What do you get the man who has everything OR tastes that make you go "WOW"

Having been almost married 12 years I find myself, once again, at a loss as to what to get Hubs for our anniversary. This should come at no surprise to some because I am a terrible gift giver. I hate junk and hate giving junk, so I talk myself out of buying a lot of things. I like plain and simple and hate doing the overboard. Hubs "says" he hates that stuff too. I just don't know what to get him, for after all, we share the same checking account and money spent on anniversary items shows up on the bank statements. How unromantic to see what your gift cost. Which mine always run to the cheaper end of the spectrum. Does that say to him that, THAT, is all he is worth or that I didn't plan out a gift or  some third option that is equally stupid?

My other problem with gift giving is that Hubs has very expensive tastes. I think if it wasn't for me we would never buy anything at Wal Mart out of the realm of toilet paper and toothpaste. Lets just put it this way. I never owned a pair of pants that cost more than 20-25 dollars until I met him. It just didn't enter my mind to spend more than that. Now, 50 is a GREAT deal if I can find what specific brand/style he likes.

He also is not a "tryer" you know a tryer is one of those people who will get something new on the menu each time they go to the restaurant. Baskin Robbins 31 flavors were made for those kinds of people. Not Hubs: I can tell you exactly what he will get in just about every situation we are in. So the odds of buying him a gift that he will like are slim.

 That would be the second problem

The third? I AM lazy. H-AT-E to shop. I would rather see a slide show of someone else's dream vacation than shop. Hubs shops (forces kinda) FOR/WITH ME me when I need something. My best stuff has come from Hubs. His worst? from me. 

So what to do? I am open to suggestions that I may or may not take, but at least I have some ideas.

Maybe I will just buy him a level. He seems to like those. He only has about 8.

Yesterday was Monday

And the day we usually clean up from an aftermath of a weekend. The kids can't swim unless they do their chores. They usually don't swim on Monday. I see this face A-Lot on Monday.

 In the summers, why clean on the weekend when there is so many more glorious things to do: even if it is just shopping and getting hair cuts for the two shaggy Weses. 

 Monday madness descended upon us in full force. It wasn't limited to just cleaning. I guess it was an all out war. 

With fists. and Pinching. Rude name calling. Lack of Personal Space.

 It was really hard to like what these two were doing.

 All. Day. Long. 

At the end of the day, when I had had it with them, they, for all their bickering, were still buddies enough to sleep in the same bed listening to scripture scouts. For a moment at  9pm they acted like they liked each other.

More of us should be as little children.

The title could be misleading so there isn't one.

I could title this "Mistakes people make" or "struggling" or  I am Dumb and I know it... something like that. But I think the title would give the wrong impression to what is going on. First I was released from my Primary Secretary calling that I struggled to keep up with while teaching, momming, and wifying. But I did it, I thought well. But then I was released and not called back into the presidency. I suffered loss. All the time I was grumbling about my work load I was growing too. And now I feel like a stretched out rubber band. I have the room but nothing to fill it.

I have not gone to church and stayed for the whole thing since I was released. I felt awkward. I felt unwanted, glarish (yes it is NOT a word but I glared a little so it is an -ish) and stared at, and out of place. I know I could have had a primary teaching job any old time - subs are welcome anytime. But I TEACH everyday. I need a new challenge on my days off. I know I am being dumb. I know it.

Yet as I forced myself to sit in RS yesterday and realized that I was the only one, for a time, that didn't have grandkids in that room I almost got up and left the room. I did once to "check on the baby's diaper" then wandered around and checked on my other kids and then....

Forced myself back into the room where I should have been.

I need to get over this feeling, but I have had 1 other calling in the 6 years I have lived here. I don't know if my soul can take another wait of that long before I serve, officially again. It is taking all I can do to keep going. Ugghh. I will get it together soon I believe. Don't worry.

Not What I meant when I said it... but it was beautiful

A few weeks or more ago I was released from my one and ONLY calling I have ever had since I moved to St. Johns. I was sad, and hurt, and confused (because I had this calling only a few short months), and relieved a little, I guess.

I made the statement something like "Well. now at least I won't be obligated to go to church any more If I don't feel like it." I was 1/3 serious; the rest I wanted to see some shock factor. It didn't shock much. It wasn't exactly what I meant but it has turned into that. Take yesterday as a point.

We planned on going to church and then helping Mr. S's uncle take some horses up on the mountain. I envisioned horses all ready penned up, ready to go, waiting for the unknown (to them). Not- we didn't even make it to church and had to round up all the horse, too. What I thought would take 1/2 an hour turned into most of the afternoon. Not enough sunblock and water in our little cooler. Who knew? Not the unprepared mom, I guess.

We drove over bumpy two-laned tire tracks into The Meadows portion of the ranch. We stopped at  a set of metal pens and could see the beauty of high desert and mountains blooming in faint green forever. I saw from horizon to horizon. After unloading, the men got to work rounding up the horses. Soon a band of them thundered over the rise in a cloud of dust, mares, and babies. I rushed to get my camera. I missed the action shots. 

after we loaded up went to springerville and dropped horses. They ran pell mell down the hill and out of sight. One little one was left behind and  I thought he lost his mom. We loaded up and started home when what to our wondering eyes should appear but the horses meeting us in the next field. At the bottom of the first pasture, was an open gate! Again they rounded  up the horses and put them in the correct field. 
I thought we were going to have a stallion gelding fight when two unknown geldings came up to check out the new herd. But trouble was averted by the experienced horsemen. 


B Reds burrito never tasted so good after a  not so hard day on my part.

Not What I meant when I said it... but it was beautiful

A few weeks or more ago I was released from my one and ONLY calling I have ever had since I moved to St. Johns. I was sad, and hurt, and confused (because I had this calling only a few short months), and relieved a little, I guess.

I made the statement something like "Well. now at least I won't be obligated to go to church any more If I don't feel like it." I was 1/3 serious; the rest I wanted to see some shock factor. It didn't shock much. It wasn't exactly what I meant but it has turned into that. Take yesterday as a point.

We planned on going to church and then helping Mr. S's uncle take some horses up on the mountain. I envisioned horses all ready penned up, ready to go, waiting for the unknown (to them). Not- we didn't even make it to church and had to round up all the horse, too. What I thought would take 1/2 an hour turned into most of the afternoon. Not enough sunblock and water in our little cooler. Who knew? Not the unprepared mom, I guess.

We drove over bump two-laned tire tracks into The Meadows portion of the ranch. We stopped at  a set of metal pens and could see the beauty of high desert and mountains blooming in faint green forever. I saw from horizon to horizon. After unloading, the men got to work rounding up the horses. Soon a band of them thundered over the rise in a cloud of dust, mares, and babies. I rushed to get my camera. I missed the action shots. 

Lying's Rewards

This last week was a end all for one of my to be name less kids. I had had it with the lies. I know everyone of us have weaknesses and strengths and some are less noticeable than others. I know that a weakness that is obvious has more opportunity for others to point at, but in the scriptures it says (and I badly paraphrase because I am too lazy to look it up) that the Lord can't look at any sin with the least degree of allowance. So hidden weakness is just as bad a public ones.

Thus said, lying is just as bad as anything else but I don't want to see my kid struggle with the bad bad habit of lying for the rest of his/her little life. So since soap, hot sauce, spankings, extra punishments have not worked on the lies, we tried another tactic. I will let you know how it

worked

Day one was to have said child get all clothes out of drawers and put them in a trash bag. This child can have 3 pairs of clothes, by which they must hand wash one pair each day to rotate out the clothes. This child can earn (and has done so) by telling the truth each day. This child will get a pair taken back each day he/she is caught in a lie. So far it is working.

I am not advocating this as a punishment for every lier. It may not work. We had to find something that would break the habit without breaking the kid. I do think we need to pepper the punishment with lots of praise and lots of set up situations so that said kid can feel the pleasure of the truth. I also think we need to have lots of discussions about the truth and why lying is bad. Not that we haven't done that in the past. It just didn't stick then.

What other lessons in life has any other parent used to break the lying habit? I am open to suggestions.

Siblings... You can't live with them because they are Married.

I have decided and come to the personal revelation these last few years that it was much easier to live with family, siblings, parents and stuff as a kid then it is proving to be as an adult.

Some of it has to be that you can't hit, choke, or pummel your sibling into submission as an adult like some could as a kid. It just doesn't work and I bet it isn't as satisfying. Well, it might be for some, but you know...

Plus if said family member is married, there is another set of opinions to deal with as adults.

The His, Mine, and Ours Opinion. (Not a pretty sight if you think the in-law is an idiot, ....and no! why would I think I had one of those. Uggh, I am offended that you thought I was talking about ME, seriously, I was talking about YOU.)

I hear my kids fight and bicker realizing that they better figure it out now because flicking someone in the head,ear or eye will get them no where and probably worse off later.

Uggh, talking to some siblings is like kicking at the pricks and I am sure they feel that way about us, too. It is so hard to let them just live their dumb mistakes when my GREAT advice so unsolicited and unasked for would be perfect for them, ya know?

How does the Lord feel about each of us, I wonder. It must be so hard to sit back and watch the goings on when one simple (to him) change would make all the difference.

DOES the world need a little more choking and a little less talking out their feelings?

Anger is the only thing you don't get rid of by losing it. SO, more biting of the tongue for us all.