From Poetry to Peace

If you read the poems in my last post, you probably gathered that I've been on a quest for peace. I've searched in all the places I usually find peace: in the scriptures, at the temple, through chocolate and in many books. But peace has still eluded me. Finally I remembered some wise counsel given by our Stake Presidency a few years ago. They shared six daily actions to find peace.

6 P's of Personal Peace

1. Prayer - meaningful pleading prayer
2. Page - at least a page of scripture study
3. Ponder - reflection on the atonement and blessings
4. Praise - genuine expression of appreciation
5. Play - take time to enjoy life, non-persuasive family fun
6. Purity - fill your mind with edifying thoughts and music

Pretty good advice, don't you think?

As I looked over this list, I realized that I actually was doing most of these on a daily basis. I could pat myself on the back, except that I STILL wasn't finding peace.

So I decided to step things up. I started a new Book of Mormon reading plan that's been pretty challenging for me. I highly recommend it if you need a spiritual boost!

I also realized that "Play" is my weakest area. But how was I going to find more time to play?? I couldn't come up with a solution, but fortunately Heavenly Father did! My next post will be all about play.


In the meantime I'd love to hear what brings you peace!

Emily Understands

Yes, I know I haven't posted in WAAAAY too long.

What's my excuse? Well I won't go into details, but let's just say my friend Emily understands just how I've been feeling. In fact she understands so well that she wrote about it. I think she says it better than I can!

Here's what she has to say about peace, or more specifically the search for peace:

I many times thought Peace had come

When Peace was far away—

As Wrecked Men— deem they sight the Land—

At Centre of the Sea—

And struggle slacker— but to prove

As hopelessly as I—

How many the fictitious Shores—

Before the Harbor lie—

Emily really understands suffering and knowing that you should feel better because of the Savior, but still you're not quiet there--not quite over it.

After great pain a formal feeling comes--
The nerves sit ceremonious like tombs;
The stiff Heart questions--was it He that bore?
And yesterday--or centuries before?

The feet, mechanical, go round
A wooden way
Of ground, or air, or ought,
Regardless grown,
A quartz contentment, like a stone.

This is the hour of lead
Remembered if outlived,
As freezing persons recollect the snow--
First chill, then stupor, then the letting go.

And just so you know I haven't gone off the deep end with depression, Emily also understands the hope I am feeling and how gently it came into my heart to rest.

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune--without the words
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

Emily Dickinson

Not Back to School

I love reading all the great "back to school" posts and seeing pictures of all your kids in their cute "first day of school" outfits. But as I explained last year, it doesn't really work that way at our house. We stagger the start dates of various classes and activities. We're already working on some things, but others don't start until after Labor Day.

We're trying a new organizational system in our homeschool called workboxes. Marianne and Evan just finished their third week with them.

As you can see in the picture below, each child has 12 workboxes to complete each day. We meet every Sunday to discuss plans for the week. Every night I fill their workboxes with math, science, writing, spelling, art, reading, music etc. The 12th box always has a card that says "Come show all your work to Mom" and sometimes contains a little surprise. This is our time to discuss how the day went, what they learned and what changes we need to make in tomorrow's boxes.

So far some favorite boxes have been:

Reading - Evan is working on the Tennis Shoes Among the Nephites series and just finished The Lightning Thief--the first in another series. Marianne has been reading lots of classics and posting reviews on Goodreads.

Cooking - Marianne has found some fabulous new recipes that we've all loved. She's also made sure I'm on top of our weekly dinner menu.

Japan - Evan's been doing a unit study learning all about the people, places and language of Japan. He's made some great origami and is going to continue with his Japanese tapes.

Science - Making cells out of jello and candy. Yum!

Some of our favorite not-in-the workbox activities have been:

Working at the Bishop's Storehouse

Family Search Indexing - Be careful. Once you start, it's hard to stop!

Reading the Chronicles of Narnia together. We're on the final book, The Last Battle, and Marianne says she can't wait to finish so that she can start them all over again on her own.

Evan's hike up Mt. Woodson


Hopefully we'll all keep climbing and reaching great heights this year!

The Perfect Birthday

Quick! What's the first word that comes to your mind when you think of "birthdays"?

Is it . . .
party
cake
presents
balloons?

I just had a wonderful birthday celebration and it didn't involve any of the above! My husband took me along while he worked in Palm Springs. Here are some of the delightful things I did:

• devoured an entire book about Shakespearean acting while sitting in Borders.
• relaxed during the most amazing pedicure of my life--it lasted 90 minutes!
• saved my husband so much money by heading back to Borders to find some fantastic books in the $1.00 section!
• savored Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Macadamia and Coconut Seven Layer Bar (I was devastated recently when I awoke from a dream just as I was about to take a big lick of coconut ice cream. This time my dream came true!)
• listened to a steel drum by moonlight while holding my husband's hand
  
• ate fresh cherries and chocolate for breakfast
• dived into Galway Kinnell's poems in Strong Is Your Hold.
  
• crawled back in bed at 10:30 AM and slept for an hour!

It was the most peaceful birthday celebration of my life. Aaaahh!

"Mom, I'm bored!"

I love the boredom that comes in the summertime! Well, most of the time anyway. I didn't love it today at Costco when I had children jumping on the cart, teasing and arguing. I thought, "Gee I can't wait for my kids to be back in school." Then I remembered--I don't send my kids to school. Crud! Fortunately, an abundance of food samples were available for distraction.

But all that aside. . . most of the time I DO love boredom because it often leads to creativity and learning.

Last week Evan was really bored. Here's what he came up with:

He found this book and was intrigued when I told him that he could use it to memorize all the U.S. Presidents.

He was even more excited when I promised him ice cream if he actually did it.
Despite what the cover says, it took him longer than 20 minutes and he did have to work at it, but now he's got the presidents down!
Best of all he got excited to learn more and read one book about Abraham Lincoln and another one about Zachary Taylor.

His boredom also reminded him of my promise to let him use the sun oven we inherited from our neighbors. They bought it before Y2K, but left it behind when they moved.

He and his cousin Dallin made toast, grilled cheese sandwiches, hot dogs and even chocolate cake! Best of all, it kept them busy for hours!

Marianne and her cousin Alyssa were also really bored. They both love photography and so they asked me to come up with a photo scavenger hunt for them. They did a great job and took some really fun pictures. Alyssa ended up winning and I wish I had some of her pictures to show you. (You can see her reflection in the picture above). Here are a few photos that Marianne took for:

"Peace"

"Love"

and "A Wild Animal"

What adventures in boredom have you had this summer? Have you met any wild animals?

Happy 13th Birthday Marianne!

This cute little kewpie doll is my
baby Marianne!

As she grew up she became very determined, but still cute as ever.
When she was 2 years old, she asked to take a shower one morning. Because she was already dressed, I told her no. Then I turned on the water to heat up for my own shower. A minute later I got ready to jump in the shower and I found Marianne had beat me to it. She was taking a shower fully clothed. She was completely soaked, all the way down to her shoes and ruffled socks!

Now she's 13, still knows exactly what she wants, and still loves a long, hot shower!
She wanted an expensive camera for her birthday, but didn't want to give up a party with her friends. So we struck a deal. Mom & Dad paid for half of the camera and she could have a party provided she didn't spend any money. This wasn't easy for a girl who usually has elaborate invitations, decorations, games and party favors. But to her credit, she did it. She invited her friends to swim, have dinner and hang out. She made invitations from supplies she had on had and made all the food herself. She even made cake pops as party favors for her friends. You can read more about her party on her blog.

Happy Birthday to my girl--still as cute and sweet as ever!

Summer Fun!

Here are a few of my summer favorites . . .

Sunsets at the beach
(no sunscreen required and preferably only my feet get wet)

Evening concerts at the Spreckles Organ Pavillion

Spending time with my family

(My Grandma, Mom & Dad all enjoyed the organ concert too!)

Spending time with friends

Sheree always makes me laugh!

Hope you enjoyed this latest bug-free, bee sting-free post!
What are some of your summer favorites?

Summer . . . Fun?

Ahhh....

Nothing says summer like:

A dead june bug


or a hand that's ballooned to twice it's size.

I'm guessing these two pictures didn't put you in the mood to sip lemonade or head to the beach, but they are part of MY summer. Aren't I lucky?

Let me explain . . . . I have children who love to take pictures of flowers, leaves, butterflies and any of God's creations--including dead beetles. In fact I found 32 images of this particular dead june bug on my computer!

In keeping with the insect theme, Evan was stung by a bee yesterday at the end of his swimming lesson. He usually has bad reactions to bee stings, so we immediately went into high gear with a baking soda paste, essential oils, homeopathic remedies and benadryl. Unfortunately, none of it did any good. Today his hand was swollen to twice it's size. He kept ice on it and we headed to the doctor. The (over the counter) prescription: more benadryl plus zyrtec. The bad news: Watch for restricted blood flow & infection. It may take a week for the swelling to go down. Recommended: an appointment with an allergist.

Okay, I'll try to redeem myself with a more appropriate picture, even if it's a few days late.

Let Freedom Ring!

(And stay away from those bugs!)

Splash!

Remember when Marianne sold ALL those Girl Scout cookies? She's gotten to do some really fun things thanks to the money the girls earned. They've gone horseback riding, sailing, whale watching and much more. But this week was our favorite GS activity. We went to Sea World's Dolphin Encounter!

We got to pet Deke the dolphin. He's 8 years old and very friendly.

He also loves to splash . . .

Almost as much as he loves to jump!

But he didn't get us as wet as the Journey to Atlantis ride!

It was great to have a "girls' day" with my favorite girl!

It's Official!

Elder Ryan entered the MTC today!

Yesterday was a weird day.
We sent Marianne off to YW Girls' Camp for the first time and we took Ryan to the airport, knowing that it will be two years before we see him again.


It didn't feel like we were sending him off on a mission because he was wearing a t-shirt and shorts. But I knew that his suitcases were full of white shirts and ties!



My brother David picked Ryan up at the airport and was his companion for almost 24 hours.
This morning he dropped him off at the MTC.

John's sister Susan came to play the role of surrogate mother. She gave Ryan a hug from me and even shed a few tears on the way home. She is an experienced missionary mom, so she knows the routine. Her grandson Josh came along too. He and Evan will be missionaries together in about 8 years!

We love you Ryan! You'll be a great missionary.

Come and C

I thought you might like to C what we've been up to lately.

Camping

We had a great time with Marianne's Girl Scout Troop.
There were a few drips that dampened the fun a bit.
Here is a picture of the more photogenic drips.
We decided not to take pictures of the drunk guys who kept us up till 1:00 AM.

Camera
Aaron has been enjoying his birthday present!
To be specific, he got half of a Nikon D60 for his birthday.
Fortunately, he had enough saved to pay for the other half!
Now he's trying to decide which macro lens to buy.

Cavity

Ryan had his pre-mission trip to the dentist
and got his first real filling.
He is blessed with really strong teeth.
Despite his childhood habits of candy eating and forgetting to brush,
he's only had one little cavity up till now.
He'd never had novocaine before and couldn't believe how weird it felt.

Car Crash
Fortunately John's wasn't quite as serious as this,
but he was rear-ended at a stoplight.
He's been to the chiropractor (a bonus "c"),
but his neck is still sore!
Cowboys
Here's cowboy Evan just before our performance of
A Midsummer Night's Dream
We set it in the old west and the costumes were a lot of fun.

The mechanicals were cowboys and the fairies were Indians.
Evan was really funny as Bottom
and he looked great in his donkey-head costume!
Marianne and Aaron helped out on the stage crew
and I got to direct.

Marianne has been using her camera to take pictures of:

CATS
(this is Lorriane, that cat that Marianne gave her cousin Emma for her 8th birthday.
The hardest part was convincing Emma's parents that she needed a cat!)

CLOUDS

and her Cousins' Chickens!

You can check out her blog for cute pictures of
Cupcakes and more!

One Spring Day

My kids were horrified by my last post, so I thought I'd find something less embarrassing to write about today!

Sometimes it takes years for our prayers to be answered. Many years ago, a wise leader told me that she prayed daily for her children to be worthy to enter the temple and serve missions at the appropriate time. At the time, I only had one little toddler, but I decided to follow my friend's example. Over the years, I have wondered if my children may have grown weary of my repeated prayers pleading for their worthiness and preparation. Yesterday, part of that prayer was answered.

We were able to take Ryan to the temple for the first time.

We received some tender mercies from the Lord:

The sister that helped us check in was a returned missionary from the Arkansas Little Rock Mission where Ryan will be serving. She was so excited to talk to us and tell us all about the mission. She told Ryan that he will be very well fed--especially with fried foods and pie! She said that in some areas, the members fed them breakfast, lunch and dinner! She also said that this was the first time in the temple she'd ever met anyone who had served (or would be serving) in her mission.

We were also thrilled to find that the temple session we attended was conducted by friends from our stake. I know many people who work at the temple, but in 22 years, I have never known both of the ordinance workers leading the session.

It was a wonderful spring day to be in the temple with so many members of my family.

In the coming years, I hope to spend many more days in the temple with my family.

Until then, I'll just have to keep praying . . . and trying not to have too much fun embarrassing my children.

Full Disclosure

I worked really hard on my bedroom this weekend. I organized both of my bookshelves and even recycled a few books HERE. I cleaned off my dresser and got rid of all the single, broken and tarnished earrings.

Evan was a huge help! He cleaned my sink and my mirror and was my gopher. When I wondered aloud what to do with my necklaces, he came back with a wooden mug holder he made in Cub Scouts last year. We've never used it to hold any mugs, but it is the perfect size to hang up my necklaces and bracelets.

John even cleaned out underneath our bed. I was so pleased with all our hard work!

Then something happened this morning. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry, so I decided to take a picture.

Marianne noticed this teeny-tiny little plant growing in the track of my shower door. Yes, that means there is enough gunk down there to sustain life. Yes, I should probably be too embarrassed to post this picture. But I actually find it kind of amazing. A dear friend of mine told me that I should consider it a symbol of the growth taking place all around me.

So I've learned an important lesson: Growth sometimes comes from the worst circumstances. And, oh yeah, I really need to work on my bathroom this week!

Gratitude

"Behold, thou art [Melanie], and I have spoken unto thee because of thy desires; therefore treasure up these words in thy heart. Be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love."
D & C 6:20

This became one of my favorite verses nearly 14 years ago when I suffered a miscarriage.

Earlier this month, this scripture was again a source of comfort.
I spent 6 days in the hospital with Evan.
You might imagine that I felt scared, worried or stressed.
But surprisingly, I felt overwhelming peace
During the entire experience, I felt encircled in the arms of His love.

I am filled with gratitude for:

The hours of time I had with my son, to focus on him and give him my undivided attention.
This is a rare blessing in a busy family!
Our friends and family who took care of needs at home.
The many nurses and doctors who cared for Evan as a person, not just a patient.
Priesthood blessings and prayer.

I believe that Evan was also encircled in the arms of His love.
He changed during his hospital stay.
He was filled with tenderness, love and concern for others.

On one of our last days in the hospital he asked me,
"Did you eat yet Mom? I never see you eat."
Later he woke up from a nap and said,
"You know what? This place would be just awful without a Mom."

When we came home, Evan was much softer and gentler with everyone. He was blessed with a sweetness and a purity that lingered for many days. I am grateful that Evan has been healed and is well on the road to recovery. But I am equally grateful to my Heavenly Father for the gift of this illness. It has truly been a blessing in my life.

Jump For Joy!

Today is Aaron's 17th birthday. He has brought great joy into our family!

Aaron's birth was an amazing experience. It was a slow and gradual labor culminating in a very gentle birth. It was an easy thing to bring him into this world and that's the way he lives his whole life. My life is richer and more peaceful because of Aaron.

Here is what I wrote for Aaron's seminary teacher to share with his class this morning:

We love Aaron! He is:

• a peacemaker
• always willing to help
• very thoughtful
• fun to play with (His little 5 yo cousin Cammi sometimes calls to ask if Aaron can come and play. He is good at giving the little ones rides on his back and making them laugh.)

Some of his gifts:

He is an amazing photographer
He is extremely patient and is a good teacher
He loves and understands nature
He is a fantastic writer
He is unfailingly honest
He loves the scriptures

Stories about Aaron:

You've heard of the Cookie Monster? Well, when Aaron was little, he was the candy monster. He LOVED candy and he seemed to be able to smell it from the other end of the house. He could always find any candy that was hidden in the cupboard or the closet. He could even smell it on your breath. If anyone in the family had eaten any candy, Aaron knew about it and demanded some. He must have gotten his need for candy out of his system because now Aaron is a very healthy eater!

Aaron has always had a great sense of humor. When he was in first grade his teacher told us that Aaron was the only one in the class who would get her jokes or understand when was she was kidding or being sarcastic.

Aaron has always been good at collecting things. Even now he has an interesting collection of things like a rattlesnake rattle and a coyote pelt. When he was little he would collect things and stuff them down one pant leg. This made him look like one leg was twice as fat as the other. It was really funny! Thankfully he outgrew this!

Aaron was a very active little kid, almost hyper. I thought he would never sit through Sacrament meeting. When he was about 5 I was trying to keep him quiet while we watched General Conference in the Stake Center. I gave him a piece of paper and asked him to draw a picture of the story the speaker was telling. He squirmed and wiggled around the whole time and didn't seem to be listening at all. Then he gave me his paper and it was just a bunch of scribbles. I was upset and asked him what the talk was about. He proceeded to repeat the story almost word for word. I was absolutely amazed! And the scribbles? Well the story was about a blind person and Aaron had drawn it with his eyes closed and said it was the path the person had taken around the house.

Aaron has always been good with words. When he was very little, he made up words and somehow the rest of the family started using them. He would say "bunken" which meant "to open" and we all said it for a year or two. Now Aaron is a big help when we are reading something and aren't sure of the meaning of a word, Aaron can usually help us out. He often knows the Latin root and tells us what it means.

Aaron is a peacemaker now, but he wasn't always. One day I was trimming Aaron's fingernails. Ryan laughed and said, "Now you don't have any weapons!" Aaron replied, "Yes, I do. I can make you bleed with my teeth."

Happy Birthday Aaron!!

Gory Details

Okay, they're not really that gory, but for those who are interested, here you go . . .

The cause of Evan's illness was a tiny little bacteria called mycoplasma. It is so small that doctors and scientist used to think it was a virus. Unlike other bacteria, mycoplasma doesn't have a cell wall.
So these little buggers caused the pneumonia that got him down. That's nothing unusual. Mycoplasma pneumoniae is fairly common in causing walking pneumonia.

Evan was diagnosed with pneumonia, given IV antibiotics and a follow up course of oral antibiotics. Normally this would take care of things. That's where things went wrong. For some reason--maybe it was the bacteria, or maybe it was his body's reaction to the bacteria--he developed meningitis.

Meningitis is the swelling of the lining of the brain and spinal cord. Even though a bacteria was at the root of the meningitis, Evan did not have what is typically known as "bacterial meningitis." The meningitis was not contagious, although mycoplasma is. Usually it doesn't cause pneumonia, just a cough, ear infection or headache. In fact, many healthy people have mycoplasma in their system.

So Evan had mycoplasma pneumonia, that somehow led to meningitis. Some of the doctors who examined Evan actually seemed excited about this diagnosis. It was unusual enough to be really interesting to them. It was a little scary to see the spark in their eyes, and I wanted to say, "Hold on! I know this is fascinating to you, but don't forget this is my boy, not just a medical case." Fortunately, most of the doctors really cared about Evan the patient, not just his unusual case.

Today we followed up with a visit to the pediatrician. Evan's weight is down between 5 and 8 pounds, but otherwise he's doing well. His double vision is gone and he's slowly regaining his health. His doctor suggested he might want to find something less dramatic to do next time he wants to stir things up, even though they have really cute nurses at the hospital. He wasn't kidding about the nurses, just ask Ryan!

Blessed is My Mother

"And blessed is my mother,
For she is a mother in Israel
And shall be a partaker with my father
In all his patriarchal blessings.
Blessed is my mother,
For her soul is ever filled with benevolence.
She shall yet be comforted in the midst of her house;
She shall have eternal life."

The prophet Joseph Smith wrote this in his journal,
but I wish I'd written it
for it is surely true
of my own
beautiful, loving,
blessed

mother.

Happy Mother's Day!