Sick Of Being Sick

So yesterday morning I woke up with a cold and went through kleenex all day long...I even took my own box of lotioned kleenex to the fabulous fireside last night...b/c when you have a cold like I do--nothing else will do. But today, I'm not flying through the kleenex. Today, I just feel icky. I have a headache, no energy, and feel like whining all day...my poor husband.

We all woke up this morning and dressed for the YMCA. We took both cars intending to drop the truck off to have the brake pads replaced while we were at the Y. No such luck. We were at the auto shop for one whole hour while they "analyzed" what was wrong with it. In the end, they were wanting to charge us $350 for something that should cost about $150. Yeah, we weren't having that. In the meantime, I started feeling really sick and exhausted, so we nixed the whole Y excursion to go to biglots! and then get home in time to feed Anna lunch before the bus came. I bought some cute terra cottaish pots for my front porch. I planted some marigolds & naturtiums in it. I hope they will grow well. Stay tuned for pictures...next month?

I took Anna to swim lessons while Tyler studied for an exam he has tomorrow. I came home and made dinner, we had FHE, played 2 games, read scrippys and then bedtime routine. I can honestly say that I'm ready for bed right now...

From One Thing To Another

We went to church today. I read one of the lessons for RS last month (yes, I know, I'm not a reader--but I read it and really enjoyed it) and the lesson was on bearing your testimony. It talked about how testimonies should be short, to the point, and should share a part of your testimony. So today I acted on what I learned from the lesson and bore my testimony--it was short and sweet. I remember thinking afterwards that I was probably the only person who got anything out of it, but I had 3 compliments from people.

I took Timothy to church today. If you recall back in the fall, I took two boys from a lady that I VT to church. She didn't want me to take them after that. However, this past week DH (dear husband) went with the missionaries to visit her and she mentioned that she would like for her VT to start taking her boys again to church. DH told me and so I called her and asked for her to have them both ready at 8:30am, since I have choir practice at 9am. She said okay. So I showed up promptly at 8:30am. No one is up. No one is even close to being ready. While I waited for Shereena (their mom) to get Timothy ready for church, it occurred to me that it was more important for Timothy to be in church than for me to be on time to choir. It's nice to have things put into perspective like that.

I woke up with a cold. Yeah. So today I'm single handedly keeping the Kleenex company in business. Some good news is that the pain in my tooth has lessened somewhat and it's more bearable than before. :) But now I have a terrible cold, where I'm sneezing and my nose is running non-stop. Not fun. I have realized why I'm sick. Care to know? Well, whenever I have a regular exercise regime, if I stop exercising for a few days--I always get sick. Always. I stopped exercising b/c of the insemination. I plan to go back to the YMCA tomorrow morning, but I don't know if that will combat the cold I currently have. *sigh* One can only hope.

I didn't feel like making a big dinner, even though it's fast sunday, so I determined that I'd make some cinnamon rolls---since those are so easy to make, ha ha! I seriously think that when you're sick, you aren't thinking right...anyhow. I have a this recipe that I usually cut in half or do a third of it b/c it makes so much. Today I thought I'd try doing the WHOLE RECIPE which calls for 10 1/2 cups of flour! YEAH--I made 4 pans of cinnamon rolls. They turned out really good, too. We decided to deliver some, b/c, um, there's only 3 of us...so that was a fun activity. We went right after the fireside at the church. We told Anna that we were going to the fireside tonight. On the way there, Anna asks when we'll be at the firepit. It's fireside, Anna, not firepit. Oh, okay. When we get to the church, Anna asks where the fire will be. Poor little thing, fireside is fun lds lingo. Anyone know where the word derived from??

I Can Feel The Power Of Heaven

This morning my sweet, kind husband made cream of wheat--a wonderful breakfast for someone with a toothache. :)



Our HT (Home Teachers) came over around noon to see us. They gave a nice lesson from the Ensign. I thought the topic was a good one: Enriching marriage.



Anna went to play at Bryant's house (she was ecstatic) and we left with Shannon & Eldon to go to the Columbus Temple. It was pretty wild--something kept coming up to make us late. I couldn't find my temple recommend, their tire was losing air and the air pump at the gas station wasn't working...we arrived as the temple session began...so we ended up doing sealings instead. The temple worker told us that we were an answer to prayer because they needed more couples in the sealing room. YAY! It was really neat to be in there. While at the temple today, we determined that Tyler will not be going to China this summer. There's an AF program that would pay for him to go to China for 6 weeks and stay with a family there to learn about Chinese culture. But...we don't feel good about it. We're not sure why, but that's our decision.

It was so wonderful to be in the temple. It's like I rediscover who I am by being there. I remember that there's more to life than doing dishes, keeping house, etc. I am important. It's nice to have that reminder. I want to be in the temple more often...we're hoping to go next weekend as well since Tyler has a school function in Columbus. :)



We went out to a fabulous chinese food buffet nearby. It's seriously one of the best Chinese restaurants that I've ever been to. YUM! (of course it doesn't compare to Oriental Gardens...ah, memories)



Here are some pictures from today: The first one is of "Stanley," a project we're helping our nephew, Isaiah, with for school. Isn't he cute? The next two are of Tyler trying to take a picture of all four of us...not too bad...then we finally got some help! Aren't we oh, so cute?

Convincing Reassurance

I make a frown on my face.

Anna: Don't worry, Mama, no one's not gonna leave you.

Me: Oh, thank you Anna. Are you going to leave me?

Anna: Yes, I'm going to play at Bryant's house all day today.

I can feel the love today.

It's One Way To Lose Weight...

Didn't go to the YMCA today. I'm still taking it easy...Poor Anna wants to go. I'm not sure if I'll go tomorrow or not...I'm so afraid that my desire to return to the gym will affect our chances of becoming preggo this month. I think I'll wait until monday.

So, I've figured out that only one of my teeth hurt. It's the 2nd from the back on the top row, right side. I wish I could fully explain how P A I N F U L this tooth is. I can't chew anything without it throbbing. I've taken 6 ibuprofen today and have experienced zero relief. I think I best seek out a better pain reliever, any suggestions? So Tyler brought home a brochure on the dental plan and I signed us up (Anna & I--Tyler is already enrolled b/c of being in the AF). So guess when the first possible date of going to the dentist is?? June. That's right people--I have to endure this incredible tooth pain for at least 5 weeks before getting in to see the dentist. I don't know how I'm going to make it...at least it might help me lose weight--it's so painful to chew food...

I tried to stay busy today so I wouldn't focus on my mouth aching-I did dishes (twice), did some more laundry, vaccumed, swept/mopped the kitchen & bathroom, and lounged around feeling sorry for my poor cavitied tooth. *sigh* We were supposed to have company for dinner tonight--but their son got sick...and I found out after making a big pot of DIRT (fancy chocolate pudding). Oh well...at least I can eat that without having to CHEW.

Taking It Easy

Tyler encouraged me not to go to the YMCA today...he figured that today might not be the best time to go "jumping up & down." He's probably right...as usual. :) So we stayed home from the Y. Poor little Anna. She hasn't been able to go play in the mat room this whole week due to visiting teaching and now I'm trying to take it easy...I signed her up for more swim lessons & also tee ball in the summer. FUN!

Today I tidied up the house & put away some laundry. I taught a voice lesson to Lea. Anna & I watched the new Charlotte's Web. It had been so long since I'd seen it--I didn't really remember the story--Julia Roberts did a great job, I think. I read that Oprah Winfrey was on there, too...was she one of the cows? Does anyone know? I kept trying to identify who she was...

This evening I had a recipe exchange at my house. The idea was to bring your favorite recipes plus a sample to share. There were 4 of us present and TONS of food. It was really fun! I hope to do it again next month...I am in need of some more main dish recipes...I'm somewhat bored with mine...

200 million

Went to the YMCA. I did 5 minutes on the elliptical when my right knee started hurting...so I switched to the treadmill...did that for 25 minutes before my back started hurting...switched to arm weights for 20 minutes...what is wrong with me?? Am I falling apart all at once? It doesn't help that my teeth on the right side of my mouth have been aching for the past 2 days...what's that all about?! It feels like I gritted my teeth really hard and the teeth are crowded together..something like that...not sure how to explain except for one word: PAIN. Tyler hasn't signed us up for the dental coverage yet...I just told him about the pain today so hopefully we'll get signed up tomorrow. He's such a good husband.

So here's the scenario: Anna gets on the bus at 12:30pm, we have to collect the sample for the insemination (IUI) and be at the hospital at 1pm. Well, it takes 15 minutes to get to the hospital. And, Anna's bus was 5 minutes late today...any other day that wouldn't have mattered...but TODAY it did!!! Can you feel the stress? Yeah, so that gave us 10 minutes to collect it and jump in the car and get down there...somehow we made it. We took our sample to be "cleaned" & "spinned" down. It looked like such a small sample by the time they were done spinning it. I asked how many sperm it contained: 200 million. Yeah. That's a small army. So after it was inserted I waited for ten minutes then we came home. My sweet husband just spent the afternoon pampering me. What a guy! We watched a movie and then he took Anna to swim lessons while I lounged around taking full advantage of the "low mobility" orders the good doctor gave me for the next day.

My friend, Dana, introduced me to this fun way to track what you eat. It looks like a good plan. I entered all I ate today + exercise...we'll see how it goes. (thanks Dane)

Welcome Spring Weather!

I can't convey in words how nice it is outside...we are loving it!!! I love having the windows open and a nice breeze coming through---it's delightful.

This morning we hit the YMCA. I weighed myself afterwards. To prep this--I determined last week after only losing .5lbs that I would alter something this week to see if it brought about greater results. According to my doctor, I need to eat TONS of protein everyday because I'm insulin resistant. Since I'm really not a meat eater, he recommended some whey protein powder. I bought a huge container of chocolate whey powder. I wasn't sure about it--so I tried to experiment by putting a scoop into a chocolate brownie recipe (yeah, brownies really helps with weight-loss efforts). They tasted...okay. Not good enough to do it again. Then I pretty much forgot about the whey powder...until last week. I determined that I would have a protein powder milk shake everyday and see how it affected my weight loss. Nothing could prep me for the scales today. I gained 3lbs. WHAT?!?!? I thought the protein powder would HELP me, not HURT me. My only thought is that perhaps the combination of whey powder and my lifting weights = weight gain? Any insights into this???

Oh yeah. I forgot to mention my little HCG shot experience very early this morning. It went fine. I was trying really hard to feel the needle go in--but I didn't feel it. I did feel it when he pushed the medicine in, though, but it wasn't bad. Of course, I prepared for it by taking tylenol pm pain pills 2 hours previous to the shot and then had 10 minutes of an ice pack on my derrière. Yeah, those probably helped...a lot. So, now I will do the insemination tomorrow at 1:30pm. Wish me luck!

Sarah & I went VT again. As soon as we got there, Sherry had arrived home from the store. Her youngest child, H, age 3, ran up to Anna & Leia and sprayed febreeze in their faces. I don't know why I found it kind of funny. Perhaps because I think I sprayed a cleaner in my sister, Heather's face when she was young...anyhow. Anna handled it really well and we just went in & washed her face, no harm done. What a funny way to greet your friends...here's some cleaner in your face! Now that that's over, let's go play! ha ha.

While Anna was in school I became a busy little bee. Tomorrow I'm supposed to be on low mobility after the IUI, so I thought perhaps I should clean the house today so I won't feel guilty about not cleaning tomorrow...and it looks so nice. I can't express how a clean house brings happiness to me. Perhaps it stems from my Mom. We always knew the way to make her happy was to clean the house. For her birthday she would only ask that the house be clean--that was the present she wanted. Of course, being a gift person, I want gifts for my birthday + a clean house...does that mean I'm high maintenance???

Are you good at telling what age other people are?? I'm sure not. I took Anna to the park today and spent the whole time talking with another mom, named Kaeli. I thought she was in her mid-30s. Yeah, she's 25--YOUNGER THAN I AM. ha ha. I shouldn't speculate any more...it's pointless.

(I'm the one who's almost 30...yikes!)

Tonight is girls' night at my house. We're going to eat ice cream and watch a sappy romance movie...from England. Yeah. I can't wait. What are you doing tonight?

Halleluah Nuns...enjoy

Get Ready For Pain

So this morning I went on-base and had another lovely vaginal ultrasound--it was much better this time because I knew what was going to happen--and they found that my follicles are looking good. What does this mean? At 1:30am tomorrow morning, I will be getting that HCG shot in my butt by my sweet, oh-so-willing-to-help husband. (I wish I could trade places with him). So I'll get the shot in a few hours and then on wednesday at 1:30pm, we'll be doing our first insemination. It's very exciting! I just wish the HCG shot could come in a capsule form...

I came home & we all went to the YMCA to exercise. Afterwards I went VT with Sarah to see Deanna. We had a really nice visit. She is pg with their 5th & last child. She says she's so fertile that her last two pregnancies occurred while she was on birth control + condoms. Amazing. I'm not on either of those and we haven't gotten pg. I understand that some people have the opposite problem that we have and I'm sure it can be difficult as well...I'm grateful for the trials that I have. I wouldn't want anyone else's trials...except maybe $10,000 extra salary per year---I could deal with that trial. ;)

This afternoon was quite uneventful. I didn't do a thing while Anna was at school. I watched the first 2 episodes of Frasier--I rented it from Blockbuster--and then I showered, plus I checked my email...that was IT. I was up pretty early today and we have been entertaining a lot lately--I just needed some down time. I so enjoy Frasier...it's so funny! Niles is my favorite.

Tyler took Anna to swim lessons and then we went to Ned & Jen's house for dinner/FHE. It was really enjoyable. Ned is a gyn and he explained to me the risks of becoming pregnant with twins after having had a c-section. 7 out of 1,000 women have their scar line rupture and sometimes the baby is delivered into the abdomen of the women...sometimes they both die because of it. I hadn't really thought about the risks that I'm taking to have another child and how it would potentially affect me since I had a c-section with Anna. I'm hoping for a VBAC (vaginal birth after c-section). They do them on-base. However, if I become pregnant with twins the next pregnancy then they'll insist on doing a c-section. So, I'm hoping for a single birth with a VBAC this time and then if/when we become pregnant the next time--& if they're twins--I hope we could try the VBAC again. I don't want to have another c-section...can you tell?! The only reason I had it with Anna was because she was breech. The doctor who delivered Anna told me that there was no reason why I couldn't have a VBAC next time...so hopefully we will! Any VBAC stories you'd like to share? (preferably successful VBAC stories...)

Let The Good Times Roll...

Don't you just love pictures? Especially of your kid? Anna is growing up SO FAST. Check out these pictures! Such a big girl. She's hanging out with Bryant & Avery. Their family came over for dinner/games today. It was really fun.

I sang with Shannon today, I think it went well. I sang a high A in that piece which I haven't done previously while singing that song. It sounded pretty good, too. :) The song we sang was Because He Lives by Sally Deford; it's a great piece.

For dinner I made chicken enchiladas, refried beans, spanish rice, & corn. For dessert we had pumpkin pie. We played seafarers--Tyler won, as usual. It was fun, I was actually thisclose to winning this time...oh well, as glittersmama's husband says--I just love to play!

Sunshine...on my shoulder...

Yes! The sun decided to grace us with it's sunrays today. It was beautiful outside!!! I didn't hit the Y because of my now larger fever blister--I'm taking some herbs to get rid of the virus--and I didn't want to overwork myself. So I overworked at home instead. I did laundry, cleaned the bathroom, did two loads of dishes, made 2 pumpkin pies, and then we went to clean the church followed by a trip to purchase some groceries...then Shannon & her family came over and we grilled hotdogs, made s'mores by the fire pit--my DH was thrilled to make a fire, as usual...then we played seafarers while the kiddos played--they did a great job of getting along. I was a bit worried about having 4 kids playing here, but they did great. I lost miserably at settlers--but I enjoy the opportunity to play. Tomorrow I'm singing in church...I wish my fever blister was GONE. Like right now. At least the people in the back row won't see my fever blister...

Carriage Hill

We went to the YMCA, I did 45 on E & 20 on LW. Good workout. I talked with Jenn which was really fun since I don't see her very often. We were the only two there out of our typical workout group. After the workout, Anna & I went to Carriage Hill--a farm that still functions like it did in the 1800s. It was really fun to see all the animals and the weather was GORGEOUS. I have missed the wonderful sunshine that we had today and the temperature outside was perfect for walking around. We even walked along a trail and enjoyed mother nature. I realized that I don't hate hiking--unless it's uphill and you're carrying a 20lb backpack. My DH loves to hike and he recently asked me if I would ever be interested in hiking to which I replied "No, thank you." However, after walking along this trail today I realized that I do like being in nature and going on walks--just not hiking up some huge hill. Do you hike?





I noticed that I have a fever blister on my upper lip. Yeah, I'm not a big fan of them. I typically get them when I'm stressed or when I have a virus. I'm not sure which it is. I have a hard time assessing whether I'm stressed out or not. It's something that I need to work on.





Anna went over to Laura's house today. They had a great time playing while I made snickerdoodles & showered. I took some cookies over when I picked her up & chatted with Jenn for an hour & a half! She's so easy to talk with. :)





I came home & found DH mowing the lawn. Anna took advantage of the beautiful weather outside while I did some major cooking/baking inside. I made chicken broccoli jumbo shells, italian cheese bread, corn, & homemade cherry pie. Here's a picture of the pie, it's so pretty!

We had a family come over for dinner and we enjoyed eating & chatting. My DH went out & played on the guy's unicycle while trying to juggle. That's some entertainment, let me tell you!

Interview Me

I was asked these questions by Trena. If you would like for me to ask you some fun questions for you to answer on your blog--simply comment on this blog the words "Interview Me."

1) Have you had any schooling beyond high school and if so, what did you major in?
I majored in Vocal Performance initially, however I finished my degree in Liberal Arts focusing on religion & history.

2) Are you more of a morning person or a night person?
I'm a night person trying to become a morning person...

3) What's your guilty treat (i.e., the one thing you know you shouldn't eat but sometimes you just have to have it)?
My recipe for Homemade Strawberries & Cream Cake...I'm a sucker for real whipped cream and homemade white cake...YUM!

4) If you could do your life up to this point over, would you do it all the same?
No. I wouldn't have moved to Utah-I would have stayed in OK to finish my degree.

5) Silver or Gold? Definitely gold. I'm an autumn--we look best in gold and bronze. (CMAS-Color Me A Season)

Silly Me

We woke up early and headed to the hospital on-base. I had an appointment with my DR to do an ultrasound to see if the follicles had developed enough, etc. I assumed that it would just be a typical ultrasound--you know, where they put the thing on top of your tummy, press hard, and you see a picture on the screen. Silly me. That was NOT what happened. I didn't even know about this type of ultrasound--they did it vaginally. Yeah, I wasn't really prepared for that. Oh well, that's what had to be done. And the follicles weren't developed enough yet, so I'm scheduled to go back on monday. Then the nurse had DH demonstrate how to give me the HCG shot. He wonders why I'm so worried about this shot, and I'm thinking..."Well, you've NEVER given anyone a shot and I already hate needles...and you wonder why I'm worried?!"

I was thinking about this process of infertility today. It occurred to me that I am self inflicting myself to reap a beautiful reward: another baby. But I hadn't previously thought about how I am purposely doing this---me---without anyone else telling me to do it. Then I had the thought that it might be a way for me to understand--ever so slightly--what Christ did when he willingly put himself in pain for the better good. Now don't misunderstand, I am NOT saying that I in any way compare to what Christ went through--just that in doing infertility, I can possibly understand it better. Make sense?

After the hospital, Anna & I hit the YMCA. I did 30 on E and 1 on LW. Yeah. For some reason I was really dragging...I mean, moving in slow-motion on the elliptical machine. When I decided that I would only do 30 minutes, I headed for a leg weight machine. I did a couple of reps and about fell over. I determined that I needed some sleep, so we headed home. After Anna went to school I took a nap beginning at 2pm. I woke up at 5pm. WOW. I must have really needed a nap.

I actually got Anna to bed by 7:30pm. We started her bed routine just before 7pm. That is really good for me--I want her in bed by 7pm. Of course, it's 8:30pm now & she's still awake--but she's in her room, ready for sleeping...whenever it may happen.

Have you heard of EFT? Here's a great video that explains it. I have actually done EFT before and it really helped me overcome some pain from my past. I recommend it to anyone.

Date Night

We went to the YMCA. I did 45 on E & 25 on AW. Feels so good...I'm happy to be exercising regularly. It's the first time in my life that I've been this regular. I go 6 days a week. Isn't that amazing? 5 weeks ago I did ZERO exercise & now I exercise for over an hour everyday. I'm so proud of myself and grateful for the opportunity that I have to go to the YMCA. We honestly don't have much money--but this is definitely something a need, not a want.

Here are some pictures from Glitter's mama. We went to her house and Anna fell asleep on the couch. What an interesting position!

Dogzilla is keeping watch and protecting her...isn't that sweet? (It's dogzilla, right? Not Sophie? I can't tell).

Today I was so productive. When Anna went to school, I thought I'd be the best wife ever and mow the lawn for my husband. So I got all decked out in lawn mowing clothing (which included my hubby's shoes...I didn't want to get mine all dirty). I go out & pull the cord to start the mower. Nothing. I pull over & over & over...still nothing. I check the gas tank. Empty. So much for my good intention--Tyler had the gas can in the back of the truck at work. :( After that, I read my scrippys, practiced the piano and actually warmed up my voice. I have a 3 octave range, from the c below middle c up to 3 octaves above that. Yeah. I was pleased. I didn't know how high I could sing & now I know. Pretty cool. Of course, my top C doesn't sound fantastic--but that's why it's the TOP of my range...hee hee. I did the dishes, showered and used my new hair mousse while fixing my hair--I was quite pleased with how it turned out. You know how you get a haircut and they fix it up all cute so you look great that day, but the next day you try to recreate that hairstyle and it looks terrible? Yeah, today it actually looked close to that day...I am happy with it.

Anna went to swim lessons with DH and then on a date. Angie picked me up and we went out for dinner. It was nice to have some girls time. She's a really great person with many talents. She's more fun than I think she even knows. Why do we, as women, shortchange ourselves. Why do we say that we're untalented, unattractive, make terrible food, keep an untidy house, dress like a slob...why don't we say--well, I can sing a high C note, I can clean the toilet like nobody's business, I'm super fast at doing algebra...why can't we focus on our good qualities instead of sharing those things that we do poorly??

Aisa Des Hai Mera - Veer Zaara

What can I say? I just love this film, Veer Zaara, it's 3 hours of romance, beautiful scenery, and the music is contagious!! I love this song, Aisa Des Hai Mera--the words are about how beautiful India is & it makes me want to love India and call it "my land" like they do...Shahrukh's voice is soooo good and this song can stay in my mind for hours...This movie is definitely worth watching--all 3 hours of it. It's the only Bollywood movie that I currently own. Rent it. Watch it. Love it. Then thank me for recommending it. ;)

Last night we were at my friend's house until 2am. Consequently, I woke up later this morning but still went to the YMCA and did 45 on E & 20 on LW. I weighed 328.5, so that's a total of 4 1/2 pounds that I've lost in 5 weeks. Not bad, nice & slow.

Anna went to school & I went with Tyler on-base. He's thinking about having this done. I don't like the idea of having my eye scraped on...but I'm a big baby when it comes to pain...so I went to the commissary while Tyler went to a briefing on PRK. I think he's going to do it. *sigh* I hope it all goes well...I guess I'll be the only nerdy looking person in this family with my glasses once my husband gets his eyes fixed...

Anna & I went to rent some movies. She is now loving this which glittersmama introduced to her, so she insisted that we rent two Little Einstein dvds...she's already watched one tonight...I don' t mind them at all. She watched the Baby Einstein dvds when she was younger. I enjoy the classical music. :) I rented this movie, have you of you seen it? I'm going to watch it tonight...it caught my eye and it looks like it will be good...we shall see...

Back In The Swing

Spring break is over, therefore there were many happy parents today as the children returned to school. I am one of those happy parents. However, you should note that Anna is ecstatic about school & LOVES being there. And when Anna is happy---I am happy too. :)

We went to the YMCA--45 on E, 20 on AW. My friend, Heather, joined the YMCA, so that will be fun having another friend to exercise with.

Anna went to school, I gave Lea a voice lesson (she's doing great!), I went to Angie's house to practice a song with Shannon for this coming Sunday...a duet called Because He Lives--a beautiful piece by Sally DeFord. Tyler & I took Anna to her swimming lessons. She's such a fun girl to watch--so animated and outgoing. A fun girl.

Right now I'm at glittersmama's house...playing some settlers & hand and foot...a fun night...we're just taking a break now...kind of fun typing my blog from a friend's house...

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

This is a beautiful arrangement of Come Thou Fount--perfect for Sundays! Our Stake Choir is actually going to perform this arrangement in the fall...I can't wait!



So how was your Sunday? We went to choir practice. We learned an arrangement of Beautiful Savior--they are so good at sight reading. We finished early! Church was lovely. I felt the Spirit and enjoyed being there with everyone. I found myself being uplifted which is what I was needing...I'm so grateful to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. What a blessing it is in my life.

We had Amy & Kasey over for dinner/games. It was really fun--we got to hold the new baby girl! It's been so long since Anna was a newborn...hopefully soon...

Bollywood Obsession

Well I don't know if I'm really obsessed with bollywood or not...but I really really really really really like it. :) Did you like the youtube I put on? I thought you would all enjoy the subtitles--since none of my current friends speak Hindi...I'm open for any friends who do speak it, you're welcome to come over and tell me if those subtitles are really what Shahrukh Khan is saying...my goodness, I think he is so handsome. Isn't that funny, Melisa? I can't figure out whether I think he's handsome or if I want to be romanced the way he romances the girl on screen. hmmmm. That will take some major thinking to determine...I also think that Zayed Khan is handsome too--he looks better with short hair. ;) Here's another youtube with Shahrukh singing...Zayed looks pretty grungy with his long hair, sorry no subtitles...Enjoy:



As for the rest of my day, it was pretty blah. It's rainy outside. We went to the YMCA and I did 45 on E, 20 on LW. I gave 2 voice lessons. Since then I've just been....blah. I'm not excited about doing A N Y T H I N G. However, I did manage to spend an HOUR on youtube looking at Bollywood videos...that's kind of productive...right?

A little Bollywood for you...

Enjoy!

Check out my Slide Show!

Haircut

It's amazing how a haircut can change your whole outlook on life. The day you get a haircut, you view the world differently (perhaps because now you can actually SEE it) and feel excited about how your hair looks, feels, etc. That was my day. Remember how yesterday I said I wanted a haircut? Well, I got one this morning. Tyler took some really, um, good pictures & of course some silly ones. I love being silly.

I went to work out at the YMCA: 45 min on E, 20 min on AW. Anna went home with Leia and I went home, showered, & got my haircut. Then I went over & hung out with Sarah for a while until her husband came home from work, then we went home and did some outdoor cleaning so Tyler can mow the lawn sometime. The weather was BEAUTIFUL today! It was so nice to see the sun out...especially since tomorrow will be rain/snow--90% chance. WOW.

We went to the ward social/dance at the church. Everyone was excited about my haircut. We ate, chatted, then danced. Tyler was so sweet--he requested a latin song for me. I miss those days of dancing at the latin clubs...yeah, I loved merengue & salsa. Bachata was fun, too. Those were good times. My sweet DH-he tries very hard to please me in the dancing arena. How come mexican guys are born dancing with their hips, but every white guy seems to have missed out on the dancing "genes." That's not fair to us white girls who can DANCE! ;)

We had a really nice time...now it feels like it's time for bed but it's not even 10pm yet...welcome to being almost 30 years old...yeah, I know, I'm only 28, but I'm closer to 30 than 25....

Bishop's business card...

Bishop's Business Card

A Bishop wanted to visit in the home of two Ward members, a newlywed couple.

At the garden apartment where they lived it was obvious from the giggling inside that someone was at home, but no answer came to his repeated knocks,he even called out to let them know it was he atthe door. Everything had gone silent.

Then he took out a business card and wrote: Revelation 3:20 on the back of it and stuck it in the door.

The following Sunday his card was placed in one of the tithing envelopes and given to one of his counselors who in turn returned it to the Bishop. Added to the card was this cryptic message, "Genesis 3:10." Reaching for his Bible to check out the citation, he broke up in gales of laughter.

Revelation 3:20 begins "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." Genesis 3:10 reads, "I heard your voice in thegarden and I was afraid for I was naked."

Communicator

So, I think I'm a poor communicator. In my life there has been more than once that I have upset someone with something I have said. When I find myself explaining a feeling that I have, I'm not always sure what to say. I attribute this to my being a poor communicator. However, yesterday I had the thought that I don't communicate well because I'm not always sure of how I feel about something. My emotions come first and then I have to think through them to find the cause for those emotions and then a remedy for them--if needed. So, perhaps I'm not a poor communicator after all...perhaps I just don't think things through very well...or maybe both. Does this ring a bell with anyone?

Yesiree, I want a haircut. After Anna was born I lost a lot of hair. I later learned that if you need synthroid and you're not on it during/after pregnancy, you can lose LOTS of hair. I never had especially thick hair-but it certainly wasn't thin. Now it is. I have been growing it out for over a year now, but my husband kindly suggested that the longer the hair is-the heavier it would be and it would accentuate my thin scalp. Plus, my husband prefers my hair to be shorter. So I've been searching for some cute hairstyles online. I'll post a picture after I get this haircut...hopefully tomorrow. My goodness I'm impulsive. My husband tells me that once I get an idea in my head, it's set in stone and nothing else will do. He's right. I want a haircut, and I want it NOW. Have I mentioned that I am lacking in the patience arena? Yeah.

We went to the YMCA. E = 45 minutes, LW = 30 minutes. (E=elliptical, LW=leg weights-I want to abbreviate from now on). Anna's friend, Emma, came over to play. They had a great time. They played Anna's cd--Chipmunk Christmas CD. Yes, that's right, we celebrate Christmas year-round. (would you expect anything less from a person who gets out her Christmas music in SEPT?).

It's finally happening, I am going to scrap tonight. I did the dishes; the living room is clean; Anna is bathed & in bed, the laundry is done; the C2 room is tidy....FINALLY! I can do it! It's hard to believe it, but I'd better get to it before the time slips away!!!

Happy Feet

It rained today--all day LONG. I miss the sun. When the sun shines, then my rainbow maker works. Having rainbows on my walls makes me happy...I just smile as I watch them. SUCH FUN!

We went to the YMCA. I did 30 minutes on elliptical and 20 minutes on arm/back weights. At the mat room we decided that Leia would come home with us to play with Anna. They got along really well which was nice. :) Tyler came home for lunch. We decided that we are going to press forward with our plan and see what happens. Our plan? I'm glad you asked! We are thinking that after Tyler finishes his 4 year commitment with the AF that we'll be getting out. (I realize that I will need to change the title of my blog at that point) Tyler will have just finished his MBA program at OSU and then we will be job hunting...who knows where we'll end up! His MBA program is quite expensive and he doesn't want to sit on it after he graduates. So, that's our plan. It seems the logical thing to do--yet it makes me sad. I really like being in the AF. It's a good life. I know I will miss going on-base--I feel so priviledged to show a security guard my military id and he allows me to continue on-base. Yeah, I'm special for getting to go on-base. At least that's how I feel. ha ha.

I decided that with all this rain that we needed to bake. It's a law that I learned from my Mom--if it's raining, then it's time to BAKE! So I made a huge chocolate chip cookie--in a jelly roll pan. (something like 48 servings). The girls loved it. What child doesn't love BIG cookies?

I went to the church to select a song for the Ward Choir to sing for the Ward Classical Recital. I looked through all the pieces and didn't find anything. Then Ilona shows up and suggested a song that would be PERFECT--Beautiful Savior. Did you know that that song was written in the 12th century??? YEAH! It's fun when the Lord works through someone else to help you with what you need. :)

Tyler took Anna on a date and on their way home they rented HAPPY FEET. It was a cute movie, I wouldn't purchase it--but it was entertaining.

I Can Almost Taste It

It's so close. I can feel it. I may be scrapbooking within the next few days...I have the bug to scrap and I tell myself that if I can stay on top of dishes, laundry, house cleaning, meal planning, calling-related stuff, and of course to take care of my baby & husband then I can scrap. Right now the meals are planned, I've done some calling-related things, the laundry is DONE (that's been my whole evening activity)...however, the dishes aren't done and the house isn't completely clean. But it's getting closer...does this scenario sound similar to anyone?



This morning was different from typical mornings. Anna & I went on-base to get my pregnancy test done---it's definitely negative---then we picked up my clomid, metformin, & my HCG shot stuff--there's nothing like the thought of having a shot in your butt, but if it helps then I'm happy. We went to the commissary and bought some groceries. I bought some Trix cereal, which I haven't had since I was a kid. Perhaps I was wanting to reminisce my childhood days...the idea of having name brand cereal was so exciting for me. It was a real treat.



After the commissary Anna & I went to the YMCA. After doing 30 minutes on the elliptical, Anna & I joined Angie & her two boys in the YMCA indoor swimming pool. It was so refreshing to swim after a workout...aaaah. Anna had a blast playing with the boys and swimming around. She's part fish, I'm sure of it.



I made taco salad for dinner. And it was so good. I wonder what it is about certain recipes that are just good. Do you have any recipes like that? I took a nap and then Anna & I played some games. This evening I did the aforementioned LAUNDRY activity. My goodness, how can three people produce SO MUCH LAUNDRY? I think that laundry should be once every 1 1/2 weeks or so...but it ends up being once a week. How often do you do laundry?



I made this for Easter and it's so pretty, I just had to share a photo. I recognize that this makes me a complete nerd for posting a photo of jello-but it's not just any jello--this is 12 layer jello and it takes 6 hours to make. Very tasty!

The Prophet said to plant a garden

It's spring break this week. Isn't that crazy? Spring break in APRIL and not MARCH. It's enough to throw me off. Since Anna will not be going to school I have the pleasure of trying to fill the time with other worthy activities. To start things off, we slept in a bit today and took a while getting to the YMCA, around 10am. After my 30 minutes on elliptical and 20 minutes on leg weights, Anna & I joined Jenn, Angie, & Sarah in the mat room while the kids ran free. I set up a playdate with each family this week. That should help pass the time until school is back in session.

I had a voice lesson with Lea, she's doing a great job. She's singing The Melody Within from Rigoletto (from FFF) for the ward classical recital next month. She's doing a great job. :) It's fun to teach voice lessons.

Anna & I went over to Angie's house. Anna had a great time playing with Avery & Bryant. I cross stitched while Angie made dinner. We had a really nice, relaxed time. I came home to whip up some spaghetti, corn, & garlic toast. YUM!

We had such a great FHE this evening. We read a little lesson out of this book, which is a must for any family that has young kids! We did the lesson entitled Family Garden. We sang a couple of songs, including the title of this blog, then we set out to plant some seeds & the two broccoli plants that we have in the square garden. Tyler made a grid on the top and so it's all set. Some of the seeds we planted were so small...it's hard to imagine anything growing from them! After we came inside we decided some hot chocolate was in order and we had some while playing a game of Battleship. It was one of those FHE that really work, ya know? Everything went perfectly.

There's a bunny at the door...

Happy Easter to all! This morning Anna woke up to find the Easter basket that her parents hid. We decided that we were going to forego the whole "Easter Bunny" tale (no pun intended) and just have fun dyeing eggs--which has nothing to do with a bunny, incidentally--and telling Anna that we were hiding her basket, etc. So, we didn't exactly say that there wasn't an Easter Bunny--but we definitely weren't saying there was one, in fact, we omitted him from any Easter conversation. So Anna found her Easter basket and enjoyed eating her candy. She got to wear her brand new Easter dress that we bought her 3 weeks ago. Here are some photos:

Isn't she a doll? She is getting so BIG now! So we went to church and had a wonderful Sacrament meeting. I participated in a quartet which was nice and then led the choir which sang The Lord's Prayer--it was so beautiful! Plus there were 3 other lovely musical numbers. I love having music in church. I love being involved with music in church. It is very fulfilling.

Tyler stayed after church to work on clerk duties. Anna & I came home & I began working on EASTER DINNER. About 5 minutes later the doorbell rang. I opened the door to see a 5 foot tall Easter Bunny. He said Happy Easter and had some easter candy to give to Anna. It was our neighbor's son from across the street. His mom was in their driveway and waved to me. I said thank you--it was such a sweet gesture--but at the same time I was thinking...there goes our whole anti-bunny routine. I can just hear it now...but Mama, of course the Easter Bunny is real--he came to visit me last Easter! Remember?!?!

We invited a couple from church over for Easter dinner. They are lonely--all their children are grown and don't visit/call them at all. We had a really nice evening together. I think it brightened their Easter as it did ours. It was our first Easter away from family. I hope your holiday was wonderful. :)

That's it! I'm cleaning the garage!!!

We all went to the YMCA for some exercise. Even though it's been snowing since wednesday, it still surprises me to see it coming down...today was busy, busy! Anna helped me make Rainbow Jello---a 6 hour ordeal that yields 12 layers of yummy jello--6 flavors. I'll try to post a picture in case you have no clue what I'm trying to describe. We also make Easter basket cupcakes, which you can see in the picture slides below. I also made homemade pizza for lunch/dinner and then mixed up the cheese souflee and some white chip brownies for choir tomorrow--last week I told the choir that they were earning "brownie points" by coming to an optional practice and I thought I'd make good on my statement! Plus it was a new recipe that I'd been wanting to try out. I made some flour out of our wheat using the "Magic Mill" and for some reason, I have trouble breathing after I do it--this is the second time I've ground wheat and I had the same result last time...I think it's because it puts lots of flour into the air & I breathe it in...not sure, though. Tyler suggested that I grind the wheat outside--which is a great idea, but not when it's snowing...Spring--where are you???

While making the Easter basket cupcakes, we started looking for a large food storage can of coconut--to make the grass on top of the frosting--and we couldn't find it for a while. Tyler looked out in the garage and quickly became frustrated with the lack of order he found there. He came inside and very seriously said: That's it! I'm cleaning the garage!!! This surprised me, as we were busy doing other Easter activities such as dyeing eggs, etc...but I'm not one to discourage my husband from doing something that should be done--especially since I don't want to do it!

Easter Pictures

x + y = bad combination

Since we had playgroup at 10:30am, we had to make an early dash to the YMCA for my workout--I did 45 consecutive minutes on the elliptical, then we dashed home to shower and get ready then dashed to the church for the Playgroup Easter Egg Hunt. We were to bring 10 plastic eggs and fill them with candy for the big hunt. The children could hardly contain their excitement. Here's the pre-hunt photo:

The instructions were given and then off they went, eagerly grabbing their eggs. Here's the post egg hunting photo:

At this point, everything was just fine--kids were smiling, parents were proud of their child's ability to gather eggs...the world was right. Then kids began eating the candy inside the eggs...hello problems. I recall hearing more tantrums, more crying, more unhappy children throughout playgroup. I recognized it and have made this equation (Nina, are you proud of my mathematic ability??) x + y = bad combination. Any guesses on what "x" & "y" are? Candy + Children = bad combination. I had to take my daughter home early because of a huge fit she was having after she had stolen a car from Joseph and then she yelled at an adult---yeah, we left early. I wonder why we put our children in situations where candy is involved. Is it because of our fond childhood memories? What do rabbits and chocolate have in common anyway?

Anna & I went over to Sunnie's house to spend a few hours while a potential realtor came over. Her husband was out of town and she didn't want a guy in her home without someone else present. Completely understandable. So the kids played and we got to listen to this guy sell himself to her. I would hate that kind of job. I would be the best realtor for you because...I would be a terrible realtor.

Fertility update: She came. How dare she have come--I was hoping for success this month, but Aunt Flo came and ruined that hope/possibility for me. Well, there's always next month. I feel confident it won't be too long now...

Tonight was the Stake Easter Cantata. It went beautifully. I enjoyed singing with many other talented singers, including Mrs. Shannon who was at my side. We got the best...er, um...highest seats in the house, didn't we, Shannon?? heh heh. It was middle school all over again...that's my seat...

Almost Relaxing

Went to the YMCA--did 30 minutes on elliptical, 15 minutes on weights (arms, back, & stomach) then 10 minutes on elliptical. We went to the "mat" room afterwards to let the kids play. On tuesday of this week the temperature here in OH was 81 degrees. Care to know what the high today was? 35 degrees...and not only that--it SNOWED ALL DAY LONG. Yeah, so how does a happy temperature like 81 degrees drop down to 35 degrees in 2 days?? If you know me, you know that I LOVE the wintertime...but when springtime comes around and you have a few days of 70s, 80s degrees, it's not nice to resume frigid weather just because!!! (I had pretty much put away Anna's winter coat last week...)

After Anna went to school, I did some dishes and picked up the place. I sent out some cards in the mail...I think I need to be a bit more productive during my 3 hours that Anna is in school...oh yeah, I did some laundry too. Nothing like doing laundry that makes you feel like you've accomplished SOMETHING. My goal during those 3 hours is to tidy up the house so that I can spend the rest of the evening with my family relaxing. Although, it seems that I spend those 3 hours doing that and then for the rest of the evening I am almost relaxing...sound familiar to anyone? There's always something else I forgot to do, etc. Well, today I have a desire to scrapbook....and I feel like I can almost scrapbook--because the C2 room isn't quite done and I have 3 million pictures to organize before I can actually BEGIN scrappin'. Such is my daily grind--almost getting stuff done. But, I love my life--and I wouldn't want it any other way.

Last night Tyler & I watched some chinese films we'd rented. It's a gamble to watch foreign films---they are rarely rated, so you have no idea what good/awful things might be in it. The first one we watched was called The Three Swordsman with Andy Lau ( a YOUNG Andy Lau). It was made in the 80s, we're certain. How do we know? You should have heard that soundtrack--well, actually, there was only ONE song throughout the whole movie. If I'd ever wondered what chinese music--80s style--sounded like, I found out last night. It was hard to pay attention to the movie when the music, and the, um, "special effects," had been 80'd.

The second movie, Empress Dowager--which was so horrible, I had to turn it off. I cannot handle pain myself--much less seeing other people being hurt by others. This movie showed some terrible behavior by the Empress Dowager--a woman who actually ruled China (the only female to ever rule--see, I was paying attention when I got my history degree, which was mainly in Asian history). She did anything to manipulate others and hold onto power. This made me wonder--why is there such a struggle for power? I mean, we're all going to die and even if we're in power and we do things our way---why would we think for one second that the next person in charge is going to continue on with our grand ideas? They won't. So why seek for power at all? You can tell I wasn't born to be a politician...especially in ancient China.

So I found this fabulous recipe for banana bread. It was in a recipe book that I inherited from my mom who was downsizing her cookbook collection. The banana bread recipe was way good, so I thought I'd try another recipe called Soft Oatmeal Cookies. Yeah, those weren't so good. Do you ever bake something and have high expectations about how they're going to turn out...but your hopes are dashed when they don't look tasty and taste just "okay." Yeah, imagine "Soft Oatmeal Cookies" like that...this is one recipe that no one will be asking for!

Room For Improvement

Read below if you're comfortable reading about sickness, etc.

So this morning I wake up and I'm feeling M I S E R A B L E! Yeah, I grabbed the trashcan and headed the restroom to wait the inevitable diarrhea on both ends. NOT FUN. The rest of the morning I sat around looking quite pitiful. I just can't seem to pull it together when I'm in pain...I have a VERY low pain tolerance. After Anna went to school I took a nap on the couch to wake up 30 minutes later to a lovely call from a telemarketer--no, I didn't answer--but it woke me up from a much needed nap. Once I awoke my head was POUNDING...I greatly dislike those types of headaches (not that there's any that I especially enjoy). I laid on the couch feeling very sorry for myself and felt so terrible that I thought death couldn't come fast enough--yeah, I'm talking REALLY SICK. I made several trips to the bathroom with diarrhea--but thankfully I didn't throw up--I think that's worse than diarrhea. Then suddenly I remember a remedy for upset tummy and all that happens with it: Raspberry tea. I made some and within 15 minutes my upset tummy was completely G O N E! I love herbs, they are amazing. I only wish I'd thought of it at 7am this morning instead of 2pm...oh well. So I started feeling better and began wishing that I wouldn't have been such a baby about being sick--the thought even came to me while I felt terrible--be of good cheer during trials, tribulations, & afflictions....but I COULDN'T be of good cheer and I felt bad about that. I even prayed silently to my Heavenly Father and confessed that I didn't pass that trial very cheerfully...almost immediately the thought came back to me, "Yes, there's room for improvement here." I laughed out loud---I'm glad God has a sense of humor. :) I'm always amazed at how "real" prayer is--there's really someone there who will communicate with us and wants to talk with us...a wonderful blessing.

So that was the majority of my day...once my tummy was feeling better I determined that I needed some SEINFELD, so I watched a few episodes...I love the silly humor-it really helped me laugh and feel better about everything...this is the difficult week during the whole infertility process. Tomorrow is 4 weeks from my last period--I'm scheduled for a pregnancy test on monday...every single pain/feeling below my waist has my attention: is that my period? It's really emotionally draining waiting for your period to come but hoping that it won't come...sometimes I pray that if my period is going to come--let it come NOW so I have less days that I'm thinking I could be pregnant...*sigh* Once this week is over, I do a lot better about the whole infertility thing. Just a few more days to go!

Tonight was Anna's date with her daddy. Tyler took her to her swimming lessons at the YMCA. Anna's in the GUPPY class--isn't that a cute name? She is just loving it and I'm happy that she'll be learning how to swim, because I want to have a REAL SWIMMING POOL someday...you know, the underground pools--not the cheap above ground wal-mart brand pool...

I made a nice dinner tonight--when I was feeling better...which incidentally, every time that I'm sick or recovering from a surgery, once I feel any better I start cleaning/cooking/whatever...and it always backfires on me because I should be taking it easy. I think it's just a WOMAN thing, because most women I know are the same way. We like getting things DONE, it's very rewarding--even if we feel terrible. I'm not very good at relaxing when there are things to be done...So I made meatloaf, crockpot macaroni & cheese, & corn on the cob. And then I was exhausted! But that didn't stop me from doing some cleaning in the C2 room....

Everything Comes Down To Poo

I've never seen Scrubs before but this clip is hilarious....

First Attempt

Went to the YMCA. I did the elliptical for 30 minutes followed by leg weights and then 10 more minutes of the elliptical. What a workout! Then I went to weigh myself: 330lbs. For those of you who are confused as to my weight loss (myself included) I'll give you the quick rundown. The first week I weighed 333 (starting weight)--one week later I lost 4lbs (mainly water I'm guessing) so I weighed 329--one week later I weighed 331lbs...hmmm (tyler thinks it's because I'm lifting weights)--one week later, which is today, I weighed 330lbs. So I've lost a total of 5lbs if you count the first 4lbs and then the other pound I lost which I technically lost during the first 4lbs---but pounds lost are pounds lost and counting them makes me feel good. Of course, I also gained 2lbs, but we needn't focus on that...onward, ever onward!

I made Anna some lunch and sent her on her way to school--via the schoolbus--and then hopped in the car and drove to meet Tyler for our date this week, a lunch date, at the dining hall on-base. I had some fried fish (I figured it's more protein that I would've gotten then not eating it to begin with--I struggle getting the protein I'm supposed to be getting!), some chinese noodles--seriously, they must have dumped 3 bottles of soy sauce in it....W A Y too salty, some salad and mixed veggies. YUM! Then we walked around the home/garden store and bought some groceries at the commissary. It was a nice date, although it felt strange because when Tyler's in uniform we cannot hold hands...so that was a bit strange for being on a date with my husband. Such is his job...thank goodness it only applies to when he's in uniform. *wink*

This evening I wasn't up for making any grand dinner for Anna & myself, so we settled on some corn and Dora the Explorer spaghettios. Yes, I know...I can cook/bake fabulous meals and yet I can be lazy and eat spaghettios...they're really not that bad, actually...but feeling guilty for not feeding my daughter some real food, I did something extreme: I broke out my little mill and ground some wheat into flour and mixed up some honey wheat bread dough. At this very moment it is baking in the oven-after a very successful rising process...I am so proud of my little bread loaves. Now we'll see how they will turn out. This is my first attempt to grind my own wheat and make bread from it. It certainly seems like a healthy thing to do...

I have this LDS wheat cookbook that my Mom gave me--it must have been written in the 60s...seriously. It looks VERY old, but good recipes know no age, right? We'll see...I also make granola from a recipe in it and we love that. Speaking of granola, we're almost out...I need to make some more QUICK! Maybe after the bread is done...I've got the time now that Anna's in bed. Tonight we read 5 books at bedtime, including one of my very favorites: The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Anna has heard it so many times that when we "read" it now--she actually tells me the story from memory. It's priceless to hear it, I need to get that on video.

Do You Know The Muffin Man?

We hit the YMCA this morning and I did 30 minutes on the elliptical followed by 20 minutes on arm weights and then Sarah talked me into 15 MORE minutes on the elliptical....yeah, great workout. I think we all need someone to encourage us when we're ready to go easy on ourselves...someone to say--Hey! You can do more, don't quit now!!! Thank goodness for friends like that. :)

Today is simply beautiful outside--upper 70s and tomorrow it'll be in the 80s. However, in 2 days the temperature will drop to the 30s and snow is predicted....can you say crazy?? Yeah, I thought Oklahoma weather was wild...welcome to Ohio!

Anna went to school and I did some laundry, practiced the piano and looked through some cooking magazines for some new recipes to try...I'm always looking for new meals to prepare to keep dinner fresh & exciting. Yes, I said EXCITING. I enjoy cooking/baking, especially when it looks & tastes great. Any recipes to share? I'm mainly looking for main meal recipes...I'm overflowing with desserts, especially since I bought Deena's Hershey's cookbook (my hips thank you).

I gave a voice lesson to Lea. I think I'm getting the hang of this whole teaching music thing. I was really nervous to do it--because I've never done it before--but all is going well and my confidence is rising when I teach her something, she does it and it sounds great. EVERYBODY WINS!

I called the charter school that I want for Anna to attend in the fall. She was accepted! HOORAY! It's an all-day kindergartin, monday through friday. She's ready for K; she's found it difficult to understand why some of her friends are already in K and she's not. Poor kid. Some concepts are beyond her understanding at 5. Goodness, some concepts are beyond my understanding at 28! ha ha!

Anna started her swim lessons today at the Y. She was so cute in her little swimsuit---the only one of the girls who wore a one piece swimsuit--modesty, always modesty. Throughout the swim lesson, Anna would wave to us, shouting HI MOM, HI DAD. It's so wonderful to have a child who wants others to know you're her parents...someday I'm certain that will not be the case....how will we ever manage that??

So, for dinner I wanted to make something that Tyler LOVES. I made pork chops with homemade gravy, mashed potatoes, beets, and some vanilla muffins--something my Mom made for dinner while I was growing up. Tyler insists that muffins are not a dinner item, but since I grew up with it--it seems right, so today felt like a muffin night. Have you ever stopped to consider that muffins are really just miniature cakes? We wouldn't condone eating 3 pieces of cake (well, some of us might) but eating 3 muffins--that's completely acceptable. Interesting thought for you all to ponder. ANYHOW, my recipe for vanilla muffins includes the original recipe with the doubled recipe numbers next to it...so I began preparing the original recipe until I realized I'd put 4 eggs in and already blended it up---so, 4 eggs is for the DOUBLED recipe. Uh-huh, so then I had a choice to make: Throw out the mixture or continue onward and make the doubled recipe. Being the non-wasting person that I am, I doubled the recipe. So, even at this very moment--I have 3 dozen vanilla muffins in my kitchen. Muffins, anyone?

We had FHE on our square food garden tonight. We determined what all we want to plant: onions, parsley, cauliflower, broccoli, marigolds (to deter pests and to make it pretty) carrots, peas, swiss chard (we don't know what the heck it is--Tyler just thought it would be fun to grow), beets, tomatoes, spinach, red-yellow-& green peppers, lettuce, green beans & cucumbers. Yeah. So we thought we'd start SMALL this year since it is, in fact, our first attempt at gardening. There's nothing like starting small so there's room to grow next year...um, yeah.

General Conference Weekend

Wow, didn't you just LOVE General Conference? My husband likes to go to the church for every session. I grew up watching it at home or at my Grandma's house & I enjoyed that relaxed situation--but I must admit, I learn a LOT more by being dressed up & at the church. I have about 10 pages of notes from the 4 sessions I attended. I hope to implement the promptings that I received during the talks given. I don't handle general criticism very well, but when I hear a talk on a subject that I don't do very well--I don't have a problem hearing it.

After the last session we went over to Eldon & Shannon's house to hang out a bit. We took a walk down to a nearby pond and fed the fish. It was nice & relaxing.

I think I'm going to start reading a book: A Marvelous Work And A Wonder by Legrand Richards. I want to broaden my understanding of the gospel and that seems like a great book to do that. Has anyone read that book?

I found this new template and thought it would be a nice change. It's perfect for the Autumn/Winter that I am. :)

I thought I would list a couple of pictures of that Strawberries & Cream cake I made on friday...YUM! I love it when the berries are in season again! I'm actually contemplating the idea of growing some strawberries...