Wuv, Tru Wuv,

will fowow you foweva . . . Mawage is wot bwings us togeder tooday. Mawage, that bwessed awangment, that dweam wifin a dweam...

Do you ever look at your old wedding album and wonder who are those people? We are definitely different both physically and emotionally. I cannot believe how much we have changed and how brave I am for posting these pictures where I am slim and trim. Some people I know, who know me now and have never seen me before, might fall out of their chairs. That's alright, I know they still wuv me because of who I am and not what I look like. No, it is really not that bad. I do not shy away from mirrors because of horrible warts on my face or hairs growing out my nose or anything just flabby thighs.

Ah, we were so young. We thought about all the fun we were going to have and that it would be all the things that make us think of romantical notions and wedded bliss. Many, many, MANY, many things have we learned.

I love my husband more now than I did then and I have learned a little bit more patience, I hope. I had to throw that "I hope" in, as yes, my hubby does read my blog. He just might laugh himself into hysterics at work while he is reading this and pass out. His co-workers will wonder why he is on the floor rolling around about his ever so patient wife or why he passed out from the hysterical laughing.

By the way, do you think my husband looks a little freaked out in the picture to the right in the bottom corner?

I have learned to remember the "grapefruit syndrome" story (please read bottom of page that this link goes to for story about grapefruit) and hold it close to my heart and chant grapefruit syndrome to myself very often. My husband has learned strategic capitulation, as he calls it. He used to think, when he was young and ever so smart, that his dad just did not stand up to his mom enough, you know like men should (I can hear you all laughing), but he has learned the value of strategic capitulation in our marriage just as his father did. I swear, I am not a brutal wife and neither is his mother. Our husbands just love us and sometimes, they have to remember the "grapefruit syndrome" chant, too, and to strategically capitulate. We have both learned that making each other happy makes us happy as a couple. It has been a very busy two-way street.

I have learned that love is an action and it takes work and not focusing so much on the little things that may cause us to cringe or become exasperated. We have both grown up immensely since the early part of our marriage.

Marriage is a scary thing but also exciting and for me, it has just gotten better and better each day and each year that we are together. I am not a truly romantic person. My husband is way more romantic than me, but I just thought it would be good to end the month of February talking about my sweetheart. He is wonderful and I love him and he takes good care of me. He is truly my very best friend. It is a pleasure to go through life with him and to know exactly where we are going. So, I hope you will all remember to tweasure your wuv throughout the year.

Two Words

Chicken Makahi!

It is so good, it is criminal.

You must, I repeat, must avert your eyes from the fat content or you might have an instant coronary just looking at it.

My very favorite Indian dish of all time.

No Naan, so sad.:( Need to learn to make this. I was also out of this and too lazy tonight to go get it.

I will post my recipe for the Chicken Makhani. It is a bit simpler. The above is somewhat complicated.

I Go Back

I was driving down the freeway this morning and that Kenny Chesney song "I Go Back" came on the radio. (Confession time, I really do not like Kenny Chesney songs, so please don't shoot me if you do.) Listening to the song, though I thought about how much music really does bring us back to both good and maybe not so good memories in our lives and to thoughts of the loved ones here with us still and the ones that are gone.

My husband comes from a very musically talented family, but me not so much. When we are at church, people turn around and tell my husband how wonderful he sings and blah, blah, blah. I get nothin, nadda, not even a consoling glance as to say you were alright or even mediocre. That's okay, because singing is really not my thing. Listening to music, though has been an important part of my life. I think it is for most people. It can bring back a memory, makes us laugh, cry, and unite us as people. It can remind us how similar yet how unique each of us are. Here are just a few things that come to mind for me.

Anything 70s/80s brings me back to high school dances and my old friends.
Neil Diamond reminds me of my mom. For some reason, she loves this man's butt. We have had a hard relationship and it reminds of the happier times that I have had with her.
Gene Autry or any 'ol country song reminds me of my dad.
Louis Armstrong reminds me of my grandmother. I found a Louis Armstrong tape of hers and played it while we were cleaning out her house after she passed away and I just felt better.
Certain songs will remind of different people like Poor Wavering Man of Grief reminds me of a man that was shot and killed in one of our old wards (congregation) because they sang it at his funeral. It reminds me of who he was and how kind he was and not of how he died so tragically.
Hymns just make me happy to be a Christian/Mormon. They talk about Christ and remind me of who I am.
LDS Primary songs remind me of the people I have worked with over the years in the Primary organization of our church and all the children that we have taught about Christ and Heavenly Father. I can never get through certain songs without crying.

My list could be go on and on. I just never really thought about how important music really has been to me. My question to anyone reading is what songs make you happy, remind you of a special moment or person in your life, etc.?

Good Times . . .

Today, was so not a night I wanted to go out. At 5:00 p.m. today, I had not even showered. I was still stinky from the gym. When I had gotten home from the gym, I just got started on other work and before I knew it I had stayed in sweaty icky clothes for the afternoon. What has brought me to this lowly state? Hmmm . . . let me think . . . children.

We had a wedding reception and a going away open house for some old friends of ours to go to. I really wanted to go to both of these, but I did not want to leave my house. Do you ever feel this way? I did decide to go and I had a really nice evening, as I got to spend some very good times with my family being silly and visiting with old friends like this wonderful lady.

Thats all, a simple blog. I am just gratfeul for my fun family, friends that we have met through the years, and that I actually showered today so as not to offend my husband tonight.

I took those pictures off the last blog because I was not sure about copyright laws, etc. In a bit, I will probably just post some sort of link to where the pictures can be looked at. Sorry about that. It was just a couple of Greg Olsen paintings.

Breaking Copyright Laws . . . .

I hope not. If you have had a rough day like mine, I hope these pictures lift your spirit. This is one of my favorite pictures.

along with this one . . .

These pictures just remind me how much the Savior loves me and all of his children and how he is there to lift us up. My husband had a cousin lose her little girl to brain cancer about 7 years ago. When we went to the viewing, my mother-in-law asked, "Where is the baby?" This little girl was 5, but it made me think about Heavenly Father and how we are all his his little ones . . . his babies even after we think we are all grown up and he gave us a wonderful Savior so that we can live with him again one day. My hard day just seems so distant when I think about the both of them and what they have done for me.

Bursted Bubbles

When we had my oldest daughter 12 years ago, I did not know how good we had it. She was/is a dream. She slept through the night, hardly ever cried, is quiet. My mother-in-law told me how different she was, but I did not believe her. She cries, we said and she has her moments. Boy, was I wrong.

This is a blog of apology to all the mothers that I ever gave the look to. The look that says control your child, get a grip on those kids, man what a spoiled child. My second daughter is wonderful and I love her. She is smart and sassy and is very vocal and loud, a lot. She has been since the day she was born. She has a huge heart, too but she just is single minded in her decision making and will not let go even when she knows she will not get her way. Why does she insist on crying for cotton on a stick (cotton candy), as she calls it, and as soon as we walk into Walmart? I have never let her have this. When I tell her no, her cries echo from one end of Walmart to the other.

Crying very loud just ALWAYS gets me to do anything she wants me to. When I say no to chicken pops (popcorn chicken) because it is too close to dinner, it would be nice if all the ladies who never had children who behaved poorly would stop looking at me with the look. Yeah, I spoil her real good. She gets everything and anything she wants all the time. From this time foreword, I will no longer give the look and I will try to empathize more. Maybe that is why all the ladies were looking at me with my screaming child because they too can empathize with me.

Step Away From The Candy . . .

Why is it that I feel the need to eat my weight in Easter candy every year? Halloween candy is no big deal. Ha! I laugh in its face. Christmas candy seems to get stale around my house. Valentines Day, I would just rather have flowers! But Easter candy just makes me crazy. Why do stores feel the need to put it on sale immediately after Valentines day?

What is it with the gummy goodness of those things shaped like rabbits, the shiny pastel wrappers filled with chocolate treats, jelly beans of many different flavors, marshmallows shaped like little birdies and in various colors, chocolate peanut butter eggs that call my name . . . I need therapy or something or a WW intervention. It just keep thinking to myself "STEP AWAY FROM THE CANDY."

Cha-Cha-Cha Changes

Today, when we got home from the gym, I found this note posted to my door. It seems like an innocent enough note. Just a pink piece of paper with a chocolate candy taped to it and a lovely scripture, but it is a stark reminder that time is passing me by. My baby is growing up. She is a TWEEN. The mall is her favorite place as are the movies, going to Young Women's activities, and Claire's, at the mall, where she and her friends can buy 10 crappy items for 5 dollars like hot pink fingernail polish and green apple Lizzie McGuire perfume and eat curly fries and worry their mothers. Oh, and buy stickers that are on sale at said Claire's that say things that they do not even know what they mean. Like . . . If the Van is Rockin, . . . I will let you fill in the details. I had to explain to her and her aunt, who happens to be about the same age, what that meant. Me! We have had the talk, but well that was uncomfortable and they promptly threw it out. My husband and I briefly thought of putting it on someone's van as a joke but opted to be the good examples that we always are. What was that doing at a Claire's store anyway?

Girls in our church go from the Primary to Young Women's when they turn 12. This will be her first time at Girls Camp, which they can all go to in the summer with girls 12-18 and their adult leaders. It is not like she has never gone and stayed anywhere without me, but she is starting to take those steps into young adulthood. She is growing up. I still see her like this sometimes. Learning to let go is hard. Sometimes, I still feel young and can remember when I was doing all those things. I look in the mirror and can hardly believe who I see. I am a wife, a mother, I have responsibilities, my hair is turning GRAY. What has happened to me? It just seems like yesterday that I was cruising the beach with my friends, going to dances, camp, taking those baby steps into adulthood. My heart aches for that little baby of mine, but is so grateful to see the wonderful young woman/person that she is becoming. She tries to make good choices, is a friend to other girls, she is a joy to have in our family, and is becoming such a wonderful person. It is such a privilege to have her as a daughter.

Just One More Blog

I have gone blog happy today. I kind of wanted to post my reasons for naming my blog the way that I have. In no way do I want this to be a religious blog, but when I started thinking about blogging I was at kind of crossroads in my life. There was an article that I read years ago in one of our church magazines called the Ensign that talked somewhat about taking time to contemplate our place in the universe.

I was telling my husband a few weeks ago that my life had become so busy and I felt like I never took the time to just think or to reflect on my life. My day, like many others, is filled with the hustle and bustle of life. Work, kids, cooking, laundry, dishes, etc., but was I taking time to just sit and look at the stars or marvel about how extordinary my life really is and that it is about a whole lot more than the daily grind.

We have something called the Doctrine and Covenants and in it says this:

"Hearken ye to these words. Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. Treasure these things up in your hearts, and let the solemnities of eternity rest upon your minds."

I have a wonderful life, beautiful kids, an absolutely beyond awesome husband. All of my blessings come from one loving Heavenly Father who I know loves ALL of us. One of my goals in blogging is to take more time to reflect on my life and to write about the good and the bad and to try and remember who I really am and where I really came from.

Issues?

I found this in my children's toy box . . .

Was this an accident or do they have issues?

Bloggarrhea

Did anybody feel like they had Bloggarrhea of the brain when they first started? Also, did you feel somewhat schizophrenic? (No offense to anyone who suffers from this horrible illness). Just who in the "H E Double Hockey Sticks" am I talking to. I might have a following of about two people. I also feel somewhat egocentric like the whole blogging world will come and read my blog.

Going back to the Bloggarrhea, I have about 50 ideas running through my head. I am sure one day I will get a blogger's block, but right now I cannot decide on just one thing to write about. Just had to get this all off my chest.

I actually will come back and do a real blog later, as I have no children in the house until Monday, and can put some actual thought into it.

My mother-in-law called yesterday and the conversation went something like this:

Husband: Yes, DD #1 is still coming. You want the other two? Let me ask Carrie.
Me: I do not know if that is such a good idea right now (as I am wildly packing clothes and diapers into their suitcases)
Husband: Yeah, they'll be coming, too.

Do not get me wrong, I love my children but we went to a movie last night, ate out, got eight hours of sleep, ate sugary cereal for breakfast, stayed in bed until 8:15 and still made it to church by 9:00, sat through an entire Sacrament meeting uninterrupted, came home and talked over lunch, and my list could go on . . . I already miss my babies but thank goodness for wonderful in-laws who love their grandchildren.

Okay, now I learned that I can edit my posts. So, link #2 now goes to the right page. My hubby is going to show me later how to change it so that I do not have the long address on there, too. I thought for some reason that I could not edit. This is going to be a learning experience. My boss always says, "It is not hard, it is just new." I try and always remember that when I am learning something new because I will probably look back and think, duhuh. Editing is a good thing because sometimes I think I am SUPER BOLD and write/say something that should probably be kept inside my head. Hopefully, that will not happen too terribly often.

Okay, link #2 in my post did not go to the right posting of that lady. The post she did was about discernment. Most people who will read this will know what I am talking about, anyways. I am working on how to do those links.

How do you know . . .

when you should actually start writing in your own blog? Maybe, when you start dreaming about Baby Bok Choy. I decided that I needed to either stop reading blogs before I go to bed or get a life and write my own blog that I can dream about. In my dream, someone was insisting that I eat the Baby Bok Choy and it was remarkably good. No, I have never eaten this particular vegetable before. I have eaten at the top of the Space Needle, though on my best friend's 16th birthday. Crab and cheese stuffed steak. Yum. Her parents paying even yummier.

I love reading blogs, but the whole idea of putting my thoughts out there for everyone to read is a bit scary to me. Anyway . . . I am starting small. This is not high school after all. We are all adults, right? No one will try and kill me with a dodgeball or in some cases, maybe they will because I am LDS after all. Just thought I would add that should there be any people out there trying to discern who I am. I am also a Republican (there are some issues that may sway a bit Democratic), a fairly good mother and wife, I am a medical transcriptionist who is horrible at punctuation and spelling (thank goodness for Word or I would be out of a job, but I can spell endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography), somewhat unorganized, I do love the big bad Walmart corporation, I do like George Bush (for the most part), I love to exercise, I hate dieting or eating healthy in general but I try so my kids, who do not have a genetic chance, can be healthy . . . My list is big and I hope that you will all come along and get to know me as I get to know myself a little bit better.

I hope this becomes an opportunity to share my thoughts and ideas about my life and to keep a record of the happenings in our household. Please bear with me also as I learn to write better, think clearer, learn more about how to do links/photos/etc., and have an outlet for my daily angst and joy at being a mother and a wife.