Flashback Friday

Journal Jar question:  What things do you enjoy today that you also enjoyed as a child?  Describe them then and now.

My mom instilled in me a love of reading.  She had me convinced that I could read before I went to school.  Back in those days, they didn't teach you to read in Kindergarten.  First grade was the first venture into reading.  I'll never forget, one day, the teacher asked us to read a book and then come to her desk and tell her what the book was about.  I looked at the pictures, made up a story and was flabbergasted when she told me "nope, go try again."  I don't remember much after that, but I do remember the dismay of discovery, that "reading" was more than just what came out of my own imagination!

My family loved The Bookmobile.  It would be a great day when we saw it driving into our neighborhood.  We'd come away with stacks of books.  Books that were not just set aside, but were well used and read by the time The Bookmobile came around again.  I still love reading and get excited about going to the library or finding an ebook for my reader.  I don't think a day goes by that I don't read in one form or another.  Reading is the best way for me to unwind at the end of the day.  I like to read until my eyes can't stay open any longer.  When I was younger, I could stay up reading until the wee early hours of the morning . . . . but these days I rarely make it past 11:00!!!

Let the Holidays begin!

 The Bainters invited us out to Noah's Birthday party.  As part of the party we carved pumpkins.  There is nothing better than spending time with family, and having a project to do is even better!  Above is all of our pumpkins we carved.  Below is earlier in the process . . . . . we are all deciding what we are going to carve.

 Cutting the tops out of the pumpkins!

 The most fun part of all (sarcasm) removing the seeds and other gunk . . . . .

 Oooooooey Gooooooooey!

 "Poking" out the outlines on our pumpkins.

 Earlier in the day, Lincoln and McKay went to a Guard Halloween party.  McKay and he stopped to buy some hair paint.  McKay wanted orange, but all they would find was white.  At the party, one of Lincoln's co-workers asked McKay if he dressed up to be his dad!!!!!  Too funny!!!!  Here are the three "white-heads" of the family.  I think their hair is pretty, (excepting McKays, that is!!!)  When we are at a store, someone told me that McKay was the youngest old person they'd ever seen. . . . . . .

 Mom in action . . . . .

 Ceci . . . . . . .

 Stevie . . . . . . .

 My gorgeous hunk of man . . . . . .

 Zane . . . . . .

 McKay . . . . . . .

Dad and McKay . . . . . . .

 The Birthday boy, Noah . . . . . . . .

 Trudy . . . . . . . .

 Stevie . . . . . . . . .

 My man's pumpkin . . . . . . .

 McKay's pumpkin . . . . . . . . .

 and my pumpkin . . . . . . .

FUN TIMES!!!!!!

Flashback Friday!

I pulled a slip out of the journal jar . . . . . read it and put it back in and pulled another!  The one I pulled states: Describe getting a Christmas Tree with your family as a child.  Tell how it was decorated.  Did you ever make an ornament yourself?

We did have an artificial tree when I was growing up, but on alternate years we would go Christmas Tree "hunting."   I can't remember where we would go, just someplace out in the west desert mountains in Utah, but the thing I do remember is that is was crisp and cold.   We all would have our opinions of which tree would be best pick.  I remember being disappointed when my dad would tell me that the tree I would pick was too big for the house.  It always seemed to me that we picked the smallest scrawniest trees and then when we would get home, I'd be amazed that the tree was actually big in the house!  

Mom (in my memory) always brought along hot chocolate and chili.  The warmth of the food, warmed our insides, while the coolness of the air chilled our noses, toes and cheeks.  These are good memories for me. 

Our tree was filled with decorations that we kids had made.  At least those were the decorations I remember most!  I especially remember some that were made with styrofoam balls that were decorated with dried legumes, peas, corn, beans, etc.  I remember my parents loved putting tinsel on the tree, and my mom liked to find lights that were unique and interesting to put on the tree.  One year I think I remember a string of bubbling candles, when they would warm up they would be kind of like lava lamps, but small candles?

Fun times!

Sid Cell

My dad has been working on a hydrogen cell to be used in vehicles to increase gas mileage and lower emissions. There has been success in its use in diesel engines. Below is an informative video of what he's been doing lately and some results that have been achieved using the "Sid Cell" that he has manufactured. Pretty cool Dad!!!

Flashback Friday

Do any of you watch "Hoarders"?  I've become addicted to it.  It is on A&E on Monday nights.  I DVR it and watch it while I'm eating my lunch on Tuesday.  Sometimes I wonder why I submit myself to food and "Hoarders" at the same time.  It is NOT a good combination! 

As a result of watching this show, I want to throw away everything I have in my house.  And even though my house is not anywhere I repeat anywhere near these poor people on hoarders, I think I do have hoarding tendencies.  I am emotionally attached to some things that are totally useless to me at this point in my life. 

I got this picture off of Google Images.   It is  representative
of my junk drawers.  When you look in here, don't you see
the MANY uses of all these items???

Yesterday, I decided to clean out three drawers (junk drawers) that don't see the light of day very often.  I can report that I got rid of a garbage bag full of stuff, but the drawers are still relatively full.  I need someone next to me asking why I keep some of this stuff!  Anyhow, while dejunking I came across a journaling jar.  You know the kind with little bits of paper in it that contain questions that should jog your memory and help you write a journal?  I've kept this jar around for a long time.  Every once in a while I open it and read a couple of the bits of paper, close it up, stash it in one of my junk drawers and then it doesn't see the light of day for another few years. 

Could I get rid of that baby?  Nooooooo, and why? you might ask.  It made it to the lips of the garbage bag, but I couldn't quite put it in because I thought of a use for it!  Oh my gosh!  How many times have I seen the people on "Hoarders" finding just-such-similar excuses!  It made me think of my hoarding tendencies again, for just one split second.  What was my excuse? my reason for keeping it?  Flashback Fridays!  I can now bore you all (my faithful readers which I'm sure are few) with tidbits from my past!

Of which I was going to do today.  But my mind wandered and has already spewed forth enough to call it quits for today  . . . . . and so until next Friday, I bid you adieu.

P.S.  I once read a dejunking book that said more than one junk drawer in a house was a sign of a sick mind . . . . . . that thought has haunted me ever since I read it . . . . . . how many junk drawers do you have, if any?

I rest my case

O Dear!  McKay is the subject of another post!  Hopefully he doesn't read this and forbid me to do anymore!

Last night I received a new toy via Fed-Ex.  This new toy needed to be connected to our Internet service which is encrypted with a 128 bit WEP key.  This isn't any ole simple password.  It is 25 characters long.   Example:  99D767BAC38EA23B0C0176D15 (this is NOT our WEP key!!!).  I asked McKay to run and get the WEP key for me.  I had printed it out for him so he could use it with his x-box and PSP.  He then informed me that he had it memorized!!!  MEMORIZED?????  What the heck?  He then proceeded to tell me the WEP key TWICE so that I could connect to the Internet.  Wallah, it worked!  Amazing.

Why is my post titled "I rest my case?"  WELL, this boy will not have any excuse when asked to study for an exam, or memorize a piano piece.  I know he has skills!

A couple of years ago, something similar happened.  He was whining, (always whining) about having to play the piano, and that "it is too hard."  Well, one day he pulled me into the family room and very proudly showed me how well he could play Guitar Hero.  This kid was playing on EXPERT with very close to 100% accuracy!!!   If you haven't seen this done, believe me . . . . . it is cRaZy hard!!!  I told him that his excuses for not being able to learn the notes on the piano were gone . . . .  kaput.  I'm not listening anymore.  If he can play Guitar Hero on expert with no errors he can learn to the play the piano!

I rest my case!

PS. . . . . do any of you use the word "kaput?"  I always do, and googled it to see if I was using it properly. 

kaput:  adjective (Informal) broken, finished, dead, destroyed, ruined, wrecked, undone, extinct, defunct, dead in the water (informal) His film career was kaput.

It's a German word.  I have German words pop into my mind quite often.  My mom's heritage is German, and I always wonder if these words have been passed through the generations kind-a without knowing it . . . . . . or do you all use them????  Wunderbar is another I use.  hmmmmmmm!

Zoom Zoooooom

I don't know what has gotten into my son's head.  This last week he has been getting up early for seminary and hustling me out the door. 

I think this is an appropriate speed for a church parking lot!



Strike that!  I DO know what has gotten into his head!  Fumes get in to a boys head when he's a teenager . . . . . car fumes and perfumes!!  He twisted my arm, tweaked my nose and put me in a head lock and got me to say that if we arrived early at seminary I'd let him drive around and round the church parking lot.  The first day, he kind-a scared me!  Our Jetta is very touchy.  It has a very responsive gas pedal and brake.  I've never driven another car like it.  In other words, he drove VERY jerkily (a word? ha!)  Today he had smoothed things out though!  Maybe if I let him do this multiple times my stomach won't be in such a knot when he really gets out on the road . . . . . . which isn't for a while yet . . . . . . he's only 14!!!

My Best Friend



Here are my old friends



About a year ago, I succumbed to lust and purchased me a nice shiny new set of scriptures.  A quad . . . . with tabs . . . . . shiny golden tipped pages . . . . . . AND my name imprinted in gold.  My married name. 

Even though I had been lusting after these new scriptures, with much saddness I put my very battered, well used, unmatched scriptures, with no tabs and no gold tipped pages, complete with my embossed maiden name on the shelf. 

I am handicapped without them!!!  My old set of scriptures with their broken bindings and ripped pages practically fall open to any scripture I may need, want or desire.  My tabless old scriptures are much easier to navigate.  Who would have thunk that tabs could get in the way of finding things fast?  Who would have thunk that my nice, sleek, new quad's pages would be so thin, that I would fear to turn them lest they might rip?  My old scripture's pages have been used so much that they almost feel like leather.  (have you ever made "leather like" paper out of an old paper bag???) 



And the beauty that replaced them. . . . .



Last night, when I was going to bed, my "old" scriptures were lying on my bed open . . . .  having been used by someone.  "Honey, did you use my scriptures?"  I asked?  "no" was his answer.  This morning I found out who had used them.  My son, when leaving for seminary this morning said, "Oh, I have to run back in the house to get your scriptures," "why?" I asked.  Then he stated that he needed a spiritual thought for seminary today and apparently my scriptures are THE place to go and get one.  The last time he needed a spiritual thought, I took him to my "old" scriptures and explained to him how they were marked, and how I could find anything I wanted, and we found him a thought very quickly.  Now, I guess he realizes the worth of them also.

The tabs I thought would be so useful!
(the camera didn't pick up the shiny gold tipped pages!)

I have come to a decision.  While my new scriptures will have their place (church, where they will continue to look pretty) my old scriptures will not be shelved.  They've been too much a part of my life.  They will be my "at home "scriptures where they will continue to be my friend and my study companion. 

Whew!  Having made this decision I feel much better now!