Blessed Beyond Measure:
1. Blessing: Seven healthy children.
2. Blessing: A committed marriage.
3. Blessing: Wonderful friends who love me, as well as family.
4. Blessing: A mother who cleans my house, helps with my babies, and even does my laundry (and knows where to put most things away also!) on a regular basis.
5. Blessing: The opportunity to hold a current temple recommend.
6. Blessing: Food on the table.
7. Blessing: Good doctors! Dr. Wonderful and Dr. Awesome, you know who you are...
8. Blessing: The ability to swim 2000 yards, even after all these years.
9. Blessing: A connection to God and my Savior that grows closer every day.
10. Blessing: We booked our flight to Hawaii--without kids!
11. Blessing: The Gospel of Jesus Christ
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Where does Jesus sleep?
Tonight Dave had tucked in our "little boys," Ben and Tyson, and was telling them their final goodnights when through the dark silence came Ben's sweet voice. "Dad, I think Jesus must sleep in a cloud."
Ben, you melt my heart with your pensive sweetness, and I think a cloud would make a perfect bed for Jesus.
Ben, you melt my heart with your pensive sweetness, and I think a cloud would make a perfect bed for Jesus.
Being Blessed
Life has been really challenging lately--as I've mentioned before, I've got some health issues that are making it impossible to ignore them. It's official that I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and as my health care provider puts it, my crashes go "way beyond adrenal fatigue." So there you have it.
Some days I feel so overwhelmed and exhausted and it really starts to take a toll on my attitude, so I have decided that I need to take a moment now and then to either list some of my blessings from that day or note ways that I know God is attending to my needs.
So here goes:
Blessing: I can finally fit back into my pre-pregnancy clothes. In fact, some of them are too big! That's okay, though, because I don't like all of them anyway anymore. I haven't seen a size "8" since 2003. Cool, huh?! (This has not been without MUCH time at the gym and much dietary change, lest you think this just happened on its own--it didn't!)
Blessing: It rained today. It was a crazy, torrential rain that did some damage to some people's homes in parts of the valley, but I loved it and it didn't do any damage here, so it's a blessing.
Tender Mercy: I found the time and energy to weed part of the garden in the back yard today while the girls played in the yard.
Tender Mercy: This morning Tanner's built-in retainer popped out on one side of his mouth, and since I didn't have anyone scheduled to help with babies today, we all piled in the car and headed to the dentist's office(that was a royal pain!). The tender mercy that occurred was that when we walked in, one of my dearest friends was there with her 5 children for their checkups and I got to visit and catch up with her during part of my wait. The Lord loves me!
Blessing: Nobody complained about the dinner I served tonight.
I imagine there are more, but my brain is sluggish and it's time for bed. Some days I wonder how I am going to get through this experience and this life, but at least blessings and tender mercies help balance out the sweet with the sour!
Some days I feel so overwhelmed and exhausted and it really starts to take a toll on my attitude, so I have decided that I need to take a moment now and then to either list some of my blessings from that day or note ways that I know God is attending to my needs.
So here goes:
Blessing: I can finally fit back into my pre-pregnancy clothes. In fact, some of them are too big! That's okay, though, because I don't like all of them anyway anymore. I haven't seen a size "8" since 2003. Cool, huh?! (This has not been without MUCH time at the gym and much dietary change, lest you think this just happened on its own--it didn't!)
Blessing: It rained today. It was a crazy, torrential rain that did some damage to some people's homes in parts of the valley, but I loved it and it didn't do any damage here, so it's a blessing.
Tender Mercy: I found the time and energy to weed part of the garden in the back yard today while the girls played in the yard.
Tender Mercy: This morning Tanner's built-in retainer popped out on one side of his mouth, and since I didn't have anyone scheduled to help with babies today, we all piled in the car and headed to the dentist's office(that was a royal pain!). The tender mercy that occurred was that when we walked in, one of my dearest friends was there with her 5 children for their checkups and I got to visit and catch up with her during part of my wait. The Lord loves me!
Blessing: Nobody complained about the dinner I served tonight.
I imagine there are more, but my brain is sluggish and it's time for bed. Some days I wonder how I am going to get through this experience and this life, but at least blessings and tender mercies help balance out the sweet with the sour!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
West Palm Beach, Florida
The entire Halversen Family visited West Palm Beach, Florida in May of this year and we had 7 days of blissful beaching! Of course, I wouldn't say that Dave and I received any R&R, but perhaps we will have some when we are about 80 or so years old.
I met an older gentleman there who was amazed that our entire family would WANT to travel together and that our parents would WANT to have a vacation like this with us. He seemed to think it was a novel idea. Well, sir, let me tell you that we've had our ups and downs over the years as a family, but by and large, we LOVE to vacation together (as long as each family has its own space). We get along so well and I am grateful for such a wonderful family. I hope that one day Dave and I and the kids will be able to share vacations like this one when they have children of their own. We loved it, even if we did need a vacation from our vacation when we got home!
And what an awesome picture to remember this moment in time for the rest of our lives!
What Makes a Great Teacher
Today my 1st grader and I were having a conversation about his day at school. He mentioned that his friend Taitwon (I know, cool name, huh? His dad is black and his mom is Laotian and I have absolutely no idea where his name came from) is in another class. I asked him is Taitwon's teacher is a good teacher and Ben said that she is the BEST teacher ever! So I asked him what makes her the best teacher ever, and he said, "Well, she has a HUGE white board in her room."
If only I'd known about that when I was teaching! I had a decent one, but not a HUGE one, and the year could have been so much more pleasing to my students had I known that one small detail!
Thanks, Ben!
If only I'd known about that when I was teaching! I had a decent one, but not a HUGE one, and the year could have been so much more pleasing to my students had I known that one small detail!
Thanks, Ben!
Sunday, August 15, 2010
The 20 year Reunion
Reflections on my 20th High School Reunion:
It's bound to happen to all of us...the passage of time is inevitable. Once we were young and had not a care in the world, and suddenly, here I am, age 38, husband and 7 kids, attending my High School 20-year reunion.
First of all, I will say that for me, high school was absolutely wonderful. Now yes, it wasn't ALL peaches and cream. I did have bad hair days, my first heartbreak, betrayal by a best friend, etc. etc., but all in all it was bliss. I loved high school. Do I want to go back? No. Did I love it when I was there? Yes. LOVED IT.
So I went to my high school reunion a couple of weeks ago and here are my impressions:
1. I wasn't nervous beforehand. In fact, I wasn't even phased by the upcoming gala. I had no trouble figuring out what I was going to wear, how to do my hair, and all that good stuff. I didn't really think about who would be there, mostly because I knew which of my best friends would come and I figured that if nothing else I would love spending time with them and their spouses. I wasn't worried about Dave because he knows quite a few people from my class, either because they married my good friends or from college or life in general. So I was totally unprepared for a sudden onset of nerves that descended upon me as I walked up to the door that night! It was as if 20 years had not passed and suddenly I was a 17 year old girl again, worrying about my outfit and my shoes and my accessories and my hair! If I wasn't so nervous I would have laughed out loud about my nerves! This is not me! I am a confident, secure woman and I know what is good in my life and who I am and all that jazz, but for a moment in time that flew out the window! Even now thinking back I find it surprising but it was a good reminder that I am grateful I don't worry about all the things I used to worry about!
2. By and large everyone looked beautiful! Okay, let me say that the men looked great. But the women? BEAUTIFUL. Everyone has taken such good care of themselves and just look wonderful. It made me proud to be a member of that group. I'm tellin ya, if you do life right, you can look just as good approaching 40 as you ever did!
3. It was really cool to see what everyone is doing with their lives. Not that this surprised me, but still! Guys who in my memory are just BOYS are doctors, lawyers, pastors, professors, computer programmers, etc. And the women were accomplished as well--even those of us who are primarily mothers have degrees and career paths that were impressive. I went to high school with some pretty incredible people. There was still the party crowd who seemed like they were making an obvious attempt to get drunk. Maybe it just seemed that way to me. I don't know. But by and large most of the people seemed like responsible adults.
4. I have the most kids, and I amaze everyone. Well, they should be amazed...I'm amazed most mornings that I even find the energy to get out of bed! So yes, I'm amazing. I know. Can't help it.
5. This was my favorite surprise: It was so interesting to see who I had the most to talk about with! Of course there were the natural people--my best friends from high school, etc., but there were people who sought me out and really shared with me who surprised me. There was one woman who was very shy in high school who was so talkative and confident and beautiful. My neighbor from childhood told me I was on his list to specifically search out. I was so honored. I loved seeing who people married. In the end, we are all the same people--just older. And wiser.
It's bound to happen to all of us...the passage of time is inevitable. Once we were young and had not a care in the world, and suddenly, here I am, age 38, husband and 7 kids, attending my High School 20-year reunion.
First of all, I will say that for me, high school was absolutely wonderful. Now yes, it wasn't ALL peaches and cream. I did have bad hair days, my first heartbreak, betrayal by a best friend, etc. etc., but all in all it was bliss. I loved high school. Do I want to go back? No. Did I love it when I was there? Yes. LOVED IT.
So I went to my high school reunion a couple of weeks ago and here are my impressions:
1. I wasn't nervous beforehand. In fact, I wasn't even phased by the upcoming gala. I had no trouble figuring out what I was going to wear, how to do my hair, and all that good stuff. I didn't really think about who would be there, mostly because I knew which of my best friends would come and I figured that if nothing else I would love spending time with them and their spouses. I wasn't worried about Dave because he knows quite a few people from my class, either because they married my good friends or from college or life in general. So I was totally unprepared for a sudden onset of nerves that descended upon me as I walked up to the door that night! It was as if 20 years had not passed and suddenly I was a 17 year old girl again, worrying about my outfit and my shoes and my accessories and my hair! If I wasn't so nervous I would have laughed out loud about my nerves! This is not me! I am a confident, secure woman and I know what is good in my life and who I am and all that jazz, but for a moment in time that flew out the window! Even now thinking back I find it surprising but it was a good reminder that I am grateful I don't worry about all the things I used to worry about!
2. By and large everyone looked beautiful! Okay, let me say that the men looked great. But the women? BEAUTIFUL. Everyone has taken such good care of themselves and just look wonderful. It made me proud to be a member of that group. I'm tellin ya, if you do life right, you can look just as good approaching 40 as you ever did!
3. It was really cool to see what everyone is doing with their lives. Not that this surprised me, but still! Guys who in my memory are just BOYS are doctors, lawyers, pastors, professors, computer programmers, etc. And the women were accomplished as well--even those of us who are primarily mothers have degrees and career paths that were impressive. I went to high school with some pretty incredible people. There was still the party crowd who seemed like they were making an obvious attempt to get drunk. Maybe it just seemed that way to me. I don't know. But by and large most of the people seemed like responsible adults.
4. I have the most kids, and I amaze everyone. Well, they should be amazed...I'm amazed most mornings that I even find the energy to get out of bed! So yes, I'm amazing. I know. Can't help it.
5. This was my favorite surprise: It was so interesting to see who I had the most to talk about with! Of course there were the natural people--my best friends from high school, etc., but there were people who sought me out and really shared with me who surprised me. There was one woman who was very shy in high school who was so talkative and confident and beautiful. My neighbor from childhood told me I was on his list to specifically search out. I was so honored. I loved seeing who people married. In the end, we are all the same people--just older. And wiser.
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