Saturday, February 25, 2012

This is me question 2

Today is my birthday and I do plan to record all the fun that I've had in the past 2 days, but tonight I thought that I should take on question 2 of the "This is me challenge". Question 1 was pretty easy and simple to tackle, but question 2 really gave me something to think about. The question is

What are some choices in your life that affected where you are now?

I have often thought about this question. I know that I have made many decisions that have affected where I am now in my life, but for this challenge, I will list a few major, influential decisions. Let me start by recording a bit of my personal history. Many years ago as a Senior in high school, I had a decision to make about where I wanted to go to college. I always knew that I would go to college because for as long as I can remember, I desired to become a Kindergarten teacher. I had planned to go to Utah State as I knew they had a great program for my major. I had been accepted, an apartment had been reserved, and I had a good friend who was going with me and was also going to be my roommate. This was probably one of my first major decisions. Just as it was coming time to go, my friend came to me and told me that she just didn't feel right about her decision to attend Utah State, so she was backing out. I felt scared at the thought of going alone, but my plan was to go ahead and continue on, but as the time drew near, I too felt that this was not the right path for me. So, I switched gears and decided that I would stay home and begin my college education at Salt Lake Community College until I could decide what to do. That felt right and that's what I did. Shortly after that, I felt like I needed to go to Brigham Young University. This was a strange thought for me. I had never considered BYU before and believe me, my grades in High School were not good enough to get into BYU (they were good, but not straight A's by any means), but at SLCC I took school very seriously and worked hard and did really well there (It's funny how much more important your grades become to you when you are paying for your education.) I fought the feeling that I had to apply to BYU, but eventually I decided that if this was meant to be it would work out and all I really had to do was get my application in. I did what I needed to do and the day that it was due I drove it to Provo and turned it in. A short time later I received an acceptance letter. This decision has affected my life tremendously! After moving to Provo, I felt like I needed to apply for a job as a teller at a local bank. I had been a teller before and had sworn that I was done with that job for reasons that require a blog post of their own, but suffice it to say that my prior job in banking left me the awful memories of being robbed at gunpoint 2 times in 6 months and that, so I thought, was end of my career as a teller. So, when that feeling came, I thought that I had lost my mind. But, the job was in a bank in a grocery store and I felt much safer in that setting. So I applied, got the job and through that decision, I met Brett's cousin who set the stage for Brett and I to meet. Brett and I met, dated, fell in love and look at us now going on 15 years of marriage and raising 4 fabulous boys! The decision that I made to marry Brett truly was the best decision that I have ever made. It was a major decision and has affected my life in a very positive but life changing way. Shortly after we married we began our life together back east in Connecticut. I gave up for a time, the decision to become a Kindergarten teacher as I put my schooling on hold to become a wife and to support my husband in his new career with IBM in New York. Never in my life would I have thought that I would ever leave UT and there I was young and newly married navigating life in what seemed like a foreign country. But it was one of the best times of my life. I met so many wonderful friends, I had a job in a flower shop that I loved and Brett and I were very happy. The decision to become a mother was a no brainer for me. It was something that I always aspired to and during the course of our time in CT, we were blessed with the births of two of our boys. Then another decision moved our family to CA yet another place that I would never have imagined myself living. But here we are and while I've had ups and downs with adjusting to life in CA, it is home and we are happy. And during the course of our time here we have had 2 more children. It truly is amazing how our decisions really affect our lives. One little (or perhaps big) decision to attend BYU was the best decision that I could have ever made. It led me to becoming a wife and a mother and provided many opportunities for growth and joy in my life. One thing that I know for sure is that my Heavenly Father has had a hand in my life. He has guided me and blessed me in more ways than I can count.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

This is me

My sister started recording this challenge on her blog and I thought that it looked like fun! What a creative way to record a little bit about myself for my family and friends. So Challenge 1:

If you were forced to go back in time to the olden days, but were allowed to take 10 modern conveniences with you, what would you take?

1. Modern medicine
2. Washing machine
3. Dishwasher
4. Computer with the internet
5. Telephone
6. Air conditioning
7. Kitchen Aid mixer with electricity of course
8. Shower with running hot water
9. Refrigerator
10. Camera

Monday, February 20, 2012

I love to see the temple...


Today was a great day! The boys had the day off from school, and Brett had the day off from work and it just so happened to be our Stake Temple Day, so as a family, we spent a good portion of the day here. I can think of no better way to spend the afternoon than enjoying the wonderful spirit of the temple. I love this scripture in 2 Nephi 9:52

Behold, my beloved brethren, remember the words of your God; pray unto him continually by day, and give thanks unto his holy name by night. Let your hearts rejoice

Today my heart did rejoice. I love being in the temple with my husband, and I am thankful for our eternal marriage. I also felt joy knowing that Erik was having the opportunity to participate in baptisms for the dead. I was also grateful to know that my other 3 boys (Cameron, Austin, and Ethan) where close by being taught and cared for by wonderful leaders in the primary. There is joy in the gospel of Jesus Christ. There is joy in service. Families are eternal. These are truths that I hold dear and thank my Heavenly Father for. I truly do love to see the temple.
My boys




Thursday, February 16, 2012

LOVE...


Valentines day is one of my FAVORITE holidays. It's pink and fluffy and all about hearts and love. A girly girl day, but who says boys can't love it too. I think that my boys do....or they do a good job humoring their mother. We had our annual Valentines dinner. Heart shaped pizza on Valentines plates by candlelight. This year I made the boys each a robot Valentine. They each had a custom robot drawn and colored just for them. Cameron was most impressed with my efforts. He said Mom! You sharpied and colored these just for us?! It's the little things! Brett and the boys got me a lovely bouquet of flowers that always becomes our centerpiece for the evening and brings me joy! Grandma and Grandpa M always send the boys a fun Valentines package in the mail and this year was so fun for us to scatter the Valentines goodies all over the table to add to the fun, festive decor for our special dinner. After a yummy dinner, we played UNO as a family. What a fun night. Now the countdown begins to my other favorite thing about February....Me day! Love that!

My helper:



The boys:



The girl with her boys:



Happy Valentines (or Valentimes as Austin calls it) day!

Thoughts...

When you've been gone from the blog for as long as I have been, the question is where do I begin to catch up and do I even try to catch up? Blogging has always been a fun way for me to preserve my family's memories, but I've struggled with finding the time and motivation to do it. I wondered if I should even continue on with the task if it felt like a task. So the question I had to ask myself was should I continue on with the blog and I feel like the answer is yes. My blog is my family journal. It is a place to record the goings on in our lives. It is a place to record the accomplishments of my boys. It is a place to record all the little things that my boys do that I hope to never forget. Time really zips by in the blink of an eye and my boys are growing bigger each day and someday they'll head off on missions and venture out on their own and I hope that before that time comes, that I will have done a good job recording the everyday events in our lives for us to look back on. The boys really enjoy looking back through old posts and laughing at all the cute and funny things they have done. Even as I sit here typing this, Ethan is climbing all over me, pushing the keys on the laptop, giving me snuggles and showing me a sore on his finger that NEEDS a kiss right now in order to feel better. The boys are asking me to come snuggle up with them and watch movie before they have to head off to bed. So yes, while it is difficult to find the time, energy and motivation to continue this blog, I want to. It is worth the effort.