farewell January.

 lighter, warmer, longer days ahead!

January was not my 2014 favorite, but she did paint on some spectacular sunsets.

emoticons: in sync

Following a text message conversation about coordinating our schedules to plan a time to exercise together,

my friend sent me a text yesterday with a cute little emoticon of what looked to me to be a bunny.  "This is us in sync" is what she texted immediately following the pictorial representation, apparently confirming the meaning of the little cartoon. I don't have cute little emoticons on my phone, so this is what I texted her back:

(at first glance she wondered if our toilets were out of order)

need love?

Leeli & I did some sitting for a friend.

 Our friend has a VERY.BIG.DOG.

He hardly made a sound...(but)

his need for affection was as big as he is.

We felt very loved.

Don't let kitchen construction stop you from having company for Sunday dinner

A friend of ours gave us a BIG turkey at Christmas time.

It had finally been enough time since the last big holiday meal to think about doing it again. We invited our generous turkey-gifting-friend plus a few extra people over and enjoyed a nice long afternoon of food and fun together.

To say we were STUFFED would be a gross understatement.

There was some plate art going on with what didn't get eaten.

 The best part of the night, in my opinion, happened after the company left. There was a boatload of dishes to be washed, and these two sisters accepted the assignment willingly, and spent some time talking together while they washed.

There were never such devoted sisters.

Saturday mornings aren't always for sleeping in

These two cute friends got together before 8:00 (in the morning!) on Saturday. While most teenagers were sleeping, they made/decorated homemade donuts that were DEE-LISH,

 made rainbow loom bracelets, went to a basketball game and then did some ice skating in the backyard.

I'm a big believer in the weekend sleep-in. But even I would forgo a good sleep to spend time with a fun friend.

25+ year old ripples

We've talked a lot about the ripple effect this week in seminary. As a follow up question I asked the girls this morning if they could see that others were being influenced by their actions. They didn't seem to hesitate very long, and both answered in the negative. I understand the response. High School is a battleground. (Which is why I'm so grateful to send them off with whatever armor I can strap on them during our 45 minutes together each morning)  I think it's important that our kids recognize the good influences they have on their peers and those they associate with just by choosing to adhere themselves to a list of standards that aren't recognized on any top ten lists of desirable traits for teens. We revisited the question How can a person's actions be like a rock that is dropped into the water?  Then a discussion. I KNOW they're making a difference. I've had conversations with adults who have talked about being changed because of their associations with these young ladies. Clearly we need to talk about this some more. I want them to know the good they are doing just by being true to themselves.

Whether good or bad, like the ripples that expand from the splash of a rock, other people can be influenced by our actions. 

I remember recently (2010) thinking back on the time I spent serving as a missionary in Colombia. Did my service really make a difference?

I honestly couldn't think that it had.

Our own son was serving as a full time missionary in Panama at the time.  While my hopes and prayers were focused on his knowing that he could make a difference there, subliminally I struggled with knowing that my time as a missionary did anything more than strengthen ME. 

If that were the case, I was nonetheless grateful for my own personal experiences, but was having some feelings of guilt about whether or not my mission had been completely self-serving.

The Lord is mindful of us, and I recognize now that He didn't want me to worry about this. It didn't take long to lose contact with most of my acquaintances in Colombia. I've managed to keep in touch with two dear friends from that country. Both were young women who loved helping the missionaries; one had served her own mission prior to my being there, and another was eagerly awaiting the day when she would reach the age that would make her eligible to serve. There was no one else--no families or individuals to link any stories I might have to validate missionary success.

Out of the blue one day, I received a request on Facebook: someone with a name that I did not recognize wanted to be my friend. I almost deleted the request, not seeing any connection to this name and feeling nervous about linking myself to someone who might not have my best interests in mind. I spent a day or two thinking about it and had the thought that this might be an attempt by someone from my missionary days to contact me. I accepted.  It turned out to be a young man. Young enough in fact, that he would not even have been born yet during the years I spent in Colombia. But his mother had.  

She had been a young wife and mother, eager to make some changes in her life that would benefit her young family. My companion and I made many visits to her home, and eagerly taught her the gospel. She was baptized during my time in her village, and then I was transferred to another part of the country. Her son was contacting me to let me know that after she was baptized, her husband then decided to be baptized. They chose to add a few more children to their family, and made a commitment to raise their children to love and cling to the gospel of Jesus Christ. This young man was the youngest of the bunch. He was writing to let me know how grateful HE was that I had taken the time to serve a mission and have an influence on his mother that then went on in a rippling effect to change the lives of his father, their growing family, and ultimately himself. He was excited to share his news that he was (at that time in 2010) preparing to serve a mission in Argentina, and was anxious for me to know how grateful he was for the effects of the gospel in his life.

It's amazing.

Don't ever underestimate the ripple effect.

OR

The ability of a loving and kind Heavenly Father to reach out to us and let us know that we're doing fine when we're having moments of doubt.

she'll want to know how to spell en.tre.pre.neur

 Leeli's been busy.

She's taken to crocheting

like I've taken to huddling near the woodstove in this bitter cold.

 She's got the basics in the bag, and is expanding the vision of her product line.

Who knows? Maybe Etsy next.

January ball

We've had two snowstorms since these pictures were taken.

Today we had to take the ball to the church gym so we could get some shots in. 

Last week?

The snow had melted just enough so that this boy did not want to come inside.

Not at all.

new beginnings

These lovely ladies put on a really great new beginnings program.  Their theme for the evening was The Wizard of Oz.

Dorothy, the Wicked Witch, the Tin Man, Glinda the Good Witch, the Cowardly Lion and the Scarecrow were well represented.

They're following the yellow brick road to a great new year of fun in the young women program.

new snow

We woke up to the beginnings of a snow storm on Saturday morning.

 The frosty weather caught me a bit by surprise. 

 It snowed most of the day, making everything look clean and white and beautiful. 

 Fresh snow has a peaceful soothing effect on my soul.

 Watching my kids enjoy it makes it twice as nice.

matching socks isn't our thing

It wasn't too hard too look around the house the night before

"Crazy Hat Day"

to inventory our resources. An overflowing basket of

mismatched socks ended up being our pot of gold.

 It IS supposed to be cRaZy, right?!?

 So off he went... my little pile of socks.

(I couldn't suppress my giggles)

 He had that quick moment of doubt just before the bus arrived...

 but I told him to RELAX.

What can go wrong

when you're wearing a pile of socks on your head?

we generally don't prefer to clean

I was sick yesterday.

Woof.

Really sick.

Today is better--but I'm playing my rest-and-recovery card.

I'm also hoping no one else comes down with the bug.

One of the things I managed to do besides lay like a bump on the couch all day long, was to sweep some dirt into a pile. Six people, a wood stove, two cats and constant traffic means the floor gets very dirty very fast.  (Like the dishes... and the laundry...)  I couldn't lie on the couch and look at the dirt. I just couldn't. So I swept. There was no dust pan in sight, so I left the broom and the pile hoping the next kind soul to see it would finish the job.

There were kinds souls.  Kind souls-a-plenty. But the dust pan has remained elusive, and no one had the gumption to come up with an alternative solution.  So the pile remains.

Today's goals:  Rest.  Recover.  Find dustpan.  Clean up the dirt pile.

window art

I drove Morning Boy out to the mailbox to catch the school bus.

This is what we were amazed to find on the van window.