Well, my plans for tonight's post are have been foiled. I'm out of picture storage space. I know there's some way to work around it, but I need time to figure it out. So for tonight, I will refer you to Terral's blog post about the race he ran in on Saturday.
Showing posts with label Terral. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Terral. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Monday, November 19, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Homesteading
Terral and I have really been enjoying our homesteading lately. We have a lot of plans for things we want to incorporate into our life to become more self-sufficient, and we've started doing a few of them.
Getting chickens was one of those things. Terral was noting yesterday some of the things we had going. I fed and watered the chickens and mucked out part of their coop, then gathered eggs. We have couple jars of our own sourdough starter in process. We are drying some jalapenos. I cooked a whole chicken yesterday (it turned out so yummy with a perfect tenderness!) and today I finished making my first bone broth. Terral cooked a pumpkin and used it to make muffins this morning, and he also roasted the seeds.
Anyway, it's just really exciting to us to actually be doing some of these things we've talked about for a long time. And I just love learning new things. I've been reading a lot lately on how to preserve with lacto-fermentation. It has lots of health benefits and is easier than doing a hot water bath. We're also learning how to utilise more of what we have. Like feeding kitchen scraps to the chickens and making mineral-rich bone broth. It's just cool!
And it's because it's cool that I felt like sharing. The end.
Getting chickens was one of those things. Terral was noting yesterday some of the things we had going. I fed and watered the chickens and mucked out part of their coop, then gathered eggs. We have couple jars of our own sourdough starter in process. We are drying some jalapenos. I cooked a whole chicken yesterday (it turned out so yummy with a perfect tenderness!) and today I finished making my first bone broth. Terral cooked a pumpkin and used it to make muffins this morning, and he also roasted the seeds.
Anyway, it's just really exciting to us to actually be doing some of these things we've talked about for a long time. And I just love learning new things. I've been reading a lot lately on how to preserve with lacto-fermentation. It has lots of health benefits and is easier than doing a hot water bath. We're also learning how to utilise more of what we have. Like feeding kitchen scraps to the chickens and making mineral-rich bone broth. It's just cool!
And it's because it's cool that I felt like sharing. The end.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Our Blustery Day
Today was (and still is) a very blustery day indeed. I didn't even go outside because Terral offered to take care of the chickens so I wouldn't have to see the carnage that was Chris cutting up his deer. (We let him hang it in our garage since it's cooler up here.) I thought today would be a good day to work on Ethan's costume since the weather wasn't conducive to painting, and I ended up just doing inside chores all day.
Terral met with a guy today who teaches MovNat, which is something he's been interested in for a while. He spent quite a while in the park having fun and learning some new things. Heather has become interested in it too, so she came to watch, but ended up talking quite a bit to the instructor's wife. Terral says I would have enjoyed talking with her, but alas, I had opted for costume work instead.
Speaking of which, I did get a good amount done on it. Ethan is going to be a train engineer for Halloween, and today I worked on his cap. I'm really excited with the way it's turning out! Tomorrow I'll try it on him and finish putting it together.
Today was the first day I've used my new craft table. It was given to me by a friend recently. It's really nice for laying things out and cutting. :) And if I need to, I can pull out another leaf and make it nearly twice as long.
Terral met with a guy today who teaches MovNat, which is something he's been interested in for a while. He spent quite a while in the park having fun and learning some new things. Heather has become interested in it too, so she came to watch, but ended up talking quite a bit to the instructor's wife. Terral says I would have enjoyed talking with her, but alas, I had opted for costume work instead.
Speaking of which, I did get a good amount done on it. Ethan is going to be a train engineer for Halloween, and today I worked on his cap. I'm really excited with the way it's turning out! Tomorrow I'll try it on him and finish putting it together.
Today was the first day I've used my new craft table. It was given to me by a friend recently. It's really nice for laying things out and cutting. :) And if I need to, I can pull out another leaf and make it nearly twice as long.
And just for cutness/random's sake, here's a picture of Ethan from a walk we took the other day. His toy tractors are pretty much extensions of his arms these days. And it isn't infrequent that he has to have his tractor, wrecking ball, and backhoe all together (and he does know the names of them all). You can't tell right away, but he is carrying all three in this picture.
In other Ethan news, I've been meaning to write for a while a couple of things about the way he is currently. He definitely knows his mind and will tell you "no" if he doesn't want something, but most of the time he will answer any question with "yeah!" in a variety of inflections. It's pretty amazing how he will match his affirmative answer to the occasion.
He is also rather particular sometimes about things being just so. He'll straighten the rug, close doors, put toys away on his own (when it strikes his fancy), and is usually very eager to help me clean things up. Apparently Terral was the same way when he was little.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
2012 Family Pictures
A couple weeks ago we had some family pictures taken in our yard. For the first time, we actually had another photographer do it for us. We got a really good deal though. She's a friend of Terral's in her very last class before graduation, and she needed some models for a project. As a thank you, she offered to take our pictures for free.
We just took them in our yard, and I was really pleased at the background our house could provide. It was a fun and different experience to have another photographer there.
I of course had a hard time choosing between pictures, so I've loaded quite a few of them. One of the nice things about having someone else take pictures instead of doing it ourselves is that it's a lot easier to get a variety of shots.
Enjoy!
We just took them in our yard, and I was really pleased at the background our house could provide. It was a fun and different experience to have another photographer there.
I of course had a hard time choosing between pictures, so I've loaded quite a few of them. One of the nice things about having someone else take pictures instead of doing it ourselves is that it's a lot easier to get a variety of shots.
Enjoy!
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Five Years Coming
We had another lovely day today. The one negative was that we were all so sleepy for some reason that we really overslept and were quite late to church. Terral taught his first lesson in Elders Quorum today, and he said it went well. Also, Ethan did really well with going to the bathroom while at church. He held it while they came and got me and I took him back to the bathroom. He didn't do quite as well once we got home, but I think he's doing pretty awesome for a not-quite-two-year-old.
After church, we took a nap and then we gathered dinner together and went for another drive. We had seen a road yesterday that we wanted to explore. Ethan was really cute about our drive up the steep hill. "Up? That!" We were glad that he was having as much fun as we were.
I was very pleasantly surprised to see some gorgeous red leaves and stands of thick pine once we got up into the mountain a bit. I didn't think the mountains on this side were quite big enough for that. We found a few potential camping spots, and we eventually parked so we could eat. Terral got out of the car to explore for a while with Ethan before it got too dark and cold. I was still pretty hungry, so I stayed in to eat for a while. Well, before long, he came back with an I-have-a-surprise-for-you look on his face. I opened the door, and he handed me a pine nut. I tried not to get too excited yet. Then I opened it and found it full of the pure white meat of my dreams. Okay, that may be a little extreme, but I seriously LOVE pine nuts. And we have looked for them for five years without any success. I can't tell you how happy I was that Terral found some so close to home!
The pine cones were pretty small, but they had meaty nuts in them! We gathered as many as we could before it got too dark, and we plan to go back tomorrow for family home evening. After we put Ethan to bed tonight, we put on the Mormon Channel, turned on our "fireplace", and set to work extracting the nuts. Holy contentment. Of course, pine nuts are a lot of work for not a lot of nut, but considering how little time we spent gathering, we actually got a pretty good haul.
I just love pine nuts.
After church, we took a nap and then we gathered dinner together and went for another drive. We had seen a road yesterday that we wanted to explore. Ethan was really cute about our drive up the steep hill. "Up? That!" We were glad that he was having as much fun as we were.
I was very pleasantly surprised to see some gorgeous red leaves and stands of thick pine once we got up into the mountain a bit. I didn't think the mountains on this side were quite big enough for that. We found a few potential camping spots, and we eventually parked so we could eat. Terral got out of the car to explore for a while with Ethan before it got too dark and cold. I was still pretty hungry, so I stayed in to eat for a while. Well, before long, he came back with an I-have-a-surprise-for-you look on his face. I opened the door, and he handed me a pine nut. I tried not to get too excited yet. Then I opened it and found it full of the pure white meat of my dreams. Okay, that may be a little extreme, but I seriously LOVE pine nuts. And we have looked for them for five years without any success. I can't tell you how happy I was that Terral found some so close to home!
The pine cones were pretty small, but they had meaty nuts in them! We gathered as many as we could before it got too dark, and we plan to go back tomorrow for family home evening. After we put Ethan to bed tonight, we put on the Mormon Channel, turned on our "fireplace", and set to work extracting the nuts. Holy contentment. Of course, pine nuts are a lot of work for not a lot of nut, but considering how little time we spent gathering, we actually got a pretty good haul.
I just love pine nuts.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Messy job
This is Terral posting tonight...
Mary was gone to a Relief Society activity tonight and I was on the computer while Ethan was playing. He brought a drywall mud knife over to me that Mary's dad left for us to use. He calls it "bblablam tool" or Grampa's tool. He also had a little toy spatula that is "Etan tool". It is his version of the mud knife! He kept saying this over and over while pointing to the wall. We are working on smoothing out the awful texturing job in the kitchen. He apparently wanted to work on it with me. So why not? We opened the bucket of mud and went to work!
**edit by Mary** I just wanted to remember that Ethan said his first prayer today. It was a very proud moment for his earthly—and I'm sure his Heavenly—parents. :)
Mary was gone to a Relief Society activity tonight and I was on the computer while Ethan was playing. He brought a drywall mud knife over to me that Mary's dad left for us to use. He calls it "bblablam tool" or Grampa's tool. He also had a little toy spatula that is "Etan tool". It is his version of the mud knife! He kept saying this over and over while pointing to the wall. We are working on smoothing out the awful texturing job in the kitchen. He apparently wanted to work on it with me. So why not? We opened the bucket of mud and went to work!
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| Ethan at work. Next time I'm just going to give him a smallish putty knife because he seems to do a pretty good job :) |
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| He thought it was pretty cool to get all messy! |
By the way if you didn't notice Ethan is feeling MUCH better. By the end of the day yesterday he was up and playing around and today he acted as if he had never been sick.
**edit by Mary** I just wanted to remember that Ethan said his first prayer today. It was a very proud moment for his earthly—and I'm sure his Heavenly—parents. :)
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
No Longer Stranded
He did it! Terral fixed the car so that it would pass inspection! And the most money he spent was on new windshield wipers. We still have to register it tomorrow, but we *almost* have a working, street-legal vehicle. It's wonderful to not feel stranded anymore!
Here's a picture from Saturday, when Ethan and I went into town with Terral so he could work on the car. Ethan looked just like a little mechanic dressed in his overalls and poking tools at the various holes. He saw me whip out the camera and posed for me.
This kid really knows what to do around cameras. This morning he was playing with his tractor and singing the Tractor Tractor song as he often does. I decided I'd better record it since it's such a part of his life right now, but when he saw the camera pointed at him, he stopped singing and just smiled instead. Smarty pants. For those of you not acquainted with the song and Ethan's pronunciation, he's singing "Tractor Tractor Wheat, Backhoe Backhoe Dirt, Rocket Rocket Moon"
So, to sum up:
We have a car. . . and a cute little poser. :)
Here's a picture from Saturday, when Ethan and I went into town with Terral so he could work on the car. Ethan looked just like a little mechanic dressed in his overalls and poking tools at the various holes. He saw me whip out the camera and posed for me.
This kid really knows what to do around cameras. This morning he was playing with his tractor and singing the Tractor Tractor song as he often does. I decided I'd better record it since it's such a part of his life right now, but when he saw the camera pointed at him, he stopped singing and just smiled instead. Smarty pants. For those of you not acquainted with the song and Ethan's pronunciation, he's singing "Tractor Tractor Wheat, Backhoe Backhoe Dirt, Rocket Rocket Moon"
So, to sum up:
We have a car. . . and a cute little poser. :)
Monday, October 1, 2012
The Pit Started It
My big project for the day was breaking down twiggy branches so we can use them in our fire pit. While I was at the RS broadcast on Saturday, Terral built a fire pit because he's been wanting one for a long time. So we knew just what we wanted to do with the dead branches I've been trimming away, but I needed to make them a little more useable first. I got all but the biggest branches done today. It was nice spending more time outside, and I think Ethan really enjoyed that too.
We're going to use the fire pit as part of our cub scout activity this week. Wish us luck! Honestly, I've had a really hard time accepting that this calling is where I'm supposed to be. I like being with the boys and feel fine when we're doing something with them, but in all the in-between times I have so many mixed emotions about it. I don't quite understand the church/scout relationship. So wish me luck!
In other news, the chickens continue to warm up to us, and we're really enjoying having them. Every time I walked by them today with branches, they gathered hopefully by the fence. Terral has told me that he likes them even more than he thought they would. They kind of fulfill the needs that pets do for him, which I think is great.
Here's a picture and video of Ethan playing with them last week.
PS How the heck is it October already?
We're going to use the fire pit as part of our cub scout activity this week. Wish us luck! Honestly, I've had a really hard time accepting that this calling is where I'm supposed to be. I like being with the boys and feel fine when we're doing something with them, but in all the in-between times I have so many mixed emotions about it. I don't quite understand the church/scout relationship. So wish me luck!
In other news, the chickens continue to warm up to us, and we're really enjoying having them. Every time I walked by them today with branches, they gathered hopefully by the fence. Terral has told me that he likes them even more than he thought they would. They kind of fulfill the needs that pets do for him, which I think is great.
Here's a picture and video of Ethan playing with them last week.
PS How the heck is it October already?
Friday, September 28, 2012
A Song and A Car
This year the SUU choirs started what they hope to be an annual tradition, and they invited alumni to come sing in a concert with them. I was able to go, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that I knew more people there than I had expected. It was fun to catch up with some of my friends, and it was fun to feel like a musician again.
The rehearsal started at 5:00 and we went for roughly an hour and a half, with a break for refreshments. Then we sang in the concert which started at 7:00. It was a bit of a whirlwind I guess, but it really didn't feel that way, and it turned out really well.
I don't have any pictures of it, though. Terral was going to try to come, but this afternoon he got in a car crash. Thankfully, no one was hurt, but our car is out of commission. We're hoping this will just be a blessing in disguise because the other guy's insurance should pay for our car. It needed replacing anyway, so hopefully this will help us do that.
I was pretty worried sick when Terral called me, but he took everything really well. We're grateful for our friend Adam, who happened to be at the gas station nearby and saw that Terral was in a pickle. So he stayed around for an hour while Terral talked to police, etc. and then gave him a ride home.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Beautiful Day
Today was fifty times better than yesterday. At least. For one thing, I got a little more sleep last night. For another, I had a much better breakfast and was able to feel full. That didn't happen yesterday and the result was I was queasy all day. I've been wanting hot cereal lately, but all we had was Cream of Wheat and I felt like I needed more variety and nutrition than that. Terral found a new cereal made from whole wheat called Cream of the West, and we tried that this morning. Two thumbs way up!
After breakfast I did dishes (so nice to have that done!) and turned on some fun music and Ethan and I danced while I worked. It was a great start to the day! I think all three of us were feeling much better than we have been. Terral's foot is healing very nicely, which we are extremely grateful for.
I wanted to introduce you to that book I mentioned. The design and beautiful pictures are half of why I like it so much, so I really ought to have some nice photographs to introduce it properly, but I haven't taken any and I'm too impatient. I wanted to share with you some of the gems in it, and I'll start with this one.
Into the woman's keeping is committed the destiny of the generations to come after us. In bringing up your children you mothers must remember that while it is essential to be loving and tender it is no less essential to be wise and firm. Foolishness and affection must not be treated as interchangeable terms; and besides training your sons and daughters in the softer and milder virtues, you must seek to give them those stern and hardy qualities which in after life they will surely need.
Some children will go wrong in spite of the best training; and some will go right even when their surroundings are most unfortunate. . . . Teach boys and girls alike that they are not to look forward to lives spent in avoiding difficulties; teach them that work, for themselves and also for others, is not a curse but a blessing; seek to make them happy, to make them enjoy life, but seek also to make them face life with steadfast resolution, and to do their whole duty before God and to man. Surely she who can thus train her sons and daughters is thrice fortunate among women.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Monday, July 9, 2012
Terral's Big Three-Oh
I can hardly believe it, but Terral is officially thirty years old now. His birthday kind of snuck up on us. I wish I had prepared more, but I guess it wasn't too shabby. We are also planning on spending a little time in the mountains soon in honor of his birthday.
I tried to make it a special day by doing little things. I made a special breakfast, and fulfilled the requested enchilada dinner.
Even though I only called them today *ahem*, Terral's parents and all his siblings were able to come spend some time with us at the park this evening and partake in some dessert. I tried a new raw brownie dessert, and it would have been good, only I put a tad too much salt in it. Woops.
Terral was able to run around some and climb trees, and then we played some frisbee. Ethan wanted to get in on the action too.
We did all the regular park playing. Ethan particularly loved the slide. Terral just loved being outside and playing around.
I feel so blessed to have this wonderful man as my husband and father to our children. He keeps calling himself middle aged, but I think he will always be young at heart. Not immature, mind you, but he knows how to play and have fun without inhibition, and he can still see the wonder in everyday things.
Люблю тебя, мой лучше друг!
I tried to make it a special day by doing little things. I made a special breakfast, and fulfilled the requested enchilada dinner.
Even though I only called them today *ahem*, Terral's parents and all his siblings were able to come spend some time with us at the park this evening and partake in some dessert. I tried a new raw brownie dessert, and it would have been good, only I put a tad too much salt in it. Woops.
Terral was able to run around some and climb trees, and then we played some frisbee. Ethan wanted to get in on the action too.
There was barely room for Ethan on Heather's lap. Her baby bump is sure growing!
At the end of it all, Terral finally got to open his present.
(Um, I sewed it today while he was at work. . .but at least I had it planned, right?)
It's a wallet! I used this tutorial.
Terral told me that just last week he saw a camo wallet and thought that would be cool to have. Good thing that the material I picked out! He's very excited about it because his current wallet is very old and falling apart. I just love when gifts turn out!
I feel so blessed to have this wonderful man as my husband and father to our children. He keeps calling himself middle aged, but I think he will always be young at heart. Not immature, mind you, but he knows how to play and have fun without inhibition, and he can still see the wonder in everyday things.
Люблю тебя, мой лучше друг!
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Father's Day
Here we are, more than half-way through June, and I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that it's not May anymore. But time doesn't wait for us to catch up to it; it keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin' into the future. . .
And so today we celebrated Father's Day. This morning I gave Terral my home made gift, a foam roller for working out sore muscles after a run, but he had to wait for the store-bought gift. He had a bit of a stressful day, with last-minute responsibilities being thrust on him, but it ended up not being too bad. He says he had a good day. :)
This morning I sang to Terral, and then I told Ethan to go give him a big hug. He did, and the two of them had some really sweet moments. We were extra glad for those moments later when Ethan was being much more of a handful than usual because he never took a nap.
Right now we're just kind of winding down after dinner. Terral and I are taking care of the computer things we needed to, and Ethan is gently playing the piano. Sometimes he is so precise about it. I think it's awesome. Terral brought up his harmonica from the basement the other day, and he showed Ethan how to play it. He loves it, and we love listening to him! It's fun to see them have their bonding activities.
Terral is really such an awesome dad. I love that he loves fatherhood. And I feel so incredibly blessed to have such a worthy priesthood holder to be my partner in parenthood. I love him so much!
And I am so grateful for my own father. It's always so hard to put into words what a parent has done for you. My daddy taught me so much through his actions. I was such a lucky girl to grow up in the family I did. I sure love you, dad!
A righteous man of God has such an influence, not only with his own family, but with so many who come into contact with him. I am amazed by the men in my life.
And so today we celebrated Father's Day. This morning I gave Terral my home made gift, a foam roller for working out sore muscles after a run, but he had to wait for the store-bought gift. He had a bit of a stressful day, with last-minute responsibilities being thrust on him, but it ended up not being too bad. He says he had a good day. :)
This morning I sang to Terral, and then I told Ethan to go give him a big hug. He did, and the two of them had some really sweet moments. We were extra glad for those moments later when Ethan was being much more of a handful than usual because he never took a nap.
Right now we're just kind of winding down after dinner. Terral and I are taking care of the computer things we needed to, and Ethan is gently playing the piano. Sometimes he is so precise about it. I think it's awesome. Terral brought up his harmonica from the basement the other day, and he showed Ethan how to play it. He loves it, and we love listening to him! It's fun to see them have their bonding activities.
Terral is really such an awesome dad. I love that he loves fatherhood. And I feel so incredibly blessed to have such a worthy priesthood holder to be my partner in parenthood. I love him so much!
And I am so grateful for my own father. It's always so hard to put into words what a parent has done for you. My daddy taught me so much through his actions. I was such a lucky girl to grow up in the family I did. I sure love you, dad!
A righteous man of God has such an influence, not only with his own family, but with so many who come into contact with him. I am amazed by the men in my life.
Saturdate
Today we had a Saturday that actually felt like a Saturday. It was nice. :) The morning was spent in various activities, and then in the afternoon, my sister Rachel and her family surprised us with a visit! I love that. They were on their way home from a stay in Zion. While she told me all about their trip, we watched all the kids play together. I love to see them have fun with Ethan!
After her visit, Ethan left with Terral's parents to go visit Grandma and Grandpa Hunt for Father's Day. Terral and I were going to clean the church and then go on a date, but a funeral went long and the cleaning was cancelled. So we suddenly had more time on our hands! Darn it. ;) At first we really weren't sure what to do with ourselves. We ended up doing a few errands down town, and then we headed out to the neighborhood we hope to live in. We walked around and just talked. It was nice. And it was also hot. So then we decided to go to the little reservoir up on the hill. And we had a lovely time there. We just chilled, enjoying the stillness, the water, and the sun. But not the sand. The sand there is so uncomfortable. But the water, although chilly, felt so nice! And it was wonderful to have some time to devote to just being together.
After that, we came home to our little man. He and his grandparents apparently had a really good time too. We ended up keeping him up kind of late tonight, but he was just so good all day. He's really such a sweetie.
And now, after watching a movie and cuddling with my sweetheart, it's time to end this nice and relaxing day.
After her visit, Ethan left with Terral's parents to go visit Grandma and Grandpa Hunt for Father's Day. Terral and I were going to clean the church and then go on a date, but a funeral went long and the cleaning was cancelled. So we suddenly had more time on our hands! Darn it. ;) At first we really weren't sure what to do with ourselves. We ended up doing a few errands down town, and then we headed out to the neighborhood we hope to live in. We walked around and just talked. It was nice. And it was also hot. So then we decided to go to the little reservoir up on the hill. And we had a lovely time there. We just chilled, enjoying the stillness, the water, and the sun. But not the sand. The sand there is so uncomfortable. But the water, although chilly, felt so nice! And it was wonderful to have some time to devote to just being together.
After that, we came home to our little man. He and his grandparents apparently had a really good time too. We ended up keeping him up kind of late tonight, but he was just so good all day. He's really such a sweetie.
And now, after watching a movie and cuddling with my sweetheart, it's time to end this nice and relaxing day.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Why We Make Stuff
This post is being written by Terral. Mary is busy with Ethan right now (fireworks and such worked him up). She may or may not have already fallen asleep with him. :) I'm pretty tired myself so this post will probably not make much sense!
I have always liked to make things. What kinds of things? I don't really care. It started as things that I wanted but couldn't afford. I once tried to make waterproof snowboard pants out of an old pair of nylon warm-up pants. I melted wax in a pot and then rubbed the melted wax into the fabric. I'm sure you can guess that it didn't work so well but it was worth a try right? Oh well I was young and couldn't afford decent apparel for snowboarding. Anyway my compulsion for making things has only grown. I look at something and immediately I wonder to myself, "how is that made? I wonder if I could make something like that? How does it really work. Is there something else that can create the same function that I can rig? I think that after being married to me Mary has caught the bug. She is getting really good at making homemade health and beauty products!
Recently we were asked why we made our own toothpaste. We don't always use homemade toothpaste but we have been experimenting with it. We had a hard time actually saying why we did. It may have saved us a tiny bit of money but that wasn't the big issue. Mary says there are some kind of health benefits but we really can't remember what they are. Our first attempts really didn't taste good at all. Don't get me wrong, they do a good job and leave a good clean feel but it does take some work to get it right. We just couldn't come up with any quantitative reason why we did it!
(**edit from Mary: Although I couldn't remember all the reasons specifically, I made it because I wanted to avoid things in commercial toothpaste like flouride, which may help strengthen teeth, but it does not do the same for your body.)
Well when it comes down to it, we do it because we can. It's fun. It's interesting! For some reason there is a thrill that one gets from making something that is normally considered to be something that the average person can't make. It is impossible to explain the feeling to someone who has not experienced it. If you have eaten fresh food from your own garden then that is a similar feeling. The knowledge and skills are empowering. We live in a world where everything we do is usually justified by "the bottom line" If it saves us time, money, or effort then we do it. Very rarely do we do things just for the heck of it!
(**edit from Mary: I definitely agree with what Terral has said, but I also have a lot of motivation from saving money, being independent, and a sense of accomplishment. Oh, and for the record, I have always enjoyed making things, but my interests have certainly expanded since we got married.)
For anyone who may think that it is a waste of time to make something that can easily be purchased at the store I have an example. In high school Chaco sandals became popular. I was in with the outdoorsy crowd and many of my friends had them. I wanted a pair so badly but alas, I couldn't afford them.(They are not cheap!) We went river rafting for a sr. trip so I decided to make a pair of sandals out of some webbing that I found in the basement. I don't remember exactly how I made them but I made the sole by weaving the webbing together. They didn't offer much protection but I didn't care. My friends thought they were pretty funny! They lasted about half a day until they fell off in the river and drifted away.
Fast forward about ten years and I finally got my Chacos. I had been wearing them and loving them. Unfortunately I had stopped wearing them in the desert because the sand was making the straps break. I started thinking about all the things that I would change if I could. One day I just decided that I needed a replacement. I wanted something light and flexible. After a long search with no results I finally decided to just make my own. I played with foam, duct tape and climbing webbing to make prototypes. I looked online and found some sandals called "huaraches" which is really just Spanish for sandal but refers to the running sandals that the Tarahumara indians use for running several hundred miles at a time. They were cool but not what I wanted. A few small businesses were making handmade versions of them although they looked very primitive and like something a Roman soldier would wear. I was inspired by the simple design so I kept making until I finally got the sandals that I really wanted.
One thing led to another and now I own a sandal company. It is small but growing steadily. I have three part-time workers and we are currently making about 40 pairs per week. That is my full-time job. It would be my full-and-a-half-time job if there were such a thing! I don't mean to be boastful but rather to prove the point. You never know what things may grow from just making something. Back in the year 2000 when I made my first pair (or should I say attempt) of sandals I would NOT have guessed that I would end up making sandals for a living.
I have always liked to make things. What kinds of things? I don't really care. It started as things that I wanted but couldn't afford. I once tried to make waterproof snowboard pants out of an old pair of nylon warm-up pants. I melted wax in a pot and then rubbed the melted wax into the fabric. I'm sure you can guess that it didn't work so well but it was worth a try right? Oh well I was young and couldn't afford decent apparel for snowboarding. Anyway my compulsion for making things has only grown. I look at something and immediately I wonder to myself, "how is that made? I wonder if I could make something like that? How does it really work. Is there something else that can create the same function that I can rig? I think that after being married to me Mary has caught the bug. She is getting really good at making homemade health and beauty products!
Recently we were asked why we made our own toothpaste. We don't always use homemade toothpaste but we have been experimenting with it. We had a hard time actually saying why we did. It may have saved us a tiny bit of money but that wasn't the big issue. Mary says there are some kind of health benefits but we really can't remember what they are. Our first attempts really didn't taste good at all. Don't get me wrong, they do a good job and leave a good clean feel but it does take some work to get it right. We just couldn't come up with any quantitative reason why we did it!
(**edit from Mary: Although I couldn't remember all the reasons specifically, I made it because I wanted to avoid things in commercial toothpaste like flouride, which may help strengthen teeth, but it does not do the same for your body.)
Well when it comes down to it, we do it because we can. It's fun. It's interesting! For some reason there is a thrill that one gets from making something that is normally considered to be something that the average person can't make. It is impossible to explain the feeling to someone who has not experienced it. If you have eaten fresh food from your own garden then that is a similar feeling. The knowledge and skills are empowering. We live in a world where everything we do is usually justified by "the bottom line" If it saves us time, money, or effort then we do it. Very rarely do we do things just for the heck of it!
(**edit from Mary: I definitely agree with what Terral has said, but I also have a lot of motivation from saving money, being independent, and a sense of accomplishment. Oh, and for the record, I have always enjoyed making things, but my interests have certainly expanded since we got married.)
For anyone who may think that it is a waste of time to make something that can easily be purchased at the store I have an example. In high school Chaco sandals became popular. I was in with the outdoorsy crowd and many of my friends had them. I wanted a pair so badly but alas, I couldn't afford them.(They are not cheap!) We went river rafting for a sr. trip so I decided to make a pair of sandals out of some webbing that I found in the basement. I don't remember exactly how I made them but I made the sole by weaving the webbing together. They didn't offer much protection but I didn't care. My friends thought they were pretty funny! They lasted about half a day until they fell off in the river and drifted away.
Fast forward about ten years and I finally got my Chacos. I had been wearing them and loving them. Unfortunately I had stopped wearing them in the desert because the sand was making the straps break. I started thinking about all the things that I would change if I could. One day I just decided that I needed a replacement. I wanted something light and flexible. After a long search with no results I finally decided to just make my own. I played with foam, duct tape and climbing webbing to make prototypes. I looked online and found some sandals called "huaraches" which is really just Spanish for sandal but refers to the running sandals that the Tarahumara indians use for running several hundred miles at a time. They were cool but not what I wanted. A few small businesses were making handmade versions of them although they looked very primitive and like something a Roman soldier would wear. I was inspired by the simple design so I kept making until I finally got the sandals that I really wanted.
One thing led to another and now I own a sandal company. It is small but growing steadily. I have three part-time workers and we are currently making about 40 pairs per week. That is my full-time job. It would be my full-and-a-half-time job if there were such a thing! I don't mean to be boastful but rather to prove the point. You never know what things may grow from just making something. Back in the year 2000 when I made my first pair (or should I say attempt) of sandals I would NOT have guessed that I would end up making sandals for a living.
Ok, the rant is over now! If you're still reading then I'm impressed.
Friday, June 8, 2012
Word Vomit
I can't seem to settle on any one thing to post about tonight. So many things have been on my mind, and most of them seem important and yet insignificant at the same time. So I suppose I'll revert to the ole type-whatever-you-feel-like-at-the-moment method.
Terral just told me that tonight is the first night it weeks he doesn't feel flooded with emails. Although the current turnaround time for sandals is still longer than we'd like it, things are looking much better now. Even though owning our own business (confession: I really like the sound of "our business") can be quite stressful at times, for us it is very worth it. Terral likes what he does (uber important), we're always learning things, and it's so fun to meet people who are interested to learn about what we do. But most importantly, we feel that this is where God has led us, and that feels so good.
Speaking of feeling good, we were also just discussing how good it feels to have absolutely no travel plans for June. If we take a fancy to do a quick weekend trip, we can, but we don't have have any commitments! Aaaahhh. . .
I'm taking a challenge to washing my face with honey for two weeks. So far so good, but I haven't noticed any major improvements yet. It's only been a couple of days, though.
Terral made yogurt, some with cow milk and some with goat. I really like the vanilla-cinnamon flavored ones! I haven't tried the plain goat yet, but Terral said it's sour like kefir.
Last night as I was trying to fall asleep, I found myself thinking of things like, "I wonder where we can put the kitchen garbage can?" "I hope the water filter is usable." "I'll have to look into the price difference between butcher-block and cement counter tops." And on and on. We don't even have a current offer on the table, folks. But don't worry, I'm keepin' it real. Sort of. Well, honestly I feel that I am, but I know that it wouldn't seem like it to some people. But I might as well record a portion of my thoughts and what's important to me, right? That's kind of the purpose of this blog. To record our life.
It really kind of drives me nuts to feel like I can't express my real thoughts. I'm not just talking about here on the ole blog, but that's kind of what's relevant at the moment. Normally, it's not that big of a problem. I'd like to be a transparent person. And I really haven't minded having a public blog. I like making it easy for people to connect with me. I like people. :) But I've been contemplating making the blog private. As in really private. Like not let anyone read it private. At least for a while. So I can just write for me. For our records. So I don't have to worry about what will so-and-so think if I write such-and-such. So I can be more genuine. Of course, any sort of record only shows a portion of the story, no matter how true it is, but I don't want to limit the picture too much. Lately, I've felt a little too much restraint and not enough connection.
Is there a better term than "word vomit" to describe this type of writing? I think it rather fitting, but also unappealing.
Terral just told me that tonight is the first night it weeks he doesn't feel flooded with emails. Although the current turnaround time for sandals is still longer than we'd like it, things are looking much better now. Even though owning our own business (confession: I really like the sound of "our business") can be quite stressful at times, for us it is very worth it. Terral likes what he does (uber important), we're always learning things, and it's so fun to meet people who are interested to learn about what we do. But most importantly, we feel that this is where God has led us, and that feels so good.
Speaking of feeling good, we were also just discussing how good it feels to have absolutely no travel plans for June. If we take a fancy to do a quick weekend trip, we can, but we don't have have any commitments! Aaaahhh. . .
I'm taking a challenge to washing my face with honey for two weeks. So far so good, but I haven't noticed any major improvements yet. It's only been a couple of days, though.
Terral made yogurt, some with cow milk and some with goat. I really like the vanilla-cinnamon flavored ones! I haven't tried the plain goat yet, but Terral said it's sour like kefir.
Last night as I was trying to fall asleep, I found myself thinking of things like, "I wonder where we can put the kitchen garbage can?" "I hope the water filter is usable." "I'll have to look into the price difference between butcher-block and cement counter tops." And on and on. We don't even have a current offer on the table, folks. But don't worry, I'm keepin' it real. Sort of. Well, honestly I feel that I am, but I know that it wouldn't seem like it to some people. But I might as well record a portion of my thoughts and what's important to me, right? That's kind of the purpose of this blog. To record our life.
It really kind of drives me nuts to feel like I can't express my real thoughts. I'm not just talking about here on the ole blog, but that's kind of what's relevant at the moment. Normally, it's not that big of a problem. I'd like to be a transparent person. And I really haven't minded having a public blog. I like making it easy for people to connect with me. I like people. :) But I've been contemplating making the blog private. As in really private. Like not let anyone read it private. At least for a while. So I can just write for me. For our records. So I don't have to worry about what will so-and-so think if I write such-and-such. So I can be more genuine. Of course, any sort of record only shows a portion of the story, no matter how true it is, but I don't want to limit the picture too much. Lately, I've felt a little too much restraint and not enough connection.
Is there a better term than "word vomit" to describe this type of writing? I think it rather fitting, but also unappealing.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Three Greats
I gotta tell you that I was pretty darn proud of myself today. I made a pair of shoes for Ethan today. From scratch. As in, I traced his feet and made my own pattern. And they fit him beautifully. But I forgot to take pictures. And I discovered after he wore them a while that I need to put some elastic or something on the heels because they do slip off. But still! I thought it was pretty awesome.
He got kind of bored while I was working on them, so I set him up to draw. I bought this tray at DI with the intent of making it all pretty so I could use it next time I have a baby or whenever someone is sick, but I gave up on it after and ENTIRE bottle of spray paint didn't completely cover up the ugly. So now Ethan draws on it. Literally. He draws on paper too, though. It works out great.
Another great thing is that his giant owie from Sunday is healing beautifully. Hooray! It doesn't seem to bother him at all now. He says "owie" any time he sees it in the mirror or when I'm putting essential oils or salve on it. Otherwise he doesn't seem to notice it, and he even gets a little rough with his face when he's being silly sometimes.
The third great thing about today is that I think we found a realtor we feel comfortable working with. Yup, we are officially house hunting. We've been semi-hunting for quite a while now, but our search recently got kicked into high gear. I mentioned in this post that we had a disappointment. Well, it was a really big disappointment, and I struggled with it a lot. . . I guess I should back up a bit.
As I said, we've been semi-hunting for quite a while, which mostly consisted of me combing through online listings and very occasionally going to see a house. Well, I showed Terral a listing with the price recently reduced, and we decided to go take a gander. So we contacted the listing agent and set up an appointment. It was definitely not a cookie-cutter home. It was a little quirky, but we both liked it. We were surprised by how much. As we walked through, we weren't just trying to see if we could maybe make it work—we could both easily imagine us living there. It had so many things on our wish list it's not even funny. It just felt right. For the first time, we were seriously considering making an offer.
The next morning, I got on the phone with our lender. Long story short, we decided we needed to get financed with someone else. So we did. And when I called the agent to say we would have our approval letter in the morning and we'd like to make an offer then, he told me that the bank had just accepted an offer less than an hour before.
It may sound silly, folks, but this has seriously been a trial of my faith. Owning a home (and land!) has been such a huge dream of mine for so long, and we've really tried to be prayerful and prepared. It's not just that the house had so many items on our wish list (it did need a lot of work too, btw), it's that it felt so right. To both of us. I'm just not sure what to think of that. I'm still kind of hoping that the other deal will fall through and we'll get a chance at it, but whatever happens, my mantra has become "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5
Terral was disappointed too, but not to the extent that I was. He says that whatever the outcome, he feels like it wasn't an accident that we saw the home and felt the way we did. Maybe we just needed a kick start to get new financing and really start looking. We just need to believe that whatever the Lord has in mind for us, we will love.
He got kind of bored while I was working on them, so I set him up to draw. I bought this tray at DI with the intent of making it all pretty so I could use it next time I have a baby or whenever someone is sick, but I gave up on it after and ENTIRE bottle of spray paint didn't completely cover up the ugly. So now Ethan draws on it. Literally. He draws on paper too, though. It works out great.
Another great thing is that his giant owie from Sunday is healing beautifully. Hooray! It doesn't seem to bother him at all now. He says "owie" any time he sees it in the mirror or when I'm putting essential oils or salve on it. Otherwise he doesn't seem to notice it, and he even gets a little rough with his face when he's being silly sometimes.
The third great thing about today is that I think we found a realtor we feel comfortable working with. Yup, we are officially house hunting. We've been semi-hunting for quite a while now, but our search recently got kicked into high gear. I mentioned in this post that we had a disappointment. Well, it was a really big disappointment, and I struggled with it a lot. . . I guess I should back up a bit.
As I said, we've been semi-hunting for quite a while, which mostly consisted of me combing through online listings and very occasionally going to see a house. Well, I showed Terral a listing with the price recently reduced, and we decided to go take a gander. So we contacted the listing agent and set up an appointment. It was definitely not a cookie-cutter home. It was a little quirky, but we both liked it. We were surprised by how much. As we walked through, we weren't just trying to see if we could maybe make it work—we could both easily imagine us living there. It had so many things on our wish list it's not even funny. It just felt right. For the first time, we were seriously considering making an offer.
The next morning, I got on the phone with our lender. Long story short, we decided we needed to get financed with someone else. So we did. And when I called the agent to say we would have our approval letter in the morning and we'd like to make an offer then, he told me that the bank had just accepted an offer less than an hour before.
It may sound silly, folks, but this has seriously been a trial of my faith. Owning a home (and land!) has been such a huge dream of mine for so long, and we've really tried to be prayerful and prepared. It's not just that the house had so many items on our wish list (it did need a lot of work too, btw), it's that it felt so right. To both of us. I'm just not sure what to think of that. I'm still kind of hoping that the other deal will fall through and we'll get a chance at it, but whatever happens, my mantra has become "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5
Terral was disappointed too, but not to the extent that I was. He says that whatever the outcome, he feels like it wasn't an accident that we saw the home and felt the way we did. Maybe we just needed a kick start to get new financing and really start looking. We just need to believe that whatever the Lord has in mind for us, we will love.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
The Race to The Race, and other short stories
Well, it's already late and we didn't sleep well last night, but I'm going to post about our Saturday excursion anyway.
Friday afternoon, Terral called me and asked me to check the date on something. Sure enough, it turned out that a race we were sponsoring was the next morning. He'd been so busy, he forgot about it. Thus our last-minute trip was born. Heather and Chris were very obliging with our plans thrust upon them.
We wanted to be at the race site by 10 am, when the runners would start to come in. Unfortunately, the car decided to not work. Terral called his dad, and together they figured out that the wires connecting to the battery were corroding. Fortunately, they were able to fix it (temporarily) so we could be on our way. We were rather late to the race, but Terral was still able to do some networking, etc. A big plus for him was that he saw an elder he had served with on his mission. He never runs into people from his mission, so it was really fun for him to catch up.
While he was doing all that, I took Ethan to Heather and Chris' house and we hung out for a while and had lunch. Then H&C watched Ethan for us while I picked Terral up so we could go to the temple. We did some initiatory work, which we hadn't done for quite some time. I really enjoyed it.
After the temple, we met up with Heather and Chris again. They had taken Ethan to a splash pad in a park, and he had lots of fun playing in the water.
We stayed there for a little bit, and then it was back to the house. After dinner (and a semi-nap for me—I don't know why I was so exhausted!), we decided to enjoy the insanely perfect weather outside. It was so nice. Ethan played in the yard while we played a card game.
I'm not sure what this expression on Terral's face means, but I can think of some funny captions. ;)
Ethan had a lot of fun playing in the dirt. His new overalls from Grandma Fox were perfect for this sort of thing.
I love this picture because it captures Ethan's silly so well. It really is not surprising he is such a goofball when you consider who his parents are, but it still catches me off guard sometimes because he seems so much older when he gets that way.
After the card game, some tree climbing ensued. Ethan has been in a tree before, but this time he really seemed to have fun with the novelty of it all.
We also took a walk to a park as the sun was setting. We really tired our little guy out. He fell asleep when we got back to the house, and he didn't even wake up when we put him in his car seat. The day was that fun.
Friday afternoon, Terral called me and asked me to check the date on something. Sure enough, it turned out that a race we were sponsoring was the next morning. He'd been so busy, he forgot about it. Thus our last-minute trip was born. Heather and Chris were very obliging with our plans thrust upon them.
We wanted to be at the race site by 10 am, when the runners would start to come in. Unfortunately, the car decided to not work. Terral called his dad, and together they figured out that the wires connecting to the battery were corroding. Fortunately, they were able to fix it (temporarily) so we could be on our way. We were rather late to the race, but Terral was still able to do some networking, etc. A big plus for him was that he saw an elder he had served with on his mission. He never runs into people from his mission, so it was really fun for him to catch up.
While he was doing all that, I took Ethan to Heather and Chris' house and we hung out for a while and had lunch. Then H&C watched Ethan for us while I picked Terral up so we could go to the temple. We did some initiatory work, which we hadn't done for quite some time. I really enjoyed it.
After the temple, we met up with Heather and Chris again. They had taken Ethan to a splash pad in a park, and he had lots of fun playing in the water.
We stayed there for a little bit, and then it was back to the house. After dinner (and a semi-nap for me—I don't know why I was so exhausted!), we decided to enjoy the insanely perfect weather outside. It was so nice. Ethan played in the yard while we played a card game.
I'm not sure what this expression on Terral's face means, but I can think of some funny captions. ;)
Ethan had a lot of fun playing in the dirt. His new overalls from Grandma Fox were perfect for this sort of thing.
I love this picture because it captures Ethan's silly so well. It really is not surprising he is such a goofball when you consider who his parents are, but it still catches me off guard sometimes because he seems so much older when he gets that way.
After the card game, some tree climbing ensued. Ethan has been in a tree before, but this time he really seemed to have fun with the novelty of it all.
We also took a walk to a park as the sun was setting. We really tired our little guy out. He fell asleep when we got back to the house, and he didn't even wake up when we put him in his car seat. The day was that fun.
Friday, April 20, 2012
Relay for Life
Well, we had a pretty full day again, but the evening was particularly jam packed. I was grocery shopping with Ethan when Terral called to let me know that his mom (a breast cancer survivor) had decided to do the survivors lap at Relay for Life. We were planning on going, but not right at the beginning, so I rushed home, we threw together some pb&j's, and hurried off to the football field. We made it just in time to see the mass of purple coming 'round the corner. I forgot the camera in the mad rush, so we had to make do with using my phone for pictures.
Here is Terral's mom with her friend who is currently having treatment for breast cancer.
Ethan could not wait to have a turn on the track. Not even long enough to get his shoes on. It was so cute to seen him running after all those people.
Everything was just so exciting to him. He wanted to explore everything and run free. Naturally, he through a conniption fit when we had to change his diaper, so we didn't bother putting his pants back on until it got a little cool. His distress was quickly forgotten when he saw the balloons.
Terral stayed on at the track and said that the two of them had an absolute blast. He said Ethan did an entire lap by himself, and they just had so much fun seeing friends and playing with family. While they were doing that, I ran (literally) to the other side of campus to watch my friend play Meg in the musical version of Little Women. I was very pleasantly surprised to learn that there is a discount for alumni, so it only cast my $5 rather than the $10 I expected. They really should advertise that. I very nearly didn't go. But I'm glad I did. I enjoyed it, and I got to see some of my friends, which is always nice. :)
Terral and Ethan had just gotten home when I called to say I was done at about 10:00. Ethan had so much fun he didn't seem to mind staying up late, but he was very ready to go to bed. We've got more adventures in the works for tomorrow, so I'd best be getting to bed as well!
**edited to add: Terral just got home (he went back to the relay after taking me home) and shared a couple pictures with me. Apparently there were some pretty awesome Star Wars characters there, but Ethan didn't pay them any mind. Couldn't care less. But a few minutes later, he saw a statue and was enthralled. He kept pointing at it and saying "da da!" Lately, he's been saying "daddy" very clearly, so I'm not sure exactly what he meant by "da da". In any case, Terral thought it was pretty funny.
Terral stayed on at the track and said that the two of them had an absolute blast. He said Ethan did an entire lap by himself, and they just had so much fun seeing friends and playing with family. While they were doing that, I ran (literally) to the other side of campus to watch my friend play Meg in the musical version of Little Women. I was very pleasantly surprised to learn that there is a discount for alumni, so it only cast my $5 rather than the $10 I expected. They really should advertise that. I very nearly didn't go. But I'm glad I did. I enjoyed it, and I got to see some of my friends, which is always nice. :)
Terral and Ethan had just gotten home when I called to say I was done at about 10:00. Ethan had so much fun he didn't seem to mind staying up late, but he was very ready to go to bed. We've got more adventures in the works for tomorrow, so I'd best be getting to bed as well!
**edited to add: Terral just got home (he went back to the relay after taking me home) and shared a couple pictures with me. Apparently there were some pretty awesome Star Wars characters there, but Ethan didn't pay them any mind. Couldn't care less. But a few minutes later, he saw a statue and was enthralled. He kept pointing at it and saying "da da!" Lately, he's been saying "daddy" very clearly, so I'm not sure exactly what he meant by "da da". In any case, Terral thought it was pretty funny.
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