There Were Never Such Devoted Sisters

Though I need to specifically make a blog post about each of my beautiful sisters, I need to take a small moment today to just be grateful for them~Sarah Jane, Amy and Bethany.


Me, Sarah Jane, Amy
Bethany

I haven't lived a perfect life. Growing up, our family experienced many ups and downs but the overall feeling we had was one of great love and joy. I've talked about my parents, who are wonderful people and good examples. My sisters are the amazing apples that didn't fall far from the tree.

While talking to Amy last week, she reminded me how we were brought up with kindness and caring values instilled in us. This was not only taught by word, but also in deed. IN everything my parents did, we saw their love for mankind and their desire to help everyone around them. It made for a great sense of community wherever we were. My parents still get letters and visitors from all over the country in various places where they touched hearts and made forever friends.

Now WE are blessed to be parents and hand down those same ideals to our children. It's so rewarding to watch your child take part in caring for someone else. It's even more inspiring to know it comes so naturally to your child, because it was taught and practiced in the home. So my gratitude is great as I see the blessings of growing up in the loving family I did. I'm happy that I have 3 sisters who have shown me the meaning of perseverance, kindness, strength, faith, love, and charity. I'm grateful to pass those things down to our posterity and keep the goodness going.

Lastly, I'm so grateful to share with my sisters. We share values, the love of Christmas, Bing Crosby, snow, and Johnny Mathis. The joy of family, the dislike of feet, the thrill of a great lightning storm, the laughter that comes from the embellishment of great stories, passion for music and great books, and the love that only sisters share!

Bing Crosby

The Harry Potter Series

 

 

The Good Kind of Exhaustion

SO exhaustion has hit-big time. I have never been a person with much stamina although I really want to carry myself like I have great amounts of it! Lots of big things are filling my days and I am so tired I'm afraid the puddle of me is going to have to be mopped away at the end of this week. But I'm happy. I have smelled many proverbial roses over the last few days.

I will say that this is one of the most bittersweet weeks I endure every year. Father Time's big pendulum swings heavily for me. I am ever aware at the time I feel is stolen from me as my children grow up and move forward. But as I cannot change it, I try to see the good things in the future (when I'm not stressing over the things in the future!)

Recent days have again proven to me that great opportunities have been given to my children through the grace of God. Good people have been placed in our lives who will enrich the growth my daughters will experience. I marvel at the way these people are hand-picked for the exact way and time we need them in our journey. That alone boosts my spirits. Add to that the kind words I have received from parents and the many wonderful, sweet, heartfelt, enthusiastic hugs I have received from my little kiddos at school, and there are lots of roses in my garden!  I love feeling loved and appreciated and there's nothing quite like a hug to show that. I think if the world realized the power of a hug we'd be a lot happier and abundantly more kind.

SO though I am utterly exhausted,  it's in a good way.  I feel blessed by the people that surround me. I love my job and the fulfillment it gives me. I'm always hoping I give something of value back and that I can be a blessing to someone else the way my family has been blessed by those placed in our lives. I love the "village" that surrounds us.

Days gone by...

Let's Get This Party Started

School starts tomorrow for Meghan and I. I have fought it. I have had the silent countdown going off in my head for weeks. I am mourning it. But accepting it.



Cassie 1994







I don't mind school. I was a fairly good student. I love working at a school. School is a good thing overall. But each new school year signifies the passage of time and the inevitable steps away from time with my children. I love being a mom. I don't feel like I've had enough time being a mom or had enough time with my children. It goes fast. And that time is precious!

 Meghan 1998



With these feelings are also thoughts of excitement for what may lie ahead for my children. There are so many amazing opportunities in life and I'm excited for my girls  to go out and find them! I am trying to teach them to be kind, to be themselves, and to go live life remembering how blessed they have been. As I cannot change the fast pace of time, I am going to accept it and embrace it. Another school year is beginning. So let's get this party started. Here's to another great year of growth, happiness, experience, love, and fun. Counting our blessings all the way.


Cassie 2013

Meghan 2013



A Weighty Subject

Let's talk about weight. No, really. I don't care how much you weigh. It's not important to me. Do I care if you're healthy? Yes, I want everyone to be as healthy as they can be-I think it adds to the quality of life you live if you can feel as well as possible. Do I realize it's not always possible to be healthy?  Sadly, yes. I do.

Let me explain. Weight is a topic that is huge in our society. I hear it talked about almost every day of my life. Sometimes I am talking about it. But I don't like the subject. I don't like it that we put such value into the way someone looks. Over time as I have dealt with health issues, I realize that there are a lot of things about our bodies that we really cannot control. Disease, medications we have to take, environment, stress, time issues, and mental health issues can all affect weight. And I'm sure there are many more that I have not listed. But life is NOT about being skinny, right?

Medications are one of my pet peeves in the weight issue. Picture a commercial for depression medication. One of the top listed side effects is weight gain. If I gain 20 pounds while on a depression medication, won't I get more depressed? The fact is, there are people who would not function without their medications, but have to deal with all the crummy side effects. Not fair. But also a reason I will not judge them for gaining weight. This is not to be confused with making excuses for people who refuse to take responsibility for themselves. Let's just be good, for goodness sake!

I don't know where this post came from...it's just been on my mind. I'm hoping by addressing it, I can remove it from my mind and focus on the next query that arises...Now to finish rambling, I am posing an alternative way to handle this weighty subject. Let's just love people because they are who they are. Not because of their size (or any other issue that just doesn't matter.) I think variety is the spice of life. If everyone was just like me I would likely go insane! So I love my peeps-in every form. Thanks for being a great part of my life. I. LOVE.

Randomly Invigorating

I've had a very pleasant, very full week, and I get to continue this through my weekend. I've had a few tense moments that have turned out just fine in the end, and I'm very grateful for those blessings. My thoughts this week have been random, but many in number. I'm just getting a few of them out of my system so I can move forward.

I realized this week that my temple recommend is even more important to me than I had originally thought; and I've always known it's important. One of the main reasons it is important to me is because it is a physical piece of evidence that says I am trying to be a good person with strong values and morals. It does not mean I am perfect, but it means I am working towards it as often as I can. When I lost it for about 16 hours this week I was more distraught than I ever thought possible. I'm grateful my prayers were answered and I was led to find it. This made it possible for me to have a meaningful, wonderful day with my Young Women, my daughters,  and my friend, Angie, as we went to the temple together. I will treasure that day!


Meghan, Cassie and me at the temple

Angie and me

The cute Young Men with us

My beautiful Young Women!
 

Another thought that came to me this week is that I do not photograph well. I admire the people who can just look at the camera and have stunning photos revealed. I am not so lucky. One out of every 20 is maybe a decent shot of me. The funny part about realizing this about myself is that not 2 seconds later I decided that I don't care. I am not going to hide my life moments just because I don't think I look fabulous in them. I'm going to love them and record them and treasure them. I figure the people who know me know what I look like and it's okay. So look out world, because I am going to show myself.

 

This week showed me that we have more in common with those around us than we think. I am amazed and humbled by those around me who feel the same things I do~who have the same needs and worries and even insecurities. The same values and goals. Even some of the same life experiences and stories. And we're here to share with each other and help one another through them. Many times just knowing someone understands you makes all the difference.

 

In all I realize again, and as always, how blessed I am. I have been given much. It invigorates me and makes me want to give back. So today I'm giving back randomness...and possibly hope that there is probably someone out there who understands what each of us is living, and that might give us strength to keep going.

 



The Important Things

I had a little freak out last night. I got overwhelmed. I saw all the things in my life and in my home that are not finished, need to be worked on, or have worn out.

Let me interject that when we bought our house, it was old. We love it. We knew that little by little and with some TLC, we could turn it into something great with a lot of character. I've never felt I need anything more than my little 1970's split level 3 bedroom home. Our family is happy here. My children refuse to move. (Yes, when we see how much there REALLY is left to do on our home, we have the "moving to a newer home" conversation. No dice. It ain't happenin' and I'm always glad.) But it has taken a boatload of time, effort, money, elbow grease, and just plain hard work to get it to where it is now. And we are nowhere near finished!  But it looks a million times better than it did when we bought it. It wasn't a wreck-it just needed updating and some......no, ALOT of TLC!

I'm not the kind of person that needs everything done right now, although I love checking things off a to-do list. I do love knowing that I am improving and moving forward. (I think that's why my heart issues tick me off so much-there are times I physically CANNOT move forward. Oh well...) I know that time is just as big a factor as money when it comes to our home. My husband is either working or serving somebody. His will to serve is one of the things I love most about him. When I'm feeling overwhelmed and selfish, I want him to serve ME!

Last night after I was grouchy and not very kind, I calmed enough to see the look on his face when he told me how he had been trying to help someone else who also seemed overwhelmed. I handled what could have been a bonding and teaching moment for our family very poorly and with no grace whatsoever.

I was reminded once again of the important things in life. Moments. People. Helping and serving. Making memories. Showing love. Being an example. Making a difference. Family. Friends. Those are the important things.

The house will be done when the house is done.
                Some of the important things....

Spending the morning with Meghan when she was Student of the Month

Watching my children bask in the glow of Disney on Ice

Hunting for treasures on the beach

Family time

Watching Chad be Cassie's escort when she was nominated as royalty

What is Right and What is Easy

I was brought up well. I have goodly parents. They taught me well and raised me right, and especially showed me how to treat others. I love human beings. I see good in every one of them. I love you no matter your color, your inclinations, your choices, or your background. I am teaching my children to love. I feel I have been blessed to see the goodness in people no matter how far beneath the surface it is buried. As a matter of fact, I am often told I love far too readily and make excuses for the ways people may act. I'm really trying to understand their behavior and what may be causing them to make the choices they are.

BUT. If there is something that I feel is not righteous or is detrimental to the well being of me or my family, I may choose not to subject myself or the people I love to that influence. I will still love the person for who I see inside, but I will remove myself from what I may feel is dangerous or damaging to my spirit. I will not change my values or core beliefs because I love a person.

I feel in our world we confuse acceptance and love when they are two entirely different things. I may love a person dearly, but if they choose to be....say  a drug user, and I fear that my family may be influenced by those actions, I will not allow interaction between that person and my family members-especially during the drug use. I will be kind to that person, pray for that person, not speak badly about that person, and happily be around them when their thinking is clear. But I will not let my family think that the behavior is the correct way to lead a life. I will love the person, but not accept the behavior, or choose to be around it. It seems simple to me.

I also believe that we are responsible for the choices we make. No matter what has happened to us in the past, or who influenced us. I take responsibility for me. And there have been times that owning up to the things I have done is almost unbearable. It has led to realizing the many frailties and flaws in my personality. But I will not blame those actions on anyone but myself. I think that is one of the things we are on earth for. To overcome and show conviction even through hard times.

These are my personal views. In all my beliefs, loving one another is ingrained deeply in them. I realize we are all different and have to decide which values we are going to stand up for.  I don't want to ever fear that I did not stand up when I should have. It's a hard thing to do. It's not easy, and hopefully I will have the strength to stand up for truth while also being kind. And I will pray that those who see me stand up will also see the good in me that I see in them.