Productive Weekend

George had a productive weekend. He sanded and stained the deck. Then he organized and painted the garage inside (that one is not finished yet).

The neighbors were being so nosy... they kept coming over to see what he was doing. That did not make George a happy camper. He almost told Kevin to mind his own &*$# business.  Our landlord knows we are painting and he okay'd it so let's just see the neighbors go tattle on us. Stupid people.

We were planning to start painting the bedroom but I have not decided on a color yet so that is on hold.

I wish I had some kind of decorating talent. I can't even envision what a room will look like so it's hard for me to decide what to paint it! grrr.

Fires galore in Utah. Oh we need rain so badly. I can't even watch the news anymore because the fires get worse and worse and it stresses me out. People are losing their homes. It's so very sad.

People come and go

This Sunday we have a 1 1/2 hour long Sacrament Meeting which is more like a Stake Conference. Three of the wards in our stake will be attending and they are dissolving one ward and splitting its members between our ward and another ward. So it looks like our ward will be getting a whole bunch of new faces!

We better get a bigger Relief Society room because it is already bursting at the seams.

Change is good. But I do the VT messages each month and they told me I will probably need to copy off a LOT more and I am not sure I can do that here at work without getting in trouble so I might have to start doing it at the church (which is not in color).

oh well.

Too hot to cook

  I ended up sitting in a hot car for 45 minutes yesterday waiting to pick up George from work. It wasn't his fault. I was about 25 minutes early and he was about 15 minutes late... LOL.  It was up in the 90s yesterday. I was sweaty and cranky.

So.... I did not feel like cooking for dinner and we are trying to eat out less and save more $$$$ and eat healthier, so I got creative.

While he was helping David work on his car, I chopped up some sweet onions, tomatoes, mini cucumber, jalapenos, mango, avocado, and created a mango-cucumber salsa. Added some Tapatio sauce, cumin, garlic, pepper, etc.  It was AMAZING. George and I ate the entire bowl!  We just ate it with chips (and he had a tortilla).

It was really really good and I wanted Michael and Bryttan to try it since I knew they were coming over... but they got there when the last bite was being consumed. Oh well. I will definitely make it again. It was not hot at all (as in spicy). It was just very fresh and very good tasting. I am making some more today for my lunch.


I can't think of anything more nutritious! Just chopped up fresh fruit and veggies. YUM.

Lazy days of summer

 I admit it. I did pretty much nothing this week end. We slept in until after ten on Saturday which is something we NEVER do. We are both early birds. But the bed was just too comfy.

Sunday was Father's day and G was up extremely early (like 4am) and was outside pulling weeds and sanding the deck while I stayed in bed again until after 9. I wasn't feeling so hot on Sunday. I think I ate something that didn't agree with me, though I have no clue what it could have been. We both ate the same things and he was fine. But then, G has a cast iron stomach and I don't.

But, I recovered and had a nice day with my kids and got to meet Brian's friend Amparo. I like her very much and I hope she is a permanent part of the family soon.

Adelyn is growing so big! Oh my gosh, I keep thinking that girl cannot possibly get any more cute than she already is and then the next time I see her she is just so amazing. Those blue eyes are so beautiful and that smile is so precious and she is just learning to do so many things and has so much personality. Being a grandma is so much fun. Oooh I just love my little baby girl. Just absolutely adore watching her grow.

And it's so fun to watch Karin be a momma. She is a wonderful mother. It was so long ago... yet really only yesterday... that I was in her position with her as my little one. Man.... I sometimes miss those days! Life was a lot simpler then and I really didn't appreciate it. But I will always say that the best things in my life are my children. If I accomplish nothing else in life.... I absolutely raised 4 of the best kids I could have ever asked for. And I love their choices in whom they share their lives with.

I am a happy momma.

Beautiful Story

There has been a lot of controversy surrounding this book. Some Kindergarten child took it home from their school library and the parents flipped out because it is about a story of a family that has two moms.

The fact that the moms are lesbian is a very SMALL part of the story. The main focus is how three children were adopted into a LOVING and WONDERFUL home and given the kind of childhood most kids dream of.... whether they have gay families, straight families, blended families, or   what ever!

This book made me cry. It was so sweet.

The fact of the matter is this: There are many, many types of families. What there is very little of... are STABLE home environments. This book shows a wonderful, caring, loving, fun, educational, exciting, sweet, STABLE home environment. One of love, acceptance, and selflessness. And guess what? The kids all grew up and got married to people of the opposite sex!  oooooh boy... the gayness didn't rub off! How shocking! (rolling eyes).

There is so much worse things that kids are exposed to in media. Making a big deal over this book is dumb. Oh my gosh, sales in Utah are sky high for that naughty soft core porn book "50 shades of grey" (I think that is what it's called....) but all the negative attention is for THIS children's book?

Wake up people!!  Get a life! This book is all about family values!!  Don't judge a book by its cover. Read it. I bet  you will be pleasantly surprised.  If you liked the book "I'll Love You Forever".... which, by the way, is one of my favorites also --- I bet you will like this book.

But one could argue that in "I'll Love You Forever" the mom is a bit creepy that she sneaks into her son's bedroom and holds him all through his life.....  see it's what kind of spin you put on it.... you can make anything look bad if you let your mind go there.

I look forward to reading this book to my grandchildren.

The way a Presidential Campaign Should Be.....

             I have to rant. I have to vent. I am stepping on my soap box here so please be patient.

The news is talking about all the MILLIONS and MILLIONS of dollars that Romney and Obama are raising for their political campaigns.

It's like they are BUYING their way into the presidency. What is all this money going to? Television commercials. Posters. Stupid dumb idiotic campaign tactics.


You know what would REALLY impress me? We change the system of electing a president. And let me tell you HOW....

Let Romney and Obama take all those millions of dollars and DO SOMETHING POSITIVE FOR THE COUNTRY with it.  Let it be a competition to see who can do the most good with all the money. That would get me excited! That would get me interested in seeing the actual benefits of their having raised so many millions.

They could.... build homeless shelters. Pay off people's homes. Build hospitals. Orphanages. Create more jobs. Let them take those millions and millions of dollars and actually make a difference in people's lives.

Then they get together and "debate" about who did the most good. Let the people decide for themselves who knows how to make the biggest positive impact.

Oh this country has gone so far into greed, selfishness, and materialism! We're lost people! We are no longer a government BY the people and FOR the people. It's "who has the most bucks".  It's a race to see who can get the most dollar signs.

It's wrong. It's sad. And I'm sorry but I am tired of it. I'm tired of what is wrong with this country and how it is getting worse and worse. Corruption is everywhere.

The only thing we can do is try to make our corner.... our little piece of the planet better. That's all we can do.

I sure wish I had Romney and Obama's millions to do it with!

I do Believe.....

 Have you ever watched "The Secret"? The first time I watched it I did not like it much because it seemed focused on wealth and material things and I felt like that was a worldly mind set.

But, I watched it again. And I read the book. And I then started looking in the scriptures to see if there were scriptures that related to "The Secret" and guess what? There ARE.

So, I put it into practice. Tentatively at first, because the mind is a very powerful thing and it kind of scared me because what I was thinking............ was happening.

I had even created a "Vision board." It was just a big pin up board with pictures cut out of things I wanted in my life. I would meditate and pray about them. Look at the board every night and believe that I had those things.

As with everything..... of course... I grew tired of it and put the board away in my closet. For about two years.

And then..... I found it again..... and lo and behold..... almost ALL of the things on that board had come to pass. I was floored.

Your thoughts will manifest themselves to you in a very powerful way.  In the Bible; Proverbs 23:7 "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." This is all about the power of manifesting!

"The Secret" is all about the power of the Law of Attraction, Faith, Manifesting, Believing, Dreaming, Visualizing, Achieving.

And that message is ALL over the scriptures. I have four pages of scriptures that relate to the Secret. If you are reading this and want me to send it to you... let me know.

Anyhow.... good things can come into your life and you can bring them. It's within you. Ask and ye shall receive. Visualize and believe. It's truly amazing.

May all your thoughts and desires be focused on goodness, health, and the love of family.

Namaste.

Because of my kids who I love dearly.....

And their spouses.... and their children.... and all the wonderful people in my life and more to come!

Tastebuds are changing!

 I have ALWAYS had a sweet tooth. Sugar has always been my drug of choice. It is rare I can say no to a donut, or a piece of pie. I have been known to DRINK Karo syrup. And Maple syrup.

Yeah.... sugar is not my friend. It's my pusher.

My blood sugar levels have become HIGH. So high in fact, that my doctor warned me she is going to put me on diabetes medicine if I don't improve those numbers by September.

So, I have made a valiant effort to change my eating habits. DRAMATICALLY.

I have been taking some of the supplements Dr. Oz recommends. I also went on his sugar busting diet. I have incorporated TONS of vegetables into my daily diet.

I drink herbal teas. I used to always have to put two packets of Stevia (plant based sweetener) in my tea. Now, I can drink most of them without ANY sweetener.

I would eat fresh strawberries, but then again, they HAD to have sugar or Stevia on them. I ate a whole bowl of strawberries yesterday with NO sweetener!  Sounds like a "duh" but for me this is MAJOR.

They bring donuts in to work every Friday. I have not had any in weeks. They don't even appeal to me.

I made diabetic peanut butter cookies a couple days ago. I ate... about 3 total. That's it. They were fine, but they filled me up and I didn't really want them. And I didn't eat three at once. No... I had one. Then about 4 hours later I had one. And the next morning, I had ONE.

I have also noticed at night when I make a plate of food for dinner... I can't finish it. I am able to cut my portions waaaay down.

Last night I felt like eating popcorn so I popped a bag. I had one handful. Threw the rest away. I didn't want anymore.

I'm finding joy in cooking again, trying all these new recipes, and taking ones I love and trying to make them healthier and taste good. I'm discovering the world of spices. And it's FUN to use them!

I made stir fry last night and threw some red chili paste in my stir fry sauce. REALLY good.  I had a nice big plate of stir fried brocolli, mushrooms, onions, zuchinni, cabbage, and steak strips. (No shirataki noodles this time). I couldn't finish the plate. Normally I could have eaten the WHOLE PAN of stir fry. But I could not even finish the plate!

Now....if starting to exercise was as easy and as much fun... I'd be in GREAT shape!!

He's coming home!

The job in Kauai has been postponed and Georgie boy is coming home! Sometime this weekend.
Yay! I already have a lot of jobs I want to get busy doing. We still need to paint and stuff.

And I either need to have a yard sale... or get a dumpster... or go to D.I..... or get a storage unit.

I have TOO MUCH STUFF.