Mother, I Give you My Love with…

Today, we did our mother’s day celebrating over a breakfast of Saturday-bought Cinnabons.  The following are examples of the heartfelt/handmade poems, letters and gifts my family gave me.  I realize my children’s darling poems, recorded here because we all know Jessica will lose them in a week or so, will be only of interest to a grandparent (maybe), but you’ll want to skim down to the end.  Ryan’s was a doozy.

Seth’s Mother’s Day letter (as dictated to the Primary helper):

I loved you.

You cook good breakfasts.

I love you to make brownies.

I love to make cookies with you.

 

(Hmmm.  Any guesses on what I spend a lot of time doing?)

 

Jane’s Mother’s Day Recipe:

Mom’s Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:  1 pot full of water, 1 stick of butter, 1 cup of milk, 2 boxes of milk.  2 boxes of noodles, 2 packets of cheese.

Directions:  First, you boil the water.  Then you stir in the macaroni and cook it for half an hour.  Then we take it out.  Put in the milk, cheese and butter.  Stir it 1 time and then it is ready to eat!

 

 

 

 

 

Gabe’s Mother’s Day Poem:

Mom-oh-Mom I love you swell.

Mom-oh-Mom, you treat me well.

Mom the greatest you are so kind.

Mom the greatest the lost you find.

Mom so nice you are cool every day.

Mom so nice I hope you never fly away.

Mom dearest you are mellow.

Mom dearest you are YELLOW. (?)

Mom oh mom you are so nice on Sunday.

But today is Mother’s Day, yip i yi yay!

 

 Emma’s Mother’s Day poem:

She is wonderful in every way.

She wonders if when we grow up if we will be all that we can.

She hears everything,

She sees everything, you can’t hide anything.

She wants us to live to our full potential.

She is wonderful in every way.

She pretend she is a star, but in my eyes she already is.

She feels what I feel and tries to help.

She cries when she’s touched. 

She is touched when something brilliant happen to anyone because she is caring. 

She is worried about the day when I’m grown.  But I’ll always be her little girl.

She is wonderful in every way.

She says she would give her life for us, and I would do the same for her.

She dreams and knows we will live together after we die.

She tries to do her best and she's great to me.  She hopes we will follow Christ.

She is wonderful in every way.

 

Faith’s Mother’s Day present:

Sleeping in the church kitchen during Relief Society so that I could enjoy the whole 3rd hour of church.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ryan’s Mother’s Day present:

Certain presents I laughed at, certain presents I teared up over, certain presents…(let’s just be honest) were my favorite.

It’s not what I would have chosen…

I was reading Denae’s blog tonight about her calling.  And I left a super long comment about how much I love callings…and thought I’d turn it into a post.

Our church is run by unpaid members.  We are “called” (asked/offered/requested) by our church leadership to serve in various capacities throughout wards and stakes.  We do not ask for these callings (at least we shouldn’t) and often are not necessarily qualified for the callings we are given.

(Some pictures from callings in Primary, Cub Scouts and Girls Camp)

I have a deep belief that these callings come from God.  I believe He inspires the men and women in charge of our church to place people in positions where they can grow and change and where they specifically can bless lives. 

I have been deeply blessed by every single calling I have received.  There are some that I have been excited about and would have chosen myself (Young Women’s advisor/teacher) and some that scared me to death (Ward Choir Director, anything to do with Girls Camp). 

And that is the beauty of callings.

Heavenly Father knows we are creatures of habit and comfort.  He knows that we, mostly, are happy to do what we enjoy and think we are good at.  But where is the growth in that?  How reliant would we really be, if we only did what we had time for/were good at/enjoyed?

I have never had a calling that I didn’t end up loving.  And I have never had a calling that I couldn’t, with Heavenly Father’s help, complete in a manner pleasing to myself and Him.

Today in Relief Society, our teacher told a story   about a young boy who sneaks away from his mother at a famous pianist’s concert.  He ends up on stage plunking out Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  As told by Elder James E. Faust:

“His mother gasped, but before she could move, Paderewski appeared on stage and quickly moved to the keyboard. He whispered to the boy, ‘Don’t quit. Keep playing.’ And then, leaning over, the master reached down with his left hand and began filling in the bass part. Soon his right arm reached around the other side, encircling the child, to add a running obbligato. Together, the old master and the young novice held the crowd mesmerized.

“In our lives, unpolished though we may be, it is the Master who surrounds us and whispers in our ear, time and time again, ‘Don’t quit. Keep playing.’ And as we do, He augments and supplements until a work of amazing beauty is created. He is right there with all of us, telling us over and over, ‘Keep playing.’ ”

This is my testimony of callings.  As we accept those callings that come to us and try our very, most prayerful, most diligent best, He will encircle us and make of our work a masterpiece.

I am so grateful that I have been able to try my hand at Teaching, Girls Camp, Activities Chairperson, Cub Scouts, Primary Presidencies, and even Choir Director.  If I had said no because of fear or busy-ness or pride, I would have missed out on amazing friendships, incredible experiences with the Spirit and witnessing the Father’s love for all of His children.

I am so happy the He has confidence in me.  I am so happy to be called.

Thoughts on Prop 8

I have run across various opinions on proposition 8 which was recently voted upon in CA. I had a period of indifference on the subject due to my status as a Washingtonian. As I have observed reactions from those who are of my faith and those who are not I have become more thoughtful about the subject and formed my own opinion.

To those not of my faith,

It is the inherent function of government to establish a common morality. From Hammurabi's code until the most recent congressional session, societies attempt to define what is in their common good. Few question laws prohibiting murder, theft, rape, tax evasion, etc. because they are so widely agreed upon. However, we become uncomfortable as our government attempts to legislate for or against behaviors and activities that we are not so readily in agreement with. It is then, that some erroneously begin to posit that governments have no right to legislate morality. They fail to recognize that ALL of our laws in one way or another establish a common morality. Proposition 8 is no different.

So when it comes down to it, proposition 8 is a question of morality. Couching the discussion in terms of civil rights pushes the moral questions away from homosexuality toward bigotry. Suddenly, the proposition is recast as the "Am I a bigot?" proposition. The argument is boldly made that anyone who is for proposition 8 must hate gay people. This more bellicose and less genuine argument is an easier one to win. Rather than debate the opposition, we need only yell bigot.

I guess this is where I want to interject that I am no bigot. I do not hate people based on their sexual orientation. I think there is a profound reason why when asked which is the "great" commandment Christ taught "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." This is foundational to all of God's laws. Unfortunately there are misguided souls who spew hate and terror at abortion clinics and at gay pride events in an attempt to further their misconceptions of Christianity. This contradicts Christ's teachings. There ought not be such unkindness, harshness, or antipathy for any of us who fail daily to meet the high bar that Christianity sets.

We love people around us despite easily identifying points of disagreement with them. Most often we find this in our own families. Even when these disagreements are rooted in deep characteristic components of personality. And so it is with defining marriage. I can disagree with the definition my neighbor chooses to accept regardless of why he does so. I can even do this without hating him for it. It seems disingenuous to accuse me of hating an entire population most of whom I don't even know simply based upon the fact that I am not in favor of revamping marriage.

To those who share my faith,

I was introduced to this talk from Neal A. Maxwell, an apostle and prophet of the Church of Jesus Christ. Though given 30 years ago, it is surprisingly current. It communicates my feelings on proposition 8 succinctly.

Discipleship includes good citizenship; and in this connection, if you are careful students of the statements of the modern prophets, you will have noticed that with rare exceptions–especially when the First Presidency has spoken out–the concerns expressed have been over moral issues, not issues between political parties. The declarations are about principles, not people, and causes, not candidates. On occasions, at other levels in the Church, a few have not been so discreet, so wise, or so inspired.

But make no mistake about it, brothers and sisters; in the months and years ahead, events will require of each member that he or she decide whether or not he or she will follow the First Presidency. Members will find it more difficult to halt longer between two opinions (see 1 Kings 18:21).

President Marion G. Romney said, many years ago, that he had "never hesitated to follow the counsel of the Authorities of the Church even though it crossed my social, professional, or political life" (CR, April 1941, p. 123). This is a hard doctrine, but it is a particularly vital doctrine in a society which is becoming more wicked. In short, brothers and sisters, not being ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ includes not being ashamed of the prophets of Jesus Christ.

We are now entering a period of incredible ironies. Let us cite but one of these ironies which is yet in its subtle stages: we shall see in our time a maximum if indirect effort made to establish irreligion as the state religion. It is actually a new form of paganism that uses the carefully preserved and cultivated freedoms of Western civilization to shrink freedom even as it rejects the value essence of our rich Judeo-Christian heritage. . . .

Brothers and sisters, irreligion as the state religion would be the worst of all combinations. Its orthodoxy would be insistent and its inquisitors inevitable. Its paid ministry would be numerous beyond belief. Its Caesars would be insufferably condescending. Its majorities–when faced with clear alternatives–would make the Barabbas choice, as did a mob centuries ago when Pilate confronted them with the need to decide.

Your discipleship may see the time come when religious convictions are heavily discounted. M. J. Sobran also observed, "A religious conviction is now a second-class conviction, expected to step deferentially to the back of the secular bus, and not to get uppity about it" (Human Life Review, Summer 1978, p. 58). This new irreligious imperialism seeks to disallow certain of people's opinions simply because those opinions grow out of religious convictions. Resistance to abortion will soon be seen as primitive. Concern over the institution of the family will be viewed as untrendy and unenlightened.

In its mildest form, irreligion will merely be condescending toward those who hold to traditional Judeo-Christian values. In its more harsh forms, as is always the case with those whose dogmatism is blinding, the secular church will do what it can to reduce the influence of those who still worry over standards such as those in the Ten Commandments. It is always such an easy step from dogmatism to unfair play–especially so when the dogmatists believe themselves to be dealing with primitive people who do not know what is best for them. It is the secular bureaucrat's burden, you see.

Am I saying that the voting rights of the people of religion are in danger? Of course not! Am I saying, "It's back to the catacombs?" No! But there is occurring a discounting of religiously-based opinions. There may even be a covert and subtle disqualification of some for certain offices in some situations, in an ironic "irreligious test" for office.


However, if people are not permitted to advocate, to assert, and to bring to bear, in every legitimate way, the opinions and views they hold that grow out of their religious convictions, what manner of men and women would they be, anyway? Our founding fathers did not wish to have a state church established nor to have a particular religion favored by government. They wanted religion to be free to make its own way. But neither did they intend to have irreligion made into a favored state church. Notice the terrible irony if this trend were to continue. When the secular church goes after its heretics, where are the sanctuaries? To what landfalls and Plymouth Rocks can future pilgrims go? . .

It may well be, as our time comes to "suffer shame for his name" (Acts 5:41), that some of this special stress will grow out of that portion of discipleship which involves citizenship. Remember that, as Nephi and Jacob said, we must learn to endure "the crosses of the world" (2 Nephi 9:18) and yet to despise "the shame of [it]" (Jacob 1:8). To go on clinging to the iron rod in spite of the mockery and scorn that flow at us from the multitudes in that great and spacious building seen by Father Lehi, which is the "pride of the world," is to disregard the shame of the world (1 Nephi 8:26–27, 33; 11:35–36). Parenthetically, why–really why–do the disbelievers … watch so intently what the believers are doing? Surely there must be other things for the scorners to do–unless, deep within their seeming disinterest, there is interest.

If the challenge of the secular church becomes very real, let us, as in all other human relationships, be principled but pleasant. Let us be perceptive without being pompous. Let us have integrity and not write checks with our tongues which our conduct cannot cash.

Before the ultimate victory of the forces of righteousness, some skirmishes will be lost. Even these, however, must leave a record so that the choices before the people are clear and let others do as they will in the face of prophetic counsel. There will also be times, happily, when a minor defeat seems probable, that others will step forward, having been rallied to righteousness by what we do. We will know the joy, on occasion, of having awakened a slumbering majority of the decent people of all races and creeds–a majority which was, till then, unconscious of itself.

Jesus said that when the fig trees put forth their leaves "summer is nigh" (Matthew 24:32). Thus warned that summer is upon us, let us not then complain of the heat.

(Neal A. Maxwell, "Meeting the Challenges of Today," BYU Devotional, October 10, 1978)

~By Ryan

Details

Because you all seem so interested(?!) and because you don't think you will forget but you do:

• I had my membranes stripped on Friday (Halloween) and the nurse-midwife said I wouldn't last the weekend. I started crying. Because I really really wanted to meet my little girl. And she was coming!
  
  
  

(last picture taken prior to giving birth. I am a beach ball.)

• I "felt weird" and had contractions all day, but thankfully was able to do our usual Halloween things (post to come...).
  
• Ryan was very concerned about getting to bed early because, as he told a friend of mine, he wanted to make sure he had enough energy for the labor ahead. She, obviously, made much fun of him.


• I got 1 hour of sleep before I was woken up with semi-bad contractions 3-5 minutes apart. Obviously we rushed to the hospital where


• my active labor abruptly stopped and they "let" me walk around the hospital for 3 hours before they would admit me. (Ryan got his much-needed rest on the couch in a room, while I stared longingly at his restful self.) I couldn't stop walking/showering/dancing (seriously) because I was NOT about to let them send me home.


• They admitted me because it was my 5th and we live 30 minutes away from the hospital. It took 2 more hours of walking, an epidural, forced water breaking and 2 doses of pitocin to get me to a 10 cm dilation. That has NEVER happened before.


• My blood pressure plunged after the epidural, which has never happened before. I was nervous about how I was feeling, but hate making a big medical deal about nothing, so began asking questions "Um, is it supposed to be hard to breathe?" "Um, should I be sweating profusely?" "Um, can my husband come over here and let me lean on him, because I feel really bad?" Finally they figured out what was going on and after a very nervous-sounding call from the nurse and a sprint from the nurse anethisissticisist (how do you say or pronounce that word, anyway?), we got my pressure up and I felt fine.






• I only pushed 3-5 times. She was big and had hair and was really fiesty and screaming her head off while they checked her. See this picture of her grabbing the side of the scale?
  
  
  
  
• I cried and cried and cried. It's such a spiritual experience, that moment when they leave Heaven and come to us.


• I knew she was ours. I knew that long long ago, in the pre-existance, we became a family and Faith was part of that family. She was so familiar (and NOT just cause she looks like all the rest of them. Which she totally does.) and immediately, she was MINE. Like, if-they-don't-stop-weighing-her-and-checking-her-and-keeping-her-all-the-way-over-there-with-all-the-gadgets-I'm-jumping-off-of-this-bed MINE.



• I love the hospital. They tried to tell me I could go home on Sunday and I said, "No thank you. I will stay till Monday" and they were all surprised (but willing) and I soaked up every minute of alone time with Faith, meals brought to my bed, reading and TV and those lovely hospital gowns that are perfect for new nursers and the copious amount of liquid involved in post-partumness.


• Faith was very fussy and awake at the hospital. I was concerned about having another Emma (super colicky and hard) on my hands, but as soon as my milk came in (Monday night), she has turned into a dream.


• HAVING A FIFTH CHILD IS SO GREAT! I am so much more relaxed about nursing, being up at night, fussiness, post-partum body (kind of), germs, pacifiers. The list goes on. AND I know so much more, so I know how to nurse, be up at night, deal with a fussy baby, dress for a post-partum body, fend off germ carriers and give a pacifier. I would totally recommend it.


• In case you were wondering, every single solitary miserable minute of my pregnancy was worth this awesome experience, this sweet sweet sweet baby, this special spirit in my home, my expanded family. I am so glad I have this baby.






• She is easy. Eats a lot, sleeps a lot, wakes up only 1-2 times a night, takes a pacifier, loves her dad. And she is very fun to dress. I want, like, 5 more of her. (That is another post all together).

Is anyone still reading, except for Faith, 10 years from now? If so, you should be rewarded with extra pictures...here you go:

After her first bath, and not-very-successful tummy time

First day at church. Can you handle that dress and the tights?!

Doing it...Sherrill style

If you take a 8 hour road trip, by yourself, when you are 36 weeks pregnant...You're doing it Sherrill style.

If you all bunk up in some extended (or in this case, in-law) family's basement...You're doing it Sherrill style.

If you drive to Yellowstone National park, even when they've predicted a snow-storm...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you pay the $25 entrance fee, even though there are snowflakes as big as quarters...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you stop at every animal viewing, regardless of whether they are dangerous (hello, coyote)...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you make sure everyone knows it's BISON never BUFFALO (unless you are in India) ...you're doing it Sherrill style. **bison in the background, here:

If you stand around watching for Old Faithful, only to see a big puff of steam...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you stop at every possible sign with explanatory words...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you go to the broken Teton Dam site, because the museum was closed...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you think bowling with a bunch of kids is fun...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you go to the local temple, even in bad weather and even though you've already been there...you're doing it Sherrill style (this one is predominantly Bekah style).

If you like having grandkids/nephews/nieces constantly in your face...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you go to all three hours of church, even on vacation...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you have a sweet baby (the hair is NOT Sherrill style) that you bless (and you get choked up during the administration of the blessing)...you're doing it Sherrill style.

If you have a family that loves to get together, doesn't care about noise, loves the Gospel, fights over newborns, will eat anything put in front of them, and cries when it's time to leave...you're doing it Sherrill style.

(explanatory note: The Sherrills are Jessica's side of the family. Nate (her middle, younger brother) and Kelsie, blessed baby Luke in Idaho Falls last weekend. We are hardcore travelers, visitors, baby-lovers--and we know it.)

My Two Cents

(by Ryan...apparently people are confused about who stresses out about money the most in our family...)

The "Financial Crisis," which is being described as the worst financial dilemma since The Great Depression, has been on my mind - A LOT. Even after stewing over it for a couple weeks, I can hardly discuss it without getting fired up. It is like discussing a recent argument before you have had enough time to really calm down. You know the type, where everything you say only gets you more riled up and angry. So if I storm off before I finish, then please forgive me.

Money brings happiness is the epic lie that is bought and sold by Americans to Americans around the clock (don't worry we are generously sharing it with the rest of the world too). It is a foundation of advertising and is subtlety shown on televisions and movie screens even when commercials are not. It is hawked in the suburbs, on the freeways and at my last high school reunion. Americans have bought the lie so fully that money has become the tool of measurement for how "well off" our fellow Americans are. This isn't even a very good lie. We see examples of its deception all around us, so much so that even reading it we immediately lump ourselves into the category of enlightened souls who don't buy into it. But is that true? Have we really declined the lie? Don't we think that if the house was a little bigger or the car a little nicer or our clothes a little better then we would be happier. Yet each upgrade does nothing to permanantly change our overall satisfaction. We get a momentary buzz and then go on to look for our next fix.

Our greed has made even us uncomfortable. However, rather than quell the greed, we have shifted our paradigm to accommodate our greed by commuting our wants to needs. Americans don't even know the difference between wants and needs anymore. Could I really not survive without cable/dish, another cell phone, another car, a pedicure, a new <fill in the blank>? Really? Would it kill me? And so we change our language to obscure the truth. "I want" becomes, "I deserve." Things that used to be classified as an extra or something we want is now justified because we "deserve" it.

So Americans buy what they cannot afford. When I went to buy a car, most dealers could not understand the concept of negotiating the price of the car. They always wanted to negotiate the monthly payment. "How much do you want to spend a month?" The exasperated salesman would plead. Americans define what they can afford by whether they can make the minimum monthly payment. This might seem reasonable to many, but what usually gets neglected is an accurate calculation of what they really need left over for daily expenses not to even mention what happens when the car breaks down unexpectedly, or some other unintended expense pops up. "Isn't that what credit cards are for?" NO! This is how we end up people making monthly payments on houses and cars and furniture and electronics and credit cards and on and on. "So what?" "Why do you care?" Let's just pretend for a minute like all the foreclosures going on around the country aren't affecting my house price, my job market and my investments. That mentality is wreaking havoc on my government.

We live in a country with a representative democracy which in our case is a great representation of the people behind it. Our government buys WAY more than it can afford. Way way way more. Last year alone we overspent by roughly $330 Billion (a third of a TRILLION dollars). We treat our national budget like our personal budgets, except for unfortunately we feel less burdened by the national debt plus we have avaricious politicians who are all too eager to help us spend our money on ourselves to cinch up their re-election efforts. This only exacerbates the problem causing us to dip even deeper into the hole.

Currently the US National Debt is $10,029,611,831,671 (That's just over 10 TRILLION Dollars). That boils down to $32,901 of debt per PERSON. If your kids have as much as mine do, I am looking at a debt of $230,307 for my household alone. And once you factor in the money we owe for all the programs we have obligated ourselves to but not saved for (i.e. Medicaid, social security, Medicare, etc.) that figure jumps to a little more than a half million Dollars per household. Do you have half a mill' lying around the house somewhere? "So what?" "Why do you care?" Well -

Question: Do you know what number is even bigger than the amount the government overspent last year?

Answer: The number of Dollars we paid towards INTEREST on the national debt.

Our debt makes it increasingly difficult to balance the budget from year to year. Sound familiar? So if we owed less ... we could spend more on those things we "deserve" like health care, poverty, job creation, etc. Heck we could plunk down more than half of the government's original bailout package without needing to ask China to "spot us" $700 Billion till next payday. Our Dollar wouldn't be falling through the floor. Heck ... maybe we could keep more of our hard earned money in our own pocket.

We are such a nation of overspenders that the Holy Grail of government finance is to balance the budget (that's only the yearly budget). Let's forget that no one (except for Bill Clinton during the high times of the 90's) has managed to do that for decades. But we don't even bring up (except for "crazy" Ross Perot in the '80s) the idea of paying off the national debt. We can't even stop the bleeding from year to year.

Our government is so ridiculous that while we are trying to figure out how to revive our economy, the senate couldn't help but tack on an EXTRA $100 Billion of pork (i.e. $100B of the spending has NOTHING to do with the bailout). Seriously? We are facing the largest financial crisis since the Great Depression and we can't keep from adding on spending amendments to the bailout package. Incredible.

In the presidential debates, you would have thought that Jim Lehrer was trying to pull teeth when trying to get the candidates to explain what parts of their budgets they were going to cut in order to account for the huge price tag of the bailout. Both candidates couldn't identify anything concrete the first time around. Then on the second pass one of the candidates had the audacity to hope that I wanted to hear what spending he wasn't going to cut AND then added that he would not abandon plans to expand the budget to include a health care plan for every American that no one on either side of the isle is very clear on how we will pay for it.

I am obviously beside myself with indignation over the American people's spending habits. I realize that you might not be able to cough up your half million right now, but we can be a little more reasonable in our personal spending as well as the type of spending that will earn our vote for our city council person, our senator and our president. If we don't make some serious changes to our own habits, then maybe, just maybe we can create a financial crisis that will finally beat the Great Depression once and for all.

Why Gabe had the Coolest Baptism Ever:

that,

plus the fact that we had 40 family members, 15ish friends, a last minute healing of the sick baptism boy, a sweet solo-singing sister (Elder Maxwell would love that illiteration), neat talks, and the Spirit that we'd prayed and fasted for all week.

Our Heavenly Father loves us and smiles down on us as we keep His commandments and follow His Son in making and keeping the sacred covenants of baptism and confirmation.

We are proud of Gabe.

Some suggestions

Visit this:

http://aricandjessica.weebly.com/

This is my good friend Jessica A's adoption website. They are dying for a baby and apparently the way most couples get to adopt is because a friend of a friend knows someone who is thinking about placing their child for adoption.

They should definitely place with Aric and Jessica.

Rent this:

Totally scary and a little violent, but kept me guessing the whole time. And thinking about it for days afterward. Loved it.

Use this:

This is my favorite face tanner. They were out of it when I went to buy it this season and I got another brand and DO NOT like it as much. Except I think this picture says gel bronze and I hate bronzer, so I get the Clinique face tanner without bronzer. Totally natural look, no skin cancer.

Read this:

Of the books I've read in the past couple of months, I'd have to say this was my favorite. Kind of a slightly more adult, girlish Harry Potter--I thought it was a total page turner and have loved the sequels.

Watch this:

Quite possibly my favorite show of the year. And Ryan's. Don't tell him I told you.

Make this:

BBQ Chicken Salad

Layer:

romaine lettuce

tomatoes

green onions

heated black beans

monterey jack cheese

grilled chicken--

(I grill it with bbq sauce on it and then toss it with more)

ranch dressing

Serve with bread or whole wheat muffins and fruit. Easy, fast, yummy summer meal.

Anything else you need?

The Mother's Day Post

Ryan and I thought we'd honor our mothers by finding scriptures that best illustrated their lives and teachings.

Dorrie Sherrill

Psalms 91: 2, 14 &15
I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust
Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

My mom, while blessed with a multitude of talents and testimony, has had many trials in her life. Through it all, and starting as a little girl, she has always turned to the Lord and stayed close to his Gospel and his Church. She always knew that doing what was right, trusting in Heavenly Father and the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and serving in her ward and stake callings would bring her more peace, wisdom and joy than giving up. She is the truest example to me that, no matter what, the Lord is our refuge and our fortress.

What greater lesson could a mother teach her daughter?

Karen Romney

Proverbs 21:26
but the righteous giveth and spareth not.

My mom is someone who gives all. As I was thinking about her, I kept thinking of a quote from Marjorie Hinckley that says:

"I don’t want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there with grass stains on my shoes from mowing Sister Schenk’s lawn. I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbor’s children. I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone’s garden. I want to be there with children’s sticky kisses on my cheeks and the tears of a friend on my shoulder. I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really lived."

I have been blessed to be allowed to closely observe the life of someone who is ever ready to help and serve others. My mother went to bed after midnight and woke up before 5 am almost ever day. When I picture her in my mind, I see her stationed in our family room sitting on the floor folding a pile of laundry more than 3 feet high. She was the kind of mom who read stories to us on the couch as the seven of us kids compressed upon her from all sides. She worked long sandwich assembly lines as she prepared our lunches every morning. Yet, as busy as she was with 7 little hoodlums running rampant, she made time to help the lady who unexpectedly called her with a random request for help or a sympathetic ear. Today I am thankful for her capacity to give and spare not.

Weekly Story Corner #3

I dated other girls for a while. One night I took a girl that I had gone out with a bit to a local high school basketball game. Tracy is kind of fun because you run into people you know all the time, but especially at functions like the high school basketball game. While I was at the game I bumped into one of the kids from my class (I taught the 13-14 year old Sunday School class at church). Nate was a super cool kid and I liked him a lot so we chatted for a while.

Later, he mentioned to his older sister that he had seen me at the basketball game. He also mentioned that I wasn’t alone. Suddenly, he was fielding questions about who I was with, how close were we sitting together and whether or not we looked like “girlfriend and boyfriend,” etc. To this day, I have a soft spot for my brother-in-law Nate.

Retail is known for using the “One Day Sale” to create an impetus to close a sale by creating the perception that the deal is too good to last. I became the unwitting beneficiary of this primal female reaction. Within 48 hours, my phone began to ring.

I had actually gone to sleep early that night. Luckily my mom was the one who picked up the phone. My dad has an unpredictable streak, and can not be counted on to appropriately handle important phone calls. I have to share an example:

One Sunday afternoon when I was about 17, I told my family that a certain girl was supposed to call and that it was IMPORTANT!! I was going to take the traditional Sunday snooze. Everyone was thoroughly informed that they should wake me up when she called. I was woken up about an hour later by my dad coming into my room saying,

Dad: “Uh Ryan, … JaneDoe just called.”
Me: “Okay … give me the phone”
Dad: “Oh, I told her you couldn’t come to the phone because you were asleep.”
Me: (completely baffled) “Whu-huh? … why are you waking me up to tell me this then?”
Dad: “I just thought you would want to know.”


This is why I'm glad my mom answered the phone...She knew the importance of this call and decided to come wake me up before hanging up on the caller. I was awoken by her urgent whispering that Jess-i-ca was on the phone. Bleary eyed I picked up the phone and asked “are you calling to tell me that you love me?”

Jessica is the only girl I have ever seen that could make a Saturn look sexy

Jessica informed me that she had just purchased a new car and that it was in need of a test drive. Quickly, I seized the much-sought-for opportunity and a date was made for the following afternoon. The date baited me back in. It was time to raise the stakes.

Quick Quote #19

The kids and I were discussing my college years and Jane asked me if I'd had a bike a college. I said, "No" and Gabe said: "Yeah, Jane, bikes weren't even invented yet."

And he was serious.

The 14 Days of Valentines

Okay...this is totally mom/wife overkill. I realize this. Don't do it. It takes lots of effort.

That said: everyone involves loves it. I like that they feel extra special during this holiday.

These are the daily "treats" the children got each day (you can biggify the pictures to see the phrases-my-pun-loving-mom-would-appreciate):

Day 1: The Heart Shirts

Day 2: Everyone's favorite brunch (ebleskivers)

Day 3: Everyone's favorite desserts (raspberry cake parfaits)

Day 4: Little strawberry seed-pots

Day 5: Fun cereal

Day 6: New socks

Day 7: I took each kid, alone, to lunch

Day 8: I did everyones' chores (both daily and weekend!)

Day 9: We picked and filled out their class Valentines

Day 10: New underwear...yippee!

Day 11: New DVD

Day 12: Candy

Day 13: Dollar Toys

Day 14: We'll have a Valentine breakfast...but if I upload it tomorrow, it will mess up my pictures. So I'm not.

Ryan gets some of his individual fun stuff. Things that are family-blog-appropriate include a lunch date, a massage, a carwash coupon, his favorite dinner, etc.

So there it is for posterity. Happy Valentines' Day!