Lyndi, Seth, Nathan, and Lawren

Lyndi got to be principal for the day a few weeks back, and it was pretty cute. She was being rewarded for receiving 400 advanced reading points at school. She was able to help the principal and librarian, which she loved. She said she was "glad that she wasn't principal because it is kind of boring!" She was going to make the teachers write an essay about why it is fun to brush their teeth, but I guess that didn't fly. We even bought her some "dressy" clothes, to make her look professional. She has a little badge and everything that says "LYNDI MILLER-PRINCIPAL." Very cute. Lyndi has also decided to play volleyball. She is quite a go-getter. She likes to pass the ball, or "bump" it. She is also still playing the piano, she is struggling with wanting to practice, but I am refusing to let her quit. I know, I am SO MEAN! She and her friend played a duet in their school talent show, and did a pretty good job. She is also starting to babysit our kids while Jared and I go on our 40 minute dates. I cannot tell you how thrilling it is to have her babysit so I don't have to call and beg people to come over. If we are going to be gone for longer than that we get someone a little older (don't worry Jeanne, Lauren still has a job here).

Seth is doing much better with his reading. He is really starting to get it, and while it is a little bit late, we are pleased that he is making progress. He is really a nice boy, and is constantly telling me that I am "beautiful", or the "best mom", or the "best food-cooker". I appreciate that. He gets kind of carried away sometimes with his brother, and doesn't care much for chores, unless it is taking out the garbage.....I am thrilled about that.

Nathan is our family comedian. He is a funny kid. The other day Seth said to me, "you're the awesomeness mom!" Nathan smirked and said "yeah, you're Optimus Mom!" He likes the transformers......The other day at the dinner table we were talking about how all the kids had been getting their name written on the board for talking too much. I kind of laughed to myself and told them that I had been reprimanded in MY class that day for whispering while the instructor was talking. I guess they come by it honestly. Nathan is always saying, "Mom, remember when you got in trouble?" He thinks that is soooo funny.

Lawren is at the pinnacle of her threeness. By that I mean she is SO DRAMATIC. Everything is either hilarious or tragic, and she is constantly crying! You would think that after four kids, I would realize I need to just roll with the punches, but the drama is just about to kill me. She is still sweet everything behind the layers of her drama....three isn't my favorite age. I need to cut her hair OFF and maybe some of the drama would go away. (she screams EVERY time I touch her).

School

I am completely exhausted. I appreciated the comments people made, you're all right. Thanks for being great friends/family.
One bit of great news! Jared and I were released as Activities Committee chair-people. That is a load off my chest, and Jared's; he already had two callings! I did learn a great deal from that calling about how to be in charge. I dislike being in charge, however, and hope it doesn't come my way again for awhile now. I am happy to say that I enjoy the kids in primary, and that is starting to take away my anxiety of having to be in charge of singing-time every week.
I don't want my blog to become a weekly gripe of "how-hard-nursing-school-is", but I do want to record some of my thoughts and feelings on the subject, so I hope you as my reader aren't bored to tears.
I just finished my 3rd week of school. Deadlines are starting to pile up. I am struggling with balance, but try hard to have a little bit of scriptures and prayer at the start of everyday. My kids are feeling it too. In fact, I asked Jared recently, "am I sacrificing our family for this?" He said, "no", and reminded of all the reasons that I am doing this right now. I have entertained the questions of "why now?" and "Why don't I wait until everyone gets older?" Well, I thought blogging my answer to the question "why am I in nursing school now?" would help me in times I am ready to throw in the towel. I picked nursing school because I felt like it would a stable occupation if I ever needed to use it. I admit the number one reason I am in nursing school is I want to be a nurse. I am excited for the chance it is to take care of people. I like people, and hope that I can help people help themselves. I want to be a nurse because it is something I can do anywhere, it has a flexible schedule, and I will be able to get to know people of all different backgrounds. There is a certain amount naivety that goes along with these statements. I know that it won't be like it is on TV, that sometimes I will be frustrated, or that I will won't be able to work in "the perfect" job right away. Having said this, I really am excited to have the knowledge and skills to help people who are in need of help. Why now? well, I don't think it will ever be easy, no matter when I do it! Am I justifying? I honestly don't think so. I feel like this is the best thing for me and my family's future, even though the present is challenging. I feel like I am trying to convince you, as the reader, but I really am just trying to remind myself of why I started on this project. As I have started into it, I feel it will be life changing. I might have to change many things about myself. I think, however, that I will be a better person because of it. So next week when I am tired of studying I will come back to this blog and it will encourage me to keep going. One day at a time.

New Year, New Life.

I stayed home from church with a nasty sinus headache, stuffy nose, body ache thing today. I thought it would be a much needed period of rest. It has been, but apparently, I have lost the ability to relax, and my mind is in permanent over-drive. It was my first week of nursing school last week, and I guess I am still kind of wound tight because of it. Some of it was very exciting, and some of it was very interesting, and other parts of it were excruciatingly boring. The end result of this first week was: sickness, a stiff neck, three rather large zits, a craving for chocolate that cannot be satisfied, the first day of "that time of the month", a HUGE pile of laundry, and no food in the house to speak of. I really felt like I prepared for this, and I haven't felt that stressed out. I look in the mirror, however, and my reflection screams, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!!!!" (You, know, the zits, the bags under my eyes, the bright red nose from blowing it so much, chin hairs that need to be plucked, etc, etc etc).
So, I have decided that I need to cut something out of life for the sake of my sanity and the intactness of my family. What, pray tell, can I cut out?

School: Well, since I worked so hard to get where I am, and I know I need to finish, I cannot cut out school.
Church: I admit that cutting out a couple of church callings would make life simpler. There are other reasons, like, you know, MY ETERNAL SALVATION, that make it so I definitely cannot cut out the church.
My family: Well, I kind of like them.....they are pretty important to me.
Running: I could very well take a break from running.....than my psyche would match that reflection in the mirror, in other words, I WOULD BE CRAZY. I have learned that exercise is essential to maintaining my mental health, and walking takes too long, so I might as well run, right?
Piano Lessons: I cannot cut out piano lessons because I trade the person who watches my kids on Tuesdays for free(I have school all day on Tuesdays) piano lessons for babysitting.

So how can I simplify? How can I make it so I don't loose my mind?

My teachers all had the same old advice I have heard ten zillion times: eat right (I could definitely improve in that), exercise, get plenty of rest, plan ahead, take one day at a time, yadda, yadda, yadda. Anyone got anything that maybe I haven't thought of?

Reality

So I guess I don't know how to relax. Right after my last blog, I got dressed, did some laundry, went shopping with my kids in crowded stores during lunch time (what was I thinking? "MOM I AM HUNGRY! MOM LET's GO HOME, MOM, I AM HUNGRY"). When we got home and after I made a well-balanced lunch for my kids (spray cheese and crackers with summer sausage), I chatted with a good friend (very nice) received more textbooks in the mail, decided to cook a turkey for dinner, and ended up going to the gym while it cooked (Jared came home from work early) to run. So much for my time off. When I got home from the gym I spent four hours in the kitchen cooking dinner. After dinner I spent two hours washing dishes. The whole "cooking a nice Christmas dinner" looks really good on paper, but in reality it is just one thing: a whole lot of work. Especially since with the exception of Jared and Seth (sometimes Lyndi) my family doesn't eat anything I cook. So reality is I am MORE tired now after my supposed time off then I was at the beginning of it. Oh well. I don't mean to complain, I like serving my family, I just wanted to clear up the misconception of time off when you are a mom. THERE IS NONE!!!!!!!

Time Off

I am so excited to announce that it is ten o'clock in the morning and I am STILL in my robe, with no intention of changing out of it any time soon. I haven't had the kids get dressed or do chores. Nope, they are downstairs rotting their brains and will remain there most of the day. I haven't gone running, nor do I intend to, I haven't even considered going out in the VERY frightful and frigid weather to finish my shopping, although I might get up the energy to do that this afternoon (I guess I just considered it). Then again that includes and is not limited to getting dressed and taking my kids to a crowded store. Neither of those things seem like an option today. You see it is MY TIME OFF. I don't have school, ward party is over, piano recital is over, Seth's birthday is over, and although Christmas is only two days away, I feel like I am entitled to a little down time. I have never been the type to stress out over Christmas, and I think that if it doesn't get done it should definitely NOT be stressed over. There are a few thing I really want to do:

Eat. I really like eating. Christmas is a wonderful time because people bring chocolate to my door just for being their neighbor. That is such a great concept: Free chocolate just for existing.

read a FICTIONAL book: I have 13 nursing textbooks piled on my desk which will be my life for four months after the new year. They all look very interesting and all, but I pledge that I will not open them until my kids go back to school. I checked out a book from the library, and so far it is good, but it doesn't have anything to do with nursing and I do not have to take a test over it. That is a rare concept in my brain right now.

SLEEP SLEEP SLEEP! I really like naps. Especially when it is in front of our wonderful fire place. The crackling and comfort of a real fire with real wood and real fire smells makes for the BEST naps on this earth

Games: Christmas has always been a time where I play games with family. I really like games especially when it does not involve rook or risk. I hate those two games.

Movies: I would like to spend a small fortune and go to a genuinely enjoyable movie at some point during my time off. Good thing I already saw the latest installment of Twilight because that does NOT fit into that category.

Notice that all of the things I want to do are sedentary activities, and some my make me fat and clog my arteries (I didn't mention the kind of food I was going to eat....nothing low-fat, I will tell you that). I guess the take-home point is this: I AM TIRED....I need some TIME OFF.

News

I know I have been a LAME blogger for the past few months. I admit that I am burned out a bit on it, and I don't really have the time to spend on blogging every week. Either that or I am just exhausted. Probably the later, because I am not any busier than any of you.
I do want to keep doing it every once in awhile however, and right now I am doing it to avoid studying for a nutrition test and/or switching the laundry...in other words, I AM STALLING!!!!! So here is some recent news.

First of all, I got into ISU's nursing program, and I am THRILLED. I really was afraid I wouldn't get in. I am also thrilled that my classes will mostly be in Idaho Falls, and that the schedule is pretty good and not as obnoxious as it could be. I am really really happy about it. I have really worked hard, and I am glad that I don't have to put off my goal of finally getting a degree for another year.

Secondly, my parents were transferred to Montana because the language barrier in Mexico was making it so they weren't able to teach. That is why they went on a mission, so the people in charge decided to transfer them. I am so happy about it because now I can text them! ( I really enjoy texting because my children suddenly become little monsters when I try to talk on the phone)

I also did my first primary program as the primary chorister, and while I felt it was successful and am really pleased on how the kids sang, I am so glad that it is over. I am actually really enjoying being the chorister MOST of the time.

Jared and the kids are doing fine. Seth and Nathan are on a arguing kick where they will argue about everything, but other then that things are great. Lyndi is doing well in school and always looking for another good book to read. If you have any suggestions let me know. Lawren isn't a baby anymore. It has been fun to watch her grow up! She NEVER stops talking.

I ran out of news sooner than I thought, but here are some pictures to make up for it.

Running

My goal last year was to run a half marathon this year.....didn't happen. I went running Saturday morning intending on doing five or six miles. Well, I don't know if I am getting the H1N1 or what, but I couldn't run more than a half a mile without wanting to throw up. I came home and was wasted! I even had to take a nap, and still didn't feel that great. I guess I am kind of discouraged about it. My wise mother keeps telling me that maybe this is not the best goal with all the other stuff I have going on, but I really want to do it! (I know, I sound like a three-year-old). I don't love running, maybe that's the problem. People who I have talked to that have run crazy- long distances love running. I love that I can eat more because I run, and not gain weight, and I love endorphins that I get as a result of running, but I don't love running....I guess I just have to develop a love for running in order to run a half marathon....not sure that will ever happen.