Welcome to the family!

My nephew and his new bride had already sent out invitations to their wedding and reception when they began to add up the deposits and see the projected total for the celebration. With the costs of everything seemingly escalating at every turn they began to rethink the whole day.

A new venue was procured, and then thinking all was better they were again faced with more and more expense. Finally they looked at each other and decided the best way to begin their marriage would be as close to debt free as possible.

A explanatory letter was sent out, apologies for inconveniences made, and a new revised plan set into place. The bridal party (who had already purchased clothing for the event) would be invited, along with parents and grandparents; all others were asked to understand their decision to forgo the pomp in favour of the minimum on a sea side cliff.

A few weeks went by, the honey moon in Mexico provided by generous relatives and then they returned. Aunts, being who we are by nature, decided that they still needed some kind of family celebration. So we called up the families on both sides, set a date and had a barbecue. Assignments were made for food and dink, and I offered to bring the cake and decorate the picnic tables. (White and sand colours, lots of sea shells and pretty candles!)

Of course Robyn came to the rescue and lent me not only her kitchen, but made me dinner, helped with the cake, and generally made herself irreplaceable. We made cake and while it baked we visited while we made little chocolate shells. The cake was a hit. The party, I think, was a bigger hit. Nothing more fun that welcoming a new member into the fold while eating terrific food and having a great time!

let's refocus people : )

Ok. Check out this cutie pie: he's adorable...and check that hair! wow. He seriously is just a bundle of goodness and light.

And the beat goes on.

Don't you just love surprises?

Wow. Talk about an entrance! This little guy decided he would surprise everyone and arrive three weeks early...and we are so glad he's here!

At 6lbs. 5oz. this 19 1/2 inch blessing made his presence known yesterday afternoon. He has a great set of lungs, lots and lots of curly brown hair, and evidently his daddy's need for constant feeding.

Mommy is beautiful and doing well. Daddy has turned into a worker bee. You see, the night before the little guy decided to come, Daddy and Mommy signed the final papers for their new house. Daddy had moved in their bed, linens, 3 towels, 2 cats, a litter box and 1 roll of toilet paper; helped his wife to bed, slept a few hours and left for work.

Baby boy kicked boxed his mommy's "water" (trying to get breakfast one assumes) and there ya go. So while baby and mom hang out at the hospital, daddy will be moving in the rest of their things and hoping to set them all in the correct place.

Oh, and for anyone interested... we think the baby shower is still on for Saturday; we just have a new centerpiece!

Gramma's Oatmeal

Many times I have tried to explain the difference between my Gramma's way of making oatmeal and what the world usually makes as oatmeal. For me, they couldn't be further apart!

Last week when I was with my Father in law he asked me to make them some "Coaches Oats". He explained to me how I would take one bite and be hooked because the texture of Coaches Oats was amazing. I have to agree, compared to most people's cooked oatmeal the Coaches Oats had a much better texture, a good bite, and a great oatmeal taste, however they still couldn't beat what I grew up on.

Gramma's way of cooking the regular Quaker Oats makes a great -firm but tender- (al dente) oatmeal that has absolutely no "oatmeal goo", which, sadly, the Coaches Oats still had a bit of.

I wish I could teach you her method on line, but it is a matter of feel rather than anything else. The feel of the amount of raw oats opposed to the water you cook them in, how and when to stir to avoid the goo, how long to let it cook. In three to five minutes you'll be amazed at the difference in taste, texture, and how much people want to eat it!

When the kids were little I would add chopped nuts, craisins, raisins, cinnamon, and we'd call it "Puppy Chow". Now my Grand-kids love to eat "Puppy Chow" when they are here for breakfast. Thor likes it with brown sugar and "oatmeal cookie" spices. For me, I could eat this as in the photo, as "Puppy Chow", or with a bit of white sugar and cold milk. Amazing taste and texture no matter how you choose "dress" it. Oh, and a piece of burnt toast for me! (Not sure why I love burnt toast with my oatmeal, but it's great!) One bowl and you can go well into lunch full of energy! Don't forget how good oatmeal is for your cholesterol!

So, if you are ever in the Mojave Desert on a cold rainy day, craving a steamy hot delicious bowl of oatmeal, with a tiny puddle of real butter and a spoonful or so of golden brown sugar, call me; I'll teach you how to make it the way Gramma did. You'll never cook it any other way!

Healing, Helping, Heat, and Hand Made Give Away!

I am headed down to help my mother in law for the day (or two?). In my absence I am sending everyone some warmth and encouragement for springtime weather! C'mon Mother Nature, bring it on! We need some heat!

Now the Give Away!
There is a great idea floating about lately and here's the drill:

I promise to send the first 3 persons who comment in this post something hand made before the end of this year. (Thank you to whoever came up with that rule!) Yup, something fabulous from little 'ol S'mee! Maybe photo cards, maybe a painting, maybe something hand sewn, or who knows? But definitely hand made! And received before the end of this year. Oh the mystery! What will it be? (if only the neighbors dogs could be considered "home made"...you'd receive your gift, like, on Monday! But alas, no. so you'll need to wait and be surprised!)

Here's the rub: If you sign up to receive a hand made gift you need to "pay it forward" on your own blog. That is, you'll make a post similar to this and then promise and hand make a gift for three other bloggers by the end of the year! C'mon, an-y-thing home made by you by the end of the year! You can do this! How fun!

So o.k. my peeps! Comment away!

flower among the thorns

Thanks to everyone who has written well wishes and inquiries about my mother in law. She went in for surgery this afternoon. Oy what a mess! So glad she had a blessing the other day!

When the doc got in there he found both bones broken, one crushed like we thought. They repaired both, one with a piece of metal to wrap or lay aside the bone, bone grafts, and some screws that will be taken out after a bit of healing. That's the short of it. The long of it is she is getting better, albeit feeling extremely beat up at the moment.

Thanks to everyone for your sweet concerns.

blustery day

bad news good news

It's been a while since I've had anything substantial enough to write about. Life got a bit busy with mundane things and trying to finish those new year's goals. A bedroom is completely bare and ready for new carpet, etc. Anywho, yesterday brought all kinds of excitement in to our home.

My mother in law fell while trying to grab the newspaper from the sidewalk. She ended up with a crushed (the radius bone directly above her wrist is broken and in several pieces), bit through her tongue so severely that she need stitches across the width, and 'road rash' on her very swollen chin, nose and forehead. There were a few other injuries and she is being well taken care of. I anticipate some surgery, but we're still waiting to hear what. Last night they sent her home with a temporary splint/cast, meds and instructions to meet with an orthopedist today. It was somewhat of a family reunion as, as many of us as could physically be there, we went to see her at the hospital and then at their home. Phone calls were made to check on her all night long and before we left, a couple of sweet moments. It was tender to see my mother in law surrounded by her two sons, hands laid on her head and pronounce a Priesthood Blessing of health and healing, comfort and some Divine guidance. Then we sat and prayed as we listened to those same to sons give a Priesthood Blessing to their father. My father-in-law made note that this was the first time his sons blessed him, and there were a few tears shed. The room fell silent for a moment or two.

Earlier in the day, while we were still in the ER, we got a call from The Scholar. She (along with the other kids) had inquired about gramma and was hoping for good news. "Nothing yet, but we'll let you know." Then about 45 minutes later she called again, this time with news of her own.

The Scholar is our youngest. When she was in 4th grade she learned about universities and she decided she wanted to go. From that point on she worked like a tornado to earn her way into greater and greater challenges academically. She (since kindergarten) never received anything other than an "A" and graduated high school with a 5.0. (Back in my day 4.0 was tops, but with weighted classes I guess you can earn more.) She earned a scholarship to the UC Irvine and "BY-U". She went to the BY-U and for the last few years has continuously worked at least two jobs, held church callings, kept physically fit, had some fun, all the while keeping her studies up.

She went in as a Sophomore and was going to graduate a year early when her mentors encouraged her to take and extra year and add more classes to her resume. She followed their advise and has continued to work 2 jobs, plus teach high school, keep up on her church calling, run a couple of marathons, fly around the country to present her papers, study, and maintain her sanity. She had come to the point where grad school was looming on the horizon, tests were taken, papers have been written, applications sent. The waiting has been difficult for her. But yesterday the waiting began to end. She called us with the news that her first application reply has come in.

She was accepted to and received a full ride scholarship to Duke University!

She informs us that this was not her first choice and that she is still hoping for acceptance and equal offers from a few other schools, but "This is a good back up plan." which is classic thinking for this dynamo of a kid who loves learning. A text was sent out to all of the siblings and each one in turn sent back love and exuberant congratulations, so happy and pleased with their little sister who has truly worked for all she has earned.

Today I am grateful for family who gather in good times and in bad, cushioning the falls and celebrating the triumphs that come to us all.

College Applications Update: As of today she has also been accepted and given a full scholarship to The Claremont Colleges, although she informs us the deal from Duke was substantially better, her specific program, full health care, yearly stipend, etc.. Please keep fingers crossed for her #1 choice! Thanks

Love is spoken here...

For a few years here in our little neck of the woods we enjoyed a small family full of the most adorable children, a talented man, and one of the most dedicated mothers I have ever met. The dad played the piano in our church pretty much for every occasion as he was one of the few who could play at all. I remember one of the first times I met his wife. We were at an "Enrichment Activity" ( a church women's only activity, usually some learning, always fun and always some kind of food involved!) This particular night we were playing games. I can't really remember the exact game but Van was supposed to know-do- or something with a hippopotamus. The trouble was that Van was brand new to the United States, fresh from Vietnam and spoke only the very basics of English. Most of the time she would just shyly smile and nod and hope she didn't look to out of place. We all took turns trying to help her understand what a hippopotamus was and I finally just drew one on the paper table cloth. She took one look and repeated "hippopotamus" only in Vietnamese, with a huge smile.

Over the few years we all watched Van as she taught herself and her children English. She would ask for words from time to time, but her concern was that her children would be left behind educationally, so she not only taught them to speak English, but to read it as well. Her oldest little girl blew us all away when as a Sunbeam (Sunday school class for three years old) she was not only able to speak so maturely, but read from the King James version of the bible, old English style - Thee, Thou, and such, and understands what she read well enough to explain what she had read.

A few more years and a few more children- and all three of them were just as bright, polite, and well mannered. Van was it and a bag of chips in the mommy department. Always quiet and shy, always soft and loving.

It broke all of us apart when they announced their house was up for sale in anticipation of a move to Michigan. Ack! What would we do without the man who would arrange all of our music and play whatever we needed? What would we do without a sweet mother and her three little ones? Carry on.

I have waited for them to settle in before sending them a small house warming (which from the weather in Michigan nowadays might better have been an electric blanket). I found a piece of tin and recycled it with the word "love" in block letters, and the words "Love is spoken here" in Vietnamese. I hope they can find a place for it in their new home, the message sure reminds me of them all.

(apologies to anyone from Vietnam if I have missed spelled the above, sources tell me it is correct, but I may have goofed it)

Click on the photo to enlarge and see more detail.

We need a little Christmas

As a little kid I remember Christmas being a really exciting time, well even as an adult I still get all hepped up as I consider the possibilities that come this time of year.

President* David O. McKay (1873–1970) declared: “True happiness comes only by making others happy—the practical application of the Savior’s doctrine of losing one’s life to gain it. In short, the Christmas spirit is the Christ spirit, that makes our hearts glow in brotherly love and friendship and prompts us to kind deeds of service.

“It is the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ, obedience to which will bring ‘peace on earth,’ because it means—good will toward all men.”

Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit. Enemies are forgiven, friends remembered, and God obeyed. The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world’s busy life and become more interested in people than things.

To catch the real meaning of the “spirit of Christmas,” we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the “Spirit of Christ.

My friend Carolyn has two traditions in her family. One is to find a family in need and then she spends the exact amount on that family as she does on her own. There is no difference to her. She also places beautifully wrapped gifts under her tree as they come into the house. There to be admired and wondered about as the weeks progress towards Christmas. Each gift has a tag with a name. The week before Christmas she has a family night, and at the end of the lesson, each person goes to the tree, chooses a gift, and gives it to the Salvation Army. The idea was, that because they had no idea what they were choosing to give away, they wouldn't miss it. Carolyn told me one year that even she winces a bit, because she does know what they are giving away, and sometimes it is the gift she wished to give them most. But she reminds me, someone else may need it much more than her family, who have warmth and food and shelter beyond what is considered "need". She is an amazing example to me.

Not too long ago, we hadn't had work for over two years and money was tight. Fewer presents would be under the tree, and the dinner, well it wasn't going to be gourmet, but we weren't eating "holiday hot dogs" as I had as a child!

Our family was young, our kids had always had what they needed but had never been indulged with every toy they wanted, so this particular year wouldn't be much of a change. Toys, a few, and maybe some needed clothes from Santa. We also had set a bit aside to help another "someone" who, we felt, needed our help. We hopped in the car full of anticipation and secrets and made our midnight run with a car full of little elves too young to leave on their own. Everyone was singing silly Christmas songs and searching the skies for Rudolph's red nose blinking in the dark until we arrived at our determined place and then, as stealthily as we could, we placed our meager offerings on the porch of our intended family and with a quick rap on the door - we left, unnoticed.

By the time we got home all the kids were completely asleep. We began to carry them into the house when, to our surprise, someone had played "Secret Santa" with our family! Both Thor and I were completely surprised! Who knew we were "the family" in need? The porch was filled with small cars for the boys, a couple of dolls for the girls, a bolt (yes a complete bolt) of fabric, a large plug in push button telephone (I am still wondering about that one, but hey, someone was being thoughtful!),a bottle of perfume that was about a third gone (someone was sacrificing their perfume so that I would have some! ) and a recycled tie for Thor, among other gifts that I have forgotten over the years. Our Christmas was added upon and we felt both humbled and blessed by the generous offerings.

As a little girl I remember being the kid who had less than the neighbors, yet always, always, mom made sure we found someone who had even less than we. I am grateful for that lesson. I look back on our runs to "Mars Family Discount" with the money we had earned from neighborhood chores, recycling pop bottles, or squirreling away over the year. We would choose small toys and items we wanted and knew they would be fun for the other kid we were trying to help. It was a yearly tradition that has lasted a life time.

This year, as we are fast approaching the day of days, the celebration of our Lord's birth, let us become as the Wise Men of old, let us bring our gifts to the Saviour and become His hands as we serve and give to those around us. May we find someone who needs our love, our hope, our forgiveness, and our substance.

* President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Do One Thing: Week 14

Week 14: Bandages.

Hint: Make sure you have emergency provisions for pets.

Standard First Aid Supplies: adhesive tape, ammonia, antibiotic ointment, bicarbonate of soda, calamine lotion, diarrhea remedy, elastic bandages, gauze bandages, hot water bottle, hydrogen peroxide, ipecac syrup (induces vomiting), knife, matches, measuring cup, medicine dropper, needles, paper bags, razor blades, rubbing alcohol, safety pins, scissors, soap, thermometer, triangular bandages, tweezers, first aid book, prescription medications, consecrated oil. First aid kits and supplies should be checked and replenished regularly. All supplies should be labeled and organized for fast use.

My new favourite

This reminds me of the kind of dad Thor is and was when the kids were little. I love it. Every kid should be so lucky.

Do One Thing: Week 13

Week 13: 1 gallon bleach.

Hint: Learn how to "Protect your Home against Fire".

UPDATE:

First, I got a head's up from Willis, about Costco's 6 day kit for Two People being on sale! Check it out: According to the ad:

Basic preparation will impact the probability of your family’s survival in an emergency. Survival Kit designed for 2 People for a total of 6 Days in 1 bucket. Keep at home and in your vehicle. This kit contains the food and supplies you need for 2 people for 6 days in 1 bucket. In the event of an emergency – keep your family well fed and warm. Keep one in a convenient location at home and one in the trunk of your car. Food is 100% Vegetarian with a 20 Year Shelf life.

click here---->6 Day Kit for Two People $20.99 OFF! Now: $49.00!

Second: I guess I dropped the ball on the above suggestion. Sorry no links! Ack!

I was thinking that by suggesting it, one could search their home owners policies to see how up to date they are, what is covered and then do any adjustments. Most insurance companies will cover your hotel expenses for three weeks, after that, you're on your own. Are you prepared for what else may not be covered? Most home repairs/rebuilds will take much longer than three weeks, even FEMA will not house you for much longer than your insurance company. You will need an alternate plan. Clothing allowances are usually $100.00. Most families will find that is not enough to "cover" them! Again, making a plan ahead of time will ease stress when stress is a daily situation. Recovering household items may mean reassessing their values at retail value as opposed to replacement costs, which are much higher. Your fridge may be 8 years old, it's value would be much lower than that of a new appliance. Also, many insurance companies will want receipts for everything you purchased and want replaced. I'm not sure about you, but I don't have receipts for everything I buy.

Getting all your important information recorded onto flash drives or c.d.s. (Think of everything you would need to start over, insurance, birth certs, school records, medical records/info, SSI numbers, etc.) Do the same with family histories and photos. Make sure someone who does not live in your home can access the information if they need to for you.

Have plans in place ahead of time in regard to what to do when or if you need to evacuate. Do you have a plan to evacuate if you are not at home or can't get home at the time of the evacuation? (Have you set up a neighbor or nearby friend to help you out if you are unavailable and do they know what to grab for you?)

Do your children and or aged adults (or anyone else living with you) know the routine, the plan and escape routes and where to meet if there is an emergency? Have you shown small children how to escape via their bedroom window, and how to decide whether or not to do that? Do they have ladders or stools to give them access? Do they know they safest way to break a window if necessary? If your home is multi-story do you have window escape ladders in all the rooms? Have your little kids been introduced to FireFighters and the equipment they use (masks, air tanks, uniforms, etc.) so they will not be frightened by their rescuers appearance and sounds? Do they know what your alarms sound like and what they mean and what to do when they hear them?

Are your pets in the plan? FireFighters will not risk their life to save an animal, however they will go in after a pet if at all possible. Stickers on windows will let them know if pets are expected to be in or out of the house.

Are your smoke detectors/alarms fresh? When is the last time you tested them? Do you have freshly charged fire extinguishers?

Outdoors, at least in our area, that 30 feet of defensible space, weed abatement, house and garage clean of oil or rags, yada yada.

Is the roof fire safe or extremely flammable? Are the gutters clean of debris that could catch flame? (This is how many of the houses in the recent fires caught fire, via flying embers!)

yeah, stuff like that. I hope that gets your ideas working and thinking on how you can determine how fire safe your house is.

Do One Thing: Week 12

Week 12: 2 bars of body soap per person. (probably wouldn't hurt to have some body lotion too.)

Hint: If you have a fireplace double-check to make sure flue is clear and the fireplace is clean and can be used without danger.

Are you ready to Rumble?

Don't forget! Today is the big day for the Great California Shake Out! The Drill! Today at 10:15 a.m. we'll be rockin' and rollin' in a drill made to feel like a 7.8 earthquake! Don't forget to register and head over for all the great details!

Practice makes perfect!

Make up!

Halloween is the time for make up!
This site has a mom friendly ideas for creating that special costume look, with very easy steps.

Ghoul Skool is a few levels higher and has many other things to look at concerning costuming and make up. Be warned however, some links are dead.

Costume World has slide show type tutorials to explain the steps in their make up tips.

National Geographic has a video on the new trend of Halloween in Japan, a Green Guide to Halloween Make Up. and a story on Fair Trade Candy. Other articles include DYI for kids Pumpkin Carving with patterns! A DYI for kids, explaining how to make their own flying Witch, an article exploring the ritualistic killing of Black Cats, and lastly a fill in the blank Halloween Game for Kids Check out NatGeo., Some cool stuff in there.

Panacea 81 has video tutorials on Fabulous Eyes! This woman is adorable, very unpretentious and she demos her eye make up versions via her love of MAC cosmetics. Very dramatic! If you're looking for a dramatic eye effect for Halloween, she can set you up with something. Her videos take you step by step through over 176(!) different looks!

A great place to get Theatrical Make Up tips via video is Expert Village. Several videos to view there.

Multimakers's You Tube Channel has many video tutorials on Great Theatre Make up, seriously good "normal" physical ugliness (broken teeth, noses, bruising, bites, etc. and clear instruction.

Merely a flesh wound! Watch this video for (silent, but)clear instruction on making prosthetic wounds that actually flex like the real thing! eeek! Thanks Makinthisnthat!

Theassassinnox demos "Cats"style Theatre Make Up, silently with a nice music background, easy enough to figure out what she is doing by watching.

Ayabaya offers a silent you tube video of an actual Maiko or Geisha applying her make up...remarkable.

Askmemakeup demos a you tube Marie Antoinette, hair and make up!

BenjaminChu demos a true DYI "burn and scars" using rubber cement, magic markers and the imagination of a bored teenager. This kid has a career ahead of him!

Ford Model's hair artist Johnny Lavoy demos anAmy Winehouse do. Simple. Really! Also a great Gwen Stefani pony tail. Hot 40's look!

Marie Antoinette

This guy shows a very quick video tutorial substituting theatre make up plastics with bubble gum! to make those same scars!

Professional Artist, Kevin Haney applies Frankenstein make up done from start to finish for a show that was supposed to tribute the original make up artist for Frankenstein, Jack Pierce. Unfortunately the show was canceled last minute and he never got to see his "work".

How It's Made shows us how professionals make face prosthetics turning a beautiful 28 year old woman into an 80 year old version of herself. Start to finish it would cost up to $10,000. Cool video.

And these two videos from "The View" showing us how the Ladies get their Halloween looks from their hair and make up teams.

Opinion: Prop 8

My parents were divorced by the time I was born. As a result of their decision I grew up in a house where marriage took on a less than ideal (or even traditional) meaning. There were periods of dating, divorce, remarriage, more divorce, more dating, more marriage and so it went. I grew up not knowing my biological father, being introduced to other men, some who became momentary step fathers, others who remained the "uncle" or the "boy friend". I was told from a very early age that he, my biological father, was not important in my development or nurturing etc., because I had a good (step)dad who provided for us and took us as his own. At the age of 8 the last of the boyfriends married my mother and we did have a father figure.

There were times (even after the assurance that this last dad was going to stay) when I went to my mother and begged her for the norm, the ideal, the kind of marriage and family that my friends had. I wanted to be like the other kids I saw, the happy ones with a mom and a dad always there, without fearing that, any day now, someone would leave, change their mind and another divorce would occur.

I am now 50 years old. I still wish I had the kind of home Thor has. The ideal: Imperfect parents who committed to each other, fought along the way, built a home and family that endures through all the muck of life. They have been through it all and the fact remains, the best thing about Thor's mom and dad is that they love each other and committed to each other and their children -forever.

I have worked through my childhood insecurities and tried to deal with what my reality was during those first 8 years. Many people calculate that 8 out of 50 is a minor amount of time, especially when you figure that I was married at 18 and left my "home" rather early and could just "go on with my life the way I chose from then on." Their good meaning reasoning being that 8 years is a very short time for a child to deal with, and if there was a good man in the house after that 8 years, why was I complaining or feeling slighted?

The fact is every child, no matter who, every child needs one mother and one father to be created and gain a body. Every child has a right to be reared in a home where both that same mother and father will lovingly commit to that child for the rest of their life and to each other. This is not a faery tale, it has occurred billions of times over the last 4,000 years. Even when parents no longer were in love, they stayed together "for the children". They bucked it up and did what was right so that their children would benefit.

Usually at this point in this kind of conversation, someone will point out that they know of a couple who fought and argued so much it damaged the children and the family was actually happier once a divorce was finalized.

My answer is, well whoopi-doo for that family, my family situation was not so lucky. And like all children, I wanted the ideal. I still wish I had one mother and one father.

I have nieces and nephews whose father was taken away from them by an early death. Not divorce, not by choice, but by an accident. They have had a good life, again with a man who "stepped" up and fathered them. However, they too long for the original set of parents.

I place any and all bets that if every child were polled, they would choose the original set of parents, their own personal mom and dad, and wished they loved each other, committed, and built a home similar and as imperfect as Thor's parents.

I know there are exceptions to the ideal and I am grateful for good men and women who married into families and take the role of parent to children that are not their biological own. I believe in adoption and wish that every child have a family. I do however still believe, that even in the most severe cases, given the choice, a child would choose a home with a mother and a father.

If they were given a voice in the matter...

The hard fact is, children do not get a voice in how they are reared. But should those of us who do have a voice and a vote chose to give each child the ideal instead of the lowest common denominator? The argument of "any home is better than no home" is a good one, but the lowest acceptance of a home. Every child deserves the best we can provide, not accepting or settling for the least we can insure. We who can vote should vote for the best possible future for our children.

Normally I avoid politics like the plague, however, in regard to what is happening in California and also in other states in the U.S. I am jumping in the pool to discuss my personal opinion.

"Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity." -The Family (which reads, to me, as a child's Bill of Rights.)

For those who believe the current ads/commercials saying that no religious rights will be taken away from churches or organizations, please read this from (what is considered a liberal media source) NPR.

This San Francisco Gate article again proves that yes, indeed, our children will be taught that gay marriage is just fine, and go out of their way to make sure your child gets a front row seat as a witness. I don't know about you, but our children's schools eliminated field trips years ago because of finances and school budgets. Any trips our kids went on -we had to fork over at least $80.00 for bus fare.

In the above article it says that two families opted out of the experience and the children of those two families were placed in another classroom for the day to do regular school work as the other kids went on their wedding field trip. In Massachusetts however, a state where same gender marriage is and has been legal for a few years now, The Parker Family warns that their father was threatened with jail time because he wanted their children to opt out of certain teaching in their school's curriculum. Sorry, but in Massachusetts, parents are not informed every time a same gender issue is taught; and some curriculum is mandatory by law.

Voting "Yes on Prop 8" will not take away or further discriminate GLBT people/couples in any way. GLBT couples will still be able to form legal partnerships with all the rights of visitation, health insurance, and other rights-currently on the books as laws. No one wants to take these rights away! In the state of California laws are already in place to insure that GLBT couples have equal rights in partnerships, the work place, schools, hospitals, and courtroom. The only thing they will not be able to do is "marry". The word: Marriage.

I am coming to 90% of my conclusions because of personal experience and 10% due to my religious preferences. If you want to know more about my religious views and the "why" behind them please read:LDS view . Please click the following links if you want more information (both LDS and others in California) on Preserving Marriage or Protecting Marriage.

Thank you for reading and please consider voting YES ON PROP 8!

The Best Gift

Project Noah: Week 4 - Rice

Hey! Did any body know to day is Wednesday? Well, heck I thought yesterday was Monday -all day long and so today's Tuesday Tutorial is a day late! (ding! that would be the light going on in my head)

Week 4: 10 pounds Rice. (considering the situation this year in India...not a bad idea, this food storage)

Hint: Check that you have sufficient clothing (that fits) for one year (or fabric and necessities for sewing clothing).

H 2 ohhhh!