Talking Politics

We have been reading the Little House books this year and we are finishing up this month with Farmer Boy. I love them...can't get enough. I enjoy her writing and the many lessons that we discuss as well as the life skills we want to learn and talk about.

Which brings me to talkin politics. In the Little House books the men are always talking politics. So I was thinking about this the other day...why is it taboo in our society to talk politics? "Back in the "olden" days " when dinosaurs roamed the earth :) that was what people did when they got together...they talked about the government, the local politicians, and current events.

Which brings me to my next question's....why and when did it change? It is not politically correct to even talk politics anymore...you can complain, conjoul, and ridicule each other, but don't talk politics...it's too touchy of a subject, people get to upset, it's not polite. My theory is that it is a ploy...the evil powers that be don't want us talking to each other, they don't want us to get involved, and the certainly don't want us to be informed. Genuis..just get it to be politically uncouth to talk politics, tell people it is rude to speak about politics and insinuate that others will of course loose their tempers if you bring up any subject closely related to politics.

Seems to me we should talk about the weather, the Jazz game, the issues of our spouce, or how about blood sucking vampires, but never ever ever about politics.

The weather speaks for itself...I'm not a Jazz fan...or any team for that manner...I don't talk about my spouce except to my spouce, and blood sucking vampires...hmmm...NO. So if you want to talk...Lets talk politics!

# 86 Teenagers....Do Hard Things

I have a daughter who is getting close to entering those "between" years, so I've been reading a bit to learn how to help and how to encourage her to be a young adult. One of the books recommended to me was Do Hard Things. It is written by two twin brothers who were homeschooled Brett and Alex Harris.

There are a few things I didn't love about the book...but lets be honest, there are always a few things not to love about every book (except the scriptures :)) This book definately has the "teen culture" part. And even though it was written for teens I did find myself motivated to be better by the principles that they talked about.

The first section of the book is all about inspiring...in my opinion, the "why" of the book....or the inspiring teens to "why" read this and ultimately the "why" to do something hard.

Quotes from the book:
if you dream big...be ready to face the dream.
(hard things are) opportunities to learn, laugh, and sometimes start over

The thing I learned from this part of the book as a mother is to have high expectations for my children. (like I didn't already :) )The brothers propose that when you have high expectations for people they can meet those high expectations. (calmness, studies, standards etc.) low expectations = low performance. Expectations are a self fulfilling prophecy. I think this also means that I must be intune to the spirit so I can know what high expectations He would have me expect of my children.

My favorite quote "all effort produces muscels, even failed effort." No effort is wasted. Sometimes in my striving I feel like something that isn't working is wasted. I was listening to a book today which said the same thing...if you don't win the race will you be sad you tried? The main character wants to answer yes because it is so important to her to win but then the antagonist points out...what about this muscle you've developed, what about this habit you've gained, what about this skill you've learned; it helps her realize that it is about more than just winning..it is also about the journey. I need to work harder at realizing when things are not "perfect" something has grown or changed and that growth and change and progress are not wasted effort.

My favorite section of the book is part 2...The Five Kinds of Hard

1. Hard thing getting outside your comfort zone
Quotes:
If we take a step we grow in strength and skill
Fear keeps us inside our comfort zone...you can't live by fear and faith
Heavenly Father works through our weakness to accomplish big things
Getting out of our zone helps us learn to have faith in Him, to lean on Him
Waiting for things to be better...there will always be something to be afraid of
You cant get to success without risking failure
What could your life look like if you trust in God and overcome your fears?

This was inspiring to me I have lots of things outside my comfort zone that I don't really want to do :) and yet I feel inspired to do them. At Virtue Girls today I taught the girls about comfort zones and we compared it to a circle...things in our circle are things we are good at or enjoy doing, or want to do (our comfort zones). The things outside our circle are the things that are scary or hard or we don't want to do (outside our comfort zones). It is fun to watch them talk about the things that are hard for them to do and then to see them want to work on them....oh the faith of a child.

2. Raising the bar
Quote:
dont just do your best
mr complacency...be better than just "good"
do what is hard for YOU
be known for what you do...not what you don't
persue excellence not excuses

I enjoyed this section because I think it is very true for many youth. They are praised for "not being bad" or for doing small things like making their beds or getting an A and yet not for doing things that are really hard for them. Now, some teens may really struggle with being bad or with getting an A but generally being above average is looked on as exceptional...even though the youth of today are so much better than being above average...they have the potential to be excellent. This chapter suggests not just settling for what you can do, just getting by, or meeting the low expectations others have for you...but to push yourself to do better then your best, to do that thing that is hard for YOU...wether it be an A, making your bed, speaking in front of others, or reaching for the BIG goal you think there is no way you could ever do.

3.Power of collaboration
strength in numbers
start with questions....what does God say, my parents say, lead or help?
strengths weakness', care about issue
walk with the wise
families
use technology
treasure constructive criticism
credit is free if you give it away
other people are sinners too...runs on regular
expect a nightmare or two
dont give up
success happens in more ways than one...success looks different

This chapter is all about working with others...something I am not good at. Sometimes I think that if I can't do it by myself then it is not worth doing...but that is not true. I cannot even live the gospel all by myself because we need each other. Part of the plan of our Heavenly Father is the lifting and the helping of each other and I need to be lifted and helped as much as I need to lift and help. I also enjoyed their wisdom...I think it was their dad that said "runs on regular" meaning that work is done by regular people...even God's work. The Lord does not only use exceptional, brilliant, talented people to do his work he also uses humble, slow and sick people to do his work. I also like the last quote...success happens in more ways than one. That reminds me of the thoughts above about muscles...it is not always about the winning or the doing, sometimes it is about the journeys and the small successes...sometimes it is about the seeds and not about the blossom.

4. Small hard things
small hard things are:
things that usually dont go away after you do them
things that dont seem very important
things that dont seem to make a difference
things that dont seem very glamorous
things you do when no one is watching

things that keep us from doing small hard things
procrastination
inconsistency
compromise
begrudging
cheating

So if you haven't guessed that is making your bed, doing the dishes, and the laundry for all you mom's out there....or mabey it's reading one more book about that subject, or attending another city council meeting, or having a shower. Sometimes, especially when you read a book like this that gets you fired up to do BIG hard things, it is hard to remember that you still have to do all the little daily things that "sharpen the saw" as Covey says.

They share a story about the vikings here which I thought was inspirational. The vikings came accross the sea and terrorized all the poor sea coast cities in Europe. The Europeans had boats but the Vikings ships were small and they would drag them up to shore, loot and plunder and get back to their boats and away before anything could be done...sly, fast and deadly. One of the reasons they were so effective at this was because Europeans hired others or made slaves or criminals row their boats...but not the Vikings, they rowed their own boats..they did the hard work of rowing and they couldn't be beat for upper body strength...doing the small little unimportant thing..rowing the boat..made them the great warriors that they were....not that we should be vikings...their character needed a little more work :)

5. taking a stand
do what's right even when it hurts
the hard decision can also be easier...we'll always be glad we did

how and when to stand
start with the bible
examine yourself...fix yourself first
listen to your conscience
seek godly counsel
be humble, loving, and bold
be for something...not against everything

The last section was their weakest in my opinion and yet needed to be one of their strengths. Standing up for something, or doing something even when it hurts, or making the hard decision because you have to make it is difficult, at best. And yet it is such an integral part of choosing God's plan. There must be a time when you choose, when you choose that you will be on the Lord's side. I believe they are saying this in the book...I just didn't feel they did it as well as the other parts...but hey at 17 how many of us have written a book that stares directly in the face of popular culture :0...mabey they've already got this one down. I definately dont :) I liked their suggestions to seek for the Lord when making a stand to make sure you are firmly on His side, and then to fix the problem in yourself first...not in others...how many times is it easier to see someone elses problem and try to fix that. Seeking godly counsel means to talk with others who are wiser than you. My favorite one though was the last one...be for something, not against everything. I tend to feel like I am always fighting against everything. I liked their advice about pick something you are for and then fight for that...don't always play the antagonist.

Section 3 is all about their vision, another part that wasn't my favorite, but might be helpful for a teen who needs a bigger reality I did enjoy their interpretation of the parable of the salt of the earth and the light under a bushel. The salt is a preserver, the light is given. They believe that the salt is to remind us about the things that we need to save...from sin, from the world, our families, our communities, our world. The light is to remind us of the things we need to give to others...the gospel, truth, knowledge, our influence. I liked this anaolgy, the beautiful thing about the Saviors words they have so much meaning and depth.

The twins advocate 3 things that to do hard things you need :character: passionate about growing in christlikeness ,competence: care deeply about skill strategy andcreativity, and last
collaboration finding and working with others . Do not just make a difference, be a difference. Their suggestions are:get rid of old things, help those who stand alone,rethinking companionship, get honest ,get rid of negative actions,recognized people who can help you, plan 1 or 2 key actions that keep you from chickening out, stay close to God, and expect and be excited about success.

The overall theme for myself was courage...courage to do the hard things that I need to do and am scared to do, but then my sweet...almost teen daughter pointed out something wonderful to me today. She was working on a lesson about courage, ironically, and she said, "mom, every time I think about courage I just can't think about courage because what I always think about is Faith." How profound from a 10 year old. So my overall theme for myself is now faith...faith to do the hard things that God needs me to do and that I am scared to do. Really it is His work and His glory and I am glad that the book helped me to remember it.

#18 Take the Kids on a Walk

When March comes in like a lamb it will go out like a lion...or so the old wives tale goes. I don't really care if it is true or not because today was a beautiful day!

I am glad that Tee and Allee decided to call and invite us to go to the park with them today....I know I would have just sent the kids in the backyard to play otherwise....they wanted to take some family pictures. Oh, a service opportunity...can't pass that up. Luckily we had cleared our whole schedule anyway.

We went to the "castle" park and down into the hollow for our walk and to play in the water...luckily we wore our boots.

We even saw our friends from knights and from our mother-daughter book club.

Lets all hope for more "lamb-like" days!

#19 Play out in the snow with the kids, just to play

So it is February...and snowing....probably one of the last times this year.

Oh...#19! So we put on our snow bibs and hit the backyard. It was a beautiful day. The clouds were sitting so close and the world was beautiful.

My dad came over on Sunday and asked why we had all of the blankets in the backyard getting snowed on....those are the kids house's. They play "neighbors" and they go back and forth visiting each others houses and taking each other gifts...TOO cute!

We had snow smoothies, and pomegranite seeds, and snow dipped strawberries...let me tell you it was a delicious meal. I even had to eat some just to humor my neighbor Mr. Chipper

It was beautiful snow that melted away by dinner time. Good thing we went out and enjoyed the day.

Motivations

Can you tell that I am going threw my scattered papers today? A few weeks ago I went to a body language class. Some of it was interesting...some I really didn't like it was a bit "mystical" for me but the instructor talked about motivations..your own and your loved ones. It is a bit like the 5 love languages, except there are many more motiviations than just five. So I thought it would be fun to find out the kids motivations as well...I printed some pictures off the internet and asked them by the pictures (for the younger ones) which ones they liked the best. Suprisingly I think they are pretty accurate:

Hub
Fairness
Knowledge
Commitment
Simplicity
Fun

Moo
Creativity
Hurry
Religion
Accountability
Courage

Dude
Creativity
Structure
Invention
Fun
Money

Chipper
Courage
Wisdom
Invention
Change
Creativity


Chip
Religion
Honesty....he is the most honest person I know
Wisdom
Money
Trust

Me
Religion
Change
Integrity
Perfection
Growth

I found it interesting that both of my boys would have money in their motivations...it is important for men to have the desire to provide for their families. I have to admit that I was really surprised by hub's...his are really different from mine, and different from what I would have suspected...although he did want to take the test again now that he understands what I was showing him random pictures for :) I also found in interesting that my older two really are into creativity...they always want to draw or act or create something new...and I always knew Dude would invent something someday...he just has that kind of mind that likes to work on a problem...so different from my sluggish one.

Here is the list so if you want to take the test yourself you can....pick which ones describe you and which dont...then narrow the ones that describe you down to 10 and then 8 and then 5 and then order them in importance to you.

Urgency
Fitness
Wisdom
Innovation
Commitment
Team Work
Knowledge
Diversity
Achievement
Fun
Structure
Quality
Change
Balance
Passion
Money
Volunteer
Simplicity
Religion
Fairness
Customer Service
Loyalty
Creativity
Growth
Legacy
Trust
Family
Status
Courage
Effectiveness
Accountable
Independence
Integrity
Perfection
Honesty
Recognition
Authority

...I should mention that I took family out of the options when I asked my children...mostly because I think they all would have picked it and secondly...I don't really want to know if family isn't on their list :)

If you want to know more about the body language guy his name is Kirk Duncan and his email is office@3keyelements.com

Other notes:
Judgement is when you stop trying to learn about someone or something...we should always be learning.

Practice being still (I am so a leg shaker) Notice why you are moving

Recommended reading...the JackRabbit factor by Householder

Triangle means God (top) Self and Others
Circle means give and receive...in a round
Square means to design it...to give something shape...the corners are your first 30 minutes and your last 30 minutes

He talked about eye eye movements
up is accessing your higher power...record it
down is looking within yourself...usually an emotion with it
looking at ears...listening to the voices in their head...not the crazy ones...other peoples opinions...let them listen
up to left...accessing data, past, history, facts
up to right...creative, hopes, wants, future

He also talked about vision boards..but that is for another post after I actually get around to making my own then I can blog about it

# 33 Family History, 5 Generations

So I don't sleep at night. It is a rare occurance when I sleep without waking up for hours at a time. I know...I know.. everyone has an idea on how to fix that problem but I've tried them all and so now I've resorted to waiting for the Lord to heal me or having the patience to live with this affliction.

Anywhoo, I digress (hub's favorite word), the other night I was not sleeping. I usually just lay there or pray or think but I have been teaching the children about geneology during our school time lately and so I thought I would do a bit myself. You see, I've always had this question in my mind...hub and my mother share the same maiden name so we've always joked about how we are probably long lost cousins. So I decided to get on to familysearch.org and see what I could find. Well (drum roll please) we are but it is definately long and lost. We are actually both related to a reverend in England during the 1400's. He actually had two wives and Hub is from one wife and I'm from the other. It was really cool I was so excited I found it that I woke Hub up to tell him...he was not so excited, but hey how exciting is geneology at 3 am?

I also learned that Hub's grandma and my grandma share a maiden name as well so I've got some more searching to do :) Don't look now, but I might become a geneology nut....just what I need one more hobby to keep me up late at night :)

Chickens

Did you ever want to own chickens? If not I'd suggest it...atleast once. Chickens are quite hilarious little creatures...they are mischievious and diabolical as well as loyal and hard working. Recently my chickens have been hard working eating the worms out of my garden and turning up the soil in the process....who needs a roto-tiller?

It recently became legal to have chickens where I live....hooray...now if I could only have goats :)

There is a down side to this story though. Some members of the city council...in an effort to appease the people and to be "seen" as doing something limited who could have chickens and who could not. So only people with 1400 sq ft yards (over .3 acre) can have chickens on their property...even though chickens smell better than dogs, make less noise that dogs, cause less problems than dogs, etc.

So being the outspoken person that I rarely ever am I decided that I should say something in behalf of all those people who had worked so hard to get chickens approved without now being about to have chickens. So with shaky-knees I shared with them my appreciation for being allowed to have chickens and my sorrow for those who would not be able to. I shared with them my thoughts about government and my lack of faith in those who represent the people but forget that they are to serve the people. I mentioned that when we take away freedom from one person really we take away freedom from everyone. When we say that a person does not have the right to do something on their own property (which does not take away from anyone elses rights) freedom is the looser. I also mentioned that we sure need a little more public virtue. If I have a problem with my neighbor or my neighbor's animals I should talk to my neighbor not to the government. I can either get over my issue, bring it up with my neighbor and find a solution or I can move but I DO NOT want the government to tell me how I can or cannot act toward my neighbor or what I can or cannot do in my backyard.....the governments only job is to protect my property from my neighbor.
...so I should mention here something I learned from a friend the other day about Chinese. Chinese is a language with different levels....pictoral, phonetical, numberical, etc so the Chinese picture for country was a man with a box around him. A man who owns property is a country...and he has the freedom to protect himself and whatever lies within his box...I believe that the US Constitution would also support this view of what a country is...a man, or a group of men, who band together to protect each other and their property. Well, we all know the end to this story, the communist party took over China, and they lost all their freedoms and slowly the character for country was changed...it is now a king in a box...interesting! When we give our government power to control our "box" we loose our freedoms.

So get a few chickens, or goats, or an extra dog...or how about look at the laws your officials are proposing or passing and ask yourself if your loosing your freedom, if someone else is telling you what you can or cannot do in your box...I think you'll be surprised by what you find...I was.


oh, and by the way, if you live in Layton never, ever, ever vote for Joyce Brown...she is a freedom, prosperity, happiness leech blech....okay that was a little harsh she still is a child of God but that doesn't mean I have to vote for her

#64 Stainless Steel Bowls

A while ago I got rid of all the plastics in our house....I know a bit extreme, but hey, it your going to try to be healthy might as well be healthy right :)

So in my overzealousness I found I didn't possess many bowls or utensils that were either glass or stainless steel....thus #64....I thought these bowls were pretty fancy and I really love that them.

If you'd like to learn more about why plastics are bad for you...here is a great link http://www.mindfully.org/Plastic/Plasticizers/Out-Of-Diet-PG5nov03.htm

I'm not quite as serious as this guy is...mabey someday. In the meantime I will enjoy my stainless steel bowls

Would the world be better?

This morning for devotional we were reading a poem called "The Question"

"Were the whole world good as you-not an atom better-
Were it just as pure and true as you
Just as strong in faith and works
Just as free from crafty quirks
All extortion, all deceit;
Schemes its neighbors to defeat
Schemes it neighbors to defraud
Schemes some culpri to applaud--

Would this world be better


If the whole world followed you-followed you to the letter-
Would it be a noble world
All deceit and falsehood hurled
From it altogether;
Malice, seflishness, and lust
Banished from beneath the crust
Covering human hearts fom view-
Tell me, if it followed you
Would the world be better?"

We talked about how Christ is really the only person who it is better to follow (it helped that we were talking about Christ speaking to his disciples today and talking about how he told them he came to earth to set an example :)) and yet we can be better by thinking about what we are teaching others by our own behavior.

I think this will have to be part of my future mission statment...when I finially get the 100 things done and work on that one :) In every instance I can ask myself will the way I am feeling, behaving, choosing, leading, guiding help the world be better?

Would the world be better if it always followed me?

Something that won't get undone

What does that mean? I heard a wise woman say once that you should do something every day that does not get undone.


Being a mother means that many things that I do will get undone: the dishes, the laundry, the vacuuming, the cooking, the cleaning, making your bed, getting dressed...he he even fun stuff....exercising, praying, crafts, teaching, and reading. Sometimes it seems everything will have to be done over again. This feeling can get a little frustrating and also can be depressing.


So I have set a goal to do one thing a day that won't get undone...or atleast won't get undone right away...like write on my blog, read slowly a chapter of a book and try hard to understand it, make a new recipe to see if I like it or not, start on a big project like shelving or animal pens, or square foot boxes or paint :) and then keep working on it.


It has helped me to have one thing every day that I know is not going to be undone...atleast not by tomorrow and then I can freely give myself to do the things that I need to do that are really important, but that I'm going to have to do again tomorrow....like be with my kids, read my scriptures and clean my house.


Wrote in my blog...did something today that won't get undone! Time to get to work