Happenings and thoughts

So, today I managed to get all the laundry done. Well, most of it. Just a few things to put away and a load of diapers to do.

And the boys played all day with the neighbor kids outside, building forts, 'cooking' 'soup', and having lots of fun in general. One thing I do appreciate about them, is they are learning to be obedient even though it seems sometimes like they spend a lot of time complaining and dragging their feet. When they are clear across the field, if they can hear me, they come running, or at least respond.

Anyway, that is one of the thoughts I had. This weekend we had the Christmas program so I am going to put up some pictures of all my kids and some of the others who were involved.

Family Picture with kids new outfits from grandma and grandpa

Mommy and Daddy

One of the Primary girls, she played and sang, O Come All Ye Faithful

Shepherd/wise man Joshua

Jeffrey and baby shepherd boy with primary girl

Some of our little angels

Some bigger angels. They all sang Angels we have heard on high. Boy shepherd in the back against the wall, played a drum to The Little Drummer Boy

Victor, my friend Jenn and one of the Youth girls doing O Holy Night

The Primary kids read Bible verses about the Nativity

They also sang Away in  a Manger

I had to read a few of the verses since we had more verses than kids and one of my kids decided he didn't want to read. Sarah likes to hold a mic even if its not plugged in.

Youth group singing Mary Did you Know.

One of the Primary boys reading. 

All of them did very well, and the program went smoothly. The younger kids got up for their songs and sang very well. I was so impressed and proud of all of them! I was very thankful for all their teachers who had them practicing right up until it was time to go in and sit down. We got some videos  of some of the program.

John reading
Primary kids sing Away in a Manger
Youth play What Child is This
Primary Girl reads
Youth sing/play Silent Night
Youth sing/play What a Glorious Night

Busy doings

I've been trying to wean Sarah from her night feelings, so I started with the one she would have right before bed. I think it's working. Normally, I put her down to bed, about 8. And she would crawl in with us in the early am, not sure when, anywhere from 1-4. She wants to nurse back to sleep, though I think it's mostly a comfort, rather than actually thirsty. Once in a while she has asked for a drink, which I have gotten her and she goes back to sleep. Last night, I put her down as usual, which by this time, means I lay down with her and hold her hand or rub her face til she falls asleep. She hadn't nursed since lunchtime I think. I woke up this morning at 5 and realized she had slept the whole night in her own bed! I hope it's a trend, and not just a one time thing.

Today she skipped her nap so I rocked her to sleep about 7. She nursed around nap time but there was too much going on, so she didn't go down. She was definitely ready for bed tonight. She fussed a bit about not nursing, but gave up quicker this time. 

We worked on sewing shepherd costumes for the boys today. I made three of them. Tomorrow, I will make belts and figure out what I am going to wear. We also did some grocery shopping and the boys brought in a bunch of firewood. It's cold in here, and there is snow on the mountains. 

Anyway, I feel like we accomplished a lot today, between not nursing and sewing and shopping. I'm tired. 😊

Newsy items

So, the last few weeks I have been somewhat tired, nauseous at night, having Sarah nurse in the wee hours is annoying, and sometimes a bit painful, my menstrual cycle is wonky a bit anyway, but I missed November. So last week, my best friend gave me some pregnancy tests and I did the pee on the stick thing. Only, these ones were pee in a cup then dip the stick. Well, it was very positive.

I told my dad, and he said, "Oh, oh."  I told Victor's grandmother and she said "You need a bigger house." I told my sister and she said, "Don't you know what birth control is? And what are you going to do about space?"

Anyway, the boys all want twin girls to make it even, boys to girls. Sarah doesn't even know what's happening. And I'm thinking, I don't care, except it's healthy, and I want my appetite back. Every time I get pregnant, it flies out the window for a few months. Not throwing up or anything, just no desire to eat and yet I feel better when I do.

So, there you go, I'm about 10 weeks give or take, my clothes already were tight and getting  more so everyday. I'm trying to up my intake of water, since I tend to not drink enough anyway, as well as wean Sarah off her night sleepy time feeding.

Also, I'm very addicted to Facebook, so tonight I decided, if at all possible , I am not going to read my timeline or my notifications. I will however keep posting things I read in my daily devotions and other readings. And maybe blog more about the things we do. More like journal them. I do have Facebook messenger, if anyone messages me on facebook, I will receive those and respond.

We are planning a Christmas program for next Sabbath at church. The kids will be reading Bible verses from the story of Jesus birth, interspersed with congregational and special songs.

So, this next week, I need to find my sewing boxes, and figure out an angel costume for Sarah, and some shepherd or wisemen costumes for the boys. I have some ideas, just need to see what material I have and get cracking on it!
I am also, with the help of the boys, making some tin can luminaries with tea lights for decorations. I hope they don't look too tacky.

Anyway, I'm meeting with the midwife this weekend for my first prenatal and based on my calculations, we are due around the first or second week of July 2015.

I think that's all, for now. I'm sleepy and it's getting late. I should head off for bed.

Night all!

November doings.

So, we pretty much have been doing the same old doings. Last week, I did a week long walking water drinking challenge with one of my friends. So, I am more motivated now to get out there and do it some more. I am also trying to drink more water.

I want to start a FB group of my own for a challenge. Maybe more of a support group. Where we can tell each other what we did that day for walking and how much we drank. 

I would also like to limit the time I am on FB again, since it is an addiction for me. 

This week, we are starting to get ready for a Christmas program at church. The kids will be singing and reading Bible verses. We are making luminaries out of tin cans and I am going to see if I can make some wings and an angel costume for Sarah. 

We shall see how that goes.

Cooking

Yesterday, I made cookies and turnovers with pumpkin in them. yummy! We ate all of them for breakfast. They were very healthy, as they only had 1/2 cup of sugar in the whole bunch which after we finished the pumpkin filling today was 24 turnovers, and probably 24 cookies. I forgot to count.

Today, we made vegan potato gnocchi which could have been better, but turned out better than last time. It was so good we ate all of it and I made more for Victor since he was late for dinner. 

Lastly, I made homemade bread so Victor won't have to buy food while he is at work the next couple of days. 

Here are the recipes.

Gnocchi

http://england.lovefoodhatewaste.com/node/3896

INGREDIENTS:

Left-over mashed potato (the drier the better) or the flesh of two or three baked potatoes, mashed without milk or butter

Plain white flour

A little salt and pepper

Serve with a little tomato sauce or vegan pesto, or simply sauté a clove or two of crushed garlic in some good olive oil or vegan margarine and garnish the dish with some chopped fresh herbs. 

METHOD:

Make sure the mashed potato isn’t lumpy and season it with salt and pepper. Put the mash into a large mixing bowl and add several tablespoons of flour. 

Use your hands to mix the potato and flour together and keep adding flour until the mixture comes together as a dough.  Turn the dough onto a floured board and knead it gently, adding more flour as necessary – you will find that the more you squeeze the potato, the more moisture will appear! Once the dough is dry enough to stop sticking to the board, cut it into four portions and gently roll each one into a long ‘snake’. 

Use a sharp knife to chop the snake into short pieces and put these on a floured plate. If they touch each other, they are likely to stick together. 

Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Drop a few gnocchi pieces into the water – not too many, otherwise they may clump. They will sink, and then rise to the surface when they are cooked – this only takes a minute or two. Scoop them out when they are floating. If you need to keep them warm while you finish the cooking, toss them with a little oil to stop them from sticking together. 

Serve with a little tomato sauce or vegan pesto, or simply sauté a clove or two of crushed garlic in some good olive oil or vegan margarine and garnish the dish with some chopped fresh herbs. 

Turnovers 

Kyong Weathersby 

SWEET POTATO TURN-OVER

Filling:

2 - 15 oz can sweet potatoes or 4 cups cooked sweet potatoes

1/2 c turbinado sugar

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 tsp coriander

2 tsp vanilla

Dough:

2 c unbleached white flour

1/4 c wheat germ

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 c vegetable oil

1/2 c hot water

FILLING: If you using canned sweet potatoes, rinse and drain completely. Mix all ingredients and mash until smooth. Set it aside.

DOUGH: Mix all ingredients except canola oil and hot water. Add canola oil and hot water. Mix well with a flour blender or fork. Divide into 12 balls. Flatten and shape into 5" size circles.

TURN-OVER: In the middle of the dough, put a 1 1/2 tablespoonful of the sweet potato filling. Close in half and seal it tight. Lay on an oil sprayed cookie sheet. Prick pastry with fork. Bake at 420 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Delicious!

Original recipe by Kyong C. Weathersby, Author of A Taste of Heaven Cookbooks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6, Delicious Vegan Vegetarian Cookbooks, www.kyongcw.com

Note: I used pumpkin and flax meal instead of sweet potatos and wheat germ. Yummy! 

Cookies

Couponing4you Facebook page

RECIPE OF THE DAY: Healthy cookies!

Ingredients

3 mashed bananas (ripe)

1/3 cup apple sauce

2 cups oats

1/4 cup almond milk

1/4 cup raisins or nuts

1 cup good chocolate chunks

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon

Directions

preheat oven to 350 degrees

bake for 15-20 minutes

Cool and Enjoy!

Note: made using oat flour and a little of leftover pumpkin turnover filling instead of applesauce. Used cranberries and a few raisins and sesame seeds. No cinnamon or chocolate chips. Ate the whole batch for breakfast.

The Emerging Church

I thought I would share a few links about the Emerging Church that I found.

It is a very dangerous movement which degrades the gospel message at its core, introducing mysticism and eastern religious theologies. It is basically spiritualism.

This website is one that tries to be unbiased in either direction and just tell what a religion believes, which is why I include it here.

http://carm.org/emerging-church

Then from an Adventist perspective I am including the video series that was done a couple of weeks ago talking about the emerging church and spiritual formation in our churches and schools. 

http://new.livestream.com/saccentral/events/3378356/videos/65251973

This is the first of the series which is all about the emerging church and what it's doing in the Adventist church in particular. The series is called Omega Emerging. There are about 6 or 7 videos. 

I hope others will be able to see how dangerous this movement is and warn others to anchor themselves in Jesus and His Word, because Satan is coming in like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Spiritualism is filling our whole world in television and books, and now even in church. Do not accept it, speak out against it. 

If you want more proof just google Emergent Church, or Spiritual formation and you will find out a lot about it from many different perspectives. Of course we must base our perspective on the Biblical truth perspective.

Isa 8:20    To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

Things of October

Wow, it's been over a month since I posted last. Well, I'll try to bring out some of the more interesting things for this month.

Victor spent some time in Kanab this month, so one day we drove over there and visited my friend Amy for a couple of hours.

Sarah is picking up a lot of words and starting to speak in short 2-3 word sentences. She like to talk and sometimes will talk about things for several minutes, some of which is understandable, much of it, not. 

The kids are enjoying the cooler fall weather, spending hours outdoors, creating things, building forts and playing with the neighbor kids in the sand. 

Allergies have been really bad lately. I feel like I have a cold, complete with runny, stuffy nose and sneezing. My eyes get itchy and sometimes watery as well. I finally started taking some herbal allergy supplements that contain stinging nettle which seems to help some, and am going to try to leave out sugar and wheat more. I've kind of gotten back to eating more of those things as they are so yummy! This website gave me some great ideas and maybe some motivation. http://avivaromm.com/3-steps-to-make-your-allergies-go-away-forever

Speaking of motivation, I've found setting the timer for a few minutes helpful to get some cleaning done. Another thing I do to motivate myself off the couch is to take the kids for a walk or go to the park when they start acting hyper or fussy. It's a distraction for both of us. 

Today we went to the park. The kids and I played tag with the dog and much to my surprise, he chased John on command after I tagged him. For a few minutes anyway. Then when he was tired out he came and 'asked' to go home. So, we came home. Poor dog. We don't pay enough attention to him.

Last week, I had the sermon for church. I was supposed to do it earlier in the summer, but things got switched around, and then our pastor left to go to seminary, so for the summer we did a DVD series. So, I was pushed out til October. But it was actually better that way, because as the summer progressed and I had more time to study and pray on it, the Lord impressed me in a more focused and slightly different direction than I originally planned to go. I will share some of what I talked about maybe in a later post.

Also, this week I got to see an awesome weekend series that was speaking out against spiritual formation and the Emergent Church movement. Basically, this movement is dealing in spiritualism, mysticism, and eastern religious practices, but they are renaming and repackaging them  and bringing them into many Christian churches and schools. It degrades the work of the Holy Spirit and the Bible doctrines, particularly justification by faith and is very dangerous. 

We started a Sabbath afternoon study group at our house and so far have two people attending. One is a Lutheran who left his church a few months ago, because they weren't teaching Bible prophecy. The other guy loves Bible prophecy and end times, and wants to study more . So we have been having some good discussions, so far.

Jesus is coming soon. I hope people realize that, and that their only hope of Heaven is the faith of Jesus and His righteousness. Things are moving very quickly now, as Satan knows his time is short and is working very hard to deceive the world into following him. But we know that God's Word is true and that He is in control and will bring His people through to the end. 

Life

I haven't posted much except my challenge for the last month or so, but here I am. It's half way through September  and I'm just now getting back to this.  

The kids and I have been keeping up with school and Victor is in Moab til next week, working his tail off to pay the bills. It's been nice and cool with some rain which is good for the garden. 

We had some crazy rain this month. Washing out roads and stranding people for hours until other routes could be opened. The interstate was shut down for a couples days and then partially reopened. It's still not completely fixed but at least people can get through without having to travel around extra miles. 

At church, I've had to run the sound system for the most part with Victor gone. So I did double duty playing the piano and also going back to run power points and videos for people. Yesterday, the sermon was all on PowerPoint but we have a remote, so I just sat in the back to make sure it ran smoothly. 

In the afternoon, after lunch, my friend Amy stayed awhile and we visited a little bit. She was just getting ready to go, as the boys were making some tea. Josh handed me a hot cup to taste to see if it had enough sweetener in it, which I then set on the kitchen counter. I turned to say goodbye to Amy and all of a sudden there was a blood-curdling scream. Sarah had climbed up in the stool to taste the tea, too, and poured some down her front. It was scalding hot.

Now, that it's over, I almost could cry thinking about it. I pulled her shirt off really fast and took a wash cloth with cool water and put it on her chest. It was very red. 

I grabbed the Lavender essential oil, (thank God for Oils!) and poured a bunch all over. Then we put the cool cloth back on. Amy had brought some frozen juice and flax milk for us, so she grabbed the milk out of the fridge and we put it on Sarah's chest to keep the cloth cool. 

Long story short, Amy suggested we should go to the Insta-care and have it looked at because it was starting to blister. The doctor said it was about 15-20% of her body, so he said to give her lots of fluids, and put silvadine cream mixed with numbing cream all over with a bandage and keep an eye on it so it doesn't get infected.

So we stopped by the pharmacy and got what we needed and I added lavender oil to the mix as well. The doctor said to give her some ibuprofen for the pain as well, but I only gave her a little last night as she didn't seem to be in a lot of pain by then. 

Gods remedies really do help. I am amazed at the way it works. Today, I have had to rebandage her twice because she gets excited and runs around and it comes off, but she hasn't had any pain medicine except what is in the cream. 

I will try to remember to add a picture later tomorrow when I changed her bandage. It is a lot less red then it was yesterday and most of it didn't blister at all, for which I am thankful.

I am very impressed with the effectiveness of the lavender and also very thankful for my great friend Amy, who was there to help and watched the boys for me while I was in with Sarah at the Insta-care.

Anyway, I can't say enough about how wonderful the essential oils are and how many uses they have. We have used them for so many things, improving our health in different ways. If you want to check out essential oils, you can visit my website at www.youngliving.com/sasekvj . There are many places to get essential oils, but Youngliving is where I get mine from and I've been really impressed with the quality as well as the pricing.

Anyway, that's our adventure for the weekend. Time to head for bed!

Challenges report end of August

Well, I managed to curb my sugar intake for a couple of weeks and then kind of fell off the wagon. But it's ok, because i noticed that I don't crave it so much now. 

I didn't get as much walking in as I hoped I would, but I did do more swimming. We've gone swimming almost everyday that it wasn't raining, except for a few days. 

I stayed off Facebook until Sabbath the 30th. Having spent so much time off, I went into it expecting to binge on it. However, I found that it wasn't as appealing to me. I can get sucked into reading comments and debates about stuff, but is realized that there was so much junk and negativity and drama, that I am not so likely to jump on there. I'm hoping that I can now keep it to a minimum. Just a quick peek for messages and maybe a status update or two, rather than every time that I am bored. 

Today, we jumped into more schoolwork and pulled some weeds in the garden. I pulled some ragweed and now am paying for it with itchy eyes, sneezing and sinus drainage. We went swimming and had some fun. Now the kids are all in bed and Victor is out of town working, so I am sitting here watching a movie. By myself. With the cat, in the living room.

Maybe I'll get to bed early tonight. Or at least on time. I managed to get more water in today. Having a chart helps since I like more checkmarks.

Well, that's my update. Later.

Challenges report day 24-26

So, I'm not doing so good with the sugar challenge. Victor brought home some candy and donuts and other sugary stuff, and I indulged. I think I just kind of forgot about the sugar part of the challenge. I do notice however, that it's not as appealing to me so that's something I guess.

I put up a chart to try to drink more water, and yesterday that was a big success. Every time I went by, it seems, I drank some. And we are managing to get to bed a bit earlier the last few nights. No later than 10:30, I think.

It poured down rain the last few afternoons so we haven't gotten outside to go swimming, but we did load up the pickup with junk and Victor made a run to the salvage yard. We got outside and looked at the garden for a bit before it rained, as well.

It is sunny this morning, so I may have to see if we can take a walk.

Even with Victor being off the last couple of days, we are staying on track with our worship and school schedule, for the most part which is good, since usually everything just flies out the window with him home.

I guess that's all for now.  Later.

Challenge report for days 19-23

Ate the last two ice cream bars and had some cookies and s'mores this week. Also, stayed up way too late a couple nights.

Today, managed to eat only a few animal crackers as far as sweets go.

I have been able to restrain myself from Facebook. Now I need to limit myself on the games and tv, since I think I replaced Facebook with those things. 

Fortunately, we started school this week so my time is more limited if we want to get anything constructive done. I am really excited for the new lessons we are starting next week and looking forward to the wonderful bible studies we will be having.

We have still been swimming when the weather is good. The pond, however, is getting a bit overgrown with weeds, but it hasn't gotten so bad that we can't swim. 

The weather has been nice this month and cooler than usual. Our garden is picking up a little, now that we had some rain and everything isn't getting fried by the heat. We went to the orchard again this week and got some apples. The kids each found a fig, but that was all. Everything else is not really producing anything. Victor wants to get out there and prune the trees this winter in the hopes that next years produce will be better. Every little bit helps with the grocery bill.

I still need to work on my water intake. I think I am going to work on ways to do that. Also, maybe I can get to bed earlier. I have so much I want to do, and oftentimes not enough willpower and motivation to do it. I procrastinate too much. 

Well, that's all for now. I have a baby running around dripping water all over the floor after her bath, so I need to get a diaper on her and see if she'll go to bed. 

Challenge report for the week of August 13-19

We kind of got busy this week. I cheated a little with sugar but managed to restrain myself from binge eating which I tend to do with sugary snacks. 

We had leftover graham crackers and marshmallows and carob chips so had s'mores one day. I ate only one. Then almost everyday, we had one graham cracker for dessert at lunch, and one day we had them for breakfast. Then one day for dessert, we finished the ice cream things, but it was only one a piece left. Yesterday, I ate too many graham crackers, but there aren't any left now. Victor brought home ice cream bars and some kind of cookie last night, but I remembered what I was trying to do, so I didn't eat any. Yay! One thing I have noticed, if I stay up too late, my willpower is down the next day.

I've managed the last two nights to go to bed before 11. So that's something I guess. 

Exercise has consisted of swimming, pulling weeds and walking to the dumpster and the orchard. Not everyday, but we are getting there.

Yesterday a storm blew in with great fury, so we sat around and watched videos, which is why I ate all those graham crackers, I think. I couldn't get out of the house to go swimming. 

Today, we woke up late, because it was pouring rain. Thank you Jesus for the rain!

I was reading just now for worship and came across this cool quote which made me think about how God is taking care of His garden that we planted by sending the rain.

"Nature is a power, but the God of nature is unlimited in power. His works interpret his character. Those who judge him from his handiworks, and not from the suppositions of great men, will see his presence in everything. They behold his smile in the glad sunshine, and his love and care for man in the rich fields of autumn. Even the adornments of the earth, as seen in the grass of living green, the lovely flowers of every hue, and the lofty and varied trees of the forest, testify to the tender, fatherly care of our God, and to his desire to make his children happy."—The Signs of the Times, March 13, 1884.

Challenge report days 11,12

Monday, I didn't do too much as far as exercise. We were all pooped from camping. I had a some graham crackers for dessert but that's all the sugar I had. We did some laundry and watched some movies.

Tuesday we went swimming, and had some fun with the neighbor kids.

Victor and I went over our budget again, and he has been looking at some websites for houses and other things.

I think I am needing to limit myself to certain times for games and tv. Too much of it going on around here.

Addictions, they are all over the place. Food, technology. Anything that takes away from time with God, is an addiction. And idolotry, because it is putting yourself and your own desires ahead of His. We need to submit our wills, to His will. And He will work in us, to will and to do of His good pleasure. And His Will is Love and obedience to Him.

Well, now it's raining again. Nice! The garden sure needs it. Thank you, Lord!

Challenge report days 7-10 and camping

Thursday we finished packing the car and stopped at Costco to pick up a few last minute things, got some burritos from Del Taco for lunch and drove to Duck Creek. We set up camp and the kids got to explore some before everyone else got there. Friday we did some more exploring. The boys borrowed  a church members bikes and Sarah and I walked around the loop a few times. Then more people started arriving and so we were able to visit some old friends and make a few new ones.

The speaker for the weekend is a missionary and he told us some amazing stories as well as had some great Bible sermons on a few parables mainly from the book of Luke.

We took a hike Sabbath afternoon and Sarah walked 1/2 mile with us down to the head of the virgin river. Then I piggy backed her on my backpack which already weighed 20 lbs halfway back.

This morning, my back was sore! But we definitely got exercise in this weekend.

I did slide a bit on sugar. We had some s'mores Saturday night, but I used kosher marshmallows and sweetened carob chips. The marshmallows were the little ones and each s'more had a lot less sugar because we used fewer marshmallows and only a few carob chips. I think I ate about 2 or 3 altogether. It wasn't too hard to quit either. So, I'm feeling good about my choices over all.

Back to the grindstone tomorrow. We got home, unpacked and ate lunch. Yummy salad with gluten steaks and homemade salad dressing.

Off to bed in a few minutes.

Challenge report days 5 and 6

Yesterday, I didn't get a walk in, but we did go swimming. The neighbor gave Sarah a tic tac, and then told John to give me one. That is all the sugar I had. 

We went to bed pretty late. I know I haven't been drinking enough water, eating too much at meals, and  snacking late at night hasn't helped any either, because I've kind of been feeling run down the last few days. Definitely have to work on those things. 

I didn't get any actual exercise today, but we went to three stores doing some grocery shopping for the weekend, and I've accomplished a lot of baking and food prep, so I think I'm about ready for bed. I may go to bed early tonight.

I made 4 loaves of gluten free bread, 2 regular wheat loaves, started a batch of granola, a pot of beans is cooking in the crockpot, oven roasted some carrots, boiled beets and made a batch of seitan. I also did some laundry which now needs to be folded and most of the camping equipment is packed in the car.

Tomorrow, we will pack the suitcases and the coolers, then head for town to pick up a few last minute items before we head off on our camping adventure in the mountains. 

Well, that's all for now. 

Challenge report day 4 and stuff

Today has been cool and drizzley off and on all day. We had lentils and homegrown butternut squash for lunch, still praising God for the wonderful fruits of the garden. It was so juicy, that when I scooped the seeds out with my hand the juice ran all over the place like a ripe peach when you bite into it.

The boys ran all over the place outside and this afternoon when the sun came out we went for a walk around the field and across to the orchard where we found a bounty of apples, some already ripe. So we picked a bunch and will check back next week for more.

It's too cool for swimming today, but the weather is like fall out there. And the rain is nice for our garden.

Looking forward to next weekend and camping. It's supposed to be cool and sunny, so we will need warm clothes and jackets, but hats as well. 

Challenge report Day 3

It rained all day today, so except for a few minutes in the middle when we had a bit of clearing, we didn't even go outside. It was a nice and cool 70 degrees most of the afternoon, and now it's thundering and crashing outside. 

We had soup for lunch and it was awesome. Victor made it. The kids had granola bars for lunch as well, but I refrained since the granola had sugar in it. It was basically granola that we made on Friday. It got a bit stiff and Victor was able to break it off in big chunks. We are going to try to make more specifically for granola bars. Need to get some more oats though.

Well, I'm off to bed now.

Challenge report day 2

Yesterday everyone was tired, from too many late nights. But we managed to go to bed at a reasonable time, so that's a start on catching up.

Sabbath was fairly restful. There were some visitors at church, so we had a full class in primary. Sarah turned two this week, so her teacher gave everyone cupcakes including our class, so by church time they were all full of sugar and not very hungry for potluck. I didn't have any cupcakes and only swiped a crumb off of the plate of zucchini bread, which wasn't very sweet anyway.

In the afternoon, we came home and changed to go to Zion for some hiking. I laid on the floor and the kids were hyper and bouncing all over Victor, but I had a catnap for a few minutes which was very refreshing. On the drive over Victor was sleepy, so I drove and he had a catnap.

We rode the bus all the way to the end, Temple of Sinawava, and walked for awhile, the. The kids played in the river for a few minutes. We walked a bit further and then the kids needed to use the bathroom so we headed back. Everyone was pooped, and by the time we got back to the car at the visitors center, Sarah was asleep. Jeffrey fell asleep in the car on the way home.

It was really time for bed when we got home, but everyone was hungry so they had some peanut butter and toast, Victor made a pot of noodle soup and he ate a bowl of that, and I had some bread and milk.  The kids went to bed late, but Victor and I were both in bed before 10.

So we got our exercise in, I managed my sugar intake, and only thought about Facebook a little.

Today it's rainy! Praise The Lord! Our garden really needs it. The well water is too hard, I think and the nutrients don't always get where they need to go. Nice drizzle most of the morning, and fairly cool. If it clears up this afternoon we'll try to get a walk and/or swimming in before the day is gone.

Anyway, I'll report back later!

Challenge report day 1

Today I didn't get much actual exercise done, but we did a bunch of house cleaning and walked around at several stores. Also, when we were at Costco, I parked clear at the end of the parking lot, so we had to walk a long ways. We didn't get any swimming in at all, because we were late getting back from town and had a few other things to do before Sabbath. 

One thing I noticed today with no Facebook was I was more "awake" I guess, to what was going on around me. I did think about it several times especially when I used my iPad to read for worship, and to look up a couple things on the internet. But I managed to stay off it. I remembered what I was trying to do and it helped keep my focus.

Staying away from sugar today was easier than I expected it to be. There were lots of samples at Costco, but only a couple of them had sugar in them. There was a demonstration of the Vitamix but she used only a bit of agave nectar in one of the smoothies she made. I did slip up tonight when we made granola. I stuck my finger in the pan to lick up the syrup, but remembered just as I licked it off. So I didn't take anymore! Hurray! 

Tomorrow, I will have to remember to stay away from the desert table at potluck and see if we can take the kids for a hike In the afternoon.

All in all, it's been a fairly good day, challenge wise, and I'm looking forward to a restful Sabbath.

August challenges and Salamanders

Today is Sarah's 2nd birthday! I cannot believe how fast the time has gone. She is learning to do so many things by herself and is a fairly independent little soul who loves to run after her brothers and tries to do everything they do. She sings to herself all the time, and talks about who knows what, with great enthusiasm and drama. She likes to 'help' do laundry and sweep, and is currently pushing the boundaries at every turn.

Today, however, she played mommy with her baby doll, trying to put a diaper on it, and discussed with me matter of factly what she was doing. She will play legos with the boys, until something gets broken and one of them decides they have had enough of little sister getting into their creations.

I think she is trying to potty train herself, a little bit, because sometimes she will go into the bathroom and remove her wet diaper and then climb up on the potty and sit for awhile. Of course, it's already been done in the diaper, but she's getting the idea anyway. Also, she still nurses, but during the day often it is executed with great drama and this goofy grin on her face, like she thinks she's too big for it, but still wants to. I hate to admit it, but she's almost not a baby anymore.

Starting tomorrow, I am going to be doing some challenges that I set up for myself. Hopefully, my blog will be a good way to help me achieve my goals for the month of August.

1. I will be taking a month long break from Facebook. I really don't need to be on it all the time, and it has become an addiction for me that I really need to get under control. I literally can spend hours every day on here, doing not much useful, and getting nothing done.

2. I am challenging myself to eat nothing with sugar in it. I am addicted to food, particularly things that are not good for me, so I am starting with sugar and will work on other things later.

3. Exercise. I have been doing really good at getting some in almost everyday. The kids and I go to the pond in the afternoons after lunch to burn off some of their energy, and I really enjoy putting on my mask and swimming around enjoying nature.
I would like to see if I can add my walk back in, in the morning. It's been very hot, but not so much that I couldn't get out there and walk. I've just been lazy.

So, those are the three things I am tackling this month. Next week we are going camping with the church and we are all looking forward to the break from the usual.

Utah Animals
Tiger Salamander  This is what we discovered the last few days at the pond. I finally got a pretty good look at one, and was able to figure out fairly quickly what it was.

What we have seen is a baby larval stage Tiger Salamander. They are about 8 inches long right now and are very cool to see. When they get big they will spend most of their time on land, but at this phase in their development, they are swimming around in the bottom of the pond. So this evening, we are learning about them.

Anyway, I'll check in tomorrow as we begin the month of August.

House cleaning

Sunday and Monday, Victor had off from work, so we did a bit of housecleaning. By the time, I finished today, we put a bunch of stuff in the car to donate, vacuumed and swept and mopped the floors. The hall is clear again, the kitchen is rearranged, and the bedroom is clean enough to walk in again. It's an awesome feeling, to have a clean house. There are a few things still to clean and declutter, but some of it is just lack of storage and will be dealt with tomorrow. 

We went swimming today and the neighbors were out as well, so the kids got to play with their friends for a bit.

I managed to not snack last night before bed, and we did get to bed a little earlier and also got up a bit earlier than usual this morning.  

I should have taken pictures before we cleaned to get the contrast and taken pictures as soon as it was clean. I took these pictures Wednesday morning, so it's has a more lived in look than a just cleaned look. Three boys, a toddler and the neighbor kids can sure mess things up in a hurry, but it still looks a hundred times better than it did. 

We only have a small regular vacuum at doesn't work very well, so I used the shop vac and boy the difference was awesome! I'm going to use that from now on. If all you can do is vacuum, do that. It makes the room feel clean even if there are toys laying around and dust on the shelves. 

Living room with things now out of place again. But better than it was by a long shot.

Kitchen swept and mopped, yesterday and table moved to make the walkway wider.

Hallway after losing some shelves and trash and boxes! Yay!

My room, though the laundry is piling up again. Where did that come from? I just put a bunch away! But hey, the floor is vacuumed and I can walk in here again!

Bathroom which has remnants from swimming, yesterday. The boys did a very good job cleaning it, though.

Thoughts

So, we haven't moved yet, but are making progress with sorting stuff and trying to clean up the house. Little by little. Still hoping to move soon, but no idea where or when. 

The kids and I have been swimming almost every day in the pond. It's so nice to have that there, and it's fairly clean since we are basically the only ones using it.

My parents are supposed to come for the weekend this week, yippee! Everyone is excited, even though it is a sad reason. They had to drive over to Washington to help my uncle move. He is dying of cancer so that's not nice. :-( Anyway, they are stopping by on their way home and we will get to celebrate Sarah turning 2.

I am going to add some more exercise stuff into my routine. Hopefully. :-P I have a rebounder so I am trying to go to bed earlier and get up and bounce for a few minutes every morning before the kids get up. It works better when Victor is out of town, since we tend to stay up later when he is home. If we can just break that habit. Also, I am going to attempt to break a few other habits like eating at night. It's hard to stop, but I need to do it. I like to snack while on the iPad or watching tv. Not healthy on the digestion.

Anyway, just throwing some thoughts out since I haven't written anything in a while.

Until tomorrow! Goodnight.

Moving sale

All items listed must sell. If it's on here it's still available. All prices negotiable.

I also have a few other things that I don't have pictures of and other things that I will add as I go, so keep checking back!

1940's Hotpoint, all original, still working. $1500

Pioneer VSX-515 multi-channel receiver, $75

Odds and ends of tools, $5

.50

.25

.25

.50

All clothes $1 ranging from 12 months-3 years 

Women's jacket size medium?

Women's size large?

Women's blouse size medium or large

Comfortable chair, $5

Pioneer BDP-51FD Bluray player, $50

2007 Toyota Sienna LE $14500 what we owe.

Tons of other items, too much to list. Books, clothes, computers and parts, yard tools, some shop tools, drill press. Come see!