How to make blogging easier:

I thought I would pass this little bit of info on for any of you who are feeling like your blogging is taking too much time like I was.  I opened a blog account over a year ago, but never did anything with it because it took so long to upload pictures.  Then I stumbled upon a free download from windows called Live Writer.  It has made blogging so much quicker and easier for me.  It takes a little getting used to, but the thing I like is that you can import your pictures quick, do all of your writing, and then just hit publish and walk away.  It automatically publishes your post to your blog and  you don't have to wait while it loads the 45 pictures  you took of your day on the ranch! :)  If any of you try it, let me know what you think of it.  And maybe there are some tools out there similar to Live Writer that are better (but they've got to be free)...clue me in if you already use a similar program.  I'd love your input.

Here's the link:  Windows Live Writer

I love this kid! (finally getting a gratitude post done Marcie!)

The saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder" is so true.  Even if it's just overnight.  Grandma Trish had Chase spend the night last night.  He hasn't been sleeping well since we changed his seizure medicine and an uninterrupted night of sleep was blissful for Spence and I. Chase has also been extremely jealous of the two home-schooling cousins who get to go to Grandma's house every Tues and Thurs for school.  He cried and cried yesterday when we dropped Hayes off at Grandma's and then proceeded on to the school to drop him off.  "Gram, gram" he cried over and over.  So it was perfect timing when Trish called to have him come over. 

When she brought him back this morning, he looked so cute in his little sweatsuit that I just had to grab the camera for a few shots.

  

 

He found a dead bird on the lawn (thank you cats) and was showing it to me.  He's telling me about its beak.

He still BARELY fits on the big wheel.  He's saying vroom vroom.

Today I'm grateful for my boy Chase.

Spence and his boys when we lived at Campus Heights at NAU. Now THAT was an experience!  Talk about NO sleep. I think all of these old pictures were taken in Flagstaff when Chase was about 6-8 months old. We used to call him Yoda because of his ears.  Affectionately of course. :)

 

 

When Chase was about three months old, we started noticing these little funny jerks he'd do with his arms.  His eyes would also flick up to the sky and then back down...so quickly that you might not even notice.  But Spence and I thought it was strange, so we took him into the doctor.  They at first dismissed us, saying it was just reflexes, but as they continued and started developing into more significant "jerks" of his limbs, we got a referral to a neurologist and took him in for testing.  I found this journal entry the other day when I was cleaning out some papers.  I can't even remember writing it.

"On Friday (4/25/09) we took Chase to Dr. Kaplan, the head of Pediatric Neurology at Phoenix Christians.  He diagnosed him with benign myoclonic/akinetic seizures.  He had an EEG that same day and the results came back normal.  Thank goodness!  Dr. Kaplan thinks Chase will grow out of his little seizures within the next few months.  I'm keeping a journal for the next few weeks to keep track of their frequency and then we'll discuss if we should put Chase on medication or not.  We feel very blessed that he is going to be fine"

It kind of makes me sad to read, but he is ours and we love him.  Do I wish the seizures had gone away and everything would have turned out "fine"?? Of course. I wish he didn't have to struggle.  I wish he could walk and talk like a normal 6-year-old. But this is the life we've been dealt and I really do believe we are blessed in our trials.  You know how you always wish your kids wouldn't grow up so fast.  I've felt lucky with Chase because he hasn't.  I got to have a baby longer and a toddler longer.  He is still a cuddly little boy who shares his love more freely than most six-year-olds. I feel lucky to have that.  There are more blessings that I can name that have come to our family because of Chase. 

Since I started writing "our story", I've thought a lot about how when you're young, you never even consider the possibility that your kids might have problems or the trials that your life may hold for you.  I have a picture on my fridge from Jeanie Mangum's funeral that captures the feeling of what I'm talking about:

(Lon and Jeanie Mangum)

They look so young and innocent and full of promise, with no idea the struggles they will have to endure. I know that with Aaron's disabilities and Jeanie's health problems, as they got older, it took its toll.  My heart goes out to their family and especially to Lon who has cared for both of them for years.  He has truly endured his trials well.

I don't know how I will be when I get old (I may end up with a bad attitude:), but I hope that I can continue to find joy in the journey and appreciate all of moments that make up a life well-lived.  I am grateful for my family.

Some things about Chase:

1. He is full of it.  Full of life and fun.  A true ham and a tease.

2.  He loves strongly and shows affection freely.

3.  He is innocent and pure.

4. He loves to make messes.  I would almost say he finds joy in messes.

5.  He loves eggs, broccoli, and milk. He eats all day long.

6.  He loves his brother Hayes. He calls him Hay-dee.

7.  He's stubborn.  There is no bribe in the world that will work if Chase really doesn't want to do something.

8.  His smile can light up a room. He can take more tickling than any other kid I've ever known. He always asks for more.

9.  He has the best eyelashes around.

10.  He loves animals, but has no grasp of the concept "gentle".  His puppy still loves him even though he chokes her constantly.

11.  He loves to wrestle and rough-house.  He's dangerous with a sword.

12.  He is a cartoon junkie.  Sponge Bob was his favorite for a long time, but he's hooked on Barney now...thank goodness.

13.  He loves holiday decorations....especially Halloween, but I was surprised to see that he is enjoying the Thanksgiving decorations just as much.

14.  He wants everything he sees in a store, but rarely plays with toys....other than swords.

15.  He loves to watch America's Funniest Home Videos, especially the ones involving animals.

16.  He loves his Grandmas and Papas.  He loves his Uncle Trey more than just about anyone.

17.  He loves bathroom humor.  All you have to do is say toot or burp and he cracks up.

18.  He loves the outdoors.  He loves to go down to the barn or out on the ranch.

19.  He makes us smile.

What's Your Favorite Pie Recipe?

With Thanksgiving closing in, I've been thinking a lot about pie.  I have my definite favorite pie, and thought it would be fun to pie recipe swap.  I'm counting on all of you!  So here's mine and I'm hoping you'll all find the time to post yours so that I can try some new ones this year. 

I put this recipe in the St. Johns Stake Cookbook, but forgot to mention that I use bottled lemon for the 1/2 cup and then use the actual lemon rind to "kick it up a notch" as Emeril would say!

Sour Cream Lemon Pie

I love this pie because it is tart and creamy.

1 c sugar
1 c milk
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (I use Real Lemon from the bottle)
3 ½ Tbs. cornstarch
1 Tbs. grated lemon peel

Mix the above ingredients together in a medium sized saucepan (a heavy non-stick pan with a thick bottom works best)  Cook over medium heat (stirring so that it doesn’t  burn on the bottom) until it boils.  Boil for 1 minute and remove from the heat.

¼ c butter

Stir in the butter until it melts. Let the mixture cool a little and then fold in:

1 c sour cream

Pour filling into a baked, deep-dish pie crust and refrigerate 4 hours. 
Garnish with whipped cream candied lemon peel strips if you want to get fancy….I never do.

So share the love and post your favorite pie recipe...or send it to me and I'll post it here!

My pie crust recipe makes more than enough dough for two pies, so Chase went to town on the extra dough.  He rolled out dough for at least 30 minutes without stopping.

He worked and worked...notice the tongue. Flour and dough were a-flyin'.

And he giggled and squealed and thoroughly had a ball.

I better teach this boy to cook!

But with joy, wend your way

I forgot that I had wanted to post something President Monson said in his conference talk that had really stayed with me.  Then at YW's training meeting Tuesday night, Laurette gave us a copy of the talk as one of the handouts.  It was his talk, "Finding Joy in the Journey".  I enjoyed the whole talk, but towards the end he said, "I pray that all of us will REFLECT GRATITUDE."  He didn't just say, have gratitude.  I think reflecting gratitude is a whole bigger idea. To me it means it isn't enough to be grateful (although this is a big step), but we need to manifest it in our attitudes and relationships.  I thought this was a great concept.

Then on another handout she gave, Elaine Dalton quoted the words from the hymn, Come, Come Ye Saints.

Come, come ye Saints,

No toil nor labor fear;

But with joy wend you way.

Though I've sung this song a hundred times, these words really jumped out at me:

But with joy, wend your way!

So I'm going to work on really reflecting the gratitude I feel, by wending my way with joy.  I'm big on mind over matter; I really do think we can decide to be happy. It looks like it's time to repaint the sign above my oven.  (I have changed it a couple of times when I find a quote or saying or scripture that really hits home with me and is something that I'd like to work on)....or, I may just print it on a white sheet of paper and put it on the fridge...this one is more likely, due to the unlikeliness (I realize this is not really a word) of me actually getting around to repainting the sign. :) :) :)

OuR StoRy---in the beginning part ii

Little did my mind think of how saying no to Steven and yes to Spence would make Steven feel.  But I must have realized that I didn't even know what going out entailed, because I called Steven the next day and told him to tell Spence that my mom said I couldn't go out with him either.  Again, not true, but seemed like a good excuse.  No wonder men can't seem to figure out women...it starts at an early age! :)

I didn't encounter Spence again for a few years.  He was home-schooled at the time and didn't come back to public school until our eighth-grade year.  As we entered high school, I had a Spanish class with him.  I remember him teasing Senora Udall and getting in trouble for goofing off.  He wasn't paying attention one day when she called on him to translate.  It was something about "me llamo" and "rubio" and Spence make up some silly sentence about a dirty llama and a rude Spaniard that had the whole class rolling. 

Another memory I have of Spence is when he was a junior and tried to run for student body president.  The administration wouldn't let him because he had been suspended for fighting during the year.  His best friend Troy was up on stage and suddenly turned the time over to Spence who had been hiding in back of the stage.  Spence walked out and said into the microphone, "The administration can go to hell!" and jumped off the stage. Whoa!  If I had known him and his family better back then, I would have recognized him as his father's son. :) I noticed that he went and sat by his girlfriend and held her hand...I admit that I felt a twinge of jealousy even though I had my own boyfriend at the time. (By the way, I'm sure he would have won the election and probably still got more write-in votes than anyone)

I don't know if Spence has any memories of me.  I wasn't quite as outgoing as he was.  I remember when he started liking me.  He would come up to me at school and say the most obscure things to me. It seemed like to me he was always talking in riddles.  He was really good with words and I could never read him very well.  It made me uncomfortable because I thought he was trying to tease me. He probably just had a much better vocabulary than me. (all that home-schooling:)

He started ditching weight training second hour to hang out with me in Sylvia's room. (I was her aide) I started giving him rides home from school since he was always in trouble and couldn't drive their car. I still wasn't sure about him with all of his crazy talk and cockiness.  Then one day he invited me to his house to hear him play his guitar. (smooth move Spence...I wonder how many other girls he used that one on?) But it wasn't the guitar that got me.  It was how nice and laid back he was at home.  It was also the nice way he treated and interacted with his mom.  Looking back, that was a really good indicator.  Spence is always very respectful of women and family is very important to him. 

Needless to say, between the guy he was at home and his tight, white Guess jeans, I was hooked.  They really weren't tight, I just added that in. :)

To be continued...

I had to scan some old pictures from high school. Pretty funny!                                             

            

Something happened when I scanned Spence's picture and his left eye now looks like  he's wearing blue eye shadow...oops.

        

above left: top row- melissa west, jaime mineer and doug chlarson bottom row- troy adair, spence, and me (notice that Spence is wearing those white Guess jeans paired with Redwing boots.  I on the other hand am sporting purple leggings with socks and sandals...gotta love the 90's!)

above right:  top row- jon romero and pami christian; next row- craig kennedy and tana udall; next- spence and courtney grant; bottom row- carrol lambson and me

    

 

Tell me What you Think

You may have noticed that I write my blog list of friends and family with both the husbands and wives and their last names.  I also include the wife's maiden name if she came from St. Johns or if I know her by that name. I just like to know who is who and it's easier to find people I know that way.

I need to know if this bothers anyone.  I started my blog with nicknames and trying to keep everything really private, but gave it up quickly.  But I totally understand if anyone doesn't want me to post their real names or last names or maiden names.  So if you have a preference, please leave me a comment and let me know.  If a lot of people don't want me to use their full names, I'll change up the format.  Thanks, Kellie (Jackson) Platt

Income Redistribution

I'm probably going to offend some people with this one, but it cracked me up.

Also, something I just found out this year.  I had always heard growing up that you had to register Democrat to vote in the primaries around here (Apache County), or at least to vote on most of the races. I think I even skipped a few primary elections because I thought I couldn't vote being registered an independent.  Well I found out that independents can vote, they just ask for the democrat or republican ballot when they get to the polling place.  Just FYI.

Obama says he will bankrupt the coal industry

I thought this might be an interesting video for the people of St. Johns to watch since so many are employed by SRP and TEP.  I was skeptical when I saw the headline, but if you watch this video through to the end, he lays out his "cap and trade" plan to tax and regulate the coal  industry until they are bankrupt. He actually says that , "if someone wants to build a coal-powered power plant, they can, it's just that it will bankrupt them because they're going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that's being emitted."