A Personal Favorite

I think you all know by now that I am a huge fan of the Mormon Messages videos from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on YouTube. I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that they have made a video from one of my all time favorite Conference talks. This video is wonderful, but the full talk is so much better. It has been a source of hope and comfort to me for many, many years now. So, if you have a few minutes to spare, watch the video and enjoy its uplifting message. If you have a few minutes more, listen to the whole talk (it pre-dates video clips) and let its message of hope touch your heart and buoy you up in days to come. :D

"An High Priest of Good Things to Come" by Jeffrey R. Holland, Ensign November 1999.

Just a Shameless Mommy Brag

Today was quite an eventful day for my PrincessBug.

At today's elementary school award assembly she was acknowledged for being on the Honor Roll. Then she received an award for outstanding academic achievement followed immediately by an outstanding citizenship award. Then, to top it all off, she won a new bicycle in the "Road to Success" drawing. (Each time the kids read a certain number of minutes their name was added to a pool. The more minutes you read, the more chances you would have in the random drawing. Her name was selected from the upper grade girls' drawing.)

She volunteered to be a lunch worker today. After lunch, she and her classmates (all of the upper grades actually) walked to a nearby pool for a swimming party. After school we picked up her bike from the office and brought it home.

Unfortunately, she didn't drink enough water and got too much sun. By the time we got home she was on her way to a migraine. I kept trying to get her to drink, but she fell asleep before she got any real water or anything else to help her out. Eventually, after she woke up, we were able to do more to help her and she went back to sleep for a bit.

I'm happy to report that after her second nap she woke up happy and smiling, the way you should be after a really good day.

I'll add a picture of her with her new bike just as soon as I get one taken. :)

Perfectionism Paralysis

So...I know that I'm woefully behind in my blogging, even after my last brief check in. It seems that I have been waiting for the "right time" to jump back in and get going. See, there has been so much going on in our lives, much of it with significant importance, that I feel obligated to "catch up" and document the lot here on the blog. Some part of me has pictured an epic post (or two, or twelve) with lots of pictures and lengthy journaling. Some part of me wants the epic posts.

But, I'm beginning to feel that if I don't just start right back up as if I have never missed anything at all, that this little blog of mine is just going to fade away into nothingness. That would make me very sad. I really like blogging and the opportunity it gives me to share my thoughts, the events of our lives, and those little cool things I discover along the way. I also love reading your blogs and sharing your triumphs, tears, and laughter. I've been missing that too. So, I'm gonna just jump in with both feet and see if I can add those "important live event" entries somewhere along the way.

With all this in mind, check out this really cool entry from Shannon Hale's blog: Morals and values and lessons, oh my! I find it fascinating, especially since I have aspirations of being a writer someday when I grow up. I'd love to hear what you think.

Favorite Photo Friday

And I wonder why it is that sometimes we seem to get nowhere... :D This is 'Lashes in early February.

Hello to all those in blog land...

I've been terribly remiss in my blog writing and reading. I miss it. I shall endeavor to get it together and get posting/reading again. So, don't be too shocked if you find your inbox filled up with comments from me.

One reason I've been rather AWOL is my effort to reclaim my house. I've gotten increasingly stressed over the state of Chez Nous and I'm desperately trying to get us cleaned up and dejunked before the little one arrives. (I don't know it counts as nesting just yet, I'm only 16 weeks, but maybe. Mostly it's an effort to have a place to put said child.) I'm also trying to get my kids more involved in the process. I simply can't do it all by myself. I've also decided that it's really hard to train the kids and myself at the same time. :P

We tried to finish a basement bathroom over RM's Spring Break. We didn't make it. :( So, we'll continue to work on it a bit at a time. Right now I'd rather have RM graduate on time (Summer semester) than have a finished bathroom. We've survived this long, we'll survive a bit longer, even if it does mean we've got traffic jams from time to time.

We are down to the wire for finishing the MS degree. The drop dead date for having everything turned in will be June 21. RM will defend about a week before that. So, for the next couple of months things will be uber crazy. But, I have faith we can do it!!

I promise I'll do better at checking in with bits and pieces of information and hopefully a few pictures from time to time. :D

Happy St. Patrick's Day

This one always makes me smile and sometimes makes me laugh so hard I cry. I hope you enjoy it as much as my family does. :D

Happy Birthday Vivaldi

Apparently I'm a sap for Google's special homepages. However, since I really enjoy a good dose of Vivaldi from time to time, here's a little something to celebrate his 332nd birthday. :)