Back in January I posted about our kitchen table.  That post caused me to be filled with so much nostalgia and sentimentality that I couldn’t bear to part with it.  The pictures don’t quite do justice to the wear and use the table exhibited, and Richard was excited about the new table.  With promises to restore the old, abused table to a new glory, I insisted we keep it.  We gave away our new table to a good home. 

Months… later…

Our old abused table has been restored.  It was a project of massive undertaking, and I spent countless hours on it.  Let 2012 be remembered as “The Year of the Table.”

We ate at a card table (or out on the picnic table when weather permitted) for months.  For the better part of a year to be truthful.  But alas! She is finished, and we love her.  We look forward to more debates, laughter, games, budgets, homework, crafts and meals on her newly stained surface. 

Okay, so these pictures make the perfectionist in me squirm a little bit.  I used paint and a water based polycrylic on the chairs and table legs, and then I stained the table top and used an oil based polyurethane.  I also used a paint sprayer on the chairs and a foam brush on the table top, so there is an obvious difference in “shine.”  This bothers me.  But Richard is rolling his eyes as he reads this because he is so happy that it’s done.  He’ll never let me touch it again. 

She isn’t without her flaws- no amount of sanding could remove these knarly marks where the Hall family’s first bassett hound made use of her puppy teeth.  But such imperfections arouse pleasant memories.  (Please ignore the cherry tomato from last night’s dinner.)

So you’ll just have to come see it yourself, or take my word for it that it looks better in person.  Just like the “Before” pictures don’t do justice to the wear and tear, these “After” pictures don’t do justice to the new glory. 

A post two days in a row? Don’t hold your breath for tomorrow.  I’m working backwards here, and since all my pictures from Las Vegas/Disneyland/Ragnar are on my phone (so sad!) I will post them from my phone… sometime…

I ran my second half-marathon on November 3rd, my first since 2009.  It was awesome.  This picture is my weak attempt at looking strong when I had absolutely no strength left.  But that’s actually a really satisfying feeling. 

This little presentation is about 12 minutes, but I think it is 12 minutes well spent.  This guy is funny.  His information isn’t necessarily cutting edge, but it’s a nice reminder at the least.  Stick it out, his last points are his best. 

http://embed.ted.com/talks/shawn_achor_the_happy_secret_to_better_work.html

(Did I use that term in an appropriate context?)

In this season of intense political warfare, a few thoughts from some smart people. 

Firstly- Meredith my political sunshine:

“Democrats and Republicans have such different experiences, today, that their realities are fundamentally different. And thus, their interpretation of the “facts” will not coalesce. Ben Smith at Buzzfeed expanded on this by suggesting this divergence of realities is much more amplified this election season because in the United States now have such stark divisions in our media, that our “realities” are reinforced by an “authority” (the media). And i would take it one step further and extend this media reinforcement to include venues where likeminded people come together via online groups and forums to agree on perceived realities. in sum, falsehoods can become facts when enough people confirm them, and more than ever today, there are places to go for the affirmation.”

Secondly – Dallin H. Oaks:

“That the Constitution was ratified is largely attributable to the fact that the principal leaders in the states were willing to vote for a document that failed to embody every one of their preferences.

In other words, one should not expect perfection—one certainly should not expect all of his personal preferences—in a document that must represent a consensus. One should not sulk over a representative body’s failure to attain perfection. Americans are well advised to support the best that can be obtained in the circumstances that prevail. That is sound advice not only for the drafting of a constitution but also for the adoption and administration of laws under it.”

Third – Benjamin Franklin:

“For having lived long, I have experienced many Instances of being oblig’d, by better Information or fuller Consideration, to change Opinions even on important Subjects, which I once thought right, but found to be otherwise”

and lastly my ever-wise big brother Bryan:

“Arguably, [an individual] should find the best in conservativism (traditional family values, religiously-rooted morality, self-reliance, etc.) as compelling as the best in liberalism (visiting and caring for the poor, helping those who cannot help themselves, constant striving to improve others’ quality of life, etc.). I am heartily skeptical of the side that claims so adamantly to have a monopoly on The Good.” 

It is Rice Krispies.  It is karma for when I did the same thing with Cheerios as a child.  It is why I must choose between neglecting the blog or neglecting the children.  It is time for this mom to put her laptop away. 

And yes, Miriam is wearing Eli’s underwear. 

Cameron – 2006



Eli – 2008

Simon – 2012

After the 4th of July we had a fun trip down to Utah for a Hall Family quasi-reunion.  I call it a quasi-reunion because all of the sibling group are still on speaking terms.  (Richard and I often ponder why it is that our parents siblings groups aren’t so fortunate.)

I took a whopping THREE pictures of that event.  I rely entirely on Adri, who has the nice camera, to be photographer.  Adri- even though we are on speaking terms I keep forgetting to speak to you about putting said pictures up in  Picasa album…

Here are the girls listening to Baca tell a story.  (Read: Listenting to Baca entertain them while their vacation-frazzled mothers catch their breath.)

After a significant time investment on mine and Adri’s parts, we finally settled on this condo in the Ogden canyon, which turned out to work really well for our group, and AWESOME property managers to boot!

It is so much fun watching my kids form lasting friendships with their cousins.  If you aren’t on speaking terms with any of your siblings I encourage you to reconcile.  Cousins of any age are a treasure worth having, don’t be the reason your child is deprived! 

Ahem.  Where was I?

So the trip was lovely aside from Simon getting a thrill from jumping into the swimming pool, and then doing so when there were no other people in the pool, and giving his mom quite a drowning scare. 

The day we returned from Utah we became the temporary parents of two darling little boys, Jack and Ryker.  Their parents left on a Wednesday to run a Ragnar relay in Seattle.  Feeling only slightly sorry for myself that I wasn’t included on the team, I offered to watch the boys until their parents return on Sunday evening.

Simon and Ryker were born days apart, I loved getting affection from two little boys for a few days.

Richard left Thursday to go out of town overnight, leaving me the single mother of SIX children ages seven and under.  It actually went remarkably well.  Richard came home Friday and by Saturday we were all going a little crazy.  We couldn’t leave the house because I couldn’t fit them all in the van legally.  But Sunday we braved church with the help of a babysitter, and by Sunday afternoon they all took naps and peace was restored. 

So what did I learn from this experience?  I’ve always wanted a large family, five or six kids.  I learned about something I call proactive parenting.  I anticipated every need to prevent meltdowns. I had things planned, I was ON TOP OF IT.  But is that a sustainable way of living? 

I’ve concluded I have three choices:

1. Stop with four.  No more babies.
2. Have more children and go insane.
3. Commit to being a proactive parent.  

Certainly gives me something to think about…

In ninth grade someone in my family bought the Broadway soundtrack to Les Miserables.  We listened to it all the time.  We were living in Virginia at the time and sometimes when I hear the songs I get nostalgic. 

Richard says that when we had our first “real” conversation on the phone, meaning not the first couple awkward “ask-you-out” phone conversations, I told him that Les Miserables was my favorite book.  It still is.  (If I can even say that, having only read the abridged version.)

So LAST fall when I found out that Les Mis was coming to Boise I jumped on board A.S.A.P! I bought our tickets, not even thinking to look at the BSU football schedule.  Fast forward one year and the I make the connection that our tickets to Les Mis are on the same night as the BSU v. BYU football game.  Oops. 

Richard and I love BSU.  We also love BYU.  But Richard reassured me that it wasn’t a big deal.  That was, until three days before the game/play, we were offered tickets.  After a stressful hour of trying to figure out how we could see the play another night and still go to the game, we decided to just stick with the plan, we had pretty good seats and I didn’t want to compromise my much anticipated experience.  Richard was still being a champ about it.

Then…

Then we were downtown, grabbing a bite to eat less than a block away from the stadium.  The venue for the play practically shares a parking lot with the stadium.  Blue and orange everywhere.  I could see a little disappointment in Richard’s eyes.  Heck, even I was feeling a little disappointed. 

But every minute of the play was worth it.  (Well except those few minutes of innuendo that the director threw in.)   It exceeded my expectations.  I loved it.  Richard liked it too.  It was the fulfillment of a young girl’s dream.  I could have gone back the next day and watched it all over again, hanging on every note, loving every character, tearing up in the Finale. 

Despite the fact that the play and the game ended nearly at the same time, we managed to make it home without hearing a score.  Interestingly, I was pretty sure BSU had won, but none of the fans were really acting like it. 

We got home, put on pajamas, popped popcorn and stayed up until 2am watching the most painful game ever. 

Let me be honest here and hopefully I don’t get accused of being a fair-weather fan.  But the beauty of watching your two favorite teams play is this.  It’s truly a win-win!  Whichever team wins makes me feel good.  But if you know me at all, you know that it also means feeling really sorry for the losing team. 

So technically it was a win for the Broncos.  But it was a win for the Cougars too, because it was the first time in over 20 years that BSU didn’t score an offensive touchdown on the blue turf.  And that’s no small thing. 

But, the fact is, it’s just a football game.  And my head was still in the clouds from this…