Friday, February 26, 2010

Catching up on Scouting Activities...

Lund has been really busy lately with his Cub Scout pack. I have been his leader for a couple of years, but now with the "C" word, I am on sabaticol for a little while. The ladies that have taken over for me, Penny and Tanya, are simply AMAZING! They love the boys so much and they are MUCH more organized than I ever was. I am so grateful for them and for Cub Scouts in general because it really does build a lot of character in these little guys!
So, without further adeau, here are the picutures of the Pinewood Derby and a field trip to see how solar power works that I was lucky enough to attend with Lund.
Here are all the cars lined up... Lund's car is the 3rd from the bottom of the picture.
Here is Lund at the starting line with Bryce. The track we have in Bagdad always cracks me up. Don't get me wrong, I am very grateful that we have a track here at all, but we always have to put it together with chairs and rocks and bricks and such. Someone at the mine made it about a million years ago and one of the cars this year hit a bump on the track and pretty much exploded mid-air. There were tires flying everywhere and it was pretty hillarious.
Lund and his proud dad. They always make the car together and Morgan does such a great job of letting Lund do most of the work and encouraging him along the way. What a great dad!!!! Lund won 3rd place this year and he qualified to go onto Prescott for Regionals, but since he won 1st last year and had the chance to race in the Regionals already, he is letting another boy go in his place. What a sweet kid!!!
These pictures are from our solar power field trip. I learned A LOT about solar power. I am not quite sure the boys retained as much, but I am sure they had a great time. Little known fact for those of you that don't live in Bagdad: People that live outside of Bagdad in the desert use solar power. For the field trip we are only about 11 miles outside of town. (That shows how far in the middle of the desert we live! he he)

Here we have Tony explaining how solar power works to the boys. They look a little stumped if you ask me! I was stumped too, but I still think it is a really cool concept. I would LOVE to get rid of our 500.00/month utility bills!!

Maybe someone should tell them it is FEBRUARY!!!

Need I say more???!!!! That water has GOT to be COLD!!!!

Thursday, February 25, 2010

The sun is shining..... Let's go golfing!!!

It turned warm today, so I took the boys golfing...or putting rather, because there was a tournament going on. Lund is my serious golfer.

But of course, they had more fun with the ladybug they found.

Will really loved the ladybug, which was surprizing since he HATES bugs!

Will learning how to putt...

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Sneaking pictures in before church.... sadly, that meant I was late AGAIN!

I just couldn't help it!! The kids had their hair combed, they were even being somewhat nice to each other. So, before church a couple of days ago I snapped a lot of pictures to capture the "niceness" of it all. But, of course this meant we arrived late for church. Morgan gave me a questioning look from the stand where he and his counselors sat. He just figured one of the kids had a meltdown or something, so when I told him that it was a photo shoot that made us late... he told me I should take the pictures only if I am on time. I told him, "I was on time.... before I got my camera out!!!" he he!! I will have to work on my honesty... I should have just said it was a meltdown, those happen here all the time.
Will and Lund being chummy after being coerced
Will isn't so sure he wants to get chummy with Sarah... I think she had just scomped him on the Wii.

Will loves to be fierce. I am pretty sure he was a lion here.

This is one of my favorites cuz they are both happy. (Notice the Cars belt that Will insists on wearing. )
Sarah with her huge, "I can do no wrong" eyes! She gets away with a lot because of those eyes!



Cassidy is 11, I can't believe it!! Doesn't she look all grown up lately??!!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

The Other side of the coin...

O.K., so I know some of you think I am part robot because my posts are pretty much positive and uplifting. You know, it is always sunshine and happy skipping people or something...but, there is another side to the coin, which I usually ignore. Why ignore it??? Well, when I look back at this part of my life I don't want to remember having to be in the bathroom for an hour each morning trying to get the chemo out of my body. I don't want to remember feeling like crying evertime I pass a mirror and see a reflection of myself.... the self that is bald and swollen due to steriods. I don't want to remember that when I had my period this week, I bleed so much they almost put me in the hospital to give me more blood. I don't want to remember the times I couldn't be a mom to my kids, or the 4-year-old that stopped mid-aisle in Target and pointed up to my hat clad head proclaiming with sincere child-like honesty, "Look mommy, that lady looks funny, she doesn't have any hair." (Crap, here come the tears...)
I don't want to remember that sometimes, just sometimes I think about death....the real possibility of it and that if I die I want to give Logan a huge hug and sit down and tell him all about the year without him and how much we miss him... especially how much his mommy and daddy miss him. Does he know how much they love him and crave his touch every single day? (I am sure he already knows all of this, for he is wiser now than all of us).
I don't want to think about how my life would have been different if that first biopsy, way back in May, had told the truth. The pain that would have been avoided.
I don't want to think of that first chemo session and all the hallucinations that followed... feeling like I was throwing up metal shards and bugs. I don't want to think about the trip to the ER that week and the doctor proclaiming that I might have a blood clot and it could hit my heart or brain at any second.
I don't want to think about the bloody noses that won't stop bleeding... or learning why you don't tell kids to lean their heads back when they have a bloody nose....gross!
I don't want to remember the feeling of looking at myself in the mirror after my double mastecomy.... bald, without any chest and huge scars and drains hanging out of my body. That was a hideous moment. I moment where I hoped my spirit looked better than my physical body.
And that is where I decided to put all my thoughts and efforts.... My Spirit, to make my Spirit beautiful! And so now, I would like to flip that coin back over....
And think about how my love has been strengthened 100 fold for my husband as I watched him carefully help me shower after the surgeries... ever so gentle. Or as he paced our room when I was so sick, trying to figure out how to best help me. Or his strong hands on my head, which I couldn't even lift up, giving me an amazing blessing of strength and comfort.
And I want to remember seeing the little package of Honey Maid graham crackers as I lay in the ER. I was finally able to eat something without getting sick and those silly graham crackers tasted soooooo good, like heaven in a little plastic wrapper.
Or I think of the morning of the day Logan died and he was over at my house jumping on the trampoline. He was potty training at the time and he was so proud of himself. He said, "Keeta, look!" and he pulled down his pants to reveal stars on his pull-ups that told the world he was dry. I think of how lucky I am to know about the Plan of Salvation and to know where Logan is right now, doing his missionary work on the other side of the veil. The side that isn't as far as we may assume some times. Yes, it is so very close!
I think of Canyon (Logan's big brother) at our house that night as we reminded him of heaven and where Logan was. We told him all about knowlege and that Logan was now smarter than us all because he had past this mortal test. Canyon's head bounced up and a huge smile spread across his face as his green eyes lit up, "You mean Logan's smarter than me now?!! Hey!"
Or I turn my head to my wall (I am laying in my bed right now, doctors orders) where I have posted all the Get Well cards and I see the one drawn by Lund the day after I was diagnosed. In it there is a beautiful rainbow and a picture of he and I underneath the rainbow holding hands. It says, "Mom, hope you get better soon. I'm worried about you." (Dang, here come the tears again....or maybe they never stopped...I'm not sure at this point.) Another card, written by his buddy at school proclaims (with a dollar attached to it), "Get Well soon! Here is a dollar to by something for just you!"
Or I think of the Sunday not so long ago as we were rushing around trying to get everone ready. I was all dressed, yet had nothing on my head and I turned to Morgan and said, "Let's just get out the honey and a little tiny bow, the kind you put on a newborn's head and let's just plaster that little bow on my bald cranium and see what people say!"
Or I think of Sarah cuddled up on my lap, crying because she just wants me to feel better.If she could take away the pain, she would. She has such a bleeding heart!
So, if you ever read my blogs and think that I am just a "PollyAnna", just remember why I focus on the stuff I do! Maybe we should all focus on the beautiful in life....cuz it's here, all around us!
p.s. I love you all, I really and truly do!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Gosh, I must be getting old or something... I forgot the second half of the pictures....
Here are all the girls and moms at the movie


And here is our makeshift nail salon.... Arby's! It also doubles as a dinner place (go figure)

The Lightening Theif and modesty

On Saturday Cassidy and I had tons of fun going to Prescott for the Mom and Me Stake Activity Day! We learned a lot, joked a lot and had a ton of fun! Then after the Activity was over, we headed over to the mall to get manicures and pedicures.....only to find out that the nail place wanted 25.00 to paint a little girls toenails!!!! Are you kidding me!! So, the girls and moms all headed to Claire's and we bought our own nail polish and the girls painted each other's nails! It was much more fun to watch the girls paint each other's nails at the Arby's....(oh, and much cheaper as well!) And the highlight, for Cassidy at least, was the promise Morgan and I made to her a while ago. Knowing that I would be sick the week of her birthday, we promised her that she could invite a few friends to go with her after her Stake activity day to the movie she has been dying to watch.... Percy Jackson and the Olympians. We read the book together and we were estatic when they stuck to the story line really well. It was really a great movie!!! All in all, it was a great (and very long) day!!!

The stake made the mistake of giving Cassidy a pack of Smarties after a class about the Articles of Faith..... She had a lot of fun balancing the candy on her nose.
We went to a great class about modesty and I think all the girls and moms learned a lot! This great sister was the manaquin... such a cute idea as the girls tried to dress her modestly using the clothes given.

Here is Cassidy, deep in creativity concentration!

And here she is learned how to tie a quilt.

Here we are... mom and Cass! It was a wonderful learning experience and the theme "Come Follow Me" was a wonderful idea. We both learned a lot and the best part is... we did it together!

These are a few of my favorite things....(sing the song, you know you want to!)

I like a lot of things in life. But at different seasons of my life, and for many different reasons, I seem to have "favorites" that just make life wonderful! I thought I would share a few of them with you today. Maybe they are some of your favorites too!!
This is my new organizer from Ikea. I put the kid-sized cups, bowls, plates, and silverware in here and if they need something.... they can just help themselves!!! Genius!!!
I have loved "Nike" since I was a little girl. I can still remember when i was small and it was really hard to find shoes for my feet because I have really, really narrow feet. One day a salesclerk told my mom that Nike shoes run narrow and maybe that would be good for me. Ever since I have been addicted! Not only to their shoes, but to anything with the Nike logo. I think Nike should sponsor my bout with chemo because it is really like an endurance sport! Plus, then I would get free Nike stuff!

Here we have my favorite sleeping cap. It is comfy, and very, very soft. The only downfall is.... I look like a 70-year-old retired professor guy in it!

Here is a view of our unseasonable snowfall today. I love the snow every once in a while, especially when it is unexpected, like today! Oh, and I love this playground too, so this was a double whammy!

I love going to the gym while Will is at preschool. I also spent time at the indoor pool and out on Bruce Mine Road running and walking and biking. I just love, love, love my workout time!!
And here is the reason that I can work out!!! This is the beautiful and lovely Cheryl!!! She is so amazing! Her mother-in-law just died due to cancer and she wanted to help someone else with cancer. So to pay it forward, so to speak, she asked me if Will could be in her preschool for free!! It has been an amazing blessing in my life and in Will's life as well. Thank you Cheryl!!!

Putting Will in preschool was a really hard thing for me because I thought that, as a stay at home mom, I could do it all! Before the cancer hit, I was running a preschool at my house and it was wonderful, if not a little bit exhausting. After the cancer surgeries and chemo, I tried to be a good mother, and I believe deep down that I am doing the best I can...... but it wasn't the best situation for Will. He needed the consistency and learning that preschool gives. I am so thankful he is going to school now!! You can see the beautiful Mrs. Toni in the picture teaching the kids, she is truly amazing!

I love books like this series. They are a quick read and they are so fun!
I love the Olympics!!! I love that for two weeks, the whole world stops and we all focus on one thing!! Unity as a country, and watching people that have been so disciplined and focused! I just think it is awesome!! Plus, I love, love, love the special interest stories surrounding all the athletes!! Go USA!

These pink gloves are also one of my favorite kitchen items. My cancer doctor said I needed to use gloves while doing the dishes so I bought these pink beauties! I didn't realize how yucky and hot my hands get while doing the dishes. Now I am just in love with these pink gloves!! Plus, pink is my color now!
I am not a total tree-hugging hippie, but I do love a few "natural" things. I love putting a few drops of this euclyptus oil in a hot bath or in the humidifier. I even put a few drops on my pillow at night.... it is WONDERFUL! I also have lavender oil, but euclyptus is my favorite.

This is a cute story: A lady in our ward gave me this egg cooker because she knew how much Sarah loves hard boiled eggs. She got it from her 97-year-old mother, so that tells you how long this thing has been around. It is an AMAZING contraption that cooks 6 hard boiled eggs in under 15 minutes. As Morgan says, "it is totally a uni-tasker!! So true, but still so wonderful!

We bought this amazing shag throw run for our TV room and it is so thick and so comfy. It makes the whole room warmer just by being there!!! Gotta love the shag rug!!

I just love that Sarah tries to spell everything out on her own lately! Here she is trying to help me with the shopping list..... love it!!

This is a tradition that I started with Sarah that i absolutely love! Everyday when I pack her lunch I write her a little love note. It started out as "I love you to the moon!" and then I had to get creative.... I love you to the sun, I love you to the farthest tree, I love you to California...you get the picture! She looks for her letters everyday and she knows if they happen to be missing.... so I try really hard to not forget!

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Mom Confessions!!

Here are some "mom confessions" for me today. "Mom guilt" is a very real thing in every mom's life I am sure, so you may be feeling some of the same feelings as I am. So, here is my "mom quilt" for today.....

Mom confession: Here is a picture of the backyard right now! I think I counted 7 pairs of shoes around the trampoline and a sleeping bag, not to mention the MESSS!!!!

Mom confession: Morgan made these AMAZING cinnimon rolls yesterday and I ate one for breakfast and another half of one after lunch....... AFTER having a bowl of chocolate ice cream!!
Mom confession: There are two confessions in this picture: I let my kids watch Perry the Platipus today instead of taking care of them right after church so I could take a nap. Second confession: Will is eating his ramen on the carpet! (where is his mother?!)

Mom confession: I let Cassidy wear THIS around the house today!!! hmmmm

Mom confession: Cassidy and Lund and even I haven't practiced our piano in two days!!!

Mom confession: There are two confessions here... The first is, I confess that I sleep with a stuffed animal at age 31!!!! (But my hubbie gave it to me over 12 years ago, so I should get some romantic sentimental points there). Second confession: All I want to do is crawl back in bed and take a nap. Oh no, I see another confession coming....I haven't made my bed!

Mom confession: my laundry baskets all look like this today!

Mom Confession: My oldest son's bed looks like this!!!

Mom confession: Cassidy's bed looks like this, and she STILL hasn't put away the clean clothes on her bed.

Mom confession: I was going to plant some beautiful spring flowers in this planter area this week, instead.... I turned up the dirt, it rained, and Will turned it into his Tonka playground.
And the list could go on and on and on...... Instead, sometimes I think we need to see the good things in life....

There are two great things in this picture. The first is that I actually planted some seeds for our garden this week in cups. they are even starting to sprout already!! The second great thing is that Sarah looks adorable in her new dress for church and her necklace even matches. I should get double points for that!

Another wonderful thing in my life right now is how I am studying my scriptures. I am using the Seminary Book of Mormom study guide and doing a couple of chaptures each day and it is WONDERFUL! I am learning sooooooo much. Maybe someday I will even work my way up to the Institute study guide. Let's not get ahead of ourselves though! he he
Bottom line is this: When counting up all the points stacked against us, we need to give ourselves a break. For instance, I need to remember that the reason the laundry isn't done is becuase I was at the Cub Scout field trip with Lund and then took Cassidy to Prescott all day yesterday for a Stake Activity Mom and Me Day and then treated her to a movie. And I guess we have to figure in priorities as well. For instance, the fact that the kids didn't get a chance to make their beds before church today should be overshadowed by the fact that they WERE at church today. And studying my scriptures should take away some of the calories, right?!! He he
When my kids grow up I know they won't remember the times they didn't make their bed, or when I didn't have the special blue socks clean just when they wanted them. Hopefully, just hopefully, they will remember the good times and the times we spent with them and the principles they learned at an early age.
And maybe, just maybe this sign that I bought this week will come true..........

Here's hoping!!!!