What The Kids Think

I interviewed the kids separately.  This was pretty fun and, I won't lie, kind of scary...

Me- What is something I always say to you?

Marenberry, 6- Get dressed

Jacoby, 10- I love you.

Smiley B, 13- It's different every time.  You're very good at diversifying your speech.  Go to bed. Get up.

Chelsaloo, 16- It's not all about you.

Me- What makes me happy?

MB- The family... that they love you.

Jacoby- A happy house.

Smiley B- Writing your stories.

Chelsaloo- Writing your little novels.

Me- What makes me sad?

MB- Chelsea leaving to college.

(not for a couple years yet, but yes, she picked up on that)

Jacoby- The children fighting.

Smiley B- When we disobey you.

Chelsaloo- When I don't read your novels.

Me- How do I make you laugh?

MB- By tickling me.

Jacoby- A lot of ways... sometimes the "don't smile" trick.

Smiley B- You quote Star Wars.  Boba Fett?  Boba Fett?

Chelsaloo- When you act like a little kid.

Me- What was I like as a child?

MB- Smart... brave.

Jacoby- I never really asked you about that... Kind?

Smiley B- You were probably kind to your siblings because everything we do is way off. (I'm laughing so hard I have tears)

Chelsaloo- What were you like as a child?  Spunkalicious.

Me- How old am I?

MB- I forgot... aah... 47? (ouch, that hurt)

Jacoby- 37. (better)

Smiley B- Dad's turning 40, so that means you're turning 39, so 38.  (Thanks for spelling it out like that.)

Chelsaloo- Is this 2008?  You're 38. (It's 2009.)

Me- How tall am I?

MB- Probably... 60 inches.

Jacoby- A little taller than Chelsea.

Smiley B- You are 5' 7".

Chelsaloo- 5' 6" and 3/4ths.  (spot on)

Me- What is my favorite thing to do?

MB- Write.

Jacoby- Write books.

Smiley B- Write and cook.  Try new things.  And spend time with your siblings.

Chelsaloo- Write your novels.  Didn't you ask that already?

Me- You realize I've only been writing the novels since November, right?

Chels- Are you serious right now?  It seems like it's been forever.

Me- What do I do when you're not around?

MB- I don't know 'cause I'm not around... um... read?

Jacoby- Clean house and write your books.

Smiley B- You clean house and write in your books.  Dance.  DO you dance?

Chelsaroo-  Write your novels.  (followed by much laughter)

Me- If I become famous, what will it be for?

MB- Being a great actor or dancer... I'll go with dancer.

Jacoby- For your book writing and winning the Nobel Peace Prize.

Smiley B- Writing.

Chelsaroo- Writing your novels. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.  Put that.

Me- What am I really good at?

MB- Loving your family.

Jacoby- Settling arguments.

Smiley B- Taking care of us, keeping us in line, writing... You're great at cooking.  You're an awesome cook.

Chelsaroo- You make miraculous meals.

Me- What am I not very good at?

MB- Being rude.

Jacoby- I'm trying to think... I just can't think of anything.

Smiley B- This is a good thing for you, right?  'Cause I can't think of anything.  You're not good at striking fear into our hearts... like Dad.

Chelsaroo- I don't know.  I can't think of anything.  You're not very good at discipline.

Me- (sadly) How am I not very good?

Chels- We just don't take you very seriously.

Me- You take Dad seriously.

Chels- I'm scared of dad.

Me- What do I do for a job?

MB- Stay at home.

Me- Do I do jobs at home?

MB- Like, do the laundry.

Jacoby- Babysitting Kash.

Smiley B- You cook, you clean, and you care.

Chelsaloo- Mom stuff.

Me- What is my favorite food?

MB- Soup.

Jacoby- Soup. (I do like soup, but I have no idea why they both answered that it was my favorite.)

Smiley B- I don't think you have a favorite.  You like food in general.

Chelsaloo- Chiles Rellenos.

Me- What makes you proud of me?

MB- You being my mother.

Jacoby- You love and care for me a lot, and sometimes get after Chelsea and Braeden if they're yelling at me.

Smiley B- The way you handle things... in life.

Chelsaloo- When you make scrumptious dinner.

Me- If I were a cartoon character, who would I be?

MB- (after much giggling) Spongebob.

Jacoby- That blonde bunny from Bugs Bunny... Lola.

Smiley B- Elastagirl.

Chelsaloo- Mrs. Incredible.

Me- What is something we do together?

MB- We usually go swimming together. (she has been begging me to take her swimming for the past two weeks)

Jacoby- Play board games.

Smiley B- Crack jokes.  Make each other laugh to the point of tears.  Drive everywhere.  Drive to school.

Chelsaloo- Shop... til we drop (in a sing-song voice).  Rock Band.

Me- How are you and I the same?

MB- Our eyes are the same color.

Jacoby- We both have a good humor.

Smiley B- We both have a sense of humor.  We both have beautiful blue eyes (said in high girly voice).

Chelsaloo- We're not the same in any aspect, but that's okay, because we complete each other (fingers draw a heart in the air).

Me- How are we different?

MB- Our hair color.

Jacoby- You're really good at finding stuff, and I'm not.

Smiley B- You're a girl.  A female.  I'm good at math.  I rock at math.

Chels- In every aspect.  But it's okay, because we complete each other (laughing and drawing a heart in the air... I think I've lost her).

Me- How do you know I love you?

MB- Because you're my mother. Every mother loves their child.

Jacoby- You hug me and kiss me a lot.

Smiley B- Because you're always there for me when I really need it.

Chels- Because I just do.

Me- What do I like most about your daddy?

MB- That he's tall.

Jacoby- He has a good humor, too.

Smiley B- He's funny.  He takes you out on dates.  He brings home the bacon.

Chels- He's muy inteligente.

Me- Where is my favorite place to go?

MB- Shopping.

Jacoby- Shelli and Trevor's and Grandma and Grandpa Anglesey's.

Smiley B- The lake or beach.  Up in the mountains.

Chels- To Washington to visit your family.  Mexico.  You've been there three times.  How many times have I been there?  Zero.

The Lake

I finished the third novel in the Finding Home Trilogy.  At least I think that is what I'm calling it.  The third book is called The Lake.  It's quite a bit longer than the first two, but I love it.  I've never really blogged about what the stories are, so let me tell you a little bit.

They center around three different women in different stages of life, and the impact their choices and influences make on those around them.  The first one is based on Jane Austen's novel, Persuasion.  The second tackles questions I have about myself... what if...?, and a character from the first book I just couldn't leave alone.  The ideas for the third book began coming to me about 2/3'ds of the way into the second book, and I had Sleeping Beauty, and my oldest daughter, in mind when I wrote it.  I know, wierd, huh?  But, there it is.  All three novels are inspired by the beauty of the area we live in... the Northern Rockies.

Here is some music for you.  I listened to a lot of this as I was finishing up, and then found the songs for the player when I was done a few days ago.  Just press pause on the player on the right if you want to listen to this one.

And to my family... you can all rest easy.  The laundry is folded, and dinner is in the oven.  And I'm so happy inside knowing I can feel a little bit more like who I really am, so I can teach you to find out who you really are.

P.S.  Still waiting to hear from publishers on The Orchard.  Carla says she thinks its a good sign and that they are at least looking at it maybe a little more closely.  I feel the need to knock on wood.  Done.

Life Is A Highway

 Our computer is done.  It was a long, slow, tortured thing, but now it is in a better place.  The Cody High School Tech office.  

It's funny how we rely on computer technology.  We read a quote the other day in history class that said there was no reason any person should have a computer in their home.  I can't remember his name, but the guy who said it was a main innovator of computer technology. 

And here I sit, perched on the edge of a chair in my bedroom, using my son's laptop, catching up with 37 emails (some of which I should have checked a long time ago), wishing I could send the pictures I took of my daughter being asked to prom (the guy who asked her sang "Come Fly With Me" while he played his guitar... their were balloons, and a cake, but I promised her I wouldn't blog it) to my mom, and wondering again if our digital pictures from 2004-on are going to be rescued.  And, I need some information for the new novel I'm writing.  What did people do before this?  

Oh yeah, they had encyclopedia sets.  Do you remember those?  They took up the bottom shelves of the bookcase.  Ours only went through 'G', so my reports were on aardvarks, cherries, and gorillas.

But an encyclopedia wouldn't tell me the filipino word for "yours" (sa inyo) or "blue eyes" (kulay-asul na mga mata), or give me pictures of the villages there on the islands.  Not that this is a major part of the story... but it's needed or I would have to insert gibberish.  And that just wouldn't do.  

So, its a little crazy, but what a smaller world it is.  What a wonder, in good hands, the information highway can be.  Go for a ride.  Or, pumunta sa sakay.

And be  careful out there.

I'm Still Smiling

I love the above pictures. I've been thinking about seeing my family again and just thought I'd post these so I can look at them. You can look, too. My youngest brother, Craig, and his adorable family are missing, down in Texas doing who knows what, but they'll be back up this way soon. Summer dreams, make me feel fine...
Did I mention it was 5 degrees yesterday? We have snow. I need to take down my "I Love Winter" sign. I think somebody believes me.
Oh yeah, the reason I opened this photo file was because I lost my entire cookbook program (visit Taste Of Blue Sky) when our computer imploded, so two years of work went into the nether regions of whereverdom, and all I have are the recipes already posted on the blog, so enjoy them. I'll get to the others after I've looked at these happy pictures a while longer. I do still have most of the recipes on paper, so that's something, isn't it? And please don't comment about backing up files and such... It just makes me a little crazy.

Good Answers For Anyone Who Might Want To Know

Click Here for Link to Interview

Latter-day Student on Harvard Panel Takes on Hard Questions with Excellence From the Editors

A few months ago a panel representing a variety of religious outlooks was convened at Harvard and moderated by The Washington Post's, Sally Quinn of the On Faith blog.

On that panel was Harvard junior, Rachel Esplin, from Blackfoot, Idaho, president of the Latter-day Student Association on campus and a member of the Interfaith Council.

Seasoned journalist, Sally Quinn is a tough questioner and asked Rachel questions about whether the Church was a cult, were women treated unequally, why the secrecy surrounding the temple and much more.

What is fascinating about this video is the aplomb with which Rachel answers the questions, neither shrinking nor apologizing before Quinn's questions, and feeling free to assert her testimony, a remarkable quality in one so young put on the spot.

As Latter-day Saints, especially following the avalanche of misconceptions that were passed on by the media in the last two years, we have been advised to step up and help clear the ignorance and misunderstandings so many people hold. Rachel is a good example of doing just that.

Anthropolification Boyer Cream Cardi GIVEAWAY!!!! GIVEAWAY!!!!

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I'm reminded I like to do this kind of thing. I should re-organize my sewing desk.

Algebra Is Such a Treat

Hey, have you ever had one of those months? February was one of those months... INFLUENZA made a nice showing at our house. Brandon and I were out for two weeks. And then our computer got it, too, so we had to kind of start over. I'm still not sure what I still have... But I finally was able to access the internet again.

As some of you know, I am teaching my son Freshman Algebra so he can move on to Geometry when he starts high school next year. As some of you know, particularly my friends I went to high school with, math and I... (how can I say this kindly?) hate each other. I know, I know, hate is such a strong word, and here on the blog of hope and positive feelings you would think I could try harder, but I try not to lie. If I ever go back to school, I would have to take, like Math91, or Basic Basic Math, or... Math for People Who Hate Math.
Not that I don't use it. I use subtraction (grocery budget), multiplication and division (n cents per ounce for 32 oz. is more or less expensive than y cents per oz. for 20 oz.?), and fractions (ever one and a half a recipe?).
But here I am, teaching my son Algebra, and it goes a little something like this:

I say, "Okay, let's do number two." I stare at the problem and read the teacher's notes and move to the board with the marker in hand, tongue hanging out in concentration. I begin to write a number.
Braeden interrupts me. "Is it 3x(1/7y)?"
I look at the book. Then I look at Braeden, brow furrowed. "Yes. How did you get that?"
Braeden sighs, gets up and takes the pen from me, and maps out the problem on the board like he's one of those caricature artists at the outdoor art fair.
I look at the book, than back at him. "Yup. Do problems 1-27, odd."

And then there's the running gag about the graphing calculator, which, by the way, I didn't know existed. We came to a chapter that introduced those, and we didn't have one. After consulting with my sophomore, it was agreed that we didn't need one, as they weren't used in the high school class, either. But a new electronic gadget has been waved before my son, and therefore he will begin the relentless hint-dropping until he has seen this wonder of the modern age for himself.
I got a unit self-test back, which covered several chapters, including questions asking for the use of a graphing calculator. Here are some of his answers.

8. a. Too bad I don't have a graphing calculator, but they look equivalent.
10. Man, I wish I had a graphing calculator...
14. a. Hmm... I can't seem to find my graphing calculator.
b. Oh, wait, I don't have one.

So, I correct his paper, chuckle and say, "Aww, you're so cute," and he scowls at me looking adorable.

But then he took the Unit Test. There was only one question concerning a graphing calculator, and I just didn't see it. Of course, it began, "Using a graphing calulator..."
This was his answer:

20. "If only, of only," the woodpecker sighs,
"The bark on the tree was as thick as the skies.
And then, maybe then, some time later,
I would get my own graphing calculator."

I about peed my pants.