I was playing around with my blog background and lost all the information that was in the sidebar (except for the blog history and the "about me" but who really cares about that?!)
Does anyone by chance remember the quote that was in the sidebar before? I thought I had it written down in my quote book but I can't find it anywhere! Help!!
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Monday, June 9, 2008
Foster Care update
We found out at the beginning of last week that we are licensed as a foster care family! The family specialist said that she is waiting for a document but that we would be put on the "list." Nothing has happened yet! Many keep asking "When will you get kids?" Truth be told- we don't know! I guess it's just a matter of time. It sure is taking a long time though!
Thursday, May 29, 2008
New look!
I finally committed myself to sit down and design a new look! With the help of my SIL, Shelby and my cousin-in-law Erin (is there such a term as that?), I was able to create this new header. I'm working on getting the background changed but that requires a little more time.
More new changes are under way so stay tuned!...
More new changes are under way so stay tuned!...
Friday, May 23, 2008
General Conference Issue
I attended the YW General Broadcast back in March for the first time since I was in Young Womens. I loved sitting with the young women of my ward and being able to hear the leaders address the young women of the church! One talk that I loved in particular was Sis. Mary N. Cook's talk, "Anchors of Testimony". She spoke of the many ponds in Asia covered with water lilies and how they "added a serene beauty and sweet fragrance to an otherwise muddy and stagnant ponds. The leaves of the water lily floated on the water's surface, and a long, firm stalk anchored its position in the pond. The continued growth of the stalk ensured the flowers stability, even when torrential rains raised the level of the water in the pond." She likened the young women to this beautiful flower- "[their] freshness, purity and beauty and much goodness to our lives and to the lives of [their] families." They rise above the filthiness and temptations of the world and their testimony of Jesus Christ is their anchor. Their faith will strengthen and help their testimony grow so they can "rise above the evils of the world and maintain their position of righteousness."I love this simple and beautiful analogy of faith and our testimonies! It helped me to remember that our testimony is something that needs constant care. It isn't something that you work to receive once and never have to take care of again; that it would always be there. We constantly have trials that test our faith but that's when you have to dig in your heels and stand "steadfast and immovable" and ride out the storm.
I'm working my way through the Conference issue and enjoying every minute of it! I wasn't able to watch conference this year and I had really hoped to. I was really disappointed when I got to Scrapaway and saw that the TV's were old enough that it didn't have closed captioning device built into it. (Note to self: to bring my own caption machine next time!) I waited patiently for the conference issue to come in the mail so I can read what I missed.
Now I just need to get a tub deep enough for me to sit in and soak while I read the conference issue. :o)
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Eric is 40!!
I just had to give a big shout out and let everyone know that Eric turned 40 today! We kept it low key in our celebration (the party store was moving to a new store so I couldn't go buy black balloons and the works). We will have friends over for cake tomorrow but today was spent running errands and watching Kaitlyn perform in a play.
We spent a all morning and a little bit of the afternoon yard sale hopping for bunk beds and a dresser to prepare for doing foster care. Everyone who was selling bunk beds had already sold them by the time we got there. Ditto for dressers. If they were still there, you could clearly see why they were still there (only one place though.) So we came back home empty handed (well, we added a few more books and CD's to our collection) and disappointed. Everyone in Pocatello must be looking for a dresser and bunk beds.
In the afternoon, we went to see Kaitlyn perform in a play. Earlier this week, Kaitlyn decided to audition for a play called "Wiz of the West," a spoof of "The Wizard of Oz," put on by the Missoula Children's Theatre. They are a company from Montana that travels to perform at schools (the schools raise money to bring this company to their school). They arrive to the school and have open auditions for the students to be in the play. The company brings all the costumes, makeup, props, etc. All the kids have to do is learn the play! Eric and I were amazed and extremely impressed that the kids were able to learn the play (script), songs, and choreography in just one week! This wasn't just a 10 minute play, it lasted 1 hour and 15 minutes! There was only one adult in the whole play, all the other cast members were students from the school. Kaitlyn was a 'buzzard'. I'm not sure what the equivalent would be in the actual movie. I'll have to ask Kaitlyn that one. But it was an impressive accomplishment for the students to put on this play! I'll have to ask the performing company how in the world they got the kids to learn that quickly. It would definitely be helpful information to pass along to the new primary leaders when they are getting ready for their sacrament program!
We spent a all morning and a little bit of the afternoon yard sale hopping for bunk beds and a dresser to prepare for doing foster care. Everyone who was selling bunk beds had already sold them by the time we got there. Ditto for dressers. If they were still there, you could clearly see why they were still there (only one place though.) So we came back home empty handed (well, we added a few more books and CD's to our collection) and disappointed. Everyone in Pocatello must be looking for a dresser and bunk beds.
In the afternoon, we went to see Kaitlyn perform in a play. Earlier this week, Kaitlyn decided to audition for a play called "Wiz of the West," a spoof of "The Wizard of Oz," put on by the Missoula Children's Theatre. They are a company from Montana that travels to perform at schools (the schools raise money to bring this company to their school). They arrive to the school and have open auditions for the students to be in the play. The company brings all the costumes, makeup, props, etc. All the kids have to do is learn the play! Eric and I were amazed and extremely impressed that the kids were able to learn the play (script), songs, and choreography in just one week! This wasn't just a 10 minute play, it lasted 1 hour and 15 minutes! There was only one adult in the whole play, all the other cast members were students from the school. Kaitlyn was a 'buzzard'. I'm not sure what the equivalent would be in the actual movie. I'll have to ask Kaitlyn that one. But it was an impressive accomplishment for the students to put on this play! I'll have to ask the performing company how in the world they got the kids to learn that quickly. It would definitely be helpful information to pass along to the new primary leaders when they are getting ready for their sacrament program!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Track Season!
Caleb surprised us this year by asking to join Track! He wanted to do it mainly because so many of his friends encouraged him to do it (sometimes peer pressure can be a good thing!). I had no idea he would be interested in something like running. He had his first meet last Wednesday. We got some pictures and thought they were pretty decent until our friend we were with let us look through his camera. Man, zoom lens sure make a world of difference! When looking across the field, we can actually tell which kid is Caleb! (From a distance, they all look the same, especially in uniform!) Our friend also took some pictures of Caleb so I'm anxious to see them! I was hoping to have them by now but no luck. I guess lawyers are pretty busy people. ;) I'll post the pictures from my camera tomorrow when I download them. Right now the "tech support" guy is sleeping so calling won't help. I don't want to put the photos in the wrong place (and then never be able to find it later) so I'll wait.
Monday, April 7, 2008
M.I.A.no more!
Hi everyone! I know many of you have been faithfully checking out blog, only to be disappointed because there hasn't been a post in a while. For that I apologize!
At the beginning of March, Eric and I started taking a class to become a foster family. We have thought about it for a while (a year actually) and we decided that it was something we need to do. As part of the process, we were required to take a P.R.I.D.E. class (Parents Resource for Information Development Education) on Tuesday and Thursdays from 6-9 pm for a total of 27 hours. Since Eric and I work during the day- 5 days a week- it was a pretty busy month for us. Not to mention that I was just called into YW so I've been going to mutual on Wednesday nights. Did I mention that I was also trying to gather camp information for the stake during all of this? All of the classes (except the very last one) has homework to be completed before the next class so we've also had to dedicate time to that. All in all, there hasn't really been much time to check blogs or even post on mine! This Tuesday (tomorrow) is our last class so I'm looking forward to that. I'm sure our kids are too because that means we'll be home more often now!
As part of the foster care certification/licensing process, we have to be approved by the state Health and Welfare department. They still haven't been to our house for a visit due to recent staff changes so we're not even close to knowing if we're the ideal family for them. This class has the highest attendance they've had in a long time (at least 16 pepople) plus a new staff member was added so they've been training that person. Those two factors slowed the certification process. (I imagine the classes and visits normally happen simultaneously.) We were hoping to wait until after we've had a visit or two so we know better how things are going before saying anything but this is taking longer than anticipated! We just wanted you to know that we are still here! More details will come later!
At the beginning of March, Eric and I started taking a class to become a foster family. We have thought about it for a while (a year actually) and we decided that it was something we need to do. As part of the process, we were required to take a P.R.I.D.E. class (Parents Resource for Information Development Education) on Tuesday and Thursdays from 6-9 pm for a total of 27 hours. Since Eric and I work during the day- 5 days a week- it was a pretty busy month for us. Not to mention that I was just called into YW so I've been going to mutual on Wednesday nights. Did I mention that I was also trying to gather camp information for the stake during all of this? All of the classes (except the very last one) has homework to be completed before the next class so we've also had to dedicate time to that. All in all, there hasn't really been much time to check blogs or even post on mine! This Tuesday (tomorrow) is our last class so I'm looking forward to that. I'm sure our kids are too because that means we'll be home more often now!
As part of the foster care certification/licensing process, we have to be approved by the state Health and Welfare department. They still haven't been to our house for a visit due to recent staff changes so we're not even close to knowing if we're the ideal family for them. This class has the highest attendance they've had in a long time (at least 16 pepople) plus a new staff member was added so they've been training that person. Those two factors slowed the certification process. (I imagine the classes and visits normally happen simultaneously.) We were hoping to wait until after we've had a visit or two so we know better how things are going before saying anything but this is taking longer than anticipated! We just wanted you to know that we are still here! More details will come later!
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
TOFW
OK- now my update for Time Out For Women presented by Deseret Book. The music was awesome and the speakers were fabulous! A new group called "Mercy River" did the singing on Friday evening and Jenny Oaks Baker played several songs for us on her violin. (I wish Kaitlyn could have seen her!) Mercy River is a 3 women group that sing hymns and other songs with a contemporary style. The ladies I went with said the group reminded them of Dixie Chicks as far as the sound goes. But that's the only comparison! They sang a lot of familiar church songs with just a little different beat. It was almost hard to sing it the right way when I went to church on Sunday! They just recently released a CD and it's definitely I will be buying in the future. Kenneth Cope sang on Saturday. Beautiful voice and wonderful lyrics.
The speakers were all wonderful and I enjoyed the insights from every one of them. Emily Watts spoke and she seems to hit the nail on the head with her observations of life as a mother. It helps me to realize that we all pretty much struggle with the same things and that most kids tend to follow the same patterns of behavior. She just makes you laugh out loud! Chris Stewart was another speaker. He is an ex-Air Force pilot. I can't remember much of what he spoke about, I just remember what he said was good. (I waited too long to write this post.) The author of "The Christmas Jar" (can't remember his name) was also a guest speaker. He spoke about handwritten letters. In this day and age, anything handwritten is almost obsolete and mail is almost reserved for bills, junk mail and catalogs! He challenged us to write more instead of type or e-mail. In the last year or so, I have been trying to do more handwriting in my scrapbooking layouts. I want my family to remember my writing, not the cute popular font of the time. The page will mean so much more to them with my handwriting on it. (I still type some jouraling, I just try to balance it with my handwriting.) All in all, it was a fun weekend and it was great to have a time out away from my daily resposibilities and worries. I came back home completely refreshed.
Oh- Elder Boyd K. Packer is the one who said that quote about faith that I posted in my last post. Apparently Elder Bednar said it in a recent talk but I couldn't find which talk.
The speakers were all wonderful and I enjoyed the insights from every one of them. Emily Watts spoke and she seems to hit the nail on the head with her observations of life as a mother. It helps me to realize that we all pretty much struggle with the same things and that most kids tend to follow the same patterns of behavior. She just makes you laugh out loud! Chris Stewart was another speaker. He is an ex-Air Force pilot. I can't remember much of what he spoke about, I just remember what he said was good. (I waited too long to write this post.) The author of "The Christmas Jar" (can't remember his name) was also a guest speaker. He spoke about handwritten letters. In this day and age, anything handwritten is almost obsolete and mail is almost reserved for bills, junk mail and catalogs! He challenged us to write more instead of type or e-mail. In the last year or so, I have been trying to do more handwriting in my scrapbooking layouts. I want my family to remember my writing, not the cute popular font of the time. The page will mean so much more to them with my handwriting on it. (I still type some jouraling, I just try to balance it with my handwriting.) All in all, it was a fun weekend and it was great to have a time out away from my daily resposibilities and worries. I came back home completely refreshed.
Oh- Elder Boyd K. Packer is the one who said that quote about faith that I posted in my last post. Apparently Elder Bednar said it in a recent talk but I couldn't find which talk.
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