The right tools for the job

We've all heard the saying that you have to have the right tools for the job. I decided that I had the tools all wrong in motherland and decided to correct the problem. Herein is the problem in summary--the double stroller we have is a back to back and the thing is like driving a Mack truck. The weight distribution makes manueverablility darn-right impossible. To turn a corner, you have to start three blocks back and push with all your might. Simply put--I've had enough.

I broke down and bought a Maclaren twin and I feel like a kid at Christmas. I found the best deal online and gleefully tracked it's progress across country on the UPS truck. Isn't technology great? I knew it was being delivered yesterday and I could hardly wait to get home and see it in the flesh. (I even snuck back down to see it again after the kids were in bed) It's simply beautiful. Turns on a dime, not to metion stylish (coffee brown and baby blue) I've lost touch with all sense of style in most arenas but I am sure up-to-date on babygear. I cannot wait to take it on it's maiden voyage. It's going to be a great day.

Food Storage Fanatic

Being concerned about the family's welfare, I make it my goal to attempt a food storage plan. It is a loose attempt but nevertheless, an attempt. We have a small arsenal of food to draw upon in a pinch that would probably last a month or two if push came to shove. We may be eating ketchup and BBQ sauce as a main dish but at least I'm trying.

The ward gals in charge of emergency preparedness are emergency goddesses. This week we had a neighborhood mock emergency disaster (complete with call from 911 telling of disaster conditions) and block captains scoured the neighborhood documenting the supposed condition of each home then reported back to central command. I admit that such preparedness does give me an added measure of security. This neighborhood is so on the ball and it's one of the things I love about living in this hood. I realize that some of these drills are totally unique to Utah and would never work elsewhere but I am grateful they work here.

Somehow the preparedness goddesses came upon a lady named Shandra who I think dedicates her entire existence to food storage pursuits. Each week, she scours the SLC papers then puts all the sale items into a spreadsheet, color codes them into HOT, ok and not great deals. She then makes a weekly menu using her food storage and sends this to hundreds of people. I guess she was growing a little weary of helping humanity because she recently started charging to get the info. http://www.myfoodstoragedeals.com/

I enjoy her information but I think I will have to take a sabbatical from it because I feel wholly inadequate to meet the food storage task. Check out this woman's blog http://www.myfoodstoragedeals.blogspot.com/ to see her basement "store." She takes the cake and no doubt she has a year's supply of that too. Maybe someday if I work long enough I will get a food supply like hers. It will probably be a few years pursuit for me, at least. Hats off to her for having her act together. I need to just start with flour and sugar and go from there.

Spring Preparations

Spring/Summer is upon us--well, at least I think it supposed to be. Yesterday we had snow, so who really knows. Last year I thought that all the clothes that didn't fit last summer would somehow grow to accomodate me over the winter but that hasn't happened. Alas, I still have no wardrobe to speak of. This makes for a tricky situation. Do I buy new bigger pants or just keep hanging on to hope? I may have to go middle of the road and buy some tie-me-over bargains. I say this every year, so who am I really kidding? I just watch the old (pre-kid) pants collect dust year after year. I don't want to part with the old clothes because they are cute and I paid good money for them but how long do they sit? When I was in school in the wonderful Clothing & Textiles Dept. at BYU, the rule was if you haven't worn it in a year--get rid of it. As much as it hurts to admit it, I am probably going to have to agree. (I have to add a disclaimer that it's really not my kids fault that I don't fit in my pants--it's just a convenient excuse to pig out. I call my new pants my "Chuck-o-rama" pants)

What am I doing to fit in my old wardrobe, well, not enough apparently. I have recently gotten a little bit of ambition to try harder but it's taken months to work up the gumption. Last night I tried not to eat after 8:00 and it worked pretty well. I had my donut at 7:30. Hey--that counts and it was within goal!! My only downfall was I had 8 peanut butter cups at midnight after getting Spencer back to sleep. I did somehow manage to lose a pound since yesterday though. Maybe if I eat a donut every night at 7:30 I will lose weight! Seriously though, I have to get a grip and put down the fork. I am determined and now that I have made this declaration, I need to start making good on it. I'll start with 5 pounds and go from there. Maybe I'll hang on to the clothes for just one more year.

The Sentimental Side

Having some time away and visiting family has made me realize how precious life is and just how fast it goes. My grandmother passed away on April 10 after battling for several years with Alzheimer's and other health issues. The years pass so quickly and I have been very blessed to have the family that I do. The relationships made there are really what's it all about. I need to be better about working on those and worrying less about the day-to-day things that I can't even recall a year or even a day later. While we were back east, I loved spending time with my parents and my own kids without having to worry about what the house looked like, whether clothes were clean and what's for dinner. When you are traveling, it just doesn't matter and it was nice for the break to really just enjoy being.

We were able to have the services in the ward where I attended church growing up and it was wonderful to see all the old friends. They have had such an impact on my life and I do miss them still. Many attended my grandmother's funeral and it made me realize how kind and loving these old friend truly are. What a great blessing to grow up where I did.

It seems a little strange and sad to me to have my grandparents gone now but I know that I got to have them longer than most. My grandmother was a very kind and generous person and I will always be grateful for the love and lessons she taught me. I spent many weekends with her when she lived in Utah and I was at BYU and we had some good times. She always got a rotisserie chicken from Albertson's when I came and we often went to Marie Callendar's for pie. I am so glad that she is now with her family and reunited with her mother who passed away when my grandmother was 14 years old. She is buried in an old church cemetary in Malvern with her parents and the landscape is beautiful and peaceful. It looks just like a resting place should look.

So, there are my thoughts. In a nutshell I just need to do better with the things that really matter.

We've had a busy week

The kids and I just returned from a week in Pennsylvania. We had a great time despite the original reason for our trip.

Our hightlights:

• Saying good-bye to my grandmother (Flora Engle) who passed away on April 10. I am happy for her because I know that she is happy and pain-free.
• Having Matthew ask in ear shot of the microphone during the services if his singing qualified him for a surprise after he sang with the cousins.
• Spending time with family who we wish we lived closer to. We enjoyed a few days with my siblings and then aunts, uncles and cousins.
• Walking on my uncle's farm with Matthew on a sunny spring day telling him about things I did there when I was a little girl and watching him get a kick from throwing stones in the water.
• Visiting the Thomas train store where Matthew was in heaven.
• Watching Spencer have his first lick of ice cream at the local dairy and first swing ride in the park I played at as a kid.
• Eating local treats such as chicken corn soup, chicken salad from F&H, cheesesteaks, and pumpkin whoopie pies.
• Spending a beautiful warm day at the Philadelphia Zoo where we rode a camel.
• Making it home on the plane alone with two kids.

Tribute to Grandma E

My kids (and I) are so blessed to have 2 grandmas and grandpas living within 5 minutes of us. I know that the influence their grandparents have on them will impact their lives forever. Matthew, and even Spencer, get so excited when visits occur. Matthew also loves it on the one day a week that G Engle comes to his house to watch him. The other week he told me that he loves G Engle and that she is nice to him. I love it that both sets of Gs are involved in their lives.

My mom has always been a heroine. She somehow gets by on almost no sleep, and does anything in her power to fulfill eveyone else's wishes, even at the expense of her well-being sometimes. She insists on cooking a favorite meal, giving a desired toy, or finding time to help out even when it's not convenient. I probably rely on her a little too much but I love having her around. I am so glad that she is a "Sunday dinner" kind of grandma--she's real and doesn't get too caught up in all the pampery things she could do with her empty-nester free time. Her free time has always been spent helping others. Her heart is Christ-like. If you added all the money she has spent on making meals for people in the 44 years our my parents marriage, there would probably be enough money to buy a small house. And my dad never complains a stitch. He's just as good. I can't even begin to describe how much I love my parents and I love to watch them love my kids.

Momnesia

When I was pregnant with Matthew I thought I was kind of forgetful. The problem is that it hasn't gone away. A few times, I've completely driven past my freeway exit and I frequently get up to do something and find myself wandering looking for direction. Maybe some of you would just say it's old age since I will be 40 in a month. That's painful and it's another topic.

Last night, I was supposed to be on a call with some old friends who had set up a conference call to celebtrate birthdays. I got a call an hour and a half before time telling me how to dial in and confirmed that I would be available. Then we went to Corbin's parents and I forgot all about calling even though I had phone, instructions, and everything I needed to do the job. I felt awful that I forgot. What is happening to my brain? Unless I write down everything I have to do on the Lightning McQueen calendar that is so beautifully displayed on the fridge, it doesn't happen.

Just now, I remembered that I printed some documents over an hour ago that I was supposed to work on and they are still sitting on the printer. I did go to get them once but got distracted and found myself wandering the hall then ended up talking to a co-worker after I forgot what I was doing. Now I'm back at my desk and still don't have the papers. What's my name again? It's a wonder that I'm not the one who forgot Spencer a few weeks ago.

Maybe this momnesia is just because I've never had to track four people before. I hate it though. I never used to have a calendar and now I need one taped to my head. It's not like I have many important engagements but I have to remember important details like "Bring a stuffed animal friend to class" day at Little Gym. My kid can't be the only friendless child.