Book Report

A couple of months ago while I wandered into the young adult section at the bookstore and picked up "The Goose Girl" by Shannon Hale. I loved it! It is a fun, light, and interesting fairy tale. Just adorable.

In preparing for my trip to AZ I downloaded "Book of a Thousand Days" by Shannon Hale from Audible.com. I wondered if I would like this book as much as I did the last. I wasn't disappointed. I listened to it in the car on the trip down and back as much as I could and I listened to it every night before bed. I finally finished it today at work (after 5pm lest you think I ignored employees). This book is also a fairy tale, c'mon who doesn't like fairy tales.

If you read these (or listen to them) let me know if you like them. I plan on reading all of her fairy tale books. I just love them!

(p.s. I also read "The Princess Academy...and loved it too!)
(p.p.s. Audible.com is great for downloading audio books. The library is cheaper...but Audible has a better selection and takes less time!).

Wordle

So my friend did this on their blog and I loved it! You go to www.wordle.net and type in your own words, or you can type in a web address (i.e your blog address) creates a word picture for you. The bigger the word in the picture the more frequently it appears on your blog.

The big words in my picture gave me a lot to think about. Obviously there have been a lot of things on my mind lately.

Happy Valentines Day!

**please don't judge that this made me laugh really hard**

Happy Valentines Day to you! I love you all! (Well...except YOU...you know who you are.)

3 Things

3 things I love about Ardell:

1. She is her own person. She doesn't need to be hip, or have the latest or best anything. She is who she is and doesn't apologize for it. She taught her children the same values.
2. She likes to "party". Party in Ardell (and Dean) lingo is going out to lunch with friends, dinner with family, or socializing. I spoke with my mom just now and asked what she did today, her answer: "I partied. I went to lunch with my high school friends."
3. Her love of family. She loves her children unconditionally, which doesn't mean she always likes us, but she always loves us. Growing up I never heard "your dad's family" or "my family" it was always "our family" meaning she doesn't think of my dad's family as something less related than her family. She has always made my dad's side of the family feel like they are related a lot closer than just through marriage. She also gets just as excited to learn about my dad's family history as she does her own.

I just love my mom. She is the best ever and make me laugh often!

A Theme Found

I found a theme, but not a 2009 theme, a life theme...well really more of a life question:

"As you go through these tough times, you each have a simple choice to make. You can either choose to be bitter, or you can choose to be better. Which do you choose?"

I was thinking how I could introduce or explain why I chose this theme, and then when I was responding to an email about the theme, I thought "Why not just post my response to their statement."

My friends statement about my theme: "I am surprised to see this as the theme you have chosen. I just expected something with a more poetic rhythm from you."

Without further ado, my response: (with just a few motifications)

I agree...I was expecting something with more sass, pizzaz, etc. But, this just struck a chord in my heart. Death always makes you reflect. Reflect on the person's life, and on your own life. I have been thinking a lot about what I can learn from how my father chose to live his life and what I can glean from him to make my life better.

For most of his life, he chose to be bitter about wrongs, hard times, really just a lot of things that were tough to deal with and experience. I will be the first to admit, he had a really really really hard life. Choices by his mother, grandmother, and others that didn't give him the best start or help during some pretty important years in his life. I mean for goodness sakes his brother committed suicide. HOWEVER, he didn't let these experiences make him better...he kept some bitterness.

About a year or so ago I found a tape my dad talked on about his life, he was speaking of things from his childhood. 80% or more of the tape were bad things that happened to him. After the first time listening to it, I vowed I wouldn't listen to it again. I didn't need to be reminded of the bitterness. However, when my attitude towards helping take care of my dad changed...I found myself needing to listen to it again. Seeing him in the prime of his "BITTERNESS" on the tape contrasted with the "BETTERNESS" that I was seeing him display during the last year of my life affected me profoundly. Let me explain the "BETTERNESS" I am speaking of, experiences with my dad taught me that he could get grumpy or unpleasant in certain situations. My prediction was that his children taking care of his every need (and I mean even the most personal ones), would have made him even more unpleasant or grumpy. BUT during this time he was pleasant. He told us he loved us. My dad repeatedly told us he had beautiful daughters, that he didn't know how he got to be so lucky to have such great children. In, what I would have thought would be the hardest trial to endure, he let him make him BETTER. The bitterness that lingered from earlier years was almost non-existant.

The quote that I heard summed it up for me. I don't want to spend years or even seconds of my life carrying bitterness with me. I want to spend seconds and years carrying betterness with me. I choose to be happy. I choose to be optimistic. I choose to see the good in people. I choose to laugh. I choose to love, and to love with my whole heart. I choose to keep those I love (friends, family, etc) close to me. I choose to be better. That is my choice now and forever.

I don't think it will be easy, but I am going to try.

This is why it more of a life motto...so I need to still come up with a 2009 theme....any thoughts?

**final note, lest you get the wrong idea, my friend liked the theme."**

Right This Minute...

Right this minute
...I feel very blessed.
...I am sitting at my computer half dressed, not really unusual.
...I wish I could scream in your face "I AM NOT THAT PERSON AND NEVER HAVE BEEN AND NEVER WILL BE."
...Iam super excited for the talent show on Friday...it's going to be fabulous!
...Iam shivering, maybe I should put on some clothes.
...just purchased "1, 2, 3, 4" by Plain White T's and "Busy Being Fabulous" by The Eagles.
...I am thinking "Busy Being Fabulous" should be my theme song for a while.
...wish I could tell you that you are not funny, you are making me feel bad, and I wish you would think before you speak.
...I wish I was brave enough to go through with it, and not only it...but so many things.
...I wish I was back in China with "the circle". Life was easy and fun and glittery.
...I am going to pay bills.
...I am resolved to not let it bother me again without saying something.

New Header

Check out my new header! What do you think?

Theme's

We are picking a theme for our Relief Society Presidency for 2009, something to remember and try to model this year. Our theme is:

Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Then Lisa told us her theme for the year:

Philippians 4:11 "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content."

With all these great theme's for 2009, I have decided I NEED A THEME. And this is where you come in...

I have some ideas but would like your ideas of quotes, scriptures, etc for my theme for 2009. We don't want a repeat of last years theme's of:

"Trials make you stronger" or "I never said it would be easy, I just said it would be worth it" or "Doing what you have always done will get you what you've always got"

So let's hear your ideas!

Halloween 2008

I know, I know this is a titch late...but cut me some slack...will ya?

This year the weather was rather pleasant so Ardell decided to greet the trick-o-treater's outside. She had me set up her table and added a Halloween decoration and was good to go!

The treat's this year were a string cheese for each trickster AND they could have either a pack crackers and cheese or a twinkie. Rather awesome treats if you ask me!


As you can see, my mom loves Halloween! (And if you know my mom at all...she always has the phone hooked to her shirt. No else answers the phone if she is home...it barely even rings and she has already said "Hello".)

**Off subject: Isn't Ardell the cutest Mom/Grandma/Great Grandma ever? I just think she is great! And life is never boring with her around.**


Even Dean got into the spirit of Halloween with a glow in the dark wrist band. Okay, okay, it was my wrist band from the Halloween party I went to...but he wore it all night.

Don't be scared of the pictures of Dean...it was a bad camera angle...and I should have cleaned him up a bit...but he had just enjoyed a Halloween treat!


This was my dad's last Halloween...and by all accounts it was a good one.

Reflections and Looking Forward

At dinner last night a friend asked me what was the best thing that happened in 2008. I couldn't think of one thing. This question has been on my mind since then and I have an answer. The best thing that happened to me in 2008 was my testimony of Heavenly Father and His son Jesus Christ getting firmer.

2008 a year of trials and blessings:

*My mom has recovered amazingly well from her hip surgeries. She is more like a 60 year old than a 76 year old - Blessing
*My brother getting so sick he was in ICU for 3 weeks and almost passed away - Trial
*My faith in the power of the priesthood and of fasting and prayer grew when Joe was in the hospital - Blessing
*Feeling inadequate is so many areas of my life - Trial
*Finding out something that broke my heart - Trial
*Blogging - Blessing
*Father passing away - Trial
*Father passing away - Blessing
*The love I have felt from so many people after my dad died, I haven't felt that kind of love for a long time - Blessing
*Knowing that Heavenly Father loves me and having this reinforced over and over and over this year - Blessing
*Traveling - Trial and Blessing
*Kung Fu Joe, and the rest of my family - Blessing
*Turning 30 - TRIAL
*Having some pretty amazing friends that just love me for me - Blessing
*Sewing lessons, and then sewing an apron - Blessing
*Great Hair - Blessing
*My calling in the Relief Society Presidency, where I have been able to see and hear others bear their testimonies, I am able to share my testimony, and seeing the power of the Gospel change people - Blessing.

All in all, 2008 has been a hard, but good year. I have learned a lot and wouldn't trade that for anything.

So, what I am I planning for 2009?

1. No one dies. Sorry friends, I am done with that for a long time.
2. Getting my finances in order.
3. Finishing my landscape painting and then painting a "delia" original.
4. Clearing all sorts of clutter out of my life.
5. Temples, scriptures, prayer, and the like.
6. Starting my MBA.
7. Getting together with friends...a lot.
8. And maybe, just maybe a few trips (California, Arizona, New York, Connecticut, and maybe Oregan...)
9. and...well maybe a surprise or two a long the way...