Author: runlittlejo

I love the way Stephen can smile through any challenge! It is a gift that I greatly admire.

Current Status: Speeding Along

It can be really tricky – Speeding along Life’s Freeway. Many times life is fast, thrilling, and exciting while trying to fit everything in (it is fun to see how much I can actually fit into one day). At other times I wonder how I can catch up to the other "cars" in front (how are people so effiecient) or even how I forgot about the "cars" behind me (I meant to read, do, say, make, fix, give "that"). Sometimes I find myself in a big rut trying to get out (power struggles & conflicts). On a rare occasion, I experience a blow out (literally & figuratively). Right now I would like to slam on my brakes (while making cool track marks on the freeway of life) and just put on my hazzard lights (I’m tired of speeding). Instead, I will undoubtedly pack up the trunk, put on my seatbelt and get back on cruise control (tomorrow’s another day).

My life in the fast lane.

Comments:

dad said…

Stephen was probably so efficient at changing a tire that he didn’t even get his clothes dirty
Wednesday, April 07, 2010 6:36:58 AM

Michelle said…

Nice analogy-I agree completely. Those Parkers are pretty good at changing those tires.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010 8:43:14 AM

Stephen said…

I am just trying to keep up with you. Keep up the good pace, you are doing great.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010 10:35:07 AM

Dear Moab,

It is that time of year again. The time when I love to dream about basking in your sunny rays, the prospect of my first outdoor swim (rather laying next at the side of the pool), wearing shorts and a short sleeve shirt during the day, dusting off my flip flops, examining petroglyphs, seeing a giant grin on my big boy(s) faces as they descend the slick rock, watching a dusty lizard escape Mason’s grasp, peering out and see the RED rock against a BLUE sky, anticipating the brisk cold morning as I join thousands of runners at the starting line in the shade of your beautiful canyon, thinking of the boom boom of the drums at mile 10, and watching for my cute family cheering with pride as I step across the finish line.

Oh, how I have been dreaming during this ever long winter season. I knew I would be ready to leave my frosty land of Sugar City to be wrapped in the rays of your love. I was even desperate enough to train in frigid tempertatures, early mornings, and icy roads to merit a visit to your red earth. The dream (as metioned above) of warm memories kept me focused and mentally strong as I ran to attain my March goal.

But Moab, guess what? Remember the year I couldn’t come see you because I had just had a beautiful baby boy? Well, this year I have another one of "those kinds" of situations. The birth of my darling daughter Alexis’s singing debut. She has made it into a singing competition, one that is very important to her – Upper Valley Idol. One that will take place on the very weekend I should be there with you. She has worked hard, she has been disciplined, she has taken it seriously, and she is very excited. I am very proud of her! And because of that, I have to say good-bye for this year. Yes, you’re correct, I love her a lot!

Until we meet again,

Jodi

p.s. there is always next year 🙂

Comments:

Stephen said…

Nooooooo, I want to go still.
Wednesday, March 03, 2010 3:31:27 PM

Michelle said…

Tough choice-you are a good mom (and in good shape too!) Good job training-you know you are welcome to come to Goblin Valley with us for Spring Break!
Wednesday, March 03, 2010 4:23:01 PM

I was able to go on a date with my daughters Saturday night to "The Princess & The Frog." The show had it’s funny parts, but it  was also a little dark. I DID like the theme of how we need to work hard for what we get. All in all, each of us enjoyed ourselves and got to laugh a little bit.

The night before, I came across the cutest pattern on a random blog for making a bean bag frog prince. I just couldn’t resist making them because the timing was perfect. I woke up Saturday morning and forfeited the normal Saturday work to make frogs – I had a blast! Stephen kept coming upstairs asking me if I was having fun…as if he couldn’t tell! When I brought the frogs out of my laundry room to show off and fill them up, I got my payoff. My children were in love with them. Stephen helped me fill them full of beans. As he was doing this, he got the notion to boil some beans and make an enormous batch of chili. I’m serious, a really giant batch – we are talking 30+ quarts! We will be eating chili for months! After the frogs were done, Lex and I finished up sewing the remainder of Haiti scarves (she only has 7 more to sell to meet her goal). We had a fun time working together.

I love having 3 girls and getting to make special memories with them. I can’t wait to share many more in the future! I hope they will always be great friends and share many fond moments together (hopefully I’ll get in on a lot of those moments).

I am glad to have a wonderful sister and mom (whom I have shared lots of great times with)- they are two of my greatest friends.  I am blessed to have them in my life. They understand me and my personality so completely and love me unconditionally, despite my many imperfections and quirks! I really need them in my life. I know I always have a listening ear when I need to vent, ask a question, or be excited about something.  When I vent they don’t judge me or think I am ungrateful – they just let it go in one ear and out the other! When I ask stupid questions, they just laugh or guide me along without making me feel like I’m dumb. I can brag up and down about my kids, my husband, or a fun project and they don’t get annoyed with me – they just get excited with me. It is a gift and rich blessing to have their friendship. By the way, since my mom and sister don’t live near me, I have adopted my running friend, Diana, as my second sister. She is such a great friend and fits the bill as mentioned above. She is in the Philippines right now,  can’t wait for her to come back!

 

Happy Ground Hog Day! What’s the verdict? I didn’t bother to check because it usually just stays winter here, um let’s see??? over half of the year! I have resigned myself…I have now learned to plan a nice warm vacation in either FEB or MARCH to stay sane.

Back to Ground Hog Day….Did you eat Ground Hog Meatloaf for dinner (pictured here)? If so, DO NOT continue reading. I know what you are thinking right now, Jodi made that Ground Hog for her family for dinner. Folks, I just want to say from the words of my friend, Reba McEntire, "I wouldn’t go that far."

Actually, I saw this little fella today online and couldn’t decide whether to laugh outloud or hurl first! I decided to laugh. I do like meatloaf, but … I don’t think I could do this version and not think about eating a varmont. And btw, talking about animals at the dinner table at our house is TABOO, so shaping this innocent creature into a meatloaf wouldn’t work out well around here.

Status of Ground Hog:Ground Beef?

Remember the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004? I do. I was overwhelmed at the catastrophe. I couldn’t imagine it. The number of fatalities was outrageous and I felt wiped out emotionally. I felt like there was nothing I could do from my economic and physical status to make even a small difference. I was helpless, I thought.

I am one of those people who always appreciate other people who try to make a small difference for a big problem. I sat back and watched reports of Hurricane Katrina from my hospital bed while in labor with Olivia. My heart was sad…I personalized it and it became my devastation. I thought, "I wish there were something I could do, but…." I continued to watch and was comforted by all of the people who made a difference while I watched nursing my newborn baby at home weeks later. I felt a tinge of jealously when I heard of the people who traveled to New Orleans and helped in whatever way they could.

If there is something I learned from these two previous disasters, it is that I cannot stand by and watch any longer considering the calamity in Haiti. I have been inspired with peoples generosity monetarily, but more inspired am I by those who are doing small things to show their support and care- probably because that person could be me. It seems attainable. Perhaps it was the small comment made from my friend in Relief Society who said she is going to see if she can raise money from a bake sale or something, maybe it was when I watched a cute girl in the mid west from CBS news making bracelets with all of her friends to sale.  Probably both. Anyway I have been motivated to help. Lex wants to help. We need your help?! Help for Haiti!

I came across a cute idea to make a scarf out of an old man’s t-shirt (the shirt not the man and size m or larger) on the Internet. I quickly knew that I had to make some. So I did, they turned out cute – Lex and I both love them. Thinking about a way to help Haiti and loving these scarves seemed the perfect option for us to do our part.  We are joining efforts to sale at least 20 for $5 each. That is our first goal: $100. Not too much, but still something, right? So I have raided Stephen’s closet and found a few t-shirts (5), but in order to make the scarves with pure profit we are asking for donations of old t-shirts (to meet our goal we need at least 15 more), or you can buy one of our scarves? Either way, we would appreciate your support.

Finally, I want to share with you my new favorite song right now. Stephen and I watched Hope for Haiti last Friday evening. When we heard Justin Timberlake sing, "Hallelujah" (click on the song title to hear) we knew we would be buying the tracks of the evening off of iTunes. I would encourage you to buy them as well, you won’t be disappointed. Btw – who knew Justin Timberlake had such a beautiful voice? Not me! I thought he was a show-off dancer – who wanted a singing career? I was pleasantly surprised! Hope you are too! 

P.S. If you live in Rexburg and have some shirts for donations, let us know and we will come and take them off of your hands. If you want to order a scarf to buy we will deliver it to your door! Thanks 🙂

 Post Edit: My friend drew my attention to "Halo" from the Hope for Haiti soundtrack, another new favorite! Listen, Smile, & Enjoy.

My recipe project is finished! Here is the end result. It was a lot of work, but worth it. I love that these cards are laminated and sorted, and recipes we will actually use – plus they take up little space! I used these cute little cards everyday last week and enjoyed every minute. Tonight as I was planning this weeks meals it was a snap. So yeah  for the recipe project. (especially that it is finished!)

Comments:

Mom and dad Parker said…

Thanks for all your effort. We will all benefit from your project.
Monday, January 25, 2010 8:56:14 AM

michelle said…

Wow-looks like a great time saver. Way to be organized-your a great example.
Monday, January 25, 2010 3:45:48 PM

I am getting excited for the new addition to the blog site Stephen is working on! He is working on making a fun background design option when printing recipes. I am getting ready to print out a whole bunch of recipes and I really wanted to have them look cute – so he has delivered! I have been working on a project called 30 meals, an idea I found from this blog: littlenannygoat.blogspot.com/2009/04/30-meals-step-1.html

Yesterday I went through all of my recipe books and boxes and files and took out all of the recipes I actually use and added them to the recipe file here on the blog. I then threw everything else away! Such a good feeling. I am going to print and laminate the recipes that everyone in our family will eat, then sort and organize them into bundles on a ring as follows: Main dishes, Desserts, Side Dishes, Special Ocassion, etc.  (Most of the time I actually use my computer/blog to reference my recipes)  The only requirement the recipe has to have to make my bundle is if everyone in my family will eat it. I’m finding this is harder than I thought it would be. (7 different people with different taste – Taco soup didn’t meet the requirement!) As far as recipes like taco soup and others like it that most people like but not everyone – they will go into their own bundle and still come out every once in a while. These people need to learn how to deal with eating things they don’t like once in a while it’s good for them. But I really like the idea of diminishing whining, wasting, and delivering a healthy meal to an eagerly waiting & hungry child. I want them to remember liking to eat the food I cook. Food carries with it happy or bad memories.

I am also doing away with my monthly meal planning calendar and going to a weekly one. This way I will be able to shop from what is on sale better. By seeing what is on sale I can then go to my recipe card bundles and pick recipes that go with ingredients that are on sale. I will also be able to stock up on items that I know for sure will get used! I am hoping this will make meal planning a snap by choosing recipes that I know everyone likes for 4 days of the week. Then for the 3 other days a week I will try a new recipe, go easy with opening a can of soup, or fit in a meal from recipes that most of us like but didn’t meet the requirements.  Having them laminated and on a ring will make it easy to take it out for the week and easily accesible when planinng my grocery list and cooking.

I have a question for you? What are some of your family’s favorite meals? I am finding it hard to come up with 30 that everyone likes. I am always excited for a new idea that is a family pleaser.

Here are some of our family favorites (most of the recipes can be found from the family recipe link):

#1 favorite meal is macaroni and tomatoes, crock pot cream cheese chicken, beef pot roast with potatoes & carrots, shepherd’s pie, spaghetti, pork burritos, bean & cheese burritos, chicken pot pie, ham & scallopped potatoes, creamed peas & potatoes, cool veggie pizza, bbq (beef or pork) sandwiches, easy lasagna, stuffed shells, cheesy manicotti, best bet burgers, tacos, nachos, chicken & noodles over mashed potatoes,  five hour stew, no fuss potato soup, sweet & sour chicken, pizza bombs, meatloaf with bake potatoes, beef topping for baked potatoes, chili rice & corn casserole, homemade macaroni & cheese, ham fried rice

I will keep you posted on my project ….until then…

One of my favorite New Year’s Resolutions that I’ve accomplished in my lifetime and have really strived for and been fairly successful at is about to be unveiled to you…..drum roll please…..Friday night dates with my Husband! It really is what keeps me going through the week.

I set this goal when we had 3 young children at home (probably 2002) and had to pay a babysitter every Friday night. This meant that the date we went on had to be basically free since all of our money was going to a sitter. It was worth the $$$$$ SERIOUSLY. I could elaborate of all of the benefits, but I won’t. I will just say it is nice to have a best friend by my side and know that Friday night he’s all mine and I don’t have to share!

I really love January – a month for me to reevaluate stuff, push myself to be a little better, and give myself a direction to go in, it also gives me something to look forward to. Very cleansing and also refreshing. Now it is time to get to work!

Comments:

Anne said…

That is a wonderful resolution to accomplish. Good for you two, Happy mama and papa, make for happy kiddos. I love taking time to set new goals to! I think the best present one could give one’s self is to take some time to meditate or ponder how to be a little better :).
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 1:54:45 PM

Mom and dad Parker said…

Dating your spouse gets easier as your kids get older. It really is good practice for future missions and the years of being empty nesters. The treasure of having a companion you really like to be with is priceless, but must be developed. It doesn’t come completely natural, kind of like a talent, but a very important one.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 5:54:46 PM

michelle said…

I agree-dates sure keep me going. Its funny how a few hours together help you through the week of craziness. Thanks for Sharing!
Thursday, January 14, 2010 9:20:27 AM