Love this job

Have I mentioned in the last 5 minutes how much I love being in nursery?

I have fallen head-over-heals in love with every single one of the little munchkins in our ward. And, I can't wait to have more little ones come in!

I was called to be a nursery leader around September. I've never been in nursery, even when my kids were little. I've stayed to help or fill in when needed but never week after week.

After a few months it was my turn to teach. All of the leaders take a month that works well for them. Since I was the new person I watched for a while until I got the routine down. Last month is was my turn to teach. I missed a week so someone filled in. I figured I'd teach an extra week.

But . . . I LOVED IT!!!

So, I decided not to give the manual back. I've been teaching this month too. Why, because I love it.

On Sunday afternoon I look at next week's lesson. I read through it and jump on to the Sugardoodle website. (I adore this place.) There are fantastic ideas on there as well as coloring pages and clip-art. Monday and Tuesday I mull over the lesson and come up with a theme. I put this theme into the lesson, coloring page and *drum roll please* our activity. Let's be honest, in our group of 14 kids, there are probably 3 kids that can sit and color nicely for more than 7 seconds. We need an activity to occupy time instead of gettin out the toys again.

Our first week's theme was having a healthy body. I like to have the kids participate since it keeps them interested. I use file folder activities and have every child match one piece. This file folder had things that were healthy for our body. Then we sang a silly song about growing up. We sat down and pulled out the coloring page. I've found that simple pages are better. For the activity I made peanut-butter play dough that we molded (smashed) onto a paper with a body shape on it. Since it was made out of edible ingredients, we didn't sweat the 18mo babies eating it instead. Successful first lesson.

The second week we had a jelly bean theme. I couldn't find a file folder lesson so we posted paper jelly beans with pics them onto a big poster board. The kids got a jelly bean to eat after they had helped so nicely. Then came out the standard coloring page. I had put a poem relating jelly beans to family (thanks Sugardoodle) in a heart on a 2nd paper. We used white frosting as glue and put jelly beans around the heart signifying loving our family. We did have some paper licking and lots of jelly bean consumed but it was fun.

Since I got a feeling that my food activities weren't necessarily approved of I thought I'd switch it around a bit. The next week's theme was Prayer Bears. I found a cute file folder game on prayer and all the kids participated twice. We sang a song intended to use "teddy bear" but changed it to "prayer bear." Time for coloring page. I made 6in bears filled with wheat for each child. It was a good way to rotate 20lbs of wheat! For our activity we glued eyes and buttons on our prayer bears. This one was a huge hit! The next day at a basketball game one of the moms told me that her daughter hadn't put her prayer bear down. Ugh, melt my heart. (pic of prayer bear at the beginning of this post)

I still haven't given the book back and we're well into December now. I don't intend to either.

This week's lesson is on having a family forever. It took me a little while to come up with a theme for this one but I finally got it. Building blocks. My sweet husband is going to draw me a big picture of a temple on poster board for the lesson. After he so willingly helps I'm going to cut it up into squares (blocks). We'll build our temple and family. We'll have the same temple on our coloring page. Then, I've made a set of little wooden blocks for each of the kids so they can build their own family around the temple. I'm pretty proud of this one.

This week has been a week from hell. We've had no fewer than 3 activities for multiple children every night. Tuesday I was ready to throw in the towel. I had 145 basketball jerseys delivered to my house 2 hours before they had to be handed out. My daughters had a dress rehearsal and I was helping backstage. AJ was performing in the show. Dallon had a basketball game as well as Kason. Rob had home teaching appts during this time. When all the kids were in bed and I looked at the homework I had to correct I knew I needed a little time out. I ignored everything that had to be done and started working on my nursery lesson. Some might think that it's just one more thing to add to my stress but it's not. It's something I love and enjoy. Taking that half hour and coming up with a theme was exactly what I needed. I needed the simplicity of the lesson, the strength of the gospel and a reminder of the children's uncomplicated love for everyone. It was this one moment focused on my nursery lesson that has kept me moving the last 2 days.

I need these little people more than they need me. I know my testimony grows surrounded by the simple lessons and love in nursery. They are a light of the Gospel in my life. I'm beyond grateful for my calling and the wonderful parents that support us. I'm grateful that my husband supports me and is willing to go to Sunday School alone. By the way, have I told you how much I love nursery?

Confirmed Craziness

As I was diving into the daunting task of organizing Kanab Boys Youth Basketball, I asked my mom, "Am I crazy?" Her response was priceless. "Ya but now you're just manufacturing reasons to be crazy." Yup, thanks mom! I've manufactured a good one this time!

There are 2 main reasons I do this to myself every year.
The first being that I really enjoy basketball. I've grown up in a gym and love the sounds and smells. There's nothing quite as exciting as a great shot in the last minutes of a game. A good man on man defense is fun. Can I play the game? Definitely not! I'm terrible, really, terrible. Although I do have great technique. Can I coach the game? Yup. Been there. Done that. Loved it.
The second reason is that I have a lot of my Dad in me. No matter how busy he was, he wouldn't want a kid to miss out on an opportunity. I want the 130 boys that signed up this year to have a great time and learn to love the game. The boys deserve an opportunity to succeed.

This is where I start manufacturing my craziness. I'm a little (ahem, a lot) OCD about organization. I have a file box that is ONLY for basketball. In my box are few manila folders containing a mirage of things. All registration papers are done by alphabetical order in each grade. Practice schedules, volunteers, team rosters, insurance, Jazz contacts are included in these manila folders. Ok, maybe I have more than just a few folders. All of the information that I have must be shared in a clearly organized manner. This is just the paperwork part of it.
Now we move into the gym. The coaches that have so gracefully volunteered must feel at ease as things run smoothly. Every night I close up the gym, the floor must be swept. Once a week the bleachers are pushed in and swept. I know how much it costs to refinish a gym floor so we keep it as nice as possible. Besides, it was fun to sweep the gym floor as a little girl. My dad taught me that's what you do before leaving the gym, so that's what I do.

Tonight I had a few people thank me for stepping up to the plate and running the league again. Honestly, I kinda like it. It's my way to give back to the community and kids. I'm grateful I have a reason to be crazy. Thru basketball I feel very connected to my dad. It's a game he loved so dearly and I can be a part of him.

If you see me around town and I'm disheveled, haven't showered in days, and babble at you, please remember that I'm a little basketball crazy. Give me a week or 2 and I'll come around.

Daddy's Girl

I'll be 2 years tomorrow that my daddy passed away. Some days I can't believe it's been that long and some days it seems like yesterday.

My dad was my Superman. He is/was my hero. As the kids and I were talking the other night, they were expressing what they would like to achieve as adults. When they asked I responded, "I want to try to be half the person my daddy was." My dad was kind, gentle, patient, genuinely interested in us, a fighter, gave everyone the benefit of the doubt, happy, stubborn, had reasonable limits, generous and most importantly, loving.

I remember so many nights that we'd shoot the bull and watch Sports Center after I returned from a date or activity. He would be in the stands watching dance performances, diving meets or softball games. There would be cards placed on my pillow congratulating me on a job well done if he had to miss something due to other obligations. Or the flowers left on the counter top with a note since he'd have an out-of-town basketball game on my birthday. He cared and made sure we knew it. Don't get me wrong, we had our moments. We stood toe to toe in a disagreement neither wanting to back down. We were more alike than not and our stubborn sides would clash every blue moon. Then again, I was a teenager. Even though we didn't see eye to eye, I still had to obey the rule: Give Daddy a Kiss on the Cheek Nightly. Some kisses were a little icy but I would give almost anything to give him more nightly kisses.

I miss my daddy's smell, his hugs that make you feel like everything is ok and his voice. I'm sad that my boys won't have him in the stands at their sports games cheering them on. I wish he was in the seats at my daughters dance performances. My dad knew all the dance terminology and how to do most of the moves. See, I told you he was interested! I would love to cuddle up next to him and talk basketball/baseball/football/tennis/track...you get the idea. I wish he could have been coaching as SUU got an invitation to the Big Sky Conference. Although we all know he was involved in that from the other side.

I aspire to emulate my dad in my life. To bring out all of his great qualities he passed onto me. I know he was proud of me when he passed away and I'll continue to make him proud. I'll continue his legacy and teach my children of the great man he was. I will always hold my head high as one of the "Hodson Girls." There is a man in town that knew my dad and calls me STEVE since he doesn't know my name. The man has appologized for not remembering my name but I told him it's the greatest honor to be associated and remembered as my dad. I'm honored to be Steve to this man.

As I cry and hurt during this hard time of year I'm grateful for our gospel. I'm grateful for eternal life and the opportunity I have to be with my dad again. I know he visits me and watches over us. I know he's surrounded by family and friends. He probably golfs every thursday and is in a softball league with his buddies that have also passed on.

I miss my dad.

Steven Lloyd Hodson Dec 11, 1954- Nov 3, 2008

Run, Run as fast as you can...

There are a few things in our lives that we've taken up since the last post. I've been sleeping, which is HUGE! And Rob, Kason and I have started running.

I'm not a big fan of running (think swim team) but Kason decided we should run a half marathon in January. So, we bought the shoes and started with just a mile and a half.

Our official training starts on Monday but this last week I've been running alone. Kason has been sick with strep and Rob has been a little occupied with work. Maybe I'll have partners again next week. I'm pretty sure I'll be doing this alone since my son commented the other day "Mom, maybe I overestimated how far a half marathon really is." Ya, the kid is bailing on me. Rob works long days and hence misses a lot of the training.

On the other hand, I could get used to this sleeping idea. I've tried to be really good at getting to bed just after 10. It's been kinda nice! Sleep, huh, who knew?! My kids have been really cute and helpful. They helped pick up my room so I could rest in a clean room. They were willing to be quiet Friday and Saturday nights so I could get to bed. There are days that it's a little rough to get to sleep but overall, a great improvement. The kids did cute little things. See the glasses on the M&M pot? My bracelet was the dog collar. Sweet kids and a very supportive husband!

I'm tired because...?

I asked Rob if he could recollect anything I had done these past few days that would have made my biceps sore. He gave me that "you've got to be kidding" look and sweetly reminded me of the load of wood we gathered yesterday. My response, "Oh, ya." When we get wood we've settled into a routine. He cuts the wood. I haul the wood, often reminding him to cut wife sized logs.
As I've finally relaxed and am headed to bed I realize it's once again 2 a.m. I've come to the conclusion that I keep weird hours. And until I manage to add a few more hours into the day I'll probably continue to go to bed at 2. It also occurred to me that I'm tired because my work day didn't end until way after midnight. (Those extra hours will help my workday end sooner.) I'll give you a peak into today's workday, it's been a long one.
Since my kids like to be woken up and won't use alarm clocks I'm up at 7:10 a.m. Yes, I realize that's not early but waking before 9 is a sin in my world. Hm, probably because I've only been asleep for 4 hours. The kids are on the bus by 7:45, dogs brought back into the house and I jump back in bed by 8:30. My next alarm clock is the bus rolling to a stop in front of the house bringing Colten home around 11:30. Total sleep time= 7 hours.
Today Rob, Colten and I made a quick trip into St. George for an ENORMOUS WalMart run. Once a month Rob and I replenish the food storage and try to add a little to it. It's convenient to do regular grocery shopping during the same trip. It takes me 45 minutes to make and revise the food storage/grocery list. We've also settled into a routine as we shop. I fill the cart, he gets me an empty one. Rob checks out with the full cart as I fill another one. We continue our pattern until everything on the list has been checked off. We managed three carts today! Poor Colten was a little cramped on the way home as he had to share half the back seat with groceries. The kids were home from school by the time we got back. Hooray for more help unloading groceries!
Now the chaos truly begins. By the time the car was unloaded it was almost 5 p.m. Dallon had football practice at 5:30. Kason had scouts at 5:30. Bethany wanted to play with her friend. AJ was dying to try out his new Xbox game. Kim was willing to ride her bike down to the park with Dal to practice. I think Colten was glad to be free. The dinner menu tonight consisted of frozen pizza due to the fact that I had other plans.
I turned on the oven so I could heat the bottles of applesauce and apple butter that had been previously made and stored in the fridge. There were 5 (1/2 gallon) bottles of homemade applesauce and 9 (pint) bottles of apple butter to heat and process. I also had a mound (small mountain) of tomatoes on my kitchen table that were in desperate need of attention. As the tomatoes are being prepared for a homemade steak sauce, the other bottles are being processed, I looked at the clock and shook my head. I WAS A TERRIBLE MOTHER!!! It was 6:30 and I had forgotten to take AJ to gymnastics. In my canning bliss I had completely forgotten to watch the time. I'm going to have to beg forgiveness from AJ and his gym teacher. I'm still having guilt.
Rob, being the sweet husband he his, told me I ought to start setting more alarms. Ya, thanks honey. :)
A few more bottles were being processed, the steak sauce was started and boiling down and kids were returning home. I returned home from picking Dal up from practice (7:20) and Rob had a truck load of wood to be unloaded. Many hands make light work and it was done in a flash. Since all of the bottles were now out of the oven I could start dinner. We threw in the first pizza and I took AJ, Kason, Colten, Beth and Kim for a run.
Kason, Rob and I are going to run a half-marathon with my mom and sisters in January. There is a 5K that my kids want to run. Because Kason, Rob and I have started to do a little running everyone else thinks they need to run too. I've been promising that we'd go on a mile jog so go we did. It ended up being a run/walk with a lot of stress on my part. There was only 1 fit, 3 stern moments and a few tears but we made it a whole mile. The 5K training has ended until January. My poor sanity can't handle it.
It's now 8 p.m. I'm making sure kids are showered. Rob is handling reading time. Pizzas are being rotated in and out of the oven as they're cooked. Homework is being finished and reading logs signed. By 9:00 the sauce is moved to a better pot, all bottles have been processed, backpacks are ready for tomorrow and we're settling the kids in the living room. Wait, things are still a mess. Quick cleaning time and we're back on track. 9:15 scripture reading. This sparks a good conversation but turns to talking about Grandpa Hod. Tears are shed on my part. All kids were sent to brush their teeth and get in bed. We only had one argument tonight so it was relatively smooth. By the time it's quiet it's 10 p.m.
I need a coke. Rob and I go into town to acquire my sanity beverage, a nice large Diet Coke. When we return home we measure out the last ingredients for the sauce and pick up the kitchen. Rob is getting ready to head to bed so we get in some much needed snuggle time. It's 11:30 and the sauce probably has about a half hour left. I didn't want to leave it on the stove all night so I tidied up and adjusted the seasonings. Around midnight it was looking and tasting pretty good. I got it into jars, put them in the fridge and finished wiping down the kitchen. 12:40 a.m. and my work day is complete.
Have you ever tried to jump into bed after walking in the door from work? Doesn't work so well. I personally need some down time. I tucked the kids and dogs in bed and hopped in the bath. A nice hot bath, add in some pine nuts and watching Dancing With the Stars is a recipe for relaxation.
Here's where the insomnia part comes in. I'm relaxed, lying in bed, and I got nothin. I can't sleep. So here I sit at 3:30 in the morning blabbering on my blog hoping to see a glimpse of sleepiness. I'm hoping to readjust my work day and bedtime in the next week. I'd love to be in bed by 10 but let's be real, it's not going to happen, so midnight is my goal. But until then, at least I know why I'm so tired.

I love this guy!

Isn't he cute hanging out with his dog?

Insomnia = Tough Subjects

When I don't sleep, which is more frequently than I'd like, tough subjects run around in my head. Everyone has had one bad moment in their life but it's how we choose to deal with it that makes all the difference. I'm not ashamed to admit that I've been to therapy, more than once. It's a great tool to help us deal with issues that we can't seem to think outside our box on. Sometimes it takes another perspective on our thoughts to broaden our thinking and find a solution and forgiveness.
As I lay is bed I'm able to think about sensitive subjects without intense emotion and come to clearer thoughts. I would love to take my personal experiences and talk about them openly with groups to educate. I'd talk with health classes on the effects of anorexia, young women on the subject of date rape, groups of people on dealing with depression/anxiety, women on abusive relationships and anyone who will listen about how the Savior has helped thru all of these ordeals.
This sounds a little depressing but by dwelling on these subjects I have a clearer understanding of my position and a healthier outlook on them. I can feel the atonement continuing to take effect on my life and lighten the burden of sadness. I lay next to my husband and feel grateful that he's supportive (although jealous he's asleep) and I can talk openly to him. Rob isn't judgemental. He loves me for who I am.
What do you think about late at night? What do you do when you can't sleep? Like my cousin said, we'd like to find the relative who passed on the insomnia and see if we could trade it for something else.