I Just Don't Know

I've signed up to help with the Obama campaign here in the valley as well as regularly participate with the Democratic organization here. What I found most amusing, however, was the full page on their website with the title: Can a LDS members be Democrats? (typos theirs, not mine) Under that was a dozen or so quotes from LDS members who are registered Democrats and a few other sections about voting democratic when Mormon. Good thing I won't have to check my church membership in at the door!

I find it a little sad that it even needs stated, but also funny that it's put out there in such a matter of fact way and no one thinks twice about it. Why is religion brought in it at all? The last time I checked, my religion and political persuasions weren't tied together.

I really am in a completely different world here, aren't I?

Look! He's a Real Boy!

Sammy is really catching on to this whole "outside" thing. He loves being out in our backyard, killing bugs (I mean gently playing with them and releasing them back into the wild...) and wandering around, playing with cars. Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Aunt Sharon's in the pool. He was extremely hesitant to go in the water at first, but Simon had him laughing too hard to resist for long!

After we got out of the pool, Sammy found a little hideout with dirt to dig in. He was quickly in heaven. A ladybug encounter and several mosquito bites and a grimy little boy later and we called it a day. Maybe he's discovering his boyness after all!

Stop The Presses...

The unthinkable happened tonight. We hired a babysitter and went out. I know! It's crazy...

Two of my nieces came over and babysat Sammy while Isaac and I went out with our friends (well, if we didn't scare them off with our boringness!) Lora and Dave . It was a lovely kid free evening with fun and conversation and great food.

This was the first time in two years that we've had a babysitter that wasn't my parents shooing us out the door for a few minutes or my sister watching Sammy here and there. We just never found anyone in San Diego (well, kinda, but we always chickened out calling her!) even though it was something we always thought we should do. I was (am) a typical first time mom and didn't want to leave him and he has never been difficult in public so we just got used to taking him with us.

Thankfully things went well. Sammy didn't cry, the nieces loved staying with him and we had a great time. It's nice to have someone in place, now, to babysit. Who knows? It may actually inspire semi-regular date nights, provided we can remember what those look like...

Being Authentic

I sometimes wonder if I am fully participating in life. If I grasp that I am the star of my story and fully embrace it. I think the answer, sadly, is no. I find myself living in just parts of my home / life / world and not others. Doing things that I should and not nearly enough of what I want. I seem to be stopped by the thoughts of "I can't...." when in all actuality I can.

Fully embracing life is not something I can do without thinking about it. Embracing the now, my whole life, is not something that is easy for me. I am so structured and scheduled that I forget to stop and live. I need to remember that the dishes can wait (oh, wait...I don't ever do the dishes anyway); the laundry can be put off a day, the house isn't going to implode if it's not cleaned the same time every week.

But there's more to it than just putting off chores in favor of wants, isn't there? Life is about fully appreciating the things you love. It's waking up on a daily basis and finding the good, the miraculous and the funny. It's about living in a way that stretches you, challenges you and improves both you and the world around you. Not something you can easily fit into the MWF 10-11 slot on your planner. It's a conscious choice, daily, to fully participate and be engaged in this life. To embrace your name above the title and make it the kind of story you want to read.