The egg sac

There have been two spider egg sacs next to our front door for several days.
On the underside of the siding.
So, last night my hubbie and I went out to water the blueberries. I decided this would be a good time to jet off the front entrance and zap those egg sacs (along with all the other bugs that have made their home there).

I don't enjoy killing living things. But...if little critters are on my turf, they just have to go. It's as simple as that.
So, have you jetted an egg sac lately? They are tough little cookies. I had to spray for a good 3 minutes before the things would come free.

I don't enjoy killing living things. And when it takes longer than a few seconds, I start to feel sick inside. It gives you too much time to think....
I started thinking about the mommy spider who worked so hard to make a safe sac for her babies. She did such a good job securing them to my siding! They were well protected. But, I am a big, bad human with a powerful stream of water, and I won.

So then I came inside and got out Charlotte's Web to read to the kids. What chapter are we on?

"The Egg Sac"

That's right.
Charlotte, the loyal and selfless friend of Wilbur, creates her "magnum opus" in that chapter. 514 baby spiders wrapped securely until spring. It took all she had left in her.

There I sat reading this beautiful and sensitive writing. Me! The one who just pulverized not one, but two "magnum opi".
Sigh...
I felt horrible.

But, then I thought of 1,028 spiders by my front door and I didn't feel quite so bad.

BUSY BUSY

I'm a country farm girl at heart.
I WANT to be a country farm girl....
even though I'm not one.
I fantasize about being Laura Ingalls Wilder or Anne of Green Gables,
even though I like my curling iron and I kill most plants I come in contact with.
Animals? no experience with them.
so Why do I have this dream?
Well, one reason is because "back then" life was simpler.
Quieter, slower, thoughtful, peaceful.
People knew how to appreciate real entertainment back then.
Like a sunset.
Or a string of notes slipping from violin strings.
Or a book being read out loud...while the fire crackles...and mom knits in the corner.

Can't you see it?
Perfect, right?

But I was born when I was born and honestly I'm happy to be here now, at this time.
It's exciting, this time on earth.

But I do pine for simpler times sometimes.

Today I had a revelation while reading this article about BUSYness
in my monthly church magazine.

The revelation was simply that I choose exactly how simple or busy my life is. Not necessarily just how many activities or events I fill my life with, but my FRAME OF MIND.

Do I truly listen when my 6 year old spouts the 100th dinosaur fact of the day to me?

Am I wholeheartedly playing a game of pretend with my 3 year old, forgetting any lists or obligations?

Am I taking time to meditate on God's will for our family and myself?

Do I look into my childrens' eyes every day and think about how amazing they are and how precious they are to me?

Do I do something small each day to show my husband how crazy in love I am with him?

The things that show I'm not too busy to listen, to care, to know what's most important.

If I face the facts, I have to admit that my A personality back in the 1800s could be just as "Busy."

I could be baking bread, washing clothes with a washboard, harvesting my bountiful garden, and never take the time to memorize every curve of my baby's face.

So, since Heavenly Father has been tapping my soul about this lately, I'm guessing I'm not the only Mom out there who has to fight the same balance: relishing each day but also doing the things that must be done so everything doesn't fall apart.

So to all you Moms out there, here's a great poem that is now on my fridge to remind me NOT TO HURRY my way through life.

Duties are pressing upon me,
And the time for work is brief,
What if with purblind vision,
I neglect the very chief?

What if I do with ardor
What a thousand could maybe,
And leave undone forever
What was meant for only me?

--Charlotte Fiske Bates

I love kids...

Apparently, I took too long in the bathroom to receive this gift in person.

A Wedding, A Birthday, and Sightseeing

Recently we went to Utah for some family fun. Most of our family lives there or is kind enough to travel to Utah whenever we do. :-) It was a lot of fun.


Sam's brother got married to a beautiful girl. We all agree he married up:-). And that's saying something since he's quite the guy.

Kennecott Copper Mine.

We toured Brigham Young's house in Salt Lake City. We've done this a few times before, but the kids keep getting older, so it's always a new experience through their eyes.

Brigham Young's Dinner Bell that inspired us to get our own dinner bell. (One of the best purchases we've ever made!) Bells work to summon husbands, too. :-)

The entertaining room in BY home

My dear Papa with baby Jack

Adorable brother and his wife. Talk about marrying up! :-) Just kidding Dr. O. But, not really.

We invited family to come to a bouncy house for Kevin's birthday.
Emily on the big slide.

Poor Kevin fell and smashed his nose the morning of his big day! But, that does seem an appropriate way to start being a 2 year old (officially), doesn't it?

Me and my sis. I'm planning on being just like her when I grow up....Hmmm. I need to hurry.

Awesome brother-10 years my senior. So good with the babies! I also got to see him graduate. I'm going to have two brothers with doctorate degrees by the end of summer. Crazy.

It was a fun trip. Sorry my posts have been a little picture-happy lately. I promise I'll settle down into my boring life now and you probably won't see many pics for a while:-)!

Livin' the Dream!

Vancouver

I'm a little behind....
Here's our trip to Vancouver

The temple was beautiful. I especially liked the murals in the Creation Room. Lovely art with local landscapes.

One of Kevin's many "looks".

Dashing Dad and kiddos

Here we are at the Suspension Bridge after. Everyone crossed! Emily was upset and crying for the first crossing. The bridge does move quite a bit:-).

Forgot to rotate this before posting. oops. Beautiful tall trees.
On the other side of the bridge there was a bunch of tree houses with bridges connecting all of them. I felt like Peter Pan.

Emily poses in the totem pole.

And what trip would be complete without a picture by the iconic Canadian bear. ???

Thank Goodness for Babies

2year old and 4 year old on the counter helping make breakfast
2 year old is poopy
It's a bad one. Poop flies out when I take off his pants. It has already run down his legs. It hits my arm and the clean jeans I just put on.
4 year old yells from the counter that there's poop on the kitchen counter, too.
6 year old walks down the hall and tells me he peed his bed.
That makes 5 loads of laundry for the day instead of 4, I guess.

All before 7 a.m.

I take a 2 minute break an hour later to check if that email I'm waiting for has arrived.
Newborn baby is in the MOBY.
I look down at his sweet face. His eyes are closed, his mouth is open. He is totally relaxed. And then he smiles one of those happy dreams smiles.

My heart rate slows. I breathe more deeply.
It's going to be just fine.
What is it about babies that slows us down?
That helps us remember the eternal scheme of things?
The long-term perspective that makes us stop and enjoy the moment?

I don't know, but I'm thankful for babies:-)

Oh-gotta go. 4 year old has hopelessly tangled a comb in her hair.:-)

Livin' the Dream!

Vancouver BC

I think I've mentioned before that my husband sometimes does "things" that make me go, "uh...why?"

Like recently when our newborn baby was only days old, and we dragged our whole family to City Hall to get passports.

I have to admit that part of me was thinking, "Really? This has to happen NOW?"

We had no travel plans. Passports cost money. I had my doubts.

And now I'm eating my words.
Again.

Last night my husband told me that a coworker mentioned the open house for the Vancouver BC temple on the bus ride home from work.

And spontaneous as he is, he said, "Let's go!"

And what do you know? The passports got here just days ago. So we actually CAN go.

I am so excited! I think the kids will love going inside the temple and feeling the wonderful Spirit that is there.

And the plan is to also visit the Capilano Suspension Bridge
We'll see which of the kids will be brave enough to cross that. Since they've seen "Horton Hears a Who", their imaginations are running wild with images of boards falling 200 feet:-)
(Here's the clip from the movie if you haven't seen it.)

It feels like Forever since we've done something fun together as a family with all the health issues lately, so I am feeling very blessed for this timely and meaningful trip we'll be able to take!

Livin' the Dream