Lighten your load with help from othres.

Sometimes life gets hard, usually when we try to shoulder everything ourselves. Don't be a martyr, let others help you. Something I am trying hard to learn.


 (sorry it's so big) I need to make this my mantra for the summer!

I was once told that not allowing others to help you no matter how small of large the help will be, denies blessing those wanting to help could have. This alone has made a big difference in how I get things done. As I have often heard (but can't remember the exact saying) Many hands, lighten the load.

Jen

Appreciating something before it's gone

This morning Mike and I attended a funeral for the husband of a coworker of his. It was cold, blustery with the sun peaking out between the clouds. It was different from any funeral I have attended before. The deceased was Jewish and Russian. This meant that the majority of the service was either in Hebrew or Russian. The interesting part was that the language barrier didn't matter. There was a wife who was heartbroken at the loss of her husband and a young woman who was devastated that her daddy was gone. The man was loved, cherished and appreciated by many. They weren't financially wealthy but the love felt for this man and the feeling of loss left behind was palpable. I left the funeral with a renewed appreciation for my loved ones and for my religion. The funeral was simple and beautiful at the same time. I appreciated being able to be a part of a service that I didn't understand a single word but still felt the presence of love and appreciation and grief. It is interesting to me to watch something like this and know without a doubt the love and appreciation felt by so many without a single word understood. It was beautiful. It was sad. It was a blessing to be a part of.

Remember to appreciate those around you before they are gone and you can't.

The best policy...

Lying – noun: the telling of lies, or false statements; untruthfulness.

This has been the most annoying and irritating thing I have dealt with this last year. I am the mother of 3 adult children, I have, in the past, asked if someone drew on the wall and was told no. I asked again, stating that I knew someone was lying. Guess what, it took a few more times asking and I learned who did it. So, here is my thought. I get it, we all have lied in our past, maybe as a child, a teen, even as an adult. Man, it really gets under my skin when I have known someone lied to me and  that something was askew and then find out that there have been MANY MANY times that the truth would have been a better choice, even an easier choice. I have no use or desire to be around any adult who thinks that lying is their best option.

Let’s do this, when you choose to be dishonest it makes you an ugly and undesirable person. Oh, and about 90% of the time someone has lied to me I have known that I was being lied to! So, here is what I am getting at. You, and you know who you are, I knew you were lying and now I really don’t like you because of it. Try, just try being honest instead. Life is much easier when you aren’t trying to keep track of your lies.

New Year, New Effort!

So, I don't remember what prompted me to start this blog but I have recommitted myself to working on it at least once a month, which shouldn't be too hard since no one knows it's here. So, here goes!

The last year held some incredible highs and lows for our family this year. They go sort of as follows...Eliza got married and her and her awesome husband have moved to Rexburg, Idaho so he can finish his degree. I can't remember in what but I think it's something on the side of medical. They have been able to come home for holidays which is nice except for a hiccup over Thanksgiving in which her Bug met an untimely death. They know are driving a much better car for where they are. Grace and Zack have moved to Oregon, not loving it myself but they seem to like it. Grace gave birth to a prefect little girl a couple of weeks after Eliza's wedding in June. I must say that the tater tot is nearly perfect. They also were able to come home for the holidays but the Christmas trip was rough due to all kinds of things and I don't know if they will travel for a holiday again for a while. Then there is Catie. She had a awful, terrible very difficult summer. She was assaulted at work, was the victim of identity theft by a group of people which caused terrible issues at work for her, she had a very difficult summer semester at school and ended a somewhat difficult relationship. Basically her summer was bad all around! Then fall rolled around and she met this guy and Catie finished off her year getting engaged and we are all super happy for her and he is an awesome guy. As for Mike and I, Mike has done well balancing his diabetes and ran 1000 km this year, which is awesome! Me - well, my job ended during the summer and I plan to go back to work soon. I have continued with school and it's not easy but Im getting it done. So there is our highlights of last year.

I am a college freshman...

I mentioned I have gone back to school, were you wondering, "hmm, has she lost her ever lovin' mind at here age?!?" Well, I went back for several reasons. I went back because I decided to put my education on hold when I had my babies and my babies are all about 1/2 way or more through their college experience; I went back because one of my biggest regrets is I never finished; I went back because I know it is what my father has wanted for me for a long time; I went back because my church has this awesome program for their members that allows them to go back and get their bachelors for about less than 1/2 the price otherwise; And, honestly, I went back because I need to do this! My kids need to see me finish and I need to know I can.

When I heard of the Pathway program I thought it sounded interesting but didn't think it was for me but every Sunday for the entire summer our Bishop (mormon clergy) was up at the pulpit telling us (ME) to think about this program and give it a try. I really struggled with the thought of going back after all of these years. But, I decided to try. It's not too bad. It can be really stressful and I thought that maybe the math class would break me but I have a really great husband who tutored me through and I (we) made it through with a 97%!

Going back to school at the age of 48 is not for the weak of heart. It means I have homework most nights of the week; My house is never perfectly clean and I rarely am able to cook dinner any more. But, I love it and it has been a long time since I did something for me and only me. Currently my major is marriage and family studies. It may change. Sometimes I waffle with other options but I think that is where it will stay.

I am currently required to go to school every Thursday evening for an hour for a "gathering". I have made some great friends and we have all learned to support one another. It is a great experience to sit in a room with 20 strangers who all have the same dream and desire as you. It has been a great experience being able to support one another through an Algebra class that scared 9 out of 10 of us. It is also great to realize your biggest fear wasn't so big after all.

So, I am a college freshman at the age of 48 and it's been a pretty great experience, I would suggest it to anyone!

Out with the old...

Well, Out with the old and in with the new...I have decided to put my old, very stagnant blog to bed and start anew. This isn't so much my family blog, it's more a life after the kids have graduated and we are in full swing in a new part of our lives. I have started school, #1 has moved back home to go to school on line, #2 is married and soon they will be moving into their new place and #3 has finished her first 2 years of college having done very well and is going to spend a semester catching her breath. 

I decided to go back to school because there is a great program through our church that allows me to go at a fraction of the price and has a plan that allows you to start slowly and increase from there. So far, So Good!

My blog plan is to post once a week. We will see how I do with that.

Have a great week, All! Love you all!