Day 5 ~ Your Best Friend

Day 4 ~ Tawni aka Puggy

Not really sure why Paul started calling Tawni "Pug", but that's her.. Pug, Puggy, Puglet.

Love my baby sister. She and Mark tried for so long to have their first baby and we were all so worried that she wouldn't be able to have kids. Now she has her hands full with her three little boys and she's a great Mom:) Tawni is a gentle soul and a sweet, loving girl. She was born on Paul's birthday and they've always had a special bond. So glad Mom and Dad decided to have just one more baby!

Day 4 ~ Tara

Tara, Ted and Sally...

Everytime Tara got a new doll, she named her Sally.

We always knew she would be a good Mom:)

When Tara was born, I totally adopted her. I did everything with that gorgeous little blond, blue-eyed baby girl. I even took her on dates with me until she ran away from us one busy Christmas season at a very crowded Temple Square. I love my little sister. I love what a great Mom she is. Nobody in this family is a "step" child. They're all just "the kids" and every decision ever made is for all 7 of them. So, in spite of the fact that she named the nephew of a die-hard Yankees fan "Boston" and she supports the University of Utah Utes, I love Tara with all my heart:)

Day 4- Ted

I guess my parents ran out of people in the family to name their kids after by the 5th one. So my baby brother Robert Ted Callister was named after Mom's obstetrician, Robert Romney and our pediatrician, Ted Evans. lol. Ted's always been so funny. Keeps us all laughing. It's hard to stay mad at him because he ends up making us smile through our gritted teeth. He's got a beautiful little family and I'm so happy for him, Joey, Mikayla and Bowie. My favorite memory of Ted is that he hated going to school. Mom was pregnant every couple of years, so Ted would climb the neighbor's tree after the big kids went to school and there was no way our pregnant Mom could climb the tree and get him down. Not sure how she ever got him down, or IF she did, until school let out that afternoon. Little stinker. She probably couldn't stay mad at him, either!

Day 4 - Steven aka Hig

If you called my Dad's house and asked for Steven, everyone would be looking for Tara's husband. This is Hig. Not sure when it started but it stuck. He has the kindest heart of any of my brothers and sisters. It used to break his heart when Kurt & I or Tami & Dave would argue after we got married. I've never heard him say an unkind thing to or about any of us. We don't see much of him anymore, maybe a couple of times a year. But it's always awesome to see him. Hig has had a lot of heartbreak in his life, losing friends and loved ones to death at young ages, and I think he protects his heart very carefully. He's never been married, although he's had some great women in his life over the years. I don't THINK he has any children, but he'd be a great, loving, compassionate Dad. I love this guy with all my heart and I pray every day for peace and happiness to follow him throughout his life.

Day 4- Paul aka Wog

Although he's 4 years younger than me, Paul has always seemed like my big brother. He has always been strong and determined in everything he does. Mom called him "Pauly Wog" and he ended up as Wog or Woggy, which we still call him today. My favorite thing about Paul and Michelle is that they just don't fit anybody's mold. They create their own path and allow their girls the freedom to do the same. I love that about them:) Paul is so good to me and my children and we all think the world of him. He's a good man. A good father. A great brother. And I love him more every single year.

Day 4- Tami

Today's blog topic is "Your Siblings", but since I have 6 of them, I'll break it down into more than one post. Tami is our Mom. She takes care of us all, even though I'm the oldest. She would do anything for any of us, and if we needed anything, Tami would be out the door before we even got off the phone, ready to take care of whatever the problem is.

She's a GREAT Mom, and nobody better hurt her kids or there WILL be hell to pay!

We call her BaBa because, for some reason, that's what Ashli called her when she was a baby and it stuck. BaBa it is:)

She's a marathon runner, and I'm excited to see her wear her 80's costume in the Provo half-marathon at the end of October. I love this girl. I'm jealous of her most of the time, but I adore her and I'm super proud to call her my little sister!

Day 3

The blog topic for today is "Your Parents" so I'm re-posting an old post about my Mom. But I better add something about my Dad, too!!!

My Dad never forgets a birthday, anniversary or Valentine's Day.. He never fails to send a card to me, Kurt and the kids, complete with one of his ink stamps in the bottom corner by his signature. He sends facebook hearts, hugs and smiles every day. He's very talented. He can fix anything and we never had to call anyone from a plumber to a building contractor when I was growing up. He built the addition to our home, sewed a 3-piece suit and has rebuilt countless vehicles from the engine to the paint job. He is an amazing woodworker, and I love the gifts he creates for me.

When people tell me "You remind me of your Mom", I know it's just my physical appearance. Noone ever really stops and tells me "You remind me of your Mom because..." Here's what I'd like to hear...

Becky Callister was a passionate person. She loved, laughed, cried all with the same intensity. I inherited that from her. Tami inherited that from her. We do nothing halfway. When I'm mad, I'm not just a little upset... I'm MAD!! When I like a Christmas gift, I don't just smile and say "Thank you". I jump up and squeal and scream and act like it's the most amazing gift I've ever received.

Becky Callister was an avid sports fan. If we couldn't find her at Grandma's house, we'd check the ball park. She donated countless hours to Bobby Sox and Little League. She used to ump games and they'd give her one hamburger from the snack bar for every game she umped. So she'd stand there behind home plate on a Saturday, game after game, in the hot sun, until she got a hamburger for each of us kids.

All of Becky's kids have spent more than one summer vacation at softball or baseball tournaments with our own kids.

When I see Tami, Tara, Paul and Ted at ball games with their kids, weekend after weekend all summer, I remember Mom and Grandma Becca doing the same thing.

When we were younger, before cable TV and the Turner networks, you either liked the Dodgers or the Yankees, because they were the only teams you ever saw play on TV. So, Mom was a Yankees fan, Grandma Becca was a Yankees fan, I married a Yankees fan and gave birth to three little Yankees fans.

Even Tara and Tawni's kids are getting old enough to play ball now.

Zack bought Logan his first baseball bat for his birthday this year. Mom would be so proud:)

My Mom was always too busy taking care of other people to take care of herself. I don't think I ever saw her wearing makeup. When she'd need to get her hair done, she'd have Judy Ault cut it short and perm it so it was low maintenance. She was just too busy to worry about hair and makeup when there were places to go, people to see and kids to watch at ball games or spelling bees. Until she got sick, I don't remember seeing my Mom actually sleeping. Sometimes she'd doze off in a chair, but she was always up before me and in bed sometime after I went to sleep.

My Mom taught me my first Primary song- "The Golden Plates"- and taught me that Families can be together forever. She got me hooked on Saturday's Warrior and I have those songs on my iPod today.

She taught me that the greatest gift God ever gave her was her children. Because of her love for us all, I couldn't wait to be a Mom myself someday.

She had a laundry basket full of unmatched socks. Yup, I do, too. I know I should throw them away, but I keep thinking the mate will turn up somewhere.

She had a hard time letting go of me. I moved up to Weber State to start college, and she showed up two days later to "check on me". I was SO mad!! Man, I'd like to have that day back. I get it now. It's hard to let go of your daughter. I inherited that from my Mom.





My Mom passed away 22 years ago. I still miss her so much sometimes. I know she'd have been an awesome Grandma, and she would have loved my husband. She'd be proud of all of her kids and grandkids and I like to believe our babies will get to meet her someday.

Day 2

FIRST LOVE...

So the blog topic for today is "Your First Love".

No doubt about it, my first love was Shaun Cassidy. This very album cover.

I glued pictures of him (from Tiger Beat magazine) to my unfinished bedroom ceiling.

Cori Naylor and I used to pray at night that we'd dream about him when we fell asleep.

Apparently my First Love turned 52 years old last week...

I think a goatee and a pair of shades would probably help at this point!

Day 1

INTRODUCTION

Yeah... this picture provides a pretty good introduction to me!

What? Why? When? Where? How?

My full name is Tina Rebecca Allred, which I LOVE because I'm the 7th generation of "Rebeccas" in my family. First born daughters are given the name of Rebecca, and my daughter, Ashli Rebecca Allred Brown is the 8th:)

I'm.. ok... 42 years old!!! I simply cannot keep saying I'm 29 since Ashli is now 20.

I've been married to Kurt for 21 years and we have three A.MAY.ZING children, one AWE.SOME son-in-law and a great dog. You'll hear more about them in the 30 days ahead, I'm sure.

I've been unemployed for 7 months and I've gained a whole new respect for people who struggle to find work. It's always been easy for me in the past. I'm sure there's a lesson from God in there somewhere... Fortunately, I have a husband who works hard to take care of us and we're getting by in these tough times.

So there's the short version intro...

It's nearly midnight and I'm waiting for my 16 year old son to come home so I can go to sleep! I never did wait up for Ashli and Zack, though.. just had them wake me when they got here. I'm sure there's a lesson in there somewhere too!

The 30 Day List

My cute little cousins are doing this 30 day thing on their blogs and I like it, so I think I'll join them!
Day 1 - Introduction
Day 2 - Your First Love
Day 3 - Your Parents
Day 4 - Your Siblings
Day 5 -Your Best Friend
Day 6 - Your Husband/Boyfriend
Day 7 -Your definition on Love
Day 8 - A moment
Day 9 - Your Beliefs
Day 10 - What you Wore Today
Day 11 -What you Ate Today
Day 12 - What's in Your Bag?
Day 13 - This Week
Day 14 -An Embarrassing Moment
Day 15 - Your Dreams
Day 16 - Your First Kiss
Day 17 - Your Favorite Memory
Day 18 - Your Favorite Birthday
Day 19 - Something you Regret
Day 20 - This Month
Day 21 - Something that upsets you
Day 22 - Something that makes you feel better
Day 23 - Something that makes you cry
Day 24- Something that makes you angry
Day 25 - A First
Day 26 - Your Fears
Day 27 - Your Favorite Place
Day 28 - Something that you Miss
Day 29 - Your Aspirations
Day 30 - One Last Moment

I'm Torn...

I'm having a tough week... the suicide of the gay Rutgers University student really broke my heart. Life is hard enough when you're 18-25 years old.. Heck, life is hard enough when you're 1-100 years old-without the absolute trauma this kid went through. I know I'm getting old and I sound like our grandparents here, but the kid shouldn't have been having sex with anyone, male or female, so I'm setting that aside. Sex should be, if not in marriage, at the very least in some sort of committed monogamous relationship. It shouldn't be with one person tonight and a different person tomorrow and so on. BUT.... he shouldn't have died for it. He shouldn't have been so publicly humiliated and I would like to see those who filmed him be charged with murder. I would.

And then as I settled in for the weekend to enjoy messages from our church leaders at General Conference, I heard Elder Boyd K Packer's talk and I just didn't get a warm fuzzy feeling as I listened to him. I can't help but think Christ would want to show love for ALL of us if he were here. I have no idea how I feel about gay marriage. I know how I feel about gay PEOPLE.. I LOVE them! Most of my gay friends are amazing people.. loving, kind, super TALENTED. (Why is that? They seem to have more talent than the entire heterosexual world put together.) Many of them are in committed relationships, raising children in a loving home. So, I'm conflicted. Am I the only Latter Day Saint who isn't 100% on board with this issue? I've never felt this way before. I was raised to believe that "whether by My own voice or by the voice of My servants, it is the same", so I'm really struggling with this. I absolutely believe that the family is essential. We all need to be committed to family living and I hate to see marriages crumbling all around me. But.... not every family has a Mom and a Dad. I really need some enlightenment here.

Day of Reflection

September 11, 2010

I'm addicted to facebook. I don't want to be. Sometimes I try to walk away for a day or two to prove to myself that I can, the same way I give up caffeine for a while just to prove that I can. But this morning, I had absolutely no desire to harvest my crops or chat with old friends or snoop into the lives of other people. I didn't log onto facebook until after the coverage from Ground Zero of the reading of the names. And even then I just wasn't into it. I saw a link to a video tribute set to the song "Have You Forgotten?". I shared the link, too, then logged off facebook until a few minutes ago. When I got back on, my sweet, adorable, honest cousin had commented on my link, something along the lines of "No, I haven't forgotten, but I don't need these grim images to remind me." I was taken aback, and thought I'd better watch the whole video. So, I did. There were images of bodies in midair, people who had flung themselves from the top floors of the Trade Center rather than face whatever horror was up there. The images were in poor taste, and I feel terrible that I was a party to sharing it on facebook. So I deleted the link from my profile and spent some time thinking about what I want to remember about September 11.

It's time to heal. That's how I feel. It was a tragic, horrific, devastating day in the history of the United States of America. The repercussions of that day are being felt now, nearly a decade later, and will continue to be felt for decades to come. I shed tears every year when I am reminded of the horror of that day. But the horror continues for innocent people day after day; soldiers and civilians continue to die daily as a result of September 11, 2001. Those who were physically responsible for the devastation of that day are dead. They can never be punished. So we continue to try and end terrorism on a global level. Will we EVER end terrorism? Of course not. Terrorists believe they are on a mission from God, the same way millions of others believe they are on a mission from God in many different ways. I'm weary of war. I'm weary of partisanism. I'm weary of discord. Michelle Obama and Laura Bush were together in Pennsylvania this morning, and when Fox News cut away from Mrs Obama's speech, I was upset. She had brought me to tears with her thoughtful words and the people on "my side" cut away, much the way CNN probably cut away from Laura Bush. I'm tired of this. Is Barack Obama a Muslim or a Christian? Is there going to be a Mosque near Ground Zero? Who cares? Ted Bundy was a Mormon. Does that mean no Mormon Temple should ever be built near a college campus? I don't blame every Muslim for the choices of a few.

I'm home alone tonight, watching "United 93"and "World Trade Center"on DVD. So I went to 7-11 for a diet dr pepper. As I pulled into the parking lot, I had the disrespectful thought that here I was, supporting the Middle Eastern owners of 7-11 on 9-11. Sure enough, the guy behind the counter was of Middle Eastern descent. There was a cute family in front of me in line, and the little 2 year old boy grabbed some candy from the bottom shelf. The Mom and Dad looked at each other, and shook their heads, and I knew they didn't have enough money for the candy. The (Muslim?) guy behind the counter said, "No, get the candy. I'll give you the coffee for free." Ah! And there it is. We are not Muslims or Mormons or Democrats or Republicans. We're humans. With faults and strengths, good and bad. Time to heal.

Thursday Night Lights

I LOVE watching Tyler play football this year! He's on the Juab JV squad, so his games are played on Thursday nights, and it's a great way to kick off the weekend:) Ty played both offensive and defensive line last night and he played SO WELL! The best game he's ever had, seriously. Juab beat Payson 21-6, and I was so proud of Ty:)

.

I love living in a small town. If you go to the grocery store or gas station on game day, you'll see a variety of people in the newest Juab Football t-shirt, hoodie or hat. It's a big fundraiser every year, and the boys have to be pretty competitive to get their 15 sales before the other football players beat them to it.

Last night at Ty's game, I looked around and saw some people who keep attending every sports event at the high school even though their kids have all graduated. I love that. Reminds me of little Bobby out in Grantsville, the most loyal Cowboys fan ever.

I saw people I actually haven't seen for a while, and was saddened to realize that I didn't recognize two people I've known for years. They've aged so much, they're not in the best health, and I couldn't help but think of them 10-15 years ago when they were full of energy, witty, funny and so much younger. I saw a lady that I thought was about my age holding a baby, and I asked Ashli if that was her grandchild. She laughed and said no, it was her baby, and that she is atleast ten years younger than me. Ugh!! I really do think I'm 29, don't I?

Ashli had her little dog there at the game, and everyone from little 3 year old children to grandmas and grandpas stopped to pet her and subsequently talk with me and Ashli for a few minutes. Ashli is amazed at how many people here in Utah say "Don't you have kids yet?" after she has only been married a year! It's definitely the required next step around here, and apparently the sooner the better, if the joking with her in the football stands is any indication.

I love walking out the gates and having people stop to tell me what great kids I have. Two different parents stopped me last night to tell me how glad they are that Tyler hangs out with their kids. Awe.. I can't take any credit for what a great kid he is, but I'd trade any amount of money and success to hear that kind of thing about the kids raised in our home:)

And most of all, I love that Kaitlyn ran to catch me and give me a hug as I was leaving the game. Kids are SO awesome! And the kids in this town are especially amazing. I know there are problems, but you just don't see the cliques and stuff that go on in other towns. One of the freshmen football players was sitting in front of us during the JV game, and the rest of the freshmen team called over to him to come sit with them. Ah.. love to see stuff like that.

Reading is Fundamental

Remember when we were younger and there were only like 5 TV channels TOTAL, two of them being PBS? I remember the Reading is Fundamental commercials and was happy to see that this program is still in existence today.

I LOVE to read! Right now I am actually reading three different books at the same time...

Jana's Journal by Jeannette Windle was on sale for 25 cents at FYE about a month ago, so I picked it up. I don't read it a lot.. a few pages a week. It's a pretty good book.... aimed toward much younger readers than myself, but the style of book I always imagined I would write someday.

I've been reading the first book in the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead. I loved the Twilight series mostly because Stephenie Meyer is an LDS author who went to BYU. If she can do it, anyone can! Stephenie Meyer makes me believe in dreams. Her books definitely started a trend among authors, though, this series being one of them. So I'm reading about dhampirs, guardians and so on in this series. I was reading a couple chapters a day until yesterday when Ashli brought me Catching Fire,

the second book in The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. CANNOT put it down! But I'm at the end of Chapter 12 in Catching Fire, and I'm furious at what is happening! So I took a little break, did some housecleaning and some blogging while I take a breath before I get back to the book. The third book in the series came out last week, and since Ashli, Tyler and I are all reading the series, maybe we can all pitch in and buy the hardcover edition since paperbacks won't be out for a while. Ah.. I LOVE to read!

Odds and Ends

I'm not sure we've EVER had a matching full set of silverware in our house. As a result, all of us somehow ended up with our favorite fork. Ashli's had a wooden handle and we think it fell behind the stove a few years ago, but we never did find it even when we put in a wood floor and moved the appliances out.

Kurt's has a blue handle and it was lost for a long time, too. But I found it one day under the shoe rack in our closet along with a plate... apparently he had hurriedly stashed it there when he heard me coming down the hall ..in an effort to hide the fact that he was eating messy, greasy enchiladas in the bedroom.

Tyler likes the one with rounded edges on the handle and if there is a drawer full of clean forks, but that one is dirty, he will wash that one fork in order to use it.

But of us all, Zack is the most loyal to his fork, a tiny little fork with an intricate design on the handle. I actually think it belongs to a set of Kurt's Moms and we ended up with it somehow, but Zack loves it. When Mack married into the family, one of the first "rules" he learned was NOT to use Zack's fork when he ate at our house. So... Zack moved to college last week.. and took his fork with him. Tonight when I washed the dishes and put Tyler and Kurt's forks in the drawer, I was way sad that Zack's wasn't there. I miss him. And his fork.

Collage

So the other day I was thinking about some of the things that define who I am~both good and bad experiences that have molded me. Most of it is too personal to blog about, but I made a collage of some of the things that have played a big role in shaping the Me I am today. There are days when I look in the mirror and like what I see, and days when I don't. But I am grateful for the character-building moments that I've had and continue to have. Sometimes when things are really tough, I think I absolutely CANNOT handle one more challenge. Then another challenge comes along, and you know what? I handle it:) Fortunately for me I have some AMAZING people in my corner who are always on my side, even when I don't deserve it. Thank you to everyone who has played a part in my life in one way or another, and especially to those who have hung around long enough to see how the collage looks today.

~Sons~

I've been thinking a lot about the men in my life lately, and particularly my sons. My oldest son, Zack, moved to Ephraim to attend Snow College last Saturday. And, my GOSH, it was harder than I thought it would be. I'm so proud of him, but can't help but be sad that he's all grown up now.

Tyler is working SO hard at football this year. Tomorrow is his first game, and I CAN'T WAIT to see him play! I'll be wearing my Juab football tshirt all day:)

And of course there is Dixie's son, Kurt. She tells me all the time how proud she is of the man he has become.

And Becky's son, Paul aka Woggy... I LOVE this man more every single year. My brother is an amazing man and I am so proud to be his sister.

And all three of Tawni's sons... Logan, Landen and Lincoln:) Tawni spent years trying to get pregnant after she and Mark got married. We were all so worried that she'd never have the blessing of being a Mom, which would have been devastating. She is the sweetest, most patient among the four of us sisters, and she was born to be a Mother. So, when she finally got pregnant with Logan, we were SO excited! And along came two more adorable sons. They're such a cute family:)

I didn't get any pictures of my other nephews in this blog, but they're all amazing. Sissy wrote this on a card to Tawni when Lincoln was born, and it touched my heart so deeply. It's really personal to our family how much we all love Stephen's son, Aaron. He and Aaron's mom divorced when Aaron and Brittany were very young, and Tara and Stephen spent many, many years and many thousands of dollars trying to get the kids back here in Utah. They are finally here, and it's been so hard for Aaron to really figure out where he wants to be-- here or with his mom.

He'll be 18 in a couple months, and I pray that life brings him all of the opportunities and blessings that he deserves. I love him so much.

An Amazing Day

SO.... I know I brag about this amazing family A LOT! But, seriously, how blessed am I?

They're all beautiful, inside and out. But today they were exceptionally beautiful. Kurt and Zack have been working in Blanding, Utah, since about March. They do come home occasionally for a couple days at a time, and we've all been to Blanding a few times this summer, but our family has not been all together in church for months. Well, today was the last Sunday before Zack goes to college in Ephraim, Utah. He moves next Saturday. So, when we all arrived at the church this morning for Sacrament meeting, it meant a lot to me to have us all there.. together. And then...there were no Priests sitting at the Sacrament table. Our ward has threePriests at a time, all of them preparing the bread and two of them offering the blessings on the Sacrament. Well, my husband, Kurt, is the 1st counselor in the Young Mens' Presidency and Zack and Tyler were the only Priests at the meeting today, so the three of them went up to the Sacrament table. Oh WOW!! I looked up to the front of the chapel and saw all of the men in my family sitting there together to bless the Sacrament and I was absolutely overwhelmed. With love and pride and just a sense of peace and security that I am surrounded by this Priesthood power in my home. That all of the men under my roof are worthy to sit together and perform a Priesthood ordinance is amazing, humbling, awe-inspiring. I just can't put it into words. I'm proud of them for so many things, but this is probably the top of the list. I have the life I always dreamed of. Wow. I love these guys...

The first fish Tyler ever caught.. probably about 1997.

Kurt could have made more money working somewhere else all these years, but it was important to us that he have free time to coach the kids in sports and be there for the important events in their lives. We wouldn't trade it for anything.

I love that Kurt works with the Young Men in the Church, so our boys can see him honor his Priesthood and look to him for guidance throughout their lives.

How lucky am I to live with these guys?

But.. I'm going to miss Zack SO MUCH! Just the other day, we were praying that he'd live through the night in the NICU and now he's off to college! I'm so proud of him and the man he is.

And so honored that I get to be the woman in their lives, atleast for now:)

~Family~

So this is the newest addition to our

FAMILY~

a teeny little dog named

Hemi

I tend her every day while Ashli and Mack go to work.

I'm ready to be a Grandma, but I am glad Ashli and Mack are waiting to have children until life is somewhat stable.. they're only 20 years old, after all....

So, I'll wait... patiently... and tend their baby dog in the meantime:)

I've been thinking about FAMILIES a LOT lately...

A couple of my high school friends have faced some challenges in their families and it just got me thinking... it absolutely breaks my heart to see families fall apart.

Sometimes marriages just have to end.. after every effort has been made, after every avenue has been explored, after lots of advice and prayer and tears...

Sometimes it just has to end..

But the family unit doesn't have to end... Mom and Dad are mutual parents of their joint children forever.... so I'm happy when I see people putting their own issues aside for the good of their children and maintaining a strong family bond even when Mom and Dad aren't together anymore. One of my friends said "Happiness is all that matters" I could not DISAGREE more.

Integrity matters. Morals matter. Compassion matters. Sacrifice matters. There is much more to life than our personal "happiness". In our marriage, we have both given up personal happiness at one point or another for the good of the children, for the good of each other, or just simply because it was the right thing to do.

So, my rambling thoughts about family brought me to the definition of a

FAMILY

I have some gay friends. I love them. They're good parents. They're good people. They want to be legal families.. they want to be able to legally get married.

And I'm not sure how I feel about this. My political party and my religion are pretty clear about where they stand on California's Proposition 8. But where do I stand on a personal level? It's so easy on paper... Satan is attacking the family. He is trying to destroy the family unit. But you ask the two adorable kids of my gay friends and they'll say they have a great family. They have a Mom and a Dad and Mom's partner and all of these adults absolutely ADORE them. Sure, it's nontraditional. But my family is nontraditional, too. We haven't had a Mom for 23 years. Is it worse to have two Moms than no Mom at all? I don't know....

But I do know that there is simply no continuation of the human race whatsoever without a man AND a woman creating a child, thus creating a family...

Here's what I do know... whatever the family unit.. a dog named Hemi instead of a baby, two Moms, a single Dad, my newly divorced friend with four kids... I think it is absolutely vital that we as adults make the lives of children as "traditional" as possible. Men bring something to the lives of children that women simply can't and vice versa. I hope that when we find ourselves in a position where our children are no longer in a home with Mom and Dad together, we give them opportunities to spend quality time with Grandmas or Grandpas, Uncles or Aunts, religious leaders, teachers, people of both genders, to bring their unique gifts and talents to the lives of children.

This past summer, we've had to find a balance between all of the things we want in our family. Money is tight, so we didn't go to a Yankees game this year... we went camping.

Ah! I'm so GLAD that money was tight.. this camping trip blessed our lives tremendously.

Read a great scripture in Sacrament Meeting today...

2 Timothy 2:20

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver,

but also of wood and of earth..

Love that..

We do still love our baseball, so we've gone to a couple Orem Owlz

games on Sundays, when it's only $1 to get in....

It's been fun, but nothing can compare to the feeling we

had last August when our daughter married the love of her

life in the Manti temple...

So I think we've decided to skip the Sundays at the ball park.

I think we can spring for $4 on a Tuesday if we really

want to hit an Owlz game:)

It's vital that we teach our children the value of hard work,

no matter what their chosen profession will eventually be.

Whatever we do, wherever we are, the bottom

line is simply this...

Together is the best place to be...

...And I vow to never take it for granted that

we have six people (and two dogs) who love each

other immensely... who are willing to

sacrifice time, money, and personal desires

for the good of each other.

I am SO blessed to have this amazing

family..

Random Thoughts for the Day...

* I miss the old 3rd ward

* I'm kind of bummed that the girl from Utah was the first one to go home on Project Runway last night.

*I think it's way cool that Nigel has promoted a FREE National Day of Dance for tomorrow.

*I am SO EXCITED to watch Tyler play high school football this year!

*I don't like a quiet house.

*I think I hang tightly to memories of my old friends because they remind me of a time when my Mom was still alive.

*I'm no longer smarter than a 5th grader.

*I'm not sure how to define life in my 40's.

*I have decided to print more photographs. There's something about holding a photo in your hand that is just a little bit more special than seeing it as a digital photo.

*I'm looking forward to seeing my family tomorrow, but worry every time I see my Grandma that it may be the last time.....

The No Photo Post

I usually wait to blog until I have some great idea with lots of photos to go with it, but today I just wanted to sit down and share some random thoughts. Our family has had so many challenges the past two years. Nearly everything you can imagine, short of catastrophic health problems, knock on wood. And I'm so grateful that we're slowly emerging from the fog and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel to a certain degree. With Ashli married, Zack out of high school, and both Kurt and Zack working in Blanding, our family is rarely together anymore, so I've come to cherish the moments we are all together in one place. Zack and Kurt surprised me and showed up at home Wednesday night. I had been doing my last full day of U.S. Census work, and as I was driving down Main Street in Nephi, I glanced down at our house- as I always do when I pass the intersection of 600 North and Main- and Kurt's semi-truck was parked in front of the house. Yay:) So I did a u-turn in front of Matilda's and came home to get a couple hugs! It did kind of change our plans for the weekend, and I missed Brooklyn's 6th grade promotion out in Tooele Friday, which got me thinking about how every little thing we do anymore involves a big decision. There was a time when we jumped in the car and dragged Main for hours, and $5 would get me to work for a week. And now with gas over $3 a gallon again, we never leave town unless we can accomplish more than one task when we go. The easy decisions are between right and wrong. The tough decisions are between right and right. And one last random thought was stolen from Krystine's blog today...

People are often unreasonable and self-centered.
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.

If you are honest, people may cheat you.
Be honest anyway.

If you find happiness, people may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough.
Give your best anyway.

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God.
It never was between you and them anyway.
~Mother Theresa

The House That Built Me

So the sale of our home fell through last week. When the offer came in on March 13, four days after we listed it on ksl.com, it seemed like an answer to our prayers. We planned how we'd get out of debt with the equity from the sale, get Zack started in college in the Fall and maybe even take a trip to California this summer.

But the cute couple who put in the offer got tired of the fight with the Rural Development people after two months, and we decided not to re-list the house.

As I watched Tyler hang his pictures back up on his bedroom walls, I realized that this is the only home he's ever known. He has barbecues in the backyard with his friends, sits at the bar in the kitchen while I cook and tells me about his days at school.

We had Ashli's wedding reception in the backyard last summer and when I look at the deck, I remember our good friend Phil playing music while our friends and loved ones danced and celebrated the beginning of Ashli and Mack's life together.

There's the tree house my Dad, husband, brother-in-law, sons and nephews built.

Sophie, Durt and Chester have a permanent home here in the pine trees and tulip bed.

So, while it would have been nice to get that equity, this is home.

Pray for You - Jaron and The Long Road to Love :: Official Video

So this past week on facebook there was a group started with the ridiculous over-the-top name of "DEAR LORD THIS YEAR YOU TOOK MY FAVORITE ACTOR PATRICK SWAYZE. YOU TOOK MY FAVORITE ACTRESS FARRAH FAWCETT. YOU TOOK MY FAVORITE SINGER MICHAEL JACKSON. I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW MY FAVORITE PRESIDENT IS BARACK OBAMA. AMEN."

I LOL'd when I saw the name. Thought it was hilarious. Patrick Swayze was pretty good in the 2 or 3 movies I saw him in but he was no Tom Hanks. Farrah Fawcett? I guess she could be loosely labeled an "actress" but she wouldn't make my top 100, much less my "favorite". I was a Michael Jackson fan for a brief period of time when I was about 13, but again, not my favorite. The group name made me laugh, though, so I clicked the little "like" button and thought nothing else of it until later in the day when I got an inbox message from one of my liberal friends (of whom there are probably 15-20 among my facebook contacts). She was very offended by the name of the group and by the fact that I "liked" it. I was surprised that she was so offended, but her friendship meant more to me than having my name as a "liker" on the group's wall, so I "unliked" it. You used to "join" or "leave" facebook groups, but now it's simply "like" or "unlike".

ANYWAY.... I thought that she was overreacting to something trivial and silly. Of course I'm not praying for the death of the President of the United States. And I think she knows that about me personally. But she brought up some interesting points. For us, the red-blooded American, conservative Republicans in trucker caps and faded jeans, this is funny. But not everyone appreciates redneck humor. I'm not about being "PC".... I respect honesty and people telling it like it is. But I guess it's time to lean more toward the center if I'm going to get along with people in this day and age. I choose my friends, but I can't choose some of the people I deal with on a daily basis, and some of them are bound to be liberals who just don't "get" how conservatives think. How boring it would be if we all thought the same way. So... I vow to respect others' feelings even if my feelings are on the completely opposite end of the spectrum.

Republican actor John Wayne said, upon the election of Democrat John F. Kennedy, "I didn't vote for him, but he's my President and I hope he does a good job." We all need to respect the Office a bit more than we do. We Republicans heard the hate speeches throughout both of the Bushes terms, and now we're returning the favor. We all blame Obama for our woes when the guy hasn't even been in the White House long enough to have created the woes we face. The blame lies with the terrorists who tore our world upside down on 9/11. Nothing has been the same in the United States since, and both Bush and Obama have had to deal with the economic impact of fighting terrorism on a global level.

I see this in Church, in the work force, and even in families. Though we may not like the man in the position, we have to respect the office to a degree. Maybe the Bishop didn't pay you for work you did for him ten years ago. Maybe your boss is ... well, any number of things your boss could be... Gotta respect the office. Go home and complain about the guy to your spouse if you have to, but at church, at work, respect the office, as hard as it may be.

So there you go. I didn't vote for him but he is my President for the next 2 1/2 years. And I am not praying for his death!!! His leanings toward Socialism scare me, but for now, he is the President and all I can do is pray that he makes good decisions for us and future generations of Americans.

No new posts....

Laptop is still out of commission, so I haven't been blogging. It is amazing how many things I've found to do that don't require computer access, though. I love reading again:) Take care, all:)