Simplify, yeah right.

And how do I do that exactly??

Between work, side jobs, and running- Dustin may as well be working 65 hours a week! Then add on me working at the temple and doing 10+ hours of house cleaning a week (not even including my own house)... I'm feeling quite overwhelmed.

And school starts in 4 weeks...
(yes, I realise that the '...' Is super annoying, but it exemplifies my thoughts and feelings of stress and growing anxiety.)

So I really need to simplify my life, I just don't know how to accomplish such a feat.

Cleaning shleening.

After years of semi-professionally cleaning, I thought I'd be a good friend and share my secrets. And yes, I have many useful ones that WILL be profitable unto you.

Let me introduce you to my good friend: Cascade Powder Dishwashing Detergent

Uses: dishwashing, cleaning/sanitizing nasty, yellow tubs

Directions: sprinkle detergent all over tub, grab a rough, brissle scrub brush and work away. Rinse with insanly hot water to ensure detergent dissolvement. Voila!


you're welcome.

Sorry, I smell like varnish.

Well, I'm ending my almost month long hiatus an am now going to inform my 3 readers what I've been up to.

1. Time Out for Women with sister and sis in law. Yes, I cried.
2. Work. Some weeks I work 4 nights and some weeks only 1, but it's still very exhausting. And before you text me me asking, I work as a housekeeper for the IF Temple... And have since March.
3. Half Marathon. I finished it on June 11, but am still running to prepare for my next one in August. It's awsome, but yes, time consuming/exhausting.
4. No internet... But not to worry. After a recent purchase, we now have wifi AND a Samsung Galaxy.
5. Refinishing our piano. After hours and hours of neverending sanding, staining, and 5 coats of polyurethane... It's (still almost) done.
6. Did I fail to mention that we moved? Yes. June 6th.

I could write a list of biblical proportion about how number 6 has been almost the death of my happiness. Moving to a house and unpacking things from 2 storage units (some of which have been stored unopened for 2 1/2 years) has been stressful and not quite as fun as I had previously anticipated. Whatev.

So, I'm back, slightly grudgingly. And yes, I do realize I prolly spelled that wrong.

We're emptying out both storage units.

Yes, you heard, and understood it correctly. We're moving into a house!
No, we're not new home owners, we're just renting it. And technically (if you're going to be like that) it's not completely our house. The attic is a separate unit that some girl lives in, and the basement is another separate unit that is currently unoccupied. However, the main front door, porch, back deck, and fenced backyard is all ours. Also, the 1400 sq/ft main level living space is ours. This old charmer was built in the 1920's and is complete with dark hardwood floors throughout, archways, walk-in closets, and a humongous kitchen (despite the nasty dark-red sloppy paint job on the cabinets I'll be forced to ignore). We're only 2 blocks away from Kate Curley Park and are living in one of the few neighborhoods in Idaho Falls that have sidewalks- pure luxury.
So, it's probably not as nice and fancy as your place, but we're thrilled to have it be ours... for at least 12 months (darned leases). It's Christmas morning all over again! Hip hip horray!

Oh... so that's why.

Elder Orson F. Whitney wrote: “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude, and humility. … It is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire.”

This quote makes everything sound so easy! It was somewhat of a revelation to me when I first read it the other night. We all go through pretty crummy things now and again, and I feel like I've had my fair-share of heartbreak and sorrow. However, looking back before the whirlwind of trials came through, I was immature, selfish, and impatient... and probably a bit naive. It wasn't until reading through Kent F. Richard's entire "The Atonement Covers All Pain" talk that I realized I have been schooled through my own difficulties that I've (basically) been forced to overcome.

So, in a way, I'm grateful. If I could go back and change some circumstances would I? Honestly? Probably. But, I would still be very selfish and prideful right now. I would also be very ungrateful.

Here's another paragraph from Elder Richards I especially liked:

Much of our suffering is not necessarily our fault. Unexpected events, contradicting or disappointing circumstances, interrupting illness, and even death surround us and penetrate our mortal experience. Additionally, we may suffer afflictions because of the actions of others. 3 Lehi noted that Jacob had “suffered … much sorrow, because of the rudeness of [his] brethren.” 4 Opposition is part of Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness. We all encounter enough to bring us to an awareness of our Father’s love and of our need for the Savior’s help.

Birthday Budget

My family includes:
Dustin and I
Our 2 children
7 nieces
6 nephews
5 Grandma's
3 Grandpa's
9 siblings
8 in-law siblings

Total: 42
times that by $20.00 for each Birthday present per year...

$840.00

(and that doesn't even include baby showers, Mother's Day, Father's Day, or Christmas, or the few friends I still exchange gifts with)

So, I've decided to tone things down a bit. Back in 2006, when Dustin and I had no children, and only 5 nieces and nephews combined, $20 wasn't a big deal. But let's be honest- now it kind of is.

Don't get me wrong, I really do love giving gifts. Do I expect to receive them myself? Not really. But it's a pretty universal tradition (especially in both of our families) to wish other's a Happy Birthday, and if you're close (or related, for that matter) to give a gift to brighten their day and let them know you love them and care about them. I love thinking about each person and figuring out what they really would like. It's a game for me that lets them know that I really care about them and that their Birthday wasn't an after-thought.
I suppose I just need to be a bit more creative with my gift finding to keep things on budget.

Only Seeing the Rocks

I had a huge wake-up moment last week.
I left my husband and kids Wednesday night and left for a slow, 4 mile run. I got to my 2 mile mark, and as I turned around to run back, I, for some reason, decided to stop and walk. I took off my headphones that were blaring Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" album, and for once, noticed how quiet everything was. (*que cheesy music*) I could hear rustling of trees, and water rushing down a canal, and the sound of a calming, easy breeze. I looked all around me. I could see the magnificent Grand Teton Mountains, rolling brown foothills, and never-ending fields of newly growing alfalfa, hay, and barley. The landscape was broken up by small, antique farm houses complete with clothes lines and tulips. The sun was setting, there were a few white clouds above me, and the sky was blue. It was almost too perfect, how serene it was.

The weird thing about this cheesy, obvious observation was that I run on that road 4 times a week. It shouldn't have been anything new to me. I guess I'm always looking for cars ahead, or for rocks, or for intimidating, scary canines. It wasn't until last week that I realized there was an infinite amount of acreage of pure, simple beauty surrounding me. I've been blinded by the obstacles of running, and have been missing out on everything else breathtaking.

So it is with my life. I've become obsessed with everything that's wrong. I need to start looking around at everything that's perfectly beautiful and right.