All this = $0.00 (aka TOTALLY FREE!)Because I rock. Whabam! :)
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Grateful
Our budget this month has been tighter than usual thanks to a lovely car repair at the end of October. So today as I was walking out of Walmart with a shopping cart full of groceries I was thinking to myself how frustrated I was; frustrated that the budget is even tighter than usual, frustrated that I couldn't buy some of the things that I wanted to at the store, frustrated and tired of living on a student budget. I got to the car and opted to put Cayden in before the groceries as it was lightly snowing and cold and Cayden has a cough that I didn't want to antagonize. As I was doing so I kept an eye on my cart full of groceries to make sure someone didn't take off with it.
I glanced up at one point to see a man walking very slowly up the aisle of cars. He looked a little out of place and was visibly upset. I smiled at him and went back to putting Cayden in the car. When I looked up next I was startled to see the man standing a few feet away from me. He told me that he wanted to get some food for his boys and asked if I had anything on me I could give him. A few thoughts went though my mind...
...I normally don't feel bad for people asking for money as I think there is something else they could be doing to get the money/help they need. But I felt bad for this guy and wanted to help him.
...I never carry any cash on me! How on earth am I supposed to help him when I don't have anything to give?
I had to tell the man that I didn't have any amount of cash on me and that I was so sorry. I felt horrible and helpless as he walked away. After loading the groceries into my car I climbed into the drivers seat, locked the doors, and started bawling. Not just a few tears, but all out crying. I felt so bad for the man. What he said really tugged at my heart. I wished so badly that I had something to give him or even a less strict budget where I could have gone and bought him a few things. I didn't think of it at the time, but I could have offered him a loaf of bread or an apple or some crackers. That might have helped a little.
As I was thinking about how bad I felt for the man and his situation I was reminded of how truly blessed I am. I have a house to come home to with plenty of warm water and heat. I have a wonderful family - a husband who works so hard and loves his family and a sweet little boy who brings so much joy to my life. I have a car to get me places. I have the ability to buy food for my family; while it isn't always the grandest, we never go hungry.
Whether or not the man actually was trying to get food for his boys or not doesn't matter. It reminded me that even though our budget is tight and I sometimes wonder where the money is going to come from, we are always provided for. I have no room to complain that I couldn't buy all the things I wanted because I have all the things that I need. Things could certainly be much worse. I'm grateful. So grateful.
Sometimes Heavenly Father needs to drop a brick on our head to get us to pay attention and realize that things aren't as bad as we think. Apparently today was my day. :)
I glanced up at one point to see a man walking very slowly up the aisle of cars. He looked a little out of place and was visibly upset. I smiled at him and went back to putting Cayden in the car. When I looked up next I was startled to see the man standing a few feet away from me. He told me that he wanted to get some food for his boys and asked if I had anything on me I could give him. A few thoughts went though my mind...
...I normally don't feel bad for people asking for money as I think there is something else they could be doing to get the money/help they need. But I felt bad for this guy and wanted to help him.
...I never carry any cash on me! How on earth am I supposed to help him when I don't have anything to give?
I had to tell the man that I didn't have any amount of cash on me and that I was so sorry. I felt horrible and helpless as he walked away. After loading the groceries into my car I climbed into the drivers seat, locked the doors, and started bawling. Not just a few tears, but all out crying. I felt so bad for the man. What he said really tugged at my heart. I wished so badly that I had something to give him or even a less strict budget where I could have gone and bought him a few things. I didn't think of it at the time, but I could have offered him a loaf of bread or an apple or some crackers. That might have helped a little.
As I was thinking about how bad I felt for the man and his situation I was reminded of how truly blessed I am. I have a house to come home to with plenty of warm water and heat. I have a wonderful family - a husband who works so hard and loves his family and a sweet little boy who brings so much joy to my life. I have a car to get me places. I have the ability to buy food for my family; while it isn't always the grandest, we never go hungry.
Whether or not the man actually was trying to get food for his boys or not doesn't matter. It reminded me that even though our budget is tight and I sometimes wonder where the money is going to come from, we are always provided for. I have no room to complain that I couldn't buy all the things I wanted because I have all the things that I need. Things could certainly be much worse. I'm grateful. So grateful.
***
Sometimes Heavenly Father needs to drop a brick on our head to get us to pay attention and realize that things aren't as bad as we think. Apparently today was my day. :)
Friday, November 5, 2010
Family Pictures
Last month (over the course of 2-3 days) Chad's cousin Emmalie took our family pictures. The first day it was pouring rain and we had to reschedule - though we still got some really cute pictures. Anyway, Emmalie did an amazing job and I am in love with the pictures! Check her out on Facebook... SnapShots By-Emmalie ...I would totally recommend her. Thanks Emmalie for doing such a great job!
Here are just a few of my many, many favorites. :)
Here are just a few of my many, many favorites. :)
P.S. I'm really sorry this post is SO long. These are just a few of my favorites. Seriously. :)
P.P.S. Is my son really picking his nose and eating a booger? Gross. Thank you Emmalie for capturing this moment.
P.P.S. Is my son really picking his nose and eating a booger? Gross. Thank you Emmalie for capturing this moment.
Time Capsule
Way back in the year 2000 when I was 14 years old and in Young Women's we had this really fun activity where we made time capsules that we were to open during the year 2010 on our birthday. While visiting my family this summer I re-discovered this time capsule and brought it home with me so that I could open it on my upcoming birthday.
I'm not gonna lie. Some of the contents made me laugh so hard and some were really sweet. Though the one thing that stuck out the most to me was that I was totally a 14 year old girl when I made the time capsule. :) Enjoy!
My time capsule.
* Painted yellow which was and still is my favorite color.
* Has tons of pictures of things I liked such as... makeup, animal slippers, diamond rings, and Elmo?
The contents.
* A "What Does It Cost?" sheet. Apparently I need to travel back in time each time I want to fill up my car as gas was only $1.21/gallon.
* Ticket stubs from plays/sporting events I went to.
* Pictures of Nicki and I. By the way Nicki... we look so young!
* A Young Women's pamphlet with the values and theme. (Both of which have changed since then.)
* A questionnaire that I filled out. This seriously had me rolling as I read it! Why? One example... My favorite birthday was when I turned 14 because I could go to Stake dances. LOL!
* Letters from both of my parents and Nicki.
* A mission statement from yours truly about the type of person I hoped I would be in ten years.
* Laura's rose.
* My handkerchief and recommend from the Palmyra Temple dedication.
I'm not gonna lie. Some of the contents made me laugh so hard and some were really sweet. Though the one thing that stuck out the most to me was that I was totally a 14 year old girl when I made the time capsule. :) Enjoy!
My time capsule.* Painted yellow which was and still is my favorite color.
* Has tons of pictures of things I liked such as... makeup, animal slippers, diamond rings, and Elmo?
The contents.* A "What Does It Cost?" sheet. Apparently I need to travel back in time each time I want to fill up my car as gas was only $1.21/gallon.
* Ticket stubs from plays/sporting events I went to.
* Pictures of Nicki and I. By the way Nicki... we look so young!
* A Young Women's pamphlet with the values and theme. (Both of which have changed since then.)
* A questionnaire that I filled out. This seriously had me rolling as I read it! Why? One example... My favorite birthday was when I turned 14 because I could go to Stake dances. LOL!
* Letters from both of my parents and Nicki.
* A mission statement from yours truly about the type of person I hoped I would be in ten years.
* Laura's rose.
* My handkerchief and recommend from the Palmyra Temple dedication.
Monday, November 1, 2010
I Feel So...
OLD!
My birthday was this past Thursday and I turned 25. I've never really cared how old I was, but for some reason 25 feels really old to me. I mean, I'm only five years away from 30 (which everyone says is over the hill) and according to my brother my life is 1/3 of the way over. Now I understand why year after year my mother continued to turn 29. ;) Though I'm really not that old, turning 25 still seems really weird.
Anyway, Thursday was a pretty regular day... laundry, Cayden was somewhat of a pill, Chad was gone most of the day with work... but we did manage to make it a little special.
Chad came home with these pretty flowers. I really, really like getting flowers.
He also brought home Nicholas Sparks' brand new book (I've only read two of his books and loved them, I've decided that I'm going to have to check out the rest from the library), a heavenly caramel apple from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (they are seriously divine, and they can't be THAT bad, I mean most of it is apple...), and marshmallow creme (which he claims is from Cayden even though Cayden didn't help pick it out).All in all the day was pretty great. I got a little spoiled with some surprises and was able to spend some time with two of my favorite people, Chad and Cayden. Love my little family!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)