Choosing names has always been very difficult for my husband and me. So, 8 years ago, when we both liked the name Clara, we decided that would be our baby's name if she was a girl. We didn't find out the gender ahead of time. We were living in Holladay, Utah, in the very same ward that Judd's grandparents used to live in, and there is a picture in the primary room with a plaque honoring his Grandmother- Lucille Pitts. So, we thought it fitting, since we were having this baby in that ward, to use the middle name Lucille. When she came out a girl, we named her Clara Lucille. We didn't know what the names meant before we selected them, but that's important to me, so I looked it up. Clara Lucille means "Bright, Bringer of Light". For anyone who knows Clara, you know that this meaning fits her perfectly. The beautiful combination of those two names is like a little whispering from God to me saying, "Here is a special child. And I'm loaning her to you. Let her light shine!"
Clara can be a difficult child- impulsive, loud, active, wild. I thought she was going to kill me between the ages of 2 and 4. My journal is full of entries about her coating her baby sister with various substances like toothpaste, pudding, desitin, or markers. She was just really hard. I remember nearly having a nervous breakdown when the nursery leader's husband brought her to me 30 seconds after I dropped her off, telling me she had just bitten his wife and she was kicked out. And I marched her back down and stayed with her the whole time, because, it's just not okay to kick a kid out of nursery. Then the next week that leader asked me to substitute in nursery. Well, she asked me by voice mail. I didn't return her call because I was at my limit with my little spit fire. I never got a break from her. NEVER! We couldn't afford a babysitter. She was too young for preschool. I had a baby when Clara was 23 months old and I was really tired. My oldest child was 8, and I had 5 kids. It was a hard time as a mother. Really hard.
Clara did calm down, somewhat. But, nothing can quench her spirit. That kid practically glows. She's hilarious. She once made a dollar picking the neighbor's flowers and then going down the street selling them to those same neighbors.
She knows EVERYBODY on our street, young and old, and it's mostly people a lot older than her. She invites 50 year old neighbors to her birthday party, makes them presents for their birthdays, and visits them constantly.
Clara marches to the beat of an unseen drummer. Sometimes I think it's a very slow drummer. She doesn't know what it means to hurry, at least not when she's getting ready for school.
But, if she sees a neighbor out for a walk, she blasts out the front door to hug them and visit. It doesn't matter who it is. She's just always been that way.
She really is a bright little bringer of light. It's who she is.
And today she will be baptized and officially become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
My half joke about Clara has always been that she will be a powerful force in this world, for good or evil, depending on which she chooses. But, I'm only half joking. I'm joking about the evil part. I know she will choose good. She has too much light in her to do anything else. She is amazing. If you know her, you know exactly what I'm talking about. It's kind of hard to describe. You really need to spend time with her. You need to see her in action. Like yesterday at the park, she spent the better part of an hour visiting with some kid's Grandma. Last year she sewed a little basket as a going away present for her bus driver. When she got an American Girl doll for her 8th birthday she walked around in a daze for two days, proclaiming over and over, "I know I'm dreaming. This can't be real. Am I dreaming?"
Clara is hilarious. She is unique. She is loving and more than anything, she is intense in her bright love for others, bringing the Light of Christ into every interaction. There are no strangers to Clara because they always become her friend. She loves everyone.
I feel so lucky to be her Mom and to get to share this special day with my Clara Lucille.
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Would You Like Some Super Glue?
The other day I took my kids to Hollywood Connection to take advantage, yet again, of our Passes of All Passes. Those things have been awesome! Anyway, I didn't have my husband with me, so I had to stay with the 3 year old and had some time to sit around on my pockets while she played in the indoor play structure. I didn't have a book with me, so I had the chance to observe the people around me.
I like watching people.
I know, that's kind of creepy.
So, I noticed that a TON of people were glued to their cell phones. GLUED!
I actually took notes.
4 out of 6 parents on the Merry-Go-Round were playing on their phone instead of enjoying the ride or even paying attention to their small child.
Roughly 50% of the people who walked by had a phone in their hand.
75% of the parents in the playland were glued to their screen. I was the 25%. I was glued to staring at them while they spoke to their kids without even looking up.
We could really save some muscles just by super gluing everybody's phone to his/her hand. Even when they weren't using them, people had their phones in their hands. Um, are we afraid of looking fat from phone bulge in our pockets?
I don't know.
What I do know is that I am sometimes guilty of this too, although not usually with my phone. My phone doesn't have internet or any games.
But, my Kindle Fire can be just as distracting. It's easy to be stupid while using electronics. The computer lures me away too. Sometimes I wonder if my kids will remember all of my parenting happening from the computer chair. I hope not.
Hey, I don't have a problem with a parent playing games or facebooking while the children climb on the slides, but doing it on the merry go round seemed a little extreme.
Maybe these devices are already superglued?
Maybe people feel naked without them?
Maybe we don't even need buildings to go to to entertain ourselves if we can be completely satisfied with a little magical black box. We can just interact with other people who aren't really with us, and ignore the really short ones that live in our houses.
Hmm. Maybe that is a bad plan.
It was scary, you guys. I know how easy it would be for me to become one of those parents. I've been known to have my nose in a book and not even hear what my daughter was asking me.
We need to run screaming away from these phones! Put them down! Put them in a purse, or in your pocket, or leave it in your car, and pay attention to the people that you are hanging out with. Okay, I'm almost done with my lecture.
We already have people walking around looking like the Borg with Bluetooth ear attachments, apparently talking to someone, but looking like a nutcase. Will we get our phone screens implanted on the backs of our hands next? I'm sorry. It's just creepy. It's a lot creepier than me watching the people with their eyes glued to their phones instead of watching the joy on the face of their little one.
Okay, I'm getting off this computer right now to go pay attention to my kids.
I like watching people.
I know, that's kind of creepy.
So, I noticed that a TON of people were glued to their cell phones. GLUED!
I actually took notes.
4 out of 6 parents on the Merry-Go-Round were playing on their phone instead of enjoying the ride or even paying attention to their small child.
Roughly 50% of the people who walked by had a phone in their hand.
75% of the parents in the playland were glued to their screen. I was the 25%. I was glued to staring at them while they spoke to their kids without even looking up.
We could really save some muscles just by super gluing everybody's phone to his/her hand. Even when they weren't using them, people had their phones in their hands. Um, are we afraid of looking fat from phone bulge in our pockets?
I don't know.
What I do know is that I am sometimes guilty of this too, although not usually with my phone. My phone doesn't have internet or any games.
But, my Kindle Fire can be just as distracting. It's easy to be stupid while using electronics. The computer lures me away too. Sometimes I wonder if my kids will remember all of my parenting happening from the computer chair. I hope not.
Hey, I don't have a problem with a parent playing games or facebooking while the children climb on the slides, but doing it on the merry go round seemed a little extreme.
Maybe these devices are already superglued?
Maybe people feel naked without them?
Maybe we don't even need buildings to go to to entertain ourselves if we can be completely satisfied with a little magical black box. We can just interact with other people who aren't really with us, and ignore the really short ones that live in our houses.
Hmm. Maybe that is a bad plan.
It was scary, you guys. I know how easy it would be for me to become one of those parents. I've been known to have my nose in a book and not even hear what my daughter was asking me.
We need to run screaming away from these phones! Put them down! Put them in a purse, or in your pocket, or leave it in your car, and pay attention to the people that you are hanging out with. Okay, I'm almost done with my lecture.
We already have people walking around looking like the Borg with Bluetooth ear attachments, apparently talking to someone, but looking like a nutcase. Will we get our phone screens implanted on the backs of our hands next? I'm sorry. It's just creepy. It's a lot creepier than me watching the people with their eyes glued to their phones instead of watching the joy on the face of their little one.
Okay, I'm getting off this computer right now to go pay attention to my kids.
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Math, my Precious!
I need to tell this story and you need to hear it! Well, you need to hear it if you like math, and justice, and the consumer winning in the end. I really tried to make this a facebook post, but there is just too much inside of me bursting to get out, so I had to blog. I love this blog!
Okay, so if you like math, keep reading. This is going to involve addition, subtraction, percentages, and frustration.
I went to Joann's today to get some "needed" supplies for Amy's massive 3D art Reflections creation. I can't tell you what it is yet in case your child reads this and copies her idea and they end up competing against each other later. Yes, I am psycho. Amy ran out of white Sculpey clay and our craft paint was running low.
We had a coupon for 20% off our entire purchase, including sale items. Sculpey was 50% off. JACKPOT! Alright, I'm a little bit obsessed with Sculpey, but it's FREAKING AWESOME. Okay? Okay. Back to my story.
I picked up 6 blocks of 2 ounce Sculpey, regular price $2.29 on sale for $1.14. I also grabbed a one pound brick of white, regular price $16.99, on sale for $8.49. And I was going to get 20% extra off of these prices. I know, it's so awesome!
Next we headed over to Clearance and found a down alternative comforter for Amy for $14.97. We didn't need it, but she convinced me she would suffer hypothermia without it.
We grabbed 7 pieces of 34 cent felt for a special project and headed over to the paint.
The craft paint came in 2 oz. bottles for $.69 or 8 oz. bottles for $2.49. Now, if you are still reading this, you like math, and you know that it was a better deal to buy the larger paint. What you didn't know is that our craft paint supply has dwindled into a pathetic stash of gloppy gloop. We needed to completely restock. So, I got red, yellow, blue, orange, green, gold, black, white, purple, pink, silver, and brown in the 8 oz size and a couple extra smaller shades of green.
I knew this would all be expensive, but remember the 20% extra off. So, it shouldn't have been at all like my typical $100 Walmart grocery trips. Yes, I shop at Walmart. Judge me when you are a stay at home Mom with 6 kids and a high mortgage.
I went the the checkout. The bill went up and up and up, all the way up to $100! What? "Oh, crud!" I thought, "I didn't mean to spend that much on craft supplies." But, it went down to $80 with the coupon and then Amy paid for $7 worth with a gift card. So, I got away with paying $74.
Something still didn't feel right.
I looked at my receipt and noticed that I got charged twice for the one pound Sculpey. I told the cashier and she said she would fix it when she finished with the next customer. While I waited, I noticed that the black and yellow paint containers both rang up at $4.99. Woa Nelly! Somebody stop these runaway money horses!
I told the cashier and she took off the extra Sculpey and the black and yellow paint. The black price was correct because I had accidentally picked up glossy, so I just returned it. Apparently, it costs twice as much to be shiny. The yellow paint was ringing up incorrectly since it wasn't glossy. She said she would fix it. She told me a number, which seemed too low, but I was so dang confused at this point that I just said okay. I sent Amy to grab some small black paint and I repurchased the yellow with the black, paid a few bucks and left.
We drove home. My brain started turning.
FLIBBERTYGIBBIT!
I had been overcharged for the one pound brick of Sculpey. It didn't ring up at 50% off! And I didn't notice until I was on my way home. So, I came home and studied my receipt. That's when I noticed that, while the cashier took the black paint back, she didn't give me my money back for it.
GRRRR!
Okay, so the first time I got money back it was $18.80.
I went back to the store tonight and told the whole long confusing story. Thankfully, with my 3,245 receipts, or maybe just 3 receipts, the lady believed me. She credited me for the black paint and for the discount that should have come off of the Sculpey. I was refunded an additional $11.52 and I came home victorious!
In total, I was overcharged $30.32, which is a heck of a lot of money for a $74.10 bill.
The morals of the story are:
1. Always,.always, always, check you receipts!
2. Don't be fooled by your children proclaiming that they won't use Math as grownups. If they don't use it, it's going to cost them.
3. Be nice and be smart, and you can usually get what you deserve.
Okay, so if you like math, keep reading. This is going to involve addition, subtraction, percentages, and frustration.
I went to Joann's today to get some "needed" supplies for Amy's massive 3D art Reflections creation. I can't tell you what it is yet in case your child reads this and copies her idea and they end up competing against each other later. Yes, I am psycho. Amy ran out of white Sculpey clay and our craft paint was running low.
We had a coupon for 20% off our entire purchase, including sale items. Sculpey was 50% off. JACKPOT! Alright, I'm a little bit obsessed with Sculpey, but it's FREAKING AWESOME. Okay? Okay. Back to my story.
I picked up 6 blocks of 2 ounce Sculpey, regular price $2.29 on sale for $1.14. I also grabbed a one pound brick of white, regular price $16.99, on sale for $8.49. And I was going to get 20% extra off of these prices. I know, it's so awesome!
Next we headed over to Clearance and found a down alternative comforter for Amy for $14.97. We didn't need it, but she convinced me she would suffer hypothermia without it.
We grabbed 7 pieces of 34 cent felt for a special project and headed over to the paint.
The craft paint came in 2 oz. bottles for $.69 or 8 oz. bottles for $2.49. Now, if you are still reading this, you like math, and you know that it was a better deal to buy the larger paint. What you didn't know is that our craft paint supply has dwindled into a pathetic stash of gloppy gloop. We needed to completely restock. So, I got red, yellow, blue, orange, green, gold, black, white, purple, pink, silver, and brown in the 8 oz size and a couple extra smaller shades of green.
I knew this would all be expensive, but remember the 20% extra off. So, it shouldn't have been at all like my typical $100 Walmart grocery trips. Yes, I shop at Walmart. Judge me when you are a stay at home Mom with 6 kids and a high mortgage.
I went the the checkout. The bill went up and up and up, all the way up to $100! What? "Oh, crud!" I thought, "I didn't mean to spend that much on craft supplies." But, it went down to $80 with the coupon and then Amy paid for $7 worth with a gift card. So, I got away with paying $74.
Something still didn't feel right.
I looked at my receipt and noticed that I got charged twice for the one pound Sculpey. I told the cashier and she said she would fix it when she finished with the next customer. While I waited, I noticed that the black and yellow paint containers both rang up at $4.99. Woa Nelly! Somebody stop these runaway money horses!
I told the cashier and she took off the extra Sculpey and the black and yellow paint. The black price was correct because I had accidentally picked up glossy, so I just returned it. Apparently, it costs twice as much to be shiny. The yellow paint was ringing up incorrectly since it wasn't glossy. She said she would fix it. She told me a number, which seemed too low, but I was so dang confused at this point that I just said okay. I sent Amy to grab some small black paint and I repurchased the yellow with the black, paid a few bucks and left.
We drove home. My brain started turning.
FLIBBERTYGIBBIT!
I had been overcharged for the one pound brick of Sculpey. It didn't ring up at 50% off! And I didn't notice until I was on my way home. So, I came home and studied my receipt. That's when I noticed that, while the cashier took the black paint back, she didn't give me my money back for it.
GRRRR!
Okay, so the first time I got money back it was $18.80.
I went back to the store tonight and told the whole long confusing story. Thankfully, with my 3,245 receipts, or maybe just 3 receipts, the lady believed me. She credited me for the black paint and for the discount that should have come off of the Sculpey. I was refunded an additional $11.52 and I came home victorious!
In total, I was overcharged $30.32, which is a heck of a lot of money for a $74.10 bill.
The morals of the story are:
1. Always,.always, always, check you receipts!
2. Don't be fooled by your children proclaiming that they won't use Math as grownups. If they don't use it, it's going to cost them.
3. Be nice and be smart, and you can usually get what you deserve.
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