Ouch!

I'm nursing a pulled muscle from bowling on the Wii...Who does that...seriously? I had a sore left leg muscle today after kicking all THREE of my brother's butts bowling (and golfing too I might add) at the Poindexter Palooza held on Black Friday and then when I went to kick Jake's butt again today, I found out why I was so sore. I'm thinking I need to cancel my gym membership and buy a Wii...It's obviously working some muscles out...LOL!

Saying Goodbye

I just returned from a lovely funeral service for Jen Gilbert. There was a whole lot of tears and laughter when loved ones spoke about her. My sister was asked to speak. She told Jen's girls that when they get older, she has a lot to tell them about their mom and then made a joke that their dad wouldn't let them talk to my sister until they are like 30 years old. There were many fun stories told about Jen by numerous people including her 3 brothers. Apparently her younger twin brothers used to chase her a lot and re-organize her room which annoyed Jen. Jen was a planner and very organized. She loved her husband and kids very much.

Jen passed away from a very rare condition called SCAD. I just tried to look it up online and there is very little information on it. It is so rare that most doctors don't check for it. 75% of the people who have this condition will pass away and it usually happens in either the last trimester of pregnancy or post-partum. It's basically a tear in an artery near the heart.

I know that Jen will always be Mekenzy, Kacy, and baby Jake's guardian angel watching out and guiding them throughout their time on this earth. I know it is and will always be hard for those girls to understand about death especially the death of their mom. It was heart wrenching hearing Kacy crying out for her mommy during the funeral services today. My heart and prayers go out to her and her sister, brother, daddy, and all the extended family. I can't get the song "God be with you till we meet again" out of my head. I know we will all be reunited with loved ones who have passed on, but in the meantime, it's ok to grieve and it's ok to be sad.

I'm So Sad

Among sorrow and grief, death brings realization and perspective. A dear friend of my sisters passed away yesterday. She was a young woman of only 34. Her name was Jennifer.

Jennifer married her high school sweetheart whom she started her family with. She had just given birth to her 3rd child last week. A son named Jake. Jake is the brother of two beautiful older sisters Makenzy and Kacy, who are 7 and 5 years old and look just like her. My heart is broken and yet I have realized, once again, that God will call us back on his terms and on his time and we may not know when that will be. With her death, I have pondered all night and day about my life and where I am with the people I love and most importantly, where I am spiritually. Heavenly Father has a plan for all of us and even with this knowledge, I can't help but think why would he call back a mother of not only small children, but a week old infant. I can't imagine leaving this mortal earth with my children so young, yet it happens all the time. It is so sad to think of how things are going to work out for her family, but it will, because it has to. My thoughts and prayers are with Jennifer's family at this time, especially with her husband and 3 small children. I pray that the spirit can comfort them and all who are affected by the death of Jennifer. May they draw closer to God and ask for his comfort and strength and not curse him. May they wrap each other in their arms and love each other and draw strength from each other and may they raise those kids to always remember their mother and remember the love she had for them and may Jake always know who his mother was and that she stayed alive long enough to bring him into this world so that he could get his body and fulfill his mission on earth. I pray that all of you who are reading this post will remember how precious life is and how short is can be. Give your children an extra hug and kiss and tell them you love them all the time for you don't know when it will be the last time. To Jennifer Brown Gilbert...May you Rest in Peace in the loving arms of the Savior.

Bragging Rights

Becoming a mother gives you the right to brag about your children. Things that mothers think are so important to share with others may not really be all that important to the listener or in this case, the reader, but I am going to do it anyway. It's so nice to hear positive things about your children from people you don't normally converse with. I had two different conversations in one day regarding my two older daughters in which I think is most definitely blog worthy.

Raya has been begging me for her friend Lizzy to come over and play and although I would prefer her friends to come to my house, I have a hard time allowing them to come when we have school the next day. Since Friday was a no school day, I allowed Lizzy to come over after school on Thursday. The kids played very well together except for when they felt like torturing the only boy in the house. My bragging comes when Lizzy's mom came to pick her up. I have talked with her only a few times. Lizzy hasn't been in Raya's class since kindergarten and they are now in 4th grade so our paths haven't crossed much. Lizzy's mom said that it is finally nice to have such a nice kid for her daughter to play with. Apparently Lizzy has had some "not so nice" friends in the past where her mom had to put a stop to a "not so good" friendship. I am in shock about it. I didn't realize that that kind of stuff happens at 9 years old, but it does and I am now aware. One of the biggest things I try to teach my kids is to always be kind to everyone and make sure they are aware of those who may not have friends or those who are getting picked on and stand up for them. I have seen and heard stories from and about Raya that have made my heart happy and that feeling of "I've taught my kid well" comes over me. One that stands out happened in church. A few boys were picking on a girl while in class saying "Ewwww don't sit next to Emma, she's gross!" Raya's teacher came up to me and told me this story. She said that Raya, without hesitation said "I'll sit next to her." Her teacher said it was so refreshing to see a young person act in that manner and that I've done well teaching her.

Each month at the Elementary school, the principal picks a character trait and has a lunch for students who show that particular trait. The class votes on two people for their class. This months trait was "Caring" and Raya was voted for out of 36 students and was able to enjoy a lunch with her principal. It is true, Raya is a very caring person and I am soooo proud that she is turning into such a lovely young lady!

My next brag is about Malia. Malia is in first grade. Her teacher is actually a substitute teacher and has been since the beginning of the year. Her real teacher has been on medical leave since the end of last year. I got her teacher a simple $5 gift card to Jamba Juice just to say thank you for being there for my Malia. So she called me to thank me for it. We went on talking about Malia and how much I've seen her change and she told me how much Malia has opened up since the beginning of the year.

She then went on to tell me a story that happened earlier during the week. Her teacher gave each student 7 letters. They play a game with them. The kids start by making a one letter word like "a" then go to a 2 letter word like "at" Then a three letter word like "cat" and so on and so forth. After they got through the sixth word, the teacher told them that all seven letters make a word and to see if they could figure it out. She told me that she walked by Malia's desk and was blown away that Malia had spelt out the word "Scratch". Her teacher said that she wasn't sure if Malia knew for sure what she had spelt, but got it none the less. Malia did come home that day and told me that she was the only one in the class that knew how to spell "scratch" but didn't elaborate on the story so it was nice to hear how it happened.

Malia has always been a silent learner. She doesn't talk much but takes everything in. I am so proud of the progress she has made this year in school. It has been a huge change and I am excited to watch her grow throughout her school years.

So I will just brag about my two oldest daughters for now. I don't write much about them so it was time for me to share some of the good things I get to see and hear about. After all, I'm a mother and I've earned my bragging rights!

Escape Now or Die Later...

Bright and early when the sun is just barely up, I pack the kids in the car and head off to take the older girls to school. This morning was no different until we reached the corner street where the school is. Six turkeys grazing on the side of the road was not a normal site to see. I live in the suburbs and seeing a flock of turkeys along side a busy street is a rare site. They were big turkeys. They flapped their wings and chased each other. We were fortunate to have left a few minutes early so we were able to watch these turkeys for a while. What a coincidence that Thanksgiving is just a week away and here are these big, plump turkeys walking along side the street. I watched cars stop, kids and parents stop, and the crossing guard stop and all watch these turkeys. Then I noticed the second one to the last in line. He was limping. Then it occured to me...These turkeys must have escaped from becoming a Thanksgiving meal. The only problem with escaping is that there are people like me who thought immediately to go and get my gun so I wouldn't have to pay for my thanksgiving turkey and then I remembered that I didn't have a gun or the heart to kill an animal...so I will still be heading to the store to pay for someone to do my dirty work so that I can enjoy a nice plump yummy turkey on Thanksgiving day...and to those turkeys on the side of the road...RUN FOR YOUR LIVES OR DIE...it's Thanksgiving time!

Explore...

I sometimes wish there were more hours in a day that I could use for all my many projects. I am learning photoshop and am having a hard time pulling myself away from the computer to...I don't know...feed my kids...Anyway, I told you a few post back about Addie and her photo session. I've created another collage. She is definitely an Explorer so this collage fits her well.

40% off

I have two 40% off coupons from Michaels that begin tomorrow and go through the 22nd. I'd be happy to mail them or give them to anyone who wants them...Just leave me a comment.

Dinner at Denny's

Patrick went out of town for four days to work and promised the kids when he got back that he would take us as a family out to dinner. Of course the kids did not forget and as soon as daddy walked through the door, they ever so kindly reminded him of his promise...

We went to our favorite family restaurant. I say family because Patrick and I would have chosen Wasabi Sushi, but our kids would have chosen otherwise. We sat down and ordered our food. The kids were busy playing with cardboard cutout alien masks that the host of Denny's gave them. The waitress stopped by our table and handed us a coupon and told us it was "compliments of the gentlemen by the window" She said he told her that it looked like we had a very nice family and he wanted to share his coupon with us. It was a nice elderly man and his wife who were regulars there. Patrick thanked him personally. When the gentlemen and his wife were leaving they stopped by our table to say hi. He complimented us on how well behaved our children were which always feels good when you have four of them to keep tame at a restaurant. He then went on to say that when his children were young they got many compliments on how well behaved they were in public but when they got home, the kids would raise cain...We laughed because that's the story of our life. At least in public we can make everyone else believe our kids are well behaved...if only they were a fly on our living room wall.

Photo Shoot

I got to go up to the Temple and to the lake and take pictures of Miss Addie yesterday. I got some pretty cool pictures. I'm liking this photography thing...It just takes up a lot time and since I'm a perfectionist...that doesn't help. Check out the collage I put together below.

It's All Politics

I am by no means heavy into politics. Come election time, I do my research and cast my vote. Our country just had a HUGE election this past week. We voted for a new President. A man to rule our country and make decisions that will affect all of us who live in it. He is a black man. We have never had a black man in the white house. This is a historical moment. Why did this black man get elected? Among other things, he was qualified...He wasn't elected because of Affirmative Action...He wasn't elected because all the blacks went out to support their "brotha". He wasn't elected because he has a daughter named Malia like me...He was elected because the majority ruled and chose him to be the Commander in Charge. I read an article yesterday about the highly debated Prop 8. Supporters of Prop 8 debated that "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid and recognized in California" and the other side argued that we should have "Equality for All". The article was about a gay couple who got married during the time when it was legal in California. They were wondering what was going to happen to them. They made a comment that stood out to me and made me really think. The comment was basically that Prop 8 was about a minority issue and "unfortunately" it had a majority vote and it's really sad. I have pondered that statement a few times since reading it and felt that my feelings towards it is blog worthy.

Let's just say that I hold my cards close. A lot of people don't know where I stand when it comes to politics. I choose carefully who I discuss them with, however, I do my research and vote always. Truth is, I'm probably one of the most liberal Conservatives you've ever met but that's besides my point. Getting back to the comment the man said about a minority issue having a majority vote. My response to that is...IT'S ABOUT FREAKIN' TIME! I cannot count how many "minority issues" our county, state, and country have faced and those of us who are in the majority bend over backwards as to not "offend" anyone and accept all, leaving me offended. We have a black heritage month...Do we have a white heritage month? If we did, whites would be racist. So the gay and lesbian community are getting the butt end of the deal this time. Four high and mighty people who obviously thought it was important to make sure the minority's ruled again overturned Prop 22 which was essentially the same fight that supporters of today's prop 8 dealt with 8 years ago. FOUR people disregarded the majority vote and left many Californians offended and once again... minority ruled.

This blog is not about whether prop 8 is right or wrong. This blog is about that old saying "majority rules"...Does majority really rule or is it all politics?