Religion is a Choice

Back in either my junior or senior year of high school I remember sitting and talking to an acquaintance in my Drama class named Ali. We were discussing religion. It was a very interesting topic because I am Mormon (or LDS if you prefer) and she was a practicing Wiccan. I don’t believe you can find two more different religions.

This was not the first time we had talked about religion. Growing up in the middle of Georgia, just south of Atlanta, both Ali and I found ourselves outcast. Surrounded by a bunch of self righteous Christianities, we were both told we were going to Hell numerous times. I’m sure in many people’s minds Ali and I were both evil Satan worshippers.

So, one day as we were exchanging questions and answers about our religions, Ali asked me, “Were you just raised Mormon or did you choose it?”

The question threw me for a moment. No one had ever asked me such an intelligent question regarding religion. Most questions went along the lines of “Do you have horns?” or “How many moms do you have?” (seriously) After a second of thought I said, “Well, yes, I was raised Mormon. But now that I’m older, I have chosen to be Mormon.”

I remember Ali smiling and being impressed with my answer and I felt very proud. I believe that the conversation then went in the direction of talking about how most people just go with the religion they were born with and never question or find out for themselves what is true.

And now, 5 or 6 years later, I still remember that moment. I think that might have been the first time I really owned being Mormon. That I wasn’t afraid to say it and that I wasn’t afraid of the ridicule I might get. Admittedly, this didn’t mean that I was shouting it from the rooftops, not that I needed to, most of the people I grew up with already knew.

I believe in people making decisions for themselves. And I also believe that whatever decision you make for yourself about religion you should do it for yourself. Choose the religion that is right for you. That makes since to not only your heart, but to your mind as well. And even if in the long run you choose a religion that isn’t the most correct, I believe that God will give you bonus points for faith and dedication.

Religion is a choice, so choose wisely and be grateful if you live in a community and/or country that allows you to make that decision.

And if you’re interested in learning more about the Mormon faith, feel free to ask me questions or to visit this very cool web site [mormon.org]. And the next time that pair of nicely dressed young men riding bikes and wearing name tags come to your door, let them in and talk to them. They pay money so that they can come talk to you and your neighbors for two years. Give them a little slack. :D

New Blog Theme!!

So I was reading a very interesting article in this month’s issue of Writer’s Digest [http://www.writersdigest.com/GeneralMenu/] (they don't have the particular article on their website yet, but here's the website) about blogging and how to make it more successful. And it gave me some ideas of things I could do with this blog.

In the past I have just treated this blog as an online, public journal of shorts. It was very boring for the most part and the posts that got the most comments were ones with funny stories and such, like Daniel’s post “Fly Wars” [http://kricketskonfessions.blogspot.com/2010/08/fly-wars-special-entry-from-daniel.html.] Most blogs have a theme of some sort and I decided that mine needed one too. But what could I write about that would be different/interesting compare to everyone else’s? I already have a blog for just writing, as sadly unkempt as that is, so I needed something that truly reflects me.

Thus, I made a list of things that describe me, what I am. Here is that list,

I am:

o A wife

o A working mom

o A Mormon (LDS)

o A writer

o Southern born and raised

o NOT a Utard

Upon looking at this list it dawned on me that I have a lot to write about. I have a lot to say and a lot of opinions that I can share. And maybe, just maybe, there are others like me who view the world in a similar way. I’ve always prided myself on being different, but sometimes, being different can be kind of lonely. So I’m hoping that in this way I can find and connect to others that, despite what cultural boundaries one was raised in or lives in currently, look at things from outside the box.

The name of this blog is still going to be Kricket’s Konfessions (did you know that confessions spelled with a “K” is actually how it’s spelled in German? I didn’t know that until after naming this blog), because I have finally found what it is I want to confess. And I will now be posting on a regular basis; I’m thinking every Tuesday and Thursday. And maybe on Saturdays, just depends on what I have to talk about.

So I hope y’all will enjoy this as much as I and please feel free to comment and tell me what you think! :)

Scentsy!

I am now a Scentsy Consultant! Very exciting. If you want to know more, then visit my website: https://ksiemens.scentsy.us

So I had my first party about a week ago and it went really well. Everyone bought stuff and I've booked 3 parties from it. I even got my mom in Georgia excited about it and we're trying to figure out how to do such a long distance party. I'm having a lot more success than I thought I would this early on.

It helps that's I'm really excited about the product. I love this stuff. I just bought my fourth warmer the other day and a bunch of new scents. I'll have to take pictures of what I have so that everyone can see how very awesome these things are! :D

Road Trips!

The past two weekends, Daniel, Will and I have been doing a lot of traveling. The weekend before last we drove to Denver, Colorado to visit my sister Michelle and her husband Josh; and then over Labor Day weekend we drove to Idaho with Daniel’s brother, Jared, to visit our friends Josh and Calli. I have found that road trips are very educational. And here follows a list of things that I have learned.

1. Cruise control is the best invention since the car itself. When we drove to Colorado, I started the 8 hour drive. After weaving our way through the mountains to get out of Utah I felt my right leg start to cramp up from my ankle to my knee. Holding the same position for that long, pushing down on the gas pedal, my leg was in rebellion. I was looking for a good place to pull over when Daniel asked, “Are you using the cruise control?” “This car has cruise control?” For some reason it never crossed my mind to check, maybe because I thought my car was too old for that sort of thing. So after spending about 10 minutes trying to figure out how the darn thing worked I was set! I could have driven the whole way like that if it wasn’t past 5 pm when we started. I drove a little more than half way though.

2. Short cuts are not always short. So someone in Daniel’s family told us about this short cut from I-80 to I-25 in Wyoming so we decided to take it. It starts in Laramie, WY and takes you to around Fort Collins, CO. Basically keeping you from having to go to Cheyenne, WY. So at first everything was going good, the road we were on was a little slower than the interstate, but it was late at night with no traffic. But at the end of the road we ended up having to weave our way through a bunch of little neighborhoods to get on to I-25. When you’re driving 20mph for 10-15 minutes, it totally negates any time you just saved. Needless to say, we didn’t take the same way going home.

3. Wendy’s doesn’t believe in changing tables, apparently. We stopped at a few Wendy’s on both trips and none of them had a changing table, 0! It was a little bit ridiculous. But, in retrospect, the front seat of my car is probably the cleaner of the two.

4. Formula To-Go is ingenious. Gas stations would make a killing if they sold them.

5. Will loves dogs and dogs love him. I’m sure one of the first things he’s going to ask for as a birthday/Christmas present will be a dog. Michelle and Josh have two dogs and they were very well behaved.

6. There are a lot of cows in northern Utah and Idaho, and where there are cows, there will be flies. Always make sure you have lots of washer fluid and good wind shield wipers, it’s very hard to see through bug guts.

7. Wyoming is quite possibly the most boring state to drive through. There is nothing out there. Just a lot of wind, and scatterings of windmills (which are kind of fun to watch for some odd reason).

8. DON’T FORGET THE STROLLER! Babies are heavy. You should only carry one while walking around a park if you’re trying to get a workout.

9. DON’T FORGET THE DIAPERS! Yes, you can go to the store and buy more, but it’s still a hassle.

10. Tacos are a favorite when you have guest coming over, apparently. That was dinner in both Colorado and Idaho, and both on Sunday night, strange…

11. Be nice to semi’s and they’ll be nice to you. I’ve always had this rule when driving, but it’s always very important to remember while on long road trips. I believe that every time you are nice to a semi you get a couple more points in the Car Karma department and that comes in real handy when you’re milliseconds away from getting in a wreck. Trust me, it works!

And there you have it, the things I’ve learned on our recent road trips.

On a side note, I’m writing this post at work right now, and it’s my birthday. L I hate having to work on my birthday. But I’m 24 today! Yay, I’m old!

Fly Wars! A Special Entry From Daniel!

So for the last couple of days we have been attacked by some crazy killer flies. It started with one fly. It was huge and pestered me by dive bombing at my face and then spinning circles around my head while laughing hysterically. I thought this fly is not going to get away with this. It Must DIE!!!!

Since we don’t own a fly swatter I resorted to other means of fly destruction, the rubber band gun. For those that don’t know, a rubber band gun is a very effective way to kill flies. And it’s fun. The problem with fly swatters is when you miss, the fly takes off and you have to chase it around waiting for it to land on a flat enough surface to smash the pesky thing against. Not so with rubber band guns. Almost any surface works and, if you happen to have a nice repeating semi auto rubber band gun, the flies don’t move if you miss! They are totally oblivious to the fact that a whole bunch of killer high speed bands of rubber are smacking the area around them. Once your aim is honed in they’re done for. There is a down side to rubber band guns though. That is the slim but possible chance of shooting your eye out. So far it’s never happened to me; knock on wood.

So I dug out my trusty rubber band gun I made while I was a teenager. It’s a single shot rifle with a wire connecting the classic clothes pin to the trigger allowing for a nice gun feel and better accuracy. (I’m not obsessed really!!!!) So I dig out my rubber band gun and come to find out I’m out of ammo. I dig through the whole house looking every where to find even one rubber band. …..nothing. I am rubber bandless and the fly keeps mocking me with its hysterical laughter and its loops around my head.

So the fly lives another day and I don’t know how it happened, but it seemed that the fly either thought this was so funny he called in two buddies or he strangely separated into two more smaller flies. So now I had three pesky flies zooming through the house like the Red Baron. Dive bombing me and driving me nuts with the buzzing. I decided I was done!

I resorted to an ancient art I learned from an old shaman aka my father in law. I decided to go at these flies with hand to hand combat using a technique I’ve come to call Flyjitsu. In order to master the technique you need to be as stealthy as a hawk and as quick as a snake….well not really its actually pretty easy. You place your hands in the clapping position about eight inches apart. Wait for the fly to land then go right above him and simply clap. Flies really are dumb creatures. They will see your hands move and think “Oh NO I better take off!” Then being your hands are above the fly they fly right in and are smashed. Then of course you must wash your hands. I killed two flies this way almost in a row but, the other one must have been watching cause he figured out Flyjitsu’s weakness.

Flyjitsu only really works when the fly lands on a flat horizontal surface like a table. If the fly lands on a vertical surface, like a wall, the fly has the option of flying up or down and always picks the opposite of where your hands are. So this pesky. little green. nasty fly seeing its comrades go down decides it will have its revenge by pestering me more and not landing on any horizontal surfaces EVER. It buzzed around for half an hour with out landing at all. Then when it did land it landed on every vertical surface in the apartment. After about an hour of this I had had it. So I called around trying to find any body close by that could get me a stupid rubber band.

My sister Sarah came to my rescue and brought a small rubber band ball she had laying around. I pulled a rubber band from it and went hunting! I spotted the fly and followed it until it landed on yet another vertical surface, which is actually perfect when it comes to rubber band guns. I got in position, aimed and fired. In one shot the fly was down. It’s little life ended with in ten seconds of me having received the rubber bands. I stood pleased at the perfect silence that now filled my apartment. At least until another bullet bike went by.

I felt very accomplished and was very happy to now live in a perfectly flyless apartment. I looked around holding my rubber band gun like an old western sheriff looks over his now peaceful town. Then it hit me. I had all these rubber band’s, a good rubber band gun, and no flies! I’m bored again!!!! All well maybe I’ll take it to my parents house.

GA Trip Pictures!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/album.php?aid=2152437&id=46705106

This is the Facebook album of some of the 500 pictures that Daniel and I took while on our trip.

Facebook was easier to use to download the pictures. :)

The Vacation Log!

Yesterday, Daniel, Will and I returned from our week long vacation to Georgia. We had a blast! But before I start on the log I'll say now that pictures will be coming soon. All the pictures are currently sitting on Daniel's camera, waiting to be downloaded.

Anyway, we flew out to GA on Saturday the 24th at about 1am. Will slept the whole time; he was restless, but he slept. Daniel and I watched Date Night (very funny) and got an hour of sleep here and there. We landed in GA about 6:30am local time (it's a 3 & 1/2 hour flight) and my parents came to pick us up.

This was the first time my dad has ever seen Will. My mom got to see him when he was three weeks old, but my dad wasn't able to come out to Utah then. We went back to my parents house, ate breakfast, talked and napped. My sister Carrie came in from Valdosta, GA around noon and then my mom, Carrie and I went shopping.

I got a new shirt for work and then feel asleep in the dressing room while Carrie and Mom tried on clothes. Went back to the house and took another nap, dinner, talk and then to bed for the night.

The next day, Sunday, we all went to church and it was nice to see some of the people from the old home ward. Carrie left later that afternoon and the rest of us spent the day packing for our road trip to Louisiana the next day.

So, around 7am Monday morning, we drove to Slidel, LA (a 6 hour drive). Most of my extended family lives there and that's where my parents grew up. I hadn't been there for about 4 or 5 years; not since before hurricane Katrina. We stayed at my Grandpop's house (my dad's dad), visited my Grandmother (mom's mom), and played a lot of Wii 100 pin bowling with Grandpop.

On Tuesday, Daniel got to meet a couple pairs of my aunts and uncles and learned the art of poker (they don't play with real money anymore, but trust me, they used to :P). And then we drove back to GA on Wednesday.

On Thursday we went to the Georgia Aquarium where Daniel took about 500 pictures of fish and Will was captivated by all the color and movement. Daniel and I bought a couple shirts and got a cute little book about dolphins for Will that he can play with in the bath.

On Friday Daniel and Dad went shooting (any reason for the boys to play with Dad's AR 15) and I hung around the house with Mom. That evening Daniel and I went to visit my old friend Gina, her husband Josh and their little boy (who's only a month younger than Will) Breyden. It was so much fun to reconnect and catch up on each other's lives. We stayed there way too late and we still had to pack to go home the next day.

So Saturday, we headed home. Our flight was delayed, but not much, and we got back to Utah around 10am. Will was awake most of this flight and only a little fussy because he got tired of being stuck on Mommy and Daddy's laps.

Over all, it was a fantastic trip! Will was in a good mood 90% of the time. He was happy and smiling and friendly and I am so proud of him. He got dragged all over the country and was pretty easy going about all of it.

But I know we're all glad to be home. I love Georgia and I miss it all the time, but it's good to be back in my own space and not be living out of a suitcase. I know Will is glad to be home, and we got back just in time because he's teething again.

It was a very successful trip and everyone was happy. And now i's time to go back to work and back to the real world. Boo! :(