The kindness of others

Today I had to run a few errands. I was trying to beat the coming snow storm. I called various stores and found out if they had the items. One store even put the candy thermometers on hold for me since they only had two left of each type. We made it to the customer service desk and the ladies there found the candy thermometers on hold. Another lady that worked there saw what I was getting and told me to get the cheaper one because she says that they all work the same but the expensive ones were like buying a name brand. She also told me that she had the same cheap one and it worked great but if for some reason it didn't I could return it. I saved $6 not a whole lot but I appreciated her help and honesty. I still needed a few more items so we finished some shopping and went to check out. When we were checking out, E, yells out, "Mom! H has a big burger!" I look and sure enough he does. I'm trying to find a tissue but can't find anything. I did have a piece of paper so I was trying to use that and H is screaming because paper isn't soft. The lady behind me saw the situation and pulled out a tissue from her bag. H liked that a lot better as I finished cleaning up his nose. The third random act of kindness came in the parking lot. It was snowing and I had finished putting the three bags of groceries in the back and I was trying to buckle H and T in their car seats when a lady walked past, saw my empty cart and saw me buckling the two little ones in when she says that she will just put my cart away with hers. Three acts of kindness showed to me by strangers who made my day a little easier, a little happier. So thank you to all who show a little kindness to another person--I hope that I can return the simple acts of kindness to someone else.

Enemy #1

M has an enemy. According to E and T the little boy across the street, who is a year younger than M, is her enemy. He is her enemy because he hits her (although she hits him back). He is also an enemy because he makes her cry and they stare at each other with looks of anger or malice until the other looks away. Who knew that one so little could have an enemy already?

It's all about giving thanks...

Around here we have a lot to be thankful for.

E: my family, food, books, school, parents, brother and sisters, toys, games, my house, bed, plants, animals, clothes, my grandma and grandpa, my cousins, my friends, aunts and uncles, teeth, dentists and doctors, firefighters, police and hospitals.

T: family, friends, grandpas and grandmas, aunts and uncles, mom and dad, sisters and brother, clothes, toys, the earth.

M: mommy and daddy coming home, my birthday, family, books, tomatoes, Ella and Thea and Henry, blankets.

H: food to eat, foot pajamas, bandaids and neosporin, music, milk, bottles, ability to crawl, diapers.

I am thankful for 4 wonderful children who are healthy, a husband that loves me and a father who loves and teaches our children. I am thankful for falling leaves and the wonder it holds for little hands and feet to explore, for rain and for puddles to jump in, for a washer and dryer to wash and dry those same clothes. I am thankful for smiles and little hands that reach out to hold mine. I am thankful for women in my ward who will love H for me and rock him to sleep during Sacrament meeting so that I can hold M and be with E and T. I am grateful for my parents who teach and love me and for sisters and a brother who also love me. I am grateful for air to breathe, public libraries, books, testimonies, and my Savior. I am indebted to men and women both past and present who fight for my liberties and freedoms that I enjoy on a daily basis. I am thankful for a house to shelter us, technology, good neighbors, Steve's job and so much more.

I am truly blessed.

Makes me laugh

If you ask M to spell her name this is what you get: "E-M-E-B" or "E-M-E-turtle" or "E-M-E-monkey." She isn't even close but it's funny to see what combination she can come up with next in her little mind.

E was playing Heads Up 7-Up at a church function and after she proudly exclaimed, "I knew who put my thumb down. . . . Because I peeked!" At least she is honest and really how else can you know who pushed your thumb down?

T running out of dance class exclaiming, "I'm a snow sprite! I'm a snow sprite. I've always wanted to be one!" In her oh so many years alive apparently this is a huge pinnacle she's reached but her grin makes you smile and wish that everything in the world would be like finding out you are a snow sprite.

H loves to crawl away from you as fast as he can and if you follow behind him he always winds up in the bathroom in the upstairs with a giant grin on his face as you pick him up and carry him back down the stairs and if you put him back down again he'll repeat the process.

My soapbox

With the election just under a week away, I have thought hard about who I want to see run my country. I might not agree with everything that one candidate says or does all time but we are human and being human means we make mistakes. I figure I have only two options when it comes to choosing the next President of the United States. I can choose Obama or McCain. I have watched the debates and as I have watched Obama I must confess that he is a great rhetorician. I did a term paper on great rhetoricians in college among them were Martin Luther King, Jr. and Adolf Hitler. I listened to their speeches and they were eloquent. They made you see the change they could bring or offer. It's no wonder why the people of Germany who in desperate times wanted some change as they were starving and their economy was at rock bottom. Martin Luther had a dream and it made the country perhaps look beyond the color of one's skin and take the necessary steps for the rights of blacks to come to the forefront. Yet, as I listen to Obama, my stomach lurches as I know a little bit of his background--I have tried to do my part to see what type of man he his. Yet, with all the hype about him and his charasmatic personality can't people see what lies beneath his words. He's a snake charmer. He lulls you away with his words and his smile but what happens when he is in control. What friends will he keep and what laws will he pass?

As a mother of 4, I have learned responsibility to those who can't take care of themselves, the little one who is sick and only wants to be held and loved, those that smile for the first time and those whose little fingers wrap around yours. There is nothing better than holding a newborn in your arms and feeling your heart grow and knowing that you brought this miracle into this world. Yet, how can Obama with daughters of his own support partial birth abortions when the baby at a viable age is extracted from the mother except for the head and then scissors are rammed through the skull and the babies brains are suctioned out. This is not humane. I have friends who would give anything to have a baby of their own but are not able to and yet this practice of killing little ones who could live on their own takes place and Obama supports it. Don't give me your hoopla saying that he voted "present"--he didn't take a stand and not taking a stand is just as bad. I worry about policies he'll make and how he'll treat others. I know how he talks but I need someone who does more than talk the talk.

I know that McCain has his share of problems and concerns, but at least he sticks his neck out and stands up for what he believes. I need someone who will do that. I know that our economy isn't the best but look at the world's economy because it's not doing, too, well either. I know that we will emerge from this time stronger but I want someone that has similar values leading me. Don't you?

---And now I'll get down---

Dumpster diving for treasures

One man's trash in another man's treasure and E and T have literally taken that to heart. On Saturday E, T and one of their friends started going through the big trash cans. The friend found a big red stuffed animal. E found some books, computer games, and markers. T found a box of markers and crayons. There is something disturbing about seeing you're little ones open up trash cans and climb inside or else after it is tipped to scrounge around. They were told to stop and they said that they had enough stuff. Great. What does that mean that one has enough?

Steve and I told them that we don't look through garbage because it's 1) not ours and 2) it's disgusting. On Sunday, I had E take some recycle stuff out to the blue can. She was gone for a lot longer than what it should take and M was with her. I went outside and what do I see but E closing the lid on another person's recycle bin and running back exclaiming that she has found a journal that has never been written in before along with some more pens. I reiterated that we don't keep other people's garbage and that she needed to throw them all away. She was quite sad and told me how clean they all were and that she just wanted a journal to write and color in. Couldn't she keep it? I told her that this was the last time. No more dumpster diving.

Tuesday night E was out with friends and what did she find, a dictionary. Her very own dictionary to use and look up words with. Can't she just keep it? She doesn't own a dictionary and now she can look up all the words she needs to and she won't have to use the one we own. Then T came out and showed all the little neighborhood kids how to tip over the trash cans so they can look inside and see what they can find. All those little kids were so excited until I told them all that they needed to stop looking in the garbage cans.

I am so glad that today was trash day and all trash cans have been emptied and hopefully the treasures will stop coming back to our house.

Lucky fish

Lucky is one lucky fish. He has now been alive over two years and despite our inability to properly take care of him, he is still swimming. On Sunday, M decided to feed Lucky herself and instead of giving him a few flakes dumped the remaining half bottle of fish food into the tank. What a lucky fish to get so much food. M was so excited to help and it was hard not to laugh when you saw the bottom of the tank covered in food. We thought nothing more about it until Monday when I woke up and went downstairs. Lucky's tank was a puce green color and Lucky was floating upside down. I didn't want to handle a dying fish and 3 crying girls who lost their fish. I called Steve and asked him if he had noticed the fish tank. Nope. Why can't I be oblivious to things like that? Lucky was still breathing so I hurried and filled up a pitcher of water and put in one of the water tablets. After it was dissolved, I scooped Lucky out of his old tank and put him in the fresh water. He was still upside down and I told the girls that perhaps they needed to tell Lucky goodbye and perhaps they could say a little prayer so that Lucky wouldn't suffer long. I felt downright terrible seeing Lucky breathing and swimming upside down and thinking we should have cleaned out his tank the night before. I cleaned his tank out and put fresh water, and filter in it and then placed Lucky back in before we went to swim lessons. We had to run some errands afterwards and I was prepared to come back to a dead fish, but when we arrived home, the girls and I were overjoyed to see Lucky swimming right side up again. Lucky is one lucky fish and now all the fish food is kept where M can't reach; although she is delighted to see him every day and give him a few flakes of food.