A Series of Unfortunate Events

I wrote this over a week ago, needed to download pics.


My 8 year old daughter, Lishy and I were at the piano, she was practicing...and I was tryin to squeeze in a five more minutes of time, (she was doing so well, I didn't want to stop).

  The phone rang, 

it was Mr. L, 

he hears Lishy in the background, and asks, 

"Is she stayin home from school today?"  

Me, "No."  

Him, "Uhhh, it's 9:00 isn't she supposed to be at school?  

Me..looking at the clock in the living room...8:35, 

then...rushing into the kitchen to see the clock in there...uuuggghh...9:00...DANG!  

Hurry and get backpacks..flee out the door and in a fast fury get them to school, rush home and get out of the car to run in the house...

when...

BAM...

I'm face down on the driveway, with my left hand pinned between my left hip and the cement, my foot had gotten stuck inside my pant leg and sent me sailing.  

As I get up off of the ground, 

I glance to make sure no one saw my awesome imitation of a clumsy person....

my hand is numb and immediately starts swelling.  

Oh Boy, I knew that wasn't a good sign...

so I went in the house and grabbed the frozen peas...relief.  

I didn't want to call Mr. L at work and tell him of my really good impression of being graceful...

so I went down stairs to find my partial cast that I had kickin around, 

(oh yeah, because I fell 17 years earlier at Youth Conference practicing for a 3 legged race on the cement, dumb... when I was 17, weird...and had a fracture and a crack and 2 black eyes....I hope this isn't a trend every 17 years.)  

I thought the Doc would just send me home with one of them anyways so to save time and trouble and money, why not just use the one I had.   

Well, I couldn't find it, and it's just as well.  I broke down and called Mr. L and he was very gracious and offered to take me right down to the Dr.  My sweet Mother-in-law watched the kids.  

So, I broke my hand pretty bad and found out I needed surgery to pin my left pinky bone back up and over to where it belonged.  

A thoughtful pie given to me by Mr. L's workin buddy.

The surgery happened 2 1/2 weeks ago, and it is so wonderful feel that I am healing.

Today was a great day...I got my cast off for the first time, 

and my arm didn't even stink.  

My hand is very dry and peeling weird, but not too shabby.  

I now have a brace on, and am starting to move my fingers.  It was hard at first, I couldn't even bend my ring and pinky at all...now I can bend a bit more, so I am encouraged.  The most uncomfortable thing is the pin that pokes me every once on a while.

I have missed being able to:  wear my wedding ring, straighten my hair, open zip lock bags, holding babies decent, give piggy back rides to bed, wash dishes, taking care of my laundry properly, sweep with both hands, type with both hands (today I am using my left hand a bit), hold hands for prayer.

Every second of the day I am so thankful this didn't happen to my right hand or my legs or feet.  I am soooooo grateful.

  

My husband is my sweet new groomer:  flossing my teeth every night, without skipping, washing and combing conditioner in my hair, shaving and washing my right armpit, and applying deoderant, clipping my fingernails,  changing diapers more, I am sooo grateful to him for his needed service and his generous love.  

My Mother-in law, has been so faithful in arriving here each morning to help with the daily school scramble, doing girls hair changing and dressing baby Dolly and sometimes sweeping and other mundane tasks.  i am so grateful.  I am going to try to be more independent, I will miss seeing her every day.

A sweet sister from our ward, Julie Lemmon, just showed up one morning and asked what she could do to help.  She was sooo awesome, she ended up cleaning my whole kitchen floor and into the foyer, and all the surfaces.  It was so wonderful to have my kitchen sanitized, even if it was only for 30 minutes.  They don't stay clean very long.

My mother has made me meals and fed and took care of my family for sooo many nights, which has lifted a great burden, thank you to all for your sweet kindness, and giving service.

The things I have been able to do with a broken hand...

We went bowling, 

Celebrated Loo Loo's 5th birthday

I felt well enough to go to my nephews baptism 4 1/2 hours away on the day of my surgery, I am so grateful we could still go, it was great fun and a nice break.  

I found a running partner and signed up for the St. George Marathon ( I am way excited).  I helped run a vendor booth for the Ironman...incredible experience...okay...ummm..nothing else.

I have Learned:  

-Things can happen in an instant, and loving people are willing to help in a wink.  Only through others can burdens be lifted.  

-To be more compassionate, and hope to see someone's need so I can serve them.

-To delegate menial tasks...diaper changes to Lishy who's 8, she loves to change diapers...who knew.  And my 3 year old, Tank likes to help me turn socks the right side out.  And, Loo Loo's likes to fold towels.

Mama Mia

I finally watched the movie "Mama Mia" with Mr. L.  He saw it up at a conference without me and has been singing the songs ever since, especially the song "Honey, Honey". Sounds cute, well the girl who sings it in the movie can really sing it, so cute and sweet. You can hear it on my playlist.

So, we're watchin' the movie and I just start crying. I'm crying because my own daughter is growing up sooo fast, I'm crying because I couldn't wait to get married (I married right after I turned 19), and I'm crying because I moved away from home which means someone's missing me and crying because my bedroom's empty and I'm not coming back. You can guess that someone's my mom.

It would be soo hard to say goodbye to your only daughter, it makes me cry right now. At least I didn't marry some MOJO down at a bar or somethin, I did marry a wonderful man. I am soo grateful that I had some sense of mind to be attracted to, and marry a decent man at such a tender age.

I was soo selfish though, all I could think about was me, me, me and how wonderful it would be to never hafta say good bye at the door step, and when your get home you're both home. Being married has been so wonderful, I am so blessed and so grateful.  I know it makes it easier to live in the same town as my mom, my girls (and boys) better do the same, dang it.
Just being a bit sentimental.

My extraordinary, super-duper, unsurpassed, exceptional mother

I took my dear mother to Tuacahn to their production Footloose a couple weeks ago for her birthday. {I highly recommend it...very well done}It's a heckufa lot better than what we were doing a year ago...me throwing her a hat party for her upcoming chemo. uuugggh..... We had a great time....

If I could just freeze time for the moment and make it last a bit longer. Life gets a bit harried and unexpected turns come our way. That moment to spend with just my mom was glorious to be sure. I am in heaven in her presence. I am enveloped in a soft, cozy blanket of love, unconditional love. She is so kind and without guile. She always finding ways to serve me, whether it be coming over to just say hi and ends up helping me with my floors or dishes or just snuggle kids and steal them away for the afternoon.

She loves to be a grandma, she is the first in at least 3 generations to be one. She always says: "I am so grateful I was able to be a grandma, I was just hoping I could live long enough to raise you kids, but look at me I made it to be a grandma, what a blessing. They feel like they're mine." Let's not leave out my dad...he is a super grandpa..along with my mom they make the perfect grandparent duo of selfless love, and never-ending patience. They both are very gracious, kind and generous.

Ways I will never be like my mom...her pores...did I say pores? What pores? None, zippo. I break out at least once a month, still. Her soft skin so soft....her face...her hands are younger than mine. Her porcelain, unblemished, clear skin, not a mark on it, yeah and we will probably be getting wrinkles together....what? And hair? What hair, her arms are as soft and smooth as the day she was born. As you can see she's beautiful But hey, I am okay with the skin I'm in. Love what is...

So since I will always have freckles and breakouts the one thing I can change is my spiritual blemishes and between my parents and in laws and husbands example I'm on my way.

Thank you dear mother for raising me so I can lift my head up high, thank you for being strong when dad was working outta town at the fire station, thank you for taking us to church so faithfully, thank you for trusting me, and believing in me, I believe in you....thank you for loving me and serving me..you have eased the burden of raising 6 kids...thank you for your Christ-like example. You were and are so courageous fighting for your life. Now you've conquered your Goliath, and you will keep on conquering.

I love you dear mother, my sister, my best friend...I am so grateful to have you longer in my life. We can celebrate this milestone...You're still here to bless so many more lives and people will draw strength from you...Look at you? You super, phenomenal woman you.

Mama Enchanted

Book Review: Ella Enchanted, written by Gail Carson Levine... I just finished reading this book, very awesome. It is the retold fairytale of Cinderella. Very well done. I have to admit I didn't know for the longest time that Ella Enchanted wasn't just a movie...when I found out I felt errr.. pretty dumb and uneducated. But if you've only seen the movie, don't judge the book by the movie. The movie doesn't do the book the justice it deserves. In fact, the movie doesn't follow it very well at all.

The book has a very strong character..Ella, she as we know was given a gift from a fairy at her birth to be obedient, which in the wrong hands can prove detrimental. Ella found ways around always doing what others told her to do....yes, she did what she was told and then some, let's say. Her quest is to find the fairy that bestowed the gift on her to undo it, so she wouldn't hafta be obedient, because she was afraid to marry thinking her obedience could harm her future husband and family. The end of the book is really empowering, as she has found that through her selflessness she is able to find her true self. But will she ever be able to make her own choices? You better check out the book and find out. This book is definitely a keeper.

Reading the book has really made me think a little deeper about my own life like: what kind of character do I have? What do I choose to do when told to do something? Do I have the right motivation?

I keep finding that my life parallels in some way to Ella's..how many of us moms have our path laid out day by day by the demands of our children and husbands? A lot of times our whole day is planned without our even putting forth any effort of planning. Even if a list is made it is always at the mercy of poopy diapers, a drink or snack, meals, crying, sleepy babies and 2 year olds, and now summer is upon us, so it's keeping after the kids to stay on task.

Instead of getting the things I want to get done, I find myself more busy keeping my kids on task. But, the difference between Ella and me is I choose to do those things, because of love. It's amazing the things that are prompted by love. I love my life, and am grateful that I can be home with my kids and have my life planned around them.

The one thing I have control over is my attitude, it's mostly good, I also have control over when I get up, and I choose to get up and run. That is probably a big reason why I run, cause it's one thing I can control, and also, because I can. I have found the perfect name for me, just call me... "Mama Enchanted".

We're waaaay better than Ringling Brothers, what?

What can I say? It's Tank

My little Sunbeam, in the red.

6 yr old Buster tying Loo's dress.

My dear friend asked me at church, "Are you writing these things down?" Here's me writing it down. Oh my goodness, I know we all ask the question, "Why do we even go to church we're not getting anything outta it anyway?" And, "Isn't it breaking the Sabbath to go or be apart of a circus?" Apparently not, we do it every Sunday.

So of course my morning began with the normal Sunday scramble, we got to church in time to take my 2 and 3 yr old to the potty, my boy Tank is 2 1/2 and just learning and didn't go, but he was big to try. We get back in our seats just in time to start the circus. I decided to write things down on the program and every time my 3 yr old girl Loo Loos saw me write on Tank's back she wanted me to write on her back. It was pretty funny.

First things first. Have you ever arrived at church only to find out your have a hole in your stocking, something unknown on your skirt, sticky stuff on faces and TooTHPaSTe on your daughter's dress? This is just the beginning. Thank goodness for the all-terrain wet wipe, although it couldn't fix the hole in my stocking. Hmm, maybe I shoulda packed some duck tape.

Next up is the juggling act. Tank wants me to hold him and so does Lou, time to hand over the baby to DH and try to balance two kids one on each knee, so far they're happy. Oops, they start to fight, it's time to send one over to grandma. Thank goodness we are in the same ward.

We sit in the very front, I'm a LeBaron now, buck up it's tradition, I guess. So we are setting the standard for the ward or the substandard, or the standard not to be. People that used to sit behind us now sit a couple rows back. Some brave the 2nd row behind us, k the Gifford's do, bless their souls. Maybe it's dry council Sunday and they're into a little more action, I don't know.

The Copy Cat. I love it when it's time to sustain someone into a calling and they say "Any opposed" and my 2 yr old's hand almost always goes up. Hey, he saw us with our hands up, it's his turn.

Walking on Eggshells. During the Sacrament I just pray the kids won't touch all the bread when they're finding the biggest piece. And I hope and pray they don't dump the water from their semi-empty cup into the other cups as they put their cup back into the tray. And please cover you're mouth when you cough and sneeze. aaaak, I'm going insane. No one's ever experienced that I'm sure.

How does he do it? The Incredibly Small Gum Chewer. Somehow 2 yr old, Tank got to church with some mysterious gum. My guess, from the trash, but he is enjoying it soo much and it's keeping him quiet for now. So I was very amazed that after eating the bread and the water from Sacrament he managed not to swallow it, impressive.

I always take baby Dolly and nurse her after Sacrament, Loo came along. So we get to the mother's lounge and I can hear my son Tank over the speaker. I guess that's one advantage to sitting on the front I can still keep tabs on my family. If I can hear it from the mic who can hear it in the chapel? aaaaahh too loud

Last act same as the first. Loo decides she needs to go to the bathroom again, Dolly's now in a nursing coma, asleep and here I am trying to keep her asleep and take care of Lou's business in a very small stall. Not funny.

Oh the joys of motherhood. Why do we take them to church? Why? You get hear the most precious and unforgettable prayers at night. Over time you know you are somehow taming your wild animals and training them to be church-going, proper citizens. Not to mention you're going to have grand kids someday and so the circus goes on, only this time you simply smile because, hey, pay backs.

Everything you wanted to know about me, but were afraid to ask.

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I feel this almost nagging feeling that I should write some random thoughts on my life and blessings. Oh say about 25 of them. I was tagged to do this a few times on facebook a while back, but didn't do it on there. Maybe I still will. But I really did do it, I just wrote them down in my journal, so here goes...

1. I truly believe I live in a fairytale, (I'd say musical, but I'm not that good of a singer) I know no one is perfect, but I wouldn't change my life if I could. I know a good solid foundation in the gospel of Jesus Christ is a BIG reason my life is so perfect (even if it wasn't perfect it would still be perfect, because it is perfected in our Saviour) Thanks to a mom and dad for raising me strong in the gospel.

2. I love all things hand crafted, knit, crochet, glass work, needle work, clay...love it. I want to know how to do it all.

3. I have 6 kids- 3 boys, and 3 girls- boy, girl, boy, girl, boy, girl. 12, 7 1/2, 6, almost 4, 2 1/2, and 7 mos.

4. I love reading cook bk's, organizing bks, decorating bks, get rich quick bks...because I like to see things done and wish I could do it- it's a good way to dream.

5. I had my 1st and last leading lady role as Elmire in the play Tartuffe on the Dixie College stage my Freshman year.

6. I don't have any sisters so I tend to think all my friends should be my sister- we should act like sisters and share our clothes and ask advice and go to the park...etc.

7. I don't get offended. Well, not too easily. I get offended over foul language, and such.

8. I love decorating (at least in my mind) I have so many ideas going on in my mind that it takes a while before I actually settle on some thing.

9. So since I love decor, anytime I'm at someone's house I automatically (sometimes secretly, sometimes I ask) want to go through their home.

10. I am married to the first and last boy I kissed. I have never regretted it, ever.

11. I cut everybody in my family's hair and my mom's (when she had it) I don't cut my hair. (well, not anymore.) For some reason they think I can cut hair. It took a few oops before I got DH right. Now there is no way I would let another woman get that close to him, cutting hair is a very up close and personal thing.

12. I have never drank any type of alcoholic beverage- never had coffee or tea and never smoked ever.

13. If I haven't seen someone in years I am able to pick up right where we left off as if no time has ever passed. I take friendships very seriously. So let's have a chat.

14. I'd much rather do this than clean my house or do laundry.

15. I looove it when the sun comes up in the morning and shines into my kitchen. But I do welcome the night after a long day too.

16. I always wanna run on a nice sunny afternoon. I don't always do it but I think about it.

17. I floss everyday (and brush, of course) with my DH. He gets me my floss and brush every night.

18. I just about like everything I eat and will probably try anything once- I ate sushi for the 1st time last year- didn't like it. But I found out that I like Bleu Cheese dressing-yum!!

19. I want to go on an overnight backpacking trip w/ my DH. And maybe someday I'll get strong enough to hike the Grand Canyon rim to rim.

20. I made bread for the first time ever last summer- which means grinding the wheat.... and it turned out perfectly, I don't know why I was so afraid to do it. Homemade wheat bread is my favorite kind, and maybe a slice of banana bread or two.

21. Most of the time when I see some decoration or craft or bracelet I think "I can make that when I get home." But do I ever do it? very rarely.

22. When I was 14 I told my mom that I was gonna marry Mr. handsome man LeBaron, and I did.

23. I have been pregnant or nursing for 8 going on 9 years. I haven't been myself for a while. Or is this the new me? We have 5 yrs between our 1st two kids so I am immensly grateful for all these little ones. Our prayers where answered one right after another.

24. I still have my Christmas lights up on my bed from 2 Christmas's ago, it's unanimous they're gonna stay.

25. I am so blessed with children who want to be righteous and a loving husband who has always provided so well for this family. He is such a caring husband and father and is still my Knight in Shining Armour. He is my solace, and my wise friend. He is my counselor and confidante. Not to mention a very handsome man. I am soo thankful to have such a wonderful and tender man who still loves me with all my faults. I have such a blessed life.

There, now I feel very naked, now that I've let it all hang out. I am feeling a bit uneasy. Maybe queasy. I want to know more about you, you do the same thing.

I've fought it long enough

I have to finally admit it isn't ever going to go away so I might as well face the fact that I need to plan dinner. I have been inspired to start a menu for the week, heck for the next 2 weeks or even for the whole month. So I am going to commit myself to making menus and sticking with it.

My family's favorite meal is Hawaiian Haystacks, so we will have this probably every 2 weeks and some version of pizza everyweek, and try not to be too greasy unhealthy about it. I have found there are sooo many different ways you can do pizza, plus, the kids really like to help make it. Also, have a spaghetti night. We'll see how long this lasts. Also, depending on whether the kids like this idea, I will try having breakfast for dinner once or twice a month.

I am always curious as to how other moms handle the dinner scene, so if there is anyone out there that would share, pleeeease do, I wanna hear your comments. I dare you. Also, share some of your family favorites.

Which brings me to.... thanking Erin, (my new friend that I have never met, but who isn't afraid to post on my blog. Did that make any sense?). Thank you Erin for inspiring me to make weekly menus. Now that you know me a little too well, it's embarrassing, I'm ready for a change.

"Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity"

My friend Becky e-mailed this to me (btw thx Becky) and
it really makes you grateful for
our right to vote. It's worth the long read.

WHY WOMEN SHOULD VOTE

This is the story of our Grandmothers and Great-grandmothers;

they lived only 90 years ago.

Remember, it was not until 1920

THIS IS MOVING. HOW QUICKLY WE FORGET.....IF WE EVER KNEW......

that women were granted the right to go to the polls and vote.
The women were innocent and defenseless, but they were jailed nonetheless for picketing the White House, carrying signs asking for the vote.

(Lucy Burns)And by the end of the night, they were barely alive. Forty prison guards wielding clubs and their warden's blessing went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of'obstructing sidewalk traffic.' They beat Lucy Burns, chained her hands to the cell bars above her head and left her hanging for the night, bleeding and gasping for air.

(Dora Lewis)They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her head against an iron bed and knocked her out cold. Her cell mate, Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack. Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging, beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting and kicking the women.

Thus unfolded the 'Night of Terror' on Nov. 15, 1917,

when the warden at the Occoquan Workhouse in Virginia ordered his guards to teach a lesson to the suffragists imprisoned there because they dared to picket Woodrow Wilson's White House for the right to vote.
For weeks, the women's only water came from an open pail. Their food--all of it colorless slop--was iNFeSteD WiTH WoRMS.

(Alice Paul) When one of the leaders, Alice Paul, embarked on a hunger strike, they tied her to a chair, forced a tube down her throat and poured liquid into her until she vomited. She was tortured like this for weeks until word was smuggled out to the press.

So, refresh my memory. Some women won't vote this year because--why, exactly? We have carpool duties? We have to get to work? Our vote doesn't matter? It's raining?

Last week, I went to a sparsely attended screening of HBO's new movie 'Iron Jawed Angels.' It is a graphic depiction of the battle these women waged so that I could pull the curtain at the polling booth and have my say. I am ashamed to say I needed the reminder. All these years later, voter registration is still my passion. But the actual act of voting had become less personal for me, more rote. Frankly, voting often felt more like an obligation than a privilege. Sometimes it was inconvenient.

My friend Wendy, who is my age and studied women's history, saw the HBO movie, too. When she stopped by my desk to talk about it, she looked angry. She was--with herself. 'One thought kept coming back to me as I watched that movie,' she said. 'What would those women think of the way I use, or don't use,my right to vote? All of us take it for granted now, not just younger women, but those of us who did seek to learn.' The right to vote, she said, had become valuable to her 'all over again.'

HBO released the movie on video and DVD. I wish all history, social studies and government teachers would include the movie in their curriculum I want it shown on Bunco night, too, and anywhere else women gather. I realize this isn't our usual idea of socializing, but we are not voting in the numbers that we should be, and I thinka little shock therapy is in order.

It is jarring to watch Woodrow Wilson and his cronies try to persuade a psychiatrist to declare Alice Paul insane so that she could be permanently institutionalized. And it is inspiring to watch the doctor refuse. Alice Paul was strong, he said, and brave. That didn't make her crazy.

The doctor admonished the men:

'Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity.'

Please, if you are so inclined, pass this on to all the women you know. We need to get out and vote and use this right that was fought so hard for by these very courageous women. Whether you vote democratic, republican or independent party - remember to vote.

History is being made.

Heretofore quoth I

I read this somewhere and thought it was worth sharing. Sorry it's sooo long but it's definitely worth reading. It's a little overwhelming but read one a day and focus on it.

An Angel says, 'Never borrow from the future. If you worry about what may happen tomorrow and it doesn't happen, you have worried in vain. Even if it does happen, you have to worry twice.' Here are a list of things to help prevent that worry:
1. Pray 2. Go to bed on time. 3. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed. 4. Say No to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health. 5. Delegate tasks to capable others. 6. Simplify and unclutter your life. 7. Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.) 8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places. 9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects overtime; don't lump the hard things all together. 10. Take one day at a time. 11. Separate worries from concerns . If a situation is a concern,find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety . If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it. 12. Live within your budget; don't use credit cards for ordinary purchases. 13. Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra housekey buried in the garden, extra stamps, etc. 14. K.M.S. (KEEP MOUTH SHUT). This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble. 15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday. 16. Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line. 17. Get enough rest. 18. Eat right. 19. Get organized so everything has its place. 20. Listen to a tape while driving that can help improve your quality of life. 21. Write down thoughts and inspirations. 22. Every day, find time to be alone. 23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. Don't wait until it's time to go to bed to try and pray. 24. Make friends with Godly people. 25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand. 26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope isoften a good 'Thank you Jesus .' 27. Laugh. 28. Laugh some more! 29. Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all. 30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can). 31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most). 32. Sit on your ego. 33. Talk less; listen more. 34. Slow down. 35. Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe. 36. Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before. GOD HAS A WAY OF TURNING THINGS AROUND FOR YOU.