well, it has been a year since the last post.

It has been a year since I posted!  I think one day I just didn't have anything to say.  Wait... I always have SOMETHING to say... but this past year I said it in conversations, or via email, or in my journal and letters.

Here is an email I recently sent to a friend:

I was thinking of you the other day and so I wanted to write and see how you were doing.  

Here is a quick recap since we last talked:

The first week of December we went on a roadtrip to California.  One afternoon we went to the beach.  It was overcast and windy but the kids still ran down to the waves and then promptly ran right back out as the water was freezing.  They spent most of their time crawling on some nearby rocks checking out tidal pools.  I watched from the boardwalk.  I loved that they were having fun and it was one of those moments where I felt like I was truly present and completely happy and at peace.

 BUT, having said that, I don't like sitting on the sidelines.  It isn't nearly as fun. SO, here is what I want to do for my birthday next month... I want to go skiing with Jeff and the kids.  My friend told me about an organization called the National Ability Center near Park City that can help us out. They will fit me with a bi-ski and a guide to take me down the mountain (we will go to Brighton).  How cool is that?  Hopefully it works out. 

I went to the temple this week with some friends.  Being there was a beautiful reminder of God's love!

Much love, Janae 

conversations with Megan

 

Megan:  Daddy I love you. Mommy I love you more than cats.

Jeff:  What about me? Do you love me more than cats?

Megan:  I love you more than cats unless they are cats that follow me, are playful, and don’t scratch.

Jeff:  That’s an imaginary cat.

-----------------------------------

Megan:  Mom, do you ever wish you could wish for something and it would come true?

Me:  Sure!   

Megan:  I would wish for you to have peace and strength. 

Me:  Oh I love that.  Hmmm...I would wish for a healthy body.

Megan:  (a bit frustrated) But, I’ve been praying for you to have ‘peace and strength’ for like, 3 years!

Me:  (pause) Heavenly Father has heard all of your prayers.  Sometimes prayers are answered in ways we don’t expect, because I do have ‘strength’, but it comes through help from others, and I do feel peace at some point every day.

And then she started talking about cats or dragons.  Or maybe it was cat-dragons.

-------------------------------------

We all have our own ‘something.’ 

  

Some days it is incredibly difficult to be at peace when I still really really really want a healthy body.  

To move on I have to want to be at peace.  Every day I have to choose to be at peace all over again.

I then am willing to reconcile my emotions, and my wants, with the realities of my ‘something.’  It's about finding a balance.  

I want my children to see that, despite the lack of muscles, I am strong in other ways and that I am happy and still love life.

In the Uintahs last summer.

awesome

A quick story...

Last spring I was looking through Erik’s school papers and came across test.  There were 25 official questions, and then there was a 26^th multiple choice question penciled in – in 5^th grade handwriting it said:

26. Who is awesome?

                        a. Erik

                        b. Erik

                        c. Erik

                        d. Erik

Haha!  

Who else is awesome?  This guy is.  'Jay' left about six months ago to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Awesome-ness.  Jay and Erik.
(sorry 'bout the fuzzy photo)

be at peace

These are words I love.

Bid thine heart all strife to cease;
With thy brethren
be at peace.

-Joseph L. Townsend

And the November highlight was my entire family getting together for Thanksgiving!
Many thanks to Heidi and D.J. for hosting.
Here are the cousins…

A good looking bunch...even the one making a silly face.

important things

Here is a quote passed on to me from a friend.

Everything changed
the day
she figured out
there was
exactly enough time
for the important things
in her life.



Yesterday I interpreted it as:
Put aside the things that suck away your time and leave you feeling empty.
Instead make cookies.
Because at least they will fill you up.

 Thank you Grandma, Claire and Megan!

This was one of my better ideas and so we made cookies again today.

Roma and Megan's creation.

photos of the fam.

We have many family albums filled with pictures Jeff and I have taken over the years.  The photographs tell a story, they preserve a memory and over time they become more valued. 

So, for me it is like Christmas when I can add in photographs taken by someone who knows what they are doing.

A million times ‘THANK YOU’ to our friend, Jenn, and her camera! 

Megan.  She likes to climb and wants 4 cats when she is older.

Claire.  She loves bright colors and is a pro at the monkey-bars.

 

Erik.  He does funny poses if a camera is pointed at him and likes riding bikes.

Jeff and Janae.  They like love fresh peach shakes.

Jenn the Photographer, Whittney and Janae.  They like to laugh. 

yummy zucchini soup

2006 garden

This is a great time of year when fresh vegetables are in the gardens and at the local farmer’s market.  Woo-hoo!

But what the heck do you do when your neighbor gives you not just one but a whole bag of zucchini?

Well you make zucchini soup, of course. My kids love this and we always double the recipe so that there is enough.

When you receive the zucchini, slice them and freeze them in Ziploc bags until you are ready to use. This recipe is really the only thing that you would use the frozen zucchini slices for, because when they thaw they are mushy.

Zucchini Soup

3 cups (about 1 pound) sliced zucchini

½ cup water

1 tablespoon fresh or instant minced onion

2 bouillon cubes

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

2 cups whole milk

Combine zucchini, water, onion, and bouillon cubes. Cook until zucchini is tender and most of the water has evaporated. Puree  in blender and set aside. In saucepan melt butter and add flour.  Blend; add milk and simmer until thickened. Stir in pureed vegetables; thin with milk, if desired. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Makes 4 servings