The anticipation of GOOD Friday

This Friday is Good Friday--
I am ready to declare it GREAT Friday.
I am ready for a break.
I am ready for a day to play
I only wish i didn't have to work tomorrow...
I am sick and tired of it.
The worst part of working in the morning is that it is going to start even earlier than usual.
Some knuckle head at work decided to add another student to this route i am driving
and i have to pick her up at 5:45 am
--which means i need to be at work even earlier.....
way to early if you ask me.
The only redeeming grace is that the sun is coming up earlier and earlier,
so getting up isn't quite as bad--but it still sucks.

This has been a tough week around our house--
more disappointments
and then van issues on top of it.
I think it is safe to say that both my hubby and i are emotionally exhausted.
We are both ready to get away...
even our little trip that we planned was almost derailed by a need for a expensive new transmission that was not going to be done in time for us to use our van,
thank goodness for a grandma with a van, and her willingness to let us borrow it--
that way we can still get away...
Even if it will only be for a day

how much sleep is too much?

Today i woke up and felt like I had been ran over by a Mac Truck.I have been battling a sore throat and runny nose the last few days, and in my mind was the debate,
Allergies, Cold, Flu or just plain tired?--
I am not sure if it was not a bit of all of them.
After i decided that i was not up to going to church,
i crawled back into bed and slept...
and slept....
and slept!
Does sleeping for 8 extra hours constitute a NAP or a new day?
I slept the day away with only a few minutes of alertness to get something to drink and snack on and then i was back to bed.
I did awake feeling better, but still not up to par.

I remember as a young child
my mom wanting me to take a nap.
I remember fighting her over it,
explaining to her that naps were for "babies",
and i was not a baby and therefore did not need a nap.
She then went on to tell me that daddy was taking a nap--
what could i say to that?
My young brain could not find any logic as to why my father would be taking a nap.Being an adult now i understand the attraction of finding a few hours rest in the middle of the day.

With all the sleep i got today,
The real question is if i will be able to sleep tonight/
My sleep has been so messed up this past week--
there were nights when i got plenty of asleep only to awake and  feel so tired that i would come home from work in the morning and go back to sleep till i had to go back in the afternoon. Then there was the night where i couldn't sleep and stayed up till 3:30am and only go TWO hours sleep and went on to work the entire day and was FINE?!
So i sit and wonder what tonight is going to bring me--
one of restful sleep or....?

public service announcement--marshmallow mush

Can i just say
sometimes it is the small and simple things
that make me happy?!

I found these little bit of yumminess at the dollar store the other day.

In true Goldilocks fashion,

they are bigger than a miniature marshmallow,

but smaller than a full size--

they are the momma bear marshmallow--

Just right for this momma.

And to boot, they are tasty with different flavors-- not your boring bland white marshmallow. Not that i don't like plain marshmallows-- I just like them dried out. Some might even refer to them as stale?. Is it strange that i like dried out, plain white mallows? There is just something about the crunch that i find appealing. In fact i have been known to leave the bag open in hopes that they will dry out-- unfortunately they usually don't last that long...

So what do Marshmallows and public service announcements have to do with this blog? This blog is about many things, but the last thing i want this to turn into is a blog about the weather. Currently we are riding the weather roller coaster-one day we are having unusually HOT weather and then one week later we have dropped over 40 degrees and it is raining, and dare i say COLD?.
It is hard to know how to dress-

the question is: bikini or thermals?

(EWWEEE--what a mental picture-- the bikini it out of the question).

 So, really the question is:

--expose the pastey white (marshmallow like) legs

or leave them covered?

 There are things you take for granted when the weather is cool. Things people never have to think about unless you live in the toasty warm state of AZ.--Phoenix specifically. The things i am talking about are the things you can"t leave in the car even for a few hours.



Growing up (when life was much safer) my mom would run errands with us kids (not by our choice or hers). Often, if it was a quick errand (quick is a relative term when you are a kid) she would leave us in the car--usually with the windows up and when it finally would get warm (again relative term when living in CO) with the windows down. She didn't worry about us being taken (no one would want the whole brood--we were too onerie) The only thing that she worried about was whether or not we'd kill one another while she was gone. Now this is NOT something i recommend these days, but i can understand why it was so appealing--and lets face it, we lived on the wild side. We ran around the neighborhood (without cell phones) and my mom's only requirement was that we were home by dark. But this blog entry is not about my carefree safe childhood--it is about leaving things in the car.

Here in AZ,in the summer, even a few minutes in the car can leave you breaking out in a full sweat (and that is with the AC on). Once years ago, I was taking a sleeping child into a friends house and left my keys sitting in the car. My older children shut the door and the automatic door lock--LOCKED. It wouldn't have been such a problem--you can always get a spare key (only i was 20 minutes from my house)--but for the fact that when they locked the door, they locked my baby in as well. There he sat, in his car seat--smiling through the window at me. 

(dang he was a cute little bugger)

It was high noon in the middle of the summer and I knew the temperature in the car was going to increase real quick. We tried breaking a window to no avail and quickly gave up and called the fire department. They did manage to get him out and declared him FINE (i am still left wondering about his humor and wonder if his brain didn't get a bit baked)--he was a tad red, but really no worse for the wear. On occasion I hear about parents leaving a kid in the car by mistake and I think of that day--things would have turned out much different if i hadn't realized he was in there. It makes me sad to think about that kind of loss--but i do understand how those accidents can happen.

Once again today i am reminded just how warm it can get in the car.
Let me preface this by saying that it hasn't really been HOT this week--
the weather has been
BE-UTE-I-FUL

--lest i say almost PERFECT these last few days.

So nice in fact, that i was able to open the windows in my bus and read and nap without melting. So with all this perfect weather i never gave a second thought about it being TOO HOT in my car --that was until i went to grab something out of my backseat and saw this.

Apparently while i thought the weather was perfect,

it was a just a tad warmer than i thought in my car--

warm enough to melt the DNA of the marshmallows bunnies into each other

I had just bought these yesterday.

Unfortunetly, I don't think there will be any recovering from this though.
Just one big ooeey gooey mess.

Other things i have learned over the years not to leave in the car when it gets hot--

• Deodorant--yes it melts as well, but it does leave the car smelling, ohh so fresh and clean.
• Candles--do i really need to explain? Again, good smell but often the wick goes MIA
• Glue sticks--hot glue--glue glue--they ALL melt! It is NOT pretty, and leaves quite the MESS, because it is glue! And when glue cools off, it glues everything back together--even things you didn't want glued--like the bag it was in.
• Magazines and Books--again back to that glue thing. This time it manages to UN-glue the bindings and you end up with lots of pages loose
• Crayons--creates a waxy mess--not so good on the carpet or upholstery
• Bottles of Milk--now it has been a long time since i have found one of these hidden gems in my car but i can still remember the curdled solid mass it was. Often that bottle would get tossed before i would dare to open it
• Chapstick--ends up in the cap--or melted sideways
• Soda in cans--when it gets hot enough it will EXPLODE. Yes, i am afraid to say that it has happened...MORE than once over the years(you think i would have learned)

 Now i feel i can add to this list...

• MARSHMALLOWS

I am sure there are more things that i have overlooked--

they will have to be added to the list at a later date.

I know the heat is coming--

my melted marshmallows
only served as a reminder of that fact.
In true Hill Street Blues fashion I will say:

"Let's be safe out there people"
Time to make sure everything gets brought in from the car, lest we have any more "accidents"



POINGO and Sunday with the BOYS

Ah Sunday--a day of rest. Usually you can find me taking full advantage of the rest part... buried under the blankets in my bedroom enjoy an afternoon nap. I guess with the day off yesterday, that eliminated my need for a nap. Instead i spent the afternoon hanging out with my boys upstairs, while my girls were buried under blankets, taking naps in their room. Maybe that has something to do with fact that girls(for the most part)could care less about Sunday sports. I really didn't care who was playing or even won the US Open (at least i think that was the golf tournament) The men on the other hand acted as if they had a vested interest. Little man has had these Poingo books. He LOVES them. Months ago his little poingo stick quit working. If you know our little man he does not give up when he wants something-- needless to say that the inoperable poingo stick was a large source of consternation for US as well as him. He just could not understand WHY it was not working. I called the company and they sent us a new one--problem was it was the NEW one. As in: they redesigned the toy and the new one would not work on our old books. Well now that was no good. In fact the new one had a major flaw in my mind--it had these things that you had to plug into the stick in order to make it work. If that was how it had been when i originally gotten the books i would have NEVER bought it. Who needs parts to lose? Never mind the fact that each time you change books you have to change cards--which means we as the adults would be in charge of that. The old one was much easier and user friendly--he didn't have to plug anything in and the only thing he would lose would be the books or the stick itself. I called the company and to see if i could get the old version of the stick sent to me. NOPE! They no longer make it? Well i did proceed to tell them what i thought of their new design and explained as a parent the major flaw. Was there anywhere i could get one of these sticks??? Again i was told that they no longer manufacture them and have NONE in their warehouse--SIGH--what is a mom to do? Well as i was talking to the Poingo man i had googled Poingo on my computer, and low and behold there was a site that was selling this little golden stick. I NEVER buy anything off the computer--but this was dropped into my lap. Not only did they have the original poingo they also had some other books for CHEAP. I could not resist...I knew how happy it would make my little man . And HAPPY he is! This little boy has been playing with these for the last two day It has kept him busy for most of the day. While i was taking pictures of little man and his books, i took the opportunity to aim my camera at the rest of the people in the room. Ever feel like everyone is against you? once they figured out that i had a camera in hand they quickly buried their faces even the dog who had been resting her head on a pillow lifted it up and turned away and then she gave me a yawn to show how bored she was with the whole process even my husband got in on the obnoxious picture face--

the finger on the nose was just for the camera here he is with the glazed over golf look and here is the whole reason the camera was in the room to begin with.

My husband wanted a picture of the three boys hanging out together I know it won't always be like this.

I wish i had gotten a picture of the two older boys sleeping on the couch together...

so sweet...reminded of me of when they were little--

somedays i wish we could go back...

like when they actually liked getting their picture taken

Rain brings out the procrastination in me

I have today OFF!!
I can't even begin to tell you how happy/content that is making me.
Knowing i could sleep in...
and wouldnt'cha ya know it,
I was awake at 7am.?
So much for REALLY sleeping in--
but i did stay in bed...
and that my friends,
is thee BEST!

I have been abandoned by the entire family.
I am home ALONE--
peace, quiet and tranquility.
{{{AHHHH}}}

I should sorta feel guilty cuz i sent the older boys with little man to attend an Easter egg hunt at church. Sometimes i LOVE having extra drivers and being able to pawn off unwanted tasks. I am trying to feel guilty-- but it is not working.

Instead i am watching the rain fall outside,
listening to it with my window open,
and I am feeling grateful for the fact
that i am curled up under a blanket.
Warm and toasty... (
was it only a week ago we were having a record high of 100 degrees,
and now we are having a record low for a high?)

I am telling myself that the boys are bonding--
and they are probably sharing the candy in the eggs--
we all know i don't need the candy--it is better that they are there to share.
Afterall we know that boys never outgrow easter egg huntsas documented here.

I should get up and be motivated,
but i recently read this article on Procrastination...
I didn't actually finish the article,
but the part i read said it can't be helped,
that we are wired that way.

So many things to do today.
I guess i need/should make a list of priorities.
Where to start?
Maybe i will just sit here a few more minutes
and debate that eternal question.
Just me and the dog hanging out.....

So the hubby and I and the son we are preparing to send on a mission, are each working on reading the Book of Mormon by June 1st. We thought we would have each family member do it, but we have some less than willing participants --AHHH--free agency. Don't ya just love it sometimes? I realize that June is just around the corner-- why is it so hard to motivate myself to sit down and read-- I mean, I just finished a trilogy of books in less than three weeks?. My sweet hubby found a website that breaks down the reading into bite size pieces. You put in the date you want to finish and it sends you an e-mail each day with your reading task--
I think i can do it.
No.
I take it back--
I WILL do it.
I just need to quit procrasinating...

Any task in life is easier
if we approach it with the one at a time attitude. ...
To cite a whimsical saying;
'If you chase two rabbits, both of them will escape.'
No one is adequate to do everything all at once.
We have to select what is important,
what is possible,
and begin where we are,
with what we have.
And if we begin
and if we keep going the weight,
the worry,
the doubt,
the depression will begin to lift ....

We can't do everything always,
but we can do something now,
and doing something
will help to lift the weight and lessen the worry,

'The beginning,' said Plato, 'is the most important part.'
--Richard L. Evans, Thoughts for One Hundred Days
i am off to catch one rabbit at a time--
even if i bite off more than i can chew--
if i concentrate on chewing it one bite at a time,
eventually i will be able to swallow--
here is to not choking on my list!

Mostly dead

I wrote earlier about my poor plants.
It didn't seem like it was an overly cold winter but all it takes is a few chilly days in a row to play havoc on the landscape plants. My plants have always seemed to make it through, but this year was far worse than ever before. My hubby cut everything back once it started to warm up. I was hoping that they would perk up....but up to now I hadn't seen much to give me hope. I walked over the other day to get a closer look. I figured if they were really dead i would rip them out of the ground. Upon closer inspection i saw this

close to the ground there were some signs of new life.
I was thrilled that i was not going to have to take them out.
There was hope....
As i was thinking about them being "mostly dead" it reminded me of a scene in the "Princess Bride" (one of my all time favorite movies)

Miracle Max: [Lifts and drops the arm of the dead Westley] I've seen worse.

Inigo Montoya: He's dead. He can't talk.

Miracle Max: Whoo-hoo-hoo, look who knows so much.
It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead.
There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead.
Mostly dead is slightly alive.
With all dead, well,
with all dead there's usually only one thing you can do.

I love that--sometimes we are so ready to rush to a conclusion about things that we fail to give it the proper time needed for the miracle to happen.
Not just my plants but in my life as well.
We want the instant results.
We lack the patience needed to allow the miracles to take place.

Miracle Max went on to say this:
You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles.

I couldn't agree more.
Once again the earth is teaching me a lesson
"Be patient and things will slowly return to normal"

Recieving inspiration in my jammies

Can I just say I LOVED today?
I sorta feel like i played hookie--
only without any guilt attached to it.
Twice a year we get a free pass to stay home and watch church on TV. I think it should be more of a quarterly thing-- but twice a year is good.
Conference is a blessing--
the talks were inspired
and i can hardly wait to read them again--
there were things said that i know i need to apply to my life.
Things i need to work on--
things i needed to hear and be reminded of.
It was awesome.!

The best part of staying home and watching Conference/church on TV is that I spent the ENTIRE day in my jammies--
Everyone was home today--ALL DAY.
I had all the kids surrounding me.
I loved watching them play with Lego's,
each other and just hanging out.
I loved taking a time out-- not having to run different ways.
Sorta felt like Christmas--
My oldest son and i talked about when the next time conference came in October he would more than likely be in the mission field--no staying in pajama's for him then. Just reminds me of how these moments are fleeting--

Not an April Fools joke

Today the most cruel of April Fools joke was played on us in Phoenix.The weather man had been telling us for days to expect a unusual high of 98 degrees. We thought for sure it had to be an April Fools joke... Unfortunately it was NOT.! In a cruel weather dichotomy, we were blessed with 100 degrees of HEAT, while those in the northeast were being blessed with... another snowstorm.

(this picture is actually was taken outside of Flagstaff-- but it just goes to show that if i want snow, i only need to drive a few hours) Although I am grateful for the fact that I do not have to shovel sunshine, I felt that 100 degrees on April 1st, was not called for. Sometimes (well more often than naught) I forget that while we live in a warm sunshiny state, other places are still freezing. Today, while i am pulling out my shorts to expose my winter-y, pasty white legs,

those living in the cold are wrapping up as to not expose any skin-- lest it be frozen off.

I can hardly wrap my mind around the fact that while we are having record highs, others are out shoveling snow. I feel guilty wishing that our cooler weather would return--I am not ready for the heat to take over my life. I have enjoyed dressing in layers. I have liked wearing jeans, and socks and tennis shoes. I hate these weird weather days--cool when you get up, and you dress for that only to be TOO warm just a few hours later. Don't get me wrong i love being WARM--just not HOT. I love the sunshine, but not the: burn your skin off, and melt your remains HEAT, that comes with the sun in the summer. I have enjoyed our cooler weather-- WHY MUST IT END???

I know like everything else this too shall end. Just like my life, everything goes in cycles, and if we had perfect weather all the time, what would we have to complain about? I know it will get cooler again before the blaring un-ending summer heat hits us. I guess I am just not ready to be reminded of what is coming around the corner.{{{SIGH}}} Just one more thing i have no control over in my life--but that's OK. I don't want to be a weather god, or mother nature--far too much responsibility--just can not please everyone all the time. Sometimes you can't help but have your parade rained on

Sometimes weather makes for an interesting afternoon

and clouds make for beautiful sunsets

and who doesn't want to be reminded that Rainbows do come out.

To remind us of the HOPE that the lord gives us.

So heat do your best to beat me up and wear me out. I know it will only be a matter of months before it will be cool again and in the meantime while i wait for those wonderful days to come... I will be working on my farmers tan.