Presidential Holiday

We celebrated our nation's former presidents by going to our state's capitol, Springfield. Also home to our favorite president's tomb, home, and lotsa memorabilia...and we may or may not be related to him...LOL!! Isn't everyone somehow related to either Abraham Lincoln or Joseph Smith through some distant blood/marriage line?!? :)

Anyway, we grabbed a great hotel deal off of Priceline and headed south on Friday night.



(The top floor of our hotel, that's the teeny tiny capitol building to the top left of Avery's head. :) I wouldn't go that far on the terrace...no thank you!)

First order of business was getting some grub...the only constraint was "nothing we can normally get back home" (which mainly consists of fast-food, pizza, and Chinese). So we found a "middle-eastern" place downtown called the Holy Land Cafe. We were hoping to get a little hummus and pita action, maybe a little shawarma and fattoush...you know the deal-e-o. When we got inside I knew that it wasn't exactly what we were hoping for...but we got sucked in. Ugh!! What is it about feeling bad about offending these establishments? The people-pleaser in me decided to stay and just experiment. Lucky us, it turned out to be an all you can eat Vegetarian buffet (or boofay as Dennis would say!) What?!? They took pity on us and brought a plate of gyro meat for all of us to share. Not the best food I've ever eaten, but also not garbage either. It's the kind of thing that we'll always remember and laugh...'member when we ate at that little Mediterranean place that was all you can eat Vegetarian?!? Ha ha!



After our Vegetarian meal, we went back to the hotel to swim...girls had a great time. It was a bit crowded but we're probably overly sensitive to large crowds after our years of exile in the country. :) Parker was a little fish, and probably drank gallons of pool water in her open-mouth, shrieking, splashing fun. What a little stinker. We tried putting her in the hotel "crib" and she was up till after midnight yelling at Mark to "stop snoring, Dad, go seep!!" LOL!!

Saturday we had breakfast at the slowest IHOP of all time, and then hit the State's museum. It was great! We kept ourselves busy for hours. Who woulda thunk? The hands-on portion was one of the best in the area. I kept myself busy doing this:


(feng-shuing a dollhouse in the kids hands-on museum, don't judge me! Ha ha!)

while the girls did this:



and this:



and this:



After that, we walked around the Capitol building, held Lincoln's hand, visited his tomb, drove by his house, and enjoyed what Springfield had to offer.





It was a quick, fun little getaway that made some good memories for all of us.

Birthdays and a Belated Valentine

Today would have been my father-in-law Dennis' 68th birthday. The brothers decided it would be nice to share our favorite "Dennis" memory to remember him today. I've been thinking about it for the past few days and it's been tough to narrow it down to one in particular. I even pulled out my scrapbooks to try and remember something that would be fun to share. And I thought of a good one. But then I came across these pictures from Christmas of 1999 and couldn't pass up the chance to share them. I think this might be my new favorite picture of Dennis and Mark together (probably one of the only pics of them together...lol!) I just love how they (but especially Dennis) are both looking straight on at the camera and that Dennis is actually smiling!! That didn't usually happen in photos of him. But I got one!! Ha ha!

Christmas 1999 was our 2nd Christmas as a married couple. Our first one we had only been married for a week or so. This was the Christmas after Mark had been through his cancer scare during the summer of 1999. We had a different perspective that year, we were feeling a little rattled from our first year of marriage, but Christmas was a time to let all of that unease go and just enjoy our time together. Dennis and Laurie both did so much for us this first year to help us stay strong. They were endlessly supportive and loving, and I remember really feeling like a part of the family at this point. I remember one time in particular during that summer feeling so emotional and scared that my stress began to manifest itself physically. I got an infection and me being sick was the last thing that Mark or I needed during everything else we were dealing with. We were at Dennis and Laurie's house in Rexburg for some reason, and I broke down. Bawling my eyes out in their living room, I remember Laurie wrapping her arms around me and Dennis sitting close by asking what he could do to help me/us...it was intense. He was the one to offer it first...would I like a priesthood blessing? I agreed, grateful and humble. I gained much needed strength and the ability to endure my trials that night, but more than anything I knew that my in-laws loved me. Enjoying Christmas at their home that year I felt grateful to not only have my husband healthy and here with me, but I was grateful to be a part of a bigger family who I knew had my back and loved me like their own.



This picture brings back so many memories of this period of our lives. We were pretty young and naive still. Even though we were 25 here, we had so much to learn about each other, marriage, family, life, etc. But the thing that held us together was our love and our friendship. Mark has always been my best friend. I've always loved talking and laughing with him. I remember being so afraid that it would all be taken away from me...so soon, so early. I am grateful that after all these years, after ALL we've been through, he is still standing by my side. I love him and am grateful for what we've learned and shared together. I think Dennis and Laurie would feel the same way.

(Happy Belated Valentine's to my valentine...Mark.)

The Dulldrums

So it's right around yuck-thirty around these parts...for me at least. I get like this every year, mid-winter. Tired of the constant gray days with little sunshine, I begin to feel a little discouraged and sorry for myself. The magical coziness of Christmas and the New Year is past, but the first buds of spring have yet to burst forth beckoning new beginnings. So from now until then, I kind of sink into a funk...a dulldrum if you will. My lack of posts lately is in large part due to that lack of inspiration, or fresh ideas. Blah, blah, blah...cry me a river right?

Anyway, I found a little sumpin' this morning to try and spark an attitude adjustment and thought I'd share it with you, in case you find yourself feelin' a little lethargic these days.

7 Ways to Adjust Your Attitude:

1. Take a Friend to Lunch: Try taking a friend to lunch or dinner. Not only will you get a nice visit in with a friend you care about, but the act of generosity will likely boost your spirits. (Who wants to join me? Anyone, anyone? This tip actually compounds my problem with feeling lonely and isolated, so it's probably a good idea to just skip this one before I burst into tears...oh how I've tried...the tales I could tell...the End.)

2. Listen to Your Favorite Song: Carry your portable CD or MP3 player with you and listen to your favorite tunes. A recent study in the journal Anesthesia & Analgesia found that music decreased anxiety experienced by patients before surgery. (I would agree with this...Parker and I just got done dancing to a little Maroon 5 a minute ago and I feel LOADS better! LOL!)

3. Discover the Extrovert in You: "Merely acting extroverted will make you feel happier," says William Fleeson, Ph.D., a psychology professor who studies happiness at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Fleeson suggests acting assertive, bold, adventurous, and talkative to practice being an extrovert. (Remind me to tell you how I tried to start a PLAYGROUP in this dadgum Ward of mine...seriously the self-pity is oozing off of this blog post!)

4. Take Ten: Give yourself ten minutes out of every day to reconnect with yourself, suggests Marston. "We live in a fast-paced culture where we're all moving at warp speed with ridiculous to-do lists," she says. If we take time to be quiet, we can get in touch with our values and priorities. "With some adjustments and time, soon our outer life will be matching up with our inner life," she says. (I have really taken this tip to heart...and am trying to take a few minutes to "search my heart" each day, and find out where I really am in there, underneath all the layers, and issues, and stuff.)

5. Count Your Blessings: A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that individuals with a more grateful outlook on life exhibited a heightened state of well being. According to the study, "research has shown that gratitude is linked with positive emotions including contentment, happiness, and hope." At some point during the day, make a simple list of five or ten things that you are grateful for in your life. (I truly whole-heartedly believe that when we are feeling sorry for ourselves, if we stop and count our blessings and feel grateful, we can turn it around. Amen.)

6. Shake It Off: Try not to take things personally. Instead, develop the habit of looking at other people's actions as just the way they are and less of a personal statement about you. Keep in mind that you can't make another person change but you can change your own thoughts. (I think this is my favorite for right now. I have had SUCH a problem with this lately. I get so critical of people because they don't take the time to see what is right in front of them...instead of always taking things so personally I need to just let people be who they are...flaws, inadequacies, and all.)

7. Just Say Om: Cultivate your spiritual side. This could mean checking out some meditation classes (often yoga studios are a good source), exploring the local religious centers in your neighborhood or asking a friend to recommend a good spiritual book. (Anyone know where I can find a good spiritual book?!? LOL!! Ahem...hint: it's blue and it's got gold letters on the cover...it always comes back to this, doesn't it?!? Know it's true.)

So anyway, maybe this is a good little kick in the rear. I need to do something cuz this whole feeling sorry for myself but not doing anything about it isn't really working for me anymore.

Got any other advice? (Be gentle.)