Monday, December 31, 2012

Reptition

Repition is sortof a given when you're LDS.

We do a lot of stuff a lot of times in hopes that eventually we'll learn what we're supposed to. We believe (not doctrine, just common experience) that the same story or experience will be different at different times in your life. So we do things over and over and over again. The same stories, the same commandments, the same meetings on the same topics. We listen, process and repeat.

When we went to our new ward for the first time we were excited and happy to see some wisdom and maturity in the ward. We were confident we would be sent to nursery with the other young children who can't sit through 3 whole hours of meetings.

That's why I was so confused when Brother Beck said "We'd like to call you to serve as the secretary...." and I thought Nursery has a secretary in this ward? Awesome! "....to the Relief Society."

I stammered some kind of "yeah sure, I think I can do that." response and stumbled out of the meeting in a stupor. I texted Josh whose immediate response was "awesome! when are we moving?"

In our last neighborhood I was lucky enough to serve as the Relief Society Secretary for 3 years and 9 different sisters as presidency members. I loved it and I loved the sisters I served with and each time there was a change in the presidency I was excited for the new sisters I would get to know better and I especially LOVED the opportunity to do something I was good at for church.

A dear friend of mine taught me about a time in her life that she and her husband each had multiple demanding callings. But it was also a time in their lives that they were asking for a lot from their heavenly father. They needed miracles in their life and were thankful that they could show their willingness to serve and attempt to repay the debt they felt they owed for their personal miracles.

When I got the call (and all through that calling) I felt much the same way. The type of miracles I needed changed significantly through the 3 years I served, (starting with financial needs, ending with spiritual needs) but I never quite felt like I was going to be OK without a lot of significant help from my Heavenly Father. I was thankful to prove my willingness to work and to sacrifice. To earn my blessings in a way. (Not that I think you earn blessings....I don't believe that....)

Anyway, my need for help hasn't diminished at all, so I am thankful again to have the opportunity to give my time and talents in church service. And I'm certain there are things I still need to learn from this position. A lot of things.

But at the same time: again?!?!

Sunday, December 30, 2012

Christmas

The Holidays around here were much like any other.

Christmas Music, parties, staying out late, eating rich sodium-packed food, visiting friends and family, and spending all kinds of time running around doing things we don't have time for.

I really loved it this year.

We had a lean Christmas present-wise in our own family. I did some shopping back in September and wrapped things right away. I sortof forgot what we had and as Christmas drew nearer I just kept looking at the pile thinking "we have plenty!" But on Christmas morning it seemed like all we had was a bunch of a DI books and tradition presents. (PJs, Fontanini, etc.)

Fortunately the Grandmas stepped in for my kids big time. Every grandma hit the perfect gift present out of the park this year and Tommy and John were thrilled with what they got. From Grandma Fugal a Sandra Boynton book filled with silly songs (and a CD to match). From Grandma Egbert a homemade puzzle of our family picture. From Grandma Reilley a CTR Hero Cape and book about Book of Mormon heros.






But more than that we were happy with what we did.

We spent Christmas Eve at my mom's house. Traditional soup dinner, live nativity, gift exchange, pinata, and Santa's Elves delivered PJs.



Christmas morning after enjoying our gifts and opening time together we headed out on the snowy roads to enjoy some time with family. 

We visited people and stayed long enough to chat, but still got home early enough for Josh to go to work. 

We have lovely family and it is always fun to visit them. 



But, to work Josh went as soon as we got home. I'll be calling that lovely when the paycheck comes.....

The rest of the week Josh worked and I put away Christmas. I get so tired of finding Christmas tree decorations all over the house that I just can't put it away fast enough. Finding a new home for the new stuff and throwing out the trash is stupidly gratifying for me.


I hope your Christmas was just as good as ours.

Monday, December 24, 2012

Christmas Dreams

I'm listening to Josh do the dishes while Tommy shouts at me from the bathroom "I'm all dooooo-oooonnne!" then he gets distracted by one of the million Christmas songs we taught him in various moments of foolishness.

"Up on the house top click click click! it's about....what's it about mom?.....here comes Santa Clause......down with the chimney........tick tock tick tock.......HEEEELP! I'm all dooo-oonnnne!"

It's almost that game where you word link a bunch of songs together - only not quite as cool as that since it's really just ADD caroling.

Which brings me to my Christmas wishes.

  • I hope Josh keeps doing the dishes. Forever.
  • And Tommy keeps singing. Until I get annoyed and turn on music. Then I hope he sits down and folds his arms and listens to the lovely music quietly.
  • I hope John avoids peanuts all day today. (Did I tell you about how he's allergic to peanuts and on Thanksgiving an unknowing aunt shared her peanut butter pie with him? If you were wondering what's open at 6pm on Thanksgiving Day, it's just one Walgreens in SOUTH Provo. None of the (6) Walgreens or Rite Aids between here and there. Just that one. Also we confirmed what we already knew, Josh is good in emergencies and I am a freakin' basket case.)
  • I hope the snow doesn't stop coming. Until April. Because it's magical. And Tommy keeps staring at the window. 
  • I hope I really don't have to go to the grocery store until after New Years...I think that's possible, but I'm not entirely sure - which probably means it isn't at all possible.
  • I hope there are plenty of presents under the tree tomorrow (there are) and that my kids are enchanted and in love and GRATEFUL. Because we have been given much.

Friday, December 21, 2012

Allen's

I grew up reasonably close to a small grocery store, Allen's.

And for a good part of my childhood we lived with my dad's parents.

Living at Grandma and Grandpa's house was always a busy time. The cousins were always around, and since I was the 4th child, there were plenty of older cousins hanging around for me to play with too. This was great news for me since it meant I was (in my head) automatically inducted into the "older and wiser" club. This was probably not great news for my older and wiser siblings and cousins as it meant they were automatically inducted into the "babysitter and annoyed about it" club.

I never really knew that I couldn't do the things they could do, and it certainly never occurred to me that I could get into any trouble following them around. Until the day we all rode our bikes (and various other vehicles, scooters, big wheels, I think someone took the pogo stick....) to Allen's without telling my parents. Some other parents may have known about it, but my mom didn't know about it and certainly didn't know I was going unaccompanied.

Turns out I was in BIIIIG trouble when I got home.

But pretending we were going to Allen's was not at all off limits.

While we were driving my younger brother Nate and I would lay down in the floor space of the "way back" in the station wagon and pull the cover down over us and use our spookiest voices to scare my mom. "Aaaaaamy and Naaaaathan are MIIIIIISSSSSSSSING" and my mom ever The Saint for playing along would "panic" and ask "The Ghost in the Back Seat" where we were. We'd answer "Amy and Nathan are gooooone to Allen's." And she'd proceed to remind us that if we didn't get our buns back in the car to get ready for church we were gonna be in big trouble.

So we did. We magically reappeared in the backseat having "found" something awesome that only could have come from Allen's.

Tommy and Josh have been playing a lot of hide and seek lately, and every chance he gets Tommy tells me "close your EYES mom!" "now COUNT mom!" so I count to 10 and he runs to the nearest closet, and giggles uncontrollably, while I narrate my search. "Is Tommy under the desk? noooooo..... [giggle giggle giggle]  is Tommy behind the chair? nooooo.... [snort snort laugh] is Tommy standing in the middle of the room? noooooo [don't forget about me mom!] is Tommy in the closet? HEY!!!! THERE YOU ARE!" Then it's my turn and he tells me where to hide while he counts. Best hide & seek ever.

At least until his ghost starts telling me "Tommy & John are gone to Allen's".

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Shoplifting


I hear that shoplifting for some people is thrilling and exciting and fun and even necessary (Alladin, I'm talkin' to you) but for me it isn't any of those. It's just something that I do sometimes...

That's not really true. 

Sortof.

Earlier this week I dragged my snot-nosed pajama-clad blanket-wrapped kids to the grocery store because they wouldn't eat anything we had no juice and we had gone through ALL FOUR of my emergency tissue boxes and we were out of medicine and everybody was ill. 

So there I was attempting to laugh at my pathetic grocery lineup (orange juice, 9 boxes of puffs plus, children's ibuprofen, 3 boxes of airborne, and a lindor truffle) with the checker at Macey's. So busy focusing on recognizing that this was ridiculous that I didn't recognize that giant 12 pack of paper towels under my cart. And neither did he. 

And when I got out to my car and put it in, I thought "I bet I didn't pay for that...I don't remember seeing him scan it" But then I remembered my snot-nosed pajama-clad blanket-wrapped sick children already buckled in. (not without effort) And I looked at the LOOOOONG walk through the snow/slush/rain back to the store, and I threw the paper towels in my car and came home. 

The paper towels are still in my car so I can drag them back into the store the next time I go and pay for them. 

Shoplifting is sortof a pain in the butt. 

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Things I've Googled in the last 48 hours

Wanna play "what have you googled"?
  • Where do boogers come from?
  • How to get rid of weevil (don't do this, it ruins your testimony of food storage)
  • What do weevil eat (don't do this, it's gross....and fascinating)
  • Utah county cheap date ideas
  • Various ultra top secret gift searches
  • Real mistletoe
  • How to use an epi pen
  • NAET practitioner
  • What is a person-to-person allergy?
  • Places to stay near yellowstone
  • Nyquil for kids
Now you go. What have you googled (or binged...I'm an equal opportunity searcher) in the last week?


Monday, December 17, 2012

Incest

The first week we lived here, I happened to drive somewhere right when high school was getting out and found myself hyperventilating a little bit as I watched all of the teenagers walking (and driving) around after school. High School was not the peak of my personal growth (I hope!) and it weirded me out to be back there for the first time since I graduated. I saw my high school self the way other adults probably did. Annoying, full of it, generally disrespectful and not-at-all put together.

High school flash backs is only one of the reasons moving home is trippy.

Last night at my ward's book group one of the others attending said "what's your maiden name?"
"Fugal" I told her hesitantly. Not knowing which Fugals she knew. There are a lot of us around here....
"I KNEW it!"
"How?"
"Your profile. I can totally see that you're a Fugal."
She isn't the first to see the Fugal all over my face. Apparently I am the most Fugaly looking Fugal on the planet. Perfect strangers have come up to me more than once and asked if I was a Fugal. And I always am. Every time.

Turns out she's a Fugal too (though she doesn't look as Fugaly as I do) and that she is the sister of the "Other Amy Fugal" (who is now not a Fugal any more than I am). Growing up we'd occasionally get mail for The Other Amy Fugal, bank statements, medical bills, all sorts of things. Not often, but every now and then. And my mom would always tell me about the Other Amy Fugal. The Other Amy also has a younger brother named Nathan. Just like me. I always wondered if the Other Amy Fugal was anything like me...I'm still wondering.

I've had all kinds of run-ins with people I used to know, or who know my family, or who we are related to.

I was scrolling through my Instagram feed one night while Josh looked over my shoulder when he suddenly shouted - hey! That's Travis! Turns out Travis works with Josh and also happens to be married to Kami who I just met through blogging over the summer but has quickly become a close friend. They just moved here (for his new job which is at the same place as Josh's new job) from Arizona and as it turns out they work together often.

An old friend from high school's father knocked on my door one day asking about my apples which were dropping into the church parking lot over our back fence. (oops!)
"Yes you're welcome to pick them (and more! please!!!), but I think you look familiar. You're Aubrie's dad aren't you?" I asked him.
I see pictures of him all the time on her blog and facebook and I feel like I know him, though we'd never met until he randomly appeared at my door.

My mom is a librarian and knows my visiting teachers (and probably half the ward) from the library.

I feel like every time I turn around I'm finding some former or familial connection with someone I just met (and like). And every time I tell Josh about it we laugh at him because he can't remember "what's that thing where family members marry each other so everybody is related more than once?" Incest my dear. And it feels like this place is full of it.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Obedience

You know how old people get frustrated with their computers because "it keeps doing things and I don't know why" 
and computer programmers are all like "computers ONLY do what you tell them to. You must have told it to." 
And then the computer programmers scoff because they know that their superior intellect has won them yet another battle? 

That is how I feel with my children. I'll say something, they'll do something and I'll be frustrated. Then my mom (the computer programmer with superior intellect who never loses at anything) will come along and point out how they did exactly as instructed. 

I asked Tommy to bring me his dirty laundry so I could sort it. 


Technically he did. But clearly there were missing 1s and 0s in this operation.

John is quickly picking up the practice. His current favorite is to clear his plate.....onto the floor.

But he's so dang adorable that I simply can't help but love him while I scrape sick-nasty cheerios and bananas off the floor.

I guess I should be enjoying the fact that they obey me at all. Ever. Because there will likely come a time when they don't.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Changed

If I had set a theme for the year back in January, it would have been wrong. Guaranteed.

I could not ever in a million years have known about the changes this year would bring. The theme of 2012 is  Change.

Change of job, moving (twice) and growing boys are just the beginning. The personal and relationship changes that have come this year are something I can't really measure or explain.

But possibly my favorite change of the year is the one where I am DONE changing the Boy With The Adorable Bum's diapers.

Seriously people, it's over. That boy goes in public, stays dry at church, and is working on the nighttime thing. (Darn you footie pajamas!) Update: nighttime is going great, it's been 6 days and no accidents. I haven't changed a diaper for him in over a week. And the lack of those changes is invigorating. Beautiful! Life Changing!

I just may be capable of having other children at some point in my life. (There's still another person to convince this is a good idea...but I'm confident Josh will come around eventually.)

On the other hand, going places has become MORE complicated instead of less complicated. Balancing a toddler who has a completely rational fear of public restrooms while making sure he doesn't touch anything and is relaxing enough to do his business is bad enough. But add in a squirmy whiny heavy "don't hold me!!!" aged child who doesn't walk (and screams when he stands) and it's hardly even possible.

So we go to the library, because at the library there is always a grandma (or 2 or 3) willing to hold the non-walker while I calm and sooth Tommy and coax him through using a public restroom.

Remember back when I was pregnant and knew the exact location of every restroom within a 5 mile radius of anywhere I ever went? I hated that phase. I hate public restrooms. And I hate that we're back in that phase again. I probably haven't even used a public restroom in 3 years, and now all of a sudden I have get so close to the floor I want to cry.

I couldn't be more thrilled (or proud) that The Boy With The Adorable Bum is no longer hiding his Adorable Bum under a mass of absorbent miracle product....but I didn't really need another excuse to hide in my home for the entire month of December.

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

4 Dinners per Week = success

Or The One Where Tommy Discovers Feta

I'm counting the Thanksgiving dinner that I contributed to, and the family pizza night which I also contributed to....

November's goal was intended to make us eat out less. And when I make dinner we eat out less.

I thought.

Except now that we live insanely close to civilization (I go to the store when I'm missing an ingredient instead of calling all my neighbors. It's faster. Seriously. We're THAT close. Dear Foxboro, GET A GROCERY STORE! Or don't because the neighbors there are awesome. Doesn't really matter.) it turns out that just making dinner wasn't enough of a goal. We still ate out A LOT out of sheer laziness - lunch, breakfast, snacks, pre-dinner meal and "making dinner at 9pm (only once)). And my child now recognizes the Arby's sign.

Still, I'm counting this as wildly successful because when I told Josh that it was my goal for November he got all depressed and told me that he was excited because he thought it was "for real" that I was cooking dinner all the time. I agreed that it was nice to have real meals and that I'd keep it up the best I could.

We also had almost all real meals. No mac 'n cheese or just pasta. Which is why we had spinach salad with feta and cranberries almost every night.

Which is how I know that Tommy thinks "feta my fav'rite food mom."

He requests spinach salad every night now. Smarty. And he eats it.

Here's hoping this one sticks and that we eat out less and I cook more. (so far I've made dinner every night in December....so......)

Monday, December 3, 2012

Give Away Something Significant = Success

My goal for October was to give away something significant.

I thought about it all month and tried hard to think of something incredible. Let's just say that if I had the money I would have given away a house. But I don't have the money...so I set a $100 budget (significant to me...) and thought some more.

I thought of people I love who could use a million things and I saw a million tragic stories of a million people in need. And decided against them all.

Instead I spent the money on a loads of food and hygiene stuff to give to someone on the street.

Josh always keeps a giant box of granola bars and stuff like that to give to people when he sees them asking for things. It's not much to give, but it's something I really love about him. There's not a human on the planet Josh wouldn't help if he thought they needed it. And he never wonders or speculates if he is being cheated or taken advantage of. He simply gives to people who need things. At every opportunity.

So I loaded a backpack full of food and a couple of water bottles and hand warmers and a hat and good pair of gloves and socks. I grabbed a blanket and a warm waterproof coat and hauled it around in the back of my car waiting for someone who looked like they needed it.

I didn't finish in October, so technically I guess I failed. But I finally found someone who needed something I'm calling it success anyway.

There was a man standing on the side of the freeway holding a sign indicating his homelessness. I jumped out of the van, handed him the package of stuff and wished him well in his life. He was a little stunned I'd say. But since we were just stopped at a light, I couldn't really stay to talk.
I wish I knew his story.
I wish I knew what he really needed.
I wish I could have taken him on a shopping spree instead.
I wish I knew if anything helped.

But I gave him what I had. I hope he was a little warmer last night. And I hope he has a little hope and can get back on his feet somehow.

Bottom line: I want to give more. I want to be better prepared to help people. I want to have the feeling of having done something significantly good more often.
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