Conference Messages

We spent the week mostly at home with sick kids. Everett spread his nasty cough to Phillip and Evelyn. We had several coughing fits that ended in gagging and barfing. Gross. Everett ran a fever Sunday-Thursday. I wore my stretchy pants most of the week in anticipation of staying home. Since I was home it seemed the perfect time to deep clean the kitchen. I started on Monday and finished late Friday evening. That was a dirty, greasy task. I touched or moved every single item in the kitchen. I reorganized my cupboards, relocating the kid items to drawers or the pull out drawer. Now the kids can get their own cups, plates, etc without climbing on the counters. I moved the junk drawer near the table and moved the baking ware up into the cupboards. It is a little strange now, not really logical but will work better for the kids. Phillip helped me clean out behind the washer and dryer. I slipped him into the space and gave him a hand broom, he was very happy to use the space for a couple games while I cleaned elsewhere. We ate several picnics on the floor since the table and counters were stuffed with items waiting to be sorted. I think the dryer won the award for having the most dirt and lost items under it. Yucko.

The CASA organization hosted a concert on Tuesday to raise money for the local kids. I took Amelia and Phillip for the concert. It was interesting! One lady was an Opera singer...I think she was drunk because she kept tripping and wobbling across the stage. A couple times she pulled wilted carnations from her cleavage and threw them to the audience. One carnation hit a lady in the head. Strange. Our favorite performers included a 15 year old boy who played the accordion and a group that sang Queen Bee. We enjoyed supporting a good cause.

Wednesday evening the Webelos worked on their Craftsman badge. Brother Jones put together birdhouse kits with scrap wood from his stash. The boys got to drill holes, pound nails, and cut dowels. We had 4 leaders and 8 boys present. Imagine 8 boys with heavy hammers, nails, and lots of energy. It was awesome. Amelia came with me to play with Bryn, Sister Jones was kind enough to cut out another birdhouse just for Amelia. We put it together the next evening. Amelia painted her birdhouse during Saturday afternoon conference session.

We had a lot of errands to run by Thursday. I made several quick stops, the bank, the library, the consignment store, Salvation Army, and the Post Office. With all the sick kids I put on a movie and ran my errands with great haste. We went to the park afterwards hoping the fresh air would burn off all those nasty germs. The Hornbargers met us at the park as well. As we walked around the pond Phillip found a goose egg! Another good sign that spring is coming. Amelia started piano lessons after school. I traded a photo session for 20 piano lessons. Gotta love that! I might take on a couple students just so I get into the habit of teaching again, then I can sneak in Amelia between lessons. She loves to practice already. While she practiced I tried to help her, she started bawling because I was helping her. Geeze, already?!

General Conference was amazing. Sister Reeves said something that really struck a cord with me. She said that it is better to read the scriptures and pray then get certain chores done. Since I am always looking for a reason to not do chores I have a pretty good one now! Just kidding. Her point was well-taken: better to be prepared spiritually than have a spotless home. Elder Holland is always a favorite, he said, "Defend your beliefs with courtesy and with compassion, but defend them." Loved the power in his statement. I also loved Bishop Stevenson's talk on Your Four Minutes. The kids did really well this conference. I found some fun sticker books for them and got each a notebook to color in. We enjoyed some time outside in between each session. The kid's and I met Justin at DQ for a sweet treat before bed on Saturday. Poor Evelyn sounds like a smoker right now. She is wheezing and rattling, her cry sounds so pathetic. Cuts me to the quick. Our friends the Smuin family are in town to move their belongings to Utah. They came over for dinner. I made fresh bread and served it with cantaloupe, ham, and cheese. Gotta love simple and delicious.

**This week Phillip came tearing out of his room, his face was full of wonder. He exclaimed, "Mom! My bed smell like Monster Truck!" I asked if that was good. He paused then told me that he smells like Monster Truck as well, so it was good.