I got a cold over the weekend. It was probably building up for a day or two but Saturday night it really hit. I should have taken some cold medicine Sunday night but I didn't and I really felt it today (Monday).
NW has a cold too and so I got AD busy and then the two of us lay down for a nap. I woke up feeling much better although I still didn't have much energy to do all the things I want to do.
Still, I am glad that I can rest when I need to to get over a cold or illness.
Tomorrow will be a "do-over" day.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Gratitude Day 25: Sunday--Day of Rest
It's funny that I'm writing about Sunday being a day of rest *today* because 4th Sundays are my busiest Sundays. And today was a little busier than usual.
As Young Women's President, I sit on the Ward Council, which consists of: the Presidents of the Elders Quorum, the Relief Society, the Primary, the Young Women, the Young Men, the Sunday School, the High Priest Group Leader, the Ward Clerk, the Executive Secretary and the Bishopric. We discuss matters relating to the ward, our focus being always to strengthen and help members. Ward Council meetings are held on the 4th Sunday before the usual 3 hour block of church meetings.
Also on 4th Sundays, after church, is the Bishop's Youth Council. The class presidents of the Young Women (Beehive, MiaMaid and Laurel) and quorum presidents (deacon, teacher, priest) meet along with the YM and YW presidents and the Bishop. The purpose is to plan joint activities as well as bigger activities such as ward youth conference; discuss needs of ward youth and take care of other matters.
So I go to church at 9:30 am for ward council, run home at 10:45 am to get my family and return to church for the usual 3 hours of worship services (that start at 11 am and go until 2 pm), take my family home at 2:10 pm and run back to church for bishop's youth council at 2:30.
Tonight I went back to church yet again for a baptism. The two children getting baptized today have an older sister who has been attending YW meetings and the older of the two is YM age so I wanted to be there to show support. It was a lovely service.
For LDS members, Sunday isn't a day of rest in that we stay home and do nothing but it is a break from the usual Monday-to-Friday week. It's a time to put aside the world and focus on filling our spiritual wells to sustain us during the week. So we may not rest much but we have a rest from the world.
And for that I am grateful.
As Young Women's President, I sit on the Ward Council, which consists of: the Presidents of the Elders Quorum, the Relief Society, the Primary, the Young Women, the Young Men, the Sunday School, the High Priest Group Leader, the Ward Clerk, the Executive Secretary and the Bishopric. We discuss matters relating to the ward, our focus being always to strengthen and help members. Ward Council meetings are held on the 4th Sunday before the usual 3 hour block of church meetings.
Also on 4th Sundays, after church, is the Bishop's Youth Council. The class presidents of the Young Women (Beehive, MiaMaid and Laurel) and quorum presidents (deacon, teacher, priest) meet along with the YM and YW presidents and the Bishop. The purpose is to plan joint activities as well as bigger activities such as ward youth conference; discuss needs of ward youth and take care of other matters.
So I go to church at 9:30 am for ward council, run home at 10:45 am to get my family and return to church for the usual 3 hours of worship services (that start at 11 am and go until 2 pm), take my family home at 2:10 pm and run back to church for bishop's youth council at 2:30.
Tonight I went back to church yet again for a baptism. The two children getting baptized today have an older sister who has been attending YW meetings and the older of the two is YM age so I wanted to be there to show support. It was a lovely service.
For LDS members, Sunday isn't a day of rest in that we stay home and do nothing but it is a break from the usual Monday-to-Friday week. It's a time to put aside the world and focus on filling our spiritual wells to sustain us during the week. So we may not rest much but we have a rest from the world.
And for that I am grateful.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Gratitude Day 24: Getting away
We don't often stay overnight at my parents' home in Logan since it's just a 1.5 hour drive. This weekend was one of those times we did.
Three of the four children in my family are married and so we switch off celebrating Thanksgiving on Thursday and Friday. This year was the "off" year when we celebrated Thanksgiving Day with the in-laws so the Allen family celebration was on Friday.
I had promised that we would go to a USU football game. Due to soccer schedules as well as the USU home game schedule, the only time I was able to get tickets was to the final game which was today (Saturday). I was really happy that this year was the off year. We had our family celebration on Friday, slept over Friday night and went to the game today.
There is just something about watching a live sporting event. There's an excitement in the air that isn't always conveyed over the TV, no matter how big your TV is. You have to pay more attention to what is happening on the field because there may not always be instant replay. There's a feeling of electricity in the air when you are one of thousands of people standing and cheering when your team runs for a touchdown.
Our children enjoy sleeping over at Grandma and Grandpa's. They sleep in sleeping bags on air mattresses lined up on the floor in the family room. Well, CM, JJ and AD did. NW slept in the pack n play. It was nice to have unhurried time to chat with my parents and my younger brother (who also stayed over to go to the game). Even though we do maintain somewhat of a routine (bedtime, wake time, naps, meals, etc.) and we do help clean up after meals and ensure that the house is in good order before we leave (no toys left laying around, air mattresses deflated, towels gathered and put in laundry room, etc.), because we aren't at our house, it feels different.
I like traveling (what little we do of it, haha) and I also like coming home. I am grateful for the times we can get away--for something different and for the fun times we have. I am also grateful to come home, to the familiar settings and routines--and to sleep in my own bed!
Three of the four children in my family are married and so we switch off celebrating Thanksgiving on Thursday and Friday. This year was the "off" year when we celebrated Thanksgiving Day with the in-laws so the Allen family celebration was on Friday.
I had promised that we would go to a USU football game. Due to soccer schedules as well as the USU home game schedule, the only time I was able to get tickets was to the final game which was today (Saturday). I was really happy that this year was the off year. We had our family celebration on Friday, slept over Friday night and went to the game today.
There is just something about watching a live sporting event. There's an excitement in the air that isn't always conveyed over the TV, no matter how big your TV is. You have to pay more attention to what is happening on the field because there may not always be instant replay. There's a feeling of electricity in the air when you are one of thousands of people standing and cheering when your team runs for a touchdown.
Our children enjoy sleeping over at Grandma and Grandpa's. They sleep in sleeping bags on air mattresses lined up on the floor in the family room. Well, CM, JJ and AD did. NW slept in the pack n play. It was nice to have unhurried time to chat with my parents and my younger brother (who also stayed over to go to the game). Even though we do maintain somewhat of a routine (bedtime, wake time, naps, meals, etc.) and we do help clean up after meals and ensure that the house is in good order before we leave (no toys left laying around, air mattresses deflated, towels gathered and put in laundry room, etc.), because we aren't at our house, it feels different.
I like traveling (what little we do of it, haha) and I also like coming home. I am grateful for the times we can get away--for something different and for the fun times we have. I am also grateful to come home, to the familiar settings and routines--and to sleep in my own bed!
Gratitude Day 23: Friends
I was looking over my list from yesterday and realized I forgot one very important thing: Friends! But friends are so important they deserve a post all their own!
I am so grateful for my friends. Growing up, I had many acquaintances but only a few real friends. This was mostly due to communication barriers. I grew up oral--depending on lipreading and speaking for communication. Though I can speak and lipread well, participating in group conversations is very difficult. It's just about impossible to keep track of a conversation when several people are involved and they could be interrupting or talking over each other. And it takes a few seconds to locate the speaker and then another few seconds to "tune in" to lipreading them. When you think about how quickly spoken conversation can move, no wonder I always felt more comfortable in one-on-one conversational situations.
I was 19 when I learned sign language. That was also when I started meeting other Deaf students who were attending Utah State University. That was the spring of my freshman year. My sophomore year was when my life really changed. That year I lived in one of the residence halls on campus. A group of Deaf students lived one residence hall over and so I spent a great deal of time with them. That year was also the beginning of several years of a large Deaf student population that came to include interpreters and other hearing students who were also learning ASL. The highlight of that year was putting on an ASL version of "Les Miserables". To this day, I still remember the songs we used and the ASL translations. And Les Miz is still one of my favorite musicals. I can't wait for the film release next month!
After my sophomore year of college, I served an 18 month mission for the LDS Church. I really developed my ASL skills during this time. When I came back, some friends had moved on but there were lots more Deaf students to get to know!
After I married The Writer and moved to Provo, I met a whole new group of friends. Well, I guess that's not exactly accurate. During the almost 1 year we dated and were engaged, we took turns driving to see each other (I lived in Logan, he lived in Provo) on weekends. We frequently hung out with his friends. We also went to church together and so I became acquainted with many of the Utah Valley Deaf Ward members. After I moved there and was going to church every week, I developed some good friendships. Even though we no longer live in Utah Valley, we are still good friends with many of these couples. Some have moved but we still keep in touch. And now we have friends in our current city and ward.
Our friends have been with us through our ups and downs. They were there when we got married. They were thrilled for us when each of our children were born. They were sad when we had to move. They took care of our children (and we took care of theirs). We have celebrated holidays and special occasions with them. We have helped them when they needed help and they did the same for us. We have watched football games and basketball games together. We have watched General Conference (semiannual meeting of the LDS Church, held in April and October) together. We have had BBQs and potlucks together.
What I think makes our current friends so special to us is that we can COMMUNICATE. Everyone knows ASL and that makes a world of difference in being able to understand and stay involved in a conversation.
Some friends we don't see as much but when we do get together, it's like we saw each other just yesterday. We dive right back in to chatting and catching up with each others' lives. I am also grateful for social media such as blogs and Facebook that allows us to post pictures and little details of what we are doing in our daily lives.
To all my friends, I am grateful for you!
I am so grateful for my friends. Growing up, I had many acquaintances but only a few real friends. This was mostly due to communication barriers. I grew up oral--depending on lipreading and speaking for communication. Though I can speak and lipread well, participating in group conversations is very difficult. It's just about impossible to keep track of a conversation when several people are involved and they could be interrupting or talking over each other. And it takes a few seconds to locate the speaker and then another few seconds to "tune in" to lipreading them. When you think about how quickly spoken conversation can move, no wonder I always felt more comfortable in one-on-one conversational situations.
I was 19 when I learned sign language. That was also when I started meeting other Deaf students who were attending Utah State University. That was the spring of my freshman year. My sophomore year was when my life really changed. That year I lived in one of the residence halls on campus. A group of Deaf students lived one residence hall over and so I spent a great deal of time with them. That year was also the beginning of several years of a large Deaf student population that came to include interpreters and other hearing students who were also learning ASL. The highlight of that year was putting on an ASL version of "Les Miserables". To this day, I still remember the songs we used and the ASL translations. And Les Miz is still one of my favorite musicals. I can't wait for the film release next month!
After my sophomore year of college, I served an 18 month mission for the LDS Church. I really developed my ASL skills during this time. When I came back, some friends had moved on but there were lots more Deaf students to get to know!
After I married The Writer and moved to Provo, I met a whole new group of friends. Well, I guess that's not exactly accurate. During the almost 1 year we dated and were engaged, we took turns driving to see each other (I lived in Logan, he lived in Provo) on weekends. We frequently hung out with his friends. We also went to church together and so I became acquainted with many of the Utah Valley Deaf Ward members. After I moved there and was going to church every week, I developed some good friendships. Even though we no longer live in Utah Valley, we are still good friends with many of these couples. Some have moved but we still keep in touch. And now we have friends in our current city and ward.
Our friends have been with us through our ups and downs. They were there when we got married. They were thrilled for us when each of our children were born. They were sad when we had to move. They took care of our children (and we took care of theirs). We have celebrated holidays and special occasions with them. We have helped them when they needed help and they did the same for us. We have watched football games and basketball games together. We have watched General Conference (semiannual meeting of the LDS Church, held in April and October) together. We have had BBQs and potlucks together.
What I think makes our current friends so special to us is that we can COMMUNICATE. Everyone knows ASL and that makes a world of difference in being able to understand and stay involved in a conversation.
Some friends we don't see as much but when we do get together, it's like we saw each other just yesterday. We dive right back in to chatting and catching up with each others' lives. I am also grateful for social media such as blogs and Facebook that allows us to post pictures and little details of what we are doing in our daily lives.
To all my friends, I am grateful for you!
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Gratitude Day 22: Count Your Many Blessings
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
I have so many blessings! Naming them all in this post would be a very long list indeed but here are some among the many things I am thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day:
My parents
My parents-in-law
My brothers, sister and all my brothers- and sisters-in law
My extended family--cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews
My husband
My children
My home and all it's conveniences (heat, AC, dishwasher, laundry machines, electricity, running water, refrigerator, range, microwave, freezer, electric lights, comfortable furniture, etc)
Reliable transportation
My children's schools and teachers
My husband's job that challenges him daily and provides a sufficient income for our family
That we could have three of our four children participate in soccer this fall (and will do so again in spring)
A safe, reliable supply of good food
A safe, reliable supply of good, clean water
Clothing and the ability to buy clothing when needed (which leads to gratitude for those who make them)
A good, safe neighborhood located conveniently to work, school, two major shopping centers, two highways, and church
My health and my family's health
The Gospel of Jesus Christ
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the opportunity to serve in the Young Women's organization with a group of fantastic leaders and young women
Beautiful mountains
Snow in winter
Gorgeous sunrises and sunsets
Trees and flowers and grass in my yard
The right to worship as I please, to bear arms (if I choose to do so), to vote, to speak up against things I object to, to travel where I wish to, to live and work where I want to, and many more.
The military forces that protect our country and it's interests
This is but a sampling of the many blessings I have. I believe we should all strive to cultivate an attitude of gratitude all year long, but it's nice to have one day a year when we can sit down and think about the last year and truly remember our blessings.
May we always give thanks for all that we have been blessed with and always remember the God who gave us all that we have.
Gratitude Day 21: The Internet
I have learned so much from the internet.
A few years ago, for Thanksgiving dinner with The Writer's parents, I volunteered to make green bean casserole, which is a favorite of my family. My mother in law said she didn't like the kind made with French style green beans, which was the only kind of green bean I'd ever used. I thought there had to be a way to make it from scratch, so the Writer and I turned to the internet. We found a recipe by Alton Brown from the Food Network (recipe here) that used fresh green beans (though we used frozen) and a from-scratch sauce. It was so good! I've made it again several times since then (including today).
I've also learned how to do some hand stitches from internet websites.
I've kept up with the news via internet for years. I can look at almost any newspaper's website and get current events.
I've gotten ideas for organizing, holidays, projects, church, gardening, sewing and many other things from the internet.
I've been inspired by pictures I've seen on many websites.
I try not to let the computer and the Internet rule my life but it sure is a great tool!
A few years ago, for Thanksgiving dinner with The Writer's parents, I volunteered to make green bean casserole, which is a favorite of my family. My mother in law said she didn't like the kind made with French style green beans, which was the only kind of green bean I'd ever used. I thought there had to be a way to make it from scratch, so the Writer and I turned to the internet. We found a recipe by Alton Brown from the Food Network (recipe here) that used fresh green beans (though we used frozen) and a from-scratch sauce. It was so good! I've made it again several times since then (including today).
I've also learned how to do some hand stitches from internet websites.
I've kept up with the news via internet for years. I can look at almost any newspaper's website and get current events.
I've gotten ideas for organizing, holidays, projects, church, gardening, sewing and many other things from the internet.
I've been inspired by pictures I've seen on many websites.
I try not to let the computer and the Internet rule my life but it sure is a great tool!
Gratitude Day 20: Clothes
I spent quite a bit of time today working on the clothes in my ironing basket. The Writer has a lot of button down shirts for work that need to be ironed. I don't like to iron so put it off as long as I can (even though my weekly schedule says "Ironing" on Tuesdays).
I am grateful to have clothing to wear. It's not as cold as it was recently but it's still chilly enough that I am grateful for jeans and long sleeve shirts and jackets.
When it's hot outside, I am grateful for capris and shorts and short sleeve shirts. And I'm grateful for swim suits.
I'm grateful for nice Sunday clothes to wear to church.
And I'm grateful for snow gear! It came in handy when we went to the BYU/Idaho game on Nov. 10. The bleachers were snow covered and that night was *so cold*! Boots, snow pants and winter coats helped keep us more comfortable (though we were still a bit cold).
I am grateful to have clothing to wear. It's not as cold as it was recently but it's still chilly enough that I am grateful for jeans and long sleeve shirts and jackets.
When it's hot outside, I am grateful for capris and shorts and short sleeve shirts. And I'm grateful for swim suits.
I'm grateful for nice Sunday clothes to wear to church.
And I'm grateful for snow gear! It came in handy when we went to the BYU/Idaho game on Nov. 10. The bleachers were snow covered and that night was *so cold*! Boots, snow pants and winter coats helped keep us more comfortable (though we were still a bit cold).
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