Women's Conference at BYU

 It has been an annual tradition in the Dixon family to go to Women's Conference.  This is the first year that Shannon and Sarah (nieces) went with us.  It is always fun to be back on campus and remember my days at BYU.  As Shannon prepares to head to Provo in the Fall, it was fun to talk to her about the campus and what she can expect with a few things.

The best part of Women's Conference is seeing 15,000 women who are just like me in certain ways.  We all have our own trials and family circumstances.  It is just good to know that everyone is fighting the same fight.  We are all trying to raise righteous families and keep our own heads on straight.  I love to people watch at this kind of event.  It is fun to see that there are women of all ages, body types, and personalities trying to get to the same place I am.  That brings me some extra strength to know that I am not alone.

The other best part of Women's Conference is going to classes on a variety of topics.  I always learn something new.  That gives me motivation to try harder and to try new ways of doing things.

Till next year, I'll be missing all 15,000 of you.

My little Entrepreneurs

My kids decided they wanted to make some of their own money.  Dave taught them how to make survival bracelets out of parachute cord.  The cord we got comes in a variety of colors and holds up to 550 pounds.  The idea is that you wear the bracelet which has about 7 feet of cord braided together, the double braided ones contain about 14 feet.  If you are in the wilderness and are in need of rope, you can unbuckle the survival bracelet from your wrist and you are instantly able to help yourself with this strong cord.  

Macey has been the most involved.  The others have been support staff.  Becca has been great at advertising to those walking by the house.  We made a bunch of the bracelets and the kids set up a table in the driveway.  They are selling them for $5 or $10 for the double braided ones.  So far, they have made about $60 in one day of sales.  Our sweet neighbors have supported their efforts as well as some sales by Grandpa Dixon.   

In Boise, the most popular ones are the blue and orange (BSU colors) which went really fast.  We are encouraging the kids to make a bunch more and sell them on a game day near BSU where I am sure there are plenty of people willing to help out some cute kids. 

There is no immediate plan for the money, but they have saved every dime.  Even when they lose interest in this project, I think they will learn some skills that can help them be self-sufficient in other ways later.  For those that want to learn more about these survival bracelets, you can contact my kids.

It pays to use a professional

We have lived in this house for almost a year. One of the things that has bugged us is that we had to use a wireless network for the computer. We were used to having the computer wired to the internet so it was pretty fast. The wireless network had issues connecting and was much slower. We lived with it for a while now and decided it was worth the hassle to wire everything up.
Dave and I are pretty good do-it-yourselfers usually. We looked at what the job would entail and decided to call a professional. I did a little google search and found an electrician that had good ratings. He came out and told me he would have to cut two holes in the drywall for each location I wanted to put an ethernet jack. That was so he could pull the wires in the walls. I could do that and pay to have someone come patch things afterward or else pull wires on the outside of the house to each location. I wanted it done inside the walls. He couldn't pin down an exact quote because he gets paid hourly, not by the job. The estimated cost was going to be pretty high.
So then, I called the Wire Guys. They came out to see what the job would entail. They gave me a quote and said they would not have to cut any holes in the drywall except where they would put the jacks. Pefect. Just what I wanted. They estimated less than half of what the other electrician estimated for me. They told me it would take about 6-7 hours. They came today and finished the job in about 4 hours.
The wire guys pulled ethernet wires from the basement to the main level and up to two rooms on the upper level. They also fixed two coaxial cable lines that were installed incorrectly by someone else's DIY project. So now we are back up to a fast speed and no waiting for the wireless network to connect.
We have a few more projects in mind. This one was one that if we had tried to do ourselves, we would have spent the amount we paid a professional for the tools we needed to do the job and it would have been ugly.
So, if you are in need of a professional to add wiring to your house, I would recommend the Wire Guys.
http://www.wireguys.com/

My Valentine

Here's a shout out to my love for Valentine's Day. It has been almost 13 years of marriage and the flames of love are still burning as bright as ever. It's not about the flowers and candy. It's about when he does things for me and his children that warms my heart. For instance, last night Becca got out of bed and wanted me to get her a stuffed animal that was on her shelf out of reach. Dave got up and got it for her and tucked her in sweetly. I watch the loving way he interacts with my babies. That's what brings joy to me. He helped Kyle figure out his math problem. He helped Macey put music on her MP3 player. He treats Hailey like she is a princess. He gives loving encouragement and hugs to all of us. That's the kind of man I want to be with forever.

Religion and Politics

I am not a fan of politics in general. I hate that it's a big fight over "he said______ or he did_____." All you hear is what a scumbag the other guy is.

We really have to be careful when we are highly passionate about a subject not to offend everyone around us. Religion and politics are not good conversation starters when in mixed company. It notoriously causes contention and bad feelings if not handled correctly. I have my opinions and points of view of religion and politics. However, I think sometimes for certain people, it is better not to even bring the subjects up, knowing full well that there will be a war. It is possible to have a conversation with most people that is mutually respectful. Some people are not capable of having such a conversation without getting all riled up. They start spewing hatred toward someone else because of their passionate views.

Lately, my religion has been attacked (or sometimes defended) while in the middle of a political discussion thanks to a Mormon running for President. I will keep my opinions about politics to myself in the discussion, but let me just say that I have been hurt by things said in the news or on radio about people that have hatred towards the church. If you have a good reason not to vote for a person, so be it. I just hate the labels and anti-Mormon crap spewing from all over the place. If you don't want to be a Mormon, that's your choice-(Agency to be exact). But why do you have to make it the center of your life to tell everyone you can how much you HATE my church? Why can't you just let things go and move on with your life? Why do you have to try to bring everybody down with you?

I don't hate anybody. I believe there is a lot of evil in the world. I don't, however, point my finger toward any group of people and say they are evil. Christ taught love and forgiveness. I'm doing my best to try to live by those standards. I just wish everybody that hates my church would go find a constructive way to live rather than to beat people like me down that haven't ever done anything to hurt anybody in their lifetime.

Enough said. Peace out.

Christmas Loot!

 Hailey is obsessed with giraffes.  She calls them "giraffies".  We found this giraffe print comforter set which goes pretty well with the jungle motif of her room.  The big giraffe on the end of the bed is a pillow pet so it opens up flat.  She is loving all the giraffes and sleeps with ALL of them at night.

 Becca was also in need of new bed covers.  She loves flowers.  The other thing she asked for which Santa brought to her was a rubber chicken.  Silly, funny girl. 

 Macey has asked for a roll top desk for a couple of years now.  Dave and I checked into getting her one and were sad to find that they are quite expensive.  So this year, we decided to check out Craigslist and see what we could find.  I am happy to say that you can get great deals on Craigslist and that Macey doesn't mind having a used desk.  My little artist is now busily at work at her desk for long periods of time.

We also found a great new ping pong table from Dick's.  It was a pain to put together but lots of fun for the whole family.  The one feature that sold me on this particular table is that there is a ball storage area right in front of you so you don't have to chase balls the whole time you are playing AND they don't have to make a mess all over when you are done playing.

Not pictured is Kyle's loot.  He got a few Wii games and an electric scooter.  He has already spent his Christmas vacation working on mastering those things.

We feel so fortunate to have such abundant blessings.  We are especially thankful for the most precious gift we have received, the gift of our loving Savior.  Merry Christmas to you and your families.  We love you!

"You owe your life to dental hygiene"- Batman

A while back, my sister Jalyn shared this with me.  I couldn't stop laughing about it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mdKrNT29kE

An update on the job situation:

I am officially working for Dr. Coleen Crowley Jarvis at Jarvis Dental in Meridian.  She is great.  She goes by Dr. Crowley because he father in law is Dr. Jarvis (general dentist) and her husband is also Dr. Jarvis (orthodontist).  To keep things straight, she decided to go by her maiden name.  I have been filling in as their schedule was very busy for the last few months and I told her I was looking to work one full day per week.  She told me she was thinking of having a double hygiene day (2 hygienists working at once) per week.  What a perfect fit!  She was in the process of buying out her partner (father in law) so that she could be on her own.  That happened on November 16th.  So then she had the power and ability to hire her own employees and make her own decisions about her practice.  Previously she was more like an employee to her partner.  I am excited to know that I will have a constant position at one office. 

On a side note, in a past blog post I wrote about having my heart broken over not being hired for Dr. Davis.  Well, I still really love that office.  I have been working there still even after the weird, messy situation.  I love the people and it is just fun to be there.  However....I am so glad to have some stability and not wonder what was going on and what would happen next.  I am not at liberty to explain it all because I think it could be hurtful to certain individuals but I am glad things worked out the way they did.  Dr. Davis called to explain things and he wanted me to know what he was thinking that he never said.  Long story short, we are all good and I'm happy to fill in when they need me to, but I am glad that I will be with Dr. Crowley.

Yet another great blessing to me and my family.