The small-time Adventurers

Guest Post - Scripture Challenge #10

2012-01-23T05:50:00.000-08:00

"He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. "

Matthew 16:15-19

Last week I asked my sister Tanya if she would share her insights on the scripture challenge for the week. The first official "guest post." :) Fun, huh?! Among many of her talents, one neat thing her and her kids did this last Christmas is memorize the published testimony of modern prophets entitled "The Living Christ" found here. She's such a good example in so many ways. So without further ado - Tanya!

So, Amanda called me on Monday asking if I would like to post on her blog.

I thought there was a weensie chance she was giving me a hint that she didn't want me blog-jacking any more ;)

Turns out, she wanted me to "officially" guest-post for the Sunday Scripture Mastery... COOL! I checked out the scripture for the week and... drew a blank.

But as I searched more about this scripture, after memorizing it (on a super-cool, free app:), I discovered I'd been having a lot of related ponderings on the subject all week, and top that off with a very appropriately timed Sharing Time in Primary today (on the Plan of Salvation), and I couldn't stop writing about it! So, I was certainly thankful for the opportunity to purposely ponder on the scriptures, Manda. Thanks :)

Abraham 3:22-23

Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;

And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.

There really is a lot of doctrine packed into these verses! First off, we had a premortal existence and lived in the presence of God. He stood among these "good" spirits, and (in this vision) told Abraham - face to face (verse 11) that he was called to be one of the rulers before he was even born. -- I LOVE knowing we lived with God before we came here. I LOVE knowing we were taught and prepared for this life. I LOVE knowing that we knew there were certain things we were *supposed* to do... that we *PROMISED* Heavenly Father we would do on earth... not excluding our freedom to CHOOSE to accomplish these things or not.

This chapter teaches that Satan rejected God's plan, and began the first war: over agency. We are here because we FOUGHT to have agency. To learn from our own choices how to become more like our Beloved Father in Heaven. --- It was not a haphazard, nonchalant decision to come to earth and get a body. --- Perhaps this is why our spirits can recognize when truth is shown to us. The Spirit confirms the truth that our spirits already know ... and what JOY we feel when we hear that truth!

Likewise, our spirits know how to recognize false teachings. We have each felt that dark, confused, or angry feeling when confronted with false teachings. --- I feel immense peace and comfort knowing I have this power - to discern truth from error. A gift that must be nourished and nurtured in order to be recognized above the attractions of the world.

It shows us we can be sure about those whom God has chosen to lead His church because "He stood in the midst of them" and "He saw that they were good."

What else did God declare was "good"?

Oh, just every step of the creation of the world!

Which reminds me of one of my very favorite songs:

Firm as the mountains around us,
Stalwart and brave we stand
On the rock our fathers planted
For us in this goodly land--
The rock of honor and virtue,
Of faith in the living God.
They raised His banner triumphant --
Over the desert sod.

And we hear the desert singing:
Carry on, carry on, carry on!

Hills and vales and mountains ringing:
Carry on, carry on, carry on!

Holding aloft our colors,
We march in the glorious dawn.

O youth of the noble birthright,
Carry on, carry on, carry on!

President Ezra Taft Benson said this about us:

"Make no mistake about it -- you are a marked generation. There has never been more expected of the faithful in such a short perioud of time.

"God has held you in reserve to make your appearance in the final days before the Second Coming of the Lord.

"Our generation will be comparable in wickedness to the days of Noah... but there is a major difference this time: It is that

"God has saved for the final inning some of His strongest children, who will help bear off the kingdom TRIUMPHANTLY.

A tall order, to be sure. But by simply being HERE, we know that WE are those valiant spirits God has held onto, to help our brethren come to Christ and build up His Kingdom so He can return once again. No matter what our circumstances are now, or how many mistakes we've made (and continue to make) ... There is no denying: We have an objective to accomplish, and by jingo, we can DO this!

Heaven knows how many times I fall flat on my FACE trying to pass the same hurdle, repenting, and trying again, with the same result. I am weak, I admit. But He will never give up on me, so why should I give up on myself? He is patient, loving, forgiving, and encouraging. So I learn to dust myself off, put my trust in Him, and try to do better. He blesses me with the determination to do so. --- I may fall flat on my face again (!) but only Satan wants me to throw in the towel and let frustration overcome me. With Him, I am STRONG.

We are of the Noble Birthright, so let's CARRY ON!

*Carry On: Hymn 255, by Ruth May Fox & Alfred Durham

**good heavens! Ruth Fox was 105 when she died! Way to carry on! :)

Thank you Tanya!! It was wonderful to hear your insight and get to learn from you! PS - though it was harder this week, Derek & I both memorized it!:)

This is the Christ - Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Christmas!!!

2012-01-18T00:11:00.000-08:00

So, on December 20th our friend Holly invited us over to her house for dinner, and since we weren't sure if we were going to get around to decorating or a tree, we made sure to take some Christmas-y pictures.

My favorite ornament on the tree - this awesome retro giraffe.

And this half creepy/half cute doll entranced Holly. ;)

Christmas Eve!!
So! Christmas Eve came and we decided we must get a Christmas tree. There is a Christmas tree lot at the bottom of our hill, so we decided that we would go down and get a little 2-3 foot tree. We began perusing the trees, and I laughed in shock when I saw single twigs being sold. Really? They give out BOUGHS for free at Christmas tree lots in Mesa!!
Check it out.

$7.50??? RiDICulous! I could NOT believe it. That is a joke. For Real. It makes Charlie Brown's tree look like the Rockefeller Center Christmas giant. And do you see the little 2 footers there? TWENTY-EIGHT dollars! Before tax. A women bought this barren, really skinny, mostly bald 4 footer while we were there- $60. What!? On Christmas Eve even. You think they'd make some sort of deal since in 2 days the season would be over. Nope. Nope. Nope.

I can just imagine the lot owner's conversation over dinner.
"Honey, we can buy that house in Cape Cod you've been wanting. And take that cruise with Kathy Lee Gifford too. ;) You wouldn't believe what those San Franciscans will pay to get Christmas trees into their homes! And when the branches and twigs fell off the trees we sold them for $10 after tax!"*maniacal laughter*

Not wanting to support such blatant robbery, and not wanting to be scalped ourselves, we drove to Colma (nearby town with a Target) to do some last bits of shopping and check out their Christmas tree lot.

Unfortunately the cheapest trees there were $20.

Fortunately those trees were 5-6 feet tall!! :) We were delighted! We walked around the lot just BREATHING in its delights when found a very good looking Douglas Fir that was (after testing) the best smelling tree there. :) Because that is one of the, if not THE most vital part of buying a real, live Christmas tree. It was an EXCEPTIONALLY thrilling purchase. Our first Christmas and our first Christmas tree. :) We felt so official. ;)

We cautiously made our way home with our happy tree tied to the top of our car, and went home to decorate him! We named him Ebenezer (for after his change of heart Scrooge kept Christmas best of anyone!) and strung our lights and popcorn on him. When we strung our popcorn earlier we thought we'd be getting a much smaller tree, so there wasn't as much as we'd hoped, but while I fed Deborah, Derek put them up in such a way as you can hardly tell. :) He did a great job. I hastily made our Christmas tree star - cardboard with tin foil wrapped around it, but it got the idea across at any rate. ;)

Ebenezer :)

We made some DELICIOUS pizza and drank hot chocolate afterwards in the glow of our new tree while we cheered each others good qualities and shared the things we love about one another. Possibly my favorite Christmas tradition growing up, and one that Derek & I loved starting in our own, new family. We cheered Deborah too, even though she was sleeping. (A rare enough of an occurance that we didn't dare wake her. ;) And the most important part of Christmas, we read the birth of Jesus Christ in Luke II to each other.

Best Christmas present ever!

I didn't get around to finishing our stockings unfortunately... Ah well. Next year!

Christmas Morn!!
We opened the stockings right after church, enjoyed a delicious breakfast of sausage, eggs, and orange juice afterwards, changed into our comfy jams and opened presents.

to Derek, a tennis player before he went to dental school, I gave tennis balls with a coupon for 4 tennis dates until March for us to play. As I have absolutely no background in tennis, he will have to teach me. He was so excited about it he drew a diagram and went over the rules with me (theoretically since it wasn't time for the date yet) for the next few days.

Derek took a book given away to us we didn't want, and cut out the pages to stick the present of a DVD hidden inside the book. I was so sure I had gotten a book all that time leading up to Christmas - it was a shock, but most pleasant! He gave me a DVD of Martha Graham dances. I LOVE Martha Graham technique. I was thrilled! I just love dancing her technique for modern!! Boy, I miss dancing. I LOVE watching it though.


And Derek with the wool scarf I made him! :) I'm so happy he likes it and has actually been wearing it! :)

Like Ebenezer Scrooge said, may the spirit of Christmas abide in our hearts all year long!

Christmas Bells - Andy Williams

Christmas Baby!

2012-01-16T12:14:00.000-08:00

Right before my mom left on December 2nd, when Deborah was just 9 days old we got some of these fun Christmas shots. It's amazing how much she's grown since then!

3 Generations

Her namesake. Deborah Lynn with Deborah Jane

M-WAH!! *kissy kissy*

And this is my favorite from this round. As cute as a Christmas card. :) I could just eat her up!*Tamara quoted to me a while back that motherhood turns completely normal women into wanna-be cannibals. I totally get it now. ;)*

What Child is This - Josh Groban

Scripture Challenge #9!

2012-01-15T23:41:00.000-08:00

"Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones; And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born. "

Abraham 3:22-23

Last week's scripture, Doctrine & Covenants 8:2-3 (found here) was fun to memorize. We've so loved learning these scriptures together and the spirit it brings. We also try to spend time on Sunday reviewing the past scriptures, because it's all too easy to forget them after moving on! As we've sat here reviewing them to eachother, Deborah was on my lap and so I would say them to her and she just loved it! She'd smile and talk back, and even got out a few laughs! :) It was awesome. As far as last week's scripture goes, Derek's going to share his thoughts on it.

    D&C 8 is about personal revelation. Each one of us needs guidance in our lives- at one point or another we need the help of God to get through. God speaks to each of us on a very personal level.   In these two verses the Lord explains how he comunicates- he does so in both our minds and in our hearts through the Holy Ghost. (see Galatians 5:22, John 14:26, 15: 26, 16:8,13-14)
    There is an important caveat in the first verse- The Lord tells us that the Holy Ghost will speak to us and will dwell with us. In Helaman 4:24 we read that the 'Spirit of the Lord doth not dwell in unholy temples.' a sentiment found through out the scriptures (Gen. 6:3; 1 Sam 16:4; Rom 8:9; 1 Nephi 7:14; D&C 1:33). If we want the Spirit of the Lord to dwell within us- if we want to hear the voice of the Lord in our minds and in our hearts we must make ourselves holy temples to the Lord- with all that being a holy temple entails.
    When reading the scriptures we marvel at those great men and women of faith we find- Daniel, Esther, Nephi, the 2000 stripling warriors, and many others- all of whom accomplished great things, or was carried through moments of great danger or trial (see Job) by the Lord. We marvel at their faithfulness and ask ourselves, 'How did they do it?' Doctrine and Covenants Section 8 verses 2-3 tells us how. The Holy Ghost spoke to their minds and to their hearts and dwelt in them- just as it can with us. It is by this spirit of revelation (the Holy Ghost speaking to the mind, the heart, and dwelling in the heart) that Moses led the children of Israel through the Red Sea on Dry ground.  The Lord's way of communication is a simple but powerful link, through which great things are possible. Through it we can receive help, guidance, & strength in even the darkest hour of our lives.
    The Lord has made himself available to us. He reaches out to us in many ways- in the scriptures, through modern Prophets, Apostles, in the Church God has restored in these last days (lds.org), through angels (both earthly and heavenly), and through His very personal directions to us. In times of need each of us can go to the Lord for help. I testify that all those who seek the guidance of the Lord with a sincere hear, with real intent, and with faith in Christ will receive an answer through the power of the Holy Ghost.
    (to learn about other who have felt the Holy Ghost clik on "my faith" or visit http://mormon.org/people/)

Plastic monkey, you're the one. You make bathtime lots of fun! Plastic monkey I'm awfully fond of you!

2012-01-08T18:15:00.000-08:00

It's time.
Sorry for the slackin'. I'm going to be better this week. That's one of my goals. ;) First my friend Danielle called me out on the carpet for my serious lack of post-age, then Tanya felt compelled to write a post since I was so MIA. Whoops,. Sorry all! Hopefully that was just the nudge I needed!

To start with something fun - December 20th (so yes, a bit ago) we took these fun pictures during bath time. She doesn't seem to love taking baths, but neither do they bother that much.

I think she looks like she's posing as an angel statue & could be playing the harp in her hands. ;) Don't you think?

hehehe! This one makes me laugh! Note: plastic monkey. :)

I just adore this picture. It's so cute to me!

And I love snuggling with my cuddle-bug. :) She;s just so sweet!!

Rubber Ducky - InsideOut

Scripture Challenge #8

2012-01-07T20:16:00.000-08:00

Oh dear. So it's not exactly Sunday, but aren't we supposed to keep its spirit and remember what we learned all week long? Yes. ;) So I'm taking that as my excuse.

But! All this is to say that the scripture challenge is back! Woohoo!

"Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart. Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground."

D&C 8:2-3

1 Nephi 19:23 (found here) we memorized - how about you all? I love that we got this scripture fairly early in the game, because I feel like it showcases exactly why we are doing this. "I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning." The scriptures aren't just nice sentiments shared by ancient people wholly disconnected from ourselves. They are God's words for us - our job is to apply them to ourselves - find their meaning in our own lives - so that we can learn from them & enjoy happier, fuller lives.

Love you! Good luck with this next scripture!

ahem

2012-01-06T13:32:00.000-08:00

Hi, again! (it's me, Tanya ;)

I haven't any NEW pictures of Sweet Cheeks, baby Deborah yet ... *shakes head* (not like I have any room to talk with my OWN blog-slacking stretching on a couple months...)

But I DID have to share this little gem:

Mom noted a significant likeness in one of the pictures already shared.

Little Baby Sloan bears a striking resemblance to her little baby MOMMY!

*taken on her blessing day*

Let's name the rest of the siblings, why don't we? (left to right)
Joseph, Tanya (the one struggling to see past the bangs - sporting my new CTR ring... I wonder if I knew how green it would end up turning my finger ;), Katrina, and Tamara (in her favorite plaid shirt :)

That's all I've got.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We just adore her!

2011-12-19T14:22:00.000-08:00

I'm super-blog slacking these last couple weeks, but here's a couple adorabe pictures of baby girl. She's growing so fast!!

First bath. ;)

Isn't She Lovely - Glee

ps - I don't support Glee, but there song was great when I llooked it up on groovshark.

pss - I love grooveshark. :)

Scripture Challenge #7

2011-12-04T20:24:00.001-08:00

"And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah; for I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning."

1 Nephi 19:23

Sorry for the M.I.A. last week, but we're back on schedule again, hopefully without any more breaks. ;) Last week's scripture (Matthew 6:24 - found here) was short, but powerful. Both Derek & I got it, but to answer Tanya's question, yes, I frequently find it hard to buckle down and actually perfectly memorize a scripture I have kind of half-baked already in my head. Two things that help me actually do it are 1, knowing I will have to report on Sunday if I did so or not, and 2, thinking of Elder Scott's last general conference talk and how important it is to memorize the scriptures. Also, when you think about the prophets and apostles and even the Savior, they can quote the scriptures perfectly.

I really love last week's scripture, but I've got to bed before Deborah wakes up, so I'll share the thoughts I had about it tomorrow.

Love you! Happy Sabbath!

the BIGGEST adventure part 1

2011-12-02T14:48:00.001-08:00

I checked my email one day, and saw these comments on my new blog post... I had been M.I.A. from phone, computer, etc. so that was a surprise to me! I got to enjoy the surprise of cute baby Deborah's pictures with the rest of you! Thanks Tanya! ;) Besides the normal healing/getting used to baby's schedule, I seemed to have gotten mastitis and some sort of flu or really bad cold - so I've been achy, coughing, sneezing, sinus headache-ing, and throwing up - which really aggravates those stitches. ;) I'm starting to feel a bit better, and wanted to document the blessed event before too much time past - so here it is. Part 1. I'm thinking a 3 part adventure story should cover it, so for those interested in the birth story - stay tuned. ;)

Rewinding life back a bit to November 19th, we were super excited to welcome my mom to our home! She was coming to help with the new baby, and had a ton of fun together. We took ~~the wrong road~~ the scenic route home from the airport and ~~ended up~~ got to showcase some of the SF sights around town. Here are some sights she captured. The "Magic" bus is definitely SF. ;)

Derek also made some very tasty bread. :)

We took walks up our hill, 'round Golden Gate Park, went shopping, and got halfway through sewing our family Christmas stockings! It was so much fun! I just love spending time with her - she's a blast. I'm blessed to have my mom as one of my best friends. She also took some *very* pregnant shots 2 days before the big event.

A little goofy

He's a vampire. That must be the reason I got so sick during the pregnancy.

Plus there are those really sharp canines he has.

Tuesday night, November 22nd I was lying in bed and could not sleep. Could NOT sleep. Tick tock, tick, tock. I was hungry and got some food. Tick, tock, tick, tock. I layed in bed thinking about Christmas, then made a list of those I needed to still figure out Christmas presents for... 12:30 am... I was about to make a blog post about how I couldn't sleep & share some of the recent going-on's when -

**WHOOSH!!**

And there went my water. Though I sopped through about 3 towels before it started to peter off to where I could move around without a flood. Boy they weren't kidding about that excess of amniotic fluid. ;) When I stopped to think about it I realized I'd been having minor contractions for a while, but had been having contractions for so long I had pretty much taught myself to ignore them. We got ready for the hospital, gave them a call, and headed off to have the baby! :) We were SO excited and thrilled. :)

It's time!!! (taken after the water broke)

I wanted to put up both because one shows our excitement really well, but the other has great lighting. ;) Then we were off!!!

Stay tuned for the hospital!

"Every Baby is the Sweetest and the Best."

2011-11-29T08:56:00.000-08:00

This is big sister, Tanya, reporting live from the wilds of Wisconsin.
Apparently, I'm not very patient when it comes to posting new baby pictures. This is, after all, the 21st Century! ---
Amanda?
Sorry if you were cooking up a super-cool post on your new arrival, but... I remembered that I still have permission to post on your blog, so:

Let's Welcome *cute as a button*

DEBORAH JANE!

Born: Wednesday, November 23, 2011 {around} 7:10pm
Weighing an adorable 8 lbs 2 oz

Amanda might not feel comfortable saying this, but, as the proud aunt, I can safely pronounce: Deborah is one GORGEOUS baby! The dark, beautiful eyes, the glowing skin, the sweetest little rose bud of a mouth, and that adorable button nose, smooshed between those sweetest cheeks.

Amanda rocked this delivery sans epidural, but equipped with incredible know-how of how she wanted to facilitate this delivery. She is a ROCK STAR! (and I hear Derek was one amazing birthing coach as well. :)

Mom flew over a couple-three days before to be there for the arrival and transition for the new growing family, out there in craaaazy San Francisco. ;) -- Representing the entire family of support.

And, without further ado, here are the pictures that I possess of this precious heavenly gift:

The jowls :)

This one is just too much. SO SWEET with that touch of her cheek! :)

Teensie weensie feet! --- and, my favorite: an open "Nursing Mother's Companion" book with ice cream :)

Long, beautiful, wrinkly fingers, just waiting to be plumped up :)

Very chill.Very content. Very heavenly.

And, as Rachel Lynnd so truly stated: "Every baby IS the sweetest and the best" --

Congratulations!

WE LOVE YOU!!

Scripture Challenge #6!

2011-11-20T18:59:00.001-08:00

"No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."

Matthew 6:24

So there's this week's scripture, and we're pretty excited about it, especially since they spoke about it so much in this last general conference (found here).

As for last weeks scripture (Moses 7:18 - found here) Derek & I both got it, as did my mom who's staying with us right now (yippee! :) ) And you all?

I loved how it says that the Lord called his people Zion, and then explains why. They were of one heart, one mind, were righteous, and there was no poor. I was thinking about the attributes that lead to those results. For example, to be of one heart, you have to be united - and to be united you can't be picking at the other person - you need to have charity, the pure love of Christ. One mind - truly united with God, to me signifies the need to fully submit our will to God, and humbly let Him lead me. Righteousness - obeying the commandments with exactness and following the example of Christ. And the lack of poor shows our humility, service, and work ethic. That when all who can work, and are honest, we get what we need. It was neat for me to think of those things that I need to do to become truly a woman of the Lord and to help establish Zion, especially in my life and my home.

Love you and happy Sunday!!

Read the scriptures online here

Come All Ye Saints of Zion - Geslison & Groberg

Scripture Challenge #5

2011-11-13T23:09:00.001-08:00

"And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them."

~
Moses 7:18

Sorry for the late Sunday post! Despite our tardiness, we got last weeks scripture challenge down! How did you all do?

D&C 1:37-38 (found here) was a bit more challenging to memorize, but I really loved studying it. I was familiar with the last part where the Lord says if He or His servant (the prophets) say it, it is the same, but wasn't very familiar with the first part. I loved how the Lord tells us to search the commandments and says clearly without any hesitation that ALL the prophesies and promises will be fulfilled. It made me think of the covenants we make with the Lord in our own lives when we are baptized, take the sacrament, etc. and how the Lord will ALWAYS fulfill His end of the bargain. It made me want to be a better follower of Christ and better remember and keep the promises I've made to the Lord to always keep His commandments.

I'm so grateful that the Lord has called prophets and apostles today, just as in ancient times, and that through them He continues to guide and direct us. What a blessing it is!

Have a marvelous Sunday night and a great Monday!!

Read the scriptures online here

A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief - Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Buns in the oven

2011-11-08T08:26:00.000-08:00

The exciting thing for me with those pictures, is that I just found the button in picasa to make a vertical collage! Call me slow, but I'm very happy about it! :)

Derek has been making starter after starter of sourdough trying to "capture" the right type of yeast. He found a new recipe and here's his 4th attempt at sourdough and best yet. We think he's finally got the right type growing for sourdough, and as it ages it's supposed to get better and better. He can't wait to try again. ;)

Baking - Aztec Two-Step

Scripture Challenge #4 & a devotional!

2011-11-06T11:55:00.000-08:00

Before we start into the scripture challenge, I have fun news! President Boyd K. Packer (1 of the 12 apostles) is giving an inspirational devotional tonight at 6:00 pm. I'm sure it will be fabulous, and you can tune in and watch it free by satellite here. I'm excited. :)

"Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled. What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."

Doctrine & Covenants 1:37-38

With some work & practice Derek & I met last week's challenge (1 Nephi 3:7)! This next scripture is a bit long, but we can do it! So I asked Derek to write his thoughts about the scripture we just memorized, so in his first writing appearance ever - enter Derek! ;)

As I memorized 1 Nephi 3:7 the first thing I noticed was the use of pronouns- I will go and do the Lord's will. Nephi's personal choice is emphasised- and like Nephi we must choose- we need to exercise our freedom of choice to do the will of the Lord. It is a choice that requires humility, and faith, and dedication.

The last two lines of 1 Nephi 3:7 read, "save he shall prepare a way for them, that they may acomplish the thing which he commandeth them." My next lesson came from those last two lines- that even though the Lord prepares a way, he doesn't do the work for us. If memory serves Nephi had to make a long journey, and endured grumbling, a beating, and multiple attempts (all of which risked his life and property) to acomplish the will of the Lord.

We are on this earth to learn and to grow, and as we follow the direction/advise/commandments
of our loving Heavenly Father we become our best selves, and find hapiness and joy in the journey. As these next weeks pass I will make a real effort to submit my will to the will of my Father in Heaven, and even when following his teachings seems tough I will persevere. I know as I do so I will grow into my best self. I will bless the lives of my family, friends, and co-workers. And I will enjoy a greater measure of peace and happiness in my daily life.

Read the scriptures online here

Come Listen to a Prophets Voice- Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Diggin' OWS?

2011-11-04T17:00:00.000-07:00

So, I had my itunes on random yesterday and this song came on, so we started talking about how we should put it on the loudspeakers at Occupy Wall Street. We think it's a great idea. :)

Do they not teach this anymore???

And I can't not rave about how this is one of my FAVORITE Gene Kelly dances. When I was little I didn't know the name of the movie (Summerstock) so I called it the "dancing on the table movie." A-mazing!! When I was at BYU I had to perform this ballet Esmeralda solo and there were a lot of repeats in it, which I thought was boring, but I rewatched this movie and the way Gene Kelly made each dig stick out with very subtle changes inspired me. Esmeralda was a lot more fun after that. Though with the tambourine it was already pretty awesome :)

If you don't like the grainy-ness, just press play on the side music! :)

Dig, Dig, Dig - Gene Kelly

This is Halloween! This is Halloween!

2011-11-01T16:24:00.000-07:00

Chicha has BIG earrings. So I needed big earrings. I cut up a soap box, hot glued twine all around it, and put some earring hooks in them from some earrings I have. I would've made Derek's poncho bigger, but that was all the fabric. Derek got a pumpkin from the patch near our house and went about carving it up while we watched/listened to You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. It was delightful. :) PS, we bought some candy just in case we got trick-or-treaters. Not one. It was kind of sad. Even with Doris outside. Today Derek learned that there are never trick-or-treaters on the steep streets. And ours is STEEP. Oh well, we'll just have to eat it ourselves. ;)

Her name is Doris. :) We love her!

And then we got into our Pacha & Chicha costumes! Even if you can't go out you still have to dress up. :)

Remember this scene? It's just as difficult as she made it look. ;)

"Demon Llama!!"

"The Emperor didn't SEE you? No-no-no-no! It's called COMMON COURTESY! I would go down there and give him a piece of my mind! You KNOW I would... whoo! I need to go wash something."

Super Pacha. Yes, he stuffed himself with a pillow. ;)

Then we made tasty chile and watched a movie. Hope your Halloween was FABULOUS!!

This is Halloween - Nightmare Before Christmas

Scripture Challenge #3!

2011-10-30T11:44:00.000-07:00

"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them. "

1 Nephi 3:7

If you're new to the scripture challenge, find out more and join in here. It's not too late! Last week's scripture Matthew 5: 14-16 (here) took more effort on our part than the first one, but we still got it! How did you do?

I loved thinking of the light of Christ and how we can let that light shine. One night last week I got up to use the bathroom and saw that the moonlight coming in through the skylight was a bit eerie. Before my imagination could run wild and get the better of me, I thought about the light, and that light ALWAYS rules the darkness. As long as there is some light it will always overcome the darkness. Even a shadow means that there is light nearby. And the closer we come to Christ, the brighter that light will grow, and the greater power and strength we will have over darkness and temptation and the happier and more peaceful we will become. When last week's scripture came up some of you said that you loved the analogy of light and had been thinking about it recently. Also, I've found that working on memorizing a scripture opens the doors to insight, so I want to invite you each week to also share any thoughts you had about the scripture during the week as well - if you'd like.

I hope you all have a beautiful Sabbath!

Read the scriptures online here

Nephi's Courage - Marvin Goldstein

2 Profiles and happy free things :)

2011-10-29T20:28:00.000-07:00

Here's me & Deborah at 36 weeks! I briefly thought about changing into a cuter shirt, but that seemed a bit silly - especially since this one was so comfy. My sister Tamara used to say that having kids fused her lower spine together... It seemed a bit outlandish to me. ;) Not anymore! I feel like my back's all out of wack and fused together and I just can't stretch far enough (there seems to be something large in the way) ;) I can't wait to s-t-r-e-t-c-h every which way after the baby's born! :)

Also, I made a profile page on mormon.org (here)! I've been meaning to do it for awhile & finally got around to it. The "faith" button on the side is linked up to it now too.

Our neighbors in the apt complex next to us were moving and left some goodies on the road for free (people do that often here around town) . Yeehaw for us!

We picked up a dresser (which is low enough to use as a changing table) and an awesome round, wooden table (with a big ole leaf)! They're both pretty scratched up and in need of some TLC, so we're going to paint the dresser next week and worry about the staining the table later. ;) Derek is He-man and while they were both nearby, we are up 3 floors! He took the dresser up himself, and luckily a neighbor came out right before Derek tried to heft the table up and helped him. Whoo! We're feeling super blessed and lucky!

Happy Saturday!

How Lucky - Indigo Swing

A New Head

2011-10-24T09:33:00.000-07:00

I'm no expert by any stretch, but a few months ago I learned how to make a blog header, and I love it! I've had a few requests on how to make it, so here goes:

I just used picasa, but found a great tutorial on this here: http://www.memoriesoncloverlane.com/2009/08/tutorial-on-how-to-make-blog-banner.html

If you want a cute background behind the pictures on your header you can download free pages here at http://www.shabbyprincess.com/downloads.asp. When you have the one you want, bring it to picasa, put it on hold to make it part of your collage, and then once inside the collage highlight it & click "use as background." Ta-da! (If that's confusing let me know). And I just found a great explanation of that here

For fun fonts, I downloaded some great ones here http://www.dafont.com/theme.php?cat=602&page=1. All free of course!

The first time it took me a while, but afterwards it went super quick. Have fun!

If I Can Learn to Do It - Anastasia

scripture challenge #2!

2011-10-23T15:29:00.000-07:00

"Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

Matthew 5:14-6

Read the scriptures online here

As for last weeks challenge (here)- both Derek & I got it down. It was blissfully short. ;) And since I love checking things off. Here's our check mark. ;) How did it go for you all?

I am Like a Star - Marvin Goldstein

thru another's viewfinder

2011-10-21T13:09:00.000-07:00

I already blogged about when my parents came to visit in August, but I just got my mom's pictures, and they are BEAUTIFUL! See the sights of SF thru her lens - she's got a gift!

This fabulous shot with the fisherman was actually taken by my dad.

flowers at Golden Gate Park

I'm a sucker for old cars. :)

We saw dolphins at the beach! You can't tell, but there were 6 or 7. Amazing, huh?!

Lombard Street! The crookedest street in the world. ;)

Off of Baker Beach, and possibly my favorite photo. Ahhhh.....

Obviously not one of the main attractions in SF, but a fun picture she took when Derek was trying to 'woo' me with his guitar skills. ;)

I just LOVE those pictures! :)

What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong

34 weeks & baby bookshelf!

2011-10-18T15:03:00.000-07:00

So, I've had some requests to post some pictures of the belly. It has grown. Continually. I had to go to the Dr's yesterday so I took advantage of the "I got ready-ness" (used chapstick, put in a headband and everything ;) to take a picture. There's no denying it. I'm "pretty great with child." (The great will come a bit closer to the due date ;) I'd like to keep it at this picture with Derek, but I think some may find it inadequate.

Without further ado - baby belly at 34 weeks & 2 days!

And my new favorite thing to do with cheap bookshelves! We got this shelf from Craigslist for a few $$ a while ago, and wanted to use it for the baby stuff, but it was pretty drab and boring - not to mention a bit rickety. So Derek found some wood that someone was giving away, I found some cute fabric and we put it together. (Me mostly supervising on this one per bedrest - thank you Derek!) I wish I could paint it too, but that's not an option right now. Notwithstanding it was so easy to do and made such a difference!

1. Just take off the back - really easy to do with cheap bookshelves

2. Cut the fabric you want to use to the size of the back - leaving an extra inch or so around the sides so you can fold it around the back

3. Staple the edges of the fabric to the back (as long as you do it close to the edge it won't show at all)

4. If your shelf needs reinforcing (like ours) nail a piece of wood cut to size on the back as well. And ta-da! A sturdy, happy bookshelf. :)

Cheers!

Big Girls - Mika

An invitation to a Challenge!

2011-10-16T13:45:00.000-07:00

We're going to shake up these 'sabbath celebrations' a bit and make them more fun and meaningful. I've been thinking about Elder Scott's counsel this last conference about the importance of knowing and memorizing scriptures and how that can improve our lives. He said:

"Great power can come from memorizing scriptures... help in time of need, give inspiration and comfort, and be a source of motivation for needed change. The scriptures can form a foundation of support. They can provide an incredibly large resource of willing friends who can help us...

Scriptures can calm an agitated soul, giving peace, hope, and a restoration of confidence in one’s ability to overcome the challenges of life. They have potent power to heal emotional challenges when there is faith in the Savior. They can accelerate physical healing." - read/watch/listen to the whole talk here

With all the trials and problems we have, I think we could all use those extra blessings in our lives. The invitation/challenge is to memorize the sunday scripture during the week and then report back the next week if (I can't start making excuses for myself already) that we've got it. (having buddies to do it with and report to helps me actually fill my goals instead of just make them ;)

When I was thinking about how to structure this and which scriptures to choose, I realized that in the "scripture masteries" (here) the prophets/apostles have already marked some of the most important scriptures to memorize. So I'm just going to take them in order, choosing the 1st from the Old Testament one week, then the 1st from the New Testament, then the Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants, and repeat until we've got them all. :)

There's 25 scriptures for each book of scripture - making 100 in all. To keep me us motivated I'm planning on having some sort of party/prize/giveaway every 25 scriptures if because we've kept up. It'll be fun! Who's with me?

If you want to, grab the scripture challenge button on the side! (Yes, I just learned how to do that. It was exciting. ;)

SO - this weeks is:

"For behold, this is my work and my glory — to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

Moses 1:39

Read the scriptures online here

Press Forward Saints - Mark Gelison/Geoff Groberg

We've got it!

2011-10-14T13:37:00.000-07:00

I'm still a bit hazy on the costume details, but we're decided! We're going to be Pacha and Chicha (his wife) from Emperor's New Groove! She's quite pregnant (a must for me) and they're super fun! We're going to watch the movie this weekend so we can scope out their characters/costumes. :) I'm excited!

via

What are you going to be? :)

via

This "What Should I Be" song from Garfield's Halloween Adventure is a sticker. I watched it as a kid a few times and now I stop from singing/hearing it in my head every Halloween when I think about costumes. :) It starts around 7:30 min.

baby socks are small...very small.

2011-10-14T11:30:00.000-07:00

So! In preps for baby Deborah we've been organizing her clothes, crib, and whatnot. I was going through and making a pile of her new clothes (we were blessed to borrow/receive a bunch of free hand-me-downs already washed :) that needed to be washed.

There's only one washer/dryer for our little complex, and when he went to get them out of the dryer he noticed 3 little wet socks placed on top from the people who were using the washer after us. Whoops.

So we're folding the laundry, matching socks and realize that there are still 2 missing. Keep in mind that these are BRAND NEW socks. No "c'est la vie" here. (Yes I had to look up how to spell that ;) They hadn't even been worn yet! We decided to write a note and put it on the washer they were using so that they'd keep an eye out for the others. Derek handed me a post-it to write the note on, but before I started writing I checked out the top. Good thing too!

See note:

That would have seemed a bit rude and demanding, don't you think? Yikes!

So, we used a (hopefully) harmless sticky with the name of some drug on top (remnants from working at the Dr.'s office) and said something like this:

"Hello, this is our first time washing baby clothes, and we accidentally left 5 socks in the washer. Thank you for putting out the 3 you've found already. Could you please keep an eye out for the other 2? One is rainbow striped and the other is white and pink and looks like a ballet slipper. Sorry for the inconvenience and thank you!"

Yes, it was a bit embarrassing to write, but in an hour the striped one was lying on the washer.... The ballet sock is still MIA, which is really sad because it was my favorite one, but there's still hope that they'll find it in their house, right?

Mr. Rogers Neighborhood - Fred Rogers

Celebrating the Sabbath - 7

2011-10-09T16:44:00.000-07:00

via

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."

John 3:16-17

Read the scriptures online here

My Heavenly Father Loves Me- Clive Romney

"Fah who for-aze, dah who dor-aze!"

2011-10-04T20:50:00.000-07:00

"Welcome Christmas come this way!" - from How the Grinch Stole Christmas

So, for the last couple of weeks it has been hot as hades around here! Well, maybe not for those who don't have a heater in their body 24-7... Be that as it may, it has still been hot! And since there's no a/c in this joint we've got to keep the windows and hope for a breeze.

However, just as this hot spell landed a couple of smokers moved in the neighborhood and decided to take their smoking breaks at least once an hour right under my window. :P Which means my windows are closed most of the day and I'm stuck in here like a roasting pig. Yes, a roasting pig. Just stick an apple in my mouth. It will cook.

via

Yesterday however, we got a lovely respite! The temperature dropped, it sprinkled and rained for hours and it was delightfully overcast. Not the depressing kind of overcast, the "happy-it's-Christmastime!" type. :) I listened to Christmas music all day and went to our movies to put on It's A Wonderful Life while I worked on these lantern balls to hang above the crib. We don't actually own It's A Wonderful Life, so I went to look to see if we had Miracle on 34th Street. We didn't either. I watched Elf. Still good, but not as classic. I found White Christmas today though. Fabulous!

I've been making a bunch of things lately for the nursery half of our bedroom, but since I'm not very mobile these days (still bedrest) I have to wait for Derek to help me put them up. I'm excited to show you when we get them up though! In the meantime I'm SO EXCITED for Christmas! I love the music/movies, the feeling, the celebration of Christ's birth, picking out presents for people, the decorations, etc!

Don't get me wrong, I love me some halloween, though this one has been slightly shunted to the side since a lot depends on bedrest stipulations. Since last halloween I've been planning on being Penelope this year (yes, I plan my costumes in advance. I take dressing up very seriously. :) ), especially since I already own tights and shoes just like these.

via

Derek could be Max super easily... there was just one hitch. I don't exactly fit her image like her right now. An 8-month pregnant Penelope just wouldn't work. So I'm up for new ideas. Right now I'm thinking Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter could be fun. ;) That may be a bit much though. No matter what I end up being, it's October and the holidays!

Yee-haw for the holidays and no more roasting pigs! :)

Welcome Christmas - Dr. Seuss

Celebrating the Sabbath - 6

2011-10-02T12:56:00.000-07:00

via

"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."

Amos 3:7

I testify of the truth of that scripture, and that because the Lord loves us and is the same forever, He continues to speak to us today through His prophets. Twice a year we get the opportunity to hear them speak and teach us in general conference, and I feel so blessed to have been able to learn from them these last two days. I LOVE it! To hear them and/or find out for yourselves that they are called of God, click here.

Read the scriptures online here.

Happy Sabbath!

We Thank Thee, Oh God for a Prophet - The Lower Lights

9 months!

2011-09-28T21:39:00.000-07:00

Today is mine & Derek's 9 month anniversary! I know, it's not even a year, but it's fun to say "happy 9 month anniversary" and look at all that's happened in that short/significant amount of time. This thing with the excitement of 9 months could also stem from my mission.

When you hit the 9 month mark you're half-way done, and since it takes 9 months to make a baby, in the mission we all take pregnant pictures to show off the occasion.

And the fact that we hit our nine month wedding anniversary and I am indeed pregnant was not lost on me. ;) Now though, if people count the months from our wedding to Deborah's birth they won't be scandalized, no matter when she's born. Had she been born sooner tongues might've started wagging. ;)

Deborah's not due for a while yet though, a fact I remind her of often. :)

Besides us drinking out of our "bride/groom" goblets, I thought that to celebrate I'd post a few pics from the big day & an adorable pic of Deborah. :)

Apparently all that amniotic fluid makes for some great pictures. ;) Isn't she so PRECIOUS? I'm so excited to meet her!

I've been so happy these last 9 months & can't wait to adventure more with my love.

Ring a Ding Ding - Frank Sinatra

Celebrating the Sabbath - 5

2011-09-25T13:03:00.000-07:00

via

"For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do."

2 Nephi 32:5

Read the scriptures online here

Let the Holy Spirit Guide - Jonathan Keith

sourdough!

2011-09-23T11:25:00.000-07:00

For the last week or so we had another member of our family. Derek had a little baby he cared for and fed so to speak.
It was yeast. ;) He made his own yeast to turn into a sourdough starter. He was so excited for it, & fed it religiously each day. It was his post-boards treat. :) Isn't he so cute? And ambitious!

I think it was left in the sun too long one day, because it wasn't as sourdough-y as it should have been, but it was tasty & definitely had the sourdough texture. And the yeast part TOTALLY worked. I was impressed.

See? Yummy...

He took ALMOST step by step pictures, except there were many more kneadings, divisions, and risings.

#3 is pretty neat, you put near-boiling water underneath it while it cooks to keep the outside soft & flakey. (Don't notice the dirty oven bottom)

P.S. The day before he made it he said,

"I'll take pictures of the yeast and the bread and everything & we can put it on the blog!"

"Perfect!" I replied, "It can be your first blog post!"

"Ummm.... How about you do it and I make pizza?"

I would've done it without such a stipulation, but...We had pizza last night. :) Baby likes pizza. :)

Les Poissons- Rene Auberjonois

spidey-watch

2011-09-21T11:06:00.000-07:00

via

Some of you may know that my absolute favorite superhero is Spiderman. Seriously, he's awesome. Besides his superpowers, I always admire his work ethic and how he's willing to give away everything so that he can help people - even when the public villainizes him! No thanks,no money, no glamour, but he suffered it all because it was the right thing to do. Now, I do remember S-3 when he was not so noble, but I again admire his fight to overcome it and feel like that too is a good example - that even if we do something wrong that makes it hard to come back to the light, we should never give up and always fight.

Be that as it may I do NOT appreciate BIG, HAIRY black spiders in my bathroom. Or anywhere in my home for that matter.

So Monday morning I'm happily washing my hands, when I notice this nickel-sized nastyness right by my fingers! Yack! I doused him with water. He drowned. I felt no remorse. Whatsoever.

Apparently I was making some noise during this time, because Derek came in with a, "WHAT is going on?!" I revealed the traitorous carcass and my dragon-slaying abilities, when he said, "Weird. I killed a little one in here earlier this morning!"

"WHAT?" This did not ease my soul. So we looked up at the little skylight we have in there, and there's a GIANT daddy (think half-dollar AT LEAST in size...Derek claims it was smaller. Posh. ;) ) sitting on his spiderweb. I may have freaked out a bit and shouted, "AH! Kill it! Kill it!" a few times. After some excitement, he fell by Derek's hand. Ha!

I've never really liked spiders, but I feel like pregnancy has:

Made me a bit more skittish
Made me much more "Death to the spider!!!"

They didn't list THAT in the pregnancy symptoms. ;)

---luckily after the THREE we killed in one day we haven't... I'm not going to finish that sentence. I don't want to jinx anything.---

Spiderman - Micheal Buble

"rejoice" sign & 30 weeks!

2011-09-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

One of the things I've made on bedrest is this "rejoice" sign for the wall. (It's actually on the door in this picture... we're rearranging the front room when Derek finishes the board exams)

My neighbor moved and left a bunch of stuff with us that she didn't want to take. These cardboard hula coasters weren't exactly my cup of tea, but were perfect for covering! (The gray part is the back)

Step 1: Modge Podge your pretty paper onto the coaster (cut cardboard would work the sameas a coaster)
Step 2: print off your letters and modge podge them on
Step 3: put a bit of craft paint around the edges of the square and the letter for some color variation
Step 4: sand the paper and painted edges for some antique-ing. (As a fun side note, this was a guess on my part. Having not made things like this before I had no idea you could sand paper!...with sand paper. ;) You're all probably nodding, "Yes, Amanda," but it was exciting for me! I actually covered an extra coaster because I feared my experiment might go poorly and I'd have to re-do. I didn't. It was awesome!)
Step 5: Seal it with some more modge podge
Step 6: hot glue it to some ribbon or twine or whatever strikes your fancy

close up on a couple of the letters

TA-DA!!

And in other news- the belly has popped! Remember at 20 weeks when I took that first picture? (here) Well, what a difference 10 weeks makes!

Here's me & little Deborah on Saturday at 30 weeks. Only 7 weeks to go to be full term! As a side note, I might be so big because at the last ultrasound they said I had polyhydramnios - which is too much amniotic fluid. Yah, just another thing. ;) Other than that, things are going well!

Rejoice - Becka Shae

Celebrating the Sabbath - 4

2011-09-18T11:37:00.000-07:00

via

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Matthew 11: 28-30

Read the scriptures online here

Come Unto Jesus - Michael Dowdle

Constitution Day!

2011-09-17T16:51:00.000-07:00

Happy September 17th!
Today is the 224th anniversary of the Constitution of the United States!

photo cred: Katrina ;)

I found the famous painting of its signing on the national archives website - luckily accompanied by a guide of "who's who." ;)

via

For the bicentennial year of the constitution 24 years ago, the prophet and apostles gave out a lesson packet so that we could share its importance and miraculous start in our families. They introduce it by saying:

"Our Dear Brothers and Sisters:

The group of inspired men assembled for that convention produced the document that the Prophet Joseph Smith referred to as "a glorious standard" and "a heavenly banner."

In commemoration of this important event, we are providing this booklet, which contains three family home evening lessons, activity ideas, and a copy of the Constitution. We encourage you to prepare and teach each lesson prayerfully so that family members may feel the divine significance of the Constitution in their minds and hearts.

Faithfully, your brethren,

The First Presidency."

For a copy of it free, click here - Family Home Evening Lessons for the Constitution. Awesome, huh!?

AND there was a great article in the archives with a fun summary of the events and the signers. http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_history.html

Happy Constitution day everyone!

via

America the Beautiful - Ray Charles

Special Visitors!

2011-09-17T12:47:00.000-07:00

So in August (I know I'm behind) my parents drove back with me and the car to SF and spent a couple of awesome days! Unfortunately we took most of the pics with my mom's camera (to which I do not have access right now), but here are the few we have!

Me & my dad!

Mom & Me admiring the awesome view of the city from some stairs

And I know we've seen these stairs before, but isn't this
the cutest picture? Yes, it is. :)

The sign you can't really see says "FINISH" with a hare on one side and a tortoise on the other. I am a tortoise.

Birdies on the beach. You can't see really but they were all congregating on someone's blanket and trying to get into their food. ;) We also saw DOLPHINS swimming in the water...hopefully we'll get those pictures later. It was amazing!

We had so much fun together and it was such a treat!! We loved it and were so sad to see them go!

PS we love visitors! ;)

Consider Yourself - Oliver!

Celebrating the Sabbath - 3

2011-09-11T17:52:00.000-07:00

via

In honor of the September 11th, 2001 attacks upon our nation and our ideals, I am drawing today from the experience of Moroni and the title of liberty he and his people raised in defense.

"And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it - In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children - and he fastened it upon the end of a pole...And thus he was preparing to support their liberty, their lands, their peace, and that they might live unto the Lord their God, and that they might maintain that which was called by their enemies the cause of Christians."

Alma 46:12, 48:10

via

Read the scriptures online here

When the World Stopped Turning - Alan Jackson

Life After Harry Potter

2011-09-06T15:18:00.000-07:00

While good 'ole Harry lights up our lives, we managed to have some fun even after the show ended. Pier 39 at night was beautiful!

We went around taking pictures at almost all of the "photo spots." The signs cracked us up, as if they were speaking very slowly to everyone. "This...is pretty. You should consider taking a photo...If you like it." ;) Derek is showcasing the sign here. :)

This was not a photo spot.

At the end we went and ate at Fog Harbor

- the only seafood I've ever liked.
With a fabulous view I might add.

The next day we adventured through the town and showed off some of our favorite spots. This staircase fairly GLEAMS in the sunlight. :) ...It was foggy.

Then off to our favorite bakery! Check out that sign. ;)

Our most fabulous used bookstore! Kat got a tiny leather book of poems from the 1800's & a 1st edition of National Velvet. :)

Sign reads:
<-- Lands End - 0.7 miles
-->Golden Gate Bridge - 0.4 miles
<-- Mexico - 775 miles
Really? ;) Someone's funny.

Then we went ~~and saw~~ to the Golden Gate Bridge. It's there right behind us. It's just a bit foggy.

Those dang robes! While singing "Buffalo Gals," it managed to slip off. Luckily there was a hydrangea bush nearby, but I don't know if I can trust George Bailey in that situation. He sure thought about it long and hard before handing it over!

And we watched Sabrina with tea and cakes!

The next day : Church, games, and golden gate park.

The statue of Cervantes was too imperious to
pass up. Though I am but a friend of the
lowly and humble Don Quixote.

We are the knarled trees. :)

Left: Katrina. I can't remember why she's doing that besides to look awesome and demonstrate her physical prowess.
Middle: We're bloomin' flowers!
Right: To many, I may appear to be in some worshipful pose, but I'm not. I'm a flower. :)

It was hard, but we managed without Harry.

Foggy Day - Michael Buble

Celebrating the Sabbath - 2

2011-09-04T19:05:00.000-07:00

via

"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."

Ether 12:27

Read the scriptures online here

Be Thou Humble - David Glen Hatch

Celebrating the Sabbath

2011-08-28T19:06:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to do something good for Sundays here, and especially now since I can't go to church. So I decided that every (hopefully) Sabbath I'll post a scripture that's impacted me recently. Just a quick shot of goodness. :) This beautiful verse rings so true and helps me remember to trust in my Heavenly Father. Enjoy!

via

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him."

Psalms 28:7

Find the scriptures online here

All My Days - Hilary Weeks

A Strange Pair

2011-08-26T15:30:00.000-07:00

While Fawkes the Phoenix and Bellatrix Lestrange both reside in the world of Harry Potter (mainly) - for one enchanted night, this magical, courageous, and noble bird and the twisted, evil, and malicious death eater walk side by side.

FAWKES the PHOENIX and BELLATRIX LESTRANGE

About a month ago we had a fabulous treat! My sister Katrina came to visit us! And our 1st adventure was -
via
THE MIDNIGHT SHOWING!

Highlights and to-do's for our magnificent night:

1. An official welcome sign.

Yes, that is a wax symbol on there. If you can't read the small words next to it, it reads- "Phoenix in Flight." In case it appears to resemble a reindeer - it isn't.....it's a phoenix. In flight. ;)

2. An awesome phoenix flame skirt!

I must digress for a minute to talk about how EXCITED I am about this skirt! The last thing I sewed before this was pajama pants - in Young Women's about 8 years ago! but I had a vision! I had even sketched my costume! And I don't draw, but I wasn't going to let my lack of experience or pattern sway me. I was just going to outline a skirt I already had that was the form I wanted.

Easy, right?

Well, turns out that I don't actually own that skirt. As I got up to go find it I realized it was my old roommate Hilary's skirt that she was kind enough to let me borrow.

Oh bother.

That's okay - people sketch clothing from chalk all the time, right. Right. But remember the extent of my sewing genius was following a pattern for baggy pajama pants. And I wanted my skirt to have some form - and look like flames! I was intimidated. VERY. I couldn't do it. I had VERY LITTLE material, and one mistake and I'm doomed-no way to get more material. YIKES!

I avoided it for days.

Then it was the day of the show. No more procrastinating and blibbering.

I went to get the chalk.

Hmmm... No chalk.

So I tried dry ivory soap - works perfect! Good for marking and brushes right off. So I eyed my size and how I wanted it to look. Took a deep breath - and started marking and cutting. By the end I was thrilled - amazed - flabbergasted! I had made a skirt! For the first time ever! It's no work of art, but it was certainly adequate for a dimly lit midnight showing. :)

3. Get on our Glam

with Harry Potter 7.1 playing in the backround. Oh. Yeah. :)

4. Oops - Bellatrix needs a wand!

Enter Derek. He also made some tasty potato soup on the fly for us. Thank you! He had just started clinic a week or so before and had a patient scheduled for 8 am, so thought it best not to go. In a sadly ironic turn of events - the patient didn't show.

5. Take fabulous pictures at home

6. Get lost a few times on the way to the theatre. Absolutely mandatory. And all the shocked looks, laughs, and congratulations by random strangers in their cars.

7. Watch the movie. It was great.

8. Take more fabulous pictures at the theatre- because it's beautiful!

Check out those pillars, staircase, and ceiling at that joint! WOWZA!

9. Konk out at around 4 am when you finally get home.

It was a fabulously fun night! I love midnight showings. :)

Fawkes is Reborn - Harry Potter

Passing Time

2011-08-20T18:28:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm still on bedrest. At the beginning of this pregnancy adventure I was super sick, and couldn't do anything either, but I was so ~~lifeless~~ ill that I was pretty unaware of time passing. Not so right now. And in some ways that is much more difficult. As Cosmo said in Singing in the Rain when he thought he had lost his job:
"At last I can start suffering and write that symphony" it turned out he didn't lose his job, so he said, "At last I can stop suffering and write that symphony." via

Either way my skill set is not equipped to write symphonies, but I certainly am finding plenty of time to do things that require no movement....

So to keep me from going absolutely STIR CRAZY I've been crocheting and edging baby blankets! Now I'm on the lookout for new patterns! I've done some writing, dreamed up a bit of dance choreography I haven't been able to try out, watched some movies, and done a lot of reading. Some of the books I've loved are:

This is actually a magazine, but the articles are wonderful this month! There's a lot about the family that I've really loved and found helpful. You can read it here free

When I was in Mesa I picked up Pres. Monson's biography, & it has been so inspiring! I love it, and am setting some new goals in my life. via

I also was checking out my friend brooke's book blog, and was shocked and appalled to see a book with my name on it! Not Amanda, but Aurelia - a name I thought I made up! A while ago I was working on writing a story, and I was trying to come up with the perfect name for my protagonist- I thought about it for days - a beautiful name I thought I had created after hours of work. Ahhh.... tsk, tsk
http://www.anneosterlund.com/

Just to make sure it wasn't a besmirchment on her name, I checked it out from the library and read it this last week and found that it was really fun. Mystery, intrigue, bold characters, dressing up (you know I'm there), and horses.

I liked it.

But I'm still deciding if I'm bitter about them using my name. ;)

All in all, things are going well, and the baby's still cookin', so I'm super grateful.....

However, if any of you have suggestions on good books, movies, shows, music, crochet projects, etc - I'd LOVE to hear them!!

Counting Flowers on the Wall- Statler Brothers

Wo, girl!!!

2011-08-13T17:53:00.000-07:00

via

Now, I've always felt like little Deborah was excited to come out and meet the world, but lately she's taken that to a new, and I might add unacceptable level. Monday evening Derek & I were enjoying our new car (new to us anyhow. YIPEE!! .... Boy, it's nice to have a car! I've certainly missed that ;)) by going to Safeway to shop for groceries! Yeehaw mobility!

So we're walkin' along, I squat down to a low shelf to get some vitamins, and we keep going - when all of the sudden I feel the baby come down & push hard, have pretty intense low abdominal pain with shooting lower back pain, a little fluid comes out,and --

uh oh.

So we wrapped it up quickly and after our bumpy ride home (you'd think this town would have less potholes ;), Derek carried me up our 3 flights of stairs, and I layed down on the couch to rest and look up how to recognize labor and contractions, because, lets be honest, I had only vague ideas because I figured I would study that closer to the actual due date. So I started researching - check and check. Dang it. So I started timing the contractions and hydrating (dehydration encourages contractions I learned), called the Dr. (no answer) and waited for them to go away.

Tick, tock, tick, tock - let me tell you what, ouch! So I called Ron, one of my bro-in-law doctors, and right after that the person on call at the Dr.'s office called back --> she told me to drink two more large glasses of water, keep timing, & lay on my left side for an hour, then call back.

Tick, tock, tick, tock - she sent us to the hospital - they monitored us (the baby & me, not Derek & me ;), did a fetal fibronectin swab test (which shows if you are at least 50% high risk of giving birth within the next 2 weeks), checked to see if I was dilated- thankfully no-, and after 3am sent us home when the contractions tapered off. We had to get an ultrasound the next day, and got the test results - positive.

So I've been sent to bedrest for at least the next few weeks, and have weekly visits at the dr. Still having contractions, but not regular enough to send me to the hospital. Besides staying in bed, I'm also supposed to stay super hydrated and keep my bladder empty..... Quite difficult. ;)

Derek's been wonderful and a great support and help, and we just tell little Deborah to slow down, because she's not allowed out for at least 100 days!

Feeling Groovy- Simon & Garfunkel

The Revenge of Bambi's Friends

2011-07-26T10:34:00.000-07:00

So 2 nights ago we were lying in bed peacefully trying to fall asleep when all of the sudden -

"Derek, did you make a stink?"

"No."

"I think so. It stinks."

"I didn't. I don't smell anything."

"Well, it was either you, or it's coming through the window - and it REEKS!"

"Maybe... I don't --- Ah man!!"

"Oh my gosh, it's a skunk!"

...And just like that the room was permeated with a VERY, VERY skunky smell. Nasty. Nasty. Nasty. Why is there a skunk on the street? For the record, I prefer finding racoons. Be that as it may, I made a jet flight to the front room so I wouldn't lose my cookies. The smell would not leave our room, so I spent the night on the couch, while Derek cozied up on the floor. Surprise, surprise!

Flower my foot. I'm not fooled by those darling eyes. And P.S. flowers that close should be wilting . ;)

Bambi Gets Twitterpated - Disney

Half-way House

2011-07-23T17:46:00.000-07:00

This little baby ~~kind of~~ knocked me flat, so I've been M.I.A. here for quite a while. Things are looking up finally, so I'm going to try to catch up on a bit of what's been happenin' round these parts.

First of all, we're kind of thrilled about the tiny garden we have growing on our window ledge. ;) The basil and oregano were slow growing, but the cilantro and chives are thriving! :) ...And our lovely tomatoes.

And 2 weeks ago we had a fun occasion!

Our date night was the 20 week mark of our baby, so we took our first belly pictures. We made delicious mini pizzas and Derek set up our awesome half-way party table. :)

Fun, but a little dysfunctional. Good thing they were mini pizzas... and salad. Hmmmm.... :)

The More I See You- Michael Buble

My Favorite Holiday!!

2011-07-04T18:00:00.000-07:00

I LOVE the fourth of July!

We've been gearing up with a family 4th party last weekend, watching throughout the week Little House on the Prarie, Summerstock (the American Dream), National Treasure, & Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Today we hung our flag out of our window with an awesome WWII/American Revolution Poster, have been listening to patriotic music all day, and now it's time to cook our little barbecue, read the Declaration of Independence, and watch 1776!

We'll talk more about it later - but I feel so blessed and proud to be an American and so grateful for all our soldiers, leaders, and forefathers who fought for this land so we could be free and enjoy the freedoms of the constitution & bill of rights.

God bless the USA.

Keep the Change - Darrel Worley

Happy day Mothers!!

2011-05-08T18:45:00.000-07:00

Happy day to my mom - my most fabulous example of all good things, loving teacher, guide, and friend. I couldn't have asked for anything better.

Thank you!!

And to all the wonderful women in my family!

I LOVE YOU!!!

And... speaking of mothers and/or adventures, I'm going to be a momma soon!

Baby Mine - Alison Krauss

tangled life lessons - not mixed

2011-05-06T15:32:00.000-07:00

So, we haven't been able to head out on any excursions lately, but we decided to splurge some of our date money on a movie...for a date.

$13 later Tangled arrived at our doorstep. We could not have anticipated how FUN it would be!! I think I've watched/listened to it 4 times since its arrival.

Some favorites: the music! The Horse (Maximus)

and the frying pans. Awesome.

So the day after I saw it for the first time I was thinking about how nasty mother gothel was and the tactics she used to keep Rapunzel back and how it parallels our own lives.

I hate how she used love as a cover for her selfish, cruel behavior when all she cared for was herself. Most of all how she continually demeaned Rapunzel to keep her from going outside and becoming who she was meant to be.

"On your own, you won't survive

Sloppy, underdressed

Immature, clumsy

Please, they'll eat you up alive

Gullible, naïve

Positively grubby

Ditzy and a bit, well, vague

Plus, I believe

Gettin' kinda chubby

I'm just sayin' cuz I love you"

"Likes you? Please, Rapunzel, that's demented.

This is why you never should have left

Dear, this whole romance that you've invented

Just proves you're too naive to be here

Why would he like you? Come on now - really!

Look at you - you think that he's impressed?"

Do they sound familiar? To me, Gothel's lines didn't sound much different than the voices we hear on an almost daily basis - whether from the outside or within that make us feel or think we're less than who we truly are.

Rapunzel was a princess, of royal birth, but she couldn't remember it, so it was easy for her to believe the constant barrage of lies.

We too are of noble birth - children of God, but we can't remember it either, so the adversary lies to immobilize us so we don't achieve our full potential and receive our rightful heritage and place in our Father's kingdom.

Like our adversary, Gothel never wanted to help Rapunzel and was willing to exploit anything and anyone to achieve her ends.

But we don't listen. We don't give in. We FIGHT to be truly happy and return home to our kingdom someday.

Let's never allow our fears to keep us from our destiny and most precious dreams.

Mother Knows Best (Reprise) - Donna Murphy

What a wonderful day

2011-04-24T18:18:00.000-07:00

I LOVE this holiday!
Some of my favorite things of Easter are:

Sweet Tarts Chicks, Ducks, & Bunnies! Mmmmm!!!

Or some tasty choc-egg with some sort of nut inside :)

Bubbles! We used to get them sometimes in our baskets.

via

Jelly Belly's of course...or for a cheaper route I choose starburst jelly beans. Also tasty.

Some fun links! Jelly Beans History - Did you know Ronald Reagan loved them & always kept some in the oval office? And sent them into space?
Cute poem for Jelly Bean Significance

Dyeing Easter eggs is a MUST every year. Kids or no kids. These are ours. ;)

Traditional Easter Dinner

Easter Dresses! Since I didn't actually have one this year I window-shopped in places I couldn't normally afford to go and found these lovelies.

shabby apple

Mod Cloth

shabby apple

Runway Mod Cloth

The Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant

This pageant about the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ has always been the highlight of my Easter Season.

For while there are many wonderful things, Jesus Christ is the Reason for the Season.

This is my favorite picture of the resurrection when Christ appears to Mary. Though hard to
see on this copy, she has tears on her face which you can still see from her previous sorrow,
but her face is filled with joy as she realizes that the Savior lives.

"And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments...said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen."

Luke 24: 3-6

Greg Olsen's "I Feel My Savior's Love." This title truly touches me as I see her feel the
wounds in his hands. Wounds that he took willingly upon himself for me. And for you.
He truly loves us.

"...They may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me." Isaiah 49: 15-16

I'm so grateful for the sacrifice of the Savior for me and each person. It has brought such peace and joy into my life.

I know He Lives.

Happy Easter

Garden Walls - Mindy Gledhill

What's in a Name?

2011-04-19T18:29:00.000-07:00

So, I've been thinking a while about our blog name. "Fun in the San Fran Fog: Our Family Adventure Book" was just a bit laborious.

adventure book - CHECK
Fun - CHECK
Fog - not so much
San Fran - unnecessary to my eye
in, the, & our - necessary evils

So I was thinking about it and a few weeks we were discussing our adventures.

We don't have a car, a large budget, or a great ability to travel much farther than our feet can take us (apart from using our precious transportation fare) - so the ability to have the typical grand adventures such as fabulous trips, tickets to the theatre, hiking famous mountains, going to Disneyland, etc. is quite difficult.

And yet we adventure!! We get to create and imagine wonderful things and enjoy them just as much! Is it not an adventure to try to flourish within small means? Find ways to cut costs? Hang your laundry in your house on your hair ribbons to skip the dryer? Enact books together? Play silly games? Make up stories while you wash the dishes? Talk in accents? Write poems (when let's be honest, that is not a well developed talent) and find awesome things cheap?

Building a happy life together whether rich or poor is an adventure. Every day there are things to be grateful for. Appreciating and enjoying the small things make life a joy.

Therefore we are now "The Small-time Adventurers." Finding happiness and excitement in what some might consider the little things - though when put all together build a great life. They are the things which sustain us.

"Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great."

- Doctrine & Covenants 64:33

I Love My Life - Jamie O'Neal

spring break!

2011-04-18T19:50:00.000-07:00

Our honeymoon was not very long. Just a couple of days in a hotel before we had to U-haul it up to SF. (Lovely though it was) Before we got married we contemplated this and realized that in March Derek would have a full week off! Knowing we couldn't go somewhere extravagant we thought that perhaps we could still hitchike our way to Yosemite or somewhere and camp for the week.

Beautiful, isn't it?

By the time March came around though, we realized such an excursion was impossible.

Regardless, we excursioned.

view from our front door - ALMOST like Yosemite?

We decided instead we'd have a date a day (switching planners of course) and Monday Derek planned our day. (Don't worry, I'm only sharing the 2 more spectacular days). So! we made some yummy gorditas and beans and packed ourselves a fabulous picnic and made our way to Golden Gate Park!

We didn't actually get a pic, but they were something like this. After the feast we played a rousing game of monopoly deal and pass the pigs. If you haven't played - you should. That's all.

So Derek rolled a fabulous round of 91 on the pigs, but his greediness for more took it all away. I won. His face there is only a slight exaggeration of the actual feeling. ;)

After that we played catch with a baseball (Derek taught me since I hadn't touched one in say, 12 years), then a frisbee, and finished up the lovely afternoon cuddling up beneath a beautiful tree and reading to eachother.

We loved the book, but the ending was a bit hard to accept - as a side note.

CAMPING

So, for one of my dates I decided we would go as much camping as possible. So I made dinner, packed our backpack full of the essentials, grabbed all the sheets and pillowcases we owned and picked him up - much to his surprise to see me with my hat and backpack - we soon set about making our tent.

After that was done I brought out our meal trying to make it look as campy as possible. The dark jar is full of homemade salad dressing if you're puzzled. ;)

Our fire

Our dessert-y snack. Derek LOVES Ritz crackers. Part of the date splurge.

Awesome vaulted ceiling you could stand up in!

After placing all our blankets down for padding (hard floor) we played games and spent the night in our makeshift tent palace. Take that YoSHMemite.

I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm - Frank Sinatra

my most wonderfulest seester that does hot yoga

2011-04-04T10:03:00.000-07:00

Since I'm not in AZ I just wanted to use today to celebrate my seester Kat. Kit. Kitty. Katrina. Katterwall... oops. ;) JK

Beautiful inside and out, talented in so many ways, kind, thoughtful, a blast, brave, spiritual, hilarious, etc!

Now, had I access to certain pictures in AZ I could really make this exciting. But alas, I have but a few here with me. But!

Here she is - Elastigirl! The real one - boy she's flexible!

She's actually the one that got me started up with dance (ballet) years ago, giving me the fantastical (Christmas) gift of a year of lessons. And I couldn't be more grateful!! It has altered and improved my life forever!!! Thank you!

Not to mention how much I've loved dancing with her!! Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat was especially awesome to perform together. :) As was ballet company, the parking lot, the street, stores, the house... etc. We dance wherever we can!

She's SOOO much fun to be with. HILARIOUS. Witty. Wonderful.

And is definitely crazy. As only the best are. ;)

I could go on and on about the wonderful times we've had, especially working together at the Dr.'s office, watching So You Think You Can Dance, going shopping, making up costumes, halloween-ing together, singing, laughing, driving home making up conversations for the people in other cars, etc!!

I LOVE HER!!! I hope you have the most terrifical of days Kat.

Happy Birthday!!

Unbirthday Song - Disney's Alice in Wonderland

it worked out crepe!

2011-03-27T19:32:00.000-07:00

Since our bug friend lingers with us only slightly, these last couple of weeks we've been exploring!

With all this going out and finding new things I feel a bit like this, but more fully clothed. ;)

"I can show you the world. Shining, shimmering, splendour... A whole new world!!"

So, I was in charge of our date last Friday. When we were done getting ready I closed the door on him before he got out of the bedroom (much to his shock and dismay). He was happy though when he realized I had done so only to knock on the door and pick him up. It was kind of fun pretending I hadn't seen him all day. ;)

And apparently it has become a tradition to take themed pictures before we leave.

Have you seen Night at the Museum 2? We just did, and loved when Octavious laments to Larry (the night guard) that he's been gone and makes him feel horribly guilty - to which he says, "Don't stare off dramatically into the middle distance! I'm right here! I'm right here!"

So we tried to re-enact it with varying degrees of success. This one's my favorite.

This has nothing to do with Night at the Museum... Just us. ;)

So part of our planned date was to head to my new favorite store - this awesome, tiny little used bookstore which I love! Books everywhere, piled stacks upon stacks, with an upstairs and downstairs - just delightful! I planned to go upstairs, find a nook and read to eachother in appropriate accents. But when we got there...

CLOSED.

We planned to go to Arizmendi's (great bread store) and get something tasty...

CLOSED.

That's when I learned that a ton of shops close at 6 on Saturday. MOST actually. Shocking!

So we took a walk, and ended up in the wonderful land called "Crepevine."

First of all - the menu. A+ on happiness and sheer wonderfulness.

Food - exceptionally cheap, fabulously large portions, and DELICIOUS. Also quite healthy-ish.

Service - Super fast

Atmosphere - happy and BUSY. Of course, based on the above.

If any of you visit us and go to dinner, we will be taking you to Crepevine. Oh happy place. Just wait. Just wait.

In the end - a win.
Then we played games, and just spent the most fabulous night together!!

Note: box of leftovers was used for 2 meals the following day!

Some Enchanted Evening - Frank Sinatra

Kissin' tha 'ole blarney stone!

2011-03-22T14:25:00.000-07:00

Fer a while naw I've bin a thinkin' aboout whut I wus goin' ta dou ta celubrate tha blessid day a' me ancesturs an' pay arr respecks ta all the luvlee leprucawns. I wus thinkin' uv a luvlee green breakfust to honur all tha rolling heels uv me native land. An' fer dinner, I wus goin' to scrub up sum a' them luvlee irish putatus an' maybee even sum corned beef er irish sodu bread.

Exceptin that I fergot all aboout it with me tempraree jub - an' I ran outta tha house seen dressin' even meeself in tha' green!

Cun ya even imugin tha terra tha' racked me irish sole whan I realised i'twas tha day uv deer ole Saint Patrick?

Twas in shame I'wus. Me. Irish. Withou' ny a speck o' tha ole reveranceen color on me.

When tha work twas done tha night wus nigh an I wus late for tha relief societee meetin. Me dearis lad agreed ta help wi tha li'l ones an' ad alruddee gun when I got back. As luck a' the Irish would 'ave it, they didn' need tha good lad, so 'e came right back home where I had a bit a' Irish decorations an' I was completely covured in all the dear green I cooud find in tha 'ouse. Than I crated a good 'ole playlist on grooveshark wi' all tha irish music ta' set tha mood.

'an I pinched tha' lad fer remainin' in 'is disraspeckful colars oll day. At leas' I 'ad the decencee ta change when I got back. And 'e did too when 'e saw 'is mistaake.

An' we celubratid in reeal style.

Watchin' a course "Darby O'Gill and the Little People" in tha green an' eatin' are luvlee stawberree icecream-ish with tha' blessid green keewees on top.

'Twood appeer tha' when ya' say "Ack like a' leprucawn" we 'ave diffuren' ideeas. But'cha musn' fault tha poor lad. 'E tells me 'e dusn' 'ave anee Irish in 'im a'tall.

Tha' bein' sed - I hope that all a'ya ad a glaryus day 'an tha' ya rumember ta watch fur tha leprucawns all tha yeer lawng!

Pretty Irish Girl - Sean Connery (Darby O'Gill & the Little People)

My honey

2011-03-12T15:58:00.000-08:00

That's it.

Oh, plus there's a drawing at http://placetobloom.blogspot.com/ for a $180 CSN giveaway-comment to enter!

Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man of Mine - Ella Fitzgerald

venturing out

2011-03-11T10:16:00.000-08:00

It's been... let's be honest... over four weeks since we got sick that first time. It has since mutated over several times. Perhaps influenza A,B,C, D, blah-dee, blah. Who knows. But every so often there's this, "Hey! I'm almost better!" followed by a falling out.

So it's been a long time since we ventured out at all for our weekend dates. Most were spent inside with lots of water, a movie, and a spit cup. Yes, a spit cup.

But last week we declared our freedom (though the awful guy lingers!) and went to the museum here in Golden Gate Park to see a free show of what was supposed to be some fabulous Brazilian dancers and singers.

We were excited.

There seemed to be some sort of confusion.

It was Spanish, not Brazilian.

No dancing.

And turned out to be a kids band.

They did good for their age.

But...

Don't feel obligated to watch the whole thing, but wait at least until they start singing. This wasn't from our show, but comparable.

It wasn't really for us.

Especially when we came already with headaches.

So we took pictures outside the museum until the battery died. ;)

The Snake and the Panther

Together - wow, hard to do with an arm shot

Very knarled trees... and people

Perhaps Halloween....

;)

Beautiful Disaster - Kelly Clarkson

books, books, books

2011-03-07T20:36:00.000-08:00

One of the wonderful things Mr. S. and I share is our LoVe for books - and we've both had it since we were little.

This leads to a lot of books in our home.
Which we love, but calls for some creativity when there aren't many bookshelves to be found.

So I decided to make a coffee table out of them! I was at once shocked at how much work it took to sort through all our books and find those that were the right size, right color, etc! And then you realize that you don't OWN a book that size. Hmmm... * redo. redo.*

However, it's done at last!

And I'm ridiculously happy about the whole thing.

The end.

wrapped up in books - sebastian & belle

Fun & Fancy Free!

2011-03-03T19:12:00.000-08:00

So just a quickie to let'ch'all know that

Every so often Canvas People gives away an 8x10 canvas free (plus shipping) or $50 off of any size. One of those times is now. :)

Click here for your own : 8x10 free-

For my first purchase (of shipping) there they also gave me a $25 off coupon for me and my friends. Hello friends: http://www.canvaspeople.com/freegift

Pretty fun!

Free Fallin' - Tom Petty

uno dos tres

2011-02-26T19:45:00.000-08:00

1. A SPECIAL TREAT

One lovely Saturday afternoon while I was talking on the phone to Katrina, Mr. S. walked into the room and said, "hey, let's go out to dinner."

I was unbelieving to say the least. We hadn't gone out the weeks we'd been in SF - couldn't afford such luxuries as having someone else cook for us. ;) So I sat there finishing the conversation...during the which he took this picture.

...then and a few minutes later he returned with a "does this match?" and a "Come on, let's go! It'll be fun! And we can use the wedding money!"

Huh! Well color me surprised! It's true we did have some extra money from the wedding... we were kind of low on available food in the house... we hadn't gone out to eat this whole time... it was Saturday night...

Alright! Twist my arm! ;)

.... and we were ready!

Now I realize this may not be the most refined picture, but I have recently learned that this is called "a cheese bridge." P.S. this pizza was delicious. for a pretty decent price too. Especially considering that it later evolved into Sunday's lunch. ;)

2. THE FIRST... OF MANY MORE

I was in charge of our date this particular Friday. I split it into parts. ;)
Part 1: break a cookie and make a wish. wishbone style. (I won)
Part 2: make a romantic dinner together. (delicious)
Part 3: play a rousing game of monopoly deal while said dinner settles. Warning that the stakes are high. (Derek won. barely.)
Part 4: eat yummy banana cake for dessert. and feed it to eachother nicely. (good job)
Part 5: Winner gets to choose what surprise movie to watch (I had borrowed various ones from the library)
Part 6: Break out surprise Ritz crackers with fixin's and apple juice for our bride/groom goblets.
Part 7: *kiss*

So! While I ventured the, I don't know, 20 small blocks down to the library for the movies I decided to walk down a couple more to Walgreens to get something fun for our date! Since it was an anniversary and all.

No big splurging, but I found a celebratory bottle of apple juice, and Derek has a very intense love for ritz crackers. Cue juice, crackers, and candle.

It was a fun surprise.

So there ya' go.

3. THE FRONT ROOM DRAPES

These guys were nasty.

Let's get that settled right off the bat. This picture hardly does them justice, but use your imagination. Besides the fight it took to get them to close, and all the scary nails coming out the top, I felt like they were harboring all sorts of diseases that were slowly infiltrating the house. And unknown diseases in SF are just not my cup of tea.

New ones were in order. Pronto.

So I researched and finally found a curtain rod LONG enough for our huge windows.

The I researched to find the most warm, economical drapes and came up with these "Fireside Pinch Pleated 144-Inch-by-84-Inch Thermal Insulated Drapes" from Amazon. They were supposedly fabulous. And I found them on sale - the end.

Right?

Wrong.

We happily received said drapes and rod after a week or so, and went about to hang them up. No holes. Nothing we could hang them on the rod with. What??

So we looked online to see what people did! The best solution we found was that you go along the drapes every pleat stabbing them with this crazy pin-hook, and then loop the nail/pin/hook into some rings.

A bit more research and we ordered said hooks...

Plus these rings. Another week or so goes by while we await their coming.

The big day arrives! We put it all together, measure the heck out of everything and use our handy-dandy drill to make the first holes. We put in the drywall anchors (see above ;) and... it comes right out under the slightest pressure. Blast!

So that Monday I walk down to the small, local hardware store to buy more sturdy anchors. My dad uses these and they work in most cases...

MOST.

Right. Another walk down to the hardware store.

And we find these metal beaut's. We try it.

They WORK!! We put the two ends up, and go for the middle.

Hmmph. No give. The wall just happened to be made of concrete RIGHT where we needed to drill.

Another walk down to the hardware store where we purchase a masonry bit and a few concrete nails.

This is Derek using our new masonry bit and HOPING!!!

Until finally..... TA-DAAAA!!!!!

Ahh.... *sigh*

Love (Robin Hood) - Nancy Adams

snip, snip and BZZZZZZZZZZZ

2011-02-20T20:47:00.000-08:00

Derek's hair was Shaggy. Capital S.

He bought a pair of hair clippers/trimmer.

He asked me to use said machine to cut Shaggy hair.

He knew I had never done it.

I resisted.

He emphasized that he didn't care how it turned out.
Men's hair grows out fast.

I complied.

So, the same day as our adventure morning, which was followed by the beautiful baptism of Nancy, he asked me please to shave his all too long, luxurious locks. I was SOOO nervous!! He kept saying, "it'll be okay, it'll work out. You can do it...etc." So I watched a couple of basically worthless videos on youtube, read the picture instructions that came with the box, put it all together....

and couldn't do it! I would start it up and bring it really close up to his head and couldn't bring myself to take that vibrating blade to husband's head! I laughed at myself and laughed and laughed. ;)

Then I DID it.
And felt VERY brave.

P.S. He wanted it that short. After I finished the first time he asked for more off. And then still more. Scary!

I was ridiculously proud of myself for not making it look like a bushwhacker haircut. :) It's no fancy job, but pretty good for my first time cutting anything! :)

These aren't Vday pancakes, but I thought I'd stick them up though since it
is the month of love. ;) Oh, last Friday we weren't feeling quite as good as
we were hoping, so our Valentines celebration is up for grabs this weekend.
Wish us luck!!

The Haircut Song - Ray Stevens

The small-time Adventurers

Guest Post - Scripture Challenge #10

Christmas!!!

Christmas Baby!

Scripture Challenge #9!

Plastic monkey, you're the one. You make bathtime lots of fun! Plastic monkey I'm awfully fond of you!

Scripture Challenge #8

*ahem*

We just adore her!

Scripture Challenge #7

the BIGGEST adventure part 1

"Every Baby is the Sweetest and the Best."

Scripture Challenge #6!

Scripture Challenge #5

Buns in the oven

Scripture Challenge #4 & a devotional!

Diggin' OWS?

This is Halloween! This is Halloween!

Scripture Challenge #3!

2 Profiles and happy free things :)

A New Head

scripture challenge #2!

thru another's viewfinder

34 weeks & baby bookshelf!

An invitation to a Challenge!

We've got it!

baby socks are small...very small.

Celebrating the Sabbath - 7

"Fah who for-aze, dah who dor-aze!"

Celebrating the Sabbath - 6

9 months!

Celebrating the Sabbath - 5

sourdough!

spidey-watch

"rejoice" sign & 30 weeks!

Celebrating the Sabbath - 4

Constitution Day!

Special Visitors!

Celebrating the Sabbath - 3

Life After Harry Potter

Celebrating the Sabbath - 2

Celebrating the Sabbath

A Strange Pair

Passing Time

Wo, girl!!!

The Revenge of Bambi's Friends

Half-way House

My Favorite Holiday!!

Happy day Mothers!!

tangled life lessons - not mixed

What a wonderful day

What's in a Name?

spring break!

my most wonderfulest seester that does hot yoga

it worked out crepe!

Kissin' tha 'ole blarney stone!

My honey

venturing out

books, books, books

Fun & Fancy Free!

uno dos tres

*snip, snip* and BZZZZZZZZZZZ

ahem

snip, snip and BZZZZZZZZZZZ