How Do They Do It!

In talking to a fellow friend blogger - who has surpassed even my most lofty goals of being a great design blogger in a mere 3 months vs. my 3 years of blogging about just the days in my life.  I learned in five minutes from her what I couldn't figure out on my own pertaining to the labels on my blog.  Now I just need to go back through 3 years = 75+ posts and correct what I did wrong.

I am amazed at how much so many other people accomplish in their life.  How do they do it?!  How do so many seem to fit a whole other life within a life.  They have amazing blogs with amazing ideas.  There are others that are continually creating and accomplishing a new project every day.  They design things, sell them, blog about them.  Then there are those that have a job, young children, big life challenges, go back to school, know the latest world news, and more.  Do they have the same 24hr day that I do?!

And me . . .I get up, make my bed, pick up the house, do laundry, take care of my church responsibilities, try to stay in touch with family & friends on a limited basis, update my blog now & then and my days are gone without having accomplished any of these great things that so many others seem to. 

My single greatest accomplishments in a days time are that my bed does get made every day, there's rarely more than a load of laundry in the hampers at a time and we sit down together as a family almost every night for dinner.  Not that it's a great dinner by any stretch of the imagination.  Just another thing I only do marginally well.  Grateful that my family (particularly my husband) loves me anyway and tolerates having tacos once a week!

I am thankful that so many others do all that they do.  Because in reality, if not, I wouldn't be able to seem to do a few great things.  I wouldn't have their ideas for my Young Women's lesson or the joint activity I'm in charge of tonight and be able to tweek and make it my own.  I'm a good copier just not a good inventor of original ideas.

I aspire to greatness but I have yet to discover it.  To find where it lies in me. 

I'm a lover of simple things - reading, family, friends, the greatness in others, children's books, poetry, diet coke, boston baked beans, Panera Bread's cinnamon crunch bagels w/honey walnut cream cheese,  carrot cake, key lime pie ice cream and the likes.

In years to come when someone asks my children what would define their mother, I really wonder what they will say.  I hope they will say that they always knew I loved them, wanted the best for them and just as the warriors of Helaman, they knew & never doubted that their mother had a testimony of Jesus Christ.  In reality, the only success I am seeking is yet to be determined in the years to come as my children grow, learn and begin lives of their own.  The manner of men (and woman) they become will be the measuring stick of my life's accomplishments, my greatest reward.

I am not fishing or requesting comments, compliments or validation. I am merely voicing the musings of my mind at the moment.

POOF!

This is not the  POOF from a fairy tale where something magical happens by the wave of a wand.  Oh, I wish it could have been that simple after this 'POOF' event!

We had our traditional crepes for Christmas Eve dinner with raspberry filling & powdered sugar all rolled up and topped with whipped cream with link sausages & bacon on the side.  (No such thing as gooseberries available in Florida.  Will have to have mom send me some in time for next year).  John and Parker favor putting the meat in the crepe.  Anyway you do it they are delicious and filling! 

Christmas Day morning after we saw what Santa brought and opened presents I decided to get the kitchen straightened up a bit.  First thing I did was grab the powdered sugar container off the counter to return it to the pantry.

Apparently the lid wasn't on tight.  The powdered sugar went POOF!  Everywhere, all over!

 All down the counter, around the corner and all over the floor!

 Even down inside the soda box all over the cans all the way to the bottom.

 All the way across the floor to the next wall.

 Into the pantry, inside buckets and onto every available surface.

Who knew powdered sugar could POOF so much but POOF it did.  This was not how I wanted to start my Christmas morning!  Macey, however, jumped right in and volunteered to help me clean it all up.  It wasn't nearly such an unpleasant task with her help. 

 The bright side of it all was that the pantry got a little makeover so it was a little neater when it was all said and done.  It just wasn't the funnest wiping off jars, jugs, boxes, plastic cups and shaking it off napkins in our 'paper products' bucket.  Oh, well.  It could have been worse.

A Wallet & A Prayer! (a little like a wing & a prayer)

On Sunday morning when I was helping to get John's bag ready for church - scriptures, notebook and the like I noticed his wallet wasn't in it.  My instant thought,"oh, mmm, it must be in the car."

On Monday night as John was getting ready to leave to go home teaching he asked if I had had a chance to look for his wallet.  Well, uh, no - cause I didn't really know it was lost.  A slight sense of concern started to creep in.  After he left I went out in the dark and tried to comb through the vehicles - glove box, pockets, floor, under the seats.  You know the drill.  Not there.

Tuesday morning I checked the car John was driving the night before.  Still no wallet.  Once we were up and going that morning we talked about when it was last in 'our' possession.  We had all gone last minute shopping together on Wednesday, Dec. 23rd.  John & Parker needed to stop at WalMart (shopping for me).  They got me some good stuff too - pedicure & nice shampoo!

Anyway, back to the wallet . . . John was sure he had given me his wallet to put in my purse or had actually left it in the car.  He thought he had only taken his credit card into the store (made more convincing on his part because he had asked me if stores asked for ID).  Parker, however, was certain he had his whole wallet in with him.   

We combed through the cars again just to be certain it really wasn't there.  After John left for work, the kids and I (mostly I) proceeded to go through the house piece by piece to try and find it.  Our biggest fear was that it really was lost or that it had gotten thrown out.  We thought maybe the wallet had been in the bag with the shampoo (last purchase) and had gotten pitched with the bag.  By this time the trash truck had already been to our house.  All the wrappings & remnants of Christmas were gone.

I looked and looked - for 3+hours - couch cushions, cleaned my craft room & garage (where Christmas had been hiding), looked in buckets, under beds, dressers, bookcases, couches, chairs.  Nothing, nada!

At some point during all this that morning I had asked Parker to say a prayer.  Since I'm in the middle of it all and frustrated and more - I thought their prayers might have a better chance of being heard since it is being delivered with a better spirit.  I do have faith though, right? or I wouldn't be thinking as a parent to stop and do this?

Ok - the wallet wasn't anywhere at home.  I had checked and there hadn't been any charges so that was a blessing.  Our last resort was to check back at WalMart.  I was going to take a shower and get ready for the day - nevermind, let's just go.  I told Macey to go choose me some clothes so I could at least be dressed.  Just before we pulled out of the driveway I suggested we say another prayer.  Macey asked if she could say it this time.  Bless her heart.

Off to WalMart we go.  We went first to the hair salon and asked there.  She said no wallet had been turned in but to check with customer service.  So I got in the 'return' line to wait while Parker & Macey headed back to look at the toys together.  As I was waiting I sort of decided which customer service person I was hoping I would get to help me.  Sometimes there is one that seems a little more competent than the others.  One that seems a little more proactive or seems to give more customer service.  She was the one closest to me.

I did get her.  I explained the situation.  She looked behind her on a shelf, not there.  She went in the back room behind the locked door.  When she came back I could tell it wasn't there without her saying anything.  I knew she didn't want to tell me that.  Then she bent down & looked below her register on the shelves that must be there. As she stood up guess what she had in her hand?!  My immediate response was, "that's it!" Tears came to my eyes.  She said I was really lucky.  It hadn't gotten logged into the lost and found binder and it wasn't where lost wallets were suppose to be put.

I should have told her we weren't just lucky - it was an answer to two young kids prayers!

Lost on Wednesday.  Found on Tuesday.  Miraculously everything was intact - nothing was missing.  I immediately went and called John.  He was grateful for our efforts and our prayers. 

(Note to husband:  Lost wallets and lost keys are usually not attributed to any fault or misplacement by the wife.  Rather the wife is the seeker & finder of said items!  Love you.)