Monday, February 28, 2011

It's a wrap...And it has just begun...

(First thing this morning...)
...the weekend is already over? How did that happen? It started out a little bit of a bummer-I missed Jake's last game because the girl who was going to work for me on Saturday couldn't...(Picture me sticking out my tongue...). She had a good excuse-her daughter was sick. I was bummed to have to work but that night made up for it. It was the dinner and awards ceremony for the Upward b-ball season and it was awesome. Jake has made great friends at Upward and they do this amazing picture slide show at the end and it makes me cry...just a little. How can another season already be over? How can it be the last day in Feb.? How can Jake be turning 10, 6 months from TODAY? (I forgot I was going to have a little half b-day shindig...Better get on that...) Double digits? I turn 35 the end of May...35... and Jake turns 10 August 28th....Where has this decade gone? I can't even believe it...My son is 6 months away from being a decade old...(Picture me with tears in my eyes...). I feel a little sick to my stomach just thinking about it...

(Same day...just in the evening...)
Another thing that makes my stomach hurt: Jake has been getting phone calls the past 2 days from a girl in his class named Sophia. She called 5 times yesterday before we were able to answer it and Jake ended up talking to her for 30 minutes (maybe more, I listened to his side of the conversation-so funny and of course completely innocent). When he got off the phone he said "I didn't think she was ever going to stop talking!" Sophia called again today. I was in the car driving and I told her when I got home I would have Jake call her. When I got home Jake's response was: "I told her I wouldn't be able to talk to her today!" She called back 4 more times (once leaving a message that she was sorry that she missed Jake's call but she had stepped out...Jake hadn't called back at this point...)...Jake tried to call her back to let her know he couldn't talk because we were getting ready to eat dinner-she didn't answer. I am hoping her mother noticed how many times she tried to call and told her to stop. :) You see Jake was going to start a business where people would pay him for help on Wii games (keep in mind he does love his Wii, but he isn't even allowed-except on RARE occasions-to play during the school week...so there are probably plenty of people who could give out more info. than him.), and Sophia is part of the company...Jake says he may move her up to the Vice President since Maddie (the current VP) isn't doing half as much as Sophia is...Apparently all of his employees are girls...He said he thinks Sophia likes him, but he only likes her as a friend. I made sure to tell him not to pick on her about this (or let anyone else-meaning don't tell everyone she keeps calling to embarrass her), and always remember to treat people the way you want them to treat you...I can picture this little girls heart being crushed as people pick on her...He said he would never do that. He is totally clueless that all these girls love him. I am glad he his clueless. You see Jake has been raised with girl cousins close by and as he says he is used to girls. One of his friends, Kendrick (a boy..you probably knew that though right?), at school gets mad at him because Jake will play with different people everyday. The truth is: if you want to hang with Jake, he will hang with you. He gets that from me. :) I am totally getting away from the point...(surprise, surprise). The part that makes my stomach hurt: Is it okay for him to talk to girls on the phone? He doesn't talk to boys on the phone...Will this lead to wanting to date early or I am I just totally over reacting???? HELP please if you have any insight on this kind of thing...I am clueless...

Friday, February 25, 2011

TGIF and Note to self.

Thank goodness it is Friday (...that is if the girl at work that needed more hours, so I gladly gave her my Saturday shift, shows up tomorrow when she is supposed to...Why is my manager all the sudden giving me weekend shifts? I am a Mon.-Fri. girl!)! I need a day at home (besides Jake's last b-ball game, the awards dinner that evening to wrap up the b-ball season, and of course grocery shopping) to catch up. Bedrooms are highest on the list of an overhaul...And then the rest of the house will follow.

This has been a week to remember! I need to remember that when my child is sick and I miss church it really throws the whole week out of whack. I don't think I could go inactive because this past week has been a real stinker and I am blaming it all on Satan. He realized we didn't get our Sunday uplift and really focused in on us all week long...Every morning was rush, argue, guilt. Every afternoon was...well, exactly the same as the morning! The house is still partially a mess. I clean one room and then the next one is back to a disaster zone, because I have been to lazy to keep it up. I will admit to the fact that I have not cracked my scriptures this week-except at Primary training on Wednesday night. How sad is that? And my prayers at night have been laying in bed half asleep apologizes to the Lord as I am slipping into dream land and not making any sense. My morning prayers were an after thought. After I have been a screeching, mean mom...Sorry about that Jake. Not to mention poor Aaron-even when he was calling on the phone on the way from school to work I was only half listening...Sadie was no where to be found, (which is never a good thing) and I was yelling from another room to have Jake find her...all while talking to Aaron on the phone for a few minutes of the 24 hours we exist at home with out him. Nice job Carrie!...Sorry Aaron...(that talking in 3rd person was a joke, I swear.)

What is the point of this post? Why am I rambling on about this? This is a note to self. "It" all does make a BIG difference. "It"being: reading scriptures, praying, homemaking, and going to Church on Sunday. I have been one big ball of grumpiness and I know exactly why. I will read my scriptures and say my prayers. I will get this house in order. I will be nice and not grumpy. And I will be ready and waiting to go to Church on Sunday so I can start the week off on the right foot!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

My Simple Pleasure: Boys Best Friend...

Cocoa is discussing simple pleasures today over at Chocolate on my Cranium, and this is what came to my mind immediately...



It brings me simply pleasure watching Jake and Sadie...Dogs can even make homework better. :)

Brain Declutter...

*I am not ready to put away my Valentine dishes. I don't think I will. We were too busy using them for me to put them in the cabinet, so now we can enjoy them. Don't they look pretty? Don't you love my stack of paper plates? It really dresses up the cabinet. :)

*We had chicken and Pasta Roni Fettuccine Alfredo (fancy I know...I didn't feel like really cooking and this is always a hit at our house). Jake said something about it (can't remember what), but couldn't remember what it was called. He called it some funny name that we swore we would remember forever and we would now call it that...only I already forgot what he called it...It was just last night!!! See how important it is to blog and hold on to those memories?! Maybe Aaron will remember...

*It always bugs me when I look at my blog or other peoples and it says "1 comments". Not that I am perfect in my writing skills, but that just bugs me that the computers can do so much but not drop the "s" until there really is a need for it...Strange the things that bug me. I always comment on peoples blogs when it says that so it won't any more. Plus I always have some thing to say any way... :)

*Do you like garlic? If you do you MUST try these roasted garlic Triscuits. They are seriously delicious.

*I am a big fan of Clorox wipes. They make my life so much easier. Especially right now. Our little Pee-paw is trying really hard to make it to the door when she has to go...Sadly several times a day that is as far as Sadie makes it. By the back door I have a roll of paper towels and Clorox wipes that I use several (hundred) times a day...At least it is tile and not carpet...

*This is Aaron getting ready to take a snooze. He is not sleeping-he hid his face. I told you he is a P.T.P.P (picture taking party pooper)

*I made my bed this morning. :) I know that a lot of people do that every day, but when I get out of bed, Aaron is getting home from work to get into bed. This morning (last night was one of his nights at home) I actually made it. And then I took a picture of it because it made me so happy. My body pillow also makes me so happy. It takes up the space in bed that Aaron usually would, and it is cute too. So glad that I snapped the picture before realizing that the can of Diet, Caffeine Free, Dr. Pepper that Jake drank while hanging out in our bed when he was sick and his stomach hurt...That means it has been there a week...I think I will pick that up today!


*I have come to the conclusion that people who talk in 3rd person are egotistical. I have no scientific proof to back this up, but everyone I know who does it really loves themselves A LOT...Just saying. I told Aaron this and now he is doing it just to annoy me. Thanks Aaron! :)

*I love Jake's door. I want to decorate every door in our house to show the personality of the person that inhabits its space.

*I also love the difference it makes when you put your personality up on the wall. This is Jake's homework station. It is usually cluttered. But, I don't notice the clutter as much since I put the pictures up above it...Or maybe it is because the rest of the house is all cluttered too.

*I had lunch with Jake yesterday at school and listened to one of his "friends" lie like crazy. Everything we talked about he had an outrageous story to go with it. For example, Jake was talking about his new puppy and this boy said he had 12 puppies but now they are dead because the big adult dog ate them all and his father has it on video...I asked why they would video tape it and not stop it. More lies followed and I just chuckled and told him I didn't believe him. Really I wanted to say you are a crazy little person...And I don't mean good crazy either....

*No matter how many toys Sadie has, her favorite still seems to be Jake's flip flops...Where does she find them?

*Whoever invented these should win the Noble Peace Prize...My hands thank you.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Wordful Wednesday: Beauty

Over at Chocolate on my Cranium, Cocoa and friends are discussing beauty. The first thing that popped into my mind was the words from an amazing hymn. "There is beauty all around, when there's love at home..." After yesterdays stress this is a perfect subject for me think about. I really am blessed with beauty all around me. Here is some of the beauty that I have enjoyed in my home lately...

*The beauty of our four legged friends and the joy they bring into our lives. I have loved, loved, loved, watching Jake and his new best friend play and cuddle. They adore each other and I adore them! There is beauty in having a best friend that will never judge you, will love you unconditionally, and will keep all your secrets.


*The beauty of an epiphany while reading the Ensign...In the article "His Grace is Sufficient", Kimberlee B. Grant wrote: "When it comes right down to it, I don't hate myself, but Satan does hate me and will use every tactic available to turn me away from the light." Yesterday Satan wanted me to look around me and see my shortcomings and feel guilty. It worked...almost. I decided to enjoy the beauty outside and let the mess wait another day. I can honestly say I feel no guilt in spending time outside with Jake and Sadie. And guess what? This morning went much smoother and the house is getting cleaned today. I think I fought a battle with Satan all day and came out with the upper hand. Go Me!

*The beauty of celebrating love! We had an amazing week leading up to Valentine's day remembering why we love each other....

We even celebrated by having a beautiful meal of lobster tails, Martinelli's sparkling cider, and baked potatoes. Aaron had gotten a $25 gift certificate to a grocery store in our area (not Bi-Lo) from work at Christmas time and decided to save it for a splurge. There is definitely beauty in sitting at the table and having a delicious meal with your family. I love that Jake only had his undershirt on for our fancy meal. :)

*The beauty of the earth. One day last fall I went outside and enjoyed snapping a few pictures of the beauty of Fall, my favorite season (though Spring is a close second with the wonderful weather we have enjoyed the past couple of days...). I love the color of the leaves against the still green grass. I love the smells, I love the brisk wind. I love this beautiful Earth in the fall...I am going to have to do the same thing and snap some pictures of Spring.





*The beauty of sleep...
Aaron how is it that you spend 5 nights a week up all night and still function during the day? Sadie spent 3 nights last week crying off and on...Which meant I only slept off and on...I was a mess. I find it much more hard to find beauty in my life when I haven't had a good nights sleep.
How do you do it? Thank you for doing it...

I could go on and on, but the messy house isn't cleaning itself (unfortunately!). Thanks yet again Cocoa for making me start the day off by thinking about how good life really is!

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

The story of my life...Rambling and Venting on just a few of today's highlights...

Today went something like this:

Wake up, hurry let Sadie out before she pees!...Can't resist playing with her...OH NO! We have 10 minutes to get ready for school!!!! Get dressed while I pack your lunch, Carnation instant breakfast on the way, bye Daddy/Aaron see you tomorrow (guilt set in)...AHHH! We forgot to pick out your favorite poem to bring to school...grab the Feb. Ensign (after leaving the house and coming back to figure something out...) and rip out the awesome poem (which is now Jake's favorite) about the Atonement and call it good (and it is really good, so go read it if you haven't already...I have some catching up to do on that too...Haven't finished Feb. -what I have read really made me think...more on that another time.. and March came in the mail today!...Is it really March next week?!?) . Back to the car, Jake-I really hope you aren't tardy (luckily I thought of that before leaving the house the first time and put a bra on just in case I had to sign him in...)! Sweet we made it (barley)! As much as I love that you blow me kisses, do the sign language "I love you", and wave I am really hoping you will walk quickly to the door!!!! I didn't say that to him...I just quickly returned all 3 and motioned for him to hurry...Phew...Now back to the messy house and the first day Sadie will have to stay in the crate for the whole 5 hours I will be at work...And this after she slept in it all night! Guilt sets in. Take her on a quick walk, 1 loop tires out an 8 week old puppy (she is 8 weeks today!), and play with her until she is tired. Jump in the shower and pull a head full of wet hair into a pony tail and go to work...

Needless to say I didn't walk into work my normal bubbly self. It was a break to walk in the door and wait for customers! I told the other cashiers I was grumpy and mean today and they laughed and told me that they didn't believe I could be grumpy and mean. That made me feel better until I realized how sad it is that acquaintances get my best behavior and I save grumpy for my family...Guilt sets in...

After work (where I thought all day about how much our house looked like someone either broke in or a tornado went through...I dreaded going home...), and picking up Jake from school we came home and rescued Pee-Paw (one of Sadie's nicknames since she walked through her own pee once and I told Jake "Grab her quick! She just peed on the floor and has Pee-Paw!!!) and we decided to stay outside...Jake did his homework on the table on the patio (for the second day in a row) and I read Anne of Green Gables from Aaron's Kindle (I want one...some day...). We watched Sadie play and played with her...We enjoyed the beautiful weather and for a little while I didn't care that the house is in complete disarray...Until I walked back in it (guilt sets in)
...Maybe if I close my eyes I can navigate to the kitchen with out burning the vision of stuff every where into my brain...To the library, back home to make ramen noodles (this is my single mom day-Aaron is gone to school/work and we won't see him for 24 hours so noodle ramen it is!) to eat on the way to b-ball practice, run to Bi-Lo during his practice (I told another mom there and she has my cell #...) because I forgot to bring my coupons to work that would enable me to get 2 jugs of laundry detergent (on a BOGO sale that ends today of course) for a mere $2.99. Not a piece-for both of them...AWESOME deal!...Back to practice, chat, home and get Jake in bed, make sure we focus in the morning so that Jake can do his response, on the new book he got from the library, before leaving for school in the morning...And the house is still horrible. Oh well, it will still be there tomorrow and I have the day off! Overhaul tomorrow will be a piece of cake. Instead of cleaning tonight I need to check in on the blog world-I haven't even thought about it since Thursday...You miss a lot of good posts in 5 days! ....I just got pee-foot...Awesome (sarcasm, in case you didn't know)...Sadie is sleeping soundly but not before she could pee with out me noticing it. And why did I get up in the middle of a post? Because I heard them say on the TV (the mom from b-ball practice said they only have 4 TV's...huh?...only?) that is on in the other room, that Justin Beiber cut his hair and for some reason I had to see it...Why? I am not sure, and he looks the same to me (I don't have Beiber fever or anything but the previews for his movie actually look good... What does that say about me?...). And that is the story of my life! Rushing, being unprepared and puppy pee (by the way not complaining here-she is so worth the pee)....Awesome. Tomorrow will be better and I will now stop venting and rambling and go to bed. I will put my blinders on and not look at the counter where there are all sorts of things needing to be taken care of. One of which is the pepper I spilled, but didn't have time to clean up before basketball. Guilt sets in...It will be there tomorrow. The mess and the guilt, but it will be better. :) Aaron will be home...

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Highs and Lows



High: Finally have a puppy!
Low: They pee on the floor...But she is doing really good. I have caught her starting to pee a couple of times picked her up, and she stopped and finished outside...

High: The floor is cleaner than ever before!...(in the process at least)
Low: ...because ever bit of paper or dust bunny becomes a tasty nugget for a puppy.

High: I was supposed to work today and I didn't have too.
Low: I didn't have to, because my sweet Jake is sick. Fever and snotty nose and all. Oh joy...

High: Puffs plus with lotion tissues are the best.
Low: We have been through 2 boxes in the past 2 days and there where mountains of them on every surface Jake was close too.

High: Airborne has helped me not get sick in the past and I am chugging it right now....
Low: It is almost gone and going to the store loses all it appeal when Jake is sick.

High: Sadie (the peeing puppy) is finally snoozing! She has been playing all morning..
Low: Time to stop blogging and get some dust bunnies taken care of while she is asleep...sigh. And of course cuddle a sick boy and hope not to get sick in the process...Days off aren't really days off when you are a mommy...But I wouldn't have it any other way!

Have a great day!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

What did we get for Valentine's Day?

For Valentine's Day I gave Jake and Aaron this:

Aaron gave me this:

Turns out Aaron has been checking the papers looking for a lab puppy for quite some time. I don't know if you can read it. If you can't it is ads for lab puppies for sale. If you can read it, NO we didn't not spend $350 on an AKC lab-not even close! Just the cost of a pound puppy. Aaron told me to call. I did....After 11 months (today) of a dog-less home we would like to introduce you to Sadie:

Sadie is 7 weeks old today and she is a genius. :) After driving only a few exits down the road she started to whine. We stopped and she got out and peed. Jake thinks she is already potty trained. I think (know) he is wrong, but here's to positive thinking! She LOVES Jake already. She really loves chasing him. :)

We gave her a bath. (I can almost hear you going ahhhh...) She looks a lot like Emily, just a little shorter ears...

Look how pretty the sky was on the way to....

...Pet's Mart! We needed food and a puppy collar (we still have Daisy and Emily's old ones so she can wear them as she gets bigger.), and we couldn't bare to leave her alone yet. The food was only $1 more for the bag than at Bi-Lo so we figured it was worth it to not traumatize her right when she got home. :)

Is Sadie adorable or what?!? Thanks Norb and Elizabeth for letting us borrow your dog crate! :)...I will get back around to our awesome Valentine's day feast another time, for now here is another sweet puppy picture. And they say dogs don't smile....I am pretty sure she is smiling. We are. Can't wait for you to get home in the morning to meet her Aaron! Hopefully I will have gotten some sleep... :)

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Day 4, 5, 6, and 7 of Our Week Of Love...We are busy people...

I haven't gotten on the computer, except to check and see if the parent in Jake's class that was supposed to bring the cupcakes on V-day is going to...They aren't...Which means I am the lucky one that gets to bring them, and you can't bring any anything homemade...Huh?!? I know right. Times they are a changin' people-I had to buy 36 cupcakes (there are only 28 kiddos...only!..but you can't buy 28. I had to buy 24 and another 12 so that they would match. The pack of 6 didn't match...I am the class mom and will NOT be buying anything else for the rest of the school year. Slacker parents...), not cheap!...That is me venting...Sorry. Here is the rest of our uneventful week of love that I totally lost steam midway through...
Day 4: We had our friends over and made some yummy homemade heart shaped pizzas! It was so much fun! I was in need of a girls night and Jake needed a play date so it worked out great. Poor Aaron had one of his long school to work days...We missed you!

Erin and Abby
My well loved cookie sheets with our heart shaped crust.
Jake, Griffin and Abby...This was about 20 minutes before Jake started to not feel so hot...Sorry for the poor picture quality. The prayer had been said and they were ready to eat, another shot was not going to happen...

Day 5: Leftovers and hugs and kisses. This after Jake stayed home from school...He had a stomach thing...kind of. I know he wasn't feeling well but he may have faked it a little to stay home....I had to go to work (I usually only work while Jake is at school-this would be one of those times when he should have been...) and felt GUILTY. Aaron was there of course but he had just gotten home from 36 hours of no sleep so he hit the sack...If Jake had been throwing up and stuff I wouldn't have gone...but I still felt guilty. When I came home Aaron told me that I shouldn't have worried. About 30 minutes after I left Jake made a remarkable recovery and made enough noise that Aaron knew he was feeling okay. :) But he still had to stay in bed. Jake, when you fake sick and stay home, that is one less fun day off we can take on random dude! I don't believe in the whole try not to miss a day of school and you will get a little certificate at the end of the year. That is just called not having fun parents. :) No offense if you are into not missing any school...I would love to miss every day of it!!!! Enough rambling...
...Still surprised that Jake hasn't written any love notes!!!! He usually loves this kind of thing.

Day 6: I worked until 7 (boo! Holiday weekends are all hands on deck...People grocery shop like crazy for any occasion!), so Jake and Aaron had frozen pizza and probably played video games and watched TV most of the day. Oh that's right they did both do homework and Jake had a b-ball game that he scored several shots in. Good job dude! When I got home I was greeted with love and we ended the evening watching a new show called: Only in America (or something like that) with Larry the Cable Guy as the host. Can you say FUNNY?!? Watch it, you will love it. He goes around the country and learns about different traditions that are celebrated in different areas. It was educational (the one we watched was about how boot legging lead to Nascar in GA, Mark Twain wrote about a frog jumping competition in CA, and etiquette in VT-was the lady who wrote that book a long time ago named Post? Okay so maybe I didn't retain all that I learned, but it was great!), and HYSTERICAL at the same time!

Day 7: Finally a love note for me and Daddy from Jake! Aaron and Jake got their favorite hot cocoa (land-o-lakes makes the BEST) in their boxes too. It was Jake's favorite meal today and I forgot to take a picture of his happy face eating it off our fun heart shaped plates (I found at Walmart for $1)...Jake LOVES creamy crock pot chicken so that is what I made. I kind of forgot about the homemade rolls so I will have to make those tomorrow with our extra special Valentine day celebration of love!!!!! Even though our week of love was rather uneventful at the end of the week tomorrow I will make up for it!!!!

Thursday, February 10, 2011

This weeks Highs and Lows...




Have you checked out the awesome blog Memoirs of Mrs. Harris ? You need to if you want an awesome take on the highs and lows of life and motherhood. When she decided to link up and see what other peoples highs and lows were for the week I had to do it! Here are my highs and lows for the week...

High: We had an awesome play date today that made me clean up the piles of stuff...
Low: Jake was a witness to me "stuffing away the stuff"...His bottom drawer of his dresser is refilled with all the clothes he out grew that I just took out of it...and several other random things I didn't have time to find a home for. To this he said something like "what did you do with my mommy? That was a kid thing to do!"

High: This play date was for me and Jake. Erin is a great friend of mine and her son is a great friend to Jake.
Low: Did we just contaminate our friends with sick germs...(you will see why I say this next...)

High: We made heart shaped home made pizza's to continue our love week.
Low: Almost immediately after eating it Jake was in tears with a stomach ache. I don't think it was the pizza, the rest of us are fine. The stomach bug is making its rounds at school and it may have just found its way into our house.

High: Penny and Pooha (in-laws dogs we are puppy sitting) are SO fun to have around! Our home is in need of a dog bad.
Low: Unfortunately we don't know Pooha's (she is an older dog), "I really have to go pee you crazy humans! Let me out NOW" face because the poor thing tinkled in Jake's room while I was getting him settled with a puke bucket by the bed, just in case...

High: My legs are recovering from my exercising the past couple of days.
Low: The reason they are recovering is because I didn't exercise today...

High: Monday is Valentine's Day and Aaron doesn't have school or work!
Low: Since Valentine's Day is Monday and grocery stores are busy for ever holiday imaginable, I have to work from 10:30-7 (might as well say the best part of the day...I hardly ever have to work any time other than when Jake is in school...) on Saturday. I am missing Jakes' b-ball game...bummer!

High: It snowed last night and already melted with no ice problems at all!
Low: It didn't snow enough to give us the chance to have a fun PJ day off...maybe next time..

Do you have highs and lows from the week you want to share? Come on people venting always make you feel better!

Day 3 of Our Week of Love...and it snowed I think...

Last night we had Aaron's favorite meal: homemade lasagna....

Aaron is a P.T.P.P (picture taking party pooper) on most occasions. I am just glad that he decided to act crazy for this picture rather than ignoring the camera completely like he usually does...
Yummmmm..

I love the old school doily (that is how spell check said to spell it...) hearts so much I had to put some up in the front windows of the house. The shade not going all the way up is driving me a little crazy..

The real reason I went outside was to take a picture of what appeared to be the snow we were told we were going to get. Depending on where you get your information we were told we would get any where from nothing all the way to 3 to 4 inches...This was pretty much nothing. But it was enough that Jake got to stare at the snow that covered the window on the roof of the car as we drove to school, which I thought of taking a picture of but it was already melted. And in some places you could actually tell it was snow. :) Hold on Winter don't give up yet!

I got a love note yesterday. Thanks Aaron for the sweet note. And to your P.S.-yes I will finish the Thomas Jefferson Education book so you can read it soon I swear! :)

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Wordful Wednesday: Random acts of kindness

I have so many acts of kindness that come to mind, so this one may sound silly but I still think about it often. It reminds me that things you don't even think twice about doing may be a random act of kindness that you didn't even know you did!
When my son was born I had a number of friends from church bring in meals. It was amazing to be taken care of by my sisters, but one part of one meal still sticks out in my mind. I am not even sure what the main course was, but I remember that along with it came a mason jar of home grown green beans. I knew how hard this family worked together to grow their garden. I knew how much joy they had spending time canning it together. I knew all the love that was put into this jar of green beans. For some reason this family giving me that mason jar of green beans they labored over really touched me. They were the best green beans that I have every had. Maybe it was the hormones from just giving birth...I think it was the Spirit touching my heart and reminding me that simple things can change the way a person feels. I have kept that in mind and because of it have been touched by the Spirit to give small and simple acts of kindness that I would have other wise probably not even thought twice about actually doing. Sometimes the simplest acts of kindness come from something you don't even know you did. Things that you don't even think about can be exactly what someone needs.

I just thought of something else! Jake loves to help people in the grocery store parking lot by putting up their shopping cart for them. I have witnessed many faces warm with a smile at this simple and random act of kindness. A smile on the strangers face, Jake's face, and of course mine. :) I think these little acts of kindness really are contagious because you can't help but feel better when someone serves you...It is the whole "pay it forward" phenomenon.

Read about other peoples random acts of kindness here at Chocolate on my Cranium

Wordless Wednesday...Day 2 Of Our Week Of Love







Check out other peoples Wordless Wednesday here.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Our Week of Love: Day 1

This week I am making everyone's favorite meals. I guess I got mine last night! We splurged. We went out to dinner. Don't get me wrong we occasionally hit the Taco Bell drive through, but going out to dinner almost never happens. The last time we went to a sit down restaurant was last summer when we went to IHOP with the Powell's (Jake and I). The last time we all went to a sit down restaurant together was when Nee and Papa got their mission call and we took Papa out to celebrate (Nee was in Uruguay with the Powell's. We opened the mission call on speaker phone...you can see that post here.), and went to Chilli's. That was over a year ago! Last night we went to Olive Garden-one of my favorite restaurants. I had a coupon. (Did you even know Olive Garden had coupons? I got it out of the newspaper.) It was for $4 off....But it is still expensive and I admit I felt a little guilty, but once a year it is okay right? It was a fun splurge to start off our week of love leading up to Valentine's day. Jake watched as a couple left their table and said: "You mean we just leave our plates on the table and they come and clean it off?"...See what I mean by never going out to dinner? We spent the whole afternoon out, again something we NEVER do.Aaron and I both needed new sneakers. It is so hard to buy things like shoes for us. If Jake needs them okay, but we need to really need them to break down and get them. We also made a Target run and got tissues (it turns out Jake takes after me and is allergic to long haired dogs...), and a few things of that nature. We spent time together-the whole afternoon! We lived a little. :) Usually our afternoons consist of homework (Aaron and Jake's) that takes forever (Jake is not a fan...7 hours at school...I don't blame him!), cleaning, cooking, etc. It was a fun way to start the week off. Will it happen again? Not for a LONG time. Maybe when Nee and Papa get back from their mission in August. :) It was not the Family Home Evening I had planned but it was amazing. At dinner we wondered how many of the people in Olive Garden went out to dinner every night...Probably a lot! We made lists of places we would each want to go out to eat if we were rich. It was pretty fun to think of, but what a waste of money going out to eat all the time must be! It is much more fun when it is a treat that only happens...once or twice a year I guess! :) At Target I got my guys a little 1st day of a week of love treat...

Here is part of our new tradition for a week of love....(That we were to busy to even look in this morning since we had to finish some homework that didn't happen last night. Plus the guys didn't know about it since we didn't get to have the planned FHE last night...That is why my mailbox's flag isn't up.) We are going to write little love notes to each other every day this week. I just stuck a kiss and a little post it note folded in half that has something I love about each of my guys inside. Aaron will have to check his tomorrow since today is his school/work day. (We won't see him until tomorrow morning and he left this morning...).




For anyone who is wondering, I got these cute little mail boxes at Target for $1 a piece. I love a deal. :)

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Schedule revamp and Aaron...

Another week over...another one beginning. The cycle sometimes seems monotonous: wake up, hurry, feed, hurry, clean, hurry, work, hurry, study, hurry...You know the never ending cycle right? I love being a mom. I love being a wife. I loved being an organized homemaker. Loved because I am not that now and feel like I haven't been for months (Aaron would probably say years, but he better not). My main problem is that I had a cleaning schedule that worked pretty well, but then when our life changed (Aaron-in school again and working 3rd shift, and me working part time outside the home for the first time since before Jake was born), I refused to change the schedule. Over a year later and Aaron saying (on numerous occasions), I can't take it any more, I am agreeing that neither can I! When we say we can't take it anymore we are referring to: not a pair of clean socks in the house, dinner?...what time is it?, no there isn't any gas in the car, why do I always wait until the last minute?, where is-fill in the blank depending on the day (for example tonight it was the stapler...where does a stapler end up if not on the desk?)? I am pulling my hair out! My old schedule is impossible to follow since I am not here to do it and it is time for me to give up on it and make a new one! Duh, right? Smarter people wouldn't have taken a year to figure that out...This is a new week and a new schedule....That I am going to come up with before my head hits the pillow tonight!!!! Sorry for the rambling...

This past week,I am sad to say was NOT spent: studying the scriptures, eating right, exercising, keeping on top of my cleaning schedule, or making good use of time in general. But, we DID have family home evening...Yippee, for accomplishing one thing...Oh yeah, I did manage to get Jake almost a whole new wardrobe (he likes to grow in the middle of winter. When I say grow, I mean he wakes up and nothing fits...THANK YOU TARGET FOR YOUR CLEARANCE!), for not much money. I also saved tons of $$$ with my awesome coupon skills too. And the house was clean for almost one whole day...except laundry in our room. Never mind, scratch that off the list, the whole house was never clean all at once. Oh well.

This week can only get better since I was so slack last week, right?! Family Home Evening is planned and tomorrow we are starting a brand new tradition I am calling: "A Week Of Love", as we lead up to Valentine's day. We need a week of love and appreciation for each other! We kind of started today with a "Daddy Appreciation Day". Aaron was too tired to make it to church today (I am not sure how he functions...Thurs. through Mon. he gets only a few short hours of sleep when he gets home at 7am. He only has Mon. and Wed. nights off and he goes to school all day Tues. and Thurs., so the end of the week is the long sleepless part...) because he had to catch up on some much needed z's. When we got home from church, Jake and I cleaned up the living room (so we could hang out in it stress free) before Aaron woke up. We then spent the afternoon bringing him things he needed and taking care of him. What did he think of this? He asked me "What did you guys do? Did you break something?" :) We obviously need to do a better job of showing our appreciation on a more regular basis. What started Daddy appreciation day was when Jake and I were at church. Jake said "Mommy will you bare your testimony? You really should." I sat and thought about it. When was the last time I bore my testimony? I couldn't remember...Sad, I know. So, I did. I needed it. Jake needed to hear it. I felt a weight lift off my shoulders as I realized (again) in our crazy, hectic life I had a testimony of how mindful Heavenly Father is of my little family. How Jesus Christ atoned for me and everyone. How my husband sacrifices sleeping and a normal life in general because he loves us. Aaron takes his responsibility of caring for and providing for our family very seriously. I know that the only way we have made it through this year, and we will make it through the next, is because we know what we are doing right now, is what we need to be doing. Is it fun? Nope. Is it easy? Not at all. Am I handling it the best I can? Not even close. But, when I think of what Aaron sacrifices for Jake and me I can't help but want to do better. Is this where we thought we would be 13 1/2 years into marriage and back in school? NO. We are going to be stronger for it. I am even more thankful for my awesome husband than I ever was before. He amazes me every day. I can't keep up with the laundry, but he can ace all his classes (he is a math major people!!!) on little, to no sleep? I can and will do better. It feels good just to make the declaration. Now I just have to do it!!!

While I was laying on the coach being a lazy bones today and drifting off into my much loved Sunday afternoon nap. I caught a bit of Aaron and Jake's conversation. It went something like this: Aaron "So why are you being extra nice to me today Jake?" Jake: "Because we appreciate you. Especially Mommy. She REALLY appreciates you. She bore her testimony and talked about it today." :) I will be a better home maker again. I may not be a home maker full time, but life is so much better when I don't make it so obvious that I am not. Here's to a new week! Here is too a husband who works hard for his family! Aaron will probably get a chance to read this some time in the middle of the night when he has a little down time so Thank you Aaron. We love and appreciate everything you do for us. I love you more than you know. You are my hero. :)

And just because I love pictures...
Jake and Aaron with all our lovely Super Bowl snacks on our cocoa table (isn't it so cool? I saw it at the store and loved how it looked-Aaron realized it pulled up into a table and was sold on it). Smoothies (one healthy thing), pigs in a blanket, cheese sticks, pizza rolls...This is the first year in as long as I can remember that we haven't thrown/gone to a Super Bowl party. (I ended up having Primary leadership training with the stake leaders tonight before Aaron went to work any way.)


This picture?...Nothing to do with what I talked about...just because I love this face! We were sitting and playing with Legos today while Aaron tried to catch an afternoon power nap and Jake just looked so cute in his "lumberjack shirt" as he calls it. It does have something to do with what I was talking about! This is one of the new shirts from Targets clearance rack, it was only $3.98. :)..Notice the full laundry basket in the background...and who knows what is in that grocery bag. Oh I know, it was little trinkets that we were going to trade in at geo-cashing spots when Tina and the kiddos where here...3 weeks ago? That bag stayed on there even when we rearranged Jake's room. Oh yeah add that to the list of things I did accomplish....priorities: laundry or rearranging furniture...hmmm. I may have made a wrong choice there...But Jake's room feels so much bigger now. :)