Piano Pay Off

A strange phenomenon is occurring at our house.  The piano is being played without my pleading, begging, bribing, and threatening.  Last week I even had to ask Savannah to please not play the piano before 6:00am!   Savannah has also decided to teach John piano lessons as part of one of her Personal Progress Value Projects.  I don’t know what’s going on around here, but I LIKE IT! 

General Conference

Tomorrow the text and video of General Conference will be available online.   I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Conference last weekend as a family.  Even James was able to be with us for the Saturday sessions.  We had a great weekend filled with conference, soccer, and Thai food, but I did not take a single picture.   So, here is my testimony of General Conference instead : ) 

A few years ago our family had the opportunity to visit with Elder Bednar at his office.  Elder and Sister Bednar lived across the street from my family when I was young and are dear friends of my parents. So, although we are nobody special, this friendship with the Bednars has blessed our family in many ways, and this opportunity to visit personally with an Apostle was one of them.  I tried to prepare my kids well for this day.  We prayed about it, I think I even fasted about it, and we discussed ahead of time what questions we might like to ask.   True to form, on the appointed day, two of my kids had a disagreement about (of all things) socks and were like ticking time bombs the whole visit.  Elder and Sister Bednar were awesome and so was our visit, but I was distracted, aware of the short fuse.   As we left Elder Bednar’s office, my mind flooded with questions I wished I’d asked.   I worried for a moment that I had missed the chance of a lifetime because, believe me, I need all the help I can get. 

Then, we toured the Conference Center, and I realized that we were being blessed to witness a technological miracle.  It was amazing to see that the Lord has provided a way for everyone to have the same opportunity we had in Elder Bednar’s office--a chance to be personally taught by his Apostles and Prophet.   I realized that if we prepared ourselves spiritually for General Conference just as we prepared for our visit to see Elder Bednar - if we prayed to have the Spirit with us, if we came prepared to listen, if we came with really good questions in our hearts - we could be personally taught through the Spirit all we need to know.  I felt better knowing I hadn’t missed the only chance I might ever have to receive guidance from an Apostle of God. I think it’s a miracle that every nation, tongue, and people has this chance too, and they have it over and over again every six months.  And that is why I love General Conference so much  : )

Fruits of our Labor

Among the many things that I will miss when we move is our garden.  We planted grapes 3 years ago and this year has yielded our first edible grape harvest.   I love that the kids can run down to the garden and snip grapes off for snacks and lunches.  I love that I don’t have to ask anyone to please pick the grapes.   I love that they are free.   I love that our kids love to eat something that we grew because that is not always the case.   I love that one of our best crops took three years and taught us about delayed gratification.   I love that our garden produces not only fruits and vegetables but so many life lessons. 

The kids eat these like candy.

These are Concord grapes that I planted to make Grandma Van's Grape pie.

Update/Priorities

I am happy to report that in response to the revolt we have moved scripture study to 6:30am and are having it first, when everyone gets up, instead of last, right before everyone leaves for school.  I think there is a life lesson here that we have learned before.  Our morning only involved minimal murmuring and everyone left for school content and on time.  Hooray!  Until the next uprising...

Jackson and I stayed up way too late last night working on this Obi Wan Kenobi costume for Homecoming week.  Today was “Saga Day.” 

Bright Spot

 Dear James,

I miss your help.  Family scripture study ended in a revolt.  Today’s house showing was a close call.  I wasn’t finished vacuuming when the realtor arrived.  Luckily I was able to shove the vacuum in the downstairs closet and escape out the back door and around the house.  There was one bright spot in the day though, and that was a bike ride with John.   I had promised one on Saturday but we were too busy.   After taking off on our ride we had to return home and grab the camera because I knew you would appreciate photos of one of the few summerlike days left here in Oregon.    Enjoy!

Love, Betsy

P.S. We need to convince John to ask Santa for a new bike with gears for Christmas.

For Sale

 

Last summer while driving home from Idaho, the kids watched a movie called Deep Impact.  I only listened sporadically from the front seat of the car, but there was this one scene that grabbed me.  I could relate to the intensity and stress as a team of astronauts tried to divert a meteor from hitting earth with only minutes to finish the task before the sun came over the horizon and fried them all.  I interrupted the movie to announce, “This is exactly how I feel every time we have to clean the house for a showing.”  I have to write this post to document, lest I forget, how much I dislike the process of selling a house. 

Tonight I got a call from our realtor telling me that I need to get our house ready to show tomorrow for the bazillionth time.  I know exactly how my morning will go.  I will have to forgo running because I will need every spare moment to clean.  I will panic.  I will fill my laundry basket with school papers, wet towels, shoes, dirty laundry, dirty dishes, you name it, and run it out to my car.   I will clean every square inch of my house.  I will run around like a crazy person and no matter when I start, I will spend the last 30 minutes completing jobs that would normally take me a full day.  Amazingly enough, with only minutes to spare, the clock will slow down, and I will recognize that my prayers are being answered and that our house will be ready in time (or a few minutes after).  And I will realize that it’s OK that I missed my run because I’ve just gotten a better workout cleaning.   And I will be dripping in sweat to prove it.  And, one minute before (or after) the realtor and clients pull in the driveway, I will run out the front door with someone’s dirty socks stuffed in my purse.  And I will smile at the realtor like my house always looks this clean and it was no big deal to get it this way.  And then, in a few days, I will do it all over again.

Saturday Evening Post

Our Saturday went something like this: 

·         long run for me

·         10K Habitat for Humanity run for Yuhua

·         soccer game for John

·         wakeboarding  for Jackson

·         shopping with the girls for fabric to make skirts

·         Jackson’s friends at our house working on Eagle Service Project and eating spaghetti

·         Relief Society broadcast and dinner

·         late night sewing so that Brooklyn will have something to wear to church tomorrow

John scored a goal in his first soccer game of the season

Jackson with Brother Burton and friends wakeboarding on the Willamette River