Faux Swearing

Yesterday when I was on You Tube embedding the Whitney Houston videos for yesterday's blog post, I stumbled upon this video and it made me chuckle enough that I wanted to share it here.



Now, it may be living in Utah that makes this video especially amusing.  But, I know I heard those same faux swear words among my Mormon friends while growing up in Northern California.  It is definitely relatable if you are a person who tries to avoid profanity.  My favorite part?  The very end when he's surprised and says the actual word when he's talking on the phone!  ("I said shoot mom!")

Anyway, I hope it brings a smile to your face.

Musical Memory

Was anyone else completely blown away by the sad, sad news that Whitney Houston died last night?!  I was.  I still can't quite wrap my head around it!  Music has always been important to me.  No other creative medium has the power that music does - to uplift, to calm, to relax, to excite, and especially to elicit memories.

As I was thinking last night about how the music of Whitney Houston has touched my life, I remembered that it was one of her songs that was my very first favorite pop song.  The first pop song that I knew all the lyrics to.  Do you remember "I Wanna Dance with Somebody"?




And then I remembered a very crisp, clear memory of that song.  I was in the bedroom that I shared with my sisters, Dawnette and Megan.  I remember putting that song on and turning the volume up and going and dancing in front of the full length mirrors of our closet doors - singing along to every word, note, and oooohhh.    Pure Pop Music Magic that song is.

And who can forget the best rendition (ever) of the Star Spangled Banner?  Not me.




But, I think, of all of her songs, the most indelible one is her version of the Dolly Parton song "I Will Always Love You".  I still remember watching her performance of that song on the 1994 World Music Awards and marveling at her pure, peerless talent.  We recorded that show on a VHS tape and I remember watching it over and over and over and over again in the days and weeks following the broadcast.  I watched it so much that that section started wigging out after awhile - I think I'd worn the tape of the VHS by watching those 5 magical minutes over and over again.  Simply put, I was obsessed with the power of her voice.




And what person who appreciates music wouldn't be in awe of her talent?  I was.  I am.  I always will be.

The Bread Bandit Strikes Again!

If you are a regular and avid reader of our quaint little blog (and, really, who isn't?!), you may remember a post from a couple of weeks ago wherein I told of how Luke quietly and quite slyly helped himself to a loaf of bread that had been sitting on the counter top to cool.

My little bread bandit struck again... last night.

But this time it wasn't yummy, hearty wheat bread.  

It was fresh, scrumptious banana bread. 

I took it out of the oven and put it on the rack to cool, then went back downstairs where the kiddos were playing.  Audrey asked if I would play (Barbie) dolls with her, so we did.  Just a few minutes later, Luke ventured upstairs.  Sometimes he goes on little lone trips up to the kitchen to play with the alphabet letters on the fridge, or to grab a few kitchen utensils to play with, or just to check things out.  Usually he's not gone for long and comes back to join whatever fun there is to be had with the rest of us.

I really didn't think anything of his disappearance - because, like I said, these one man exploration trips are a pretty regular occurrence - and my doll, Stephanie, and Audrey's doll, Nikki, were busy baking chocolate chip cookies before going to a ball, so clearly we had some big plans to occupy our minds!

Well, a few more minutes passed, and then Luke came back downstairs to play with us.

It wasn't until about 10 minutes later, when I wanted to get a drink of water, that I discovered the cute little pinch marks that formed one long row on one of the loaves of banana bread!  The loaf that was closest to the edge of the counter - which just happens to be right within my little boy's reach.

I'm just glad that he focused his attention on just one of the loaves - since I had plans to give the other two away!

A Big Sunday

Today was a big day.  

(And not because the Super Bowl is just a couple of hours away.)

Today was a big day for Audrey.  During Sharing Time in Primary at church, Audrey gave her very first talk. 

(All of a sudden she looks so grown up... 

and it's not entirely due to her new favorite way to pose for pictures!)

The overall theme for this whole year in Primary is on Choosing the Right.  So, we decided that that's what her talk would be on.  Adam and I sat down with Audrey and asked her what that means - to choose the right.  And what kinds of things she can do that are ways of choosing the right.  Some of the things she came up with were:  to be nice to each other.  To be reverent at church.  Don't yell at others.  Take the Sacrament. Be baptized.  And she concluded with "If we follow Jesus Christ's teachings, we will be happy, and will live with Him again.  I know Jesus lives, and He is my Savior."

She did such a good job!  I was so proud of the way she stood, looking at the large group of her peers, and she talked clearly into the microphone.  I was there to prompt her, but she deserves the most credit.  (I even noticed a few of the adults in the room wiping tears from their eyes.  One of those was Audrey's dad!)

And, as if that weren't enough for one Sunday, we had another first for Audrey just about an hour later during Sacrament meeting.  Being the first Sunday of the month, it was Fast and Testimony meeting.  I felt prompted to get up and bear my testimony, so I walked up and took a seat to wait my turn (there were a few people ahead of me already on the stand).  After about 45 seconds, I looked down the aisle to see Audrey trotting towards me.  She came up and sat in the empty chair next to me and said, "Mom, you're bearing your testimony?"  And I said, "Yes."  Then she looked up at me and said, "I want to bear my testimony, too."  To which I replied, "Ok."

I wasn't sure if she would want to back out when it came to be her turn - the whole congregation of our ward is a much, much larger audience of people to talk too.  (Even I was a little nervous!)

But, she walked right up the little stepping stool in front of the pulpit and, with my help, she bore her very first testimony in Sacrament meeting.  Again, she spoke clearly and confidently.  I was so proud of her!

After Audrey was done, she ran proudly to Adam who was sitting in the congregation, wrestling Luke into submission!  I stayed to bear my own testimony and, as usual, I got teary eyed and emotional.  As I stood saying the things that were in my heart, my sweet little girl came running back down the aisle and stood by my side for the duration of my testimony.  I could tell she was a little worried that I was crying and she asked a couple of times, quietly, "Mom, are you ok?"  and I would smile and nod to her to let her know that everything was fine.  And then when I was done she grabbed my hand and walked me back to our seat in the congregation.  She is such a little sweetheart.  I love her and Luke (and this new one on the way) so, so much!  I feel so blessed to be their mama.

(That was actually the focus of what I said during my testimony - the daunting responsibility of teaching my children correct principles and teachings that will help them find their way through this crazy life.  I referenced a favorite General Conference talk by one of my favorite Apostles - which, if you're interested, you can find here and I also talked about my own righteous parents and their efforts to be good examples and teach their children well.  I feel so blessed to have had them to help form and mold me into the person that I am today.  I am so thankful for stalwart and true believers and defenders of Jesus Christ.  I am reminded of the last line of the famous Robert Frost poem "The Road Not Taken" that ends with,  "And that has made all the difference."  Having true and faithful parents has made all the difference and I hope to emulate that in my own kids' lives.

I am indeed blessed.