Hearts Full of Joy

a textile tale

i love fabric. i collect it. i studied it and earned a degree in it. i like to think that my piles of fabric are provident living, but they may actually indicate an unhealthy obsession.
a few months ago a HUGE bag of fabric was dropped at my house. i'm always happy to receive fabric. but this was much more than i could use, and i was happy to know that i could share it with others. a few weeks ago gloria sat and ironed fabrics pieces that i really liked as i fished them out of the bag and added them to my piles of favorites. i found several large pieces of homespun plaids that i folded and set aside in their own pile, feeling that there was a special project they would be just right for.

a dear friend who has a strong desire to give her children homemade gifts this year as a way to simplify, focus on the savior, and stay within a budget wanted to make quilts. last week i offered a prayer that i would be able to help her fulfill this desire. a few hours later she showed up at my door to borrow a book and i asked her if she wanted to go through my HUGE bag of fabric. she wasn't finding quite what she was looking for.....and then i remembered the pile of homespuns. she wanted most of all to make a quilt for her son who is graduating from high school next month and going to college. the homespun plaids in blues, greens, and reds were perfect. we chose the largest piece as the backing, and started cutting strips of the others to make into 6 inch squares. we cut and cut and cut. she mentioned that she kept feeling impressed to make one for her 14 year old son too. but we were both sure there wouldn't be enough fabric. we decided to cut all we had, and then see how much more she needed to buy.

we counted all the strips, and to our amazement, we had EXACTLY the number of strips needed to make two quilts in the exact size she had chosen. next we measured the backing fabric....again it was exactly the amount needed, to the inch. and then we found a piece of plaid flannel that was just right for the backing of the second quilt. i couldn't believe it.

i felt god's love for this friend, and it was a sweet reminder that when we do as the lord has asked (this friend is one of the purest people that i know) that he provides for us. i know that this fabric was meant for her, perhaps even before she had decided to make these quilts. a small miracle that i was blessed to witness.

my 1930s to 1950s vintage feedsack collection.

one my current projects, a quilted bag for packing my relief society materials to church.

this & that

i absolutely love my friend crystal's idea for christmas this year. it makes me happy.
100 provident living points for crystal! i want to be like her.

brock & i finally made the trip to carthage yesterday and gave up our arizona licenses for the illinois version. painful! we have had our arizona licenses since '94, brock's grad school days. the same licenses, not renewed. in arizona they issue life-long licenses, good until your 60th birthday when you need to start getting regular vision checks. my license still had 22 years left on it.....good until 2030. i had hoped to keep it until then. but we decided to comply with the law. we were so grateful to have these licenses through our japan years so we never had to worry about getting them renewed from overseas.

and speaking of japan, as much as we didn't like getting our illinois licenses, it was completely painless compared to getting our japanese licenses.....i could write numerous posts on the process of getting our japanese licenses (i only know 1 person who passed the driving test on the first try, and know many people who had to take it 5, 6, 7, even 12 times.....and driving education classes cost upwards of $3000 - not offered in high school, because you must be 18 to drive in japan, which really isn't a bad idea), and which we promised ourselves we would never allow to expire...but they will, as we aren't living there, and have to be there to renew them. such a shame. as i write, i realize that mine probably just expired a few weeks ago on my birthday....alas.

flashback: i just remembered having to go back to the testing center (45 minutes away) when my license was 2 years old and take a 2 hour driving class in order to keep my license. this was mandatory for all drivers. it was excruciatingly boring, in japanese, and included a horrible video of every type of accident it was possible to have, with reminders that in japan, the larger vehicle is always the responsible party in an accident. so if a motorcycle cuts you off, a bicycle darts in front of you, or a pedestrian jay-walks, you are responsible. (we drove a van, one of the biggest on the road, because a family with 4 kids is monster-sized there, and so this was a stressful point, as we were bigger than most everyone else..... one of many, many aspects that made driving in japan a stress-fest.) i fell asleep and then was humiliated by the teacher in front of the class for doing so. at least that was her intent. but i had long since grown a thick enough skin to prevent this kind of humiliation, so that i could manage my life in japan. and i don't think any of the the other students cared either. they all wished that they were asleep too.

i love japan, i really, really do. but i don't miss experiences like these. and don't even get me going on the japanese postal service.....really, don't.

end of october

this past week was a hard one. we had two deaths in the ward, a mother and daughter. the mother passed away just before the daughter's funeral. very sad, but happy, as they were both disabled and in a lot of pain. the funerals were two hours away, and we provided food. i felt so much for the family that these two women left behind. brock was/is in japan. our compassionate service leader was also out of town. i was officially broken in as relief society pres. and there were other challenges too.
but as i was editing photos this morning, i realized that our week was also full of happiness:

our garden plot was plowed by tractor, and all of our lawn clippings, leaves, compost (lots of apples and crabapple compost), were plowed into it.

i finished two halloween pillows (as if i needed more). the witchy pillow is a reminder to me of what i don't want to be. the cute little pumpkin boys are a replica of an antique greeting card.

we continue to be visited by our own personal flock of wild turkeys.

i made treats for mia's class on halloween. my goal was something non-sugary (whew! the effects of sugar on my children would be another downside to this week). i came up with "mummy toes" (cocktail sausages wrapped in dough with sliced almond toenails) and ghosts (crescent roll dough with melted cheese & olive eyes. the mummy toes were a big hit, and were gobbled up.

there was also a wonderful night of trick-or-treating on "beggar's night", halloween eve in nauvoo. it was perfect....happy costumed children walking/running down friendly streets, overhung with maples showing yellow, orange, and red leaves. perfect.

after school on halloween, we packed up and drove (fled) out of town for a weekend retreat.
our favorite resort for weekend get-aways, is actually the home of our dear friends who shared this relaxing weekend (and japan) with us...hayride trick-or-treating through their neighborhood, antique shopping, movie marathons, and delicious food. they are such a blessing in our lives.

and as if a day of antique shopping with gloria wasn't enough of a treat, our favorite antique mall in palmyra, missouri had these waiting for me:

the red wagon & blue chair will be in noah's room, the green cradle in the family room, holding antique baby quilts.

preserving & preparing

 september is emergency preparedness month in japan, in honor and remembrance of the great kanto earthquake (sept. 1, 1923....over 105,000 confirmed deaths). and so it has be come our family's official preparedness month. we sort through our 72 hour kits, throwing out the expired and replacing it with new. we spent our last two family home evenings on this activity, because we gave away our 72 hour kits along with our food storage when we left japan, and hadn't yet restored them properly. now we are much more prepared, and it feels so warm & comforting. i'm always surprised by just how good i feel afterwards.

a new opportunity was thrown in my lap this month....free grapes for the picking and wonderful new friends who offered me juicers and know-how. i feel so blessed. with the grapes we picked, plus donated grapes that someone didn't have time to use, we bottled 19 quarts of juice. which is really 38 quarts of juice, after we dilute it to the level we like it best. at a conservative estimate, i figure that's about $100 of juice! the relief society sisters in nauvoo are industriously finding free fruit that needs to be canned, finding jars to share with others at yard sales, and teaching and inspiring new-comers like me. i feel blessed. and tired. i had forgotten how exhasuting canning can be. but also very satisfying. today we are off to pick and gather apples. there are apples dropping from the trees all over town, and the owners just want them taken away before they rot. we are happy to oblige....applesauce, apple butter, apple pie filling.....mmmm.
gracie with our 72 hour kits.

bits of blogs

i love to read lovely blogs, and pass on their goodness to you. here are some of my favorite recent postings from some of my favorite bloggers:

bobbie in australia has a wonderful blog that you can get lost in. so glad you found my blog bobbie, so that i could be led to yours. this post was a wonderful reminder of the fragility of life. and greatly inspiring to read of incredible challneges and people you are facing them. i have referred to some of the people she links to in this post, and some were new - and very compelling - to me.

as a new and past relief society president, i enjoyed and related to this post by heather. be sure to click on the link to her fabulous photography blog while you are there.

and i completely related to this post by mary - her moments with babies & teenagers. i love mary, and loved every minute of togetherness with her in st. louis at "time out for women" last weekend. we haven't seen each other since she left japan eight years ago, and mia was a very chubby three month old. when mary and i first met in our ward in japan, we knew that we knew each other. we finally figured out that we had taken japanese 101 together at byu. some time later, we realized that we had taken that class during different years. so that wasn't it. but i'm still quite sure we already knew each other. mary is a great writer, and i always enjoy her blog.

valuable advice

another lexi temple photo

~today, because i care, i offer the most valuable advice i have to give:
say no to wallpaper! if you are ever tempted to wallpaper your home, even to put up a simple border (which are the worst to remove), resist!

after almost four weeks of stripping wallpaper, plastering the areas where it pulled the sheet rock off with it, sanding, and painting...... please believe me. wallpaper isn't worth it. it won't stay in style. you won't like it forever. and if you move, the poor people who buy your home definitely won't like it. then they will need to spend four weeks stripping, plastering, sanding, and painting, because of what you did.

~things done on our moving-in to-do list (a brief and incomplete list):

buy and install mailbox, manage angry neighbor who doesn't want it in front of their yard where the post mistriss told us to put it - brock

strip wallpaper from dining area, kitchen, large bathroom, teenagers' bedroom, stairway - julie, gloria, lexi, tashi, mia, noah, brock

remove sliding glass doors from the kids' bathtub - brock

resurface the tile in teenagers' shower - brock

shop for & deck out teenagers' new bedroom, while spending very little money - julie, gloria, lexi, tashi

paint teenagers' bedroom walls and furniture - rodenberg & stout families

build wainscoting entry & dining area - brock, julie, tashi

paint entry & dining area - brock, julie, lexi, tashi

buy 14 gallons & paint (and too many other supplies to mention) - brock & julie

trim the 35+ trees & hedges around our home - julie & brock

entertain gracie while adults perform the above - mia & noah

school registration, physicals & immunizations - julie, lexi, tashi, mia, noah

enjoy, enjoy, enjoy nauvoo, the pageant, etc - all

etc, etc

~still to-do:

finish unpacking

strip wallpaper from hallway

sew curtains for teenagers' room & living room

paint kitchen, kitchen cabinets, living room, mia & gracie's room, noah's room, main bathroom

buy garbage cans and countless other items, like shower curtain rods, etc, etc, etc

find/replace many unaccounted for items

decorate

etc, etc

~here is my second best piece of advice, which is truly my best advice:
cherish amazing friends

the rodenbergs are amazing.

last weekend they showed up, with the whole family ready to sleep over, and worked and worked, and worked. we hadn't asked them to, they just did. they borrowed a trailer to bring us the low boy dresser that was part of lexi & tashi's thrift store bedroom set - can't wait to show photos, and worked until their bedroom and all of their furniture was painted, cleaned, and reassembled, our millions of boxes were broken down, and the garage was cleaned and organized. 24 hours of whirlwind service, with the pageant thrown in. we are still flabbergasted....and very grateful. alexa, austin, gloria, and tashi (in painting clothes). it doesn't look like much now, but just wait for the before and after photos!

we shared that same weekend with hometown friends, some by chance, and some by plan, who were visiting - so fun! AND we were brought a plate of cookies by someone that is visit taught by a friend from our tokyo english ward, who now lives in michigan (did you follow that?). this goodie bearing friend of a friend is here because her husband helps with pageant production.

the pageant is over. lexi drug me & the little ones to the final performance (she had already been twice during the week, and once the week before). brock & tashi were working at the concessions. i was tired and had seen it twice (in three weeks) already. i didn't expect to love it. but i did. the spirit was amazing, even at the pre-show. so glad i went. still loving being here. so glad we're here. every day is a blessing. every time i step outside, the beauty takes my breath away. everywhere i go, i feel the spirit. grateful. you can't complain when your teenagers are obsessed with church history & the pageant, and are stalking the actors who play joseph & hyrum :)
lexi: "when i grow up, i want to be becky laird in the pageant"
one of my favorite things about the past few weeks has been the people we have met who are associated with the pageant...the core cast, the family cast members, the support & production crews - all amazing people who sacrifice so much time, money, and effort to do what they do. it has been a treat to associate with them. now we can settle down and meet more of our neighbors & ward members which will be another treat.

the grove where the king follet discourse is given. lexi may have enjoyed it even more than i did, for which i am also grateful.

20 years!!!

i have been alive for more years since high school than i had been when i graduated. hmmm. saturday was my 20 year reunion, and i loved it! it was an all day event: golfing, family barbecue, and dinner. i helped get it going, but those more talented than me turned it into something much bigger & much more fun than i had envisioned.  my class was a small one, about 72 or so, and about half of us made it to at least one event of the reunion. living in a small town, we all grew up together, went to church together, went to school (kindergarten through high school) together.

i like that about us.

the best part of our reunion, and i would recommend this to all, was our website. everyone was invited to post photos and updates about their life. that was a great way to break the ice, get everything out in the open, and help us feel relaxed and comfortable at the reunion. it felt so good to be together again, and to laugh together again.  i LOVED the karaoke, even though my sentiments were not shared by all. i had a wonderful time.

reunions

this is an interesting few weeks for me. as we are packing up and saying goodbyes, we are also reuniting and saying hellos to friends we haven't seen for years & years. we had two reunions over the weekend. our moving truck pulls away one week from today. and we have two more reunions before we leave twelve days from now. i'm so grateful that we get to see people before we leave. not only is it wonderful fun, but it keeps our life from being completely consumed by boxes.

on friday & saturday we had a fabulous time getting together with my siblings, their spouses, and their kids. all but 1 of the 33 of us were there - 21 cousins. there's nothing like being with family and seeing the cousins play. living next to cousins, even briefly, has been such a treat!noahhaley-boo
on monday we  got together with friends from our english ward in tokyo. our friendships there have been some of the most amazing of our lives. when we made the decision to move to japan 13 years ago.... in fact, we were in tokyo for brock to interview for that job 13 years ago this week, as he was graudating from grad school.... we expected to have amazing cultural experiences and make lots of japanese friends. what we didn't expect was the incredible bond we would form with the member of our english speaking ward. we didn't even plan to go to an english speaking ward, but after a few weeks of complete japanese submersion, i realized that i needed to be able to speak english, at least on sunday. after 7 1/2 years in our english ward (probably the happiest time in our life so far - lexi & tashi think so too), we did make the move to a japanese ward, which became a branch, and then became a ward again. that was an amazing experience too, in different ways.
i guess something about being in a foreign culture with a foreign language and having no family in the same hemisphere helps people to to appreciate each other. we needed each other, and we would do anything to help each other. i learned from example how to really serve and really love, how to really share the gospel, and really fellowship, and how to really be a friend in this ward - from the examples of these friends. and i learned how to overcome cultural and language barriers. at one point we had people from 13 different countries, who spoke 10 different native languages in this ward. members traveled (by car, bus, or train) up to an hour and a half to get to church, and up to two hours to do visiting and home teaching. people sacrificed for each other and for their testimonies.

but it was more that just the need for each other. the people in this ward were exceptional, some of the best people i have had the privilege of meeting. truly. and i love them.

to me the most amazing thing is that we can get together with these friends, no matter how much time has passed - 1, 6, or even 9 years, and pick up again where we left off like no time has passed, nothing has changed - except our kids getting older. some of us are still in japan, some have been in thailand, england, taiwan, turkey, canada, and many are back in the u.s. it doesn't matter where are are or what we have been doing, we still connect and understand each other. we have known most of these teenagers since they were in nursery & sunbeams with lex & tash. it was so fun to see them back together again.

even if our life in japan hadn't been an amazing experience, and we hadn't gotten our mia & noah.... even if i hadn't loved japanese people & culture (most of it anyway), i would still be grateful for japan just for these friendships that we have made.
these girls were my lifeline. and the memories are so fun.....crazy karaoke, train trips, scrapboking while our kids played, costco shopping (american food at close to american prices = heaven), trips to hong kong, etc. if only more of the girls could have been there with us. five of my blog links (to the right) are bloggers from this ward: gloria, jeni, mary, mcintyres, & val. only val is in the picture above.


seeing the hansens & their two oldest (plus nick, who jumped in the photo - dang you nick! :) ) was a highlight! we haven't seen them since we visited them in nagoya nine years ago this week, and celebrated the 4th of july & parker's 7th birthday with them. they have stayed at our home (two different homes in Japan) twice since then, but both times we were in the u.s. and didn't get to see them. the second time they stayed in our home they were on their way to live in thailand. their kids were lexi & tashi's first friends in japan. tashi wanted to marry parker. i told her it was ok with me.

another highlight was when friends who were in this stake, but not this ward, stopped by because they saw the "tokyo reunion" sign posted. they adopted a japanese son that is lexi's age. i had long talks with them about how they adopted in japan, and it was such a "fluke" (blessing) that they had gotten that baby, that i feared it could never happen for us. the agency they worked with wouldn't even work with us because we were "too young" (still in my 20's) and already had two kids. but it did work out. it was wonderful to see them!

let's face it

it's so easy to waste time on the internet. and i hate that. i am almost phobic of wasting any time on my computer. i check my email as quickly as possible, i try to avoid looking at anything that will get me too interested, and suck me in. lexi, brock, & tashi love facebook, and highly recommend it. i have held out, not wanting to join it for the same reason that i didn't want to blog....i didn't see how i could justify the time. last week that changed. lexi created a facebook account for me. and i was right. i couldn't justify the time. i have spent FAR too much time on it the past week. but just like blogging, i LOVE it! SO FUN! the best part is connecting with friends that i have been out of touch with for a while. i highly recommend it to all my friends. i want to be your friends on facebook ~ especially if you have time to waste, but even if you don't :)

a match made in cyberspace

i never imagined myself being part of a match made by an online marriage service, but this post goes to show that anything can happen, and frequently does, out there in cyberspace. and this is thanks to my friend from our days in the tokyo 3rd ward, jeni. she married my blog to a blog of another friend, on her post, "blog marriages". fun idea! i'm excited to read the new blog she hooked me up with.

and now, an ode to photography. i treated myself to some virtual reality scrapbooking (digital scrapbooking online, which now that i have five kids, is the only realistic way that i can find time to scrapbook AND keep up with it - and so this is another "cyberspace match" for me - the concept of online scrapbooking). and i am always amazed when i scrapbook after taking some time off from it, how therapeutic it is. i'm so enthralled with the power of a photo...how it can bring back the most subtle and warm memories that would have been forgotten without it. things that weren't even an integral part of the photo, like the delicate & intricate snowflakes that my girls cut out and stuck on the window. it reminds me that my life is even happier and more blessed than i generally remember that it is. and i am grateful for that. it brings me joy...... here is a photo (one of many) that warmed my heart from this latest scrapbooking session.....

noah (2) & mia (5) at kasai rinkai koen, on our christmas card photo shoot, december 2006....among other things, this photo reminds me that although i was terribly sick with my pregnancy, and it took great effort to walk around the park and take the photos (which is what i tend to remember most about that time - in fact i distinctly remember wondering if i would make it back to the car, or just have to lay down on the grass and spend the night in the park), life was still wonderful and beautifully blessed -  these precious kids, the ocean so close to our home, the warm sunlight, etc.

and a random question to throw out there into cyberspace....is it possible for me to do pilates without getting upper back and neck tension? i've been working towards this goal for 5 or 6 years now, and sometimes i do better than others. sometimes i think i've got it figured out, and i even put my main focus on relaxing my back and shoulders while i do the workout. but i still have problems.

i have some fun projects going that i want to share, but although my camera has been returned from repairs, my lens hasn't....still eagerly waiting.