Giving Thanks

This Thanksgiving I'm thankful for many things, especially family.

Too Cold to Go Out

Our school district gives the kids Veterans Day off from school. I was exceptionally thankful for that this morning. The temperature got down into the 20s overnight and by 10:00 in the morning it still felt like 22 degrees outside. My goal for today: to not leave my house. I had to step out briefly to bring a package inside, but otherwise I stayed in. I'm glad that none of us had to stand waiting for a school bus in that cold.

Shoutout to Bryan for taking the middle three to youth activities tonight so I could make my goal of not going outside!

Thy Pow'r Throughout the Universe Displayed

After a heartbreaking weekend for members of my faith, I consider the glorious sunset we had yesterday to be a tender mercy. Sophie ran outside with my camera and captured it.

The Dad

Well, we celebrated Bryan on Father's Day, but the only pictures I took were kind of weirdly zoomed in and don't really show his face.

See?

Hopefully he felt loved and appreciated, because we think he's pretty great.

He Is Risen

On this Good Friday, as we look forward to Easter Sunday, I'm thankful for the healing power of the atonement, tender mercies, and answers to prayers.

Happy Easter.

Beauty All Around

We had snow last night and a two hour school delay this morning. After the kids (except for Cooper, who is home sick today) were all on their buses, I came home and shoveled the driveway and sidewalk. I acknowledge that snow is not my favorite thing. But this morning I looked at the sidewalk and saw so many beautiful colors sparking in the snow. This picture doesn't do it justice. I wanted to snap a photo anyway. This is a reminder to me that there is beauty, even in things I don't enjoy.

He Thought She Could, Too

I talked to someone at church on Sunday about the bookcases and showed him the finished picture. He said he had lots of plans like that for his own house, but his wife wasn't on board with any of them so he hadn't started them. 

It made me reflect on how very supportive Bryan has been through this whole process. He believed that I could do this crazy hard thing, even when I felt like I was in way over my head. He bought me a 10" miter saw for my birthday this year so I could build the shelves. And he was willing to ask the right questions (which was admittedly frustrating at the time) to help me consider other necessary options. He joined me for the two person tasks and did a lot of heavy lifting when I couldn't.

He's the best.

So Many Leaves

I was in charge of singing time on Sunday. We needed to start learning When Joseph Went to Bethlehem, but I also wanted to include Thanksgiving in our activity. I had several ideas, but nothing really gelled until I was walking down the hallway to set up right before primary started.

I asked the kids what holiday was happening this week. A few said Christmas, but at least one knew it was Thanksgiving. Then I asked about their Thanksgiving traditions. After a few of them answered, I told them about our Thanksgiving tree tradition. Then I drew a bare tree on the chalkboard. If I had known beforehand that this was the plan, I would have asked Bryan to draw it. The kids had to make do with my artistic attempt instead. I told them they were going to help me fill in the leaves on the tree.

Then I taught them the first verse of the song. After we'd sung the whole verse at least once, I told them that they would get to decide how we practiced it, but they would need to pay a price first. They all looked shocked. I told them that the cost of a practice suggestion was saying something they're thankful for. For example, the first little girl that I called on said she was thankful for her family. After I wrote that on the tree and drew a giant leaf around it, she said she wanted us to sing opera-style. It was awesome.

The kids were creative (we sang county-style, danced disco, mooed like cows, took turns between the boys and the girls, and spoke the words in fancy British accents along with the music) and we all got to think about things we're thankful for. I added the last item: I said I'm thankful for primary and then we all stood and sang like we will in our Christmas sacrament meeting. 

I think it was a success.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Doing My Duty

The adults in our household (including Peter) all used mail-in-ballots this year. I dropped mine off last week and got an email on Friday that it had been received. I'm thankful that we live in a country where we get to add our voices and vote.

The Wayback Machine

This gem of Sophie celebrating our return to in-person activities popped up in my Google Photos memories yesterday. I had no idea it existed before that. I can't believe it's already been two years that we've been back in person. It both feels like it hasn't been that long and that it's already been much longer. I'm so thankful for the inspired church leaders that gave us opportunities to watch church from home and had outside activities whenever possible. And I'm incredibly thankful that we kept to go to church in person now.

And this reminds me, it's time for us all to get our COVID booster shots.

From Here to There to Here

Last week I flew from my local airport to Chicago, from Chicago to Denver, then from Denver to Idaho Falls. I now know that the Chicago airport has a dinosaur in it.

I also learned that United gives these gluten free goodies out as a snack.

Here I am with one of the people I came to visit, my youngest brother, Isaac.

It snowed while I was there. I was not pleased. I had to use my hotel key envelope to scrape the frozen stuff off my rental car. When that turned into a pulpy mess I resorted to just shoving the snow off with my arms.

My sister-in-law Falisha and I went to an art museum that included these lovely pieces. The combination of art and the written word really speaks to my soul.

She and I also enjoyed walking along the Snake River.

I took advantage of staying in a hotel less than a mile from the Idaho Falls Temple and walked over to do a session on Saturday morning. It was lovely. I especially appreciated that the weather cooperated, this was the nicest day we had while I was there.

On Tuesday I flew from Idaho Falls to Denver in a tiny plane.

As soon as we landed in Denver I took my phone out of airplane mode and discovered that my next flight (from Denver to Chicago) was delayed. Then as I exited the plane it was delayed even further. By the time I was in the Denver airport my next flight had been delayed so much that I was going to miss my connecting flight to get home.

I texted Bryan to update him on what was happening and we tried to find a solution. The United app gave me the option of rescheduling to a flight that would change my arrival time from 9:33 Tuesday night to 11:15 Wednesday morning. I didn't want to do that.

I decided to walk to my gate, even though the flight was so delayed. As I went I noticed a gate saying the next flight was going to Philadelphia. I had the thought that I needed to get on that plane. I tried to call United customer service and was bumped to a text conversation with an AI. 

When I got to my gate I saw that my Chicago flight was next, followed by a flight to Philly. I opened the app again and this time it gave me the option of a video chat. I was put through to a person almost immediately. I explained that my flight was delayed so I was going to miss my connecting flight. I said that if I could get to Philadelphia I could get home. I asked him if I could move my seat to the later Philadelphia flight. He said that plane was full, but there happened to be a flight to Philly leaving at 1:40 that had space that he could move me to.

It was a few minutes after 1:00 at this point.

While he changed my ticket I turned around and booked it back to the first gate I had passed, the one that I felt I should get on. That was the flight! I walked up as they were already boarding, told the situation to the gate agent, got a new boarding pass, then walked on to the new plane. The customer service agent stayed on the call with me until it was all fixed and I was walking down the gangplank.

I was so thankful that it worked out. Bryan was able to shift his schedule to pick me up and Cooper and Phoebe took over bedtime duties with Topher and Sophie (Peter was at work).

This is what the middle of the county looked like from the plane.

This is what Pennsylvania looked like from the air.

I exited the flight, so happy to be on the ground two hours earlier than my original itinerary dictated. I was waiting for Bryan at the curb outside the airport when I discovered that my third flight, the one I was going to miss, had been delayed. And delayed again. And then canceled. If I hadn't switched my flight I would have been stuck in Chicago.

I think that experience was a tender mercy.

Thanks for letting me visit, Falisha and Isaac!

A Fish For a Duck

Last Sunday Topher ended church with this cute duck in his possession. One of the Young Women in the ward crochets tiny animals and gives them to the Primary kids. Apparently it was Topher's turn. 

As we drove home from church we had the following conversation:

Topher: I'm going to make her a fish to say thank you.

Me: A fish? (trying to understand what this would entail) What materials will you use?

Topher: Paper, a plate, and tin foil.

And that's just what he did. He added the feathers and googly eyes for an extra pop. I drove him over to her house so he could deliver it that afternoon.

According to her mom, this made the Young Woman's day. 

The Great Outdoors

After lots of rain and cold, we've finally had a few days of spring weather. Cooper, Sophie, and Topher have taken advantage of it and played outside everyday this week and a few days last week as well. I love that they still love having a backyard.

Dictation

I haven't talked too much on here about some of the health things that I deal with. I do my best to manage them and choose not to highlight them, at least in written form. But today I have been hit so hard with some of my symptoms that Bryan is kindly transcribing this post while I huddle under the covers. my arms too weak to type. He's even filling in the correct words when the brain fog is so thick that I say the wrong thing.

Tonight I'm really thankful for Bryan. and all of the stuff that he jumped in and did today without being asked. I know he doesn't like praise (and I'm sure it makes him very uncomfortable to type them while I say them) but I'm really thankful for him, and all that he does. I'm especially grateful that he doesn't feel put out when my energy fails me, even though I have a tendency to get angry at myself with these health challenges that I can't control. 

So thanks Bryan. I'll try to type my own post tomorrow.

Giving Thanks

Our Thanksgiving day was extra special because Bryan's youngest brother Spencer drove all the way from Indianapolis to visit! I was so focused on cooking and visiting with him that I took very few pictures. Even without photographic evidence, it was a wonderful holiday.

Bryan and I spent most of the day cooking. Spencer helped with the sweet potatoes and with entertaining kids in the backyard. The meal was delicious!

Not pictured: six pumpkin pies (I decided to cut back this year and not make as many), one razzleberry pie, one key lime pie, one chocolate pie, and one apple cobbler.

After all the cooking and eating were finished, we played a few rounds of MarioKart. And by we, I mean not me. I was busy dozing on Bryan's shoulder.

This was taken just before I fell asleep.

After MarioKart we gathered back in the kitchen for dessert. I had failed to take a picture during dinner and only remembered to take this one after most people were finished eating their sweets. They were good sports and came back into the kitchen.

I'm thankful for this family of mine, both immediate and extended. And I'm thankful for a holiday focused of gratitude!

Out and About

One year ago today Topher was fully vaccinated for COVID. That means it was one year ago today that, after two and a half years at home, we returned to attending activities in person. It was overwhelming and surreal at first, but it got easier as the days and weeks went on.

Today I made three round trips between our house and the high school (a total of thirty minutes there and back) in the space of three hours. Instead of feeling grumpy and put out that I had been in the car for so long, I felt thankful that my kids are able to have extracurricular activities that happen in person and not just over a computer screen.

The Big Reveal

Yesterday I mentioned that we had a second place in California to visit. Bryan and I had planned that leg of the trip for just as many months as we'd been planning the rest of the trip. The big difference was that this part of the trip was a big secret. We had thought about telling the kids as we were on our way, but we were concerned that they might guess the surprise. Also, we were afraid that if we told them while in transit they would scream and Bryan would drive off the road. True story.

So instead we told them on Friday, the last day of virtual school. Bryan had the presence of mind to film the reveal.

So, on Sunday evening, we said our goodbyes to the grandparents and drove up to Anaheim. We had picked a hotel that was a ten minute drive from Disneyland because it included a free breakfast and looked bigger than our other hotel option that was across the street from the parks. When we arrived at said hotel we discovered it was not only much smaller than advertised, it also had a gross dirty mattress on the foldout couch and stunk like cigarette smoke. We were exhausted and discouraged. Cooper took a few pictures of the kitchen, to show it's size.

Bryan called the front desk and asked if they had a different room. No, this was the last room big enough to hold a group of our size. We opened windows and tried to make the best of it. The kids refused to put any of their bags down and stood huddled together near the door. Bryan and I stepped into one of the bedrooms to conference. The smell was even stronger in there. Cigarette smoke is a trigger for my asthma and I was feeling it with every breath. In the few minutes that we'd been there Bryan had found a different, more expensive hotel room for us. But could we get out of this hotel reservation? And if we could, could we afford the more expensive room?

As we talked I said a quick prayer in my head. I didn't ask if we could afford it. I asked if we would be safe staying in that smelly hotel. The answer came to my mind immediately, "You didn't have to pay for a rental car." We had budgeted for a rental car, but hadn't had to use that money thanks to our generous friends letting us borrow their van. We hadn't reallocated the money anywhere, so we did have a financial cushion that would cover the new room. I told Bryan the answer that I got and he left to ask the front desk if they could cancel our reservation.

The front office was in a different building than the one we were standing in. The kids and I watched out the window as Bryan walked into the office. Then, what felt like moments later, Bryan came running out of the office and across the parking lot. He burst into the room and said they wouldn't charge us and would cancel the whole reservation if we left immediately. We hauled ourselves out of that room so fast and were loading back into the van in less than a minute. As soon as the person working the front desk had said they would cancel, Bryan booked the other room. We were on our way to our second hotel of the night.

I wish we had more pictures of that first hotel to highlight how completely different these two hotels were from each other. While the first one was old, small, and stunk, the new one was indeed new, spacious, and gloriously clean. The kids all heartily approved of our new accommodations. In his excitement, Cooper took several pictures of the new hotel.

When Bryan checked in to the new hotel the clerk told him that this was the very last available room in the hotel and apologized that it was an accessible room. That's why it was so huge, it was big enough for a wheelchair. We did not mind at all.

Now that we had a clean, safe place to sleep, we surprised the kids by handing out the souvenirs (little backpacks, hats, shirts) we'd been secretly gathering for months and tried to sleep in spite of our excitement for the next day.

New Friends

A particular highlight of our trip down to Maryland last Saturday was when my sister-in-law Leah let the younger kids each choose a doll to take home. She's been collecting used/worn/damaged American Girl dolls and restoring them. She's doing a beautiful job. Phoebe, Sophie, Emma, and Topher all love their new buddies.

Thank you, Aunt Leah!

Woman's Blind Bluff

One of Bryan's Christmas gifts was a new suit. It's been about ten years since he bought one and one of the buttons recently broke in half on his old suit. It's a good thing the weather is cold because he could get away with wearing a sweater to church instead of his suit jacket. He picked the new suit out, ordered it, tried it on when it arrived, and handed it to me to wrap. The pants needed to be hemmed, but he figured that wouldn't be hard to arrange.

Then he learned it would take six weeks to tailor and would cost roughly a third of the price of the suit. He started talking about hemming it himself and I asked if he needed me to do it. We've since learned that he thought I was offering to help when in reality I was asking if I needed to do it because I have more sewing experience. He said yes. Did I know how to hem anything? No, no I did not. But I knew his mom, a sewing wizard, was coming after Christmas so maybe I could ask her to teach me how.

Getting COVID threw a wrench in most of our plans that week, but on the last day they were here she patiently walked me through how to do a blind hem using my sewing machine. After she left I practiced a few times on some scrap fabric since I was worried about ruining Bryan's new suit. On Saturday night I finally got brave enough to actually hem the pants. And it worked! He wore his new suit to church the next day.

Here's a picture of the settings needed to do a blind hem, because I will definitely forget without this reminder. Shari, thank you for teaching me a new skill!

Attitude of Gratitude

Peter spoke in sacrament meeting yesterday. He worked on his talk over a few days and finally let me see a copy late on Saturday night. I had a few very minor edits and asked that he practice out loud several times before he actually delivered his talk. I think he did well. Peter does not like public speaking, but he kept a good tempo, was articulate, and managed to look up from his paper a few times. Several people complimented him afterward. Today a friend told me he sounded more like a missionary talking than a youth.

In the last three weeks Phoebe, Sophie (in Primary last week, I wrote the whole talk since she was drowning in school and didn't think I needed to post it), and Peter have given talks at church. Cooper is waiting for for his invitation to speak, he expects it will be coming soon.

Here's a copy of Peter's talk:

Attitude of Gratitude

In Mosiah Chapter Two, we hear King Benjamin address his people. He discusses many important things throughout this chapter, but I want to focus on verses twenty and twenty-one, where he says: “I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another—

I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.” While King Benjamin may not have been specifically talking to us, we can still take some things away from those two verses. It is important to show gratitude to our Heavenly Father for many, many reasons. First, he created us and is the Father of our spirits. He gave us our Earth and our earthly bodies that allow us to stay in mortality. He gave us his Only Begotten Son, to suffer for our sins in Gethsemane, and die on the cross, so that we may all be resurrected and return to live with him. It is the least we can do to show our gratitude towards him.

In the October 2010 general conference, President Monson gave a talk titled “The Divine Gift of Gratitude” he said: Quote, “A grateful heart, then, comes through expressing gratitude to our Heavenly Father for His blessings and to those around us for all that they bring into our lives. This requires conscious effort—at least until we have truly learned and cultivated an attitude of gratitude. Often we feel grateful and intend to express our thanks but forget to do so or just don’t get around to it.” Close quote. An attitude of gratitude isn’t just being grateful, but also expressing that gratitude. An attitude of gratitude can be shown by following many of God’s commandments. We can show Him our gratitude for our earthly bodies by following the Word of Wisdom, to show him that we are truly thankful by taking the best care of ourselves and our bodies. We can repent of our sins whenever we have the chance, to show our gratitude for the Savior who suffered for those sins to give us that opportunity to repent.

Not only can an attitude of gratitude show Heavenly Father that we are thankful for all that he has done for us, but it can bless us in its own right. In Doctrine and Covenants Section Seventy-Eight, verse Nineteen, we read “And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.” Through an attitude of gratitude we can be blessed. In our modern world, there are many things that we may not want to be grateful for, or even many things we should be grateful for that we just take for granted. Having an attitude of gratitude can allow us to have a more optimistic view of our world, even in the most turbulent of times. According to an article I read from Harvard Health Publishing:  Quote, “Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible. With gratitude, people acknowledge the goodness in their lives. In the process, people usually recognize that the source of that goodness lies at least partially outside themselves. As a result, being grateful also helps people connect to something larger than themselves as individuals — whether to other people, nature, or a higher power.” Close quote. Showing gratitude for the good in our world can help us to have a stronger connection with those around us who may be a source of that good, and ultimately with our Heavenly Father, who has provided us with the world itself. According to the same article: “In positive psychology research, gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness. Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.” While writing this talk, I remembered a movie I once saw called Pollyanna. In this movie, there is a young girl named Pollyanna who is incredibly optimistic. She holds onto this optimism by playing something she calls the “Glad Game”. When she is feeling sad or discouraged about something, she will try to think about all the reasons she has to be glad, or grateful, for that thing. This kind of view of life, to always try to be grateful for something is inspiring for me, especially in those moments when I feel there is nothing to be grateful for. In those hard moments, I try to think of something I can be grateful for, then see that things aren’t so bad, and begin to have a much better outlook on things. In the April 1992 General Conference, President Monson gave a talk called “An Attitude of Gratitude”. He talks about the story of the ten lepers, all of whom were healed by Jesus, while only one came back to thank him. He then says, quote, “Like the leprosy of yesteryear are the plagues of today. They linger; they debilitate; they destroy. They are to be found everywhere. Their pervasiveness knows no boundaries. We know them as selfishness, greed, indulgence, cruelty, and crime, to identify but a few. Surfeited with their poison, we tend to criticize, to complain, to blame, and, slowly but surely, to abandon the positives and adopt the negatives of life” Close quote. With an attitude of gratitude, we can do the reverse, and slowly but surely abandon the negative and adopt the positives of life. We can begin to push back those modern plagues, as we recognize and show gratitude for all the good around us. I’d like to bear my testimony that it is important to have an attitude of gratitude, not only to show our Heavenly Father that we are thankful for all that he has given us, but to also be closer to Him and those around us. I know that if we can cultivate an attitude of gratitude in ourselves, we can begin to have a much more positive outlook on the world, and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.