The daily ONE

Today, instead of listing the top ten reasons I am grateful, I wanted to recognize the one thing I am most grateful for. This one thing has come with a price. It's no wonder one values and appreciates what they work for the most. I am referring to my marriage with my sweet, eternal companion, Dan. Service and complete unselfishness have played a big role in cultivating this into my most cherished relationship. We have been married for almost 6 years now. Infatuation faded quickly, and we had to hold on, and build true love for one another. In the beginning, there were a lot of ups and downs. We felt whipped and lashed around every turn, trying to figure out how to live with another person. It wasn't easy, and mistakes were made along the way. We had to grow and stretch ourselves to become anxiously concerned for the others well being.



During our marriage, Dan and I have often turned to a talk by Elder F. Burton Howard that we have tried to pattern our life and relationship after. He taught that, "If you want something to last forever, you treat it differently....it becomes special because you have made it so."

After many years, and a LOT of hard work, I look at our marriage like this picture below. There still will be curves and bumps in the road, but we are allies, hand-in-hand, getting through life together as partners. Instead of working through problems with each other, we are working together to get through the challenges of mortal life. I can truly say that, "Our marriage has become special because we have made it so, and it grows more beautiful and precious as time goes by."



I have added the talk Eternal Marriage by Elder F. Burton Howard. It's not too long and is well worth reading. (Sorry, I don't know how to make it into a link- just copy and paste it into your web browser. If anyone knows how to make it a link, let me know!)

http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=b37fee9ba42fe010VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

The Daily Ten

My friend, Jamie, has started to do what she calls, "the daily ten" on her blog. She basically lists ten things she is grateful for that has happened to her that day. I love the idea and thought I would give it a try. I have been trying to focus more on the positive, and this is a great reminder.

1.) Sacrament meeting was especially inspiring today.
2.) Dan and I are going to New York City in March! Hooray!
3.) Every month at work we order cookies for our patients, and this month we ordered cookies I do not like. I have lost a couple pounds from not inhaling about 3 Otis Spunkmeyer cookies a day....and Dan has noticed ;)
4.) I had 3 women at church today ask me to help them decorate their houses.
5.) Dan and I got called to be "Ma" and "Pa's" for the upcoming pioneer trek for our stake. We will be in charge of about 9 youth, helping them learn about the pioneers, and to feel the spirit as we reenact what they went through.
6.) Today I watched a few of my friends with their babies in church, and I truly felt a strong desire to start a family. Something I have been struggling with for a while.
7.) Dan cooked me dinner tonight, and spent the entire evening with me, which is very rare,(not the cooking dinner part, but the breaking away from homework to hang out with me part. He cooks dinner all the time:)
8.) There are fresh flowers on my dinning room table, and I see them every time I walk into the room. Fresh flowers are one of my favorite things in the world.
9.) I was actually ten minutes early for church this morning, something our bishopbric has asked us to do. I have yet to manage that one. I have been 5 min, even 8 min early but never ten!
10.) I was able to finish a couple crafts I have been wanting to work on.

Now you try it!

Craft Idea

January is a boring month, so it's nice to fill the days with little projects to keep busy. I just finished a cute Valentine's Day wreath and wanted to share the idea. It was really easy to make. I got the idea from Little Birdie Secrets blog on my craft blog list.

Steps: Use fabric, I used two different, but very similar kinds of fabric. Cut the fabric in 2x2 squares. Put the fabric on the end of a pencil (be sure the fabric is in the center of the pencil), and then hot glue each piece of fabric on a heart shaped styrofoam wreath- which can be found at JoAnn's.

And voila! A darling, cheap v-day wreath to hang on your door!

Baby girl

My twin sister is expecting her fourth child. She just found out yesterday it's going to be a girl! I am thrilled to be an aunt again, and am just as thrilled it's going to be a girl.

It has got me thinking. I want a little baby girl. I would name her Olivia, put big bows in her hair, teach her the gospel, teach her self confidence, and give her all the love my heart could hold. One day...

P.S. I would be just as happy and grateful for a boy one day as well.
P.S.S. Aren't those booties to die for?

Help!

My cats are ruining our house!! I am seriously considering getting them declawed. People argue that declawing cats is very mean, but these naughty, little girls are destroying our stuff. Take a look at the curtains and leather bench, they have completely destroyed them. Now, don't get me wrong, I love my cats. Dan even tried to convince me not do another post about them. He said people will start to think I am a crazy cat lady. Oh well.

I have tried everything, clipping their nails, giving them a scratching post, nothing seems to help, and they don't take me seriously when I yell at them. Has any one declawed a cat, and is it really that mean?

(click on pictures to enlarge and see the full amount of damage.)


Do you see the half chewed mouse toy in the background?






Ahh, they are so cute, I guess I forgive them.