One month without TV

In January Karl and I decided to turn off our Cable. We'd been thinking about it for awhile and finally just decided to. This has had some really great benefits; first, we are giving the boys a lot more attention. We had gotten into the habit of just watching TV and letting them play. Now we play with them. Go fish and memory are the favorite games.
Second, their speech is improving. I'm sure this is a byproduct of the first benefit, but it has been great.
Third, I'm getting more done during the day. I know the TV isn't there to watch, so I do other things.
Fourth, we're saving around $60 a month by not having TV. It would be more, but we raised the speed of our internet so we could stream videos better.
The really nice thing about not having the TV is that we don't really miss it, except when we can't watch Jazz games, but we can live with that. And I haven't been able to watch 19 kids and counting, but Karl doesn't mind that at all.
I'm not sure how long we'll keep the TV off, it might be permanent.

Choices

This month I've thought a lot about choices. Partially because we've discussed choices the last 3 weeks in Relief Society.
Those of you who know me well know how hard I can be on myself. I tend to look at the worst that I do and compare it with the best that others do. I also know what I'm capable of, and when I don't do it I feel like a failure.
I've been trying to change this though. I've realized that while my house is not spotless all the time, for the most part it is less than 15 minutes from clean, and that is not too shabby. I've decided that while I'm not always available to help my friends when they need me, I help them when I can and they know that I care. I've decided that while I could say that my boys have speech problems etc because I did something wrong, it's more true that they have progressed as much as they have because I am doing a great job being their Mom. I also know that while I don't cook dinner every night, or do all the things a perfect wife is "supposed" to do, I am a pretty good wife and Karl is very happy with me (and me with him).
These may sound like silly things to have to make choices about, but the fact that I have made these choices is a huge step for me. I've always been able to see the good in everyone else, so it's about time to see it in myself. I am choosing to be happy with myself and to love me for who I am, because I'm pretty special.
Oh yeah, I also chose to stop drinking soda and I'm feeling a lot better physically because of that choice.

Share Your Stories #11 Easter

What did you do on Easter? Did you dye eggs and hide baskets?

On Easter we would leave out our Easter Baskets before leaving for Church. We would also leave out the eggs we had dyed the day before. When we got home the baskets would each have candy in them, and the eggs would be hidden all over the living room. Everyone had one egg with their own name and the others were free game, kindof. Actually there was usually a rule that only the younger kids could find the eggs that were below a certain height.

One year the Easter Bunny hid piles of Jelly Beans all over the living room as well. We searched really hard, but didn’t find them all. Then Dad went around the room and found a couple more piles. Over the next few weeks when Dad wanted a treat he would look around the living room until he found a pile to eat.

Mike really liked eating Cadbury crème eggs. He would trade me his other treats for my Cadbury eggs, which I liked because I didn’t like the way the inside of those eggs looked like a raw egg. One year I was so excited to search for eggs, and Mike just laid on the couch and told me where ones were hiding that he could see from the couch.

My favorite candy for Easter was (and still is) Robin Eggs. They are malted milk, like whoppers, coated with chocolate with a candy shell. When you licked the shell you could use the candy coating as lipstick.

My favorite other treat was deviled eggs. We would take all the boiled eggs that people didn’t want to eat and make deviled eggs with them for dinner.

One year we had church at a later time, so we had a fancy breakfast on Easter. Mom had made a set of pillowcases for each of us. Most of them matched quilts she had made for us.

Share Your Stories #10 Valentines Day

This just happened to be the next question, but I thought the timing of it was cool since Valentines day is on Sunday.

What did you do on Valentine’s Day? Did you make your own valentines? How did you deliver them? Did you have a valentine box at school?

In elementary school I always did Valentines. Usually my parents bought me a box of them from the grocery store, and one bag of candy hearts. I would very carefully select which valentines to send to each person in my class. I didn’t want to give ones that said anything romantic to someone I didn’t like, and I hoped that the boys I did like would read the valentine from me and find out I liked them. I also put 2 or 3 hearts in each envelope. On Valentines day we would all take our valentines around to each person’s desk, or box that we had made earlier in the week.

In Junior High Valentines day became more focused on the romantic aspect. I always hoped for someone to really like me and tell me on Valentines day, but it didn’t happen. I gave valentines to my friends, but was much more selective about who I gave them to than I had been in the past.

In High School Valentines day became really fun. Guys gave me Valentines and actually meant it when they said they liked me. I was in the Future Homemakers of America club and helped sell carnations to be given out on Valentines Day. One year I did the 10 days of Valentines Day for 3 of my friends. They didn’t know who the gifts were from, which made it extra fun. I did things like: “You’re the Apple of my eye” on a note with an apple and “You’re the Light of my life” with a lightbulb. For the last gift I made each of them their favorite kind of cake and delivered it to them. One was an angel food cake with cherries and marshmallow fluff, one was german chocolate, and the third was plain chocolate with the top decorated like a check that was written out for $1,000,000. And a note that said “you’re worth a million to me." It was fun to see the guys reactions to the gifts.

My senior year I did something different. I focused on my friends that were girls, specifically Cacci, Jordan and Erin. I got each of them a gift and a card that told them I was grateful for their friendships. I think that Valentines day was more meaningful than any of the previous ones had been.

Prayer List

I try to keep a prayer list in my head, of all the things I need to be praying for, but I often forget some of them, but whenever I remember one I say a little prayer for them at that moment. Here are some that I'm praying for now:

For Danette to go full term with a healthy baby.
For Joy to have her baby soon, and healthy.
For Eric to do well in his classes and graduate in April.
For Margaret to be prepared to go to the temple on the 2nd.
For Mom and Dad to be good missionaries, enjoy their experience and stay healthy.
For Liz to get the job she just interviewed for.
For Mike and Niki to go to the place that will be best for their family.
For Lillie to do well in her classes.
For Lydia and Brian to stay healthy so they can do train and do well in their triathalon.
For Chris to get a good job.
For Della to do well in her classes.
For Von to be able to finish his homework quickly so he can spend time with his family.
For Emily's baby to arrive healthy.
For Elise to do well in her classes and have the strength to do what is best for her and Tanner.
For Mike to improve his life.
For Brian to stay on top of things.
For Jay to be prepared to work hard.
For Iris to have the energy she needs to work and do the things she needs to.
For Dennis to get a good job.
and then there's the prayers for my little family:
For Karl to feel more confident in teaching and know how much I love him.
For Kaleb to continue improving his speech, and can learn how to deal with his challenges, and can learn to eat more foods.
For Von to keep talking more, eat more foods and finish potty training.
For Eddie to keep being such a patient sweet boy.
For me to have patience, love and energy for things that matter most.

The interesting thing is that when I say my regular prayers the things I ALWAYS say are how grateful I am for my blessings, for my family, home and the love I have and most importantly; For my Savior and all he has done for me.

Share Your Stories #9 Favorite Childhood Experiences

What were some of the best experiences in your early life?

One of my favorite experiences was holding Von for the first time. I remember him being so small and knowing that I needed to be a good big sister for him.

Another experience was going to do Kindergarten testing at Franklin Elementary School. They had me put pictures of events in order. One of the scenarios I had to put in order was baking a cake, there were 4 or 5 pictures and I had to put them in the order they happen in. I did it and said all the letters in the alphabet and I’m sure I did other things. Then the teachers talked to Mom about which class I would be in. There were 2 teachers and one of them said “I get her in my class”, the other one said “You get all the smart ones.” It was a small thing, but I knew from then on that I was smart, and I wanted to keep learning. I was one of the first kids to write all the numbers 1-100 and one of the first to learn to read.

My baptism was a wonderful experience. I have lots of little memories about it. Picking out the pattern and fabric for my dress. Being so happy to have a bubble-skirt. Showing everyone else the right way to have our hands and feet. Sitting on the front row in the chapel, next to Chet. A girl telling me it was a good thing I was first because otherwise the other people’s sins would wash onto me. Changing into a brown dress with lace at the collar and sleeves afterwards and going to a basketball game at the Marriott center.

Another good memory is sitting on Dad’s lap. I liked to sit on it while he was sitting on the floor reading the newspaper. Or when he was sitting in a chair and he would bounce me. I even remember sitting on his lap after standing in the corner for doing something I wasn’t supposed to and him telling me he didn’t like it when I didn’t follow the rules, but he would always love me.

I remember being amazed at how good Mom was at everything. She could sew and knit and crochet and cross-stich. She was always making something for someone. I loved to stand by the sewing machine and watch her sew. Later I loved learning how to make things and loving the feeling of making something. I also remember her playing a game with me and someone else. We each had a wooden spoon in our hands and Mom had a bunch of cards with letters on the floor. She would say a sound and we would try to be the first one to hit the letter with the corresponding sound. If we were right we got to take that card.

My best experiences weren’t specific times, they were feelings. I felt important and smart and I always felt safe and loved.

Prices as I grew up:

1979- Birth year
Cost of a new home: $71,800
Median Household Income: 16,461
Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.15
Cost of a gallon of regular gas: $0.86
Cost of a dozen eggs: $0.85
Cost of a gallon of Milk: $1.62

1984- 5 years old
Cost of a new home: $97,600
Median Household Income: $22, 415
Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.20
Cost of a gallon of regular gas: $1.21
Cost of a dozen eggs: $1.01
Cost of a gallon of Milk: $2.26


1989- 10 years old
Cost of a new home: $148,800
Median Household Income: $28,906
Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.25
Cost of a gallon of regular gas: $1.21
Cost of a dozen eggs: $0.96
Cost of a gallon of Milk: $2.34

1994- 15 years old
Cost of a new home: $154,500
Median Household Income: $32,264
Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.29
Cost of a gallon of regular gas: $1.11
Cost of a dozen eggs: $0.87
Cost of a gallon of Milk: $2.88

1999- 20 years old
Cost of a new home: $195,800
Median Household Income: $39,973
Cost of a first-class stamp: $0.33
Cost of a gallon of regular gas: $1.17
Cost of a dozen eggs: $1.08
Cost of a gallon of Milk: $3.32

Share your stories #8 Pets etc

Do you remember having a favorite nursery rhyme or bedtime story? What kinds of books did you like to read?

My favorite books to have read to me were the Berenstein Bears books. Especially the one called Bear Scouts. Once I could read to myself I loved any books I could get my hands on. My first grade teacher encouraged me to read by giving me 3 jelly beans for each book I read. I was reading a ton of books so she changed it to 21 jelly beans for a stack of books, I thought that was awesome. At some point I got into the Baby sitters Club books and read the whole series, up to about #70. I even joined a book club for them so I was sent 3 books and something that had the logo on it each month.

Who pulled your teeth when they were loose? How was it done? How much did the tooth fairy leave for a lost tooth?

Usually my Dad would pull out my teeth, my Mom always tried, but for some reason I preferred Dad to do it. He would just grab onto it with his fingers and pull. One time my Mom said that if I pulled out certain teeth before we went to the dentist she would give me $5 because otherwise the dentist would have to pull them out. I did my best to get them out myself because I didn’t want him to do any more than I had to.
The tooth fairy usually left me a quarter. I think once I got a dollar.

What was the climate of the area where you grew up?

We always had the normal 4 seasons. Winter was cold, Summer was hot and Spring and Fall were just right.

What was your favorite toy?

The only one I remember really caring about was a doll. She had a plastic head, hands and feet and a fabric body. Mom made her a white dress out of the leftover fabric from my baptism dress.

How many pets did you have? Which one was your favorite pet?

We had a fish, but it died and we buried it outside, Della had a hamster for awhile. Other than that all we had were dogs. The one I have the best memories of was Princess. She was a little black dog with curly hair. She was full of love for everyone. Officially she was Della’s, which came in handy when she needed to be fed, let out or cleaned up after.
Before Christmas one year she got sick and we took her to the vet. We went to California for Christmas and planned on picking her up when we got home. The vet said she had cancer and she died before we got home. We buried her in the backyard under the lilac bush.
After Princess we had more dogs, Shebud was one, I don’t remember the other one’s name. One was so rambunctious we sold her to someone who had a lot of land and could let her run around a lot.

Did you have any childhood diseases or health problems? Any stitches or broken bones?

I remember being sick, but I don’t remember what it was. Dad gave me a blessing and I thought that meant I was sick enough to die, so I was relieved when he said I would recover from the illness.
When I was about 12 I started having really bad back pain. After MANY doctors we finally found out that my body was growing up faster than it was ready to.
No broken bones, but I had stitches one time. I had cut my finger on the sharp edge of a tomato sauce can. I got 3 stitches in my middle finger on my right hand.

Have you ever been hospitalized, or have you had surgery? What for?

The only time I was hospitalized was for childbirth. I never had surgery either.