Thank You!!

This post is so long overdue it is embarrassing, but just as Angela said life happens.

I want to thank all of you for participating in this little challenge. I learned so much. I was overwhelmed by the wisdom you shared and felt so blessed to be able to glean from it.

I hope that each of you gained a little something from reading and discussing these lessons. Thank you again for your thoughts, your questions and your advice.

Thank you!!

Thank you Marisa, everyone, and Happy Mother's Day

I know the weeks have long past since I should have written this. Life happens: we get sick, kids get sick, sun comes out so we run out, little boys learn to use the potty, and callings get busy. But I just wanted to say "Thank you" and post some of the things I've done/changed because of this challenge and because of you:

-- I re-assessed our budget
-- I've started praying daily in gratitude for my husband
-- I gave my mom a journal filled with questions
-- I've written a few more-than-normal times in my journal
-- I've looked in my children's eyes more often
-- I've thought more about how and when I'll have those "difficult" discussion with my kids (sex, gender, the scary scary world :))
-- I've  a few new recipes to try
-- Weekly or fortnightly "counsels" with Justin

and more things than I can think of right now. So thank you Marisa for setting this up! And thank you everyone for what you taught me. Happy Mother's Day!!

On a side note

So I actually haven't read this week's lesson (Justin needs our laptop a lot for school and work) but in this quick moment I wanted to send this link for a lovely look at motherhood.

And I look forward to this lesson. Marisa's questions have me thinking (and wanting to run away! I'm not ready for those tough issues!)

Enjoy this article

Family Council & A Question

I really appreciated the lesson this week. It got me thinking about things I want to change, start doing and things I hope to do in the future as Gavin grows and as our family grows.

When we were first married Danny suggested we do family council and at first I was a bit skeptical (I wasn't sure how this was going to be different than family night) then he said you can have my full attention while we PLAN as much as you want. That sold it. I was completely on board!

As we had a few of these family councils I quickly became aware of their greater importance (which I should have recognized from the get go). During our family councils we will discuss family related gospel topics, plan for the week or for other things and then share any thoughts or feelings we have about areas that need improvement.

We determined that if a problem or an issue didn't need to be dealt with right away then we could save it for our discussion during family council. One of the greatest pieces of advice that we picked up from listening to For All Eternity by Dr. John L. Lund (I highly recommend reading this book, it is awesome! We have it on CD and have listened to it multiple times.) was that  suggestions or requests for change in behavior are much more readily accepted when we ask our spouse when they would prefer to talk about the issue. Dr. Lund even suggests that you use a rating system, 1 being very minor and a 10 being a little harder swallow. That way when you have something you want to bring up you can tell your spouse "Hey I have something I want to talk to you about, it is probably a 4. When would be a good time to talk to you about it?" Then the spouse can mentally be prepared for a request or suggestion for change in behavior, whether they say, "Hit me with it now" or "How about later this evening." This works wonders with me because I tend to get more defensive (something I am working on) and turn what should be a simple discussion into a discussion filled with anger, frustration and even possibly hurt all because I get defensive. Whereas when I know that I have a suggestion coming my way I can be prepared for it.

Anyway...I could talk all day about the great things we have implemented in our marriage because of that book. Seriously, you should read it. I guarantee there will be something that you can use to make your marriages even more awesome than they already are!

Family council has been a great time for us to re-evaluate things and discuss things that each of us can change. I have really grown to love them. I always feel closer to Danny and more on track after we have finished. The counsel in this lesson was really good on how to have an effective family council with your spouse.

My last thought is actually to throw out a question. I love the idea of having interviews with your children and I plan to do that. I always had daddy-daughter dates with my dad that I really cherished. What didn't happen so much was those taboo conversations (aka sex, maturation etc.) and although I lucked out I don't think I want to take the chance with not having those conversations with my kids.

So here's the question...Did your parent's have those conversations with you? Did they go about it well? What made it work or not work? Have you heard of any suggestions that you think will work and are thinking you will use with your own family?

That was more like 4 questions but you get my drift. I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas!

It's the little things

First of all I have to apologize for the terrible layout. For some reason when I type on my iPad it shows up all in one paragraph- I hate that. So sorry if this is hard to read.  I too have been thinking about marriage all week. And I've decided it's all about the little things. Take for example just last night- I made baked potatoes for dinner (because it was easy and yeah believe it or not I was feeling a bit lazy) knowing full well Brock doesn't like them. I just assumed he'd eat them because, even if he doesn't like something he usually eats it without a fuss. Well I guess baked potatoes are different. After he finished all his chicken and veggies he began to clean up. Shocked that there was still a baked potato on his plate I ask, "aren't you going to eat that?" to which he politely responded, "No, I don't like baked potatoes." Ok normally, I'd just roll my eyes (because seriously, how can you not like baked potatoes? It's cheesy, sour creamy deliciousness!). But this time I was insistent for two perfectly sane reasons- 1) I was convinced that he didn't like baked potatoes because he didn't eat them right. If he just knew the proper way to put all that gooey goodness on he'd understand (in other words I knew I was right and I just needed him to come around to my point of view). And 2) these weren't your old run in the mill russet potatoes. These were amazing yellowy, buttery, creamy spuds! I don't know how the English grow their potatoes but they are good! It literally melts in your mouth! I just had to make him try it! After much prodding and a lot of feeling annoyed that he wouldn't budge on his opinion that baked potatoes are plain and tasteless (even after I dressed his potato up with all the goodies) I felt totally defeated. How could he not feel the same way? My brain just couldn't comprehend how we could feel so differently about this! Now here is the clincher, the entire time I'm just ranting and raving about how good these potatoes are, Brock quietly picked up his fork and began eating. He just laughed at my insistence and smiled as he explained for the 15th time that he just doesn't like potatoes and that it's okay to have a different opinion. Upon finishing the entire potato (skin and all) he said, "Now that's love." He ate that entire potato because he knew it was so important to me, because I felt so strongly about how delicious it tasted. Even though he disagreed, he just smiled and ate it anyway. Why? To make me happy. That's just how selfless my lover is (and how silly i can be...a lot of times. Another lesson I learned- be better about picking my battles. That probably wasn't a worthy battle to fight).  My husband is a perfect example of selfless love. He always puts me first, always! He lives by the quote, success in marriage isn't about marrying the right person, it's about being the right person. It's the little things, like giving your wife the last of the milk so she can have hot coco in the morning even though you really wanted cereal, or giving your husband the last bite of the delicious cookie you just ordered even though you are still salivating over the Belgium chocolate chunks, or giving your wife the contact case that has lids so her eyes don't dry out the next day (even though you know yours will), or it's about watching all the NFL highlights on ESPN.com together because you know it makes him giddy as a school girl (even though you really could care less), or (as is the case right now) its about both of you sleeping without a pillow because one of them fell on the floor in our hotel room (which for two germ freaks is a big deal)and wanting your spouses comfort before your own, refusing to take the only other pillow (even though our necks are going kill us tomorrow!) I'm betting that somehow I end up with the pillow in the morning. My sweetheart is amazing at always putting my happiness before his own. I don't feel like I'm as good at it but I vow to be better. I want to always put his happiness before my own because, that way we will both be happy for eternity. Not the worldly happiness that is fleeting and shallow but the kind of happiness that quenches your deepest thirst and fills your heart to the brim with warmth. 

Happily Ever After

I've been thinking a lot about marriage this week, and how blessed I am that the Lord led me to Jake.  I don't think anyone in the world would fit me more perfectly than my Jake. He truly is my best friend. Just yesterday we were reading the lesson for the Marriage and Family Relations class Jake goes to each Sunday (no, I'm no boycotting it, I teach the Sunbeams :-)  Yes, I come home tired!) President Spencer W. Kimball, in this lesson, stated:

"Many of the TV screen shows and stories of fiction end with marriage: 'They lived happily ever after.' We have come to realize that the mere performance of a ceremony does not bring happiness and a successful marriage.  happiness does not come by pressing a button, as does the electric light; happiness is a state of mind and comes from within.  It must be earned.  It cannot be purchased with money.  It cannot be taken for nothing.  


"Some think of happiness as a glamorous life of ease, luxury, and constant thrills; but true marriage is based on a happiness which is more than that, one which comes from giving, service, sharing, sacrificing, and selfishness."


How true that statement truly is.  Jake and I are not exactly at a point in our marriage where we experience "ease, luxury and constant thrills" by the world's view...but I must say, I feel like we lead a pretty exciting life.  We have the opportunity to raise and watch grow a young special daughter of God, who brings so much laughter and light into our lives (though, I would by no means say she brings "ease" ;-)  Our luxury consists of folding chairs for our "dining room" table, a kitchen where I can reach the fridge, sink and high chair from my seat, and a less than 600 sq. ft. rented duplex. Our constant thrills consist of grueling games of UNO and Sequence, watching Lucy on the swing, and experiencing the joy of our garden growing.  And yet....we're happy.  I am grateful to be married to a man who gives EVERYTHING in all he does, who loves, sacrifices and is nearly 100% selfless. I've heard it said that men can either be a prince, or a toad, that there is no middle ground.  I do not believe it...really, in all honesty, I think I'm the toad in our relationship!  But I'm grateful to have a patient husband.  Our marriage is by no means perfect, but we're trying.

President Kimball went on to say that in marriage "success...depends upon two individuals...and the Lord."  I know that as Jake and I both give our all, even on days where we don't want to, that our marriage will be successful, happy, and eternal.  THANK HEAVENS FOR ETERNITY!!!!

Date Nights

Since part of our goal this week is to plan a fun date night out or in for this weekend I want to hear some of your most favorite dates that you have had with your husbands. I would love to hear maybe one that was a stay at home (we all probably do this a lot) and one where you actually went out.

Danny and I don't go OUT much but the dates I have enjoyed the most have usually had something to do with a good dessert and something active like hiking or riding Danny's brothers horse. I love doing and trying new things with my best friend. It makes for a great time!

One of my most favorite stay home dates that we did was after putting Gavin to bed we busted out all our extra sheets and blankets and made ourselves the coolest fort ever! We had the best time trying to figure out how to build it. We built it so it was set up facing the TV and when it was all built we got pillows and blankets and snuggled while we watched our wedding video (it had been a little over two years since watching it). We both had such a great time!

We have gotten really good at trying to come up with awesome stay at home dates since Gavin was born and so here are a few other ideas of things that we have done...

• Colored a coloring book page together and talked
• Played 3 short games (tic-tac-toe, PIG on our little b-ball hoop, and short game of UNO) and the one who won 2 out of the 3 games got to have the other give them a back massage. 
• Watched funny videos on YouTube (Kid History episodes are winners!)
• Had a picnic in our living room (complete with blanket and basket)
• Pretended to go to a basketball game with fake tickets and arena food and then watched Hoosiers
• Put  a puzzle together (haven't done this yet but going to some day) or get the cheap one dollar little ones and have a race to see who can finish theirs first.

I would love to hear some of the things you guys have done (totally need an idea for this weekend)! Yeah Friday is tomorrow so I better come up with something fast!

Better Late Than Never!

Hey friends!  There was a bit of a recipe swap a little while ago, and yes, I failed at that.  Here are a couple of Child family staples:

Red Italian Sauce

Ingredients

•1 lb. hamburger

•1 c. chopped onion

•1 c. chopped green pepper

•16 oz. tomato sauce

•2 small cans tomato paste•

1 ½ c. water

•1 envelope Italian Style spaghetti mix

•½ crushed bay leaf

•Oregano, Italian Seasoning, minced garlic to taste

Directions:

Brown hamburger with onion and green pepper. Drain grease and put in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients and simmer on low 3-5 hours. (the longer it simmers the better).

Works great for lasagna, baked ziti, or really anything where a red Italian sauce would be used.  

I LOVE to make a lot of it, and then freeze it in quart sized bag for a quick meal. It tastes  great without the meat too if you'd rather, but I came from a meat loving family, so we make room for it in the budget. I like to bulk it up a bit in the summer when we have fresh vegis too...zucchini, yellow squash, fresh tomatoes...whatever.

Paprika Chicken

Ingredients:

•4 chicken breasts

•Paprika

•Garlic salt

•3 small cans creamed soup (mushroom or chicken)

•1 c. milk

•Dried parsley flakes

Directions:
Place chicken in glass casserole dish.  Sprinkle both sides with paprika and garlic sat and parsley.  In another bowl, stir together soup and just enough  milk to resemble a thick gravy. Pour over top of chicken.  Sprinkle with more garlic salt, paprika and parsley flakes. Bake at 350º for 1 hour. Wisk around gravy to mix flavors.  Serve over rice, potatoes or pasta.

Breakfast Burritos

Hashbrowns

Vegetables (fresh or frozen: zucchini and yellow squash work great, as well as frozen mixed vegis)

Ham or bacon (optional)

Scrambled Eggs

Cheese

Cook the hashbrowns, vegetables, and meat in a large skillet until done.  Add scrambled eggs and cheese.  Cook through.  Serve in tortillas.  Great with salsa as well.

I also remember that someone was talking about freezer meals. I'm ALL ABOUT THAT! We've found that most soups freeze great, with the exception of things with potatoes.  I freeze a lot of chili, white chicken chili, taco soup, chicken enchilada soup, pizza sauce (when I don't just make it fresh), sour cream chicken enchiladas (just the filling, I thaw it and then wrap it the tortillas when I'm ready to use it).  Almost anything that you cook in a crockpot can be frozen (just don't freeze starchy things- mostly potatoes and pasta). Freezing is also a great way to preserve tomatoes from the garden.  We just cut them up (diced tomatoes!) and add some onions, green peppers and a little salt and then seal them up good in a quart sized bag.  I love the garden!

Mewage is what brings us together...

 (I just had to use that quote from one of the best movies ever, Princess Bride)

I was in charge of Family Night last night and I decided it would be an awesome idea to have Danny and I read the lesson together and I am so glad we did! Danny always had such great insights and I love how he helps me learn and grow. 

I really loved and needed this lesson. I think it is a lot easier to feel like your marriage is just hunky dory when... 

• the stress level in the home is low
• you don't have any major decisions weighing on you
• you aren't overly concerned about one thing or another 

etc., etc., etc. but for heavens sake how often does that happen!? We have to be able to have happy marriages amidst the trials and challenges because lets face it challenges are pretty much a constant in life. 

The idea that struck me the most and many of you have already commented on this is the fact that change has to happen with me. I am the queen of believing that I am 99.9% always right which means that I couldn't possibly be in the wrong! Noway. 

Obviously I am almost always wrong and probably the one responsible for any discord that may occur. I realized that if I want to have a good atmosphere in our home and between Danny and me then I need to be willing to step up and make the changes to myself. 

This week I am really going to work on looking to changing myself whenever I feel frustrated about something. I have the most wonderful husband! He has an incredible ability to change himself for the better. I am awed by it and his ability shines ever more brightly when compared with my stubbornness. I want to be more like my sweet husband. When things aren't going well, I want to immediately look to myself and what I need to change and then be willing to do it. 

It isn't going to be easy but I know that it will be worth the effort. 

Family History and Love

I also, did not do my own post last week. I chose to not make it a priority. Better late than never, right?  Like many of you, I have struggled to be consistent with writing in my journal. Ironically, I have recently been reading the journal of my great grandma and grandpa. I have loved it mostly because it helps me realize how HUMAN they are. It is easy to think that my relatives were these perfect people that I need to live up to (I am a descendant of Parley P. Pratt).  I love reading about them and realizing that they did not become these wonderful people in a day. It took a lifetime of hard work and mistakes. Not that I want to use that as an excuse to not do my best, it just helps me be more accepting of the process. I think it is more motivating for me to write in my journal when I think of how it might benefit my posterity. Lately, I have been trying to write even just for 30 seconds each night. I have found that typing helps me be more consistent because can type much fast than I write. So my goal is to never give up with journaling. Even if I have a few days that I miss, to just start writing again. 

I loved the chapter on strengthening marriage. I am very grateful that I can be married to the love of my life, Phil. He really is my best friend. I also can say that I am grateful for all the times we have had to struggle to come closer together. I LOVED what Amber said about the only person we can control is us. It is so easy for me at times to want to point my finger at Phil and think (and sometimes say) “look at what you are not doing”. The funny thing is that when I am focusing on him so much, I am usually just distracting myself from my own glaring problems. I am glad that I have learned that lesson and that I get to keep working on it.

One of my goals this week is to try and be more proactive in giving my husband praise and validation throughout the day. I know how powerful just a little compliment or encouragement is in my life. I want to be able to build my husband up, not bring him down. In the past, I have sometimes found myself afraid to give too many compliments because I don’t want it to “go to his head”. That is unhealthy thinking—and another form of control. I do not need to wait until my husband “earns” a compliment. I can give them freely and sincerely.

Elder Lynn G. Robbins gave a fantastic article on agency and love in marriage. Love is truly a choice and takes conscious effort. One of my long-term goals is to really be able to develop charity for my husband and others. I am committed to love my husband with all my heart for the rest of my life. 

Family History with a Growing Marriage

I failed in doing my own post last week. I had a lot of thoughts and commented on a few other posts, but here's this week's early post.

First, I struggle just like most of y'all with writing in my journal. My goal is once a week and every time I actually pick up my journal and look at my last entry it's been a month. Consistently. So, the goal is still once a week...and hopefully I'll get better! I do write a blog, but for me it's not so much a record. I'll probably print it..some day. A few other ways I keep records are 1) baby books . Caleb's was much more detailed than Mackenzie's is, but I have them. I also LOVE photo albums. Justin started them for me when I was gone for a few weeks at a family reunion. I came home and he'd put together an "adventure book" for me (like from UP). I loved it! I love looking back and seeing pictures and remembering those days, those events, seeing my children get bigger, seeing Justin and I grow closer and all the fun things we've done together. I just love it! On that same sort of note, I also put together annual video/slide shows. 2011 is almost finished! They take a while, but they are so wonderful when they are finished.

So, my record keeping goals: Finish my 2011 video! Get my photo albums up to date! Write in my journal every week. I really liked the idea of giving a journal to my parents filled with questions for them to answer. LOVE that idea. I just might do that.

Now I loved Angela's post about marriage. I feel like there's so many things I want in my marriage, and I married a good man, too. Reading the lesson reminded me of a BYU devotional talk given by Jeffrey R. Holland in 2009. He talks about loving, forgiving, and forgetting. He refers to the "splat" that so many people use during arguments: bringing up past errors in an effort to put oneself ahead of the other. There have only been a few times that we have been caught in that cycle, and I'm so grateful for when we recognize it and get out of it.

I know I'm not perfect, but I'm certainly trying. I really like how the lesson reinforces that to improve our marriage, we can't change our spouse, but we change ourselves. It reminds me of a few things my Patriarchal Blessing says about supporting my husband. And I tell that to my son all the time, "You can't control her [Mackenzie], you can only control you." So, I can control me. I can control how I act, how I feel, and what mood I cast on the home and on my marriage.

I have to say, living with my in-laws for 2 years was so trying on our marriage. It was so hard to find good times to just be US, and to read or talk or do anything together. It was hard. Having our own space, where any room can be a "private" conversation room; any time can be a time for us to talk about a problem or something that's bothering us. It has strengthened our marriage so much. I am so grateful for that!! I am grateful for a loving husband who works hard and wants our marriage to work no matter what.

Oh, and on a side note, I highly recommend the film "Fireproof." If you've never heard of it, watch it! It's a great little film about growing closer to our Savior and thus changing ourselves and strengthening our marriages.

So, my goals:
1) Be more compassionate, patient, and LOOK for ways to serve my husband. Not just the normal ones.
2) Plan a stay-at-home date for this week and an outing for next week (we have baby sitting trade offs).
3) LOVE my husband. Make him feel loved, special, and needed.

Change of Heart: Marriage

To make up for failing last week, I read this week's lesson yesterday. I approached it rather humbly because I had been a down-right grump several days last week. Not in words or actions necessarily but I felt all a rage inside and I know it came across. I hate that dark feeling, and the way it puts a feeling of distance between Justin and I. This lesson was really good for me. Here are the words I'm pulling out of it and then my goal:

Unselfishness
Forgiveness
Change

And my goal is to continuously forgive Justin. Not that he has sins to forgive, but rather when he doesn't respond to something the way I expect or want or he doesn't meet some silly expectation I've created for a situation. I hate the reaction I feel inside to such things. I want to act not react. My parents always said, "High expectation before marriage and NONE afterwards." You'd think after years of hearing that I'd learn. I've been reading in the New Testament about forgiveness. I love the parable in Matt. 18:23-35.

I love the picture above. And the way to "fix it" like the lesson says is to fix ourselves. I'm grateful for the Atonement, daily repentance, laughter, and a good husband.

And now to figure out that date night...

Do what I can

Speaking of family history... I've been busy with family visitors for the past 2 weeks (which explains my lack of input and comments). My head is filled with memories I need to write before I forget everything (it's only a matter of time...does anyone else have that problem? I swear my memory left when I got pregnant and it still hasn't returned). I'm going to be honest, I just skimmed through the lesson plan (at least I'm being honest).

Having modern technology makes the whole process easier with a blog and all. I've been recording a lot of stuff on my personal blog (and I plan on just printing the blog into a book ever year). My blog is has basically become my journal so good or bad at least I'm doing something (and I don't feel too overwhelmed by it).

I love all of your ideas. The few thoughts I had as I was reading through the lesson were-

1- I need to be better about writing faith building experiences and testimonies. I do an okay job at recording events but less so about what lessons I learned along the way. I guess that is easily added to my blog posts :)

2- I want to learn more about my parents. Last year I bought my mum a journal from Deseret Book with a bunch of questions about her childhood, youth, young married life, etc. I can't wait to read what she writes. I'm curious about what experiences have shaped my parents and made them who they are. I'm curious what trials they faced during their young married life. I'd love to learn more. I guess the best thing to do is ask questions. I've learned that my parents (and grandparents for that matter) are always willing to share stories from their lives.

3- I can't stress about all the things I'm not doing, rather I'll be happy about the things I am doing. Right now, my priority to be be a wife and mum. I want to be present in the precious moments happening right now.  It's a little stressful to write in my journal everyday (I tend to be a little long winded when I write so it ends up taking too long) so I've found that writing once a week is far more manageable.

Thanks for all your comments and ideas!

The Box

So writing this title, I couldn't help but think of a book I read this past Christmas called The Christmas Box... I cried (maybe a little because I just had a baby a few months before, but who knows). You should read it.  The end.


On to what I was going to actually post... After so much commentary with regard to the Family History Box, I feel credit must be paid to the one who gifted me this box, a friend's sweet mother - Caroline Hemming -  who recently passed away. It's interesting how something like family history takes on a whole new meaning when people you love start passing away. It makes you want to bundle up everything you can about them before they go, kind of like a blanket of memories. I'm grateful she gave me this box, so that I can do that for my family.

 A few of you mentioned wanting to do something similar, and since I'm a very visual person, I thought I'd post a few pictures and show you what it looks like.

Here is the "box".  

It fits size 8x5 cards, with a little room to spare (as you can see below).

 Inside the box:

I forgot to mention that there are month dividers, because who really wants to flip through 365 cards looking for one specific one?

You can also see that she's printed up the days of the year on clear labels that she's placed in the upper left corner of each 5x8 card. It may be a little time consuming to put it together, but I think it's totally worth it.


Let me know if you have any questions. I'm grateful that we had this challenge this week, it has definitely helped me to pull the box back out and make sure I'm recording!   Thank you, Marissa!

EPIC FAIL!

I'm very sad to admit that I just barely read the lesson AND the goal for this week.  Needless to say, I haven't written even once!  I've thought about it several times, and then something always comes up.  Why does life always get in the way of recording life events??  Ha ha ha.

Journal writing use to be one of my favorite things.  I was consistent, I was detailed.  I currently have 18 filled journals, and yet I've been working on hitting 100 pages since November of last year (which is long for me, considering I use to be able to fill a journal in 2-3 months).  Something about a baby just throws me off...but I love her so!  Blogging has been a really good journal for me, at least of life events.  I'm grateful for that.  I know that keeping a journal helps me to sort through my thoughts.  When Lucy was born, I went through some pretty rough postpartum  depression, something I never thought I would go through (quite honestly, I always thought it was a made up excuse for not loving being a mom).  Boy was I ever wrong!  I found that in keeping a journal helped me discern between what I was feeling due to the depression and what I knew I was truly feeling underneath all those depressive feelings.  I'm so grateful that I now have record of those things and I can see how far I've come.

By way of family history things, I definitely need to do better.  My goal this year was to compile my grandparent's life histories, because neither are doing very well health wise (crappy motivation, yet motivation it is!).  Again, life gets in the way, but this lesson helped me to find a little more motivation!  Thanks Marisa for that little lesson boost!  I have been doing pretty well by way of our little family history. Like I mentioned before, I like to blog, and I decided that I'd keep a little scrapbook with the same pictures as the blog, but make them cuter than they would be if I just printed off the blog.  I'm proud to say that I'm 100 % caught up on THIS year's scrapbook, and 100% behind on both 2009 and 2011 (somehow I found motivation to do 2010?  What the heck?)  I just use mixbook.com...an online scrapbooking thing which lets you design your own pages, or use pre-designed pages, and you can add little stickers and things.  Still, they're pretty plain Jane, but they do the trick.  I found that doing it digitally was WAY easier for me because #1, all my pictures are digital anyway, #2 there isn't any mess other than my computer that I have to clean up #3 its an awesome way to save my pictures online and never have to worry about a fire destroying all my memories (yes, I'm the daughter of a fireman, I think about these things....) and #4 I can get them printed anytime I want to or have a little extra money for it.

Anyway, I'm grateful for histories.  I'm grateful for the ability to write, grateful that I can do it in the comfort of my own home and not huddled underneath a covered wagon like so many people before me. I'm grateful for the histories of my ancestors, and for the people that have compiled them.  What amazing people can before us!!!!!

Alas, the babe has awakened...so much for my determination to write after I finished this huh??

I am really awful at record keeping

I have set the goal to journal MANY MANY times... to do it for a week or so and then I fall into the hole of "I left this page blank because I'm going to write about _____". Without fail, every single journal/notebook/whatever I have to keep notes or thoughts in has multiple pages blank left that I intend to fill in later. In case you were wondering, they are still blank.

Here are a few "family history" ideas:

• I think blogs have helped me to overcome the "blank page plague". If I have something I want to write about, I just create a draft and when I have time, I get to it.

• Another idea came as a bridal shower gift years ago. It is a cute box and in the box are 365 index cards, with a card marked with each day of the year. When something significant happens, I pull out the card associated with that day, write the year, place, and whatever it is that happened. Ex: on the card for the day Cody and I were married, I wrote, "2008 - 1:00 PM, Cody and Jessi sealed for time and all eternity in the St. Louis Temple" or on the day Emma was born, "2011 - Emma Lynn born at 2:53 AM, 6 lbs, 1 oz, 19.5 inches long, Douglas County, Nebraska".  Over the years those cards will fill up with a "family history". It is easier and faster than writing a whole journal entry, and fun to look back and see what happened on this day over the years.   I am not AWESOME at this, but pull it out periodically and can quickly jot down events so that we remember.

• A dear friend of mine keeps a daily gratitude journal with her husband. Everyday they write one thing that they are thankful for. It can be in relation to each other or just something that they experienced that day that they want to remember or express gratitude for. 

• I periodically keep a journal of things I love about Cody. It's usually when I've had a frustrating day and want to be critical or am feeling particularly "naggy" that I pull it out. It helps me to remember how much I love him and cherish our relationship. 

• Reading this week has lead me to ponder about a talk that Elder Eyring gave years ago in conference about his Tender Mercy journal that he kept every day. He would record at least one event in the day that was evidence that Heavenly Father was there and was watching over him and his family. What an incredible thing to be able to pass on to your children. When my parents pass away, that would be one thing that I would be SO grateful to get from them - a list of their day-to-day testimony strengthening events. One goal I would like to have is to keep a journal like that for my children.

I came across a great quote that highlights the value in having a journal:

"There is one subject I wish to speak upon and that is the keeping of a journal with respect to the dealings of God with us. I have many times thought the Quorum of the Twelve and others considered me rather  enthusiastic upon this subject; but when the Prophet Joseph organized the Quorum of the Twelve, he counseled them to keep a history of their lives, and gave his reasons why they should do so. I have had this spirit and calling upon me since I first entered this Church. I made a record from the first sermon I heard,  and from that day until now I have kept a daily journal. Whenever I heard Joseph Smith preach, teach, or  prophesy, I always felt it my duty to write it; I felt uneasy and could not eat, drink, or sleep until I did Write; and my mind has been so exercised upon this subject that when I heard Joseph Smith teach and had no pencil or paper, I would go home and sit down and Write the whole sermon, almost word for word and sentence by sentence as it was delivered, and when I had written it it was taken from me, I remembered it no more. This was the gift of God to me." (Matthias F. Cowley, Wilford Woodruff: History of His Life and Labors, pp. 476-77; italics added.)

What would it feel like to have that kind of drive to keep a journal?? "I felt uneasy and could not eat, drink, or sleep until I did write".  

I will be praying to have an attitude like that regarding record keeping.

Failing...

I am completely failing this week with the goal of trying to write every day. How many times I have I written this week? Once.

I'll be honest I didn't read all the lessons before putting this together because I wanted to read them all as I did the challenge. That being said I was surprised to find out that this weeks lesson was focused more on creating a personal and family history rather than just keeping a journal.

I did have some thoughts though as I read...

• If prophets of old could keep records when their way of writing was much harder shouldn't I be able to type out a paragraph or two each day? each week?
•  We are blessed to have so much convenience in our lives making everyday chores so much easier and faster. I heard a quote from President Packer once in which he basically said that we have all these things so that we can use the time we save for the building up of the kingdom. Specifically temple work but I think it applies to all areas of the gospel. Am I am using the time I save to build up the kingdom of God? Maybe some of those saved minutes should be dedicated to keeping a history of my life and my family. 
• When writing, record feelings and experiences. Write things that will be faith promoting and uplifting. When I was younger I would start every entry in my journal with "Today I woke up." Ha! I think this is so funny, "Good for you Marisa I am so glad you woke up today." Since then I think I have gotten into the habit of writing "then we did..." "then this happened." etc. These types of descriptions can be great but I think I need to include more of my feelings, and faith promoting thoughts when I write.

Journal writing has been on my yearly goals for who knows how long and I have gone through phases of doing really well and not writing at all. One of the things that has worked well for me is creating a document titled "Daily Thoughts" this document is an ongoing document that contains thoughts from each day and sometimes they are as little as a few sentences. The whole idea is that I don't need to record everything about the day, just those things that come to mind first. It also can be short and sweet which helps me to actually write rather than feel like I don't have the time.

Starting today Wednesday April 11th, I Marisa am going to write a little something everyday for the rest of the week. You all need to hold me accountable, OK?

How do you guys do with record keeping? How do you do it? When do you do it? Have any of you started a personal or family history (not going to lie I felt stressed after reading the lesson. The writing of a personal history seems really daunting even with only 24 years under my belt : D )

Small World!!

Hey Rachel! Apparently we have met before. When I was at Marisa's apartment this weekend, we somehow got on the topic of Europe trips. We realized that I actually went on a Europe trip with you in High School! I even found photo evidence. I just scanned this from my scrapbook. I thought it was funny. Good times:)

Also, some of the rest of you ladies look familiar because I went to Davis High my Sophomore year (transferred to Viewmont for my Junior and Senior year). I also graduated from BYU. It is amazing how small the world is when you are LDS.

Leavitt Staples

So I just went a little comment crazy. I have been busy hosting family (so fun!). I have still been reading, learning and being inspired but haven't voiced it until now when I made 9 comments so sorry to anyone who is getting an email every time someone comments.

I wanted to jump in and share a couple of my easy, go to and fairly cheap recipes that we love here around the Leavitt home. Enjoy!

Hawaiian Haystacks
rice
1 can chicken breast drained or cooked chopped chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pkg. Western Family chicken gravy mix
1 cup water ½ cup milk

Topping ideas: chow mein noodles/cheese/pineapple tidbits/mandarin oranges/cashews/almonds/sunflower seeds/celery/peas/raisens/coconut.

Mix cream of chicken soup, water, milk, and gravy mix together in saucepan. Heat until thickened. Add chicken and heat until chicken is warmed.

Chicken Tortilla Soup for the CrockPot 
4 chicken breast halves
2 15-oz cans black beans, undrained
2 15-oz cans Mexican stewed tomatoes
1 cup salsa (mild, medium, or hot, your choice) (jarred salsa works best)
4 oz can chopped green chilies
14.5-oz can tomato sauce
tortilla chips
grated cheese

Combine all ingredients except chips and cheese in large slow cooker. May want to chop up the stewed tomatoes. Cover & cook on Low 8 hours. Just before serving, remove chicken breasts and slice into bite sized pieces. Stir into soup.

Stuffed Pizza Rolls
1 roll refrigerated pizza dough
1 small jar marinara/pizza sauce
2T grated Parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil or melted butter
1/2 t garlic powder
1 t dried Italian seasoning
Mozzarella cheese, diced or grated
Pizza toppings of your choice

Preheat oven to heat specified on pizza dough package. If you make your own dough, 400 degrees is usually a good heat as well. Unroll your pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat or roll the dough so it's about 12" by 8". You're going to want to cut it into 24 squares, so just eyeball it if you need to. Use a pizza cutter to slice the dough into 24 squares.

Stroganoff 
1 pound hamburger
¼ tsp. onion powder
¼ tsp. fresh ground pepper
2 packages mushroom gravy
1 ½ cups water
½ cup sour cream

Brown and drain hamburger add other ingredients except for sour cream. Cook until thick and bubbly. Add sour cream right before serving. Serve over rice or egg noodles.

Money money money

I'm still here. I've been reading all of your posts and been so inspired! I haven't had the chance to comment on your posts but I've been reading them and I've definitely been thinking about all your advice. My husbands wants to thank you all. We spent the week in Scotland with my family and although TOTALLY tempted to buy SO many souvenirs I said, "no we can't afford it" after reading all your posts about having a budget and trying to keep to it. My husband couldnt believe I used such restraint. I've been SO inspired. I want to be like all of you. I want to be better at making and keeping a budget. My hubby is into finance so too often I just let him take over the budget stuff because it stresses me to the max. It makes me grumpy ha ha (Maybe it wouldn't if we had lots of money coming in). But it doesn't work very well because I'm the one buying things- he's the one budgeting- but my purchases don't always match "his" budget. And he is all too forgiving when I go over budget. We have learned a lot the best year of living off debt but we have a long way to go. But to be completely honest, ive been putting of writing a post because I feel completely inadequate and overwhelmed when talking about budgets. I'm just not good at it. I think being frugal is such an amazing gift, one I just don't have yet. I say yet because I'm working on it. I think it takes practice. We have a lot more school in our future so I have many more years of practice in our future. Sometimes it's just easier not to think about it, no one likes to think about all the debt they owe to the government. But it's important to establish a budget and work to stay within it. I'm promising myself to be better. Thank you all for your examples. I LOVE the recipe swap idea. Thanks for all the great recipes. I'm not the best at cooking (there another source of stress...money and cooking). Many of the ingredients are a bit different here in London so sorry if these recipes aren't cheap for you.... This is my current go to recipe. Lime chicken tacos 3-4 chicken breast 2-3 limes juiced Taco seasoning (homemade would be cheaper) 1 cup salsa Just put the chicken in a crockpot. Mix taco seasoning with lime juice and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 4-6 hours. Once chicken is cooked, shread it, then mix in the cup of salsa (I add about a cup and a half and some jalapeños for flavor and spice yum!). Scoop into tortillas and top with cheese, sour creme, lettuce, tomatoes, etc. We usually just eat it with cheese cause we are cheap like that. ----------------------- Thanks for all your advice and input. I really love it. You are all so encouraging and is sightful.

"Elegantly Cheap"

That was going to be the title of a blog I was going to do, until I realized I can barely keep up with family blogs and life. But anyway, great idea Amber. I'm excited to see everyone else's staples. Here are a few of ours:

Thai Peanut Noodles from Our Best Bites
We don't do the lime or cilantro or fresh ginger...but I'm sure it would be fabulous with. I hate Pb&J and yet I love this. We throw in frozen veggies with the boiling pasta. About $2 w/ veggies.

Addictive Sweet Potato Burritos (this link is just to our family blog for us to keep track of online recipes, NOT a real cooking blog)
These are sooo yummy. I can make 2 meals worth for under $3-4 IF I soak and cook our own beans, make our own torillas and go cheese-less. And they are still very yummy. Just something you want to triple the batch to make your labor worth it.

Mac'n'Tomato
Elbow noodles (the 'mac' part) and Tomato Juice w/ salt and pepper. That's it. Comforting and the kids love it. Boil the elbow noodles to al dente and rinse til cold (About 3 cups dry noodles for our family). Put back in pan and pour in enough tomato juice until there is enough to look like a soup (3-4 cups). Salt and pepper and re-heat. Less than $2.

Baked Oatmeal
Ok so this isn't dinner, but I just love it so much I have to share. We love to put the zest of one lemon and make the night before.

Anyway, just a few. Excites to see yours.

Economical Recipes

With all of us talking about our situations, I've noticed a trend: none of us are big spenders, have money to spend, and ALL of us are conscious of our budget and are trying to live within our means.

So, I thought it'd be fun if we posted some of our favorite "cheap" recipes. I'd love to see what you guys makes. (this is an indirect idea from Angela, that smart lady) I mean, we have the standard Refried beans with Spanish rice meal...but here are some other ones that we really like and are relatively cheap.

Frankfurter’s with Rice and Beans (serves 6)

Ingredients:

1 TBL Vegetable Oil

1 medium onion, chopped

½ medium green bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (14 oz) red beans, rinsed and drained (or I often use kidney beans)

1 can (14 oz) Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained (also called Cannellini beans, or just white beans)

½ lb beef frankfurters, cut into ¼-in thick pieces (I just use whatever hot dogs I have on hand)

1 C rice, cooked (brown or white) (I use leftover rice from another meal…one reason why I make this meal)

1 C vegetable/chicken broth (or bouillon cubes with water)

¼ C ketchup

¼ C packed brown sugar

3 TBL dark molasses

1 TBL mustard

Directions:

1. 1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray 13x9 in. dish with cooking spray.
2. 2. Heat oil in pot over medium high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic; cook and stir 2 min or until onion is tender
3. 3. Add beans, frankfurters, rice, broth, ketchup, sugar, molasses, and mustard to vegetables. Stir to combine. Pour into prepared dish.
4. 4. Cover tightly with foil and bake 15-20 min until heated through

Debbie’s Bean and Pasta Stew (serves 8)

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

½ Cu bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (1 lb) tomatoes, chopped

1 can (1 lb) kidney beans, undrained

1 ½ C small whole grain pasta shells (6 oz)

1 C water

½ tsp oregano

¼ tsp basil

1/8 tsp black pepper

1 can Garbanzo beans, undrained

Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. 1. Heat oil in a medium sauce pan. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Saute over medium heat until soft, about 10-12 mins.
2. 2. Add tomatoes and kidney beans with their liquid. Bring to a boil.
3. 3. Add shell pasta, water, oregano, basil, and pepper. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10-12 mins until pasta is tender.
4. 4. Add garbanzo beans with liquid. Simmer until heated through. If thicker stew desired, simmer uncovered. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Four Bean and Sausage Dinner (AKA Beanie-Weanie Casserole) serves 8

Ingredients:

1 lb cooked smoked Turkey sausage, halved lengthwise, and cut into 1/2in thick pieces (again, I use whatever was on sale: smoked sausage, hot dogs, whatever)

1 can (15 oz) each of red kidney beans, black beans, Great Northern beans, Butter beans, rinsed and drained (Butter beans are a bit pricier, but they are so key in this meal: Aldi has ‘em for like .69 a can)

1 8 oz can tomato sauce

1 medium sweet green pepper, chopped

¼ C chopped onion

½ C ketchup

¼ C packed brown sugar

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp dry mustard

½ tsp bottled hot pepper sauce (I don’t remember ever putting this in)

Directions:

1. 1. In slow cooker combine everything. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 8-10 hours, or high for 4-5 hours.
2. 2. Serve with rice.

Best Ever Split Pea Soup (serves 6)

Ingredients:

1 Tbl olive oil

2 C chopped onion

2 C chopped carrot (I add extra, 3-4 cups)

½ TBL minced garlic

1 C Yellow split peas

1 C Green split peas (I use just 2 Cups Green Split Peas)

1 ½ tsp seasoning salt

**I add about 4-5 oz of Keilbasa if I have it

Directions:

1. 1. In a large pot heat oil over medium heat. Cook onion, carrot, and garlic until onion is translucent.
2. 2. Stir in yellow and green split peas, broth, and seasoning salt.
3. 3. Cover, bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer 2 ½ hours (If you have less time, just a hotter simmer), stirring frequently
4. 4. Puree about 3-4 cups of it in a blender. Return to pot, heat through and serve
5. **I love to serve this with homemade bread, especially bread bowls, or rolls.

Lentil Sausage Soup (serves 8)

Ingredients:

2 TBL vegetabl oil

1 onion, diced

2 carrots, sliced

2 stalks celery with leaves, chopped (I leave out b/c neither me nor my husband like celery)

1 lb Kielbasa sauce, sliced (spicy sausage adds some great flavor, but if I don’t have spicy, I throw in some red pepper flakes)

2 qts chicken broth (8 cups)

1 (15 oz) can crushed tomatoes

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 lb (2 cups) dry lentils, rinsed

2 bay leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. 1. Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Stir in the onion, carrots, and celery; cook and stir for 2 mins
2. 2. Add kielbasa, chicken broth, tomatoes, garlic lentils and bay leaves. Bring to a boil Reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours (or so).
3. 3. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (If using spicy sausage, very little seasoning is needed)

Black Beans and White Rice (serves 4-6)

Ingredients:

Beans:

1 Cup dried black beans, soaked overnight or using the quick-soak method.

6 Cups water

2 dried chipotle chiles (I’ve never used these…I just add some hot peppers at the end)

2 bay leaves

Rice:

1 TBL extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes

About 1/3 C of diced green olives

1 C long grain white rice

1 ¾ Cups water

1 ½ tsp salt

**If I’m in the mood to splurge, I’ll add 1 chicken breast, cubed, for even more substance

**If you don’t have dried beans, just use 2 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed. Reduce salt to ¾ tsp

Directions:

1. Drain the beans. Combine the beans and the 6 cups fresh water, chiles, and bay leaves in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, partially covered, then reduce the heat and boil gently until the beans are tender but not mushy, about 1 hour. Drain, discarding the childes and bay leaves

2. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until the onion is limp, about 3 mins. Add the tomatoes and pimientos and sauté for 1 min. Stir in the rice, cooked beans, water, and salt. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until most of the water has been absorbed, about 15 mins. Remove from the heat and stir with a fork. The rice will be quite moist. Dry the pot lid, crumple a clean kitchen cotton or paper towel over the rice. Cover and let stand for 5 mins before serving.