I've been sick for over a week and am just barely returning to the land of the living, but I had to publish a quick post about a couple of things that seem very worth sharing.
First of all, for those of you in Western, WA, on Tues Dec. 8 and Wed Dec. 9 Kitsap, Pierce and King Co. Papa John's will donate 100% of their profits to the families of the four slain Lakewood police officers. Pizza anyone?
Also, I was just informed by my mother-in-law that a blog, http://adailyscoop.blogspot.com/, is holding an auction now through the 7th for the family of John Jones, the young man who died in the Nutty Putty Caves.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Favorite Things Cont.
Thanks to Keri, Krista, and Kim (must be a K thing) for the great ideas. Here were some of the recommentations:
Clorox wipes (love these already, but will definitely be trying out my boys' bathroom cleaning abilities)
Kirkland brand 600 thread-count sheets (definitely buying these next time)
Umpqua chocolate peanut butter ice cream (never tried this but PB ice cream is my fav!)
Trader Joes easy mac (good to know)
Cricut (what exactly does the cricut do?)
Yoga (has anyone tried the haute yoga ... am I spelling that right?)
BTW, for those of you who are interested, at my Costco, the fresh tortillas use to be located in a wall refrigeration unit just outside the dairy alcove, but are now in a low refrigeration unit in a center isle (with guac, pre-marinated carne asade meat, etc.).
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Lifer Mom's Favorite Things
You know how I alluded to the Oprah's Favorite Things show in one of my recent postings? Well, now I'm actually going to pretend to be important enough to post a few of my own.
Official Disclaimer: I cannot promise that the reading of this post will lead to the taste testing of fine chocolates (unless you make a quick grocery run), nor can I guarantee the discovery of a baby blue goody bag under your computer chair full of posh prizes. I will however give my word not to send copies of LM magazine to your home residence.
As a final note before I begin my monologue, I would LOVE it if you would add some of your own favorites to my list (by means of the "add a comment" link). It is, after all, through many of your recommendations that I found most of my favorites in the first place.
For me, this is a must! Thanks to my dear friend Julianne, I purchased this book about four years ago when my first child was learning to read, and now my third is most of the way through it. It has been so well used that both the back and front covers are MIA and the pages are marked and crumpled, and I don't mind a bit because it just reminds me of how useful it's been. It teaches children to read in a very systematic way (utilizing symbols and repetition), and helps the parent know what to do and say to help them learn. Try it!
Have you tried these? They are amazing. I will honestly never use another tortilla again (with the exception of recipes that call for corn tortillas) , unless forced by gunpoint, or unless Costco stops selling them--in which case I might actually shed tears in the checkout aisle. There really is no comparison to any pre-baked brand I've ever tried.
Okay, so now give it up. What are some of your favorite things??
Official Disclaimer: I cannot promise that the reading of this post will lead to the taste testing of fine chocolates (unless you make a quick grocery run), nor can I guarantee the discovery of a baby blue goody bag under your computer chair full of posh prizes. I will however give my word not to send copies of LM magazine to your home residence.
As a final note before I begin my monologue, I would LOVE it if you would add some of your own favorites to my list (by means of the "add a comment" link). It is, after all, through many of your recommendations that I found most of my favorites in the first place.
Lindt Chocolate Truffles
Steven Covey's, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families
I am typically not a self-help book reader, which is what I imagine this would be classified as. I typically stick to old-english or fantasy genres. My mom, however, loves this type of book and tends to share on occasion. Maybe she's trying to tell me something. Anyway, this book is amazing! Really made me much more aware of my own actions, responses, etc. Teaches principles, not tactics, which makes it very unique and exceptionally worthwhile.
Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons
For me, this is a must! Thanks to my dear friend Julianne, I purchased this book about four years ago when my first child was learning to read, and now my third is most of the way through it. It has been so well used that both the back and front covers are MIA and the pages are marked and crumpled, and I don't mind a bit because it just reminds me of how useful it's been. It teaches children to read in a very systematic way (utilizing symbols and repetition), and helps the parent know what to do and say to help them learn. Try it!Lansinoh Disposable Nursing Pads
I suppose the fact that these are disposable probably does not make them very eco-friendly, but use them anyway. If I could remember who referred them to me I would probably send them a box of chocolates (maybe even my beloved Lindts). After being a soggy mess with my first baby, and experiencing countless embarrassing moments, these were a dream come true for babies 2-4.
Tortilla Land Uncooked Flour Tortillas
Have you tried these? They are amazing. I will honestly never use another tortilla again (with the exception of recipes that call for corn tortillas) , unless forced by gunpoint, or unless Costco stops selling them--in which case I might actually shed tears in the checkout aisle. There really is no comparison to any pre-baked brand I've ever tried.
Okay, so now give it up. What are some of your favorite things??
Monday, October 26, 2009
Monday Madness
I've just been thinking lately, that if I'm going to keep up with this blog, which I would really like to do, I'm going to have to make it a part of my every day life, and not feel like I have to come up with something terribly unique to write about each time (not that I've been doing that:)). So, as I just minutes ago finished an entry in my personal journal, I thought, "why not just put it into my blog as well?" Well, you may have a bunch of reasons why I should not do such a thing, but since I can't hear your feedback at present I'm going to go ahead and post it anyway. My apologies ahead of time if I bore you to death.
Here it goes ...
It’s about 10:00 am on a Monday and I have been in tears most of the morning. It has been, as always seems to be the case, a couple of very busy weeks. We have had birthdays, baptisms, Halloween events, Sunday dinners and just a hundred other things. Wow, it is really hard to keep up with life!
So this morning I was just very worn down from all of the fun and exciting things we’ve been doing for the past several weeks. I was in a rush to get M and B out the door to ballet and then the dentist, the kitchen sink was still piled high with dishes from last night’s dinner with the extended fam, a mountain of laundry was (and still is) growing upstairs, and I was very quickly losing my patience with Mae and what particular hair style she wanted for the day. So in my rush to get to ballet (already late) I somehow managed to destroy the garage door. I don’t know exactly what happened (if the pull cord got stuck in the car door or what), but somehow the door was part way down when I went to pull out and I backed right into it and pushed it out and off the track. AAAAHHHH.
Well, I immediately burst into tears, got Mae and Brooks out of the car, and called to tell Kevin what happened (actually I had to leave him a message). Anyhow, I couldn’t help but think what an idiot I was for letting this happen, and, of course, this made me reflect on all the million of other idiotic things I do and say all the time and what a horrible mother I am and how I can’t do all of this, etc., etc., etc. A full out pity party really. Finally I managed to calm down a little, call the dentist to reschedule (because my car is trapped into a partly open, partly closed garage), do the dishes, and then sit down in the office. I decided I should probably take a minute to pray and read my scriptures.
So, now to the point of my entry … I read the final couple of chapters in 2 Nephi (from the Book of Mormon) , both of which I really enjoyed (a lot about the scriptures and the Holy Ghost) and eventually came to ch. 33 vs. 11 where it says, “I have been commanded of him to write these things, notwithstanding my weakness.” So, of course, it is Nephi speaking, and by his “weakness” he’s primarily referring to his weakness in writing (although I doubt it’s limited to this). I couldn’t help but think though that the same is true of me (all of us really).
The Lord knows that I can be an idiot. He knows I am sometimes scatterbrained. He knows I lose things easily. He knows I have a newly formed habit of burning meals. He knows patience with children does not come easily to me. He knows I get overwhelmed and down on myself frequently. But regardless, He has called me to do the things I’m currently trying to do. He actually wanted me to mother these children He’s blessed me with (poor things) … it was not accidental. He wants me to teach my wonderful class of teenagers at church. He wants me to be involved with people in the community and school. Notwithstanding my own weaknesses He has still called me to do this work. And if I’m good enough for Him then I guess I should be good enough for myself as well.
Here it goes ...
It’s about 10:00 am on a Monday and I have been in tears most of the morning. It has been, as always seems to be the case, a couple of very busy weeks. We have had birthdays, baptisms, Halloween events, Sunday dinners and just a hundred other things. Wow, it is really hard to keep up with life!
So this morning I was just very worn down from all of the fun and exciting things we’ve been doing for the past several weeks. I was in a rush to get M and B out the door to ballet and then the dentist, the kitchen sink was still piled high with dishes from last night’s dinner with the extended fam, a mountain of laundry was (and still is) growing upstairs, and I was very quickly losing my patience with Mae and what particular hair style she wanted for the day. So in my rush to get to ballet (already late) I somehow managed to destroy the garage door. I don’t know exactly what happened (if the pull cord got stuck in the car door or what), but somehow the door was part way down when I went to pull out and I backed right into it and pushed it out and off the track. AAAAHHHH.
Well, I immediately burst into tears, got Mae and Brooks out of the car, and called to tell Kevin what happened (actually I had to leave him a message). Anyhow, I couldn’t help but think what an idiot I was for letting this happen, and, of course, this made me reflect on all the million of other idiotic things I do and say all the time and what a horrible mother I am and how I can’t do all of this, etc., etc., etc. A full out pity party really. Finally I managed to calm down a little, call the dentist to reschedule (because my car is trapped into a partly open, partly closed garage), do the dishes, and then sit down in the office. I decided I should probably take a minute to pray and read my scriptures.
So, now to the point of my entry … I read the final couple of chapters in 2 Nephi (from the Book of Mormon) , both of which I really enjoyed (a lot about the scriptures and the Holy Ghost) and eventually came to ch. 33 vs. 11 where it says, “I have been commanded of him to write these things, notwithstanding my weakness.” So, of course, it is Nephi speaking, and by his “weakness” he’s primarily referring to his weakness in writing (although I doubt it’s limited to this). I couldn’t help but think though that the same is true of me (all of us really).
The Lord knows that I can be an idiot. He knows I am sometimes scatterbrained. He knows I lose things easily. He knows I have a newly formed habit of burning meals. He knows patience with children does not come easily to me. He knows I get overwhelmed and down on myself frequently. But regardless, He has called me to do the things I’m currently trying to do. He actually wanted me to mother these children He’s blessed me with (poor things) … it was not accidental. He wants me to teach my wonderful class of teenagers at church. He wants me to be involved with people in the community and school. Notwithstanding my own weaknesses He has still called me to do this work. And if I’m good enough for Him then I guess I should be good enough for myself as well.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Typo Alert
An out-of-place "the" has sneakily entered my previous posting. I noticed it just a second ago, but it now seems to have gone into hiding. Not that you don't have anything better to do today than search for delinquent vocabulary, but if anyone finds it please let me know. I hate typos; although, just in my own writing, so please don't go and block me from all your wonderful blogs.
With much appreciation,
PWJ (Psychotic Word Junkie)
With much appreciation,
PWJ (Psychotic Word Junkie)
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Nie Nie
I have to say, I am not an Oprah watcher. I do find simple amusement in witnessing large groups of grown women jump up and down twice a year over a variety of posh items that they will be taking home with them in crisp trendy bags as much as the next gal (if I sound sarcastic here, I'm pretty sure it's just jealousy), but I just don't watch it. I have in the past and possibly will in the future, but at present my family seems to thrive more when I leave the the cable off as much as possible, and leave it to wash over someone else's family. The Oprah show, with all its clout, is no exception.
However, I was recently shown a recorded clip from one of last week's episodes and my life will forever be changed because of it. Many of you likely saw, or have heard from somebody else who saw, the segment with Stephanie Aurora Clark Nielson (long name, I know, but I didn't want to discredit her by shortening it), a fellow "lifer mom" with an insightful point of view on every aspect of living. For those of you who haven't heard or seen, Stephanie (or Nie Nie as she calls herself) is an amazingly delightful person (or at least she seems that way, and I'm convinced that what she seems to be is exactly what she is), and not because she is a burn victim who survived to tell of her experiences from a small airplane crash about a year ago. She is delightful because her view on life before it was almost taken from her suddenly, was just as refreshing and inspiring as her viewpoint now.
She happens to have a wonderful blog, started long before her accident, that she continues to share. Below are a few comments posted (I believe back in 2007) about her own mother. Sorry for not referencing it exactly (date, title, etc) but I sort of stumbled upon it and can't seem to repeat the same stroke of genius twice. The whole blog is definitely worth reading.
"In short, my mother survived because she was smart enough to see that a little bit of quiet time for her, made for a lot of personal time for us. If she fed herself, she would have enough energy to feed us. Her sacrifice came from giving up pride in the holy mother quest. And she didn't wear motherhood like it was Sainthood–she wore it like a smart pair of Nine West shoes."
Visit her blog at http://nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/
So worth it!
However, I was recently shown a recorded clip from one of last week's episodes and my life will forever be changed because of it. Many of you likely saw, or have heard from somebody else who saw, the segment with Stephanie Aurora Clark Nielson (long name, I know, but I didn't want to discredit her by shortening it), a fellow "lifer mom" with an insightful point of view on every aspect of living. For those of you who haven't heard or seen, Stephanie (or Nie Nie as she calls herself) is an amazingly delightful person (or at least she seems that way, and I'm convinced that what she seems to be is exactly what she is), and not because she is a burn victim who survived to tell of her experiences from a small airplane crash about a year ago. She is delightful because her view on life before it was almost taken from her suddenly, was just as refreshing and inspiring as her viewpoint now.
She happens to have a wonderful blog, started long before her accident, that she continues to share. Below are a few comments posted (I believe back in 2007) about her own mother. Sorry for not referencing it exactly (date, title, etc) but I sort of stumbled upon it and can't seem to repeat the same stroke of genius twice. The whole blog is definitely worth reading.
"In short, my mother survived because she was smart enough to see that a little bit of quiet time for her, made for a lot of personal time for us. If she fed herself, she would have enough energy to feed us. Her sacrifice came from giving up pride in the holy mother quest. And she didn't wear motherhood like it was Sainthood–she wore it like a smart pair of Nine West shoes."
Visit her blog at http://nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/
So worth it!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Calm and Consistent
A few months ago I helped to supervise a youth activity where a "ropes course" was the primary focus of a two-day event. It was an experience unlike any other I've ever participated in. We were split up into groups and then asked to do some very specific things in the outdoors that we would never find ourselves doing in everyday life: get our entire group (with a weight range between 100 and 250 lbs) over what was essentially an organic 10-foot high pull-up bar; think of how to relocate each individual member of the group through very narrow openings in a super-sized "spider web" (never using the same opening more than once); transport each group member plus a bucketfull of water from one small wooden platform to another (twenty feet away) with the use of a rope swing--oh, and without spilling a drop of water; and many other feats of a similar nature. It was exciting to see what the human body and mind are actually capable of when tested, but it was also exhausting, both physically and mentally.
Okay so why am I bringing this up? Well, I happened to learn many valuable experiences from this course, but one in particular. Whenever we didn't follow the rules exactly as we were supposed to, or accidentally missed the mark, or got a little too talkative, we were given "handicaps" by our facilitator (the no-nonsense educational psychologist in a green stalking hat and worn-out hiking boots). Now, I don't know if he was getting a headache that day or just plain sick of our chatter, but our first "handicap" was always a ban on talking. The interesting thing, though, was that although we were initially annoyed by this seemingly unfair treatment, it always seemed to help instead of hinder our progress. All the words stopped getting in the way.
So I was talking with my sister on the phone today, and we were discussing how insanely frustrating it is when children don't get ready for school without consistent encouragement (i.e., nagging), don't clean up their messes unless life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are seriously threatened, and seem to have countless other things that they plot to do and/or not do that will make mom want to pull her hair out. Anyway, with this experience hovering in the back of my mind I commented to her that I've found two things to be vitally important when dealing with these types of situations ... being calm and consistent. Both are equally important but in this post I'm going (I hope) in the direction of calm.
What are the main things that typically surface when we are losing our calm? Words, and lots of them! Sometimes not the nicest words. And unfortunately, despite the fact that we continue to spew them out, they never help. Okay, so I'm not suggesting placing a household-wide ban on talking, or giving our children the silent treatment. Although; when I got back from the trip, I did have a little fun with my kids and gave them a significant task to do without speaking a word (definitely worth trying out sometime). What I am suggesting, is choosing our words and when we use them more carefully and calmly, so that our children (and really all those with whom we associate with) will know that when we do say something it will be important and purposeful, not just useless static.
Just something to think about.
By the way, if you ever have comments (ideas, examples, etc.) regarding my very random posts, I would love to hear them!
Okay so why am I bringing this up? Well, I happened to learn many valuable experiences from this course, but one in particular. Whenever we didn't follow the rules exactly as we were supposed to, or accidentally missed the mark, or got a little too talkative, we were given "handicaps" by our facilitator (the no-nonsense educational psychologist in a green stalking hat and worn-out hiking boots). Now, I don't know if he was getting a headache that day or just plain sick of our chatter, but our first "handicap" was always a ban on talking. The interesting thing, though, was that although we were initially annoyed by this seemingly unfair treatment, it always seemed to help instead of hinder our progress. All the words stopped getting in the way.
So I was talking with my sister on the phone today, and we were discussing how insanely frustrating it is when children don't get ready for school without consistent encouragement (i.e., nagging), don't clean up their messes unless life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are seriously threatened, and seem to have countless other things that they plot to do and/or not do that will make mom want to pull her hair out. Anyway, with this experience hovering in the back of my mind I commented to her that I've found two things to be vitally important when dealing with these types of situations ... being calm and consistent. Both are equally important but in this post I'm going (I hope) in the direction of calm.
What are the main things that typically surface when we are losing our calm? Words, and lots of them! Sometimes not the nicest words. And unfortunately, despite the fact that we continue to spew them out, they never help. Okay, so I'm not suggesting placing a household-wide ban on talking, or giving our children the silent treatment. Although; when I got back from the trip, I did have a little fun with my kids and gave them a significant task to do without speaking a word (definitely worth trying out sometime). What I am suggesting, is choosing our words and when we use them more carefully and calmly, so that our children (and really all those with whom we associate with) will know that when we do say something it will be important and purposeful, not just useless static.
Just something to think about.
By the way, if you ever have comments (ideas, examples, etc.) regarding my very random posts, I would love to hear them!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
