Mother's Day-Utah trip Catch-Up & Some Murals & Quilts

Sister Suzanna Landbeck in Gaia, Portugal, got to Skype with us on Mother's Day!  Here are our traditional photos with Me-MOM on Mother's Day!

I got to go on a quick trip to Utah---helping a friend drive out (she was moving there) and she paid my plane ticket back, making the deal very attractive.  A chance to see family during the school year for Emma---

And to see Stewart at work (160 North University, Provo)

He made me his favorite shake:  banana pudding and Nutella.  Delicious!

Pudding is put on the bottom, swirled around, shake poured on top, so separate flavors, almost like a pie...

I spent time Saturday on temple square--usually people take just a photo of the Christus statue, but I focused on the great mural.

More murals:

After our session, Deborah & I walked around temple square searching for the most modest & beautiful wedding dress.  There were 49 weddings just on Mom's shift, so we had lots to choose from.  See my instagram account for details (look up jennilandbeck and follow me there!).

Back at Mom & Dad's I took pictures of some of Mom's artwork rescued from the attic and now hanging up in their home.

Jane C Babcock

Dad really likes this one.  He calls this one Upraised Woman (?)--correct me, Dad.  Mom painted in acrylic while we lived in San Jose, CA.

Jane C Babcock

LOVE the colors!  She calls this one....Orange Cliffs (?)

Jane C Babcock

And her interpretation of winter California hills, green & beautiful.

I also took photos of some of David's work that is still hanging around.  This one should probably go to brother JohnB.

And more good stuff:

David C Babcock DoNotStaple

Mom said Luanna should have this next one hanging in her home since she was David's model:

David C Babcock DoNotStaple

 All with the understanding that if he had a show of all his artwork, we would gladly gather the paintings at whatever venue.  It is nice to have so much talent in the family and no blank empty walls.

David C Babcock DoNotStaple

Even the circuit breaker box has some David art decorating it.

Jennifer S Babcock

This big painting of John is by his wife, Jennifer S. Babcock.  Hanging in dinning room.

And finishing this long blogpost with two of my quilts, early 1990s.

Jennilyn B Landbeck

Nice to see things used/hanging.  This is my nod to Baltimore Album quilts, just one block.

May You Have a Happy Mother's Day

I started blogging for our eldest daughter when she went away to school.  To update her on our home life. 

This is my early morning Bible Study class:  6 am they come on school days to sing, pray, read scriptures and figure out ways to apply it to their teenage lives.  14 years-18.  One student missing in this silly picture.  Love this class, with their quirks and personalities.  They include two sets of siblings (far right in photo, front row and back) and some witty, charming, soundtrack contributing brilliance!

We try and feed the full-time missionaries once a month.  As we support our local missionaries, I am certain blessings are given to our Suzanna serving in Portugal!  We are looking forward to our skype with her today!

My days are full; busy with preparing for summer young women's camp crafts, art projects, organizing, doctor appointments...and working up to walking for exercise without pain again.

My back is doing better after two cortisone shots.  Proudly displaying hospital band after a 5 Guy meal on way home.

Some of my favorite friends come over to play.  Prince Pearson above, and King Henry below.

John really likes matching his tie to whatever I am wearing on Sundays.  And he really likes kissing photos...

Here is the Family Silver.  Said with reverence, a low solemn voice.  It is serious stuff, insured.  Fantastic! 

With Great Grandma Billie moving to an assisted care facility, there has been lots of family divesting of heirlooms and talk about sentimental links to family treasures.  This is the JSL silverware pattern that is busy, but I love in a crazy way.  Can you see Stewart using this in his someday home?  I can imagine dinner parties here, treating family and friends to the solid weight of this silver.  No rush to pass it to us yet--but you get the idea, as we talk to Billie about what she can take with her, and what needs to go to a good home.

Her ceramic Chinese pillow that John has great memories of growing up and visiting grandparents, her long couch and organ and the red Chinese chest are in the living room now, looking very cosy.  Roxie and Sam played the organ on and off all Saturday.  I found a 1959 manual for electronic music organ repair, and I am learning about amplifiers, tubes, capaciters, resisters, fuses and how to replace them....there is a weird static sound when we turn the organ on that doesn't go away as it warms up.

Here is a girls' camp craft sign up idea; sleeping face masks!  Girls got really excited about them.

Quiet book service, and crocheted wire jewelry options.  I told them they will only have time to sign up for one.

I am helping a friend drive/move out to Utah a week from Monday.  Landbecks will go to Isaac's baptism in Pittsburgh, I will spend the night and friend will pick me up there on our way west!  Hopefully we will arrive by Wednesday and I can see Emma in action teaching Thursday & Friday 21-22 and sample Stewart's work fries...  Come up Sunday 24 for family dinner at my parents (?), see cousins at Pleasant Grove Monday, go to SLC temple 26th Tuesday (?) and spend time with my parents...Flying home on Wednesday morning.

Busy Update for Spring

There was some Easter kissing and tie-jewelery matching...

Admiration for living room framed photos at a book club friend's home...

A sweet orchid gift from a friend!  (notice mint green paneling above fireplace, it will change this month)...

Another DC temple trip...

Sam went to Mormon Prom (another tie matching dress example!)...

Roxie went to a bereavement camp for children 8-16...

Tying a note she wrote to Max onto a pink balloon she chose for him...

Standing with her camp buddy for the weekend:  1 counselor per child ratio.

Then more presentations, the youth told their favorite part of the camp (Roxie said riding the horses was the highlight) and love stones with a word the counselor noticed about the youth (Roxie's was strength) and then a word of hope for them and their future (Roxie's was Love)...

Beautiful, amazing program, good practical advice, good therapy, good new friends.

And my favorite:  monarch butterfly launch, each child presented with an envelope...

And a quick picture from wedding shower I hosted last weekend-notice the paneled wall, needed a different color to highlight the banner, so a quick pink coat.  Yes, I paint for parties.

Suzanna is a Missionary! And it is not all about me, this blog...

All photos from Sister Landbeck's companion's mom's blog!  They look like they get along well, smiley and  huggy.  Her companion is a twin, who is also learning Portuguese, but going to Brazil.

I wonder if Suzu can tell them apart?  Kind of cool that they are serving at the same time!

Things going well here.  I added more to the sobriety trees, some bright oranges that glow in the rainy weather we have been having.  As soon as the redbud blooms I will take more photos.

More shots in the back today that should help back pain, and I am doing the sleep study tonight.  No lotion, no hairspray, bring my pillow, but not John to hospital.  I have a horrible bruise on my hand from IV from last week's colonoscopy.  Busy round of tests and medical updating (nothing can make a mammogram a good experience, but I was thankful for it being shorter than I remembered...).  Emma turning a quarter of a century same year I make it to a half.  I am thankful for good medical attention and expertise. 

One of the nurses this morning asked how many children I have--answered her "six" and told her about Emma being a high school chemistry teacher, Stewart in college, Suzanna going to Portugal on a Church mission, Sam a firefighter & welder, and Roxie and her brilliance.  "That's five."

And about losing Max last summer to addiction consequences.  But bearing testimony simply that I am confident we will see family we have lost.  That was what the holiday last weekend was all about, what Easter means to me. 

As the nurse shuttled me out to the car in a wheelchair (hospital policy, I was walking fine) she told me how much she had enjoyed our time together this morning.  Little Gospel sharing moments.  She knows my religious preference (one of the standard questions). 

I CANNOT TAKE A NAP, trying to stay awake and busy so the sleep study tonight is accurate...or at least as much as I can make it.

Relationships

(Suzanna is doing well in the Missionary Training Center, from everything we read in her emails!)

I have a solo drug sobriety presentation to make today, 15 minutes.  Lots of thoughts rolling around my head, and I need to organize them.

When John and I speak together, one of my favorite things he says is that using drugs hurts your relationships.  Losing trust, alienating you from each other, the distance, the pain, the fights.  Head butting.  Trying to persuade each other to change (Max did try to get us parents to get high with him so we would understand how he felt.)

I wish I knew, really knew, why our son was so susceptible to drug use.  Why did he get involved in them?  What could we have done to protect him more?  How could we have given him more information or help to resist the offer to use?

Scare tactics?  Exposing him to the consequences?

How do some kids make it through high school unharmed and safe?  With brain cells and health intact?  The stereotype--and the joke in films, sitcoms and computer memes, is an introverted, nerdy, no-friend, uncool, naive, socially awkward, boring, clue-less dressing sad virgin NEVER drinks or gets high.  And the opposite:  cool, popular, edgy, fun-loving, relaxed, world-wise, great clothes, good jokes, all the money they need and gets high and drinks but never gets caught, never endangers their friends, smokes a little pot to have more fun at a party, gets all the love-action they want...

I just spent an hour looking through drug humor memes.  Very depressing.

"What does pot give you?" ask the interviewer.
"I become more aware of how beautiful everything is," replies the movie star.
"And what do drugs take away?"
"Using drugs gets rid of the boredom, lonliness, pain..."

"Remember kids, if a stranger offers you drugs...say 'thank you' because drugs are very expensive."

This is the world we live in.

I remember Max's drug use made it hard to trust him.  Hard to believe if he was telling the truth or not.  He lied, he was sneaky, he told us he quit when he really just got better at hiding his use.  He stole grocery money to buy drugs.

Two weeks ago a PTA mom asked me what I wish I had done differently, in hind sight.  I told her I wish I had been tougher right at the beginning and called the cops and turned him in to the system, scared him, let him deal with the consequences when he was still 17 years old.  I wish I hadn't tried to protect him.

Would it have damaged our relationship? 

His making bad choices didn't make him a bad person, but what he was doing was wrong.  Illegal.  Scary.

John:  no matter how poorly you have behaved or how much you have disappointed your family, or how cynical and hard to the world, remember you are precious and your life has value and should be protected.  The world is better with you in it.

I don't want to come off as scolding.  Or judgemental.

Talking to drug abuse strangers I have to be open, bold, honest.  Praying for that.

Free T-shirts with a Promise & Committment to be Safe & Sober

Best news ever:  One of my daily seminary early morning Bible School students reported seeing someone wearing a Defiance t-shirt at his school, two days after our presentation there!  I asked my student if he talked to him, said anything, or if he would recognize the student again to talk to him about sobriety, and explain he has a matching shirt....?

As part of my grocery budget $ I buy 100% cotton dark t-shirts to bleach through my stencil.  Thanks to my sister Laurajane for cool idea!  Below is a t-shirt gift she made.

Laurajane used nametag sticky rectangles to cut out letters and bleached around.

After spraying bleach--which will continue to bleach and eat away at the fibers, immediately put shirt in sink or bowl with water and a cup of vinegar or lemon juice to stop the bleach chemical reaction.  It will make the t-shirt last longer.  Then wash normally to take away vinegar smell.

When we give the Don't Do Drugs presentation at schools, we have been giving away Defiance t-shirts, either giving them to PTA organizers for door prizes, or my favorite--throwing them out into audience after we speak.

The best source of the t-shirts:  thrift stores.  Goodwill has 1/2 off sales last Saturday of the month, so 6 shirts for $5.00.  My favorite thrift store in Edgewood has 1/2 off certain color tags every day, and I look for solid dark shirts there.  A nice cashier asked what I was doing, so I explained my spiel about Drugs & Defying them, and by the 2nd shopping trip he asked for a finished one and said he would wear it once a week at work to help get the message out, explaining every time someone comments on his shirt what it is all about.  Encouraging sobriety.

Home Decorating note:  Brilliant daughter Roxie positioned this IKEA rug in our hallway lined up with North!  She did get in to the Science & Math Academy, so her dreams of rocket ship building are that much closer. 

One More Week

Our daughter, Suzanna, is leaving for the Missionary Training Center next week!   She will be studying Portuguese in preparation to serve as a missionary of The Church of Latter-Day Saints in Portugal.

We made her a birthday cake (9 months early) and tried not to giggle about the timing.

We've been studying Preach My Gospel as a family to help her prepare.

We will miss her, but are excited for her new adventures!