Wordless Wednesday

Gratitude

There are a lot of things in my life that I complain about but deep down I really am grateful for. Like my family. I know I shouldn't complain about them, but sometimes I get into this kind of habit of listing their faults instead of saying how great they are. So I am stating this here and now. I have a spectacular family. I have beautiful and loving children that have been a tremendous blessing in my life. I have loving and giving parents that have always been a good example of how to show love to others through service. I married into an amazing family of smart strong people. And to top it all off, I have a truly amazing husband, who is a great father, a worthy priesthood holder, and wonderful provider for our family.

I have some of the best people in my life.

I live in a time when there is so much plenty. We have food at the touch of a button. I have never gone hungry, I have never suffered, I have never really wanted for anything in my life. I have been blessed with an abundance of knowledge in my life. I have been blessed with the opportunity of receiving an education. I have had wonderful examples of intelligent and gifted people who have influenced me to better myself. I live in a time when tiny babies can be kept alive that would have been put in a bed to die just a few years earlier. I owe a great debt to modern medical science. I live in a house with indoor plumbing. No cold walks to the out house for me. Now that is a miracle! I have electricity in my home that helps to keep me warm, cook my food, and light my way in the dark.

Most of all I have been given the gift of life, and given the gift of choice to do with it what I will.

I am grateful for all of these things and so much more!

What are you grateful for this holiday season?

Sunday Thoughts #5

Doctrine and Covenants 122: 7 & 8

And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.

The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?

Randomness for Friday

Have you seen this?

Holy crap people, I think this is taking it a little too far. I mean yes I have read the books (more than once), and yes I did see the first movie, and yes I will probably see the second. But don't you think this is a bit much?

Just sayin.

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I am so looking forward to Thanksgiving. It is one of my favorite holidays. (This list does not include Christmas, go ahead and harass me about it if you must.) I love cooking and I love cooking big meals. It is actually something that I consider fun. Some people think I am crazy but it is something that I really enjoy. As much as my family all make each other crazy too, I really like it when we are all together. I am hosting ours this year and very much looking forward to it.

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It is a week of blogger get togethers. I went to one yesterday, and going to one today. I am saving up for one big post.

Keep posted!

(he he... I crack myself up)

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Do you watch this show? If not you should. I need my weekly Sheldon fix. It makes me feel more normal. Same goes for Dwight.

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I have a book club that I started several years ago. Every time it's just the same five people. I have tried to get more people to come, but now I am thinking it's nice just keeping it small like it is. I wouldn't mind if others started coming, but it doesn't bother me any more like it used to. We don't spend the entire time talking about the book. Maybe if someone new came they would be irritated by that. We do a lot of chatting that is not about books. In fact every time we have one Emanhaud asks if we discussed the book at all. I tell him yes we did, for at least five minutes. He seems to find this very funny for some reason.

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It is 5:30am and I have been up since 4, so that is all I have the energy for.

Here are the tunes...

From my favorites list this week:

1. When Did Your Heart Go Missing- Rooney

2. Been Caught Stealing- Jane's Addiction

3. You Surround Me- Erasure

4. Devil Inside- INXS

5. Geraldine- Glasvegas

6. So In Love- OMD

7. Tremble for My Beloved- Collective Soul

8. If Everyone Cared- Nickleback

9. Satisfied- Squeeze

10. Breathe- Anna Nalick

It really Bugs me

I have something I have been meaning to write about for some time now, but I was waiting until I actually had something to report. There is a little bit of back story first...

This is The Bug...

She is 11, cute huh!

This is how The Bug Started out is life. Not so cute! This is after her chest tube had been removed. That patch that is blocking you from seeing her face is holding in the tube that is making it so she can breath. The patches on her back are measuring her breathing and heart rate. She lived the first two months of her life in a plastic box, surrounded by tubes and wires. She weighed 1lb. 12oz. when she was born.

This is not an easy thing to get over.

Nor does it happen quickly.

We are very lucky to have her. Blessed is the word we use. She and her sister are the best blessing we have ever received from our Heavenly Father. We are beyond flattered that he thought so much of us to entrust us with these amazing children.

I have a secret though...

Sometimes I get tired of fighting.

We have had a lot of fighting lately. Not with The Bug, about The Bug. (Don't worry we are not fighting with each other. We are fighting with the school district.) About 2 years ago The Bug was put on a horrible seizure medication that made her regress to the level of about a 1st grader. This happened right in the middle of her 4th grade school year. Because seh started out the year already behind, that year we tried to get her held back, so she could learn the stuff she missed.

We were told NO.

The next year we tried again to get her held back because she was SO far behind the other kids. We were told...

"It's not going to happen, stop trying".

So we have been doing what we can to help her try to keep up with the kids her age. She was behind when she started, and has progressively fallen further and further behind as the school year has progressed. Next year she enters the seventh circle of Hell, better known as Junior High.

I am terrified.

Not just because it is Junior High, not just because I don't want my baby to grow up. Anyone who knows me knows that I am more than willing to let my babies grow up. I have had 11 years of infancy for Heavens sake. This is not the problem.

I am terrified because I will be releasing my child that has an IQ of around 80 and the social maturity of about a 4th grader into the HELL that is Junior High. I have felt for some time like my hands are tied as far as the choices we have.

Well....Her teachers have finally caught on!

Her Resource teacher came to me the other day and said that the other 6th grade teachers approached her and stated that she should NOT be sent on to the next level. Someone actually asked me if I had thought of holding her back a year......

My response, you ask?

(Gigantic Pause!)

SERIOUSLY!

(Said in complete frustration)

Sometimes I just want to scream!

Long story short (too late!) we are having her tested for PDD-NOS which is a pervasive developmental delay, (like we don't already know that she has one) and are looking at putting her into what they call a learning center (a class for kids with behavioral issues). We have also had a very serious discussion with people from the district about holding her back next year. AND THEY ACTUALLY LISTENED!

So as it stands right now we are waiting....

and waiting...

and waiting...

to see what happens with our child. To see if people actually listen to us and realize that WE TOO have our child's best interests at heart. To see if we may have to go to more drastic measures, ie. home school.....

YIKES!

So as it stands right now we are... waiting... and testing.

Bottom line... change is coming. I will keep you updated as it happens.

Cross your fingers for us... would you please?

An open letter...

Dear Sun,

Please don't go away again. I miss you too much when you are gone. I don't like the cold, I don't like winter for that matter. I would like to see you for at least a couple of hours every day. I would even be OK with those days that are frigid cold as long as I get to see you at the same time.

Love you and miss you!

Sarah

Wordless Wednesday (nine o'clock at night)

I just can't resist Random Fridays

I know I posted that I wouldn't be posting much for a while but there are two things I can't resist. Wordless Wednesday, and Random Fridays. I just can't go without doing those two posts. Plus I have a bunch of stuff that is bugging me right now.

Like....

People who don't know how to drive should not be on the road.

Period!

So here is a simple little driving test for you...

1. Which lane do you turn into if you are turning left at an intersection (or right for that matter)?

2.When two people arrive at a stop sign at the same time who had the right of way?

3. What is the left lane on the freeway for?

These seem like pretty simple questions right? You would think that every person who has actually managed to secure them selves a drivers license would have at one point know the answers to these wouldn't you?

NOPE!

So tell me does anyone out there know the answers to these?

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I have serious issues with time. I am on time for everything, if not a little early. I do not like it when others make me late. I think it is a serious lack of respect for others and their time when you make them late. I do not care of you are late for something I do not judge, but you better not make me late too. I am a respecter of others time too. I hate being forced to wait for someone. You know like the cable guy who says that he will be there some time between 7am and 10pm. I especially hate the people who say they are coming over, so you wait....

and wait...

and wait, until you just can't wait any more and you finally decide that the stink coming off of your body has to be taken care of. So you decide that you will just take a quick shower and that is when they finally decide to show up. Of course you don't open the door the second they arrive so they go away. Now if that person had just been capable of showing respect for your time and telling you approximately what time they would be showing up, maybe that would have helped.

You think?

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I want to start an etsy shop for my jewelry... anyone out there done this? Anyone want to give me a tutorial?

Anyone?........

No takers.... OK then I guess I will have to try for myself.

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I was thinking of trying to assemble some people for a blogger lunch thing at my house. Anyone interested? Would it be worth it for you if you had to drive to Layton? Would you be willing to make that drive? Am I worth it?

DON'T ANSWER THAT!

Just leave me a comment if you think it would be worthwhile for you... K.

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I had to go and do something that I really did not want to do. I had to have my eyes examined. I know this doesn't sound all that traumatic, and it wasn't. It was the idea of having to do it. I started having bad vision when I was 14, my mom insisted that it couldn't be all that bad and didn't get around to taking me to an eye doctor until I was 15. By that time my vision was so bad I couldn't see past the end of my own arm. I had glasses all the way through high school. I had them right up until my girls were about three. That would have made me about 27. At that point I decided that I had had enough and I had lasik surgery done. I haven't had an eye exam since. That has been a little over 8 years. It is easily the best money I have ever spent. If anyone out there is thinking of doing it.... don't think anymore. JUST DO IT!

I was really afraid that I was going to go in and the doctor would tell me that my vision was so bad that I would have to go back to glasses every moment of every day again. Luckily I just need them to drive, and I don't even need them all that badly. He even said that my eyes are in better shape than a lot of people who had the surgery that long ago. I could have gone without, but they will help to make things a little more clear. Like those teeny tiny street signs that I can't read anymore unless I am standing right below them. So I am getting driving glasses... whats next... bifocals?

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We had a great Halloween this year. The bug decided that she wanted to be a ghost. EASIEST COSTUME EVER! Lou Lou was Snow White, grandma made her the costume as dress up clothes for Christmas last year so that was really easy too. We went to the neighborhood trunk or treat and The Bug left us within 3 seconds of us being there. She took off with her friend and we didn't see her again until after 8 o'clock. This was a first for us. I tried not to panic. I tried to be the cool mom that could let her child relax and have fun without being watched like a hawk. It was really hard for me! I am fully capable of letting my children grow up. They just won't. So when they do something that is obviously so grown up it is really hard to just let it happen. It was actually really cool to see her go and do that, and I have to extend a special thanks for the sweet young lady that came and asked if she could go and trick or treat with her. It was very kind! It made for a very relaxed night too. Too bad we ran out of candy after about 30 minutes and had to start pilfering from Lou Lou's bag!

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Here's the tunes

1. Ticket To Ride- The Beatles

2. Take the Fifth- Spoon

3. Ode- Creed

4. Hollywood- Collective Soul

5. It's a Sin- Pet Shop Boys

6. Traffic- Stereophonics

7. Wrong Way- Creed

8. Papa Don't Preach- Madonna

9. Tainted Love- Soft Cell (BEST 80's SONG EVER!)

10. I Turn My Camera On- Spoon (I misidentified another song as being the one that I heard on a Jaguar commercial, this is actually the one on the commercial.)

Wordless Wednesday