Secret admirer

I have been thinking about a friend of mine since last night when I saw her.

I have been thinking about her a lot.

She made a sweet comment about a fun post  I had written, and expressed how she had enjoyed it.

I thought about her again.

I thought to myself, “I wish it could be totally natural and easy to express to her right here in the middle of this pack meeting, with Halloween games going on all around, guessing games on the table beside us and lots of yummy holiday treats lined up on the stage, just how much I admire her.”

I admire how patient she is.

Not just with the eight beautiful children she shares her life with, but with all of us around her.

She quietly sits there, I’m sure knowing the answer to almost every question presented around her, but waiting for someone to answer first, but alas we turn to her to know.

Did I mention she is brilliant?

She is.

A math teacher by trade, a mother by choice.

I admire who she is as a person.

She is the kind of person who is always on time.  Not to be perfect.  To be polite.  To show you that she respects the people who are holding the activity, doing the visiting or teaching the lesson.

She is the kind of person who never shows her displeasure of what has been said.  She will give her opinion, but never to the destruction of someone else’s idea.

She is the kind of person that everyone trusts. 

She is reliable and kind.

She is knowledgeable and generous.

Generous with her time, talents and love.

When I think of her, I think of how our Heavenly Father must love the way she lives her life.

Always thinking of others.  Always learning more.  Always trying hard.

She doesn’t boast of her days’ activities, no doubt watching others’ children, caring for her family, making a difference in her children’s schools  and living a noble life.

Yes, a noble life.

I am one of your secret admirers.  But you have many more.  Many, many more.

Know that your kindness, forgiveness and love is felt by all who know you.

You are more brilliant, more kind and even more beautiful than you will ever know in this life.

But when you are greeted  by our elder brother, he no doubt will look at you, and tell you that these words are completely insufficient for the way he feels about your turn on earth.

From one of those that are blessed to call you sister, thank you.

Thank you for being who you are!

My friend, the dishwasher

 

Seriously speaking, can an appliance be a “friend?”

I think that for all you mothers out there who make a sink full of dishes just by making a meal, you would have to agree.

I am grateful to live in a time when we have so many things that truly give us time with our families.

I am looking at my life with a “half-full” view.

Loads, and I mean A LOT of loads of laundry, greet me each Monday morning, but I am grateful that I have laundry appliances to tag team the need to clean.

Sunday dishes meet me on Monday morning, when we are aiming for an early bedtime on Sunday to start the week right, but I am grateful for the dishwasher that allows me to load and walk away. (I will add that the child with the kitchen chore for the week, HATES the double, and sometimes, triple unloading chore that occurs on Monday)

Our fruit bowl gets eaten almost as fast as I can load it, but I am grateful for a wonderful store nearby with fresh fruit at very inexpensive prices.

The cool 22 degrees that met me this morning as I was taking children to the bus stop, did not greet me while sleeping , thanks to a reliable furnace.

I can read to my children, as we snuggle in bed, by a light located very nearby.

I also know that throughout all generations of time, with and without these luxuries, families have embraced what they did have, and made it work.

Hopefully, I will be able to take advantage of the time I have been given, and work a little harder to make those lives’ around me better and brighter!

I’d better go load the dishwasher from dinner, the washer from sports practice…

*Note: I was trying to help out the child on kitchen duty by unloading one load in the middle of the day, and this is what greeted me when I turned around from the silverware tray…little miss annie…I am definitely going to keep this smiling photo for the first week her name is added to the chore chart and she has kitchen duty!

Trunks, treats, and little sweets!

The Ponderosa family all celebrating together…

 

Creative costumes and lots of fun.

Trunk-or-treat lets us know that Halloween has just begun.

I love the families all gathered together.

Cars side by side, just like mansions in our forever.

Tonight I am grateful for family and friends.

And the knowledge that these relationships never need to end!

I looked out the window and what did I see?

Little Annie’s bootie!

Annie was caught with her “pants down” smiling at the dog outside the window!

Editors note: Her sisters, Ellie and Brooke, apparently did not secure the diaper properly.

Note to self: Have diapering class first thing in the morning!

Hidden talents

Do you have any “hidden” talents?

Yesterday, my mom left a message on my cell phone and it went something like this, “Laura, thank you so much for doing this (deep cleaning the house before company comes for my brother, Bernie’s farewell this weekend.)  Thank you for sharing this “talent”!  I love you!”

Talent.

I had never thought of it like that.

Friday, I had spent the day deep cleaning my sister, Julie’s, home for a very belated Christmas gift.  It is October, I know!

As  I cleaned one beautiful room after the next, I thought to myself, look at how talented she is.

She can literally turn an ordinary guest room into the most beautiful office I have ever seen, and still have it set up to be the most warm and inviting room for a guest to rest their weary head.

She takes care of every detail.

The curtains are made from her own hand.

The frames on the wall, a collage of ideas and dreams.

The bathroom contains beautiful fabrics that are in the same color pallet as the rest of the room.  It would make any designer proud.

The desk is completely organized and functional.

The bedrooms across the hall…just as beautiful.

Decked to the hill with whimsical princess colors, perfectly matched outfits hanging in the closets, and bulletin boards showcasing her darling girls artwork and achievements.

I could go on and on…

She is amazing!

My other sister, Melissa, lends her talents to hand-made quilts given to each of my children at their baptisms.  It is one of the most anticipated gifts at this special occasion.

She, too, blessed with so many beautiful talents.

A beautiful voice that seems to carry the rest of us when singing in an ensemble.

Then I thought about my talents.

I wasn’t really jealous, just a little sad that I don’t possess these obvious, beautiful talents.

An office, perfectly decorated and a song perfectly performed, are remembered far longer than a clean bathroom.

Beautiful curtains and quilts provide warmth to a home much more than a dusted bookcase.

Right?

Then I thought back to my mom’s comment, “Thanks for sharing this talent.”

It is a talent.

And it hopefully, does brighten a long day and a busy week.

A clean home that you can relax and be with your loved ones in, is a blessing.

I began to think of all the other, “hidden” talents.

I thought of those of you that are amazing listeners.  The only ones who know how wonderful your talent is, are the ones who you quietly listen to and don’t judge.  The ones whose tears wet your shoulders.

I thought of those of you who get up every morning and are incredible moms.  You may not have the perfect body left over, from bearing those beautiful children, but you love them and they know it!

I thought of all the secretaries who quietly do exactly what they are asked to do.  No glory, no name printed title, just an essential piece of a very blessed presidency.

I am sitting here thanking my Heavenly Father for blessing me with this thing that I am good at, and for allowing me the health to share it with those around me.

I will never be able to express how I feel, being in someone’s home, helping them organize and clean, and them trusting in this hidden talent of mine.

To all of you who have allowed me to culture this talent, I will always love you.

And maybe someday, I will make one of those beautiful quilts, and have one of those beautifully put together homes, but for now, I will share what I have.

And I hope all of you will too…

Come on in…

Fall is here, so come on in!

I love this time of year!  I think that I shared how I feel about Fall last year, but it is even stronger this year.

I have all this time…”real” time with my family.

Not that it isn’t filled with volleyball and football games, birthday parties and sacrament programs, homework and laundry and everything else…it is just different this year.

I think it is because I know of my family’s sacrifice to support me in my calling last year.

I can feel the difference.

I want to show them that they are first and foremost in my mind.

I want to make cookies everyday.

I want to burn my wassail candle everyday.

I want apple cider brewing on the stove everyday.

I know that this is a perfect time for me to organize, and document, and file and deep clean, and drop a few pounds, but I want to

go pumpkin picking, make applesauce, and think about what meal to make my family for dinner before the sun comes up!

CRAZY!

Hopefully, I will be able to make this the best year ever!

If you are in need of a holiday jumpstart…the door is OPEN!

Let’s go make memories and we’ll get a walk in too!

WE DID IT!

 

Isn’t it picture heaven? 

I should rename my blog

“This Heaven on Earth in Pictures”

Big…beautiful…pictures!

Thank you Kara, Chris and John for making my small dream come true!

Friends are Forever

Friends are forever.

Sounds like such a simple phrase.

You look around, you choose a friend, you are friends forever. Right?

Well, not quite.

Friends forever means that there is a bond that will last into the eternities.

Do you have a friend like this?

I have been blessed in my life to be surrounded by friends.

Friends who have strengthened me, taught me, helped me, laughed with me and even cried with me.

They have enriched my life for the better.

Today is one of those dearest of friends' birthdays.

She was someone who came into my life when I didn't know a soul around me in a new school and in a new state.

I had moved to Anchorage, Alaska. It was 1984. The Summer Olympics were over, we had moved from Parker, Colorado waaaaaaaay North, and I was thrust into a new junior high with no sibling by my side.

I loved moving.

I know that may sound crazy to someone who doesn't like change, but I embrace it.

I love it!

I loved moving as a child.

My dad worked in the oil business and was great at it, so we got to move all over to start up new plants or help struggling ones.

Needless to say, here I was, 12 years old, new environment, no friends, and freezing!

And there she was...

My dear friend, Tami.

She was my instant friend. She smiled at me and introduced herself on Sunday, and we instantly became friends.

We attended the same junior high and had virtually the same schedule.

She was always there.

She would surprise me with my favorite candy on my "unbirthdays," which consisted of only yellow Starburst and pink Extra gum.

She was there when I cried at my locker after just watching the shuttle explode with the first ever civilian on board.

That was the year I started playing volleyball, discovered running, and rode the bus to and from school in complete darkness.

She was my light!

There was nothing I couldn't do with Tami cheering me on.

My fears of being in school alone disappeared, my awkwardness of being new was almost invisible, and my self-esteem grew.

It grew and grew and grew!

Not in a bad way, just in a "I can do anything" way, because I had this friend who just pointed out my strengths and ignored my weaknesses.

She empowered me in a way that I will never be able to repay her!

This past Saturday I was driving my now 12 year old daughter, to her first competitive volleyball tryouts and there on the radio I heard it.

Our song.

The song that I loved in high school and that Tami let me listen to over and over again.

Glory of love.

I was twelve, could only see PG movies, and Karate Kid II was the current hit! Bare with me!

As I teared up listening to that song, and recalling those amazing memories, I thanked my Heavenly Father for sending me Tami.

She will forever be bonded to me...eternally...for the gift she gave to me.

The gift of seeing how my Heavenly Father saw me through her eyes, through her encouragement, through her love.

May my daughters be as blessed as I was.

Happy Birthday Tami!

I will forever love you, my eternal friend.

BFF ~Laura

Trying to see the "big" picture-someone PLEASE help!!

Trying to figure out the BIG picture trick.

I am desperate to make my pictures BIG!

I can't seem to figure out the whole HTML thing, and I want the beautiful pictures that I know are possible.

I also don't know how to change my wrapper size. Not gum, blog version!

Anyone, anywhere, know how to do these magical things?

I have wasted way too much time on this little project today!

Thank you in advance!

~Laura

The pictures are IN! Peeking is a MUST!!

Really, there is nothing to say!

No poetic words could even begin to describe how much I love these photos.

I loved the time we had that day!

Visiting with friends, being in the temple, playing on the beach, and exposing ourselves to Michelle's brilliance.

I know that there are a bazillion photos, but I couldn't choose just one.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.