Daddy Love, Chickens, and Other Random Stuff

Valentine's Day Dinner

When Danika and Brooke were little they used to yell "Daddy!" and run to the front door as soon as they heard him turn the key in the lock when he got home from work. They would hang on his legs (one on each) and he would drag them over to the kitchen and give them hugs. Sometimes they would hang on his biceps and he would try to lift them up. It was so cute! Now they've outgrown that, and we're lucky to get a mono-syllabic grunt from them when we walk in.

After they grew too old to display such unbridled affection for a parent, Megan took over the "Daddy's home!" routine. But at ten years old, even she doesn't run to greet her old dad anymore. Thank goodness for Trixie! Every time one of us walks in, she greets us with a "hello" howl and nearly shakes out of her skin with her tail wagging. It's nice to still have someone be glad to see us.

However, Megan still loves us and isn't ashamed to show it--especially Mike. They are buddies through and through. Since February is the month we celebrate love, I wanted to post some pictures of things they shared this month.

Nap time

Megan likes to give her dad "piano lessons." He willingly submits :)

Mike and Megan went to a Daddy-Daughter dance hosted by the city with the Oylers and Fuhrimans.

Other happenings this month included Megan's History Fair project--which she did NOT enjoy. It was like pulling teeth. She just kept saying "I don't like history." I pretty much had to do most of it, although once we got to the point of putting it all on the board she finally got excited about it! Ha! She wouldn't pick a topic, which was supposed to be something to do with the theme "Debate & Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, and Consequences." How does a 5th grader relate to a theme like that? It was interesting to see what they came up with (I was one of the judges at the Fair). I suggested Megan do Susan B. Anthony, and how she voted illegally and was arrested, and fought her whole life for women's suffrage. I think she learned a couple of things, and was surprised that women couldn't vote in this country until 1920.

Doesn't she look excited?

On a totally separate topic, I finished painting the baseboards upstairs--hooray!

It was a happy day for me when I got to pull off the last of the blue tape--I'm so sick of seeing that tape everywhere!

And on a final note, we had a random experience with a neighbor's chicken. Meet Phyllis Diller. She was in our yard one afternoon and wouldn't leave. Trixie was going berserk. It was getting dark and she was bedded down on our porch. I called around to see who she belonged to. Turns out it was our back neighbor's "pride and joy." I really didn't want to wake up to a frozen chicken, so I wrapped her in a towel and had Danika drive me around the block so I could return her. Turns out she has a sister named "Dyllis Philler." Now those people have a sense of humor.
Incidentally, a few days later we cracked this egg into the pan for breakfast one morning. I don't know what's going on, but we are having some weird chicken karma lately.

My One Little Word

I've been giving it lots of thought, and I think I have finally decided on my "one little word" for 2011. It is:

Prioritize

I really, really wanted to pick a warm, fuzzy word like "nurture" or "enjoy," but this is where I need to improve, so that's why I settled on it. It's an intimidating word to me. I hope to figure out how to make peace with it this year :)

The Messy Bits

One of my favorite new quotes is from the movie Letters to Juliet (Thank you Hollywood, for actually making a clean, sweet movie. My faith in you is restored). The best part of the entire movie for me is when Charlie flippantly says to his grandma how great it would be if her long-lost Lorenzo was successful and rich, because then she could "skip all the messy bits" of life with him and just enjoy the ease and fortune. Vanessa Redgrave--in her perfectly British way--retorts: "Life IS the messy bits, Charlie."

How profound. Even though we wish it weren't so, life is the messy bits: the bits that make us tired, wear down our patience, scare us to death, make us laugh and cry. The mundane bits, the bits we don't think we can take one more day, and the bits of beauty and love that help us keep going.

I'm sitting in a big, ol' messy bit right now wondering where to start. Lest I sound spoiled and ungrateful, I'm so thankful for this beautiful new home! I realize how blessed I am, and that what I have to worry about is so insignificant to most of the problems people have. But now that the dust has literally settled, I can see how easy it would be to just leave all the unfinished business and just live with it like it is. I need to get working on all those little bits that need finishing, or I will lose momentum and never finish them. I want to do many things that take money and time, and I wish they were all finished RIGHT NOW! It's a good exercise in patience for me.

Kim wanted to see some pictures, and I wanted to post some pictures of how it looks now so that when I get the projects finished I can see the difference. So here goes. All my messy bits laid right out for all to see. (I have to admit, I decluttered my kitchen before taking these--but the rest of the place is pure messy bits).

First, and probably the biggest job, is that I need to tile my back splash behind the cooktop area and between the counter and bar. The actually tiling doesn't intimidate me, but figuring out the tile color and design. I'm loving the big, open kitchen though.


I opted for a single basin sink. I'm not sure if I like it 100%, but I do love not having that stupid divider in the middle. It's much easier to wash large pots and pans.


The desk is great, but we have the big ugly computer hidden under it, so it's hard to push in the chair. Some day we will get a smaller hard drive, or a Mac (in my kids' dreams!) to eliminate this minor annoyance.

We also need to find some taller bar stools and a new kitchen table (with actual matching chairs). We may build in a bench along the wall to eliminate having to push chairs in and out.


I love these hidden pull-out spice racks, and the deep drawers for pots and pans.


We need to find and install a black microwave.


Second big project: the fireplace. I need to decide what I want to do around the "floating black square" and what kind of mantle to get.


The family room (adjacent to kitchen) needs to be made useful and livable--furniture arranged, pictures hung, and be "accessorized."


Here's the front entryway. I need to do something here that makes it feel inviting. We have never bought much furniture in the likes of coffee tables or end tables, and now with a little bigger house I'm thinking it's time to accessorize. I'm so NOT good at that.


Here are my bookshelves filled up. They need some tweaking, but overall I like this cozy room.


The painter finally came back and finished the banister. It looks really nice.


But, in the process he chipped one of our tiles. In a way it is good, because we wanted to put nosing along that top step to prevent this very thing. So now we have the motivation to fix it I guess!


We're still waiting for the building supplier to bring a replacement for our cracked front bedroom window (all the windows need to be washed too, by the way. Thankfully it's winter, so I have an excuse to not worry about the outside right now).


Some parts of the mudroom have to be sanded down again and repainted due to drips and big streaks in the paint. Mike sprayed them in poor lighting, and now we can see the mistakes.

This side will have hooks too once it's repainted.


Here's the half bath across from the mudroom when you come in from the garage. Nothing exciting.


Third big job: the baseboards in all the tiled areas need caulking and painting. We didn't finish them before moving in.


I need to paint this shelf in the laundry room.


I'd love a new washer and dryer set someday. We included our new front-load LGs as part of the deal when we sold our old house, and now have a couple of old clunkers. But they work!


The doors of the exercise room closet and one of the linen closet need to be painted and hung.



Good news: I got my food storage unpacked and organized in the cold storage room. It's the first time I've had a designated space for food storage, and it's so nice to have it all in one place. It's nice and cool in there too.

We are planning on having a small counter installed in the downstairs bathroom for curling irons, and hanging mirrors above the towel bars so the girls can keep their electrical stuff away from the sinks.


Their sinks are on the opposite wall:


Danika's and Brooke's rooms are huge and need decorating--especially rugs and some seating, and possibly desks. Someday when I have the money, I would like to have some bookshelves built in on each side of their windows. (That may never happen, but it's fun to dream, right?)

There was a dead space right outside their bedrooms, so I had our finish guy build a bench for their shoes and coats, etc.


This is our family room in the basement. Eventually we will put in a kitchenette. Right now it is the dumping ground for all our mismatched furniture. It is really echo-y due to all the bare floors and walls.


I want to do something fun in Megan's play space under the stairs. It has lots of potential.


Here's Megan's room (see, I left it messy!)--it still needs some decorating:


And the upstairs main bathroom:


Last but not least is the master bedroom, which will probably be very last on the "to do" list. It doesn't really need anything done to it. I would just like to do some decorating--like getting towels that match my rugs, hanging some pictures, replacing the comforter I've had on the bed for 10+ years.


That's it! I've got all my projects for 2011 laid out right here. Not to mention we need to put in our front and back yards! And plan Stake Girls' Camp! Gotta love the messy bits!

Starting Fresh

Another year has come and gone. It seems life keeps speeding up as I slow down. 2010 was a big year for us as a family. Searching for a place to build, building, and moving consumed almost the entire year. So in that respect, we accomplished a lot, but when you look at the rest of our lives--the social, creative, spiritual, fun parts--2010 was woefully lacking. The good news is that now we are moved in, and can start nurturing those neglected areas again.

I am really looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas this year. For two years in a row we have been moving, unpacking, settling in from Thanksgiving weekend through the month of December. The holidays have been "distracted" at best. I want this year to be more relaxed and enjoyable with my kids. Believe it or not, it is Danika's last Christmas before she graduates, and I want to make it memorable, as we might not have her around much longer.

I love starting a new year. Mentally, it's like turning the page to a clean, blank slate for me. I know it's just another day in a string of many, but there is something cathartic about putting up a new calendar. I am not one to make resolutions, but January fills me with anticipation of "what could be." I could become a better household manager; I could be better at eating healthier; I could get in shape; I could study the Gospel more sincerely; I could be less grouchy; I could scrapbook, quilt, read and do all the things I love more and not feel guilty doing it!

Last year I set some goals. How did I do? Let's check:

• Be more alert to the needs of others. Not so much--but I did start trying to plan meals and make them so we could eat together.
  
• Listen better. Still working on this--stop what I'm doing and look them in the eye.
  
• Spend more personal time with my girls. Need to work harder on this.
  
• Date my husband. Need to work harder on this.
• Continue to develop my relationship with God. Always a continuing process.
  
• Push away from the computer. Need to add "and new cell phone."
  
• Be strong and patient while Mike is in Iraq. Thankfully he didn't go!
  
• Keep exercising, even if I don't drop a jeans size. Always a continuing process.
• Read more of what I want to read. This year I want to read some classics I've never read.
  
• Stop feeling guilty for things I can't control. No comment.
  
• Allow myself time to create, as creating makes me happy. Now I have no excuse. I have plenty of room to finish some quilts I've been thinking about.
  
• Learn to keep my mouth shut. Great idea...haven't learned to do it yet though.
  

Kim blogged about an interesting idea by Ali Edwards that I think I can use to give this year meaning and purpose. Without some kind of focus, my weeks slip by willy-nilly and by the end of the year I realize I wasn't in control of anything that happened. I was just present in time and space, fulfilling my duties. The concept is to choose one little word in January that is your guiding theme for the year. I love this idea! It is simple and less daunting than a list of resolutions (which I tried, and failed at miserably). So my challenge this week to to ponder what I want for myself in 2011, and come up with "my word."