Dishwater Hands

After 24 years of this.....

 I am finally upgrading to this.....

No more dishwater hands.

In all honesty I have not minded doing dishes by hand

all these years.

It has been a time for thinking and looking out the window.

I grew up using a dishwasher.

When we got married the duplex we lived in didn't have one

so I just adjusted to washing dishes by hand.

It NEVER felt like a hardship.

Even when we moved into this house

and our dishwasher was a piece of junk

because of the hard water

I continued washing dishes by hand.

The goal...

When we get a water softener

and a new dishwasher

 I will use it.

The dishwasher has been sitting there in it's place ever since we

remodeled the kitchen.

But alas no water softener.

So I did not use the dishwasher.

The problem...

The water softener we have always wanted

ever since we did the research

Kinetico=expensive.

Never was a huge priority on the spending list for us.

Finally last week we bought one

off of KSL no less.

A man losing his house sold it to us for the BARGAIN price of

$800.00!!!

Kinetico came out and installed it for $200.00.

This is considerably cheaper than a new one.

Last night the hubby hooked up the dishwasher.

Magic!

No more dirty dishes in the sink ever! (wishful thinking)

I now have to train the family to rinsing and loading a dish

as they use it.

Wish me luck!

I think I might miss my uninterrupted thinking time at the sink....

"Come Come Ye Saints"

Benjamin had the wonderful opportunity

this past week to participate in Pioneer Trek.

He LOVED it!!

We worried about his stamina etc.

But he did just fine.

I think this is such a wonderful chance our youth have

to get just a taste of the sacrifice the early saints

made just for the chance to live the gospel

and come to Zion.

Here is the first picture I took as we finally spotted them after they had rounded the bend and came into view.

 Ben and his family pulling their handcart

 Still smiling after 8 miles today and a river crossing.

 The pioneer look suits him.

 One of his "sisters"...who I am sure he will be getting her number.

 His Trek parents the Vandenbergs

 When we got home we took a picture of his feet.

After the river crossing they were so muddy

he said it looked like he had black boots on.

He said they washed in buckets when they were done.

But when we got home and he took of his shoes and socks

this is what we saw...

 One of the days they participated in a lot of activities.

One of them they were able to make these rings.

Ben said it was an experience of a lifetime

that he will never forget.

He loved so much of it.

The Women's Pull was the hardest.  Watching the women in his family

struggle and fight to get that handcart up a very steep hill

with rocks and ruts.

He said it was hard not being able to help them at all.

They weren't even allowed to talk or offer encouragement.

Ben said all he and the other men did was watch...

with tears running down their faces.

They also had a river crossing on the last day.

The young men in each family carried the women across

and pulled the handcarts across.

He said it was muddy and very difficult to get those carts across the river.

Before they began, they had a speaker

talk about the trial that faced the handcart companies

every time they had a river crossing

and how later in the year many died after a crossing due to cold.

This made the experience even more powerful.

It's great to hear and see the stories that built

his faith and testimony even more.

I am so grateful he was able to go.

FMM

FMM: Yes or No?

Do you use coupons? Yes. I started doing Grocery Smarts about a year ago.  I am not totally dedicated but I have made up the cost of my Newspaper by just doing the twice a year sale at Smiths.  When coupons are worth double their face value.  I wish I was more dedicated I think I could save a lot more money. 


Do you like football? I don't dislike it.  I'll watch a few games here and there.  I prefer Basketball.


Are you in a relationship? Happily Married it will be 24 years in November.


Is your phone always within arm’s reach? I pretty much always have it in my pocket or sitting very near by.


Do you like thunderstorms? I LOVE them!


Can you cook? Yes, but I'm not this amazing chef by any means.  I can follow a recipe.


Are you – or have you – lost weight? No, but I need to. Finding the motivation is the hardest part.  My hubby and I are going on a cruise in March....I'd love to drop 25lbs by then.  Help?


Do you know how to read a map? I am an amazing  navigator!! ;)  I didn't get us lost once when we had our trip to Europe.  D.C. was a little different story.  We used the GPS.


Do you wear makeup? Nope. Used to a little. 


Do you read regularly? Like an addict.


Are you publicly affectionate?  I will hold my husbands hand or give a hug.  


Do you like picnics? Yes.


Do you have a/c? Yes! I could not live without it.


Have you ever been out of the country? Yes! I have been to England, France Canada and Mexico.  This year I am going on a Caribbean Cruise and hopefully Italy.


Do you know how to ride a bicycle? Yes, it's actually something I enjoy doing.  I need to dust mine off and take it out. 


Okay, now it’s your turn to answer the questions! And these are easy, right? Don’t forget to if you want to link up go here! And have a happy Monday! =)

New Blog

I am crazy!!!!
I can barely keep up with my personal blog....
but I have decided to start another blog.

This blog will be solely for the purpose of my new calling in Young Women's.
It's a place I can list upcoming events.
Link Personal Progress
and most of all, post about activities.
I want to keep a record of what we did and how it went.
I am thinking of having guest posts by other leaders and young women...
Thoughts?

I may even give a brief synapses of the Sunday lesson.
It's a work in progress.
I'm thinking of using it as one of my value projects.
Stay tuned.

You can check it out on my side bar it's titled "Walk Tall".
I would love to know if my friends think this is a good idea or not.

Opportunities

I received a new calling in our ward.
Young Women's President.

Things I know about the Young Women's program...
Besides the obvious stuff
and the stuff I know because I once was a young woman
forever ago...
Nothing!

I am excited for the chance to serve with Brooklyn.
I am excited about the sisters I have called to serve with me.
They are AWESOME!!
I am excited to serve with the other young ladies in our ward.
I am nervous beyond belief.
Nervous about teaching the Sunday lessons
and about them being what the girls are used to.
Nervous about being organized enough.
Nervous about helping to plan fun activities with purpose.
Nervous about memorizing the Young Women Theme.

And to top it all off...
nervous about finishing up all the details for camp on time and starting all this.
I was the camp director and my assistant also got a new calling on Sunday...
The Relief Society President.
Hmmmm.... I think we are both going to be pretty busy for the next few weeks.

If you are reading this...?
You are probably good friend or family.
I am always open to advice, ideas and suggestions.
Share the wealth if you will.

FMM, Why do you blog?

Why do you blog?

I first started blogging July 28, 2008.  A dear dear friend of mine was suffering from Pancreatic cancer and her family started the blog "Cancer Sucks" to keep friends and family informed of her treatment and day to day happenings.  I began reading this blog and leaving memories I had of this dear family in the comment section.  Other friends who also read the blog would see my comments and look to my profile so they could read my blog.  Of which, I didn't have one.  I had many ask me why I didn't have a blog.

A blog?  I didn't even know what it was, or how to make one work.  But, feeling a little peer pressure I decided to start my own blog.  My teenager started one shortly after me.  I love that she does this because it keeps me updated while she is away at college.  So for me it all began with reading one blog.

My blog really contains and always has, my random thoughts, family happenings, milestone events, opinions and any other thing I choose.  It's a place for me to express my freedom of speech.  At times maybe even my soap box.  But, I love it!!  It has become a place where my life is chronicled.  Now it's not a journal, because journals would be much more in depth.  It's just a place for free expression.

I have also become a pretty avid blog reader.  I have my list.  I follow it.  I enjoy it.

To me this is all reason enough. 

So whether anyone reads or not.....I blog for my own self fulfillment. 

You know the drill.  If you want to participate go here

Bailee Boo's Birthday

B   Beautiful

A  Artistic

I     Intelligent

L    Loving

E  Exceptional

E  Enjoyable

Plus she was a darling baby.

A joy to have around.

Loved to perform for family.

Kind to her little brother and sister.

Smart as a whip.

I'm not bragging.... ;-)

(well maybe a little)

She answers to many things...

(nicknames from either family or friends)

Bailee Boo

Beautiful

Angel

Pud

Bay

Bails

I dug out these baby pictures so you could see for yourself

what a cute baby she was.

We are so grateful that we are blessed to have Bailee in our family.

She makes us proud of her every day.

We know she can succeed at whatever she puts her heart and soul to.

I can't wait to see what the future holds.

We Love you!!!

Happy 19th Birthday.

Summer Salads

 I LOVE LOVE LOVE summer salads!!

Fruit Salad

Green Salad

Pasta Salad

You name it I like it.

Last night our Relief Society had a summer salad dinner.

Everyone brought a salad or desert to share.

It was delicious!!

I know they will have the recipes to share on Sunday..

I can't wait.

If you have a great salad recipe

I would love to have it.

I googled images and found some great ones.

I have had this layered one,

my sister in law makes it and it is delicious.

 Frog Eye...one of my favorites.

I make it with lemon pudding instead of vanilla

I think it adds a little extra flavor.

 I need a good bow tie recipe...anyone?

The one we had last night was wonderful.

 One of my kids favorites is this a version of this pasta salad.

They love the rotini noodles

with vegetables and a simple Italian dressing

 Fresh fruit salad?...

I love them all.

 A mix of greens and fruit with a sweet dressing is always good too.

Don't you just love summer?