I Looked Out My Window...

I looked out my window and what did I see?

A family of Robins gazing at me.

Spring has brought me such a nice surprise.

The miracle of life right before my eyes.

I love to sit and watch as the wormy treats

Are fed to the babies...oh how sweat!

Underneath my deck, robins with red chests

What a great place for a bird to build a nest!

Altering the Management of Affairs

Alma 49:11 - But behold, Amalickiah did not come down himself to battle. And behold, his chief captains durst not attack the Nephites at the city of Ammonihah, for Moroni had altered the management of affairs among the Nephites, insomuch that the Lamanites were disappointed in their places of retreat and they could not come upon them.

 No, I did not copy the wrong scripture. When Eric had one of the kids read this for Family Home Evening last week I thought that he had given the wrong reference. This is one of those scriptures that I would normally breeze through without a second thought...not my wonderful Hubby...he did an entire lesson on this scripture.

Moroni was captain of the Nephite army during devastating wars with the Lamanites in The Book Of Mormon. This scripture says that he altered the management of affairs among the Nephites, so much so that the Lamanites could not come against them to battle. So.....

Are there things in our lives/families that we need to alter or change or manage differently to keep negative influences out? It may take a lot of work to change and to become stronger, but in the end it will protect ourselves our homes and our families. In Ether 12:27 is says that the Lord will make our weaknesses into strengths if we will be humble and have faith. If there are weakness in our fortification against evil...change, and through humility, and faith turn it into a strength that does not allow it into our lives and homes...just as Moroni did with his army. This life is a battle and I need to continually change and strengthen the management of my affairs to come out victorious.

Wow, all that from a scripture that I would normally ignore. Thanks Eric!

Cream Cheese Apple Dip

Mmmmm, this is my new favorite pot-luck item to take to a party. 

It is a hit and SO EASY!

Cream Cheese Apple Dip:

• sliced apples
• 1 package softened cream cheese
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Blend cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth....that's it! Instant party/finger food.

Enjoy!

Bubble-Wrap Hopscotch

"Oh what do you do in the spring-time when all the world is wet? Do you sit in your house and lazily dream of the sunshine that hasn't come out yet? Is that what you do? So do I."

Oh, this crazy rainy weather! I am getting pretty sick of sitting in my house thinking of things to entertain my kids with. It is so much easier to just send them outside...and yes, it did get to the breaking point when I just sent my bored, hyper kids out in the pouring rain because I couldn't take it any longer!

Here is one boredom buster idea I saw and copied (I can't remember where so I can't give credit where credit is due...sorry if you are the genius who made this up). This is great for these rainy days when the kids need to get some built up energy out:

Bubble-wrap Hopscotch

Just cut a roll of bubble-wrap into 10 squares, number them, put them in any hopscotch pattern you want and let the kids go crazy jumping and popping the bubble-wrap as they go. Nathan loved to just put them in a circle and then jump from square to square...and of course mean-old-mom had to make it educational by having him say what number he landed on with each jump.

I hope this helps make your day a little brighter, even when it is gloomy outside!

My Mother Taught Me...

 I read this and it put a smile on my face...I hope it does yours as well. I don't know who wrote this, but whoever it was...I am sure she is a mother because I say/do these things all the time!

1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning."

2. My mother taught me RELIGION.
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."

3. My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"

4. My mother taught me LOGIC.
"Because I said so, that's why."

5. My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.
"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me."

6. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.
"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."

7. My mother taught me IRONY.
"Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."

8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper."

9. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.
"Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"

10. My mother taught me about STAMINA.
"You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."

11. My mother taught me about WEATHER.
"This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."

12. My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY.
"If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!"

13. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."

14. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.
"Stop acting like your father!"

15. My mother taught me about ENVY.
"There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do."

16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.
"Just wait until we get home."

17. My mother taught me about RECEIVING.
"You are going to get it when you get home!"

18. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.
"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."

19. My mother taught me ESP.
"Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?"

20. My mother taught me HUMOR.
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

21. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.
"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."

22. My mother taught me about GENETICS.
"You're just like your father."

23. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.
"Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?"

24. My mother taught me WISDOM.
"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."

25. And my favorite: My mother taught me about JUSTICE
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!"

Two Green Thumbs Up

Remember our garden boxes that we built last summer? Well, they are now all planted with tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, peas, green beans, raspberries, cucumbers, pumpkins, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, and some marigolds scattered in there to supposedly keep the bugs out.

Why did we go to all this work?.....

• to be a little more self-reliant
• to have a living and growing science experiment in our backyard
• to teach my kids to work
• to have fresh, healthy veggies throughout the summer
• to be able to can salsa from the tomatoes and peppers
• to have something to share with my great neighbors

So here's two green thumbs up for our garden...hopefully it tastes as good  as it looks!

Picture Perfectionism

Family pictures...I get all tense just hearing those words. Those of you who know me know that I am NOT a perfectionist...I like to do things the simplest and quickest way possible. But when family pictures are looming around the corner I turn into an obsessive monster who stresses over having the perfect family pictures. I go shopping for hours, finding the right outfits that go together, yet aren't too matchy-matchy. I make sure we all have haircuts, finding that right balance of not too short right after a cut, yet not waiting too long when it starts looking sloppy. And after all that, the day of pictures comes and trying to keep everyone clean and happy is exhausting!

I did it. I found cute shirts that compliment each other yet don't match too much. I gave everyone haircuts about 2 weeks before - giving the mistakes time to even themselves out. And on the day of pictures I managed to keep everyone clean and in a somewhat good mood...with some bribery of ice cream afterwards. I guess all the picture perfectionism paid off...if you ignore the bags under my eyes from being so exhausted.

Now my problem is trying to decide which one to print for my wall...any suggestions??

What was I so worried about? My family is beautiful to me no matter what! I need to remember that for the next time...in at least 3 years!

I will not let family picture de"feet" me again!