Did I mention it is hot?

It has been in the high 90s with humidity to match.

For those who might not know, I'm a cool temperatures kind of girl, I don't like dirt, I love my own bed, I hate bugs, and I get really grumpy when I am hot, dirty, and haven't slept well.

So, knowing those facts, are you wondering why I'm going camping this week?

Well, let me tell you.

This week is our Young Women's camp. The YW (ages 12-18) from the Birmingham and Montgomery stakes are getting together to learn survival skills, sing silly songs, strengthen one another, and strengthen testimonies. I get to be one of their leaders (actually I am a "shadow leader" - they are really good about truly allowing the older girls be the actual leaders). I am so looking forward to this. I am dreading it too. Really, I'm so not a camping kind of girl (especially in extreme heat). We have ten girls going from our branch. There are six 12-year olds; two 13-yearl olds; and two YCLs (youth camp leaders). They are so cute and enthusiastic. I just need to remember their enthusiasm. One of my best buds (Corrie) is coming along too. How will this not be wonderful (oh yeah, the heat)? Really, (trying to convince myself) this is going to be GREAT!

I'll take lots of picture and post a great synopsis when I get home this weekend. Pray for cooler temperatures and that I won't be a grump.

I'm grateful that Phil will be home with Eden. I am really going to miss those two (they are going to come visit me for a day though).

Tears and Kisses and Singing ... the Shoe Curse Continues

Remember this post?

Well, today Eden was wearing the brown sandals purchased at that time. I've decided there is a curse associated with those shoes.

We went outside and played (well, she played and I picked up branches downed in our latest round of storms). Then it was time to come in for a nap. Eden wasn't happy but I was firm so in we came. I looked down and noticed that Eden was missing one of her sandals.

"Where is your other sandal?"
"I took it off"
"Where did you put it?"
"In mine house."

She had just been playing in her playhouse/slide thing on the deck and so I thought that is what she meant. I walked onto the deck, looked, but no shoe. I turned the handle of the storm door and was met with great resistance. She had locked it.

After about five minutes of trying to get her to unlock it, I gave up on that approach. I left her crying and fearful and went to my neighbor's house to use the phone. I called Phil (who works 30 minutes away) and asked him to come right home. I spent the next half hour sitting on one side of the glass door with Eden on the other. We sang songs, she cried some, and we did lots of kissing through the glass. She was very brave (which, incidentally is one of her favorite new adjectives).

Then when Phil was about five minutes away, she reached up (without any prodding by me - I had long since given up on that) and unlocked the door.

We are grateful that is over.

Oh, and I found the shoe "in mine house." The real house.

This I Believe (too)

I believe in making bread.

I love the texture and taste of homemade bread. I love the smell of a well-cooked crust. I love knowing which ingredients I and my family are eating ... no mystery chemicals this time.

I especially love the excitement of my daughter when it is time to take the bread out and she has waited patiently (or not so) to get to taste the first piece. She does a little jig, then a giggle, and her hands involuntarily plunge out in the "give me" stance. I ask her what she wants on it. "Honey bear, honey bear" is invariably the reply. We watch the butter melt then add the honey from the bear-shaped bottle. It melts too.

She eats.

I wait.

Finally, after mouthfuls of crust and innards have been disposed, I hear the critique, "it's 'ummy, mommy, 'ank you."

My husband comes home and the bread is no longer hot. Only faint hints of the fresh bread aroma remain. I serve him dinner. I include some bread. The scene nearly repeats itself. "This bread is so good, honey. It turned out great again, you rock." He thanks me five more times before our heads occupy our pillows.

Baking bread definitely makes sense in a cost/benefit world. It costs me a little bit of time and a few ingredients but the benefits go beyond healthier eating or more economical feeding. The biggest benefit is the love.

Bread making is all about love.

I was talking to my mom a few weeks ago and she had just taught a bread making class for Enrichment*. Most of the women who signed up to attend were younger mothers. As my mother prepared and prayed about this assignment she was convinced that her real purpose was to teach these women that bread making is all about love. You can buy good bread (especially in Utah where there are bread stores everywhere), that isn't necessarily the point. The point is that in baking bread you show others you care for them.

I had a friend from graduate school who made bread. He once said to me, "I'll never use a bread machine because how else can I knead the love into my bread?" He knew that bread making is about love.

As I was thinking about this concept, I thought about how often Christ is referred to as the "Bread of Life" in the scriptures. We are told to partake from the Bread frequently and generously. Each week we partake of the Sacramental bread in remembrance of Him.I think there is no coincidence that He chose to compare Himself to bread. Bread sustains and comforts. Bread fills and satisfies. Bread is love. Think about it, is there any other kind of food that even makes sense when you try to use it as an analogy for Christ? I've tried to earnestly think of a few and they just sound lame. Spinach is very fortifying but that definitely doesn't work. Chocolate is comforting but still falls short. Hot oatmeal warms and fills but ... nah.

I believe in bread making. It is one of the ways I show love. In eating it with excitement, delight, and enthusiasm, my family returns that love.



*Enrichment is short for Home, Family, and Personal Enrichment. At least once a month women from congregations of the LDS church get together to learn and share and do in ways that are enriching to themselves, their families, and others. It is fairly informal and usually is held in someone's home. For more information go here.

This I Believe*

I believe in imperfection. I believe that sometimes doing something poorly is better than not doing it at all. I even believe that sometimes doing something "well enough" is actually better than doing it perfectly. For instance, I could spend hours and hours cleaning my house to perfection and miss out on spending time with my daughter. Or, I could clean my house "well enough" and then go for a walk and watch my two year old discover butterflies and birdies and blossoms.

I believe that I can wait to take a family vacation until I can afford the perfect vacation or I can take a day here and a day there to build memories and connections with the ones closest to me. Life has a way of passing us by if we wait for perfect moments.

A friend of mine has a poster in her kitchen, it says something like this, "anything worth doing is worth doing poorly until you can do it well." I believe in that too. When I was in elementary school I quit taking piano lessons because I just wasn't very good at it. How I wish that I had been willing to do it "well enough" until I got better. How many things did I quit or never start because I was unwilling to accept imperfection? Now I play the piano and it doesn't really matter that I hit the wrong notes fairly often. These days I'm okay with imperfection.

Perfection is still a goal for a few areas of my life. I strive to be a perfect disciple of Christ. I want to perfectly follow His teachings. I would like to be perfect in my relationships, especially with my family. I fail, of course, but I'm learning to not give up the things that matter most just because I'm not perfect at them. And the things that matter less? I'm learning to do them imperfectly and to be perfectly happy with that.


*There is a series of essays produced for public radio entitled "This I Believe." Basically, essayists (from all walks of life, all ages, all political and religious persuasions, and all races) submit writings about a core belief and how that informs their life. I'm not ready to submit this for radio but I thought I'd share it with you.

Projects' Status or is that Stati?

Dress: got it done Friday and she had a great time at the prom. She's that kind of girl. Makes her life fun and is generally happy. I don't have any pictures but she promised me one when she gets hers back. I'll post then. She wore it to church. So did the other two prom-goers. Next to their fancy beaded get ups hers looked simply lovely (with perhaps too much emphasis on the simply). Hers was the most modest though! (The other girls did wear cover ups on their bare shoulders. They better have kept those on throughout prom night!) So glad to have it done and that she was happy with it.

Bathroom: all painted (except behind the toilet because I needed Phil to help me turn off the water and move the toilet). We just put the hugigantic mirror in place - we aren't vain, we are just using the same mirror that was already there. Phil is putting in the new light right now. Trim. It tortures me. So much trim in this house. Why did we ever decide to paint it all? Trim will wait for another day. month? year? it will wait.

Laundry: I got it done last week right? Well, would you believe that it needs to be done again? What is up with that? Phil was getting Eden ready for bed tonight and I walked in and he said, "I don't know if these PJs are warm enough..." Then I completed his unspoken sentence, "it is just that my wife hasn't done laundry for a week and all of her REAL jammies are dirty and I didn't know what other options I had." Eden is sleeping in a long-sleeved onesie and some too-small stretch pants. Laundry is definitely on the list for tomorrow.

72-hour kits: no change in status.

Pay back sooner than expected

I was not a darling teenager. In fact, I was quite often a B*R*A*T. It is true. I know those of you who only know me as an adult are having a hard time to believe this since I'm such a darling now, but it is true.

I routinely told my mom she was "stoo-pid" "dumb" "lame" and that I didn't like her. I even told her that I hated her a couple of times. There was even one time that a really unkind, rude word escaped my lips. It happened at the dinner table and although all my siblings were shocked, no one was more shocked than I. The fact that I am alive to be telling you this can only be attributed to stake presidency meetings. If those meetings hadn't been held that night, my dad would have been at the dinner table and I would have been toast! My mother didn't say a word. She bit her lip (literally and figuratively) and a single tear ran down her cheek. I think that was a turning point for me. That was punishment indeed.

I've figured that I will have times with Eden when I am punished again. Now that I know a mother's love and sacrifice, I know that I will remember with hightened pain how cruel I was at times. I have been anticipating that pain (the pain of a obstinate daughter and the pain brought on by new awareness of how cruel I really had been to my own loving mother) to arrive in about ten years.

However, the payback has come a little sooner than anticipated. For the past several nights Eden has refused to give me a kiss good night (she finally did last night when Phil asked her to, but not when I asked). Then today as I changed her diaper the following conversation took place:

Eden: "Sister Hollie" (her nursery leader)
Mommy: "Does Sister Hollie love you?"
Eden: "Yes."
Mommy: "Does mommy love you?"
Eden: "No, Sister Hollie."
Mommy: "Yes, Sister Hollie does love you. Does mommy love you too.."
Eden: "No. Sister Hollie, friend."
Mommy: "Sister Hollie is a good friend who loves you. Mommy loves you too."
Eden: "No ... love you mommy."

She's totally messing with me. She's got my number and she knows it. Think how well she'll have this mastered in the next ten years!

Agony, I tell ya!

Update

I am sitting in Phil's office.

He is molding young minds.

He's also in the middle (well, the beginning of the middle) of a treatment so he is on drugs.

He can't be trusted to drive.

But he can be trusted to mold young minds?

I'm the chauffeur.

His class is three hours long.

We live a half hour away and so I am waiting.

I'm supposed to be working on my YW lesson.

I'm blogging.

Shame, shame.

Projects Update

Bathroom: same status as last post. The OTHER bathroom is in severe need of attention. It is getting all the use and none of the attention. I should really clean it tonight.

Dress: everything is done except the zipper and hem. She looks beautiful in it. Yesterday we went shopping and she got new shoes, a necklace/earrings set, and an uplifting undergarment. Clinton Kelly would be so proud. I hate zippers though. Guess what I'll be doing at midnight while Phil can't sleep?

72 Hour Kits: I bought a new backpack with wheels. It doesn't all fit into it. I have sorted the stuff into boxes: Phil, Heidi, Eden. I need another backpack with wheels. Maybe two. Is it cruel to expect Eden to haul her own survival gear?

Laundry: Resumed its position of prominence but although washed, it hasn't been folded. Guess what I'll be doing before midnight? I can't stand to have laundry unfolded over night (Phil, on the other hand, can't stand to have unfolded laundry for more than five minutes. He's a good man to put up with me and my laundry wrinkles.)

Roof: done by 3:00 that day! Yeah, those guys are finishers! I should learn from them. It looks great.

Other upcoming events:

Saturday morning: the Laurels and a few of their prom friends are coming for a waffle party. Phil is a nice, supportive guy to let me invite (actually they invited themselves) a bunch of teens into the house on the last day of his treatment.

Saturday afternoon: unhook Phil from his poison and pull out the needle. I'm such a good nurse.

Saturday evening: drive to B'ham for YW training followed by a stake YW activity followed by the YW General Broadcast. Of course the laurels will all be at prom but those beehives better get their little skinny bods there!

Sunday: teach a lesson about patriarchal blessings. This isn't in the manual but we decided to reserve fifth Sunday lessons for topics that we feel impressed our girls need. I'm not sure what the beehives are going to be learning about but the laurels are going to be learning about planning for the future now, including the importance of patriarchal blessings.

It is such a good thing that our lives are fairly busy. If I had time, I bet I'd be throwing myself pity parties. Phil's CEA was up again. We seem to be having a steady (slow) climb here. CT scan in a couple of weeks. That should give us some more info with which to work. Yeah, too busy for pity parties. That is a blessing and truly one of the tender mercies I count.

Missing You ... see you soon

I've been on a bit of a blogging vacay lately.

Stuff to do. Busy, busy, busy.

I'm a good starter, need to be a finisher.

Master (term used loosely) bathroom: patched, mudded, sanded, mudded, sanded, ceiling painted, walls are up next.

Prom dress: mock up done and it fit well (relief), skirt sewn together, bodice and sleeves are in progress (prom THIS Saturday ... oh dear, panic).

72 hour kits: everything has been pulled out, evaluated, rotated, added to and is residing on my laundry table.

Laundry: waiting for the 72 hour kit mess to vacate so that the laundry can resume its normal prominence in the room that bears its name.

Roof (yeah, we get a new roof because of the hail damage): shingles delivered at 7:am this morning (woke Eden up, ok, it woke me up too) I guess we will spend the day listening to the melodic sound of nail guns. That should harmonize well with the hum of the sewing machine.

So now you know why I haven't been checking your blogs much. I'll see you soon.

A Thousand Splendid Suns

I just finished A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (author of The Kite Runner).

I must say that I really enjoy his writing and storytelling style. It is so interesting to learn more about Afghanistan (although I realize it is fiction). Phil asked me if I would recommend this book. I had to think about that. Here is my answer:

If you are looking for a happy story ... don't read this book. The ending does not compensate for the sorrow and horror that must be a reality for far too many people in that area of the world.

If you are willing to face some pretty harsh realities and experience some of the sorrow, you might appreciate this book. It is well written.

So yeah, I would recommend it but with some serious qualifications.

I have realized that the books I like best are the ones that champion the human spirit. I love stories about people doing hard things. I appreciate fiction that is plausible (even if it is "fantasy" - if the author can make me think it is plausible, they get big points). I like to read books about other cultures (either in place or time) than my own. I want a book to inspire me and make me think.

Here are some that I've enjoyed:

Cry The Beloved Country by Alan Paton
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone
Oh Pioneers by Willa Cather
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

With that as a background, any suggestions for my reading list?

25 Things

It has been a while since I have done a tag. Corrie shared 25 random things about herself on her blog and invited others to follow in her footsteps. How could I refuse (especially since she kindly mentioned me in hers). So, while I don't promise to be as witty as Corrie, here are 25 random things about me.

1. Right now I am eating leftover chicken cacciatore. I made the recipe up one day by just dumping things that sounded good into my crockpot. After I was done, I realized I'd come up with cacciatore. I often cook this way. It is much more a function of my laziness than it is my creativity. Well, maybe a little creativity...

2. I once killed a mouse in a bag with a hammer. You'll have to ask me if you want the details. (It was a mercy killing though.)

3. When I was young I wanted a daughter named Tiffany. I never considered the name "Eden" until I was about 6 months pregnant with my little Eden.

4. My husband once dated a girl who ended up marrying (someone else) and having a daughter whom she named Eden. (hi, Sarah) Ok, that isn't really about me, but an intersting fact, don't you think?

5. I LOVE to make snowflakes. You know, the paper/scissors kind? Above my computer desk I currently have approximately 35 snowflakes I've made (well, I forced Phil to make two of them). Snowflakes have six points guys. Just in case you didn't know. Yeah, my snowflakes are anatomically correct.

6. When I was growing up (well, getting older anyway) I loved that my mom crocheted us slippers every Christmas. I never learned how until I was in college. My cousin taught me how to do it (my mom taught her). Phil hates crocheted slippers.

7. I like red.

8. I love efficiency.

9. I have six brothers who are all high-achievers. Mark - MBA from Harvard; Michael - Master of Teaching (I don't know what the real title is) and a Vice Principal; Andrew - MBA from Duke; Paul - MBA from Duke; Jon - in Dental school (after getting an MS in biological engineering); Josh - attending USU, speaking Russian, and avoiding marriage.

10. I once wrote in my scriptures: "interesting idiom for a prophet to use prior the the birth of Christ." Yeah, that was in my intellectually snobby graduate school years.

11. I love going to youth dances. I'm the coolest, nerdiest chaperone ever! Oh yeah, I boogie (and I even get Phil to boogie with me sometimes).

12. One time a guy told me the best quality I had going for me was that I was "sly."

13. My parents are two of my biggest confidants, advisors, cheerleaders, and heros.

14. As far as I know, I still hold the record at West Gresham Grade School for hanging on the crossbar (chin above the bar) for the longest time. I think it was 2 1/2 minutes or something.

15. I love sweets and waffles and ice cream and cookies and bread and this cacciatore is gone and I'm having hankerings...

16. I had a crush on Little Joe (not Michael Landon though) from Bonanza.

17. I have three incredible sisters who are raising some amazing kids. I love that all of my sisters and SILs are awesome moms and that the men in their lives support them as stay-at-home moms. My sisters are some of my best friends.

18. I like to sing. I pretty much sing all day long. Phil didn't know this about me until after we were engaged. I was always very threatened by his skilz and so I wouldn't sing much around him. He asked me (after we were married) if I had ever thought about doing choir when I was in high school. I was like, "yeah! I was in ALL the choirs in high school! Show choir, madrigals, jazz choir, concert choir, symphony choir. I wasn't just some girl who was in a few choirs. I WAS the choir-girl."

19. I blog when I'm avoiding cleaning. Yeah, that is what I'm doing now. What I'm NOT doing is cleaning my bathrooms, cleaning the windows, and vacuuming.

20. I once came home from an elementary track meet with a 3rd place ribbon. My mother was so proud. Before I could sleep that night, I had to confess that there were only three kids in the race. I'm not much of an athlete.

21. I did play basketball for three years in Jr. High. The coach played me fairly often. I never made a point in a game. I'm not sure why she played me as often as she did.

22. At my Jr. High graduation, I was awarded some award that was something about being the outstanding physical education student of the class. Same coach. What was her deal? Did she really think I just lacked encouragement?

23. In my first job interview (to be a receptionist of a medium-sized corporation), the HR director asked me if I had any experience. My reply, "well, when the phone rings at home, I'm always the first one to answer it!" I was 18. I got the job. The HR director was not my former BB coach, I promise.

24. I love to laugh and I love hugs. Laughing with my husband and daughter is only second to hugs from my husband and daughter.

25. I am one blessed girl!

Pretty good with color...

When Charlotte and I first met Phil, she and he made a deal. She would crochet him an afghan and he would paint her a picture. He got to choose (and buy) the yarn and pattern and she got to suggest a subject. Charlotte said she wanted a yellow umbrella featured prominently in her painting. He selected a manly, heavy pattern and then was off to the store to select yarn. I got to go with to be his assistant.

Standing in front of the vast array of yarn possibilities the following conversation took place:

Heidi: "So what are we looking for here?"

Phil: "I need three different yarns."

Heidi: "What about these, or these, or these?"

Phil: "I just need your help selecting the type of yarn, I'm pretty good with color so I can handle that part."

He selected a nice burgundy, blue, and gray. We have a great, heavy, manly afghan as a result. Charlotte has a Phil Kesler original hanging on her office wall (I think it is still there) featuring a rainy street corner with a bright yellow umbrella. What a deal!

Flash forward about ten years when Phil and I got married. We bought a house that needed to be updated. We nearly got a divorce while trying to select the colors for the walls. I just had to remember that although Phil IS the artist and professor, I'm pretty good with color too. Eventually we agreed on our color palette and we quite enjoy the colors in our home.

Now flash forward two and a half more years to this very morning. As I was getting Eden dressed (in her purple turtleneck and purple sweater) she exclaimed, "purple shirt!" I hadn't told her it was purple (today). She also knows blue, green, yellow, red (although she sometimes calls it "Elmo color"), and orange.

Yeah, she could proclaim: "I'm pretty good with color!"

She is. He is. I am. We are.

Tradition and Limited-time Offer

Many years ago, Charlotte started a tradition. She crocheted hats, wrapped them, and then held a Christmas Lottery to determine the recipients. When people visited her college apartment they got to draw a number and possibly win a hat. What fun!

Then we became roommates and I wanted in on the fun. I made hats too. More people got hats. Pretty soon EVERYONE got hats. We started to have Christmas Lottery parties. Fun, fun.

As a flashback to those silly days, I have been making hats (besides, it is a great way to use up the dregs of yarn from the year's projects).

Do YOU want in on the fun? Ok! Here is the deal: while supplies last I will be giving a hat a way a day. Each day I will randomly select a number and then I will determine the corresponding comment from the day before and that person gets the hat!

These are cute hats, by the way!
Behold a few of my hats on the cutest (if not always cooperative) model ever:

I know Layne and I'm no Layne...

Layne: married to the most funny VM guy

Me: married to the most not funny VM guy*



Layne: degree in Technical Writing and therefore a bona fide Grammar Nazi

Me: minor in English and therefore a self-proclaimed Grammar Nag



Layne: keeps up with four adorable, energetic offspring

Me: barely keeps up with one fairly calm offspring



Layne: shops at Whole Foods and NEVER at Walmart

Me: shops mostly at Winn Dixie and once in a while at Walmart



Layne: grows much of her own food (including meat, produce, eggs, etc.) on her home farm

Me: grew this
(and only this)
in my "garden" this year:


pathetic,
I know.
It is about two inches long.

Sad....

but Layne still loves me.


*During the summer Phil and I got married, Layne's oldest son informed me that "my dad is the funniest guy up there [on stage] and your dad [I assume he thinks Phil is my dad] is the most not funny."

Wanted: A Sister-Wife

Ok, my husband would actually be off limits so the job description would probably read a lot more like a MAID.

But here is the deal: I'll do your cooking if you do my cleaning.

Any takers?

My hubby is definitely a USU Alumnus, and he is distinguished, but is he really young?

This year for Utah State University's Homecoming, the six men who make up Voice Male were honored to be the Young Alumni of the Year. I got to go along for the festivities and it was great fun. We were treated pretty well with a fancy banquet (at which Phil gave a very nice "acceptance" speech-ette). Then we got to dance the night away (I think we made it about 45 minutes). The best was watching Phil's parents - they know how to dance, none of the awkward move back and forth junk we were doing! After that, Phil and I took a walk across campus. I was sad, the place I had spent most of my time while a student (the library - and now you know, I was/am a nerd) is now a soccer field. Sad.

The next day we got up and went to a nice breakfast. While the president of the Alumni Association was speaking, Eden walked up in front of the podium and lifted her shirt for everyone to see. My mom later confessed that while she was babysitting Friday night, she told Eden that she had the smallest, cutest belly button. Naturally Eden figured everyone would want to see the "smallest, cutest belly button!"

After breakfast we were off to the parade. My mom, brother (Josh), sister (Emily) and her husband (Todd) and daughters (Brinley and Emma) joined Eden and I. Voice Male was in the parade - naturally!.

After the parade we were off to the president's pre-game reception. A live band, more good food, and lots of sunshine greeted us. Then we were up three floors to the president's box to watch the football game.

It was nice being connected to a "dignitary" (even if VM isn't always exactly dignified). For more accounts of this fabulous weekend see here, here, and here. It was so much fun to see the other VM families. It really is kinda like another family.

So here (in reverse order because it doesn't matter how many times I load pictures, I can't seem to remember that the first shall be last and the last shall be first, when will I learn my Isaiah scriptures????) are some pictures of the festivities:

The view from the Prez's box:

Our little Aggie

Me, Eden, Mom, Emily, Emma at the parade:

The "distinguished" and "young" Alums:

Conference Crochet Give Away

I didn't fall asleep once during conference this weekend! I LOVE conference and so enjoy the uplifting and inspired messages but lets be honest, sometimes in the comfort of one's own home it can become way ... too easy ... to doze.

My trick? you ask.

Well, I have used this for a few years and it always works.

I crochet.

So in honor of conference and staying awake, leave me a message about your impressions of conference and you might win this ( leave your message by Sunday, October 12th, at noon)

It is about the size of a child's blanket or a lap quilt for an adult.
Here is an up close and personal look so you can behold my crochet madness.
There is a cute little "rosebud" at each intersection.
Each square is a different crochet pattern.
Admit it, it is 'dorable and you want it!

As for me, I really enjoyed Elder Perry's talk about simplifying. Let's do it folks! Life is just too crazy and there is just too much of it that is NOT necessary.

I also enjoyed the talk (also on Saturday) by one of the 70 (and I have forgotten his name) about faith being a choice. I totally agree! I really have been learning that one. A year ago I was feeling pretty jumbled by all that was going on in our lives and I finally had to just decide to have faith. It wasn't a passive choice it was a very concerted effort.

I remind myself often that I choose faith!

There were so many other wonderful talks but I know you want to get to the end so you can post your comment and enter to win the conference crochet give away so I'll refrain ...

for now.

Is there a gene for that?

This may come as a surprise to you, but I was 17 - almost 18 - when I first received my driver's license. This isn't due to the fact that I never took the test ... I did ... three times! I didn't fail it twice because I was reckless or because I couldn't parallel park or because I ran a stop sign. Why did I fail? you ask. To answer this most curious question I shall quote the man who conducted my road test:

"You are a danger to others on the road, a menace! You are overly cautious!"

Flash forward 25 years...

My daughter knows how to walk. She loves to walk. She refuses to be carried and seldom crawls. However, she will only walk if she can hold on to a person, a piece of furniture, her stroller, the grocery buggy, or keep one hand on the wall. She has walked around our entire block - pushing her stroller. She walks all over the church - along the walls. She insists on walking through the grocery store - holding on to the buggy.

Do you think there is a "cautious" gene? If so, we definitely have it.

To be fair, she has been walking a few (unassisted) steps at a time over the past few days. We decided to help her realize that it is ok to fall (she also has her father's "perfectionist" gene) and so we giggle when she falls. Now she will walk a few steps and then fall on purpose so that she can giggle and say, "OOOOH!" What a silly, cautious, perfect child.

Sleepy Pants

Now I know that there are many creative-crafty people who read this blog. Like this one and this one and then there is this one (and many others). But I just had to show my latest creation to y'all.

The other night Phil was doing a "photo shoot" of miniature toys for the cover/liner notes for the new CD (Kid Stuff - if you haven't heard). So it is about 9:00 pm and he has set up a "photo studio" on our dining room table. On it he has various items that correlate with the various songs on the CD. We then realize that he needs a pair of jammie bottoms (or sleepy pants). Where would we find a miniature pair of sleepy pants?

I pulled out the leftover fabric from this costume (I made this for my costume box before we got married). Here it is being fashionably modeled by my indulging husband (this was just before our first Halloween as a married couple, he DID NOT wear this on Halloween but he very reluctantly tried it on to humor me - it is sized for an 8-10 year old - it TOTALLY humored me).

Back to the original story ... I got the leftover fabric, made a pattern, cut out the fabric, did some sewing, made a draw string out of some embroidery thread I had, ironed them (yes I even ironed!), and voila! Aren't they cute? (they are about 2 inches tall)
I'm hoping that the Voice Male guys will let me sew them all sleepy pants for the CD release concert. Wouldn't they all be oh, so cute? LOL

Quirky Tag

The Rules:

1. Link the person who tagged you - that would be Charlotta the Great
2. Mention the rules on your blog - I'm doin' it!
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours - see below
4. Tag 6 fellow bloggers by linking them - I'm a rebel, so I'm not tagging anyone. If you wanna do it, do it.
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger's blogs letting them know they've been tagged - can't really obey 5 since I didn't obey 4 (that is how great sins are committed, one small disobedient move at a time and pretty soon you don't have the choice to do some good things because you didn't choose the prerequisite good things previously, so let that be a lesson to you!)

The Quirkiness of ME

1. I listen to NPR pretty much all day long. I don't listen to our local NPR affiliate (except in the car), I stream KUER from the campus of the University of Utah. At times I am totally engrossed in the topics of the day and at other times it is like background noise but it is almost always on - although lately Eden thinks she needs to listen to these cheesy kids' CDs we have. Could someone make a really cool kids' CD please? (shameless plug for the new Voice Male CD - Kids Stuff - being released this fall. Sold where LDS books and music are found, or online at www.voicemalemusic.com - I told you it was shameless)
2. While I am listening to KUER I often have conversations with the hosts. They usually go something like this, "Diane, I agree with you completely, you are so insightful and such a good interviewer, good luck with your treatment** this next week, I'll miss you." or "Doug, you are such a wannabe sometimes, you're killin' me!" or "Terry, you are driving me nuts! Did you really need to ask that question? Are you serious?" or "Nina, that was most helpful, I've always been confused about that." or "Cokie, you rock, I want to be like you if I grow up." or "Scott, you are the most infantile person, are you a thirteen year old in the locker room? You could have written Dumb and Dumber (which I HATE), why do they even let you be the host!" or "Juan, I think you are absolutely right, you are so fair and balanced and not in the you've-got-to-be-kidding-me way that others say they are fair and balanced." These are just a few of my NPR friends.
3. Sometimes when Phil is in the other room but his gmail account is up, I will "chat" with his friends and pretend I'm him (except for one time, they always initiate the chat, I just answer). There is one guy that I don't even know but we've had full conversations. I like to be enough like Phil that they really think they are talking to him but different enough that they go, hmmm... Richard is on to me though and usually says, "am I talking to Heidi or to Phil." Smart guy, that Richard.
4. I don't think this next thing is quirky but Phil does, so you all can weigh in and tell me who is right. When entering the shower I get in then I pull up the lever and run to the end of the shower so only my feet get wet. Then when the water is the correct temperature I allow the shower to hit me. Quirky or normal - you decide. (He just turns the shower on and then gets in - BORING.)
   
5. I like to jazz up things. As has already been discussed, I jazz cook* all the time. What might not be known and is perhaps a little more quirky, is that I like to totally change the melody of songs - mid-song. It drives Phil nuts. Sometimes I just get him hooked on my version and then I change it (not on purpose, just cuz).
6. One time, about ten years ago, Charlotte and Phil commented on my widow's peak. They weren't necessarily teasing me about it but rather speaking about it as though it were somewhat odd. It totally stuck with me and I became subconscious about it. When bangs went out of style and therefore the peak became more noticeable Charlotte mentioned it again (this was about five years ago - so yeah, five years later). That very night I plucked it out. Seriously, I did. Then for about three years every time I waxed/plucked my eyebrows, I would also pluck my widows peak. I had a beautiful straight hairline. After we got married, I admitted this to Phil and he convinced me to grow it out (yeah, funny that the two who prompted me to get rid of it didn't even notice, huh?). (Check out the no peak in the picture with Phil, peak in the other one.)
   

It was one of those things though that once I had done it, it was hard to grow it out and un-do it because really who wants fifteen or so hairs that are stubby, then a bit longer, then a little longer, etc. So once again we see that it is so easy to follow up one mistake with more mistakes. It is just easier to make good choices from the start. (Do you think I've been serving in YWs too long????)

And that, my friends, is a lists of just six of my most quirky-yet-delightful attributes.

If you decide to do this tag, leave me a comment so I (and others) know.


*Jazz Cooking is the term for cooking without a recipe or drastically changing the recipe with your own improvisations. I first heard this term on ... wait for it ... wait for it ... yup, NPR!

**Diane Rehm has some disease that hurts her vocal chords and so she has to have these treatments every few months and so she is gone for a few days. I miss her when she is gone.

Tag from last February!

Last February my friend Sally tagged me on her blog. The problem is, I didn't know she had a blog (she probably told me and I forgot or something). Anyway, now I know and so here is the tag:

• How long have you been married? 2 years
• Who eats more sweets? Probably me but it is close.
• Who said I love you first? Phil, although I coerced him to "express his feelings"
• How old is he? 40 - and a dang good looking 40 year old at that!
  
• Who is taller? Phil (by 8 inches)
• Who is smarter? He says I am but I think he is - we are smart in different ways so I'm amazed by his smarts and he's impressed by mine. That works out pretty well!
• Who can sing better? ummm, that would be Mr. VM although Eden prefers my singing.
  
• Who does the laundry? Me.
• Who pays the bills? He.
• Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? He does and that puts him closer to the Bambino's room and therefore closer to a baby crying in the night (on those nights when that happens).
• Who mows the lawn? Totally him (I'm allergic).
• Who cooks dinner? Me but he does the dishes.
• Who drives? He does unless he is on some drug that makes him impaired, even then he drives if I forget to make him sit in the passenger seat.
• Who kissed who first? It was pretty mutual, he brought it up though.
• Who asked who out? Well first he asked Charlotte out! Then he asked me out.
• Who has more siblings? Me, I have 9; he has 5.
• Who wears the pants? We both wear the pants (both literally and figuratively).

Now I tag Alisha, Corrie, and Delvonna