Finished!!

Here is Jeffrey lying under 18 completed lap quilts:

Today 5 Scouts and 1 Scout leader descended on our home and joined the 4 of us in tying 18 lap quilts.  And now they are done!  

Jeffrey and I still need to go to Wal-Mart to buy diapers, wipes, medicine, juice boxes, and healthy snacks for the Women's Center.  This stuff will be bought with the extra money he raised with his fundraiser.  Then we need to deliver everything, he needs to do his final write up, and he will be done!  It is possible to do a worthwhile Eagle project in less than 3 weeks. 

Michelle's Tag

A random tag, stolen from Kimberly's friend, Michelle:

1. What’s your favorite children’s book?
When I was young:  "Go, Dog, Go".  Especially when read to me by my Dad.

When my boys were young:  "How Many Trucks can a Tow Truck Tow".  That one was great fun to read aloud.

2. What’s your favorite type of cake?
White cake with chocolate buttercream frosting.  But if you are talking cupcakes, then it's Swiss chocolate (kind of milk chocolatey) with white buttercream frosting.  Now I want cake!

3. What are your 3 best qualities?

I hate questions like that, so I'm not going to answer.

4. Do you think you're a kind person?
Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

5. What color is your toothbrush?
My SoniCare electric toothbrush is white with a mint green on/off button.  Man, I love that toothbrush!  Even though I sometimes cheat and don't brush the whole two minutes. I'm a slacker that way!

6. Who was your first TV crush?
Randolph Mantooth, who played paramedic Johnny Gage on the 1970's show "Emergency!".  I used to buy Tiger Beat just for him.  Many of you probably weren't even alive when I was watching that show as a teenager.  Man, I'm old!!   

7. If you had to choose one celebrity couple to hang out with for the holidays, who would it be?
Either Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker (I really like both of them), or Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos (I think she's funny, and he's really attractive).

8. What's your all-time favorite, most-repeated movie quote?
"Don't push me!", uttered by Tony during the momentous fight scene in "West Side Story".

9. What was your least favorite class in school?
Physics.  For two reasons.  First, I hated Physics.  Second, the teacher had terrible BO, and he would wander around the class helping us individually.  Shudder.

10. What was the last thing that made you laugh uproariously?
It was something I saw on the internet.  Robert, Jeffrey, Scott, and I were all laughing at it.  Too bad I can't remember what it was!  

11. If you had to choose between a million bucks or the ability to fly, which one would you choose?
A million bucks, definitely.  Then I could buy a private jet and fly whenever I wanted to.

12. Where were you when 9-11 happened?
Teaching my first Adult ESL class.  No one even told us what happened.  I didn't find out until I was driving home at about noon and heard it on the radio.  Since I started listening a number of hours after it happened, it took me a while to figure out what was going on.

13. What do you do when vending machines steal your money?
Get very angry and want to curse.  But I don't.

14. Can you change the oil in a car?
Not in a million years.

15. Do you like to cook?
Nope.  I hate, hate, hate to cook.  I do like to bake. Unfortunately, kids can't live on a steady diet of cookies!

16. Would you rather wake up after surgery and find that they’ve accidentally given you Barbra Streisand’s nose or Dolly Parton’s breasts?
I can't stand Barbra Streisand and her liberal propagandizing, so I would not want to look in the mirror every day and see her nose.  So I guess I would choose Dolly's "assets".

19. What are you wearing?
Pajamas.

20. What kind of bear is the best?
I would say a Panda bear, but they are not actually members of the bear family, but are in fact members of the raccoon family.  (Bet you didn't know that, did you?)  But they look like bears, so I'm going to say Panda anyway!

21. What’s the last book you finished?
I wish I could say "Crime and Punishment", or "War and Peace" or something substantial like that, but, sadly, the last book I finished was a murder mystery called "Dying for Chocolate".  I thoroughly enjoyed it!

22. What fictional character is most like you?
I have no idea.

23. Do you like to dance?
Not especially.

24. What did you have for dinner LAST NIGHT?
Sonic's Chicken Strip Dinner.  But I didn't eat the toast or gravy, so it was a healthy meal!

25. What’s your favorite painting?
I really like Thomas Kinkade's lighthouse paintings.  I know many people think he's too commercial.  I don't care - I like his work!

26. If you could have any hair in the world, what kind would you want?
Something I could wash and let air dry and have it look great.

If you would like to complete this tag, feel free!

Did You Know?

Did you know that in Brooklyn it is illegal to let your dog sleep in your bathtub?

I thought you should all be informed.

Worst Escape Attempt Ever!

So these two aren't the smartest criminals around:



I love the obvious enjoyment of the TV anchors! "Crime never pays, children."

Names

Hi, my name is Laura.  Unless you are my parents, sister, aunts, uncles, cousins, or friends of my sister's.  Then my name is Laurie.  I don't know why they call me Laurie.  They just do.  In fact, I once asked my dad why he called me Laurie.  His reply?  "Because that's your name."  Um, no, dad, it's not.  My name is Laura.  He was quite surprised to hear that.  So my family (on my side only) calls me Laurie. But I have always introduced myself as Laura.  It would sound weird to me to say my name was Laurie.  It would be weird to me if you guys all started calling me Laurie.  That's like a separate part of me.  So just keep calling me Laura, but don't be surprised when my sister calls me Laurie.    

Random Facts Tag

My friend, Rhonda, tagged me (she tagged you too, Lori).

Here are the rules:

Post six random things about yourself.

Tag six people at the end of your post.

1.  I once touched John Denver's hand (it's been a while since I mentioned John).  Robert and I had just seen him in concert at Jones Hall.  We went out a side door, and saw a bus.  I told Robert I wasn't leaving until someone got on that bus!  So we waited and John eventually came out the door! He didn't stop, but he did sort of stick out his hands as he walked by.  So exciting.  Side note:  Because I remembered that incident, Kimberly and I were able to meet Michael Buble the first time we saw him in concert.

2.  I was baptized in 1978.  The missionary who baptized me was from Washington.  About 10 years ago, I looked online and found someone with his name living in Washington.  So I called, and it turned out to be him!  Now we exchange Christmas cards every year, and it's kind of nice to know what's going on with him and his family.  I imagine it's probably nice for him to know that one of the people he baptized is still active.

3.  I played the oboe and English horn in high school.  The English horn looks a lot like an oboe, except it's longer and has a deeper sound.  I carried a flag in Marching Band (you can't march with an oboe).  We didn't do fancy stuff though - we just carried the flags.

4.  I had an 11 pound baby.  Yes, that's right - 11 pounds. Jeffrey was my giant baby - although you would never know it now.  

5.  I am deathly afraid of bees and wasps.  I have been known to run into the house at the sight of a wasp.  When I was in high school, a wasp flew in my car window while I was driving.  I moved over until I was practically sitting on my passenger's lap!  That made driving interesting. Fortunately we were on a deserted road!  And fortunately the wasp flew back out the window!  The perils of non-air conditioned cars!

6.  I was always jealous that my sister had perfect eyesight. I have had to wear glasses since I was 13, and always envied her 20/20 vision.  Would it be terrible of me to say "Ha Ha" now that she has to wear reading glasses?  I love you, Chris!!! 

I tag:

Kimberly

Liz

Jennifer

Carol

Leslie

Alisha

A Question

I am going to ask a question.  I am not going to give my opinion.  I want to know what you, my faithful readers, think.

My sister's ward has a number of mothers with babies (sounds familiar).  She said many of them nurse their babies in the chapel during Sacrament Meeting.  Most cover themselves with a blanket, one doesn't always.  What's your opinion?  Is it appropriate to nurse a baby in the chapel during Sacrament Meeting?  Or should you use the Mother's Room?

Discuss.

The Dent

On Friday when Jeffrey went out to the school parking lot after school, he discovered a dent in his car's trunk.  A dent which wasn't there when he went into the school that morning.  Which means that someone probably backed into Jeffrey's car, then just drove off.  That is so annoying!  Sure Jeffrey's car is old, but that doesn't mean we want a dent in it.  

It makes me wonder how many people out there would put a dent in a car, and if there was no one around, would just drive off.  Is our society becoming full of people who will get away with whatever they can?  I would like to hope not, but I find myself becoming more cynical about people's honesty. 

Journals

I am not a good journal keeper.  I wish I were one of those people who wrote diligently in their journal every night (heck, even once a week would be good).  But I'm not.  I know I'm supposed to keep a journal, but I feel I have very few journal worthy events to record.  So I'm a slacker.  

However, for the past 15 years or so I have kept a weekly engagement calendar in my nightstand.  I try to write down something every day or so.  Sometimes it's just a list of what went on that day.  Sometimes it's a line or two of feelings.  It's not deep writing, but it comes in handy.  Like when I'm trying to remember if Scott went camping last January - I can usually find a record of it.  Or when I was writing my two posts about my parents, I pulled out my calendars and they helped me remember the order of events.  

I guess you might call me a mini-journaler!  For now, it's a start. 

Burn Notice!!

"Burn Notice" is back!!  I'm so excited!  

Commercials are almost over - I must go watch.

Death - Part 2

By the time I post this it will be after midnight. That means it will be January 22nd, which would have been my dad's 82nd birthday. I thought it would be fitting to share this post about his death on his birthday.

Some back story first. My dad had Parkinson's Disease. It was mostly affecting his legs. He had fallen a few times, so in March of 2005 he sold his home and moved into an apartment in an independent living facility near the Galleria. Very nice. Very private. He was enjoying it a lot more than he thought he would. At about 2:00a.m. on Saturday, August 13, 2005, the phone rang. It was my sister, Chris. The facility where my dad lived had called. He was being taken to the Emergency Room. I ended up driving over there, arriving at about 3:00a.m. We spent the next 16 hours in the ER, where he was poked, prodded, and tested. No definitive diagnosis, but he was admitted to the ICU at 7:00p.m. Sunday Chris and I alternated ICU visits. Monday we both spent the first of what would be many full days at the hospital. We would arrive early in the morning. Chris was able to get there before me, so she would stake out a good spot in the ICU Waiting Room - ideally in front of the TV (not that there was much to watch). We would spend the day waiting for the 15 minutes we were allowed to visit every few hours, going home after the last allowed visit in the evening. (As a side story to all of this, Kimberly and I were supposed to be spending the week together, getting her ready to move to Denton to begin her Master's program. We were planning on moving her to Denton on Saturday, the 20th. I was going to stay with her for a few days - helping her get her apartment set up. Needless to say, those plans all changed.) Monday it was determined that dad's aortic aneurism (which had been repaired before) was leaking and needed to be repaired. Surgery was set for Tuesday. Robert and Bob brought the grandkids up to see grandpa. We had as nice a visit as possible under those circumstances. Robert and Bob gave dad a blessing. I think dad felt it couldn't hurt, and he knew Chris and I took comfort from the blessings. Tuesday, surgery day, was a long day. The surgery took over 6 hours. When we finally left in the evening he was still unconscious. Wednesday was another long day. We had been told the operation had a 10% chance of paralysis, and we were told that unfortunately he was one of the unlucky ones. It looked like he was paralyzed from at least the knees down, possibly higher. Dad was still pretty out of it, but we knew he would be devastated by that outcome. On Thursday the doctor removed the respirator, and by Thursday evening we were able to have a nice conversation with him. Oh, and Thursday was my 24th wedding anniversary. Friday morning dad was agitated when we went in to see him at 9:00. When we went back in at 11:00 we found the nurses in his room getting ready to reinsert his breathing tube. The nurses told us they didn't know if it would ever be removed again. Chris and I both started to cry. We knew that dad would not want that and told them to stop while we called his doctor. Dr. E. came over, talked to dad, and filled out a DNR order. He told us that dad would probably die within the next day or two. But we all knew that that is what dad would have wanted. He would not have wanted to be kept alive with a breathing tube. He felt very strongly about that. At that time the ICU staff let Chris and I move into his room on a permanent basis. I'm not sure they were supposed to do that, but I think they also knew we weren't leaving. Robert and Kimberly came up that evening so she could say good bye. Friday night Chris and I slept in chairs - one on each side of dad's bed. We both had one hand stretched through the bars, holding his hands. While it wasn't very comfortable physically, it gave us great comfort emotionally. On Saturday Robert, Kimberly and the boys headed off to Denton to move Kimberly into her apartment - without me. Saturday night Chris and I tried to sleep in our chairs again. I can't say I slept well. I was watching the monitors - watching as dad's respiration slowed down - from 11 breaths a minute, to 10, to 9, continuing downward until at about 6:45a.m. on Sunday his breathing just stopped. Like my mom's death, it was very peaceful. He simply stopped breathing. Chris and I waited for the funeral home to come pick up our dad's body. Then we each went home to once again prepare to make funeral arrangements. I went home to an empty house. Robert and the kids were driving back from Denton. This time I didn't cry myself to sleep, but I did cry for my loss.

The amazing thing about all of this? Sunday, the day my dad died, was August 21st. My mom died on August 21, 1999 - six years earlier to the day. It almost seemed as if he held on so he could die on the same day.

Death - Part 1

One of the questions from the tag I just did was "Have you ever watched someone die?"  I was able to answer yes, not once but twice.  Perhaps more for me than anyone else, I thought I would write about those two experiences, splitting them into two posts.  Here is post 1.

It was Saturday, August 21, 1999, almost 10 years ago. Robert was out of town, he was supposed to be gone two weeks.  My mother had gone in the hospital on the 18th. She had been in the hospital before with similar problems so we weren't too concerned.  That Saturday morning I was at a Cub Scout training meeting, where I was supposed to teach a class later in the day.  I was sitting in the meeting when someone told me I had a phone call.  My sister, Chris, was calling to tell me that mom's doctor had visited her in the hospital and then called my dad to tell him she was dying and would probably die by that evening.  Needless to say, I did not teach my class.  I vaguely remember telling President Oldroyd (who was not Stake President of course, but I think was in charge of the training) that I needed to leave to go to the hospital.  When I got there my dad and Chris were there. Mom was unconscious, and remained that way.  We talked for a while and then decided that the grandkids should all come up to say good bye to grandma. Kimberly wasn't driving yet and Robert was gone, so I called our wonderful home teacher, Jeff, who gave up part of his Saturday to bring my kids to see their grandma.  Kimberly was 17 at the time, but the others ranged in age from 4 to 11.  I know some of them didn't understand what was going on, but I think it was important for Chris and I that the kids say good bye to grandma.  Before they left, Chris' husband, Bob, and Jeff gave my mom a blessing.  My parents weren't members of the church, but I think dad realized it would help Chris and I, so he let them do it.  After they left, my dad, Chris, and I held vigil.  We sat in her room and talked and reminisced. At one point we were talking about my mom's mental health issues, which she struggled with her whole life.  At times she dealt with some real mental health demons, and she was very difficult to live with.  We asked my dad if he had ever thought of leaving her. He said no, because he loved her, and you just didn't do that.  That has always stuck in my mind.  I wish more people would remember that when times get hard in a marriage.  You just don't leave.  Such wisdom.  We sat there as afternoon turned to evening. Before 9:00 we noticed her breathing was slowing down. We all sat and stared at her, watching for her chest to rise and fall.  Then one time, nothing happened.  I remember saying "Did I miss her breathing?"  But I hadn't. She had taken her last breath and was gone from us. That simply. From what we could tell, she was in no pain and the end seemed to come without a struggle.  I like to keep that memory in my mind.  I remember my dad calling his brother, and the surprise I felt when he broke down on the phone.  My dad was worn out from the whole day, so Chris and I sent him home and we waited for the funeral home to come pick up my mother's body.  Then we each went to our homes to try to sleep before the funeral planning began the next day. Since Robert was still in New Jersey, I went home to an empty bed.

That was one of the times I cried myself to sleep.

Random Tag

I received this in an e-mail and thought it would make a fun tag.

Place an X in front of all of the following which you have done:

(  )  Gone on a blind date.  (I guess it's too late for that one.)

(X)  Skipped school.  (Unless my kids are reading this - then the answer is no.)

(X)  Watched someone die.  (I was in the room when both my Mom and Dad died.  Both times it was, surprisingly, very peaceful.)

(X)  Been to Canada.  (Niagara Falls.)

(X)  Been to Mexico.

(X)  Been to Florida.

(X)  Been on a plane.

(X)  Been lost.

(X)  Been of the opposite side of the country.  (I have been to the northern, southern, western and eastern borders, so I have been opposite any side of the country.)

(X)  Gone to Washington, D.C.

(X)  Swam in the ocean.  (Atlantic and Pacific.)

(X)  Cried yourself to sleep.  (Not often, though.  I don't cry that often.)

(X)  Played cops and robbers.

(  )  Recently colored with crayons.

(X)  Sang Karaoke.

(X)  Paid for a meal with coins only.  (At a fast food restaurant.)

(X)  Done something you told yourself you wouldn't.  (Too many times to count.)

(X)  Made prank phone calls.  (I would imagine that Caller ID has put an end to a lot of prank phone calling.)

(X)  Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose.  (Not a fun experience.)

(X)  Caught a snowflake on your tongue.

(X)  Danced in the rain.  (Although not recently.)

(X)  Written a letter to Santa Claus.

(X)  Been kissed under the mistletoe.

(X)  Watched the sunrise with someone you care about.

(X)  Blown bubbles.

(X)  Gone ice skating.

(  )  Been skinny dipping outdoors.

(  )  Gone to the movies alone. 

That was kind of fun.  I only couldn't check 4 of the 28. Does that mean I've led a rich, well-rounded life?

I might go to the movies alone or even color with crayons, but I am not going skinny dipping!

I tag everyone I know with a blog!!  

Crazy Day!

Today was a crazy day.  Why, you ask?  Well, I'll tell you. Jeffrey and I got up early and went to Wal-Mart, Target, and Kroger.  We were buying supplies to make Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares for his Eagle Scout Fundraiser.  Then 10 youth descended on our home and proceeded to make 50 pans of the luscious goodness.  You heard me - fifty pans! After feeding them all hot dogs and thanking them all for their help, we sent them home.  After a couple hours of rest, more fun and excitement for us - we got to deliver all of the goodies!  We mapped out routes for Robert, Jeffrey, and I (thank goodness Jeffrey drives), and then we each spent from one hour (Robert) to three hours (Jeffrey and I respectively) doing delivery duty.  But now we are done with that portion of his Eagle Project!  Hooray!  And he raised more than enough money to make 15 tied lap quilts for the Fort Bend County Women's Center.  (We will have to ask them what they would like us to do with the extra funds. We'll either just give it to them or buy stuff they need.) Now we just have to buy the fabric, arrange for some youth to come over and cut the fabric, get the quilts sewn by kind sisters in the ward, and have some more youth come over to tie the quilts.  That's all.  I'm tired just thinking about it.  

But it will be worth it to have Eagle Scout #2!  

Carol's Tag!

Carol tagged me, so here goes:

5 things in your purse:

1. Coupon organizer (thrifty, thrifty).

2. Small, cute, blue pocketknife (the only kind I would ever have).

3. 2009 calendar.

4. Pretty silver pill holder (filled with Motrin - you know who to come to if you get a headache at church). 

5. Fabric swatch for my dining room chairs (I'm still looking for the perfect tablecloth).

5 things in your workroom (which I don't have, so I am substituting "computer desk area"):

1. My iPod shuffle.

2. Kimberly's talking Napoleon Dynamite figure (he says random phrases when you press a button - "But my lips hurt real bad", "I caught you a delicious bass",  "Can you bring me my chapstick").

3. My HP calculator.  HP calculators work differently than other calculators, so my kids won't use it.

4. My K'nex dinosaur (one of my Walgreens Christmas presents).

5. 3M Dust Remover.  I should probably use that every once in a while....

5 things you always wanted to do:

1. Go to the British Isles - Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales - the whole place.  Robert and I have talked about taking a cruise that circles that area.  Maybe some day....

2. Get a college degree in something other than Accounting. I hate Accounting, and it's been so long since I've worked that I don't think I could do it if I had to.

3. Go whale watching.

4. Play the piano (stolen from Carol, but I like it).

5. Learn to square dance.  I know the basic moves, but it would be fun to know how to do it well.  I would need to lose weight first, since I'd probably have a heart attack.  

5 things you are into:

1. Blogging.

2. Reading.

3. Watching my favorite shows - Criminal Minds, Burn Notice, and Numbers.

4. Procrastinating church or other volunteer assignments.  I get things done, but at the last minute.

5. Sudoku (until I finish the Sudoku book I got for Christmas).   

5 bloggers you want to tag:

1. Kimberly (I know Lori tagged her, but she's my daughter so I'm tagging her too).

2. Michelle (Kimberly, would you let her know).

3. Rhonda.

4. Randi.

5. Everyone I know with a blog has been tagged.

Thanks, Carol - that was fun!  We need a tag once a week. 

You're the One that I Want

Remember the song from Grease - "You're the One that I Want"?  Well, here is quite possibly the most unique and entertaining version of the song you will ever see:  

Wasn't that incredible?  Give a big hand for Carolyn Scott and Rookie!

Laura Needs...

This was stolen from Carol's blog.  Go to google, and type in your name and the word "needs" (Laura needs).  Write down the first 10 responses.

1.  Laura needs 25 cents and 2 fingers.  (What??)

2.  Laura needs some post-toddler love.  

3.  Laura needs to hear from other teachers who may be having similar dilemmas.  (So far none of these seem to really apply to me.)

4.  Laura needs a home.

5.  Laura needs a break.  (That's more like it.)

6.  Laura needs you to come eat.

7.  Laura needs her meds changed.  (Not yet.)

8.  Laura needs money.  (Now that one is true.)

9.  Laura needs to get out more.  (True also.)

10.  Laura needs a clue.  (Lots of people might think that's true....)

That was interesting, but not very accurate for me.  I guess the other Laura's of the world have very different needs from mine!

Sunday Driving!

Yesterday's Church activity driving schedule:

2 round trips to church starting at 11:00 (Jeffrey had to be there early).

1 round trip to Robert's stake calling starting at 3:00.

1 round trip to choir starting at 4:00.

1 round trip to Stake Youth Council starting at 7:00.

1 round trip to a Financial Fireside starting at 7:00. 

Total for the day - 6 round trips to church (including 2 to the Stake Center).

Total mileage - 8.4 miles!!!

I love our new building!

Jimmy Cagney

I love Jimmy Cagney as George M. Cohan in the movie "Yankee Doodle Dandy". I never knew that he reprised the role in the movie "The Seven Little Foys", starring Bob Hope.  In this clip he does his famous Cohan dancing, and Bob Hope stars as Eddie Foy.  They are both really good - especially when you realize they were both in their 50's. Enjoy:

As an added bonus, here's a clip from "Yankee Doodle Dandy".  It's the scene where Jimmy Cagney tap dances down the stairs.  It's incredible, and amazes me every time I watch it!  If you don't want to watch the whole clip, the staircase part starts at about 2:15.

Jimmy Cagney is awesome!

Altos?

Where were my altos at Choir today?  Courtney and Jennifer - I'm talking to you!  Amy was playing piano so I couldn't really hear her, so I felt like I was the only alto!  That is not acceptable, people!  I need someone singing alto in my ear if I am going to sing the part correctly!

You guys will be there next week, right?  RIGHT???  

Burn Notice

"Burn Notice", the TV show, returns on January 22nd!  It has not been on since summer, so I am very excited.  For those of you who haven't seen it, you don't know what you're missing.  Good plots, great acting, extremely attractive Jeffrey Donovan (what??), gunfire, snappy dialogue, explosions.  What more could you ask for in a TV show?  My DVR will be set to record!

Ladies Night Out

"Oh yes it's ladies night, and the feelings right,

Oh yes it's ladies night, oh what a night."

I was trying to find little musical symbols to put around those lyrics, but I don't know how to do that on blogger.  Oh well.  Hopefully you will all recognize the song and sing it out!

Ladies Night Out.

Tonight.

9'ers Grill.

7:00

Be there or be square.  (I am so hip and with it).

Late Christmas Post

This year the actor, Edward Hermann, performed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at their Christmas concert.  I heard he performed a wonderful narration explaining the background of the song "I Heard the Bells".  I have been looking for it on YouTube and finally found it!  Here is the link.  It is a stirring, spirited narration and I was very moved as I watched it.  I am posting it mainly so I will always be able to find it!  It is 8-1/2 minutes long, but well worth the time.  

I Got Nothin'

I've got nothing to post about.  My life is dull, boring, ordinary, non-postworthy.  Sigh.

Many of the other blogs I read are also quiet.  Are we all being dull, boring, ordinary, and non-postworthy?

This Seems Odd

I'm in an e-mail group of moms whose sons are serving missions in the Dominican Republic.  One of the moms said that yesterday her son e-mailed her and told her that the Mission President was not happy with their "numbers".  So he took away their temple privileges.  I will probably be struck down for this, but that seems wrong.  (That was also the consensus of the moms in my group).  I know Brian and his companion are working really hard.  As are most of the other missionaries.  It is not their fault if people don't want to listen to them.  You can't make people listen and accept the gospel.  It seems wrong to deny the missionaries the spiritual uplift that they get from going to the temple.  Now, when things are hard, is when the need it most.  

I know I shouldn't second guess a Mission President.  But sometimes it's hard not to.

Genetics

Scott is doing a project on genetics for Biology.  (Don't even ask why we have been working on this the last 2 days of Christmas vacation....)  Anyway, we have been calling family members to ask the following questions:

1.  Are your ear lobes attached?  No, for me.

2.  Do you have hairy fingers or toes?  No, for me (I must confess to being relieved about that).

3.  Can you roll your tongue?  Yes, for me.

4.  Do you have hitchhiker's thumb?  Meaning if you hold your thumb out, does the top joint bend back.  No, for me.

Apparently these are all genetic traits.  Once Scott has filled out four separate pedigree charts (one for each trait), he has to come to some sort of genetic conclusions.  Aahh, the joys of high school Biology.

What about you?  How would you answer those four question?

Christmas is Gone

The Christmas decorations have been taken down.  They have been, for the most part, put away.  Jeffrey and Scott can not manhandle the tree into the attic without Robert. It's just too big and heavy.  Other than that, though, Jeffrey somehow managed to get all of the other boxes into the attic by himself.  I'm not sure how he did it - some of them are HEAVY!  He's pretty handy to have around.  

Without all the Christmas decorations, my house looks kind of blah and colorless.  

Book Club

Book Club is on Monday.  We're reading "Man's Search for Meaning" by Viktor Frankl.  Who hasn't read the book? That's right, me!!  Who doesn't want to read the book? Right again, me!!  I have tried to read it, but I am just not in the mood for what seems to be a depressing, psychological look at Concentration Camps.  I just want to read light mysteries that require little concentration.  I just want to read fluff!!

Truth be told, I always want to read fluff.  I like Book Club, and I know it's good for me, but sometimes I just don't want to read the book we have selected.  Most of the time, I make myself read the book, and often end up enjoying it. But there are time when I just can't make myself read the book.  And I fear this may be one of those times.

Someone help me!!  Tell me this book gets riveting once you read past a certain point.  I am at the point where I am avoiding reading altogether (a pastime which I love) because I don't want to read this book.  And I hate that.  I need some help.  

2009!

Happy New Year!!!

Now, back to "The Dark Night".