a happy return

{name tag from our ward party on Friday night}

I feel like I've been absent from my life (and my blog) for far too long. Man, that was a long sickness. Happily, I'm back!

(I noticed in iPhoto that I only took 86 pictures in all of January! Unprecedented! And very telling.)

Yesterday morning, two sweet friends from my neighborhood came over to help me clean my house! Laurel proposed the idea at church on Sunday, and I feebly protested that I thought I was getting well enough to clean. But she insisted that, after such a long illness, the house probably needed a lot of work (all too true). Chris heard our conversation and said she would be coming as well. Let's face it, I was in no position to reject this kind offer.

Laurel brought her vacuum, since ours recently stopped working, and they both brought cleaning supplies. They stayed for 3 hours! And when they left, my whole house was clean. (It is hardly ever all clean at the same time. True confession.)

• Clean kitchen.
• Clean bathrooms (I even washed the walls!).
• All floors vacuumed.
• Couch and chair cushions vacuumed.
• Blinds vacuumed.
• Tables cleared of all clutter and detritus and cleaned.
• Tile mopped.
• Piano cleaned (badly needed).
• Everything dusted.
• They even washed the windows and glass doors in our living area!

I got some laundry going and heard that satisfactory hum of a washing machine and dishwasher going at the same time.

I have no words. It was one of those times when I felt utterly rescued. I went from feeling quite overwhelmed—like I was surfacing from the depths—to feeling on top of things, energized, and ready for re-entry.




Oh, and my kitchen is finally finished! I polished up the last remaining bit of painting during the first week of January (before I got sick) and installed the hardware a couple of weeks ago on a day when I thought I was better. (It was disappointing to learn otherwise, but at least I accomplished something big!)

I love it.

Anyway. After my sweet friends left, I just sat and looked around for about 15 minutes.

Then I decided to go get dog food, as we were completely out. I also ran to the grocery store to get some necessary items for an afternoon of baking (I had to make 3 double batches of muffins to take to Lucas's play practice today).

It was the first day that I didn't spend any time in bed! It was a very full day, and I was exhausted at the end of it, but absolutely thrilled that I could do it all. Doing laundry, errands, and baking bring a whole new satisfaction when you haven't been able to do anything for awhile. So thankful. I feel like I could conquer the world!

Christmas book club

It's the most wonderful book club of the year! We met at Collette's for dinner, book discussion, and gift exchange.

Collette's husband Travis took our group photo (he was dealing with an unfamiliar camera).

Collette said the blessing and got choked up when she talked about our friendship. It was sweet and adorable.

It's always fun when we bring in all our gifts and fill up the tree!

Travis won this lamp as a white elephant gift, much to Collette's delight. (She said, "not in my house!")

We had a lot to say about this book, which was a wonderful selection to read at Christmastime to help us focus on the Savior.

Jana is still recovering from the pneumonia from hell that lasted a month and left her with 3 cracked ribs from coughing so hard. Or as her mother-in-law called it, "her little cold."

I made this caramel cake. It was delicious, but hideous. The frosting took way longer to set up than the recipe specified, so it pooled at the bottom of the plate.

Jenn has entered the world of texting! But Jill called her phone "the brick." She's a late adopter.

December book club is always fun because we have a book exchange and we also exchange gifts. Jenn brought us some of our favorite candies; Amy made us beautiful ornaments with her Silhouette machine (jealous); Jana made us adorable little first aid kits with a tag that said, "thanks for helping me through the bumps and bruises of life;" Collette gave us monogram ornaments, a BYU water bottle and chocolate cinnamon bears from the candy counter of the BYU bookstore; Jill gave us all a book that she read this year and loved. (I made everyone sparkly literary ornaments.)

Jana had me for the book exchange and gave me Infinite Jest. I saw it and said, "I totally want to read this!" (despite the fact that it is over 1000 pages) and she said, "I know! I saw it on your Goodreads list!" I love Goodreads.

I came home with many parcels and gifts, such a treat (also leftover cake, which delighted my family).

reconciliation

Recently, after I picked Eva up from playing at her friend's house (I should point out that she left very reluctantly), she informed me that she "had to pray a lot while she was there."

Ummm... what?

I asked her what she had to pray about, and apparently she was concerned that her friend would hurt her (I guess they found an arrow of some sort).

We've had this friend over many times and she has always been sweet and fun, so I was surprised that Eva would have felt fearful with her (especially since she didn't even want to leave her house!).

Ever since, Eva has not wanted to play with one of her formerly best friends, so I set about to see if we could come to some sort of reconciliation. I planned a trip to Bridal Veil Falls, and invited Riley to come along. (I figured that getting together on neutral territory might be easier. Eva agreed.)

Emily joined us, as well, although I neglected to document that fact with a single photo. (She even brought me a fountain drink!)

Eva: "Riley, you will love Emily!"
R: "But what if I don't?"
E: "Don't worry, everyone loves Emily!" (It's true.)

Riley is much more adventurous than Eva. She kept wanting to climb the steep hill to the other path. Eva wanted to join her – especially since there were many snail shells to be found – but she was definitely out of her comfort zone.

At one point, Eva screamed, "Save me! I'm going to die here!" Fortunately, Max was on hand to rescue her.

They threw sticks off the bridge and then ran to the other side to watch them float down the river. Unfortunately, they couldn't see the sticks. Perhaps they were too small.

Emily spotted many cool spiderwebs. I took pictures of them, but couldn't tell if any of them were turning out. They were!

We met this adorable Weimaraner puppy, Dante. His owner let the girls pet him and give him little treats, but he was shaking with a combination of excitement and trepidation. Adorable.

They paused for a little picnic.

Teamwork.

There was much hand-holding, which I took to be a good sign. (Check out that height difference!)

We finally made it up to the falls. I love that we live so close to beautiful places like this!

Again, Eva was braver than I thought she would be. She stepped on rocks and walked on a log. She ended up getting wet up to her chest! Brrrr.

Again, Max came to the rescue. Riley dropped her lunch bag because it had a spider on it, and the girls refused to go back and retrieve it. Luckily, Max is not (that) afraid of spiders.


It was a beautiful day and I think my mission reconciliation was accomplished. (Now if only Eva can go back to school soon!!)

happy birthday, Jill!

Today is Jill's 40th birthday.

Like me, she had some trepidation about turning 40, but then became reconciled to it as her birthday approached.

40 things about Jill:

1. She is a working girl now! (but thankfully, she has the summer off)
2. She discovered that she actually likes math!
3. Now that her iron deficiency is resolved, she no longer craves pebble ice (it's rather a shame).
4. She favors hot pink nail polish for her toes.
5. She kicked the need for ambien (impressive!).
6. She figured out a way to not hate her current calling on the R.S. activities committee (way to speak up!).
7. She really, really wants a new computer.
8. She really, really wants to be able to access her iTunes library.
9. And her good mail labels. And mailing list.
10. She wears a pedometer to keep track of her daily steps.
11. She goes on daily walks.
12. She gets frustrated when her Goodreads widget doesn't update the number of books she's read this year.
13. She (still) gets embarrassed by people singing and acting in plays.
14. She hires Whitney to keep Eva entertained during Creative Fridays!
15. She loves a good rainstorm.
16. She craves a trip to the beach. (Or Paris.)
17. She worries that her camera is not long for this world (unacceptable).
18. She adores fresh flowers.
19. She is not too keen on getting attached to any more hamsters.
20. She works to banish negative thought patterns.
21. She enjoys listening to podcasts.
22. She enjoys Carnation Instant Breakfast.

23. She wishes the U.S. Postal Service would issue gift cards – they would be her favorite type.
24. She has adorable children.
25. She is a great aunt.
26. She values creativity.
27. She loves being in nature.
28. She can't stand overhead lighting.
29. She can always make me laugh.
30. She is the only person I know who appreciates breezes as much as I do.
31. She is serious about self-improvement.
32. She likes watermelon, but dislikes cutting it up.
33. She is very tender-hearted.
34. She loves going to the movies.
35. She always has a spotlessly clean house (man, I wish I could say the same).
36. She lives very frugally.
37. She is one of the most generous people I know.
38. She is the best friend you could ever have.
39. She is absolutely dedicated to living the gospel.
40. She is bound to have a wonderful year!

Love you, Jill.

Sunday thoughts

Today was our ward conference, and while it was all good (even the 7:30 meeting I had to attend!), the thing that stuck out the most was this experience shared in Relief Society:

A young mother (YM) was struggling with a difficult morning, rushing to find shoes for her preschooler and get out the door while the other children were crying for various reasons. The phone rang. She debated about answering it. She picked it up, and it was her visiting teacher (VT).

VT: How are you doing this morning?

YM: Oh, fine!

VT: Really? Let's try that again: how are you doing this morning?

YM: Great! (thinking: I just need to get off the phone!)

VT: That's not what I heard.

YM: (looking out the window to see which of her neighbors might have seen her frustration) Why, who have you been talking to?

VT: Heavenly Father.

The visiting teacher arranged to lend a hand that day. The mother was incredibly humbled to realize that 1) Heavenly Father was aware of even her more minor distresses, and that 2) her visiting teacher was praying for her consistently and receiving direction as to how to be of service.

This took place several years ago, and the mother (who was our speaker) ran into her former visiting teacher recently. She told her that she would be relating this experience in ward conference and the other woman said, "I don't even remember that." This humbled the mother further, to think that such incidents are such a part of her friend's life that they don't even stand out in her memory.

It's wonderful to think that we can make a big difference in each others' lives, and that sometimes by very small means are great things brought to pass. I know I'm inspired to do better.

Happy birthday, Jill!

We celebrated Jill's birthday early due to my travel plans that unfortunately overlapped with her special day. We had our traditional birthday outing of lunch and a movie, with a little shopping for good measure.

I saw this J & M on display at TJ Maxx. Love that.

I feel somewhat lame about only being able to give her part of her gift – the other part hasn't arrived yet. Jill, we will have to celebrate a little more when I get back!

Jill, in your 39th year, remember this:

You are the most thoughtful person I have ever known. Ever.
You are so very generous with your time, talents, and means.
You can always make me laugh.
You always seem to know what to do to cheer and lift another.
You amaze me with your dedication to your family and your calling.

I am so blessed to have you in my life.

Happy birthday!

seven for Saturday

1. We all went to see Toy Story 3 today. Marc and I have been anxiously awaiting its open, while the kids didn't seem super excited about it. We talked them into it, though, and of course they all enjoyed it. They were all big Toy Story fans when they were little.

We originally went to the 1:45 show, but it was sold out and we would have had to sit in the front row. Fortunately, Marc exchanged our tickets for a later show, and then he and the boys went an hour early to ensure good seats. Thumbs up from the Olivier crew.

2. I dug up my ancient hot glue gun to make some flower hair clips. One of my sweet neighbor Heidi's five daughters was married this week and I was putting together some little gift bags for the young girls who helped to serve at the reception. Eva loved them, so of course I had to make a few extras.

3. After church last week, all three kids were playing the piano together. We moved the piano upstairs recently, and I think it's pretty cool. I find I like the piano more now that it's not banished downstairs, as if it has more legitimacy in its new home. (It's an old upright that we inherited a long long time ago, so it's nothing fancy, but I love its tone and now I think I just appreciate it more in general.)

It's been getting a lot of play, and that's a very good thing (except when I'm trying to take a nap).




4. The other day, I was feeling better. SO much better. And I realized that I had really missed cooking. I had to make something, specifically something baked. That's when I decided to make Angel Biscuits. I haven't made them for years! I have no idea why. They are fast, easy, and delicious. My family was thrilled and have asked for a repeat. Soon.

5. Eva came with me to the wedding reception. Lucas wasn't feeling well, Max had a trek family reunion, Marc was out of town, but Eva was thrilled to be my escort. It was her first reception and even though it was an outdoor affair, she insisted on putting on her best dress and having her hair fixed up. These requests are rare, and I'm not one to refuse – there were quite a few people there in jeans. It's a wedding, people! I think I'd rather be overdressed than underdressed.

Anyway. It was a lovely reception, and Eva was enchanted with the bride, the cake, the flowers, and of course, the candy.







6. I went to WinCo today to get groceries for Father's Day. I was shocked and amazed to see that they carry Umpqua ice cream! This is an Oregon brand that Marc grew up with. I enjoyed it many a time when we visited his parents in Eugene, but since they moved to Salt Lake, we haven't had any. Chocolate peanut butter, definitely his flavor of choice. I think it will make a nice addition to Father's Day dinner (atop chocolate peanut butter brownies).

7. It's officially summer here. It took awhile, what with the unseasonably cold temperatures and my sickness that seemed to go on forever and ever, but it really feels like summer now, and I'm enjoying it. After feeling awful for so long, and then gradually better but really weak, I woke up one day this week and felt my lungs filling with air, with ease, and it was the most amazing feeling.

I can vacuum! I can clean bathrooms! I can cook dinner! I can carry in a 40-pound bag of dog food from the car! I love not being sick.

not Creative Friday

I came down with whatever it is my kids have been sick with for over a week now. I was just congratulating myself, too, on my frequent hand-washing, vitamin-taking, sickness-resisting ways. That'll show me, I guess.

I was hoping I'd still be up for Creative Friday, but I really wasn't. A girl can hope.

Jill came by anyway and brought me Café Rio for lunch, a Sonic drink, and a stack of books. (I had unfortunately run out of books waiting in the wings at a very inopportune time.)

Eva lured Jill into her room to show her a big stack of her pictures, and then held her captive for quite some time. I found them tickling and scaring each other with the Bizarre Dinosaurs book.

For today at least, I'm trying to do as little as possible, taking DayQuil, and staying close to my new box of Puffs with Vicks (SUCH a good idea). Maybe I'll even get to lie down and read one of my new books!

It's so good to have such a good friend.

seriously.

Jill and Jenn came over this morning to help me out. They were both dusting (I rarely seem to get around to dusting!) and I was gathering and sorting. Suddenly I caught a glimpse of something hideous on my wall!

Not a bug, nor bodily fluids or anything of that sort. No, this little beauty was hung there on purpose.

What the? In fact, I actually purchased it at one point (albeit about 16 years ago). My only excuse is that, at one point, I liked it. And now I hate it. And apparently I stopped seeing it. I have no idea what brought it into view with such clarity today, but it was such a relief throwing it away!

I mentioned it to Marc, and he said, "well, it did have some cool keys hanging from it." As if THAT excuses this monstrosity.

But the worst part was that, when I mentioned to Jill and Jenn that I was going to throw it away, they both breathed a sigh of relief and said they had been wondering for years how that had made it into my house. Years!

I demanded to know why they never mentioned it, and they said it wasn't their place to question my decor. And so, a declaration is in order: if ever you are wondering something like that, please tell me! Please. I promise I can take it.