8 is GREAT!

I came across this scripture during our Family Home Evening. 2 Nephi 32:5 "For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do." Now I just need to have the faith that I'll recognize those promptings. Easy, right?

I usually like to keep my blogs upbeat and positive. But today I'm feeling melancholy and just don't feel like being upbeat. So please be warned... this is a long and not so uplifting post. Please don't feel obligated to read it. I won't be offended! I was talking to a friend the other day who just celebrated a birthday. She mentioned that her 20's were difficult because she felt so self-conscious, but now in her 3 o's she's so much more confident. I feel the opposite. I feel less sure of myself now than I did as a new mother. Being an only child, I really had no clue about being a mother and I probably should have felt overwhelmed and insecure. Maybe I even did feel that way, I just can't remember. When I look back to my 20's, being a young mother, just starting my little family-- all I can think is, those were simpler times. Lately we've been recording our old home videos onto DVD and I really miss those days when my kids were young and...

I went to Kamary's Parent Teacher Conferences this past week. The teacher had a lot of great things to say and Kamary has made a lot of progress. One thing she mentioned though is that her students with younger siblings tend to be more socially immature than other students. She said that 4th grade is a transistion stage, where they leave the toys and make-believe behind. She suggested that I help Kamary with this transistion by taking Hanna and Kamary out to do "Big Girl" things together, like painting nails, etc. So, I've been thinking about that. Kamary and Hanna already paint nails together, we made flowers to go in their hair (which is the "thing" now), I've taken Kamary to the mall and we shopped for 5 hours, she's taking an interest in her fashion and what she wears, and even yesterday I took her to Hobby Lobby where she looked at every little trinket possible. Really the only "young" thing she does is play with barbies (which s...

"In these difficult economic times," is a phrase I hear almost everyday. The truth is that my whole married life has been a "difficult economic time". One of the great things that comes out of financial struggles is the art of trading services. Lately I've traded music lessons for home organization and photography. I teach a girl clarinet lessons and her mom does family pictures for us. It works out well because both can be pretty expensive. Here are some pictures that she has taken of my kids. ALYSSA BRYNLIE KAMARY HANNA She just did pictures of Kohler and Lauren this weekend. I'll probably have more to post next week. She also did the family picture that's at the top of my blog. She does a great job and I think this trading thing has benefited both of us!

Today was "All about 80's" day at school! This is how our conversation went this morning... Child: "What should I wear for 80's day?" Me: "Well, let's see...I wore....." I've had several experiences lately that have been letting me "feel my age" and this is no exception. It was very strange explaining 80's fashion to my kids. I kept saying, "Too bad we don't have converse shoes," or "Oh, if only I had a banana clip right now!" I even wished I had some Jelly Bracelets! That would have been perfect! I did have to say that I had fun ratting Alyssa's bangs! She was so embarrased to have "shaggy bangs", but I assured her that everyone would think that she looked "Totally Awesome!" The picture doesn't show it, but Kamary is wearing Jelly shoes!! I tried to do her hair in a sideways ponytail, but it was too short. When we got to the office, everyone gushed over Alyssa's ...