Feeling peaceful

My life is crazy right now. Being the planner I am and having every almost every aspect of my life being up in the air is very hard for me. Normally I have lists. Lists of things to do, lists of places to go, lists of what money is coming in and lists of where it needs to go. Lists of who needs what from the store. Lists of who needs to go where and when. My family knows "if it's not written down, it doesn't get done"

Lately there have been no lists (almost no lists, I can't be totally unorganized) No amount of planning or scheduling or list making will help me. There is too much in our lives right now that we just don't know! Luckily due to some of my last posts I don't need to go to that place right now. Despite all the unknown, unplanned, crazy going on--I am learning to find reasons that some of these things are happening and being grateful for them.

Our family has had a hard year. Physically, financially, emotionally. BUT-- our family has learned:

• to be patient


• to live within our means


• to talk through problems before they get out of control


• to read scriptures together on a regular basis


• to say personal prayers more often(we were already doing pretty good at family prayers)


• to forget our problems and help others through theirs


• to be more giving


• to speak kind words more often


• to find cheaper entertainment (which can be more fun)


• to talk about our fears, hopes and dreams, openly and honestly


• to solve problems together (not just letting the parents make the decisions, kids can have some great input!)


• to ask more often--"what are we supposed to learn from this?" and "what does Heavenly Father want from our family, what are we supposed to be doing and where are we supposed to be doing it?"

We are so much closer as a family. I feel so much closer to the Lord and pray that my family feels the same. Mark and I have been married for almost 16 years and I feel closer to him than I ever have. These trials have pulled or maybe pushed us closer. We both have our moments of weakness, but we seem to take turns and pull the other through. I am so thankful for Mark and for every single one of my sweet children. I am also thankful for having Pam living here. She is such a big help in every way and lets me vent. She is having trials of her own and I do my best to help her in turn.

So--despite all the insanity--I am feeling peaceful. I know that many prayers have been offered on our behalf. I know that prayers are heard. I know that our Father in Heaven knows our hearts, our wants, our needs. I know that He has a plan for us and is just lining things up to carry that plan through. I have felt Him carry me and hold me many times in recent months. I am so thankful for that comfort. If these trials are what it took for us to learn so much and become closer to each other and our Heavenly Father, then I am thankful for what we have been given. Good and bad.

And that makes 10

We were supposed to have 2 weeks notice to paint, pack, move, etc for Mark's mom (whom I will refer to as Pam from here on out) to move in. We found out yesterday, due to some crazy uncontrollable circumstances, that we have today to paint and the weekend to not only move Pam in but help Mark's brother move also. AAAHHHH! Can there be more crazy added right now?? So, after a desperate call to our RS Pres, I got lucky enough to have 2 awesome boys (thanx Connole's) come and knock out the painting in little more than an hour! WooHoo! Mark just has to paint around the ceiling and it's ready for occupancy.

So, after this crazy weekend, we will have 10 people living in our home. We are excited to welcome Pam, Gramma, Mom into our home. The kids love her and I couldn't have asked for a better mom-in-law. We get along great, she's a huge help, likes to cook and naturally wakes up early enough to take the girls to zero hour so I can sleep YEAH!

Now all I need is for Mark's business to pick back up so we don't lose our house. I cringe just thinking about having to find a new place for 10 people....YUCK!
So, prayers are welcome and encouraged on our behalf. Better business or a whole new job, whatever it takes to stay where we are...we love our ward and don't want to leave it. But at this point we go where the work is. So, even if that means we leave here, it would just be nice to have a house to live in and a job to depend on.

So, on to a new chapter in our lives...the beginning of living with Gramma...fun times ahead!!

Loooong weekend!

Friday:

1. Picked Ty up from school at 9:30
2. Took Ty to occupational therapy in Mesa
3. Had to have Mark pick up Jake from school and meet me in Chandler so he could take Ty back to school and I could take Jake to the hand surgeon to have a cast put on his broken wrist.
4. Picked kids up from school
5. Took Natalie for allergy shots (10 minutes late)
6. Fed the kids.
7. Got to go for a break with friends (dinner and movie)

Saturday:

1. Woke kids up at 8 to get ready for Mark's dad's funeral
2. Left for funeral at 10:30
3. Headed home about 4
4. Went grocery shopping
5. Friends came over to BBQ and help finish Kyra's room so we can get started working on the room that Mark's mom will be moving into.

Mark's brother,Scott, gave a beautiful eulogy and then all the grand kids sang "Families Can Be Together Forever" Two of my kids were crying so hard they couldn't even make it through the song. It was really heart-breaking.

Mark's mom's RS served a wonderful lunch and wouldn't let us help with anything. It was really sweet. We had some relatives from Utah come down for the weekend so after the luncheon we went back to Mark's mom's to visit for awhile. It was nice to see them since we haven't been up there for 4 years.

Sunday:

1. Overslept and missed church
2. Went to Mark's mom's house to start going through and packing everything and to have dinner and visit with family some more
3. Left her house around 7
4. Came home and moved Kyra's stuff into her new room

By this point my back and legs hurt and everybody was exhausted!

It was a very long and emotional weekend for all. But it was fun to be around family and see the love that surrounds this family. We are all experiencing financial and/or health issues right now. But when it comes to being there and showing love for each other, this family is NOT in short supply!!

So, over the next few weeks we will finish prepping Pam's room and packing some of her most treasured belongings, having a charity yard sale (selling almost everything else she owns) so she will have money to live on for awhile and moving her from her home to ours and moving Mark's sister into her new apartment....

Farewell and a birthday...

This is Mark's nephew, Vince. Sunday we went to his farewell party. This 'do' was one of his last freedom acts. He left yesterday for boot camp for the Air Force. We are all very excited for him! Despite how he appears in this picture, he is insanely smart and super sweet and we love him to death. Good luck Vince!!

And now on to Alaina--HAPPY 15TH BIRTHDAY!

Alaina Rochelle was born at 6:03 pm. She counts down to the minute every year. I can't believe how fast the past 15 years have flown by. It seems like yesterday I was getting frustrated because she had colic and Mark slept right through it.

Alaina did everything early.

She crawled at 4 months, walked at 9 months, spoke complete and understandable sentences at 18 months, started kindergarten at age 4, got her teenage attitude at age 9 but mostly outgrew it by age 12. Now she is trying to graduate a year early.

We are so grateful to have Alaina in our family. She tries so hard to do what's right and she can be very spiritual. She always thinks about others and does things without being asked. She loves to clean and organize which is nice since my other 3 daughters don't share that passion!

Alaina--you are awesome! Stay just the way you are, we love you so much. Happy Birthday,baby Llama.

Everything update...

OK. I haven't posted in awhile but that's because I've been waiting for Mark to download the pics from my camera cuz I still don't get it. (sad,I know!) But whenever he's home,I forget. So,here's yet another post without pics!

School started a few weeks ago. I thought I was excited to not have the kids home saying "I'm bored" 15 times a day.

I.was.wrong.

My schedule has been so insane,I can't think straight. So,here it is:

Kyra has been doing a little better this year at keeping up with homework and actually turning it in. Her attitude is getting better, most of the time. And after groundings piling up on top of groundings--finally after 11 months--she is free!! And hoping to stay that way so she's watching everything she says and does.

Alaina is still having alot of problems with pain from what we think is arthritis but they still can't find any proof that anything is wrong. The dr said it could be beginning stages but that could take awhile to show itself. But she is taking an extra class at school cuz she is trying to graduate early. She is very motivated cuz she wants to hurry and start college courses for fashion and design.

Jenna is still doing great in school. She is not as motivated as I would hope but we're working on it. But she's still as fun as ever and keeps the kids laughing (even during homework)

Jake has finally hit some growth spurts.He has complained for so long about being short and now all of a sudden I have had to buy him new shorts (twice in 6 weeks) new shoes and shirts cuz he keeps growing.He also has a love/hate relationship with junior high. He loves some of his classes/teachers. But of course there's some he doesn't like. Mostly he loves that he made the football team. Out of the 105 boys that tried out, only 32 made it and he was one of them! Daily practices are making him tired and he's trying to adjust.But he's doing awesome! His first game is today so we'll see how it goes!

Jaren is in 5th grade and that means he gets to play an instrument! He chose the alto saxophone and he loves it. He is doing better this year at being organized and getting things done.He has grown a little too.

Natalie is in 4th grade. She has had so many health problems this year, it's hard to be excited about school. She is having a ton of stomach problems and had to go through some not-so-fun meds and treatments. We are being told (if it's what they think) it could take 6 months to 2 years to get her back to normal. Long road ahead.....

Ty is in 1st grade. Back at his old school but with a new teacher. We've had some ups and downs but this new teacher is doing a good job to make sure there's more ups. He's still in self-contained but will be starting in with some mainstreaming soon.

Mark and I have had our own health issues to deal with. The scary job situation doesn't help the health situation much. But we are having faith that Heavenly Father knows what He's doing. I hope He does cuz at this point--WE DON'T!

I'm trying to end this on a more positive note....sorry....I just don't have anything right now.

A Little Help

I need recipes for a diet that will lower cholesterol. Preferably meals that my whole family will be willing to eat. Recipes for desserts and snacks would be helpful too. Or if any of you are a nutritionist or dietitian, we could use your help. Thanks!