On My Mind...

Grab a drink, a snack and sit back. This one is long.

Easter - Is it me or has it crept up on us this year? We totally missed the Easter egg hunts for both our church activity and Nate's work. Yeah, that would have been LAST weekend, not this. We did this last year too, so even though Easter is extra early this year we can't use the date as an excuse. We've spent the last few years doing our own Easter celebrations at home and they have been L.A.M.E. Of course, the girls love anything involving easter egg candy, plastic eggs and color dyes, but we've decided to forgo our own attempts this year and head to Nate's family on the west side of the state for some cousin fun. Besides having to drive the four hours there and back, it should be fun. And hey, at least we get to drive the new car, right?

Growing up I would get a new Sunday dress each year for Easter. This has been a tradition I've continued with my girls. The problem is, we're always broke and I never want to spend more than $10 on a dress. I know, we're so cheap...I get it...I'm a yard sale girl at heart. Needless to say, I often end up shopping late Saturday night for the elusive $10 or less Easter dress. Of course, this does me no good because I'm left to buy whatever is left on the racks, which usually isn't as pretty, isn't the exact size I need and isn't in my totally unrealistic price budget. So, this year when the Costco spring dresses came out in February (or was it even January?) I broke down and bought them immediately. Seriously, you just can't beat the $15 price tag, the right size for both girls and they get to match. How many years do I have left before they don't want to match anymore? I have been sitting pretty with those dresses in the back of my closet for weeks now, knowing I don't have to worry about THAT on Saturday night. Too bad I'll still probably be raking the remains of the eggs and candy and 99 cent useless toys at the last minute for basket goodies. Oh well, you can't get it all right.


Family Home Evening - A day late, a dollar short. Or whatever they say. I've been really trying to re-institute a "real" family home evening at our house lately. And what I mean by real is not the last minute trip to the store "together as a family" or a walk at the park or all sitting down together to play an hour or two of the Wii. I know, all of these can count as family home evenings (except maybe the store trip), but not ALL of the time. My kiddos need these lessons and we need the blessings. And when I mean I've been "really trying" to start up FHE again, I mean I've been thinking about it a lot, putting it on my to-do list on Monday mornings, maybe even looking up lessons on the internet Monday afternoon, but somehow never getting it done. After hearing a great talk about FHE on Sunday at church and realizing that perfection doesn't arrive in the form of family home evening, not even in the most perfect-looking families, I've decided to JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN from now on. Even if there is yelling, crying and gnashing of teeth, it's time to make the commitment and stick to it. While surfing the internet last night (after missing another chance to make it work) and hoping to find some good Easter ideas I found this great website. Check it out here.

Sundays - Sundays can be a rough day for us. I know it's not supposed to be that way. In fact, it should be the day of rest, right? Resting is a stretch with two kids under the age of 7, but we could use a little more peace at least. My girls don't like going to church. Kenzie has issues that make going to church difficult to say the least. Her sensory issues and church dress don't mesh well. Clothing in general is a tough one for her. I'm constantly looking for the "perfect" outfit for her. Something that isn't too tight or too loose, too scratchy or itchy or has tags or decals or bows or ANYTHING that could potentially bug her. I could literally write a couple posts on the agonies of shoes for Kenz. In fact, I've had a few rolling around in my head for months now. Let's just say church shoes aren't a favorite around here, either. And my goodness, let's not even go to tights at our house. Yeah, that's not a pretty sight. Kenzie trying to wear tights. Imagine wrapping a puppy in saran wrap... Except lots more tears and nobody's laughing. Sooo...by the time we walk in the doors of the church building we're exhausted and Kenzie is barely containing a melt-down or else she is in the midst of one and we don't make it past the foyer. Natalie has taken to mimicking some of Kenzie's behaviors. She, too, HATES church because Kenzie does. She, too, thinks her shoes itch and that her socks are too tight and her dress is too small or too big or too whatever. They both complain that church is so BORING and they're STARVING and beg to go home. It doesn't help that we've had to miss so much this past winter. Heck, this past life. With all the sicknesses, trips out of town and my monthly week of horror, we average getting to church twice a month. This breaks my heart. I am not a less-active person. Not in my heart. I grew up going to church EVERY Sunday. Nate grew up going to church EVERY Sunday. This is where we need to be, no matter how difficult it feels. Sooo...of course I've been thinking about ways to make it easier for the girls and therefore, easier for me. After hours of searching on Sunday night, I found quite a few fun ideas for things to do in Sacrament meeting and lessons to teach in FHE. If you've got any tips on how to make this day easier, send 'em my way. And if you're needing a few ideas yourself, try going here or here or there.


Moving - Moving has been on our minds for over a year now. It's no secret that Nate's been looking for work in Albuquerque. It's also no secret that we've not found anything at all. Obviously it isn't supposed to happen right now. We're okay with that. Well, most of the time. We love it here in the Tri-cities. We've made great friends, we have a comfortable home, Nate has a great job and he's almost done with school. Kenzie is going to a wonderful school and loves her friends. It has crossed our minds many times that maybe we're supposed to stay right here. We miss our families. We want our girls to grow up with cousins. Nate is antsy and ready to change the scenery. I outgrew this little house before we ever moved in it. So, yeah, we're looking for change, but who knows when it will come and in what form. We can't help but be curious about it now that we're rolling closer to another summer here and only two classes between now and Nate's degree.

Nate's parents are in the midst of moving this week from Idaho to Arizona. Their lives have been up in the air for months...or is it years, you two? They have found work that will give them some consistency for a few more months and some sunshine. Two of my family members in Albuquerque are moving this week. My sister, Jen and her hubby have FINALLY been offered a position and Rick is off to get training while Jen moves from parent to parent biding her time before the new baby comes. They are moving this week. My brother, Nate and his wife Heather are moving this week, too! I know, how crazy it all is at once. They are building their dream home and after a spiritual family fast, they were able to sell their home in one week! They are going to rent until their new home is completed. We get to go visit them in a couple weeks for Spring break and we can hardly wait. So...moving is on my mind. Good luck to everyone who is packing up and moving this week, wish we could be there to help!


Exercise - So, yeah, health is a big topic at our house. Not necessarily having it, but our lack thereof. It's been weeks of sickness for us this winter. The girls and I are finally over the pneumonia and sinus infections, but Nate got hit hard again. He's been so miserable. He's had three doctor appointments in one week and lots of prescriptions to fill.

We were finally able to get him back into a sleep doctor. He has sleep apnea. Years ago he was diagnosed and spent a night at a sleep clinic only to come running home proclaiming his hatred of the sleep apnea breathing machine. We lost our insurance soon after and so there went our effort to get his sleeping problems fixed. After two miserable sicknesses this year, though and problems with his oversized tonsils, we decided it was time to go back in to the specialist.

We had an interesting appointment yesterday. The doctor we saw was quite forthright and blunt. I couldn't help laughing at his way with words. Nate is headed back for another sleep clinic in a couple weeks and has been promised that it will be better this time. He was also told that in no uncertain terms he has asthma and should be treating it daily. We also got the not-too-unexpected pep talk about weight. Sleep apnea gets worse with weight gain. In Nate's case, he had it even at a healthy weight, but it has grown worse with each extra pound. In no uncertain terms, he was told to lose it. I need to lose it too. We've needed to lose it for years. Not just for cosmetic reasons, but for our health. For some reason, losing the weight for Nate's health makes the task seem much easier than doing it just for mine. I got back on the treadmill last night. I'm going to keep getting back on that treadmill again and again. Even when I fail for weeks on end, I'm not going to quit. There, I said it. We're on a mission. A mission to get healthy. Too corny? Oh well, it's the truth. :-)

Is that enough thinking for today? I think so. The End.