too many buttons....

Have you noticed how many buttons it takes to run our lives?  I never realized I was dependant on so many, until last night, when  I went to put in a dvd of a movie a friend loaned me.  Let me say, usually, Kelly runs all remotes and electrical equipment in our house (something about a man thing) and he happens to be out of town this week.  But as I am a college graduate and an intelligent and intuitive woman, I was not worried in the least about accomplishing my task. I ought to be able to figure out how to change the input from cable to dvd and play my movie!

I thought our cable remote worked all devices (isn't that what a smart remote is supposed to do?)  Apparently our remote needs to return to school because aside from turning on the tv, volume control and cable control, it was absolutely useless! I dug into the remote control drawer, yes we do have an entire drawer dedicated to remotes, and was able to finally find the remote that matched up to my tv.  Success!

 Upon pushing several buttons and gaining no response, I flipped the remote over only to discover that the children had raided the batteries in the remotes to replenish their wii controllers.  Good grief, here I am at ten at night searching through odd places to find batteries as the battery drawer was empty.  I finally broke into the wii, stole back what was mine and proudly returned to my room.  I was a woman on a mission now and I wasn't giving up. 

After successfully getting the tv remote to work I studied all the various buttons and started pushing different ones to find the correct input.  I then had to find the dvd remote to actually power and control the thing.  Once again the batteries were a victim of the world of video games and I again went in search of new ones.  By now I was totally exasperated but would not be deterred.  After mumbling under my breath about children and our reliance on batteries, I finally was successful and returned once again to my room. 

Finally, forty-five minutes later I had navigated the many remotes, pushed an excess of buttons and started my movie.  Although I was proud of my accomplishments, I was too tired to return to the kitchen to make popcorn and decided a bubble bath and a book were in order. 

That is what's wrong with the world today, or at least the Christensen household.  There are too many complicating, time consuming, battery depleting, button pushing devices and not enough page turning, imagination building, intellect developing, quiet reflecting activities.  So everyone needs to put down the buttons and open a book.  It might not be the solution for world peace, but it sure would make a more well rounded society, and in my case family.

new projects

This past month I have been in a crochet mood again. I have had a couple friends have babies and so I made some little hats. I even had the fun opportunity to help throw a baby shower. It's been awhile for me on that one. Cassie helped me make the little diaper cake. We had a blast. I crocheted the little hat on top of the bear for the new little one. I have made more girl hats lately too, but have given away some before I took pictures. These two are just some of the ones I still have here.

I am a craft spurter. I find something that I like and go gangbusters with it, only to burn out and have to take a break. So until the next crochet mood strikes, I thought I'd post these pictures.

i ate my willpower....

That is the sign that hangs above my kitchen sink, "I ate my willpower". It causes a few chuckles and smiles when people come over, but it really is true! I am always trying to drop a few pounds (ok, I need to drop a lot more than a few, but baby steps people) but it is constantly an ongoing battle to have the self discipline to make any real dent in my waistline.

Yesterday when I was eating a couple cookies after dinner and Mark said, " mom, how come your always on on a diet for breakfast, but after dinner you're not?" I had to smile and think to myself, after all these years, my nine year old just figured out my problem!

I need some siren hooked to my pantry that goes off when I pick up the chocolate, "step away from the pantry and put down that chocolate bar nice and easy..."

One time years ago I made lemon bars, and discovered that I was the only one in my young family who liked them. I joked with Josh who was five at the time, "go hide these somewhere where I won't find them." He took me seriously and for the next few weeks I kept trying to get him to tell me where he hid them, but his lips were sealed. Finally I found what I think was originally lemon bars decomposing under my bed. To tell you the truth, I don't eat them much anymore. Maybe I need to enlist him to make chocolate and cookies unappetizing.

Josh is going on a major backpacking trip next week with his scout troop. I have been buying lightweight freeze dried food for him to take and it isn't amounting to much. I was talking with a friend tonight whose son is also going and we said that our boys will come back ten pounds lighter. Then both of us remarked that we should go too. (She totally does not need the backpacking diet, but I do!) I can just see me half way through the week in severe sweet withdrawals, seeing mirages every where I looked, not of pools of cool water, but of melted chocolate instead.

So if anyone has any great ideas how to make it through my summer without gaining my weight in sweets, I'd welcome the advice and my scale. who is constantly under verbal attack, would thank you.

class of 2011....

Well he went ahead and did it, he graduated. He didn't ask for permission, or kindly agree to do another year in high school for me, he decided it was time to go on to the next phase in his life and so he did. Since he was very stubborn about the whole thing, I decided I should probably go and support him. However, let me go on the record and say, this went against my whole plan to stop time or at least delay it for a bit.

It is still a bit surreal for me. I know I was there to witness it, I know it's been coming for quite awhile now, I know he is registered for college this fall and yet it is still hard to believe this day has arrived and my oldest, great big teddy bear of a son has graduated. I got a bit teary at times but was proud of myself for holding it together. The uncomfortable seats in the Marriot Center helped distract me, so I guess I can be grateful for that.

I am a proud mom today, I have been blessed with great children, and Ryan is the leader of that pack. It's not easy being the oldest child, I am an oldest child so I know. :) He has put up with my trial and error type of parenting and still managed to do well despite my great learning curve. Every new phase of his life I would tell him, "this is the first time I've been the parent of an eight year old, a teenager, a child who can date, an adult...and so we"ll just need to figure it out together." I have appreciated his humor, obedience, patience and even his scientific mind over the years. I am glad I get this one last summer with him before he goes off to college and then onto his mission. Maybe by then I will have created a time machine that will work. Thanks for the last eighteen years of learning and memories Ryan; and here's hoping the next eighteen move at a slower pace. I'm thinking a snail is a good family mascot.