Ten Things on Wednesday

1. School is awesome. I love going. I love my classes and my teachers. I love what I'm learning.

2. But sometimes my brain hurts because it is filled to capacity, and I have to step back and change gears.

3. Fall is here in the Rockies. Crisp mornings. Yellow leaves. Pumpkin Spice cocoa. Yum.

4. I've discovered that drawing is my stress relief.

5. I'm taking art classes next semester.  Drawing and Watercolor.

6. I am possibly more excited about that than the Interior Design classes I'm taking.

7. Six of us in the family are in college this semester.

8. My other business venture is about to start and I am Super Stoked about it!

9. I am surrounded by amazing women in my life right now--they inspire me to show my best and I love it.

10. I am mostly done with Christmas shopping.

Black and White

Clarity:

noun

1.

clearness or lucidity as to perception or understanding; freedom from 

indistinctness or ambiguity.

2.

the state or quality of being clear or transparent to the eye; pellucidity:

the clarity of pure water.

I am all about "clarity".

I am not interested in grey areas.

Once things get blurry, it's hard for me to focus.

In most every aspect of my life, 

I draw hard lines--

and because I know my self so well, 

I also know I have to be careful about those hard lines

and where I draw them.

I don't flinch on somethings--

honesty.

truth.

loyalty.

effort.

integrity.

Those things I don't flinch on.

Not with myself, not with my family, not with my friends.

I was having lunch with a dear friend last week

and as this topic came up,

she said,

"Judging others is my favorite sin."

We both laughed. And cringed.

It's true. I am completely guilty of judging--

not to condemn others,

but to protect my self.

I have discovered that the older I get,

the more suspicious I am of others and their motives.

I pay attention--

if someone is especially gossipy about someone else,

in an unkind way,

I find that I am guarded about what I say to them

and I back away as slowly as I can without causing a stir.

I also have a hard time trusting someone who comes across as selfish,

self-righteous, self-serving, and diva-like.

To me, that means they will choose themselves over anyone else

leaving "loyalty" on the curb.

 I don't know what this says about me,

still figuring this out, really.

I like the part of the Hypocratic Oath that says, 

"First Do No Harm."

I want to be mindful of that oath because it's a good one, yeah?

Another fault of mine is I don't suffer fools lightly.

I don't see as my role that of correcting fools either.

Unless they're my kids--then, yes, 

I have to,

HAVE TO,

correct them.

That comes with the territory of being a Parent.

But the rest of the world is on their own.

You're welcome.

Not my business if you wanna lie through your teeth

like everyone on "Grey's Anatomy" or "General Hospital",

go ahead, create your legacy.

But 

Stay away from me and mine.

Being clear with my family is imperative because my goal

is to be as transparent as possible with them.

I want to them to be able to judge me, if you will,

as to what's important to me.

No smoke and mirrors here.

So yeah, I have to be careful where I draw those hard lines.

There's lots of things I let "slide"--

heavens, I am not interested in stirring up contention over 

silly, insignificant things--

those that fall under the heading of:
"WILL IT MATTER IN A YEAR? A MONTH? A WEEK? AN HOUR?"

A Case of "Creativity-itis"

I have had a wild case of "Creativity-itis", and I'm not looking for a cure, people.

Many friends and family have added to this "itis" n' I love it.

So here goes:

First, I did the florals for a wedding reception with a lovely and talented friend, Laurel:

 We loved the fresh garland on the mantel...we ordered it from fiftyflowers.com and added the flowers to it :

 All the table centerpeices were made from fresh florals--some from fiftyflowers.com and some from a local floral supply wholesaler here in the Springs:

I'm also working on another wedding reception doing these lantern centerpieces in all shapes and sizes:

 And I did the calligraphy for the invites to the Rehearsal dinner too:

  I was also commissioned to do these three pieces for a young man we knew as a missionary here in the Springs, as a gift for his wife's birthday. Their children's names and a special scripture he'd chosen for them.  I didn't take pics of them finished, darn it, tho I was pleased with how they turned out:

Then, I started school!

I love it.

I really do.

Great teachers, great classes, all of it!

One of my Interior Design classes has a Project Notebook assignment,

and as part of the Supply List, I had to invest in decent colored pencils and markers,

so I just started doodling to create my notebook and have found that's another

thing that I so enjoy:

 Then I just started doodling things and such for my own enjoyment and relaxation:

In honor of Fall:

I've also been staging and unstaging homes but the selling season is about over which is OK for me since I started school.  And that's it for me!  

Like a cudzu vine...

Joseph, age 15 1/2

Height: 6'5"

Wgt 190

Likes: Mountain Biking, Hiking, Hammock Camping, Mountain Rappelling.

Anything outdoors.

Dislikes: cleaning his room, any sport that involves a ball;

 "I"m not a dog, I don't chase balls." direct quote.

How He Spent His Summer:

Scout Camp @ Camp Alexander, Colorado:

One Week of Life spent doing what he loves, 

turned into a possible summer job for 2016

working up there. His fingers are crossed!

Pioneer Trek @ Martin's Cove, Wyoming:

Memorable quotes:

"It was too short, I could've walked for a week."

"Hardest part was watching the "women's pull" up Rocky Ridge. 

I may have gotten a little emotional, Mom."

Rocky Mountain National Park camping:

Guided his cousin on hikes,

saw a mountain lion

and a bear came through our campsite.

11 Mile Reservoir Camping, Colorado

Just he and his dad making memories.

Red Rock Canyon Bike Trails, Colorado Springs, CO.

College: It's Never Too Late!

Risks?

I'm taking them.

Have I lost my ever-lovin' mind?

Possibly. Quite possibly.

Consider my arms as wide open

and my mind as welcoming this new chapter

in My Story

as Open as

as an all night market

with lights blazing at 2am!

What got me here?

At 53 years old, I have decided to try and prime the pump

in my brain and kickstart it into a new world

that I've only entered as a sidekick,

a cheerleader, a note-writer, and aloud-reader

to other students.

Putting a first husband--

a dyslexic, even

through Chiropractic college,

across the country!

Staying up late to proof his assignments

and read Grey's Anatomy outloud to him,

writing thesis and whoknowswhat papers for his degree!

And then filling out applications

for the kids

college, scholarships, FAFSA;

loading up the car and driving kids over and across

mountains tops to college towns --

it's my turn.

Mine.Mine. Mine.

I finally got the hint the Universe was sending to me

when, time and time again,

I found myself

wanting

what others around me already had--

that little paper with credentials.

Now, I do have a variety of certifications:

Bank Teller

Dental Assistant

Chiropractic Assistant

Home Stager

Doula

to name the top ones.

But not a four year degree, 

so it's just natural to want that too, right?

I've got these tiny little talents

and big dreams

that I've explored to ad exhaustum

(I don't think that's a word, but it sounds "college-y" latin and all

so I'm using it)

and this is what I've discovered:

I want more.

I want to learn more

about design

from people who eat, live and breathe design

and --

--and this is the best part--

they're going to share what they know with me.

Last Saturday, I was invited to join a new retail business venture

with some talented, lovely women--

it'll be a smashing endeavor, I know it.

BUT...

at the end of the first meeting

one of the co-founders said,

quite emotionally:

"I've wanted to do this since I was seventeen years old. This is my dream!"

That lingered with me for the whole afternoon.

She was inviting others to participate in her dream.

It's not my dream.

I was invited to join because of my own little talents--

people I do not know,

know my name and my talent.

It is humbling, truly.

I just kinda keep my head down;

following my passions and accepting opportunities to express them.

And somehow, 

people have noticed.

Humbling.

Flattering.

Inspiring.

I came home that day and said to my dear Mr. Wonderful,

"Sign me up for college."

We got the paperwork done,

I visited the school yesterday,

only to find out the Interior Design program is filled to capacity--

but the guidance counselor visited with me

and after hearing my resume,

she gave me the Department Chair's direct number and email

and said, "Call her. She'll make room for you."

Me?

Yeah?

Okay. So I did. I emailed and attached some pictures of projects I've done--

Staging, Painting Furniture, Kitchens, Florals, Calligraphy, Re-Designs.

Was I nervous?

uh. yeah.

Then I called the number

and boom! I'm IN!

I had to take placement tests--

hey, I haven't been to school in 36 years!

On the READING part, I scored a 96.

Sentence Composition a 106.

And Math..haha...33.

Algebra may well as be Arabic in my brain.

Anyway, I'm IN.

At 53 years old,

I am still a lifelong learner.

My family is SO stinking happy for me!

My oldest kids are proud of me

and that makes me really happy too.

SO this Fall, 8 of the 9 of us are in college!

What a life.

What. A. Life.

Seriously.

To The Fullest: Why Same-Sex "Marriage" Isn't What It Looks Like

Rainbows.
On my facebook newsfeed.
On bumper stickers.
On the nightly news.
On the White House of my United States of America.

Same-Sex Marriage is legal in the land of my birth.
So much emotion around this one. single. issue.
So hot and so cold at the extremes.

I, like so many others, look at this issue with confusion--
on one hand,
the issue is not my issue--
I'm not homosexual
noone in my family is homosexual.
It's not something I have had to reconcile with my faith
and yet...
I have felt my own faith threatened by those who do identify themselves
as homosexuals
or align their beliefs with those who do--
calling me a "bigot", a "hypocrite", among other things
for not supporting them.
It's hard to support something I have nothing at risk in.
Let me just say, quoting Jane Austen's Elizabeth Bennett
when asked why she didn't bristle at the thought of her younger sisters' dating
while she was yet unmarried:
"That hardly encourages sisterly affection."

The Facebook feeds I do watch?
My friends who are mothers of homosexual children.
Oddly, their newsfeeds are not lit up with rainbows...
but of pictures living their lives and loving their families.
Their silence is noted.
Their message delivered.
Life goes on.

What is at stake for me?
Do I care how others identify themselves based on their sexual preferences?

I have pondered this from a societal and religious viewpoint.

And this is where I am today:

I believe that marriage is a divine institution of God
between a man and a woman
to bring to His children a fullness of divine potential.

That alone is enough for me;
it meets my expectations of Life.
I am a Woman who is also a Wife and Mother.
My belief and innate feelings of who I am
coupled with my innate desire to have Heavenly Father
in the center of my Life,
not on the sidelines,
not in the shadows,
but at the core of who I am
and who I'm trying to become--
those beliefs and the faith I ascribe to,
gives me Peace.
My Faith provides a light on a path to follow,
as well as boundaries that protect my choice.
Boundaries that some may feel exclude or limit me in life.
I accept those boundaries as part of my chosen path.
Being a heterosexual woman,
I choose the life that will give me the fullest measure of my creation.


My heart looks upon those who choose same-sex attraction
and all the baggage that comes with that choice--
and I feel compassion.
Every one deserves to feel loved.
Every one.
We are all His Children.
We are all in need of the healing power of love.
We, the walking wounded, through the corridors of mortal life--
only hope for survival through the expressions of Love.
Those who choose to follow their feelings of homosexuality
are not ignorant to the limits their choice hands them.
They surely have counted the costs
and decided the exchange a fair one for their needs.
Homosexuality does not require a complimentarity for a union.
It doesn't ask to be Co-Creator of Life.
It is SO Simple.
Homosexuality is in the most basic category of life.
There is no "fullest"life sought after--
just two people looking to weather the storms of life together.

From my point of view,
homosexuals don't want what I have--
a divinely instituted covenant between themselves and God
as I understand it, embrace it, live it.
They want, it seems, simply to be acknowledged
for their ability and desire to love someone and create a life with that love;
and not be humiliated, criticized, shunned, or cast off from society
for how they choose to have their wounds healed.

They don't want what I have-
they're using the terms society has used to describe
"marriage"
because there isn't a term for what they want.
Maybe they should create one?

I came across The Destiny of Humanity: On the Meaning of Marriage | Part 1 of 6 of The Humanum Series:
This fits with my personal understanding, belief system and aspirations.
It obviously doesn't support the foundations of homosexuality,
but seen for what it is, helped me to understand why Same Sex Marriage
Isn't What It Looks Like.

Chances Are Like Opportunities

When I was a kid, 

I thought fifty years old

was old.

Like, next-to-death Old.

One's life is more than half-over by 50.

That's true.

But, like the middle of a good book

this is where the plot thickens

and there are surprises 

to keep you on your toes.

As it turns out,

there's a whole lot of exciting things

to be learned 

the closer you get to the end of your life

than previously thought!

Fifty-plus years and I am still an anxious learner.

Last Sunday was Mother's Day.

In my attempt to get insight into my impact upon

my own yahoos' lives,

I texted six of them (minus Dean)

and asked them a simple question:

"For my journal entry today, I ask asking each of you to answer one question: 

please tell me one thing you have learned form me. Just the first thing that comes to mind."

The answers that came back:

Diana: "To be brave under difficult circumstances."

David Scott: "I'll be honest, the first thing I thought of was spinach lasagna. More to the point I learned to love learning."

Arianna: "I learned to Grow The Hell Up cause you can't be shy all the time because then you won't live life to the fullest. Amen brother sister friend."

(Lots of laughter from her reference to our after thought of what our family motto should've been for 2014, according to Diana.)

Joseph: "I have learned that she doesn't want me to grow up."

Danielle: "How to TP! And be adventurous! And love someone based on their insides, not their outsides!"

*

You know, being a Mother to Many,

I have accepted the fact that I never know what my yahoos

might say in all situations--

but I know it's important to ASK these open-ended questions--

important for all of us.

I have to say that I love their responses.

Yes! I want them to be Seekers of Opportunities!

                                                          To be ON the Dance Floor

so they can dance!

To be willing, worthy and prepared

for chances to shine their best!

We are all building foundations in our lives

for the Life we want--

and I am amazed, even at age 5-0 +

the opportunities that continue to come to me

for the taking!

I am grateful for the chances to express my talents and interests--

they come to me more and more each day--

big things are on the horizon--

chances taken earlier have prepared the way

for these opportunities to develop.

Just as the scriptures say,

We reap what we sow.

But seriously,

you haveta be out there sowing something

for it to grow.

And that's alot of work.

I have heard it said that it takes just as much energy

to make a happy life as a unhappy life.

I don't know if that's true,

but I can say that it's really sweet when 

you see your dreams coming true.

Especially on this side of fifty.

Carry on People.

May May May

Colorado is ushering in the month of May
in a most lovely way...
rain
rain
raining
yesterday and today.

Is there anything better than going to sleep
listening to raindrop pelt the house
with their little soft
drop
drop
drop?

The yard is green
and the Aspens are budding
as fast as they can
getting ready to make their seasonly debut.

I love Spring in the Rockies!
We had snow last week,
temperatures climbed towards 80 degrees
and then bounced right back down
teasing us with a taste of summer
that's just down the way.

Dani's family came from Saudi Arabia
last month, staying for two very-fast weeks.
We all cuddled
and coddled
those babies
morning noon and night.

My favorite moments were reading bedtimes stories to the boys
and snuggling Gracie in the wee hours
of night and morning.
Oh sure,
we went places and did lotsa things--
but I'm not much of a "go-er"
so just loving on these sacred grandchildren
did my heart SO good!

We said hello and goodbye to Daisie
as she took a week's break
from her college studies at Brigham Young University-Idaho
and came home to visit and get her mission papers
ready!
It's such an exciting time in our family
when one of our yahoos submits their mission papers!
Now, we wait!
She could go ANYWHERE in the world
for her mission
and we are just barely breathing over here
waiting for that large white envelope
from Salt Lake City
that holds her destination inside!

If there is anything more exciting and gratifying
than to see
a child choose to
serve our Heavenly Father as a Missionary,
I don't know what it is,
honestly.
The sacrifice that this service demands is
sometimes daunting--
no daily contact--
phone calls limited to Christmas day and Mother's day
emails once a week
and that's IT.
for 18 months (for young women, 24 months for young men).
Missionaries abide specific codes of conduct like
no TV or secular music,
movies or leisure computer time.
No dating.
Lots of service from sunrise to sunset.
Going to bed dedicated and exhausted.


BUT.
What they gain in return is just wonderfully life changing and miraculous.
Each of my older kids have returned so grateful
for the place
and the people
they met and loved
along the way.

So we're waiting.
Like usual.
Aren't we always?

Bring on those May flowers.

Staying

The wait is over.

We're not leaving these Rockies just yet.

I'm okay with it.

My co-dependence upon Pikes Peak continues.

One day we'll have to part,

but for now 

the love affair goes on.

April's First Weekend

Let's just cut right to the chase, 

shall we?

First off, there's my Dean

"taking notes"

during the LDS General Conference broadcast

yesterday morning.

Showing his blank page at me,

he asked, "Spell 'God'".

"G-O-D."  I answered.

"G-O-D", he nodded.

And got busy writing that word

that feeling down on the blank page.

He sat as still as he can these days,

and really perked up when the Mormon Tabernacle sang--

he knows alot of hymns so he sings with them.

He even helped me point out a new member of the choir--

a sweet, handsome young man from our ward.

I didn't get to watch all 4 sessions of Conference,

but I can tell you that of those I got to listen to,

my favorite was a talk by Elder Kevin Pearson,

Stay By The Tree.

You can read a summary of it on the link.

I bet by the end of today, it will be linked to the full video though.

It really is inspiring.

Now, it was Easter yesterday.

My most favorite day.

But we didn't celebrate the traditions of Easter Eggs and dinner

because our kids from Saudi Arabia will be here next weekend

and we're going to do all of that with them.

So. Stinkin'. Excited!

This morning, 

at exactly 3:27am 

I sat on my bed,

a little bleary-eyed,

and french-braided the Caboose's hair

because she's taking a special trip today.

Meeting the Saudi kids in Orlando, Florida

for a week at Disney World!
She was a little emotional last night

about flying by herself from Denver to Orlando.

In fact, she'd never flown before.

So unlike the rest of the yahoos

who LOVE to travel away from home,

and always have--

she is my little homebody.

But Mr. Wonderful and Mr. Nana 

gave her a blessing last night

so she could sleep.

Which she says she did pretty good.

And while typing this up, 

I got a text message from Dani

saying they had her in their arms 

at the airport and all is well.

Talking about being out of Comfort Zones.

We're all branching out, aren't we?

No word yet on the new opportunity in Washington.

The interview went well and we should know something this week.

So we are still in a holding pattern on that.

But you know this, 

no matter what, 

Life Goes On.

Happy April!!

Waiting...

Where to start?
Well, in a matter of hours, we will know if we're moving to Washington.
Mr. W has his, what we understand, will be his final interview today.

I don't know how I feel about this.
I am on the sidelines just watching this unfold.
Ready to go.
Happy to stay.
Preparing, as best as I can,
for the outcome.

TO keep me distracted,
I've been crafting like a wild woman.
Today is the first day I haven't
created
something
anything.
Yet.

Here's a look at my projects:
Painting another kitchen with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  Old Ochre & dark wax:

Went to Habitat For Humanity's Restore and picked up some closet doors,

cut the bottom part off and taught Ms. Bee how to paint them;

also using Annie's Paris Grey and Provence:

And a chair we got at Goodwill for $5., done in Duck Egg:

with a little birdy decoupaged on it and freehand branch:

 To help re-do her bedroom, 

after she painted it Olympic's "Baby Bird" blue:

 We;re just about finished with her room.

I also had the chance to makeover a couple of florals for a friend and her workplace; she brought the stems and I just played with them:

Ok and I've had this project on my mind for a long stinkin' time:
Frame botanical prints and I finally got three of 12 that I want to do:

 Ok next project:
Bought these Goodwill finds,
and will be peeling them apart and reupholstering them:

 I also had time to calligraph announcements for another wedding--it was a small number, but still fun.
And last night I had the sewing machine out, to hem a friend's temple dress and while I had it out
I just whipped up this little envelope pillow case:

***

One hour and 40 minutes until the interview.

Hmmm. What can I do?