Another Blog!

I've wanted to write down all of the funny things that John and I did when we were little for a long time. A blog seems like a great place to share the fun! There are so many of them, that they will need their own blog. I'm giving Johnny access to the new blog, so he can add some of his memories too. Check it out! We were quite wacky kids, it'll be a laugh! Here's the address: http://johnandrenae.blogspot.com You can also access it through this blog. If you scroll to the bottom of my profile, there will be a link. Enjoy!

My Son, Ross is a Nutter!

Here's a story that Ross told us last night. I did my best to write it down as he was narrating:

The Dangerous Box -- by Ross, age six

Once there was a Dangerous Box. Since the first professor died, there's only one professor now. And the professor was working in his office one day. But today, since his bug, boss professor was dead, he had to study rugs.

The rugs were in boxes that were old. The last box was the Dangerous Box. But he did not open it, because he knew it was the Dangerous Box. He saw his bug, professor teacher open it. He saw that this was no ordinary box. When his bug, professor teacher opened it, he saw that the rug inside made it even more dangerous. He didn't open it.

He went to bed early, because he was so tired from studying rugs all day. But at night a big boy and his little sister snuck in. They didn't know that the glowing box was the Dangerous Box. They thought the professor just put a flashlight on to see the Box. They got the professor's opening tools and opened the Box.

Their mother and father never saw their children again! The Dangerous Box had the power to kill people.

My New Game

Here's something that I've started doing for fun. I put on my head phones, stick in a cd, sit down at the piano, and try to play along. Its fun eartraining practice. I'll start out with either the bass, or the melody, then I'll try to add more. I like to see how much of the song I can pick out before the song is over. I'm not very good at it, but I'll get better. Its amusing.

Does Everybody Know About This?

This is totally cool! I've been a library patron forever. I frequent all of the libraries in the area, because they all have different things. They probably get really annoyed with me for returning 30 or so items to the wrong libraries on a regular basis. I don't go to the same library twice in a row, hardly. Of course I know that you can request things from the other libraries anytime, but I've never done it because I don't want the bother of bothering other folks with my requests. Yes, I know that they have interconnected catalogs at all of the libraries, but I am a dork, and I hate to use them at the library, because I have 4 children who are running around all the while, which makes using the computer there somewhat hard to do. I hate to bother people. I don't know why, but I'd almost cut off my own foot before I asked someone else to trim their toe nails. So, what I've been doing forever is this: I have a basic knowledge of where everything is in most of the libraries, so I just travel to all of the libraries and look on the shelves for what I want. Sometimes I find what I want, and often I don't, at which point I sigh a disappointed sigh and go on my way, without asking anybody for help. Silly, yes, but that's me. What I didn't know is that you can do it online! I don't have to bother anybody! They have a catalog online so you can see who has what in all of the libraries, then all you have to do is click, and they send it! So, the next time that I go to the library (the one that is 5 minutes down the road!) I don't have to look for what I want! They will have exactly what I want (stuff that I've been looking for unsuccessfully for a long time, and stuff that I didn't know was out there) behind the desk! Oh what joy!!! I've already requested six things from other libraries (since last night), and I have a list in my head of many more things that I want to request, but I can only use so many things at a time. Maybe I've been living in a hole, not to know that you could do this. Maybe I'm a dork for getting so excited about it, but to me, this is really cool! I've been sick of all of the inventory of all of the libraries in a 20 mile radius for a while. Yay, Yay, hooray! I don't have to travel to the far corners of the earth to get what I want anymore. Mamie and Miranda may never see me again at their library! Actually, I'm sure I'll still go to all of the libraries that I do, I love different things about them, and my kids like to go to the different ones. But I don't have to look fruitlessly anymore! Okay, I'll shut up now. Yes, I am pathetic.

My Brothers!

Sword Fighting

It seems that Ross and Mark have come up with a new bedtime ritual. We send them both to go potty just before turning them in for the night. They've taken to going at the same time. Being boys, they can do that easily. I over heard them last night saying "Let's have a sword fight". Apparently this is a new game, urine stream sword fighting (into the toilet, but still, bound to miss). I, of course, had to put a stop to this fun game. But not before I'd had a chuckle to myself.

Okay, I have the coolest bestfriend in the whole wide world!

Have I ever said how much I love my bestfriend, Amy? I don't know why I got to be her bestfriend (okay, yes our husbands are actually our bestfriends, of course, but I mean among girls), she's way better than me! I think that Amy is just about perfect. One time, just for the heck of it, I actually tried to think of something not to like about her. I litterally could not think of a single thing not to love! No joke! I'm not sure what she likes about me, but man, am I lucky!
She just posted some beautiful pics of my Justice on her blog. (No, the pictures aren't why I love Amy. She was gush-worthy way before she got into pictures!) Check then out: http://www.amyetc.typepad.com/ (I hope you don't mind the link, Amy. I thought you wouldn't mind)

Happy Birthday To MMMEEEE!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe it! What a find! I just stumbled onto something really cool. Thank you to whoever did it! I really don't know who or how. I just stumbled onto about eleven cds worth of music (that I think that I will really like) in a music folder that I did not know existed on my computer!!!!! YAY YAY HOORAY!!!! Some wonderful friend of mine, with good taste, must have come over, at some point, with a bunch of cds and downloaded them onto my computer. Neither Bruce nor I can remember who or when, but what a find! My only guess is Emily McClaine, but why, I don't know. Did we need music to play for prelude at some stake choir thing? But 11 cds worth? Who knows. But way cool! This is me doing the dance of joy!!!
thank you whoever you are!

On top of that Lds.org has a bunch on new music to download and lots of new sheet music. As I've been DYING for something new to play around with on my piano, this is could be really cool! Anyone who knows of some good sites to download good piano music for free, please tell me!! I've been known to spend an hour or more a day at the piano (cuz I love it, and someday I want to be really really good). But lately, I've nothing that I want to play. I'm sick of all of my music. Actually, I recently spent about $35 on new music, but that doesn't go as far as one would hope. Plus, I'm really poor, so I can't afford to do that very often. Anyway, I've played Sally DeFord to death. Love her, but I need something new. I know its out there, but where do I find all of the good music?

"The Battle"

I found this quote in The Ensign, and I thought it was neat:

Elder Melvin J. Ballard (1873-1939) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Taught that "all the assaults that the enemy of our souls will make to capture us will be through the flesh, because it is made up of the unredeemed earth, and he has power over the elements of the earth. The approach he makes to us will be through the lusts, the appetites, the ambitions of the flesh. All the help that comes to us from the Lord to aid us in this struggle will come to us through the spirit that dwells within this mortal body. So these two mighty forces are operating upon us through these two channels.

"...If you would have a strong spirit which has dominance over the body, you must see to it that your spirit receives spiritual food and spiritual exercise...

"The man or woman who is taking neither spiritual food nor spiritual exercise will presently become a spiritual weakling, and the flesh will be master. Whoever therefore is obtaining both spiritual food and exercise will be in control over this body and will keep it subject unto the will of God."