Zeke's Musical Debut!

Remember when I said something about Zeke and a sailor hat?

Well, he was asked to perform at a fundraiser a few weeks ago for the Utah Festival Opera Guild. Are you wondering if Zeke sings opera? Well, he doesn't (at least not professionally... ha ha ha!) Are you wondering if this is something Zeke does regularly because he's a musical performer? No, this is the first time! So why is he doing this? When our friend, Kree, asked him to I thought, "Oh, that would be so fun, but I bet he'll say NO WAY!" And he surprised me and said, "Huh, that sounds kinda fun, what the heck, I'll do it!" Isn't he wonderful? They got a copy of the music just a couple weeks before and only had two practices -- so they really did great considering that.

It was such a fun night. The theme was "Some Enchanted Evening" and there were several musical numbers from "South Pacific". Zeke sang, "There ain't nothin' like a dame!" Two other guys from our ward performed as well, so their wives and I got to come and watch and have a night out together. I might just be a *little* biased, but our guys were the last number of the night and they stole the show! The crowded cheered 10 times louder for them than for anyone else. That could have been us, but hey, I was proud! (Thanks for the video from Lora and David -- my camera didn't do too well with the lighting.)

The "Sailors" from our ward: David, Aaron, and my sweetie, Zeke

Zeke and his "dame" (Thanks for the pictures, Diana)

I have always loved musicals and I have always loved Zeke,
but this was heaven. :)

Feelin' the LOVE

Still blogging on fumes here... I get seasick from the waves in my computer screen.

Quick update: Beck's dentist appointment went really well this morning... he's doing great. Thanks for your prayers. :) The Spirit really helped me to be calm. Beck wasn't afraid at all and he did really well with the anesthesia.

Okay, so I just had to tell you about the best parenting moment I've had with Gabe in a LONG time. Nothing pre-planned or fancy or forced. It was just an opportunity to spend a little one-on-one time together. There's a million things to do everyday, but I will be forever grateful that I chose to sit down and just BE with my son.

After school on Tuesday, Gabe and I cuddled up in the recliner and watched "River Monsters" together. The host is so funny! He is a true biologist -- VERY passionate about what he does. Gabe and I had fun trying to imitate his accent and add to the show (think Mystery Science Theater 3000). We were laughing so hard we were crying. Gabe leaned over and said, "Mom, I love you, you're so cool to hang out with." How many 13 year old boys say that to their Mom? I don't think I will EVER forget that. Ever.

This Might Be My Last Post...

It's Tuesday and well, I just haven't been in the mood to blog...

but our computer is being REALLY weird now... as in, I think it may be dying for REAL. Yes, I already told you that I'm a "bit" dramatic. It may be the video card? I don't know, but I've been storing photos like crazy expecting the worst. This is not good.

This just might be my last post... until we can save enough money for whatever it is we might need to replace... gripping, isn't it?

We had a great Easter weekend...

other than I was threatened by a Tongan woman in our ward that she would choke me if I tried to pay her husband for helping with the food for Zeke's graduation party! Yeah, good times!! :) ha ha ha (it was all in good fun) Love you, Sister Pauni! You have to hear her say it, "I come ovah and I choke you!"

took my family rolling Easter eggs... for the FIRST time. Zeke says I'm nuts. Maybe it's a Utah thing...

tried to sing "Because He Lives" with the ward choir on Sunday, but I cried through most of it. Sorry 12th ward for the ugly faces I was trying not to make ... I'm not a pretty crier. That song just gets me.

drum roll... we now have a family room (again). Oh, it's fun to have room to breathe and move around a bit more... I love to move furniture and rearrange rooms... it's a bit of a neurotic thing... I'm taking pills and having injections.

Tonight I told Beck it was time to get out of the tub and he stood up, saluted me, and said, "Yes, your Majesty!" I do not know where he got that one from.

Earlier tonight, Beck got a blue-coconut slush from Sonic and said, "This is the best yummy ever!"

My friend, Tawnya, came over today... I feel so special. I just met her in February and well, she's rather groovy. :) Beck and her son, Sammy, had fun too. She's one of those people that I feel like I just "click" with... do you know people like that? Isn't it great? (I am not sure if Tawnya feels that way, but just keep letting me think that, okay?)

Last week my dear, sweet, wonderful, awesome, groovy neighbor Lora showed up at my door with flowers and candy for ME! "just because" Wow, my life is so blessed right now. I am her visiting teacher and she came over just to cheer ME up. Here's the flowers!! (My camera is not great, but hey, I had to get a picture.)
Getting nervous for Beck's dentist appointment on Thursday... we'll be there for at least 4 hours... I'm bringing 3 books in hopes that at least one of them will keep my mind off of Beck, because I am not allowed to go in with him. The books are:

"The Help" been wanting to read this one for forever.
"Beyonders" Brandon Mull's new one... enough said.
"The Thirteenth Tale" this is the book club choice for April... I need to finish it by May 5th...

I'm planning to bring some chocolate too! Say a prayer for my lil' Beck if you can. This is the FIRST time any of my children have ever had general anesthesia. He can't have any food or water after midnight tomorrow... I hope they can get him in early. I'll be so happy to have it done. Poor lil' gaffer.

I hope you all have a great week!

P.S. If any of you would like to come to Zeke's graduation party on May 7th, send me an email and I'll let you know the details.

I've walked where Jesus walked

A lady in my Mom's ward read this poem in sacrament last time I was there. I loved it so much I asked her about it afterwards. The very next week my Mom sent me a copy and said "Linda wanted you to have this." Thanks, Linda!

If I could go to Galilee and walk where Jesus walked

And sit in tender grasses on the hillside where He taught;

If I could feel the gentle breeze that lifted from the sea

where He chose the humble fisherman, how full my heart would be.

If I could sit and ponder on a rock that knew His hand,

or walk along the seashore where His feet had touched the sand;

My spirit yearns within me, but it doesn't seem my fate,

I'll never walk where Jesus walked,

I'll never see... But wait,

I've worshiped in His temple where I know He's walked before,

Have His feet been down this hallway?

Have His fingers touched this door?

Has He stood here in this very room and looked at what I see?

In the beauty of His temple, I can feel His love for me!

I close my eyes and picture Him... my worries melt away.

I don't need to go to Galilee or travel far away.

For my tender heart is filled with what He wants me to be taught

And my testimony burns within me... I've walked where Jesus walked!

written by Carma Salveson
Tremonton, Utah August, 1997

I just want to wish all of you Happy Easter and tell you that He LIVES!

Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-24 "And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony last of all, which we give of him: That he lives! For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God."

Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is the only reason I survive in this crazy world.
I love you all and hope you feel peace in your life because of Him. :)

Satan gave me some Zyrtec

You know that song, "Satan gave me a taco" from Beck. Yeah, you probably don't, but it's one of our family favorites. You just might click on another blog right about now...

Well, as you know, yesterday, was not my best day. However, I woke up feeling absolutely FABULOUS today... could it be all the wonderful comments you posted yesterday? DEFINITELY. I'm so thankful for all of you. I love you all!

Could it be a random girl's night at my neighbor Lora's house? YES, most definitely! Oh dear, have you woke up the next morning after a night of crazy and thought, "Why did I say that?", "Why did I do that?" Yeah, it was that fun! Here are my accomplices, if you ever need any dirt on me, they have it:

LORA
TAWNYA
SHARI
ALLISON (I don't know if you have a blog and
I think I might have freaked you out a little, but I thought it was fun.)

Well, I also realized that way back on Monday, I was having seasonal allergy issues, so before I went to bed I took a Zyrtec. And when I woke up yesterday I felt AWFUL. Shaky and stressed and tired and groggy and DEPRESSED. It was the Zyrtec. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it! By the way, I did NOT take a Zyrtec last night, but I did consume quite a bit of chocolate. Hmmm... I think there's a connection.

So, I have to fill you in on the events yesterday:

Visiting teaching went really well. Prayer changes things. Even my prideful stubborn heart. (sometimes) I had a strong feeling that I'm right where I need to be for the moment for good or bad. My partner has a lot of strengths I didn't recognize until yesterday. The Spirit helped me a lot. I think sometimes Satan doesn't want us to go visiting teaching because it's so good for us. Carry on.

"Zoe and Kaia and sharing a bedroom" SAGA: Zoe prayed about it again yesterday morning before school and we made another list of pros and cons. Zeke and I talked with her about when you make a decision and pray about it and get a good feeling that you shouldn't second guess it. If it's right, it's right. That being said -- it doesn't mean everything will go smoothly 100% of the time. We tried to use the analogy of us getting married, we know it's right, we love each other, but sometimes we really can't stand the sight of each other. (NO, we didn't say that to Zoe!) But we did say that sometimes it's hard being married, but we keep going because we love each other and it's mostly FUN:)

So, after school, she said, "I really want to share a room with Kaia, it's more fun than not!" She has been at peace ever since... and I am more than a little excited to reclaim the family room! HAPPY DAY!

Oh, one of the MANY topics of conversation at girl's night:

If you don't know, this guy is Jani Lane, the lead singer from a 90's hairband called Warrant. (Yes, I LOVED them!)

Don't you think I look like him? My brother says I do.
(Thanks for the picture, Tawnya)
Being totally whacked is much better than being depressed.
Oh, and I almost forgot to thank my awesome hubby for encouraging me to go hang out with my friends and for taking care of the kids. LOVE you.

So tell me, what does it feel like when you're having a nervous breakdown?!

Okay, have you ever had the feeling like you're treading water FOREVER and your legs start to cramp and you can't breathe and you sink a little and water goes into your mouth and you panic and tread harder and come up a bit and try a little harder, but your legs are on FIRE and you know you can't do this forever.... and then you have 4 (sometimes more) little weights hanging on you, depending on you to hold them up?

I seriously feel like my head is going to explode today...

I am having a hard time with:

visiting teaching.... I was so frustrated on Sunday... I could not stop shaking. I just don't know if I'm cut out for it.

my house... blah.... I can't seem to keep up

my kids, each for very separate reasons...

Beck has to go to the dentist next week for an IV sedation procedure, his teeth are in BAD shape. Yeah, whatever, judge away... I've never done anything different with my other kids and their teeth are fine... I guess if you play Russian roulette, the chances are you'll eventually get shot.

Kaia has a weird mole/growth thing on her tummy that I showed the doctor yesterday and he wants her to see a dermatologist ASAP. I am more than a little freaked out.

Zoe is trying to decide if she wants to share a room with Kaia or NOT. Long story.... a couple years ago we made our basement family room into a bedroom for Zoe to ease contentions with siblings and to make an office for Zeke while he's in school and there was no where else to study - NOW, Zoe and Kaia are in Kaia's room together every second and they beg to sleep together every night AND Zeke just does NOT use his office anymore... so I'm thinking let's reclaim our family room and give us some room to breathe. We spent most of Saturday moving rooms after Zoe BEGGED me and prayed about it and now she hates it! It's been a rough couple of days...

And then there's Gabe... I love that kid... he had a TRULY valid reason, he did, and it all worked out eventually, but he "sluffed" the last 10 minutes of one of his classes yesterday. That's always a fun phone call to get!

Our basement does have wallboard and studs, but I want it finished, it has been that way since 2009... I want to put my bookshelves back downstairs so I can have room to walk in my hallway and bedroom... I just feel so claustrophobic and squishy and overloaded right now.

We are having a big graduation party for Zeke on May 7th and I'm being fussy and I want to get the house cleaned up, but it's not happening. Zeke is so busy teaching his class it doesn't feel like he's really out of school at all... I guess he's getting paid for it at least, but I'm not sure if it's worth it. That day is going to be a HUGE day, two commencements he supposedly MUST attend... and he's planning to go camping with Gabe the YM the night before... YIKES?!

How do you not stress about stuff? Do you ever feel like you just want to throw almost everything in your house away? Do you have most of your income budgeted for doctor bills and future doctor bills? Maybe I just need Spring to come. My cats need Spring to come... they are so fussy and unsettled and so am I.

I am so selfish right now... I stress and look around at all the stuff I should be doing and I just want to lock myself in my closet and read a book! I feel so discouraged... I just want to pause the world and give myself a day or two to catch up. The pile is too big...

Compassion and a Question

This is a wonderful story that has been circulating through emails for awhile. I had forgotten about it and my sister-in-law shared it with me again. Thanks, Dani! I love this story so much I want to share it with you! I truly believe that we are here to help each other and we can make a big difference in someone's life. (You might want to get a tissue handy...)

There is a nine-year-old boy sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there
is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks
that his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this
has happened. It's never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they will never speak to him again as long as he lives.

The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays this prayer, "Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I'm dead meat."

He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her
eyes that says he has been discovered. As the teacher is walking toward
him, a classmate names Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with
water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl
of water in the boy's lap. The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while
is saying to himself, "Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!"

Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the
object of sympathy. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym
shorts to put on while his pants dry out... All the other children are on
their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is
wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been
his has been transferred to someone else - Susie. She tries to help, but
they tell her to get out. "You've done enough, You clutz!"

Finally at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy
walks over to Susie and whispers, "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
Susie whispers back, "I wet my pants once too."

WE ARE THE ANSWER TO EACH OTHERS' PRAYERS EVERY DAY, WHEN WE SHOW COMPASSION.

I hope I can be the answer to someone's prayer today. I hope others will show compassion to me.

Okay, now I'm whining...

I'm stressing a bit right now... I need some advice. I used to be the type of person that if someone is bugging me, I go right to that person and try in a nice way to explain what I'm upset about. You know, try to work it out and let them know how I feel? Well, the problem is I've had that backfire horribly a few times and now I'm pretty hesitant to "say what I need to say".

Instead, I've been taking my problems to Heavenly Father in prayer and for the most part just trying to love people more and smile at those who frustrate me. It has worked really well for minor things and one-time misunderstandings and I'm ashamed to admit that I usually realize that I was the one at fault. Even if my mistake was just assuming something. Never assume anything.

However, I've really been having trouble getting along with someone for over 3 or 4 years now. I try to be patient and just "walk it off" but there have been several times that have become much more frequent lately that I feel like she is putting me down and well, quite frankly, being BEYOND very rude. She talks over the top of me when we're with a group of women and if I have to change my plans she gets really upset and acts like it's the end of the world and I'm a complete idiot. She treats me like I am not capable of doing my part, that she has to hold my hand and put up with me. (Maybe I am all this, but again, I've tried to look past her quirks and issues and make it work.) After this weekend, I'm ready to be done with our friendship altogether. (Again, I tend to be dramatic if you didn't already know.) Zeke says I'm being prideful, which I know is true. I don't care what she thinks of me, but at the same time, I don't have to deal with her, do I?

What would you do?

Kaia's Birthday

One of my most favorite quotes is from Albert Einstein, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result." Translation: I'm going to try and blog at night when all the kids are in bed. Problem: I am having trouble keeping my eyes open. Anyway, I wanted to put up Kaia's birthday pictures...

Beck and the birthday girl before school

Kaia and her cake

Zoe and Kaia had fun decorating the cake

The party! Doesn't Gabe look HUGE?
Beck was asleep for most of the party,
this was a huge blessing since Zeke had to work late.

Kaia and her friends, she has her arm around her "BFFBT"
(Best Friend Forever Big Time! you have to hear Kaia say it)

Opening Presents!

The keyboard!

The PURPLE keyboard! It was a stampede!

Kaia putting her candle in her cake... I didn't get many pictures of her blowing out the candles or us singing to her because Beck was awake by then and he was a sad boy.
Here she is on her 3rd birthday back in 2007, she looks so little.

Happy 7th Birthday, my sweet little Kaia Bear!
You are the "Queen of One-Liners"!:)
Love you

If you could

If you could see my pile of dishes. I'm really glad you can't.

If you could be with my 3 year old and understand just how crazy and busy he is. He needs some serious Mom time.

If you could know how crazy my day was yesterday and even how much crazier my night was. It takes a village...

If you could understand what it's like to have a child with asthma and everything that goes along with that. She misses out on so much.
This time of year is hard.

If you could get inside my brain and see how much I really want to read all your blogs and make a fabulous post about Kaia's birthday.

Not today.

"No success can compensate for failure in the home." -- David O. McKay

I will try to fix you...

I just heard this song the other day from that great documentary I told you about called "Young@Heart"... you should seriously watch it. I love Coldplay. What a beautiful song! I am so thankful for my wonderful family and friends... I couldn't survive without you. Love you all!