- One more day until we go to Disneyland!!!!! We are not excited at all. We haven't been watching shows about the rides there, listening to Disneyland rides music, or talking about which rides we want to hit first. Totally not us at all. Must be some other Disneyland spazzes.
- My kids are excited to go to the dentist today. I wish they had fun children dentists when I was a kid. Maybe if I grew up thinking going to the dentist meant wearing sunglasses and watching movies on the flat screen on the wall then I would think dentists are fun too.
- What is up with the museum thief in Egypt who ripped off the heads of a few mummies? Dude, I can understand going after the jewels, but beheading mummies? That's just stupid and mean. Seriously. Plus what if those mummies have curses? Don't mess with the mummies!
- Nothing says "Back off or I will kill you with one stare" than buying a jumbo box of tampons and Pamprin at the store.
- If my body is going to act it's age, then random break-outs should be banned. No pimples after 20. Let's pick an age and stick with it!
- Jimmy went to the bathroom yesterday and exclaimed he didn't have underwear on and he didn't know how that happened. Hmmmm. Mysteries abound.
- I dreamt Marshall released himself as bishop so he could help me with the kids during sacrament. In my dream, I was so mad at him for being such a weenie because his time serving wasn't up. Me, mad about Marshall being released? What is the world coming to? (Though, in reality, I would kill him for that. I will miss this time as bishop when it is gone.)
- I miss good Italian food.
- My kids are obsessed with Harry Potter. Anna has read the first book and is on the second. Rachel is now reading the first book and has a mad crush on Ron. We play Lego Harry Potter, we read Harry Potter, we watch Harry Potter movies. We love Harry!
- The kids keep talking about how cool it would be if we lived at Disneyland. Oh, why is it not Tuesday morning yet?!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Ever Learning About Marriage
I am a continuing student in the study of marriage. I love to read and learn about marriage and how to make something great even better. The minute you tell someone you are reading a book on marriage, most people assume it is because you have marital problems. Not so. Why wait to fix something that is already broken when you could prevent the damage in the first place?
Let's talk cars for a minute. Pretend that after years of hard working, saving, and sacrificing, you are going to buy yourself a brand new sports car with all the "bells and whistles". You've worked hard for this car and are going to enjoy every minute of it. But after saving all that money, you opt out of buying a warranty on your car because it's no big deal. And you really don't have time to take it in to get serviced every 3,000 miles like the manufacture suggests. Don't they just tell you that to make money off of you? Won't your car still run fine without regular maintenance? It's not like you're going to go off-roading with this beauty. So you never take her to the shop. It's new, it should last awhile.
Now I'm not going to tell you all the ways your sweet new ride can meet an untimely demise thanks to your neglect. Just because it's new doesn't mean it will last forever. Not taking your car in to be serviced, such as for an oil change, on a regular basis, is going to cut it's life span down by a lot. By neglecting it you will be wasting all that hard earned money and sacrifice because you were too lazy to follow through with maintaining your car. Your car would last thousands of miles longer if you took the time to give it some attention now and again.
The same thing applies with marriage. Too many people believe that after all the work and sacrifice to get married that the marriage will just take care of itself. When kids and "real life" set in there just isn't enough time or energy to nurture the marriage. They sweep minor problems under the carpet because they are just small. Things will work out on their own. Reading marriage advice books or going to counseling is for people who have big problems in their relationship, right? Yet far too many marriages break up because the couple never "serviced" their relationship.
I don't know about you, but I don't want by marriage to just be "getting by". That doesn't sound like much fun to anyone. Which is why I enjoy learning, from good sources (you do have to be careful), more about marriage and the nature of men and women. I want to be the happiest I can be in my marriage and feel close to my husband. I want the joy promised to us now and throughout time.
I recently read, "How to Improve Your Marriage Without Talking About It" and thoroughly enjoyed it. I admit, there was some cheese at times, but not too much to turn me away from it. And I am glad I kept reading on because I learned a lot about myself and my husband, what motivates us and causes us to react the way we do to each other. There were times when I read to my husband directly from the book because it explained us so perfectly. The whole idea of the book is to help couples better understand each other so they can feel closer connected without having to do a lot of work. While reading about men, I already felt better connected to my husband without him doing anything because I understood him better. Pretty cool! And because he is such a great guy, my husband is reading the book next.
I'm not saying you have to read the book, but I do want to pass along whenever I find something that helps us progress in a better marriage. I do think you should continually nurture your marriage. Prophets and apostles have been telling that to us for YEARS. When I am 85 and have been married for many, many years, my relationship is still going to be a beautiful shiny sweet sports car, now with the value of years added. What about you?
Let's talk cars for a minute. Pretend that after years of hard working, saving, and sacrificing, you are going to buy yourself a brand new sports car with all the "bells and whistles". You've worked hard for this car and are going to enjoy every minute of it. But after saving all that money, you opt out of buying a warranty on your car because it's no big deal. And you really don't have time to take it in to get serviced every 3,000 miles like the manufacture suggests. Don't they just tell you that to make money off of you? Won't your car still run fine without regular maintenance? It's not like you're going to go off-roading with this beauty. So you never take her to the shop. It's new, it should last awhile.
Now I'm not going to tell you all the ways your sweet new ride can meet an untimely demise thanks to your neglect. Just because it's new doesn't mean it will last forever. Not taking your car in to be serviced, such as for an oil change, on a regular basis, is going to cut it's life span down by a lot. By neglecting it you will be wasting all that hard earned money and sacrifice because you were too lazy to follow through with maintaining your car. Your car would last thousands of miles longer if you took the time to give it some attention now and again.
The same thing applies with marriage. Too many people believe that after all the work and sacrifice to get married that the marriage will just take care of itself. When kids and "real life" set in there just isn't enough time or energy to nurture the marriage. They sweep minor problems under the carpet because they are just small. Things will work out on their own. Reading marriage advice books or going to counseling is for people who have big problems in their relationship, right? Yet far too many marriages break up because the couple never "serviced" their relationship.
I don't know about you, but I don't want by marriage to just be "getting by". That doesn't sound like much fun to anyone. Which is why I enjoy learning, from good sources (you do have to be careful), more about marriage and the nature of men and women. I want to be the happiest I can be in my marriage and feel close to my husband. I want the joy promised to us now and throughout time.
I recently read, "How to Improve Your Marriage Without Talking About It" and thoroughly enjoyed it. I admit, there was some cheese at times, but not too much to turn me away from it. And I am glad I kept reading on because I learned a lot about myself and my husband, what motivates us and causes us to react the way we do to each other. There were times when I read to my husband directly from the book because it explained us so perfectly. The whole idea of the book is to help couples better understand each other so they can feel closer connected without having to do a lot of work. While reading about men, I already felt better connected to my husband without him doing anything because I understood him better. Pretty cool! And because he is such a great guy, my husband is reading the book next.
I'm not saying you have to read the book, but I do want to pass along whenever I find something that helps us progress in a better marriage. I do think you should continually nurture your marriage. Prophets and apostles have been telling that to us for YEARS. When I am 85 and have been married for many, many years, my relationship is still going to be a beautiful shiny sweet sports car, now with the value of years added. What about you?
Monday, January 24, 2011
The Mystery that is "The Toddler"
The human toddler is a fascinating creature that will never cease to amaze me. The latest model in our home goes by the name of "Jacob". This adorable little being keeps me on my toes from sun-up to nap time to sun-down. I dread the day this sweet person gives up the precious nap time. I hold such a thing sacred and holy. Toddlers are put on earth to teach people, namely mothers, patience.
One often wonders what goes through the mind of these small creatures. For example, this would be a five minute sample of what the Jacob version must have thought this morning,
"I am going to hit this big lollipop on the counter. Cool! It broke up into tons of pieces. I must hit it again and again. Now that mom lady is telling me to stop so I am going to go dump this bright shiny green box of little white powder on the floor. Again with the 'no' from mom. I bet she'll be happy if I push a chair over to the counter and get myself a snack from the cupboard. The bag of pretzels make such a cool noise when I shake them upside down. Now mom is upset again and trying to move me away. Doesn't she understand my work? Maybe she'll like it if I dump out the pencils and pens from the pencil box. But now she left the room. How can I have any fun if she isn't watching me? Where did she go? Aha, the bathroom door is shut! She must be doing something fun in there if the door is shut. I should bang and yell at the door so she knows she needs to invite me in because I don't want to miss out on the fun. Bathrooms are the greatest."
Fascinating, mind boggling, and cranium blowing. This, my friends, is why nap time is sacred. I love my toddler and am so glad to have him. Jacob is so cute, friendly, and happy. How would I ever keep sane otherwise? I don't think I'll ever understand this specie, but I'll do my best to survive living with it.
One often wonders what goes through the mind of these small creatures. For example, this would be a five minute sample of what the Jacob version must have thought this morning,
"I am going to hit this big lollipop on the counter. Cool! It broke up into tons of pieces. I must hit it again and again. Now that mom lady is telling me to stop so I am going to go dump this bright shiny green box of little white powder on the floor. Again with the 'no' from mom. I bet she'll be happy if I push a chair over to the counter and get myself a snack from the cupboard. The bag of pretzels make such a cool noise when I shake them upside down. Now mom is upset again and trying to move me away. Doesn't she understand my work? Maybe she'll like it if I dump out the pencils and pens from the pencil box. But now she left the room. How can I have any fun if she isn't watching me? Where did she go? Aha, the bathroom door is shut! She must be doing something fun in there if the door is shut. I should bang and yell at the door so she knows she needs to invite me in because I don't want to miss out on the fun. Bathrooms are the greatest."
Fascinating, mind boggling, and cranium blowing. This, my friends, is why nap time is sacred. I love my toddler and am so glad to have him. Jacob is so cute, friendly, and happy. How would I ever keep sane otherwise? I don't think I'll ever understand this specie, but I'll do my best to survive living with it.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Happy 5th Birthday Jimmy!
Yesterday my not-so-little Jimmy turned 5! I cannot believe how big he is. I love Jimmy and have enjoyed being his mom so much so far. He was my first boy and I was so excited to have him join our family. My little Curious George! Jimmy is so happy, tender, loving, smart, and creative. I love watching him learn and grow. He loves preschool, where he gets to learn about science and the world around him. I love the games he comes up with, like digging for treasure in the sandbox and beating up bad guys with his CTR "ring of power". I love the hugs and snuggles he gives. I love the numerous in-depth questions he asks about Jesus, Heavenly Father, and the Gospel. I love this kid!!! Happy Birthday my sweet Jimmy!
New Lightening McQueen scooter. Sweet!
Toy Story 3 Chutes & Ladders!!!
Nerf dart guns from Grandpa and Grammy Usner
Jimmy's Harry Potter cake
Cake time!
New Lightening McQueen scooter. Sweet!
Toy Story 3 Chutes & Ladders!!!
Nerf dart guns from Grandpa and Grammy Usner
Jimmy's Harry Potter cake
Cake time!
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