Right Handy Wrap

We had something odd happen this month - more unusual I guess than odd. It was a broken arm. One of my girls fell in gym class, picked herself up and kept playing the game. She never said anything to the teacher. That night she participated in another athletic event during which she again fell. We really aren't sure which activity broke her arm, the second one certainly didn't help. We had her arm x-rayed the next day thinking it was just sprained and were surprised to discover that she actually had a hairline fracture running the about 1 cm long -  lengthwise in the bone. She came home from the hospital with her arm wrapped in a tensor bandage and instructions to refrain from physical activities that require the use of that arm for 10 -14 days. Even that was hard for her, but she feels pretty good now!

Truthfully, this was one injury that was pretty minor in how it affected what she could and could not do. Without a cast she was able to clean her arm and even use it to whatever degree didn't cause pain. She took next to no pain killer and was careful with what she did, but she healed very quickly. I am so thankful that the body has the ability to heal itself. Can you imagine how awful it would be to carry around every wound we have ever had without healing? Who knows, if that happened we would have to even deal with whatever infection came with it. We would have a hard time enjoying life and feeling good about anything being in a state of continual suffering. However, Heavenly Father wants us to enjoy life. He created us with the ability to heal. It is something that our bodies do naturally. Every time something happens, healing occurs as faithfully as the rising sun. I love this divine gift. It reminds me of the Atonement. Healing in all its forms instills a deep feeling of joy in my soul. I am so thankful for the little reminders we have in life, such as broken arms and cuts and dings that help us remember how important it is to take care of those wounds so they don't fester and stick around and cause us further discomfort. What a blessing our divinely created bodies are to us.

I love the following thought...

May joy and happiness abound in our lives and the lives of those around us! Have a wonderful day!

Bright Birthdays!

Teenagers are a lot of fun! I have been blessed with the best teenagers! This month saw a few of them add another year of maturity to their statures.

First Myles celebrated a milestone birthday this year. Last year it was warm enough to actually have an outdoor picnic with the family. No such luck this year, but we had fun celebrating his birthday just the same...

Myles is such a responsible boy. He works every day after school, helps around the house and helps me keep the walks shoveled when we have an overload of snow. He has helped me with his magic talents and his ability to share his knowledge with others. We are so glad Myles is a part of our family.

We had another birthday this month too. This birthday was celebrated by one of my girls who loves to spend time in the kitchen. She even asked if she could make and design her own birthday cake... Here it is...

She had a little help from her older sister. She covered the cake in fondant made with marshmallows. The ears are cookies.

Naomi is so talented! A few weeks ago she showed me some of her cooking aspirations, one of which was a peanut butter fudge cheese cake. I suggested we make that one since we already had everything we needed to make it. Well, she surprised me the other night with a very delightful dessert. She did awesome for her first baked cheesecake!!! Take a look...

Yup it tasted as good as it looks, maybe even better. I love to see the accomplishments of my children. Besides enjoying cooking, Naomi also works after school, helps around the house, loves to laugh and share her joy with those around her.  She is a special part of our family.

My children are probably one of my greatest joys in life. Children give their parents a wonderful gift when they choose to live and honor the good teachings they are brought up with. I joy in their accomplishments, talents and abilities. I am so thankful for my family. Birthdays are the best because they let us celebrate the joy that we felt as each one of our children joined our family - that is something worth celebrating!

Simple Joys

I love flowers, and this month I was delighted with the appearance of multiple blooms in my living room! First of all, my orchid of 3 months is still blooming. I've never ever discovered such a long lasting flower so beautiful as this one!

I have also enjoyed the amaryllis flowers I planted at Christmas time. Large and showy and bursting forth with color!

This month these delightful blooms inspired me to do something a little creative. Their bright colors are so cheerful that I wanted to make something that would capture that feeling. So I decided to use my new favorite medium - wax...

Here is the finished piece...

This piece of art is quite abstract, but it contains all the colors of a glorious sunrise. It features dark shadows made with tar paper and some real plant life used from my summer garden and then pressed. The eagles were added to further build the theme of rising. This was such a fun piece of art to do. I love the way it all blended and works together. I love nature - I feel so blessed to live. Life is wonderful and every day exudes delightful moments of joy that build into joy filled memories. 

Funny as it may seem, I've even loved the snow. I love to shovel it! (Yes, I know you are thinking I am a weird person) Shoveling snow is hard work, but there is nothing like looking back over 125 feet of clean sidewalk, plus the decks and walkways that feels better in the winter time. It makes me feel great, and I delight in the joy it brings. 

There is so much in life to be happy about! I look forward to each new day with eager anticipation. There is such joy there -  I only find it when I am looking for it - but thankfully, I have learned to keep a constant lookout for the moments that emanate pure joy! May life be a joyful journey for all...

Warmed Thrice

I remember reading in a book once that firewood will warm you three times. First when you cut it, again when you chop it and a third time when you burn it. I have to say that I LOVE firewood! 

Several weeks ago we took some time to put the second step of that formula to the test. We actually picked a fairly warm weekend and got a lot of wood cut and split! The best part was coming home with split wood and sitting in front of the fire to enjoy it. There is nothing like the pure source of heat from a fire in the winter time. It penetrates to the very bones!

So with a nice warm fire burning merrily in the fireplace, we set to enjoying it...

For Christmas my youngest girls got a coloring roll. Here they are working on it in front of the fire...

 They rolled it out as far as it would go in the room and then spread themselves out on the floor and colored happily for hours...

January has been a good month. It has been filled with wonderful things and many warm and cozy moments in front of the fire. The joy that came from just one day of hard work has been enjoyed all month long. What a blessing it is to warm ourselves.

What of the Elephant?

The Blind Men and the Elephant

"Well over one hundred years ago, an American poet put to rhyme an ancient parable. The first verse of the poem speaks about:

Six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.

In the poem each of the six travelers takes hold of a different part of the elephant and then describes to the others what he has discovered.

One of the men finds the elephant’s leg and describes it as being round and rough like a tree. Another feels the tusk and describes the elephant as a spear. A third grabs the tail and insists that an elephant is like a rope. A fourth discovers the trunk and insists that the elephant is like a large snake.

Each is describing truth.

And because his truth comes from personal experience, each insists that he knows what he knows.

The poem concludes:

And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!

We look at this story from a distance and smile. After all, we know what an elephant looks like. We have read about them and watched them on film, and many of us have even seen one with our own eyes. We believe we know the truth of what an elephant is. That someone could make a judgment based on one aspect of truth and apply it to the whole seems absurd or even unbelievable. On the other hand, can’t we recognize ourselves in these six blind men? Have we ever been guilty of the same pattern of thought?" -- Dieter F Uchtdorf

Healing

It has been nearly 3 months since my surgery and it has been for me a valuable road to travel. My healing was to me, nothing short of miraculous. I had prepared myself for a 6-8 week long road to recovery, yet the pain was mostly gone after the first 10 days and the fatigue was basically gone after 3 weeks (and even that was pretty minimal). I am amazed at how well the body heals and I feel so blessed. I know that I have been blessed from on High in my recovery. It is wonderful how the body is designed to heal itself, when it is hurt it doesn't just fix the problem it grows new skin, new cells, new nerves etc. It cleanses and removes waste - in fact it is certain that if waste wasn't removed our lives would be very short and we would suffer a painful death from toxic poisoning.

It is interesting how our bodies and our spirits are so similar. Our spirits want to be happy, experiencing, peace of mind, love, joy and contentment. The need we feel to have those things in our lives - especially on the days we don't have those feelings - give us a reminder from our spirit that it needs some care - some healing. Unlike our bodies the healing of the spirit doesn't come from the spirit, it comes from Christ through the power of his all encompassing atonement. I felt that power while my body healed and I know with every fiber of my soul that it is needed for spiritual healing. Nothing else can take away the excruciating pain of poor choices (whether our own or someone else's) so completely, removing them so effectively it is as though they never happened. Holding onto the pain that comes from those poor choices prevents healing. It is so important to not let that spiritual waste build up in our systems - spiritual waste such as bitterness, revenge, hate, pride, criticism and gossip - poisons that if left unattended, will sap the life (the joy of living) from our spirits taking with it the happiness, love and joy we each crave and need so desperately.

My purest source of JOY

We all understand the need to do the specific things outlined by a surgeon after having a major surgery, and that if those guidelines are not followed further injury or prolonged healing may occur. But do we  understand the need for the specific steps in spiritual healing outlined by the Savior that need to be followed? True spiritual healing takes a lot of effort on our part, but in effect is accomplished through the Atonement. If we don't want to put forth the effort, we don't heal. My physical healing was prepared for, strenuously, for months before I had surgery, that preparation made my healing much easier and I wasn't tempted to disobey the doctors orders. Spiritual healing also takes preparation. I know that I cannot forgive if I don't know why it is so important to do so. I am so grateful for the words and teachings of prophets that have helped me understand deeply the need of love, mercy and forgiveness in my life. I am even more grateful for the Atonement and it's awesome power. It's cleansing effect is so complete, so pure, that nothing can compare with it. It has filled my life with JOY, gratitude, peace, love and EVERY good thing! It has given me a new life - a life completely FREE from the mental anguish and pain that come into the life of every person that has ever lived. I love the Savior.

Physically I feel wonderful! Mentally I feel great and emotionally I am filled with exquisite JOY! I can do everything I did before and more! My days are filled with many things that uplift my spirit and increase my love of life. I love to read and study and learn. I love to teach my children, spend time with them and share my skills with them. I love to spend time with my husband, helping him with his projects and feeling his love when he helps me with mine. We have had so many work days, play days and family days this season, we have been especially blessed.

A Little Bit of Awesome!

Drops of AWESOME!

I found this blog post and really enjoyed reading it. It will definitely be one I will return to again and again, so for my own reference I've put a link here so I don't lose it: Drops of AWESOME!

May we all be filled with AWESOME this year!!!