So Ive decided I need to add a resolution to my "NYR's". One of the testimonies in church on Sunday was about Forgiving our enemies. Obviously during this tumultuous time in our country's history, forgiving our enemies is a delicate matter. How do you forgive someone for killing thousands of innocent people? Still, we are expected to forgive.... Whether you are spiritual or not, follow an organized religion or follow one of your own making, forgivness is essential for our well being and ability to function as adults. One of the quotes that I have listed in my "quotes that I love" section states that "hatred is a live coal". Perfect description because it literally simmers and burns inside of you until the fire it creates becomes completely destructive. Anyway, I have old wounds that I still work on everyday. Things that are still "simmering" deep inside of my soul. And, I have news ones too that are feeding those embers. I dont want to feel that ugliness inside of me anymore so I am resolving to resolve....is that english? You understand me Im sure. I am not going to allow adults who act like schoolyard children affect me anymore. People can be so petty and immature. Im sure I have been guilty of such offenses myself...... adults seem to get worse as they age. Wouldnt it be great if we could all be like little children and forgive almost immediately.....and then move on? I think the state of the world would be so much more peaceful. I hope if I teach my children anything at all, it is the quality of being able to forgive their enemies and be the bigger person. That when they grow up they would continue to treat people with respect no matter what.... That they dont hold grudges.... and that they always try to speak kindly and with good intentions. I'm very grateful for the faith that I hold that allows me to seek forgivness and receive it. It is with these principles that I try to follow that I am able free myself from the burdens that this world can pile on top of me. Burdens that I create. Burdens that I have no control over also. I pray everyday that I can forgive and be forgiven.......These are my thoughts for today.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Forgiveness.....
So Ive decided I need to add a resolution to my "NYR's". One of the testimonies in church on Sunday was about Forgiving our enemies. Obviously during this tumultuous time in our country's history, forgiving our enemies is a delicate matter. How do you forgive someone for killing thousands of innocent people? Still, we are expected to forgive.... Whether you are spiritual or not, follow an organized religion or follow one of your own making, forgivness is essential for our well being and ability to function as adults. One of the quotes that I have listed in my "quotes that I love" section states that "hatred is a live coal". Perfect description because it literally simmers and burns inside of you until the fire it creates becomes completely destructive. Anyway, I have old wounds that I still work on everyday. Things that are still "simmering" deep inside of my soul. And, I have news ones too that are feeding those embers. I dont want to feel that ugliness inside of me anymore so I am resolving to resolve....is that english? You understand me Im sure. I am not going to allow adults who act like schoolyard children affect me anymore. People can be so petty and immature. Im sure I have been guilty of such offenses myself...... adults seem to get worse as they age. Wouldnt it be great if we could all be like little children and forgive almost immediately.....and then move on? I think the state of the world would be so much more peaceful. I hope if I teach my children anything at all, it is the quality of being able to forgive their enemies and be the bigger person. That when they grow up they would continue to treat people with respect no matter what.... That they dont hold grudges.... and that they always try to speak kindly and with good intentions. I'm very grateful for the faith that I hold that allows me to seek forgivness and receive it. It is with these principles that I try to follow that I am able free myself from the burdens that this world can pile on top of me. Burdens that I create. Burdens that I have no control over also. I pray everyday that I can forgive and be forgiven.......These are my thoughts for today.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
More Snow!
I seriously dont remember winter being this dramatic last year. It seems like we have had 
snowstorm after snowstorm and it is supposed to continue like this through Wednesday. It is done snowing for now but when I came out of church today it was beautiful. I love fresh snow...... So, not much to post today. The week was pretty uneventful. Seems like the week after Christmas is slow going after all the rush of the holiday is over. We went to a movie, "National Treasure: book of secrets" and I left Addison with a non-family babysitter for the first time. I was a little nervous of course but not too bad. The girl ins in my primary class at church and is very responsible. Plus Addie knows her from coming to primary with me and Courtney has a little sister the same age as Addison so it was easy for her. It was successful: the movie was great and I will definitely be calling Courtney to babysit again! She ended up watching Evan too because Evan was more excited about hanging with a sitter than going to the movies. He is such a little flirt and I can see that he is going to be trouble one day...... The boys went back to school on Wed except Alec who starts up again tomorrow. Alec was supposed to go snowboarding with Jeff but we werent able to get in touch with Jeff all week. Next year Denver wants to learn how to ski even though I think snowboarding will be easier on his knees. I havent skiied in many years but they say its like riding a bike. I suggested to Denver that we make it a Ski Christmas and buy the necessary gear for everyone....$$$$$$$$$...... I think Alec might like that. I mean what else could he possibly want now that he has his Wii :) . Friday night Alec went home. I meant to bring my camera to the airport but forgot it so no pictures on this post, sorry. The boys were especially sad to see him go. They think he is the best thing in the world. Especially Evan. Evan will talk about Alec all year long. He makes projects in school just for Alec. Earlier in the week this sparked my idea to make a blog for Alec. I figured why not....he can type stories up for everyone about things that are happening to him and post pictures of him and his life there in Phoenix so that we and the family in Kentucky can feel more connected to him. I helped him set it up and he seemed pumped about it so I hope he uses it. (thats a hint Alec if you are reading this....)
So, a little about Addison. She is growing like a weed. She is so tall and skinny its like she came from someone else! I hope she stays that way for her sake. Of course I USED to be tall and skinny.....hopefully it wont be as hard for her to stay like that. This picture is her new "photo smile"....if you have a camera and tell her to "smile", this is what you get....total cheeze ball. Much different from her earlier in life camera shyness! Her new word these days is "LOVE YOU" although she says it like this..... "Uh-View" and she really emphasizes the view part. It is so cute. She isnt talking as much as I feel like she should at this point but she rambles so much, Im pretty sure that one day soon she will just start talking out of the blue. She also still loves to sing. Today at church she was holding the hymn book open and singing (questionable) at the top of her lungs much to the enjoyment (or dismay) of all of the older couples in the ward. They all adore her though so I dont think she could really annoy them even if she tried. Her hair is getting longer but still not so much on top. I guess Im getting to anxious for her to be a little girl. Braids and bows is all I can think about....and ballet class of course. I mentioned that I am 
watching Soren now 2 to 3 days a week and that is fun. Not only because it keeps me from having to work 2 more days at the post office but also because of the relationship that I will end up having with him. I hope to be his favorite Auntie......at least on the Ries side! Well, thats about it for the update. Hopefully this will be a good week for everyone....Ciao for now.
snowstorm after snowstorm and it is supposed to continue like this through Wednesday. It is done snowing for now but when I came out of church today it was beautiful. I love fresh snow...... So, not much to post today. The week was pretty uneventful. Seems like the week after Christmas is slow going after all the rush of the holiday is over. We went to a movie, "National Treasure: book of secrets" and I left Addison with a non-family babysitter for the first time. I was a little nervous of course but not too bad. The girl ins in my primary class at church and is very responsible. Plus Addie knows her from coming to primary with me and Courtney has a little sister the same age as Addison so it was easy for her. It was successful: the movie was great and I will definitely be calling Courtney to babysit again! She ended up watching Evan too because Evan was more excited about hanging with a sitter than going to the movies. He is such a little flirt and I can see that he is going to be trouble one day...... The boys went back to school on Wed except Alec who starts up again tomorrow. Alec was supposed to go snowboarding with Jeff but we werent able to get in touch with Jeff all week. Next year Denver wants to learn how to ski even though I think snowboarding will be easier on his knees. I havent skiied in many years but they say its like riding a bike. I suggested to Denver that we make it a Ski Christmas and buy the necessary gear for everyone....$$$$$$$$$...... I think Alec might like that. I mean what else could he possibly want now that he has his Wii :) . Friday night Alec went home. I meant to bring my camera to the airport but forgot it so no pictures on this post, sorry. The boys were especially sad to see him go. They think he is the best thing in the world. Especially Evan. Evan will talk about Alec all year long. He makes projects in school just for Alec. Earlier in the week this sparked my idea to make a blog for Alec. I figured why not....he can type stories up for everyone about things that are happening to him and post pictures of him and his life there in Phoenix so that we and the family in Kentucky can feel more connected to him. I helped him set it up and he seemed pumped about it so I hope he uses it. (thats a hint Alec if you are reading this....)
So, a little about Addison. She is growing like a weed. She is so tall and skinny its like she came from someone else! I hope she stays that way for her sake. Of course I USED to be tall and skinny.....hopefully it wont be as hard for her to stay like that. This picture is her new "photo smile"....if you have a camera and tell her to "smile", this is what you get....total cheeze ball. Much different from her earlier in life camera shyness! Her new word these days is "LOVE YOU" although she says it like this..... "Uh-View" and she really emphasizes the view part. It is so cute. She isnt talking as much as I feel like she should at this point but she rambles so much, Im pretty sure that one day soon she will just start talking out of the blue. She also still loves to sing. Today at church she was holding the hymn book open and singing (questionable) at the top of her lungs much to the enjoyment (or dismay) of all of the older couples in the ward. They all adore her though so I dont think she could really annoy them even if she tried. Her hair is getting longer but still not so much on top. I guess Im getting to anxious for her to be a little girl. Braids and bows is all I can think about....and ballet class of course. I mentioned that I am 
watching Soren now 2 to 3 days a week and that is fun. Not only because it keeps me from having to work 2 more days at the post office but also because of the relationship that I will end up having with him. I hope to be his favorite Auntie......at least on the Ries side! Well, thats about it for the update. Hopefully this will be a good week for everyone....Ciao for now.Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Happy New Year.......2008
Well, this is my first post for the new year. Due to the fact that I am a middle aged mother of 3 (4 depending on the time of year) there will be no wild party posts on my blog. Those days are long gone.....thankfully. We did however, have a few people over. Denver invited some of his friends from work over and we just had some good food and talked. Nothing major but it was nice to socialize with someone other than my children! That was it though.....maybe next year we will buy a few fireworks and get the kids more involved. Ive never been much of a New Year party person anyway but they would probably get a kick out of it.
So, I only have 2 resolutions this year.....well, 3 really. I will vocalize them here so that you can all shame me when I fail to accomplish them! Im kidding. Really, here they are:
1. Lose weight.......i know, sounds cliche but it truly is my major goal for the
year.
2. Become more financially secure......i have a number of ways to do
this, I wont list them all
3. Spend more time on ME....this sounds selfish
but the results will benefit my whole family
That is my condensed version. I will start the first one tomorrow with Denver when we attend Weight Watchers together. I hope all of you enjoyed your holidays and wish you the best for 2008.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Winter Fun.....
Today we went sledding and had a blast! Even Denver and I attempted a couple of turns down the hill....felt like being a kid again til I had to walk back up the hill! Oi..... Here are some pictures from our adventures in the snow. We were going to make a snowman today but the snow quality isnt so great....maybe this weekend since it is supposed to snow again. Also, check out the pictures of our backyard friend....apparently our snow seemed the perfect place to finish his meal!
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Going, going, GONE......
Well, we finally made it through Christmas...all the build up and then BOOM......its over, just like that. It starts Christmas Eve for us. First we went to Uncle Nate and Aunt Alisa's house for lunch and gift exchanging. We had pizza and treats and then exchanged gifts. The kids had a 
blast....any chance to be the center of attention. As you can see, they come by their goofiness naturally. Nathan (my brother) is clearly demonstrating our families' crazy gene! We had a great time! 
Next we opened our one Christmas Eve gift.....new PJ's. The kids actually love getting new jammies and were looking forward to putting them on.
So tonight we tried to go see the lights on temple square despite the 17 degree temperature reading. Not a great idea. It was beautiful but after about 10 minutes we could no longer feel our noses or toes. We headed home and had some hot chocolate to thaw us out. Now we are all settling down for the night and are thankful for having such a wonderful Christmas. Thanks to everyone who sent cards and well wishes and for the gifts that we received from everyone. You are all so generous and we thank you and love you. On to a new year!
blast....any chance to be the center of attention. As you can see, they come by their goofiness naturally. Nathan (my brother) is clearly demonstrating our families' crazy gene! We had a great time! 
That evening we continued our Christmas Eve tradition of making cookies for Santa. I decided to make them from scratch this time which was time consuming but fun. The kids enjoyed decorating their own and Im sure Santa enjoyed them..wink wink.
Next we opened our one Christmas Eve gift.....new PJ's. The kids actually love getting new jammies and were looking forward to putting them on.This was a first for us this year in a lot of things. Number one was the fact that my 2 sons seemed to finally catch on that Christmas is really hard to wait for. This is the first year that they consistentely whined about Christmas coming too slow. I can remember that it was torture for me as a child also.....funny how when you are an adult, Christmas comes WAY too fast. The 2nd new thing for us was that our kids actually got up before us this Christmas. In the past we have had to wake them up...usually aroun 9am! Can you believe that? Finally, they woke up first and came to get us to open presents (at 7:30). Im guessing that in the future that time will get earlier and earlier each year.
Addison was also very excited but she only had the attention span for one toy at a time and was getting quite irritated at everyone who tried to get her to open something else. She even kicked one present away from her because she wasnt ready to open it yet. Still she is very happy with all of her gifts but especially loves her cabbage patch doll which she carries everywhere and feeds and kisses constantly. She is such a little girl and I LOVE it. We have all had a chance to play the Wii that we got Alec. I wanted to see what all the hype was for. All I can say is that we will probably own one ourselves very soon. It is a lot of fun and I have only played one game so far... bowling. It is interactive and amazingly accurate. Very cool technology. Oh did I mention it snowed about 6 inches on Christmas Eve! I love it when it does that.....makes it a perfect Christmas.
So tonight we tried to go see the lights on temple square despite the 17 degree temperature reading. Not a great idea. It was beautiful but after about 10 minutes we could no longer feel our noses or toes. We headed home and had some hot chocolate to thaw us out. Now we are all settling down for the night and are thankful for having such a wonderful Christmas. Thanks to everyone who sent cards and well wishes and for the gifts that we received from everyone. You are all so generous and we thank you and love you. On to a new year!
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