Tuesday - October 27

Sometimes Autumn just spends hours playing with her Dora play set. Sometimes she wants me to play right along with her. Most of the time I have lots of other things to do so I just tell her to play and I will check on her. Today I sat and played for a few minutes. She is so creative with her play. She knows just what she wants each of her characters to do. If I got it wrong then she would correct me and let me know how to play the right way. I will miss these days with her as I already miss them with the older children. Today mattered because I played with my five year old and did not worry about what was not getting done around the house!

Monday - October 26

Poor little Taylor was sick today with the flu. She woke up around 3:00 this morning and was sick all day. It is so hard when the children are sick. I feel helpless and mostly just wish they could not go through it. Even though I had tons to do this busy Monday I spent a lot of time looking after this little one. Things got done - she slept a lot - but when she was awake I tried to comfort her. I hope it does not spread to the others. Today mattered because I was there for my sick little girl!

Sunday - October 25

Today was our Primary Program at church. It was so sweet. Our family was invited to sing a song and all were there except Ashleigh, Chelsea and Seth. The spirit of the program was so strong. It was about families. The children spoke of personal experiences that they had within their own families about scripture study, prayer, family home evening. It was so special to listen to these children bear personal testimony of the things that they had been taught in their homes. They all sang beautifully and even our family did a great job! We had practiced but never all together. So I was not sure how it was going to turn out. I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus were listening this day as they children sang and spoke their testimonies. Today mattered because we were reminded once again of the importance of our family!

Saturday - October 24

I finished my fall plaque today. This picture is kind of hard to tell what it's all about but I just have to say I think it is fun! When fall comes I get in a very creative mood and like to create. I like staying inside when the weather changes. We had a fire going most of the afternoon and the kids were just quietly playing. Last year I was sewing like no ones business. This year I am back to paper crafting. I am still sewing but not as much. I went thrifting yesterday afternoon and found some fun things to put together for just pennies. I love having projects going in my head and finding the jackpot of what I need at these places. Today mattered because while enjoying the changing weather I created!

Friday - October 23

Today was a Jonathan day. His favorite thing is to eat. Autumn and I have such fun watching this little guy. He is very busy but she seems to be able to keep his attention and get him to play where she wants him to. Of course, not much gets done around the house when he is here but that is OK. I did manage to get in a run this morning and did four loads of laundry before he got here so I guess I did more than just watch him. Today mattered because Grandma got to take care of this little guy!

Thursday - October 22

I finally finished my fall wreath. I was looking and looking for the right welcome sign to go with it. I had an idea in my head and it just never happened the way I had envisioned. But I think this turned out very cute! My plan is to make a wreath for all the seasons and holidays. We shall see if that happens. I always make great plans. As I put the finishing touches on this and was hanging it outside I realized how much it is looking like fall. The colors are beautiful! Last week on a run I noticed all the changing leaves and the sun was coming up and shining through the clouds and it was so beautiful! I am so drawn to the fall colors. I decorate a lot with them. I think all the colors of the leaves and flowers are the last beauty of nature until spring when everything comes alive again. There is a lot of yard work to get done and things around the house to do but for a few moments today I just stood and enjoyed the colors of fall. Today mattered because I saw God's canvas and took time to enjoy the beauty of it!

Wednesday - October 21

Today was library day for Autumn and I. We try to go every week for story time and then afterwards we go to McDonald's to eat lunch. There are three of us that go. Jenn and her girls, Gina and her girls, and Autumn and I. I look forward to this time with my friends as much as Autumn does. Next year she will be in school all day so I will miss out on this little adventure. That is unless - I take Jonathan for Grandma dates on Wednesdays - I think that is what I am going to have to do. Today mattered because reading and friendship went hand in hand!

Tuesday - October 20

In April I think I did a post on my other blog that was "Pay it Forward". The first five people to respond to my post would get a made craft from me. One of the rules was that I had up to a year to finish and deliver the projects. Well, this week I finished all five of the projects. Pictured is one of the things that Lynn gets. I did something different for each one. Jewelry, signs, picture frame memo boards, advent calendar. I am going to mail the ones to the gals that live out of town. What a fun surprise for them to see I actually finished what I started. It has been a lot of fun figuring out what projects to do for this "Pay it Forward" game. Today mattered because I completed a goal long before it was time to.

Monday - October 19

Today was jewelry class. We meet monthly and work on different projects. Denise is a wonderful teacher and has lots of fun things for us to do. This month I found this button bracelet that I wanted us to learn how to make. Jenn, Shari, Lynn, Denise and I had such a wonderful afternoon together making our bracelets. I made a chicken salad and cornbread for lunch. This project was pretty easy and I ended up making two. Today mattered because I got to spend time with friends and create.

Sunday - October 18

Today is Ashleigh's birthday. In October we have five birthdays in our family. (Six when you count Jonathan our grandson) We had our family birthday party today. It was so wonderfully crazy here. All the kids came and Noah made homemade meatballs and spaghetti. My mom taught him this summer how do make this recipe and he loves cooking so that was his birthday present to all the kids. I love it when the kids are creative with their gift giving. We had a huge salad and for dessert we had cake and ice cream of course and apple pie. I think everyone had a great time. David had a fire going in the fire pit outside. It was just cold enough to really enjoy it. Today mattered because I realize how special everyone is as we gather together to celebrate the birth of five of the children!

Saturday - October 17

Today I finished up the rest of the grapes that I made into juice. I ended up with 32 quarts of juice! I am going to make grape jelly with the juice but I will do that next month sometime. I want to make some for gifts for the holiday and some for our storage. It was much easier than I thought to do the juice but very time consuming. My friend Eliza invited me to pick grapes last week with her at a home she visit teaches at. They did not want the grapes to go to waste. When my friend Lynn heard I was doing juice she let me come pick the rest of her grapes. So in all my spare time this week :) I got to have the juicer going on my stove and fill up the rest of my quart jars with juice. Today mattered because I am practicing my provident living and learning new skills in the kitchen!

Friday - October 16

I started today out with an eight mile run. The morning was just beautiful. Everywhere I looked the leaves were changing on the trees and the sun was shining so beautifully on things. It was just the right temperature outside for running a long run. I kept thinking of how wonderful all things in my life are and how blessed I am to have David in my life. After my run my day got very crazy. Kids needed this or that. I had errands to run. Birthday present to buy. Sewing class to go to. I did not get to stay at my class. Paige needed me. So I left feeling very frustrated at that the whole day seemed to go downhill after my beautiful morning. Then David called about 4:00 in the afternoon. He asked me out on a date. How sweet. It had been a long time since we had actually gone out to dinner. I told him that it would be fun and that I had a bridal shower to go to but he should call me there when he got home and cleaned up. So at around 7:30 that evening he picked me at the shower and off we went to dinner. What a nice evening we had together. We talked uninterrupted for an hour. After such a weird day to have it end with my husband telling me how much he loved me made all the craziness all seem worthwhile. Today mattered because despite all the stresses it brought at the end of the day what mattered most was being with the love of my life!

Thursday - October 15

Today Chloe brought her CD home of her senior pictures. We spent time looking through them all and picking out which ones she wanted. I cannot believe this baby girl will be graduating and moving on with her life. She just had her birthday a couple of days ago and it seems like yesterday that I used to workout with Paige and her at my feet. Literally Paige or her would have to be held during the whole workout. (It made me stronger but boy it was hard) Back in those days I only ran two miles a day, and then I would do a workout video in my living room. That is all the time I could fit into my day with those two little ones. I remember thinking many times - "When are they going to grow up so I could really workout?". How I wish now that I had enjoyed that time more with them at my feet. But today - today I let her talk and show me her pictures and tell me all her plans. What a wonderful young lady she has become. Today mattered because my baby girl wanted to share her life with me.

Wednesday - October 14

Look at those silly faces! What a funny bunch of kids. Today was just a normal uneventful day. There was lots going on and lots of projects to finish and lunch with Toshia. Nothing out of the ordinary happened. So why did today matter? Today mattered because we were together as a family at the end of the day. Everyone came home safe and there was love in our home this day!

Tuesday - October 13

This picture is from the half marathon that Chad and I ran in this summer. We have not run together since then. We both have been running but just not together. This morning I asked Chad if he wanted to go on a 5 mile run with me and he agreed. It was raining lightly and it was cold. We got through the run just fine. It was so nice to have some one on one with him. Time is flying by with him and before I know it he will be gone and moved out of the house. We did not talk a lot but just being together felt really good. He has some hard times this last week so I wanted him to know that I really loved him and know that he is a great kid. Today mattered because I got to run with my son!

Monday - October 12

Noah has always been my little sports guy. Anything to do with baseball and he is all over it. This year in school he is taking a cooking class. When he was at my moms this summer he cooked with her and had lots of fun. Well, he has turned into quite the cook. He loves it. He brings the recipes home to me and shares all the "tips" he is learning. Today after school I promised him he could teach me how to make homemade salsa. It was really a lot of fun being tutored by him. I had no idea how easy this was to make and he loved showing me some of the shortcuts and techniques he had learned in class. Today mattered because I let my 13 year old teach me!

Sunday - October 11

Today this baby girl turns 25! I cannot believe that three of my girls are now 25 or older. Where has the time gone. There are many good things about this child that make me smile and giggle. She has such a sweet personality. Her dimples just tell it all. I am so glad that she was sent to our family. She has brought so much joy to me and taught me some very valuable life lessons. Happy Birthday baby girl. Today mattered because 25 years ago this little one came into my life!

Saturday - October 10

Today I worked at the bazaar. It was not as cold in the barn this year as it was last year. The weather was beautiful and a lot of people came out. It was fun working with Toshia and Danna and Denise. It was a lot of work but I did not do near as much as Denise! She is crazy lady with the crafting! Afterwards we went back to her house and her sweet husband had fixed us lasagna, from scratch no less. It was fun to gather around her table and enjoy a nice meal and talk and listen and be with each other. It has been way to long since I have gathered with that group of friends. It was nice to share all this with Toshia. Today mattered because I got to spend time with dear friends and my darling daughter!

Friday - October 9

President Hinckley taught us some very good values to live by. He gave a talk to the youth a few years ago and talked about the six "B"s to live by. Since that talk he added six more. I have reminders around my house for me to see everyday. One of them is to "Be Kind". Today I felt like I was kind. I really listened to a friend and could see she needed extra kindness passed her way today. She was having a hard day. I kept thinking what could I do to make her smile. I know flowers always make me smile. So I put together a small bouquet of fall flowers in an old canning jar. I just dropped them off on her doorstep with a note. It was supposed to be anonymous. But later that after noon she called and I had to say Yes I did leave the flowers. We talked some more. I am grateful for a couple of things today. Number one that everyday I see some words of our prophet. That those words are becoming who I am and that my friend could smile even though today was not a happy day for her. Today mattered because I took the time to make someone smile!

Thursday - October 8

Today was the most exciting day for Miss Autumn ever! According to her she has "waited her whole life to go on a field trip"! She was prepared. She had the correct clothing - the bag to bring the pumpkin home in and the correct shoes. (It could rain you know) She was thrilled. She woke up at 6:00 am. (She is not an early riser) When she came out of the school building she was carrying the biggest pumpkin of anyone! She was so happy with her find. Good thing I drove to pick her up. We had so much fun talking about field trips and the bus and getting pumpkins and all about the fall season. What great conversation we had this day. She really did not seem to be my little baby girl at all anymore but quite the opposite. A very grown up five year old who is very sure of herself and very confident and happy. Today mattered for me because a pumpkin brought great smiles and fun to a mom and her baby girl!

Wednesday - October 7

This sweet girl has always been such a blessing to this family. She has such a sweet personality and is soft spoken most of the time. Today was hard for her because the boys seem to be picking on her a lot lately. Just being big brothers but still it upsets her. I have told her to ignore them but it is hard when you want the approval of your big brothers and they tease you all the time. We spent some nice one on one time together this afternoon and that seemed to help her out a little. Growing up in a large family can be hard at times. But it can also be lots of fun. We talked lots about the positive things that big brothers can do for you - she agreed to try and not let them see her cry because of the teasing and I agreed to let her come to me and tell me what was going on so I could get after the boys. Eventually they will stop teasing - but as she gets older she will look back and laugh at all this. I know I do - my big brothers were always teasing me! Today mattered because I could talk, laugh, and love this little one through a hard day!

Tuesday - October 6

Bazaar things are done and ready to go. I waited way to long to get things done this year. This morning when I thought I would have time to finish a couple of things other situations needed my attention. The morning became very complicated and I still had things to get done for this event. I finally realized that I could only do what I could do and that it was my own fault for putting off what I could have done a couple of weeks ago to be ready. This is a hard lesson for me to learn as I often wait until the last minute to finish up projects. It does not really matter what I got done in the grand scheme of things. Just that I finished something. That is how I look at it today. I set some better goals for next year and Toshia and I will work diligently to finish things early! (She also was doing a lot of last minute finishing up) Today mattered because I learned a valuable lesson. It does not pay to procrastinate. I only hurt myself in the long run. Don't bite off more than I can chew and then everything can get done. It is hard to learn lessons over and over again - but maybe this time because Toshia will help me I will not put off what needs to be done today for tomorrow!

Monday - October 5

We got home from Utah very very late last night. The children were all in bed and the house was so quiet. Even though David and I were very tired from our long drive we still had to get the kids up and ready for school. The girls all need to shower and that added extra getting ready time to our all ready busy morning. During the whole bath time Autumn kept saying, "Mom, read me a story. I have it all picked out." To which I replied, "Honey we don't have time this morning. We are very busy. I will read when you get home from school." This was not making her happy at all. While I was ironing their clothes she came in with book in hand and said, "Mom, I don't need you to read the whole thing. Just open it up. Please, just open it up." I stopped for a moment and thought what is up with this little one this morning? I did take the book though and opened to the page she wanted me to. Out fell this picture. "Mom that is you and me. Do you like the bird? I know you like birds, what am I saying? Mom, do you like our heads? I worked hard on them. I know I made them black but I wanted them really really round. Do you love it? Do you love me?" Wow! What can I say but this little one constantly is reminding me of what is important. Not the ironing. Not the hustle of a busy morning. Not the lets get out the door looking good. It is that the children themselves are important. Look how she sees herself. Look at that smile on that picture! She is happy. I am happy. Today mattered because as you stop and look at things as they are there is lots to be happy about!

Sunday - October 4

This picture does not do the choir justice. It is small I know but just note they are not! On the Sunday morning of conference you get to go and listen to the choir sing as they do "Music and the Spoken Word". It is the longest running radio broadcast in the country. This makes this session of conference my favorite. As long as we have been coming here in the Fall we have been able to attend this session. This Sunday they ended their broadcast with one of my most favorite hymns - "Come Thou Font of Every Blessing". Both David and I were moved to tears as they sang and filled the conference center with their hymns of praise. Today mattered because music filled my soul.

Saturday - October 3

Wow! Conference was awesome to say the least. I was so moved by not only the spoken word but the music. I cannot use words to describe the feeling you have when you are sitting among thousands and thousands of saints. I was taught and edified and filled with such sweet feelings for these men who dedicate their lives to serving the church. What strong testimonies they share and live! Today mattered because I was once again reminded of who I am, where I came from, and what my purpose is here on earth.

Friday - October 2

Today we are on our way to listen to a prophets voice. Every fall David and I and friends go to General Conference in Salt Lake. I look forward to this fast pace weekend and we have such a great time. Not only do we get together with dear friends we get to engage in a very large gathering on temple square that is like no other. This was a long drive for us and much of the day was spent in the car. We did see the Joseph Smith movie at the Joseph Smith Building. It once again reminded me of how much I love that man and so wish I could have had the chance to meet him while he was living. I am glad for the testimony he had and the courage he had to stand when all things were against him. I hope that I have that strength when I will be confronted about my faith. Today mattered because I traveled with the one I love to see an important person teach and edify us.

Thursday - October 1

So I found this picture of Hayden the other day and I had to laugh. It is so her drama face. But honestly today was that kind of a day for me. I don't know why but I just did not feel like doing anything! I muddled my way through the whole day and kept thinking "I would love to just go and cuddle up with a good book and hide away!" Not anything major was giving me grief. I just think that maybe the last month of family life just caught up with me. So Hayden, I am with you with the "just leave me alone" picture! And yet, today still mattered. Today I got a lot of housework done, packed for our weekend trip, and went to meetings I had. I still functioned and worked through the "just leave me alone" feeling. Today mattered more because in the afternoon this sweet child came running in and flew into my arms and said, "I am so glad you are here - my day was great! How was yours?" To which I replied, "Better now that you are home!"

Wednesday - September 30

This little girl had to do a lot of things by herself today. I had a lot of last minute bazaar projects to get finish. She kept asking me and asking me to play with her, to cuddle with her, to read to her. "Not now honey, I have so much to do" was the answer she kept getting from me. I bribed her with her favorite TV shows, treats, and whatever she wanted for lunch. I even got out a hard math sheet for her to do. (She just laughed when I told her it was probably too hard - and then said, "What you don't think I know what 11 - 2 is? It's 9 duh!) Still that would only occupy her for a short time. At one point I looked over at her and thought, "She is not going to be asking me to play with her for very much longer. Soon, all too soon, she will not share with me all her thoughts and dreams. I need to stop now and take time with her.". Well, I put my stuff aside and scooped her up in my arms and we had some very good cuddly time. We read, played, shared and then soon she was sleepy and took a short nap. Today mattered because I set aside my busy schedule and held this last little child of mine. She helped me see where my treasure really lies.