Volunteering

So a week ago last Thursday (Sept 5), Jared called to let me know he might be working out of town over the weekend.  It was disappointing, but after 9 years in the military, we've learned to be flexible.  Friday afternoon he texts me, "Forgot to let you know that I agreed to the family speaking in church Sunday."
I sent back "very funny" and he replied "not kidding."

I was eager to spread the happy news, and when the kids got home an hour later, I greeted them at the door with the exciting information that they got to give talks in church in less than TWO DAYS!!! HOORAY!!!!!

They did an amazing job- W and M wrote their own talks, and I pulled a few church magazines out and handed them to H.  He wrote his own talk, had me edit it, and I made him read it through several times.  Then I wrote my own talk :) and put in lots of extra research just in case the kids were quick.  They were, which left about half the meeting for me to fill.  I managed, with the help of Heavenly Father and some divine inspiration :).

Today, the choir performed a song, "Draw Near Unto Me."  (i looked on youtube, but couldn't find a complete rendition of the song. oh well.)  Despite the fact that it has taken much more preparation and time than did my talk, I enjoyed leading the choir so much more than I did giving that talk.  I feel much more comfortable in a musical setting, I guess.

School is progressing well, I think.  H is playing football- tackle football!!- and has practice 3 times a week, plus 1 game a week.  It means he has very little free time, since he has to fit in scouts and homework on the days he has no practice.  However, he absolutely loves practicing and playing.  As in, he's ready well before he needs to be, and bugs me to drop him off early so he can in some extra practice.  I'm really glad he has found something he enjoys so much.

M is doing well- she likes most of her classes, and loves her art class.  She is still working a few days a week, and we've had at least one episode of staying up really late Sunday evening trying frantically to finish up homework for Monday.  She is learning to better manage her time, though, which is good.

W is busy with play practice (performances are October 18, 19, 21, 23, 25, and 26 at 6:30pm).  He's had several tests already, and works hard to keep up in all his classes.  However, he's already talking about what classes he wants to take next year, as well as his senior year.  I cannot believe how quickly the time is passing- I still remember taking him to the bus stop for his first day of kindergarten!

Jared is working a lot, and preparing for the upcoming hunting season.  He has big plans for an elk- he and Morgen will be hunting this year.  I'm not sure where we'll put all the meat if we get more than one elk though.

Gratitude List:
* running water.  hot and cold both!
* flush toilets
* blackberries (we made jam from the ones growing in our yard- delicious!)
* a juicer and water bath canner.
* fish for dinner.
* cooler weather :)
* music, both sacred and secular, that inspires me.
* good friends
* family
* Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father
* podcasts, and the ability to store a lot on my iphone so i can listen to them.
* Jared is home this week, barring any unscheduled emergencies.

Vacation Rental pictures

view of the driveway entrance from the house:

side yard- lots of grass, volleyball court; you can see the edge of the deck on the side of the house here:

side deck- dad's trying out the deck chair and you can see the volleyball court on the far right:

deck wraps around 3 sides of the house- here's the front view of the house/deck- i'm standing on the far right corner of the deck in the same place i stood to take pics of the side yard.  deck surface is poured concrete, railings are pine:

view of the backyard from the deck- underneath my feet is the downstairs patio area which has a hot tub and a gravel-covered ramp leading up to the backyard:

 the tree line at the back of the volleyball court is where the dry creek bed is located:

closer look at trees behind the volleyball court, you can see the rocks in the creek bed behind them:

view of the back of the house from behind the volleyball court:

you can see some of the extra parking space available behind and to the side of the house here:

pictures of the back deck- the french doors open into the dining/kitchen area of the house:

 those red deck chairs are the ones dad was trying out earlier:

dining room table with doors going out to deck:

kitchen and island:

garage side of the house:

Birthdays

Well, Hyrum is officially in his double digits now.  10 years old- however did it happen?!?

He wanted a birthday party at the local gymnastics gym, and we were able to reserve it for an hour of jumping and playing.  The boys loved every minute, and I was glad they had a good outlet for their energy!

I believe this was Hyrum's favorite part- he managed to do a few back flips while in harness, and has talked about it the rest of the week.  I'm so glad he had fun :).

We ended the day with cupcakes and presents, then watched a movie until the kids had to leave.

Gratitude List:
* my family members are all healthy and happy.
* cool nights even in the summertime.
* allergy medications.
* our garden is growing
* rain and sprinklers
* morgen is home safely from girls' camp, which she loved.
* good books
* good music
* God is good.

Overheard

"First grade wasn't my best year.  Second grade, now, that was my prime time.  Second grade was a good year."

-Hyrum

As we are approaching his 10th birthday (next week, actually), I find it amusing that his best year is already behind him, at least in his estimation!

Gratitude List:

* cashmere.  i absolutely love to knit with it.
* air conditioning in the car.
* chocolate.
* French Onion Soup mmmmmmm
* electricity
* lots of lovely knitting projects waiting for me to begin or finish them.
* my family
* God

Yarny goodness

I love yarn.  :) And I'm sure this comes as no surprise to those who know me well.  But look at these colors:

Now what to make with these delicious smooshy yarns....  it is a lot of thinking to pick a pattern that works well with each yarn and the gorgeous colors.  But the possibilities are exciting!

W tried out for the high school's musical- this coming year they will be performing "The Pirates of Penzance."  He has practices all summer long :) and I love listening to him sing.  Gilbert and Sullivan were so clever with words!

M is still working hard, but I think I've convinced her that taking one day off each week is a good idea.  Next week she'll be camping with the young women, and I will miss her but I'm sure she will have fun.

H went to TWO scout day camps last week- one for the bear scouts (his age group) and one for the webelos (they're 10, and his birthday is this month, so he was invited to this one, too).  One of the activities was archery, and he got a bulls-eye! He has also decided that he really likes boondoggle (a weaving craft with plastic cord).

Jared is working, as always.  He's been able to fish a little bit, and took the boy scouts (12-14 year-olds) camping last Friday/Saturday.  This summer he has several camp-outs planned for scouting, and one for the family.  I think he'd be happy with another 2 or 3, but that's all that he could fit in around his work schedule.

I'm very sad that my allergies are so severe this summer.  It has been so beautiful outside, and I sneeze whenever I open the doors or windows.  But I'm getting some knitting done, and enjoying the fruits of our garden (rhubarb and strawberries right now), and I am grateful for anti-histamines.

I've missed my gratitude list, so I'm making one today:

* good music
* podcasts
* kids who want to earn money, because they'll do all sorts of extra jobs like deep-cleaning cars.
* beautiful yarn and fiber
* a working washer and dryer
* stain removers
* dry air, because I can hang my clothing out and it dries in an hour or so.
* hot cocoa :) it never gets old
* free patterns!
* my family.
* new nieces and nephews
* my family is healthy and well.
* God is good

Beauty All Around

This is the view from my car window, driving down the canyon from my house towards Provo/Orem:

I am almost always a bit distracted by this view when I'm driving.  Luckily the road is never too busy.

This is the view from my front porch:

Those irises came from my father's garden.  He got them from my sister Melissa's husband, who got them from his own father.  They are beautiful!  And no, I have no grass in my front yard.  I like it very much :) but it is less comfortable on bare feet than grass.

Yesterday, after getting up early (before 7am) and doing all the household stuff, I spent an hour on my porch, looking at that lovely view and knitting.

Spoons and Forks

We ate dinner with my in-laws last Sunday.  We had a delicious dinner, and (of course) dessert afterwards.  Dennis was eating his ice cream and broke the plastic spoon he was using, which happens a lot with plastic utensils.  Morgen, sitting next to him, burst out "These are the worst forks EVER!!"  Well, yes, since they are actually spoons...

Lovely weather

This is how I spent most of yesterday afternoon: sitting on my front porch and knitting.  The weather was lovely and warm, but not too warm.  I could smell flowers blooming and see bees flying around.  It was a beautiful break.

Then I had lunch, and pulled out one of our jars of elderberry jam.  We (when I say "we," what I mean is "everyone except for me") picked elderberries about 2 years ago.  Jared & I juiced them and made lots of jam.  And because my mother taught me well, I labeled the jar lids "10-2011" and "elder" because "elderberry" wouldn't fit.  Then I had to go do something not in the kitchen, and when I got back, Jared had finished labeling the jars.  Only he was more creative with his labels:

yep, that says "deacon."  There were several other jars with interesting labels, too**:  "sister," "high priest," and "teacher." I love my husband!

Oh, and the jam is excellent, of course.

Also, a bit of a brag on my kids.  First, W.  He's kept a 4.0 for the first 3 terms of 9th grade.  If all goes as expected, he should finish out 4th term with a 4.0 as well.  Monday night we attended a "honors award ceremony" and he got a certificate and his picture put in the paper.  Hooray!  He's worked very hard this year to earn those grades, and we are all proud of the effort it took.

M had two pieces of artwork on display in her school's "Hot Arts Festival."  She is becoming an excellent artist, and was thrilled to see her work included in the display.  I am so excited to see her get this recognition!

H just finished a "mini-society" in his classroom.  He and 2 friends figured out what they wanted to sell at their business, made flyers and coupons and a store-front sign, and then made the products they sold.  H says they did very well :) and I'm proud of his hard work and cooperation.

Jared is training hard this month.  And I am knitting lots of things, and trying to remember to water the garden.


** an "elder" is the title we give to our male missionaries. it has a rank in the priesthood, so men can also be elders without being missionaries.  the women missionaries are titled "sister."  "high priest," "deacon," and "teacher" are all ranks in the priesthood as well.

Plan of the day

I am a list person.  I do much better goal-wise if I can write down what I want to accomplish, then cross them off as I finish them.  However, it is rather easy for me to get really excited and write down ALL the things, forgetting that I only have 24 hours in my day.  Also, I have these kids (and sometimes a husband) who will plan things and forget to inform me, throwing off my schedule.  So, I have started making lists I will actually follow, which has two benefits.  I can write down things like "eat popcorn for lunch" because I KNOW I will get that done, AND I get to cross it off :) later.  Also? It takes up visual room on my list, which convinces me I am being productive every day.  Which feeds my desire to finish things on the list, making me a more productive person in reality, and has the added benefit of adding humor to my sometimes dreary days.

This is a compilation of some of the things that I've put on my recent POTD (plan of the day) lists.  Please note that, while I may have done several of these things in one day, I have not (yet) done ALL of them in one day.  :)


up.
eat chocolate bar and cherry coke for breakfast  see, i totally did that and then wrote it down because if it is on the list, i MUST do it!
wrap teacher appreciation gift for younger son
explain to younger son why taking a bag of already-popped-popcorn to school for his teacher may not be the best way to show his appreciation for her, even if popcorn IS her favorite snack.   done, but i'm not sure he believes me
meditation this is code for "read a page of scripture,then pray that everyone survives the day"
kids off to school.
♫ la, la, la ♪  this is code for "fun!!!!!!!!!" which can be anything, really, depending on my mood at the time of reading.
internet- look for a fish-shaped pattern on Ravelry and get lost in the wonder of it all for 2 hours
shower
dress
knit on something fun today.
fold and put away my laundry
ignore oldest son's laundry, which is sitting glumly on the couch.
exercise
rejoice that my strategy of ignoring oldest son’s laundry actually resulted in it disappearing from the couch before i got up this morning!!!  this is an ongoing rejoicing, btw
eat popcorn for lunch
make kids get into the car.  be sure to act a little bit angry or annoyed.  don't answer when they ask where we are going.  drive to movie theater and see [insert really cool movie title here]
laugh at their faces when they realize they're not in trouble.  
make oldest son cook dinner so i can knit more.
:) knit while waiting for soccer practice to end
BED.

See, that's the kind of list I can do every day.  Well, maybe not the coke for breakfast part.

Signs of Spring

* the furnace only turns on in the evening, overnight, and morning.  during the day it is quiet, mostly!
* there are buds on everything!
* our garlic and onions are sprouting, and the raspberries have little green leaves.
* the sun is coming up earlier every day.
* my online competitive knitting group is gearing up for another three months of crafting.
* i've been weeding.
* the front porch is freshly swept and chairs are set up.
* we moved the bikes from the basement to the garage.

look: baby lilacs!