Baptism Traditions

This is an open call for tradition ideas. Syd will be baptized this Saturday and so I've been thinking, what kind of tradition would we like to start in our family to mark this significant event? I have several I'm thinking about and some we've already done, but what are your traditions? What do you do?

Thoughts upon leaving

Just a few thoughts before we leave...

When we had only one or two children, when leaving for a trip, each would get their own sippy cup to have by their side and a healthly, delicious snack, their favorite blankie. Now we pack them like sardines in our truck, give them a few saltines and no water because we don't want to stop for too many potty breaks.

I had all the clothes lined up, ready to be packed. Sterling asked if the carry-on would do. Well, we ARE a family of 6 now, going on a 6 day trip. I think we've outgrown the carry-on. (You've got to love the "Brown" mentality there. The sisters-in-law will understand.)

Gotta Go!

Things I love...

..or for which I am grateful.
Saw this commercial many months ago and it made me think of Thanksgiving, so I've been saving it until now. Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone.


I love sunrises along the Wasatch Front
I love involuntarily catching my breath while watching my children
I love the first breath, first glimpse, when coming upon a hidden mountain lake in the High Uintas
I love a real good cry
I love a real good kiss
I love dancing
I love walking in the morning, after a big snowstorm, when all is subdued, cushioned, muffled by pure, white snow.
I love feeling a connection with friends, though miles separate
I love spending afternoons on my porch with my angel-friends while we watch our children play
I love when Ster and I lock eyes in the middle of a chaotic dinner and he smiles at me and I smile back
I love the Grand Canyon
What do you love?
FYI ps - I always get kinda teary-eyed watching this. Just, you know, if you care. :)

100 Things

Honestly. This post is mindless avoidance (is that a word, Jared/Diahan?) of household chores. Anything to put off cleaning the bathrooms! Actually, I don't mind cleaning bathrooms. I feel so accomplished and good about myself when I have a clean-smelling, sparkly bathroom. But I digress. I'm avoiding here. So now I will mindlessly blog and copy this post from Veena.

The items in orange are things I have done. Go ahead and peruse if you'd like. Especially if you're avoiding doing anything productive today (like me:)).
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain (lots of climbing but never, like, to the top.)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea (does rainstorm count???)
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (still not good)
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France (saw it in the "Hermitage" in Russia, I thought it was real. Was it?)
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language (not good at it)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing (just baby stuff)
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant (my Dad did, and I was with him)
44. Visited Africa (my husband did, and I was lonely without him)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching (saw a whale while in Hawaii)
63. Got flowers for no reason (Thanks Honey!!! xoxo)
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check (to a brother-in-law, noless)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person (hiked it rim to rim)
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Totally copied a post from someone else's blog to your own

Thanks for the idea Veena. Guess its time to get to work!!! Hi Ho Hi Ho...

Tranquility...

...is that the right word?
Does anyone else love moments like this?

And moments like this. But Shhhhh....don't tell Ster I put this picture up. He'd be embarrassed!

Payback

So a while back, I had a birthday. My 35th to be exact. I love my birthday and look forward to each one. I'm not afraid of growing old...yet. 35 didn't seem old. I still feel 24 on the inside, most of the time. Anyhoo, my friend/neighbor/angel-next-door Diahan threw me a surprise birthday party.

Full Backstory: click here Diahan allowed me to accomplish one of my "goals before I die": dance on stage again. To read her take on it and to see our dance, click here.

Well, Diahan's birthday was earlier this month and I asked her what she wanted. Any dreams I could help fulfill?

Diahan's list:

#1. Eat a whole pan of rice krispy treats. DONE!

#2. Act on stage. DONE!

May I now present "What Was I Scared Of?" by Dr. Seuss.

Thanks Becky, for being the camera-woman (kids and all).

Game Day

OOHHH RISE AND SHOUT...THE COUGARS ARE OUT! We went to BYU's final home game of the season yesterday. It was so much fun! The kids enjoyed singing the Cougar fight song and listening to the cannon boom everytime we made a touchdown. They loved looking for Cosmo. Unfortunately, he never positioned himself very near us. But mostly, I think they liked climbing up and down from their seats through the guardrail. Parker would just hang and hang and laugh and climb.

As for Ster and I, we just enjoyed being together as a family. What a great day!

The Cougars made a touchdown WHILE I was taking this picture. heehee

Road Burn

Look at my poor baby's toes!!!! "Someone" let her outside and she crawled all the way into the middle of the cul-de-sac. The asphalt totally ripped up her chubby little toes, and this is about a week after it happened. Poor Thing!

(Read on for Rachel's belated birthday report.)

Birthdays and such

Finally getting around to posting about Rachel's birthday. She is such a funny little girl and a wonderful addition to our family! If you asked others, they may remark, in the nicest way possible, that Rachel is not the "friendliest" girl around. She doesn't enjoy large crowds which pretty much makes any outing kind of crazy. School functions, church activities, church in general, even family get-togethers. (I mean, come on, the family is only getting bigger. :)) And she is awfully attached to her mother-and that's ok. One of the things I enjoy most about her is that she is very cuddly. That kind of balances out the Always-wanting-to-be-held factor. Most of the time, when she is in my arms, she wants to be cheek-to-cheek, which I LOVE. Cute baby. I wouldn't trade her for the world. I hope I never forget the sound of "Ga?!" I need to record her saying that.

Anyway, we celebrated her birthday on Oct. 25, with cousin Ryan. She was cautious and taste-tested every gift, you know, just in case. Then it was on to dessert. And, thanks to the strong and wonderful genes passed on from her Grandpa Dewey AND Grandpa Brown, she went straight for the ICE CREAM. Atta Girl!!!

WE LOVE YOU RACHEL! Oh yes we doooo. We love you Rachel and will be truuuue. When you're not near us, we're bluuuue. Oh Rachel, we love you!!! Rah rah rahrahrah. Rah rah rahrahrah. Goooooooooooo Rachel!!!!

(Stay tuned for Sydney's birthday report.)

Affluenza

Funny thing happened the other day. Sterling was away late one night and Sydney came into my room, got in bed with me and just wanted to talk. That's the best!!! I love just talking with her. Anyway, my bed faces my closet and as Syd's thoughts flew from topic to topic, she said, "Mom, someday I want a closet like yours." I was kind of taken back and asked why? Turns out, mine is bigger than hers. And that got me thinking...not about closets. Thinking about wanting things and being satisfied with what we have and entitlement and indulgence and making do and "Little House on the Prairie." I often think about the Engles family. Caroline always seemed so happy and satisfied, baking bread, mending clothes by hand, making butter. The children were too busy doing chores to get into too much trouble. Church was a central, fundamental part of their community. Community...that's another thing. Everyone was linked, not by texting, IMing, blogging, cell phones, CNN...whatever. They were linked...unified, because they had to be to survive in the world they lived in. Anyway, I digress.
So Sydney wants a closet like mine, I want a closet like my neighbor and she probably wants one like someone else and the vicious spiral continues. Never satisfied, always wanting more. These symptoms are almost always indicative of an ailment that plagues me every so often.

Diagnosis: Affluenza. The strong desire to have more or to have as much or be as affluent as I feel others around me may be. Sometimes referred to as the Green-Eyed Monster or the Greedy Gimmies. It is a serious illness that can jeopardize your happiness (temporary and eternal) and negatively influences your ability to enjoy the amazing life you already have.

And quite frankly, I think affluenza has become an epidemic in America. But that is fodder for another post. Before I go too political or philosophical or get drastic with my generalities...let's just bring it back to ME. ;D So, how do I resolve this illness I come down with every so often? I've been blessed to have spent time outside of the United States and I've seen others live in less than ideal circumstances and STILL BE HAPPY! I rely on those experiences and memories heavily, to keep me grounded. I have sooo much. The poorest among us would be the richest in so many other countries in this world. Who are we kidding? We, Americans, have it REALLY good!

Sometimes I like to turn off the air-conditioning on a really hot July day, just to remind myself that other people don't have air-conditioning. Sometimes I walk my child to school (or ride bikes) when I'd really rather not, to remind myself that some children don't get to go to school. Sometimes I use duct tape to fix a box or broom or hanger, just to remind myself that I can make do. I don't mind shopping second-hand...for christmas, birthdays, home-decor, anything. USE IT UP, WEAR IT OUT, MAKE IT DO OR DO WITHOUT!

Those are some of my home-remedy treatments for you. Of course you always have to have a healthy dose of service for others. Nothing else makes a difference if you're not reaching outside yourself. And then, for good measure, make sure you're following the fundamentals of the gospel. Prayer, scriptures, etc. You know the drill.

How do YOU stay grounded and untouched by the nasty Affluenza bug???

So this final video clip from HSM3 (High School Musical 3) popped into my head when I was thinking about writing this post. My kids have been singing this song most of the week. "I want it all! Want it, want it, want it." I keep telling them, "Keep on dreaming! Dreaming, dreaming, dreaming." I know, nice Mom.