MS Walk...for my mamma:)

Wow....what a great day! Couldn't be more perfect for a walk downtown SLC. Good times with my Journey family. Thinking about the most dynamic woman I have ever known...my mamma.

The Crew

Steph

Michelle

Bucks!

Geoff and....what are you doing Jared?

Jared, me, Michelle

Moochies for lunch! #meatballsandwich#phillycheese#jalepenosauce

I'm happy for the opportunity to remember my mom and see all the support that is given for loved ones who have suffered/suffer with disease...

Flea Market! Woot!

Curt planned a day for us to go downtown SLC for the flea market. So fun! I remember we used to go to the one in Packwood, WA years ago:) Love the sweet finds and people. Curt and I hit a coffee shop, strolled the market, bought some shi...stuff, went to lunch and stopped at a few other unique shops downtown. Good times.

This aint just any old hat...it's straight up from Puerto Rico. The guy said so himself? Haha

NO LIE....I owned this jacket in Jr. High. It fit me a little better back then. Small? When was that?

Curtis (I finally figured it out) bought me this exact watch for my Birthday many many years ago. I'm pretty sure it was the first gift he gave me....other than Blake. Haha JK.

Cooper asked the other day why we didn't have any pictures of Jesus in the house. So, when we saw this, we HAD to get it for the Coopster....5 bucks baby! It lights UP for crying out loud!! Curtis picked it up and goes "Jeeezus Chrrrist!" Is it not the most hideous thing you've ever seen? The guy (same as my hat) said it got him through many years....hahaha. I have a feeling it will get Coop through some too;)

How cute is Billy? Work'in the specs!


Welp, funs over. I have a paper to write by midnight. My last one was submitted at 11:57 p.m. WURD! I.AM.AWESOME.

Summer, Summer, Summerttiimmee......

These are the top 10 things I love about my Summer break that I will cherish and remember when I am in the 6th month (gasp) of Winter.......

#1 Morning coffee outside on the deck......

#2 Coop climbing into my bed every morning, in his boxer briefs, with his tan, little, cute, body and cuddling with me.....


#3 Being able to put the kids to bed, stay up late, and watch a movie or play "Words" with the Husband. He makes us the best homemade popcorn. Once we went to the theatre and got a bucket of popcorn to eat at home. The Best!:).........

#4 Hanging out by Kristen's pool, almost daily, watching the kids swim, talking, laughing, playing Bananas, BBQ'ing hotdogs for lunch, and enjoying the rays....LOVE IT! Thank you Kris and Mark for the lovely pool:)

#5 Going into the canyon and roasting marshmallows...

#6 Watching the Orem Owlz baseball games.....

#7 Heading to 7 Peaks for the day. Sis and Coop came running to Heather and I and said, "We went on the big, yellow slide!" We freaked out! It was hilarious. How cute are they? I mean, C'mon! Can you stand it?!

#8 Enjoying time with friends that I don't get to see much during the school year...........


#9 Having the chance to clean out every closet, drawer, cupboard and room in the house. Thanks Curt for the help and motivation:)

#10 Seeing my beautiful, blossoming, flower pots when I drive into the driveway! My boys water them every morning for me:)

You've got that "ness"

I love the movie "You, Me, and Dupree" where Owen Wilson is describing what "ness" is. He says, "you've got that 'ness'...it's your name...with 'ness'." I think that is the best way to describe what it means to be in your element. So, I would have Missyness:) See how good that sounds! There was a time where I did not have "ness." When I had the shop, it was the worst two years of my life. It was all I could do to survive....I was not in my element nor could recognize my purpose as a mom, friend, sister, wife, human being...not in any aspect of my life. I truly, TRULY wanted to die. I remember sitting in the shop with my Dad, crying, saying, "I'm just lost! I don't have what it takes, I can't get back to who I am!" All the struggles and sacrifices Curt and I had made to get to where we were (school, career, home, financially) and in that one decision to quit teaching and purchase a business almost blew everything. Since I was 17, Curt 19, we were "on our own" and made our way for ourselves. Luckily, I was able to get out of it (not the way I would have intended) but am genuinely grateful for being able to sell our house/farm, make a profit, get back to teaching, etc. and find my "ness" again.



My point, I will never forget that state of being, for two reasons. 1) Now I know what it takes for me to endure and value my "ness." 2) Everyone will be in that state at some point, in one aspect or another, in their life. People who you care and/or interact with. Knowing that, I am more likely to be empathetic and not judge those who may be struggling with their "ness":) Guess what my Dad (and the people who care about me) did? Nothing. They couldn't. It has to come from the source....yourself. All they could do was simply be there to listen, empathize, and not judge. I can't tell you what that did for me. It doesn't matter if it's their fault, someone else's, mother nature, whatevs....it's life. If you're in that state now....it will pass, so don't do anything rash;) Be patient (I hate it when people say that to me, I really need to figure that word out).

I have been thinking about this a lot lately. Going through these Masters classes, I have realized something valuable. I love my job....it's where my "ness" is.....next to being a Mom. I may not be the best teacher in every sense of the word, but I know and love kids for everything they have to offer. An author describes it as The Dance-"The old empower the young with experience and the young empower the old with new life."-Parker Palmer. Good stuff.

MASTER MIND!

Cooper and I love to play Master Mind together. I don't know why I thought of this while playing a stupid game, but I had to do a response for one of my classes on a chapter about problem solving...in life, classroom/teaching, in general, and it made me think about it. The thing is, Im not master of my mind. I let other people's problems/issues control me instead of weighing MY options and what I want. I weigh theirs and end up making a decision based on what they want or need. I often find myself saying "how are they able to do that...and get away with it?" I guess Im jealous. Because in my head, I think that's just who they are and they are just doing what they need to do. It's my problem how I respond to it. Deep down I may think less of them or resent them for it, and that's not fair of me. I must be an enabler. Im afraid (I know) I won't get the same consideration when I do what I want. I don't trust that anyone would be able to do the same for me. It's a pretty interesting concept now that I think about it. It runs my life.

Greece

Where do you want to travel?.............
Greece is such a beautiful place with unique characteristics and interesting history. I love everything about it and would love to go there some day.

Insecure...much?

19......What is your biggest insecurity?
I wouldn't consider myself to be insecure about much. Whenever we play the "most embarrassing moment" game, I never win because, to my recollection, most things that involve me are awkward or embarrassing........generally speaking. So, it's hard to pick one that stands out:) I guess I DO get insecure about being so uninhibited. I never trust that the receiver can handle or comprehend me right off the bat. I end up having to backtrack, explain, or justify myself until they can come to terms with how it is (or how I am). It's kind of ironic because if I wasn't so uninhibited, I would probably be insecure about many things. I prefer to just lay it all out there, it is what it is, take it or leave it....I can't control or be bothered by how others will react. I will admit, sometimes I am truly bothered....working on it. I think that's why I love kids so much. They are so uninhibited and don't make excuses for it. Why do we put our own insecurities on them and screw them up?

**I could not find an appropriate picture to attatch here.... ;)

Oh, the Times!

Day 14...someone you've been through the most with
Curtis has been with me through most of the major events in my life...babies, college, jobs, moves, homes, relationships, personal endeavors, faith, you name it! And starting off the way we did, outlook wasn't hopeful. We have changed and grown in different ways, all the while trying to have an "us." Sure, we both resent each other for reasons we can't even pinpoint and parts of us may have been sacrificed, but it's bound to happen when you share life's decisions. I used to say, "we just got lucky, situations such as ours usually don't turn out favorable." But now that I think about it, we both had to work really hard for it, and still do. It's not luck, it's (as Curt had put it) tenacity, patience, tolerance, partnership, and trust. Any one of those can be jeopardized at any given time. Funny thing about that is, I can never be trusted. Everytime I think, "wow, I really screwed up," Curt has believed in me and had the stay power to learn and do what it takes. And trust me, we do A LOT of learning. So, I guess you could say things happen just as they are supposed to...good and bad. I wouldn't regret a thing. Ive shared great space with Curt.
This about sums it up.....

30 day picture challenge....

I need to print out my blog into a scrapbook SOON, so I need to try and sum it up the next 30 days. This Summer will be the start of a new "next three years," since thats about as much blogging I do to fill up an album:)
Day 1.....A picture of yourself and 10 things

-- Im impulsive and nothing is ever "for sure"
-- Everything that happens (good or bad) SHOULD have happened....because, IT DID! It's called reality.
-- Id rather go to a funeral rather than a wedding. (Im not happy someone died, just to clarify)
-- I have never broken a bone in my body. I really don't think it's because I sit idly by either.
-- If I had a dollar for every time I ironed a shirt.....I'd have $2
-- Its super cool having 3 boys. I secretly want to have a girl, just to meet her and see what she would be like....but that could be accomplished within the first 5 years of her life. What would I do with the rest?
-- In this lifetime, 2/3 of my boys will only know my Mom from stories and pictures.....and that makes me sad because they would love her, and she would get a kick out of them.
-- I love movies...and music....
-- People who make me laugh are so invaluable....especially the ones who get my funnyness.
-- Ive lived in 5 different states....ranging from cold (Alaska) to warm (Hawaii). I've Never been out of the country though.

10 favorite things

If I consider these my essentials...then I have a great life

Scentsy is awesome... I love how my house smells








Coffee! It doesn't have to be Starbucks...staff room coffee and white chocolate cream is just fine









I feel like I'm always cleaning. This "green" cleaner consentrate has lasted me a year and I still have 3/4 of it left (1/4 tsp. per 16 oz.) How awesome is that?









I love everything coconut. This is all natural coconut oil scrub. Coconut is naturally antifungal, antibacterial and a great moisturizer.If I need more they send a refill so I can reuse the container;)






I love music. The only way I get out of bed is from my awesome songs on the ipod. driving, cleaning, working, hanging...it's always in use







I love, love movies (mostly comedies)and sitcoms. To name a few of my inspirations...Dumb and Dumber, Stepbrothers, Will and Grace, the Office and most recently Modern Family. Oh, we just watched the Hangover and it's hilarious! The DVR is the best thing since sliced bread.







I'm a list person. I never really read or follow them again after I write them but it keeps my thoughts focused. Sometimes I will write the list after I have done something so I can check it off!








Where would I be without my phone? I can't even remember how I functioned without a cell phone. And now it just gets better...







These are just what I found in my coat pockets, purse and car. I'm obsessed with Chapsticks, lipgloss and lipsticks. I don't know why.







Last, ice water and lime (I put lime in most drinks)Plus, I love the gas station cups. I use them all around the house, can take them anywhere and I don't care if they don't come back.