There was a moment...

...today when driving my boys to a play in the big city.

A-HA's classic "Take on me" was playing on the radio.

At one of my glance-in-the-baby-mirror(yes, I have no babies, but I still love to see all my boys while I drive. Don't judge;))-to-make-sure-everyone's-happy checks, I did a double take.

For the next few minutes I secretly spied on my twins and smiled, smiled, smiled.

Al was lip-syncing his little heart out as well as someone who doesn't know the lyrics can.

Goose was air drumming like a master.

They were having a silent rock session and it was hilarious, joyful, and a proud moment to watch.

They're only four, but they certainly have a grasp of rhythm.

I love having little boys:)

Thankful Thursday

It's Thursday!

And a strange one to be sure.

There's a bunch of blankety-blank going on in life and by all accounts I should be quite unhappy, have high blood pressure, and feel completely worn out.

Life stinks, I'm tired, my kids are sick (and I don't feel so hot myself), etc. etc. etc.

It's quite clear that I am being sustained. For the first time in a long time I feel like I have sufficient faith and can "shoulder the burden." (knock on wood;))

Every time the doubts and fears thoughts start- they stop and I think, "no...it'll be okay. Everything will be okay."

This doesn't take away all the frustration or worry or whatever. But wow does it make a world of difference in my attitude.

I'm thankful for faith. For hope. For marriage.

Seriously, how cool is marriage?! A relationship of, among so many other things, balance. Give and take, push and pull, support and lean. I am so thankful to be on the teeter-totter with Bret.

And I'm also very thankful that I can listen to prophets speak in just two days. And for the technology that allows me to listen in the comfort of my home with my loud boys:)

Life is good.

Life is hard.

But life is really, really good:)

What are you thankful for today?

P.S. There was a moment this afternoon. Al came up to me and said, "Mommy, I need to sit with someone. Can I sit with you?" Without looking at him or breaking stride in my current task I said, "Just let me finish this and I'll sit with you." Al looks up with sad eyes and says, "But Moooooom...why?" (yes it was whiny, but can you blame the kid?) I looked back at him and thought, "Ummm, well...I don't have a good answer for that."

So I picked him up and we sat for a while and I relished his warmth and thought how lucky I am to have this stage of life and that my boys still like to sit with me.

And to think, I almost missed the moment! Learn from me- slow down and sit with your kids:)

Get excited

No really- get excited.

The next two weekends are going to be awesome!

We've got a set of countdown blocks in our kitchen. It's currently set to five days.

FIVE days until General Conference!

We are crazy excited. Yes, even the boys.

I mean, how many people around the world can say that they've listened to a prophet?




General Conference is a fantastic weekend of amazing messages and reminders, family gatherings, food, and oodles of teaching moments for all involved.

Yes. We are VERY excited!

And as soon as Conference is over we switch our countdown to a mere six days for the next weekend.

And what happens next weekend?

Why, it's only the best holiday of the year when we mark the resurrection of the Savior.

Easter!!!!

"Death is conquered, man is free- Christ has won the victory!"

And after Easter we switch the countdown to mark the impending arrival of my oldest's birthday.

It sure is a wonderful time of year:)

And then it was Friday

Yesterday was monumental.

Well...in word.

In every other way it was a normal day.

'round these here parts, we like to celebrate monthiversaries.

Usually they roll past with one of us thinking, "oh hey, happy monthiversary!"

Sometimes we'll actually remember to say it to each other:)

But this month?

This month we have been married for 100 months.

That's right- our one hundredth monthiversary!

Seeing as we'll never live to our 100th anniversary, I thought the day should be marked.

So, I hung up some spring-colored streamers and a flag banner.

Though we were unable to celebrate beyond that, it added a celebratory feel to an otherwise normal day.

And it was fun to see the look on Bret's surprised and happy face when he walked in the door:)

I am thankful for my husband and for the 100 months we have been husband and wife.

I am looking forward to the next hundred, and eternity after that!

What are you thankful for today?

Thankful Thursday

For a few years I've really been working on gratitude and maintaining a relationship with God always so I'm not just feeling close to him when times are hard, as has been my habit in the past.

And I feel like I'm doing a pretty good job (oh come on, let me brag about one of the few things I feel like I've got a handle on in life!;)).

And yet...what is it about struggle? No matter how tight I feel with God, I can't seem to feel as close to and dependent on him when life is great as I do when I'm struggling through something.

My family and I have been riding high for a few weeks.

Lingering questions and issues were drowned out as we've been enjoying life to the limit lately.

We spent a fantastic week together on a magical vacation. I loved it! All through planning for it, before we left, while we were gone, and when we got back, I thanked Heavenly Father for the flood of blessings making it possible for us to go, for the flood of blessings while we were gone, and for the fantastic memories we have now.

I felt very close to God.

Then, on the day we were coming home, we got word that our brand new niece was in the NICU. Over the next few days we waited for test results and updates, fasted, and prayed. She's probably going to go home just fine in a few more days:)

There's a few other struggles coming to head again, but as they involve my husband's employment I'm not going to put it on the internet.

Any guesses where I'm going with this?

Weeks of riding high and feeling close to God. A few days of rough waters and feeling even closer to God.

Seriously, what is it about struggling that makes it possible to be so much closer to God?

I'm thankful that I feel like my relationship with God is almost always awesome. And I am thankful for the results of working through trials and that that relationship gets even tighter because of them.

What are you thankful for today?

Sabbatical?

All's been quiet on the blog-front for one day shy of a month. Wow!

I tried writing here. I really did. I have four drafts at the top of my post lists; obviously, I never finished them.

I've not enjoyed blogging for a while. I've lost the desire to read them, too. There's still about three favorites that I'll check out, but for the most part my desire to read is dead. Since my second pregnancy, reading takes a great deal of concentration in order to fully comprehend the words. I just don't have the heart to put that concentration into it lately.

Perhaps it will come back one day. But for now...meh, I really wouldn't care if it doesn't.

Anyway, here's a new post from me:

I've been feeling that I need to drastically simplify my life. For a long time, I dismissed the thought as ridiculous. I mean, come on- what's to simplify?!?

90% of my day to day scheduling is on my own terms. No worrying about scheduling conflicts, deadlines, getting up and going to bed at strict times. We want to do something- we do it; we don't- we don't. Very simple.

Church obligations are the same way. I have a calling (oh yeah! I got released from Nursery a couple weeks ago. It really didn't kill me to be in there for a couple years;)) that is wide open for me to set up however I feel directed to. Only one scheduled thing that I need to worry about a few times a year. Siiiiimple.

Every aspect of my life seems simple, simple, simple. In fact, I often worry that I look like a clueless simpleton to the rest of the world (anyone out there an Austen fan?:)).

So why do I keep feeling the need to simplify?

Obviously because I must. And so I will. The only ways I know how until I get some more direction.

I'll start spring cleaning and take trunkfuls of excess stuff to Goodwill. And I'll stop trying to get my tasks done as quickly as possible so I'm more open to "interruptions" from the ones who need me most.

Here I go. Wish me luck:)