Thankful For Soup

Katie is good at saying prayers all by herself. Lately, they mostly consist of long lists of things she is thankful for. They are very sweet and uplifting. With the cold weather in full force, I have been preparing a variety of different soups for dinner. I guess Katie hasn't been a big fan of any of them. In a recent prayer given in front of the whole primary, she said, "We thank Thee that we can all like soup when we grow up." At least she is optimistic about her future feelings toward soup. Today, Brian is tearing out walls in a basement room that we are re-finishing as a bedroom for our boys. It is very exciting! I am thankful that he is such a handyman. I love it when he works on our house.

Vacation Plans 2014

It looks like 2014 will be a year of theme park visits for us!

We were surprised on Christmas morning with season passes to Lagoon from my parents.  Usually, we visit once per year.  Sometimes, I use the bounce back option to take the kids twice.  And, there was that one year when the power went out at our bounce back visit, so we got to return a third time for free.

The kids wish we could go a lot more.  Especially the boys -- Sophie is not into roller coasters and big rides yet like they are.  But, she likes the water park and the smaller rides.  Now we can go as many times as we want.  I hope I will be able to meet my kids' expectations of visiting as many times as they think we will now that we have passes.

Today, I booked our Disneyland trip -- Hooray!  I am so relieved to have completed the process of wading through the labyrinth of hotels, their rates and hidden fees and trying to validate or invalidate the negative reviews.  I am so excited that we will be within walking distance from the gate!  Major bonus.

Now, I am dreaming of our wonderful, fun-filled relaxing family vacation.  Ahhhh . . . vacations are the  best!

Happy New Year 2014

2013 is gone.  And, I barely recorded it.

We had a blessed year.

I never wrote about the trip we took with our kids at the end of November 2012.  We stayed overnight in a Swiss Chalet in Heber.  There was a gorgeous pool -- a big draw to our family.  It was one of those indoor/outdoor pools, and even though it was nearly December and snowing, the outdoor portion was open.  Right next to the indoor pool was a beautiful hot tub with a giant rock wall waterfall on one side.  You better believe that is where I spent most of my time.

The older kids ventured into the deserted outdoor pool and begged me to join them.  I finally gave in and swam out to see their cold but magical find.  I also discovered a small, empty hot tub next to the outdoor pool.  It was plain, but it was under the canopy of a black, starry sky.  The indoor hot tub was exotic, but also packed with families, including my own little ones.

When Sophie and Ian tired of the outdoor pool and swam through the little tunnel back inside, I jumped out of the water, ran across the freezing cement, and slipped into the steaming water.  After all of the chaos of organizing, cleaning, packing and generally getting a family of six out the door for a small getaway, it felt divine to sit there all alone for a few minutes.  I was wrapped in a warm blanket of water while the snowflakes gently landed on my face.  The universe felt so quiet with a peace that I rarely experience as a mother, daycare provider and writer. 

For just a moment, I wondered what it would be like if I were at that resort alone, single, childless?  Would my life be full of these uninterrupted moments to relax and think deeply?  It was just a fleeting thought and I soon came to the conclusion that -- although moments like that are a gift in my wonderfully abundant and noisy life -- I would personally be terribly sad and lonely.

Then, I walked back into my messy, chaos-filled life to play with my kids in the pool.

I never wrote about the trip Brian and I took to Idaho in October 2013.

After Brian was laid off from the newspaper at the beginning of 2013, he was blessed with a steady stream of freelance work.  One of the biggest clients of the year was CenterCal, a company based in California that has been building spectacular shopping centers around the mid-west.  Brian met up with them at their development in Farmington called Station Park.

They liked his work and decided that, instead of hiring local photographers at each site, they could fly him to document grand openings in Portland and cities in California.

In October, they unveiled a property in Meridian, Idaho and asked him to spend five-days covering the events.  Since it is only a four-hour drive, and would practically take as long to fly there, he decided to drive and take me along.  A five-day expense paid getaway!!!

My sweet mom took our kids.  It happened to be over the 4-day UEA weekend, so, of course, she spoiled them while we were gone.  I was able to write my stories for the newspaper on the road.  And, without having the kids or daycare kids, I had tons of downtime.

Brian spent most of his time taking pictures.  I saw two movies (Gravity and Captain Phillips) at the new cinema on the property.  The high-backed, reclining chairs were leather.  The lobby was grand.  And, the snack-bar menu went on and on with goodies including gelato - yum!

One night, we were treated to a VIP guest reception prior to the property being opened to the public.  When I arrived, I discovered that all of the restaurants were serving free food and drinks!  Just walk in, sit at a table, and they would start loading you up with foods that looked as good as they tasted.
Outside, there were wonderful street performers. 

Another night, we enjoyed an outdoor concert by a Beatles Tribute band.

I also have family in the area.  So, while Brian worked, I went to a Thai restaurant with my brother and his wife and I got to see my cousins perform with an improv comedy troupe.  It was such a wonderful, relaxing time.  I came home refreshed and ready to do the day-to-day again.  I love my life.  And, I love driving my kids to all their soccer games, basketball games, piano practices and the like.  But, without a small change in scenery from time to time, I start to feel like I am in the movie Groundhog Day.  Waking up and doing the same thing over and over.

I kept thinking how nice it would be for Brian and I to get away once a month.  But, I don't think that is going to happen anytime soon -- haha.

Those are two of the many highlights of my life that have been rolling around in my head waiting to be documented here on my blog.

Last night was another perfect New Year's Eve.

Our whole family was together.  I felt so blessed to be surrounded by these people I love so much.  Sophie and Ian each invited one friend to spend the evening with us.  It was a simple celebration -- lots of yummy food, games and movies.  I tried to make it a little extra special -- for example, in between shows I pulled out a sundae bar even though the kids were already packed to the gills with treats.  A part of me worried that it was too simple of an evening, but, then I asked myself, "When do we ever stay up until midnight reveling like this?"  And, I guess it was the novelty that made it special.

The best part of the evening, in my opinion, came at midnight.  Brian had driven to Evanston, Wyoming and purchased a load of fancy fireworks.  We went outside just before midnight to light sparklers.  Right after the countdown, I poured the kids their goblets of sparkling apple juice from a glass bottle and the show began.  It seemed like lots of people had the same idea, and, in addition to our own private show, there were fireworks in the sky in every direction. 

It was the perfect way to welcome the New Year.  I can't believe Katie stayed up until well past midnight.  Our other kids thought the New Year happened at 10 p.m. when they were her age.  I guess that is part of being the youngest.  It's almost 11 a.m., and she is still sleeping -- poor dear.

I didn't think I was making any "New Year's Resolutions."  I usually don't.  But, sitting here now on a new day, a new year, a fresh start of sorts, I find myself reflecting on some changes that have been in the works for awhile.  And, I guess in a sense, they are resolutions for 2014.

I will embrace my messy, busy life.  Since transitioning back to work three-years ago, I have struggled with many emotions.  I believed with all of my heart in staying home -- no matter what the cost.  But, I have learned that sometimes the cost is too high and having a stay at home mom is, in fact, not what is best for every family.  It has been one of the most difficult challenges for me to re-program my thinking so I will stop feeling like I have failed at life.  

It is a process and, like everyone else I know, I keep striving each day to find a balance that works.  One where the stories get written on time and there is still time for the picture books to be read out loud to my sweet children who are growing up so fast.  Most of the time, things seem to work out.  And, when they don't -- I have to keep reminding myself to ask for help.

I will focus on the abundance.  Life it expensive - yes!  And, the other day, after I completed a round of grocery shopping, I began my usual routine of texting Brian to tell him HOW MUCH THE GROCERIES COST!!!  Because, I just never can believe it when they ring up the total at the check-out.  I know I should eventually get use to the rising cost of things.  But, for now, it still amazes me.  After telling him the amount, a new thought struck me, which was -- "We just had that much money to spend on food."  And, as I thought about that I got a little embarrassed because tears came into my eyes thinking about how lucky we are to eat so well.

What would a list of resolutions be without something regarding diet?  Someone close to me was diagnosed with diabetes one-year-ago.  She has been able to manage it 100% through changing her diet.  She is an inspiration to me.  After one month of drastically reducing her carbs, she was able to reverse the insulin resistance that has most likely plagued her for years -- causing her to crave carbs and making it nearly impossible to lose weight.  She has lost 25-pounds and says she always feels satisfied (as opposed to her previous diets in which she would have to literally cut back to 500-calories per day and starve the weight off).

Three-years ago, I had to stop eating wheat products.  In the past year, I have noticed that eating too many carbs has the same effect on me as eating wheat.  It has gotten worse and worse and I have slowly come to terms with that fact.  I miss wheat!  I love sugar!  Popcorn is my favorite food!  But, I am getting older and I need to honor what my body is telling me.  Here is to hoping this is the year I will finally make changes for better health by following her example.  The process just happens to be coming to a crossroads right at this time of year, so I will add it to the list.

I am looking forward to another blessed year and feeling grateful for a full life.