Oh Baby!

Baby van Ormer number 4

(And likely final van Ormer child -- more on THAT later.)

Coming MAY 2012!

Pumpkin Rolls

I have alway wanted to make a Pumpkin Roll.

When I was little, I used to see them in one of my mom's cookbooks, and I have wanted to make one ever since . . . but I have been too chicken. My goal this Autumn season is to do the thing that I have always wanted to do.

I WILL make a Pumpkin Roll!

I just MUST!

They look SO YUMMY and I have never even tried one!

I know that the Libby brand has what looks like a good recipe??? If you have made one before that you think is excellent . . . will you share your recipe with me?? PLEASE??

Oooooo . . . I can't wait! YUM!

I love the smell of pumpkin in the Fall . . .

Dog Etiquette: Lesson Two

Yesterday, I took a little jog through a nearby park.

Ahead of me I could see a bunch of free-roaming dogs, with their owners laughing and playing with them, in the grass next to trail. (The owners were nice-looking older ladies.) The dogs were all off-leash in a "must be on leash" location. I was a little hesitant to run by them, because they were very free and very playful. But, unless I wanted to run a 5 mile detour, I had to make my way past the pack of puppies.

With William in the stroller, I began my approach towards the wolves. I tried not to make eye-contact with any of the animals -- I wanted to quietly sneak by. I was doing great, nice and easy, and I THOUGHT the dogs would ignore me. But then, the BIGGEST dog ran from the pack, aimed towards my direction, and jumped up on the back of my leg. The stinking dog scratched my leg on it's way down.

In the meantime, the owners -- who were about 30 feet back from the scene -- were just laughing. (Remember, they looked like nice old ladies.) But they seemed to think it was funny that their good, precious, doggie, was chasing/jumping on the silly jogger.

Really funny, ladies. Thanks.

Now, this is NOT an unusual occurrence. It happens ALL THE TIME! I cannot think of how many times I have had dogs run across a field, just to come and jump on me, while I am innocently trying to jog. It makes me angry (and I do not get angry easily!). I have small children and if any dogs ever mess with them . . .

Well, let's just say, you do NOT mess with my kids!

(I know karate.)

Dog People . . .

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, keep your precious little puppies ON A LEASH!!!

They are NOT as cute as you think they are.

Not everyone wants to "interact" with your dog like you do.

Please. Be kind.

There are leash laws for a reason!

Many Thanks.

(I want to make it clear that I do not hate dogs. I love animals, sort of. I'll be nice to them, if they be nice to me.)

The Darcy

No, I am not talking about the beautiful Fitzwilliam Darcy.

(Though he is always worth talking about!)

I am talking about my beautiful new bed!

After 12 years of marriage, we decided a new bed was just what the doctor ordered.

Our old mattress was so squeaky it was embarrassing (ask any of our guests who have stayed in our home). There was NO getting away with anything! You would go to sit on the bed and SQuEaK!!!! It was ridiculous.

Our old bed was given to us about 7 years ago, by someone who had had it just as long

(and we were very grateful, because we had been sleeping on an air-mattress for a year). But it was getting SO uncomfortable -- I felt like an old woman when I woke up in the morning! Everything ached, like I hadn't slept.

It was time for a change!

So, we found an awesome new mattress and a new quilt that I love called, "The Darcy". (Pictured above.) Charles actually picked it out! I know, I know . . . he is so sensitive. ;-) wink! It is just the kind of look that I love. I adore antiques and vintage style and that is the look I am going for in our room. I want it to feel like another time. And it does!

After a few nights sleeping on our new mattress and in our comfy covers -- it is like NIGHT and DAY! I feel SO much BETTER! No more old-woman-aching! Hooray!

OH, and the BEST thing about our new bed . . . IT DOESN'T SQuEaK!!

Yippee!

Sweet Dreams . . . FOR ME!!!

(This is NOT our room in the picture, but you get the idea!)

Chocolate Rocks

I love chocolate rocks.

I mean, I don't adore them or anything (not like I adore the superbness of Cadbury eggs, or Ghirardelli chocolates). But chocolate rocks do deserve a level of love from me -- like most decent chocolate items deserve.

I thought you could only get Choco-Rocks at the expensive candy store, for a ridiculous amount of money. But come to find out, you can get them in the bulk-barrel section for HALF the price at WinCo! (I do NOT love shopping at WinCo (yucky atmosphere), but I AM learning to LOVE their bulk section!)

So, if you are ever craving something yummy (NOT delicious, mind you -- just yummy), then head to WinCo and scoop-up some Choco-Rocks!

And don't forget to share with me! :-)

Storms of Life

Last night for Family Home Evening

we decided to take it outside. Charles and I decided to run and we had the kids on their bikes. When we left the sky was blue, with a few dark clouds hovering over the foothills. It was a little windy, but nothing that would cause us to turn around and go back inside.

We kept running, and the kids kept pedaling, and suddenly we could feel dirt in the air. The wind had picked up a little and there was some debris flying around -- leaves, small branches, garbage -- but it was still not enough to make us turn around. We wanted to go our full "loop" and we did not want to cut it short.

And then we turned the corner, heading towards the foothills -- towards the ominous clouds. The wind was blowing like crazy and it took everything we had to push ourselves against the wind (we were in wide-open cow-pasture space). The kids were really struggling to keep moving forward on their bikes. I had my arms out to my sides, pretending I was flying. (I thought it was terrific -- I love nasty weather! The nastier, the better!)

Now, maybe we should have turned around and gone back, but I still felt OK. I was listening to my heart/gut/promptings and I knew we would be alright. We kept going. The kids were concerned and really pushing their little pedals hard.

The worst things was the wind whipping in our eyes. The dirt really stung. My hat flew off many times. We were surrounded by flying plant debris. However, my biggest concern were the power poles -- I was not interested in anyone being electrocuted. We ran super fast when they were hanging over our heads. Too fast. I could barely breath!

We could see that we were about to a point where we would have to cross through a dust storm. There was a large construction site and it was causing dirt to fly violently through the air. It was thick and it was gross. But if we turned back, we would have a longer way to go. It was best to just push forward. Going back was just as dangerous and we could not just stand still.

So, we all covered our faces with our shirts and we forced our way through the thick dirt smacking against our faces. It was nasty. It was hard. The kids were worried. Daniel's bike blew over at one point. I was crying from all the dirt in my eyes and I could feel the dirt in my lungs. William (in the stroller) had his whole face buried in his shirt. It was not the pleasant experience we had been hoping for when we set out on our FHE journey.

We were thrashed the whole way home. Tumbleweed was flying through the air and smacking me on the back of my legs -- it hurt! But it was really sucking in the dust that was the most uncomfortable. We had to stop running towards the end because it was just not healthy. It was a rough experience. Especially for the kids.

But we made it home.

Covered in dirt -- but alive.

(I cleaned out my ears and they were FULL of dirt! GROSS!)

When we got home we had a special recap of our hands-on experience of making it through "the storms of life".

We described how sometimes life can be hard, but you just have to

KEEP MOVING FORWARD

and you will make it through.

I must say, I think it was one of our best FHE lessons ever. :-)

The best lessons are lessons lived.

Learning to Love -- Not Compare

I love to watch people.

Blogs make that so much easier, don't they?

I love to examine people. I try to understand them -- sometimes I analyze their ways and their lives, in an effort to figure out why people are the way they are. Sometimes I even analyze YOU! I am almost always thinking about other people. I even took classes in college to help hone-in on what seemed a natural thing for me.

BUT . . . this people-watching/analyzing habit can also be dangerous. There is a fine-line I walk between analyzing to understand others better, and analyzing that turns into comparing myself against others. I often fall into the "comparison trap".

My comparison thoughts:

"So-and-so is this way -- I am another way."

"So-and-so is better -- I am worse."

"So-and-so is worse -- I am better."

Comparing is a very destructive and self-defeating process.

I am not you. You are not me.

We are different. And that is GREAT!

I am trying to "learn to love".

I mean REALLY learn to love and NOT compare.

It is hard for me. But I am willing to work at it.

I have been reading a book by

NEAL A. MAXWELL called

"Not My Will, But Thine"

I love this quote:

"When we are struggling to learn to love, we can have faith in God's developmental plans for others as well as for ourselves. Then we do not feel threatened by those who are our superiors or who are becoming such. The more unselfish we are, the more able we are to find joy in their success, all the while rejoicing without comparing.

In any case, our only valid spiritual competition is with out old selves, not with each other. True love and friendship enable us to keep that perspective. The things about other people that truly matter are their qualities such as love, mercy, justice, and patience, and their service to others. The things that matter much less -- style, appearance, and mannerisms -- become comparatively unimportant.

Finally, our capacity to be meek and lowly enough to love without requiring reciprocity is enhanced by our coming to know how much we are loved by Jesus, even when we do not return His love as we might."

I want to love without comparison.

I want to feel the joy of freedom that comes from truly LOVING others without restraint.

I want to love others the way that Jesus loves me and the way that I love Him.

I believe it is the way to true happiness . . .

and peace of mind.

As President Monson said:

"Judge Not."

Let the comparisons go, girlie. Let them go . . . and be happy!

The Loft Bed

We live in a fairly tight space for our family.

(2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, for 5 people.)

We have learned over the years how to "make do" and be creative.

And though our home is small, we are grateful for what we have, and we love our little house!! Our family has grown "closer" together -- that is for sure!

Every now and again we make changes to our home. I have always moved furniture/tried new home designs -- I just LOVE to do it. Sometimes I have to control myself from always changing things!

Last week, we made another change.

(This time Charles helped!)

Our project: A loft bedroom in the walk-in closet.

We thought Sammi could use a little more room, especially since she will be playing the clarinet this year, and she needs a place to shut the door and practice. :-)

(Mommy NEEDS her to have a space to close the door and practice!)

*The walk-in closet is attached to the boys room.

It was actually Charles' idea -- I was the doubter! I thought it would be too much work. But in less than 2 hours -- he made it happen!

(I should know better than to doubt any of Charles' ideas.)

A piece of plywood, a few 2X4s, and memory-foam later -- it was super! (And will be easy to undo -- if (and when) we move on from our home.)

Sammi LOVES it!

She had been in the closet before, but she had outgrown the bed she was on. The loft bed is a lot bigger and she has plenty of space.

It will work marvelously for her. She has a little desk, shelves, and a corner for her music stand. It doubled her living space. And she has the privacy which she occasionally needs.

Sometimes you just have to be creative! :-)

(The images don't quite capture how neat it is, but you get the idea!)

Fantastic Friday Night

Friday night is Family Movie Night, at our house. Last Friday we were watching a dorky (yet likable) movie -- Diary of a Wimpy Kid. While I was half-heartedly watching, in the back of my mind, I kept thinking about the Boise Balloon Classic "Night Glow". I knew it was Friday at 7:00. I wanted to go, but it was not in our "plans" for the evening.

The time was passing, and it was about 7:30 when the movie was over. Everyone was a little tired and ready to relax/sleep. But I decided, WE HAD TO GO! I told everyone, "Get in the car! We are going to see the balloons!" We loaded up in the car in a matter of seconds. Before we left we said a quick prayer (as we always do, whenever we go in the car). We prayed that we could have a fantastic time . . .

My thought was that we might get lucky and drive above the park with the balloons and look down from a distant place. But as we were driving, we somehow ended up right in the park. We were in a huge crowd, trying to find a spot. Just as we pulled into the fire lane, the people behind us asked if we would like their spot -- because they were leaving. It was the closest spot to the balloons. Yeah, a miracle. Awesome.

From our car we could see the Mickey Mouse balloon and we all got excited. We were in our schlumpy "home-clothes" and so we did not want to get out. But it was TOO awesome, so we got out anyway. Guess what? No one cared about our clothes. :-)

Sammi said the Mickey Balloon was a "sign" that we need to go to Disneyland.

I think that is exactly why the Mickey Balloon was sent from Disneyland to Boise -- an advertisement just for our family. :-)

It was neat because they played the music from Fantasmic (an amazing show at D-land). The music makes me get all choked-up, it reminds me of the special times we have had there. We were first blown away by Fantasmic at Disneyland just a few weeks before starting law school. The music has a special place in my heart. I was trying not to cry.

We had lots of fun!

I kept thinking my mom would really love this! :-) Next year mama . . . !!!

I loved being around all the people in the beautiful park -- it made me love Boise more.

The kids were really having a good time!

It was a beautiful night, I wish I could have captured a little better!

We made it JUST in time for all of the good stuff! I must have been inspired at JUST the right time! We had the fabulous show, with none of the wait!

Our prayer was answered, we all had a FANTASTIC time!

*We had been getting up early before school to see the balloons take off in the morning. It was super. I wish they did it every morning! It made the morning time so much more pleasant! Hooray for special smile-inducing things -- like HOT AIR BALLOONS!

Maybe one day I will be brave enough to go for a ride in one . . . maybe . . . one day . . .

Boise Balloon Spectacular

More images to come . . .