"M is for the Million Things She Gave Me"

I realized today that I am failing miserably.
At what you might ask?
Motherhood.
Some days I feel like
it's a career that I should have done
more research on,
before jumping in!
And you?

You know when you were little,
and you made your mother
this wonderful art project at school:

Marvelous
Outstanding
Terriffic
Helpful
Encouraging
Radical

I did it, you did it, we all did it.

I have decided that at this point,
in my children's young lives,
this is how it would read:

Man
did she know how to slam a door.

Oh boy,
could she yell!

Told
terrific bedtime stories.

Had
a serious obsession with bubbles,
of the diet drink kind,
it's what killed her you know.

Everyone
loved her rolls,
the homemade ones,
not the ones on her belly.

Really
liked to run.

Sheesh.
I have a lot of work to do.
Off I go...

Man at Work

Hallelujah!

After a SIX week dry spell,
Adam has not one,
not two,
but three jobs this week.
And a fourth in the works!

We only hope to keep up the momentum.
And let me just add,
IT'S ABOUT TIME PEOPLE!
That is all.

Oh The Places You'll Go

Last week I stumbled upon this story here.

***Warning!!! It is not for the faint of heart***

It is a story of a mother who had her one-year-old child drown in the bathtub, and their road to recovery. This mother shared the series of events that lead to her leaving the bathroom, and the choices she made that led to the tragedy that followed. It's had me thinking ever since about the choices that we make. And, I have decided (according to the gospel of Rachel) that EVERYTHING we do in this life has to to with choices. This is nothing new. But...I have decided that learning to live with the consequences of those choices is the true battle in life, good or bad.

CHOICES, CHOICES, CHOICES!

I know that my life here started with a choice. I'm here! I chose to come here to earth and receive a body. This I know. From there, things get a little fuzzy.

I remember choosing to be baptized. Pretty happy about the choice made there.

My junior year in high school I decided I was going to become a cowgirl.
Wore the jeans, boots, and all things cowgirl.
Thought I would grow up and live on a ranch.
Why make this choice? Who knows.
Decided after a year it wasn't for me.
Went further from who I am than I ever had been.
Had to get back on track, back to me.
Not fun.
But, I learned a lot about myself and who I really am.
(Still trying to figure that out sometimes!)

Chose to attend BYU in 1999 to get into their
study abroad program in London, England.
One of the best choices I've made yet.
LOVED every minute of it.
Met great people.
Saw amazing things.
Can't wait to go back someday and take Adam.

Got married in 2000.
We were married civilly,
and sealed in the temple one year later.
What will I say to my girls one day when they ask why we weren't married in the temple?
I don't know.
We had to make the choice that was right for us,
and that was it.
That choice will probably sneak back to
bite us in the butt one day.
But, I have to live with it now!

My sweet brother
chose the road of addiction.
He's been struggling to stay on track for 2 years now.
It hasn't been easy,
but he's learning to live with his choices.

We chose to have children.
Best choice we ever made.
Even when it's hard,
I love the consequences of that choice!
Who wouldn't?

Sometimes,
we make choices,
and we don't know we're even making them.
Like,
making the bed and cleaning up a room,
instead of checking on kids in the tub.
Or,
turning left
instead of right
at that intersection.
Or,
perhaps we left 5 minutes sooner
instead of 10 minutes later.

Now we have to accept that choice,
whatever it may bring,
keep calm,
and carry on.

Regardless of the choice, I'm glad I have the free agency to choose it. And, I'm glad I have the faith to accept the consequence even when it's not what I wanted.

Oh the places you'll go,
from the choices you make.

A Little Randomness...

I apologize in advance for the following post.

It's filled to overflowing with random thoughts that keep circling in my head.
Hopefully now that they have a home,
they will leave a little room in my head for more important things.
Like, I don't know,
remembering to pick my child up from pre-school.
Usually an important thing.

Audrey and Lauren had their first,
all-out,
give it all you got,
hair-pulling fight.
AWESOME.
I should have been
more upset when I
walked in the room,
but I had to hide a smile.
And, I wish I'd had a camera,
but the moment passed far too fast!

In 6 days,
every car we own
will have...
wait for it...
expired registration!

I have only been snowboarding
once
this season.
Serious bummer.
Adam hasn't been at all.
Double serious bummer.

Have you ever wanted to be an expert on something? Let me explain. Adam and I watch this show on The History Channel called, "Pawn Stars". It's all about the life and times of being a pawn shop owner. Sounds horribly exciting, I know, but it's really quite interesting. So, people will bring in their old junk and then they will have an "expert" come in and tell them if it's authentic or not. For example, you could be an expert on "antique john's" AKA toilets. What? Or, you could know everything there is to know about knifes, forks, spoons, guns, ammunition, old bells from ancient war ships, speed boats, motorcycles, cars, etc, etc, etc. I think I'll start today. If I could only decide what I want to be when I grow up.



My sweet Grandma Hagen turned
85
this past week.
Given that my other
dear Grandma is 90,
I'd say us Gray girls are going to be
around a while longer.
What genes.

My Sister-in-Law
Annika
has breast cancer.
We are praying
for a speedy
and full
recovery.
We love her.

I love reading this blog.
Every day that I can.

On January 14th, I was making my way home. Much to my dismay, there was nothing noteworthy to listen to on the radio. So, I switched over to NPR (which I find myself doing much too often to admit) and heard a heartbreaking story about the earthquake in Haiti, which had only happened the day before. I have searched in vain to find the actual story, but could only find a comments about the story, which you can find here. This is definitely worth a listen. It was the first time a reporter has made me feel like I was actually there, where he was reporting. And, the comments they received were outstanding. Especially the guy who thought reporters shouldn't show emotion. Really? I mean, I know you are supposed to be impartial, but sometimes tragedy is...truly tragic.

Last Sunday
I peeked my head in the nursery
to see how Lauren was faring.
I spied her sitting at the snack table,
chewing her food,
and then showing it to
the young gentleman
across the table from her.
He, likewise,
was doing the same.
I was so proud.

For the first time ever,
we did not pay our
mortgage this month.
I don't tell you this
because I want you
to feel sorry for us.
We're trying to get
assistance from our
mortgage company.
I just want you to know,
the world did not end.
I thought it might.
But, we're still here.
Things will get better.

A December To Remember

December is always a busy month for us.

Celebrations begin with Adam's birthday,
and don't stop until after New Year's!

As the Spirit of Christmas filled our home this holiday season,
we felt truly blessed. I'm so grateful for the fun memories made!

Most importantly, we would like to thank
Santa's Secret Elves
that came and left treasures on our doorstep
twice
this holiday season.
We are truly blessed to know such
wonderful people.
Whoever you may be,
We love you!

We start things off with
Adam's 33rd birthday celebration:





Lunch with Great-Grandma Hagen, Aunt Sunny, and Christabelle:





Christmas Eve on Temple Square:







Christmas Day:







Going to The Nutcracker with the girls to see Miss Ryan be a Buffoon:



New Year's Eve Zoo Lights with Rocky and Steph:





Family fun:





We hope your memories were as great
as ours this last holiday season,
and that your 2010 is filled with joy and happiness!