Young Single Adults

 

   

For the last two years we have been privileged to work with the Young Single Adults (YSA’s) for church. It is a great program that gives activity & fellowship to young people aged 19 to 30.99. Almost every Sunday night we have home evening with a short lesson, a treat, &  a game. Monthly, there’s a dance and a fireside; there’s also a bimonthly temple trip. The dances are fun & we actually really enjoy the music & hanging out. I do have to take a nap on that Friday because I definitely can’t stay awake that late & keep smiling without one. :)

Very few callings involve serving together so this has been extra fun! Scott has high council responsibilities which include the YSA & institute; I am the YSA advisor for the ward & teach a gospel doctrine class on Sunday & host home evening. It has been fun to watch young men prepare to go on missions – the same young men whom Scott taught & led in the Young Men’s organization. A few weeks ago we had a record-breaking number of YSA’s for home evening. We had all the great regulars & then extras from Simpsonville 1st, Greenville 2nd, & a the USC YSA ward. Soon we will be losing several to missions & marriage but these are happy graduations. We have had three new convert baptisms & Brad & Conner are due to come home in the next six months. It has definitely been the FUNNEST calling I’ve ever served in.

There are approximately 70 YSA’s on our rolls & sadly I do not know many of them (probably 30-40). I am always delighted when I can accidentally run into someone when I’m out in the community. It is EXHAUSTING & rewarding all wrapped up into one big overwhelming package. I hope we get to stay for a long time!

Fifth grade day, baseball, baseball, and more baseball!

So anyone who’s been anywhere near me for the past few weeks knows that I have been a little absorbed by the fifth grade slide show. It played yesterday without any major glitches. I was able to sit in the middle of the kids while they watched it & it was WONDERFUL to hear their reactions. I absolutely cannot believe that Ryan is old enough to be moving on to middle school. Fifth grade is such an interesting place – still kids but growing up really, really fast. Ryan is the kid on the back row with scruffy hair. We haven’t had time for a haircut because of over-much baseball.

Ryan’s team is still in the tournament. His hand is still a little sore sometimes but it is holding up well. They have played A LOT of baseball this week – Monday practice, Tuesday game, Thursday game, Friday game, & Saturday game. It has definitely been an interesting tournament – our coach is the one that everybody hates. When the kids were ahead 12-2 today, he was still having kids steal bases almost every time. Just as one season is ending, the All-Star season is beginning. We don’t fully understand what this means but soon.

Last night Scott’s company went to a Greenville Drive game. Ryan & I missed the first few minutes but we all had a great time. During the eighth inning the park always sings “Sweet Caroline”. This picture includes some of the Barlows – Mimi, Ken, Tommy, Will, (Ryan), & Spencer. Chris is on the row behind in the striped shirt.

Freedom Weekend Aloft

This is the first year since moving to South Carolina that we have not been in Florida for Memorial Day weekend. Subsequently, we were able to go to Simpsonville last night & see that hot air balloons. The oven was preheated (450) & the fish was ready to bake, but the excitement was not to be deterred. We hopped in the van & drove towards the balloons. We were able to follow them to a neighborhood about 20" from our house & see them land! It was very exciting for the kids (& mom). When we got back home a while later, the oven re-preheated & the lightly breaded tilapia fillets baked for 10" on the first side & 3" on the second side. Utter perfection.

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Broken

We finally had Ryan’s hand x-rayed today & found that he had a boxer’s fracture. (This is the same fracture that I had a few years ago.) We were told by the doctor to not let him play baseball… and a six week recovery. Bummer, huh? He played tonight & was very careful. They would have forfeited the game without him.

Update: After Ryan's game on Monday, I took him to the SHIFT clinic. It's so cool - it's a walk-in clinic for our favorite orthopedic clinic. We met a fellow BYU-graduate & walked right in. They x-rayed his hand again, said that they could see where it had been broken, but that it had mended very well. I jokingly asked, "So, can he play baseball?" and the doctor happily agreed. Ryan was especially excited for this because it means that he can play on the all-star team this year.

It’s all Hollee’s fault…

I got a few pieces of furniture for Mother’s Day…

 

The desk is a lovely piece that I found on sale at the Pottery Barn outlet on Tuesday night. I had to drive back the next morning to pick it up because… it was calling my name. I have it in a quiet room in the basement where I can sit & work on the computer without any distractions. The room is vacant except for the desk & the chair.

The hutch was an accidental find on Craig’s List. I visited Hollee & learned that she got beautiful pieces from Craig’s List. I did find my sectional sofa there last year, but generally I just see a lot of icky stuff.

Exhibit A:

Lovely floral print sofa in great condition. $200

After buying the desk, I was resting from the drive & looked on Craig’s List. There was a beautiful hutch. I love the hutch – it’s real wood, matches my cabinetry & has space for my ceramic bowls & my china. While trying to get the glass out, the previous owner dropped one piece of tempered glass onto the lower piece, scratching one & shattering the other. Otherwise, it’s a lovely piece, fits the wall perfectly, & I’m delighted. I will change out the hardware because it’s outdated but that’s easy. Which would I rather have – the hutch or the lovely floral print sofa? I will take the hutch.

Free will & trust kit from Suze Orman!!!

http://blissfullydomestic.com/financial-bliss/money-tips-and-a-free-will-trust-kit-from-suze-orman/

A Challenge … to grow!

A garden …  One of the blog authors that I like to read is at the Pretty Organized Palace. Right now she is doing a series on 12 homemaking skills. I am sure that I am pretty deficient in 10-11… we’ll see as she introduces things. Last year Scott built nice raised beds & we harvested a little food … but never as much as we hope. He dreams of growing a giant pumpkin. The local food bank encourages people to plant an extra row or two & donate the fresh produce. Cool idea, huh? Here’s some pictures from last year’s harvest – beans, watermelon, & cantaloupe.

My blogging skills … By the way, I started using Windows Live Writer for writing my blog. I LOVE that you can control your type & pictures better. I have yet to fully explore the functionality of the program but am glad that there’s something out there more sophisticated than blogspot.

My cardio workouts … Last night at WW the leader challenged us to set some type of goal. Mostly they’re trying to get people who’ve never exercised to start… but I’ve been exercising for two years constantly & not seeing the results that I crave (almost as much as chocolate)… Anyways, so my new goal is to do at least 45 minutes of cardio 5 days a week. My mom has amazingly started to train to run a half marathon (at 61). She has never been a runner so this is a fun new adventure.

(Update: Since I wrote this post a week ago, I worked really hard on getting an average of 45” of working out for five days. I missed Wednesday & so made it up on Thursday with a cycling/Bosu class & then 45” on the treadmill. I don’t think I will be doing that again… I got a little overheated.)

Isn’t this picture GREAT? It’s Scott’s grandfather Gale Dustin Smith. It’s especially fun because our boys love to run!

My parenting skills … Somewhere along the way I missed the manual that was handed out at the hospital on how to be a great parent. I am going to take Family Life 100 through BYU – it will count towards my degree & help in my everyday life. Perfect!

OK, enough babbling … pics of the kids soon.

Easter Sunday

We spent a fun day as a family today. The Easter bunny dropped off a small basket with enough goodies for the kids to make them feel remembered. (He had “early Church” so had to come back on the way home to hide the eggs. … You can’t say that our kids don’t have active imaginations!!!) We heard wonderful messages about the atonement & resurrection of Jesus Christ during sacrament meeting. … seriously some of the best talks I’ve heard. Scott & I taught Sunday school together on the law of consecration, tithing, & whatever else came up. Finally, I played the piano for Primary. I hadn’t practiced in a while but luckily we played the same song over & over & over & over…

 

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Marathon Weekend

 
 
 
 

Can you see the smiles? Scott completed the National Marathon in 3:21.44 and qualified for the Boston Marathon in the process. The amazing part? He was smiling the whole time & got to even run for several miles with the mayor of D.C. He didn't really know who the guy was but people kept saying "Hello Adrian!" (everyone knew him) so he (Scott) finally figured it out. Scott felt strong for the entire marathon. His slowest mile was 8:01 & his fasted was 7:04. So what does he want to do now? Run another marathon, of course.

Lisa & Crystal were awesome & we all just loved the whole experience. It was fun to have two additional family members hanging out with us for the weekend.



The boys and I had a blast riding the subway and chasing the runners. After the race we drove over to Alexandria & visited my favorite pizza place - Bertucci's. The pizza was 16" across & brick-oven fired. We then parked the van at the hotel & left to meet our friends the Rankins at the Lincoln Memorial. It was SO GOOD to see them. We walked around the Lincoln Memorial & then the Korean & Vietnam war memorials. We disembarked at the wrong subway station and ended up walking A LOT on the way to see the Rankins.



On Sunday we went to the Richmond, Virginia Branch. The building was very non-descript old building, in the middle of a poor part of town, with VERY limited parking. The people were very friendly. So many people stopped & introduced themselves to us. The speakers happened to be visitors - we were glad that we were not the ones called on to speak!

At the web-site MapMyRun, I input the roads that we walked on & figured out that on Saturday we walked for over TEN MILES!

Washington DC

Last Thursday we drove to Washington DC with our three sons & two friends whom we would gladly claim as daughters. The purpose of the grand adventure? To run the National Marathon and to qualify for the Boston Marathon. The Boston Marathon is the only race in the United States that requires a qualifying time in another race; Wikipedia says that that fact makes it the "people's Olympics".

What's cooking Wednesday (almost)

Tonight I was desperate for a fast dinner. In the refrigerator? Dubliner cheese from the tasty-tables at Costco & chicken-apple sausages (fabulous!). I looked at the web-site for the sausages & found a great salad - which I tweaked because it wasn't for a grade. I called Scott to grab spinach on the way home. Here's the rest of the recipe (my way):

Apple Sausage Salad

4 Chicken-Apple sausage links (when sauteed they taste like bacon)
4 oz. Dubliner cheese (or goat cheese)
2 apples, cored & sliced thin
Bag of spinach
4 Tbsp. Walnuts (mixed with craisins, optional)
Ken's Lite Honey Mustard dressing

Slice sausages into small rounds; saute in a bit of cooking spray for 5-7 minutes. Layer spinach, sauteed sausage, apples, cheese, walnuts, & then honey mustard dressing. Yummy & ready in under 15 minutes. WW points? 6 for 6 servings.

I'm published! ... well sorta

While helping a friend with her algebra today, I received a knock on my door & found my favorite postal carrier with a package for me. I couldn't imagine what was in the box. I tore it open to find a new cookbook - for free - for submitting a recipe for the Worldwide Web Cookbook. I submitted a recipe for Pulled Pork sandwiches (page 146).



When I heard about the project & submitted my recipe, I thought, "OK, sounds fun." I didn't realize the book would be hardcover, spiral-bound with beautiful photos & even a cute font. I almost bought the book on Friday before I realized I would soon own one.

If you're in Utah, there's a great event next Wednesday with demonstrations of recipes from the cookbook. Tell them I sent you (or not...) --

³Confessions of a Chocoholic Cook² is a free cooking event in which community members will be taught simple but tasty chocolate recipes from author and cook Deanna Buxton.

The event will be held at the SCERA lobby (745 S. State St., Orem, UT) and will begin at 7 p.m.

Some of the recipes that will be taught and demonstrated include Chocolate Pancakes with Grandma's Syrup, Snickers Salad, ³My Most Favorite Cake² and Fudge Cookies.

The event¹s recipes are based on the book Worldwide Ward Cookbook, which features recipes from all over the world.

³Confessions of a Chocoholic Cook² is open to the general public, but those who want to attend must RSVP by March 16 by emailing covenantpromotions@gmail.com.

Participants are also encouraged to email their best chocolate/dessert recipe ahead of time to be included in the recipe-swap table at the event.

Reedy River 5K race

Yesterday, I went downtown & ran with several of my girlfriends. I had a blast & was miserable all in one grand occasion. You will need to read the pictures uphill to understand what happened. ... My phone went dead but we managed to meet up before the race. My calves have been KILLING me but I thought I would try running & just see what happened. My best time ever was 33:11 so I just wanted to beat that. (Well, I really wanted to beat 31:00 but didn't hold my breath.) I ran & my calves were fine most of the way. I walked for a little bit at the water stop but it hurt to walk & hurt to run so I just ran & ran & ran. I decided I would rather hurt for a shorter amount of time. When I rounded the corner & saw the finish line I wanted to sprint but my legs said no! I don't remember much of the race - but when I heard Crystal cheering me on I was SO excited.

My official clock time was 32:56 and the GPS watch said 32:23 for exactly 3.1 miles. Whatever?! I beat my old time by 15 seconds or more. Hooray! I had a blast with my friends & probably look forward to doing more races. But never a marathon - and you can quote me on that one.

Want to see my new favorite gadget? It's almost midnight & I can't figure out how to upload another image to facebook but you can see it here.

Snow Day

 
 
 
 

The weatherman had been predicting snow for quite a while but we did not want to get our hopes up. The kids heard about the trick of wearing your pajamas backwards for more snow while in Primary on Sunday. They came home & put their pajamas on right away. Voila! Snow!!!

First Grade sweetness

Click on the picture for a close-up view.

Jared has a homework assignment each night to draw a picture & write a sentence with 4/12 spelling words. I love that they capture the innocence & beauty of first grade. His spelling words are spelled correctly but there is some creative spelling going on for the rest. I guess I could correct him & make everything perfect, but *newsflash* perfection isn't all that it's cracked up to be.

If you need a translation:
We can say anything.
Put your food on your tray.
We can play with are frends.
You can yous gray.
Bee, go away to your bee hive.

I have been working on a picture-a-day project for the year & have done a pretty decent job of capturing the mundane. Somewhere along the way though, I lost track of adorable hug-hug-kiss-kiss Jared. My new resolution for today is to take a cute picture of each of my kids... eyes opened... smiling... perfect. Wish me luck!

Marathon Weekend

 
 
 

I spent a great weekend in Myrtle Beach with two amazing women last weekend. Danielle & Lisa both ran in the Myrtle Beach marathon. They both met and exceeded their goals. I chased them around the course & saw them at miles 4, 10, 16, 22/23, & the finish line. I had a lot of fun, rang my unique cow bell, & just loved the whole experience.

As I drove down Kings Highway at about 7 a.m., I felt the enormity of the distance that they were running. Twenty-six miles is a long way! Amazed is the word that kept coming to me through the day.

Hanging out with my friends, walking on the beach, eating amazing food for almost every meal (I missed breakfast!), and talking and talking and talking. Loved the whole experience.

First Five ...

So I got this from Bonnie's blog who got it from Misty's blog, and the only reason I'm doing it is because I really want to see what Bonnie will create. I'm not as creative as her, so beware. And I definitely not as good at time management... and a million other things.

Lucky you!

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!

2- What I create will be just for you.

3- It'll be done this year.

4- You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be a story. It may be photography or an article on properly cleaning your face before a masque. I may sew or paint something. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

5- I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so, and leave a comment telling me they did, win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me! (Or maybe Not so fabulous)

Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!

Groundhog Day

Do you remember the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray? It is one of my favorites. I forgot about it until too late today. We turned it on in time to see them kiss, kiss, kiss, & wake up to a whole new day. Gretchen Rubin talks about a perfect day in her blog today. She also poses the question, what would your perfect day look like? She says that for most people, it's a lot more attainable than you would think.

So, what would your perfect day consist of? I haven't really taken the time to figure it all out but for sure it would include all of these folks, good food, lack of deadlines, and down time.

 
Click on the picture to see enlarged views. I especially love Jared's face in every single instance. :)
Almost every Sunday night we host home evening at our home for a group of young single adults from church. We split a lesson & have a treat & a game. Last Sunday was the funniest game ever since Brad & Connor did team charades. Jonathan & Jordan argued about which item is more bitter - pennies or mustard? Jordan pulled pennies out of his back pocket & they each tasted them (ew!). Then they each ate a teaspoon of mustard (ew!). When all was said & done, Jonathan decided to choose stomachache.