Happy Father's Day (late)

I know it's a few days late, but this was a hard post for me. (my dad would say "better late than never, but better never late")
I have been blessed with 2 wonderful father's. First of all, my husband. He is so amazing. He is an example to me of many things such as, integrity, commitment, patience, calm, and my favorite...think twice, speak once. Each of these qualities and many more make me feel lucky to have him for a husband and father for our children.
Second, is/was my dad. He died nearly 9 years ago, when I was 26 (he was 53). Each Father's Day without him is, I guess, a little easier. He was also amazing. He was my hero. He taught me to anger slowly, and forgive quickly. He taught me to expect the best in others and find their inner good and help them to bring it out. He taught me unselfishness, by putting my needs above his. He taught me to expect great things in myself, to listen to the Spirit, to study and ponder the scriptures, he taught me to turn to the scriptures to find answers to my problems. The funny thing is, most of these things I have learned more fully since he died. His quiet example is still present in my life. He wasn't perfect, but he was humble enough to know it and tried as hard as he could to be a better person. I'll always admire his inner conviction to try again after he would stumble. I love him so much and still miss him every day.

Recital

Tonight Katelyn had her piano recital. She is amazing! She received her gold cup for her Federation performance, also she received the "Best in Federation" award which is way cool!!! It means her performance was voted best by all three judges for the day she performed. Way to go Katelyn!

2 Jason turned 2 today. Yeah! He had fun tearing wrapping paper, eating cake, blowing out candles and he especially loved his balloons. It's such a precious age, I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world!~
Grandma and Grandpa Barton made this cool toy that spins, Jason played with it for ever. He got a wagon, some sand toys, trucks, clothes and other cool stuff.
We love you Jason!

Represent! (fist bumps chest)

First of all, I don't know what my title means, I only know my 5 year old says this ALL the time. (thanks to Biggun')

My boys have been playing play station 2 to pass the boredom. On a baseball game, when you hit a home run, the crowd cheers and the announcer says "You can kiss that baby goodbye!" Well, Ty hit a home run and started saying " I'll kiss ya later baby!"

Which also reminded me of a funny Ty thing. When he was 3 he'd sing "Tyler, pyler, pumkin pie, kissed the girls and made 'em.....Happy!"

Represent! (fist bumps chest) ...er something

ode to school

Last week, J went to jr. high.
This week, J just teases Ty.
Today is day 2
which makes me a little blue
I need ideas to make the time fly.

3 months isn't so bad
as a mom, I should be glad (?)
What will be great
is soon we'll add Kate
and so much more fun to be had.

Summer vacation, at first, seems cool
maybe we'll go to the pool
until boredom sets in,
and prospects look grim
and then what looks good, surprisingly, is school.


Tomorrow....day 3...... :):):):):):):):[:):):)

Task oriented vs. People oriented

I read a book a long time ago called Positive Personality Profiles. It's basically like other personality determining books on the market. One thing I learned about myself was the fact that I am motivated with people oriented situations vs. task oriented. I've been thinking about this because I have been trying my little brothers' advice about charting you time in 6 min increments. Even though, as a mom, obviously we have many tasks, I am happier and feel like I am accomplishing more when I am helping people rather than doing the dishes.

So, where's the balance? I feel like I am being a better mom by reading to my kids and helping them do stuff but the laundry tends to pile up when I focus too much on play time. I had a friend who was the opposite, she gained a lot of satisfaction when her kids went to school with ironed jeans. There are definite benefits to both types of people and I don't think one is more important than the other, maybe it's just about finding a balance between the two. Or maybe it's about focusing on your strengths and developing your talents. I don't know.

The reason I am giving this scary in site into me is maybe other moms feel like me. Feeling bad about yourself for letting "tasks" go or feeling guilty for neglecting relationships with kids and friends. From my 6 min. experiment, I realized that I spend the bulk of my time on people, and in doing that, tasks fall through the cracks. But I realized that I do important things, I just can't prove it.........