Please say there's a "N"!!!

I just couldn't resist this one . . .

I asked Jacob to give Courtney her spelling words on the way to school this morning (they are both 11 years old). I'm quietly listening up in the front seat as Jacob is going through the words and Courtney is spelling.

Jacob then says, "orgasim". Courtney spells, "O.R.G.A.S.I.M" I say, "WHAT?!?!?" (you can only imagine what is running through my head right now about what kind of material my daughter is being taught in school!!).

Well, Jacob had forgotten the "N" (thanks heavens!). He then said, "Oh, sorry Courtney, it's 'organism' ". Whew!

Courtney then spelled the word correct.

Wants

I want new clothes - you know, the stylish ones that look really cute. I want a thinner body (what woman doesn't?). I want lots of really cool jewlery. I want a hot little 2-door Mercedes to buzz around in. I want a massive quantity of money in my checking account. I want, I want, I want.

Funny, we all have "wants". What's ironic is that we are ALL in a time now where the wants have to go on hold and we focus on the "needs". I'm so okay with this and I feel that I am doing so well on refraining from spending "real" money (I have my little check register that I deposit magical money in and spend it on lots of wants. It's fun!). I haven't seen the inside of a Target for about three weeks now. Amazing!!!

Last night my son, Brian, was fuming and storming around our home pissed off because our internet was down (again). There was nothing I could do about the situation so I just let him be pissed off. He then spouted off by saying, "This sucks that we have to live way the hell out here. I wish we lived in town so that I could just go hang out with my friends. This place sucks. There is nothing to do. I'm so bored. I hate it here!" Mind you, Brian is 18 years old and DOES NOT have to stay here! The way I see it, it's his choice!

Fast forward to this morning. The charming little boy woke up just as foul as he went to bed. He was all angry because there was no gas in his truck (he gets two fill ups a week and isn't due for another fill up till tomorrow). I just calmly said, "What do you want me to do about it, Brian?" He screamed out of our home, slamming doors and burned rubber all down the driveway in a fit of rage (in OUR truck). Mind boggling. He then informed me on the phone, "I'm just going to move out. I've had it with all of this crap!" Cool.

My point is this. What the heck?!?!? This kid has no idea what he's got! He's got a home, a vehicle, gas, clothes, food etc. etc. etc. All because his last name is "Weltz"! He has no idea what it is to want! Nothing will bring me more joy than to watch this child transform the way I have watched his sisters do when they move out. This one is going to be a real treat to watch.

It seems to me that this will be worth trading in a lot of wants to witness this little goodie. Bring it on, baby! Oh, and please can I have some popcorn while I'm enjoying the show? (Would that be a "want" or a "need"?)

Capitulate

The meaning of this word is: to surrender on certain terms or conditions.

I didn't know this until this morning. I was in the shower and my husband and I were having a conversation about whatever and he used this word. Now, my husband has been one, in my opinion, to always be using words out of context. I was his secretary for years and was constantly rewording his letters so that they would make sense to the recipient (I wanted my boss to look good!).

At any rate, I really thought my husband said something else and I was really getting kind of pissed off (because I asked him to repeat the word three times - say it out loud and you will know where I'm going with this). When I finally got that he was saying "capitualte" and not something else, I asked him what he thought that word meant. Surprise, surprise, surprise! He was spot on (I looked it up).

Capitualte is my word of the day. Perfect for a yogi! I will capitulate in my practice today and allow my body to experience a deeper and more fulfilling practice. I will capitulate more in conversation with my teenagers (hmmm, what might that result in?). I will capitulate more in traffic.

I think this new word can be a super buzz word for all. What if EVERYBODY learned to captiulate more??

Skip vs. Facebook

The other day as I was on Facebook doing my "thing" I couldn't help but notice that my dear husband was standing over my shoulder and watching everything that was going on on my screen. He was wondering out loud if we would be able to look up some old friends of his from his school years and add them to my "friends" list so he could see how they were fairing life. At first I was annoyed by this action but then I had an epiphany!

What if I set up a Facebook for him? How hard could that be? Well I knew the set up would be easy but then would he be able to navigate the thing? After all, we ARE talking about my husband who types by the "hunt and peck" method.

Well, we set him up and I couldn't believe my eyes! He was up and running in record time. He had already scored 45 friends by the end of his first 24 hours on the thing! He was telling me all this random stuff about people I have never even heard of! I've been married to the guy for like 22 years or something and I had no clue what the heck he was talking about.

I've decided that I've created a monster! Every time I go back to the office he's on that blasted computer laughing and pecking at the keys. He's off in another world (I'm grateful, however, that he did decide to state that he's in a relationship with me).

So there we have it. Things aren't always as they appear and we never really know where our paths will take us. I'm just grateful that the paths my husband have both traveled on have always seemed to bring us closer together. Go Facebook!

Grateful

Tonight Skip and I were getting ready to go to our Saturday evening stake conference session. I was dragging my feet all afternoon/evening about wanting to go but finally let him talk me into it. You see, lately I've been kind of neutral about church and it's been a chore to get me moving in that direction. Whatever.

After I was dressed I decided that I wanted to accessorize my outfit. I went into my jewlery drawer and had decided that I wanted to wear my grandmother's wedding ring. I opened the case and . . . IT WAS GONE!!! I started to hyper ventilate and, of course, cry. I then opened another case where my tanzanite ring that Skip had bought me in the Carribean was and THAT was gone! I was mortified! Someone had stolen my jewlery. Skip, knowing his wife, suggested that maybe I had misplaced it. I assured him that I KNOW they were in these boxes and THEY WERE GONE!!

I tearfully left with my husband and headed to stake conference. I has having a lot of trouble focusing on the speaker but was, instead, pondering something that Danielle of all people had just said to me while we were texting en route to the church. She told me to pray. Hmmm. What a concept. Decided to give it a try.

Robbie called and I excused myself from conference to take the call. He had held a "family conference" in our absence and had pursuaded everyone to go to their rooms and anomysly put anything they had that belonged to mom out on the kitchen counter. Long story longer, a member of my family had put a few things out there. Robbie then pressed this young person and they had produced a whole bag of my stuff (including the two rings) that they had thrown in the garbage in panic mode when I was "losing" it tonight.

So there it is. Robbie is my hero and I am soooo grateful to have those rings back (especially my grandma's ring). It just goes to show you - when you stand in holy places and put your trust in the Lord, he will never let you down. (No, Brandilyn, this lesson did not get wasted on me, thank you very much).

That BOY!!!!!!

I know, two blogs in one day. Oh well! I couldn't help it.

Robbie got home from school today and was seriously ticked off about something. He threw down his backpack and books and proclaimed, "I'm going to go ride my dirt bike and blow off some steam, homework can wait until it's dark!" He then stormed out the door.

I knew better than to reason with this kind of logic. But I also knew that this would be a wonderful opportunity to capture some photos of aggressive riding - the kind of photography that makes me giddy. Of course, it wouldn't be a complete event without a good crash. The kid didn't let me down. He wiped out and quipped, "Besides my arm and my knee, I'm just fine", as he jumped back on his bike and rode off.

Gotta love it! THAT bike and THAT boy are going to be the bane of my existence!!!

Stay at Home Mom

Today is my first official day as a stay-at-home-mom. I have had a simply fantastic day and am excited for more fantastic days like today. I started dinner, jammed on the laundry pile, called and got some random charges reversed off my VIsa (believe it or not, this is a biggie) and spent a minute bonding with my beloved equine babies. Yes, this has been one of the best days of my life.

Some might argue that I have "always" been a stay-at-home-mom. NOT!!!! You see, we moved out here in the hills 12 years ago. Since then, I have been a slave to my children in school. I have been paralyzed because it simply doesn't make sense (economically or time-wise) to come all the way home and then leave in 2-3 hours to head back to town to pick up my children. I have simply not been able to be in my home. I have been a master at finding random things to do in town (unfortunately, they usually cost money).

Enter Brian. Yes, Brian. Brian has a dilema and Mom has a dilema. You've read about mine. Brian's is this. Brian wants $$$ and gas. Jobs aren't that plentiful and he's really become discouraged about the whole job search. I had a brilliant plan. Brian does my afternoon pickups, I pay a set amount per day plus an extra tank of gas for the week. Bada bing, bada bang! We are both happy as can be! Where do these brilliant ideas of mine come from?

So, yeah, I have a life! I ate lunch outside in the beautiful sunshine (sorry Idaho) and enjoyed every blissful moment. My loyal canines kept me company (actually just hoping beyond hope that I would chuck a morsel their way) and I got to meditate in the quiet. I think I have died and gone to heaven.

My family benefits too! They get a REAL dinner tonight. Imagine that!!!

If You Love 'em, Tell 'em

I flew out to help Brandilyn and Dave move to their new apartment. It was actually more of an excuse to see my gorgeous daughter and her awesome husband than anything else. Turns out that I think I was actually useful - something all of us parents need to feel in order to keep ourselves going, I guess.

What impressed me, amongst lots of other things about Dave and Brandilyn, was how many little love notes there were just randomly lying around their apartment to each other. I didn't really read them because, frankly, it is just none of my business. I strive to stay out of their marriage because I don't belong there. But I couldn't help but notice the thoughtfulness, nonetheless.

It definitely makes me want to go home and look for ways to be more thoughtful for the ones that live with me. Like maybe just listen more and take time to leave notes on napkins in their lunches or, I don't know, just say "I love you" more and mean it?

I am grateful to Brandilyn and Dave for this little reminder and I hope that they will always strive to keep their love alive and well. I am also grateful for Terri and all that she was able to share and give to me while she was still walking through this mortal experience. I have beautiful examples to follow.

Many years ago my dearest friend, Terri Watterson, gave a homemaking lesson on random acts of kindness to the ones we love. It was entitled, "If you love 'em, tell 'em." She shared with us that we should do just as my daughter and her hubby do. Just take a minute and do little nice things for each other.

Gail

My sister, Gail, and I haven’t always been close. I was the oldest and she was the youngest in our family as we were growing up. I picked on her a lot because I could. It was my right, after all, as the oldest sibling in the family!!! I was the one that seemed to be always getting into trouble. I did, however, have a partner in crime. My brother. I was his mentor in the trouble department and I trained him well. So well, in fact, that he exceeded my expectations in this area. I was a proud sister. But that is a different story.

As we have journeyed through adulthood, my sister and I have grown closer than ever. We have discovered that we have very similar personalities (which would explain why we clashed as kids). Of course, our dad has the same disposition that we do. We are a laid back group. Our other sister, brother and mom are a little more intense. We love them, nonetheless.
As it turns out, turn about is fair play. My sister and I talk on the phone at least 3 times a week. I look forward to our conversations and even get excited when I see her number on my caller I.D. So, we talked a couple of days ago and were discussing our individual businesses. She told me of how she attended a business class and was instructed to write a mission statement and an elevator speech for her business. She then challenged me to do the same. Ugh!
Today as I was traveling I decided to do my “assignment.” It’s amazing! I feel more confident and optimistic about my little business. I feel as if I finally have clarity and a direction. This is the most empowered I have felt in a long time.
Okay, I’ll say it. My sister knew best. And, yes, I love you, Gail. You are my sister AND my BFF!

Courtney

She came into my life 4-1/2 years ago, 6 years old. She was a little sunshiney, sweet girl and I was happy to accept her into our family. She has grown on me and I now think of her as "my daughter." And why shouldn't I? My husband and I adopted her AND her twin brother, Jacob.

Life didn't really give her a fair shake at first. She had a tough start and ended up in the foster care system which is not the easiest life. She faired pretty well, we thought. What amazed me was that she had been handed a raw deal and seemed to be a sweet girl in spite of it.

I'm not going to say that we haven't had bad days with Courtney, because we have. She has done her fair share of "naughties" and has had to be disciplined. She happens to be pretty lazy by nature and that just really rattles my cage. Anyone who knows me knows that I am anything but lazy!

The other day we were hiking up in the hills, her and I. We came across a beautful meadow with some huge rocks at the edge of it. It was a sunny day and she went running across the meadow with the wind blowing her pretty blonde wavy hair and yelling, "Mommy, look! Over there are some rocks. Let's go see if the Indians left holes in them!" It was a vision right out of a "Sound of Music" movie. I will not ever get that memory out of my head.

So now we have today. She is struggling with something. I don't know what it is but there are some changes that we are having trouble dealing with. Our sweet little innocent girl is reaching puberty and now the darkness from the past is here to greet her again. I know she will get through this. We are seeking outside help to ensure that she does get through this.

I am left here wondering how is it possible that people are allowed to hurt children in this way? Why is that even something that we have to deal with in our world? I have a lot of anger toward the individual/s that have done this to our child and I know that I need to let it go. I need to allow God to handle this in HIS way - justice is HIS job, not mine. My job is to love her through the storms in her little life and love her I will.

So tonight as I say my prayers, I will thank Heavenly Father for the opportunity to be able to make a difference in these two little lives that have been sent to join our family. I will also ask for the strength and wisdom to help my children weather the storms in life and grow up to be the awesome individuals that they are all capable of being.

After all . . . I am their mother!

BISCUITS!!

My husband just walked into my office and asked if we had any of those Pillsbury canned biscuits in the refrigerator. Um, no we are on a "BUDGET"! Remember??? Luxuries like canned biscuits are a thing of the PAST!!! I actuallyy felt kind of bad for him. He looked like a little kid that just had his candy taken away from him. He looked crushed!

So, being the awesome wife that I am, I suggested that I make biscuits myself. He said, "How you going to do that?" Is this a reflection on my lack of enthusiasm in the kitchen or what?

I said, "I can just make them from stuff we have in the pantry."

He replied, "You mean, from scratch? You know how to do that?"

Oh, my mother would be mortified if she were in the same room as we were just now. She would say something like, "Jody! Of course you know how to cook. You are a damn good cook. You mean to tell me that you haven't been preparing great food for your family?" Well, we aren't going to let her in on this little escapade of mine, now are we!?!?

I am now heading into the kitchen to show my family that, yes indeed, I am capable of being on a budget and making food that is palatable from our food storage. I guess this means that the secret is now out. It isn't that I CAN'T cook - I just HATE it. I hate cooking. That is all there is to it!

Damn! This budget thing is killing me!

Remaining Christlike

Today at church I had the opportunity to visit with a friend of mine that I haven't been able to see for quite awhile. I was so excited to see her and she always acts as though seeing me is one of the brightest spots in her life. I'm sure she does that to all of her friends.

We spent most of the second two hours of church talking. Probably not what I'm supposed to be doing but, friends, I can tell you I got more out of our interaction than I would have out of paying attention to the lessons that were presented. This dear friend of mine has been through the wringer. Not a bit of exaggeration here.

I asked her what's been going on in her life and she opened up to me quite frankly. She told me things that I know she hasn't shared with many. Things that would have destroyed some of the strongest of us and here she was just pushing on. Not only did she share these trials with me, but there was no hint of self-pity or longing for sympathy. As she was telling me about what's going on in her life, she made a point to tell me that her marriage was strong and she was GRATEFUL for her wonderful husband and the many good things in her life. Talk about seeing a very dry glass as half full!!! I was utterly amazed.

During the course of our conversation she made a point to, get this one, tell me that she's been thinking about me and worrying that things might not be okay with me. Let me clarify. She's concerned that the yogic world might be affecting my spirituality. I was floored! Why would someone who has more than their fair share on their plate be concerned about my spiritual health? What's even more amazing is that we haven't interacted in quite awhile so she would have NO way of knowing what's up with me - emotionally, spiritually or physically! I told her she was dead on but not to worry, I was going to be okay. My daughter has made it her mission to see to that! We both laughed.

Driving home from church, I was touched at how Christlike she was/is. Christ had so many personal challenges, yet he always showed and had love and compassion for everyone. I was humbled. It all goes back to what we have all been taught from day one. When you lose yourself in service and compassion for others, your burden is made to seem light. This lesson that I received at church today has touched my heart and I would gladly give up any organized lesson at church to receive this kind of wisdom.

Thank you, my dear friend. You are an example to me and I will strive to be more like you - more Christlike.

Party On!

It's funny how the things in life we seem to dread often turn out to be really enjoyable. Now, I'm sure there are things we dread in life where there is just no way they will turn out to be a good deal regardless of how you view them such as going to the gynocologist, dentist or disciplining a teenager. Today was one of those days where we had the twins' birthday party scheduled at the roller skating rink. I was dreading it. I hate all the chaos that goes along with kid's parties and just feel like I'm being drug to the gallows when I have to go. No exceptions.

So it is times like this where I'm looking back on the event and realize that, yes, I actually had a decent time. I was able to visit with my friend, Meredith, quite a bit. I even held her baby, Elsa, pretty much the whole time. Anyone who knows me knows how I SO don't do babies. This baby is special, for some reason. I really like this little girl. Of course, while I was holding her baby, Meredith was the party mom. She was in there giving directions to the children and snapping photos. It was great.

There was also another mom that I got to visit with that turned out to be a pleasant surprise. I visited with Noah's mom, Jen. She, too, has a child in the SDC with Jacob. We chatted about the challenges of having a special needs child and she mentioned that is wonderful to interact with someone else who is fighting the same battle. I agreed.

Often people just don't get it. They have "pity" for those of us with special needs children. Yes, we do have challenges that people with mainstream children don't. However, I don't feel sorry for myself. Actually, I consider myself richly blessed. Jacob is a loving boy who is genuinely grateful to belong to a family and be able to do the many things we do. He is perfectly content to entertain himself while other children are off running around and requiring a lot of attention. Jacob is loving and very kind to others. He genuinely cares about the well being of other people. There just are not enough people like that in the world.

So, going to this party turned out to be a wonderful experience. I had a lot of fun interacting with these two women. Meredith just enjoys getting out and having a life outside of taking care of her 6 month old twins. She was excited when I suggested that we have a party for her older twins up at our place in two weeks.

Yeah, so guess what? I'm actually doing another twin birthday party in two weeks at my place! Go figure.

Simple Life

Last night my husband came home after an "all day" visit with our financial planner. He grabbed my shoulders, looked me in the eye with all the seriousness he could muster, and said, "Honey, I have a new word for you to learn. It's a new word and it's going to be a difficult task for you to wrap your head around this new concept. You are a smart woman and I trust that you will be able to handle this incredible feat."

I looked at him skeptically and said, "Okay, give it to me. I can take it. What's up?"

He said, "Your word for this next year (or lifetime) is . . ." and then he backed away slightly to ensure that he was out of slapping range, then quietly added, "BUDGET!"

I gasped. What?!?!? I don't understand. (Of course I wouldn't understand. I've never HAD to understand, thankfully.) So, it was at that moment that I asked for clarification. What do you mean?

My sweet husband gently attempted to explain that I would have to be accountable for ALL expenses that I incurred. Wow. Not only that, we would be going through our expenditures for the last year and decipher what we can cut out and live without (I don't know about you, but I NEED everything, yes, everything I buy and spend money on).

So promptly in my head I started rolling through all the stuff I spend money on and decided that spending money was hard work! I started to realize how much more simple my life is going to be without the pressure to spend all that money! I'm kind of excited. We are going to use the food storage (that sure cuts down on the grocery bill and time spent in the grocery store), minimize the kids' activities (that would be, like, they might be home more?? Can't decide how I feel about this one), reduce the meals we eat out as a couple dating (um, yeah, I'm down with this - it might actually get my husband to be creative about our dates), and generally refrain from unnecessary and excessive frivolous expenditures (whatever THAT means - like no more random Target runs??). One thing I absolutely REFUSE to give up, though, is my yoga. Thankfully, that one got glossed over so far.

Okay, this is not sounding so bad. I actually am excited for the challenge that Mr. Weltz has extended to me and, yes, I will be victorious! I will show him. I am a going to be the budgeting fool.

So, girls, I can't go to lunch much of anymore nor can I go shopping. What I can do is go on a hike, horseback ride or hang out at your house. Oh, and yeah, I can zone your feet! That costs $40 to you and it is positive affect on my budgeting efforts!

The Three A's

As I was browsing my Facebook and reading the status of my friends, I noticed that one of my friends posted her status as:

___________ is glad that her husband is out slaying dragons for our family. I love you, honey.

I was touched by that. What a wonderful wife she is and must be to her husband. All too often we women forget to do the most simple and obvious things that make our men happy. One of the things on that very small list is to acknowledge the things he does and show appreciation for them. If more wives would adhere to the three A's, as I like to refer to them, there would be a lot more happy marriages and a lot less broken homes and families. They are:

Appreciation, Attention and Affection

In no particular order. I, for one, need a lot of reminding in this department. And, I would like to thank my friend for bringing this to my attention today.

My husband is always doing wonderful things around our place just because he enjoys making me happy. He will go down to the barn and "putz" around cleaning up the alley, discarding all the twine I throw around and then he will always load a bale of hay on the Gator for me and reload the feed. Not a lot of effort on his part but, boy, does it make my life a lot easier. I really strive to let him know that, yes, I noticed what he did and thank him for it. What I love is that he quietly does these random acts of love with no expectation of praise but I can tell that it means a lot when I notice.

So, Skip, I love you and appreciate you more than you will ever know. You are the bestest husband for me and I am so grateful that you put up with me and are willing to bring sardines (don't ask) home for me to make me happy. I am a very lucky and grateful girl. As for the attention part? Well, as a friend of mine once said, "Some things are just better left between a husband and his wife."

Enough said.