Happy Birthday Angela!

I was watching BYU TV recently and the reporter asked a group of women who their role models were.  There were many different ideas expressed but it got me thinking about who some of my role models were and I realized that mine are my daughter and daughters-in-law.  They are amazing women who inspire me with all of the good they do and the faith they have.  Since it is Angela's birthday today I'd like to tell you some of the things I admire about her.  The love Angela has for her children is inspiring.  She has a high standard for them and she is such a loving and kind mom.  I love watching her and Andy (Scott) interact because they have such common interests and have fun doing so many things together.  No matter what Angela does it is done better that well.  She takes an idea and then comes up with some good ideas and then kicks it up several more notches.  There is nothing mediocre about Angela and she impresses me every single day.  Happy Birthday Angela.  Thank you for being such a wonderful role model!

Canning Peaches

Today was a great day.  Ellis came and spent the day with us.  With his and Scott's help we put up 11 quarts of peaches which I will use exclusively to make peach cobbler.  It is a great recipe but with home canned peaches it is even better.  Angela brought me peaches from a farmers market in Fresno so they are extra good.  My next project for food storage is to can some green beans.  Hopefully I can get a good price at our farmers market.  Home canned green beans are really good.  Scott planted a crop but they didn't produce very much this year.  Last year we were able to can 20 pints. 

San Diego with Bill

Scott and I were able to spend the afternoon with Bill before he started his conference.  We had a nice visit and enjoyed some wonderful Mexican food were serenaded and then took a tour of the Mormon Battalion visitors center.  They usually have a child put on the clothes but there were only adults so Bill volunteered to gear up for the march.   Sorry the picture is dark but you get the idea!

Happy Birthday!

Our second son Scott Andrew (Andy) just celebrated his birthday.  He is such an amazing man and we are so proud of him.  He has always been a hard worker and we are so blessed to have him living close to us. He loves his family, birds and bird watching.  He can fix anything and he is an amazing artist.

Desserts

I got a recipe magazine of desserts and went through and tagged the ones that I thought sounded good.  Today I made three of them to see if I wanted to keep the recipe.  I had already made a tres leche cake from the book and although it was okay the recipe that I already have was much better so that one won't make it into my dessert notebook.  I liked all three of these desserts--apple-almond mini-cheesecakes, cranberry orange cookies, and a banana, macadamia nut, toffee brownie.  Now I just have to start delivering all these treats so I don't eat them! 

Quilt

I have started making a different kind of quilt but this was the last applique quilt I made.  I just gave it away to a wonderful expectant mother before they leave our area.  Fortunately they will return to us after her husband's work assignment is complete.  I like the applique quilts but they are not as cuddly as I would like them to be so my new design is just strips with various materials to match.  I have just finished quilting the third one and have four more to go.  I'll post the pictures of them when I finish all of them. 

Happy Birthday Katie

Our granddaughter is 12 years old today.  She is a beauty!  I just know that her young women leaders will love having her in their program.  She is a sweetheart and always so grateful for everything that is done for her.  Happy Birthday Katie.  Grandpa and I love you.

Happy Birthday!

       
                                         
Our oldest son is 40 years old today.  He is a wonderful man and has been an example to all of our family about standing for truth no matter what the consequences may be.  He was named after both of his grandfathers and he has many of their good qualities.  I love and appreciate Bill and am so grateful that he is my son.

Judgement

"The Final judgement is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts--what we have done.  It is an acknowledgement of the final effect of our acts and thoughts--what we have become."  Elder Dallin H. Oaks

Movie

I did something that I have never done before--but know that I should have.  I walked out of a movie.  I sat there for way to long thinking it would get better and then realizing that I could not expect the Holy Ghost to remain with me while I sat in the darkness both physically and spiritually.  When that thought came to me I walked out. 

On Sunday I watched a rebroadcast of Women's Conference in which Sister Elaine Dalton and her daughter spoke.  Sister Dalton talked about the moral decay of the world and showed a graph of this decline.  On top of the world's decay she showed religious people were also experiencing a decline even though we were not within the world's moral compass.  Today I understood more about what that really meant as I came to understand that I am lowering my standards sometimes by accepting the standards of other people's ratings.  I would never watch an R rated movie but I worry that I am not spending enough time evaluating what a PG-13 rating means.  As long as we watch the junk that is often put out there we are condoning profanity, vulgarity, and mediocrity of filmmakers.  They need to offer so much more than we get and we need to expect so much more than we do.  Since I have retired I have enjoyed numerous wonderful movies and I am making a commitment to myself that I will not allow myself to be part of the worst of so called entertainment.

Ironing

I know this post will solidify what you already suspect--I'm crazy!  But I have to admit that I love ironing.  I always feel such a sense of accomplishment when I finish.  I often find myself trying to beat my record which is under 4 minutes to iron a shirt.  I remember when I was a little girl sitting on the floor by my mother while she ironed.  We'd talk, or I would read, or play jacks as she ironed down the pile of clothes.  She use to iron for other people to earn extra money for our family.  When I worked full time I did take Scott's shirts to the cleaners--so you see I'm not completely crazy.  Now that I am home full time I have remembered how much I enjoy ironing a crisp white shirt.  It is one of my simple pleasures!

Freedom

"We have implanted in our souls a desire to be free.  The Lord understood this when He granted us our mortal probation.  With that freedom, however, comes accountability.  We are instructed not to idle away our time nor bury our talents and not use them.  We are expected to make our lives better through our own initiative and effort."  Elder L. Tom Perry

Smile

Last night I was reading an article in the Deseret News about Mitt Romney and his family having a family picture made while they were on a vacation in New Hampshire.  I smiled when the reporter talked about the sons dancing around trying to get their kids to smile for the grandkids pictures.  Just two weeks ago we were doing the same thing and I was so touched by my adult children who were all dancing around behind the camera, calling their children's names and doing everything to make sure that the picture would be good.  For you who know my sons that in itself is quite remarkable!  I saw my daughter run back and forth when she was taking our family pictures after she set the timer so many times I know she had to be exhausted, but she kept a smile on her face the whole time. 

I think that experience made me think of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and all of our ancestors who have gone before us.  I know they are cheering us on in so many ways.  They want us to stay strong and to smile because great things are ahead for all of us if we just don't give up.   

Anniversary

Scott and I are celebrating our 41st wedding anniversary.  We are going back where it all started--in the Temple!  This time in the Redlands temple instead of the Mesa temple.  I read a quote by Mignon McLaughlin on Pinterest yesterday that says much about what our marriage is about.  "A successful marriage requires falling in love many times with the same person."  I am grateful that Scott has continued to love me these many years and I am grateful that I recognized the greatness in the man I married so I could continue to fall in love with him in the good times as well as the difficult ones!