Homesick

At times my homesickness for Charleston hits me stronger than other times. For some reason I'm always quite homesick on sundays. But anyway, here's a few pictures of random events that we thoroughly enjoyed. There are a lot of pictures but this is mostly to be included in the future when I print out our blog.

2006. My first calling in Chas was a sunbeam teacher. They were a hoot! (And a handful).



Thanksgiving 2007. Becca preparing to send everyone home with leftovers. Kimball pulls some of the best faces I've ever seen! Lindsay the head chef who did a fabulous job. Matt, Krystal, Doug, Joel, and Spencer playing Rock Band.





Halloween 2007. Great costumes! Clara, Matt Tipping, Josh and Michelle, and Brice and Tawni.




2008 Tedrow's farewell party. We miss you guys and I wish I could see your cute pregnant belly! Congratulations!
2008 before Francis' moved to Chile. Game night with Tippings, Hirschi's, and Francis'. What a blast we had!

We love the Tippings!!!! Enough said. (tear, tear)

August 2008. This is the YM & YW at our luau. Collin rocked at the Limbo!

2008. Game night with Hirschi's. Annalee and I always beat the boys, what can I say we make a great team!

I LOVE MY BEST BUDS!!!

2008 right before we moved back. I had a lunch date with Crystal, Becca, and Trea and their kids at Chic Fil A. And to think this was my first time eating there. Shame on me!

2008. This is most of the kids being entertained by the ol' pirate at Brian M's birthday party.

The ol' pirate himself, Matt Tipping. Yes he's so rough and gruff he steals the little kid's capri sun drinks.

2008 The girls hitting it up with rock band. You really were awesome! Vanessa, Jenny Leigh, Krystal, Teagan, and Becca.2008. The best fourth of July ever! I've never seen fireworks quite like the ones these boys shot off.

2008. This is Lance and I right before we left for a date to see the Middleton Plantation. No comments on my hair.....seriously what was I thinking?!

Lance will probably shoot me once he finds out I posted this picture since he's lost so much weight since then. This was at Boone Hall, July 2007 right after Jason and Makenna moved to Chas. We had a short tour of the mansion and enjoyed an outdoor concert by the Chas. Symphony followed by cool fireworks. It was there we learned how people really get into the picnic contests and we got eaten alive by the noseeums. (Don't ask me how to spell it but Jason, I know you know what I'm talking about!)

Ever seen a redneck beach house? Only in the south!

Blah!

Does anybody else out there have the winter blues? Seriously, after several weeks (if not months) of fog and mist and snow and rain and lots of wind............where's the sunshine?!?!?! Where's the warmth and the love of walking outside because it's so nice???? I'm so sick of winter, it's getting quite ridiculous and very on my nerves. I just want some sunshine people, is that too hard to ask for?!?!

Glimpses Into the Life and Heart of Marjorie Pay Hinckley

I have been reading this book about sister Hinckley and I wanted to post an excerpt in her words that really touched me:

"A grateful heart will give you a touch of refinement that can come in no other way.

I went to high school during the days of the famous Depression. It was a miserable experience. But, in a way, I wish you could have been there with us. Somehow it helped me to appreciate much more the prosperity we now enjoy. I know some of you think you are on a tight budget, and you are. I am glad if you are. But it is a tight budget because you have nothing else to compare with it. It isn't your fault that you have had three square meals a day, most every day of your life. It isn't your fault that somehow or other you have always been able to get a new pair of shoes, whether you needed them or not. It isn't your fault that you have at least five or six changes of clothing in your crowded closets. But all of this makes it doubly hard for you to be truly grateful.

Has the fear of not being able to get an education ever struck terror into your heart? Probably not, for you knew that somehow or other you would get here and that somehow or other you will stay as long as you so desire, for this is America, where only your own indolence can keep you from the good things in life.

And when you finally develop a little gratitude in your heart, make up your mind to express it. 'Appreciation unexpressed is not appreciation.' If you can't find someone to say thank you to for something, just take a look at your toothbrush and say, 'Thank you for being. You are a wonderful little gadget.'

'Thank you' is a wonderful phrase. Use it. It will add stature to your soul. Never let a day go by without saying thank you to someone for something - and especially to your Heavenly Father."

Another Excerpt from Sister Hinckley's Book

"As I watched some of the young mothers come into this meeting with young children, restless from meetings that have preceded this one, I think I felt something of your frustration and challenge to be the perfect mother. Relax. There is no such thing as the perfect mother who fits all the eulogies. We just do the best we can with the help of the Lord, and who knows, these children who are struggling to be free may someday rise up and call us blessed.

The trick is to enjoy it. Don't wish away your days of caring for young children. This is your great day. Sometimes we get so caught up in the physical work and trivia that we forget the big picture. We forget whose children they really are. When the house is filled with children, noise and teasing and laughter, you get the feeling this is forever. Before you know it they will be gone. When our second son went away to school at the age of seventeen, I said, 'But Clark, I am not through with you. I feel there is so much I will need to teach you.'

'Too late, Mother, too late.'

Our children grow so quickly out of our reach. The rewards of mothering are not immediate. There are times when you are less than appreciated. I took from the oven one day what I thought was a beautiful casserole, only to have my six-year-old son say, 'Mom, how come you baked the garbage?'

There there is the unexpected hug, when you least deserve it. And while you are enjoying these days of mothering, be sure your demands on your children for perfection are not so heavy that they cannot be children.

Don't be like the mother I know who said to her ten-year-old daughter, who was the oldest of five children and from whom the mother needed a little help and cooperation, 'Sometimes you act just like a child.'

'But Mother, I am,' she wisely replied.

A busy parent writes: 'One morning I was hurrying my three-year-old's dressing procedure because I had only minutes to spare. In the middle of the commotion and worry, my little girl cleverly enjoyed a little joke of her own about something unrelated to the job at hand. I ignored her fun and indicated my disapproval . . . Her sweet, thought-provoking response: 'Mommy, don't we even have time to laugh?'

We all feel the pressures and stress of the sophisticated, fast-paced, complicated, competitive world in which we find ourselves. Not only do we feel it as adults, but the children feel it too. Because of TV, the press, and videos, our children are exposed to adult life very, very early. This makes it doubly important that mothers and fathers consciously strive to make it possible for children to be children before they become adults."

Holy Cow.....I mean, bunny!

Lance has a love for rabbits and even though the term "bunny" is generally reserved for speaking to children, we call them bunnies. Before we moved to Charleston we had two unnamed bunnies that we called Bunny (we're so lazy we never actually named them). Ever since Lance got a little Christmas money from his parents, he's been dying to get another bunny. Saturday he went with Kempton up to Gooding and bought one while I was out with my mom and sister wedding planning. When I got home I asked Lance to bring the bunny in the house so I could see and pet him and in the mean while I used the bathroom. When I got out I heard this unexpectedly loud thumping. I looked over to where the sound was coming from and I was seriously terrified! This was the largest bunny I have ever seen in my life, it was HUGE! I mean, I was a little scared and then realized just how large this thing was and thought it was freaky/comical. Anyway, needless to say he's quite large so we took him back to the owner. Here's the bunny who we called Rupert for a day while we had him.

The Old Men

Many of you who knew Lance from high school, knows that he is an avid lover/supporter of barbershop. No, not barbershops like the kind that cut hair because after all, he doesn't have hair to cut. I'm referring to barbershop music. Before we moved to Charleston he was the director of the Magichords in Twin Falls, a group of 30 old and grumpy men that love to sing in harmony (and complain a lot). Now that we're back in Twin he's formed a quartet with his brother Kempton, and two high school friends TJ and Ben. Let me tell you, they have such a great time together! I think they do more laughing than actual singing but it has been so fun to have the four of them together doing what they love.

Friday was the annual barbershop dinner and though we were the only "youth" there (I thought youth was ages 12-18 but apparently in barbershop you're still a youth if you're under 55), the quartet was asked to sing a few numbers. They did a fantastic job! We had an awesome time together and I'm so glad Lance is again involved in his love of barbershop.

It's Official

I now have a display with lots of jewelry items now available at Just 4 Kids on Fairfield Avenue above Real Deals. COMING SOON: I'm in the process of making another display so I'll have a lot more jewelry for moms, not just kids. Right now there's plenty of baby bracelets and several sets of earrings, go check it out!

I Gave In!

Ok I've never been a big fan of reading books that are popular. The Harry Potter books and movie - I could care less. The Chronicles of Narnia - not interested at all (although I did see the movies because Lance read the books several years ago and loved them). I'm just not a science fiction type of person, all the fantasy and weird creatures and powers, just a little too bizarre for me. I like to stay a little more grounded.

However, while Lance was having quartet practice tonight, Emily, one of the other fellow quartet wives such as myself, came over while the boys sang their little hearts out. We decided to go see a movie. And yes, I gave in and watched Twilight. Now, in my defense Emily had already seen it a few times and although she hadn't read the books, she was SO in love with it. I mostly went along with it to humor her because in all honesty I really didn't think I would enjoy it at all. I mean come on, vampires, really???

Needless to say, I am now a Twilight fan and come Monday I will be the first one at the library checking out the books. Yeah I'm too cheap to buy it and besides we live literally, right next door to the library so I really have no excuse not to read the books now. I'm debating if I should just read the first one and then wait until the next movie comes out to read the second. I don't like to jump ahead and I don't want to spoil the next movie. But if I like the books as much as the movie, there's no way I'd be able to wait for the next movie. Alas, I am now a fan!

A New Era

On Sunday an older woman in our ward whom I greatly admire for her strength and wisdom, stood up in Relief Society and gave an analogy that she was taught several years ago by her visiting teacher when she was about to move. She talked about how each of us are in different eras in our lives; some are newlyweds and others are celebrating their 50th anniversary. Some are finishing school and others are well into their careers. Some have little tots running around and other are raising teenagers. Etc, etc. As we enter in these eras we are like four white walls. If there are regrets or mistakes on our old wall decor, we have a chance to decorate these new white walls with whatever we wish. We ring in a new year and everybody has resolutions on their minds, well this is our chance to create a new era, to make needed changes in our lifestyle or habits, and to "hang up" a picture of Christ on our new walls.

Of course she said this much more eloquently than I just explained, but as she did I welled up with tears and my heart ached to be in Charleston. I felt sad, alone, and really vulnerable. Then I realized that I have entered a new era in my life: Lance and I have moved back home to Twin Falls to finish up school. I have just as much opportunity as the next person to make changes in my life. And so I decided to be happy. I decided to do what makes me smile and laugh. I decided to quit being selfish and self-centered and feeling sorry for myself for being so far away from my friends and all the things I came to absolutely love about Charleston. I decided that all the familiar sayings and quotes are true and not just cliche that states, "Only you can make yourself happy" or "You choose your own attitude" or "As a man thinketh so is he." One of our best friends in Charleston has a big board above her mantle that just states Be Happy. I'm making the decision to be happy, to be proactive and outgoing about making friends and making Twin Falls home again.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Debbie Downer. I've just realized that I need to change my attitude and be more optimistic. Life is to be enjoyed and we're supposed to be happy. That's why families, chocolate chips, and crafts exist! :) No really, one of my goals that I previously posted about was to read more. I finished reading The Peacegiver a few weeks ago and it really changed me. So I'd like to take the initiative to help other people laugh and smile and feel good about themselves because if they do, then so will I.

Look Who's Getting Hitched!

On New Year's Day my younger and only sister, Christine, got engaged! How exciting, we've already taken a trip to try on wedding dresses and of course, day dream. Aahhhhh.....

Beading By Becky

I've added a few recent designs to my jewelry blog, click HERE to check it out!

The Peacegiver

I have a book recommendation to everyone: it's called The Peacegiver, by James Ferrell. Read it, it offers some amazing insight into the atonement and how it applies to others, not just ourselves. Seriously.....read it, I highly recommend it and cannot say enough good things about it.