Randomness

This morning while I was getting Katelund ready for school, she started talking about Washington D.C. I asked her if she knew what that was? She said, "I think it was George Washington's basketball team."

Ever since I started pulling out the baby clothes and giving them away to friends and Goodwill, Cloey has really been having a hard time. She just doesn't understand why I am giving away Clairisa's clothes. She knows that she will be with us again someday, so why would I be giving away all her stuff? She has been writing letters to her and drawing pictures of her. It is so sweet but also very sad because I just don't really know what else to say to help her understand. She is also totally in love with one of Logan's friends, Grant (he plays on Logan's baseball team). Cloey tells everyone that he is her boyfriend. Nice. This morning she said to me, "Mommy were you like freaking out when I was out of town?" Where did she come from?

I got my hair cut last Friday and I absolutely LOVED it! Well, I still like it but I CANNOT get it to look the same way that my hairstylist did. It is so frustrating! I even broke down and bought some product that cost me like $20 b/c I thought that by using what she used I would get the same look. Nope. AHHH!! It is so frustrating.

I am getting so excited to spend next week in Vegas. My sister-in-law (who was also my best friend in high school) is so sweet. She emailed me a list of questions for me to answer (ie: fav. breakfast food, fav. snack, fav. ice cream, fav. meals, do I want to go horseback riding, shooting, swimming, or see any shows on the strip? Or do we just want to scrapbook?) How adorable is she!!! I can hardly wait. AND...after I get home from Vegas, my sister Andrea will be coming for 5 days!!! WOO HOO!!!

Katelund's Missionary Experience/Blunder

We've been teaching the girls the Articles of Faith. They know the first one really well and they are getting pretty good at the second one. After FHE tonight, we ran to the store to get a missing ingredient for our treat. Kate had to go to the bathroom (of course). So we went. Katelund decided to practice her Articles of Faith while she was sitting on the toilet. She starts singing the second one (the girls love the tune, especially when it goes really high on "believe"). But, she got a little mixed up and instead of singing "We believe that men will be punished for their own sins.....", she sang...."We believe that God will be punished for His own sins..." Of course I immediately corrected her and explained how God is perfect and does not sin. But the funny thing about the whole scenario was that there was a lady in one of the other stalls. I can only imagine what she was thinking when she heard the very incorrect version of the song. In order to teach correct doctrine, I then had Katelund recite both the first and second Articles of Faith. Who'd have thunk that teaching our girls the Articles of Faith would bring us so many missionary opportunities. :)

{ETA: For those of you who have no idea what an Article of Faith is; there are 13 of them and they are basically a description of our beliefs. The first one is...."We believe in God the Eternal Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost." The second one is..."We believe that men will be punished for their own sins and not for Adam's transgression."}

A Day to Myself and a GIRLS NIGHT OUT!

Cory went to go watch his little brother play baseball this weekend at SVU. I didn't go because I had been planning a girls night out with some of my good friends whom I hardly see b/c we all live all over our stake (our stake is 2 hours from end to end), but we have gotten to know each other pretty well through the wonderful world of blogging. Anyways, Cory took Cloey, and Kate stayed here with me so that she wouldn't miss school yesterday. So while she was at school, I had a whole day to be alone and do whatever I wanted (and not do whatever I didn't want to do...like clean my house, cook, or do dishes).

It was fabulous. I went to a salon and got my hair cut, I went shopping and aimlessly roamed the aisles, and I went on a bike ride. I think every mother deserves a day all to herself at least a couple of times a year. It is so rejuvenating.

After Katelund came home from school, I took her over to a friend's house to have a slumber party while I met up with my friends at the mall. We shopped for an hour or so and then we went to dinner at P.F. Changs (SO YUMMY)! Afterwards, we went to Destinee's house to have some fondue. It was good food, but even better company. We laughed and laughed and then laughed some more. It was so much fun!!!! I felt like I was in high school or college again...except for the fact that I would've been WAY past curfew. I didn't get home until 3:30 AM....crazy right? Yes, but totally worth it.

FINALLY DONE!

For the last couple of days (okay, maybe for the last week), I have been engaged in a crazy huge project upstairs in the girls' toyroom and bedroom. In the toyroom, we have three good-sized closets that were PACKED full!!! One of the closets was full of my scrapbooking stuff, another closet was full of toys, blankets, and coats. The last closet, the biggest one, was stuffed full of baby/toddler clothes and all sorts of other misc baby stuff. All three of the closets were crazy. Well, after LOTS of purging, I finally have three beautifully organized (still full but not even close to how crazy full they were before) closets. I am getting rid of five huge bags of clothes, two boxes of clothes, one box of stuff and one other BIG box (not included in the pic b/c I need Cory to carry it down). I also threw away a huge bag of trash (things that I don't think anyone else would ever want to clutter their homes) Crazy, right?. I tried to just keep the things that I absolutely love because who knows...maybe I'll have another girl someday.

Whew!!

L.O.V.E.......

L.........................................
Learning when it is time to lead and when it is time to follow.
O........................................
Overcoming obstacles together.
V...........................
Validating your feelings.

E........................................
Enjoying the ride.


Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Time Out for Women

So apparently the title of my last post was a little misleading. My sweet sister-in-law, Stefani, called me yesterday because she thought I was announcing that I was pregnant when she read my title. Nope. I only wish. I actually have to wait a year until I can start trying again because the doctor wants to make sure that my body completely heals. Anyways....

I just wanted to blog really quickly about something I am so excited about that is coming up pretty soon.
TIME OUT FOR WOMEN!!! (If you click on it then you can go to the Dessert Book website and found out what it is and where the closest one is to you).
I am seriously so excited!!!! The one I am going to is on May 8th and 9th in Columbia, South Carolina. I went to one two years ago with a whole bunch of friends and it was so much fun!! If you haven't been to one of these you should go (you do not have to be a member of the LDS church in order to go or LOVE it). It is a great weekend filled with incredible speakers and amazing music. When you go home you just feel like you can conquer the world. The theme this year is Sweet Assurances. All of the speakers are focusing on how in the times that we live in where there is so much uncertainty around us, we need to remember the things that we can be certain about and that we can find joy and hope in. One of my friends, Kim, has asked me to help get the word out and find people who are interested in going. I promise you that it is totally worth every penny you spend. They even have a program for those who cannot financially afford the registration fee. If you are interested in going to the Columbia one, let me know and I will get you more information.

the little girl....{or boy?}....in me

This morning was one of those mornings where I literally had to drag myself out of bed to go running. I so did not want to go!! But my determination to drop a dress size stuck it out and finally overcame my oh-so-sleepy-and-my-bed-is-so-warm self. So...I went for a run. But it was not an ordinary run for me. I decided to run really hard today since I will be missing tomorrow morning's run (Cory is going to be out of town...maybe I shouldn't have said that considering the fact that my blog is available for all of the crazies of the world to read).

Okay...back to my amazing run. Cory helped me put a whole bunch of new songs on my Ipod last night, so I was feeling really excited about running to some new music If I know what song comes next, without looking on my playlist, then it needs to be changed up!. I was really pushing myself. I even ran up TWO of my "Mt. Everest" hills (I have never ran the entire way up either one of them) . (Sorry, I'm going crazy on the paranthesis again!!) I swear the reason I was able to run up both of them was because I was listening to THE BEST running music ever....Cascada. I L.O.V.E. her!

I was feeling really good and was in an adventurous mood, so I decided to do something that I have been wanting to do for months. I stopped running in order to walk over a log that had fallen about 6 feet over a creek running along side the road. It was SO SCARY! I was literally shaking. But, it was SO FUN and I did it without falling. I don't know what would have happened if I'd fallen. I guess I would've been really hurt and really wet. While I was crossing back over, there were a couple of cars that passed by. I wonder what they were thinking. I'm sure that somewhere in their thoughts were the words "crazy lady". I seriously felt like a little girl...or maybe more like a little boy.

The Cure-All

Yesterday I went on a youth temple trip. It was absolutely perfect, amazing, wonderful, and exactly what I needed. It is the ultimate cure-all for everything. I remember going to the temple for the first time after losing Clairisa. There in the walls of the Columbia, S. Carolina temple, I experienced the overwhelming feeling of joy that had been absent from my life for so many weeks. After going through another hard trial the previous year, I was able to find the healing and strength to endure within those very same walls.

As a youth, I would pray to feel my brother, Kelly's, spirit whenever I would go to the temple. As a 28 year old mother, I now pray to feel the presence of not only my brother, but also my daughter. Yesterday, after witnessing such an incredible experience with one of my very dear friends who came with her husband for the very first time to the temple, I sat in the waiting room with my young women just soaking in all of the peace and joy that is so abundantly present. My thoughts turned towards my perfect daughter. I sat there thinking about her and the brief, yet sustaining, time that I held her in my arms. I felt my emotions welling up inside of me. In that very moment, one of the young women started to quitely hum a hymn...."God Be With You Till We Meet Again". The hymn that Cory and I sang to Clairisa before we had to kiss her good-bye for the very last time in mortality. Her humming was the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. It was as if my angel daughter was standing in the room humming to me the only lullaby I ever got to sing to her. It was amazing. It is hard to even put into words. I have no idea why Amy chose to hum that particular song at that particular moment, but I do know that through her, the Lord showed me yet another tender mercy.

I LOVE to see the temple, I LOVE to enter the temple, and I LOVE to feel the presence of the Lord and the presence of his angels (and my angel) each time I enter within the walls of the Lord's house...the holy temple...the ultimate cure-all.

Unity

One of my favorite things about my church, is the unity that is found among the sisters (the women) in the ward. I love being part of Relief Society and I love to know that no matter what happens in my life or where I go, that I have a group of friends who will carry me and love me through the difficult times. I have felt of the love and charity that comes from a group of women who serve, strengthen, uplift, and love one another. I truly feel that the unity and Christlike love and service that comes from being a member of Relief Society is one of the greatest blessings and gifts in my life. I have been in some wards where I have felt the unity very strongly and I have been in other wards where it is a little weaker, but I have found that the unity and love is always there and available for those who seek it.

I went to two activities this week where I was around some of the other sisters in my ward. I LOVE the sisters in my ward, but for some reason this week I felt some distance. I felt lonely. I felt like I wasn't connecting with them for some reason. I know that it probably has nothing to do with anybody but myself. But, I just don't understand why I feel that way sometimes. Is it just my own insecurities? Is it my pride? Is it a lack of charity and love? I long for that sense of unity but for some reason, lately, it has not been there. Has anybody ever felt this way?

Things that I have learned/realized lately...

* I parent with a lot of emotion...for good and bad. I have been reading a book called "Christlike Parenting" (it is seriously the best parenting book that I have ever read...I highly recommend it).

*Cory and I decided to get rid of our cable awhile ago. We have been without it for about 2 months now. It has been amazing!!! Every once in a while we watch a show on the internet but other than that we just spend a lot of time together as a family and also a lot of time reading (luckily everyone in our family L.O.V.E.S to read or be read to.) Cory and I will lay in bed at night reading our own books. I don't know why, but we both love spending that time together. Although it probably drives him crazy b/c I do a lot of laughing, gasping, crying, etc. when I read).

* I really can organize. I have been praying and studying a lot about how to be more organized. I feel like I am starting to make some progress.

*Purging feels so good. I am trying to declutter my house. It is very liberating to get rid of stuff.

*I am in LOVE with the BYU podcasts of the round table scripture discussions!! I seriously could listen to them all day. I have been listening to the Doctrine and Covenants sessions lately. I have learned SO MUCH!!

* Even though I am not a little girl anymore, I still get giddy. Cory makes me giddy, romantic movies make me giddy and thinking about my trip to Vegas at the end of this month to hang out with one of my very best friends/sister-in-law, Amber,...is definitely making me giddy. :)

Stake Basketball Tournament

This last weekend was our stake basketball tournament. Cory has been working on organizing it for quite some time. It started on Friday at 5 and ended on Sat. at about 7. Cory was there the whole time either reffing or playing. He had so much fun! Especially on Saturday when he talked his Dad into coming out here and playing on our team.
Okay, so I may be a little biased, but I think Cory was definitely one of the best players at the tournament!! He played so good! He was throwing up three pointers, lay ups, and all sorts of other cool moves.
Here are some cute kids that spent their time running around on stage screaming and cheering for their daddies.
Here is one cute little girl and one beautiful grandma.
Another cute little girl. You didn't think I could take pics of basketball without my kids in the pictures right?
Cory throwing a free throw.
Here is the winning team. There were many other teams that were a lot younger, but I don't think that any of them had the passion that our team had. :) (okay, maybe CPod, MommyJ's husband, Ryan, and Leslie) :) Our bishop was so cute. He and his wife came to every single game on Friday and Saturday. So when they won the trophy at the end, they gave it to him.

Trying on my boots...