Roses are Paper, Light is Truth...

News flash! In case you're wondering, I didn't die! I'm still very much alive, I just kind of dropped off the face of the blogging planet for a little while...or a long while depending on how eternal your perspective is... I could make a ton of excuses and all of them would be quite valid (except for the one where I ended up looking at cat pictures for a few hours and watching Star Wars on Valentines Day...we won't get into that) but let's just say "It's Cleopatra and Caesar and they brought a salad!" wait-- what? Now that I've distracted you with my clever Aladdin reference we'll get down to the good stuff.
I've got to come up with a name for this mental condition I think I've acquired... Maybe "Blograzy Disorder"...It's symptoms mostly involve talking to yourself in "blog" language... I make up these fantastic blog posts in my head and I quite often find myself commentating on my life in real time as if I'm blogging it...It's a little creepy but hopefully it helps me give you something worthwhile tonight!
I have so many things I could tell you about, hopefully I can narrow it down to something interesting!

So I wanted to come up with something significant and profound to write about on the blog this week and looking back I've realized that most of my posts could come off as really preachy and self-righteous. I never meant for them to come off that way so if any of you got that impression, I'm really sorry! I am nowhere near perfect and I have a long way to go. My only hope is that I can share bits and pieces of that journey with you so perhaps it can help you come closer to Christ.

After that horribly long (and hopefully not boring) intro, here it is! For real!

This morning when I woke up I had one of those mornings when you wake up in the perfect position and you think "if I move I'm going to ruin it! I just need to stay right here forever and everything will be okay!" Well when the alarm is going off, you don't stay in that position for long! I got in the shower and the water was the PERFECT temperature! I thought "if I just stay in here forever my life will be dandy" but then you know what really happens, you just get pruney and late. So, regretfully leaving the shower behind, I did a short morning yoga routine, put on my "new" shirt (pretty sure I got it for 5 dollars at Goodwill...shhhhh) and did my makeup. By the time I ate my breakfast and had my lunch all set and I looked at the clock, I was over 20 minutes late to seminary! It was 6:43 and I hadn't even tried to start Suzy (my car) yet! I grumbled to myself and ran out the door.
When I finally did get to seminary, it made the whole morning (even leaving my bed and shower) sooo worth it! We were talking about Doctrine and Covenants Section 88. I walked in, to my teacher asking "What is light?" He did that funny thing that teachers do when they are looking for a certain answer so even though the fifty answers you come up with are right, they're not what they want so they're all wrong. Until one kid finally said "Truth!" and the teacher pointed at him and said "yes!" as if that's what we all should have known from the first time he asked, right!? Silly teachers! Anyway, he went on to talk about real light and how it extends infinitely, even if it's eventually infinitely faint. It's kind of a mind boggling concept that light continues forever and doesn't stop, until you look at it with a spiritual perspective rather than a worldly and logical one. On the board he drew a circle representing the Son (which in verse 7 says: This is the light of Christ. As also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun... I've always loved that those words are the same Son and sun) He drew the earth in the infinite light of the Son, demonstrating that Christ's light is EVERYWHERE! Verse 12 states: "Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space." I'd read this before but I hadn't dug into this concept as deeply as my teacher did this morning. (Sorry this is long, hold on! It gets even better!) Christ is light and truth and so, Christ fills the immensity of space! My mind is officially boggled by thinking about the whole "everywhere at once" thing, but the Holy Ghost confirms to me that it's so true!
He went on to talk about how God created our Spirits from intelligences, which he explained to be God's basic building blocks for creating the world pretty much. What makes God so powerful is his power over intelligence, which always obeys Him because he ALWAYS acts in light and truth. I know I'm getting kinda deep here, just bear with me! I feel like this is explained in verse 13 which says: "The light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon His throne, who is the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things." Oh there are SO many more amazing things in this section, I highly encourage you to read it while pondering and praying about this concept! So intelligence is governed by God and God created our Spirits from intelligence, should we not also obey God? Well we should, but he gave us AGENCY! I'd like to believe that agency is more than the ability to choose, but to temporarily govern the intelligence of our Spirits. He allows us to use this power, knowing that we will make mistakes and betray Him and His light. What a precious gift this is! As His children, we wield the power over our own intelligence! Perhaps that is the light of Christ that God gave every man, the glory in this light and truth that we are literally made of. We can follow Him in light and truth, as our Spirits want to, or we can follow the natural desire to sin that comes from the effects of the Fall.
Back to this morning, after the lesson I was definitely spiritually enriched! I went to school and I had a free first period, so I went into the library and pulled out my triple combination and my Preach My Gospel to study it further. It was fascinating and exciting! I surprised myself too! If you had told me a year ago I would be sitting in the middle of the library at school with my scriptures in plain view I may have lovingly punched your shoulder and said you were crazy. Crazy how much strength and courage Christ can give you over time. I could be doing so many more "amazing" things like that if I depended on Him more. So as I pondered this business with intelligences and light and truth, a scripture I had heard many times came to mind: "The glory of God is intelligence..." I searched it (thank you gospel library app!) and found it in D&C 93:36- "The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth." As I scrolled up and down the section I saw that it was ALL about light and truth and intelligence! I kindof wanted to do a little happy dance but I didn't (you're welcome world...) I looked it up in my paper scriptures and started reading. God is so good! The scriptures are amazing!!! I thought of yet another scripture: Moses 1:39 For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." This just made another connection that "the glory of God is intelligence" or "the immortality and eternal life of man." They are connected, or even one in the same.
Anyway, I learned a few more things from section 93 (another VERY HIGHLY recommended read!) but I won't share all of them. I don't know if anyone out there needed this message, but I know it sure re-sparked my testimony today! I love this gospel and all the connections and analogies we can draw from it! It is so extensive, it makes it so that you are NEVER done learning about the gospel! Sound daunting? No! Try, exciting! You'll never run out of little gospel treasures! What a quest to embark on!


SOOOOO...since the glory of God is intelligence and "if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience..., he will have so much the advantage in the world to come" (D&C 130:19) I decided to learn something new. I've been seeing things on Pinterest for paper flowers for a long time, but after my experience with the nails (oh my goodness what a nightmare!) my faith in Pinterest was definitely wavering! Nevertheless, with Valentines Day coming up I decided to try it a couple of weeks ago. My experience was as follows...
Monday afternoon. Thinking "dude! You're such a loser you haven't posted on the blog for forever! You need to do something RIGHT NOW!" (because that's how I talk to myself...maybe I didn't need to tell you that). So I saw the flowers and became determined to give it a whirl! I am proud to report that my trust in Pinterest has been greatly heightened! It was a success!
I made my very own paper rose!

This is how you can do it too:

 "If I can learn to do it, you can learn to do it! Tell yourself it's easy and it's true! You can learn to do it too!!!" (if you sang that in your head- may I give you a virtual high five and say well done)

This isn't the best picture of them, but I was up past 1am writing this post so I didn't want to find a better one...

~Step by step Paper Rose Tutorial~

 

Gather materials:

paper (colored, newspaper, sheet music, scrapbook paper etc. Get creative!)

glue stick

scissors

wire, floral tape and 2 small beads (1/8'ish diameter) (these are for the stem on your flower)

First cut the desired paper into three 4' by 4' squares

I used a paper cutter to make it perfect but you really don't have too I'm just a little OCD:) They can also really be any size, but I found 4' to be the best size to work with and it turns out looking the best too.

Then fold them in half, corners across-ways to make a triangle.

Then do it again! (The triangle is 1/4 of what the original paper was if that makes sense)

Then do it AGAIN! If you're paper were a pie you should have a 1/8 slice of it.

Then, just like we used to do when we made snowflakes in elementary school, cut the top off so it's a rounded shape. You don't want it too drastically curved but you definitely don't want it straight across! It should look like a tear drop shape.

Repeat with all three squares so you have 3 "tear drops"



Use the first one as a template to make the other curves the same

Then unfold all of them so you have 3 little scalloped "pies"

From the first "pie" cut out 1 slice out of the 8. Keep the slice! You'll use it!

From the next "pie" cut out 2 slices or wedges so you have a pie with 6 wedges and a 2 wedge piece. Once again, keep the 2 wedge piece.

Then, you guessed it! Cut out a 3 wedge piece from the remaining pie.

SO! Now you have 6 different pieces: a 7 wedge piece, a 6 wedge piece, a 5 wedge piece, a 3 wedge piece, a 2 wedge piece and a 1 wedge piece!

Try and cut right along the lines

Roll the wedges and glue the ends together so you have 6 cone-like things

You can have a good amount of overlap on the larger ones, I'd say up to a 1/2'

Next, trim a teeny tiny bit off of the bottom tip of the cone. Just enough that you can fit the wire through.

Then, curl the edges of your scalloped cones. Each wedge-end scallop will be a petal so you should curl it down a little to look like a petal. This will also cover the awkward gaps between layers of your flower (you'll understand in a second)

Now it's time to make your stem. Take about 8' of wire and take your little bead and put it about  3' down. Bend the wire back and twist it around the itself so the bead doesn't move around.

Then, take your smallest cone and put the stem through the bottom hole. "Thread" the second biggest cone onto the wire and under the first one so they kindof fit into each other and start to look like a flower! Add on the third, fourth, fifth and sixth layers in order of size. You can rotate the layers so the petals are staggered to look more realistic.

Then, once you've got everything in place, (if it moves, don't worry, it's easy to shift back when you're done) take another bead and put it on the short end of the wire sticking out of the bottom. Twist this wire around the longer strand and until it is securely holding the layers up. If you want to, you can take the bottom end of the wire and bend it up and twist it around itself to make the stem a little thicker and sturdier.

You can then cover it in floral tape by twisting it tightly around the wire. This makes your stem green and hides the bead and wire twisting. This is kinda hard and takes some practice. My first flower didn't look that great either...

I can speculate that you could use washi tape or frog tape on the bottom, but I'm not sure

And voila! Now you have a fun craft to share with family and friends and for gifts or cards. Sorry it wasn't in time for Valentines Day! Like I said, you can do it with all kinds of paper! I made a newspaper-ish one with some pages from my old Driver's Manual because I didn't have real newspaper. I believe in being resourceful :P

I taught my family how to make them for FHE one night and that was...an adventure. Not all of them are quite as crafty- or patient- as I am... But it could be a fun activity! Pinterest didn't fail me this time! Yay!

clearly James didn't enjoy this activity as much...

Once again, if you have any questions, comment below and I'll try and help as best I can!
Also, follow me and the Pinterest Perfect Sisters on Pinterest to get links to blog posts and the original inspirations!
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If you have any comments or anything you would like to see on here in the future, (things you've seen that you want to see how they REALLY work out?) let us know in the comments!
Thank you for reading! If you've made it all the way to here, I salute you! And thank you from the bottom of my heart.

NEXT WEEK look for another AMAZING recipe for Gluten Free Pancakes and hopefully something else really awesome that I'll come up with before then :)

Butternut, Birthdays, and MY Winter Wonderland

Is it just me or has it been weeks since we've posted ANYTHING on the blog... oh no! It's NOT just me! That actually happened--- or rather didn't happen... Sorry again for the inconsistency. Good thing Christ set an amazing example of patience right!?...

I am SO excited for the holidays! Any one who knows me can tell you that I am the biggest Christmas fan in the world! I love the music, the atmosphere, the lights, the Spirit, etc. etc. etc. It may be my favorite thing in the universe---okay I like strawberries a lot too! Anyway! Thanksgiving break is almost here and winter is officially here because we got our first snow in Bend today! It was really interesting to drive in it- to say the least! But this morning when I woke up, and I saw the snow outside, I had a new hope for the day! The stunning white blanket froze the air and warmed my heart. Even though I was already getting up over 15 minutes late, I wasn't stressed out or cranky. I just hurried into the shower, put on a fun outfit (at least I thought it was fun but whether it actually was or not is left to be determined...), ate some chocolate Chex (which is absolutely delicious by the way!), and went out to my car 20 minutes after I should have left. (Now, you really should know about my car... It's a 19 eighty-something Toyota Tercel that I'm pretty sure has been totaled at least 47 times. My parents bought it for Lauren when she was 16 for 300 dollars... that's a red flag right there! The heater doesn't really work, you have to pull the windows up and, sometimes you have to push it to make it start... It's fantastic. My car's name is Suzy the Little Blue Coupe, Suzy for short. Suzy has had a new problem lately where she'll jolt or buck like a horse when you start her and then she'll die right in the middle of traffic! That's been her funnest quirk yet! I'm not complaining! I'm grateful to even have a car! I just think it's hilarious! So I have to start the car and let it warm up for at least 5 minutes, sometimes longer depending on how cold it is, before I can go. Suzy does have four wheel drive but needless to say I was nervous about the jolting on the ice...) So, when I went out to the car this morning, I saw that there was at least 4 inches of snow on the ground! So it wasn't just one of the mamby-pamby snow storms that's gone by 8 o'clock in the morning. Thank goodness, my car didn't jolt on the ice! It just slid around a lot! I'm not one of those girls that thinks it's super fun to do doughnuts in the parking lot when it snows. I like adventure as much as the next gal, but I'm the kind of girl screaming bloody murder when the car is spinning out of control. But somehow, I was unusually calm as I slid around the round-abouts and down the hills. When I finally did get to seminary, I got a text from a friend saying that perhaps that snow storm was meant just for me. Maybe it was selfish to think that, but it just  made me think about everything that had happened this morning. Things that usually would have made me scared and unhappy, didn't bother me. To me, the snow was one of God's tender mercies. It told me how much He loves me and how much He wants me to be happy. I felt His love for me, His daughter, literally falling from heaven. In seminary we talked about the Atonement and I couldn't help feeling the Spirit so strongly testifying of how much my Father in Heaven loves me. All day long, I watched the snow fall out the window and I felt the joy that comes with feeling the Spirit all day long. I truly felt the Spirit of Christ, or the true Spirit of Christmas. I felt so blessed! I love the gospel so much! I love how that no matter what is going on, big or small, God will always find tender ways to bless us and tell us that He believes in us, we just have to open out eyes to see them. I put a blank piece of paper up on our fridge labeled "God's Tender Mercies". Everyone is my family just writes the little things that God has done for them that day. It has helped me as I look at how much He is blessing each and every one of us. It helps us as a family open our eyes to see the blessings falling from the clouds in our path for us to find. What better way to remember the things you are grateful in this beautiful Thanksgiving season then recognizing all the little things we all too often overlook.

Because I was feeling so incredibly blessed today, I wanted to share those blessing with those around me. Specifically, one of my best friends' had her 17th birthday today. I made her a cute little "display" for the table we sit at during our study period.

 

It was kindof silly really, but it was just a little way of me showing her how much I love her. I filled that vase with snow ( last minute backup that she ended up loving), hung a little banner I had made from some skewers sticking out of it, made a thoughtful card, and a cute little present. It really wasn't anything that special ( and shhhh... didn't cost me a cent) but I just knew that she was so happy about it. It made me so happy to see her happy from that small thing I had done for her. She appreciated it even though it wasn't very significant.

 I wonder if that is how our Heavenly Father feels when he blesses us in those little ways, like letting the light turn green when we pull up, or letting the snow fall in November. Maybe we can catch a glimpse of what He experiences when we give things. I just love His plan! It's so perfect and so full of love and joy!

 

 

I made this with some scrapbook paper Chanel left lying around before she left to live her life of awesomeness and so I may have snatched it... Anything cool I have is something my sisters forgot to take with them :)

 

Saw these super simple bows on Pinterest! They were so fun! Just get some ribbon, hot glue the edges so the make a flat oval, squish the middle together and hot glue a piece of ribbon folded in half on it. Then glue a hai clip on the back and- BOOM! Cuteness! (If you have any questions about making these, just comment below)

 

 

If you're feeling all warm and fuzzy inside because of this post (yay! That's what I wanted!) then it's probably time for some warm, creamy soup to eat with your family by a blazing fire while talking about beloved memories. I had the most amazing soup the other night at the home of some wonderful old family friends. It's absolutely to die for good! And of course gluten free! So I couldn't very well keep it too myself!

 

 

Butternut Squash Soup



 

1 (1 1/2 pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4 inch pieces

1 pear, peeled, cored and sliced

1 sweet onion, chopped

1 (14 oz) can chicken broth

2 teaspoons tomato paste (we've used tomato sauce too)

1/4 teaspoon dried sage

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Sour cream (optional topping, but for my dairy free buddies, I like it without)

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray, or cover evenly with olive oil.

Place squash, pear and onion in a bowl with a little olive oil and toss to coat. Pour onto pan. Roast, stirring occasionally, until veggies are tender, 45 minutes is good.

Place vegetable mixture in blender (in batches if you have a small blender) adding broth and puree.  Transfer to medium sauce pan, add tomato paste and spices. Bring to simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

 

(This also freezes and reheats very well so you can make a double batch and it will keep up to three months!)

 

 

 

Have a wonderful week and notice all of God's tender mercies in your life! He loves you!

42 Days until Christmas!!!

My Life May Not Be Pretty, But It Sure Is Beautiful!

So, I know I'm a day late with this post...but maybe after you read it you will understand why.

This was me this morning...

My kitchen is a complete disaster from trying to make, and can, homemade applesauce with wormy apples and broken equipment last night.

I have big bags under my eyes from being up until midnight to do the aforementioned task, and feeding/snuggling my fussy baby the rest of the night.

I am in desperate need of a SHOWER!

Make-up?  Does left-over mascara from yesterday count?

The drawers in the background are open because my 2-year-old daughter prefers them that way. (I'm sure that some of the cupboards not visible in this picture are also open....if not all of them.)

I am eating a delicious, nutritious bowl of...you guessed it....fruity pebbles, since I had 2 minutes to eat before I needed to be somewhere (and, as a nursing mom, it is kind-of important to eat).

The counter behind the sink is covered in junk...because no matter how often I clear it, it seems to magnetically pull things onto it.

Under my feet, the kitchen floor is covered in crumbs, sticky applesauce drips, stuck dried cereal, and all sorts of other treasure.

As I sit to write this, I am constantly interrupted with fits of screaming or a dirty diaper to change.

It's not a very pretty sight!

Such is the life of a mom.  Working mom, stay-at-home mom, single mom, married mom, or even a stay-at-home dad!  Life is messy.  Life with kids is even messier!  Wanna know what keeps me going?

The beauty of life.

The pure and utter joy found in these eyes as they learn to take their first step, write their first letter, or just when they notice you noticing them.

The love of a devoted husband, who works so hard every day, and still makes time to wrestle on the floor with his kids that have been anxiously waiting for him ALL DAY!

The peaceful calm that comes from quality time spent with those you hold most dear to your heart.

God's daily "tender mercies", like a home, food on the table, the love of family and friends.

The pure, unending love of a Heavenly Father and a Savior that sacrificed so much for imperfect me.

These are the things that life is made of.  Sure, exploding kitchens, late nights, rough days...they are all part of it, too.  I don't believe that will ever change.  Even when my kids are grown and gone.  When that day comes there will be trials that are different from those I'm experiencing today.  But I believe there is beauty to be found in every stage of life, and in every circumstance.  Sometimes we just have to look past the chaos that is so easy to see, and find the moments of gold.

May we all take more time to notice the things that are truly important.  Let us hold onto and cherish those things to get us through the pandemonium created by everyday life.  Let the world tell you what it wants to: you need expensive clothes, perfect children, more money, or maybe a nicer house to make you happy.  But more and more I am finding that lasting happiness comes from worrying less about the world and what we don't have, and worrying more about the things that are right under our noses that God has blessed us with.

Happy Tuesday to you all!  I'm signing off to clean up a potty accident and tickle my son until he cries... ;)