Relief Society

This picture CRACKS ME UP! I found it in a giant Relief Society history book and I just giggle every time I think about it.

"Let me gaze at your newborn babe while I impress you with the smell of my delicious casserole and freshly baked banana bread and handmade diapers."

I'm a crappy Visiting Teacher. Tomorrow is the last day of the month. I don't think February should count. There aren't enough days to completely fail at visiting teaching, right? Our ward just had a Visiting Teaching convention activity this month and I was asked to be part of a skit that portrayed bad visiting teachers and good visiting teachers. I was a bad visiting teacher. Maybe that was a hint.

I am committing RIGHT NOW on this, the second to the last day of this month to be a GREAT visiting teacher and an even better friend henceforth and forevermore!

Who will save you?

Last week we had lunch with Daddy at Desert Breeze Park (it's over by his work). Stella was running around the lake and getting super close to the water. We all know I'd jump in after her if she fell in, but I was looking for a teaching moment. Stella answered me quickly as if she'd already thought of the scenario.

MOM: "Stella, please don't get too close to the water because what would happen if you fell in? Who would save you?"
STELLA: "The ducks. Or Peter Pan."

We had planned on playing at the park after lunch, but Stella had to pee, so we went back to Daddy's work. When I started loading her up in the car - MELTDOWN! Holy moly! A bribe was my only option at that moment, so I offered it! We headed over to cousin Anabelle's to pick the kids up and take them to the park near their house since school was out that day.

I helped Claire several times as she learned how to climb up the big girl part of the play area (it's a long way down if a 2-year-old falls) as she proclaimed "I'm a monkey!"

Stella can go across the monkey bars all by herself now! I'm surprised she didn't get blisters. If it seems like Stella is always wearing this dress . . . well, she is. She's very dedicated to her favorite clothing.

George is too big for the baby swings, so he built himself a sand recliner perfectly molded to his little rear.

Those baby swings don't go high enough for Stella, high enough for Anabelle, and too high for Clairie.

George was pushing Claire a little bit while I was pushing Anabelle and Stella. Claire kept saying, "Too high, too high! Stella's mom push me!"

The kids were really into sliding down the slide in a train, but Claire would have no part of it. I don't remember that first kid's name (neighbor boy), but behind him is George, Stella and Anabelle. Ray couldn't come because he was sick. But we had a great time and it wore Stella out! Thanks for letting me take the kids Xan!

"WHY? WHY NOW?!"

That's what my hamstrings are screaming at me because I started working in my garden this week. Don't be peeking over my fence these days because you'll just get a good look at my rear.

My new favorite garden tool:
THE GARDEN CLAW

This is my smallest portion of my gardens and with THE CLAW I was able to dig it up in less than a minute. And it saves my back . . . oh I heart thee Garden Claw!

V-Day Adventure

Our family headed to Boyce Thompson Arboretum out by Superior, AZ for flowers and chocolate-tasting . . . which ended up being chocolate-buying-and-then-tasting. Tricksters. You don't joke about chocolate.

We went with Grandma & Grandpa and Aunt Beth who helped keep Stella in line.

Stella had to pet every animal that went by. Thankfully they were all nice, though apparently this giant dog was camera shy (it's owner told us). Stella wanted to take it home and make it her horse.

Elliot wants to build this in our backyard.

REAL or FAKE cry? I can't remember.

There were lots of beautiful places to take pictures, but no one was willing to be my subject for very long.

My 2 favorite Valentines!

Grumpy Valentine

Stella's preschool did a little Valentine performance at the park. The kids were playing before their teachers gathered them up. Each letter of the alphabet was on a small carpet square on the ground and the kids were told to sit on one. Stella was perfectly happy until she noticed that someone was already sitting on her "S." The letter "C" just wasn't good enough for her.

She didn't sing ANY of the songs and just had this grumpy face the entire time.

Next to Mommy's kisses, swinging cures just about everything!

Bedtime

This my conversation with Stella when checking on her tonight as I was trying to put her to sleep:

MOM: "Thanks for staying in your bed Stella, you're doing a great job."
STELLA: "Thanks Mom."
MOM: "Maybe I'll send Dad in to sing to you if you can still be good."
STELLA: "Just call him Bishop."

Protector

I know, I know . . . I say this all the time, but Stella is still having a hard time going to sleep (scared of monsters and such). In fact, as I write this she is in there singing herself some songs and in about 2 seconds she'll start calling for me to check on her.

I found a little stuffed kitty here in the office that she occasionally carries around with her, so I thought I'd give it to her last time I checked on her.

MOM: "Look what I found! Your kitty!"
STELLA: "Thank you Mommy."
MOM: "Your kitty will help protect you."
STELLA: "No he won't, he's not Jesus!"

Thank You

Thank you for helping me describe myself for the adoption papers. I guess there was no way around fishing for those compliments, so I thank you very, very much friends.

Hasty Wardrobe Change

Infertility Etiquette

Here's the deal. I am infertile. My actual diagnosis is ". . . bouts of infertility," but same same. I have conceived 3 times. I have one daughter. Below is an article about Infertility Etiquette. Some of it applies to me, some of it does not. I try to be fairly approachable and do not mind talking about it, so if you have questions about me or this subject, please ask me . . . don't ask my friends or relatives.

(Click on the title to read the whole article. I've inserted a few of my own comments to ease any anxiety you may have about my feelings on the subject.)

Infertility Etiquette
By Vita Alligood

Chances are, you know someone who is struggling with infertility. More than five million people of childbearing age in the United States experience infertility. Yet, as a society, we are woefully uninformed about how to best provide emotional support for our loved ones during this painful time.

Reaching a resolution [to infertility] can take years, so your infertile loved ones need your emotional support during this journey. Most people don't know what to say, so they wind up saying the wrong thing, which only makes the journey so much harder for their loved ones. Knowing what not to say is half of the battle to providing support.

-Don't Tell Them to Relax
Relaxation itself does not cure medical infertility.
(though I would LOVE to go on a cruise)

- Don't Minimize the Problem
(I can add the "just enjoy the child you have" comment under this subtitle . . . don't say it . . . it doesn't help.)

- Don't Say There Are Worse Things That Could Happen

- Don't Say They Aren't Meant to Be Parents

- Don't Ask Why They Aren't Trying IVF

- Don't Offer Unsolicited Opinions If They Are Trying IVF

- Don't Play Doctor
There a numerous reasons that a couple may not be able to conceive.
(telling me about "so and so who did this and that" only reminds me that nothing is working for me . . . smiling and nodding is a perfectly acceptable response.)

- Don't Be Crude
It is appalling that I even have to include this paragraph, but some of you need to hear this-Don't make crude jokes about your friend's vulnerable position. Crude comments like "I'll donate the sperm" or "Make sure the doctor uses your sperm for the insemination" are not funny, and they only irritate your friends.

(I'll throw this one in there because I've heard it as well . . . "Is he shooting blanks?" . . . don't say it, I'll cut your tongue out.)

- Don't Complain About Your Pregnancy
Just being around you is painful for your infertile friends. Seeing your belly grow is a constant reminder of what your infertile friend cannot have. You have every right to vent about the discomforts to any one else in your life, but don't put your infertile friend in the position of comforting you. Your infertile friend would give anything to experience the discomforts you are enduring because those discomforts come from a baby growing inside of you.

(here's me again . . . I will ALWAYS hold your baby . . . when I want to give your baby back, I'll give it back . . . you never have to worry or say sorry about me holding your baby for so long . . . ever!)

- Don't Treat Them Like They Are Ignorant
(if they don't have children yet)

- Don't Gossip About Your Friend's Condition
Regardless of why you are sharing this information with someone else, it hurts and embarrasses your friend to find out that Madge the bank teller knows what your husband's sperm count is and when your next period is expected. Infertility is something that should be kept as private as your friend wants to keep it. Respect your friend's privacy, and don't share any information that your friend hasn't authorized.

- Don't Push Adoption (Yet)
You do, indeed, need to grieve [the loss of "your" baby] before you are ready to start the adoption process.

(I actually have had fantasies about someone knocking on my door and leaving their baby for me. I am SUPER excited to LOVE someone elses child!)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

So, what can you say to your infertile friends? Unless you say "I am giving you this baby," there is nothing you can say that will erase their pain. So, take that pressure off of yourself. It isn't your job to erase their pain, but there is a lot you can do to lesson the load. Here are a few ideas.

-Let Them Know That You Care
-Remember Them on Mother's Day
-Support Their Decision to Stop Treatments

(I cannot even tell you what a relief it was to hear the words "there is nothing else I can do for you" from my doctor. WE ARE ADOPTING . . . please pray for our family.)

Happy Valentines Day!

I think this could be my favorite commercial of all time . . . or at least right now.

Sparkly Like Diamonds!

Stella had her first dentist appointment last week. We prepared by talking a lot about the dentist and reading several books. Stella was even excited to go!

Stella handled it like a champ! She only got a little nervous about the x-rays, but everything else was super fun for her! She's now a part of the Zero Cavity Club! She wouldn't swallow for a while, which was actually quite funny, and the dentist and assistant loved her!

Don't her teeth look sparkly like DIAMONDS?

Pump It Up!

We were invited (actually, I sort of invited myself) to our friend's preschool field trip last Friday. They went to Pump It Up, the giant inflatable slide zone.


Stella's head almost explodes when we go there because there is too much fun to be had!

Mary Poppins Moment

OK, so most of you know that I have a room that I've dedicated to being a total and complete mess. We lovingly refer to it as The Abyss. I'm actually still trying to clean it. My method of cleaning is not the same as Elliot's method of cleaning. I've watched him and somehow he just gets it done. Maybe that's my problem, I just watch him clean instead of cleaning myself . . . but he's so nice to look at. Mmmm.

My method is that you have to make a bigger mess in order to clean up the rest of the mess. For instance, this was all packed away, but not organized. So I made a bigger mess . . .



. . . and now it's organized, accessible, and put away (as in, not on the floor in The Abyss).

Our Little Missionary

For Family Home Evening last week we learned about being missionaries.

And then we ate pudding.

First Swim of the Year

Last week Stella strapped on her swimmer and asked if she could go outside and play in the sprinklers. I told her it was too cold, but she didn't believe me because it was actually pretty warm outside. The sprinklers were too cold for her, so she asked me to get the kiddie pool out. I told her once again that it would be just as cold as the sprinklers, but I was in a push-over mood, so I filled up the pool.

Stella put her feet in, but she said it was too cold for her bum.

Days of the Week

Each month in preschool Stella has about 5-6 tasks she needs to complete, color, and I need to sign. From the beginning, all of the tasks were so easy that she either already knew them or learned them very quickly (things like doing a somersault, drawing a stick figure, spelling your name, etc). That is until December came upon us. She needed to learn the days of the week. Simple enough, right . . . Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday . . . so I thought. She's already learned a million poems for preschool, 7 measly days shouldn't be too hard.

So we started working on it. We worked on it all of December. Darn that Thursday and Sunday . . . she just could not remember those days! January came around and still, she could not get it! I think I'm a fairly calm person, but this was frustrating me! Plus, Stella started goofing around every time we started working on it. She had already finished January's tasks before I could sign off on December and I wasn't going to let February get away from me.

I started asking people if there was a song that went along with the days of the week. A few people sang some for me, but I couldn't remember the tunes (maybe I'm the slow one). I started asking my mother-in-law if she knew a song and Stella came around the corner and busted out with this:



Now I feel like a total moron. She's known them THE ENTIRE TIME! I was the one messing her up starting on Monday instead of Sunday. Try to sing the song starting on Monday . . . it doesn't work! (the tune is Oh My Darlin')

"Prayers need not be everlasting to be eternal."

I'm an Anderson. Anderson's are known for their long prayers. I'm also a McAllister. McAllister's are also known for their lengthy prayers.

I'm currently a Dibble and plan to be for quite some time. Elliot Dibble in particular is not a huge fan of lengthy public prayers, but even more so not a fan of lengthy food prayers. If you're going to bless every mission in the church, do so on your own time. I think, and this is my own opinion, that I've been cured of the long prayers . . . though a Dibble or two may disagree.

This reminds me of when I was sitting next to a friend in church at college one time and we had just been witness to a rather prolonged prayer. My friend leaned over after the "amen" and quoted Brigham Young in saying, "Prayers need not be everlasting to be eternal."

Stella is a Dibble. The other night as we all knelt down for our family prayers, she grabbed my arm and said, "Is it your turn to pray, because my pee is coming out."

Somebody is probably looking for the rest of their bike . . .

The Dinosaur Museum

Stella's preschool took a field trip to the Museum of Natural History in downtown Mesa (dinosaurs and such . . . you'll hear about the "such" later). We took Clarkie along for the fun.

The museum used to be an actual jail at one point and still had some cells with the bunks and toilets. Clark was TERRIFIED of it! He still posed for the picture, but took off immediately after.

They had an entire room dedicated to poop. You heard me, poop.

Here are Stella and Clark checking out the different size and colors of animal poop.

You want to know why I love going to museums? They answer a lot of questions that I've always been too lazy to look up.

Questions might follow along the lines of this one . . .

Some might wonder about this one . . .

I know I've asked about this one . . .

Hum, it's a mystery.

You'll have to go to the museum to find the answers (or simply google it), because the question of the day is this:

And the answer is . . . Poop that floats has a higher content of gas than poop that doesn't float.

(if you'll notice all of the questions and answers are in the shapes of toilets . . . clever.

And speaking of poop, here are Stella and Clark in the bowels of a mammoth.

First Ball Challenge of 2009

We had our first Ball Challenge of 2009 several weeks ago. Our challengers were Mike & Mari, Joe & Lynnae, and Kevin & Melissa. Mari is several months pregnant and since she is one of our greatest dismounters, she didn't get to play. The kids, however, did play on her and her belly.

Mike going right for the knee-to-stomach tricks.

Kevin making a rather impressive debut.

We're still trying to figure out how Missy got her legs up there in time before she fell.

I should have posted this picture of Brooke and Brenna earlier because now I can't remember which one is which. They were not afraid of walking in front of the flailing appendages during the ball challenge.

I wonder why Elliot is always complaining of neck pain.

Tyler the acrobat.


Somehow Reagan lost her pants during the evening.

Stella helped Emma balance.

Joe kept falling away from me, so I got plenty of pictures of his tushy.

I think Lynnae's dismount is among the top 5 of all time. THIS one of Mike is still #1 because of it's purely horrific awkwardness.

Do you ever wonder why you never see pictures of me doing the challenge? Besides the fact that I have the camera in my hand when I'm balancing, it's because I NEVER fall off the ball. It's true.

I Love Babies!

Elliot's cousin Merrill and his wife had their third child on January 10th in Mexico. Giada Marie Dibble weighed 7 pounds! Congratulations Merrill, Kellie, Blake, and Daniela!

My former Ricks College roommate (everyone always gets testy when I say "old roommate") Carrie and her husband had their fourth child (1st boy) on January 21st. Logan David Brown weighed 7 pounds 4 ounces! Congratulations Carrie, David, Baylie, Avrie, and Kenadie!

And our friends Britton and Diana had their baby girl on December 18! Evelyn Mariah Goodman was 7 pounds 1 ounce. They just blessed her on Sunday and I think she slept through the whole thing! We just got her birth announcement . . . so cute! Congratulations!

My Nephew Is Smarter Than Your Nephew

Here's my handsome nephew Karl. Let me just give you an example of how smart this kid is. When Karl was 9-years-old I asked him how he liked school (imagine me asking him in my "you're still a little baby" voice), when he tells me that he's studying the Egyptian language . . . and I'm sure he went on, but I didn't understand him because it was too advanced for me.

He participated in his science fair at school in Utah and won best in show! Now he gets to go to districts (whatever that means, but it sounds important)! Congratulations Karl!

Here is my sister's description of his project:

"Karl participated in a school-wide science fair. His project was to program a decision-making program on the computer. His Grandpa Southwick made up the program years ago, but it needed updating for today's technology. Karl has been studying computer languages and took on the project. He had to test it out on people to see if they were more confident with their decisions after using the program. Overall they were. At the school he won best in show--the only thing they awarded! He now advances to districts."