I am so thankful for having a dishwasher!  Doing the dishes has to be my least favorite constant house chore.  I'm okay with laundry, but not so much with dishes.  When we lived in Springville, the only dishwasher was me.  Sometimes I really considered going out and getting a portable dishwasher, but they are kind of a pain, so I never did.  One of my criteria for moving was to have a dishwasher.  Now that we have our own place - we have that luxury.  I still hate doing the dishes, but it does make it easier when I don't have to stand at the sink for an hour to do them.  I'm glad I can rinse my dirty dishes and put them in the dishwasher.  It makes my kitchen look nicer, even if I still have dirty dishes.  I'm glad I can load it up, put detergent in, start it, and go do something else.  I don't have to stand there forever.  I'm glad also that I don't have to physically wash the dishes.  The dishwasher can use hotter water than I can stand, so my dishes are more sanitary.  I like that when they're clean, I can just put them away.  There is minimal drying needed, and then I'm ready for the next batch.

So yes, today, I am grateful for my dishwasher.

Last night, we had a Primary Regional Training.  I adjusted my work schedule so I could attend.  Since I got off at 6pm and the training was at 7pm in Payson (and I had to stop to get gas), I opted to go straight to the church.  I was 15-20 minutes early, but that was nice because I wasn't stressed.  I also got to visit with a lady from my old home ward, as well as my cousin, who is the secretary in their newly-called presidency :)

Sister Durham of the Primary General Board was our speaker, and the training was amazing.  Sister Durham was so positive and engaging.  We got to ask questions, share ideas, and work together to improve our primaries.  I took about 6 1/2 pages of notes, as well as some notes for my sharing time this week.  Probably one of the biggest themes I took away from it was how we need to be spiritually prepared, both when preparing our lessons and when giving our lessons.  We also need to be spiritually prepared as we think about and meet about ways to improve the primary, to reach out to individual children, to reach our teachers, and to help our teachers improve.  I loved the comment one sister made about how some of their teachers don't go to sacrament meeting, but they do come to primary, and that for some of them, primary is the only spiritual nourishment they get each week.  We really need to be cognizant of that fact and make sure we're not just teaching and spiritually feeding the children, but also their leaders.

Our whole presidency was there, and we had a mini meeting right after.  I think that was the best thing because we had just come from this awesome spiritual training with all of the ideas fresh in our minds, and we were able to talk about a few of the ideas that impressed us as they relate to our primary.

Sister Durham also oriented us to the lds.org primary section and the different helps available there.  She mentioned all of the lesson manuals were up in PDF, along with the clipart.  Now, I knew I could get lessons online before.  I've had to do it :)  However, I leaned over to Whitney and told her the thought I had about substitutes - if we don't lend them the actual book, but just print off that week's lesson for them - maybe that would be easier so there's not a lot of arranging to get the book to them and then back to the regular teacher.  It must have been a good idea because she was having that same thought :)

I'm really glad I was able to adjust my schedule so I could attend this training.  It was so helpful on many levels, and it truly was an amazing spiritual experience.  I knew that was where I was supposed to be.  I just hope I can incorporate some of these ideas into sharing time this week.  Guess I need to work on my spiritual preparedness some more :)

That my last title was correct.  Posting daily is apparently super hard!

So today, I am thankful for overtime.  Last night, we got slammed with work around 5pm.  I ended up working later.  Last week, I got some overtime as well.  I don't particularly like living at work (which sometimes it feels like I do), but I'm especially grateful for the opportunity this week and last because of next week.  I don't get paid holidays (lame, I know), and we aren't working Thursday or Friday next week.  We're quite broke at the moment, and Christmas is going to be a stretch.  So even though I hate working more than necessary, I'm glad I am able to for a bit to help offset the holiday next week.
 
That's another thing I'm grateful for - this Christmas, it was decided that we wouldn't do gifts at the Christiansen party.  Remember how I said we're quite broke? It's not like this was a person-to-person gift exchange.  It was entire families.  We lucked out the first couple years, getting Sharon and Greg, whose kids are grown and on their own, and then getting Tyler and Andrea, who at the time just had Kwin.  Not only was it an expensive adventure, but it was hard knowing what to do - do you do some games or movies for the whole family? Do you do individual gifts for each member of that family?  As more grandkids grow up and have their own families, it seems to be getting a little crazy.  So I'm really glad I don't have to worry about that this Christmas :)

All we really need are 3 gifts (Matt's sibling gift, and then two cousin gifts on my mom's side), and I already know what I'm doing for two of them, and they can be done rather cheaply.  I also know what I'd like to do for the parents... it will just be a matter of making sure we can afford it... And then there are the grandparents.  They may be getting a hug from us this year... Oh well.

On the plus side (that is totally unrelated) a hawk just flew past the window here at work.  I love hawks :)

Wow, talk about a struggle.  I even told Matt yesterday I still had to write a blog post, but then I didn't :)

So yesterday, we went up to my parents' house after church to pick up my sewing machine.  Nolan's friend couldn't fix it :( which means I have to pay Sears to do that, but it's okay.  Dad's eye is still giving him grief, so we hung out with them for the afternoon.  Nolan made BBQ roast that was pretty tasty, and we stayed for dinner.  It was nice spending the afternoon with my family, especially because Dad and Gloria have been in New Mexico for the last while.  I'm grateful they are close by again :)  


I'm also grateful for my step-family.  Saturday night, Makayla sent a text out for family fasting and prayers for Dad's eye.  Sunday he wasn't feeling well at all, and he could see blood.  We didn't know if blood was just moving when the bubble was shrinking, or if something serious happened.  He and Mom went to the doctor this morning, and he said things look good, so it was probably just some blood that had been trapped.  Yay for prayers :)


Also on Sunday evening, we met with the planning committee for the Christmas Party.  I'm so grateful we get to help out with the party planning!  I'm really excited to put on an awesome program for the ward, and for less active, inactive, non-members who may come to the party.  (While we're all helping with all aspects, Matt and I, along with the Butlers, are taking point for the program. I'm rather excited :))


The bishopric wants to omit Santa and bring the focus back to the true meaning of Christmas.  The Butlers (who are the committee chairs) had a cute little poem thing about different Christmas symbols entitled Santa Whispered, "Teach the Children." We talked about expounding on the different symbols, so I looked it up online because it seemed it had to come from a more fleshed out story, the way their handout was.  I found three versions, and I really like the idea of Santa being the one to refocus on Christ - that it isn't about Santa himself.  Now I just have to convince Brother Trotter on Sunday :)  Anyway, be sure you'll see pictures and hear more about that over the next few weeks (party is on the 10th).  I'm just grateful for the opportunity to participate and get to know some other ward members through this temporary calling :)

Yesterday was a pretty good day, which was a nice change of pace from the rest of the week.  After I took care of the animals and took the pup outside, I unloaded the dishwasher and reloaded it.  I stretched - which I really should start doing everyday :\ And then I pulled of the books out of the spare bedroom and spread them all over the office floor ;)  (I'm seeing what will fit on bookshelves when we can afford to get more, and then putting them back in boxes nicely.)  While I was sorting through books, I turned itunes on shuffle, and apparently a majority of the songs I have on here are LDS songwriters and Owl City, so I was thoroughly happy while cleaning :)

Today has been a pretty good day as well.  I slept in until 9am (which never happens without snoozing the 7:30am alarm, which I didn't even hear today).  Aside from having to work for a couple of hours (from home, so it didn't suck too badly), I've hung around the house with Matt.  I made french toast for breakfast, and we watched an episode of Star Trek: Next Generation before I had to work.  After work, I watched Matt play Xbox for awhile and took care of some stuff for church.  I caught up on reading blogs, and I talked to my Daddy, who still can't see yet :(  (I don't know if I mentioned, but he had surgery on his eye because his retina was detaching...again - he just went through this while they were in New Mexico.)  I've pretty much decided to hold off on my Walmart trip until Monday, and our dinner plans fell through, so we get to have a lovely evening in :)  Oh, and we just played with the puppy, both of us.  It's fun to watch her.  And I played with the kitty today.  It's fun to watch the animals :)

So today, I'm thankful for good days :)

I am thankful for Skype.  Not because I use it to video call my distant friends and family, because I don't do that.  I use it at work.  It's our chat at work, which means it is sanctioned for usage.  Granted, it should probably just be used for work-related communications, but it's not. :)  It's nice because Matt has a Skype, so we can chat when he gets home and I'm still working.  However, yesterday it was nice because I could chat with one of my work friends in Cebu.  Yesterday sucked. We were oh-so-busy and we were drowning.  My friend Rhen and I have this running joke that we'll be needing our beachwear because of 'drowning'.  So yesterday, when I was really annoyed, I messaged him about beachwear, and our joking around lifted my spirits and made work more bearable.  It's the simple things, really :)

I am grateful for the moon.  I've always loved the moon, especially bright nights.  It's a magical time.  Today is the full moon - at 3:16 in the afternoon. Aw well.  Apparently November is the Beaver Moon.  (Learn more here.)

Anyway, I usually get home from work between 9:30pm and 10pm, and then I take Mocha out to potty for the evening.  Usually it's quite dark then, and I'm checking balconies and walking through the dark spots of the complex quickly.  However, the last two nights, the moon has been quite bright (makes sense if the full moon is today, don't you think? :))  And I've been grateful for that.  I feel safer, and I can see where Mocha left her presents.... Plus, like I said, I just enjoy a nice bright night.