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Friday, November 20, 2009

The Hundred Dresses...

Last year the Young Women in our stake were given a challenge to work on a charitable service project and give a presentation at Stake Girls Camp of what they did with documentation, and pictures, and share their testimony of the Savior and the insights that they may have gained about charity, the pure love of Christ.
Our ward young women chose to make "100 dresses" for the Humanitarian Center of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, that would go to little girls, possibly throughout the entire world.
They incorporated a story called...
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"The Hundred Dresses"
"A 1944 children's book by Eleanor Estes. The book centers on Wanda Petronski, a poor and friendless Plolish-American girl. Her teacher, outwardly kind, puts her in the worst seat in the schoolroom and does not intervene when her schoolmates tease her mercilessly. One day, after her classmates laugh at her funny last name and the faded blue dress she wears to school every day, Wanda claims to own one hundred dresses, all lined up in her closet. This outrageous and obvious lie becomes a game, as the girls in her class corner her every day before school, demanding that she describe for them all of her dresses.
Wanda ends up leaving school and moving to the city. After she has moved, a dress design competition at school reveals that she was, indeed, telling the truth: her winning entry consists of beautiful, detailed drawings of one hundred dresses, each exactly as she had described. Her tormentors are awed by her artistic talent.
But the story is not about Wanda; it is told from the point of view of her classmate Maddie, who feels bad for Wanda but is nevertheless particularly mean to her because she herself is poor and does not want to be the target of her wealthier peers. By writing sympathetically from the viewpoint of someone complicit in the social violence, the story confronts readers to question their own attitudes and behaviors."

The girls worked together sewing each and every dress over months and months leading up to camp, and ended up surpassing their goal of 100, and made 125 reversible dresses for a total of 250!

This week I had the privilege to help take them to the Humanitarian Center and turn in the dresses! It was an amazing experience. The sister missionaries there taught us about the many things that happens there, and some of what they see. When items are donated, they say it is like Christmas... they are so excited to have each and every scrap of fabric or item given, because nothing goes to waste and every single thing is used for something, not one scrap of tiny fabric is thrown out. They told us of the many experiences they had had receiving something, just at the same time they would know of a need for it. We were able to help tie a quilt and sew eyes and noses on some stuffed hand made teddy bears that were donated early that day.
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It didn't seem like much, but they described the many small amounts of service given here and there, and showed what a great affect it had on people throughout the entire world. It made me think of the scripture in Alma 37:6 "behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass". The effects of service, no matter the size, reach very far and wide.
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They asked the girls what they felt as they accomplished this great goal of learning to sew and making these dresses. And one girl shared that they had discussed when sewing one night, that they may never know where their dress ends up, but wouldn't it be wonderful to be married to a return missionary one day and be looking at his mission pictures in a third world country and see him with a little girl who was wearing the dress she made. (ahhhh, this made me bawl).
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I have a testimony and I know that the thoughts we receive to reach out and love others, and show we care, come from God. He uses the Holy Ghost to whisper to our minds and hearts quietly and humbly.
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And I know that as we serve others and give of our time and talents and move beyond ourselves and act upon those thoughts and listen to that still small voice, that this gives our Heavenly Father great joy. It brings us closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ and allows us to obtain a piece of His everlasting joy.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Pacemaker Checkup...

I did it!!
I made it through another pacemaker checkup appointment!
I know these should not be as dramatic as they feel to me. But pacemakers in 19 year olds was kind of new when I got mine. And I more often felt like a Guinea pig going into an appointment than a patient. Since my big brother has one, he now can relate. But on my last email for sympathy, he offered some really good advice to get tough and stand up for myself!
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I think this has been our role for years, I whimper and reach out for his sympathy and to coddle and take care of me, and he in turn teaches me how to reach inside myself and find that "strong daughter of God will" that he has seen in me all my life, but I couldn't recognize on my own without his brotherly love.
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Here is his advice...
(I am the youngest of 4 and used to be very well known in our family as "the official tattle tale", I have never been able to shake the title).
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"The biggest thing I hate about those appointments is they are ALWAYS training some newby and they want to show them all about it at your time and expense. Do yourself a favor and pitch a hissy fit if they start training on you and those appointments will go way faster and easier on you too from then on! IT WORKS but you have to put your goody two shoes away and put on your OTT (Official Tattle Tale) Hat and lower the boom, I mean demanding to get the Dr in there or Charge Nurse who ever and if they have to cry, they're just collateral damage! Then you can sit back and enjoy, lol."
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Luckily there didn't have to be any "collateral damage" yesterday (LOL... that was pretty funny advice).
I finally got a nurse I knew. Our sons have played baseball together for a few years, and will graduate together.
I run into her volunteering all over our little town for her church. We have lots in common and I was able to have what we call a "come to Jesus" discussion with her where I could lay all the cards on the table. Keeping the trainees out of the room, and get right to the interrogation on my pacemaker, no playing around with the new program on the computer, causing my heart to race up and down, one print quick efficient print out for the doctor to review and that IS IT... it was the best appointment I have had in years.
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The final results
  • 0 % usage over the past 12 months
  • 18 months of battery left
  • a small discussion about whether we will need to replace lead wires or not the next time, no decision made there yet.
  • I lost my leisurely annual visits I had talked him into.. I am back to every 2 months now, due to the length of battery time.

DRAT!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Begging...

The teenager went to get his hair cut yesterday.
Earlier this month, I had a conversation with Katie, to make sure he took the famous traditional picture with her before he left after his appointment.
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I tried to send him with the camera, at first he wouldn't take it, he said he wasn't doing it, no way, no how! Finally I at least got him to put the camera in the car, just in case he changed his mind.
And then I begged and begged and begged as he walked out the door and pleaded some more as he drove off.



I love it when begging works!


After all...I have learned from the best... when you live with a bunch of beggars, sometimes it rubs off.

(never mind the pile of laundry, or the fact that my strong silent mysterious man is eating ice cream on a PLATE, WITH A FORK!! good grief...still much training to do... my job is never finished).

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

It's the thought that counts...

We attempted to get our leaves raked.... but it was so windy, almost a futile effort. We do have a few bags to show for it though!

The teenager never understood and grumbled through the entire process complaining about why we were doing it in the wind.

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But I won't have to feel so guilty now when I look outside and see all our leaves piled in the neighbors yard. And there is nothing worse than leaves on the ground wrecking a completely perfect new snow fall!

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It was all great when we were done. I was so grateful he stayed out there to help me, even though he wasn't happy about it.

Cherished moments with him.

Monday, November 16, 2009

ol' filth paw...

The pups all had to get baths this weekend...

It started with Rudy... poor little guy; he has had a nasty infection that we finally got the swelling under control with antibiotics, but he was "leaking" and we had to keep him clean, so the easiest way was dunking him in the tub.

And ol' curly sue... Morgan stays pretty clean, but her curly coat was shedding like crazy!


And Taylor was just a total "filth paw" from running around and digging her paws into the mud to pass everyone in the race out through the back yard. She had mud in places I didn't know you could get mud.

But they are all shiney and squeaky clean now!
We are really lucky they all like to get baths.
And I was surprised how much they all cooperated to get their toes done too... it was almost tempting to paint the girls nails pink... but the boys said NO WAY!!

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Walking the dogs...

We have fun on our quiet little street working on "healing" training with the dogs off leash. If they do pretty good and don't break command chasing a neighborhood cat, or a squirrel... then we give them some "free dog" time where the main idea is to run them back and forth between us to wear them out! Because let's face it, you just can't walk Taylor long or far enough to wear her out! So she loves this game and it works pretty good to give her a workout.


Morgan will make the trip one time... and then she waits by the front door while Taylor wears down her toe nails on the pavement!

And back again...
One last trip, that should do it.

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