My Stunnishing Dastardly Duo!

Its the first week of school for my dastardly duo.
Gman (formally known as littleman) is a first grader!
His teacher is a very nice, young woman that he adores.

However, he is very unhappy.
His friends are all in another class.
So far he hasn't found a class friend.
It may seem a little thing to you.
Jobs, money, family stress.... but to my little guy its huge.

Praying that soon everyone will settle down and he will find a few friends.

Prissy on the other hand.... has all her friends in her class!
Not only does she LOVE her 3rd grade class but has made even more friends!

Then again she is unafraid of rejection, alright lets face it, she's oblivious to it.

My girl will and can love you into submission.
Everyone loves her - whether they want to or not.

This is Gman's "old" best friend. They are still friends, but not in the same class hence they don't get to see each other that much.

Today, the fourth day of school, is picture day. Utah does photos at the beginning of the year so that we can send them out to friends and family at Christmas.
Normally its a month or so in... this time they barely had time to send the forms home!

I'm hoping for some really great photos today! Even though it will be a few weeks until they come in I want my kids to look amazing!

They grow so fast! I can't believe another school year is here! On that note I am now a member of the PTA... first meeting is tomorrow... not sure how I feel about being a PTA mom..?!

Update: I talked with his teacher. Today he was hit in class by a very troubled boy - so troubled they are trying to move him into another school that can handle him.
Needless to say this did not help G-man to have a happier day. However, the teacher talked with one of the kids in the class that does talk with and get along with him in class (boy named BK) who is going to play with G-man tomorrow.
Hopefully this will help him to settle in and enjoy his time at school more.

Zoo BFF Day!

Our local Zoo, The Hogle Zoo, has made some amazing changes over the last 12 years. The fact that they are far from done is great news!
With in 20 years (of starting) our zoo will be completely new, renovated and amazing!

My BFF and I have a joint Zoo Booster Deluxe, membership. Allowing both of our families full access to the zoo, rides, discounts at the store and special parties and events throughout the year.

Several years ago they re-did the elephant encounter (which also includes the rhino's) in the hopes that our young female would be able to get pregnant. Two tries and now our little baby (the one in the large photo) is now two years old!
Her mama was doing a show for everyone and she was watching, mimicking and waiting for her mama to be done! She is such a cutie!

After the elephant show, we hit the Free Flight Bird show. This is where all the birds are trained and fly free - some inches from the top of your head!
Its only 25 minutes long, but its amazing! My best friends girl, beauty, had a ball!

The newest exhibit that opened in June is Rocky Shores. This has our newest polar bear (who is adorable) our seals and sea otters. As well as our 3 young grizzlies.
He played for a solid ten minutes, going from one side to another and repeatedly doing a back stroke. 

It was the perfect day! Nice, mild weather (high 80's), not to many people and the kids were happy!
My BFF's children & my children are the best of friends, something we are deeply grateful for!
All in all a day with my best friend and my children's best friends was golden!

Monday school starts and I (and patch) will be all alone. This year is the first year that both of my children will be gone for the whole day!
I can't wait!
I can finally clean without hearing, Mama! I need____, Mama! I'm hungry!, Mama can you_____ and my favorite, Oops! I'm sorry.... did you just clean that?

No more (during the day at least) will I have to say, SHARE! STOP HITTING! NO! LEAVE THE DOG ALONE!
Camping, zoo trips and fun days with friends are winding down, I am both happy and sad!


Also I am planning a Thanksgiving Purse Party, South of the Border for all my friends and family! Its going to be a great time of food, fun and friends!

Beauty For Ashes

Isaiah 61:3

New Living Translation (NLT)

³ To all who mourn in Israel,^[a]
    he will give a crown of beauty for ashes,
a joyous blessing instead of mourning,
    festive praise instead of despair.
In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks
    that the Lord has planted for his own glory.

How many times in life have you heard or said, God must have allowed it? I'm sure he had a purpose for ___? I'm sorry that happened BUT maybe it was for _____?

WRONG! Very very wrong! The Bible says - 

John 10:10

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁰ The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

The thief being Satan and MY being Jesus/GOD. 

Bad things happen. They happen everyday to good people. People that have angels and families that love them.

They don't happen because GOD says to himself, this horrible thing will help my child. They happen because Satan is doing all he can to hurt, destroy and kill your happiness, your life and your future.

However, God can turn bad things into beautiful things. He can turn the horrible into the incredible.

My garden inspired me. I had this talk for about the 8th time with a beautiful woman who I love dearly. People continue to judge her, lie to her and try to hurt her - even by trying to validate the abuse she suffered.

While I was mulling over a better way to illustrate verses and ideas she has heard and read a thousand times, I gardened.

I have a fire place, I save all the ashes from my fireplace to add to my garden soil. Because it adds the best nutrients into the ground.

Its also one of the major reasons that people live next to live volcano's. Hawaii is the best example I know of. The plant life is lush, the seasons warm, the land filled with plenty. However, a horror is always looming. Doom can descend at any time.

Volcano's are one of the MOST destructive powers in the natural world.

It can't be reasoned with.

It can't always be predicted.

It can't be protected against.

You run or you die.

It kills without discrimination.

Everything in its path dies.

The air is death.

The ash is death.

The heat is death.

and yet... when its over life springs forth stronger and more vibrant. 

Just like a volcano, rape, abuse, hurt, pain & betrayal, can be the most destructive force in a persons life.

Many people commit suicide due to how fearful or un-hopeful they become.

God's promise of, Beauty for Ashes, is evident whereever a volcano explodes. If he can over come the most destructive force in nature and quickly too, so can he heal your hurt and turn a bad thing into a good thing.

Using a bad experience or a bad thing in your life for God's glory doesn't mean that "it was meant to be." Or that you were destined for that pain - but it can take the bad and use it for good. 

The best thing a person can do is allow God to heal the pain and to then use it to help heal others.

Taking the victory away from Satan.

The volcano doesn't disappear, nor does the damage of what has happened in your life.

The ash doesn't get swept away.

However, it becomes something more - something better.

 

2012 Camp Out pt 2!

My family

Have I ever mentioned how much I love these guys?

Next week school starts for my dastardly duo and I am in rush mode now to get the last of everything ready!

Clothes, bags, supplies, meeting teachers...

It was really nice to go up and spend some one on one private time with them.

We (along with another couple) rented this camper for a few days.
It was amazing!
It allowed us to go off trail and still have a potty!
By the last two days we had 14 people!
It was so much fun going up with such a large group!

The view from our camp site (above)

Also on a side note for those that follow my blogs, this area is up behind Heber, Ut.

The Lake is Mill Hollow Lake.

This is the region, the second half of book one, The Altered Lives of Lily and Ivy is set in.

(to be published soon)

My hubby and his wolf's head walking stick

now both of my kids want their own!

Seriously my kids never left Sue alone! 

Every time I turned around they were all over her!

Thank you so much for being a grandma to my kids.

 This was just a roof...

no floor, no walls, just a random roof in the middle of the woods.

Patch had a ball! 

He ran, chased squirrels, begged food and got very very dirty!

Can't wait to go again!

2012 Camp out

Camping!

We went up for 4 days, off trail up by Mill Hollow Lake

The kids got to shoot (paintballs) ride 4 wheelers, hike, cook, chase squirrels and so much more!

Everyone including Patch had a great time!

The weather was cool with a brief rain.

The night cool, but not cold.

The food was great!

Visit HERE for full menu

Our friend's Married almost a year and still doing great!

Can't wait to go camping with them again next year!

 My kids new adopted grandma!

Sue was always with one or the other of my kids!

Thanks for being such a great sport!

Sara doing what I love best about camping!

Gund Dog Contest

Pure Puppy Patch!

Vote

Don't you think he is adorable?

Don't you think he would make a plushy you would want to take home?

You can vote once a day from now until Aug. 16th 2012 when judging begins.

Thank you for voting!

I know that I think he is adorable and I would buy him, mainly because I have the live version of this adorable Shih Tzu laying at my feet right now.

Besides being adorable, he is a sweet, loving member of our family.

He is everything his breed is supposed to be!

~~~

Now for a few small facts about Shih Tzu's

They have "Real Hair" making them a wonderful allergy friendly breed.

My daughter is allergic to dogs, cats, weeds, dyes... the list continues

She is fine with Patch. (lvl 5 allergy)

My BFF  has a higher allergy to dogs (8-10)

She has a slight allergy to the oils from his skin 

so if she pets him (which she does frequently) she only has to wash her hands.

Many breed of dogs are said to be "Hypo Allergenic" 

Some because, they don't shed or they are a low dander dog.

I have found the Real Hair breeds to be the BEST hypo allergy dogs you can buy.

That said, we still don't allow him to sleep in her room, get up on her bed and any time she plays with him for to long she must wash.

Compared to her cat allergy these small safety measures make living with our dog easy.

Just walking into a house with cats can trigger her asthma, hives and other assorted nasty things.

Power Cleaning

Today its hot, muggy and cloudy. As I type thunder clouds roll in over my head and the valley vibrates with the rumbles of an approaching storm.
Will we really get rain this time? Will tomorrow be even more unbearable?

 My BFF

 My amazingly clean living room

what my bedroom looked like half way through the process of organizing, cleaning & tossing.

I normally don't brag, but I do have the most amazing best friend ever!

She and I are like two peas in a pod!

We do everything together and are very much alike.

Save for those very few things about us that are polar opposites.

Like the fact that I am free and loose type of cleaner

while she has OCD.

Not kidding

We threw away roughly 13-15 bags of garbage.

Wash, swept, mopped and cleaned.

12 1/2 hours of cleaning!

Thank you to my Best Friend who helped

and to my hubby who took the kids out all day long leaving us alone to work!

Thankfully the garbage man comes tomorrow!

Today was my second week at our new home church and I loved it

my only issue was how sore my legs were today after all the work yesterday!

The rain is starting to quench the earth. The thunder has played out and the smell of rain on dirt has filled the air.

The smell is clean, fresh - a renewal.

It feels like my whole life has become new, clean, a rebirth.

My chimes are tossed about in the wind, making a tune that the trees dance to and the rain continues to fall.

Take some time this week to find an area of heart or home to clean. I know I feel so much better!

Hot/Cold packs

Hot/cold packs
These are amazing!
Versatile, easy to care for and store. Can be made in any shape and size needed.
If you want a professional, well cut, pre-planned perfectly shaped hot,cold ice packs - Please follow this link to Bee in my bonnet.

Mine are more - go with the flow, use what you have... looser less strict packs.
I cut up a few of my kids old/stained clothes.
First I used a pant leg of my daughters to make my husband a hot/cold pack for putting around his neck.

First off find the material you want to use.
Then cut it to the size you want.
Bee in Bonnet suggested two layers.
The inner one being flannel to hold in hot/cold longer.

I cut off the bottom legs off of shorts, then laid them out over a flannel shirt.
Did I mention that I was just doing a fast, loose version?
Yeah I really did mean that, I didn't do any exact measuring.

I did all the sewing by hand.

Each one took me a day (roughly 2-3 hours)

It would only be a few minutes if you do it on a machine, mine happens to be broken at the moment.

I sewed up the sides and then connected the bottoms.

Then flipped it inside out.

 

Filled it with a cup of rice

Again fill it enough so that when it lays flat the rice fills the whole pack at least

a quarter of an inch high across.

My sons and my daughters new ice packs.

They both love them!

Mine was an odd size.

I used the bottom half of my daughters old shirt.

Then cut out the heart design from the top of the shirt and sewed it on.

Mine is longer than the kids but shorter then my hubbies neck pack.

My reason is simple.

I need an ice pack for whenever I mess up my ankle - which lets face it - is pretty often.

I need the hot pack to be the size of my belly - for when the weight and form of a hot water bottle

just won't do.

I rather like it.

4 days, a few cups of rice and some old clothes and everyone in the house has a new rice pack.

If you have a machine it would be done in one day!

Also for those that follow this blog I will no longer be posting any of my gardening tips, photos, ect here.

All of that is moving over to my food blog, Garris Cooking.

I encourage you to check it out, follow and enjoy!

I post recipes for household cleaners, beauty products, food and now gardening tips.

All dye free.