Remembering

When I was single I was a champ at daily scripture reading. Even if it had been a very late night, I'd at least read a verse or two before turning off the light. Since being married, I've not been so diligent. Maybe it's having someone to talk with until the lights go out. Maybe it's just having the emotional support of my husband making me think that I do not need additional spiritual support. Maybe I had so many crazy changes in my life that I just forgot.

Regardless of the reason, lightening up on my daily spiritual maintenance definitely took its toll. About a year ago, I found my faith wavering. Even turning to my scriptures seemed empty. I didn't know what to do to get it back. I am blessed to have a Heavenly Father who knows just what I need. I had a turn in life circumstances last fall that sent emotional turmoil my way- almost more than I could handle. It is just what I needed.

I needed to be reminded that I can't do it alone. Married or single, I need strength that I can't find on my own or through my husband, regardless of how wonderful and supportive he is. I found my faith again. I was relieved to know that I still had the faith to rely on Heavenly Father when I was emotionally spent. I turned to Him and He got me through, just like he always has.

I don't know how much I've posted on here about my continuing search for happiness. It's been a quest of mine for many years. I feel that if I'm not happy in my life, something needs to change. Often what needs to change is my attitude. I believe I can be happy regardless of my circumstances. Not that it is easy, but I believe it is possible if I can maintain peace in my soul. I'm so glad that I remembered how to find that in my life again.

During my nightly scripture reading, I can again feel the strength coming off the pages. I am very conscious of how wonderful that is. I have committed to keep up on my daily personal spiritual maintenance. Now that school is starting, it will be easier to maintain our family scripture study as well. If there is anything I want to pass on to the kids, it's how to find and maintain inner peace. It changes your life more than anything else.

Blackberries!

Last night my mom called and said their blackberry bushes were overloaded. This morning we got up, went over and picked, and picked, and picked.

 This is a result of about 20 minutes of picking. There will be at least this many more ripe next week and at least that many that were overripe and should have been picked last week.

Some of them are huge!

We love having a big breakfast on weekends, so I decided to make some blackberry syrup.

 

I had enough blackberries for 7 batches! I can almost taste the banana waffles with whipped cream and this syrup.

 There was plenty left over for Rick to make us a yummy Sunday evening treat! We each had our own blackberry cobbler. Not bad for a spontaneous Sunday activity.

Summer Family Theater

We had such a fun family party tonight. My amazing mom had Grandma Day once a week during the summer. Over the years, these have gotten harder for her to plan. How do you keep 2  year olds and 16 year olds entertained once a week. Grandma decided they would put on a play this summer. Tonight was the performance. It was a version of Little Red Riding Hood.  Check out the photos.

It started with Mother (Kasey) sending Red (Krista) off to grandma's house, and warning her to stay on the path. Kasey sang, "Mother Knows Best". (note forest animals in the woods behind them)

Red got on the path and wondered why her mother didn't like the wolf when she thought he was kinda cute. She sang, "He's a Rebel"

Bears (Will, Isaac, Asher, Kane & Luke) came out of the woods on the way.

They sang, "Teddy Bear's Picnic"

Then they danced to "Bad to the Bone". It was so cute!

I need to bring a real camera to this kind of stuff.

They all had little solos.

Then a woodland fairy (Maya) came out and danced.

Some cute forest birds (Luke and Mason) came and sang, "Let's all Sing like the Birdies Sing." (We all got to sing along- just like in the Tiki Room)

They did the cutest dance to "I'm Like a Bird".

Here comes the wolf! (Zane). He sang the Gaston song from Beauty and the Beast, but substituted "wolf" for "Gaston" in the lyrics. He did great.

Krista and Kasey did back up.

The Woodsman (Isaac, Asher, Will & Kane) sang, "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf"

Then Will did some break dancing to "Cooler than Me"

I didn't get the shutter time right for his back flip. (That kid is amazing)

Katie played Grandma (loved the costume). She cleaned the house to get ready for Red's visit and sang, "Happy Working Song"

The wolf chased her off and got in bed to wait for Red

"What big eyes you have"

The woodsmen saved the day and the wolf decided to be known as "the Big Good Wolf" (very Disney ending)

Everyone sang "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf" as the finale.

All the kids with grandma after the show. I was so impressed. I thought it would be chaotic, but they all did so great. We have some talented kids- voices and dancing. It doesn't hurt to have a dance teacher/choreographer sister and the worlds best g-ma for a mom!

What I am not

I'll just say it, I'm not an athlete. I love to be out doors and active, therefore I bike, hike, walk, ski, and anything else that seems fun. This leads people to think that I am athletic. I am not.

I remember having a conversation with a friend I used to mountain bike with. She (cute little blond girl) said, "I hate that people think I'm prissy, because I'm not." I responded, "I know what you mean, people think I'm not prissy, but I am."

With all of my riding this summer, numerous people have asked me if I want to sign up for various century rides. At first, it seems intriguing. I'd like to be able to say that I've ridden 100 miles. The energy of everyone riding together with a single goal could be fun. But when it comes down to it, I never sign up. I really don't care, or at least I don't care enough.

I know some people are motivated by competition. I'm not one of those people. I don't need to be better than anyone. (And I don't mean that to put down anyone who enjoys competition- good for you, I will come and cheer you on.) While I can enjoy pushing myself to meet personal goals, just as often, I'm fine doing what feels right for my body that day.

I love biking to work, it's a great start to my day. I love weekend biking, it can be social and it feels great to be outdoors and active. I love biking adventures with my hubby, it's great to explore new places and spend time together. (I also enjoy many things besides biking and hopefully my feet will let me do them again soon.) Pushing myself to keep up with or beat a bunch of strangers, does not appeal to me. Also, I don't want to pay to ride my bike. I can go do the same ride the next week for free, you can keep your t-shirt. I'm not an overly-frugal person (my husband will attest to that), and I don't know why it bugs me, but it does, a little.

I'm an advocate of trying anything once. You never know if you like something unless you try, right? When I re-entered the biking world several years ago,a friend convinced me to do an organized ride, and it was horrible. Maybe that is what keeps me away from them now. I was terribly unprepared and we had bad weather, so I don't consider it something to judge all other rides by. (That can be another post.) Honestly, I just think I'm not the type of person who gets into that kind of thing. I am active, but it's not the same as being a competitor. I know I should try it again, just to see, but I don't seem motivated to do it.

I remember in college I would be the first one out on my bike in the Spring. I would ride for several weeks before any of my biking friends (the naturally athletic ones whom I really wanted to be like) would join me. When we finally went out together, I was the one pushing to keep up with them. I used to find it frustrating, but I'm OK with it now. I know my strengths, I know my weaknesses. I gave up long ago trying to be something I am not.

So this is me. Not athletic, not competitive, just happy to be healthy enough to enjoy this amazing world I live in.

Graffiti Wall

There is a wall across the street from my work that has been a graffiti wall for several years. A few months ago, I thought it would be fun to post the different artwork each time it changed; however, I haven't really liked what's been there since. Several different artists have worked together on the past several murals and it ended up looking more like graffiti all over a wall rather than something cohesive. Last week, a single artist worked on the wall a couple of mornings and created this...

Pretty cool, eh? There has been some amazing work over there. Hopefully, it will continue. I'll keep you posted.