5 Things I'm Grateful for Right Now 

1. The Stock Show

Every year we wrangle the family together and attend the National Western Stock Show.

Usually we get tickets to the rodeo, but this year we tried to scale back on expenses and just went for general admission.  We talked another family in our ward, the Olsens, into joining us for Family Home Evening at the Stock Show on Monday night.  I didn't really warn them (they are greenies and have never been) that they needed to dress warm and prepare themselves to smell all manner of unpleasant smells.  In spite of all that, I think we all had fun.  Lots of petting zoos and agricultural displays.  It is hard to get a good picture taken in a petting zoo.  These baby goats were the favorite.  At one point Tristan walked too close to a calf with a serious drooling problem and ended up getting slimed.  I'm gagging as I'm trying to clean out his hair with a wet wipe, but also laughing because it was dang funny.  Farm humor I guess.

2. Showers All By Myself:

I don't get to shower alone very often.  Usually there are three hot-water-demandin'-soap-in-the-eyes-whining-gimme-that-toy-that-I-didn't-want-till-you-had-it kids in there with me. But this morning I snuck away from the argument between the girls of whose bed Tristan got to be in while they read books and shut myself into a warm bathroom.  For Christmas Gram bought me some Goat Milk Soap.  It is heaven and it strongly reinforces my desire to be a goat farmer and spend my free time making goat cheese and goat milk soap.  I also had the chance to remove some old toe nail polish and trim my toe nails (while I can still reach them)!  You may not see the joy in all this, but believe you me I had a great morning with my mother-of-three version of a spa treatment.

3. Creativity Time

I recently learned that I need time each day to be creative.  Lately that has amounted to making homemade gifts, joining a card making club, baking, decorating, ect.  President Uchtdorf said,   "The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.  Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty....Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty..If you are a mother, you participate with God in His work of creation—not only by providing physical bodies for your children but also by teaching and nurturing them....As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you."

4. "Eat To Live" by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.  

On our drive home from WA Adam and I had some nice long talks.  He told me he outline some New Years Resolutions around the topics of Mental, Spiritual, and Physical.  Under the Physical he plans to train to ride the Leadville 100 this summer, a 100 mile mountain bike race at 10,000 feet and up.  This involves losing a bit of weight and he's following Dr. Fuhrman's plan.  It involves lots of fruits and vegetables and yummy bean concoctions (like homemade hummus).  Needless to say, we have lots of delicious, healthful food around and I'm so happy about it.

5.  LifeTime Fitness

Our Christmas gift this year was a family pass to LifeTime Fitness.  It is a Wal-Mart size gym they just built close-by and I can't stop raving about it's awesomeness.  The kid area is huge and really fun and the kids actually look forward to going there (and they can stay in there for up to two hours!).  There is every piece of equipment imaginable, plenty to keep from getting bored in the same-old-work-out-routine.  The pool (indoor and out) is super duper.  Etc. etc.  I'm planning on going tonight while Adam is at Young Men's so that the kids can play and I can climb the crazy-fun stair machine.