Teenagers...

I am getting accustomed to life with a teen. We have all the normal things going on. Constant eating, a zit, a smell that would rival the smelliest thing ever, being able to visibly see the growth in him (especially his feet), eye rolling, arguing...you know teenagers. When his friends come they eat like it is their last meal and hot dogs, pizza and ice cream go in and out of here like you wouldn't believe! I am accustomed to feeding his friends, they are welcome here. We have made it clear that we want him to feel comfortable inviting whomever to our home and we will make them feel welcome. He tested that by his choice of "friends" yesterday. As previously mentioned my son loves politics (vote for him in 2036) and he is very actively involved. He is a big supporter of Cherilyn Eager ever since she ran for senator. This year she is running for congress and Kyle invited her to come to Sevier county and she consented. He has been so excited preparing for her coming. Two nights ago we found that would include having her come here for dinner...umm...hot dogs and Doritos prospective congresswoman? After some conversation we banished our children, sans Kyle of course, to grandma's for dinner. I borrowed a table cloth and cloth napkins from my neighbor, heaven knows I don't own things like that! Anyway long story short it was a success. She, of course, was lovely and gracious and Kyle and her had a fantastic political chat including her asking him to be the county coordinator for her campaign...teenagers, next time you openly tell your kids to invite whomever they want you might want to think about what that might mean!

13 Amazing Years

13 years and where has the time gone! You showed up and changed everything, most of the time I have had no idea what I am doing, but boy have I loved figuring it out with you. So here it is, and though you will roll your eyes (careful they might get stuck that way), a tribute to my son a week after his 13th birthday...You were so tiny when you were born and grandma nicknamed you "bird lips" I called you "bugaboo" (for some reason you don't like that anymore). You fit right in dad's big hand pretty comfortably. You cried constantly (even when you were sleeping). You are passionate about EVERYTHING. When you were 6 you were dead set determined to be a composer (much to grandpa Friant's chagrin), but went on to become an amazing pianist and violinist often writing your own music. You have a strong sense of justice and fair play. When you were young this meant that if people got in your way "watch out!" For example a boy in our neighborhood was beating up on your cousin and so you stabbed him with a fork, fortunately as you grew older (about 8) you channeled that anger into government and then and there decided that you would become the president of the united states. You haven't wavered from that and now we have to silence the conversations about politics for our own sakes! You and I can really be two peas in a pod and our idea of a good time is a nice dinner and hours and hours and hours and...well, you get my point in a book store. This year you started high school at Williamsburg Academy and are tearing up the scene at this amazing school. You really surprised us though when you joined the basketball team, who would have thought that my little musician, politician, book worm would also become an athlete. When you were 7 you made a goal to get your Boy Scout eagle at 12, you were disappointed in yourself when you finished the project the weekend of your 13th birthday. You are happy and loud all of the time...you sing at the top of your lungs (that goes for yelling as well), you adore BYU and look forward to being a student there and graduating from law school there. Just this year you got taller than your old mom (which let's face it isn't a big deal), but by taller I mean 4 inches taller. You now have bigger feet than your dad at a size 12, if you catch up with your feet you will be a giant! You know what is right and you live it with all of your heart. You are a gift from heaven and I am honored to be your mom. Happy 13 years my boy, I love you!

Forever Is Not Long Enough

Warning: This e-mail will make you throw up if you are my 13 year old son or the kind of person who doesn't do mushy... There are lots of ways that I know that God loves me. He has blessed me so abundantly that I could start counting my blessings and continue on into infinity. However, there is something that He has done for me so magnificent that it makes me want to recite poetry...He gave me my husband. It's been nearly 20 years and everyday I love him more than the day before. Don't get me wrong we know how to fight like nobody's business, two passionate people sharing a life together means a little of that I am afraid. But, as time goes on we spend little time fighting and lots of time grossing our children out. He makes everyday worth getting up for and there is nothing we wouldn't do for each other.

We have some guests staying with us for a few days. Their names are Sparky and Sophie and they are our friends mules. They are "mowing" our field. The boys were "helping" Lyndon move the gates and keeping track of the mules when one of them got free. Our neighbors have horses and were out so all of us were standing perimeter calmly trying to get him returned safely. My neighbor who is your all time cowboy jumped on his horse with his lasso to help out. Lots of tries later the mule was still out and at this point kicking at our neighbor trying to get him to go away. He got behind a fence and we were a little concerned since he was out of the cul-de-sac. Lyndon got behind the fence and just stood there looking at the mule. Within a minute the mule walked toward him and let him get his rope. Smart mule. Even animals know when they are in good hands...sigh...forever is not long enough with this man. Though my husband would enjoy the lyrics to a Motley Crue song much more than the poem I am including below, I include it anyway since it has always touched me and seemed so true of our life time love. Sorry Kyle, feel free to commence throwing up now! Lyndon, I love you baby.

My True love hath my heart, and I have his,
By just exchange one for another given:
I hold his dear. and mine he cannot miss,
There never was a better bargain driven:
My true love hath my heart, and I have his.

His heart in me keeps him and me in one,
My heart in him his thoughts and senses guides:
He loves my heart, for once it was his own,
I cherish his because in me it bides:
My true love hath my heart, and I have his.
Sir Phillip Sydeny

Running Parable #3

I have to tell you...running is pretty simple. I don't mean that in the "yes I easily ran 10 miles today" kind of simple. I mean in the throw on a pair of shoes and your all set kind of way. With that said. When I first started into running pretty seriously I found that I was having a major problem with my feet. Blisters, and pain were a constant and my socks were so bloody you would assume that I bought red ones instead of white ones. I couldn't figure it out and so I decided to take myself to the big city for a new pair of shoes. But, I decided that this time I would ask the experts. I went to this great running store in Provo where the salesman do their jobs to support their running habit and know exactly why your feet look that way. They even smile like they understand and they are proud of you at the same time. They listened to me, and then headed to the back room and came back with a tower of shoe boxes. Their counsel, "try every pair on all the way and then go running". So there I was running up and down this strip mall for an hour. That was kooky but the kookiest thing was when they suggested that I wear a size 9, ummm I wear a 6 and 1/2. They smiled and said, "trust us and if we are wrong bring them back". They seemed quite certain I would not be back. Anywho, long parable short, they were spot on. I haven't had a blister in 8 years no matter how many miles I have run. I have been through 6 pairs of the shoes they suggested and when the soles are literally falling off I buy a new pair.

The parable part starts now. Life, unlike running, is anything but simple. This world is tricky, scary and confusing. We could just be stuck here unaware of how to handle things, unaware of what to do. For me I feel deeply blessed to have the gospel in my life. The gospel is filled with direction and experts that counsel us in a way that makes the world seem a little more blister free. I am especially grateful that twice a year a prophet of God and many others meet to give us counsel and advice about how to handle everything that is placed before us. Like running, the goal in my life is to endure to the end, finish the race and to have all those I love with me at the finish line. This can be pretty hard to do in this crazy world we live in, but this gift from my Heavenly Father sure fits comfortably around my heart and helps me run this race with less pain.

Running Parable #2

When I decided to run a marathon in my usual full disclosure kind of way I told everyone that I knew. I get so excited about things and I just assume that my enthusiasm is catching and so off I shot my mouth to anyone that would even pretend to listen. Imagine my shock and surprise when people did not react enthusiastically! I got lots of reactions and most of them could be chalked up to, "you are nuts, a total masochist, seriously what is the matter with you?" Completely shocked me! I have learned though that so often the things you feel inspired to do make no sense to the outside world...you are a nut....a complete lunatic, and people feel open to say whatever is on their minds if they think they are saving you from yourself. This has happened on so many things I have wanted to do! Adopt a child from Haiti, home school my children, get rid of TV channels, move out in the middle of nowhere...Well my enthusiasm isn't catching but I am maintaining it anyway! Sometimes you have to just get out there and run whether it seems crazy or not!

The Running Parable-#1

Running is one way that I have spent many hours of my life. I started after I had my second child and became a fanatic after my third child. I am like the turtle, though I never win the race. Since I don't run fast I decided to run far and that has meant lots and lots of hours, usually just me and my IPOD and my mind that never turns off. Over the years I have come up with a lot of running parables and decided I better start keeping track of them before the lessons are all forgotten. In high school the worst torture I could imagine was that one LONG mile that we had to run for our fitness test. After about 2 yards I would get a cramp in my side and be certain that I was going to die any minute. After kid number 3 I got this brilliant idea to run a marathon and I began running following a schedule. I learned early on that cramp or no cramp I had miles to cover and that I had to keep running anyway. I learned something amazing, you can run with a side stitch, a broken toe, the flu, hundreds of mosquitoes attached to every part of you not covered by clothes, depressed, worried, ligaments ripped out in a knee, with a headache...you get the idea...No matter what you can run!

I think this particular lesson has been invaluable to me and boy am I using it right now! I have a cramp associated with parenting! I am tired, I have a headache, I feel broken down, I am certain that I should be doing better, I have a pile of laundry on the floor that I am afraid to tackle certain there is a monster hiding underneath it (we have been camping for a week), I am remembering what life is like with a a baby who is mobile and can and will get into everything (I spend much of my day fishing stuff out of his mouth so I don't have another child who needs to have a penny surgically removed from his throat, I have already had two), are you getting my point? Back in the old day this would be a signal to me that it's time to check out. With the help of my running parable I can see that now is the time to grit my teeth and dig in! I can parent even with all of these cramps in my side and hopefully, just like when I run after a few miles (sometimes as many as 10) it goes away and that runners high shows up, here's to the parenting high that I just know has got to be in there somewhere!

I've Lost My Mind, Have You Seen It?

OK...we all have those moments when we are a bit absentminded or random or whatever, and then there are some of you who get to feel that way all of the time due to real life adult ADHD, but I have a new one for you. I think maybe I have developed this as an adult of 35...I have always been great at focus, not so great at thinking outside the box or fun, but focus yes. Now I find myself sort of aimlessly wandering from thing to thing never quite figuring out what I was doing in the first place...It's very strange and a bit unnerving. I can't for the life of me read a book and find myself reading the same line over and over and not having any idea what is going on. My friend suggested we take a little note of the things we want to talk with about to each other since we don't catch each other often, but I explained that I would have the thought, head for the paper and by the time I stopped to wipe up a spill, put on a band-aid, changed a load of laundry, unwrapped a popsicle, refereed a fight....I would have forgotten what it is I was thinking on the way to the paper...I stopped to find my train of thought so I could explain this more in detail to you, but lost my train of thought...I sure hope it comes back someday! In the spirit of the random thoughts here goes the wandering now...I am going to women's conference tomorrow with my mom and sister, can you say woo-hoo? Talk about spiritual feast, throw in the girls, laughter and a mint brownie and you have a recipe for perfection! My son Jamen is playing baseball this year and got pegged in the eye at bat last night...we are talking wicked cool black eye, his response, "I was just so glad I didn't strike out," boys are so cool. My son is playing this song for his piano recital and I could never tire of listening to it and love that he is playing it for an hour a day...listen to it, it's awesome! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMpDrjT0TUI I just finished read The 3 Big Questions for a Frantic Family...I loved it, I highly suggest it for all families. Well the mind appears to have gone blank again...so have a happy random kind of day. I have to wonder if now it will be possible for me to be fun or to think outside the box, that would be nice...wish me luck on that.

It's Getting Better Now

In this high tech day and age you really get to know someone by what you hear when their phone starts ringing! I have been shocked and amazed at some of the ring tones I hear feeling like I am getting a glimpse of the soul of someone just from that little blip! You can really meet my husband when you hear his phone. It is a headbanging beat with the song "It's getting better now" by Tesla, a hard rock hair band from the 90s for all of you culturally more refined folks out there. You have to understand that this husband of mine is an engineer and deals in either black or white. He is scared to death of change and has a ritual for everything from the way he towel dries after a shower to how he makes his oatmeal in the morning. So this has been quite a year for this guy! He ended the summer with a new baby boy (#6) he started the holidays with a diagnosis of diabetes, and he is beginning the spring with a new job. This has been the most gut wrenching decision that he has ever had to make and after two great job offers he finally decided on becoming an engineer at Jones and Demille. I know that it will be great for him, because though he hates change he is an never ending optimist and truly does believe that "It's Getting Better Every Day."
While I should have been learning from him over the last 20 years it wasn't until I read the book "As A Man Thinketh" that the power of thought began to sink into me. I have done pretty well at doing the things that I "should" for awhile now. However to often my thoughts did not reflect my actions. Examples: I would make dinner for my family often times thinking "I live in this kitchen, they will whine about it anyway, what is the point? I almost always eat right and exercise 4-6 days a week but I always have the thought, "I am fat, always have been always will be." While doing laundry I always sing the theme song to "The Never Ending Story", I mean talk about a self fulfilling prophecy! OK on the last one with six sons there may be no hope to finishing it....But, I am beginning to see that I have really reaped what I have sown in the garden of my own mind and I am working to change that day by day. Here's to right thinking and to a beautiful year to go with it (let's face it, it may be that long before I post again!)

Check it Out

If you look on the right of my blog you will see that Erin's esty store is on display there. May I suggest to each of you that you take a peek. Erin is my BFF and the most talented girl I know. She could make mud beautiful! You will love what she has done in creating jewelery, she even inspired me to buy some and I don't even like jewelery! Check it out!

You know your in trouble when...

You begin to find profound symbolism in the shower...so I just got home from Zumba and I was taking a shower. My shower contains the same things most of yours do...shampoo, conditioner, soap, rescue heroes, dinosaurs, cups and a figurine of Maggie from Little People, you know the usual. I am rinsing off and I notice that Maggie (the only girl type person in all of the play items in the house) is face down in a cup of water. She is on the floor and the dinosaurs and the rescue heroes are looking down at her from the ledge. The dinosaurs are smiling and the rescue heroes look like they are in a conga line having a great time...doesn't anyone see that Maggie is face down in the water? I am afraid I feel a little like Maggie right now. I am just plain worn out from the winter blahs....I feel like a giant whiner baby for saying one word about it. I mean listen to my complaints and see if they could easily go on a list of things to be grateful for...First, my kids NEVER leave the house and while in the house they destroy every thing in sight. Second, my baby has been sick for a week and he coughs and pukes and doesn't sleep much at night. Third, my treadmill up and died on me when it is 20 degrees outside with a sheet of ice on the road, I have been running with the ice, but let's face it at my age I am liable to fall and break a hip. Fourth, it's dark when I get up to get the kids ready for school and Isaac is arguing about having to go to school in the middle of the night (let's face it the kid has a point) Fifth, my husband pointed out to me that I am a grumpy beast. This was a little disheartining since I feel like I have never worked harder to not show that I kind of want to punch everything in sight...What you want me to quit whining now...point well taken. I have everything to be thankful for. How many people wish for a house full of kids to clean up after, a baby to take care of, snotty or no, two legs that can run, and a husband to be put out with. So while I am perfectly aware that I have everything to be grateful for I find myself muttering, "Heavenly Father help me endure my blessings today..."