Ella was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints today. I can’t believe she is already eight years old. It was a special day for her. We were thankful to have so many of our friends and family there.
This is Brennen eating his lunch. When I looked at him it made me laugh. He is wearing his “Luigi” hat (from Super Mario Brothers). It’s actually my basket liner, but it’s green like Luigi’s hat so it works for Brennen. He is also drinking his soup with a straw. Isn’t he cute?
Ella did her math homework tonight. The directions said to “show your work.” So, she drew a picture of her finger for each problem to show that she counted on her fingers to figure out the answers!!!
I walked into the kitchen and saw Brennen eating a super hero! It’s actually a spoon but it makes me laugh every time he eats with it.
Preston has been practicing his handwriting. I thought he did a great job writing his name on my craft table!!!
Ella’s 2nd grade class is learning all about the election process. They have learned about the important races going on in Ohio and how someone is elected. Their class decided to hold an election for a class president. Anyone who wanted to run was to prepare a speech for the primary. Ella and three other students won the primary and advanced to the general election. She again had to prepare another speech dealing with the issues that were important to their class. Here is the speech she wrote entirely by herself! She did not win the race for class president, but was elected as vice president.
In case you are wondering:
amygdala: almond-shaped groups of nuclei located deep within the medial temporal lobes of the brain in complex vertebrates, including humans. Shown in research to perform a primary role in the processing and memory of emotional reactions. (Wikipedia)
We have an extra refrigerator in our garage. I went out there today to get some apple juice. As I grabbed it from the refrigerator, I noticed it felt warm. I checked the dial and saw that someone had turned it to the off position. I immediately asked Preston about it and he admitted that, “I wanted to see what it would do. I didn’t do it today, but I can’t remember what day I did it.” The entire contents of the refrigerator (5 pounds of butter, 1 block of cream cheese, 4 pounds cheese, 1 dozen eggs, 2 pounds of ham etc) were at room temperature and had to be thrown out. When I opened the freezer, it was still 32 degrees and cold. Everything was thawed and I only had to throw out about half of the questionable contents (2 tubs of cool whip, 2 bags of ravioli, 2 pounds of meatballs, 1 pound of pork chops, 3 pounds of shrimp, 1 pound of salmon etc).
Then, I spent the rest of the evening crying over lost food and money and cooking the rest of the meat that could be salvaged. I cooked 9 pounds of chicken, 2 pounds of hamburger, 6 pounds of beef ribs, 3 pounds of beef roast, and 7 pounds of pork roast! I put all the cooked meat again in the freezer with hopes that this will never happen again.
When Ella came home she asked what I was doing. I told her all about it and she said, “I won’t do that again. I learned from experience.” I had forgotten that she had done the same thing a few years ago. I guess I have two more kids coming up who will want to see what the refrigerator dial will do!
I have not enjoyed very much this summer. I am pregnant with our fourth child and I have felt horrible all summer. I was sick with the other three kids but nothing like this. I spent most of my summer laying in bed hoping the nausea would go away. We ate out more in July than I think my kids ever have in their lives. They were beginning to think that McDonald’s is a regular dietary staple. My house has not been taken care of as I would have liked. The kids have watched more tv than ever before. I am slacking in my scripture study and other spiritual areas. I could go on and on, but I know we all have times like this in our lives. There are times when we either don’t feel well physically or emotionally and just need to take a little time out. I also know that things will get better and that Heavenly Father does not forget us. I know that no matter how we feel, he sends us what we need when we need it.
I am grateful for a husband who didn’t mind coming home from work and picking up my slack and picking up the house! I am grateful for a friend who sensed our needs and brought my family a wonderful home cooked meal on a day that I just couldn’t bear to eat fast food again. I am grateful that I was able to quit work to stay home full time with my kids. I am grateful we will soon have another child in our family. I am grateful for this beautiful sunset we experienced one night at my parent’s home.
It’s easy to sit and wallow in our pain. But, when we think of all we are grateful for, it makes things much easier to bear.
Brennen is 2 1/2 and has decided he will dress himself. It’s a lot of work for him but he is bound and determined he will do it without help. One night he came running up to me and said, “Look Mom. I got dressed all by myself!” He kept looking at his pants like something wasn’t quite right but couldn’t figure it out (they were inside out). Then he looked down at his shirt and was puzzled by the fact that the batman logo wasn’t on his chest (his shirt was on backwards). But, all in all, he was pretty proud of himself.
A few minutes before this we were having Family Home Evening. During the lesson Brennen decided to strip naked and streak through the living room! So, he had to put his clothes back on. Things are always eventful during Family Home Evening at our house!
And yes, he is still wearing his cowboy boots day and night! And boy are they STINKY!
I am a pharmacist. I went to college for five long and grueling years. I always knew I didn’t want a career. I always wanted to stay at home with my children. My fellow students all thought I was crazy to put myself through the torture of pharmacy school when I didn’t want to work full time when I graduated. Well, when I did graduate, I worked full time for a few years to help Phil finish school and get his career started. Then I went to part time after I had my first child. My mom watched Ella, then Preston, then Brennen as I worked 1-3 days a week. I never had to continue working. It was just something I did because I could. I always felt I had the best of both worlds because I still felt like a stay at home mom. I only worked part time and my kids weren’t going to a babysitter. I also felt like I got out into the “real world” a few days a week and was able to contribute to the family income.
Well, earlier this year I started feeling a little stressed with the three kids, work, house, and the prospects of having another baby. I knew in my heart that I needed to quit work completely. I kept feeling this way and knew something had to be done. When Phil and I found out we were expecting another baby, we knew it was time for me to say goodbye to work for a while.
I didn’t think it would be so hard for me to give up especially since I only worked part time and I was excited to spend more time with my kids at home. But, it was tough. I started working there when I was 16. As you can see by the photo above that I have worked there exactly half of my life! That is a long time. The economy is really bad right now too and I felt nervous about quitting a good job when so many people are looking for work. When I expressed this concern to Phil, he said, “Heavenly Father’s ways are not the ways of the world.” That really made me think. I know that logically with the economy the way it is, I should work and continue to contribute to the family income. But, I know that Heavenly Father wants me to stay home with my kids and teach them His ways. I know my family will be blessed because of this and that makes me happy. So, for now I am a mother!
Here is a video that I love: