Life is Sweet

Friday, February 4, 2011

Ode to a Swimming Pool

O, pool, so calm and peaceful now,

Whence soon a swimmer's dream will make

So cooling, quiet underneath

Yet heavy, heated, overtake

My hours, as I sit and view

Could you be my refuge too?

Engulfed by air of laden breath,

Sweat beads running down my spine,

Oh, I could honor what you give

If only I could call you mine

To enjoy, alone, with only me.

Alas, it isn't meant to be.

I'll sit, encourage, praise, and cheer

While others do your gifts partake

Red-faced, longing for a breath

Of outdoor freshness. Can you make

My child's efforts all pay off?

If so, I'll ne'er again breathe a scoff.

(This is totally reminding me of high school English class... I wasn't good back then, either. It seems unfinished, yet will have to do, since my time is GONE.)

So I'm off to a long afternoon/evening at the League swim meet, then back there again tomorrow for relays in the finals. Here's to humidity, the smell of chlorine, crowded sitting areas, and scantily clad girls who look much better in a swimsuit than I do.

Good Luck, Shilo!

Thursday, February 3, 2011

In the Mood

I put the Valentine decoration up today.

It's sad and old, but it will do.

Too bad these are still hanging around.

We'll just call it mood lighting.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Yes!

We made it through January. And as a reward, I get today off.

(Maybe the snow day from school is really due to the predicted -31 degree windchill today, but I choose to see it as a tender mercy, intended just for me.)

I'm ready for the rejuvenation of a new month. Like a mini new year. Starting over with a renewed energy to make this particular month great. I've been talking to my kids a lot lately about the power of positive thinking, which I heard from my own mother on countless occasions growing up.

A PMA, she would call it: Positive Mental Attitude.

I truly believe what I tell them, so now it's time for me to put it into action myself. Tell myself things like, "I can do it," and "You are a child of God with great strength. You have the ability to choose righteousness and happiness, no matter what your circumstances," (a favorite quote from For the Strength of Youth).

So in the spirit of positivity, here are the good things about the weekend:

I baked 160+ cupcakes. I was pleasantly surprised that it didn't take very long, and only required 4 boxes of cake mix.

The trick is to not fill the cupcake liners as full as the box suggests. I've found that filling them about 1/3 full is optimal. That makes them easier to eat (slightly smaller size, cupcake papers are easier to remove), and not only makes them easier to frost (IF you are using a decorator tip), but requires less frosting.

Triple bonus.

We sent packages to our college kids.

They had a rough January too. Happy February, guys!

We attended what is very likely our last cheer competition.

High school cheerleading this year has not been an overall positive experience, unlike the previous 4 years, so we are glad to have it come to a close. Now Lex just needs to go on cruise control until the end of the season. About three more weeks. You can do it, Lex!

The New Member Reception that Bill was in charge of turned out great.

As for my part in the whole affair, the cupcakes got frosted,

and the refreshment table was ready on time.

I couldn't have done it without the help of these fine gals.

Mauri was a big help too, but the only picture we captured of her was this one:

(Can you see her?)

Today, the tablecloths are washed and folded (folding those large round church tablecloths can be tricky, you know), and ready to be returned from whence they came. The dishes are washed (thanks, Bill), and things are boxed up and ready for storage until next year. Yes!

Friday, January 28, 2011

Intensity

Things have been a little crazy around here. It kind of feels like the norm,
but I still hold out hope for a time when life is

peaceful, organized, clean, and smooth.

(I know, weird combination of words. If I had more time I could possibly think of a more grammatically beautiful way to say it, but right now, I'm in a rush. As usual.)

This week has felt frantic, crazy, and unorganized. Bill is preparing for our stake's New Member Reception coming up this Sunday - a big annual event to honor and recognize all the new converts in our stake over the past year. He has pretty much commandeered the computer any waking minute he has been home, as he has collected pictures and bios, communicated with Ward Mission Leaders and Bishops of the 12 wards in our stake, and put together the presentation and programs. (We have TWO computers, but I think I've shared before, one is archaic and slow - 10 YEARS OLD. That's like 100 in computer years. Pretty much good only for Bill's excel stuff and email these days.)

He asked me to help with the refreshments.

It's been intense.

In the midst of all this, we have had swim and cheer practices, a piano lesson, track-on with anxiety, swim meets, a rescheduled swim meet, rescheduled FHE (on a Wednesday), and all the other craziness I share far too often (the job, the laundry, the schedule-keeping, the child-supporting, the morale-building, the breakfast, lunch, and dinner-making...). Intense.

Then there are locker tags.

Monday morning at 6:15am I was at the school hanging the locker tags I had made the week before.

(I love that Shilo's locker is right under the word INTEGRITY, don't you?)

I had also agreed to help make locker tags for the upcoming League swim meets. (Cheer tags needed to be made this week also, but, thankfully, Rebecca took them on.) Initially I was asked to make them for the girls who were swimming C League.

I spent my spare hours (not really, since I have none to spare) on Monday (after making cupcakes for the swim team dinner), printing, cutting, gluing and laminating the 15 locker tags I was assigned.

Tuesday, I headed off to the final regular-season meet. After getting lost on my way there, and a good 45 minutes in the car, I arrived only to find out that there were NO OFFICIALS present, so the meet needed to be rescheduled. I chatted briefly with the swim-mom-in-charge, and was told that B League tags needed to be done by the next day, so C and B tags could all be hung on Thursday. Could I just put those together too? And could I cut some stuff out for her A League tags? Since we didn't have a swim meet, I had plenty of time, right?

Another "What was I thinking?" moment.

So I spent my not-really-spare hours on Tuesday making locker tags too.

Then I cut the requested stuff for the A League tags.

Since Shilo would not be getting any of the locker tags I spent so much not-really-spare time on, I made name-hangers for the A League girls too... in hopes that the mom creating and assembling the tags will use them.

I craft like I cook, so the mess took even more of my not-really-spare time to clean up.

Other intense moments this week:

Britta got her car towed because she parked overnight in the visitor parking at her own apartment complex. $175 to get it back. There's a profit margin in that in a college town. Maybe Bill should quit his job, we'll move to Provo, and start up a University towing company.

Mornings have been intense with Mar tracking back on at school. Remember the problem she had here? It's developed into a fear of not being able to come home from school in the middle of the day IF she needs to. IF she were to get sick. IF she needed me for one reason or another. (Because I'm at work for 3 hours in the morning.) It has led to mornings full of tears and worries, upset stomachs and chest cramps. Oh my.

At Thursday's swim meet Shilo's relay team had a chance to make a State-qualifying time.

They were a mere 2 seconds short.

They only have one more chance to get it. Intense.

And to top off this wonderful week of intensity, I get to spend my Friday night baking cupcakes for Sunday. Just a hundred or two. And I just might throw in attending an LHS basketball game, just to up the ante.

On the agenda tomorrow:

Cheer competition

Refreshment wrap-up (might take all day)

Hair cut (Bill needs one like none other)

Missionaries over for dinner

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Made

After her extended family celebration, her immediate family celebration, awesome gifts (she still has hardly been able to touch her brand new bike), and an airplane ride, Mauri still felt a need to celebrate her decade with friends. She's been off track at school, so it's been a while since she's seen some of them, and the thoughts of gifts, fun, and friend togetherness just wouldn't let up. She used the good ol' guilt trip on her ma ("I haven't had a friend party for years!"), so although I've felt desperately overbooked lately, I relented.

We made a plan. I thought it would be simple.

We printed up some invites.

(You get a double dose, since I can't figure out how to crop just one.)

As Mauri was addressing them, we counted 12. We delivered them, and started preparing for the big party.

I purchased party prizes, made individual cakes for each of the girls, made pizza dough and carefully divided it equally. The number 12 ("how easy," I thought, "an even dozen") in my head the entire time.

Party day came, and girls arrived. As the last one came through the door, Shilo turned to me and said,

"Mom, we have 13 girls."

In the hubbub of noise and busy-ness that occurs daily in my life, I had miscalculated. I had grabbed the number 12 out of the air, and ran with it. Oops.

Thanks to the assistance of my lovely two older daughters, we were still able to pull the party off without a hitch. It just about killed us, but the birthday-girl-and-guests had a fantastic time (the purpose for a party), and we will forever view it as a success.

They crafted party hats for their stuffed animals (an item Mauri included on the envelope -- to bring your favorite).

They each decorated their own cake (yes, everyone had one. In the midst of the party, Shi, Lex and I managed to bake cake. We are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G).

Which, by the way, was the favorite activity of the party-goers.

We made pizza. Yum-O.

We tie-dyed.

(It was a tender mercy that I happened to purchase 13 shirts. Or maybe it was the fact that they only come in packages of 5 or 3? Either way, I felt blessed to have enough. By the time the shirts were photo-ready - washed and mostly dried, two of the guests had had to go.)

We opened gifts, sang Happy Birthday, and enjoyed cupcakes.

Mauri blew out candles for a third time.

The party was a hit.

Thank heavens, since it just about did me in.

At last we can say "Happy Birthday, Mar!" with finality. At least for this year.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Ditto

Bill had another late-night celebration for his birthday.

Just like last year.

He had a stuffed pizza from Papa Murphy's.

Just like last year.

He had a German chocolate cake with crazy, unmatched candles.

Just like last year (although this year it was NOT my best cake ever).

He received affection from his family.

Just like last year.

The cake had a meltdown.

Just like last year (but not quite as bad... and no trick candles).

The party ended around 11pm.

Just like last year.

Maybe we went a little overboard on sticking with tradition.
Maybe next year we'll take a walk on the wild side, and shake things up.
I have a whole year to think about it, thank heavens.

Tomorrow I'll share what we did for Mauri's party. I think we can safely say we have celebrated enough.
(And you can read that how it was unintentionally written. Like, "Enough already!")