more birthday presents!

May 8, 2009 by tracy

I was blessed with a delightful day yesterday. My friend, Kari, took me to the Thai House and then I had my horribly overgrown eyebrows tamed back into their proper places. I need a hair cut as well, but that will have to wait until I can get down to my little sister.

My mom gave me the most fabulous book ever…The Neal A. Maxwell quote book. It is full of hundreds of quotes arranged by topic and beautiful artwork is interspersed throughout. I love, love, love it!

Here is a classic Maxwell quote:

The gospel does provide structure in lifestyle – a scaffolding for shaping the soul especially in the formative years. So shaped, later in life the individual can stand resolutely in holy places and on holy issues and not be moved.

and another:

It isn’t that random goodness lacks heroism. Rather, in isolation it lacks effectiveness. Sharpshooters can irritate and delay an advancing enemy, but they cannot mount a counteroffensive. Random goodness lead to Dunkirks, not to D-Days.

Be prepared for more of these treasures – when I read them my mind is full of thoughts I want to put a pen to.

My friend, Amy, brought me this adorable picture late last night! Isn’t it so cute! It brings sunshine to my soul! I will be finding the perfect spot for it today.

Here is my finished planner in its lovely and durable red, yes, I LOVE red, leather cover. I am so excited to start using it!!

My friend, Sommer, and her little munchkins, gave me a peace lily at gym on Monday. The miracle is, that after five days of being in my care, it is still alive! I have a bad track record when it comes to growing things, so I am hoping I can keep it thriving.

Thank you to everyone who made my day fabulous yesterday!

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birthday number thirty-five

May 7, 2009 by tracy

Today is my 35th birthday. I was going to have a big party with all the people I love…well, okay, not ALL of them, but quite a few of my local friends and their children/husbands/pets/etc., but the weather is just not cooperating! We are supposed to have 25 mph winds and some thunderstorms this afternoon, so I rescheduled till next Thursday. Now it will probably be a beautiful day!

My present to myself is finished (a big thank you to Cosette for letting me use her computer for hours yesterday so I could utilize the amazing Adobe Acrobat Pro to organize all the individual files into something the copy center could deal with)! Last night at 6:45 I walked out of the copy shop with it completed! It is my new homeschool mom planner “transform my life and save my sanity” organizer. How will it do this, you wonder? The answer is simple! It will eliminate all the little pieces of paper I write important stuff on and then LOSE. It has forms for all the stuff I need to keep track of – calendars, weekly planners (I call these ones Strategizing for Success, so the part of me that rejects all things resembling a structured schedule will be able to deal with it) menus, shopping lists, books we want to check out at the library, books we loved reading, books we want to buy, projects I am working on, mentor meetings, monthly stewardships, birthdays, thank you’s, contacts, and some extra sheets of paper for jotting down notes. The pages have a different quote on each page – each one chosen specifically to bring me encouragement, truth, laughter, or peace. Isn’t that fabulous…each day as I am pondering what to check out at the library, what we need for dinner, or what I will be teaching at a seminar, I will have beautiful quotes to brighten my day! I am in love with the front cover – it is made up of excerpts from Julie B. Beck’s talk, “Mothers Who Know”. I will get to be reinspired each day as I read those powerful words!

Here are some pics:

Many people who know of this project of mine have asked to purchase them. I am working on a way to make that possible. I am thinking of allowing people to buy the files and then they can print them however cheaply or fancily (is that a real word, I wonder?) they choose. Let me know if you are interested!

My dear husband woke me up this morning with a live morning milkshake – uuummmm, scrumptious! Then it was present time! Richard gave me this “Life is Good” hat:

Keziah gave me a book she made, a blue heart that says “I love you” and “Happy Birthday,” AND two king-size Reeses, my favorite!

It is a tradition of mine to write a letter on my birthday to my mother, thanking her for giving birth to me and for being my mom, after all, it is HER “birth” day. She gave birth to me on this day, was willing to give 10 months (yes, I was born at 44 weeks!) of her life being pregnant with me, and then endured a really long and tough labor with me. I love doing this because I remember all the wonderful things I have been taught by her and am filled with gratitude that I get this opportunity to be here on earth. My mom loves these letters and I think it helps her view herself a bit more lovingly. Try it!

Last year on my birthday, I wrote a lengthy letter about the lessons I had learned. As I reread it this morning, I wanted to say “ditto”. So here it is again. If you read it last year, soak it in again. If it is new, enjoy!

Birthday Reflections – May 7, 2008

Today is my 34th birthday and I have been pondering. Today, I want to share with you some things I have learned in my time here on earth.

I have learned that God loves me. Perhaps I haven’t learned this, but more accurately remembered it. I have learned He will help me in a myriad of ways, even when I don’t really deserve it. I have learned that true happiness comes when I am being true to eternal truth, treating others as children of God, and loving with my whole soul. I have learned that connecting with other’s spirits is the most powerful way of being and can, does, and will heal hearts and change lives. I have learned that miracles happen every day – every single day. I have learned that God’s ways are not my ways, and they are infinitely better. I have learned that a baby is a gift from my Father to help me learn His ways. I have learned to trust Him. I have learned that living each day, really giving my heart to what I am doing on a daily basis, brings joy. I have learned that laundry and dishes never end and I can be depressed about it, angry about it, just get it done, or I can wash it and fold it with love for each member of my family and rejoice that we have clothing and food and I have a family to take care of. I have learned to take advantage of the sunny days. I have learned that being “first” does not mean being “best” or even “better”, it simply means “first” and can often mean “last”. I have learned that anything worth doing is worth doing poorly at first. I have learned that being a woman is a privilege I am grateful for. I have learned that motherhood is the best way for me to become the woman God created me to be. I have learned that if my children truly feel my love for them, it is a successful day. I have learned the power of a loving husband to change my life. I have learned that his love teaches me about God’s love and allows me to blossom and mature as a woman. I have learned that pain is real, that it hurts deeper than I ever thought possible, and that love IS the salve that heals it. I have learned that it is impossible for me to bury pain, it will keep coming out of the grooves and crevices of my life until I give it to my Savior and allow Him to wrap me in His blanket of mercy. I have learned that friends are critical on this journey and I am so, so grateful for mine. I have learned the power of a righteous matriarch. I thank my Heavenly Father continually for sending me to my Grandma Smith’s family to be tutored by her love and wisdom. I have learned that a bike ride on a sunny day can change my whole outlook on life. I have learned that God sends people to me to teach me, help me, bless me, and love me. I have learned that I can torture myself with worry and that it doesn’t help me at all in coming to truth. I have learned that it is okay to mess up and that what I learn in the process is invaluable. I have learned how to cry. I have learned it is not weak to cry. I have learned that if I am not crying AND laughing, I am not living. I have learned that a smile can change everything. I have learned that we all learn differently and God is here to help us individually in our own best ways of learning. I have learned He will do ALL He can to bring me and you and everyone home to Him, but we still have to choose eternal life over everything else.

Happy Birthday to me!
Thank you for your presence in my life – I love you.

Tracy

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april showers – of blessings!

May 1, 2009 by tracy

We have been so blessed by the goodness and generosity of others. As I look back at the month of April, which was full of busyness, meetings, and deadlines for all of our activities, extreme tooth/face/chest/head pain, a week of diarrhea/throwing up/stomach aches/chills/exhaustion/etc. by every member of my family, and more laundry and dishes than should ever exist in one home, I am humbled to my core at the kindness that others have bestowed upon our family, and me especially.

1. Numerous meals…all delicious and so needed…thank you April, Katy, Amy, Anna, Camille, Cami…you guys saved my children from starvation !

2. My dear cousin, Camille, came all the way from Logan to take care of me and my children.

3. Priesthood blessings helped much.

4. Prayers by many.

5. Medications to relieve the pain.

6. My mother drove to Salt Lake City from Wyoming to take care of Annesley during my dental appointment.

7. My friend, Kari, came with me to SLC to drive me home after the dental appoinment and her husband took the day off of work to care for their children…thanks Gary! We had a fabulous time talking, laughing, crying…you know, girl stuff!

8. My friend, Jana, let my other children stay with her family all day long for said appointment.

9. Our friends, the Hall family, adopted us for Easter and brought over much needed groceries, baskets, $$$, and most importantly, love.

10. My friend, Jennifer, came and held me and rubbed my feet during the Lortab hallucination/uncontrollable shaking/freaking-out fiasco.

11. Her husband, Jesse, who is an incredible pharmacist, answered countless questions at all hours of the day and night.

12. My amazing dentist, Dr. Pyper, talked with me and counseled me for at least 3 hours about what to do with my tooth and he left it in!

13. My mother came and stayed with us for Easter and Passover, did my laundry, dishes, cooking, etc. She made amazing poppy sead bread that I think I ate an entire loaf of!

14. Our friends, the Randleas and the Brownings, joined us for a 3 hour Passover Feast and brought much of the food!

15. My chiropractor saw me numerous times…for free…what an amazing gift!

16. The Taylors let us borrow their trailer to pick up some free tires I am hoping to build a little play area with.

17. My friend, Jessica, took Amy and I to dinner at my favorite restaurant, Miso Hungry.

18. She also spent hours helping me with my blog…she did a great job, don’t you agree?

19. All of my friends called and checked on me many, many times and were always ready with hugs and encouragement.

20. Lots of rides were given to my children by friends and neighbors.

21. My friend, Mary Beth, came to my house early one morning and made me a scrumptious, buckwheat smoothie…it changed my life…I would like to eat one of these every day for the rest of forever…and yes, I will post the recipe later! Her children got right to work and washed my dishes.

22. I was given some absolute treasures of my grandmother’s. A little green stool that my grandfather carved by hand to round the corners. I love, love, love this stool. We always stood on this stool to brush our teeth at grandma’s house. One of her sweaters that I adore. Her set of story books. Her scriptures! Lots of handkerchiefs, doilies, tablecloths, and table runners. Her crochet basket and hooks with some of her unfinished projects. A knitted blanket in blue and white for Miss Keziah, who loves all things blue. My great-grandfather’s sweater – priceless! A cake platter for Miss Blythe to display her creations on. Two of her little pink cups and one blue one (for Keziah, of course!). Her memory book that I made for her for my grandfather’s 90th birthday. Her green quilt, made by her, and snuggled under by me on many a visit to her house. Her old yellow stool…the kind that is a step stool or fold the seat down and sit on it stool – my children are loving this thing. What treasures! I miss my grandma every day, but now, having some of her things in my home helps me remember the wonderful times I had with her.

23. My husband made dinner almost every night, held me when I cried, told me I was “exactly the woman he wanted” when I told him he should trade me in for a better model…you know, one who actually has the laundry folded and findable, meals prepared and cleaned up, beds made, baths cleaned, books shelved, floors mopped, and a bedroom that is actually able to be slept in because the bed isn’t covered with stuff and the walkway to the bed is not a “taking your life in your own hands” adventure. He is the greatest husband ever, of that I am sure!

With all of these blessings, we survived! Here it is the first of May. Thank you all for your help, your love, your time, and your prayers. We surely needed them to get through April!

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cuteness

Apr 28, 2009 by tracy

Notice how adorable my page is now? Notice how all the colors are lovely and matching, all the margins are perfect, all the writing is left justified, and those cute little dashes on the search box and comment boxes? Notice the cute, cute, cute, block quote areas? Wowsers, it is just delightful to look at now! A big thanks to my dear friend who spent the day over here teaching me and transforming my blog into absolute cuteness. Isn’t she amazing!

You are a gem my dear! You endured my messy house and my poor overworked children (big grin at that one!).

Slowly, but surely, I will figure out how to do this myself…

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