Hurdles

Welp!
I really really want to go hike the grand canyon again and do the 17 miler. But I am sooo not in shape. Winslow refuses to kill me by taking me not in shape (cause he just hiked it in shape and was sore for almost a week!) So I made the jump and started getting up at 5am to work out.
The biggest hurdle is the headaches. I can't seem to shake them right now. I'm fine in the morning but by mid day my head is going crazy. I'm hoping this will pass soon. I'm sore and enjoying it. Now if only I could entice someone to teach a Zumba class here!
The thing I am most pumped about is that I have not woken up to an alarm!
Our stake has really pushed being COMMITTED to making our homes a Heaven on Earth. Not just wanting to, not just putting forth a little effort or giving a big push and then falling off the bandwagon.
President Goodman spoke to us about really having a CHANGE OF HEART. I guess I never really applied this principle to its fullest extent before.
But late last year when I committed myself to family scripture reading nightly NO EXCEPTIONS I just decided we were doing it. We were going to make it happen no matter the obstacle. And we did it. I'm happy to say we're going on 3 months without missing a night! Now we've moved on to morning prayers. Something I've struggled with since having kids and losing sleep : ). I realized that I just needed to decide it was happening. That I was worth it. That my family's eternal happiness meant enough to push everything aside and make it happen. And we have. So of course then I start realizing that everything else in my life that I should or should not be doing is the same thing.
There were a few little things in my life that I wanted to change, had tried, but hadn't really made the commitment. Well, Now I am. and it truly is a Change of Heart. My family deserves the best of me.I can be so much better than I know. My Heavenly Father has a greater plan for me than I have been achieving.  I feel more focused. Better prepared for the craziness ahead. (and boy do I feel like there is craziness in the world around us.)
Now don't get me wrong. My children are still bickering, I still feel cramped in my house, I have a long way to go. But I feel calmer, more patient, and better able to deal with the chaos of life! well most of the time : ).

Anyone know how to make blogger stop turning my photos! They were fine and then blogger turns them when i try to upload!
Mary, these are  the newest additions to my stash!

Purging And Prayer

Ha ha ha, I guess that's kind of an odd title, oh well. It's what's going on here at the moment.
With an 18 month old and 2 two year olds I don't get as much time during the day to get projects done, like I used to. All the little things in the corners have been piling up. And I hit my done point today with clutter.  Oh there's still plenty of it, but I tackled at least a few areas tonight after the kids (except for David...who seems not to know that Mommy needs a little time to herself with no kids) went to bed. I cleaned out the girl's dresser because I refused to do any more of their laundry until I had somewhere I could put it. (small house syndrome!) The girls each have three drawers and one combined jammie drawer. They had shoved coats and snowpants into an already crammed space. So I dejunked and tossed old and outgrown clothes into a bag made a pile of things to hang up and folded and put back the rest. (Unfortunately my closet is the size of a coat closet so my clothes are hung up in the girls closet in a futile effort to give Winslow some closet room.)
Prayer....well we are on a roll with family scripture study, so we decided to take the next big step. Morning personal prayer. It's always the hardest for me. It always has been. silly, but sadly true. So we made a commitment in FHE this week to all say our morning prayers. I got about an hour and one destroyed science project into my morning and realized with angry thoughts in my head and out of my mouth that I had forgotten. I scooped up the torn pieces of the science project (due that day!) and put them into my bedroom for safe keeping which I should have done before. Kneeled down and asked forgiveness for my not so nice thoughts and words and restarted my day the way I should have in the first place. Much better.
Winslow was kind enough to watch kids while I went out for a half hour with my Relief Society Presidency (that I was previously in) girlie friends. Ohh. Sooo Sooo needed. I love those ladies. I got the mail and Mary had thoughtfully sent me a surprise in the mail .Thankyou Mary. You so made my day!!!! The Lord knew we women would need other women! And I am so blessed to have so many wonderful  friends!!!!

What I love

February is LOVER'S month.
So let me tell you what I love.
Happy Children
Snuggling With my Hubby
My really really soft fleece body pillow. Soo warm on cold winter nights
A Clean house (okay let's be totally honest....a clean house is always top of my list....but I am trying to put it lower on the list so work with me  here)
Romantic movies that make me cry
Michael Buble (is that how you spell it?) anyway I feel so relaxed when I listen to his music.
Singing. Especially when it's just perfect for my range and I sound good. I love to belt it out with only my kids listening. (Winslow makes me nervous, I always want to be the best for him...my kids think I'm the bomb!)
Playing the piano
Talking with Friends
My Mom...she is my best friend next to my husband. I totally love her and when people tell me I am like her I feel it's the best compliment that I could ever get. She's an amazing lady!!!
And Crocheting...hilarious I know, but it's one thing that helps me to relax and is a project that when I'm done doesn't get torn apart or messed up within minutes, unlike most others things in my house with having kids :)

Trudging thru the terrible twos

For Sale

By Shel Silverstein

(italics are added words)



One 2 year old  for sale!

One 2 year old  for sale!

One crying and yelling 2 year old  for sale!

I'm really not kidding,

So who will start the bidding?

Do I hear a dollar?

A nickle?

A penny?

Oh, isn't there, isn't there,

isn't there any

One kid who will buy this 2 year old for sale,

This crying and yelling 2 year old for sale?

He looks so innocent. But this week I swear I'm gonna "sell him to the indains,"as my dad used to say!

He is such a momma's boy and can so melt my heart. But this week he is on one. He's fighting and screaming and saying "stupid" Which is a bad word at our house. And he's totally trying to test me. And it's working!!!! Thankfully we've been thru this a time or two before and I know if I can keep him alive(ha ha ha) he'll get past it and we will both survive!

The Penny

In December we had tithing settlement and our Bishop encouraged all of our kids to pay tithing.Jacob earned some money from wood and from Birthday so Sunday morning he was counting up his tithing. Well Rachel and Abby decided they desperately wanted to pay tithing too. So they gathered up their change. I was helping Abby fill our her tithing slip and realized she hadn't put her tithing amount in the correct spot.
"No Mom, my tithing is in the other envelope." I realized she was donating $0.35 to the temple construction fund. She was so excited to be giving her money to the building of temples. And I was so proud.
Rachel on the other hand was upset. "What's wrong Rachel?" "I can't find my Best penny." Rachel only has a few pennies (less than 5 total) and she had wanted to give her very best penny for tithing. WOW! We found it later and she was so excited to give her Best penny to the Lord.
There are many people who scoff that we give 10% of our income to the Lord. Certainly it would seem like I would have more money to pay off debt or have a larger savings or nicer things for my family if we kept that money. However, it's just not true. I receive tremendous blessing from paying tithing and fast offerings. We tend to make more money when we pay the Lord first. I know this to be true. I am so grateful my children are gaining a testimony for themselves of the blessings of Tithing!

Preschool and a Piano

Sooo,
I am desperately hoping to buy a used piano at the end of this month. So I am saving my pesos and crossing my fingers that we can make it happen. I have been without a piano IN my house for 4 years now, and I so miss it. Jacob and Abby want to learn how to play and I'd like to teach again. But in order to do that I need a smaller less heavy piano that isn't missing 3 of the 4 wheels! (My piano is old an untunable, and in my garage. not exactly handy.) So cross your fingers with me.
Preschool....well Mary you inspire me and make me want to do better. I have had a bad case of cabin fever, and somehow, it squelches my creative side and I forget how many fabulous things I can do, even in the winter.
So Rachel has been staying home instead of going to preschool and one of my part time babysitting kids just went full time, and I have an after-schooler now too. But all of this has been a huge blessing. Because, somehow with 3 kids to do preschool stuff, I have motivation again. So K takes a nap in the morning and David, Rachel, and KD, do preschool with me. They love it. Today we read THE MITTEN, one of our favorites, and colored and cut, and laced mittens. Then we filled them with animals we colored. We sang songs, did the Hokey Pokey and London Bridges. They had such a great time and the morning went by so fast. And the tv didn't even get turned on all morning. Hallelujah!
Rachel has already decided that tomorrow we will be making valentine's cards.