"The Hill of Hell"

I did something I never thought I'd do...I was in a race. Well it's really a relay but a race none the less. I've been walking like a crazy women this year and decided to enter the famous Portland/Hood to Coast relay with a few friends. Let me tell you it was soooo FUN!! Nothing like spending quality time with people you kind of know, people you know, and complete strangers mixed in with no sleep, junk food, a grueling course spread out for 2 days, and a large man driver who just happens to be a police captain.

I haven't laughed like that since college! I'd give you a play by play of the whole experience but that would take way too much time, so you get just a crumb of the whole slice of bread....the hill.

I had an extremely hard leg of the relay in the middle of the night, in the middle of BFE. It was a hill located somewhere with windyuphill roads and a 600 foot elevation climb stretched between the first 3 miles. Not a soul out there but you and an occasional walker that would either pass you or you would pass them. Armed with some serious headphones (which I had to stealthily conceal since they were "illegal") and some awesome van support, I made it up that )(*^(*%*&^%&**&)&(*)&_&_)(*_)&*^$^%$##*%^(*!!!!! Is that descriptive enough for you? It wasn't that I haven't climbed a hill that steep before. It wasn't that it was a 6.11 mile leg...it's that I signed up, paid money, and wanted to take this leg in the first place! What was I thinking? Why would anyone subject themselves to the hardest leg of therace? Was I crazy? It's not like I got some special award for doing this incredibly difficult part of the course. As I worked my way up with much swearing, I bemoaned my ego that thought I could do this. I chipped away at my pride and gave myself a good verbal butt kicking...and then...I reached the top.

You know what they say....what goes up, must come down....

Down, Down, Down I went with the speed of a cheetah! And then a most important life lesson came into full view as I plummeted down that hill (passing people that had previously passed me), I choose the hard road for a reason....I wanted the reward! Nothing beats coming off of a challenge that you don't like but knowing that you accomplished it and that leg provided me with the greatest reward. Sure, I had to climb the steepest hill in the dead of night with not a soul in sight. I had to rely on my strength and just keep climbing upward no matter what obstacles got in my way, but I also got the biggest reward too. No one got to go down a hill like that. It was a piece of cake with chocolate sprinkles and whipped cream!

So yes, I applied it to my life and realized that I really hate having to climb all the hills that I probably signed up for in some little clipboard in the SKY, but I knew that I would get greater rewards in the end...and that makes all the difference...

Mother Knows Best

I know you hear of mother's that think there kid is the cutest child ever put on earth, the smartest, the most talented, etc....well I hate those mothers. They give us moms who actually know that our kids have faults, a bad name. I'm here today to redeem myself....I think my daughter is gifted. I think all my children are gifted in some way but today I want to talk about Brighten. Brighten has been in dance since she was 3. She is coordinated and not shy in front of an audience. As she grew, I noticed that although she is a really good dancer, she held herself a little differently than my other daughter. She is very flexible and a great monkey bar afficionado. In my mom brain, I just knew that she was a natural gymnast. As she grew (or didn't grow for that matter) her little frame was built like Mary Lou Retton.

Now that we live very close to a great gymnastics center, I enrolled her in a beginning summer class to try it out. Of course, it was very evident to me that she was the best of the best in her class. You should have seen her dismount off of the balance beam today! Anyway, the teacher recommended that I place her in an intermediate class.

This would be skipping a class. I promptly signed her up. She had to go back later today for a makeup class because of her recent bout of shingles, so I dropped her off this afternoon in an intermediate class with a different teacher. I came in a few minutes before it ended, and it was evident that she was better than all the girls that were in that class...but who am I to judge right? I'm just the mom who thinks her kid can do no wrong right? Apparently, that was not the case. The teacher pulled me aside and told me that not only should Brighten skip intermediate, but Advanced as well and move straight into Training for competition...yes that is right folks...my kid is a natural! So now I will have a little gymnast on my hands. She hopefully will be competing in the spring and I will be one proud mom for pegging my kid's natural talent. So I guess I'm not a freaky mom after all...

Living Lake Oswego Style

If your from Oregon, chances are you've heard all the stereotypes of Lake Oswego. I consider myself a Lake Oswego native and find that although some of the stereotypes are true, most are not. Take for instance the country club lifestyle that might be on some peoples minds. Yes, the country club here is gorgeous but most people that live in Lake Oswego have never even stepped foot on that course. I'll show you my "country club". They don't have a golf course, but they do have swimming with a lifegaurd on duty.

They have shuffleboard, ping pong,

badmitton, volleyball, tether ball,

basketball, a sandbox, a kiddie pool,

dressing rooms, snacks, and two play structures.

All this can be had for the cool price of free! Well as long as you live in the area. So I guess it's exclusive, but you can have guests. Come prepared with quarters to "rent" the equipment for the various games. It will be returned when you bring the stuff and you can get a popcorn and a large soda for a $1.25 That right there is worth it's weight in gold! So if I do not answer my phone, it's because I'm lounging at the lake with my she-she-foo-foo friends while we sip diet cokes from hot high school boys and talk about where our next luxury vacation will be...yeah right!

My Therapist

Being creative is such a strong driving force in my life. Recently I have discovered that it is really a question of which comes first: the chicken or the egg. If I am in a bad mood, having a gloriously hellish week, or just feeling exhausted, being creative always pulls me out of my funk and back into reality. It literally feeds me. Or is it that my lack of being creative, ultimately causes my funk, exhaustion, and hellish feelings? I'm a tortured artist, what can I say?

This week has been a particularily grand pile of excrement and I gleaned from my cache of fabric that I had purchased from Boersma's in McMinnville to help me through. I then put on a Pandora station that I can actually sing to, The Dixie Chicks. I think I can sing, but I'm not really sure if people are just being nice, or it's true. But evidently I channel Natalie Maines quite well and Amy Lee is my avatar when I am belting it out on Rock Band...of course I pull off a mean Pussy Cat Dolls impression if I hear Don't Cha...they didn't call me "stripper" my senior year in Dance Team for my skimpy clothes...;0)

I digress...

This pile of fabric, once covered my dining room chairs.

They had seen better days for sure and I had about had it with scrubbing them. So I set to work pulling out all of these

That took be the better part of the day.

This is the end product...8 chair pads covered in burlap...I kid you not. The burlap was actually in good condition, but I had a rich velvet with powder blue and cream just waiting for my large rump to sink into.

This stuff is like butta!

I only got 4 done before I ran out of staples...looks like I'm headed to the hardware store tomorrow.

Of course, the big stink is still around and I catch a wiff of it now and then, but it's just so darn hard to focus on it when your cutting velvet and you know that your dining room will look so fabulous in the end.

One of the minor wiffs is the fact that my daughter has shingles. She is handling it like a trooper...she is just like her mother. I'm being completely literal. At 17, I had shingles in the same exact nerve path. Looks like I gave her more than just my food allergies, excema, and sassy stubborn attitude. Hope she'll forgive me someday when she gets to channel all the really good things about being just like me...like her creativity.

Do what you love. Know your own bone; gnaw at it, bury it, unearth it, and gnaw it still.
Henry David Thoreau

Keeping it in Perspective

It's all about perspective, is it not?

Today, I'm unpacking my office.  Yes, for the first time in a few years and several moves, I have an office.  Somewhere to really hang my hat in.  Room for all my books, graph paper, tear sheets (design lingo for magazine pages you love) colored pencils and two desks.  I unpacked the scrapbook paper and brads.  Have way too much artwork to hang, but I will edit as best as I can.

It's amazing what a little perspective can accomplish.  It would have taken me weeks to get done what I have done in days, but since going to school, I feel like I can cram so much more into my day.  I didn't get perfect grades, but 3 A's and a B is fine for this mom of 5 who actually has a life and has to cook every meal.  

It boggles my mind that I couldn't get straight A's in college when it was just little old me.  I mean really?  I think I just do better with no time on my hands than too much.  

And as a last thought, I want to share this talk....this man moves me on a regular basis.  He speaks volumes to me and I can always read between his lines.  A remarkable mind and a spiritual giant...

Great talk by Neal A Maxwell

"Such longing for a heavenly home is real, especially in view of how this life is designed. After all, brothers and sisters, when we rejoice in beautiful scenery, great art, and great music, it is but the flexing of instincts acquired in another place and another time."

I think I live on Wisteria Lane...

Really, I mean do people actually live like this?  I just had to get this off of my chest because in all my 36 years as a person (was a cat before in Egypt?  Who knows...I'm just throwing it out there) I have never lived in a neighborhood like this one.  I can't blame it on Lake Oswego because I have lived here before and didn't experience this in any way, shape, or fashion.  Can I blame it on living in a culdesac?  Nope.  Did that one in Sacramento and I can say that it wasn't this way at all.  Although I did have one neighbor that mowed the front lawn when Kevin was too sick to do it and a neighbor that I hung out with on a regular basis.  But this is just plain mind blowing!  You know all of those TV sitcoms where people actually know their neighbors...ok like Three's Company comes to mind and the Cosby show, yeah like that. I thought those were just figments of writers convoluted idealization of childhood....well they were right!  That place exists.

We just happened to get a house on the Twilight Zone Street!  Not only have several neighbors actually come over to introduce themselves, but they actually bring things over...how strange is that?  And when the dog gets out of the backyard, they bring him back to me with a smile...not calling the HOA  (there is none by the way) or calling the cops.  I must have missed the memo that it's ok to be neighborly.  These people are really nice.  They all know each other.  They all were excited to have kids move into the neighborhood.  They share extra lettuce and some of them even go out to dinner with each other.  They ladies drink wine while watching their kids play outside and walk around the neighborhood chatting.  They all shop at Target and not Talbots.  These are normal people folks.  I met the "mothers' last night and they all proclaimed how they look out for each others' kids.  They have my back...I mean I really was completely floored!  Is this the "village" that Hillary Clinton keeps talking about?  (Sorry, I'm sure you all live in neighborhoods like this one, but really, I can't say that I have...even in Daybreak.)

Then the power went out.  How do I know this?  Well one lady got out of her car and proclaimed the garage door wasn't working.  Then the men started coming outside and asking if everyone's power was out.  It was like a impromptu party on our street.  Everyone was just great friends with each other.  It didn't matter if you had kids or single, they all are one big happy family.   We chatted for a few minutes, introduced all of our kids, talked to the neighbor on the next street over that got a flaming poop bomb two weeks ago at 4:30 in the morning. I think I might be living in the Truman Show...is someone filming my every move?

Maybe this place is like Desperate Housewives if I actually knew what that show was all about.  I'm hoping it's not, but seriously, this is going to take some getting used to (besides, which one would I be?)  I think I might like this neighbor thing.

Grateful for Today

(One of the flowers in my yard...a dahlia I believe)

Sometimes life can be pretty overwhelming.  Thinking back on the last 4 weeks and what I have accomplished since my kids got out of school gives me a sense of satisfaction that can only be reached when you do really hard things.  Rather than give you the big long list, just know that I accomplished more than was humanly possible.

But today, I'm just grateful that I have made it.

I am grateful that I am ok with just 90% instead of 100%.

I am grateful for the spine that I have grown.

I am grateful for my yard.

I am grateful for the overwhelming love I have for my ward.

I am grateful for all the friends I made in Sherwood.

I am grateful for the development of patience.

I am grateful for this gorgeous home.

I am grateful that my husband makes a good living.

I am grateful that I know my Savior lives and loves me.

I am grateful for forgiveness and the healing that it brings.

I am grateful that I get a month off of school.

I am grateful that the kids have found new friends already.

I am grateful that our cat waited to have babies until we moved.

I am grateful that I am strong and that I did it.  And that I know, I will never be given more than I can handle....

(A lily right outside my kitchen window)