The Not-Sleeping Cycle

by Andilyn Jenkins

I do not possess healthy sleeping habits. And I would love to take a moment and blame that on my parents, who taught by example. We always pull through, which is a virtue, but at the sacrifice of a precious gift many people fail to value—myself included. Some claim the title "night owl" which I've discovered to be an acceptable euphemism for I-stayed-up-so-ridiculously-late-working-on-the-stuff-I-didn't/couldn't-do-during-the-day-that-now-I-physically-can't-get-out-of-bed. In high school, my French class (first hour), lunch, and sometimes choir (fifth hour) were the times I would inevitably crash. Now it's after I give the kids breakfast and when I turn cartoons on for them around three or four in the afternoon. In college, when Aaron wanted to propose, he came to pick me up an hour before I had to be at play practice, and I was napping on my couch. I begged him, "I'm so tired. Just, snuggle with me for a minute. I just want to sleep. Please...? No, Aaron, don't make me get up. I'm so tired." It took him a good fifteen minutes to convince me that we really needed to get going. Of course I had no idea why and pretty much thought he was the spawn of Satan for making me unwrap myself from my warm blanket burrito to go outside in December in Rexburg, Idaho. But once I did, I realized what Aaron had in store more than made up for pulling me out of my coma. Boy, am I glad I woke up.

And the thing is, I never wake up from a nap and think, "Man, I wish I had just slept through my entire day. Waking up is such a waste." In fact, I usually reprimand myself for falling asleep and end up feeling guilty for neglecting the kids and letting them have too much screen time. Or for not doing my chores or failing to make the complicated dinner I had planned and was excited about trying. And then I'm rested. So when bedtime comes for Aaron, I think, "Well, I took a nap today. I'll just finish these dishes, start the laundry, paint my nails, write my blog post, solve world hunger, and then skip off to bed." And the cycle continues. And on the rare occasion I go to bed before midnight, I can't fall asleep. So my motivation to develop that healthy habit skips off to my neighbor's house where it encourages her to make hot breakfast for her family before driving them to school.

So here I am. 1:23 a.m. on the very last day of 2014, wishing I had done that puzzle with my daughter today (technically yesterday), but also sooo satisfied that I made fondant centers for homemade chocolates and danced in my kitchen for an hour while I waited for the candies to cool. But the reality is, making that candy was challenging and fulfilling, but I could have started it earlier. Dancing to "All About That Bass" with my new noise-cancelling Bluetooth headphones was fun but it could have been a treasured memory if music blasted through the house while I had a dance party with the kids. And my quiet time is rare and coveted but so are the fleeting faces of my four- and one-year-old.

So goodnight. I can't afford to miss out on any more proposals. Consider this my New Year's Resolution: Sundays through Thursdays, I will go to bed before 11:30. That gives me 8 hours of sleep on a normal/good day for my kids. Because this year, I don't want to hear a whiny, "No, Mommy, please don't fall asleep." This year, I'm going to be awake.

My New Year's Resolution

by Terri Wagner

I'm not much on New Year's resolutions, because I never keep them. But when I ran across this, I knew I had found one I could grow into believing.

So short and sweet here it is. Happy New Year everyone.

Have Faith

By Claire Enos

"Have faith that everything will turn out how it is meant to." That's the thought that popped into my head the other day as I was praying to God that I could attend school in the Spring and graduate in December 2015 instead of April 2016. I don't know what God has in store for me, but whatever it is I know that it will be better than anything I could plan for myself.

Unfortunately, this is the end of my time on this blog. I have enjoyed my time here, but with school and my personal blogging, and everything else going on in my life right now I can't commit to this blog. I was talking to one of my best friends the other day, and I said: "Whatever happens, just know that God has a hand in it. God knows what you need, and he'll provide it." I believe this with all my heart, and I know that because of this blog and writing alongside so many wonderful women, I have learned so much about myself and my writing.

So, although this is an end and this door is closing (for now) I will continue to hone my gift. I am starting a new journey of self-discovery, which I will be documenting on my personal blog. The link to it is on the side under blogs we like: Between the Lines of Life. I hope to see you all there as I post about what I am learning and what I am passionate about.

Have A Very Happy New Year!

<3Claire

Gratitude Gifts

by Christy Monson

We have a family tradition of giving a little 'thank you' to someone who has done something nice and didn't even know it. Now all of us have written gratitude notes before, but this is a little different. We like to surprise the people who don't know they were spreading good will.

Maybe someone gave you an extra big smile when you were feeling down so you wrote a note. Maybe an elderly lady walked down the street and stopped to talk. That cheered you up so you took her a flower. Maybe the produce man at the grocery store found you the ginger root you'd been looking for so you gave him an extra big smile. The postman always waved as he drove down the street and for Christmas you gave him candy or cookies.

This is a nice tradition you can do all year long. It's especially fun for the kids to take their little craft projects to cheer those around them. It also helps the kids look for the good around them and  find things to be grateful for.

Have fun spreading cheer all year long.

Merry Christmas to All

by Marsha Ward

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! 

and a very

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Our blog team will look different next year, and we will change the frequency of blog postings, but we'll post a schedule so you can keep up.

Thank you for your loyal readership. May you have all the blessings and joys of close relationships and satisfying work to accomplish throughout this Holy Season and the coming year.

The Founder and Friends Blog Team

God Bless Us Every One!

by Kari Diane Pike

What do you call a bunny wearing a kilt?

Some of you probably already read that on Facebook. But just in case, I'll give you the punch line at the end of this post - which may be two or three sentences from now...or several pages. My cup runneth over. The music, the symbols, the opportunity this time of year presents to think of others and find ways to bring them joy - I don't even know where or how to begin expressing the gratitude I feel today as we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ and the gift that He gave all mankind.

I think that's where I need to start - I know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I am grateful for Heavenly Father's gift of sending His only begotten Son to pave the way for me to return to Him someday. Christ suffered, bled and died, and rose again. He healed the sick - physically, emotionally, and spiritually - while He walked on this earth, and after - as He continues to do so to this day. I know that my salvation comes through Jesus Christ and no other.

I wanted to write a post thanking all the people who have blessed my life - but that would take pages and pages and I don't want to risk leaving anyone out! I can honestly say that every person I've met has taught me something and helped me grow. I'm grateful for the plethora of gifts you have all shared with me - Which kind of segues into how much I have come to appreciate the unique personalities and abilities of the people in my life. I love knowing that I was created to become a creator. One granddaughter showed her parents this morning that she has a great understanding of her own uniqueness and purpose:

After building the princess castle, four-year-old Gwendolyn says, "now can I break it and build whatever I want?" Answer: of course! Thank goodness for pink princess Legos! 

This makes me smile on so many levels. First we learn...then we move on and put that knowledge to creating the life we want.

Another take on uniqueness came from one of the conversations during this week's family time. Our son Kenny complimented his sister Brittany on the "Arizona" necklace she wore. But then he commented on how it didn't fit the way his brain was connected to have one of his father's children be so connected to one state [I suppose this has something to do with our family moving 23 times in 35 years - although only 4 different states]. My husband  replied that even though our children had so many similarities to him, there were still a lot of differences among them.

Kenny replied: "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, but when the tree is in the back of a truck..."

So there you go. I've also learned that what's most important is that we are united as a family in our testimonies of Heavenly Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ.

May God bless you and yours throughout the coming new year and beyond.

Merry Christmas to all!

oh, I almost forgot...What do you call a bunny wearing a kilt? A hopscotch.

You're welcome.

hugs~

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

From the Williams Family to yours.

At Least "Meltdown" Was on My To-do List

by Andilyn Jenkins

I write everything in my day planner (although I call it an assignment calendar because I'm still in fifth grade, apparently). Call me old-fashioned, but there's something I get from a hard calendar and scribbles that I can't accomplish on my iPhone. And this week, I have my time calculated to the minute. Today was chores-day and writing night. I spent my entire day vacuuming, tidying, scrubbing, dusting, and washing. And after finishing the laundry at 10:00, I began writing. Tomorrow is errands-day, mutual, ANWA, and freelance work. Thursday is baking-for-neighbor-gifts-day and temple-night. And Friday is deliver-neighbor-gifts day and Christmas party/date night. I think you see where I'm headed as far as my schedule this week goes. In fact, it probably looks a lot like yours. It's that time of year.

Well, three hours ago I started working on a poem for my post tonight--a beautiful poem I'm trying to write for my dad for Christmas that I've put off far too long. Two hours ago, my computer started telling me it needed to shut off in fifteen minutes to do updates. I declined. It postponed for fifteen more minutes. I was almost finished with my first draft of them poem, then I was going to post it here and request feedback from our readers to help me get it ready for Christmas. And then the fly flew into my ointment. An hour-and-a-half ago, my daughter woke up with various ailments ranging from sore limbs to an upset stomach. So between squatting on the bathroom floor holding her as she tried to use the bathroom to make her stomach feel better and rubbing her arms/legs/feet while telling her happy stories and singing her lullabies in bed, my computer restarted without my consent. And when I came back in my room for a brief moment before being called back into my daughter's bedroom, I discovered a blank computer screen and nothing recoverable in Word.

And you know what? I have no idea when I'm going to be able to sit down again and rewrite that poem, assuming I can recapture the spirit I had put into it. But it won't be tonight because every three sentences I get down here, Evelyn calls, "Mom!" from her bedroom. And my mommy-brain is kicked in and my muse is kicked out as I listen for whimpering or rustling from down the hall muffled beneath the clicks of my keyboard.

So, just to make myself feel better, I add "comfort sick Evelyn" to Wednesday and cross it off my list.

Merry Christmas. May your preparations go smoothly and may you always cut your wrapping paper the correct size on your first try. (Wrapping day was Sunday.)

EDITED NOTE: Immediately after posting this, I found a recoverable version of my poem in Word! Tender mercies :). Look for it Wednesday night on Andilyn Thinks and come give me your feedback so I can get this Christmas poem sent on its merry way.

Striking a Blow for the First Amendment

by Terri Wagner

Things are still crazy around here. Mobile home, or manufactured home, or trailer, I've always thought it funny to have 3 different names when it is the same thing has finally arrived. Today I have to bring to the table all the information they need for the loan to go through. I must be unaverage because I passionately resent giving them all that information. Do they really need to know all this? And further more why does my employer have to verify my employment? Really it is any of my employer's business what I am doing on the homefront? And why we are at it why does anyone have to know what I am doing with the house I own outright?

And another beef while I'm at it...what is this infernal onslaught when it comes to FB? If a person offers up a personal opinion about something that happened at work to several hundred friends at one time, why can that be used against that person? Who made up that rule while I wasn't looking?! And no I am not talking about extremes here. And why should we all be concerned about this attack on free speech? Because as the German people once learned, if they come after the one guy, eventually they will come after you.

My best example is the attacks for your own good. Lookit, I'm LDS right? Never smoked a day in my life. Can't stand the stuff. BUT if you choose to smoke, and accept the consequences (which may or may not include cancer but certainly causes you serious health issues), and pay extra for your health care for it, then so be it. But no one really stood up for the smoker, so now they can hardly smoke in the streets. Then they went after the fat people. Using the same tactics. And again I was appalled at the lack of response to the fat police. Now they are after your free speech on something as simple as blogs, and FB. Don't be fooled, they are waiting for the opportunity to pounce. Just ask Canadian preachers who can't speak from the pulpit about homosexuality (that may now be toned down but the framework for it is in place), and it's not just Canada. Recently the lesbian mayor of Houston wanted to check out the speeches of several city pastors before they gave them. For now, the pastors' protest was successful enough that the mayor backed down. However, the law that preceded the demand is still in place.

I just wonder where it will end? I'm still mad about all these intrusive things I have to answer. Makes me wish I could just pay cash in hand. Hmmmm, maybe this is yet another reason for the emphasis on being debt free.

Fairy Fun

When our children were little, a fairy family would come to our house right after Thanksgiving to stay until Christmas day. They came for fun adventures and to be Santa's helpers in spreading Christmas happiness.

Our kids built elaborate houses for them each year - sometimes out of graham crackers, other times we made homemade gingerbread, and when they wanted a really fancy design, cardboard covered with vanilla wafers. They decorated the yards with candy cane toboggan runs, gumdrop trees and silver sprinkle skating rinks.

The fairies wrote notes to the children to tell of their escapades. One year Tom broke his leg because he got going too fast on the toboggan run and crashed into the gumdrop forest. Another year Melinda and her winged horse needed a high dive to practice jumping into a swimming pool. Aunt Matilda got a cold. Uncle Henry needed honey candy  to cure a tooth ache. 

The children watched for the tiny foot prints and little wings. Each night before bed our little ones wrote a letter to the fairies.

The best part was having the fairies help with holiday service projects. Everyone made cards and cookies for older people in the ward. Tiny foot prints magically appeared on the envelopes. Everyone sang for neighbors. We were all sure we could hear the fairy voices. The winged creatures were very good to scout out a house to see if it was safe to door-bell ditch.

We had lots of good times with this over the years, and now the grandkids are in on the fun.  Here is one that should be interesting. Sharks on this roof. Wonder how the shark/fairy story will turn out. We'll just have to wait and see.

Try this in your family. Magic is part of Christmas.

Indie Author? Go read the linked article

by Marsha Ward

I'm a confirmed Indie Author, which many of you already know. I ran across a link on The Passive Voice Blog leading to a blog post by M.C.A. Hogarth that all indie (and probably lots of traditionally published and hybrid) authors should read, oh, maybe every three months or so. It's very affirming. I recommend you read the comments at The Passive Voice, and also, when you click his link to the article, the comments on the blog post, too.

I Am an Indie Midlister (and That's Okay!)

I think the big take-away quote for me is the following:

I do not begrudge my peers their better sales, because they don’t need to fail for me to succeed. This revelation is deeply freeing, because it means I can be thrilled for their successes, and fine with my own more modest accomplishments.

What a great outlook!

If You Give a Writer Chocolate...

By Kari Diane Pike

I intended to have today's post published before nine a.m. I forgot about the contractor coming at eight. No worries. I finished cleaning the kitchen while he painted the drywall repair in the entryway. I wanted to be nearby in case Martin's hip gave out on him again. Sixty-something-year-old guys with bad hips and climbing up ladders scare me. Besides, he shares funny stories about his life in England and his accent makes everything he says fascinating. Why is that?

Anyway - after Martin left, I planted myself in front of the computer. The moment I opened my Gmail account this crazy vortex opened up and sucked me into a Facebook conversation started by Tristi Pinkston. I couldn't pull myself out! Fortunately, my visiting teacher and her two adorable daughters dropped by and rescued me. The girls bounced all over the porch vying to show me the reindeer food they made in preschool and how they planned to sprinkle the sparkling oats on their lawn so Rudolph could find them. They begged their mom to let them stay and play with my doll house with me. But their mom told them we have to wait until after Christmas.

When I sat back down to write, my bangs kept falling in my eyes so I had to run up stairs and find the  right scissors. I didn't want to get hair all over the sink which meant I had to go back downstairs for a paper towel. I solved the bang problem with just a couple of snips. Since Christmas pictures are still two weeks away, I think I'll be okay.

Upon returning to the office, my tummy grumbled and woke up the chocolate covered cherries, raspberries and Oreo truffles from their hibernation in the refrigerator. They shouldn't have called out to me. I wouldn't have eaten them if they had just stayed quiet. It's not my fault! Now I'm going to have to make more to hide the evidence. Do you think if I add some Cookie Dough Buckeyes to the plates and wear a long sweater over the popped button on my jeans I can keep anyone from noticing?

hugs~

Christmas Thoughts

by Cindy R. Williams

We all know that Christ's real birthday was in April. I have this theory that Christmas is celebrated after Thanksgiving for a  good reason. The need for gratitude and thanksgiving, for our Savior and the many wonderful gifts we all have but often forget.

Here are some thoughts of the season.

"The United States Post Office dead-letter department receives annually thousands and thousands of children's pre-Christmas letters addressed to Santa Claus asking for things.  After it was all over one year, a single, solitary letter thanking Santa Clause was received. Could this be on of the problems of this troubled world; that people thing only of getting -- not giving?  Of receiving -- and not even expressing their gratitude for that which they do receive?
-- President Thomas S. Monson, Pathway to Perfection, pp. 254-255

"Don't be mad if you don't get the things  you want . . . just think of the things that you don't get that you don't want."

 

"People who complain that they don't get all they deserve should congratulate themselves." 

--The Irish Digest

--"And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him.  Doctrine & Covenants 78:19

"Cultivate a spirit of thanskgiving for the blessing of life."  --Gordon B, Hinckley

"Gratitude is the sign of noble souls"--Aesop

"The depth of our gratitude is the depth of our understanding." 

"The best things in life are yours, if you can appreciate yourself." --Dale Carnegie

I wish you all a warm and happy Christmas full of a heart of gratitude to our Savior!

Getting Ready for Bed in Three Short Hours

by Andilyn Jenkins

A mom gets ready for bed. A dad goes to sleep. "Why don't you go get ready for bed, dear. I'll be in in a minute," Aaron subtly suggests because he knows. He knows that even if he gives me a head-start, he'll still fall asleep long (often hours) before I do.

* * *

Aaron walks in the room for bed after I've put on my salmon-colored pajama pants and an old t-shirt that says, "Anything war can do, peace can do better," in a rainbow font. I just placed my day-time t-shirt in the previously empty hamper and thought, "The laundry is never done."

Aaron digs through his dresser drawer. "What are you looking for, honey?"

"My black basketball shorts I wore to play football last week."

And in the time it takes him to check under another pair of jeans my brain takes me to the dinner-table a week previously and plays out this conversation in full color and detail.

"Oh, are these new basketball shorts?" I asked pointing to an insignia on the knee I hadn't noticed before.

"No, just old. They're reversible. I usually wear the white side," he explains, flipping the hem over at the knee to show me the reverse.

"Gotcha."

"I don't like wearing the white side to play football 'cause they get grass stains."

"Smart man."

So, now I know what shorts he's talking about. And my brain ticka-tick-ticks. Nightstand drawer? No, those are his pajama basketball shorts. Did I fold them in my last load of colors? No, that load had the blues, mints, and grays I washed first to deal with Evelyn's grass stains. I saved the darker load for after in case the stains didn't come out and I wanted to wash them again. And I just folded that load, so his shorts must be in the dryer.

"They're not in there, hon. They're in the dryer," I answer as he looks between his third pair of pants.

No! They're in the wash. I took the dryer load out early so I could fold it before I went to bed. Don't forget to check Evelyn's pants.

"Oh, I mean they're in the wash. I'll put them in the dryer before I go to bed so you can have them in the morning." Don't forget to put those in the dryer. And check Evelyn's pants.

I snap my hair into a ponytail and slip on my headband. As I squeeze the tube of Clean N Clear, Aaron asks, "Did you call your mom?" as he goes into the closet and comes out with his old running shoes, placing them in front of his dresser to remind himself to get the shorts out of the dryer before work.

"No . . ." So tomorrow I need to return that call, oh, and return my dad's call. He wanted to know about Christmas gifts for the kids. So think about ideas to give him. And he asked about work. I need to go over my notes before I call him so I have something progressive to say. Man, I can't believe it's been so long since I worked on his project for work. I don't know how time slips away from me. I've just been so busy lately with family visiting and sisters having babies and getting Christmas started and recovering the house from Thanksgiving. Oh, don't forget to turn on the dishwasher tomorrow. " . . . I'll call her tomorrow."

I turn on the water and scrub off my makeup then grope half-blinded for my bath towel and dry my face. And the thinking continues. I reach for Kleenex and my brain jumps to the grocery list. I pull my hair out of the ponytail and remind myself to text Cami, a friend who happens to be my hairdresser, about our plans this weekend. I walk from the master bath to the bedroom and see empty water bottles, dusty dressers, Walmart items to return. Mental note, mental note, mental note. My toe hits the full laundry basket--don't forget to switch out that load. And check Evelyn's pants.

Aaron and I read a few verses from our scriptures and say our couple's prayer. Then he falls asleep. I get out of bed to get my day planner from the kitchen and open the door to thousands of mental notes. Notes that I know I can't grip. I see the preschool bag, but I won't remember that Evelyn has homework to do until I see it again tomorrow, ten minutes before school starts. I see my laptop sitting on the table, but I already forgot today is blogging day. I grab my planner and keep my eyes on the floor so I won't see the bottle I meant to wash, the macaroni I wanted to put away, and the socks that escaped laundry day.

Because in seconds, my brain tells me 357 things I forgot, misplaced, over-scheduled, and neglected. But tonight, I remembered to hide Dash, our elf-on-the-shelf. And because I checked my planner before bed, I’m writing my blog post. And I’m really going to try and remember to put that load in the dryer after I’m done here. But the reality is I’m human. And being a mom is a super-human job. So, sometimes, we have grass stains on our pants.

BOM's Jacob's delimna is also mine

by Terri Wagner

I had the dubious honor of giving the FHE lesson for our little singles group. We are small in number, and mostly older women. After a few years, we decided to actually study the scriptures instead of pick-your-own lessons. I got Genesis Chapter 6 which is the big build up to the Flood. In preparing for the lesson, I learned a lot more than I guess I really wanted to. According to the LDS Old Testament Institute Manual, the wickedness front and center was the "sons of God marrying the daughters of men" and "the daughters of sons of God marrying the sons of men" and visa versa. In a nutshell no one was marrying in the covenant, and the children born from these marriages were not being raised in the gospel. President Joseph Felding Smith and President Spencer W. Kimball were very straight forward about this being a problem in our time as well.

This relates to Jacob from the Book of Mormon because he says in effect I don't wanna have to say this, but I'm gonna have to say this, and you aren't gonna like it, but here I go.

The reason I felt that way is because well frankly here in our little corner of the LDS world, the ratio of single men to single women is about 8 to 1. And most of the women in this group would prefer to be married. There are a few exceptions. So do they accept a lonely life in exchange for not marrying out of the covenant or do they accept a son of man to at least have companionship with??? It's tougher to figure out than you might think. I know of three women who married outside the church and three who married men who were baptized. All six are currently in very difficult circumstances. The two of the three who married non members are now less active with children who either are not or were not raised in the church. And those children lead the world's way of life. One married a non member much later in life, and has to make choices regarding callings and church meetings based on his requests. The other three married men who were baptized but apparently not converted as all three have left the church and yes took their families with them so to speak. One comes faithfully to church but is not allowed to participate much nor can her children participate beyond coming now and again. The heartache is huge. And I lost two friends that were my pillars of support in my early church years.

The Lord saw the torment of His children making unwise choices in marriage and how deeply it affected generations to come. The wickedness increased until eventually of course there was only Noah and his family. It was a hard lesson to give, because I know many of these single sisters, their story, and their loneliness. And I myself can be terribly lonely at times. None of us really want to be alone at times. I only could end on a positive note that while these things are true, it is also true that the Spirit can guide us in our choices about companionship. And sometimes a son of man can become with a bit of support a son of God. I've seen that happen too!!!

Everything For A Reason

By Claire Enos

Recently, it came to my attention, that the saying/belief that everything happens for a reason is as true as it can get. I could write a novel on decisions I made and how they led me to where I am right now, all happening within the last three years or so. This all really struck home as I watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer last night. It was part one of the season 2 finale and I was distracted emailing people and trying to write blog posts. All of a sudden, these words penetrated my concentration and I ended up looking them up.

"Bottom line is even if you see 'em coming, you're not ready for the big moments. No one asks for their life to change, not really. But it does. So what, are we helpless? Puppets? No. The big moments are gonna come, can't help that. It's what you do afterwards that counts. That's when you find out who you are. You'll see what I mean."

You know, it really is these moments that show us who we are. What we choose to do with what we are handed in life really shows who we are and who we want to be.

With that, have an amazing week.

<3Claire