Walking, Weeds and Weddings

The only thing these three words have in common is that they all start letter 'W'. Other than that it's just what's been on my mind lately.

Hyrum (11 1/2 months old) teased us yesterday by walking 4 mini-steps without help. He was just standing on the picnic blanket and decided it would be easiest just to walk to me. It was a happy moment for me, his siblings, an aunt, and a few of his cousins. When we tried to show Daddy his new skill, he refused to do it. Instead he collapses to the ground and crawls whatever distance is required of him.

Last night I tried helping my husband with the yard by pulling out a few weeds. Pulling them out was no easy task since the dirt was holding on to them so tightly. I gave up after a quarter of the work was done (of just one section). I decided that the soil has to be cultivated. It has to be moist. It has to be giving. When relating that to my life I realize that we, humans, have a difficult time giving up our weaknesses when we aren't willing to let them go. We have to cultivate goodness into our lives. We have to feed ourselves the word of God and counsel of his living prophets. We have to pray and seek God's forgiveness. Then we can feel the change happen within us and we can give up those undesirable "weeds".

Lastly, weddings! It seems that my immediate and extended families have an unusually high number of weddings this year. Four of them are coming up in August. As I told my nephew, weddings are a great way to lift the spirits of all in attendance and gives us cause to rejoice!! It helps us to remember the promises we've made to our Heavenly Father. It renews our desire to keep our side of the bargain, so that God's promised blessings will be fulfilled in this life and the next. (Hopefully my husband will want me around that long.)

I Love Zeli

I'm sure you're wondering, what is zeli? It is the Czech version of sauerkraut. They make it a little sweeter and add caraway seed (same flavoring used in rye bread). You're probably also wondering why I bring this up now? Saturday I cooked 1 1/2 gallons of zeli for the Wallace Toronto Foundation Family Event. (By the way, this Foundation I'm talking of donates its time and resources in helping the people of the Czech and Slovak Republics. If you would like more information please visit http://www.torontofoundation.org/about.html.)

When I volunteered to help I was counting on my husband to be here, but he ended up having to go to the 11-year scout's adventure camp. So, I was on my own. Thanks to some kind neighbors and my oldest helping with the youngest I was able to do it! I was even more shocked when...by a stroke of pure luck...native Czechs complimented me on a job well done. They wanted the recipe and everything. I can't take all the credit since I was taught by a wonderful Czech cook. Here's the recipe if you feel brave enough to try it:

ZELI

1 12 oz. can sauerkraut (drain, if desired; leaving liquid makes zeli more tangy)
1/2 large onion (sweet or vidalia)
1 tsp flour
1/8 cup water (alter amount if leaving sauerkraut liquid)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
caraway seeds to taste

Simmer all ingredients together until onions are clear and tender.

Serve with brats (bratwurst), smoked sausage,

pork loin (see picture below), and other meat dishes.
Try substituting this sauerkraut for the traditional kind used in Reuben sandwiches.

One of the best things about eating zeli is the great memories that come flooding back from the time I spent in the Czech Republic (former Czechoslovakia). I served for 18 months as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I learned to love some amazing people and was able to share with them the greatest blessing in my life--the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Sammie's FOUR! Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Sammie turned four yesterday. As you can see from the pictures she had a "groovin' good" time with her friends.

When I planned it with her a couple of days before she started counting "#1....play with my friends, #2....uh....ring-o-rosies, #3....uh..." Her seriousness and "maturity" brought me lots of smiles.

I asked what cake she wanted--chocolate. What frosting? Strawberry! Favorite food? Strawberries. Drink? Strawberry (giggle, giggle, giggle). She found the recurring strawberry thing very humorous, as did I, AND that's exactly what she got!

HAPPY
BIRTHDAY,
SAMMIE!!!

Father's Day almost as good as Mother's Day

With a husband like mine, who could go wrong! Father's Day almost felt like another Mother's Day for me. He even made is own towering cake--triple layer chocolate with cream cheese frosting. We (meaning the kids and I) were able to return the love with breakfast in bed and a small showering of gifts.



You know, I've been thinking about how expectations can really make or break a situation. When we just do the best we can to serve one another that should be enough, right? Regardless of what our expectations are we can always find that even the smallest intentions of doing good replace the grandest of expectations.
Thanks, Ben, for making all of our lives complete!

Not so perfect

I asked my husband the other day how he thought my blog was going. "You sound like the perfect mother," he said. I replied, "Really?" He responded: "Well, I wouldn't expect you to write about your bad moments."

My intent with this blog was to share life experiences, along with my thoughts and lessons learned for all of us who aren't so perfect.

Today has been one of those not-so-perfect days. It started out okay as I watched my kids swim their hearts out. Grandpa's Cafe snack hit the spot too. Then I realize as I drive home that I've got piles of laundry waiting for me. I don't feel like doing it (since it's by far my least favorite chore), so I decide to get some "business" done. I have to make sure my payments at the dentist are all accounted for, then I call for an appointment to have our attic evaluated on insulation needs (since the utility companies claim that they'll give rebates to a few energy savers). So far so good. As soon as I start talking with a representative from my phone company though, I realize that my day's luck is swaying. I explain my problem and their response makes my feel like I'm living through "Honey, I shrunk the kids." I am telling the long story made short and it's too unbelievable that it brings retribution instead of recompense.

What's the scoop, you say? Well, someone called (back in early May) from our telephone company saying that we had been selected as a valued customer and offered to upgrade our Broadband speed from 256K to 1.5 M. Being the skeptic, I asked him if this upgrade was free of charge. He answered that it would be and that it was merely in thanks for being such a valued customer. Still thinking how absurd the offer was I asked again if the upgrade would affect mine or my Internet providers charges. Again he answered that it would not. Who could pass up that offer, right? I told him to go ahead. When billing time came around, you guessed it, my charges had doubled for Internet service. Feeling like an idiot, I called and explained the situation and expressed my disappointment for being misled in my first conversation with them. (Okay, your probably thinking exactly what I now think in hindsight--dumb, dumb, dumb!) He said that he would refund the mistake and offer my preferred rate for the 1.5M Internet speed (You'd be happy to note that I've kept my cool through all of these conversations.) This month's bill reflected the refund but I don't see where the preferred rate was applied. So today I attempted to get the record straight THREE times. All three times the phone reps had a hard time believing me. (You probably don't either.) But they also said the bill looked accurate to them. I can barely discern what charge goes where, etc. There you have it, what's done is done!

After spending hours on this one issue and having my patience tried, it was inevitable that I would turn into "monster mommy" as I so affectionately call myself when I'm not being very nice. (I should have been taking my power nap instead.) My patience was not only thin but it was hanging by the tiniest thread. Then I had to face making dinner, finishing the laundry, supporting my husband in doing the yard work, getting kids to bed, etc., etc. AHHHH! Life can be so overwhelming!

...But, guess what, tomorrow's a brand new day!

P.S. Having a bad day yourself? Listen to this by Daniel Powter:

Trenches? or Mazes?

Ben (with a lot of help) has successfully turned our yard into a maze. No really, he was able to transform our dirt into a maze of trenches. Okay so maybe it's not just for the fun of it...it's really so he can lay pipe for our sprinkling system.

While doing so the kids had to try out "Daddy's toy."

How can Mommy possibly compete with that?!?! Whatever it takes to get a fully functioning "garden of eden." (It's actually more appropriate to call it the "garden of eating" with around twenty fruit trees planted already!)

One week of summer down, only 12+ more to go.

Advice for the day: If you have a lot of tension and you get a headache, do what it says on the aspirin bottle:"Take two aspirin" and "Keep away from children."--Author Unknown

Four out of my five kids are taking swimming lessons daily for two weeks. Three out of the five days thus far have felt like winter. Luckily the pool water is heated! I watched fog lift off the water yesterday and thought back to the time when Ben and I went to the hot pools in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. We went on his birthday which is in early January. It's great in the pool but once you get out it's cold!!! The kids have been real troopers. I guess the excitement of swimming lessons makes the cold bearable afterwards.


As for me? Well I'd have to say that I'm exhausted already. It's a good exhaustion though. Before summer came I wondered at how I would handle the "kid overload." Now that it's here, I must say that I'm enjoying it. The best part is seeing all of the kids playing happily with each other. They're finally relieving the ache of all the things they dreamed about doing during school days. Even 10-month old Hyrum puts in his two bits. Why just today 3-year old Sammie made up a game involving him. "I'll tease you with your toy, then you come get it. Before you come too close I'll run the other way." At first I thought Hyrum would disapprove. It didn't take long, however, to notice that he was actually playing along.


Learning to laugh at some of my motherly ways has been my greatest "overload" coping tool. Motherhood can be crazy, but if you stop and think how blessed you truly are then life brings more fulfillment. It is like deciding to work with the tide or against it. My kids just want to be kids, so why not get down on the floor and join in the fun!