This phrase is uttered in our house multiple times a day. Any of the three older kiddos can be heard yelling it or mumbling it under their breath at any time.
I remember saying that to my mom and I'd get the "life's not fair" answer.
So, I guess I'm stuck with it....I sure hope my kids have to deal with this when they are parents!
After all, it's only fair!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
9 years old
My first baby turns 9 next Friday...less than a week away! What do you buy a 9 year old? I'm having a hard time facing that she's having a birthday and it wouldn't hurt my feelings to skip that day....
What to do?
What to do?
What to do?
What to do?
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Pumpkin Patch
We went on a preschool field trip yesterday to the local pumpkin patch. We got to ride on a trailer being pulled by a tractor (a highlight to the boys) and scan the patch first before deciding on the "perfect" pumpkin.
Things were going pretty good. The kids were all having a fun time and they were listening pretty well too. Finally the boys and I agreed on good sized pumpkins and loaded back onto the trailer.
Then trouble had to nudge it's little nose in. Jacob was climbing on some of the hay bales where he wasn't supposed to be and after several times of being asked (by me) to get down, I had to pull him off. This resulted in a major meltdown and the boy lost it! He was screaming and yelling and crying and hitting and kicking...well, I'm sure you can imagine it. If it was at home, it would have been easier to get him to calm down, but that wasn't happening. I told him that if he didn't calm down and start acting like he should, he would lose his pumpkin. I wasn't going to buy him one if he couldn't show some slight form of respect. Well this made the tantrum even worse. He started swinging his jacket around along with the screaming and such and ended up hitting Ethan in the eye with the zipper on the jacket. Which in turn made mommy, who had been in an excellent mood, turn pretty grouchy. I went in to pay for Ethan's pumpkin and the whole time Jake is screaming at the top of his lungs in the store and out for his pumpkin. The cashier just looked at me with pity and all I could muster was "some lessons just have to be learned the hard way".
She smiled and nodded and out we went. In the van on the way home, Jacob had a moment of clarity and apologized to me for his actions. I was still pretty grouchy, but accepted. He is now on a mission to apologize to all of his preschool friends and their moms who saw the awful display.
He's still not getting a pumpkin this year. He's had to learn a hard lesson, but so far today I've had a lot less temper tantrums than before...I'll count my blessings!
Once we got back it was time for snacks. They had juice and cookies and the kids thought that was great as well!
She smiled and nodded and out we went. In the van on the way home, Jacob had a moment of clarity and apologized to me for his actions. I was still pretty grouchy, but accepted. He is now on a mission to apologize to all of his preschool friends and their moms who saw the awful display.
He's still not getting a pumpkin this year. He's had to learn a hard lesson, but so far today I've had a lot less temper tantrums than before...I'll count my blessings!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
An interview
An interview
I dreamed I had an interview with God.
"Come in," God said. "So, you would like to interview Me?"
"If you have the time," I said.
God smiled and said: "My time is eternity and is enough to do everything; What questions do you have in mind to ask me?"
"What surprises you most about mankind?"
God answered:
"That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again...
That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health...
That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future...
That they live as if they will never die, and they die as if they had never lived."
God's hands took mine and we were silent for awhile and then I asked... "As a parent, what are some of life's lessons you want your children to learn?"
God replied with a smile:
"To learn that they cannot make anyone love them. What they can do is to let themselves be loved...
To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives...
To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis...
To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most, but is one who needs the least...
To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in persons we love, and that it takes many years to heal them...
To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness...
To learn that there are persons that love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings...
To learn that money can buy everything but happiness...
To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally different...
To learn that a true friend is someone who knows everything about them, and likes them anyway...
To learn that it is not always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves."
I sat there for awhile enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for his time and for all that He has done for me and my family, and He replied, "Anytime. I'm here 24 hours a day. All you have to do is ask for me, and I'll answer.
---
I found this on one of my facebook friends' (Greg Delange) notes. I think it really is something a lot of us don't take the time to think about, or that we take some of this for granted.
"Come in," God said. "So, you would like to interview Me?"
"If you have the time," I said.
God smiled and said: "My time is eternity and is enough to do everything; What questions do you have in mind to ask me?"
"What surprises you most about mankind?"
God answered:
"That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again...
That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health...
That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future...
That they live as if they will never die, and they die as if they had never lived."
God's hands took mine and we were silent for awhile and then I asked... "As a parent, what are some of life's lessons you want your children to learn?"
God replied with a smile:
"To learn that they cannot make anyone love them. What they can do is to let themselves be loved...
To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives...
To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis...
To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most, but is one who needs the least...
To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in persons we love, and that it takes many years to heal them...
To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness...
To learn that there are persons that love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings...
To learn that money can buy everything but happiness...
To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally different...
To learn that a true friend is someone who knows everything about them, and likes them anyway...
To learn that it is not always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves."
I sat there for awhile enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for his time and for all that He has done for me and my family, and He replied, "Anytime. I'm here 24 hours a day. All you have to do is ask for me, and I'll answer.
---
I found this on one of my facebook friends' (Greg Delange) notes. I think it really is something a lot of us don't take the time to think about, or that we take some of this for granted.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Posture
I went to the chiropractor this morning to get all of my joints put back in place. Talk about a good kind of pain! As we were talking about things I could do to help prevent coming so many times...I know, someone who wants to "prevent" my visits....gasp!..... We talked about exercises and strength training.
We started off talking about posture. I guess I better get used to seeing my double chin because that helps set my shoulders back and helps me sit straight. Posture is what tones the muscles to keep the joints in place. When we don't sit or stand properly we train our muscles to be weak or to be "lazy" and not keep things in order.
Sitting here at the computer, I've been thinking about my posture and how I feel better (even if it hurts) when I sit properly. I've also been visiting different blogs while sitting here. I've been reading about others' trials and questions and blessings and family events. Doing this got me thinking.
How is our faith like our posture? How strong are we when we are lazy in our faith. Sometimes it takes a conscience effort to make sure we are doing what we need to. I have to retrain my back, shoulder and jaw muscles to help alleviate the pain I feel. If I need to do this physically to feel better, what do I need to do to make my spiritual side feel better? (I am thinking this not because I haven't been feeling spiritual, but I think we all have those "downer" moments.) How poor is our faith posture?
Jon and I have been talking a lot about what it takes to prepare for the second coming of Christ. What we need to be like and what it will be like before He comes again. We know that we have been slouching and need to correct our posture. We've improved or family scripture study and our personal study. We're trying to be calmer, even-tempered parents, and we're doing the best we can to follow all of the counsel from the prophet and other general authorities of the church. It's painful at times. We're trying to retrain our spiritual muscles so that we can do all that is required of us at any level. Obedience is key when it comes to this process. Just as our physical bodies need to function in the way that they were intended, so do our spirits. We need to make sure that we are all taking good care of ourselves and stretching our muscles and our spirits. It is the only way that we can become stronger in both aspects.
I know that everyone is different, and I'm glad that we are! As I remind myself to keep my tongue on the roof of my mouth (relaxes the jaw) and my chin doubled (not hard to do), I can also remind myself to engage in activities that will stretch my Spirit so that I can become strong in my faith and knowledge of my Savior.
We started off talking about posture. I guess I better get used to seeing my double chin because that helps set my shoulders back and helps me sit straight. Posture is what tones the muscles to keep the joints in place. When we don't sit or stand properly we train our muscles to be weak or to be "lazy" and not keep things in order.
Sitting here at the computer, I've been thinking about my posture and how I feel better (even if it hurts) when I sit properly. I've also been visiting different blogs while sitting here. I've been reading about others' trials and questions and blessings and family events. Doing this got me thinking.
How is our faith like our posture? How strong are we when we are lazy in our faith. Sometimes it takes a conscience effort to make sure we are doing what we need to. I have to retrain my back, shoulder and jaw muscles to help alleviate the pain I feel. If I need to do this physically to feel better, what do I need to do to make my spiritual side feel better? (I am thinking this not because I haven't been feeling spiritual, but I think we all have those "downer" moments.) How poor is our faith posture?
Jon and I have been talking a lot about what it takes to prepare for the second coming of Christ. What we need to be like and what it will be like before He comes again. We know that we have been slouching and need to correct our posture. We've improved or family scripture study and our personal study. We're trying to be calmer, even-tempered parents, and we're doing the best we can to follow all of the counsel from the prophet and other general authorities of the church. It's painful at times. We're trying to retrain our spiritual muscles so that we can do all that is required of us at any level. Obedience is key when it comes to this process. Just as our physical bodies need to function in the way that they were intended, so do our spirits. We need to make sure that we are all taking good care of ourselves and stretching our muscles and our spirits. It is the only way that we can become stronger in both aspects.
I know that everyone is different, and I'm glad that we are! As I remind myself to keep my tongue on the roof of my mouth (relaxes the jaw) and my chin doubled (not hard to do), I can also remind myself to engage in activities that will stretch my Spirit so that I can become strong in my faith and knowledge of my Savior.
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