Sweet Little Baby "E"

Today our hearts are heavy. Our daughter had another ultrasound, and they found that Sweet Little baby "E" had died. They are brave, their Faith is solid and strong, but are they are grieving all the same. Their dreams have been dashed. Faith is being tried. Hopes have been smothered. Tomorrow she will have a d&c. I wish I knew some answers. But all I have to offer them are my arms and my faith, and knowledge that our Loving Heavenly Father is in charge, and is very aware of them and the pain they are going through at this time. I'm so very grateful once again that Families can be together Forever!

♥ Lewaina

http://brandonandkimberlee.blogspot.com/

The Miracle, called life.

I tend to get a little bit carried away(OK, so I get way melodramatic and go clear over the edge...)when I feel there is a cause. So in light of that, I will try to be umm, low key?

Our daughter and son in law, are having a baby. Ordinary? No. The past 3 years their lives have been riddled with fertility drugs, tests, waiting and disappointment. Now, almost 3 years and a miscarriage later they are expecting another baby. What joy and happiness has filled their lives! Our Son and his wife are expecting their first child also. A little girl, coming in April. There is a flurry of collecting going on by both new mothers. Little blankets, little oneies, name choosing, dreams of sweet little fingers and toes, soft baby sighs, and downy little cheeks to kiss. We are so Blessed. A new life is indeed a gift from God. But all tiny lives are not afforded the blessing of a loving home and family. Some, tragically are not even afforded life.

Beth over to Aunties,had a very good post yesterday. Below is the link back to her blog.

http://auntieswithadvice.blogspot.com/

Amaree Chloee was born at 26 weeks. Also the last stage of development which would be considered a late term abortion.

http://amareechloee.blogspot.com/

Our youngest son is adopted. He was 22 months old when he came to live with us. The decision his birth mother made to place him in our home was not an easy one for her. But one made out of great love. I'm grateful for the bond he and I share, and for the understanding that he has been blessed with. I can not imagine our family without our caboose. I'm so very grateful for each of my children, and for their sweet babies. I know our family can be eternally together. Is there any blessing greater than that? Please make your voice heard and save our Nations greatest resource, Human Lives♥

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Valentines Day Plans???

I have been thinking about what it is I'm going to make for Valentines Day for all of the loves in my life. Last year I didn't think about it until the day before. Too late and way too rushed were all those splendid plans. That was my first and last time ever cooking prim rib. Now don't be laughing at me. I never have professed to be a chef. This year, I have no such lofty plans. In fact thus far, I am plan less. However, you can bet I'm not going to wait until the last stroke of midnight to finalize this years plans. I wanted to share this fun idea with you, from KSL's Studio 5. http://studio5.ksl.com/index.php?nid=61&sid=2658275 You can view and download the pattern there.
This is a great idea. Last year, due to bad timing, I didn't make the entire coupon books, so rather, I made tags with coupons on them, and hung the tags over the necks of glass soda bottles. They were a big hit. Each Valentine recipient received their own 6 pack of pop, with Valentine embellished carton, with 6 embellished coupons, which were redeemable over the next few months time. What was on the coupons? For Little Big Chief, A pint of Ben and Jerry's his choice, pkg of sock, (he can never get enough) date with Dad and I to a movie, date with Dad and I to dinner.....I can't remember them all, but the fun thing is to personalize them to fit your needs, and, they get the soda to boot! In fact, Little Big Chief still had his 6 pack squirreled away in his treasure box! Minus the embellishments and the coupons. He kept really good track of redemption times on those coupons! And no, I haven't got any pictures of my Valentines from last year.......too harried and hurried! LOL If any of you have any great ideas for home made Valentines, I would love to see them:-)


If any of you happen to be in the Marysville Kansas area and happen along some guys with Entercrest trucks working along a pipeline, and if you happen to see a handsome dark haired green eyed young man, ask him if he's from Utah then give him a hug and tell him his mom loves him! LOL ♥

Faith is not only a feeling; it is a decision.
Elder Neil L. Andersen
Of the Presidency of the Seventy
General Conference October 2008

Hi, and Good morning on a rainy Saturday.♥ I just want you all to hope over to Mimi Sue's Cottage, http://mimisuescottage.blogspot.com/ and have a popper gander at her "Travel Journals". What a GREAT IDEA! I'm so going to have one of these books. I told her I was "needing" to go on a road trip so that I could start one now. Hummmm, maybe somewhere where there is a huge mongo flee market:) LOL Have a great weekend!

Got Axe?

Twelve year old boys are amazing aren’t they? They are such a mixture of little boy and teenager all rolled into one, and when you couple that with their straight from birth know everything, can do anything attitude, you get quite a little man child. “Little big chief” lately has become obsessed with Axe. I’m not talking about the kind you chop with, although he has mastered using that as well. Rather I’m talking about the kind you wear on your body! Axe you wash with. Axe you shampoo with. Axe you putty your hair with, under arm Axe, and the “king” of all Axe, the one you spray on! This little man loves to shower, but will wear the same clothes day after day if I would let him, and then, he tops his entire outfit off with spray on Axe. No kidding, we could call him “Peppy Le Pugh” as there seems to be a small sent cloud that hovers over him. He rolls his eyes at everything I say, yet he still skips, literally skips from his bedroom to the bathroom down the hall. Lol! He’s not overly concerned that his teeth are brushed, nor that his hair is combed. But goodness, he must at all costs smell divine! There is axe in the shower, Axe in his backpack, Axe all over his body, and Axe on my shopping list! :-) But this morning he went off to the races "Spray Axe free" (he's out). I do indeed love this little mutt! :-) Enjoy all the little joys and pleasures you are blessed with this day!

Journals

I'm not a very prolific journal writer. Prolific? OK, I'm not a daily writer. Daily? OK, I seldom write. Seldom? OK, so I write sporadically. Sporadically? OK, you caught me, I stink at writing in a journal. I have a very dear friend who does so faithfully on a daily basis, and has done for years. I mean years. I could document chunks of my life from her journals! I also have another dear friend who has a feel good book. She loves to garden, and has a very magical green thumb. She grows the most beautiful tea roses this desert has ever seen! She can grow anything her heart desires! The amount of sand or lack of water are no deterrent to her! If she plants it, it grows. But when she can't get out and garden or walk, she feels edgy, and anxious. So she created a book to look at in these moments, that helps her feel uplifted. For lack of a better name, I always called it her "Feel Good Book". Inside this book are things that make her smile. Handouts from Church, pictures of her children, jokes that make her laugh, thoughts that initiate reflection, pictures from magazines she identifies with, and in short anything that makes her feel good, or at peace. I liked it so well that I made myself one . We have passed this on to others and, low and behold, I find, it's sort of like a JOURNAL.
Here are some pics from my book, which is entitled, Who I am.

Our books are art notebooks with heavy blank white pages. I made a scrappy cover for mine, which has come off, but I still carry it around with my book, and some day I'll adhere it back on. lol

This is so me.

Random pics of each of my children are in my book.

Letters . The flap of the envelope is glued down, so I can slip the letter out and read them.


All of my posterity will know how I feel about cleaning the fridge. LOL



My book is full of my feelings, views, and opions, on everything from A to Z. If you were to open my book you would know who I am. Work has begun on Volume two of Who I am.
So, even though there is muuuuuuuuuch room for improvement where writing in my journal goes, I am ,journaling after a fashion! :-) Mercy

I want to sew valentines today..................

Good Morning. What's on your docket for the day? These are the things that are calling my name today. But you should see my bedroom. I have my sewing table moved back up stairs, and the sewing machine and the serger are on it... the cupboard that has been referred to as "my craft room" for the last year is also at the top of the stairs. Now all the stuffs that filled that "craft room" are still on my bedroom floor. Hummm. They were on my bed :-) (bed to floor, floor to bed, bed to floor........) Hopefully I have not passed on my bad habit to any of my children. If I have, stop it this instant! On the lighter side of life, did you know that it was National Popcorn Day yesterday? I didn't even know such a day existed. How have I gotten along all this time? However, even though I was in the dark about this celebration, I tried a new popcorn flavor yesterday. Just pop your corn and sprinkle it with the cheese from the mac and cheese box. Stir to mix. Wal-la. I liked it. The 12 year old "little big chief" wouldn't try even try it, he thought it looked "gra-roaaaaasssss". I wasn't shocked by his response, and I happily munched away leaving his 12 year old taste buds in the dust. I'm sure if I went to the store I would find a popcorn cheese along with other flavored salts. But if you live out in the boonies like we do here at the Stone House, just open a box of mac and cheese from your storage shelf and as your'e fixing it for someones lunch, snitch a little cheese powder for you afternoon popcorn, and have a HAPPY NATIONAL POPCORN DAY, a day late!

Mercy

Angel Tracks!

For the last year, our oldest Daughter and her family have been living with us. They started a new job and bought an old house, which needed many repairs before they could inhabit it. New Years Eve was their first night in their home. We were all excited ! I’m sure when my son in law woke that first morning and I was not in his house, he was over joyed! And our home on the other hand, felt like something was missing. Three little children to be exact. A pair of 6 year old twin boys, and a 16 month old critter. As I was walking through my living room one day after they had moved , I saw these on the wall…………………..
I can't quite bring myself to wash them off them the wall yet. The most scathingly brilliant ideas are thought up by this identical pair of boys. They are never still. They require only a minimum amount of sleep, and even as they are closing their eyes at night they are making plans for the morning, and as they are waking up in the morning, their plans are already going full swing. Their curiosities have no bounds, and some of the things they say are the best crack ups ever! They love me unconditionally, and I know that my heart is theirs. Grandchildren are some of life's sweetest blessings! So far we have 5 of these incredible little blessing, soon to be 6, and look forward to many more. Lucky us! Hope your Monday is full and rich with hugs from little arms and may you too have hand prints on your walls:-)
Mercy

Where are the batteries for the flashlight?

Good morning. I’ve changed my mind today. (Nothing new there) I have decided after reading Hannah's post this morning I would share it with you This is a guest post written by her SIL.
I lived in Rexburg Id at the time of the Teton Dam Flood. (June 5 1976) I can still see very clearly the events of this disaster. Hannah’s post reminded me that I need 72 hr kits for those of us that are home, (we had them many moons ago) and I need to have a few odds and ends added to my storage, and emergency items need to be in a very handy spot. Visit Hannah's blog, Safely Gathered In
http://http//safelygatheredin.blogspot.com/
Guest Post: What I Wish I'd Known During the 2008 Ice Storm
Special thanks to my sister-in-law for writing this guest post for us! It seems like so many people all over the country have lost power this winter, so this is a valuable read for everyone!
What I Wish I’d Known During the 2008 Ice Storm By Shauna Siebach
I always thought of myself as a level-headed person who deals well under stress. I thought if I knew a disaster was coming, I’d make the necessary arrangements to ensure my family and I would be comfortable and safe. However, I did not deal as well as I thought I could during the ice storm that slammed New Hampshire in December.
I feel most of problem was that I was not prepared for it to be worse than I thought it would be. The weather report prior to the ice storm notified us there would be a snow storm that would mix with ice and freezing rain. Upon hearing this I planned to do my grocery shopping the day before and then hunker down at the house keeping the wood stove going during all day.
The night before the storm I went to bed as usual expecting to do my cleaning the next day while I was stuck inside for the day. We lost power around 10 p.m. but this had happened before and I thought it would come back on shortly as it had done in the past. My husband Mike woke me up around 2 a.m. to say he thought we weren’t safe in the house and needed to go to my parent's home or to a hotel. When I looked outside I saw that most of the trees surrounding our house were either doubled over or broken from the weight of the ice. There was also a fire truck in front of our property clearing away a fallen tree. Looking at the conditions I told him I thought we’d be safer inside rather than traveling anywhere on icy roads. For the rest of the night we were kept awake by crashing branches and trees.
The next morning Mike drove into town and told me that everything was without power and said he was nervous leaving us at the house without a phone or way of contacting him. After he left I got things ready to head to my parents house because I knew they had a generator and a land line phone so I would at least be in contact again. I thought we would be there for the day and would head back home when we got our power back that evening. I packed enough clothes and supplies for me and my one-year-old for the day.
Once I got on the road, however, I realized things were much worse than I originally thought. There was no power in any of the towns I drove through on the way to my parents. It is normally a 25 minute drive and it took me an hour and a half to get to their house due to closed roads. When I arrived at their house (after walking the last half mile because their road was impassable by car) I was exhausted and the day had just begun. The news I heard was that I would most likely be without power for another 5-7 days and it was then that I knew I was very unprepared for this to happen.
While there are a few stories of compassion and brotherly love coming out of this, unfortunately there were many times when people took advantage of others. Generators especially demanded a premium. We saw generators and generator accessories being sold for 2 to 5 times their normal price. One man purchased the entire stock of an emergency essential item and auctioned them off outside the store exit. Fist fights broke out over who grabbed what first. The shelves where batteries and flashlights are stocked were bare early the next morning.
One other aspect of the power outage that my husband took care of was keeping the house functioning. We are on a well so we lost water pressure. Because we couldn’t keep our faucets dripping to prevent pipes from freezing, we had to keep the house temperature above freezing. Luckily we have a wood stove and we had a kerosene heater that we could keep running overnight. Our sump pump stopped working, obviously, so to keep our basement from flooding, Mike would fill 5 gallon buckets and use the extra water to back fill our toilet to keep that working. He also thought it was important to move our cars around the driveway to make it look like someone was always home at night, because there were some robberies in the area.
Knowing what I know now, here are some things I wish I’d done differently:
Take a shower the night before the storm. I wasn’t able to take a shower for a couple days after the storm because my parents’ generator was having trouble.
Not buy so many perishables when I went grocery shopping the night before. I thought I was doing a good thing going grocery shopping the night before, but we lost a bunch of stuff in our fridge and freezer because we were without power for so long. We moved the food to our porch to keep it cool, but we had a 50 degree day that spoiled the food.
Done my cleaning the night before. All my laundry was clean, but I wish I had it all folded, dishes done, etc. so I feel I could leave my house clean at least.
Have more menus/meals ready for this sort of situation. I have food in my pantry and in food storage but both my mom and I were completely unprepared to put things together into full meals. When you are tired, hungry and unshowered, it is not when you feel most creative.
Gather more emergency supplies such as batteries, candles and water. My mom, sister and I naively headed to Wal-Mart for these items when the roads were clear only to find the shelves completely empty.
Have 72-hour kits ready for all of us. I ran through the house in the dark grabbing what I thought we’d need but I ended up forgetting several things. If I had a 72-hour kit ready I could have just grabbed it and gone. I will also include entertainment items such as books, crossword puzzles and sudoku books because it is alarming how much we rely on TV or the internet for evening entertainment.
My main motivation for getting these things ready for next time is so I won’t be such a burden on other people. My parents were nice enough to have us at their house for the outage because they had a generator and a gas fireplace. I know they would be glad to have us back again in a similar situation but I would like to be much more help to them instead of depending on them for so many things.
Our Stake President gave a great talk at our ward preparedness fair about why it is so important to be temporally prepared for disaster. He said that when we are prepared temporally it allows us to continue to grow spiritually. In a disaster if we are continually only thinking of the temporal survival it doesn’t allow us much time for spiritual growth. I had never thought of food storage/emergency preparedness in that light. Having gone through my own mini-disaster of not having power for a full week I can attest that this principle is true. Not having all the comforts we are used to and being tired, dirty and frustrated due to lack of preparation made it difficult to feel like I was spiritually progressing. Each day we were concerned with very temporal concerns because we were planning life meal to meal and planning our activities hour to hour. The biggest lesson I learned for next time is to have a much better game plan and supplies pulled together so you are not rushing to the store with everyone else for the same items. I know that this goal is attainable and we will receive help from our Heavenly Father if this is a true desire of our hearts.
WOW. I believe Char Sethman over @ http://http//charsethman.blogspot.com/ The Pickled Pepper Patch also experienced an Ice Storm this winter. I can't remember for sure, Char was it you?..... I live in Cold Dry Eastern Utah, but still need to be prepared. SO, lets all get with it and become prepared with our storage of foods and Supplies. If you're already with it, more power to you! :-) Mercy

Winter Comfort

Have you ever gone out to eat and in the offering was clam chowder, and you thought to yourself, yumm, I’m really hungry for some of that, only to have it arrive and taste like an unrecognizable dish? All clam chowders are not created equal. Here is a recipe for the best ever clam chowder. It came from friends of my Parents from their Rexburg days. This is our family Christmas Party requested main dish.

Clam Chowder-------Mary Kaaiakanamu
2 cups minced clams
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup diced celery
2 cups diced potatoes ( I don't Peel mine)
¾ cup butter
1 quart half and half
½ teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste
Drain clam juice into pan (reserve clams)
Add potatoes, celery, onions, cook till potatoes are tender. ( you can add small amount of water just to cover potatoes)
Set a side. Melt butter in pan. Whisk flour salt and pepper into melted butter, & slowly add half and half. Stirring over low heat, until mixture thickens. Add potatoes, and clams. Heat through and serve.

Ok, so it's not very "low Cal", but it's way good and is sure to please even you non sea food loving family members. It's fast and easy to take to a family pot luck, or to a "souper salad" night at church. It works well in a slow cooker to take in to a sick friend. Enjoy

Mercy

Fruit For Thought

There are soooooooo many things that are calling my name right now, I'm not sure where to begin.....shall I take the blue carpet off and refinish the floor underneath? Or should I repaint my kitchen cupboards? Or maybe, I should get my house back in some kind of order.....I might like to start sewing for Rendezvous. You can never get too early a start on that can you? But maybe, I'll just blog hop for awhile:) But really....I must clean the fridge today.AHHHHHHHHHHH I think there may be things in there that are alive! LOL! I found the funnest thing on Aunties with Advise, and I wanted to share it with you. It's called FRUITILICIOUS and was posted Jan 1 2009
http://http://auntieswithadvice.blogspot.com/2009/01/fruitilicious.html
We do need to embrace who we are. Can't do a ton about genetics. We certainly should improve what we can and be healthy, and learn to love the rest. :) They say, (not sure who they were) That Utah has the highest numbers in plastic surgery among women. Hummm what does that tell us ladies? Sad commentary. I heard on a radio show a couple of summers back, that the number one birthday gift for 16 year old girls in the middle and upper class (financially) in America, was Breast enhancements. I was pretty much astounded. Why would parents think that's OK? What kind of message were they telling their young daughters about themselves? WOW! I had better stop. I'm climbing up on one of my soap boxes. Remember that Modesty is more than just Apperance in Dress.
We here at the Nelson Home are well and happy. Hope this day finds you the same. I'm going to borrow from the "aunties" some of Sister Hinckleys words for my sidebar. Enjoy.
Mercy

DH's Newest Baby

The wind is blowing a gale out there this morning. I think it must have blown a good part of the night. Brrrrrrrr. I'm sorry that DH has to work out in it, but I'm grateful for the warmth of this old stone house. Speaking of DH, he has a new baby. Not the living breathing kind, but a baby all the same. He's a proud papa for sure! Truthfully, we will all enjoy his baby. I think we should name him Emmett! Then I can ask him," are you and Emmett going to be up in the north forty?" "Where are you and Emmett doing today?" He'll humor me and tell me what he and Emmett will doing doing. :) So what do you think? Look like an Emmett to you? Yeah, me too.......... I have a new popcorn topping to share with you today. It's a good one. Fast and easy with only 3 ingredients.

Peanut butter Popcorn

1/2 cup Karo

1/2 cup Sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter

mix sugar and Karo together, and bring to boil. Turn off

heat and add Peanut butter. Mix well and pour over popcorn.

This will cover apx. 1 &1/2 gallons of popped corn, or a Tupperware That's a bowl full. Ummmmm. it's good:)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY OSCAR

Today is Oscar's Birthday. He was born in 1915, in Lake Fork. He would be 94 years old today. He was born in the Stone House, the third child,(10 children altogether) second son to Oscar And Naomi . He went to grade school in a one room log school house. He never did finish high school, but stayed home to help on (Cliffside Ranch) the farm. On Feb. 9, 1942, he married Jean Stokes in the Logan Temple. Shortly after that he was inducted into the army. Jean moved back home to her parents and taught in a one room school house in Bothwell. She was a faithful letter writer and picture taker. He went into the service as a foot soldier, but soon became Calvary. He was a guard over the arsenal at Pine Buff Arkansas. He transferred to Fredrick Maryland as military Police, guarding an experiment Post of Bacterial War fare. He transferred again to Dugway Proving Grounds as a quarter master.After two years there he was discharged, but held in reserve. His discharge was a mistake. There was another man with the same name at Clearfield . They were able to clear the mistake as their wives had different names. He then was at a navy Depot, and he also served at Bushnell Hospital as a quartermaster. He then worked for civil service as a supply clerk an lived in Roy. At that time as Jean was very sick and in the hospital there. She had a lung disease. I don't know what it was called. At one time she was expecting a baby, but they took the baby in hopes of prolonging her life. This must have been a sad time for them. It all looks so matter of fact when it's in ink, but I can't imagine what this time was like for them. Jean never did get well, and due to complications of pneumonia, she died on the 19Th of Oct, 1947.

Sometime after Jeans death, Oscar served a mission to the Northern States East Liverpool Ohio mission. (?) I'm not sure this is the exact name of the mission he served. After returning from his mission he came home to farm. In May of 1951 He married Reva Bell Mitchell. They continued to farm and became the parents of 2 daughters and 3 sons. (DHis # 2 son). For some of this time they did not live in the stone house, but rented homes in the area. His parents were still alive but his mother was in poor health. She had suffered a stroke and was in a wheel chair. The farm was 600 some acres of land, 125 head of cattle, and hay production. They had a cattle range permit on Anthro mountain for 25 years. Oscar and Reva were very active in the Church and fulfilled many callings there. They raised their family on the farm and taught them how to work hard. DH and I bought the farm some time after our marriage. We did not live in the stone house at time, but had our own home on the western end of the farm. Together Oscar and Reva served as Temple workers , as well as Serving a mission in the Raleigh North Carolina mission. Reva passed away Jan. 7Th 1991 from a massive heart attack. Oscar was devastated.

The ambulance came to the stone house and took her to the hospital in Roosevelt. After her death, He never went back to the stone house to live. He lived with DH and our family. May 23rd 1992 Oscar married Melvina Alexander. They soon moved to a home she had bought in Town and they lived there for a few years. At that time DH and I sold our home and moved into the Stone House. Oscar had suffered many slight strokes, and had lost most of the use of his legs. He came to live with us in the Stone House, but soon was very ill with pneumonia. At 4:00a.m. on Aug. 27Th 2003 Oscar passed from this life into the next. At the time of his death, he had 21 grandchildren, 2 great grandchildren, 33 step grandchildren and 20 step great grandchildren. What a great man Oscar was. I can still picture him in my mind, riding off across the field on the back of his horse Salty whose tail is switching as his trots on, Oscar's hat at a jaunty angle, with a small grandson or two up in the saddle with him. I know he's busy today, doing some kind of missionary work, and that he's aware of our lives here and loves us still from the other side of the Veil. I loved this man. Happy Birthday Oscar.

Good Morning Winter

As you know, I'm not a big fan of winter, and on cold mornings like this I'm gald I'm not a cow. or any other outside creature. According to Google, it's 5 above here this morning. I know it's freeze the snot in your nose cold and when you walk around outside the packed snow squeeks. Ahhhhhhhh a sound I don't care for. But there is a hot crackling fire in my wood stove and water in the kettle. Aaaaand we do need the snow for our crops and livestock. SO I shall contuine to count blessing and dream of warm days. I'm going up to quilt this morning and then I think I'll head to town. Olde Mother Hubbard needs to stock the cupboard.

Hallooooooo Out There Blogger Land

Well, it was bound to happen. I only have myself to blame. Only now what am I going to do? The symptoms are undeniable. I should have stayed away and not let myself become exposed. I did not. I Could not if the truth be known. Alas, I am ill. I have been bitten by the blogger bug. I have succumb and now suffer from this sickness. However, I am not one to sit idle and shall make the most of my time while under the influence of this germ. No lolly gagging around waiting for a cure. Up up and away! LOL :) Before I was "under the weather", I spent hours (enjoyable hours for sure) reading your blogs. You have shared many smiles, much laughter, great ideas (thanks Char), happiness, hope and even tears with me. There are those of you out there, that are my kindred sisters that I may never in this lifetime meet, except here on a blogspot. Hence, the succumbing. So, lets see what I'm made of, and see if I can get it together and follow the lead of my four daughters that have bravely gone before me. Thank you jp,jo,bug and ad.