On Time for Church & scattered thoughts from this week

I haven't posted anything for a really long time, mainly because I don't know how to add pictures without Matthew's help! I've also been a bit down lately, for various reasons...my life feels out of control in a lot of ways (messy house, being overweight, the list could go on!!). I have also felt a huge lack of confidence in social situations. Saw a lady at the pool the other night who I'd like to be friends with, but she was chatting with a good friend of hers, and I could not bring myself to go over & talk to them. In addition to my family, I have had a few friends in my lifetime who have been able to see & bring out the good qualities I possess. I guess the trick is to gain some confidence in myself (without getting too prideful), so I'm not so dependent on others' opinions of me.

So for now, I will just write, but would like to add pics of Emily dressed as Oprah, and maybe Jared's "train" BDay... Emily wants to write an email to Oprah. She can be reached personally at oprah@oprah.com. I gained a lot of respect for Oprah as we researched her life for Emily's school project.

Em completed 4th grade on Thursday! She was so good about getting up & ready every morning, and riding to school on her bike! She was only tardy one day the whole school year, and it really was my fault! She missed out on the Perfectly Punctual award, so we are going to reward her somehow, because she really did earn it!

Just having Emily home for 1 day on Friday helped me so much. She's getting really good at helping with Jared. He loves for her to read him his favorite book, Roadwork. She loves to play with his toy cars on his new rug!!! I'm looking forward to this summer...hope it will be fun, relaxing, and productive! Swim team promises to be a big part of Emily's summer, especially the meets on Mondays (approx. 3:45-10 p.m. -- ugh!)

Today, we hit a major milestone for our family! We pulled into the Church parking lot at 12:58, and Church didn't start til 1:00!! It was the best feeling! We really try to get there on time every Sunday, but never quite make it. This morning, instead of everyone going out to the backyard like usual and hanging out til 10 or so, I hid the key to the backyard! I decided to try to do everything we needed to do to get ready for Church FIRST, and then leave by noon if we were all ready. I started getting ready at 8:30, and we all got baths/showers, found/washed the clothes that everyone needed for Church, got breakfast, listened to some Primary songs, got Jared down for a nap, we all got dressed & ready, and then did the last-minute stuff like preparing tithing, Emily's allowance & tooth fairy money; finishing the paper bag puppets for Nursery; wiping out the shoes that the dog slobbered on; getting a small birthday gift together for a lady I visit teach; packing up diapers, snacks, etc. for Church... After all that, we were actually pulling out of our driveway by about 5 til 1. Usually, I would have allowed myself just a few minutes to do all those last-minute things, but they took a full hour! I really tend to under-estimate how long things will take to accomplish.

So...my long-term goals include time management, money management, cleaning & organizing our home, eating healthier, etc... but this was one step in the right direction!!!

Got pretty emotional (lots of tears) at the Weight Watchers meeting Sat. morning. Tried to wipe them away before I made too much of a scene. Losing weight is going to be such a long road... I really hope I can do it! I know it won't solve all of my problems, but it will help me to become a healthier Megan & mom!!

Also, we went on a date last night, which is kind of rare these days! We went to Lomonte's-they have the best lasagna! I brought along 2 pair of scissors and a bunch of papers to cut out for my Nursery lesson. While we were waiting for our meal, Matthew & I were cutting out these figures for puppets, and our waiter asked us what we were working on, and what Church we went to. He was excited to find out that we go to the same Church as the hostess at the restaurant (she goes to a Single's Ward). That was really fun!

Another bonus of being on time for Church: we got to sit by Lisa & her daughter Zoe, some of our friends who recently got baptized! Lisa's husband John has to work on Sundays, but he goes to a ward by U of H during his lunch break! We have loved getting to know their family as we've participated in some of the lessons with the missionaries--2 wonderful Elders.

I love my calling in Nursery, but sometimes, I feel pretty isolated from the other ladies in Relief Society. It was nice to talk with Cecelia for a few minutes today.

I really need to start brushing my teeth at night...I had 3 cavities filled this week (1 was a doozy!) (and it cost us over $200-yikes!)

Doreen made the yummiest homemade french fries and hamburgers for dinner tonight.
Hope I can make it to Zumba tomorrow night!

Sorry my thoughts are so scattered!

So long for now,
Megs