Wanna plank?

I left my kids home together one evening so I could attend a meeting.  Leaving them home with the 12-year-old in charge can bring mixed results, and I never really know what I'm going to come home to.  I was pleased to enter the house without greetings of crying, whining, or demands of retribution.  Instead, they were excited to show me what had occupied their time during my absence.

Have you heard of planking?  It's the most ridiculous pasttime ever invented.  We recently watched a You Tube video about young children's reactions to the activity of planking, which was absolutely hilarious.  You should follow  this link to view the video--it's worth it. 

Anyway, the video introduced my kids to planking, and they pretty much had the same reactions as the kids in the video.  That was several months ago.  Evidently, a few months of incubation in their little minds led to their decision to try their own planking rendezvous in our house.  Now, while I think planking is complete stupidity, it's different when your own cute kids decide to do it and document the event.  

They found some creative positions and I just have to laugh when I see their ideas.  My kids continue to surprise me with their ideas and if anyone has time to plank, it's children.  I'm of the mindset of the girl in the video, however, who, when asked her opinion on planking, says, "Don't do it!  And get a job, or something!"

A Christmas Vacation: Part Tres

We spent one day with Thomas Jefferson at his Monticello home in Charlottesville, VA.  He was a gracious host, although a bit stiff and reserved.  His home is beautiful and really quite a remarkable structure for the age in which it was built.  We learned a lot about Mr. Jefferson and his personality in the way he built and structured his house.  He spent many years tinkering, building on, adding things, and making his home exactly what he fancied.  My favorite parts were his library (which was quite extensive), his weighted clock in the parlor, and his beautiful dining room complete with a neatly hidden dumbwaiter that fit bottles of wine exactly and which connected directly to his wine cellar so he could have the bottles delivered quietly when he was entertaining.  

I really enjoyed learning more about Thomas Jefferson and his life.  I'm ashamed to admit I didn't know or remember hardly anything I had learned of him in my younger years--maybe I didn't learn much back then anyway.  Now that I'm older, I appreciate learning all the "boring" historical stuff.  After our visit, Jason and I both were fascinated with Mr. Jefferson and wanted to learn more.  We purchased a few books about him and since then I've already read part of a short biography on him.  It's truly fascinating--he was a very interesting man.

The photos below are of two parts of life that we take for granted every minute of our existence today.  The first is a picture of the ice house (really a huge ice pit) that was used for Monticello and the plantation.  During the winter they would fill this deep pit with ice chunks from the nearby river in order to preserve foods through the coming summer.  The other picture is of the privy located outside the house in the slave quarters.  There was only one privy in the actual house of Monticello, and it was located in Thomas Jefferson's private, personal quarters.  I suppose everyone else had to run outside and use this one.  And now I am so very grateful for my bathroom and my refrigerator!

A Christmas Vacation: Part Dos

One of the days we were in Washington, DC we had the opportunity to tour The White House.  We had to get special permission a few months in advance with background checks, security clearance, etc, from our state senator.  It was quite the process, but I'm glad we were able to do it and finally be approved for a tour!  It was also, understandably, a process just to step into the doors of White House.  There were many security and ID checkpoints along the way.  Grant got pretty nervous during one checkpoint when they scanned our bodies.  His eyes got huge and round and his face very serious. It wasn't too big a deal, but I think he realized the seriousness of the security and wasn't sure what to expect the agents to do.  It really is an amazing thing that we are still allowed inside the home of the President after all the crazy things that happen in this world, so I count it a privilege and honor to be allowed into even a portion of the White House.

No pictures were allowed inside the White House, but it was amazing to see all the different rooms the President uses when he entertains guests and diplomats.  I also enjoyed all the portraits of past presidents and their wives throughout the halls.  It's a sort of tradition that we commoners no longer keep--to have a portrait done of ourselves or our families.  I asked Jason if we could get a portrait of me for the mantle of our fireplace--he just looked at me funny.

 After our White House tour, we started exploring the streets of DC as we headed to a few sites we had missed the days prior.  On our way, we passed many government buildings (of course) and then we came upon this beautiful structure which was the Old Post Office.  It's a distinct-looking building with a huge tower.  We entered the building to discover an inside pavilion and a free tour of the tower.  We rode the elevator up to the top and froze our cahooties off as we took in the view from above.  Then we went down a couple of stories to see the level where the bells were located and where they ring them in different songs and patterns during special occasions.

The rest of the day we saw pieces of history we weren't allowed to take pictures of--the United States Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, etc.  I was excited to be in the National Archives Building, since I could likely spend the rest of my life inside doing family history research.  Unfortunately, this wasn't the time for that kind of visit, but someday....

All in all, I really enjoyed the city of Washington, DC.  It's a beautiful city (at least the parts we were in) that is very clean and well organized.  There is a certain bustle and feeling about it that makes you realize you're in an important place and that a lot of serious, important things go on there.  Security is tight in many buildings, which adds to the feeling of seriousness.  Most people are well dressed in suits, skirts, and wool coats, also adding to the business-like feeling in the air.  I liked it.  It appeals to the structured, business-like side of me.  I would definitely like to return sometime without kids so I can explore more and take time to really enjoy more of our nation's history and artifacts.

A Christmas Vacation: Part Uno

Three days after Christmas we went on a great adventure across the United States to Washington, DC and Virginia.  Jason's brother, wife, and family are living in Charlottesville Virginia for a year, and we decided to take advantage of their being in a part of the country we may never visit on our own.  So, with some careful planning and a lot of frequent flier mile points redeemed, we were able to fly our family out to see them for a week.  What fun we had!

We spent a couple of days in Washington, DC where we visited the Capitol Building, the National Mall and the monuments thereon, some of the Smithsonian museums, and even the White House.  With our gang of nine children, we tried to use our time wisely to visit the highlights of the area, but even then the kids got "museumed out" and tired of walking.  When they're with their cousins, they really just want to play and goof around with each other, so keeping them entertained with Monet art and presidential monuments wasn't their idea of the best time.  I thought we'd have a lot of nice family photos with historical monuments in the background.  We did get some, but really, I had to settle for pictures of what was really happening, which was kids being goofy or whiny.

I was humbled by the fact there is so much about our country's history I have forgotten since I learned it in school.  It was nice to be reminded of many of the important events in our history and how and why they took place.  Although it was freezing cold and we didn't get time to really soak in much of the spirit of the war monuments, I appreciated them and most certainly felt a reverence for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for my freedom.  The WWII Memorial is huge and beautifully, carefully designed.  The Vietnam Memorial is powerful.  I explained to the kids what they were viewing and even little Karina, after a moment of looking and walking beside the wall, said, "Wow. Those are a lot of names."

The presidential monuments were a treasure to see as well, and to be honest, I was glad we had seen the Lincoln movie prior to our coming here so I could better appreciate everything related to President Lincoln and the Civil War.

I didn't realize there was so much to see in Washington, DC.  I had no idea about all the Smithsonian museums and we enjoyed seeing just a smidge of the national treasures they contain.  One could spend an entire week or more going through the museums and not see everything there is to see.  It's simply amazing how much history is located there.  Some of the highlights we saw were:  the Hope Diamond and other jewels, a recreation of the books purchased from Thomas Jefferson after the Library of Congress' books burned in the Capitol during the War of 1812, beautiful original art from Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, etc, dinosaur bones and fossils, the real ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz movie, many of the inaugural gowns worn by the First Ladies over the years (one of my favorite exhibits!).

We saw many, many things during our visit to Washington.  But the one thing I loved the most, whose glory and history stood above everything else, which took my breath away when I laid eyes on it, and which brought tears to my eyes as I took it in, was the Star Spangled Banner.  I was completely stunned when I turned the corner into the darkness and reverence of the room where the flag lay.  I have never seen such a sight and I was in utter awe at the flag and its glory.  I had no idea it would be so huge!  The flag is absolutely gigantic, which added to my astonishment of this great national treasure.  And to see it, in all its tattered, faded, red, white, and blue glory...  it literally brought tears to my eyes.  The way the Smithsonian has designed the exhibit is truly wonderful and really adds to the reverence of the piece.  It is absolutely stunning. The history behind the flag is quite fascinating too and it was fun to learn about.  If you'd like to know more, follow these links to discover for yourself the history of the flag which inspired our national anthem.  And, by the way, the photo below does the flag absolutely no justice.  You really have to see it in person to appreciate it.

Smithsonian website info

National Museum of Natural History webpage

Reflections on a resolution

Last January I made a single New Year's Resolution.  To find joy in the journey of this year of my life.  Here is a snippet of what I wrote:

"Whether the year be what I'm anticipating or not, let me find joy along the way.  Let me be grateful for the road I'm traveling and never forget that all blessings and trials come from a loving Heavenly Father who will help me along the way."

At the end of each month this past year I took the time to reflect on specific occurrences or items I was grateful for in that particular month.  It was a routine of sorts to help me stop, remember, reflect, and record the highlights of my days so they would be properly appreciated and not forgotten.  This routine definitely helped me realize all the wonderful things that happen along the journey of life--whether they be great or small.  There were months I had to search and find the finer details of life I was grateful for.  Other months were filled with larger, more obvious happenings that were easy to remember.  Either way, after careful moments of reflection, I found I was able to fill a page with many blessings and joyful things.  Because of this effort, I now more powerfully realize that my life is abundantly filled with joy and happiness.  This abundance has always been there--I have not always been able to recognize it. 

I count my resolution as a success.  I think I learned and grew as a result of it, which is the goal of most resolutions, right?  I kept my promise of finding joy along the path of this past year and I intend to continue doing so in the future.

As I ponder my path for the coming year, I look behind and ahead and feel as though I'm in the middle of the journey.  Not the long, winding journey of my entire life, but a shorter period of time and transition with my family, with our business, with my own sense of purpose.  I sense this is a period of great growth, which I've already felt and seen this past year.  I sense the growth will continue forward--nudging me along this pathway of new-found confidence, freedoms, and responsibilities.

And so, considering I'm in the middle of this journey, my new resolution is to move ahead with courage and confidence--building upon the momentum of the past year and striving for newer heights in the coming months, taking along with me the lessons of the past in order to survive the lessons of the future. 

In more concrete terms:  I resolve to strengthen myself through daily habits of scripture study, prayer, and continued reflections of gratitude for my many blessings.  There are things I want to change about myself--about the way I'm raising my family.  There are things I want to strengthen and grow in my personality and my confidence. There are talents I want to pursue and develop more fully.  I know I will be able to achieve these things if I devote myself more fully to what my Heavenly Father wants of me and submit myself to His will.  I have the faith these things will happen and I'm looking forward to it!