Trip Teaser

We were able to spend two weeks in Idaho & Utah last week. I am going to tell you why I fell in love again with Idaho & Utah & then some things I appreciate about SC.

Hiking Entertainment

We have family less than two hours away!! My nephew & his wife live not too far away from us for the summer & we were able to spend Memorial Day weekend with them. We ate lots of food & went hiking at Whitewater Falls. While they waited for me to come around the bend, they thought up creative poses. The hike was beautiful, shady most of the time, but seriously uphill for the last half mile. I think I was voted off the island as the weakest link.

IMG_4354

 

Special K and the Smoke Alarm

We try to feed the missionaries about once a month. We appreciate the fact that they've left home & taken two years away from school & life to share the gospel. Also, with three sons we can foresee the day when our three boys will be able to serve as missionaries & hopefully be fed occasionally.

Chris served for a while as a ward missionary and worked with Elder Mauer.

Ryan perfecting his double Windsor knot.

When we were living in Maple Valley, Washington, we invited the missionaries over & I cooked something that sounded wonderful from Cooking Light magazine. I wasn't paying attention (hello, two little boys running all over!) and the kitchen filled up with smoke. Our smoke detector was connected to the whole house alarm system so when it went off, the entire neighborhood knew that I was having a rough day in the kitchen!! The alarm started sounding just as the missionaries arrived. We opened the front door & the back sliding glass door for some cross-ventilation & then I looked for something to fan the smoke away from the smoke detector in the hallway. I spied a box of Special K cereal & started fanning the box to clear the smoke. The top of the box was closed, but soon opened with the weight of the entire box of cereal pounding against it. Special K flew down the hallway & back into the kitchen.

A few weeks ago I was trying to fill out a survey for Relief Society when I read the question, "What is your funniest story?" My kids told me that I'm just not that funny. :) I was happy to remember this story & tell them that I can do some pretty ridiculous things.

I like the following video about young men preparing for missions. If you have 5:08, it's worth a watch.

https://www.lds.org/youth/video/why-missionaries-must-be-morally-clean?cid=HP000064&lang=eng

Settled

I have been working on my degree since 1984. That's a lot of years even without the math. I started as a junior in high school, took AP courses & exams, attended the U before chasing my boyfriend to the Y after two full years. I became very sick & had to transfer yet again to the UW and still didn't finish before I had Chris. Chris had to submit a semester by semester graduation plan during the first month of his first semester of college. I think I might have attacked college differently with a graduation plan!!

Clayton children, SLC

Now, and for the past five years, I am working on completing my degree through the Y's independent study program. I started in Family Life - I love my family, right? How hard could it be? Well, it turned out to be very difficult for me. My brain is wired for problem-solving - follow a certain pattern & find a solution. Math & physics are not well-suited for independent study so I have landed at genealogy. I take the given information, known formulas for finding solutions (census records, obituaries, cemeteries, birth records, etc.), and arrive at a conclusion. I check and recheck my work and hopefully it all works out.

And here's the point...

I love my coursework! I am happy & look forward to working on the classes that I am taking. Last semester I wrote my autobiography (seventy-pages or so). This semester I am writing a narrative biography (think "Who Do You Think You Are?") about one of my ancestral lines. I get excited when I start explaining the coursework to people. Excited!!! Usually their eyes glaze over and I think one of two things. First, I have landed in the right spot for me. I like researching families and history and trying to put stories together. Second, if the stories were about their people and their past, they would probably be fascinated. In each of us is a desire to know. Who am I? Where did we come from?

Lawrence & Ella Madoche family

Including my current class I have about twenty-two credits to go until graduation. The best part? I only have to take one non-genealogy class - persuasive writing.

Also, I have another blog. I have only written two entries. My plan is to share family stories and genealogy tidbits. The website is: http://justthewaythingswere.blogspot.com

Falls Park

Falls Park in downtown Greenville is a beautiful green space in the middle of the city. The bridge is cantilevered out over the waterfall. Miles of trails link the zoo, the YMCA, and downtown to the Swamp Rabbit Trail that goes all the way to Traveler's Rest. During the summer you can people watch and see Shakespeare.

Scott had training downtown last week & I needed the car during the day. Chris dropped me off & I walked around taking pictures & enjoying the beautiful park. I am looking forward to warmer weather & riding my bike. Hooray for spring!

Wordless Wednesday - The Flu Take 2

Warning: Cast Perfectionism Aside!

Subway Art

This was not the best moment of my crafting life!

I have admired various interpretations of subway art for the last year or so. While wandering semi-aimlessly around Pinterest, I found several links that helped me clarify what I wanted my art to say. At first I was thought about locations that our families lived, but then I expanded my vision to favorite sayings, dates, and activities we love. One "pin" captured what I wanted & I found a tutorial or two to help me learn what to do.

1. Make a list of the words you want to use.

2. Use PicMonkey or other software to make the subway art. PicMonkey is a free website that will allow you to make word and photo art. Use "edit a photo" and change the background to solid black. Set the size to be proportionate to your finished project. (4x6 image can be 24x36, 5x7 can be 20x28)

1. Leave a margin around the edge. 
2. Make each category a different font. All the same is nice too.
3. Shrink the box to the edges of the word. Now you can drag the corners to make the word whatever size you want.
4. Place the words evenly spaced.
5. Save finished project to a thumb drive.

3. Take thumb drive to Staples for printing. Engineering blueprints are less than $5.00 for 24x36. They are only available in black and white (and grey). Staples charged me a small fee to resize the image from 4x6 to 24x36.

4. Easy way out: Frame in a 24x36 frame. Smile & relax.

Hanging up at last!

5. More difficult: Cut MDF to 24x36 or build a frame - 24x36 with 1x2s attached to the sides to look like canvas. Sand & dust. Paint with two coats of black paint. Mod Podge artwork to board. Or spray mount the artwork to board. If you make the wood slightly smaller than the print, the Mod Podge process will be easier because you won't be trying to match the edges.

See the wrinkles? They add character.

Learn from my mistakes Mod Podge instructions:

I will give general directions because I am a Mod Podge amateur & struggled greatly with this step -- as in tear the stupid thing apart two times, make friends with the Staples chick because I had to have it printed 4-5 times, and practice alternate cuss words frustrated!! Scott finally helped me the most by standing beside me & saying, "It just won't matter. You can antique it. Wrinkles give it character."

Matte Finish Mod Podge
Sponge Roller & Tray
Xacto knife
Brayer
Spray sealer

Lightly seal the front of the print & allow to dry. Repeat on the back. Pour a bunch of Mod Podge in the tray & spread a thin coat on the board. I did one time all over & then refreshed it when I was done. Gently roll the print from one end to the other, pressing down gently as you go. If you need to lift, work quickly! Use the brayer and fingers to smooth out the wrinkles. The paper tends to stretch A LOT as soon as it gets wet. This is normal & unavoidable in my experience. Keep working on bubbles & wrinkles. If there are a few edges that are bubbled up, use a paint brush to help sneak a little Mod Podge into the gap & press down. Once everything is good enough, spread a coat of Mod Podge over the top. Repeat when the first layer is dry.

The two things that I struggled with were lining up the edges with the board (because I had no margin) and the wrinkles/bubbles dilemma. In the end, the edges are not very noticeable because of the black paint on the board. The wet paper shrunk back down to normal when it dried leaving a few wrinkles but not as many as I feared. The fonts that I chose were not crisp to begin with so the wrinkles weren't super obvious.

Although my blog does not show it, I really am an experienced crafter. Mod Podge on a large surface with thin paper was difficult. I am so happy with the results but it was crazy hard for me!

If you haven't looked at this link, check it out. She used spray adhesive & had a much easier time!!!

I Hate Technology ...

Yesterday's post was about my love of technology. I still love it but sometimes I want to beat my head against the wall. (Not literally!!)

I downloaded some Photoshop Elements actions - these are little mini programs that tweak my pictures & make them look like a real photographer took them. The directions are pretty straight-forward but I still don't get it. I am capable, computer-literate, and able to follow directions. And yet...

For $75 I can pay the creator to remotely install the actions on my computer. Not worth it yet. I keep reading the tutorials sLoWly... hoping that some heretofore hidden tidbit of information will jump out & I will understand.

And that's why I hate technology.

I Love Technology!

My friend Kristi wrote a blog post about the advancements in technology with microwaves and computers. I started thinking & realized that I have been around long enough to have seen a lot of change.

• I can carry around 50 kajillion songs on a device that is 2"x3" and listen to them with headphones of amazing quality.
• I have been working on my family history - the newspapers of Door County, Wisconsin have all been scanned & made accessible on the internet to search. I easily proved that "those people" were related to "my people" when I found them in a newspaper article. 
• Genealogy on the internet is another thing - remember the days of microfiche & dusty books?!! Now Ancestry even searches records and helps match people, places, and documents. Family trees are posted online for everyone to compare.
• Just seven years ago I drove across the country without a GPS or a smart phone!! I called my friend Bonnie every evening to find out the next nearest town to stop at.
• Video games have changed. I don't play the new-fangled contraptions but I did spend a lot of nights playing Pong and Centipede with my friend Wendy.
• I learned how to type on a typewriter. Mistakes had to be blotted out with Wite-Out or the whole page had to be retyped. We had a manual typewriter before converting over to electric.
• LDS Tools is one of the coolest apps ever. I can look up everyone's phone number & address in the ward (congregation) by logging in.
• The iPad is amazing. I can surf the internet, check email, play games, log food & exercise choices, read magazines and books (that I can download in an instant!), write blog posts, and see the last thousand pictures from my desktop computer & my iPhone in the photo stream.
• I can purchase a twin XL comforter for a dorm bed off season online.
• I can search Craigslist for a car or a sectional sofa, determine value at KBB, and then check the CarFax to make sure I am not buying a known lemon. 
• I can take digital photographs and check the results immediately. I can tag photos and easily search for everything "Jared" or Christmas or Florida.
• I can use Picasa (a free Google download) to match faces between photos with facial recognition software. The technology is so good that it can match my kids to the grandparents that they resemble and match an older picture with the young picture of the same person.
• I can use Skype or FaceTime to see and talk to family members that are far away.
• My iPhone 4 can take pictures that are good enough quality that I can use it as a photocopier. I take a picture of a document & print it out at letter size.

The list is really endless. Every day it seems there is a new invention or creation. I am thankful for all the advances in technology. What technology are you thankful for?

Writing Right

I am still trying to complete my English class, "Composing a Personal History". For a few weeks I was feeling confident in my writing and capable of finishing before the deadline. Then, I hit the wall. I feel like everything I write is choppy and not descriptive enough.

I had Chris read my paper this morning. His reaction? "It seems like a ten-year-old wrote it."

Nice.

Thanks.

You're grounded for life, even if you're right!

Occasionally, I can write effortlessly. Right now I have a lot of tasks on my to-do list and the words are getting stuck in the traffic jam in my brain. If I was not writing on an accelerated timeline, I would take a few weeks off and then write away when inspiration struck.

For now I will write uninspiring words.

Mother Moment

Usually, I suffer with self-doubts about how I am doing as a mom. I think that this is fairly common. Am I feeding them correctly? Are we spending enough quality time together? Should we throw the Wii system in the trash can? Is it okay to give kids a curfew?

We have been sick for several weeks. One nasty cold and one vicious stomach virus making the rounds on alternating people. Add in some secondary infections (two with bronchitis & one with a sinus infection for sure) and it's been a crazy couple of weeks. On Monday I went to pick up prescriptions at Costco & thought ahead enough to pick up penne chicken pasta from the deli case & the brown paper-wrapped French bread from the bakery. After taking a nap, we added frozen vegetables & felt like I had given my kids an adequate meal. (As a bonus, Chris was able to easily prepare the entire thing!!)

Yesterday, a dear friend offered to bring a pot of soup & I cheerfully accepted. She showed up at the door less than five minutes after one of the sickies requested something warm to eat. YUMMY!

Last night I took codeine-laced cough syrup to help me sleep. At about 2:30 a.m. one of the boys came in complaining of a severe headache, fever, body aches, etc. I sat on the floor beside him, brushed his hair, fed him alternating sips of Coke & Gatorade, decided on some migraine medicine, looked up symptoms on WebMd & decided he was probably dehydrated from an overly-hard workout on Monday & kept pushing fluids, and I WAS PATIENT THE ENTIRE TIME!!! Now, the super relaxing cough medicine probably helped but I was an okay mom.

Today I am tired & feeling the effects of missing a lot of sleep. But I am happy that I am not always riddled with bad-mom-thoughts. Taking care of my son was a blessing. Curfews are a good things (as my high school journals reminded me!!). Too much screen time is not good for anyone. Feeding families is a fine balancing act. Being a mother is the hardest and most rewarding job of all. I am grateful for my children and the opportunity I have to be with them.

Project Life 2013 - I am learning as I go!

I have long wanted to learn how to use Photoshop for digital scrapbooking. I miss cutting & sticking but I am more productive when every one of my 56,334 digital photos is at my fingertips.

I have Cathy Zielske's blog on my Google reader & each week she posts her Project Life layout & I think "I really should do this!" I am already keeping a journal for my personal history class & I definitely take a lot of pictures. I have lots of free digital scrapbooking supplies on my computer (now on my external hard drive & organized). The only thing missing was the ability to efficiently use Photoshop. What's a girl to do?

I watched many free tutorials on cathyzielske.typepad.com and took notes. (Geek!)

Here's a tutorial on using layered templates: paisleepress.com/2009/01/layered-templates-101/

My plan is to print the pages in color on photo paper each week. Then, at the end of the year or maybe every six months, I will have them printed & bound in a photobook (Blurb or similar). Here are a few of the pages that I have made so far:

Bucket List

Do you have a bucket list? A long time ago (before the movie that I still haven't seen) I made a list of 100 things I wanted to do in my life. A few items from the list: Graduate from college. Go to Washington DC & Boston. Visit a pawn shop.

Scott gave me a beautiful camera a few years ago. The quality of the pictures is so much better than my little portable cameras can take, especially on the fast running stuff. One day last spring while I was walking up the front stairs, I tripped & fell with my camera in my hand. Since then, the photos have been a little overexposed. Then, when we were on Junkanoo Beach in the Bahamas, my camera rolled off of my bag & into the powdery fine sand. At first, the lens would not work but it eventually worked out the kinks. I have been casually looking for a lens on Amazon & Craigslist. One lens was listed on Craigslist at a pawn shop about 20" away from our house. When I finally went & tried the lens (& heard about the 30-day money-back guarantee!), I decided to buy it. The cashier gave me a bonus 10% off because I mentioned Craigslist & I felt like I got the deal of the century. (80% off the new price?!) It's just the "kit lens" for the next nicer model of my camera, but the image quality is great!

Jared had two baby teeth pulled. Braces? Very, very soon!

The Guess How Much I Love You Bunnies

Dad frequently gives the kids rides to bed

Haircuts at last - the wise guy without wisdom teeth!

Ryan likes to practice basketball.

The View from the Back Door

My friend Kristi at thankfulme.net posted a picture about the view out her back door. I was so surprised - she lives in the desert with wind generators on top of treeless mountaintops and an unusual tree nearby. (Unusual only because I had never seen one before.) I grabbed my camera to document what I saw out my door & to try out my new lens.

I took a picture of the tree & was surprised to see a cardinal and another unknown-to-me bird. Our neighbor has several bird feeders & they are attracting a lot of wildlife. The tree in the front has always been sort of gangly & awkward but it provides a lot of privacy from the houses behind us. Our lot ends right in the middle of the tree. I think that the little blobs near the top of the tree are mistletoe.