Jack- Camp

Last week was Jack's Scout Twilight camp-

I got to go on Monday with Jack and his troop.

I was supposed to go twice. But another Mom had so much fun she wanted to go up every day! I think it is fun to go one day. Then that is about much fun as I want to have. Honestly.

The fun that I had was watching Jack have fun.

The day I attended, Jack and his friends went on a hike,

played kickball,

shot bb guns,

made nametags, (love the S)

and listened to (and hopefully remembered!) lots of great Scout info.

At the beginning and end of each day the boys would all meet together for a flag ceremony, and sing a few silly songs.
The boys cracked me up by pulling out their song books for the ride home.

I was glad to have the alone time with Jack. I was startled when I realized that Luke would be going next year. Then I started doing the math. If Luke and Tucker participate, I have about 14 more years ahead of Scouting. I think I will earn my Scout merit badge. How long until I get asked to help with their weekly meetings? Its just a matter of time.

Savanna Camp

We packed this girl up with everything we could fit into one big duffel bag

and sent her off to Girls Camp last week. She had fun working on her Secret Sister gifts, and getting everything ready to go. I sent her off happy as could be and was totally prepared to pick up a tired, cranky girl from the crash of all the excitement, and lack of sleep.

Hardly.

She came back happier than I could have imagined. I think I will have to let her do a guest post. She came back inspired in so many ways- and set right to work on making an outfit for church the next day! I am thankful beyond words to the leaders that put so much time, and thought into making camp what it was. It was exactly what it needed to be for Savanna.

I had to laugh and wanted to remember for next year:

After picking Savanna up I asked her if there is anything she would like to take different next year, or if there was anything she forgot. One of the leaders spoke right up and said,"yea, how about a flashlight?"

Oops- I guess that would be a good thing to send her with. I will try and remember that for next year!

Remembering Memorial Day

The kids and I started off Memorial day by going to the Infantry Museum. We were late and missed the parade. So late that the reenactors were walking back to their cars. (Very funny to see men dressed up in the white wigs and coat tails climbing into cars!) We walked around and saw the planes and tanks. The kids wondered if all 5 branches of the military were here in Oklahoma. I really didn't know. (I should Google that!)

I asked the kids what branch of the military would they choose to join and two of them answered out right. Luke said- Navy. Jack said- Marines. It took Savanna a little while to think about it, then she choose the Navy. While we were touring the museum, I learned that battles were fought here in Oklahoma during the Civil War. My friend Julie had told me about the Civil War reenactors, and the parade. I was talking to my Mom and I was really confused, when I heard myself say Civil War. I thought that could not be right here in Oklahoma. But sure enough, the war was fought here too.

As we toured the museum we saw many people dressed in their uniforms. I was touched mostly by one man. He had a emblem on his back that said ex-POW. I was trying to explain it to the kids, and felt like I could not adequately explain what that meant. It all just sounded like words.
Our family has no idea.

I love when we sing patriotic songs in church. I am always filled with emotion. This last Sunday as we sang America the Beautiful- and I felt once again, emotion with the 3rd verse, I remembered trying to write about it in November.

I tried to write about being grateful for those that served in the military but I couldn't finish. I just didn't feel like I had the right words. It started then with the third verse of America the Beautiful. I think it just gets me.

"Third verse of America the Beautiful: Oh, beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved, and mercy more than life!

I don't really remember seeing many people in uniform growing up. I am sure that they were around but it does not stand out. I did not really know that we had a base so close by. My first realization of the military was when I moved to Colorado Springs.

I was surrounded by military. The discounts, the uniforms, the vehicles, the bases, the cadets.

The attitudes of some made it seem that they thought they were far better than the rest of us. That I was privileged to be with them.

Then there were the others. The ones that just went about their business- they were not seeking recognition. They were just doing their job.

Both groups served, though. For that I am thankful. Good attitude, or bad attitude, they were willing to do it. "

After re-reading what I wrote, I still don't have the right words. Except that I am thankful.

No F in Art

We have been having issues.
And a lot of fun.
Issues + Fun= no computer time

Issues: Sunday night storm blew our router,our modem, our cordless phones and our PC (thankfully not the Mac!)
Fun: Piano recital, Memorial Day weekend at my Mom's attended by all of my side of the family, swimming, more swimming, eating, getting Savanna ready for girls camp, some more eating, fire pit, late nights.

I totally planned on writing about the kids last day of school, and their answers from the surveys that I found when I cleaned things up,and everything else that happened last week. But this mornings story comes first. I guess I will take the advice to start current.

I could hear someone in my studio (or art room- as some of the kids call it) this morning moving things around. Then I could hear a punching sound. Kind of like the way my paper cutter sounds when I slap the bar down and then punch the paper with the blade. I heard it over and over again. Then Tucker came out and announced:

"Mom, I arted."

Then held this up.

A friend had given us a bunch of cardboard sheets, for the kids to make things with.

Tucker took a pencil to each one.

Then poked holes all over.

He "arted."

Blah!

End of the year field trips!
Year end awards!
Smiling children!
Last day of school!
First day of Summer!

Sometime I will blog it.

I was so proud of myself ... I had found the surveys that I had the kids take at the beginning of school. Then I lost them. Then I found them in time to put them with the end of the school year ones. Then I misplaced BOTH of them. Blah! I am dropping so many balls, I look like the ball pit at McDonalds!

I have put myself on a blog break until I file all the take home papers from the kids, and I find the desk. Or the surveys. Whichever comes first.

Be back in a bit.

Birthday turns into birthweek-

All week Tucker kept telling me that a lady from church was going to bring me a brown cake. Sure enough, Sunday night his teacher brought me a "brown cake" along with flowers for my porch.

Then yesterday, when meeting girlfriends for lunch I was given a giant birthday cookie, and a set of handmade cards.

How long do you think I can drag this celebration out?

Playlist of my life

I am listening to ...

Ice Cream- Sarah McLachlan

and I am ...

With Jay visiting Oklahoma during the summer, after just celebrating our 1 year anniversary. I was sitting in my Mom's kitchen and Jay was sculpting ... me. We packed up the unfinished sculpture, and took it on the plane back to Utah. It was all smooshed when we landed.

I can do anything good!

I first saw this here- and just like her ... I keep watching it over and over. Our family now is quoting one liners from it.

Enjoy!





You can do anything great- you can do anything good.
Make it a great weekend!

My 37th birthday recap- or- The story of the corsage

My birthday really was great. I had fun birthday packages in the mail the day before.

I had decorations ...

A delicious breakfast ...

Surprise little packages

Lots of email freebies ...

Sonic, CVS, Baskin Robbins and Godiva Chocolate!

My mom surprised me with a drink and a new apron then stayed to visit for a while.
My sister Janelle showed up and the three of us visited. It was nice to have an afternoon of chatting. Without all of my kids around. I was glad to have a free day with nothing planned so that we could just sit and visit.
I had calls, and emails, and cards from friends. I went and picked up flowers for my front yard, and a friend dropped off a beautiful Dahlia.

But the best gift of the day?

A corsage-
All wrapped in a box waiting for me in the fridge yesterday morning.

I had told Jay recently that I thought we should start celebrating all holidays with a corsage. We laughed about it. But he did not forget.

He went and bought wire and ribbon. Then at midnight he snipped off one of the two Peonies that were outside. He brought it in and started creating the birthday corsage. Right as he started wiring the whole thing together he realized that the table was being covered by little tiny bugs. Crawling out of the flower. He quickly got rid of the bloom and then set out to "make" another flower. Out of a napkin. Then he put a small bug free flower in the center.

I laughed and laughed. And wore it proudly. I think its my favorite birthday gift ever.

SPT-37

I am 37. Today.

I looked through my photos of the day and realized I had not taken a single self portrait! What?!

Several ones were taken of me, but none by me.

So I grabbed my camera at 10 P.M. and shot one. Because how many times do I get to celebrate my birthday on a Tuesday?

It has been a beautiful day, in many ways. So much fun throughout the day. I got to share parts of it with so many of my favorite people. It was a little rough near the end, but I think we will make it. We will just keep celebrating all week.

Happy Birthday to me.

A perfect story for a perfect month

I first saw this book at the kid's school last spring. I fell in love with its story.
I have always thought May was such a beautiful month, my favorite of them all.
This story just intensified that thought.

I think this book is now out of print, but Jay found it for me for Christmas. I was so excited. I was stunned when I found an inscription on the inside, from a child to her teacher. I could not believe someone would get rid of such a charming story.

It is a story of a young month, May, who lives with her mother, April. She has not yet met her father, December, who lives very far away in a cold place across on the other side of the year.

May takes a long trip going from month to month, family member to family member to meet her father and then return back to her mother. As she travels they all have something interesting and new to share with her.

I loved how the story explained how the months came to be in their places, and why sometimes we have unusual weather.

Let me know if your library has it. I will share mine with you if it doesn't.
Have a wonderful May.

He is honest ... and he rhymes too!

Ahh just warms my heart. I will look forward to our yearly visits.

Blogging Etiquette

I am joining in a panel discussion next week on blogging.

Will you share your thoughts with me?

How do you feel about blogging? Why do you blog/not blog? Are you a commenter? If so, do you comment all the time? Why/Why not?
If you blog, how do you feel about your comment section?
Have you had any negative experiences with blogging?
What about the positive side?

What do you think the rules are regarding "blogging etiquette?"

Leave a comment or email-
alisaspear at gmail dot com

Thanks in advance

Create

I have the loveliest little beaded "Create" hanging in my studio. I love its beads and curves. It makes me happy when I see it twirling from the ceiling fan chain.

It had been a while since I had actually sat down in my room to create just for the fun of doing so. This room is also home to the treadmill, all the kids extra toys, our "clean" laundry armoir, and anything else that doesn't have a home but doesn't get put out in the garage.

Well it has come to my attention in a subtle way that it is time to dust off the cobwebs and get back to what I enjoy doing. As I was rushing out of the room from trying to find one of the boys a clean pair of pants, I noticed that something had been added to my beaded word.

Some little thing had done their own creating. Apparently I have not been paying close enough attention because it looks like it has been there a while, it even has dust on it!

As a result I have been doing a little spring cleaning, adjusting my schedule and priorities. Along with cleaning and organizing I have started setting a crafting goal every week. You know, like "this week I will create for 5 hours."

It is going alright. Some days are better than others, but I am starting to be much more conscientious of what I am spending my time on. Everything isn't clean and orderly yet, and there are many, many projects to work on. But I am creating.

What do you want to work on? Any projects you need to dust off?

SPT- create order

self-portrait-tuesday
No challenge this week-
So I made up my own challenge.
Get my house back in order.

I need to spend some time cleaning, and putting things where they belong. De-junking and organizing. I had to laugh at myself today when I looked around my house at such a disarray and remembered I am going to go help someone organize their home tomorrow morning.
What is that saying? Do as I say not as I do?

So I am working on the house. It may take me a few days. (and maybe a trip to Sonic!)

I even got myself a new apron. At first I thought it would be for the kitchen while I was creating in there. But now I think it is going to be my create order apron. I love the little ruffle at the bottom.

The scariest thing about today?

It wasn't that I sent my boys to school with dirty socks.

It wasn't when Luke asked why I had sent him kiwi and apples in his lunch and I explained (while cringing) that I had not put kiwi in his lunch since last THURSDAY!

It wasn't realizing that although now everyone has clean socks and underwear, they don't have any clean pants for tomorrow.

It wasn't the scary-screaming-obscenity-man at Walmart.

It wasn't Tucker repeating a word from a private conversation that Savanna and I were having.

It was the biker Grandma at Walmart, asking me what carseat I thought would work best on the back of her motorcycle. She planned on attaching it to the sissy bar with a bungee cord.
That is all kinds of scary.

SPT-(non)extreme make-over

Lelly had me laughing with this weeks challenge when she said:

"a cut and/or color can be an easy way to feel hip and trendy (am i the only one who struggles with NOT feeling hip and trendy?!?) there are a million little ways to get a mini-makeover, even when a visit to the salon is not on the calendar.

what's YOUR secret to feeling and looking fabulous?"

So my secret to feeling fabulous?

Get out in the sun.

I just feel better after being in the sun. Even today when the wind was whipping down the plains. It's one of those things that is on my mental checklist of things I need.
Plus, who doesn't look a little bit better after being sun-kissed?

Sunday Thoughts

One of our kids was on a school trip and heard some others talking about what they had been studying in history, "the Mormons." As they started to discuss what they thought we believe, this child of ours spoke up and said "I'm Mormon." Surprised, a few of the kids said things like, "Oh thats cool." &" We have never met one of you before."

A few days later one of the friends said to our child, "I thought that was odd the way you were talked about. I mean, what you believe is your choice, I am Christian, and I wish you were Christian, but that's your choice. To which our child surprised said, "But I am Christian. I believe in Christ."

I have played this out over and over in my mind. It has made me think. Do others know I believe in Christ? Do I live my life so that others know I believe in Christ? Is my reverence and lack of talking about things close to my heart leaving others doubting what I believe?

I was visiting with some Sisters from church and they asked me what was stirring me right now about the gospel. I immediately said my relationship with Jesus Christ.

I believe in the Savior Jesus Christ.
I know He lives. I know that He is the source of peace. I know that when I am left soul searching for peace He is the source, when there seems nothing left.

My personal relationship and understanding changes as I study and search and experience life. More and more I realize my need to seek relief through Christ. As I struggle, and hurt or worry, I try and do things on my own.

Today as I sat in church, I thought of the promises I made at baptism. I thought about what I am doing well at, and some things that I need to work on. It is my belief in Christ that helps me overcome those things that I am struggling with. The things I need to improve on.

He is who I need to rely on. He is who I need to turn to instead of trying to do things on my own.

The words to a favorite hymn come to mind:

Where Can I Turn For Peace?

Where can I turn for peace? Where is my solace
When other sources cease to make me whole?
When with a wounded heart, anger, or malice,
I draw myself apart, searching my soul?

Where. when my aching grows, Where, when I languish,
Where, in my need to know, where can I run?
Where is the quiet hand to calm my anguish?
Who? who can understand? He, only One.

He answers privately, Reaches my reaching
In my Gethsemane, Savior and Friend.
Gentle the peace he finds for my beseeching.
Constant he is and kind, Love without end.

SPT-give me break

Self-portrait-Tuesday

Lelly's challenge?

"come on, we all need one... that hour we use to splurge on a massage or a pedicure, that workout at the gym, those fifteen minutes when we hide in the bathroom while our families lie in wait just outside the door..."

"what do YOU do when you need a breather? please share. "


When I need a break?

Chocolate (I am stockpiling those Cadbury eggs- Yes, I have calculated the calories in each delicious egg.)

Water (preferably swimming, but a hot bath will do)

Music

Not necessarily in that order.

Playlist of my life-15 years ago-I remember

Edited to add link at bottom.


I pulled up Kristie's blog and looked at my clock.
9:02-
Remembering 15 years ago.

Playlist of my life:

15 years ago I heard the sound of Oklahoma's news stations interrupting the normal broadcast in Colorado Springs. How strange to hear them on TV in Colorado. Their little intro jingles and cutting away sounds being played in the wrong state.


I was in Colorado. I was living there. I was actually at Jay's parents house that morning. I had been snowed out of getting home the night before. I was the only one there, and I remember Jay's Mom opening the garage door.

I think about where I was when I heard. I remember the look on Jay's mom's face as she came in from her car in the garage saying I had to turn on the TV. I think about how far away I felt watching from the TV in Jay's parents family room. Watching the newscasters that were from home, on TV in Colorado. I think about how I had just been home visiting the weekend before, and I had just been downtown. I remember the busy signal on the phone, over and over again as I tried to call home. I remember going about my day in a daze and looking at everyone else going on with their lives. I remember pouring water for someone at a table that night at work thinking they had no idea what was going on just a few states away. I remember a few co-workers talking about it, and hearing them saying to go easy on Alisa tonight. I remember feeling sad, and strange, and confused. I didn't know anyone that was hurt, but I felt like I did. It was my home.

I remember the stories. I remember hearing others connections with those that were downtown that day. I remember the stories of those that didn't make it downtown that day. I remember the stories of those that knew someone in the building.

Just like I remember hearing about the Challenger explosion, the Columbine shootings, the events of 9-11, I remember where I was and what I was doing when I heard about the Oklahoma City bombing.

What do you remember?
Where were you?

Edited to add this link:
Oklahoma City Bombing- By NewsOK

Sweet dreams

I keep writing and re-writing. I finally decided its just time for bed.
Goodnight!

Tucker asleep 3-29-10 -dreaming of trains-at the kitchen table after a rough and tumble day of playing trucks in the dirt.

odd

I went about my morning. Tidied up the house. Put a load of wash in. Ran up to the school. Visited with several people. Chatted with Savanna. Went to Sam's. It wasn't until I was leaving Sam's in the pouring rain, that I realized, hey! My feet are not getting equally wet! Wait a minute! One feels like its higher than the other!

I am thankful for how wonderful a bed feels at the end of a day.

SPT-Weather or not

self-portrait-tuesday

Lelly's challenge?
"weather or not"

Thankfully today was great weather. Perfect for Tucker and I to go with Luke for a 1st grade field trip to the zoo.

As I walked around with a stroller full of stuff, (without a child in it most of the time!) in my sandals, I thought of how much the weather will change by next month this time. I love how it feels right now. (minus the allergies, but seriously, is there a time of year that we don't have that?!)

Right now I can't imagine snow, or rain, or dreary days, or days of muggy, sticky, humidity or 100+ temps. It feels just right.

Excuse me while I go knock on wood.

A rare event

Sometimes an event occurs that is so rare, it's with recording.

For about 6 hours today starting around 2:00 PM, all the laundry hampers stayed empty, and the wash & ironing was caught up.

Just had to document that occurence. I wondered if anyone else experienced that phenomenon. It will surely be a while before I experience that again.

SPT-What's New?

self-portrait-tuesday

Lelly is back with a challenge ... and I have missed her weekly spt postings!

"what better way to ease back into the spt routine than to kick off with an easy "challenge?" it's been long enough that i feel like having a little homecoming party. would you like to come?!?

you don't need to bring anything and please don't stress out about what to wear. it'll just be a gathering of friends, doing what friends do... sharing stories about what is new in life.

go ahead: snap that photo!! tell us what you're doing today - a few words, a few sentences, a few paragraphs... it doesn't matter. but make sure that beautiful self-portrait is front and center!!"


What is new in my life?
Counting, and adding and dividing calories of all my recipes and tracking my physical activity and entering them into my "Lose it!" app.

This is taking some mental gymnastics to add an entire recipes ingredients when they are weird amounts. I am constantly doing story problems in my head, and sometimes saying them out loud.

As I track I am amazed at how many countless calories I could be consuming.
Some are totally not worth it.
Others totally are.
I am learning much- it reminds me a lot of getting out of debt. I can use those same ideas towards better health.

So what is new with you?
Did you do a SP?

What we ate and drank on vacation 2