"I see these moms who can do everything and I think.....
I should have them do some stuff for me."
- Anonymous
Monday, April 29, 2013
Favorite Quote #1
I've had this quote on my fridge for years and still love it every time I read it.
Getting Rid of My "Mommy Tummy"
While searching through some blogs about exercise I found a web site with these great ab exercises for mom's. I learned about a condition called Diastasis Recti. This is where your ab muscles have not returned to there pre pregnancy state and there is a gap running down the middle of your abs.
I have posted the link for the website that goes into detail about the condition and what to do for it on my blog.
While reading the article I found out that all that ab work I have been doing for the last six months could actually be causing more damage to my abs if I do have this Diastasis Recti.
I decided to do the test. I laid on the floor and lifted my legs up, leaving my feet flat on the floor. Then I lifted my head like I was going to do a sit up and then felt along the center of my rib cage to my navel. I was shocked to find that there was a space there where I could push two fingers down in between my abs. It was quite a freaky feeling.
I have never heard of Diastasis Recti before and I am excited to be doing the exercises. Not only because I want to get rid of this bulge on my waste line but I have a lot of back pain and I am often being told that I need to strengthen my core. I've been feeling frustrated because I have been working hard to work my abs but I am not having any success at reducing the back pain. I started seeing a physio a couple of weeks ago and I told him about these ab exercises and Diastasis Recti. He had heard of it and also recommended a belt that I can use to bring my core closer together. When I find out more about the belt I will post something.
The exercises are not very strenuous I feel strained while doing these minor movements. I suppose that shows how week my core really is. I am hoping this is the answer to strengthening my core. I'll let you know how it is going. I would recommend other mothers to do the test and try the exercises, it may prevent any future back pain and also help with the "mommy tummy".
Happily Ever After!
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Another fun adventure - Palmyra this time.
April has already been a busy month here in Ontario. I can't believe it is already half way through the month. Mom and dad came to visit from Calgary. We had been planning this visit since the fall and it was great to have them here. They came the Sunday before General Conference and we had a great weekend listening to the messages from the leaders of the church, eating lots of yummy conference treats and attending Jack's ordination to the Priesthood. I can't believe he is 12 and a deacon. We also had my cousin Todd and his family over for dinner. They live not far from us here in Ontario but this was the first time we have had them over. We really enjoy hanging out with them.
On the Monday after Conference we drove 3 hours south to Palmyra NewYork. What a beautiful, peaceful place. Upon first impressions it seemed a lot like the small town of Nauvoo. A lot of fascinating church history, but not a very big community around it. As we found our way down to Palmyra's main street, a beautiful New England community unfolded with quaint little houses and farms , along with beautiful modern homes and well kept city streets. On Main street are four ornate brick church's that stand as pillars representing the oppressive attitude surrounding the area at the time when the Smith family resided in Palmyra.
The first historic site we sought out was the Smith farm. Upon arriving at the Welcome center we were greeting by two friendly and knowledgable couple missionaries who took us on a tour of the farm.
The first stop on our tour was the old log house. To think that 12 people occupied this tiny, wooden home is hard to imagine. It makes me feel grateful for the comfortable home that I have and I realized that I have way more than I need. Standing in the upstairs loft that was used as a bedroom for all the children, I marvelled to think that the Angel Moroni appeared to Joseph in that room and began to teach him the beginnings of what he would need to know to prepare his young mind for the work that was ahead of him. I'm sure that he could have begun to think that the vision of God and His son Jesus Christ was just a dream until Moroni appeared to him to confirm it.
It was fun to imagine being there with the Smith family. Looking out the window of the Smith house and seeing the fields, the bare forest, the spit rail fences and the small creek tumbling by made me feel closer to that valiant family.
We then progressed on to the next home the Smith's built on their land after a number of years of living in the log house. This next house was designed by their eldest son Alvin who was a talented architect. Unfortunately, Alvin died before the house was complete. I was saddened to learn that they lost the title to this house and had to move back to the log cabin. I hope that they didn't loose it due to disgruntled persons who didn't like what Joseph was preaching.
The last stop was the Visitors Center and The Hill Cumorah.
The boys and Alice loved running up and down the hill. It was a great way of getting them tired out for the long drive home. I loved the Moroni monument for its depiction of the historical events that happened anciently and in these latter days. To think that this was the place that Moroni first buried the gold plates and where Joseph found them and other sacred artifacts, made me feel as if Heaven was not far away. Its neat to look at the hill itself because it really is just a bump in the landscape with the fields all around. There are no other hills or protrusions around it. There is just the hill.
Our visit to Palmyra was very enjoyable and we have plans to go back soon. It is so fun to live close to so many choice historical sites. We are enjoying our many adventures and we are glad we could share this one with my parents. Thanks to mom for helping me navigate my way home. We all know that I am not the greatest at navigating unfamiliar territory and following Matthew home in our van while he was in our car with my father was an adventure all on its own. It didn't help that there were a lot of huge semi trucks and torrential down pour making the task fairly hazardous. We did make it home safe and sound even if we did make a few wrong turns.
Happily Ever After !
On the Monday after Conference we drove 3 hours south to Palmyra NewYork. What a beautiful, peaceful place. Upon first impressions it seemed a lot like the small town of Nauvoo. A lot of fascinating church history, but not a very big community around it. As we found our way down to Palmyra's main street, a beautiful New England community unfolded with quaint little houses and farms , along with beautiful modern homes and well kept city streets. On Main street are four ornate brick church's that stand as pillars representing the oppressive attitude surrounding the area at the time when the Smith family resided in Palmyra. The first historic site we sought out was the Smith farm. Upon arriving at the Welcome center we were greeting by two friendly and knowledgable couple missionaries who took us on a tour of the farm.
The first stop on our tour was the old log house. To think that 12 people occupied this tiny, wooden home is hard to imagine. It makes me feel grateful for the comfortable home that I have and I realized that I have way more than I need. Standing in the upstairs loft that was used as a bedroom for all the children, I marvelled to think that the Angel Moroni appeared to Joseph in that room and began to teach him the beginnings of what he would need to know to prepare his young mind for the work that was ahead of him. I'm sure that he could have begun to think that the vision of God and His son Jesus Christ was just a dream until Moroni appeared to him to confirm it.
It was fun to imagine being there with the Smith family. Looking out the window of the Smith house and seeing the fields, the bare forest, the spit rail fences and the small creek tumbling by made me feel closer to that valiant family.
Alvin's Tree
This is believed to be the tree that the Smith family planted in memory of their beloved Alvin.
The Sacred Grove
My favorite part of the tour was The Sacred Grove. Most of the pictures we have that depict the First Vision show the Grove alive with leaves and flowers and sunlight. Our visit to the Grove was in the spring time. The same time of year that the First Vision occurred. Although the buds were appearing on the branches and there were bundles of Daffodils spotting the path throughout the Grove, there was not a lot in the way of life. Everything was pretty barren. I imagine that it was more like this scene when Joseph went to pray. We felt the peace and the tranquility of the sacred place. Walking along the paths and believing that God the Father and his son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph in that place made the event that I had been taught all my life more real. I was grateful to be able to share that experience with my husband, children and parents. The Grove is quite large and we tried to see if there was one particular spot that felt more Holy so that we could pin point the exact spot that God and Jesus appeared, but our experience wasn't like that. The whole place felt calm. Like the rest of the world was quiet and far away and we could be free from cares. We were told there were 6 restoration trees still standing in the forest. We were told that Restoration Trees were trees that were old enough to have been standing when the First Vision happened. We found one that was cut down the day before and left to rot because it was decaying through the base and they didn't want it to damage any other trees when it fell.
Learning how to print a copy of the Book of Mormon.
E. B. Grandin Press.
The first 5,000 copies of the Book of Mormon were printed here.
Front room of the print shop.
One of the first 5,000 copies of the Book of Mormon and an old Bible from that same time period.
Going to the historic site for the first Book of Mormon printing press, helped us to understand the magnitude of the work that went into printing those first 5,000 copies. The sister missionaries demonstrated how the printers would have prepared the press and printed each page. We then were able to assemble the first sixteen pages of the Book of Mormon through folding and cutting a printed page. What a task that must have been. I sure am grateful for our modern day printers.
The Hill Cumorah
The last stop was the Visitors Center and The Hill Cumorah.
The boys and Alice loved running up and down the hill. It was a great way of getting them tired out for the long drive home. I loved the Moroni monument for its depiction of the historical events that happened anciently and in these latter days. To think that this was the place that Moroni first buried the gold plates and where Joseph found them and other sacred artifacts, made me feel as if Heaven was not far away. Its neat to look at the hill itself because it really is just a bump in the landscape with the fields all around. There are no other hills or protrusions around it. There is just the hill.
Our visit to Palmyra was very enjoyable and we have plans to go back soon. It is so fun to live close to so many choice historical sites. We are enjoying our many adventures and we are glad we could share this one with my parents. Thanks to mom for helping me navigate my way home. We all know that I am not the greatest at navigating unfamiliar territory and following Matthew home in our van while he was in our car with my father was an adventure all on its own. It didn't help that there were a lot of huge semi trucks and torrential down pour making the task fairly hazardous. We did make it home safe and sound even if we did make a few wrong turns.
Happily Ever After !
Monday, April 1, 2013
There is such a thing as too much fun.
Happy Easter everyone. We had a great Easter weekend.We have gotten to know some great families here in Ontario and it has now become a tradition to get together on these holidays because none of us have much family close by. It is great to have friends that start to feel like family.
we have had a very adventurous month of March.
we have had a very adventurous month of March.
We went to Kingston at the beginning of the month for a basketball tournament.
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| We won the gold.
Kingston is a really neat place with cool architecture, but the highlight for my kids was the swimming pool in the hotel.
We went to Washington D.C. for March break.
Last weekend we took them to a Maple Syrup festival in Burlington Ontario.
This weekend we celebrated J's twelfth birthday by eating waffles and going to see Jack the Giant Slayer.
Then we proceeded to spend each day of the long weekend doing many fun Easter events such as an Easter egg hunt and Easter dinner with friends.
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So today was the first day we hadn't been thoroughly entertained for a number of weekends and I intentionally did not plan anything special to do outside of the house. I believe my children should have time to be bored and not be entertained and running to activities all the time. I hope that because I had five children they will play together and not need me or M to entertain them constantly. How quickly children forget. All day all I heard was "I'm bored", "can I watch tv", "I'm so bored I would rather be at school" (shocker), "I'm so bored - we never do anything". That was when I put them to work. We did lots of piano and violin practicing, multiplication practice and house work. Soon they were glad to get away from me and hide so that they could happily "be bored" without bothering mom.
Happily Ever After everyone!
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