A Dusting of the Cobwebs....

welcome to my blog!
...allow me a brief introduction...

In a reacent conversation with my daughter, her questions were why I, and her Dad were so quiet about our lifes? Meaning writing or telling about our own personal historys.

I didn't think there was anything important to write about. As I was just a normal person, getting up in the morning and getting the day started, getting kids off to school, or meeting schedules of the whole family, cleaning house, and landry. Keeping little ones busy, and changing diapers, comming home fixing dinner, helping with homework, putting kids to bed, watch some news, go to bed. And then do it all over again the next day. Then some days was teaching lessons in Primary, RS, MIA, Sundayschool, cub scouts, or helping at schools, ect. Family home evening, Visiting teaching, and even some Home teaching and being the family schaefer. most of the time we had one car, 6 kids, one working husband. Oh yes, the multi years of music lessons, and baseball teams, coaching, and even one major jumproap champion, for one daughter.

We had trials too. some were very hard, just thinking about a single memory of losing our son, brings tears. But we are told that this life is to meet trials, and how we handle them will be for our own eternal growth.

A very wise Stake President, President Alred, once said "We are here to be schooled in the principles of eternity. We will work by the sweat of our brow, to work our way through this life... But remember we are here to be schooled in the principles of eternity."

So, I welcome you to my blog. Please feel free to stay and go as you please, and wander where you wish. And, as always, feel comfortable in sharing those stories that you may feel are just "an every day" thing as well...



Oct 12, 2008

Its just time...



I had a special time this morning with two of my birds and two of my daughters.
They are all Jenday Conyers. Even though its fast Sunday I still have to eat a little something in order to take my morning meds. So this morning to keep it simple I had made a plain peanut butter sandwich.

I heard some noise coming from the room where the birds were. Holding the sandwich behind me I slowly opened the door to see if they were all right. I found Hermione on the floor, and Kiwi on top of Hermine's cage. I quickly picked up Hermione and returned her to the top of her cage and tried to get Kiwi. How ever Kiwi doesn't like hands, but slowly she allowed me to put her on her cage. By this time Jenny was asking for a little attention. I remembered I was holding a peanut butter sandwich behind my back and thought that maybe they would like a bite. Hand feeding four funny birds is quite a treat...

Hermione, prefers to be on top of her cage, at the back. Will not eat anything she does not know, unless Jenny eats it first.
Jenny, who prefers to be inside the cage, is a little picky about eating something new, and often will move her mouth up and down pretending to you that she has taken a bite of what had been offered to her.

Kiwi, is quite abit like Hermione, likes to be out, little more aggressive, doesn't like hands, and is extremely intelligent. Shy about trying any thing new.
Aussie, Very gentle, Likes to be in the cage more, and likes everything.

So here is four different personality's, and a peanut butter sandwich.
Jenny had eaten a couple of bites, but when she got peanut butter stuck in her beak, most of the time was spent in licking it off.
Harmonia shy, but kept running back and fourth across the top of the cage to get small bites.
Kiwi would take a bite now and then, she didn't know what to make of the sandwich. You could tell she really wanted more, but her eyes got in the way of coming for more.
Aussie ate as much of the sandwich as her beak would hold, and loved it.

I hadn't intended to spend time with them this busy morning, but I am glad that I did. I will have some fun memories to remember....

But doesn't it always seem to happen that way...

Oct 11, 2008

Strange feelings...


Money, Money have I none.... None for Thanksgiving, None for Christmas, or birthdays... No money for at least seven months, and then.. we will see... right now even, no money for food...

But I have a years supply of fading soap for cloths...

Oct 8, 2008

Mirror mirror on the wall...


I look in the mirror and ponder the face that is looking back at me. It seems to have gotten older, alot this year... wrinkles have deepen, and my skin is loosing its elasticity. The gray hair on my head has been covered with dye, and it helps me from feeling older, just a little slower. Age marks have started showing up on my skin, and the ugly black hairs around my mouth and chin are pesky, and wont go away.

My smile is still there, just have to push a few more wrinkles out of the way. My eyes seem bright as ever, just needing glasses to see more clearly...however they seem a little tired lately.

I sit here feeling sorry for myself, when I look out the window and see my neighbors white and black cat, with three legs, just enjoying himself. He is usually playing in our garden in the morning times. He loves being there. Missing one of his front legs slows him down a little, but it doesn't stop him at all...He is quite a cat...

Oct 7, 2008

Not a funny Halloween trick...


Its a scary thing to know you have just received your last paycheck... And the financial bottom of the stock market has just fallen out, where your retirement funds are... and your in your 60's but not 65 yet...

October... this is not a trick or treet for Halloween...

Oct 3, 2008

Our Small Garden...


This week I have been canning from our garden. It is small, but has been producing alot for its size. Today I have caned 24 pints, and 10 half-pints of Red raspberry jam. I would have done more, except my husband while trying to help me, burnt jam in the bottom of my pan, by accidentally turning the wrong stove burner on, and I have not been able to get it out yet.
I have chopped 14 and half cups of onions to be frozen, and 12 cups of green peppers to be frozen. This week we canned 27 quarts of tomatoes, and 7 quarts of peaches.

Its nice to have a garden that will give us enough to can from. I have canned pickled beats, and snap green beans. Not to mention that I ate to my hearts content on green peas.... I think we will have enough green snap beans that we can dry and give us seed for next years garden.

We even had the most sweetest cantaloupe I have ever tasted, and lots of them... The problem is, I only ate a quarter of cantaloupe and my sugar level jumped from 120 to 300 !!!... Lynn promised to find one that would not be soooo sweet for next year. I am diabetic and have to watch my calories.

Our Garden produced plenty of corn, which graced our dinner plates for a couple of weeks or so, and was soo good...

Nice to have a garden, even if you grow one in a pot...Its food you have grown, and the flavor is so rich and yummy...

After Conference, Lynn brought in a watermelon from the garden. It was a round green one. The insides was the color of orange and pink...It had been growing with the cantaloupe...but it was still nice and sweet!....

Sep 24, 2008

The Doe...



Doe is a nickname given to my youngest daughter by her nieces, Her name is Jodie, they started calling her Jo, and ended up with Doe, which stuck.

Several years ago when Jodie was about 16-17, I was waiting to drive her to school.
For some reason I grabbed a pen and wrote a list of what I saw about her, for she was a very colorful person, and full of surprises.

As I was sorting through papers today I ran across this list, it brought back memories. Try it sometime, and put the list away, or write it in your Journal. Its fun to remember how things were.

The Doe, a school day

. Yellow, blue ring
. sucking on a candy pacifier
. 3 earrings, one a loop
. a clear blue pager
. black knee high boots
. white long skirt with slit up to butt in back.
. black shirt, square neckline
. yellow vest
. black purse with sholderstrap
. blue bangs, and ponytail
. glitter eyeshadow
. beautiful smile
. blue bead neckless
. Chinese symbol charm neckless

Left Hand
. blue toothbrush
. white bead bracelet
. 2 rings, ctr and 1914 dime ring

Right Hand
. watch, clear plastic
. beaded bracelet blue and white
. 2 sparkle thin rubber bracelets.

This was only a minor day.
Jodie became very stylish, both in clothing and hair.
She was great with makeup, and always had an idea how to fix things.
She is warm, and people want to look like her. She loves to serve others.
She is always creative, and can not sit still....and still does....

If you happen to be driving down the street and a Paramedic Rig flys past you, with its lights flashing and siren going, and you think you might have recognised a face.... It could be Jodie on the job...

Sep 20, 2008

Frustrating...



Have you ever been in a position where a decision had to be made, and it rested upon your shoulders??? you try to make the correct one.....and find out afterwards it was wrong...

Well it has happened to me a few times. But this one really gets my goat....
Its not that it was really important to anybody elts.

I have been trying to acquire some things for my husband and I, that we would use for a year. I have been keeping a list of things we normally use and trying to figure out what amount we would use for a year.

One of the items I have been working on is Landry soap. A few months ago I had tried a different brand that was new. I seemed to like it. Being it was a powder I knew it would have a good shelf life. After a couple of months I could not find it in the stores any more, but to my surprise I ran across it in a "dollar" store, at a lower cost than I had been paying for it. I happily started buying the boxes until I had enough.

I noticed this last week that our clothing was starting to look a little faded. Your right it was the soap I was using. And now I have a year supply of fading soap for my cloths....

It wouldn't be so bad, but I have spent time to collect the boxes, money (in short supply), planning about the amount needed. Not to mention the cost of clothing, etc, to have everything fade out... AND...what do I do with a year supply of fading soap, that does not live up to my standards..........AND.. then doing it all over again, or half way at least.

I feel so Frustrated, and wonder how many more mistakes I will make before I reach my goals, or if I ever will....

love your kids