Sunday, May 2, 2010

HAVE I DONE ANY GOOD IN THE WORLD TODAY?

I was asked this year to be the project leader for the Newborn Kits at Womens Conference. It was A LOT of work but one of the greatest experiences of my life. In the end, we assembled 7,584 kits. Most of these kits will go to new mothers in 3rd world countries or even here in the U.S. or anywhere there is a need. Each kit contains a blanket, 4 washable diapers, a layette gown, booties, soap, a cap, and diaper pins.

This is one of 6 stations

Our strong boxing team with cut fingers. They laughed and smiled the entire night.
All 6 stations:
Have you ever worried about this crazy world we live in? Do you turn on the news only to hear of troubled youth and their problems? Let me share with you some of my heroes. They are the young men in my ward.
In less than an hour, they built 960 boxes.
They moved all of the boxes on the left side of this picture from one end of the Smith Fieldhouse to the other. Not ONE of them was not working. In fact when they were finished, they were asking to help assemble the kits. They gave me a renewed hope in the youth of our world. They are ALL amazing young men and truly my heroes.
Some of my other heroes are in these 2 pictures:

These people worked for hours setting up, cleaning up, and organizing. They all had smiles on their faces and were happy to serve.
And these 2 ladies on my left and right...I am in awe of them. They are heroes to me too. They spent countless hours helping me put this project together. We have had a lot of fun laughing, counting 30,000 diaper pins, planning and organizing.

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HELPED WITH THIS PROJECT.
May The Lord bless you for your efforts to Scatter Sunshine!
Our team and the General Relief Society Presidency

Thursday, April 29, 2010

WOMENS CONFERENCE

What a night! We assembled 7,584 Newborn kits! I will have more pictures to post but for now, click on my friend Blaine and Jami's blog to see a video of the young men in our ward helping us set up. It is under the Called To Serve blog entry.

I LOVE Women's Conference and I am SO blessed to have had the opportunity to serve with this project. A HUGE THANK YOU to the 52 members of our team that helped and the 35 young men who helped set up.

Monday, April 26, 2010

OREGON TREES

I am a desert rat by nature. I grew up in Arizona where the only shrub I could name was a cactus.

Until this past week.

Now I go to bed at night and think of boxwoods, red twig boxwoods, spirea-which sounds like diarrhea, dogwoods, snowmounds, etc.

Our wonderful neighbor ordered 2 semi-trucks of trees and shrubs from Oregon. The first semi came Saturday night. I felt horrible that we were at Camille's dance competition and couldn't help unload the truck. But our awesome neighbors came through for us and unloaded our loot. We will definitely be around this weekend to help with the 2nd truck.
I am a sentimental person. I LOVE that these tress are from one of my favorite places in the world-OREGON. In fact, 2 of our Japanese Maple trees died this year. We specifically ordered a new Japanese Maple tree to remember our favorite Japanese friends, The Iinumas. When I miss them or wish they lived closer, I look at the Japanese Maple tree and think of them.
This is where one of the Japanese Maples died. We replaced it with a weeping cherry. And, I am lovin those boxwoods behind the tree.

Tomorrow is the BIG day when they are planting the rest of the trees.

Monday, April 19, 2010

SURVIVOR

My friend Laura sent this to me. Thanks for the laugh Laura!

THE NEXT SURVIVOR SERIES

Six married men will be dropped on an island with one car and 3 kids each for six weeks. Each kid will play two sports and either take music or dance classes. There is no fast food. Each man must take care of his 3 kids; keep his assigned house clean, correct all homework, complete science projects, cook, do laundry, and pay a list of "pretend" bills with not enough money. In addition, each man will have to budget in money for groceries each week.

Each man must remember the birthdays of all their friends and relatives, and send cards out on time. Each man must also take each child to a doctor's appointment, a dentist appointment and a haircut appointment. He must make one unscheduled and inconvenient visit per child to the Urgent Care (weekend, evening, on a holiday or right when they're about to leave for vacation).

He must also make cookies or cupcakes for a social function. Each man will be responsible for decorating his own assigned house, planting flowers outside and keeping it presentable at all times. The men will only have access to television when the kids are asleep and all chores are done. There is only one TV between them, and a remote with dead batteries.

The men must shave their legs, wear makeup daily, which they will apply to themselves either while driving or making three lunches. Each man will have to make an Indian hut model with six toothpicks, a tortilla and one marker; and get a 4 year old to eat a serving of peas. Each man must adorn himself with jewelry, wear uncomfortable yet stylish shoes, keep their nails polished and eyebrows groomed. The men must try to get through each day without snot, spit-up or barf on their clothing.

During one of the six weeks, the men will have to endure severe abdominal cramps, back aches, and have extreme, unexplained mood swings but never once complain or slow down from other duties. They must try to explain what a tampon is for when the 6-yr old boy finds it in the purse. They must attend weekly school meetings, church, and find time at least once to spend the afternoon at the park or a similar setting.

He will need to read a book and then pray with the children each night without falling asleep, and then feed them, dress them, brush their teeth and comb their hair each morning by 7:00. They must leave the home with no food on their face or clothes.

A test will be given at the end of the six weeks, and each father will be required to know all of the following information: each child's birthday, height, weight, shoe size, clothes size and doctor's name. Also the child's weight at birth, length, time of birth, and length of labor, each child's favorite color, middle name, favorite snack, favorite song, favorite drink, favorite toy, biggest fear and what they want to be when they grow up. They must clean up after their sick children at 2:00 a.m. and then spend the remainder of the day tending to that child and waiting on them hand and foot until they are better.

They must have a loving, age appropriate reply to, "You're not the boss of me." The kids vote them off the island based on performance. The last man wins only if...he still has enough energy. If the last man does win, he can play the game over and over and over again for the next 18-25 years...eventually earning the right to be called...

Mother!

Saturday, April 3, 2010

BAD BLOGGER

I totally neglected the blog the past few weeks.

Here's some things that have been going on lately:

1. THE SNAKE WAS FOUND--alive and well in the basement. We had looked under the water heater at least 1,426,327 times but he wasn't there. Then, a few days ago Daren decided to look under the water heater again and there he was, ALIVE AND WELL! Tanner put him in the cage, gave him a frozen mouse and water. He is for sale--if anyone is interested!

2. WOMENS CONFERENCE is coming soon at BYU. This year I was asked to lead one of the service projects making 7,680 newborn kits. We have a great team of men and women who are so eager to help serve. So if you are going to Womens Conference, come by the Smith Fieldhouse on Thursday, April 29th at 5:00pm and come help us!

3. SPRING BREAK--YEAH! We are all excited to have a nice break from school, etc.

Sunday, March 14, 2010

THE LAST TIME

This past week Daren had knee surgery. It went well and he is recovering. It's a slow process but he is getting stronger each day.

The last time (6 weeks ago) when he had his right knee surgery, the nurses gave him purple paper boxers to wear during surgery. When he came out of surgery last time, the paper boxers were gone and a get well card came a few days later from the nursing staff. We have had a lot of fun speculating on what happened to the purple paper boxers.

So this time, the nurse gave him a gown, socks and this booklet to read THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW:
But NO purple paper boxers. I couldn't help myself. I had to have the mystery solved about where the purple paper boxers went last time and why wasn't he given any this time. The answer wasn't found in the THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW booklet so I asked the nurse. Apparently, some surgeons do not like the purple paper boxers, which Daren's surgeon does not. That is why they were cut off last time and not given this time.

MYSTERY SOLVED.

This will also be the LAST TIME I have a child with no front teeth. To honor this occasion, she had first dibs on the Brownies and a Sprite.

And I cried.

Friday, March 5, 2010

HEALING

What a whirlwind this past week has been! My dad was rushed to the hospital this week and had 4 blockages in 3 different arteries. They inserted 7 stents and hopefully they will help him so he won't have bypass surgery. It's been a week of many different emotions. I have been in Cedar City and St. George all week. I came home to these:
Thanks Julie...I LOVE the tulips
And a mountain of laundry, a messy kitchen floor and some yummy chocolate chip cookies from a kind neighbor. Oh, and lots and lots of snow!
It's SO good to be home, messy crumb floor and all!