Christmas Time

Yay for Christmas! I had such a great Thanksgiving. We spent it with friends, cooking and eating and (yes) watching football and laughing. It was really peaceful and fun. Then we decorated for Christmas on Friday and the season has begun! I love seeing all for the red and green and seeing the excitement of my kids eclipse my own. Is there anything better than being a parent and watching your children experience pure delight?

Yay For Sales!

Our camera broke a month or so ago. It hasn't been a huge deal, but we have birthdays, a baptism and Christmas coming up, so we decided we needed to get on the ball. We got one in all the Christmas season megasales. So, you can look forward to lots of picture posting coming soon!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This morning, Mary and I were making "thankfulness muffins" as is our tradition. We were each taking turns saying things we are thankful for. I said I was thankful that the grandparents are all coming for a visit. Mary said "I love her!" and I explained that all of her grandparents are coming. Grandma and Granddad, and Grandma and Grandpa Russ. She said, "I love grandma. She is so cute." So, Grandma, (not sure which one she was referring to) Mary thinks you are cute.

What Sign Would They Have?

This morning I read this post. Everything is not usually as it seems from the outside, and this helped remind me of that. I think some people are so good at putting on an "everything's great" face. I hope I can be more aware of what my friend's...and strangers, really need. It reminded me of a talk Henry B Eyring gave to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2004. He said:

"When I was a young man, I served as counselor to a wise district president in the Church. He tried to teach me. One of the things I remember wondering about was this advice he gave: 'When you meet someone, treat them as if they were in serious trouble, and you will be right more than half the time.'

"I thought then that he was pessimistic. Now, more than 40 years later, I can see how well he understood the world and life. As time passes, the world grows more challenging, and our physical capacities slowly diminish with age. It is clear that we will need more than human strength. The Psalmist was right: 'But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord: he is their strength in the time of trouble.'" (The link to the whole talk)

Elder Neil A Maxwell said "Empathy during agony is a portion of divinity." I know women like that. I hope I can be like that one day! I am amazed by the grace and strength with which the women around me carry heavy burdens. Thank you for your examples to me.

The Lost Holiday

Perhaps it was the appearance of Christmas trees in stores before or on Halloween. Perhaps it has been building for years. Perhaps it is the stretched feeling that has been shared by so many this year. Regardless of what the trigger, so many people lately have expressed interesting emotions regarding Christmas this year. A sadness that can be wrapped around one question: What happened to Thanksgiving?

Let me interject by saying that I LOVE Christmas. It is all I can do to not start playing Christmas music in October. I love the feeling. I love the time of year. I love the snow. I LOVE Christmas. No, really. I LOVE Christmas. But, things seem to be out of wack. The stores, in an effort to stabilize their bottom lines, have been enticing us for many years to enjoy a "true" Christmas by getting the perfect gift and the best decorations and throwing a fantastic holiday party. The commercialism of Christmas has grown into a trite topic. However, this year has brought a new realization. In all the excitement for Christmas (in whatever manifestation it appears for you) we have forgotten Thanksgiving. Oh, we have remembered the turkey alright. And the football. And stuffing ourselves until we pass out. But, over the years it has suffered just as much as Christmas. This afternoon my mom said, "Thanksgiving has become the lost holiday." I think she's right. Now, it is just a pit stop before the full-on rush to Christmas. It is just a place marker.

This year, I want to have a heart completely filled to overflowing with gratitude. For my life, for my family, for all that my Heavenly Father has brought into my life for the sole purpose of making me happy. And most importantly, for the gift of His son, who's birth we have the honor of remembering for the following month. I recall what I said. It is a marker. But, a wonderful one. It is truly amazing that we have the opportunity to start the celebration of the birth of the Savior by spending an entire day with our families with our hearts drawn out in gratitude. I want to remember the true meaning of Christmas by first returning to the true purpose of Thanksgiving.

School Pictures

I just love Joe. This picture makes me smile. Actually, I think this is the best intentional smile Joe has ever had in a picture.

Time For the Clown Costume

So, Matt always jokes (I hope it's a joke) that he's going to make our girls wear clown costumes when they're teenagers, to ward off the boys. Well, we may need to bring those out early. Matt was talking to Mary this evening about school. He asked if she wanted to stay home and play with Will all day next year when Emily goes to school, or if she wanted to go to school with Emily. She said she wanted to go to school. Then she got a big dramatic look on her face and said, "Because there are...BOYS!" Then, confidently, she said, "They'll like me." Good grief. You are way too young, chica. Where do these kids get these things?

Caution:Hazardous substances when combined

Errands and kids. Yeah.

Most moms know that if kids have a meltdown during errands, most likely it was bad planning or bad timing. But, then, sometimes things just fall apart anyway. This has a been a week packed with errands. The dentist's office followed immediately by voting on Tuesday was a five hour nightmare that doesn't need to be hashed out again. We also had to go to the store several times.

Yesterday, I had cinnamon rolls rising at home, but needed to stop by the store, so in the back of my mind I had the picture of my yummy rolls deflating like a balloon into a disgusting mess (I know it was very very unlikely that that would happen), and the kids were...excited. There were no multi-kid carts available(K, seriously. I know I totally did it when it was just me and Joe, but it is really frustrating to be piling four kids into a single cart and then see one of the nice bench numbers being pushed by a parent with one five year old inside), so we were stuck with putting Will in the cart and hoping the other three would stick by the cart in the crowded store. We do this all the time. I figured, we would totally get through alright. First, I couldn't find anything I needed. Then Emily walked off and Joe kept running all over the place. Mary was screaming or whining the whole time. Finally, she started complaining about having to go to the bathroom. I asked if she could wait (yes, I was dumb enough to ask a three year old if she could wait). She said no, and then got the look. I made a beeline for the bathroom, knocking over unsuspecting shoppers in the meantime, squealing around corners. Just as we pulled up to the bathroom door, I saw the growing puddle forming beneath her. There, at the edge of the food market and beside the Starbucks, five yards from the bathroom, I stood with a now soaking three year old, a cart full of groceries, and three other rambunctious kids. The worst part was that it was one of those days where I just felt stretched. I wasn't handling anything super well.

Then, there he was. My knight in shining armor! Matt walked up, saying he figured he would meet me here rather than wait at work. True inspiration! With two of us we easily got everything taken care of and got out of the store.

Today, I didn't run a single errand.

Athena's Run

Last Saturday, I participated in Athena's Run to promote awareness of Gyn Cancers.

Running friends and awesome women!

Team Swindlerun

Thanks for inviting me to be part of this event, Cyndie. You are amazing!!

(PS Thanks for the pictures, Jen!)