Holy Growth Spurt!

Bekah had a dance performance tonight.
The last performance she had was in December,and we were reminded shortly before the performance to check and make sure their costumes fit.
Not a problem.
Although I thought it might be getting small, when she tried it on in December, it still came to her knees.

While that's not my favorite length, at the ginormous cost of a costume worn once or twice every 3 months, I'm willing to make it work for a while.

I didn't even think about trying it on her for this upcoming performance!
Tonight, she came out, ready to be buttoned in back...and her dress was halfway up her thighs.
Thank goodness for the bloomers underneath!
Honestly, she's grown at LEAST 3 inches in 3 months. And while I've noticed some of her pants had gotten too short, I hadn't stopped to think about measuring her.

That's a growth spurt.
She'll be getting a new costume...just in case you weren't sure.

Beauty

"This is a fire rainbow - The rarest of all occuring atmospheric phenomena.
(Picture captured this week on the Idaho/Washington border). The event lasted about 1 hour.
Clouds have to be cirrus, at least 20K in the air, with just the right amount of ice crystals, and the sun has to hit the clouds at exactly 58 degrees.
I say its God's handiwork . Very beautiful sight!"
(quoted from an e-mail I received today)

I have to agree. God's work is amazing.

Enriched

My week has been enriched.
Truly.

This week I was honored to attend, not one, but two Enrichment meetings.
Our regularly scheduled Enrichment night was this Tuesday.
Also, in our stake, there is a daytime enrichment meeting that includes lunch on the 3rd Thursday of the month.
It originally started as an excuse for the older sisters in the stake to get together and be social, since it was difficult for many of them to drive or get out at night.
When enough younger moms expressed interest in coming, a nursery was added, and viola!, I had the option of attending another meeting.

Evening enrichment was amazing.
Our leader has given her heart and 110% every month since she was called.
(I know because I worked with her for about 18 of those months).
This month was no exception.
The only difference for me was I am no longer the Enrichment counselor, and so I saw this night for the first time as a participant rather than as a "inside man".
That committee (from the leader on down) worked their tails off!
We had a progressive dinner (physical food), and each room had a speaker (spiritual food).
Here are a couple of things I came away with:

If you are too busy to read your scriptures, you are just TOO busy.

"Ye are the Salt of the Earth"
Salt: a sign of the covenant, representational of preservation from corruption, the power to be the seasoning, savoring, preserving influence in the world.
"When men are called into mine everlasting gospel and covenant with an everlasting covenant, theay are accounted as the salt of the earth and the savor of men." D&C 101:39

(Salt was used as a cleansing preservative in biblical days. Nothing else saved things from decay and rot as well as salt.)


A handout was given in a class where we tied quilts as we talked about humanitarian service.
It said:
A CANDLE
A candle's but a simple thing
It starts with just a bit of string
But dipped and dipped with patient hand
It gathers wax upon the strand
Until complete and snowy white
It gives at last a lovely light.

Life seems so like that bit of string
Each deed we do, a simple thing
Yet day by day if on life's strand
We work with patient heart and hand
It gathers joy, makes dark days bright,
And gives at last, a lovely light.

The sister had that poem memorized.
It is powerful to hear someone share something they have internalized.

It made me think of "good mail".
When is the last time you sent someone something just to let them know they were important to you??
If you can't remember the last time, make some time and do it soon.
It makes you happy, and brightens their day too!!


Today's meeting was on the brain function, and we focused on how if you truly think something, it comes to be.
My favorite part was this:

Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate,but that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,gorgeous, handsome, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us.
It is not just in some; it is in everyone.

And, as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

--Marianne Williamson

Inspiration is amazing.

It touches us, sometimes unexpectedly, but changes our hearts and our minds.

I am grateful to have been enriched.

A Quandry

To Upgrade Dish or not to Upgrade Dish...

We've debated for a long time about getting a DVR...and it would actually be cheaper to go with Direct TV in the short run...but I really like the format of the guide on Dish.
The quandry is that we aren't watching TV...as a family, on school nights, so it's after the kids are in bed that we turn it on (although I do end up recording American Idol two nights a week...I can't miss that!).
I love Food TV, The Learning Channel, and Pat loves The History Channel and Sci-Fi.
My little ones love Nick Jr. and Little Einsteins on Disney Channel, none of which we now get because we are striving to be true tightwads, so we just pay a $5 access fee and $5.99 per month (plus tax) for our local channels.
It's a steal at $12.59 per month.
But...I miss the upgrades, the "extra" channels...the ability to zone out to the tune of Good Eats.

Honestly, I know the answer, but I don't want to do it.
With our debt snowball hanging inside of the cabinet directly behind me, I should just stick out the locals for another year and a half...after which time we will have all debt other than house or car paid off...and I can choose whatever option I want with no guilt.

Just remind me it's worth it.
That listening to the prophet is worth it, and getting out of debt is paramount.
That I really don't need a DVR in my house...
That I can do without Food Network for another year and a half.
That I don't need to watch an episode of "What Not to Wear" to get applicable fashion tips for my life, tomorrow.

So, weigh in...
Give a me your opinion...
Let me know where you stand.
I'll be waiting anxiously to have you influence me.

Home Again, Home Again Jiggity-jig

It's been a whirlwind of days...but I'm home.

My friend Susan is in great spirits, especially considering the fact that she just endured major surgery.
I really enjoyed spending the time with her...but I must admit it is odd to come home and still have a weekend ahead after having a "girls weekend".
I've spent a lot of time with her, but it's always been on the weekend, so I come home and head into a new week, so it's different to be looking at a weekend ahead.

My mother and father-in-law were here for the 3 days, with help from a friend in the ward on Tuesday (I left before they arrived).
I actually did not see them at all, as they left for home about 1 hour before I got home.
I pulled in about 10:30pm, but was able to accomplish some "big city" stuff.

Tonight we have (undisclosed) plans.
Tomorrow is Pat's birthday...
Sunday...Ward Conference...
Busy days ahead...

Thanks to all for your thoughts and prayers on Susan's behalf.
I know they mean the world to her.

By Request

At Andrya's request, here's my version of what Pat wrote about last week on his blog.

Birth Story of Stephen Joseph John

Late last Monday night (8-14-1995), and early Tuesday morning, I kept being woken up by contractions. Finally, about 4:40am, I woke Pat up and asked him to rub my lower back because it was hurting so badly. He was a little reluctant…mostly because he thought he’d be leaving for work in an hour. I finally rewoke him up about 10 minutes later and asked him to start timing my contractions because I couldn’t go back to sleep. We started timing them, and were surprised to find they were between 2 and 3 minutes apart, and lasting for 30 to 45 seconds. After about 1 ½ hours, we called the doctor-Dr. John D. Holmes-, and he said to call him back in another hour. I decided to go and take a bath to help relax my back, and that threw my contractions totally out of synch. We called Dr. Holmes back and told him that the contractions had become really erratic and his conclusion was that I was having false labor. (Pat and I had gone for a walk around the (Mesa) Temple after the bath to try and get the contractions to be regular again, and it hadn’t helped). After we called the doctor, we both decided another hour or so of sleep would be good and then Pat could leave for a ½ day of work. During our nap, I kept waking up—in pain—from contractions. Finally, about 9:30am, when I was having to hold back tears and really breathe through the contractions, I called the doctor’s office and explained how I was feeling. I was told to come in for a check-up, which Pat and I left for immediately.

Dr. Holmes checked me and told Pat and I that I was dialated to 3 cm and effaced 80% and that we needed to go to the hospital and check in. We went to Mesa Lutheran Hospital and checked in. We were assigned to room #625, and from there we called Mom and Becca Lunt (who had planned on leaving for Thatcher to move Becca into her dorm on Tuesday) who were at our house, and Susan Ludwig (a very dear friend) who was at Johnson school. All of them showed up within an hour and stayed until Stephen was born. (Boy, we were naïve…thinking my first baby would show up fast!!)

The day progressed quickly. I chose to take some Stadol, a painkiller, and although it helped some, I decided to get an epidural as well. The interesting thing was that at one point I felt very strongly that if I wanted an epidural, I needed to ask for it then. I did ask, and then waited 45 minutes to an hour for the doctor to come and take care of it. They also had to try 3 times before it was properly inserted.

After the initial insertion of the epidural, I rested for about 20 or 30 minutes, and then, the medication wasn’t having any effect any more. At this point, I was dialated to 7 cm and going through transitional labor. In other words, my contractions were extraordinarily strong, and I had little or no painkiller in my system. Mom Lunt, Becca, and Susuan had left just before the pain got intense, (This is the point where my mom started talking about the palm trees swaying in the wind and I very tersely said, “Mom, BE QUIET!) and Mom John and Coleen John (my sister-in-law) had just showed up. Mom John, Coleen and Pat were there to help me through this part of my labor. (Mom John really did make the comment about the pain just getting worse, and if I could have said anything other than “MOM!” at that point, I would have told her to shut up…and that is not like me…but hey, transitional labor brings out the best in all of us, right?)

At about 7pm, Dr Holmes came into the room and checked me and said I could start pushing. From then until 8:47pm, I was working with everyone to help Stephen be born. I could feel a little bit of movement, and the others in the room kept me posted as to what was happening from their perspective. Finally, (at the very end), Dr. Holmes came rushing in and gave me an episiotomy, and four pushes later, our first son, Stephen Joseph John was born. Dr. Holmes put him on my chest, and when I spoke to Stephen, he looked right into my face and stopped crying. Pat cut the umbilical cord, and we were able to just hold and love Stephen his first minutes of life. (The funny thing was that even 3 or 4 minutes after he was born, no one had checked to see if he was a boy! Finally, one of the nurses asked, and of course it was Stephen, but it was somewhat comical.)

The labor and delivery were things I would have done again the very next hour for a joy and reward as special as my little son. I have no serious complaints—just the rejoicings of my heart and of having a healthy child.

(Written 8-22-1995)

Heading Out

I'll be back on Friday...
I'm headed to help my dear friend Susan after her 2nd masectomy.
My mother and father-in law will be here to watch the kids as Pat couldn't take the time off.
It's a first for me to leave my kids for 3 whole school days.
I'm sure they will do well.
I, on the other hand, may have some mental adjustments to make.

See you soon.