Top 10: Mother's Day

Mommy dearest at age 4

I have decided to follow a theme for 2012, and that theme is "Top 10." That being said, don't be surprised if you see some more of them this year.

Due to several factors, I have chosen to give my mom a "Blog-card" this year for Mother's day. Those factors include me having the good thought to get the card in the mail earlier this week.......and then not remembering to actually do it until last night.  Also, it gives me a good reason to journal-blog.

And so it is that I shall now present 

The Top Ten Gifts my Mom has Given Me

I have no idea how old my mom is here.
I see some serious proof that Will and Daniel are indeed her children though

10.  Coupons. I could go on, but it would be like beating a dead horse.  My mom couponed, it was just something you did, and now I do it.  OK minor detail to interject: when Nathan and I first moved to Portland I was telling my mom about our new digs and what was near it, and I mentioned Rite Aid. When she heard that--along with the fact that you don't pay sales tax in Oregon--she told me that I HAD to start couponing, or at least taking advantage of their rebates. So, being the dutiful child I am, I did, and have not looked back.

9.  California Memories- If you read my recent post about my grandma, then this is going to be slightly repetetive.  But, that is alright.

In June 2009, the weekend of Uncle Jim's funeral. I think this is the
last picture I have with my mom and my grandma.

My mom took us down to California every other summer, where we saw so many neat things. Here is the kicker though: all of those trips with us kids were without my dad. He always stayed home due to work and several other factors.  Now that I am a parent--and have traveled without Nathan a time or two--I am seeing how stressful and exhausting it can be!  At any rate, I have been able to see the places she lived, ride on Grandpa McDonnel's sailboat, and later, visit his grave, as well as see all sorts of places like the Rose Bowl, Fashion Island, Hollywood, Tijuana, and lots more that I am inevitably forgetting.  Random interjection:  Whenever we would go visit Grandpa McDonnel's grave, Grandma would always show us where she would be buried, and talk about how she was going to be next to her friend Elise.  Every time she would say something like that, I would think "I'm sure you will pass away SOMEday.....but that is just crazy talk, because you're Grandma! You can't die!"  It was surreal this spring to be at the cemetary with my mom (and my dad!! That alone was surreal having my dad there), and realizing that the day I never thought would come, had actually come.  I had been coming to that very place for years, but couldn't fathom Grandma not being with us.  And, even though the trip home was nothing short of miserable, I am so glad I went.

8.  Her Attention to Detail: this awesome picture is a self-portrait of Tanner. And his tongue.  My mom has been concerned with Tanner's oral issues from the time he was born. He wouldn't take a binky, nursing was a nightmare, and he had/has a huge tongue.  As soon as we moved to Pasco, she insisted we get him into speech therapy, or at least get him tested. A lot of friends of family thought we were crazy, but we did it, and are so glad we did. Tanner's speech is so much better than it was before, and I credit my mom's vigilance and her urging us to be pro-active.
My mom is an avid newspaper reader (and watcher of the news), and always knows what is going on in the community.  Just the last time I visited-in January-she had found a free pass the local athletic club was doing, which allowed me to go do some Zumba. :-)  I am often telling my friends about different things going on in town that they had no idea about, which reminds me of my mom. I suppose I can add my crazy love of reading the newspaper to her too. I just lucked out when I married someone who had delivered the newspaper for years, and also views the newspaper as something as necessary as food, water and shelter.

My brother Will and me after we ran the Teton Dam half marathon
in Rexburg, ID in June 2011

7.  Moderation in All Things: wow, where to even begin?  This was something my mom referred to a lot, which has seriously become my motto for life.  In the food department, much of what she taught me can be found in THIS blog post. Basically, there is such thing as too much of a good thing--or a bad thing--so don't overdo it.

Family picture my junior or senior year in high school

6.  My relationship with food: I should clarify that my mom is NOT the reason I am the world's pickiest eater. But she is the reason I am hypervigilant about a balanced diet and making sure that we were getting enough protein.  My mother in law (and even Nathan at first) were a bit startled at my insistence on having EVERY food group at dinner--not just on Sundays. I confess, I have a lot of room for improvement in having better dinners on nights when Nathan is gone, but I do work at making sure we eat a pretty balanced diet during the day. My mom didn't cook everything from scratch.  I think she came pretty close though. I didn't grow up with homemade bread and rolls, but I grew up with homemade chicken stock, home bottled fruit, homemade desserts, and the list goes on.  When I got to college and my roommate put "gravy mix" on the list of things to buy, I was shocked to discover that you could buy a MIX! This is ironic because my mom, who made excellent gravy (still the best gravy I know of) taught my brother Will how to make it, but I never cared to learn. So, once I learned you could buy package gravy mix, by golly, I was able to "make gravy."  Just last week I made gravy by myself for the FIRST time, although it was my mother in-law's recipe and not my own mom's. Note to self: learn how to make mom's gravy!
I have a good friend up here in Pasco who actually has her masters' degree in Dietetics, and I have to be honest, it is soo fun having a foodie friend who is as passionate (and more knowledgeable) than me when it comes to eating a nutrient-rich, balanced diet.

Mom with Preston when he was about 2 hours old

5.  Money Isn't Everything: I wasn't sure how to title this one, since there are a lot of thoughts on this one. My other choice was "Doing What you Love."  Nathan has pursued his dream of being an airline pilot, even though we have not seen much money from this job.  Whenever I complain to my mom about it, she reminds me that is is much more important that he loves what he do, than if he is doing something he hates but bringing in lots of money.  I now coach cross country, and tell people that it is the best job in the world, mainly because it is something I absolutely LOVE to do.  This spring I decided to branch out a little and coach track. It has been a......learning experience, to say the least.  One thing that has been a little different about it is the fact that I am a volunteer. I have a lot of people ask why I would do something that I am not getting paid for.  But let me tell you this: for years my mom volunteered at Longfellow (the elementary school my brothers and me went to), in my brothers' classes, and later on in the library when she had no kids at the school.  She spent years volunteering at Deseret Industries in the humanitarian room.  She has taught me that there is more to life than just doing jobs that are attached to a paycheck.

My parents, way-back-when. Couldn't tell you if they were dating,
engaged, or married here.

4.  Agency: my parents were rather strict with me in some areas, some of which differed from what freedoms my brothers were allowed, but.......we aren't going there.  I have been thinking recently about how my mom let me choose what to wear. She never said how long my shorts had to be or how big the straps had to be on my shirts.  Yes, I wore dresses to dances that didn't have sleeves (they had thick straps, but not sleeves). I wore shorts that were pretty darn short.  And when I did track and cross country, I wore what I wanted to.  The only thing I remember my parents saying about my clothes was when I went to a stake dance.  The dress I chose to wear was shorter than what my dad thought I should wear, and he told me. I didn't really care, and wore it anyway. At the dance, the woman at the door told me my dress was too short and that I was going to have to go home to change. The funny thing is that I had to ride home with the bishop's son, who had worn jeans (which were not allowed).  My dad laughed when I told him what had happened, and kept saying, "Someone needs to give that woman a MEDAL for standing up to ornery teenagers!" I don't know if my parents just got lucky that they never really had to enforce the clothes thing with me, since I went to BYU-Idaho (on my own free will), and their dress code governed me--not my parents. I am not saying that I was the epitome of a modest, obedient child. Because I wasn't. But I have always appreciated the freedom my parents gave me, and that is was a choice that I was given. I wasn't told what I could wear.

3.  Thrift Stores- again, if you read the post about Grandma McDonnel, you already knew this one.  My mom has always been a thrift store shopper, and while I may not have always loved how large the percentage was of secondhand clothes in my closet, I somehow came away with liking thrift stores.  A rule my mom had growing up was that whatever I picked out at a thrift store was on her tab.  This may have contributed to my liking thrift stores. :-)  Even now though, when we visit Idaho, I always pack my latest thrift store finds, and look forward to showing them off to her. Many a time I have called her after Value Village's 50% sales and excitedly told her about my finds.  I was so excited to tell her about the store near me in Tacoma where they sold their stuff by the POUND.
**I had to laugh because when I was putting together pictures for this post, the folder I was putting them in already had the logo for Fiesta Foods.  I took that as an omen, so I am using it. :-) When my mom came to visit me is Pasco, I was excited to show her Yoke's--the grocery store near me. Well, she wasn't too impressed. However, we did end up going to Fiesta Foods, a grocery store in downtown Pasco that is, um, rather 'cultured.' My mom was a big, big fan of Fiesta Foods!

2.  Domestic Skills: OK, so I did not learn to make homemade bread from my mom.  But that might be the ONLY domestic skill I didn't learn from her.  Well, there are a few more, but they are due to me not wanting to listen, not her not trying to teach me (ie: gravy making).  My mom is another Heloise (or as Will says, 'Hullo Hel-loys).  She knows about every stain remover there is when it comes to laundry. She knows how to clean, she knows how to use every bit of a chicken.  My mom knows how to cook like scratch like nobody else.  Heaven knows I do much better at finding ways to buy "luxury" things (like pre-shredded cheese, boneless skinless chicken breasts and chocolate milk) than I do at being as frugal as her. I got in trouble from her when she came to visit because I poured the sugar water out of a canning jar when we had eaten all the pears that were in the sugar water.  She knows how to "Waste Not, Want Not" with the best of them!

1.  And finally, the number one gift I have received from my mom is........

A certain red-headed, Irish tempered little man who goes by the name of Preston Dean!  OK, maybe he wasn't given to me by my mom, but I think of her when I see him and his bright red hair.  And apparently many of Preston's antics are similar to my own and what I put my mom through. :-)

At Preston's blessing in 2008

Happy Mother's Day mom!  I love you! As I am typing this both boys keep asking when we are going to go visit Grandma Kitty!

Preston at the 4th of July parade in Idaho Falls last summer