Change in perspective

You wonder about why certain things turn out the way they do. When you really need your sleep the most is when you start to have problems and aren't able to sleep like you used to. It can really be the pits. And then again, for me anyway, sometimes there is a light bulb moment and you see things differently.

As I have gotten older, I sleep less and wake up really early. At first I hated it and lay there frustrated and mad because I couldn't just go back to sleep.

Then I began to just relax and in the quiet of the late night and early morning I let my mind ponder on things, mostly my family and the great blessings I have in each member.
I think on each one and pray for and about them individually.
I started to pray about what to pray about and have been blessed with thoughts and ideas on things to do.

I feel closer to my Heavenly Father and have a greater love for my family.

Life can be really interesting at times. What started out as a negative experience has turned out to be something that I have begun to look forward to and am even disappointed now if I sleep through the night.

cont. critter stories( beware long version)

Ok so we made it through the horses, stray dogs, stray cats, raccoons, skunk and possum.
then came the mice. the first one visited in Mistys room and she and her dad had fun catching and removing it. After another visit from a little visiter we set to work. So we got expert advice from a variety of sources and tried everything. We put out bait which nothing touched. So we find out we also had two sizes of mice. One size too little to set off the spring loaded traps and one size two big for the sticky strips and just drug them around and left them stuck elsewhere. we also tried the enclosed kind of trap where you don't see the departed little creature. So we got rid of one of the tiny ones in that one. Didn't even know it was in there until I went to move it and noticed a bad smell. Yuk. The rest biffed it on the spring loaded traps. We tossed the sticky strips, they were a total waste. We managed to eliminate a total of 6 over two weeks. The good news is it made me clean out the pantry and throw out alot of stuff that needed getting rid of anyway and I now have a totally rearranged pantry with containers for everything. Found a hole in the floor in the laundry room where they seem to be coming in and plugged that and haven't had a death to the mice population recently. Except for the ones our outside cats honor us with from time to time. They are like kids, they play with their food and then leave it uneaten for us to have to throw away.

Sooo, we thought that the worse was over at last. then we wake up in the weee hours of the morning, gaging from the smell of ..... you guessed it
SKUNK. Pee youuuuuu. !!!!!!!! We had one hit on the road in front of our place a few weeks ago which really stunk up everything and were hoping that is what it was this time.

Having blocked the place where one got under the house last time, we are thinking it just camped out under the porch in the back or was passing through, we aired out the house and felt confident the worst is over. Next day, the smell is still really bad. ??????
Sooo we finally take a good look under the porch and find out that the determined creature has ripped open the heavy sheet of plexiglass like stuff cover we put over the opening and has left his or her scent under the house which is seeping up into the whole house. Have I mentioned how very much I dislike skunks?

So, we get busy. Trip to Lowes for a piece of wood to put over the opening. Gather tools, put on coveralls and old clothers, squeeze under the only way to get under the porch and crawl through mud and old spider webs to get to the opening (hoping the said skunk has left for the day) Just as we get the wood cover ready to screw on, one of our cats darts into the opening and under the house. At this point I say leave the stupid creature for a couple of days and then let it out latter. The special screws that we bought to go into the fake brick wont work. We are under
the porch, muddy, cold, cramped for working room, mad at the dumb cat and now the screws wont work. We haven't divorced yet but are coming close. Sooo, I crawl back from under the porch, got into the house leaving mud covered shoes at the door and trying not to touch anything in the house with the mud caked coveralls and find some screw that we hope will work. Put the muddy shoes back on, crawl back under the porch, hand over the screws and hold my breath. Whew they are the right ones, we screw the wooden cover securely over the hole and crawl back out from under the porch. I repent of the urge to leave the cat under there and go to the other opening, take the cover off and call the dumb cat. The other cat comes tearing across the yard and luckily my husband catches her before she too goes under the house. I call, and call and call again. Finally she shows her face and acts like she has all of the time in the world. I am seriously thinking of my original plan to leave her under there when she finally exits from under the house. I quickly put the metal cover back up and head to the house to get out of my very muddy coveralls.
right now, I am sitting at the computer with my warmest coat on, with all of the windows in the house open and all of the ceiling fans and bathroom exhause fans running to air out the smell.

So, I am sure the saga will continue. But for now, we are hopefully critter less for the time being and my cats are safe and sound. It is a good thing I love even stupid cats.
the bright side is, the skunk didn't greet us at the opening under the house and can't get back under there again.

Oh did I tell you about the lady bug invasion???? Maybe next time.

Grown kids make my head hurt

Some days I want to go back to when the kids were little and depended on you to take care of them and you knew what was right and best for them. Where bandaids and hugs and kisses could fix most things.

Sometimes I really hate it when they are grown and either know or at least they think they know more than me. OK Ok they know more than me.

I hate it when things get all complicated and there seems to be no simple answer to anything. Like trying to figure out when they are for real or joking and just trying to get a rise out of me. Trying to figure out if they need a listening ear or a kick in the pants. The things that you can only watch them struggle through and can't really help. You know stuff like that.

But for better or worse, just glad they take the time to include me in their lives and so far the hurt from the strain goes away like it does after eating ice cream.

Love the country, not necessiarily the critters

So the saga of the country critters continues. We had a skunk under the house and thought it had moved on but kept hearing noices under the house at night. So now what? who wants to go under the house to check it out? Not us. So we just let it go for several nights. then we thought it was the cat, hunting under the back porch. Still noices at night.
then we had trouble with the satelight and had them come out to check it out. when they pulled the cable from the dish concection in the house to the outside, they found the wires chewed almost in to. Shesh, now what?
Since we hadn't smelled anything for awhile, we were hopeing the skunk was gone but now what was under the house chewing the TV cables?
So plan B. Set trap under the house and see what we can catch. Nothing the first night. Drat. But walla, the next moring there is a possum in the cage. Off he goes to the wild blue yander.
So, Tom goes fishing and when he decides to come home a kitten runs up under the truck and he can't find it. When he gets home, you guessed it, he could hear it. He can't get near it and it keeps running under the truck and he can't find it. So when he takes the possum off, it is still under the truck somewhere. Luckily after he drops the possum off and comes home, we don't hear the kitten anymore. Hopefully it left of it's own accord somewhere and didn't fall out and get run over.
Sooo, now we are double checking for any more ways for a critter to get under the house. We aren't holding our breath but hopefully we are done with critters for the time being.
We definetly didn't need a kitten that stayed under the truck to worry about everytime we needed to go somewhere.
So for now we are critterless and happy for it.

love the country

we fairly recently moved into a country setting. Lots of trees, birds, great views, wonderful night sounds etc.
things are different out here. I never had a horse come down my driveway where we lived before and have had it happen twice now. I was talking on the phone with my sister one morning and a big white horse went down my driveway. Made for the start of an interesting day.
I never had racoons on the back porch before. We have had two, a mom and her offspring who were captured and moved to other far away places. they loved the seeds in my bird feeders and would go to any lengths to get to them. I kept finding my bird feeders on the ground each morning. Finally figured out what was going on when I heard noises on the back porch one night and looked out to see two racoons staring back at me.
Our old house was on a slab so we never had critters under the house. We have had several here, some we just heard during the night and never knew what they were but more recently knew what it was by the smell. Yuk. Skunks under the house are really stiiiiiiinnnnnnkkkkkyyyyyyy!!!!!!!
Definitely not my favorite kind of a visitor. Thank goodness it has been warm enough to open all the windows and air out the house. Hopefully we now have all of the openings covered and it wont gain entrance again. the smell is getting better. Just glad it was under the house and not waiting outside the door to greet us.
No snakes to speak of so far. I would just as soon miss that experience.
Love the birds the most. I have two bird feeders outside my kitchen window and keep them filled and enjoy lots of feathered visitors. the little ones are my favorite.
I have alot more spiders but they know their place and stay outside for the most part. I do have to clean the widows alot more when the webs get too much though.
I acquired two outside cats when we moved here. They are both very good hunters and leave little tid bits of their prey on the front porch. One day it might be a mouse head or various body parts, another time parts of a mole, sometimes a bird. How sweet of them to share their successes but I just wish they would clean up after themselves a little better. Yuk.
I have never been a big animal person but I must admit I enjoy our two cats. They always greet us when we come home and if we are outside they are right where we are. We each enjoy our independence and yet enjoy each others company and yes love, too. It is a good balance.
I went from very few trees and little shade to lots and lots of really big ones and lots of shade.
I love to sleep with the window slightly open and to hear the sounds of nature. It is my favorite way to fall asleep.
I love having a metal roof over my front porch and being able to hear the sounds of the rain coming down.
I even love the sound of the roosters, chickens, goats, donkeys, dogs and the voices of the children running and playing outside from the neighbors.
I have learned that I like goats milk and fresh eggs.
I love the sound of the wind in the trees. It is such a peaceful sound.
I love to burn and have had a great time clearing out scrub bushes and trees and making burn piles and seeing progress in opening up spaces for pretty things to grow.
If I ever think I want to grow roses, I remember what it took to get rid of the wild ones. I have had all I want of things with stickers and thorns that reach out and grab you when ever you get near. Nope no more rose bushes of any kind for me. I just burned the last wild one last week.
I love to walk my place early in the morning and listen to the sounds of the wind and hear birds and see nature and so much that is beautiful and peaceful.
I can understand why a boy named Joseph went to a grove of trees to find God.

Between the child and the Father

this has been one of my all time favorite parables.




A PARABLE

I took a little child’s hand in mine. He and I were to walk together for a while. I was to lead him to the Father. It was a task that overcame me, so awful was the responsibility. And so I talked to the child of the Father. I painted the sternness of His face, were the child to do something to displease Him. I spoke of the child’s goodness as something that would appease the Father’s wrath. He walked under the tall trees and I said that the Father had power to send them crashing to the ground struck by His thunderbolts. We walked in the sunshine; I told him of the greatness of the Father who made the burning blazing sun. And one twilight, we met the Father. The child hid behind me. He was afraid. He would not look up at the face so loving; he remembered my picture. He would not take the Father’s hand; I was between the child and the Father. I wondered, I had been so conscientious, so serious.

I took a little child’s hand in mine. I was to lead him to the Father. I felt burdened with the many things I had to teach him. We did not ramble; we hastened from one spot to another spot. We compared the leaves of the different trees. While the child was questioning me about it, I hurried him away to chase a butterfly. Did he chance to fall asleep, I awakened him; lest he should miss something I wanted him to see. I poured into his ears all the stories he ought to know, but we were interrupted often by the wind a blowing, of which we must study, by the gurgling brook which we must trace to its source. And then in the twilight, we met the Father. The child merely glanced at Him and then his gaze wandered in a dozen different directions. The Father stretched for His hand. The child was not interested enough to take it. Feverish spots burned his cheeks. He dropped exhausted to the ground and fell asleep. Again, I was between the child and the Father. I wondered. I had taught him so many things.

I took a little child’s hand in mine, to lead him to the Father. My heart was full of gratitude for the glad privilege. We walked slowly, I united my steps with the short steps of the child. We spoke of the things the child noticed. Sometimes we picked the Father’s bright flowers and stroked their soft petals and loved their bright colors. Sometimes it was one of the Father’s birds. We saw the eggs that were laid. We wondered, elated at the care it gave its young. Often we told stories of the Father. I told them to the child and the child told them to me again. We told them, the child and I over and over again. Sometimes we stopped to rest, leaning against one of the Father’s trees, and letting His cool air cool our brow, never speaking. And then in the twilight, we met the Father. This child’s eyes shone. He looked lovingly, trustingly, eagerly up into the Father’s face. He put his hand into the Father’s hand. I was for the moment forgotten. I was content.
Jean Betzner Especially for Mormons Vol. 1

Parenting

As I was reading the post of one of my grown children, I was thinking about parenting and the balancing involved.

The balancing in parenting can be hard and involves risks but also has some of the greatest joys ever.

Holding on too tight to me has more potential for harm than the gradual trusting and letting go of the reins.

Heavenly Father did not send us to earth to be over protected or have others make all of our decisions for us.(who's plan was that?) He loves and trusts us enough to let us experience trials and challenges that would strengthen and built in us the ability to succeed.

When we emulate His parenting, our children are more likely to grow strong and succeed.

Earthly parents are meant to be the temporary scaffolding.

Our children are meant to ultimately stand on their own.
They no longer need the parent/child relationship but the relationship of adult/adult or equals.

the permanent part is the foundation of Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

OK as my kids would say, step away from the pulpit. end of lecture 999.