Positive Attitude with Six Canines and a Flat Bed

 Romantic sleigh ride? No.

Memorable winter adventure? Yes.

 
I was recently chatting with my married daughter about church. She told me that her friend's sister is in her new ward (congregation) which makes her happy so she won't be bored in Relief Society (the women's meeting). I gave her some of my profound (?) advice:

"Whatever situation we're in will be what we make it to be. Housework can be extremely annoying or we can make it enjoyable with a change of attitude. Going to church can be arduous and boring or spiritually uplifting. Folding laundry can be tedious and monotonous or we can enjoy ourselves by playing music or talking with eachother. Employment can be grueling and status-quo, or a blessing because we have the money to support our family. Our attitude determines the outcome."

I used my own advice in February when Sam and I went away for the weekend to Ogden Canyon. This was our 2012 Christmas present...very enjoyable and long overdue. After all, it had already been 6 months since the Alaskan Cruise! 

As part of our trip, Sam surprised me with a winter sleigh ride in Liberty, Utah. I was imagining a romantic, cute little sleigh with warm blankets, hot cocoa, and a little old man driver. The driver part was correct, but the other details did not match up. Instead of a rustic, antique sleigh (like something you'd see in a historical romance movie), we were presented with a large, cumbersome flat bed trailer; something you'd use for a hay ride. 

As soon as we climbed aboard, six huge dogs jumped up, surrounding us with their panting, slobbering selves. They didn't just sit on the end of the flat bed. No, they got right up on the hay bales with us, warming us up (literally) with their dirty bodies. 

At first I was not happy. 

You're kidding me, right? The driver didn't bother to ask us if we wanted his furry friends to accompany us. I guess they're just part of the gig. I remember thinking, "OK, I can let this really bother me and ruin our sleigh ride, or just go with it and enjoy myself." I chose the latter.

We enjoyed the picturesque mountains covered in snow.

 We watched our little old man driver feed his elk. There he is...see him?

We went up and down snow covered trails. The sunshine kept us warm and the fresh air was glorious. 

Our new canine friends were not so bothersome as time went on. It was actually kind of ironic that we'd have a sleigh full of "extras"....kind of felt like home, although our children are a lot louder than the dogs, but definitely more fun! They even get right in between us, just like our little people at home. :) (Note snout in below photo)

We held hands and linked arms...

...and enjoyed being together -  Dogs and all.

Yes, I find myself regularly needing to take my own advice. In this case, I'm glad I did. What was supposed to be a romantic winter sleigh ride turned out to be the most random and funny winter adventure that we continue to laugh about. Sometimes those unique experiences are more memorable than they would have been under "normal" parameters. Liberty, Utah, little old man, six friendly canines, two European horses, and a flat bed hay trailer provided a day we'll always remember...All because we chose to make it that way.

More to Come...but until then, Stick-to-it!

Our Joyful and Jovial January

January

Cold, Snowy, White

New Year, Post Christmas Relief, Daughter's Birthday

Cocoa, Popcorn, Movies

January

This was our month - at least what got recorded via iPhone... 

January Randomness:

Wedding Dress Shopping!

Hangin' with Tank

The Body Project

Early Morning Winter Temple Day

Cupcakes for a School Celebration. Love Coconut on Buttercream Frosting!!

My Soon-to-Be Missionary Son brought this home for me!

Her first Date - Girl's Choice Dance!

Lunch with AMAZING friends! ~ Dear Lizzie

Daughter's New Digs :) :( :) :(

Birthday:

The 9th Birthday Celebration consisted of the school preparations and party the day before her birthday, the birthday breakfast, and family party.

One of our favorite treats - Coconut Chex Mix (See Recipe, Below)

Put it in plastic cups - it looks like more and is less messy to eat from.

 

My helper

Valentine decorations work with a  late January birthday, right?

Ready for school!

The Birthday Girl with her Spoils!

Best Friends!!

 

Ahhhhh, Friends!

Birthday Breakfast (Note other children passed out in background)

Birthday Present: SNOW!!

Love this Girl!

So sweet with Sibs!

Grandma's serving (cutting circles for wedding prep)

Sad Sis

Cool Dad

Make a Wish!

One year older and wiser, too!

I love this sweet, thoughtful, loving, funny, witty, joyful, caring, and darling daughter! Thanks for being my cooking buddy and for constantly doing things to make people happy. You have a beautiful heart!



Coconut Chex Mix

3 cups Corn Chex
3 cups Rice Chex
1/2 cup nuts (cashews, peanuts and/or almonds)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
M&M's - if desired

Combine Chex, nuts, and coconut in a large bowl. Set aside. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. In a medium saucepan, combine the corn syrup, butter, sugar, and vanilla. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Take off heat, and pour over the Chex mix and stir until evenly coated. Spread out onto cookie sheet and let set for a few minutes. Enjoy! Store leftovers in baggies in a cool, dry place.

NOTE: We make 2-3 batches of this at a time so the cookie sheet thing doesn't work for us. Just line the TABLE with wax paper, then pour, cool, and EAT.

More to Come...but until then, Stick-to-it!

Answers in Alaska - Part 2

Eight stars of gold on a field of blue -
Alaska's flag. May it mean to you
The blue of the sea, the evening sky,
The mountain lakes, and the flow'rs nearby;
The gold of the early sourdough's dreams,
The precious gold of the hills and streams;
The brilliant stars in the northern sky,
The "Bear" - the "Dipper" - and, shining high,
The great North Star with its steady light,
Over land and sea a beacon bright.
Alaska's flag - to Alaskans dear,
The simple flag of a last frontier.

Alaska's Flag
Written by Marie Drake
Composed by Elinor Dusenbury

I can't let 2012 get away from me without finishing my Answers in Alaska series. The Alaskan Cruise almost seems like a dream, but I have the photos to prove that it REALLY HAPPENED! Answers below...

Seattle

Sibs at The Space Needle

Cool Tour! We learned all about the history of Seattle - Underground!

An Original "Crapper" - Look it up...

All Aboard - Seattle Skyline

  

Seattle Great Wheel

Ketchikan

Ketchikan - Our First Port

Off the ship and ready for adventure!

Off to see the rain forest and the totem poles.

Us and Him

My Groupies

The LOVE Seat

Can you say, Karate Kid? (In the Chunk Voice)

Posin' with Totem

Had to take in the Lumber Jack Show

Totally Cheesy but Fun

Go USA Team!

Cheering for our Guys!

That Log is made out of....Wood! (In Chipmunk Voice)

Nice Try...you don't have that look of terror.

Some of the fam enjoyed a plane ride

The N1400Z

Ship Life

Concerts Under the Stars

The Dining Room - Our Favorite Place!

Cruising the Tracy Arm Fjord

Formal Night with the Fam

Our amazing dinner servers. Italian Night!

Early Morning in the Fjord

A Barry Manilow Reunion!!! (See Barry in the Background)

Couldn't resist the chocolate milk...now, let's keep it down!

He brought the Sees! What could be better than sailing with Sees?

Groucho Marx?

The Best Night of the Cruise...Memories

Our Information Lady: "I just LOVE Information!!"

The most delicious gluten free dessert!

And how many virgin strawberry daiquiris is that?

  

Sorry guys...I couldn't resist!

Sporting the attractive, orange life vest...

Reflecting....

The Cozy Dinner Table

Always a funny face from this gal!

Can those binoculars be any bigger?

Juneau

The Mendenhall Glacier...in the rain

The holes are too big for our heads! I'm the Fish! Love the Growl...

The Sass of Suz

Mom at Mendenhall!

We did see a whale...a great blue one! HaHaHa- Great Times!!!

Our Lovely Wait in the Rain

The Baers by The Bear

Oh, I'm so skinny! Look at that waist!

Lovin' the Salmon Bake

Blutty Butting in...

Skagway

I found Gold!!!

 

A Gold Mining Jaunt - Liarsville

On the road to Yukon Territory

Border of Canada and Alaska. Cold!!!

Silliness with the Sibs

Some made the jaunt to Canada via train...

Love this photo!

Two of my amazing sisters!

  Victoria, Canada (Butchart Gardens)

An evening at Butchart Gardens in Victoria, Canada

Pure Gorgeousness!

A waterfall of fireworks

Beautiful fireworks that night in the gardens

Not restrooms or bathrooms...but washrooms

Waterfall at Butchart

Can we look any more touristy?

It's like you're in a different world!

Boring bus ride but you look cute!

Thank you...I enjoyed myself!

Pretty Pics

Location where we saw whales

Mendenhall Glacier in the rear

Somewhere in Alaska...

Ketchikan

Loved these Alaskan towns!

More of Mendenhall

The Rainbow Connection

Bridge on the way to Yukon

Lily Pads!!!

LOVE!

Perfectly Picturesque

Rainbows and Fireweed

Mount Rainier

Answers in Alaska - Part 2

Four months later, I'm completing my Answers in Alaska series. See Part 1, Here.

1. While on our cruise, we met a couple from Las Vegas. We talked with them a lot about children and family. We found out some interesting things about his grandmother, Lola Walters. She wrote the famous article entitled The Grapefruit Syndrome. It is her personal experience about getting annoyed with her husband over the way he ate grapefruit. When she told him about it, she didn't have a single negative thing to say about any of her habits, quirks, or personality traits. 

Answer: I looked it up when we got home from our trip and sure enough, after rereading it, I remembered the story and took note of her wisdom.

From her article..."I wish I could say that this experience completely cured me of fault finding. It didn’t. But it did make me aware early in my marriage that husbands and wives need to keep in perspective, and usually ignore, the small differences in their habits and personalities. Whenever I hear of married couples being incompatible, I always wonder if they are suffering from what I now call the Grapefruit Syndrome."

This reminder has been a blessing as I strive to look past the sours and focus on the sweets!

2. Our friends told us some other things about his grandmother. They told us about "The Cost of a Thing." It was a story about a couple who wanted new carpet. They determined if the mother got a job, they would have the money for the carpet. However, the job ended up being quite detrimental to the family and children. So, Lola Walters encouraged her children and grandchildren to think about the cost of a thing. Did the carpet really just cost the purchase price or did it cost much, much more? 

Answer: When making decisions about money spent, whether to accept another obligation or responsibility, or agree to this or that, think about "The Cost of a Thing" and encourage your children to do the same. What is the true cost?

3. You Snooze, You Lose. My mother raised us in a way that completely goes against this common saying. When she bought a bag of treats, she divided it equally into ziploc bags and gave one to each of us. When she made meatballs for dinner, she told us how many each person could have so nobody missed out. She taught us to assess how much of a food item is available at a party or family event to make sure we didn't take more than our share. This was engrained in me since day one.

Answer: I realized on this cruise how much I hate this phrase. It goes against all that I've been taught - to look out for others, the Golden Rule, common courtesy, a desire to make others happy. Even though the "You Snooze, You Lose" phrase is widely used, I will continue to fight against it and teach my children to do the same. It may seem like a little thing but I detest the entitlement, selfish mentality of our society.

I could go on and on about the many realizations and answers resulting from this once in a lifetime experience. No doubt it was an amazing vacation spent with family that I love dearly.  I think that was the best part...making memories with people I adore. 'Till the next vacation, peeps...

More to Come...but until then, Stick-to-it!