Couponing Frustration

Today, I am frustrated; even a little bit depressed!!!

I've been trying my hand at couponing the past week and so I had great plans of clipping coupons from a Sunday paper today! However, I can't find any Sunday papers left today anywhere in Woodburn! To top it off, I went to Walmart all ready to get free floss and toothbrushes! Heck yeah! They are free! Well, all I got was the floss. They don't have the right toothbrushes (just my luck)! So, now I am contemplating driving to Keizer just because I want my darn free toothbrushes!

This will not deter me! This will not deter me! This will not deter me! Repeating things helps the mind, right?

Newness

I'm not sure "newness" is a word but either way it will be my word. It is my word for the new year, my new goal, my new day!

I have really been thinking about how I can learn to continually look forward, instead of looking back in lieu of my new goal and motto for the year, "Look Not Behind Thee!" I can already tell this is going to be a struggle. I have a bad habit of always looking forward or backward and forgetting to enjoy the moment! It's hard for me, oh so very hard! But I will try, I will try, try, try!

While looking for a new poem to display from my book of poems for the new season, for the new year, I came across some for New Year's! It sparked my interest of the concept of "newness" even more! I will be posting these throughout the next week or two for you to read and enjoy, hopefully as much as I!

A New Leaf

He came to my desk with a quivering lip

The lesson was done

"Dear Teacher, I want a new leaf," he said;

"I have spoiled this one."

In place of the leaf so stained and blotted,

I gave him a new one all unspotted,

And into his sad eyes smiled

"Do better now, my child."

I went to the throne with a quivering soul

The old year was done

"Dear Father, hast Thou a new leaf for me?

I have spoiled this one."

He took the old leaf, stained and blotted,

And into my sad heart smiled

"Do better now, my child."

- Kathleen R. Wheeler

How blessed we are! We have the Atonement of Jesus Christ, our Savior to replace the old, the stained, the blotted with purity, cleanliness, and newness! Throughout this year he will be the source of my strength because I know now that I will need him. I will need to know love. I will need to know patience. I will need to know charity. I will need to know healing. I will need to know forgiveness. I will need to know humility. I will need to know the newness that comes only from him! It seems that I need all these at one point or another each year! 

 

My prayer and hope is that we will each know these things, that we will know HIM more fully, more deeply because we depend on him, just as a little child would!

Look Not behind Thee

I've been mulling over what I could set as a goal that would really help me this New Years! I don't want to set the once a year physical goal of losing weight that everyone always sets because I want something that will really help me both heart and mind! It wouldn't hurt me to be in better shape and I plan to work on being healthy however, that is not the goal for this year!

I have needed something to move me forward. Something to move my heart and mind forward with my ever-changing life! For the past 7 months I have been what I am calling "stuck!" My heart is not here in Oregon. It is definitely in the relationship with my husband but I left part of it in Idaho. I didn't really want to move here as most of you have figured if you read my blog frequently. Some days I have a really bad attitude about it!

But, I have a new desire to change my attitude and my new motto for the year is:

Look Not Behind Thee

There might still be bad days but after watching this video today I knew what I needed! It gave me the kick in the pants and the inspiration I needed to set a worth-while goal for the year that would really help me! It is just the thing I need this year and as readers of my blog I expect you all to help me! You better be the kick in the pants I need on those days when I complain about being here! I expect you to do it! But, do it nicely so I somehow save my pride! Ha ha...or be mean if that is what I need! ;-)

I just need a way to keep myself accountable now! If you have any ideas, let me know! 

Lots of Excitement

Wow, our lives have been filled with a lot of excitement lately! That is my excuse for almost everything including my used to be messy house (it's clean now, hallelujah), my lack of blogging, my procrastination of putting away Christmas decorations, and so many more!

I'm slowly getting back into the normal every-day schedule! I don't know if I like this or not! We had so much fun with all of our family and friends that have been involved in the exciting times of our life lately and we didn't want any of it to end. However, all things must come to pass so it is just Nate and I on a quite Sunday afternoon today! Guess what!?! We even got in a nap (something we haven't done for a long time on Sunday)!

I have no idea how to catch up on everything that has happened but I'm going to attempt it anyways!

We found out about a month and a half ago that we would not be able to go home to Idaho for Christmas with all of our family and friends but luckily Nate's family (except for Josh in Iraq) were able to come to Oregon to spend the Christmas weekend with us! It was nice to have some family and familiar faces with us!

Our Christmas was great! For breakfast I fixed a sausage and bacon quiche with fruit and it was so yummy! That morning we were also able to skype with Josh who is currently in Iraq! Of course, he couldn't tell us anything he was doing it was nice to visit with him! It sounds like he is doing well amidst all the sand and the nature of work surrounding him. I thought it was bad not having any snow in Oregon but at least I'm not surrounded by sand clouds all day, right!

After breakfast and talking to Josh we got around to opening all the presents! We were all spoiled and are trying to find a place for everything! Some of our favorite presents of the year were Nate's CB radio, his bucky balls (really powerful little magnets to play with), money for new work boots (no more nails sticking in his foot), my sewing machine, my attachments for my Bosch, my new scrapbook luggage, three tubes of Deep Relief in my stocking, lots of hair bows and yummy smelling perfume/cologne! We also appreciate some money we received to help us out! Spoiled ever? We are! We feel so grateful for family who are always trying to help us out in any way they can!

Nate's mom and David

Brian

Nate's Dad, Mom, and Brian

Nate distributing presents (Does anyone else agree he needs a hair cut?)

After we were done with presents we all started opening and playing with different things for a while! I personally tried almost every stitch on my new sewing machine and my very patient teacher (my mother-in-law) taught me the basics of knowing how to set up my sewing machine, and sew!

For Christmas dinner we went a bit of a different route and had pizza. According to Nate that is a family tradition for the Benson's (however, his parents don't remember it)! Ha ha...I think he just likes pizza a little too much! Besides pizza, we had tons of candy and goodies to munch on from friends and family!

Nate and I were also able to skype with my family before he had to head of to work Christmas night! It was so fun to see everyone but so emotional as well. I did really good until I had to say goodbye but at that point the tears wouldn't stop and I cried for a good 15 minutes after I said goodbye! Nate wasn't there to comfort me and although I don't think they were sure what to do, Brian and David were quite understanding and they helped to take my mind off all my emotions of the day!

We had a most wonderful Christmas and can't wait for next Christmas when we are planning to come home to Idaho!

After the Christmas weekend we were also able to go see the snow!!! We went up to Mount Hood Monday morning and spent the afternoon there! On the way there, Nate's mom gave me an hour long foot zone! It was a good and bad thing! ;-) If you have ever had someone zone your feet before you know it can sometimes be painful! Well, it was definitely painful but the next day my hips and my back, which usually always hurt, felt so much better! Besides that, there was so much snow and it was so pretty on all of the trees! I LOVED IT! From there we said goodbye to his family and then headed to Washougal, WA where Nate installed his CB radio with the help of Paul! Krista and I hung out with them in the shop for a little while and then we journeyed inside to the warmth and helped to make the flowers for Paul and Krista's open house in Oregon!

Deciding whether I want to laugh or cry in pain!

Nate, his mom, and David

That's right, I am just putting my husband in a head lock!!! Smack Down

We have so much more to report on but I think we will save some of the excitement for tomorrow! On the agenda for tomorrow's blot post is a night of snow camping, off roading, and our New Years celebrations! Not to mention I will tell you all of how I am a real woman! A real, snow-digging, Idaho born woman! ;-)

Happy to see snow!!!

A late Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!

Happy new years

Well it is another year and a fresh new start. It has been a great year and I think probably one of the most excited I have had up to this point. I am very grateful Sharon agreed to marry me and that she puts up with me even when I get a little grumpy at times. She is truly an amazing woman and I love her with all my heart and soul! We have had some fun times since the last time we posted a posting on here. The first of which being that most of my family (except my brother josh who is off in Iraq serving to keep us free who we miss and are very grateful for and very proud of) came up to see us for a few days at Christmas. Because we had to work and couldn't go to Idaho they were kind enough to come to us. They got here Thursday night which unfortunately Sharon had to work. They stayed till Monday during the day. We had a fun Christmas even though our time together was interrupted by me having to work Christmas night and Sunday night. Me and Sharon were very much spoiled by both sets of family and we are very grateful for everyone's kindness to us. Because of me having to work we didn't get to do as many fun things as we wanted but we did get to go to silver falls park and see a few water falls and we did get to go to mt hood and play in the snow a little before everyone had to leave. Our next little adventure came on Tuesday when Paul and Krista Hildebrand had there wedding reception up in Portland on Tuesday. We were very late due to a late start getting going and getting lost a couple times on the way but we finally made it and did some video taping during the reception(well mostly Sharon did with a little help from me occasionally)! It was a smaller reception but was a lot of fun and there was plenty of food to go around. The best part though (for us anyway) came after when me and Sharon and Paul and Krista took our rigs and drove up in the mountains behind Paul s house to go camping. We had fun getting up there and then stayed up way to late playing games in the back of the jeep. I think we all stayed pretty warm in our cars during the night at least I did and I think Sharon did. In the morning we woke to about 5 inches of snow on the ground. We had parked down a hill So it made it a bit interesting getting out... after Paul trued getting up the hill about 5 times and only accomplishing hitting a tree and getting stuck I showed him the power of the Subaru and got up and out on my first try and then pulled him up over the last little bit of the hill. The rest of the way was a little slow with Paul leading the way through all the branches covered by snow which made it had to see out. Besides the jeep skidding off the road and us having to dig it out and push it we made it out without any more incidents. Sharon even drove quite a ways of the way out and did a great job... which is totally hot if you didn't know. ;-) we then spent the rest of the evening playing and hanging out at the Hildebrand residence! Then to end the week Paul and Krista came down and hung out with Sharon and I and stayed the night. We had planned on going to the beach but didn't end up making it out there so instead we went to rocky butte and ate our sack lunches in a McDonalds. We even got to see a chocolate waterfall through a window because the store was closed. Then to my surprise another one of my mission companions and his wife came over to see us. Elder nelson is from Keizer just south of where we are living and ever since we moved here he and his wife who I had not met had not been back out here so we had not yet seen them yet. Since they finally came home to see there family we got to spend a few minutes visiting with them and even gave them a little Cincinnati chili for old times sake. It has been a great couple weeks and it was a perfect way to wrap up the week. Anyway I think that will do it for this post.

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