Thursday, March 18, 2010

Completely Plagiarized Blog

Earlier this week, I got to go on a road trip with my cute niece Jessica to visit my mom in southern Utah as well as do a little business. As is common, I forgot my camera. That was sad 'cause she brought along one very, very cute baby! And, I did a rare craft project then had no way to show it off. Fortunately, Jessica had hers. When she posted her cute blog entry, there was no question about whether or not I should just cut and paste it. Hope you don't mind, Jessica! (Besides, isn't copying a form of flattery???)

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

A trip to see G & G Witzke....

\
This week, James, and I ventured down to Southern Utah to visit his great grandparents in their new Casa.
We went on a little shopping spree for a few decorating odds and ends. James probably thinks his second home is the Home Depot. He has spent more time there than in his nursery:) We took a little Applebee's break to get refueled before we braved the feisty crafters at Robert's.

We decided to do a little DIY project for a blank wall in her sewing room. This was the inspiration for our artwork.

We applied scrapbook paper (.60 cents) to craft board ($4 each) with a little Mod Podge.
Cost: about $20.00!

Voila, the finished product.
(P.S. Thanks for teaching me to Mod Podge Aunt Cheryl..you have fulfilled a dream of mine;)

James decked out in a teddy bear ensemble my grandparents gave him.
It was so good to see you Grandma and Grandpa Witzke, we love your new pad! Love you lots!
XOXO,
Jessica and James.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Mature Young Men

I saw an interesting demonstration today on how young men develop. It was a function of our Sacrament meeting at church today.

[Allow me to interrupt for a moment and provide some quick lessons on LDS meetings and practices for my blog readers who are not familiar with them. #1 The Sacrament is administered by teenage young men. The 14/15 year olds prepare it before church, the 16-18 year olds administer the prayers to bless the bread and water, and the 12/13 year olds pass it to the congregation. #2 In lieu of a preacher who delivers a sermon each week, the speakers for each Sunday meeting are members of the congregation. #3 Many young men choose to serve a volunteer mission for the church at the age of 19. They serve in some location away from home and family for a total of 2 years which means they return at the age of 21.]

We had an unusually large congregation at church today. One of the speakers was a young man who's leaving this week to serve a Spanish-speaking mission in Portland. Another speaker was a young man who just returned this last week from a mission in California. They both had a ton of family and friends in attendance. The number of people attending was 1 1/2 to 2 times what we normally see.

It was interesting to sit back and watch the young 12/13 year old boys passing the sacrament. They were clearly facing an unusual situation. They handled it beautifully. There were no adults telling them what to do, they were well prepared, and they managed the large crowds very well. I couldn't help but think how neat it was to see these boys showing leadership and maturity when so often we simply don't expect that kind of maturity from 12 year olds.

The first speaker today was a 15 year old boy who spoke about the importance to each of us to read and study the scriptures. He did an impressive job at public speaking (before a large crowd), and he had solid, interesting information to present. Again, it's not exactly what the rest of the world sees in 15 year olds.

The next speaker was the 19 year old leaving on a mission. He was a little awkward at times, but he was very sincere. He joked a little with his friends who were there to support him. He taught some doctrine by making a reference to a scene from the movie 'Avatar.' But he spoke of his excitement to go help other people for the next 2 years. What an awesome commitment from a 19 year old. I know that's not what many boys his age are thinking of.

The final speaker was the 21 year old young man who just returned from a mission. He was articulate and he spoke with conviction. With all due respect to the 19 year old who had just spoken, he showed how much growth he had experienced in the last 2 years. And he still had all his friends there waiting to welcome him home. They hadn't all gone off and left him while he was gone. He was happy he'd gone and happy to be home.

Essentially, in one hour's time, I was able to see the life cycle of an LDS teenage boy. It was so fun to see. There was a huge difference between the 12 year olds and the 21 year old. And you could see the landmarks with each boy of a different age. But each age group had their strengths, and they showed how much young people are capable of if we just believe in them and give them a chance. When we expect that they can take on responsibilities and that they can be leaders, they respond to that. I see it in those I don't know as well, and I see it in my own son. And yet, they all bring their own age-appropriate awkwardness, quirkiness, and fun to what they are doing as well. It was good to see it all around.

Thanks, boys, for showing me such an awesome display today!

Sunday, March 14, 2010

This year's wedding cake

Again, my blog is the site for showing the most recent wedding cake. This one was a fairly simple one with fondant and ribbon. It was for another daughter of Dale's old boss. Her floral designer did the flowers for the top. You may or may not be able to catch it in these pictures, but the flowers had peacock feathers tucked in there. The flowers were really pretty.

In addition to the wedding cake, they asked me to make a groom's cake - a silver cake with the Detroit Lions logo on it. Here was the use for the edible spray paint referred to a few blogs ago! So, here are the pictures. Enjoy!



Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Another Informative Week

Oh, how I love weeks in which I learn new things! It happens most weeks, but sometimes it's more fun than others to record what I learned.

1. Snowboarding is not a sport I should take up at this advanced stage of my life.



2. If you feed ants Cream of Wheat cereal, they will eat it, go back to their hill, and then they'll blow up! (This came first from one of Daniel's classmates and was 'confirmed' by several internet users so I'm sure it's true.)


3. There is no bureaucracy quite like the Federal Government. Common sense is not allowed within government entities.


4. Even if the weather outside looks like this:


It is still really smart to wear sunscreen. (This picture doesn't really do it justice, you can get the idea if you look at my hairline!)


5. Chuck Norris turned 70 years old today!! Does he look 70 to you??? He doesn't to me. And who knew he could be the source of so many jokes!