abortion rates and help ensure that every child is loved and cherished. But I also think faith can fortify a young woman's sense of self, a young man's sense of responsibility, and the sense of reverence all young people should have for the act of sexual intimacy." President Elect Obama said this. Motivation for my worries aside, I always hear people saying that they'd never wish to be a teenager again. Is being the parent of teenagers just as bad? Or worse? I sure hope not!
I like this quote: "I think we should put more of our tax dollars into educating poor girls and boys, and give them information about contraception that can prevent unwanted pregnancies, lower abortion rates and help ensure that every child is loved and cherished. But I also think faith can fortify a young woman's sense of self, a young man's sense of responsibility, and the sense of reverence all young people should have for the act of sexual intimacy." President Elect Obama said this. Motivation for my worries aside, I always hear people saying that they'd never wish to be a teenager again. Is being the parent of teenagers just as bad? Or worse? I sure hope not!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
I'm Amazing
S. woke up from her nap today in a very grumpy mood. I asked her if she wanted to paint her nails (she's got a black pinky from trying to work on the basement--she meant to hammer a real nail).
She grinned and took off running down the hall "Oh yeah!" Sometimes it's just too easy to be "the best mom in the whole wide world!"
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
My Trip
I went to Cali this weekend. Saturday morning, Ben and C. showed up to surprise us at the temple!
Hanging out with my five siblings:
Worn out from all that sneaky traveling!
Cutie pie!
Photograph of C. by Amy Lynn Smith Photography check out more pics at her blog: smithdiaries.blogspot.com
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Ten for Thursday
1. Halloween was a continuation of our family's salute to Uncle Steve. The boys picked out firefighter costumes! I attempted to intervene with a reminder that they were firefighters in 2003, but the power of Uncle Steve was far greater than the power of useless facts. S. alternated between her firehouse dog costume and her princess attire, but was happy as both. And C. made an adorable fire hydrant. One kid asked me if she was a blood cell, the nozzle contraption fell off, so I can't blame him. I'd never thought to dress my kids up as cells though--maybe we'll be DNA strands and various molecules next year, what do you think? Oh, and C. can now say "lollipop" and she does so with conviction. She'll walk into the kitchen, point at the shelves where the candy is and say; "BOB!" Too fun. Load 'em all up with sugar--I can't believe all the candy is pretty much gone! That takes true determination to eat so much candy.
2. I bought fake blood ($1.00) for the boys to have some fun with on Halloween. I was surprised at the reaction I got when I trickled a little along the corner of my mouth. I showed R. my oozing blood and he said; "I don't really like that mom, can you wash it off?" It was a mixture of disgust and fear. Does fake blood store well? Because maybe it'll be cool in a few years--I'll stick it in the Halloween box and see. Mmm, rancid fake blood. . . maybe not.
3. I found a new blog that's got some real potential. It's called "Being Frugal is Fabulous" and it's regularly updated with sales and promotions. Did you know there's a free Red Box rental coupon code every Monday?
4. I can't wait to see my family tomorrow! How wonderful to be able to celebrate with my sis and her hubby (their blog) when they get sealed on Saturday. Can't wait to see you all! Ben accidentally told me about his surprise plans for this weekend. He's going to take the kids to see Grammy and Papa while I'm gone. The van will be packed and ready to go when the boys get home from school. Fun! And more help watching the kids. Bonus!
5. We are THISCLOSE to having a working gas furnace. Terry came over yesterday to finish up with the "home runs" (fancy electrician talk--something about breakers) and hook up the furnace. We got the furnace and gas line inspected yesterday too. I spent way too much time wiring outlets and the getting wires into the rest of the can lights. I can't believe how much our basement is going to rock! Sorry, upstairs, but we hate you now!
6. I had a moment of extravagance the other day. When I was heading out the door I opened my tic tacs container and raised it to my mouth. I got eight tic tacs! Who needs eight tic tacs, I think to myself, this is crazy!?! But now what do I do now? I can't just spit them back into the container. I've got no choice but to consume them all. So there I am driving down the street in total luxury; sucking on eight tic tacs like nobody's business. Whoo!! Fresh breath and then some. I guess everyone deserves to splurge on occasion. I even did the math as I was heading down Pines Road "1 1/2 calorie breath mint" x 8 = 12 calories of opulence!
7. Back to real life for a moment. My house is a total pigsty, but at least I'm all caught up with laundry. I'm blogging at 7:00am so I can have the rest of my day for cleaning, packing, and grabbing essentials at the store.
8. Race matters? It does and it doesn't. I was not thinking that an Obama victory would be such an emotional experience for African Americans. I honestly didn't think of the election that way. Race was not an issue for me in my decision to vote for him; skin color has never been a big deal to me. I am brought to tears thinking of the opportunity I have to be a witness to this significant event in United States history.
9. I'm beyond thrilled with the election results. To wary McCain supporters, I say it'll all be okay. The campaigning since the conventions has been your run-of-the-mill mud slinging, but slinging doesn't magically make it true. As I told Logan, Obama's not REALLY a socialist, (liberal and socialist aren't interchangeable, regardless of arguments to the contrary) that's just what McCain's straight talk express tried when all else failed to pump up poll numbers. I'm certain the next four years will be aboveboard once the dust of negativity we've been forced to inhale settles. We have elected an intelligent person who will govern sensibly.
10. Related to #8 and #9, HOORAY for a return of eloquence to the white house! A president who can pronounce long words without the need to make up his own. Beyond pronunciation, Obama's speeches and leadership will inspire a new generation. My Brazillian friends who wonder how we could have elected #43 (twice?!?) will celebrate with us all. *INSERT ABSURD BUSH COMMENT HERE* "There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —George W. Bush (video), Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002 (bonus, he said it in Nashville! ). The past 8 years can finally take their place in the history books, sorry historians, and we can move on.
BONUS QUOTE: "We as a nation have reached that mountain top. Because at long last the United States has fulfilled the greatest part of freedom. We have a president who is Hawaiian. For decades these proud people have been segregated from the rest of the nation literally on an island. Hawaiian kids growing up in grass huts thought their only choice in life was selling poi on street corners or carving tiki idols just to put mahi mahi on the table. Now they will know there are other options than trying to make it big as a ukulele player. They could be president of the United States. As Queen Liliuokalani said so long ago; 'Mele Kalikimaka. I have a dream.'" ~Stephen Colbert on election night 2008.
2. I bought fake blood ($1.00) for the boys to have some fun with on Halloween. I was surprised at the reaction I got when I trickled a little along the corner of my mouth. I showed R. my oozing blood and he said; "I don't really like that mom, can you wash it off?" It was a mixture of disgust and fear. Does fake blood store well? Because maybe it'll be cool in a few years--I'll stick it in the Halloween box and see. Mmm, rancid fake blood. . . maybe not.
3. I found a new blog that's got some real potential. It's called "Being Frugal is Fabulous" and it's regularly updated with sales and promotions. Did you know there's a free Red Box rental coupon code every Monday?
4. I can't wait to see my family tomorrow! How wonderful to be able to celebrate with my sis and her hubby (their blog) when they get sealed on Saturday. Can't wait to see you all! Ben accidentally told me about his surprise plans for this weekend. He's going to take the kids to see Grammy and Papa while I'm gone. The van will be packed and ready to go when the boys get home from school. Fun! And more help watching the kids. Bonus!
5. We are THISCLOSE to having a working gas furnace. Terry came over yesterday to finish up with the "home runs" (fancy electrician talk--something about breakers) and hook up the furnace. We got the furnace and gas line inspected yesterday too. I spent way too much time wiring outlets and the getting wires into the rest of the can lights. I can't believe how much our basement is going to rock! Sorry, upstairs, but we hate you now!
6. I had a moment of extravagance the other day. When I was heading out the door I opened my tic tacs container and raised it to my mouth. I got eight tic tacs! Who needs eight tic tacs, I think to myself, this is crazy!?! But now what do I do now? I can't just spit them back into the container. I've got no choice but to consume them all. So there I am driving down the street in total luxury; sucking on eight tic tacs like nobody's business. Whoo!! Fresh breath and then some. I guess everyone deserves to splurge on occasion. I even did the math as I was heading down Pines Road "1 1/2 calorie breath mint" x 8 = 12 calories of opulence!
7. Back to real life for a moment. My house is a total pigsty, but at least I'm all caught up with laundry. I'm blogging at 7:00am so I can have the rest of my day for cleaning, packing, and grabbing essentials at the store.
8. Race matters? It does and it doesn't. I was not thinking that an Obama victory would be such an emotional experience for African Americans. I honestly didn't think of the election that way. Race was not an issue for me in my decision to vote for him; skin color has never been a big deal to me. I am brought to tears thinking of the opportunity I have to be a witness to this significant event in United States history.
9. I'm beyond thrilled with the election results. To wary McCain supporters, I say it'll all be okay. The campaigning since the conventions has been your run-of-the-mill mud slinging, but slinging doesn't magically make it true. As I told Logan, Obama's not REALLY a socialist, (liberal and socialist aren't interchangeable, regardless of arguments to the contrary) that's just what McCain's straight talk express tried when all else failed to pump up poll numbers. I'm certain the next four years will be aboveboard once the dust of negativity we've been forced to inhale settles. We have elected an intelligent person who will govern sensibly.
10. Related to #8 and #9, HOORAY for a return of eloquence to the white house! A president who can pronounce long words without the need to make up his own. Beyond pronunciation, Obama's speeches and leadership will inspire a new generation. My Brazillian friends who wonder how we could have elected #43 (twice?!?) will celebrate with us all. *INSERT ABSURD BUSH COMMENT HERE* "There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —George W. Bush (video), Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002 (bonus, he said it in Nashville! ). The past 8 years can finally take their place in the history books, sorry historians, and we can move on.
BONUS QUOTE: "We as a nation have reached that mountain top. Because at long last the United States has fulfilled the greatest part of freedom. We have a president who is Hawaiian. For decades these proud people have been segregated from the rest of the nation literally on an island. Hawaiian kids growing up in grass huts thought their only choice in life was selling poi on street corners or carving tiki idols just to put mahi mahi on the table. Now they will know there are other options than trying to make it big as a ukulele player. They could be president of the United States. As Queen Liliuokalani said so long ago; 'Mele Kalikimaka. I have a dream.'" ~Stephen Colbert on election night 2008.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
We VOTED, Did You?
S. is sticking with her decision to vote for Dora the Explorer, and the boys' school held an election today. It was a mock presidential election and a school student body election. (All of the first graders voted by gender--girls voted for girls and boys voted for boys--cute, huh?) Is the suspense killing anyone else? I yoinked this pic from USA Today dot com. An interesting tidbit: in Austraila, I think it was, you are fined $20 for not voting. 
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