One of My Many Hats

We all wear different hats throughout our days. Each day, I wear that of a maid, cook, chaufeur, marketing assistant, and sometimes, even president of a publishing company. This week, I got a chance to wear that hat for two days at the LDSBA or Latter-Day Saint Bookseller's Association Convention in South Jordan. This year was different from the others with less vendors setting up and less buyers coming to review the wares. Both the high and low point of our location on the floor this year was that we were next to Utah Truffles, which had non-stop free samples of their products. I did really well on the first day, but by 5:00 pm on the second day, I was shaking and looking for a booth that maybe had protein like cheese and eggs to balance out the sugar in my system. (Unfortunately, Hickory Farms wasn't there!)

Here is our booth this year with the new banner that Elizabeth designed.

Each day, Kink and Kevan Clawson and I would welcome the buyers with a bag that included the new book of the year, Hostess to the World about Irene Staples, and Becoming a Great Missionary. Each person who stopped by would get the missionary book and, thanks to John's insight who stopped by at the end of the first day, some chocolate from V Chocolates. (It was pretty hard to compete with our neighbor, although when people would slow down for the free samples, we could grab their attention.) Liz stopped by with her new postcard line with the photos from Tinian and we were able to show off her talents to Granite Distributing for some possible book covers. (Her work really is unbelievable--www.elizabethclawson.com.) So next year brings maybe a couple of new books and hopefully the coffee table book of the World War I envelopes. I'll have to put that fancy hat away for another year . . . .

Why Is Fast Sunday So Slow?

For those of you who may be unfamiliar with Mormon/LDS culture, the first Sunday of every month is called "Fast Sunday," giving all the members of the church the opportunity to fast (skip two meals), donate those funds, and share their testimonies of the truthfulness of the gospel and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. For those of you who have kids, it's more like "Slow Sunday" since they complain the whole time about how hungry they are.

We had the opportunity to participate in a family fast this month (which always makes fasting easier) and broke our fast with one of our favorite meals from Italy: caprese, pasta with bolognese sauce, and, yes, I made panna cotta! On a day where my caloric intake should be remarkably reduced, I think I ate more than double the recommended amount of calories for the day.

In our ward, we fast frequently for the health and well-being of specific ward members. The Fast Sunday following my surgery was dedicated to several struggling with health issues, including myself. I have seen these work miracles, from a single mom surviving stage 4 breast cancer to a man who received three donor organs at one time. I know that the combined faith and prayers are heard by the Lord. We love our family so much, and know that the Lord will bless these family members as needed.

Who Goes to Wal-Mart at Midnight?

Apparently, several hundred fans of the Stephenie Meyer Twilight series. Unfortunately, I was one of them with my friend, Carma. With the release of her fourth book and conclusion to the series, Maggie and I were both anxious to get our hands on it. So Carma and I left home at 11:45 Friday night only to be at the end of an extraordinarily long line that wound through our local Wal-Mart. With 10 or so minutes to wait until they started selling the book, the line ended up going out the door! By 12:30, we had our copies in hand and where she was going to bed because she had to be up extra early to pick her sons up from scout camp, I gave Maggie her copy and started reading my own. I figured by 4:00 a.m., I should probably try to get some sleep. I slept in until 9:30, then picked up the book again. At 8:15 that night, I was finished. John thinks I'm nuts.

My goal was to finish before Sunday since my notorious "I feel so sick" on a Saturday night when Harry Potter 5 was released is well remembered by my family members especially when they came home and I had finished the book but seemed to be feeling miraculously better. Yes, I know it was wrong and I haven't done it since.

There aren't many series that I do read-all-day-a-thons for, and I must admit that it's been a very guilty pleasure. I'm sad that the series has ended, but looking forward to her next book which revists her first from a different point of view. (That gives me another read-a-thon day!)

Griffin's Continuing Recovery

Tonight our ward had a game night at the junior high where they played kick ball and had a large inflatable obstacle course for young and old. It was an enjoyable evening, still about 90 degrees at 9 p.m., but bearable once the sun went down. Griffin really wanted to participate, but we're ever cautious of his activities while he continues to heal. Determined to go, he came out dressed like this (this is afterwards once he had showered and was in his pajamas).Who can argue with a kid like this?

Happy Birthday, Maggie!

Maggie turned 15 today, officially, although Ian couldn't stand it anymore and told her what her present was on Monday. By the time I got home from work at 11:30 a.m., they had already opened it up and had friends over playing Rock Band. It hasn't been quiet in the house since! As you can see at the bottom of the picture, her friends have come over and been bringing wigs and costumes to rock out in.


Here it is, 10:30 at night, and we still have a basement of teenagers.

But let me talk about Maggie. Except for the sibling rivalry between the girls, Maggie is full of life and laughter. She is a joy to have as part of our family. Even her friends commented this afternoon that they love it when she's around because she laughs at everything (and her best friend, Anna, said that being in our house had the same effect on her as she laughs whenever she comes over). Her dad and I love that we tell her a joke and about 15-20 minutes later, we hear her laugh and say, "I get it!". She is so loving and tender with Griffin and a good listener to Ian. She sets an awesome example of modesty for Ellie and all her friends. When it was 107 in Italy and we were sweating, I said to her, "Maggie, you don't have to wear 2 tank tops under your shirt. It's okay." She responded, "Mom, modest is hottest, and if that means literally, then that's okay." I couldn't believe it. She tries so hard to do the right thing and is always aware of the influence she has with others by the choices she makes and the example she sets. We love you very much, Maggie, and are grateful to have you as part of our family.

P.S. I'm locking you in the house for your 16th birthday!

It's Done!

After weeks of being in "remodel" mode, the living room is finally finished. John spent nearly 12 hours replacing the lights and, thanks to the kindness of our friend, neighbor and electrician, Doug, they work! (If any of you watch the show Monk, I was sure our house was going to turn into the house he purchased.) Once you delve into the bare bones of your old house, you find all sorts of things that need repaired. I chose not to know and not to find out any further what could possibly be behind the walls. While they finished up the lights, I got the curtains up and am so very pleased with the final result. I guess I'd have to be honest and say there's some paint touch-up work to do, but that will be done without rush.

Living in Utah gives us the distinct advantage of adding a holiday to the work schedule. Thursday the 24th was Pioneer Day. Our local ward celebrates every year at the house of one of our neighbors with an enormous breakfast. They provide all the pancakes you can eat, and everyone else brings something to contribute. This family has a tree house, trampoline, zip line, swingset, basketball court, and lots of room for tables and chairs to be set up. It's one of my kids' favorites of the year, so we were there bright and early. John, unfortunately, is never able to attend since his line of work doesn't allow for the 24th off. We ate until we could eat no more, then headed home to rest it off until lunch when I had a promise to keep for Griffin. During his brief hospital stay, he begged and pleaded to go anywhere else, but mostly to Carl's Jr. (Not for the food--for the playland.) I told him that if he could just hang in there, I would take him on Pioneer Day. So still full from breakfast, Griffin, Maggie, my friend Cherise and her mother Joyce, and I headed off to the playland. I let him play for about 20 minutes while the rest of us "ate" and then we took off for home where I dropped he and Mags off so Cherise, Joyce and I could make a dent in the missionary shopping for Cherise's son who was leaving the next week to India for two years.

Maggie had her birthday "party" that night which consisted of a banana split bar for her and 8 of her friends followed by night games at the local junior high and a sleepover at her friends' house. It was the easiest party we've ever done and I'm thinking it's a new standard for everyone--you can eat here, but then leave! She received one of her presents, a new set of scriptures. She'll get her main present Wednesday for her birthday. Ian knows what it is and can hardly stand it. He keeps telling her that she wants it early, but she's not budging, I'm sure because of his anxiousness.

Griffin still has quite a bump on his head. He tried to use it to his advantage today when it was time to get ready for church. Unfortunately, none of his negotiation tactics worked and he had to go to church with the rest of us. He seems to be recovering, although he said that his head still really hurts. He's in desperate need of a haircut, but since that involves touching his head, he's off the hook for now.

Ellie surprised me this morning by walking in after her shower and saying, "Feel how smooth my legs are!" to which I replied, "Tell me you didn't shave your legs." She had. She said she was tired of Maggie always saying the same thing and she couldn't compare hers. Now she can, and we've welcomed her into the world of shaving for the rest of her life. She said, "Well, no one told me THAT!" It's a cruel world, isn't it.

Ian is in full swing with the student council. With Sophomore Day less than three weeks away, they've been meeting every other day to get things ready for the new school year. I can't say that I've ever seen him happier. It's been such a good experience for him.

Promise Me You Don't Have Any Leeches!

I can't believe I have to use this graphic again. John and I took some time to go out Friday night to get new light fixtures for the living room when we received a phone call from Ellie. Griffin was going down the hill on his scooter and had fallen off. He was scraped up a bit, but Maggie had been able to help him using all her girls camp training. The problem was he hit his head and Ellie was sure he had a concussion. We figured she was overreacting, but told her we would be right home. (Fortunately, Lowe's is less than a mile away.) He didn't even pull the car in all the way joking that one of us would be on our way to the hospital.

When John checked out Griffin's head, he looked at me and said, "Um, we need to get him to the hospital. Feel this." I assured him that I didn't need to feel anything but would take him. He said, "No, you have to feel this." Even as I was touched the edge of the goose egg, I could tell it was bad. So we were off to the hospital with another head injury, different child.

Griffin was really worried about what was going to happen. As we encountered each person, he would pitifully ask, "Do you have a needle?" to which everyone could answer, "No, I don't." That was followed by, "Are you going to use leeches on me?" Now, where this came from, I can't tell you, but he was convinced that leeches were somehow involved in his treatment. He also would ask if he was going to die. They were able to reassure him that this was probably the one place they could help prevent that, so he didn't need to worry. The evaluated him and took him in a wheelchair (the highlight of his stay) for a CT scan where they confirmed a fractured skull. As they debated whether or not to keep him overnight for observation, they realized his anxiety levels were so high that he would probably recover better from home. So I got the night shift and was on duty to wake him every two hours to see if he could answer simple questions. The only one that worried me was the 4 a.m. awaking because he couldn't tell me much and the answers were coming out as gibberish. It took about 15 minutes of trying to rouse him to a sufficient level of consciousness, but once we got there, it was clear that he was okay, just really tired from all the activities and injury. I, on the other hand, didn't sleep at all that night (yes, I was really fresh and firing on all cylinders for Maggie's BYU interview).

He stayed home from church yesterday where we re-enacted Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty (granted, on a smaller scale). He still has a headache, which we certainly expect, and a diminished appetite and activity level, but seems to be mending well. I only hope he'll get back on his scooter again--this time with the helmet he's supposed to wear when riding it.

I guess we've achieved our hat trick of head injuries with the kids. Only Ian left. Maybe I'll make him walk around with a helmet 24/7.