Great Quote

My mom started me getting Meridian Magazine. It is usually just a little "up" to read to start my day. I really have enjoyed it. Anyway, this is a great quote from an article I read today by H. Wallace Goddard. I feel like I have been so busy lately that I don't have time energy for my own thoughts, etc. I liked this and hope you do, too!
'Elder Maxwell wrote about time: "Even now, time is clearly not our natural dimension. Thus it is that we are never really at home in time. Alternately, we find ourselves impatiently wishing to hasten the passage of time or to hold back the dawn. We can do neither, of course. Whereas the bird is at home in the air, we are clearly not at home in time—because we belong to eternity. Time, as much as any one thing, whispers to us that we are strangers here"
The past may be more malleable that we think. The Lord has said that He can make what is crimson as white as wool (Isaiah 1:18). When He removes the stains from our past, He does not leave a void, a vacuum, a gaping hole in the fabric of our lives. He, with our cooperation, creates a past filled with purposeful living and specific goodness. As we become a new creature in Christ, we get a new history filled with all those things we would have done if we had had the convictions we now have. We indeed are changed.
With the tunnel vision of mortality, we do not glimpse the ripples of our choices. We march along mortality gritting our teeth, grieving yesterday's losses, and dreading tomorrow's ambushes—unless we have that transcendent faith that lifts us above the worries of mortality. With that faith we know that a perfect Father will backfill the sinkholes or our life histories with love, purpose, growth, & joy. In eternity we will inherit the wisdom gleaned from our own experiences and the wisdom He has given as a divine gift. He can repair anything, even the past.'

Peeps

So I know this is a little late but I just got the recipe from my Relief Society president who gave it to me. It also says that it may be created for any holiday which marshmallow candies are available. It is one of those cookie in a jar mixes but it uses peeps for Easter. Now, I am not a peep fan but it was so cute in the jar and the cookie bar was yummy. So you can put it in your idea file and give to someone!
1. Reduce 1 sleeve graham crackers in crumbs.
2. Layer 2/3 of the crumbs in a 1 quart jar.
3. Place 8 marshmallow bunny peeps standing up, facing out around the inside of the jar.
4. Press them up against the glass, but don't squash them.
5. Carefully, spoon remaining crumbs in the center of the jar to support the bunnies, pressing down to keep it snug.
6. On top of this, pour 1-1/4 cup Easter M&M's.
7. Spoon 1/3 cup brown sugar into the center of the M&M's, gently pressing with a spoon.

Attach a gift tag with the following instructions:
1. Empty the jar contents in to a bowl. Snip the bunnies into bits with kitchen shears or cut up with a knife. Return the bunny bits to the mixture. Mix well.
2. Melt 1/2 cup butter; add 1 tsp vanilla. Pour this over the dry ingredients, mixing well. Pat into a greased 9" square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool and cut into bars. (Makes 9-12 bars)

Also a great idea for peeps that I saw was a table centerpiece where they were stuck on skewers and put in a basket with floral foam. Easter grass was put on top of it. She had several colors of peeps at differernt heights. It was way cute and a way to use those nasty peeps!

The Unexpected

I had my post almost done and Brynna just erased it. Here is take 2! I read an article on Meridian Magazine this week where a lady was complaining that Newsweek or someone had done a study that children do not bring happiness. They rated couples happiness before and after kids. She was appalled that it said that. She has young kids. How can she not understand that children do not bring immediate happiness. Always sacrificing your own needs and wants for your kids does not always bring immediate joy. I thought it was kind of funny. I know that kids are part of the Lord’s plan of happiness. But not all parts of the plan are for this life. Kids do bring moments of laughter and joy but kids are a lot of work!

Bridger was gone and so were his parents. He left me a well person but by the end of that day, I was sick. I could only say that I just didn’t feel good. It also felt like I had scratched my throat on one side. I didn’t really think I had the right symptoms for strep but I went in to the Immediate Care anyway. I had a lot scheduled this week and I didn’t have anyone to come be a fill in parent. I had strep. I woke up the next day with a migraine ( I was so sick with the strep that I don’t think I knew it was a migraine until I threw up). I hadn’t really eaten anything because I hadn’t had an appetite and it hurt to swallow. I knew my glands were swollen and it felt like maybe a little sinus pressure but otherwise, just sick, not migraine. I got my RS president, a neighbor and a VT to help me. I cancelled my appointments and made it through. I told Bridger it gave me a taste of what it would be like if we lived somewhere where we didn’t have family and he worked a lot. He came home and let me sleep in the next day and got the kids ready. It was really sweet of him. I wasn’t even feeling that bad by then. It was almost 48 hours into the antibiotic. I still have a little headache and a little something in my throat but I am much better. I was disappointed I missed my VT appointments. I have a hard time getting in sometimes and I had to cancel last month because my kids were sick and I don’t want it to happen this month. I kind of let my kids run wild this week and didn’t do much homework with them. It was a free for all. It sure makes you appreciate your health you do have. (I summed that up in a paragraph and it was a page before that with the details of my praying on my bathroom floor while my kids were in the tub and I didn’t think I had it in me to get them out- aren’t you glad you missed that!)

Corban earned an orange belt in Tae Kwon Do. He is pretty happy about that. Kjerstin’s soccer team lost again yesterday. She was once again more concerned about her outfit than soccer but she might get there eventually.

Soccer

Kjerstin started soccer this week. She at first was more into the outfit than she is was into the game, but by the end of the game she was starting to be a little more aggressive. She called everyone she could think of and invited them to her game. She is a cute girl. We will have 2 practices a week and a game on Saturday. I found a Mom who is willing to carpool with me so I don’t have to bring 4 kids to practice and entertain 3 of them in the meantime. Blessings from heaven! She prayed that they would win. They didn't but I think it will be a good experience for her all the same. She got her finger stepped on by a cleat when she got knocked down once. She got up with some tears but she did great! Six more weeks of soccer and TaVaci and then our lives will be considerably less busy! I am excited for that but until then we will just enjoy the journey!

Easter

I have read some good articles about the Atonement and that has helped. I always have so much room to grow, though! It makes me feel unworthy of the Atonement but I guess none of us are. I always struggle not knowing what to do for my kids. I had Corban and Kjerstin say to me that they were going to try to stay up all night so they could meet the Easter bunny. I think I will be relieved when I don’t have something to live up to being the tooth fairy and the Easter bunny and Santa. It is probably good for me to strive to be more than my natural man is, I just always fear that I fall short of my kids expectations. I don’t like to make it as big of a deal as Christmas with gift giving. I would like to focus on the religious aspects of it more, but it seems like with kids you have to do something. I didn’t think they needed new Sunday clothes. I could give them candy but is that enough? I don’t know. I feel the pressure! Bridger picked up a Wii Fit at Costco. I asked him when he was going to give it to me. He said whenever I wanted to (smart husband). I asked him if he wanted to do it for Easter. He said no. I felt like I was not giving the kids very much so last night as I was filling baskets I got the Wii Fit down, too (although it was so late that I forgot to take the Costco price tag off and the kids told me the Easter bunny got it at Costco). I think everyone was happy. I filled some eggs with candy and hid them around the room and the kids had fun searching for the eggs this morning. Brynna set out carrots for the Easter Bunny. I think they were happy and would have been happy even without the Wii Fit but I guess I did it more for me so I could start using the Wii Fit and not have to feel guilty that I just bought it without a good reason.

General Conference

We enjoyed General Conference last week. We have a tradition of having coffee cake on during conference. My mom calls it conference cake but I call it coffee cake so my kids will know the name most people know it by. It is nice to eat something sweet while listening to the pleasing word of God. It was a good parenting reminder to me. As I am listening I can find areas in my introspection that need improvement but I don't feel reprimanded, I just feel an amazing sense of peace and love. I want my kids to feel that way when I correct them. I have a ways to go in that regard but at least I know where I want to go and I am trying to get on the right road.

Derby Time!

I forgot to write about Corban's pinewood derby! I was the one who was mostly left to help Corban with his car because Bridger is so busy with everything right now. His was the least fancy of all the cars, poor kid! There were other moms who were the helpers but I think the other moms are more talented than I am thus far. I don’t think he really cared or noticed. His car was named Volcano Flames. I thought that was a pretty cool name he came up with. There were some impressive cars. Corban told me when he came home that he wants to get a pinewood derby track for our house. I told him I didn’t think we had enough room in our house for one. He still is talking about how he can find a place for it. His was not the most fastest car. It got 4th out of 4 in all the official races, but he had fun. Then they put a loopy loop in the track. Everyone else’s car crashed. Corban’s held that loop like nothing else. That was a good thing for him because he felt like he was a winner, too. I had asked Corban's grandma to pick up his car kit at the scout office for me because she was going there anyway. She came home with 3 kits so I got to help Brynna and Kjerstin build cars, too. At least we will know what to expect better next year. I think it was a good experience for him.

Hooray!

I just figured out how to add playlist to my blog thanks to my sister! I have tried and tried! I am so happy! Pat myself on the back!