Ch - Ch - Ch - Changes 2012

I have been quite absent this past year, but my time's been full of new lessons.

In the next few posts, you get the opportunity to check out some of ways my life has changed over the last 12 months (or 52 weeks or 366 days or 8784 hours or 527,040 minutes or 31,622,400 seconds - because some of these changes I look at in smaller measure to make them seem less big).

First change happened last February.
I started working regularly outside the home.
If you've been a reader for a while, you already know that my mr.'s 'one month non-voluntary vacation' threw me for a loop. I always thought that I would go back to work someday. Someday just came way sooner than expected.

It was a part time job that's turned into a 30 hour a week job this school year.
I'm a tutor that helps out a reading teacher.
I get to play with kids and help them learn.
If I need to be working, I'm blessed to be where I am.

Lessons: children will catch you yawning and don't even try resting your eyes for a bit, first graders pick their noses - a lot and it's a very common trait for the young men of that age to not zip up their trousers, liking your co-workers & what you are doing sure makes work life a lot more enjoyable (I'm really lucky with this one), planning home life (e.g. dinner) is top priority, every little person needs a champion (ok, that lesson is from long ago, but over the last few month's it's become more and more apparent), sometimes you are put in a place to do more than what the job description describes, and you can blow a grade-schooler's mind when you tell them 'See you next year!' right before Christmas break.

And when I say you, I mean me or "I," to be grammatically correct.

It's been a wonderful Christmas break. We all go back to school next Monday. I'm excited to see what this new year in school will bring and who did their reading.

Pictures of the fails

so I can get space back on my phone and they may be documented:

This Year's Christmas Fails

So, I'm just going to do my part to break the cycle of perfection that runs so rampant in the blog world.

Nobody's perfect. We can try to look it. We can try to act it. We can try to post it. But, we're not. It's just how it is.

As my gift to all those women who put too much pressure on themselves trying to keep up with the Mrs. Joneses out there on Pintrest, I give you yesterday and today and one from last year.

Overnight turkey- This one I got from a woman in our ward. It looked good when she talked about it on facebook so I asked her for the recipe and she sent her entire Thanksgiving file over email, which was very awesome and entertaining and I'm very grateful. 

I tried. I really did, but I think my oven's 170 degrees is less than her oven's 170 degrees. (The turkey does take a 300 degree stint at first to kill the bacteria.) And it didn't help when I came home from the grocery store yesterday morning and the oven was off. So I stuck in my thermometer and the temperature was ok, but not close enough to where it should have been at that time, especially since the oven was on when I left for the store.

The temperature did not rise in a timely manner. In fact, that turkey hogged the oven the entire day! Not cool.

We ate some for dinner and nobody got sick, but I'm not sure if I will try that again.

Cinnamon Rolls- This one's not a fail yet, but I'm calling it.I should have listened to my inner voice while at the grocery store and not bought them. They look kind of browned too much and I'm really not sure how good they will be Tuesday morning. The phone call from little mr. b while pulling out of the grocery parking lot doesn't help my confidence. "Mom, did you buy the cinnamon rolls yet because you don't have to. Mrs. L just brought some over for us for Christmas." Mrs. L is perfect.

Nuts- Well, almonds. Thirteen years ago, I made the most wonderful spiced nuts for Christmas and gave them out as little neighbor gifts. Thirteen years I've been trying to do that same thing, but no luck. This year was no different. 

Gingerbread- The boys really want to build a gingerbread house. I have some cute gingerbread house wall/roof/chimney cookie cutters and tried to use them tonight. The only pieces left uncrumbled are the chimney, one long wall, two side walls and part of half a roof. miss h told me that I should just tell them they're making their gingerbread house out of graham crackers. We'll see what tomorrow brings with their construction decisions.

Peppermint Popcorn=Broken Pestle- My mortar is now without it's pestle. Did you know that if you drop a marble pestle on the granite countertop, something will break? I'm just thankful it wasn't the countertop. 

Snap- I was grumpy a little bit. Not all day, but still not good.

Sugar Cookie- Nightmare. I made the dough yesterday so we could just cut them out and cook "later." Later turned out to be this afternoon and apparently this recipe didn't want to wait. I almost gave up and was about to take a nap when miss h said, "Want me to go google what to do with dry weepy sugar cookie dough?" Of course I said yes.

She found a fix and fixed it. Phew.

We only lost one little bag of dough.

The rest of it has now morphed into a large amount of cookies that are sitting on a big pink platter waiting for frosting.

Gifts- I am a horrible sister/daughter/daughter in law. Mom, K & G if you are reading this, I am so sorry. Fail, fail, fail this year. I think that this year I'm not a very good giver of things. I hope you will understand.

little mr. j, I am sorry that Santa has to talk to parents first when it comes to live animal requests. You know what we told him. And the only other thing on your list is something that I know one of your siblings is blessing you with. 

Cards-I love Christmas cards and sending them out before Valentine's day the next year. I love that my miss h totally did them for me this year. Just like I love that miss s totally orchestrated our Christmas Eve dinner last year when I was down, half dead with the flu. I remember her coming into talk to me and asking me what needed to be done- reality hit when I found the notes she took a few weeks later.

That's it for now. At least I think that's it. I probably forgot something big and will feel like a big failure on my fails, but I didn't take that nap and it's way past my bedtime, so ---

I just wanted you to know that I won't fail to fail again and I will always to be grateful to those who help me pull through my failures, except when they try to take my picture.

Turkey Update - Finally

We now officially have three Thanksgiving decorations living (albeit put away now as the holiday seems to have past rather quickly as are all the days of late) under our roof.

Earlier this month, when we only possessed two, little mr. b asked if he could please put them out as he would like some decorations. Of course I said yes you can with the reservation that they would have to be put away sometimes because of some unwritten of stuff that we have going on with the house at this time. He agreed.

So through the month of November, the two decorations would pop out and I would put them away and they would pop out again and I would put them away somewhere different and they would pop out again until I saw them and so on.

Thanks to our school's first grade's create a Thanksgiving turkey program, we now have three decorations to play that game with next year. And I didn't throw up in the crafting process. Thought you might like to know that as well. Oh, and little mr. j did not throw up either.

Can you guess which one is ours?

Hint: It's not the pencil turkey or the Phelps turkey or the soccer turkey (which I got a preview of via a very fun texting session) or the bear turkey or the gymnastic turkey. I wish we had been that brilliant.

Still, it turned out kind of cute and it's done.
And that's good because Christmas will be here in about 15 days and I should probably be blogging about that.
But never mind that - take a gander (hehe) at these turkeys:

You get what you get

and you don't throw a fit.

Eve of the Vote

(image taken from friend's facebook page- I have no idea where she got it, but I like it so it's here)

It's Monday night. November 5th, 2012. Tomorrow is election day. The first Tuesday of November.

I've argued with myself quite a bit over this post, but when miss s came home with so much to talk about from her government class, I decided it was time to come out.  I've made a decision and I've made a decision to be public (haha- as public as this little blog is) about it. But really, I've decided that since one of the reasons this little blog was created was to leave a little legacy for my progeny- who will someday be adults- to let them know that, yes, mom did know a thing or two- even though they didn't used to think so, I've got some things to say. Things I've learned that maybe they can learn from. Things I really hope I'm not to late in telling them.

Elections-

You need to vote.

People have died so that you can have the privilege.

Don't mock their sacrifices, even through omission.

How to know how to vote-

When you turn 18, go register. You'll get a voter registration card in the mail. It will have all your important information on it. 

Find out where your polling place is.  It's usually near your home address.

If you're living out of the area, figure out how to vote absentee.
It's not that difficult.
Once you get to the polling place, follow the directions on the ballot.
This is one of many very important reasons you were taught to read.
If you can't figure it out, there are usually nice volunteers available to help you.

How to know how to vote (part 2)-

Or, How to know what/who you should vote for/against-

Know your own values and beliefs.  

Know what's important to you.

Match your values and beliefs with the candidate/issue.

Look for information, but more importantly, know the sources of your information-and if you can, their sources. Figure out who you can trust. 

When I learned about propaganda in WWII in my high school history class, I thought, "Surely, that will never happen again. We've become a much more advanced society and will see right through it."

Like most of my high school thinking, that was extremely naive.

Always, always, always question a person's (or group's or media source or etc., etc.) motives and bias.

Be smart. Be wise. 

How I made my decision this vital voting year-

It wasn't easy. 

I remember four years ago thinking, "Hope & Change? What hope and change?" There were no specifics and that scared me. Rightly so. Things have not gone well & I do not understand the people who can still stand behind and cheer for that kind of rhetoric.

Our nation's debt terrifies me. We haven't had a budget for years. What would happen if we ran our households this was? It makes me sick just thinking about the horrible mess this leaves for our children to take care of. 

I decided years ago (when Romney was running the first time) that I would not vote for the man just because I shared religious belief. A woman I know told me then, "He really is a moderate who can bring the two opposing sides together." Now I believe her. I also let religion in. Because, a man who has served the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the capacities that Mitt Romney has- has to be a man of integrity, an honest man. To be a full fledged 'Mormon,' one must live the commandments and more. Mitt Romney answers to a higher power than congress, country or wife.  He answers to God. I'm afraid that we haven't had that integrity for some time and our country and society need it terribly. 

No matter what happens tomorrow, I just want them (my kids & theirs & theirs) to know that the decisions I'm making now, I am making in hope that it will make life better for them. 

I hope other folks are doing the same and that someday they (my kids & theirs & theirs) will have the chance to do likewise.

The Dreaded Turkey Call

The note came home from the first grade teachers today (via email).

Turkey Homework
I know many of you have been waiting in anticipation, wondering about our 
traditional turkey homework.  Well, the time to start your turkey is now.  Every 
year, since the beginning of time when Mrs. R began working at O'school, the 
first graders have created with their parents a "found" art turkey for 
Thanksgiving.  You can make these turkeys out of anything you find.  Things found 
around your home, at Wal-mart, or in your backyard.  We have had turkeys made of 
leaves, balloons, beads, golf tees, feathers, etc.  The only requirement is that 
this project be completed by both the parent and the child.  When creating your 
art work,  be thoughtful about breakable parts and food that may rot.  The turkeys 
will be displayed in our hall and on the tables during the Family Feast Day.  They 
are due Nov. 13th.

It's time to make our turkey.
I'm quaking in my non-crafty boots.
What will little mr. j's be?
We shall see.