Notes for my sister

Cade earned his Eagle Scout award.  We are so proud of him!  He learned a lot of leadership skills in the process.  Last fall he ran his service project. On choosing a project, I had a handful of great ideas that my son didn't like, everything from helping refugees to raising money for a homeless shelter in SLC.  Because Dad was the scoutmaster, he also weighed in and vetoed a few ideas.  Ultimately Cade had to pick who he wanted to serve.  It had to be his project, not mine.  Here's a list of  project ideas .  Last summer we learned about a local program that combines the best of horsemanship with therapy for kids.  Courage Reins  is in Highland, and they have amazing horses and people.  But keeping a horse is incredibly expensive, so they rely on donations. We helped Cade start a fundraising site with youcaring.com.  His goal was to earn over $2100 to buy 10 tons of hay to fill a barn.  Thanks to the generous d...

Months ago at a Relief Society meeting, we made our own Kintsugi.  One of my good friends brought sparkly gold glue for hot glue guns, and then we each took a perfectly good bowl or plate, put it inside a pillowcase, and used a hammer to break it.  I remember thinking, "one hit, make it count..." and so I did.  I like that my blue square plate broke into five decent chunks.  That made it easier to reassemble.  (idea credit:  probably pinterest) Peter Mayer sings a great ballad about Japanese Bowls.  The photography and illustrations are beautiful.  It's slow but I love the guitar.   japanese bowl I’m like one of those Japanese bowls That were made long ago I have some cracks in me They have been filled with gold That’s what they used back then When they had a bowl to mend It did not hide the cracks It made them shine instead So now every old scar shows From every time I broke And anyone’s eyes can see I’...

Sunday night Norm and the boys went camping.  One of our favorite places is south of here, near Santaquin.  One reason we love it is because it's not too crowded.  There weren't any individual sites left, but paying the group site fee isn't too terrible if it gets you this much space without neighbors. So the boys left after church and the girls and I drove up to meet them on Monday morning.  I loved sleeping in a tent as a kid.  (As an adult, not so much.)  I loved camping as a kid.  (As an adult, not so much.)  We've found the perfect solution.  Norm can sleep in a tent with the boys and I can join them the next day. It was totally worth the drive, and beautiful in the springtime.  Karly is getting pretty good with a pocketknife.  Whittling! Amber is good at finding and throwing rocks. The campsite was by a burbling brook.   Of course if there's a stream nearby, you have to cross it. ...

May 30, 2018 This winter and spring Amber and I have been potty training.  Basically it's a transfer of power.   S he and I have an unwritten agreement that she’s in charge of her body, and I get to take a step back. There’s good advice everywhere.   My main insight is this:   when your kid is old enough and wants it enough, it works.   Even if mom makes every mistake in the book. I did a super lousy job this time around.   One cold day in January, I took Amber with me to Target.   We bought princess panties and a pink potty chair.   Filled with enthusiasm, we came home and tried potty training for an hour or two.   I quickly remembered the main detail I’d forgotten:   potty training is a ton of work. We continued for a few days, basically using two hours of each morning.   And then I said, “Nope.   Not yet.   I’m not ready.”   By lunchtime I was hungry and done.  Afternoons are filled wi...

“Wouldn’t it be so fun to buy a cabin and have a place of our own, out in the woods?”   Three years ago we tossed this question around, and decided the answer was yes.   We wanted to teach our city kids to live off the land.   We wanted a remote getaway, where we could enjoy quiet and serenity.   We wanted to make memories.   The drive there was inspiring, through beautiful mountains.   It took just over an hour, so we thought we could go up on weekends, no big deal.   The land had a beautiful house with a well, a generator, propane tank, electrical, everything.   It was passive solar, so the windows got tons of sunlight.   The thick log walls kept heat in during winter, and kept it cool in summer.   There were even bat houses around the house itself.   I learned that bats are friends because they eat pesky bugs.   It was perfect. But in the end, it took too much time, money and effort to maintain it.   L...

See this gem?  You can probably tell I made it sometime in the 80's.  But I love it, so I've kept it all these years.  As a girl, I thought it was a cute way of saying, "Be cheerful."  As it turns out, the message to "Make your own sunshine" is even more profound in my adult years.  Every winter I struggle.  Every winter when the sun hides and the gloom sets in, I have to dig deep.  This is what my backyard looked like earlier today.  Usually I can see across the valley, but there was a serious cloud and not much sunshine. Maybe you also struggle with wintertime depression, or seasonal affective disorder (SAD).  Here are a few things that help me.  1.  Exercise.  I used to wake up at 6am.  This is what my basement looked like on an early morning back in November.  Good news here:  it's starting to get light outside, earlier in the day.  That means winter is almost done!!!  The main thing I want ...

January 31, 2018  Okay, I’m not going to lie.  This transition is really tough.  My little girl used to be pleasant and easy, and then a few weeks ago something shifted, invisibly and without warning.  She quit going to sleep so easily.  She doesn’t want to take naps anymore, and going to bed at night started taking forever.              Notice I haven’t posted anything lately?  That’s because naps are gone.  This blog may die before it even gets off the ground!              For moms with kids who are approaching this stage, I guess you’ll know it when it happens.  When your child spends an hour singing out, “Mo-om, I’m awake…”  or “I’m done with my nap,” before they even go to sleep, you’ll know.  My oldest kept napping until he turned 4, then his brother quit napping right around 3.  I felt like I’d...