Day 607: Intuition

This morning started out rough, including a run in which my broken-y foot still felt yucky.  But Little M was doing his best to cheer me up (which means, he was oblivious to my mood and was just being his usual cheery, chatty, silly self) around lunch time.  And then we got a knock on the door.

I knew who it would be.  Because she'd been trying to stop by for a while now, but I keep putting her off because I don't like to see people when I'm feeling this way.  Then I have to pretend to be happy and it just feels painful to do that lately.

But she's a persistent friend.  And a little "no nonsense", if you know what I mean.  And she ignored me when I just claimed to be "really busy".  And she came anyway.  Bearing gifts, no less.  Perfect gifts.  Snacks and a movie for the kids--"The Fantastic Mr. Fox", which Sweet P began watching while we were waiting for her surgery to begin way back in June, but then she never finished.  She also read the book over the summer, so I've been meaning to rent the movie, but kept forgetting.  Problem solved, now.  My sweet, intuitive friend also brought me delicious Godiva chocolate and some calming herbal tea.

But mostly, she brought love.  And just the right words.  And even though it made me cry (it seemed silly to pretend to be happy when it was clear that she knew better), it was my Joyful Moment.

This time around has been like my old Depression, from years ago, back when it was around pretty much all of the time.  Back when I was a depressed person who occasionally had good days, rather than being the happy person who occasionally has down days that I am now.

Otherwise, the visit from my friend from out of town would have cured things completely because it was so great to have her here and we had so much fun catching up and just being together.  And being laughy and chatty always knocks my depression right out of the water.  But when it actually started creeping back before she even left, I knew something was really wrong.  This was the kind of depression that has no trigger, no reason, and makes it feel impossible for me to ever escape.

Which just gets me more down.

With my usual depression, I know it will come to an end in a day or two, so I can kind of just endure it.  But with this other kind, there is no light at the end of the tunnel.  Which is, well, depressing.

Are you all feeling down yet?

The good news is, after my friend's visit, things started to look up a bit.  I found the strength to get back on the horse and keep fighting.  I was able to smile and laugh again with my family.  And that's always a good start.

I think I'm almost back to normal now.

So, thank you, Friend.

Wishing you all Intuitive, Persistent, No-Nonsense, Awesome Friends!

Day 606: Developing Empathy

My friend left today.  I still can't express just how much it meant to me to have her here.  Thanks again for stopping by, Friend!

It seems that now that normal life has resumed, my funk has come back with it.

I may, or may not, have had a bit of a melt down sitting on the laundry room floor late this afternoon.  Baby B came and slid the door open and peered at me quizzically.  Then, he proceeded to climb into my lap with arms open wide, wrap them tightly around me, and rest his head on my shoulder.  When my tears didn't immediately subside, he sat back and looked up at me again.  Then he opened his arms up again and resumed his huggy-snuggle.  And he just stayed there for a while.

I've never had a child understand someone else's tears at that young age.  But, even though he seemed confused at my distress, he knew just what I needed.  It was one of the sweetest things.  And, in spite of my emotions, it was my Joyful Moment for today.

Wishing you all sweet Joyful Moments and melt-down free afternoons!

Day 605: 101 Ways To Use Steel Wool

We've had another fabulous day full of Joyful Moments with my dear friend.

Sweet P has just really attached herself to my friend and her cute dog.

Today Little M asked what "attached" means and we ended up defining it as when someone or something hooks onto your heart.

That is most certainly what has happened here.

For all of us.

I'm in denial about her departure tomorrow morning.

And just to show what a great time we provide for our guests--this is HH showing her how to clean bugs off the windshield using steel wool.

It doesn't scratch.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that hook into your heart!

Day 604: Dream Come True

Remember the post where I basically screamed my excitement out at you about my friend coming to visit?

She came.

She's been a friend since my earliest memories, but I haven't seen her in years.  And I've always been telling HH and the kids different stories involving her and her husband.  And wanting so much for them to meet.  I wasn't sure how to make that happen, though.

But now she came here!

And having all these people that I love finally meet each other, seriously was a dream come true.  And, of course, a Joyful Moment!

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that make a dream come true!

Day 603: Comeuppance

Does it make me a bad mama if this was today's Joyful Moment?

He just walked over and sat on Little M and then kept bouncing up and down.  Of course, Little M thought it was funny, too, or it probably wouldn't have been my Joyful Moment.  But after all of the picking on that's been done by Big Brother to Little Brother, it's about time that Baby B started "fighting back".

Don't remind me of this down the road when they really are fighting.  I'm not looking forward to that.

I'll just enjoy the giggles that come right now.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments in finally getting what you deserve!

Day 602: Weird

The last 24 hours have been kind of crazy, really.

Making this photo perfectly appropriate and applicable.  This is actually from a few months ago.  That is a birthmark on his little tushy--not a rash.  And if you're very observant you can see the little mess he was making as I paused to snap this shot.

Anyway, today's Joyful Moment was watching him play in the dirt at the park tonight.  I was kicking myself for forgetting the camera because he looked so cute.  At least I've got the mental picture to go on.  You will just have to imagine Baby B in all his adorableness having a blast in the rocks and dirt.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments with a free spirit!

Day 601: Forget Me Not

Looks like my lesson in hard work paid off.

Catching him out there after dinner was a much needed Joyful Moment for today.  So cute.  So sweet.  And so funny.

Confession:  I've been battling the Big D off and on for the past week, but it's gotten pretty bad over the past two or three days.  There was an incident on my little Road of Life that really should have been just a speed bump, but it somehow became more of a brick wall.  And it's really had me down.  So much so, that I have just been avoiding people the last couple days because I'm struggling to hide this, as I typically do when I'm down but forced to interact with someone.

Which is why I nearly skipped tonights General Relief Society broadcast.  An opportunity to hear from the leaders of the women's organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and also an apostle of the Lord.

But the thought of facing so many of my friends and trying to pretend that I wasn't walking around in a completely black cloud was giving me panic attacks.  Finally, I decided to go at the last minute.  I arrived a couple minutes late, so I could slip in the back unseen.  And then I bolted when it was all over.

I'm really glad I went, however.  There was something I needed in each of the messages, but when the final speaker was announced, I knew that this was why I needed to be there tonight.  It was President Dieter F. Uchtdorf.  He has been blessed to have an amazing insight into women and he always gives the most inspiring and uplifting talks.

And sure enough, he did it again tonight.  There was one point specifically when I felt as though he were speaking directly to me in my personal situation.  And I know that I'll be okay.  More than okay.  I know that I'm starting to be better already and tomorrow things will start to be good again.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments and good days!

Day 600: High Five For Hard Work

Baby B is still quite the walking tornado.  He is constantly getting into things, dragging stuff around the house, and leaving it wherever he wants.  Which sometimes includes outside, thanks to easy access via the doggie door.

Right after dumping his bowl of cereal on his head

This is slowly making me crazy.

So, today, I put my foot down.  He had just finished trashing Sweet P's room and was heading out to go wreak destruction elsewhere when I stopped him and turned him around.  Then I proceeded to point to an object and tell him to put it away.  Sometimes, I had to hold his hand to help him stay focused, but for the most part, he put it all away all by himself.  It was really cute to watch as he struggled to put a pillow back on her bed.  And I was really proud of him.

After each item was successfully put away we would do a "high five for hard work".  This invariably made him smile and he was eager to complete the next task.

This was today's Joyful Moment.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments complete with a "high five"!

Day 599: I'm Done With Today

I just am.

But that doesn't mean it was without its Joyful Moments.  Those were actually had in abundance.

It's just that sometimes, one sad thing kind of swallows them all up.

But my favorite for today was having a friend and her three darling kiddos come over for a play date this morning.  She's just a fabulous person.  I love talking to her.  She is full of surprises.  Because she's really talented and amazing, but she seems so down to earth at first glance.

And the kids had a great time hanging out, too.

So, it was a Joyful Moment Win-Win.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that don't get swallowed by anything--unless it's more joy!

Day 598: Hanging On To Summer

This morning, against my better judgement, I joined some friends and headed to Boot Camp.  I just couldn't bring myself to do the elliptical, which is what I figured would be the gentlest for my foot.  But, I had some wishful thinking that moving around on it might be just what it needed.

Boot Camp was fun.  I haven't been in a while.  But the running parts were sorta painful, to be honest.

The awesomeness is--moving around is just what it needed.  Well, not just.  It still hurts pretty bad.  But it's not really feeling fractured-y any more.  And I think the swelling has gone down.  So, feeling less pain was a surprisingly good Joyful Moment as the day wore on and it loosened up even more.

Then tonight, I decided that we should enjoy the somewhat nice weather we're having and have one final fling eating out on the patio.  We really didn't do that enough this summer because it was so ridiculously hot.

These guys were all pretty excited for the spontaneous picnic.  And Baby B was excited to sit at the table like a big boy.  So cute.  Joyful Moments all around.

The hot dogs and brats didn't use up the last of the propane as I was hoping, so Little M and I decided to try to roast marshmallows.  It didn't work the best.  I held the lid closed and they at least melted, though.  Enough to be a Joyful Moment shared.

And we ran out of propane.  So, HH can get it re-filled and I can finally start grilling up some real stuff again!  Which, of course, leads to Joyful Moments for all of us.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments squeezed out of this last bit of summer for as long as it lasts!

Day 597: From Good To Better

This morning was okay.  It had its rough spots, but we managed.

But as the day progressed, the goodness progressed as well.

I'm pretty sure it helped that I was wearing cute new pants from my favorite store.

First, I started my first big service project in motion.  I've decided to host a bake sale as part of the Great American Bake Sale  to benefit the fight against hunger.  Just an email to see who else I can get involved, but I've gotten a pretty good response so far!  Joyful Moment!

Then I got my hair cut.  FINALLY!!!  For the last two weeks I've been driving HH nuts with my incessant "I hate my hair!" rants.  I had to go to a new hairdresser since my old one moved.  This is another friend of mine and she did fantastic and I love it.  So, that was a super Joyful Moment.

And then, I went to my first Parent/Teacher Conference with Sweet P's first grade teacher.  It was wonderful.  Sweet P is just one of those kids that is easy to love, so naturally, her teacher loves her.  She had everything good to say and more than once commented that she wished all of the other students could be more like her.  Music to a mama's ears!  Joyful Moment music, that is.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments and days that get better as they go!

Day 596: Cancellations Make Me Cry

Today was another stinky one.

To begin with, I've been struggling with some bad news I received a few days ago.  But I got all pumped up to do some half-mile sprints this morning in preparation for Saturday's triathlon.  I needed to find out if I could push my speed in my Vibram Five Fingers, or if I should wear my regular sneakers.

But after each sprint, this pain in my foot grew progressively worse.  And by the end it was feeling kind of fractured-y.  And it's not really doing any better now.

Then, after mowing the lawn and getting the boys fed and down for a nap and showering, I came to check my email, only to discover that my race had been CANCELLED!  Not cool.  Yes, I cried a little.

I tried (again) to find a race in my area, but pretty much came up with nothing that would work.

I moped about for a couple hours, trying to not be as sad as I was.  And then I came across my list of things to do and I remembered a few different service project ideas I've had over the past few months.  And I decided to take the time and effort I would have put into preparing for a race and put it into service projects.  And that was my Joyful Moment.

So, life is okay.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that make you happy when you're trying to not be sad!

Day 595: Me Did It

This is unrelated to the post, but I just had to share.  This is the ultra-safe way that Baby B likes to eat his meals.  He freaks out and refuses to eat if we try to strap him in.  And since he's a scrawny little guy, I'll do just about anything to get a calorie, or two in him.  Including, put up with this.

Today's Joyful Moment was inventing a recipe all my own for dinner.  Usually, I combine anywhere from  2 to 10 recipes to create something, but tonight, I really didn't have a lot of inspiration.

Or, a lot of time.

I got home from church late because of a meeting and still had no idea what to make.  Then I looked in my fridge and the ideas started rolling in.  So, I started cooking some rice and mincing some garlic and onions (always a good start).  Then the other ingredients just sort of grew out of it from inspiration as I cooked.  And I wound up with something super yummy as a result!

I haven't figured out what to call it because it had a lot of ingredients, but it would be somthing like Chicken Sausage (I think it was sun-dried tomato and asiago cheese) and Arugula Rice, maybe?  With the veggies being the above mentioned garlic and onions, sliced bell peppers (multi-colored), wilted arugula, and potatoes.  Plus some fresh basil and other spices.

Oh, and some grated cheese from my CSA that's kind of like Parmesan sprinkled on top.

Eating it and tasting how yummy my concoction was was my Joyful Moment tonight!

Wishing you all original Joyful Moments!

Day 594: Ball Pits

They kind of gross me out, in principle.

But the kids and I were at one of those play centers that are full of all kinds of great fun (for kids, not so much for the parent trying to keep track of all three) with some friends tonight.  And finally, I knew I had to take Baby B over to the ball pit.  He'd been finding random balls all night and carrying around as many as he could hold.  He even tried to heft two basketballs at one point.

He was entertained by the massive amounts of bubbles being blown by a machine off one corner of the wall for a while, though.  That was a Joyful Moment watching him look up in mesmerized wonder.

Until too many bubbles popped in his eyes and he couldn't watch the bubbles any more because he had to keep rubbing them.

So, I took him to the ball pit.  This was a fairly nice facility, so I told myself they disinfect their ball pit regularly, and plopped him on in.

He was in heaven.  Seriously.  He had so much fun just sitting int he balls, throwing the balls, and then laying back and letting himself be buried by all the balls.

Yes, it was love.

And it was a Joyful Moment to watch.  As long as I didn't think about the germies.

Wishing you all clean Joyful Moments!

Day 593: Carnival

Tonight was the annual Fall Carnival at the elementary school.  

That means a fun barbecue, inflatables, and silly games.

It was a Joyful Moment watching the kids play and have fun together.

But finally remembering to get a photo of Sweet P with her teacher from last year was the main Joyful Moment.

Unfortunately, I forgot that I'd been messing around with various settings on the camera earlier, so the picture looks all grainy.  Sad!

Still a fun evening.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that aren't the least bit grainy--unless they involve corn, of course!

Day 592: Time To Tri

I went for a bike ride this morning.  Aside from being pitch black, FREEZING, and almost getting hit by a truck and its trailer, it was a delightful ride.

Seeing this just as I was arriving home made it a Joyful Moment.

But that isn't the Joyful Moment for today.

The Joyful Moment for today would be what inspired this early morning ride.

I signed up to do another triathlon!  It's a sprint distance this time, which is a good thing because it's a week from Saturday.  Not a lot of training time.

Coordinating and shifting my schedule to make this happen has been a pain in my patootie all week.  But that was when I realized just how much I wanted to do this.  And then when I finally committed and registered, I wanted to just get up and do a happy dance.

Instead, I IM'ed HH and told him I was SUPER excited.

And later called my friend who told me about the triathlon in the first place and will be doing it with me and we both were excited together.  Only, a hushed kind of excited because our kids were sleeping.

But that's okay.

I'm doing a race and I'm SUPER EXCITED!!!

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that leave you SUPER excited--even if you have to keep the majority of the excitement on the inside!

Day 591: Curtain Call

We've lived here for 2 1/2 years and I haven't hung any curtains.

Gasp!

In my defense, all but one of our windows have beautiful wood blinds and I just really like the look of them and see no reason to cover them up.

But the basement window has no blinds.  And it's our guest room.  So, it kind of needs some coverage.  We've been using a fuzzy blanket hung with binder clips.

Classy.  It's the only way we do things around here.

A few weeks ago, a friend asked me if I wanted some curtains she was replacing--not because they were worn out, but because she wanted a new color scheme.  She actually decorates her house.  Weird.

So, I took them.

Today, I hung them.

And all was right with the world.

They make me very happy.  So, it was my Joyful Moment.  And every time I look at them, it's repeated.  Along with a sigh of relief.

Because we have a guest coming and I wanted to have curtains for her.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that are repeatable!

Day 590: On The Mend

Once again, I've decided it's time to rearrange the way I organize and structure my life.  Thanks to my mom for some great ideas!

As a natural consequence, I've had the productivity bug all week.

Which, I guess has only been two days.  But with how much I've accomplished (and how little I've slept),  it feels like a lot more.

Hence, today's Joyful Moment.  I can see my sewing table again!  TA-DA!!!

Okay, I actually started on my mending last week.  And I may, or may not have thrown out several items of my mending when there was a clothing/scrap drive a few weeks ago for a local shelter.

But, the point is, I finished up my mending pile today!!!  One of the things in there has actually been in the mending pile since before we moved here 2 1/2 years ago.  Sad, I know.

But look back up at that picture.  There is absolutely nothing sad about that.

Except maybe the big stack of "parenting" CD's given to me by my chiropractor (after my kids ran around crazy in his office one day last year) that I know I'm never going to listen to.  So, for some reason, my sewing table has been their designated resting place.

But back to the sewing table and the Joy looking at it elicits.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that have been at least 3 years in coming!

Day 589: Rosemary Makes Me Happy

Truthfully, rosemary + butter makes me happy, but that doesn't sound good coming from a self-proclaimed "health nut".

It's delicious, though.

Especially, when baked up in the amazing goodness of a focaccia bread.  And, now that I'm thinking about it, there was no butter in this bread.  Just yummy olive oil.  Which is super healthy, right?

Anyway, this was part of the Joyful Moment that was our dinner tonight.  I was going to take a picture of it all on a plate, once it was served, but I got so excited--I forgot.

The rests of dinner was this amazing steak salad.  It's delicious.  And, aside from the steak, UBER healthy.

Because I'm Health Nut, in case you didn't know.

Wishing you all nutty Joyful Moments!

Day 588: Not The Way I Like To Remember

I've kind of been dreading today.  Because I knew that THEY would have us commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11 by dredging up all the horrible awfulness that was that day.  As if reshowing the images and footage and the tragedy is the best way to deal with what happened 10 years after the fact.

I don't mean to be disrespectful, but I disagree.  I was pondering a better way to honor those who died and those who sacrificed so much on that day as I made dinner tonight.  And I decided that, in my opinion, we should commemorate the day by returning to that feeling of union and brotherly love that came about in the aftermath.  The patriotism and the concern for our fellowman, you know?

So, that's what I'm going to do.  I'm not sure how to go about it yet, but from now on, I want to organize a service project that gets us out into the community.  I want to involve everyone regardless of race, religion, or whatever and do something good in our community.  Something to remind us of that whole "united we stand" business.

Anyway, sorry for the rant.

Moving onto Joyful Moments.  The first was when I woke up this morning and realized that I'd slept better than I have in several several weeks.  This was especially appreciated because I have been battling a painful cold the last few days.

And then came a Joyful Moment of seeing my good friend in her new cowboy boots.  She won them from a contest over at Pioneer Woman's website.  They're amazing.  And she looked fabulous in them.  And really really happy to be wearing them.  Which was what made it a Joyful Moment for me.

It's good to see one's friends being happy.

And my final Joyful Moment was making peace with some unpleasant feelings I've been harboring for the last little while.  Peace knocking out unpleasantness is pretty much a natural Joyful Moment.

Wishing you all a day of peace with a few great Joyful Moments in between!

Day 587: AWEsome

Yesterday, as I sliced the last cucumber from our garden for Little M to munch on, I was a little sad because I never got to make more pickles.

And then I went to the garden to check on our one tomato still growing, and it's a long story, but I wound up coming back inside with this:

So, you can bet your bottom dollar I made me some pickles today.  Just to give you an idea of their size, that tomato is an average-sized tomato.  One and a half of those cucumber bad boys gave me four jars of pickles.  What?!  Yeah.  And it was a Joyful Moment.

But not as much as watch Little M at his first soccer clinic.  Look at their tiny little shin guards!  WAY to cute.  Joyful Moment, for real.

And then there was this.

Almost two weeks ago, I caught two LARGE caterpillars eating up my carrot tops in my garden.  So, I brought them in and plopped them in a jar for the kids to see.  And boy did those caterpillars eat!  But only for a couple days.  Because then they made their chrysalises (chrysali?) and went about napping and transforming.

And then this beauty unfolded today.  I was grateful for the flowers I received earlier in the week, so he had something pretty to sit on for a little while.  Then he flew off prematurely and I thought he was going to die, lost in our house, but we located him and set him free.

And all was right in the world.

Honestly, I think I may have been more excited about this whole process than the kids.  I've never successfully hatched a butterfly before and it was really amazing and interesting to watch.  And the other one is still sleeping and transforming, so we get to do it again!

In case you haven't guessed, that was all a Joyful Moment.

Wishing you all beautiful Joyful Moments of transformation!

Day 586: It's Been A Little While

Since I posted about a Joyful Moment found in just being with Baby B.

But this afternoon the kids were off at TaeKwonDo and he and I had the house to ourselves.  And he was in one of those super sweet giggly moods that little kids get in.  It was his nap time, but he was just so fun I had a difficult time putting him to bed.

He's in that super independent phase that toddlers hit, so the opportunity to just be together doesn't happen all the time any more.  Making it all the more of Joyful Moment today.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments in one of those super sweet giggly moods!

Day 585: I Get A Little Help From My Friends

I went and saw "The Help" with some girlfriends tonight.  The wisdom in this choice is debatable, since I'm coming down with a cold and it was kind of late.

But then, I'm pretty sure I've read about studies that say that hanging out with your fabulous girlfriends boosts health and immunity.

I know through personal experience that it does provide Joyful Moments, however.

It was a good movie, too.

But on the way home I found myself thinking that maybe I should find friends who act our age.

I'd sure get more sleep.

But life would probably be a lot more boring.

These are the decisions I have to deal with.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that bring you good health, one way or another!

Day 584: Odds n' Ends

So, I should have posted this picture last night, because that is when our dinner guest gave them to me:

But looking at them all day has still been a source of multiple Joyful Moments.  I'm a sucker for flowers.

Today was the first day in quite some time that I haven't had any urgent obligations.  So, I began tackling the ever-growing list of non-urgent,  but still worthwhile tasks.

This included making about a thousand batches of pesto.  Give or take.

I should have taken a "Before" photo, but this is what my basil plant looked like "After" I used about 10 cups of it!  If you live near me, please come get some!

Making the pesto with my homegrown basil, handmade cheese and garlic from the CSA, and flax seeds substituted for the pine nuts was a super Joyful Moment.  As was eating a yummy pasta dish with some of the pesto used to make a creamy delicious sauce.

And, as if my day weren't full enough with these Joyful Moments, after dinner Little M called me to come outside and see this:

HH was watering the trees when Baby B commandeered the hose.  And was in absolute Baby Heaven.  We watched him play around with it for several minutes.  And it was a Joyful Moment for us all.  It's so fun to see a baby having fun with the simplest of things.

Good day.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments and a good day!

Day 583: A Case For Blue Jell-O

We had company for dinner again.

This time it was a woman HH introduced me to on Sunday.  She's Jewish, but is sort of investigating our faith right now.  I briefly spoke with her between classes, when HH told me he'd invited her to dinner, and she informed me that she was on a special diet and couldn't eat cheese.

So, I formulated a menu all around this "diet" that I wasn't very sure of.  I decided to lean towards healthy foods just in case it was that kind of diet, and because people usually appreciate healthy.  Turns out, it's not that kind of a diet.  There are just certain foods she can't eat.

And given that "cheese" was the only one she told me about, I did really really well on the menu.  The only item I served that she couldn't eat were the tomatoes in the salad.

But the interesting thing is that the dessert I decided to make was a trifle of sorts, but it called for raspberries, raspberry Jell-O, and raspberry yogurt.  When I was at the store I was feeling a bit indecisive and decided to pick up blueberries and strawberries.  I guess I just wasn't in the mood for raspberries.  Anyway, I ended up making it with blueberries, berry blue Jell-O, and blueberry yogurt.  All along, I kept telling myself the blue Jell-O would look awful.

And it did.

But, come to find out, she can't eat any red fruits.

Ka-Zam!

I knew I made a good choice!

And even though it didn't look as pretty as the red would have, it still tasted good.  She even had seconds.

And it was all a Joyful Moment for me.

But I also need to mention the wonderful discussion we got into after dinner about God, the eternal nature of family, and faith.  As HH put it, having that kind of a discussion always leaves you feeling closer to God.

Which is the best kind of Joyful Moment.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments with good choices and good feelings!

Day 582: Not The BEST Fair, But It'll Do

Yeah, we're really missing the fall fairs as done back in New England.  Here in the Great Plains, they just don't know how to do it.

Nor do they know how to do a Demolition Derby.  HH pretty much decided we were going to the fair today based solely on the fact that they had a Demo going on.  He bought the tickets last week and has been super pumped.

I love this picture of Baby B.  He just sat staring like this in baffled bewilderment at these crazy cars crashing into each other.

And yes, that is a Pecan Sandie in his hand.  I told HH to pick up some snacks that would be good for Baby B.  That is what he came back with.

That is why it is best for children to have a Mommy and a Daddy.

So, even though it was all a little disappointing, it was still my Joyful Moment.  Got to spend tons of time with the family all day.  In fact, one of my favorite parts was rocking out together and doing some sweet Car Dancing on the way up.

We are THAT family.

And seeing all of the crazy over-sized fruits and veggies is always one of my favorites.  I couldn't get Little M to step aside so you could really see how big that melon was.  You'll just have to trust me--it was HUGE!!!

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that leave you staring in baffled bewilderment!

Day 581: I'm A Mormon

Well, I am.

And I hope that is the most descriptive word that can be used for me.  I am trying to follow my Savior Jesus Christ and to become more like Him in all I do.

On the first Sunday of every month, we have the unique opportunity of voluntarily bearing testimony of Jesus Christ in front of the entire congregation.  This morning I felt quite strongly that I needed to do so today.  That always makes me a little nervous, but I did it.

And sharing my faith and knowledge was today's Joyful Moment.

I love my Savior.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments filled with convictions that bring you peace and, of course, JOY!

Day 580: Crazy Day

Today was absolutely crazy.

A lot of good stuff.

But emphasis on the "a lot" part.

And a lot of anything can be too much, sometimes.

So, I'd say, today's Joyful Moment was taking a nap.

At 8 A.M.

Because no one slept much last night and we got home at 7:30 A.M.

Although, waking up next to these sweet faces was a Joyful Moment, as well.  Don't let Little M's peaceful face fool you, though.  He was the one responsible for waking everyone else up!

Wishing you all Joyful Moments at 8 A.M.!

Day 579: Fire Pits and Thunderstorms

We've been telling the kids we'd go camping all summer.

But it's been too hot.  All summer.

So, finally, I realized that this may be our last weekend to go because Little M will have a soccer clinic every Saturday until October and then it may be too cold.

It took a surprising bit of coordinating, but we made it happen.

And then the weather did a switcheroo and instead of being the super nice, cool evening predicted, it was hot and humid.

Surprise.

But, we went anyway.

And I'm glad we did.  There were some not so great moments, a crazy thunderstorm, and the sleep was flat out terrible (a.k.a. non-existent), but we had a lot of fun.  And we got to hang out as a family.

And believe you me, there were plenty of Joyful Moments!

Wishing you all Joyful Moments capped off with delicious S'mores!

Day 578: Merry Maids

Tonight we had the wonderful opportunity of going to the temple together.  Learning more about my Savior and how to become more like Him is always a beautiful Joyful Moment.

Then we had the opportunity to clean the temple after all the patrons went home.  You wouldn't think cleaning bathrooms would be a Joyful Moment, but because it was part of a place that is so special and sacred to me, it was.  It helped that they weren't very dirty and I got to visit with another woman who I've never really had the opportunity to visit with before.  And she was wonderful.

Plus, I got to hang out with my HH which is nearly almost always a Joyful Moment.

I do love my HH.

Wishing you all Joyful Moments that leave you clean all over!