Things I am grateful for today

Today (as with every day) I have a lot to be grateful for.  Here are a few things that come quickly to my mind:
modern medicine
time
my home
the smell of canning and cooking
my family
technology
a surprise visit from my parents
hugs from my kids
smiles from my husband
my brand new neice
the gospel
washing machines
good health
alarm clocks
sprinkler systems
comfortable beds

Disappointing Ending

I hardly ever watch tv (we only get a few channels) because it makes me feel lazy and wasteful.  However, I got drawn in to a murder mystery show that Tony and Em were watching tonight.  I thought it ended at 9, but it really ended at 9:30.  I told myself I would leave at 9 and finish a few odds and end before getting ready for bed.  After my personal deadline,  I kept saying to myself "just a few more minutes", then continued to watch because I wanted to know who the guilty person was.  Just as the big reveal was starting, an amber alert came on!  Of course I was concerned about the missing child from Boise, but I missed the whole ending of the story and now must go to bed feeling lazy, wasteful, and still in suspense! I don't think I will watch much more in the near future.... it's too stressful!!!

Old Lotion

Em had an itchy bug bite tonight so she got out the calamine lotion to soothe the irritation.  She burst out laughing as she saw the date on the bottle..... 1993!!!!!  I guess we don't use much calamine lotion!  It made me think about the time that I helped my mom clean out her medicine cabinet and I gave her a hard time about the expired stuff in there.  I do watch expiration dates on oral medicines very closely, but I obviously need to do a better job with the other stuff!  So, Mom,  I apologize  for teasing you about the stuff in your medicine cabinet, and you can say "Like mother, like daughter"! 

Beautiful Morning

A storm blew through last night, making me get up and stumble around closing windows.  The power even went out for a while following a very close blast of lightening.  When I got up this morning and stepped outside, it smelled so sweet and clean, I could almost taste the air!  We have been socked in with smoke from several wildfires for the past few weeks, and it was so refreshing to see the  sky so clean and blue, and the rain had washed all the dust and ash away.  I wish that smell could somehow be preserved and used as a pick-me-up when I need to feel refreshed and energized!

Day of rest?

I really enjoy Sundays because they are different from the other days of the week.  I like going to church and learning about the gospel.  I enjoy seeing friends and checking in with how they are doing.  I like having home teachers come to visit us and share a message about Christ. I appreciate this day set aside to focus on my Savior and to learn and try to become a better person.  Sundays are a peaceful, pleasant time, but a day of rest they are not.  I usually get up early for meetings of one type or another, make phone calls, visit people in my ward, work on visiting teaching routes, study lessons, make assignments for the upcoming week, go to church, sometimes have guests for dinner, and try to help my family with their assignments, goals, and projects.  I am very grateful for the Sabbath Day, and I truly love it, but I don't usually feel very "rested" at the end of the day!

Chicken Run

I spent the last few days building an expansion on to my chicken coop.  I built it in the garage, then had Jacob and Erik help me carry it out to the garden.  The girls seem to be happy with their room to stretch and scratch.  I am tired and glad to have that project off my list.  I have 2 weeks before starting school again, and a lot I want to get done in that time!

Beans and Apples

The kids first day back to school went well.  I was going to take a picture of them this morning and then I forgot.  It is good to get back into a schedule, but I miss having my kids home.  Tonight Em helped me to get a batch of green beans canned.  Over the past few days she has also helped me with dehydrating some apples.  She is working on a 10-hour project for a church activity, and she chose to do it on learning about food preservation.  I am going to teach her how to make jam next, then it will be time to harvest and freeze the corn and can tomatoes.  I also have lots of herbs in the garden to cut and dry.  I am enjoying teaching her and having her help with some of these jobs!

Last Day of Summer Break

Today was the last day of my kids' summer vacation.  It's back to school tomorrow!  This year Emily is in the Junior High school, starting 7th grade.  Erik is a senior!  Yikes!  Jacob is taking classes at BYU-I starting on Sept. 22nd.  Wow... they have grown up!  To celebrate the last day of vacation, I did not make the kids do any chores... it was a lazy day.  For lunch we got a pizza and some snow cones and met Tony up on campus for a picnic in the gardens.  My new favorite treat is a snow cone from Snoasis.... the texture of their shaved ice is so deliciously melty and softly crunchy!  I think I have had  5 or 6 snow cones this summer! 

Zuchinni

Ode to zuchinni.
Summer squash so green and long
growing in my garden,
So prolific, so oblong,
we must ask your pardon!
You are the butt of many jokes
abandoned at neighbors' houses.
I even know some local blokes
who feed you to their cowses!
Yet, given a chance, you are delicious
fried or baked or grated ...
versatile in many dishes;
some I've liked, some I've hated!
So here's to you my abundant friend
and all your tasty uses
I'm looking forward to the end,
because I'm running out of uses!!

Old Photos

Today Tony and I spent some time looking at old family photos and trying to figure out how to organize them.  We have thousands of them scanned in to our computer, and they are mostly a disorganized mess.  A lot of them came from old albums that his parents had.  How do we decide which ones are important to keep and which ones are not?  How do we learn the stories behind them and who all the people are?  It is a very daunting task!  I think all the ones of scenery and zoo animals can be deleted!  :)  Maybe we need to have a family reunion, using our laptops to sort and label? 

Forgotten Phone

I got up early this morning to work at the temple for a few hours.  I put my phone on vibrate and slid it into my  purse.  There it stayed until just a few minutes ago, when I realized that I have had an exceptionally quiet day.  There are several missed calls, texts, and e-mails that I should have responded to during the day, but on the other hand it was so nice to be separated from it all for a few hours!  The opportunity seldom comes to have a day without interruptions, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I know that I would have been worried if I had deliberately left my phone off all day.  Am I too dependent on technology?  I don't think so..... I think that that many people are tied down by it, rather than freed by it, but I enjoy using it, and enjoy going without it. 

Supporting Our Local Library

Tony and I are on the board of the local Library Foundation.  Tony is the secretary, while I am merely a board member.  We love to read and believe that books are an important part of an educated, meaningful life.  The foundation raises money for the library to use for community projects, upgrades, programs, etc... Last year we bought a baby grand piano to put in the community room to be used for concerts, recitals, and community events.  Tonight we spent several hours at the fair, selling books from our "book wagon".  It was pretty slow, but it was fun to sit and watch all the people. 

Driving in to town

We live about 5 miles out in the country.  I try to limit my number of trips in to town, to save gas and time.  However, there are days where I find myself driving back and forth a number of times.  Today I went early in the morning for Emily's school registration, a trip to Ace, and a stop for milk and bread at Albertsons.  Later, I went out again to take Tony to the dentist since he can't drive himself with his bandaged foot.  In the evening, I went to town again for a family trip to the library and to drop Emily off at Pizza Pie Cafe for dinner with some friends.  I probably spent over an hour and a half of my day just driving back and forth!  For some commuters that probably doesn't seem like much, but in my small-town world, that's too much running back and forth for one day!

Todays treasures

Look what I found in the hen house today!  Finally all 3 of my hens are laying!  I think it is cool how each one has a different color of egg.  There is such simple beauty in nature! 

New lap(top) and new toe

Its been another long day!  I am always so tired that I wish bedtime was an hour or two earlier!  Today I was up at 5 to go back to the hospital for another surgery on Tony's toe.  This time it is pinned together and will hopefully not shift out of place again.  He did better today with the nausea and sleepiness than last time.  I also got a surprise this afternoon from Tony.  He got me my very own laptop!  I am so excited because I am always having to boot someone off the computer, or borrow one of the kids' when I need to do some work.  I'm looking forward to using it for school and Relief Society stuff.  Thanks my love!

Headaches

My head hurts tonight.  I have had headaches off and on for much of my life.  I think that they are so stupid!  I wish I could tell what makes them happen, and how to prevent them.  Stress? Chocolate? Weather?  Eye strain?  Yuck!!

McLean Family Reunion

This weekend my family was able to attend a reunion for my grandparents' ( Clyde and Marjorie McLean) family.  They have 5 kids,
25 grandchildren, and at least 50 great-grandchildren, with more on the way.  It was really fun spending time with my extended family.... especially talking about "the good old days".  It reminded me of how blessed I am to have such a good family and a lifetime full of love and happy memories.  I am so grateful to have the gospel in my life, that allows me to be sealed to my family for eternity!

Long toe day

We got a call early this morning telling us to go to the hospital ASAP for Tony's toe surgery.  So, my day was spent waiting for Tony and waiting on Tony.  He has been a good, if somewhat loopy patient!  Hopefully the toe will heal and work properly again.

These are a few of my favorite things

Today I worked all day at the bookstore.  While I enjoy it, I don't enjoy it as much as being home with my kids and working in the garden.  This picture shows my garden with the chickens helping me fight the weeds and bugs.  It calms my mind and brings peace to my heart as I grow and tend the plants and animals.  I am so grateful for the amazing creations that God has given us! 

Time

I taught a lesson in church yesterday about using time wisely.  I came across this quote from President Monson, which I love. "Time is the raw material of life.  Every day unwraps itself like a gift, bringing us the opportunity to spin a fabric of health, pleasure, and content and to evolve into something better than we are at its beginning.  Success is contingent upon our effective use of the time given us.  When we cease peering backwards into the mists of our past and craning forward into the fog that shrouds the future and concentrate upon doing what lies clearly at hand, then we are making the best and happiest use of our time.  Success is the ratio of our accomplishments to our capacities."    I found an amazing amount of wisdom in this small paragraph! 

Weekend Fun

We traveled down to Utah on Friday night and stayed with my brother.  On Saturday morning he baptised his daughter.  It was good to be with family and experience this sweet time with them.  The weekend included a couple of new experiences for me.... I had my first go-kart ride (my second ride was better than the first), ate chicken heart at Tucano's, and also tried quail eggs, which I wasn't terribly impressed with.  It was a great weekend, thanks to my brother and his awesome family!

Bunch of Bloggers

We have been trying to think of ways to make family history and journal writing a part of our family life.  One idea was to spend a few minutes each night recording something from our lives.  We got the kids set up with their own blogs, and they seem to really enjoy posting.  If you want their addresses, contact me and I will share!  Here are my bloggers!

Jacob Graduation

This is from a few months ago.  Jacob did it!  He even got a scholarship to BYU-I!  We are so proud of him!

Boys double date

This is from a few months ago...both of the boys got asked on a double date by a couple of sweet girls from our ward.  They made tie-dye shirts, played games, ate home-made pizza, and went to a school dance.  It was a great experience for both of them!