The Game

A friend of mine, Ashlee Miller, had this story on her blog and I thought it was worth sharing:

"I've felt impressed to write about something we discussed in Relief Society yesterday. The question was posed, 'Why do we need adversity in our lives?' I started thinking about basketball. (I know, sports analogies are usually left to the Elder's Quorum, but stay with me.) I think life is a little like basketball. We practice dribbling, shooting, passing, running plays, and defensive strategies so that we can become better at each skill, and develop into a better player in general. If all we ever did was practice, what good would that do? We need to actually come against an opponent to test our skills and know what we need to work on in order to advance, and therefore be in a better position to win the next game.

In life, we spend each day 'practicing' such skills as obedience, communication, compassion, faith, etc. But in order for us to progress, we need to come against an opponent to test our skills so that we know where we are and what we need to work on. The trials that come into our lives are just such an opponent, and by evaluating our performance within and at the outcome of each trial, we can know on what skills or characteristics our time should be spent 'practicing'.

For anyone who has played basketball before, you know that emotions can run high, effecting performances and ultimately the outcome of a game. Same thing in life! If we allow them, our emotions can hinder our ability to see clearly the big picture and stop working in areas that need the most attention, or cause us to give up altogether.

I guess my point is that we can be in control of our 'game' as long as we take the time to put the right kind of practice in beforehand."

I know there has been much adversity in our family recently and I truly hope this story will help us as we face this adversity in each of our lives. We can and we will get through it, with the Lord's help. I want all of you to know you are in my thoughts and prayers always. I love you!

Video of Chickens and Turkeys

Ryan helped me convert the dvd from my camera so that I could post it here. Enjoy!!

Our Chickens and Turkeys are Here!

These are just the chickens - they arrived yesterday and the turkeys arrived this morning. We have 15 hens, 5 roosters and 14 turkeys (we won't know how many males and females we have until they grow a little more). We have lost one chicken (the littlest) and one turkey, who drowned in the water dish. My dad used to raise turkeys when I was growing up and sometimes they would try to drink the rain water when it rained and they would drown in the rain. They are pretty dumb and you have to watch them carefully. They also liked to chase the cars on the road - and they would usually get run over.

The chickens with the blue spot on their heads are the roosters. The chicks with the unusual brown markings are Americanas and will actually lay multi-colored eggs - blue, green and lavendar.

I tried to do a video that shows the chicken coop Tara designed and everyone (except me) helped to build, but I can't figure out how to download it. We have a fenced area for them when they get a little older and we will actually let them out for awhile in the mornings and evenings so they can eat the bugs and scratch around for food. That is actually very good for them. But, when it's time, they will go back into the fenced area or the coop all by themselves. They like to feel safe. We'll keep more pictures coming as they grow so you can share in this adventure with us!

Puppy Party

Yesterday our puppies turned 1 year old, so we decided to have a birthday party for them. Kayla and I made cupcakes and then Kayla and Arleen made birthday hats. Kayla could hardly wait until her brothers got home from school! It was very windy outside and we knew their hats would just blow off, so we invited Apollo, Bailey and Zar into the house for the "party". It took a few minutes to get them calmed down because they were so excited to be in the house; we finally got hats on Bailey and Zar, but the yarn on Apollo's hat broke off. Apollo was mostly interested in Mollie (you can hear her barking), who was in the bedroom because she is at the end of her heat, but apparently still somewhat desirable. He was very conflicted all the time he was in the house. Mollie...cupcake...Mollie...bologna...Mollie...you get the idea. Here are a few pictures of the festivities! In the first photo, it's Zar (who has one ear that has never stood up straight - we think it was because he was so sick with parvo as a puppy), Apollo (the biggest) and Bailey (the smallest) . Below is a short video of the fun event. Those cupcakes went down really fast!! It's hard to believe that they looked like this one year ago!

25 Random Things About Me

1. I LOVE to travel...as long as I have enough money in my pocket so that I don't have to worry about expenses. If I start running out of money, I panic.

2. I really love thunderstorms and I have been known to be a "storm chaser". I like to get as close as I possibly can. There is something relaxing and comforting about the rolling thunder.

3. My family means more to me than anything else in this world. There is nothing that relieves stress more for me than spending time with them.

4. One of my favorite places to go is Hawaii. I've been twice (but without Michael). I enjoy walking on the beach, the gorgeous sunsets, the weather, the palm trees. The next time Michael and I will probably go with Jerry and Kaye.

5. I'd rather be hot than cold.

6. I've always loved being tan. My neighbor all through Jr. and Sr. High School and I had a contest every summer to see who could get the tannest the fastest. I would even go up on the roof of my house to tan because it was closer to the sun and I thought I'd tan faster.

7. I hate aging. If I had the money, I'd have plastic surgery - especially on my eyes - as long as it doesn't look like I've had plastic surgery!! I always tell Michael that I feel like my face is falling. (Maybe I shouldn't have spent all those years in the sun.)

8. I have 4 dogs. I would have more if I could. Mollie is our Queensland Heeler, and we have 3 German Shepherds: Mieke, Apollo and Zar. I especially love it when one of them sleeps on my bed right near my feet.

9. I don't like the wind. A cool breeze is nice, but I hate the cold wind (like today). It feels like it's biting you in the face.

10. I love to watch it snow. I don't like being outside in it, but give me a cup of hot chocolate and a roaring fire and I love to sit by the window and watch big, huge flakes of snow fall.

11. My best friend in the world is my sister-in-law, Kaye. We have been friends for over 35 years and there is hardly a day that we don't talk to each other. We can talk to each other about anything and everything. I totally trust and love her.

12. Don't send me to a pet store. I'd want to buy everything in there...except for the snakes...they can keep their snakes!! (If my brother, Jerry hadn't chased me with snakes while we were growing up, I might feel differently.)

13. I idolize my Mom. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't wish I could talk to her.

14. I have always loved to read. Most of my weekends were spent in my room reading mysteries when I was growing up.

15. I absolutely LOVE a clean house. If Febreeze really worked, I'd totally spray everything in my house with it so it would smell good.

16. Now that my children are grown, I love having them as my friends. It's awesome when this happens and it's great to have fun together. Of course, I still love being a mom and having them ask me for help and advice.

17. One thing I work on every day is trying not to be judgmental of other people. I always try to see the good in everyone and see their potential. My Mom taught this at a very early age and I hope I honor her in treating people the way they want to be treated. I hope my grandchildren always remember this about me.

18. I love to dance. I used to do Ballroom Dancing - my favorites are the Latin Dances and the Waltz. While in High School, I did Polynesian Dancing with some other friends. A good friend that I babysat for that was born in Hawaii and she taught me the Hula and other Tahitian dances. I loved it so much and we actually performed around Tacoma all year round, but especially during the summer months.

19. When I graduated from High School, I was accepted to BYU Hawaii. Sometimes I could kick myself for getting married and not going, but I know I wouldn't have the children I do today if I had. You know, it's always "what if...". I have visited the campus, though! Oh, and there's that thing about the education I could have had...

20. I recently attended an energy healing seminar and became certified to do energy healing. I believe this is something I can do to help others. It's called Calyco Healing and it's not as weird and crazy as it sounds. I have already been able use it on several occasions.

21. One of my favorite things to do is bake. I love to make bread, cinnamon rolls, pies, cookies and healthy meals for my family. The greatest compliment is when my kids tell me I should open a bakery.

22. I used to have to take a lot of flack for having 7 children and 3 step children. I wouldn't change a thing. Now I have 5 daughters-in-law and 2 sons-in-law that I really love. I can't imagine our family without them.

23. I've never thought of myself as a country girl, but I am now! We are going to have chickens, turkeys, a cow, horses, and pigs. We have our garden planned and will be ready to plant as soon as it's warm enough! The chicken coop is almost finished (thanks to Tara, Scott, Jared, Arleen and all the kids.)

24. My biggest fault is that I love Diet Pepsi. I know...I know...I've heard all the bad things, but I really enjoy it.

25. Going to a good movie is a favorite hobby and if it's REALLY good, I'll go more than once.

Hey, Jeff! Are Your Fish Hungry??

OK - Can I just say how much I absolutely LOVE my Bosch Mixer? I just made 4 dozen cinnamon rolls and 7 loaves of bread. The mixer makes everything so easy and making bread is no longer a chore. Homemade rolls...no problem! Whole wheat bread...no problem! We even made homemade pizzas last night for dinner. Homemade pizza dough...NO PROBLEM! My house smells soooo delicious! My only wish is that all of my family could be here to share it all with us. Tara helped me finish because I tried to do so much too late in the day. I got everything in pans, but had to lay down for awhile. Tara finished baking and frosting everything for me. I don't think she minded very much - she had her eyes on the cinnamon rolls (or at least one anyway). She and Arleen have been walking every day and we are trying to watch what we eat. (Well, at least we will walk off what we eat.)

I only have one question...DO YOU MISS ME YET???? ;-) And BTW...my door is always open!

Patience is a Virtue

My patience is paying off with regard to the repairs that need to be done in the house. (At least I've been TRYING to be patient.) Because of the water leak, insurance is going to pay for us to install a whole new kitchen! They are going to replace all the cabinets, the floor - even some of the sub-floor, baseboards, and island. The water got into the laundry room also, so the floor will be replaced in there as well. The floor looked good, but did not match the kitchen floor. Michael is going to lay all the flooring to save some money and that will hopefully give us enough extra money to purchase a new dishwasher. Michael also has to get the house leveled right away (see pictures of the settling) so these other repairs can be completed. It will take 2 weeks before they can begin work in the kitchen because everything has to be ordered and we calculate that the work being done will coincide with Spring Break!! I know Arleen and the kids were planning to go to the valley at that time, and possibly Tara and Dean. I may also be coming down just so I won't have to deal with all the construction mess. I'll keep everyone informed and post pictures once I have my brand new kitchen! Woohoo!!

Leak Under the Sink

Last Sunday, I went into the kitchen to make some rolls for dinner (using my new Bosch...) and I noticed that my socks kept getting wet. I also noticed that water was squishing up between nearly all the wood planks on the floor. At first, I thought that my dishwasher was leaking, but upon further investigation, we discovered that there was a leak in a pipe under the sink. Luckily, Jared was still here and was able to take care of the leak right away. There was water under the wood on the floor from one end of my kitchen to the other. We put towels down all over the kitchen to try to soak up the moisture.

Monday morning, Tara and I noticed a horrible moldy smell and just looked at each other knowing without a doubt that the entire floor had to come up. That meant that EVERYTHING had to come out of the kitchen. We have 2 food storage shelves loaded full, a microwave stand full of stuff, an island loaded full of stuff (one that Jared and Arleen brought with them) and the little buffet table that Mom Halls gave me. Plus, we also had to clean out the food on the floor in the pantry. We were exhausted just thinking about all the stuff we had to move out.

Once we had everything out, then Michael began pulling up all the wood. Luckily, there was linoleum under the wood - ugly, ugly and full of staples because of the plastic that was installed under the wood - but better than particleboard. Michael swept the floor and wiped down the linoleum to get the worst of the dirt. Then Tara took a scrub brush and scrubbed every inch of the floor. We had to wear masks because of the mold and smell. I have had laryngitis all day today and congestion in my chest. I'm hoping no one else gets sick.

The good news is that our insurance is going to cover it! We will probably have to get a new island and replace some of the wood underneath the linoleum. We have a $500 deductible, but that is much cheaper than what we thought we were looking at if we hadn't had the insurance. I'm posting pictures of what it looks like now and then I'll post pics when it's done.

Awesome Birthday Presents!!

For my birthday this year, Michael and my kids bought me a Bosch mixer that also has a blender attachment and special cookie dough beaters. I was also lucky enough to get a new wheat grinder because my other one quit working. I used them the other day for the first time to make whole wheat bread. The bread turned out great and it was fun to have new "toys" to use!! I had Annette come over to show me how to use both of them. It's so much easier to make bread now - and we eat a lot of bread around here! Thanks to everyone who helped make it possible.

Changes

This is Dean bringing wood in - can you tell it's cold outside? (Oh - and BTW, Happy 15th Birthday, Dean!)

I have finally been shamed into another blog entry. I was checking other family blogs and...sure enough...they have my blog listed and now it has the date and title of the last entry for my blog as 7 months ago. I'm totally embarrassed and decided I better get back in the swing of blogging again. Coming to my own defense, we have had a few changes in the past few months. Our empty nest has become full again. At the beginning of October, Tara, Scott and Dean moved in with us and 2 weeks later, Jared, Arleen, Treven, Skylar, Noah, and Kayla moved in as well. It really is fun having them here. We're a bit short on living space, but we have been drawing up plans to add on to the house in the spring. I had forgotten about work charts and chores - Tara and I got that done right away for all the kids with rewards for when jobs get done quickly and with good attitudes. Every day the boys have to bring in kindling and wood for the fire (we don't use propane for heating because it is too expensive), they feed the 7 dogs, pick up dog poop (they like to do that in the early morning because it's frozen), help with dishes and help with other household duties. Tara, Arleen, and I make menus every two weeks, make a grocery list, and do the shopping. Things are actually working out very well. Our only complaint is that sometimes it just gets crowded, we'd like more space, and we all miss our family in the valley soooo much.

The kids like their new schools and are doing very well. Dean was "Student of the Week" last week and currently has straight A's!! He's really trying hard. Tara is the Ward Music Specialist and Choir Director, Arleen has been called as Cubmaster. Because Scott and Jared are only here on the weekends, it's been hard for the bishopric to give them callings or even get them to talk in church. The kids are really liking "snow days" (they have had 2 so far since they moved up here) and are hoping for another one later this week! We all hate the mud that inevitably comes after the snow melts, but we are even learning to deal with that. Whoever said that the only sure thing in life is change was sure right. But we have chosen to find all the wonderful things about the recent changes. Nothing is ever easy, but we all choose to be happy way up here in the White Mountains! I promise to post more regularly and will get some pictures up soon!

A Wicked Day!!

Tara, Ami and I had so much fun Saturday! A huge THANK YOU to all who made it possible for us to go. Our day started out unusual because as we neared the airport, I thought I had left my pain medication back at Tara's. Tara turned the car around and headed back to Queen Creek. At about Dobson St., I found my pills in another pocket of my purse. So, speedy turn around again and headed back to the airport at a speed we were hoping wouldn't get caught by radar. Needless to say, we were rushing through security to get to the gate. And, we got stopped to have our bags checked because we forgot to put our liquids in baggies (yes, all of us). After we got through security, we ran to our gate (having to abandon the idea for Einstein bagels we were so hungry for) just in time for boarding.

Once in LA, we got the rental car and were on our way to the Santa Moncia pier - which was so beautiful. (We all decided that the traffic was so not worth living in CA.) The day was perfect, but more humidity than we get in AZ, and our hair got frizzy because we were so close to the water. We walked along the pier and took pictures and Ami and Tara rode the roller coaster. Oh! And we saw a family of sharks swimming alarming close to a family playing in the water near the shore (can you say, "scaaaarrrry"?) (Ami has a picture on her blog.)

We left to go to downtown LA in search of a nice bathroom to get ready for "Wicked". I was praying the whole way that we'd find a bathroom with electrical outlets... We parked near the Kodak Theatre and went inside on our quest to find a nice, unoccupied, clean bathroom with electrical outlets. The Renissance Hotel connects with the Theatre, so we went inside and found just what we were looking for! We got ready as quickly as we could, given the fact that we had to steam clothes and re-straighten our hair. Then we were on our way to the play! WOOHOO!

Most everyone was dressed in jeans and capris - but, hey - we looked GREAT! We absolutely loved the play and didn't want it to end. The music was amazing, the sets incredible, the costumes unbelievable, the acting better than anything you can imagine. What can I say - IT WAS AWESOME!!

After the play, we went to dinner, then changed our clothes and walked along the street with the "stars" of the stars, did some shopping and people watching. We got back to the car and Tara asked me for the keys, which I had put in my purse earlier. You guessed it - no keys. I remembered taking my phone out of my purse at American Eagle, so Ami jogged back to the store (only 5 long blocks - each way...) and luckily found the keys right where I thought they would be. Good thing she can run marathons...

When we returned the car, the place was packed with a lot of other people doing the same. It took nearly 40 minutes (not planned in our schedule) and we were stressing about catching our flight home. I paid the shuttle car driver to take us directly to our SW terminal and we actually got through security pretty fast (we already had our liquids in plastic bags). Thank goodness airports are fairly quiet on Saturday nights. Ami got through security first and went to check which gate we needed to go to. When Tara and I got to Ami, she was jumping up and down saying, "They're paging us for our flight!" We still actually had 30 minutes until it was supposed to leave, but we ran to the gate as fast as we could yelling and trying to keep up with each other. Ok - I was trying to keep up with Tara and Ami... When we got to the gate, Ami asked why they were leaving so early and was told that everyone else was on the plane and "they like to leave as early as possible". How nice...

We got to our seats and were exhausted and extremely thirsty. Tara had a headache, so I gave her 2 Aleve tablets to take as soon as we could get our water. When the flight attendant took our order we asked for water and ice - and lots of it. He brought us our drinks and when he handed me my glass of ice, I didn't really have it in my hand and the ice fell all over Tara. We were all hot, but she really didn't want to cool off that way. We were brushing ice off of her and when she opened her hand, she only had 1 Aleve left. So, we started looking for that and couldn't find it, so I just gave her another one from my purse. A few minutes later, the flight attendant came back and asked us if we could possibly have lost an Aleve. We responded that we had. He said that after he had served us, he went back to get a glass of water for himself. He poured water into a cup of ice he had had on the cart and sure enough - a blue Aleve tablet floated to the top of his glass. (We felt WICKED for giving him drugs...but at least it was an OTC drug and not my Rx.) He simply stated that he was going to have to keep an eye on the three of us. We laughed so hard tears were running down our cheeks - for 30 minutes. Later, when I was telling Michael the story, we were laughing so hard again, Tara almost had to pull the car over to the side of the road because she couldn't see to drive.

After we landed, to add to our day, we couldn't find the car. We walked from the east end of the airport to the west end and back. We were all so tired, that was the last thing we really wanted to do. But in the end, Tara had been right all along and she found the car.

Bed and sleep never felt sooooo good!! I left the next morning, making every attempt to make it to my church meetings. And, you guessed it again - I got a speeding ticket. Can I help it if the cop car was disguising himself between 6 other cars on THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROAD????

We decided we'd like to make this an annual tradition, but that next year, I'll be in better shape physically and we will take TWO days instead of just one! (And they might want to leave me at home.)

Check out Ami's version of our day at http://thebetheas.blogspot.com/

Unbelievable!

We took the puppies in to the vet this morning and they all weigh between 15-16 pounds already! It's hard to believe that at 8 weeks they can weigh that much. Michael finished the dog run at the back of the house today (wohoo!!). I was getting exhausted cleaning up after them all day and now they can be outside all day and only have to come in at night. They absolutely love being outside, but now they get very dusty and dirty. We're still getting calls on them, so hopefully we can get them all sold in the next week or so - they're eating us out of house and home!! We're thinking of getting a horse trough just to keep enough water outside for all of the dogs. I'll post some pictures of the dog run when we get them. In the meantime, pray that we will get them all sold. They're cute, but getting expensive with the vet visits ($161 for shots) and dog food ($46 a bag - and between all the dogs, we go through a bag a week now) - but the fun of having them around and watching them play is priceless!

New Home

Well, we sold one of our sweet puppies on Friday. They named her Alexandra and call her Alex for short. They have 2 other dogs, a Rotweiller and and a Heeler, like Mollie. You'll see how much their dog looks like Mollie. Christine said that the puppy sleeps with her new sisters and doesn't even cry. It is rewarding and exciting to see the puppies go to homes when you know that they are going to be very loved and well taken care of...maybe even spoiled! (We wouldn't spoil our dogs, though.)

Snuggling with My Sista

These puppies get cuter and cuter every day. They are going to miss each other when they go to their new homes. We have already sold a male and a female and are still getting calls. WE are going to miss them when they go to new homes!!

Stephanie's Graduation

Michael went to Stephanie's graduation from Dental Hygienist College last Friday. Stephanie was chosen to speak to her graduating class and gave an amazing speech and had everyone laughing. She and Brooke will be moving to Queen Creek to join Jason in the next two weeks. She can't get a job in AZ until she passes her state boards here, but she is excited about her new career opportunity. We're excited that they will be moving home!!

Way Too Smart!

Tonight I heard a lot of commotion in the kitchen. When I went to check it out, two of the puppies had pulled up the vent in the floor (don't even ask me how...) and were attempting to put a toy down inside. Mind you these puppies aren't even 7 weeks old yet. They really do keep me hopping - it is like having 3 sets of twins! Where do they get all this energy? We are starting to get some calls now, so maybe we'll sell some this weekend. And yet, we're not sure how we can say goodbye to any of them...

I'm Still Hungry!

Mama, Mama, Can I Get Out and Explore?

The Most Adventurous

This is the first puppy to crawl out of the box! I went into the bedroom to fold a load of clothes on the bed and felt something furry at my feet. When I looked down, expecting to see Mollie, I saw this little puppy licking my feet. This one LOVES to explore around the house! I wish I could just let her roam, but she also loves to do other puppy stuff - like poop and pee. She looks sleepy because we just fed them some oatmeal baby cereal and warm milk, so she's ready to snooze for the night! I guess Michael is going to have to put another board up sooner than he thought - like tomorrow morning...

Puppies at 3-1/2 Weeks

These puppies are growing so fast! You can almost watch them grow as they sleep. They are getting so playful now! They will play with toys now, too. Their teeth are coming in, so they love to chew on just about anything - but especially love to chew on a sibling. Their legs are getting stronger and are even running now if we take them out of their box - we can hardly keep up with them. They love to snuggle and cuddle with us when we pick them up. They even recognize us when we go to their box and come to see us and want to be picked up. I try to groom them every day now - brushing them and checking their teeth and give them some individual attention. They growl and bark and play, but they still sleep a lot. They are beginning to eat some baby cereal with milk so we can give Mieke a break from nursing. I wish all of you could see them!