A Tomato a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

Anyone who really really knows me, understands I've hated the taste of raw tomatoes for pretty much my whole life. At restaurants for whatever I order I always ask for no tomatoes. I always ask, "Does it come with tomatoes?" They are never on my sandwiches or hamburgers. I've never been shy about putting the tomatoes to the side when I have salads.

I've been asked, "Didn't you ever have home grown tomatoes in your garden growing up?" I know we had a garden when I was growing up but since I was never interested in tomatoes I don't know if we grew them or not. People would look at me like I'm crazy when I say, "No I did not eat garden tomatoes growing up but I have had garden tomatoes and I don't like them any more then the store bought ones."

People don't understand that I've eaten several tomatoes over the years just to see if my taste buds have changed because I understand that I may actually change my attitude towards them. Over the years I've learned to like certain things with tomatoes in them like salsa and soups.

A few months back that attitude change started to happen. You see I get strep throat very easily and in the first four months this year alone I've had it twice. The second time I thought I was going to die. I was in more pain then I had been in since Ruby was born. The misery was overwhelming.

As I visited the quick care doctor she pointed something out to me that no other doctor had bothered to mention in the 20+ years I've been chronically diagnosed with strep throat, "Gargle lemon juice or vinegar to help with the ph levels." It was like a light went off in my head. What do lemons and vinegar have in come? Acid. Now who wants to drink straight lemons or vinegar...not me. Orange juice is out because of the sugar levels and my pre-diabetic issues. So that left me with one other option.

Tomato juice.

So for the last two months I've been drinking one small can of tomato juice a day to prevent strep from returning. Will it work? I have no idea and frankly it could all be in my head but if I can make it the rest of the year without getting strep again I'll owe it all to that quick care doctor and tomato juice.

Survived Part III

Just so you know I started this post yesterday. But once again I exceed my own expectations by coming back three times in one week. Has a new patterns started? Probably not but it's nice to dream. :)

The last few months was a big strain on Flash and I. We hardly ever saw each other between both work and school. A friend of mine, Waffle (so called because she waffles back and forth between decisions), moved in with us back in March. Waffle and I have been super close friends for about five years and I've always believed a true test of friendship is sharing living quarters. So far things have been great. Waffle is going to school to become a chef and we often come home to wonderful meals we normally would pay $20 a plate for at a restaurant. She also helps with the kids, baby-sitting when we both have classes or I have a class and Flash is late at work.

The interesting part is all three of us are going to college. If you were to come and visit some nights you would see all three of us doing homework in the living room while the kids are in bed. Being married and going to college feels a lot like...well when I was single and in college. It's kind of surreal. Like we're just a bunch of roommates trying to struggle though midterms, reading assignments, and finals. At night any way. During the day it's more complicated with kids, work, and house management.

Flash is currently working for a satellite installation company to help pay for the bills. It's not his dream job, we never know when he's going to be home, and weekends are no fun anymore because he works. One of the first things his boss said to him when he started working there was, "We have a high divorce rate in this job because the hours are hard on a marriage."

Nice.

Never fear, our marriage is far from that point and frankly we have a plan. This job was always meant to be temporary until something better came along. Flash is going back to school to learn accounting. That's right he's joining the family business. That's our plan. So...he's quitting his job...today actually. Giving two weeks notice and then it's full time school to learn. We'll be living on student loans and basically struggling for the next ten years to build our client base. In the long run it'll be worth the struggle. We both have other education and careers to fall back on and supplement whatever we don't make during tax season. But for the most part...I believe we're going to be just fine.

There's a lot more going on but I'll save it for other posts and other days.

Survived Part II

Well would you look at that...I'm back. The very next day as I said I would. Trust me no one is as shocked as I am.

So I promised this would be a post about Mini Flash and his doings. Since we only get to see him on the weekends it's hard to come up with anything earth shattering to talk about. He's nearing the end of first grade and come to think of that is pretty earth shattering. I mean, seriously the kid is growing up so fast I'm not sure how I can keep up. I'm feeling the needs to start buying clothes on sale for the following season and start reading books about knowing how to talk to your six year old cause I'm struggling. Where do you draw the line between letting your kid joke with you and talking back to you? How do you keep them from crying every time you tell them they have to do something new?

His reading level has been improving considerably. In primary he's the only one we don't have to help find scriptures in class. We may not read scriptures every night but having him find scriptures has turned into a game so at least he knows how to navigate through the Book of Mormon. I have eight six year olds in my class and I can honestly say not many six year old kids can do that.

 MF is becoming more and more like his father. I'm sure his mother is in there somewhere but since I don't know her very well I can't give anything specific. He likes to kid and joke and play just like his dad. He's a wonderful older brother playing with his 16 month old sister like they are best friends. Nearly every morning I find the two of them in her crib either reading a book or just goofing off with each other.

This summer is bringing new experiences. We are planning switching off every two weeks instead of every other week for the summer vacation. I also plan on giving him a summer job by having him learn how to type. I also have a feeling he'll be learning how to ride a two wheeler. This should be interesting.

Shall I dare to update again tomorrow? I think I will dare. For tomorrow it'll be about Flash and me. Stay tuned.

I bought a t-shirt saying "I survived tax season at Merrick and Rowley"

So my family and I survived the remainder of tax season, winter, and the spring semester.

Barely.

It's amazing what kind of burn out one feels when they take on too many activities. It took me nearly a week of recovery after school for me to even think about blogging. So what's the latest and greatest happenings for the family?

Let's start with Ruby. She is full on walking every where now and it's so much fun for mommy. Really! I'm not being sarcastic or anything. You see every bit of freedom she acquires means a little bit more freedom for mommy. Sure I have to watch every move she makes and keep her out of things, but really I was doing that already so nothings changed the status qua. Her walking means less carrying leading to hands free for other things mommy needs to carry.

She now has hi, bye, and no in her vocabulary. Some doctor mentioned that was pretty advanced for 16.5 months (yes that's right 1.5 months before nursery time!). She also says please, thank you, and more in sign language and occasionally uses it without our promptings. Now I'm trying to teach her milk, water, juice, and food so I know what she wants when she asks for more please.

The kid also loves books! What book worm mommy wouldn't love that? It's so exciting for me to watch her follow me around the house with a book only to sit down close by while I work on the computer or fold laundry or clean the kitchen and read her little board books. I'm not kidding guys, in her little baby language she turns the pages and starts talking like she's reading something. The books are never upside down either. She also thinks whatever she's ready is hilarious because she'll say something, look at me, and then laugh like it's the funniest thing she ever read.

So that's Ruby. I'm going to attempt to blog about Mini Flash tomorrow. If not tomorrow, just know the next installment will be about Mini Flash and what's going on with him.

Breather

I'm taking a moment from life right now...it's been very busy since the school semester and tax season started. I work just about every night and when I'm not working I'm trying to clean my house, get homework done, cook, clean the house, move a friend into my house, do homework, play with the kids, balance financial statements, do Flash's homework, and if you can believe it clean the house some more.

Oh, I've also decided to participate in a Half Marathon and I'm three weeks behind the suggested training schedule. Not sure if I'll survive but it's worth a shot right? I've started kickboxing workouts (not real kickboxing but at least it's cooler then aerobics) at my school gym which I find I really enjoy. I also want to find time for rock climbing...why? Not sure but I'm hoping it'll turn into a nice activity Flash and I can share.

Spring is coming and I'll admit I'm pretty excited. Flash wants to build a white picket fence for our front yard, and I have dreams of benches. Wooden benches circling our trees where adults can sit and chat while the kids play in a white picket fenced yard. 

She walks

Ruby walked on Sunday! By herself! Several times!

I've known for a few months that Ruby could walk but I never could get her to the point of doing it by herself. Walking just wasn't interesting to her. She can walk on her knees and crawl rather well and she likes to hold onto the fabric of my pants as we walk around the house together. As the boys take a hand each the three of them bramble around the house together. But we couldn't get her to stand on her own much less walk.

On Sunday I was cleaning up after dying my sister's hair two lovely colors of black and red when I heard a yell from my one of my good friends, Waffle, behind me. "Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh she's walking!"

I whipped around and saw with great shock my little girl walking by herself not just one or two steps but several as if she's been doing it for a while. We got a few more walking moments and a video (which I'm still trying to figure out how to upload from my phone) when she made it clear she was not interested in walking any more.

Since then I've tried to stealthy remove my fingers from her little iron fists but she gets very angry with me when I do. Right now I'm content in knowing she can walk and not concerned that she doesn't but look forward to the day when my arms will get a break before the next child comes along.

School in for the Winter!

I'm back! That's right school has officially started for me once again! And not just for me but for my DH as well. Yep...I finally talked Flash into going back to school. We decided it's a good idea to be proficient in more than one profession. Which is why he's going for an AS rather then a BS. It's a smart move especially in this economy.

Ever get tired of hearing that phrase, "...especially in this economy..."  but those four little words seem to give meaning to the downtodden life in which we find ourselves. <----dramatic much?

Of course neither of us are attending classes full time. When bills need to be paid education needs to wait. At least until the summer when we both will be getting into it full swing. For the last two weeks we've had to juggle our jobs and finding sitters for Ruby. My parents are amazing by taking Ruby to work while I ride public transportation all over the valley. I drop her off with my folks and ride a bus back to campus where I'll wait a couple hours for class to start. Then I rush back to the bus stop and have an hour ride back to work. Funny thing, I actually enjoy riding public transporation systems. It's relaxing and gives me a chance to study. It is a headache to schedule my day around what time the bus comes but in the long run it's been worth the trouble.

Eventually I'm going to introduce our valley bus system with my kids and I think it'll be fun. A new advanture!

The Big 1st of 2009!

Ruby turned 1 on December 31st! Yes I know, I'm late with the post but if it helps this one comes with pictures!

Ruby has been a joy in our lives. This kid smiles all the time and is starting to give hugs! Oh my gosh the first time she did that I melted. What is it about your kids and the wonderful surprises they give you? Her birthday was small with some family and close friends. I believe my daughter is going to be a drummer when she gets older and so we bought her a little drum set that has other noise makers stored inside. She loves to bang on the drum...which is better than banging on my keyboard. She got some new clothes and learning toys but the best part of course was the cake!

She dug into that thing like a pro and we enjoyed helping her eat all the frosted parts. We tried to get Mini Flash to dig in but he's not big on getting his hands dirty.




While we dug into Ruby's first cake we enjoyed sharing stories of Mini Flash's first birthday and how he would not dig into his first cake. With our encouragement, Ruby's example, and promises that the frosting will wash off he got into it though and started to really enjoy distroying the cake.

2009 Year End

The year 2009 was a great and frustrating year all at once. The happy and joyful moments make me sorry to see the year go but I'm excited for the coming year and the possibilities coming our way.

2009's Not so Great Moments:

I'll start with the bad parts of 2009 first so I can end on a good note:

Education - I took a year off school in hope to further my education at work. Though I've learned many things I'm not where I had planned. I did this in an attempt to help my family financially but I'm no further ahead then I was last year. I'm not sure I would have done anything different but if I could go back I might have thought more seriously about going back to school in the fall.

Family Issues - I was going to begin this section with Family Death but for some reason that just seems too upsetting. Nonetheless, my Grandmother died a few days before Thanksgiving and we are still trying to pick up the pieces of her passing. My Grandpa is having to struggle though the holidays without her and just so you know the holidays last until the Super Bowl around here.

Financial Struggles - with Flash being out of work for most of the year our savings dwindled to nothing. The construction business has suffered greatly in the valley and we had to live off the charity of our church and the government for a couple months. Though it was upsetting I was very grateful we live in a time and place where we can receive help with essentials like food and housing. I myself feel like our bills are consuming my soul. I say this mostly in jest but only mostly. ;)

2009 Awesome Moments:

And now for the moments that jazzed my year.

Firsts - January 2 of 2009 I brought my baby girl home from the hospital. What a way to start out the new year! 2009 gave me a year of firsts: First baby, first sleepless nights, first holidays, first laugh, first tooth, first vacation, first sippy cup, first dance, first smile, first crawl, first stand, first...well you get the idea. She is the reason why I don't mind not going to school in the fall because no monatary or educational value could replace all or even one of my firsts.

San Diego/Sea World - My little family spent two weeks in San Diego where we rocked with Shamu, laughed with Clyde and Symore, swam with Baluga whales, played on a HUGE jungle gym with the kids, splashed ourselves on Ship Wrech Rapids, visted with friends, and even a few temples along the way. Mini Flash conqured swimming under water (with goggles) and we even got him in the deep end a few times (that's a big deal when you're six). Our San Diego trip was an adventure and deserves a blog post unto itself and it may possibly get one in the near future.

NSA - While in San Diego I joined the National Society of Accountants, a group dedicated to helping tax and accounting practicioners do thier job. My mom has been a member for years and I have been a student member off and on but decided I would finally take the leap and become a full member. Despite my disappointment at furthuring my career this past year joining the NSA was the breakthrough I think I needed in taking the first step to a better career. I'm still going to school to be a technical communicator but that will be something I can do on the side because in the next 10 years things are going to be different.

Planning - So Flash quit his job last year. Yes...I know in this economy and I let him do it but it was a good move for our family in many ways. One being we realized just how awesome it is to spend time together. We can't do that when he has to work for someone else. My husband loves being an electrician but right now our lovely state has suffered greatly in the construction department. I knew years ago this was coming so it's no great surprise but for my DH it was a disappointment. So I have convinced him to make some changes. Quitting his job opened his eyes to a world where he can take his son to swimming lessons during the day, he can drive to work with his wife and spend all day together, he can spend time with his infant daughter, and go on vacation for two weeks without fearing he'll lose his job. Therefore; we are making plans for 2010 in hopes for a better future for ourselves and our children.

I'm glad 2009 is over though I enjoyed many moments I'm looking forward to 2010 and what it will bring to our little family. So good by 2009 and heres to the new year with all the frustrations and joys it can bring!

Picture Proof

Proof we had fun on Thanksgiving:

My daughter is 18lbs. The Turkey is 22.

*edit: seriously isn't she the cutest kid ever! Look at her smile! How could you not find her adorable?!?!?!

There's always some sort of wrestling going on when they get together.

The Merrick men chatting away in the kichen. I think it was about Football

She loves the camera

Mom's famous holiday drink. We use cranberries as icecubes.

My aunt, dad, and cousin's son (my first cousin once removed?)

B-I-L wants to wrestle too.

Look at that yummy turkey

My uncle and his wife's dog. Did you know yorkies have real hair? It's like a living hair-peice for men.

Bittersweet

I haven't really known how to blog about my week. So much of it has been filled with sorrow but since it's also a holiday week there has been some joy. I feel I'm stuck in limbo as I debate what I will write about first. Should I write and post about the first sorrowful part of my week first? Or should I start out happy with the second part? Unfortunately I feel I must write about both at the same time depicting how my family members and I have felt this week. Our Thanksgiving was bittersweet as we enjoyed loved ones both living and dead.

My grandmother Maureen Susanne Irwin Merrick has battle cancer for several years. When I mean several I'm talking decades. Contracting breast cancer twice and fighting it off twice we thought Grandma would beat it and live forever. When the third relapse happened we hoped and probably expected this round to be a repeat of the last two but for the last nine years her body slowly succumbed to the cancer has it found it's way to her bones, liver, and finally lungs.

While she was or wasn't battling cancer Grandma was a steady force in our family. Though quiet but by no means meek she had plenty of her opinions but didn't force her views on her children or grandchildren. She didn't think much of any given church but I often heard her say, "Any church is better then nothing." She was always there at every function we had from volleyball games to choir concerts to every one of my church functions.

Her own father died when she was seven and my great grandma moved her two children from Canada to San Diego, CA where they lived in various places including project homes and a chicken farm. Traveling by train Grandma celebrated her eighth birthday while the north US rushed by. She enjoyed the outdoors playing on Mission Bay Beach while growing up. After marrying and had three boys she still continued to enjoy the outdoors but expanding up the mountains to snowmobile.

My grandparents moved their three boys up to Grandpa's native Idaho where they lived for well over thirty years in the same home. My parents met (my mother having moved up from San Fransisco just a few months after my dad) married and well the rest is history. Growing up I lived no more than 10 minutes away from my grandparents and both were a huge part of my life.

The first time I heard of my grandma getting breast cancer was actually her second time and I was scared. But her treatments went well and she recovered quickly despite her age so when the third time came I was sad but not scared. She beat it twice why not a third time? Earlier this year my grandpa called up all the boys scolding them for not being more supportive in grandma's illness. We suspected this time was different but we didn't really know for sure and probably didn't want to know. Then in October we were told Grandma had decided to go into hospice care. Wanting to support my family I asked to go with my parents to the hospital. My grandmother had been on kemo but it was doing more damage than good. Her lungs had filled with fluid and she couldn't breath and soars were forming in her mouth and she wouldn't eat. After draining her lungs (a painful process) of nearly a quart of fluid her doctor had said it was time to stop the treatments.

As we met with the doctor he was certain her lungs would fill up again we just didn't know how long it would take but he was certain that three months before she died was a positive estimate. The room was filled with sadness and acceptance but my grandfather crying for the love of his life was the hardest thing I ever witnessed. What I saw a month ago was only a foreshadowing of what was to come.

In the beginning all went really well. You could see Grandma perking up and behaving as if she was just old and not dying. She was eating and getting out of bed without much trouble. From earlier posts you know I took care of her in the mornings and it was wonderful sitting with her, making her breakfast and chatting with her. Looking back on it I wish I had asked more about her life but one thing we talked about was not living with regret and so I remember what we did talk about.

I remember how I held Ruby in my arms as she waved for the second time in her life to her great grandma unprovoked and how pleased Grandma was. I remember watching Emille cook and commenting on how excited the audience gets over cayenne pepper and she shoots back, "You should see what happens with garlic!" I remember helping her move to her chair to have some semblance of getting better. I remember talking about how glad I was able to be with her every morning.

Soon, though, she had trouble breathing again. She wasn't getting out of her bed anymore because she was afraid of losing her breath. A week later, Nov 21st, I got a call from my sister, who was crying, that she may not make it through the night. Flash and I packed up the kids picking up my brother and his girlfriend and we headed to my parents. Grandma was laboring to breath and my mom said this was a good time to say goodbye. I called my younger brother in Rexburg and told him to come home. She was on heavy pain medications that must be administered every two hours. I stayed up with her the first half of the night and by morning she was still alive but none responsive.

Around 9:00 am my dad came to me and said he was going to use the priesthood to release grandma's spirit from her body. My husband, younger brother, and my dad gathered around her and told her it was time to go home. My mom and I decided to bath her one last time. Silently we bathed her and gave her fresh clothes as a way of saying goodbye and we love you. An hour later she was gone.

I have never cried so much and seen so much sorrow as I saw in my grandfather as he cried and said, "God I loved that woman." There was some confusion as we realized we had no idea what to do now that she was gone. We had such purpose in taking care of her while she was alive that with her death our purpose was gone. Hospice came and verified her "apparent death" was the term they used and we decided to call a local company who would cremate her body. We gathered in her room as we waited for them to some get her body. We talked about...everything and in that moment there was peace, sorrow so much sorrow, but peace in knowing...it was over, she was no longer scared for she was never in much pain.

For the last few days I've felt like my heart was broken. Even as I write my heart aches for our loss. We spent the next few days preparing for Thanksgiving knowing it was her favorite holiday and knowing she would be there but only in spirit and for some reason that didn't seem enough. We set a place for her at the table with her good china she only used for holiday meals. Thanksgiving was as mentioned bittersweet. As we gathered with siblings, cousins, aunts, and uncles we watched our children and laughed. There was no mourning but the sorrow was ever present. Finally the day was over and with a sigh we realized we made it through. Christmas is coming but knowing we made it through the first holiday without her I think will make it easier. Loss is an interesting thing...it never really goes away...it just gets easier over time.

Routine

I've always been big on routine. I like schedules and plans to keep my life in order. I always end up throwing these kinds of things by the wayside because I either a) am too lazy to keep it up and/or b) get thrown with something new to change my life up. But some things stay the same. Right now this is my life:

5:30 am - wake up to Flash's alarm. He gets up and I stay in bed because gosh dang it I can

6:00 am - get up after Flash leaves and hop in the shower

6:30 am - wake up and get Ruby ready (or Tweeter's more on the name change another update)

7:00 am - leave for my mom's

7:30 am - arrive at my mom's and take care of my grandma. I do anything from get her coffee and breakfast to cleaning out her bedside commode (I won't go into detail on this, just know it's smelly but I love my grandma so I do it).

9:00 am - leave to open the office where I work for 8 hours

9:30 am - put Ruby down for her morning nap

11:30 am - Ruby wakes up and I get her lunch

2:30 pm - put Ruby down for her afternoon nap

5:00 pm - Ruby wakes up and I get her another bottle

5:30 pm - leave the office and go home. Somewhere between naps and lunch I get work done

6:00 pm - go home where I do a combination of cleaning, laundry, cooking, and homework

8:00 pm - say family prayer so Ruby can go to bed

9:00 pm - go to bed; sometimes bedtime is 8 for us but when i do homework Flash tries to stay up a little later so I can get more done. Neither of us like to go to bed without the other. It's probably a newlywed thing we haven't grown out of yet.

And that is my life during the weekday. Throw in some cleaning, cooking, laundry, homework, and some church and that's my weekend. Friday night's usually is my play time with the girls and I do watch some tv. I sure know how to keep myself busy though, don't I?

At the Death Bed Of a Loved One...

When I was in junior high I started reading these books by Lurelene McDaniel about people with life altering medical conditions. Though my affair with these sort of books was short lived some how I came across a book about a girl in a hospice home. I forget the name of the book and I'm not sure if McDaniel even wrote it but I read it the same time I discovered McDaniel and it had the same flavor as her writing. Hospice was a foreign idea to me and even after reading that book I never needed an opportunity to think about it again but the one thing I took from that book was hospice is where sick people go to die comfortably.

Two weeks ago I joined my mom, dad, and grandfather at the hospital to discuss hospice care for my dad's mom who has been battling her third round of cancer for the last nine years.

I've known this was coming. We all did but there was plenty of denial. I guess we just all expected her to die suddenly instead of having to prepare for it head on and make arrangements for her comfort until the inevitable happens.

About the same time I came home from my mission my parents remodeled the house so it had an apartment attached to it. The garage got expanded to a two bedroom (with a walk in closet but really it's big enough to be a small bedroom), two bathroom, with another room for storage, complete with a full kitchen and living room apartment. I think the smallest part of the apartment is the dining area which fits a table of four. It's rather large for an apartment but it was designed to be a place for our disabled elderly.

When hospice was brought up we didn't think nursing home. That's not how we think in this family. We thought of the apartment and knew this was the best thing we could do for my grandparents. We all knew Grandpa couldn't take care of her the way she needs and now she has lots of family close by to assist in her every need.

It hasn't been easy for any of us. Especially my grandma and mom. Though service has never been a problem for my mom the magnitude of what's involved in hospice care was slightly overwhelming at first. But after a schedule was made and portions of the day assigned to different members of the family it has become a fluid process.

I arrive in the mornings Tuesday - Friday to give my parents a break and to spend time with Grandma. I enjoy being with her and helping her. It's hard to describe how it feels to take care of her. Service and charity are not new things to me but these feeling of service and charity...the love...that is new. It's a constant companion not unlike what I felt serving on a mission.

I know it's hard for Grandma to not be in her home, in her bed. Needing to rely on others for the barest of needs. She struggles and feels weak. I hurt for her and want her to be happy. Even though I find so much joy in serving her, more than anything I want her to feel less helpless. I wish I knew how.

The Pix Theatre 3rd Annual Gala

Over the last decade or so my hometown has been working on fixing up the downtown district. Our downtown is nothing big. The buildings are small and the shops are made up mostly of locally owned antique stores and restaurants and I believe the tallest building there is the library but it's quaint and I love it. Several condemned buildings have been torn down and replaced with grassy areas with murals while other older buildings received face lifts. Even the police station had a make over. It's actually exciting for me to see progress in a turbulent economic downturn.

One of my fondest memories was watching Back to the Future III at the downtown theater. I didn't notice at the time how rundown and old it was, I was too excited about seeing Michael J Fox save the present as he knew it from the evil clutches of Biff Tannen in all his various ages and generations. After that I went there only a handful of times before the building was finally condemned and Edwards took over the Treasure Valley. I hadn't thought about the old theater much since then until a foundation came to my work asking for help with their bookkeeping and taxes. They call themselves the Pix Theatre Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated in the restoration of an old condemned building where a little girl once watched Back to the Future III. The work they are doing will not only give downtown their theater back but also a venue where live performances and meals can be given. Over the last couple years we've built a relationship with the official members of the organization and have done work for them pro bono.

A few weeks ago they came into our office announcing their 3rd Annual Gala on October 24, a fund raising and awareness event with auctions, dinner, entertainment, and raffles. Since we've done so much work for them they wanted to give us a whole table of eight (cost of $800) and be VIP guests for the evening. They mentioned they were having trouble finding volunteers to help receive money for all the different money making portions of the evening and I immediately accepted the challenge for both my husband and myself. My mom (also my boss) said everyone who sat at our table would be happy to help. It was an exciting evening for me at least.

They had some really good fundraising ideas as well. The theme was Wizard of Oz and a local jewelry store donated a real ruby and emerald. Anyone who bought a wand (little dollar store plastic things) received a box which may or may not have the ruby or emerald enclosed inside. Those who didn't receive the precious stones got other jewelry like earrings and necklaces. There of course was a raffle for a beautiful quilt, a live auctions, a silent auction, and an online auction.

I live for these kinds of things. I don't like going to this stuff for the party, I always feel out of place and awkward. I love to work these events where I feel I have an excuse to interact with the guests and feel like I'm working toward a good cause. Something my hometown can be proud of.

Underwhelming the Overwhelming

I have a brother two years younger than me. This worked out perfectly for us when we decided to serve a mission for our church. I stayed in the states serving in the CRM and he went abroad to teach the people of France the restored gospel. Our experiences as missionaries were very different but the unity we felt knowing we were serving our Savior is His work created a bond between us that will never fade.

Our lives after the mission have reflected our mission as we both work toward similiar goals in different ways. We both are attending college but he goes to Rexburge and I attend BSU. I'm now married with kids and he is dating a lovely girl we just met this weekend.

Which brings me to the purpose of my post.

MY BROTHER BROUGHT A GIRL HOME TO MEET THE FAMILY!!

Needless to say we were all very excited. My dad's birthday was on Wednesday which just happened to be the same day as the Boise State football game between Tulsa. We've developed a tradition to go to my parents house to watch the Boise State games (GO BRONCOS!) and eat Klondik bars in the 3rd quarter. While watching the game we received a text from my brother saying he was bringing the girlfriend of 1 month home!

Well after the shock passed we started to panic just a little. First off, the reason Nick was coming home was to celebrate Dad's birthday on Sunday (big family dinner) AND to go golfing on Saturday morning. The poor girl was going to be alone with us for half a day. That's a lot of boyfriend family to take in on the first trip out. So we (the girls) started planning what activities we would do in hopes to not overwhelm the poor girl.

I'm happy to say though she did just fine. Despite being so young (19) she's, as my mother puts it, "Lovely." She's funny, sweet, interested, and most importantly interesting. Flash teased her unmercifully and she handled it very well which gives her a pass in my book. He certaintly can be overwhelming for those unused to his kind of teasing attention.

We all hope this will be a lasting relationship but you know it's only been a month... ;)

An Ill Favored Week

I'm sick, Mini Flash is sick, and Tweeters is sick. Poor Mini Flash is the sickest of us. Tweeters and I just had a head cold and recovering nicely. But Mini Flash can't keep anything down and visits the bathroom a lot. So no church for us today. Right now we are watching Monster vs. Aliens...for the fourth time...this weekend....yeah....

Other than that our week has gone smoothly. I've got a couple of school projects I need to complete by December. Last year I was busy preparing Tweeters arrival and asked for Incomplete in my Argumentative Writing and On-screen Print Documentation classes. Part of my Argumentative Writing class requires a submitted portfolio of 30 pages showing my development has a critical thinker. I wanted to focus on online gaming addictions but may turn into a comparison between chemical addictions and emotional addictions. I've also decided to take a subject from the news everyday and write an argument either for or against it. That part of the project started yesterday but I learned quite a bit about how people get nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Spiritually Invigorated

For the past month I've been thinking about my relationship with Heavenly Father and how much I miss the feeling of being close to Him and the promptings of the Holy Ghost like I had on my mission. As I've cleaned my house and organized the decorations I realized a pattern developing in a little corner of my living room I hadn't intended.

In that corner you'll find pictures of Christ, our Family Home Evening assignment board I FINALLY put together, our family Book of Mormon, Preach My Gospel, a book of the first 100 temples, and the last couple issues of the Ensign. Some of the things have been there since we moved in, others were put there because there was no room any where else. As I was sitting there looking at the corner and thinking about getting an updated picture of the First Presidency and noticed a space where the framed picture would fit perfectly it dawned on me that I had created a little nook that represented all my faith and convictions.

Then there was my visiting teachers. They came by and shared the Septembers Ensign explaining how we need to be rooted in a firm foundation of the gospel. A timely message for me. A friend of mine asked me to join her and another girlfriend to Deseret Book during the priesthood session on Saturday for prizes and sales. As I walked around I discovered a Primary Edition of trivia cards for half the normal price. I snatched them up hoping to use them for family home evening. Later at McDonald's we challenged each other by not only asking for the answer to the questions but the reference. I was surprised and dismayed when I couldn't remember what chapter Christ visited the Nephits! A return missionary should never have to admit that!

So then came conference. I challenged myself by playing scripture chase. Whenever I heard anything that sounded like a scripture or a story from our standard works I raced to find it the reference. I am rusty but I was pleased when I found an especially hard one Ezek. 11:19 because I had never heard it before.

So Friday was an educationally and physically uplifting day that opened my weekend to being spiritually invigorated.

Invigorated

I went for a walk today with Tweeter's down to a park not far from our house. I remember lamenting as I left my house that I forgot my iPod but I was too lazy to go back and get it. I didn't want to waste time looking for my headphones since I haven't used them in a few weeks. Halfway to the park I realized how blessed I am to be lazy at times because I almost missed listening to my daughter explain the mysteries of the universe.

Other random thoughts as I walked:

- Since Direct TV doesn't pull wire through houses when they put up those ugly dishes Flash should make a business of putting the wire in the house before the actual installation of the dish. That way people won't have an ugly dish and ugly wire.

- I need to buy a digital recorder to record my random thoughts because some of them are really good.

- I never believed walking was exersizing until today. I was always a strong believer in running. "How could walking really help you lose weight and get in shape?" I always questioned. You need good hard workouts with lots of sweat to achieve optimal weight loss. But my legs really hurt right now man. I wonder if that means I really out of shape.

- I wonder if my phone has a digital recorder. Wait, no it has a video recorder and it only lasts for thirty seconds. Wow do I really talk that much to need something lasting longer than thirty seconds?

Those are just to name a few.

Extra Mom Week

Last week was what I call the "Extra Mom Week." Occasionally, I get to exercise the parts of my mom muscles that usually lay dormant. Mini Flash (I know he wanted to be called Speed but I just can't) stayed with us for a week and a half. Usually we only get him Friday night and send him off to school Monday morning but his brother needed surgery last week (non-life threatening and he got through it fine) and bio-mom asked us to keep Mini Flash during the recovery time.

My mom muscles got worked over by having a full time elementary student in the home. My days at work started later and ended earlier and my house actually got cleaned on a regular basis because I was focused and not tired from work. It gave me a glimpse of what it'll be like when my littler ones get to elementary age and frankly I liked it. The only issue, less work hours equals less money. I've got at least five years to figure that out.

The highlights: watched Flash relish his time with Mini Flash doing homework. Helped Mini Flash dust around the living room and he actually LIKED it! When I picked Mini Flash up from school he grabbed my hand rubbed it against his face and said, "I love you mom."

Yeah I think it'd do that all over again in a heart beat.

Zebra Cakes!

Saturday I was dying to get out of the house and I got a hold of one of my girlfriend's who was just as excited to do something fun. Her mom took her daughter and my kids went to bed while Flash stayed home watching football and we went out at 9:30pm. We were both exhausted and the night life around here consists of movies and bars. Neither of which we were interested in doing. We made do by getting zebra cakes and zingers from Wal Mart and headed to the local movie joint where "beach" volleyball was being played by nice looking single men (the junk food was for me, the single men was for my friend). Where we sat next to the water fountain to eat and talk.

GameWorld is right next to the movie theater and we had a great time playing air hockey, basketball, and skeeball. We walked around the little shopping area where we disovered Artist for a Day is open until 11:00pm on Saturday and tucked that bit of knowledge away for another Saturday together. We went back to my place to watch the rain fall on my sunroof and watch the lightening flash across the sky until 1:30am talking and laughing. It was a simple and unplanned but awesome girl time!