“susceptible of modification or adaptation; adaptable”
Case in point:
It is spring. (I think.) Monday night we grilled chicken for dinner. I was a beautiful day. I was planning on making a wonderful Japanese Chicken Salad with the leftover chicken (I always grill extra). As it turns out, it is a soup day.
We are now having Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup.
Another good one!
"All children need a laptop. Not a computer, but a human laptop. Moms, dads, grammies and grandpas, aunts, uncles - someone to hold them, read to them, teach them. Loved ones who will them and pass on the experience, rituals and knowledge of a hundred generations. Loved ones who will pass to the next generation their... expectations of them, their hopes, and their dreams."
-General Colin Powell
Tonight I had the fortunate opportunity to attend the YW General Broadcast at the conference center. Taylor and I braved the traffic, searched diligently for parking, and walked several blocks at a rapid pace to get there. We were richly rewarded.
The First Presidency was there with President Monson presiding. The Young Women general presidency spoke followed by Dieter F. Uchtdorf. I loved his story of the courtship of his wife and his persistence in doing whatever he could to gain the attention of the woman he fell in love with the first moment he saw her.
He spoke of fairy tales and happily ever after’s and how we, as Latter Day Saints can achieve the greatest happily ever after as we strive to follow the commandments and have the courage to be the one to stand for what is right even if we are the only one standing.
It was a great evening.
When I saw this, I knew I had to post it. LOVE IT!
Marriage is not a noun; it's a verb. It isn't something you get. It's something you do. It's the way you love your partner every day.
Barbara De Angelis
As I have pondered my goal to do one good deed daily, I have realized how simple it really is. Opportunities are constantly presenting themselves. We are often not even aware of these opportunities. We are also not aware of the good we do without actually trying. We just do. A smile, a handshake, a complement, a gesture to move ahead of us in line or traffic.
I have tried to become more aware of these opportunities, and in doing so, I have become more aware of the opportunities for others. It feels good to see others extend kindnesses. Being a witness to such acts gives me hope. There is still good in this world. A lot of it. Knowing this, the potential cloudy doom that we face is blown away and a bright future remains on the horizon. We just have to try to keep things in perspective and remember, that it is in the Lords hands and as we continue to follow Him and serve Him, all will be well.
It’s what busy people do.
Tonight we kicked off Kylee’s birthweek. We celebrated with dinner at a restaurant of her choice. (Always La Puente.) Topping it off with the dessert of her choice. (Always Butterfinger Cake.) Friends gathered to help us eat two cakes.
Later this week will be lunch out with dad, grilled steaks at home, and the beginning of her spring break trip to San Francisco.
I can’t believe she is turning 20 this week!
Before Christmas last year, I secretly bought tickets to Brian Regan. They arrived with plenty of time to spare and I tucked them in a drawer until I found a moment to wrap them up.
As luck would have it, we were skipping through the cannels on TV and I noticed Bryan Regan on Comedy Central. I stopped so we could watch for a while. I was also hoping for some positive reassurances. Those assurances did not come, in fact, the response was mostly negative. My heart sank. Reluctantly, I wrapped the tickets but added a note of apology.
Tonight was the show. Evan is gone for his “business trip” in Vegas, so our friend Heather used his ticket. The evening started off with dinner, Rowley Style (not always a good thing). We topped it off with a great show and of tears of laughter.
On the way home, we caught the score for the BYU game. I wonder if Evan wished he did not give up his ticket.
Every year, about this same time, Evan leaves for a
“business trip” in Vegas.
I sense a correlation.
Graycie Anne was blessed today by her father.
Neale gave a beautiful blessing. I am so proud of him. He has such a beautiful family and most of all… he honors his Priesthood.
As always, Saturday is a busy day. A day for errands and catching up on neglected chores.
Today I vacuumed,
dusted,
washed and folded laundry,
and emptied the dishwasher.
I’m exhausted!
(and VERY lucky!!)
"If you do something once, people will call it an accident. If you do it twice, they call it a coincidence. But do it a third time and you've just proven a natural law." ~ Grace Hopper
“Latter-day Saints, having received the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, are entitled to personal inspiration in the small events of life as well as when they are confronted with the giant Goliaths of life.” ~James E. Faust
I must prelude this story with a short story.
Just over a year ago, as I was walking up the stairs at work, I reached for my keys so I could open the door. Somehow, the split ring that attached my car key to the rest had come loose and it fell off the ring. I heard it drop, slide and drop again. To my horror, it had slid down a gap between the building and the stairs. I immediately went to the management office to see if there was a way under the stair well. My stomach dropped when I was told “No”.
My boss, not wanting me to incur the great cost of replacing a remote key, went home to fetch his SUPER MAGNET and many hours later (sparing the details) my key was retrieved.
Flash forward to today .
My morning started earlier than usual. Up at 4:00 AM. Out the door by 4:50 AM. Picked up two of Taylor’s friends and I dropped all three off at the airport. After a quick hug goodbye, I went straight into work. As I was walking up the stairs to the office, I reached for my keys to unlock the door. The entire key ring got caught up in a wire basket I was carrying and then slipped out of my hands. To my horror, it had slid down a gap between the building and the stairs. (Déjà vu)
It was cold and dark. No one was around to help. I considered waiting it out until someone else showed up to unlock to door, but the thought of sitting there in the cold for 2 hours was too much. I called Evan and woke him up. He promptly brought me his spare key and I sat in my warm car until after 8 AM. During that time, I noticed Travis, the friendly maintenance man (who incidentally, is not usually around as he works at many properties). I explained to him my situation and he got permission from the manager to cut out the extra railing that would expose a small opening. I told him I would volunteer to crawl in. He said he would be back later.
I was sick about my situation all day long. TWO remote keys, house keys, office keys. Headache, nausea, upset stomach. I managed to stay on task and get my morning work done. Soon it was lunch time and I was heading out the door to pick up our order of comfort food. As I was heading down the stairs, I was prompted to look once more. The sun was up and the lighting was perfect, because this time, I noticed something different. There was a ledge under the stairs at approximately the same spot where the keys fell. I also remembered the sounds of this morning. It sounded different from the first time. No slide. No additional drop. As I looked, I noticed a small black nubbin peeking ever so slightly from under the stair. I wondered.
After lunch, I took a hanger and carefully swept it near the nubbin. My keys appeared along the edge. After creating a hook on the hanger, and the help of my boss we were able to, once again, retrieve the keys. I called off Travis and breathed A LOT easier for the rest of the day.
I hope now, that there is no proof of a natural law in this series of events.
If Evan and I had any sort of musical talent… we might grow old together like this:
We do, however, have the “bottom pats” down!
It cannot be avoided, children will always grow up. I face this reality every March… the beginning of birthday season.
This year is no exception. In a little over two weeks, my oldest will no longer be a teenager.
Less then a month after that, my baby says goodbye to sweet 16.
I have been fortunate as a mother, to have found great joy in all stages of my children's lives. I have not looked back and missed the “days when”. I have always looked forward to “what’s next”…and it just keeps getting better.
There is so much to look forward to. I can’t wait to see what’s next!
