Goin' Fishin'

Brigham and his friends went fishing in the Bear River near our neighbor's farm after school on Wednesday. They didn't catch anything, but you can tell fro their smiles that they had a good time. There is nothing like fishing with buddies! For some reason, O.P. Taylor from the Andy Griffith Show comes to mind when I see this picture.

Inspired to plant!

All I did was put a bag of dirt on the counter. Honestly! I didn't even say anything! I was just finishing cleaning up the kitchen and was planning to plant the tomato and pepper seeds I had purchased. Then one, by one, my three oldest kids gathered in the kitchen and began hunting for our stored seeds, pulling out seed trays, and writing on popsicle sticks. Before long, they were asking me if they could plant my seeds for me... um, sure. That was the easiest batch of seedlings I ever planted! And these kids even cleaned up after themselves! (I am thinking I must have done something right.)

So now we have three seed trays of little seedlings up on our East windowsill over the kitchen sink that these responsible kids are watching over and watering each day. This week, they discovered that the sun was better through the south windows in the afternoon, so they carefully move them back and forth each day. After just three days, the first seedling sprouted! We get so excited when a our seeds of Faith show promise!

The perplexing thing is that Lisa's and Brigham's seedlings have sprouted, but none of Amber's have yet. We are still trying to figure out what she did different, since some of the seeds were the same. This dilemma could make for an interesting science experiment. My hypothesis is that she packed the dirt in harder than the others and the little seedlings have to push harder and longer to reach the sunlight. I'll let you know if we figure it out.

Unexpected Blessings in Disguise

This past Sunday, our fridge quit functioning. The culprit: a compressor gone kaput. Translation: $600 fix... or get a new fridge. Since our bank accounts are all at critical levels, (due to some other unexpected blessings in disguise) the obvious answer of purchasing a new refrigerator seems unattainable, which means we will have to make do for now. Since we are semi-experienced campers, we came up with a plan using our coolers and our deep-freeze. We could survive for months--or years really--using this method. We merely rotate our bottles of ice each day from the the freezer to the cooler, and the melted bottles back to the freezer. Through this process, we are discovering what temperatures certain foods store best at. One lesson we have learned was that lettuce doesn't do so well in extreme cold. The outer leaves, when frozen, wilted. However, we could still use the inner leaves. Also, some of our milk froze and that made the taste just a bit different, but we are surviving. And that is the important thing, after all.

I have actually been grateful for this experience because we are learning so much from it; especially my children. For instance, yesterday, Lisa remarked that "it is harder to live without a fridge than it is to live without a microwave." Her comment reminded me that last winter our microwave bit the dust and we survived without that for a few weeks. I can't help but love that my children are experiencing what it feels like to NOT have the convenience of a fridge or a microwave, or any other modern convenience. I think that this experience will be important for them to possess understanding and compassion towards others who may be in similar conditions. (Not that I could compare our circumstances to anyone living a sustenance life-style without electricity in some third-world country.) Still, the inconvenience of living with a cooler for a fridge is a big step for us and I think it will prove to bring understanding and connections for our family in the future.

Another process we are going through is learning how to make do with what we have until we can afford what we need. We watched a funny skit on You Tube from Saturday Night Live the other day with the message, "Don't buy anything if you don't have the money." Steve Martin and others sarcastically referred to that statement as a huge breakthrough in finance, a newly discovered truth. It was so funny. We laughed, but the next day, as David called me from Home Depot to ask my opinion about whether or not to buy a new fridge, I remarked, "Do you have the money?" He replied, "No." And we both responded, "Don't buy anything if you don't have the money." So our decision was to save up and buy the fridge when we have the money in hand to do so. When we changed our thinking from "emergency" to "we can get by with what we have," we felt more at peace with our decision. After all, who doesn't like camping? And we still have the freezer, cupboards, kitchen sink, and all the rest. We are actually feeling pretty blessed right now.

So the best part of this whole story is when Lisa brought me a pickle jar with some loose change in it with a label on it that says, "Money for the new fridge." I can see that our example is catching. Our kids want a new fridge--so they are motivated to help us save. Think of the unity our family will experience through this process!

I am just so grateful for unexpected blessings in disguise. :-)

Ode to Winter

Winter.
What a wondrous season.
We were just wanting the cold to end,
But looked back and saw the beauty and fun that winter has brought us.
And we find ourselves grateful for winter.
For with winter comes a slower pace, renewal and inward reflection.














And an occasional snowman, skiing adventure, or creative expressions in the snow.
So we pay homage to our beloved winters of Northern Utah.
May you forever bring moisture to our desert valley
And a wealth of wonder to our senses.
We shall watch and wait for your grand entrance next fall.
Until then, adieu,
As we walk through Spring and Summer,
Discovering all the wonderful blessings
You left behind.

Memories of Summer (to warm us during winter)

I just ran across some photos of our summer fun. In an attempt to inspire warmth of soul, I will share a few memories here.
Rachel is just the right size to ride Pennie since she can carry up to 50 pounds. So Lisa and Amber enjoy saddling her up and leading Pennie with Rachel riding. It is good for us to have a small, gentle horse so that our kids get exposure to horse handling and accustomed to caring for animals. Pennie especially likes to be brushed and I, as the mother, feel a little less anxiety about having the children handle her than I did with the big horses. We have a lot of fun with Pennie and Kalypso.

We also enjoy building cook fires in our little fire pit. We roast hot dogs and marshmallows and watch the fire burn while we visit with each other during summer evenings.

One week last summer we had several cousins come to our home for "cousins camp." We tie-dyed t-shirts, splashed on the water slide, played with animals, did some crafts, and went on walks. The last day of our camp we went to our local ice-skating rink to cool off. Isaac set out to break his record of numbers of times around the rink. I think he made it to 50! The rest of us practiced tricks and got used to the feel of ice skates. We practically had the rink to ourselves. What a great way to cool off in the summer.

Another way we cool off is with the waterslide. It has been a good investment to keep kids occupied and cool during May, June, July, and August. As a privilege, it does not go up until chores are done. So it provides great motivation each day for kids to be responsible.

Our Missionaries pay us a visit while awaiting their Visas

Grandparents are the best mentors.
Ours are waiting for their work visas to arrive at the mission office so they can depart for Australia. In the mean time, they are tying up loose ends and visiting their grandkids. We enjoyed their company in Trenton on Saturday, March 12th, for a couple hours.
While they were here, we played soccer with Grandpa, and card games with Grandma. My boys and Amber thought that was the best soccer game ever--playing with Mom, Dad, and Grandpa. After we wore Grandpa out, we sent them on their way to visit more grandkids in Idaho.
Then last Friday, my husband and I were able to meet them in down town Salt Lake City for lunch when we were there for a symposium. What a blessing that we get a few more personal interactions with them before they depart. Even though it creates a bit of frustration for them to wait, we are sure they will take advantage of each day they have at home until they leave. We pray that they won't have to wait much longer.

Sweetheart Ball - February 5, 2011

Our darling daughter and some friends from Trenton honored each other by spending the day playing games and then dressing up for a high school dance and a fancy dinner at our house, served by the butler, Mr. Rad-Dad. (I wish I had a picture of him, but you see, it was my job to keep the other kidlets out of the house by taking them to a movie and bowling, so I wasn't there to document or help with anything. Luckily, he remembered to get pictures of these beauties!) Amber cleaned, decorated, and set up the house for dining in--a lovely dish of Enchiladas, rice, and beans. Another Dad escorted them to the dance in his "limousine" (a Ford 350) and home again to his house, where they amused themselves with games before arriving home before curfew. :-)

It is significant that the next day in testimony meeting, one of the friends stood in front of 300+ residents of the town to acknowledge what great friends she had spent the day with, and thanked their parents for raising them so well. What a great bunch of young people we have in this here little town. Aren't they cute?