Happy Puppy!

Late blog post is only a few days late, right?

Anyway, still getting used to all the new things here. It's all finally becoming normal to me.

In other, more important, news, we got a dog! We've been waning one for awhile but the apartments we were in in Utah didn't allow dogs. So we went to a local animal shelter and picked out this little cutie.

His name is Happy (that was the name he had and he responds to it so we kept it) and he's a 5 year old chihuahua. He is the sweetest dog I've ever met. He's a total cuddle bug and he gets along pretty well with Will. Which really means he just ignores him. :) Plus, since he's more mature he's already house broken and knows basic commands. I don't know how we got so lucky. :) He also plays well with other dogs. Can you say perfect dog?

Anyway, that's all I've got. Look forward to next weeks post, I'm planing on making a big announcement that I've been holding in for a while.

Well thanks for reading!

Now in Colorado!

Okay, so this has been the craziest past few weeks ever! I'll try to sum it up for everyone as briefly as possible.

So on Aug. 3rd we found out that Daniel got the job in Denver. We were very excited, I laughed and cried at the same time and there was much joy. That following weekend we went to visit some friends in Idaho. On Monday the 8th we found out that Daniel's start date was going to be the 22nd. That gave us exactly 2 weeks to find an apartment, get a moving truck and move. Not a lot of time. But we made it work.

Then on the 19th we packed the truck and left Utah in the wee hours of the 20th. It was a 9 hour drive but overall, it went pretty well. Will was calm and napped 80% of the time. But by the time we got to our new place we were exhausted and all I wanted to do was curl up on the floor and go to sleep.

We've been here a little over a week now, it hasn't been the smoothest or easiest experience but I'm happy we moved. There's still a couple things we need, like a washer (our old one broke just before we moved, figures, right?) but overall, all is well. :)

Depression Hurts...

Have you seen those ads on TV for that anti-depression drug? Their motto goes something like: "Depression hurts, X-drug can help." Well I came up with my own motto today, and it goes something like: "Depression hurts, getting off your ass can help."

So I've been pretty down the last week or so. As you may know, Daniel has been trying to find a job in Colorado. He had a really promising interview two weeks ago and we have heard nothing back from them. Now I know this kind of stuff can take time, but the person Daniel interviewed with made it sound like it was a done deal and he would get in touch in a few days.

Two weeks later, nothing. We were really pinning our hopes on this. It felt like everything was going to fall into place and it's been hard for me to accept that things aren't moving as fast as we had hoped. Thus, I got depressed.

When I get like that I just want to shut down. All I want to do is watch TV and sleep. And unlike a lot of people in the country, when I get upset I can't eat. I don't feel like eating and the thought of food makes my stomach turn. So for the last couple of days that is what I have done. I've shut down, minus the time and energy it takes to care for Will. If it wasn't for Will, I might not have gotten out of bed.

Now I know this all sounds really melodramatic and that's not my intention, I'm just wanting to share my experience and the things I found that help me get out of it. So, as I said in the beginning, "Depression hurts, getting off your ass can help." And that is what I have done. I've gotten up, I've gotten dressed, done a little cleaning and now I'm updating my blogs. Once Will wakes up from his nap we're going to go shopping and maybe after dinner we'll go play outside or something. It's amazing the difference you feel just getting out of your PJ's and into real clothes. Not to mention how nice it is to walk outside and see that big orange ball up there that keeps us warm.

I wouldn't say I'm a depressed person or anything, but these moods come up every once in a while. And even though I know it's happening, it's hard to pull out of. It takes a good cry, a bit of whinnying about why my life sucks and then talking my self out of it. It's a load of fun.

I wouldn't say I'm totally happy right now though. There's a lot of things I'm not happy with in my life right now, but most of those things are out of my control, a.k.a. trying to find Daniel a job/moving. I'm a control freak, an impatient control freak, so this has been rough for me.

BUT, as long as I get off my ass and do stuff; as long as I keep moving forward and just take stuff a day at a time, I'm sure it'll all turn out fine. :)

So kids, what's today's motto? Depression hurts, getting off your ass can help. :)

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Please leave comments or something, just so that I know people read this. :D kthnxbye!

Nerd Mom

First I'd like to apologize for not updating last week. I say I'm going to update every Friday and it doesn't take me long to forget. :) Anyway, real quick before we get into the meat of this blog, no word yet on the job for Daniel. We have to wait for their decision on Monday or Tuesday. So here's hoping *crosses fingers*

I'm a nerd and thus, my children will most likely be nerds as well. So, I figured that I'd start the indoctrination/brain washing early for Will. A week or so ago I found the entire Star Trek: Next Generation series on Netflix. I was thrilled because even when I was young I had a crush on Captain Picard and on Wesley Crusher. So I started watching the show and I average about 2 episodes a day.

Normally, when I watch a show on Netflix I skip the intro credits, but Will started getting excited to see the stars ("star" was one of his first words) and watch the Enterprise whoosh across the screen. Then, just the other day I heard Will trying to hum a few notes of the theme. It made my Mommy Nerd heart proud. :)

I think the next step will either be Dragon Heart or Star Wars. Gotta keep the sci-fi/fantasy love going strong in the blood line. :D

So tell me, fellow nerd parents, what nerdy things have you gotten your kids into? Love to read comments. ;)

Pimpage!

Today I'd like to pimp one of my all time favorite websites Absolute Write Forums. It's a forum for writers of all types, ages, and levels of experience. So if you like to write and you want to connect to other writers, get feedback on stuff you've written, and just have a good time come join me. :) My username on there is Kricket (as if you couldn't guess).

Well, that's it, thank you for reading and I love you all!

Trying to Move & Dolls

This is going to be short because I'm having a hard time coming up with topics to do every week. :) I don't want this to be an online journal so I promise that next week I'll have a more interesting topic. Maybe I'll do another vlog since that's the only medium I get an responses too. :(

Anyway, Daniel and I have been planning on moving to Colorado this year and Daniel has been in the process of looking for a job there. Well, Daniel has a job interview next week! *happy dance* We're super excited.

Of course, the idea of Daniel being away for a couple days is kind of weird. We've never spent a night away from each other before. But I'm sure I'll be fine. *whispers* he's kind of a bed hog Plus, Daniel will be taking my Vibe down there because we're not sure the Bug could do that kind of distance. So, I guess I'll be learning how to drive a stick shift this weekend. I'm a little less excited about that.

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Pimpage!

This site isn't new to me but it has recently gone through some big and cool updates, so I wanted to mention it here. I love me some Doll Divine. They have some really fun and cute dress up doll games and 90% of them are really easy to use. And now you can set up you own account with them and save your creations into galleries and have people vote on them. Just to show you a couple that I have made...

Well thank you for reading, love you all!

Updates, New Car & Pimpage

So I always intend to update this on some kind of regular basis, but that doesn't work out so well. But I will, I swear! If I put it in writing I can do it.... Okay, here goes, I will update my blogs every Friday! There I said it, now I have to do it. It's in writing and floating in the endlessness of the internet.

Anyway! This last month was fun. My parents came to visit at the beginning of the month. We went to Hill Air Force Base Museum and Antelope Island. (Pictures coming soon)

Then a couple weeks ago we went to the Hogle Zoo to see the robotic dinosaurs they have there. Yeah... we go to the zoo to see animals that don't exist anymore. :) But see how cool they are!

This one sprays water at you and is Daniel's all time favorite dinosaur.

And then last weekend we bought a new car!

It's a 2005 Pontiac Vibe and I love it!

The old car had some issues that we had to fix and after talking to the mechanic we decided that this car wasn't going to last us much longer and it was time to get a new one that's more reliable. When researching cars the Vibe was one I was wanting but we were having a hard time finding one but we got really lucky at the dealership and now I'm very happy.

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I Pimp What I Love

First: Writer's Digest Shop. I got a great set of books and a corresponding independent study course with a couple webinars there for an awesome price. Should have cost me about $560 but I got it for $119. If that isn't a great deal then I don't know what is.

Second: E-Mealz. Daniel heard about this on the Dave Ramsey show and we've just started it this week. I'm already in love with it. It gives you five dinners every week with a shopping list. You can choose from a bunch of different plans. They have stuff for large families, picky eaters, all types of diets and ones that have you shop at one store. We use the Wal-Mart for 2 plan and it's saved us money. I don't cook as much as I should and we spend a lot of money on fast food because of my laziness, so this has been great for us so far. And the best part, you only pay $5/month for this. It's so worth it for us. :)

Third: Anniversary Inn. We stayed there for our 3rd anniversary this year and I just love that place. It's such a nice little get away.

And that's all folks! I'll be updating my Writing Blog here in a few minutes as well, so go check that out.

Thanks for reading, love you all!

Tolerance, Love & The Family

So I just wanted to share this article I read in the June 2011 Ensign. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's a magazine that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints puts out every month that is filled with lots of great articles. The article that I'll be talking about is entitled: "Defending the Family in a Troubled World" by Elder Bruce D. Porter. I'll only be talking about a small part of the article but you can read the entire thing here on the LDS Website.

The Shifting Definition of Tolerance

Until recently in our national history, tolerance referred to racial and religious non-discrimination. It meant civility in the political arena; in other words, respecting the right of others to express their views, even if we do not agree with them. It meant treating all people with decency and respect. Such tolerance is an important and vital part of our American heritage.

Today, however, the world is in danger of abandoning all sense of absolute right or wrong, all morality and virtue, replacing them with an all-encompassing “tolerance” that no longer means what it once meant. An extreme definition of tolerance is now widespread that implicitly or explicitly endorses the right of every person to choose their own morality, even their own “truth,” as though morality and truth were mere matters of personal preference. This extreme tolerance culminates in a refusal to recognize any fixed standards or draw moral distinctions of any kind. Few dare say no to the “almighty self” or suggest that some so-called “lifestyles” may be destructive, contrary to higher law, or simply wrong.

When tolerance is so inflated out of all proportions, it means the death of virtue, for the essence of morality is to draw clear distinctions between right and wrong. All virtue requires saying no firmly and courageously to all that is morally bankrupt.

Curiously enough, this new modern tolerance is often a one-way street. Those who practice it expect everyone to tolerate them in anything they say or do, but show no tolerance themselves toward those who express differing viewpoints or defend traditional morality. Indeed, their intolerance is often most barbed toward those of religious conviction. But let there be no misunderstanding or deception: the First Amendment right of free speech applies to religious speech as well as to other kinds of speech. Believers of all faiths have every right to participate in and share their convictions in the public arena.

Now let us go one step further. Even in its original and correct connotation, tolerance is surely a secondary virtue in comparison with the far higher virtue of love. Certainly it is good to be tolerant of those who are different than we are, treating them with kindness and civility. But love, or charity, is the highest of all, and it is far better to genuinely love those with whom we differ. When we truly love all of God’s children in a Christlike way, we will desire to bring them unto Christ, the fountain of all happiness. This means proclaiming the truth, defending that which is right, and in a mild voice inviting all to walk the path of Christ. By defending the traditional family, Latter-day Saints bless all people whether others recognize it now or not.

So perfect and exalted was Christ’s love for God’s children that He took upon Himself the penalty for their sins, descending below all things in the Garden of Gethsemane and dying for us on the cross at Golgotha. Yet He never compromised virtue nor tolerated sin in the slightest degree (seeD&C 1:31). He treated the woman taken in adultery with love and respect, putting her accusers to shame; nevertheless He said, “Go, and sin no more” (John 8:11). The Master abhorred sin, because sin is the enemy of the human soul.

God’s love is sometimes described as unconditional. It is true that God loves all of His children on earth no matter how often or how far they may stray. But while God’s love is all-encompassing, His blessings are highly conditional, including the very blessing of being able to feel and experience His love. The further human beings stray from the path of righteousness, the less they will be capable of feeling divine love, because it is conveyed into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. This does not mean that God loves us less when we stray, only that we, by our choices and actions, have distanced ourselves from His love. How wondrous, then, is the gift of repentance, by which we can be brought back into accord with His will and feel again of His love.

I thought I'd share this because I agree with everything Elder Porter says here. And I like the way he defines and explains the way tolerance has changed. My parents were here visiting last week and we got to talking about how some of the very liberal media is talking so loud and saying that everyone has a right to do whatever they want, as long as "no one gets hurt". They talk so loud that it's hard to hear the other side. And some of these liberal people can be very rude when stating their opinion and they refuse to listen to those of us who believe differently.

Now I'm not saying that conservatives can't be the same way sometimes. But I do find it interesting when Elder Porter talks about tolerance sometimes being a one-way street. Where one side just talks and never lets the other side get a word in. I find this behavior annoying and rude, thus why I don't watch much news or even listen to popular talk radio.

And I like how Elder Porter talks about tolerance and love. Tolerance is about respect; respecting other opinions and beliefs which means not being mean or rude or making fun of people for those opinions and beliefs. And then there is love. Loving others who are different from us is harder, but it is also "the far higher virtue". And trust me when I say you can tolerate/respect someone but not really like or love them. Learning to love someone so different is extremely hard, I know from personal experience. And it's something I still struggle with sometimes.

So I strongly suggest that you read the entire article. It covers a lot of different points about families and all the things out there that threaten them. I just wanted to discuss this small bit because it stuck out so strongly to me.

And tell me what you think. Do you see the definition of tolerance changing? Have you experienced intolerance of any sort? And for those that go and read the entire article, what are your thoughts? Do you think the traditional family is in danger? Have we become a selfish people? I've said my small bit, so tell me what YOU think! :) My blogs have been sparking some interesting discussions and I love it.