10 random things you may or may not know about me

This is a meme going around Facebook that I participated in. Since it includes a bit of my own personal history, I thought I'd include it here on my blog.

1. I grew up in the country and remember the outhouse. It always creeped me out because there were spiders. Also going out there in the dark was scary because it was far from the house. I had nightmares about that place, the earth cracking and opening up and millions of spiders pouring out from the cracks. brrr. I still shudder to think of that dream.  I remember when we got an indoor bathroom, how luxurious that was. I don't remember where we took baths before that.

2. Mom's counter tops and cupboards were orange crate boxes stacked on top of one another with a board on top and homemade curtains on one of those spring curtain-"rods" to hold them in place. I got under the curtain and wrote my name in chalk on the orange crate in my 4-year-old hand writing. On the wall of the kitchen was a saying which I will never forget which read: "I had no shoes and I complained, until I met a man who had no feet." We looked at that while we did dishes every day.

3. I remember having my tonsils out, when I was four. The doctor came to my room the night before the operation and knelt down by my bedside and said a prayer for a successful surgery. I was comforted and wasn't afraid. But when they put me under with ether, I could hear my name echoing, and my hand-printed chalk name floated in all sizes before my eyes. It scared me.

4. I remember a trip to Pennsylvania when I was two. I remember loving the tunnels and standing on the bump between the back and front seats (there were no seat belts) and exclaiming, "come anuder hole!" I also remember when we got to Pittsburgh, I was looking for the "clock shop on a corner in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania", like Perry Como sang. It wasn't until just a few years ago that I found out it was a "pawn shop"!!!!!! all these years I thought it was a clock shop on a corner. I remember asking my mom where the clock shop was as we passed all the corners in Pittsburgh. My parents giggled. I listened to Perry Como and Tennessee Ernie Ford in my young life. I always thought I would marry Tennessee. I was in love. He taught me much of what I knew about my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ through his beautiful songs.

5. I attended a four-room/8-grade school with a hot-lunch cafeteria in the basement. Mrs. Lolis was our beloved cook. I know this makes me sound ancient, but I don't feel that old. . . There were two grades per room/teacher. Our principal was also the 7th and 8th grade teacher. My first and second grade teacher, Mrs. Winslett, owned a skating rink, and Friday nights we would go roller skating. She was there, ringing the bell and turning the crank on a display board which would say, "Reverse Skate, Backwards Skate, Girls only, Boys only, couples only, etc".  Mrs. Winslett saved the boxes from the candy bars and put our phonics cards in them. I loved Phonics, maybe it was the association with the chocolate smell?

Once, my best friend and I were sent to the Principal's "office" for giggling in class. We had to write our times tables from 1 to 12 in front of the 7th and 8th graders. It was mortifying and I learned them permanently that day, never to forget. But our Principal, Mr. Gauthier was also an amazing gymnastics coach, and when our country school was closed, he moved onto our Jr. High, as a science teacher, where he taught my friend, a few other girls and myself to do many gymnastic stuff. We loved that man. We had ink-well desks in 5th/6th grades, but more modern ones in the first four grades. I still have some of these ink-well desks from when the school closed down.

6. I gave birth to my third child alone in the bathtub after I drove myself to the hospital and they sent me home, telling me that I was NOT in labor, even though I was a week overdue. . . When Dave got home (he had to call for a substitute so he could leave the control room of the power plant) and found me with a brand new baby in my arms, he turned almost as white as the wall and slowly sat down. The hospital took us serious when we showed up with a brand-newborn baby in our arms. . .

7. I LOVE dolls, and have several walls in my sewing room filled with stacked boxes of Barbie dolls on display which includes all the princesses and princes, and the two who sing in harmony. I also own the Carol Burnette one from their skit, Went With the Wind, with the curtain rod and curtains draped over her shoulders, Farrah Faucett and Jack Sparrow (yum).  I own three Patty Playpal (three-year-old dolls) and usually have one in the front room dressed for the season. For Halloween, I dressed her in the costume I'd made for my own three-year-old son. She sometimes freaks people out because she is so life-like. But I think she's cute.

8. I sang my first solo when I was five for my dad's shop Christmas party. I have sung in a beloved 100-voice SATB choir, the Choral Arts Society of Utah, in Salt Lake for the last 10 years, driving 300 miles round-trip every week, and sometimes up to three times in one week on the week of performance. I served 7 or 8 years on the board of directors as the Executive Secretary and still have many business cards to prove it. 

We have sung in Carnegie Hall, at Larry Miller's funeral, the Kennedy Center on Memorial Day, in Montana with the Helena Symphony Orchestra, in Austria for Mozart's 250th birthday, along with 4-6 performances every year around the community. Our beloved and very talented choir director, Sterling Poulson, is also the channel 2 news meteorologist. This Christmas I will sing in my very last concert with the choir (I am moving out of state) and our guest performer will be Colin Raye. Previous guests have included Nathan and David Osmond, sons of Alan Osmond, George Dyer, Bar-J Wranglers, Michael Ballam, Joseph Paur and several others I can't think of. I also sang in an 8-person backup choir for Lyle Lovett.

9. My hubby and I met at the student branch of our Church, and were friends for two years before we married. We have been married for 39 years and are still best friends. We have six children, three boys and three girls, and twenty grandchildren, ten boys and ten girls. When the last grand daughter was born she evened out her family to two girls, two boys and the grand children's numbers. When her dad was born, he evened out our count as well. The oldest boy and girl were born in March, the youngest boy and girl were born in February and the middle boy and girl were born in January.  They are scattered from the east to the west coast and several in between. They have awesome spouses I love them all.

My husband recently retired so I have twice the hubby and half the pay check and it is just fabulous. We have such a great time together and are still very much in LOVE!
I spent 8 years as a farmer's wife, helping out with the lambing, cattle drives, driving tractor, irrigating, and canning 30 bushels of fruits and vegetables every year. I miss the beautiful scenery from that farm. We are moving to a home on 5 acres on a mountain-side, so we might be able to pick up the fun parts of farming again. . .

10. My sister and I went on a 2000 mile road trip for a month when I was 23 and she was 19, in Ted Bundy country, camping out at nights in our car at the road-side rest stops. In the years before cell phones, we called home every night from a pay phone using the operator and person-person long distance. Somehow the code would include where we were, and my parents would say that person was not there and not accept the call most times unless they wanted to talk. Years later we discovered we fit the profile of Ted Bundy's victims.

An Honor

My blogger friend Heidi over at HiHoRosie said she had nominated me for this award. Wow, I have never been nominated for anything before. Well on my blog at least. I was nominated long, long ago for Homecoming Queen at my college, but I didn't make it, and student council in Jr. High, and executive secretary on our choir board. But that is it. So You made me feel special today, Heidi. Thank you!

The fun part of this award is you have to tell about 7 things that you love, and then nominate 7 other bloggers.

Like Heidi said, this is timely, because it is so close to Valentine's Day. So Here Goes:

I LOVE:
1. My Husband and BEST FRIEND. He is my Hero. He gets up every.single.morning on the days he has to work, kisses me goodbye, in my sleep, and makes his way to work, lunch in hand. The best part is his attitude. He is always happy and if something doesn't go his way there, he finds a way to look on the bright side. He has even influenced a friend out there who was pretty sad there to find the good and they both keep each other happy. He is an amazing cook and makes the BEST whole wheat bread ever. I adore his beautiful blue eyes. And smile, and kisses, and sense of humor and. . .
. . .I could go on and on, but I don't want to bore everyone out there into shutting this off before they get to the last part.

2.My family. That includes all the children, in-law children, grand children, both moms (including the lady across the street who I have adopted as a mom), sisters, brother, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, and any of you out there that I have adopted as sisters, etc.

3.My teeny tiny little Muti (mother) who lives 500 miles away. She is so sweet to call me and talk. We have the best time talking on the phone. Her life is a gift and I enjoy her spunky nature and her love. She will be 88 this year and is still living on the farm, pulling all the hoses around, watering her huge yard which looks like a professionally landscaped park. Some of the trees are at least 100 years old. She still drives, and is always helping other people. What a darling little lady she is.

4.Life. I guess that should be second. I do LOVE LIFE.

5.My choir, and the friends I have there, including the director and his wife. I have made some sweet friends there, and it is worth the 2.5 hours one way to drive there in order to see them and sing the beautiful songs Sterling picks out for us to sing. He has taken us to Carnegie Hall and Austria for Mozart's birthday with this choir. It is amazing to me. I always say that this is the BEST music we have sung, and he manages to out-do himself on the next concert.

6.My internet friends. I have made some pretty sweet friends here. One sent me pecans from her trees in Tennessee, two sent me Christmas cards. I enjoy the people who take the time to visit and it is always fun to get comments.

7.My hobbies. I love to sew, sing, and anything artistic.

Now for the nominees: Envelope please. (ahem)

Mostly Risible- Lori's was the first blog I connected with when I entered the blogging world. Someone in another blog mentioned she was in Italy, so I imediately linked over. She was sending daily reports, pictures and everything. I was fascinated. She even told us what they had eaten, which restaurant, and had pictures of the place, her food and anything else she fancied. She has some pretty funny stories and great product reviews. I spent hours and days reading her past posts and none of them were a waste. Her blog kept me laughing, smiling and sometimes crying. I adore this lady. btw, her sis is HiHoRosie. Really, I sort of think secretly they are really my sisters.

Poop Happens- Janie. This lady is an amazing person. I first found her older blog, A stained-glass life. I read all her posts and was terribly sad when I realized she had quit writing. Later I found her latest site. She is a good writer and photographer. And a really sweet lady, who sent me pecans.

Artsy Craftsy Babe- This woman amazes me. She designs her own patterns, sews bags and sells them on her etsy site. She also has taken up knitting. She is a full-time wife and mother of three young ones and I wonder how she gets so much done. My hero. I hope to some-day to be just like her when I grow up. I purchased a purse from her etsy site. It is like owning a piece of art. I adore her.

5 Stringed Guitar- Dave, a man who went deaf because of some anti-biotic given him when he had pneumonia. He has a cochlear implant now and after 500 days off work, has headed back to the working world. He has a son, Guitar Boy and a very loved wife who has lukemia. I think she is in the hospital right now. He takes on life and his trials with such grace that he inspires me to look for my blessings and express gratitude.

Significant Snail- I'm not sure how I found Annette, I think through Lori's blog. When she came to read my blog, she recognized the mountain in my banner and said she had grown up under that mountain. We are hometown sisters. I enjoy reading her thoughts.

Crazy Mom Quilts- Amanda Jean blows me away. She will show you the fabric she bought yesterday, then two days later the quilt is done. She will show a quilt in the process of being quilted on her sewing machine, not a quilting machine, just a regular machine, and the next day it is done. If I didn't see this every.single.day, I would think she was faking it. I don't know how she gets stuff done. She even blogs, which I would use as the reason I don't get my sewing done. ha ha.

Dreamdust- Sarah's humor is so great. She is a good photographer as well. I learned to know her through her crazy comments on Lori's blog. Almost every.single.comment she makes on Lori's blog makes me laugh out loud. I have to be careful not to be eating or drinking when I read Sarah's comments, or my keyboard and monitor are in danger. I have linked her up to my Rss feed because I don't want to miss a single post. This is probably my favorite of her posts. I just discovered it. She has such a charming accent and what a great humor.

Kay's Thinking Cap- Kay is a neat woman. She posts on politics, work, her beloved Buckeyes, and the most favored, Friday Groaner. I love puns, so I get a kick out of these.

Making this Home-Katie is living in Berlin but is from the US. Her blog tells of all the remodeling they are doing, and her adventures in a new country, learning to speak the language, recycle, finding her way around on a bike and many other things are fun to read about.

Don't count the number of nominees above or you will realize there are more than 7. It was hard to choose.

I had some other nominations in mind; namely my daughters-in-law and my daughters, sons and in-law sons, but mostly they are really private about everyone reading about their lives and families. Its sort of funny, because in Facebook they reveal everything about themselves.
I still nominate all you in my family because I LOVE your blogs, but I won't make a link here for all to see. OK?
And anyone else who would like to consider themselves nominated and play along, please feel free.
have a great day and a Happy Valentine's Day.
~a

Finding Faith

note: The following is from my notes I took at Women's Workshop held at our Stake. I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I wanted to add these notes to my blog for my own reference, because it was a spiritually growing day in my life.

Today was a Women's Conference at our Church. We had three classes offered in a two hour period. This meant we could choose two out of the three. There were guest speakers for the classes, two of which were our local doctor and a former State Representative. The third works at Deseret Book in Salt Lake. She was our guest speaker last year, and was invited back to give a workshop. She also was asked to suggest a main speaker for the conclusion. She chose this wonderful woman named Chris who is blind.

Chris began by asking us to think of how the Spirit teaches us, how Christ communicates with us. She also told us to think of a problem in our lives that we have today. Then she told us her story.

Then she told us how her doctor discovered the tumors in her eyes when she was 7 months old. The medical terms were Bilateral Retinoma Blastoma. The specialist they went to see walked in with no compassion and basically told the parents that they may as well get used to the fact that their daughter would never see, and that one eye was going to be removed tomorrow and the other one radiated. Stunned and feeling darkness, the parents decided to get a second opinion. They found a different hospital who decided to radiate both eyes instead. It saved some of her sight, but she had limited vision.

As she grew, her temples did not because of the radiation which gave her head an hour-glass shape. She interjected that all women want an hour-glass shape. She did, but not necessarily where it is. She prefers it in her waistline, which she didn't get she said laughingly.

When she was 8 they discovered another tumor, this one in her right eye, and even after the surgery to remove it, she completely lost sight in that eye. They told her it was only swelling from the surgery and it wouldn't go away. But it didn't. Her left eye was the one the doctor would have removed, leaving her completely blind at a very young age.

She remembers the turning point in her life then. As she listened, she realized all this would not go away, she would always have a misshapen head, she would never see out of that eye again, she couldn't do the things she wanted to do. Her first reaction was "why me?" It was a turning point in her life, and she did the thing she says she was best at. She threw a huge temper tantrum right there in the doctor's office hallway.

Her mother just held her and loved her, all the while praying for the Spirit to tell her what to tell her daughter. When Chris was reduced to tears and sobs, her mother whispered into her ear. This wise mother told her that she could choose how to react to this tragedy. She could be bitter, or she could take these problems to Heavenly Father.

Chris took this to heart and went right upstairs to her bedroom and poured her heart out. She remembers receiving a very specific answer that Jesus Christ would help her. She said this is a great experience for an eight year old.

Then she skips ahead to five years ago. She noticed the limited vision began to close in and fade. She went to doctor after doctor. None of them could find a solution or a reason. Then one day, she felt the Spirit tell her specifically to get a CT Scan. The doctors wouldn't listen. One even told her it was the dry environment, and she should move to Hawaii. She said laughingly she would happily have done that if insurance would pay for that. But soon thereafter she had to be hospitalized for a splitting headache. The CT Scan showed nothing.

Here she interjected with her great humor, that, well, yes it showed she had a brain, but it didn't show why it was hurting so much. After a second CT Scan, the doctor told her to take the CT Scan to an Ophthalmologist, that there was something in the eye socket. It revealed two things: another tumor and air bubbles in her brain. They had been caused by the lining over her brain had been weakened by all the radiation. This was causing the pain, but the cancer meant they needed to remove that eye, or this time it would take her life.

Her mother had taken her to the doctor and asked her what she wanted to do. She felt bitterness returning. She was married, she had children. She asked her mom to take her to Temple Square. They walked to the Christus statue. She remembers standing there, wanting to feel Christ's arms around her. She just stood there and cried and cried. As she stood there, she remembered a scripture. John 14:27 which says,"Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." She felt the Spirit and realized she must trust Heavenly Father. This moment, she felt was a turning point in her life, and thus a holy one.

She asked her mom to take her across the square to the Temple. There she stood, looking up at those tall granite walls, and she prayed. She thought of her husband and children, and how this would affect them. She prayed for her eyesight, and in the same sentence, she uttered,"thy will be done" and asked that the two somehow be brought together. She realized then that it was not Heavenly Father's will that her eyesight be restored. She didn't know why, but she realized what must be done. She gave her will over to Heavenly Father, and that moment in her life became a holy one.

That next Monday in the prep room, the perky nurse came in with a Sharpie. She was to write "YES" with the Sharpie on the eye the doctor was to remove. She said she couldn't do it. Finally, her husband did it for her.
Again she interjected that she fantasizes about writing on his face with a Sharpie while he is sleeping.
People would say to her, "you're so strong! The Lord doesn't give you any more than you can handle." She said these words didn't make her feel better, they were like a knife in the heart. She needed strength and felt like she had none. She said these things happen so you can turn to Christ. Two things to remember are these:
There is Grace available to you. He will give you an enabling power and bless you with strength.
There is Hope. Put your hope in Jesus Christ.
She knows the blindness won't last forever, and her "hour-glass figure" won't last forever
With hope cometh faith. It is the anchor to goodness for man. This world is hard, but there is a better world, the world to come, on the right hand of God.
But there is hope in this life as well. There is joy. At one time, she thought she would never smile or laugh again.
She has found that laughter has always been the better part of life. She has found humor in her situation. Then to give examples, she told a few funny stories.
The first one was in the hallway in Church. A well-meaning woman stopped her and asked if she was teaching her children sign language. "Why would I do that?" she queried. The woman answered, "So you can communicate with them."
Kids ask her, how do you drive? She answered that she used her white cane, and when she hit something that meant to slow down and find her way around it. It seemed to make sense to the children. She explained that she has never been able to drive and has never driven, and added legally.
She told of how the Bishop had asked her to give the closing prayer. As she anticipated this, she decided to use her cane, because if she had asked her husband to take her, he would have had to bring the baby, then the four-year old would not want to be left alone on the bench, and would have come up with them. She really didn't want to cause a scene. But when he announced that she would say the prayer, he also told the congregation that a deacon would help her to the front. She said that unless you are taught, it is hard to guide a blind person. They shuffled to the front then he left her about three feet away from the lectern. She began to find her way, and in a panic, the Bishop and his counselor both jumped up and guided her to the lecturn, one on each side.
she told us, "Now after all that, I'm supposed to pray?"
She said, Each of us has sadness in our lives, so we can turn to Jesus Christ and turn ourselves over to Jesus Christ. There is healing available in Jesus Christ. We can become holier because of hard times. We must go to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ to become Holier.

I hope this is helpful to anyone reading it. It has been to me.
God Bless
~a

Fabulous entry in a talent show

For those of you who are not LDS (Mormon)I have to explain. Periodically we have fun entertainment, although, I haven't seen one of these talent shows in years and years. Apparently there are other congregations or Wards, as we call them who are still doing such fun things. This one by the Summit Ward.

Here is a typical humorous Mormon production. Enjoy.

Busy Busy Busy

I guess being busy is good. I find when I haven't posted in a while it is because I find myself nowhere near the computer. In other words, I am busy.
I have had many sewing jobs lately. Most of them are just repairs or alterations. Nothing amazing.
I have found that the clients view their alterations as a social event. It is strange, but I find that they want to visit. Sometimes they tell me their problems. I feel like a psychologist sometimes. I can never just fit them and get them out the door. *time is money* so I can get on with the sewing. They sit down. They bring pictures from their latest cruse. They ask about my family. I cannot rush them out. One man spent about an hour on the phone when he first called, I couldn't get away. Maybe I was too nice? He called later to change the date, and spent another hour. Then when he came, he spent two hours. I couldn't' get him to leave, he just sat there, out of breath. I couldn't be rude. After he left, it took me 20 minutes to alter the pants. I think I finally figured out how to do this. When he was coming to pick up the pants he had altered, I was talking to my daughter. I told her to call me back in 5 minutes. She did and I acted like I hadn't heard from her in years. He had jumped up to leave when the phone rang. I told her to hang on and said goodbye to the client. Luckily, he had paid me, or that wouldn't have worked. I know that is rude, but what else can I do? Are these people so lonely, they come for friendship? I swear it is the case with one lady. She was out of a job, so poor sometimes her checks bounced. Not good, but she would stay long and bring me more stuff as she picked up the last things. I told her my rate when she first started and she was fine with that. I never figured in the hours of visiting into the bill, like some people might be tempted to do. I figured this was my way of serving some of God's people. But sometimes enough is enough. Which was the case with the man. Come on, people 4 hours for a 20 minute job! I should have charged him $60. But I didn't .

I received a Flat Stanley in my mail the other day from my Grand daughter. When her mom sent me an email telling me I was getting a Flat Stanley in the mail from her daughter, soon, I immediately thought of their cat who is named Stanley. My reply was, "what happened to Stanley? Did he get run over? Why is he flat? You no longer want him?"

If you read the link, he is a character from a storybook. He can travel all over the world and visit many places, have his picture taken and go on many adventures because he is flat and fits well in an envelope.

When mine arrived, it was actually an outline of a gingerbread cookie. My sweet Grand daughter called me up to tell me he was coming and I had to put a face on him, and would I make hers into a girl? I can name her and dress her appropriately for the season and occasion. And take her on adventures, write about the adventures and take pictures where ever I take her.

Of course my imagination went crazy and I began to think of all possible situations where this little paper doll could come along with me and what adventures I could take her on.
Not wanting to give anything away until after I send her back, which has to be by December 1, (my bday) I will not post any pictures or tell any of our adventures until after she arrives safely back in my sweet Grand daughter's hands. But suffice to say, she has taken up many hours of time getting her ready for our adventures. Sailor says I am still a little girl at heart. I guess that is true.

It brings to mind the time when I was in about 3rd grade. Barbie had just entered the scene. We were all crazy about her and had to have one. I corresponded with my great uncle Glenn in California. He had this wonderful script typewriter and he wrote me letters. I told him we had each gotten an Barbie. He said that Ken was there in California. Would we like one?

Would we LIKE one????? What kind of question was that? After telling him *YES* in no uncertain terms and he telling me that the Kens were coming, I wrote back and told him about how our Barbies were preparing for a wedding when the "mail-order Kens" arrived. I was making a wedding dress. (yeah, I began sewing at a very young age, and I hand stitched all my Barbie clothes) Well, Uncle Glenn was a charming man and his wife, Kathryn was equally as charming. She owned a floral shop. So when our Kens arrived, they came in a box surrounded with fragrant, real stephanotis, the official wedding flower back in the day. It was so magical. We had real flowers for our Barbie/Ken Weddings. That was about the neatest box I remember ever receiving and of course my favorite aunt and uncle were Kathryn and Glenn.

As a Grandma, I want to remember all those magical moments in my childhood so I can recreate them for my sweet grandchildren. It is such fun.

We had beautiful, unseasonably warm weather for the middle of November, and I hung the Christmas lights out side. They are not lit yet, I will wait. But it is usually my luck when I am in the mood to hang them it is bitter cold, so this time I beat the rush. It is a good feeling.

S3, DIL3 and baby are coming for the weekend. I am so excited. That little darling girl can understand kiss. "Kiss the bear" her mommy stays and she turns her head, finds the bear and lands an open-mouth slobbery kiss on the bear. She is only 4 months. OHMYGOSH. what a smart baby. The other baby who was born 2 weeks later just got a tooth! Wow. These little babies are growing up fast. I talked on the phone to D2's little boy. He has such a cute vocabulary, I LOVE talking to him. What a darling little guy. I love 'em all and feel so lucky to have so many to love.

that is all for tonight.
have a great one

~a

New Heading Picture

If you access my post from a reader or blog line, you will not notice that I have changed the photograph on my header. It is still a picture of my favorite mountains where I used to live, just another view.

I got it from the link listed to the right, Nick Wilde's blog. He gave permission to use it. I thought it was so nice. I gave him credit and a link.

I grew up looking at these mountains and thought they were literally mine, because every year on my Birthday, the Christmas Star was lit up on a mountain near to this one. I spent many hours studying them and the clouds that came over them.

Even though I live in another state, this will always be home to me. My mom still lives in the same house in which she brought me home from the hospital. I watched my daddy remodel that house and my mom make the yard turn into a park. Mom and Dad were a good match. We lived on 25 acres with alfalfa growing in the fields, cows in the pasture, cats and chickens in the barn yard. Actually they were two roosters that someone rescued from a research place. They accidentally hatched.
This picture shows our yard looking south. If you look carefully (click on the picture and it will enlarge), you can see those mountains between the trees directly in the middle of the photograph.


It still is a beautiful place. Mom is in her late 80's and still hauls the hoses all over that huge yard to water the beautiful established old trees, perfectly manicured lawn and perfect flower beds. The next picture shows it in December, looking east. How does she keep the grass so green?
I tried to find my favorite picture of the house looking west at the front door in the summer, but it must be in printed form, not on the computer.
When I do, I will scan and post it.

this was not meant to be a long post. I have other things I must do today.
have a nice one.
~a

Interesting quiz

Taken from Lori's blog

and Heidi's blog

Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...

HBDS - The Commander

Humanity, Background, Detail, and Shape

You perceive the world with particular attention to humanity. You focus on the hidden treasures of life (the background) and how that is affected by the details of life. You are also particularly drawn towards the shapes around you. Because of the value you place on humanity, you tend to seek out other people and get energized by being around others. You like to ponder ideas and imagine the many possibilities of your life without worrying about the details or specifics. You are highly focused on specific goals or tasks and find meaning in life by pursuing those goals. You prefer a structured environment within which to live and you like things to be predictable.

Sailor's is this:

Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...

NBPS - The Idealist

Nature, Background, Big Picture, and Shape

You perceive the world with particular attention to nature. You focus on the hidden treasures of life (the background) and how that fits into the larger picture. You are also particularly drawn towards the shapes around you. Because of the value you place on nature, you tend to find comfort in more subdued settings and find energy in solitude. You like to ponder ideas and imagine the many possibilities of your life without worrying about the details or specifics. You are in tune with all that is around you and understand your life as part of a larger whole. You prefer a structured environment within which to live and you like things to be predictable.

The Perception Personality Types:

Take The Perception Personality Image Test at HelloQuizzy

The Perception Personality Types:

Take The Perception Personality Image Test at HelloQuizzy

Battery Bob

I guess I am the fix-it person. Where ever I go, I am immediately pulled into something that needs fixing. I get that from my Daddy. When I was a little girl, my older sister was basically "Suzy Homemaker" from the time she was in 2nd grade, and since my parents had three girls (the brother hadn't been born yet) I decided Daddy needed a boy, so I assigned myself to be his boy. I watched him fix almost anything. I still use that inspiration to forge on when I feel I am having trouble, I tell myself, "If Daddy could do it, then I must at least try."


Our trip to Denver was no exception. In February, when I was visiting my mom, we determined how much fabric to buy so we could sew her some new drapes. When I got there, my goal was to sew at least one of these drapes so I could have a pattern and take the rest home and finish it here. Some how I managed to finish those drapes and go sight seeing and eating out besides in those three days I was there.




Then we went on to my son's house. There was another project awaiting me. It was one of those huge love sacks that needed reupholstering. Basically it is a tube 47" in diameter with "lids" on both ends and a zipper going through one of the circles and all the way down one side of the tube. The circumference measured 140" and the length of the tube was 57". We had to make a trip to JoAnn's and purchase denim and a zipper. After the zipper failed, I took the old one apart and swiped it. It took all evening to finish it.



But besides those two projects, I also found they had these little Audubon birds from Wild Republic whose batteries had died. Rather than see them thrown away, I took them home and picked a seam apart to see what batteries were needed.
I determined they were the little disk round ones that cost upwards of $3 to $5 each at the drug store, so I decided to just Google the number on thebattery and see what I got. I found a site called Battery Bob. Which has all manner of batteries. I found the ones I wanted. Not only were they .69 each, but it was free shipping. The only catch was I had to buy them in lots of 10. I decided there will be more birds who use up their batteries, so I purchased 20. I was required to give my email address and after paying by credit card, I got an email asking what I was using the batteries for. He wrote back to tell me that this other size was better suited for the birds. I thought, "great, I just ordered 20. But to my surprise, when they arrived in the mail, Battery Bob had given me the appropriate batteries for the plush birds. Wow! Is that service?

I think Battery Bob needs a round of applause!

*hurray BattreyBob.com*

ps I am not getting paid for this endorsement, I just believe in passing on the names of the sites and businesses who treat you right.

have a nice day

~a

A bit of a funk

I want to say "thank you" to everyone who has commented on my last post. I think I am in a bit of a depression. This surprises me. Rodger's family and ours have known each other for as long as we have lived here, 22 years, but we never got together and played cards once a month or anything like that. We did see each other every week in Church. I guess I am a bit surprised how hard I am taking Rodger's death.

It seems that everything reminds me of him. When I drink my water, it is Rodger's voice in my head that asked when I came in for an adjustment, "how much water have you been drinking?" I mentally take note of how much water I do drink, just in case I have to go in for an adjustment.

When I exercise, it is Rodger and Mary I see in my head, faithfully walking past my house every morning. When I read my scriptures, it is Rodger's face I see in front of our Sunday School class mentioning that he hoped we enjoyed reading this week's assignment.

When I work on my genealogy, it is Rodger's face I see in the Family History Center. He and his family were a much bigger part of my life than I realized. I am sorry that I took this for granted.

Yesterday after my dental appointment I had no particular place to go. My entire mouth was numb and I didn't much feel like doing anything like shopping or eating, so I sort of drove around. I passed by Mary's house. The drive-way was filled with all the children's cars, still there helping her out. I would have stopped, but I felt like they had enough to handle there. So I drove out to the cemetery and found his grave. All the flowers were knocked over by the recent winds and heavy rains. I tried to upright one of them, but it fell back over. I read his name, cried, then got back into the car and drove home.

When nothing at home inspired me, I realized then that I must be a bit depressed. Usually to cheer myself up, I get into a project. Yesterday all my projects seemed too overwhelming.
I looked on my bio-rhythm chart (palm bio) and realized part of my problem. My emotional line was completely on the floor. Today is at its lowest point. I really don't bank on bio-rhythm charts. It has its place when you wonder why you feel so low and check it. Usually there lies the explanation.

Anyway for a week now I have felt very vulnerable and on the brink of tears. Today, I realized it is more than Rodger's untimely death that is getting me down. It is a combination of many things including his death.

My D2 is moving away in about a month to the next state. Her little son is such a sunshine and always goes into celebration mode when I arrive. He doesn't talk much yet, but he always starts laughing and running around when I come. He wants me to hold him and play with him. I love being loved so much and will miss him and his sweet family so very much!

It is May, Graduation. May used to be my most favorite month. I love the flowers, lilac, crocus,tulips,iris, etc., the freshness of the leaves on the trees, the spring rains. But ever since my children have begun to line up on the HS Graduation "high dive ladder" preparing to dive off into the deep end of the real world, I have become depressed in May. Yesterday was the High School Graduation, and I could swear I feel the sadness in the air that comes from all the other parents who are facing that sadness themselves.

My husband calls me an Empath, like Deanna Troi from Star Trek, the Next Generation. I am not a mystic and don't believe in that so much, but I do feel other's sorrow and become sad because they are sad. It is something I don't control, it just happens and I find myself in the middle of the sadness and realize why after the fact. I have to surround myself with happiness and laughter all the time to protect myself from these feelings though.

I do have some cures. Drinking my water, exercise (Rodger's voice again) and surrounding myself with laughter. I need to get out something that makes me laugh, funny movies, books, etc. Since I am working on someone's wedding dress, I think after I go do my exercise, I will fill up a jug of water, put on a funny movie and sew on this dress.

Thanks for listening and commenting and thanks for the laughter. All you who are humor blog writers cheer me up with your hilarity. Thanks for the support.

Hope your day is filled with happiness and sunshine.

~a

D-1's Birthday

All my children were born in January, February and March. The oldest boy and the oldest girl are born in March. The middle boy and girl are born in January and the youngest boy and girl are born in February. There were times, especially as the kids got older and wanted to invite friends, after putting on six birthday parties in three months that I wanted to get a special T-shirt printed for me that said:

I survived
6 Birthday Parties
Before
the end of March!

January, February and March are those bleak months after the festivities and expenses of Christmas are over. The six birthday parties were a wonderful way for us to get through those 90 dreary days. The last birthday of the kids is the last day in March, so by the first of April all the spring flowers are ready to pop and Spring has officially sprung.

And there was NO combining of parties with a theme, like My Little Ponies or Transformers.

No, each month was a boy and a girl, so they each got their own, except for one year when I combined all six birthdays in one big celebration at the skating rink. I allowed them to choose one or two best friends and I made a cake with their names and Happy Birthday all together forming a cross-word puzzle as the decoration.

As each of their birthdays come along, I find myself recalling the day of their birth, so many years ago.

note: If you get bored with labor and delivery stories, then just know that is what this is about. Don't feel obligated to read on. One other thing, all my childbirths were "natural", which means I got NO medication. None, Zip, Zilch! By the last child, the new thing was an epidural, and I wanted to try it, but the anesthetist was out of town, so I missed out on trying that. ::ratz::

With S1 I was in labor for 12 hours from start to birth. You may think, "you wuss, that is NOTHING." But the doctor talked to me later and told me they were doing a print-out on a machine that measured the baby's heart rate and my labor pains on the same paper. He said that my labor pains were so intense that they always jumped way into the baby's heart rate chart for 12 hours. He had never seen labor so intense in his whole life. So I sort of felt justified for crying a bunch. Poor Sailor, his wedding ring is actually oval shaped and he says it is because I squeezed his hand so tight. He wished he had brought a tennis ball for me to squish instead.

By the time S2 came along, I had taken some Lamaze classes and learned to focus on the corner of the room and transfer all my pain and anger to that corner and breathe. I was in labor with him for only 6 hours, and was in the hospital for only 3 before I had him.

I was on a roll. I was excited for the next child, because if they got easier, it was going to be a walk in the park from now on!

If you count the time I started labor at 2 in the morning until she was born, it was only 4 hours. She was born at 5:55 am. But if you count all the days before when I awoke at 2 and had false labor until around 5 for 3-4 nights, it is much more.

But more about that later.

The fourth & fifth children, D2 and D3, were what the Dr called "sunny side up." Both were extremely painful back labor and took 15 and 16 hours. With D2 the labor was so bad, I kept getting up and standing, but the nurses didn't want me walking around, so they kept coming in and saying "Mrs. Annie, get back into bed. You can't be out of bed." I finally stayed in bed, but stood on the bed, because it hurt so terribly bad to be laying down with this labor. That even panicked the nurses more. The doctor finally stripped my membranes for D2 and she came really fast. With D3, I was hoping that would work again, so I asked them to do it again after a while. But instead, I continued to labor 4 more hours and had what they call a "dry birth." MUCH WORSE. This was NOT the way I had hoped for it to work out. Everyone said it gets easier as each successive birth comes. I was breaking the theory, one painful birth at a time.

The last one, S3 took 14 hours, but only 4 in the hospital, and only about 2 of really intense pain. His birth was really not a hard one, just long. We had just moved to a new job and a new town, a month before, and our insurance was due to run out at the end of the month. He was due the 22nd and February only had 28 days. I was so afraid I would go over and insurance wouldn't cover, so I asked the Dr. about it. He said he would strip my membranes on that day if I hadn't had him already. So that morning, we went through the procedure and Sailor and I walked all over this new town we had just moved to. It is only a mile square, eight blocks by eight blocks. When we got home in the afternoon, poor little S2 had spots on his tummy. He was coming down with chicken pox of all things. Not a good time have this happen, and the poor little fellow wasn't allowed into the hospital to hold his baby brother the next day. However they let me take the baby home and be exposed two days later. I never could figure this out. After S2 recovered, the rest of the children came down with it, some overlaping 2 weeks apart. It was a long two months.

Anyway, back to D1's birth. I had been going into false labor every night at around 2am, for about a week before she was actually born. Back then I was ambitious, and made little baby announcements. It was a picture of a little chick still in the egg, but the top of the egg shell is it's hat and it is standing in the bottom shell. This could represent either sex, since we didn't know the gender of the baby. I had drawn the chicks on that stuff you bake and it shrinks. Every night when awakened with the pains, I would draw and bake some little chicks, bake and paste them onto a card on which I had printed: New Arrival! and a place for all the statistics.

I kept myself busy all night long as I felt these labor pains that were strong enough to keep me awake, but not strong enough to wake my husband. Every time I would think to myself that they were getting strong enough, which usually was around 5 in the morning, they would stop abruptly.

I did this for about 3 or 4 nights. By Thursday night/Friday morning, I was getting scared. My husband had gone onto Graveyard shifts Thursday and I was afraid that I might actually need to be taken to the hospital one of these times and he would be 25 miles away at work. Since my other labors had gotten progressively shorter, I figured this one would follow that pattern and I would need him there, not trying to find a substitute (control room at the power plant) and driving 25 miles home. So on Friday morning when he got home from his graveyard shift, we went to see the doctor. With S2 the Doctor had told me that if I went past the due date, he would induce. D3 was 3 days overdue, so I thought the policy still stood. With that policy in mind, I asked him to induce and explained about Sailor's being on a grave yard shift. This made him crabby, and he patiently explained that when "the apple was ripe, it would drop." He would NOT induce. I told him I didn't want to be alone when the "apple dropped", but he wouldn't budge.

Friday night, true to form, I started labor again. But this time it felt a bit more intense. All of the previous nights, I had taken a VERY.HOT.SHOWER with the streams of hot water pounding on my tender belly, and usually it helped. Every night, I spent those 4 hours in prayer, communing with my Heavenly Father and asking for help. This night was no exception. I pleaded for inspiration as to what to do, and I felt his Spirit near me.

But this time the hot shower didn't help. I had run all the hot water out and I still felt terrible. A dear friend had told me to call her if I needed someone to come and tend the kids in the middle of the night, should I start labor.

I thought of my options. If things went like they did the last few nights, this would stop by 5 or so. I didn't want to bother my friend if it was a false alarm. I didn't want to call my husband either.

The pains continued to get worse. They were now 5 minutes apart. But the pain was on my lower left side instead of the center of my tummy. I finally decided to just drive myself to the hospital. After all, I could call my friend and my husband from the hospital if the nurse admitted me, and all would be fine, and I was only 4 miles from the hospital. I checked on the children and said a little prayer, then got into my car and began to drive to the hospital. At the most, it was maybe a 5 minute drive, so I figured they would be safe until I got there to call my friend. Wouldn't it have been nice in those days to have a cell phone? How did we ever get along without them back then? But due to the intense labor pains, instead of taking 5 minutes, it took me 20 minutes. Each time a pain would come, I would stop the car, squeeze my eyes shut, and breathe through the pain, then start back up again, only to be stopped again about 1 1/2 minutes later. The pains were coming hard and fast now.

A nurse examined me and reported that I was NOT in labor. The pain was on the left side was the baby pushing against my bladder (the nurse informed me, hence the pain in that area) and until it could move to the middle and go where it needed to, I would not have this baby. Even though the pains were very close and I was 3 days overdue, she told me she had called the doctor and he had said: "Tell her I WILL NOT INDUCE her." He would not even come in to the hospital, but he did authorize a sedative but the nurse made me take it in front of her, not after I got home. WHAT WERE THEY THINKING? First, knowing I would be driving home with this in my system, and second: That I would administer it to my children when I got home?

I cried on her shoulders, I put my arms around her neck and pleaded for her to just admit me until my husband could come and pick me up. I told her it had taken me 20 minutes to drive those 4 miles. But she was adamant and would not yield. Hind sight and many years of experience tells me NOW that I should have called my friend to go watch the kids, I seated myself in the waiting room and refused to leave. But I was timid and obedient, back then.

Going home was the same, stopping every so often, breathing through the pain and continuing on. It took 20 minutes to get home and by then the sedative had taken effect and labor had stopped. I was ready to just drop peacefully into bed, but what should I find in my bed? My two-year old had found his way into my bed while I had been gone. I had to heft this large toddler back into his bed and he cried a bit when I put him back into his bed. The sedative was no longer effective. I started labor again.

Exasperated by now, I called my husband and told him I had been to the hospital and back, I was not in labor, but the pain was intense, and could he PLEASE COME HOME? Then I got back into the shower to distract me from the pain. As the hot water ran out for the second time that night, I tried to manually take that baby's head and move it to the middle. It did not budge. Then I decided to bear down, like you are supposed to do when you push. . .

oops. I realized to my horror that had done the trick and this baby was ON THE WAY!

Two more pushes and her head had emerged. I noticed the cord around her neck and slipped it over her head. Then she was in my arms. I knew Sailor was coming home, so I just waited, still standing there in the bathtub. I nursed and talked to this beautiful child for a full 5 or 10 minutes before I realized it was a GIRL! Two boys and now a girl!!! I thanked my Heavenly Father for taking care of me and my beautiful baby daughter. I even delivered the placenta and cut the cord before my sweet husband arrived. When he did arrive, it all seemed too quiet. He saw a light coming from the crack of the bathroom door and cautiously opened the door to find me still standing in the tub, but with a baby in my arms.

"Its a girl", I announced.

Poor fellow nearly turned as white as a sheet, and had to lower himself to sit down, so he wouldn't faint. I asked him to take this sweet baby and get her a blanket so she wouldn't get too cold, while I got myself cleaned up and dressed. He said he had to say over and over to himself "blanket, blanket, blanket" in order to remember what I had asked him to do.

After we drove to the hospital and were checked out (miracle of miracles, the doctor was actually there this time) and all was well, was when people began to ask me, "HOW did you do it?" The doctor told me I had done everything right. It was at this point that I broke down and began to sob, realizing what terrible things could have happened to both of us.

Basically my answer was I was guided and directed by a loving Heavenly Father. I prayed for inspiration. I had just read a pamphlet the night before on Emergency Childbirth. I had just seen a movie made by our Church called Man's Search for Happiness. It shows a doctor holding a newborn baby upside down by its feet and stroking its throat, I guess to help the mucus out. I had checked and found the cord around her neck and knew what to do.

My beautiful D1 is now 29 years old, just a few days ago. She suffered no brain damage from the cord around her neck, in fact she is exceptionally bright. She is perfect, just like all the rest of my darling children, and I thank my Heavenly Father for taking such good care of me and my family.

sorry if this was too graphic for you, I had just read a friend's blog titled "How I got this way" and realized that it is times like this in your life that you are effected for the rest of your life.

this is part of how I got this way.

~a