Self-Sufficiency: A Work in Progress

I feel I have done a fairly decent job keeping life in order during Janson's absence. With his upcoming return, I've been evaluating my self-sufficiency. Seeing how he was already putting in long hours before his departure, my week days are fairly normal. I am more confident in my abilities to keep things under control. Well, with my sister helping every minute of the day (and night... sorry Sara!).

I have taken over many tasks Janson usually does. To my usual chores I now add trash take-out, sweep/mop the kitchen floor, vacuum, and clean the bathroom sink (Yup, he did a lot). There are a few areas where I have failed miserably; where I haven't even tried to fill his void.

1. Putting ink in the new, fancy printer: The "needs new ink, cannot be used" light is currently flashing in my face as I write. It has been doing so for three weeks now.

2. Drain ground beef: Yup, that's right. I only drain ground beef when Janson is around to lift the heavy pot. I can just feel that fat pumping through my arteries. To spare you all, maybe I won't have dinner guests while Janson is away. No, I think I'll take the plunge and attempt the draining next time. Wish me good luck, I'm afraid of those nasty steam burns.

3. Checking car tires and putting air in them: I drove over some amazing potholes, and kept saying for two weeks, "I should check these tires." Technically, this void actually has been filled thanks to Dad. He taught Sara and I the valuable life lesson of tire-checking and then putting air in the tires. That is, after we accidentally let a bunch of air out of one of the tires (when we thought we were filling it up) and then drove through town with it dangerously low.
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4. Sacrament meeting survival (aka Make-it-through-the-entirety-of-sacrament-meeting-without-giving-up-and-retreating-to-the-foyer): This is another area that I tried, but I didn't try all that hard. In future situations I'll probably enlist the help of a young woman or friend. Grace simply does not know how to whisper.

5. Staying Sane: I can't explain it very well, but I feel imbalanced without Janson around. I wear a cloth of sanity that masks my truly frantic, restless, frustrated, partly insane self. My sister can attest to the fact that this cloth of sanity is gradually becoming more threadbare as each hour of the day progresses. With every two year old whine, with every pooped or peed on outfit, with every public toddler tantrum, my calm confidence wanes. Well, I think "calm" exited the building about two weeks ago. (The adjoining picture shows Grace crammed into the baggage compartment of the stroller. This was of her own doing, and she is having a royal tantrum. I took the picture to show Janson what fun he was missing.)

Overall, thank goodness for Sara's constant companionship, and Janson's nearing arrival. I'm learning that one truly cannot do it alone.

Sidebar Quotes

If you are like me and read most of people's blog posts via RSS feed, you don't see the layout content or templates of blogs very often.  So I am making a post here directing you all over to my recent sidebar addition, I-Need-to-Read Quotes.  These are quotes that, as it says, I currently need to read on a regular basis.  This is also proof of my laziness.  My initial motivation behind seeking out these quotes was to post them around the house.  But the ink has been out on my fancy new printer, and with Janson out of town I haven't taken the time to learn how to refill.  Soo... this is my creative way to digitally post these quotes without the required printing.

A Poetic Mother's Day

I was recently introduced to this poem. It fits my personality perfectly, so it's framed and stationed in the entrance of our home. Well, I wouldn't choose the word like in the last stanza. I usually don't support words accredited to "unknown," but I sure like this poem and will continue my search to find the author. Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

Excuse This House
Some houses try to hide the fact
That children shelter there,
Ours boasts it quite openly,
The signs are everywhere.

For smears are on the windows,
Little smudges are on the doors
I should apologize, I guess
For toys strew on the floor.

But I sat down with my child
And we played and laughed and read
And if the doorbell doesn’t shine,
His eyes will shine instead.

For when at times I’m forced to choose
The one job or the other,
I’d like to cook and clean and scrub,
But first I’ll be a mother.

Author: Unknown

Designer Do's & Diaper Disasters

This is what we did today:

Sara cut off at least 6 inches. We had to take pictures immediately, since we'll never be able to style it the same as the professionals.

While Sara was enjoying her therapeutic shampoo and restful sit in the salon, I was dealing with The Poop Explosion of the Year. Well, hopefully I don't have an equivalent in the next year. I need time to recuperate. Here's my idea of mommy math:

Detection of suspicious smell while shopping
+ Slippery grasp of babe as I take her out of car seat (baby screams begin)
+ Yellow poo smeared on seat back, straps, cover
+ Puddle of yellow mush on diapering table (still screaming)
+ Destroyed onesie fit only for garbage can
+ Exhausted supply of baby wipes and wet paper towels (still screaming)
+ Sticky poo baby hair (still somewhat existing as I write)
+ Rushing around mall with baby wearing only diaper
+ Rushing around mall with big poop slash across my chest (still screaming)
+ Buying clearance baby clothes and mommy shirt
= Poop Explosion of the Year

Cubworld Concert

There is a great Cubworld concert on May 23rd in Laie, HI. I put a poster for it on my sidebar, but wanted to make an actual post about it to point you over to the poster. I don't think I have very many readers in Laie (or anywhere else, for that matter), but I still wanted to advertise. Wish I could be there. My favorite song of his (and one of the best love songs I've heard) is For Love. Those that are in the area, go have fun for me!

Novel Paranoia

My mom just got back from BYU Women's Conference and stopped here for a night on her way home. While she was out west she picked up a novel for my sister. I recognized the author and tried to think of what other books she'd written. Then it dawned on me: I recognized the name because I personally know the author. She was in the BYU singles ward where Janson and I met.

So now I'm reading a book written by a girl from my old ward. I've only read a dozen or so pages, but I've already gained an eery paranoia. Some of the characters seem very similar to people from that ward. Perhaps it's a coincidence. I have a feeling that I'll stumble upon even more "coincidences" as the novel progresses. My paranoia is that she's going to write about me. My sister has diagnosed this as a paranoia and not a legitimate concern because I don't remember holding a conversation with this girl. I was only in the ward for eight months so I probably entered and left her world without making a dent. Yet I have this narcissistic concern that somewhere in this book she publicly humiliates me. This is driving me to finish the book and rid myself of the fear.

Leaving this self-centered train of thought, the finding of this book has opened my eyes. I read her bio and saw her picture and thought, "Wow, we're really all growing up." People my age are really starting to go places and do things. I've been watching this slowly happen lately, especially with old high school buddies. Oddly enough, I seem pretty satisfied to watch others climb the ladder into the spotlight of fame while I contently sit at home with my two babes.

Happy Lei Day!

May Day, known to me as Lei Day, is one holiday I miss celebrating in Hawaii. As you can tell by the name, we wore leis and more importantly, huge performances were put on by the schools. Students practiced for months to perform on May Day, and I can name the May Day Kings and Queens from my school years better than I can name the prom royalty. Watching the May Day performance is one thing I miss about Hawaii. I hope my friends in Hawaii have fun for me!