Be a good human

Saw this on Facebook this past week.  I love it!  Be a good human!

4th Grade Clubs

Wade is a good kid. 

Before I report on birthday celebrating, I have to share something that Wade experienced this week.  Some of his friends got together and created a "Little People" club at recess, where you have a name and an "issue."  I think Wade was "Small Man" and he had "anger management issues."  There was Mini Man and Tiny Man, etc. (4th graders are smart.)  The club was going to meet a couple times a week at recess to discuss their little people.  I told Wade that it sounded fun but that he needed to be inclusive, not exclusive. 

Sure enough, the next day a kid (a really fun, nice kid) wanted in the club and was turned down by another of Wade's friends.  Feelings got hurt and Wade was a little worried about it and confused.  We talked about it a lot, practiced "what to say," and after pounding it into Wade, I finally gave it a rest.

The next day Wade reported that there was a new club, a Marvel Super Heroes Club.  He was Peter Parker, and some of his friends were The Hulk, Wolverine, Iron Man, and Captain America.  The boy who'd been turned down before was now part of the club.  I asked, "So, who started it?  Who's the president?"  Wade said he was!   I told him I was proud of him and reminded him to be inclusive, asking him what the plan was once they ran out of Marvel Super Heroes, plan for female club members, etc.

 

Ah, fourth graders are fun!

Dare to Stand Alone

Tomorrow I'm teaching a lesson to the young women about choices, and why they matter. I found this wonderful video and had to share!

Sometimes Facebook can be more than just a time-waster

 

 

 

I'm pretty excited!  Yes, my grumpy attitude from this morning has vanished and I'm kickin' things into high gear.  I've had an item on my "to-do" list for way too long and finally got it done today with the help of this deal:

 

http://hip2save.com/2013/01/17/shutterfly-free-12-month-calendar-facebook/

Recently I'd made a crack about using coupons on Facebook and received quite a few helpful hints from friends about saving money and looking for deals.  My friend Sandi told me about a website called "Hip 2 Save," so I checked it out and was super excited to find this deal for a free photo calendar through Shutterfly.  All I had to pay was shipping, so instead of paying upwards of $30 on one calendar, I only paid $6.17.

Unfortunately, the time has passed to claim the code, but you might keep Hip 2 Save on your radar for other good deals!

Thank you, Hip 2 Save!  Thank you, Sandi!  Thank you, Facebook! :)

Kind words

It's been a busy weekend for me. 

Friday morning we did our big summer Primary water games activity.  (I didn't do a headcount, but there were a lot of kids running around! :))

Saturday morning I helped host a very large baby shower here at our home.  (I didn't do too much for it, but I did have to get the house ready, decorate, etc.) 

This morning I baked up some cookies for Primary kids who had memorized all the Articles of Faith, prepared a pasta dish for a ward potluck after church, and whipped up my Sharing Time lesson on making good media choices. 

My brain is going a million miles an hour thinking about school starting up again, Primary stuff, friends moving, and the ward talent show coming up in a couple weeks that I volunteered to put together.

To top it all off, I slept HORRIBLY last night and had a really bad dream about a Primary Sunday gone terribly, terribly wrong.  I can laugh about it now, but it was a very vivid dream of awkwardness, irreverence, and absolute craziness!

Imagine my surprise and delight when I opened my email this morning and found a sweet note from my new Primary counselor, noticing all the things I was involved in with the ward and elsewhere and thanking me for it. 

Boy, did it hit the spot.  Most days I'd like to think I "go about doing good" just for the heck of it, but it sure felt amazing to be thanked for it, too.  Thank you, dear friend, for making my day!

Never underestimate the power of kind words!

I think I'm going to have to try this...

You know, I'm the first to admit that inventions like Facebook can be huge time-wasters.  I get on anyways, and sometimes friends post fabulous things like this video.  Check it out!

a)  I'm going to have to try this now.

b)  I think I've got a little crush on Ken, too.

Courage

I've seen this picture floating around on Facebook the last couple days and absolutely love it.  Good stuff!

"Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow." ~Mary Anne Radmacher

Article by President Thomas S Monson:  Living the Abundant Life

Anyway

Inspiration for the day:



The Paradoxical Commandments

by Dr. Kent M. Keith


People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.

Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.

Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.

Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.

Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.

Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.

Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.

Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.

Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.

Give the world the best you have anyway.



© Copyright Kent M. Keith 1968, renewed 2001

2 for 2

We took the Abs Diet Cookbook for a spin yesterday--Jason and I loved both the Three Amigos Chili and the Philling Cheesesteak. They were quick, tasty, healthy, had simple ingredients, and were LOADED with protein. Had to share!

Three Amigos Chili

1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 lb ground turkey (I try to get the 93/7 type)
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with jalapenos
1 (10.5 oz) can chickpeas/garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 (10.5 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (10.5 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14 oz) can low-sodium chicken broth (I didn't have this, so I substituted with a cup of water and 1 chicken bouillion cube)
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/8 t. ground cinnamon
Hot sauce

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion and cook until soft, about 3-5 minutes. Add turkey and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, beans, broth, and spices. Stir and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with hot sauce.

Makes 6 servings.

Per serving: 293 calories, 31 g protein, 32 g carbs, 5 g fat, 788 mg sodium, 11 g fiber

(I thought I'd add that our kids really don't care for chili, but Rhiannon said this version was better than all the other ones I'd made. Yes, we still made them eat it. :))


Philling Cheesesteak, Take 2

1 onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
2/3 c. hot salsa
4 whole grain hoagie rolls
3/4 lb thinly sliced roast beef
1/2 c. shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese (I just used the Monterrey Jack that we had in the fridge)
(I added 2-3 fresh mushrooms, sliced, to the mix, too)

Cook onion, bell peppers (and mushrooms) in a nonstick skillet until tender. Add salsa and heat until warm. Construct sandwiches with the roast beef, veggies, and cheese. Warm in microwave for 1-2 minutes or until cheese starts to melt.

Makes 4.

Per serving: 330 calories, 28 g protein, 41 g carbs, 7 g fat, 1,050 mg sodium, 7 g fiber

I made these for lunch, and we didn't miss the Cheez Whiz--that's saying something! :)

It feels good to get this done

Cushing Family Adventures by Rhiannon (5th grade) and Wade (1st grade) on the 1st day of school, 8/24/10 | Make Your Own Book

One of my 2012 goals is complete! I finally completed the Volume 2 blog book, covering our lives from August 2009, when we got back from DC, to December 2010. It's ordered and should arrive in a couple weeks. Right now I'm working on the year 2011, and then 2012. It should get a lot easier to keep up once I've finished 2011. Enjoy the preview!

Feel-good story for the week

I will begin this post by saying that I do NOT have a crush on Tim Tebow.  I'm so over football player crushes. :)  But I sure appreciate Tim's example...

Read THIS to learn more:

http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/id/7455943/believing-tim-tebow

Feeling Great in Eight

I signed up for something interesting tonight called the Feeling Great in Eight program.  If nothing else, it will help me get to know some new people here in our stake, and maybe, just maybe lose a little weight and practice some healthy habits!  I can do anything for 8 weeks, right?

Right now I'm the cheerleader for Team #3, meaning I'll collect everyone's points on my team each week and give the average to the woman "in charge."  There is no money involved, just good fun and a little competition.  We gain points for everything from healthy eating to exercising to doing daily prayer and scripture study.  The only way to lose points is if you eat bad foods. The winners will be treated like royalty at a party where we'll all come together to celebrate.  A stay at a contestant's condo in Vegas might be up for grabs, too!

I've never done anything like this before, especially in a competitive format.  I purposely volunteered to be one of the team leaders so that I could stay motivated!  Who knows, if it's fun I might try and set up a little friendly FAMILY competition, too!

Another reason why we love Ridgecrest

We recently started getting the local newspaper again.  It's not the greatest paper--the frequent spelling mistakes and typos really bug me sometimes.  But it's also full of treasures.  On the back page of today's edition a man had taken up a quarter section to thank those who had helped during his medical recovery.  I'm not sure if I know this man or not, but his gratitude sure made my day!

Fabulous

I was thinking of my nephew Sam this morning when I watched this video.  It was on a substitute teaching blog called "The Bus Stop" by Utah State University that I check frequently for feel-good stuff and good teaching ideas.  Enjoy!!!