Happy Thanksgiving!

Sending out a big HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all. Hope you have a wonderful holiday and are able to reflect on all the wonderful blessings the Lord has given us. I'm keeping a little prayer of gratitude in my own heart for the MANY incredible blessings I have. Thank you Jacob for being my number one. Followed up quickly by 2 and 3 who keep me hoppin' all day long. And to think that's only the beginning of my blessings....

Gosh I love this picture. Blessings indeed.

SMRT

I am so dang smart! I amaze myself. Astounding. Spectacular! Okay, so I'm only a mere lightyear away from the rest of the world, but hey, I'm going to give myself a big pat on the back anyway. As you may have noticed, I changed my blog template. Now, you have to understand what an accomplishment this is. I DID IT BY MYSELF. Yes, it's true. I actually read a tutorial and made my way through all that html code junk. To most of the outside world this is comparable to a toddler putting on their own shoe. Perhaps I'm a technical toddler. Nonetheless, I will rejoice in my triumph! Okay, I'm a dork.

Let's recap last week. The Israelsen family are really the stars of the show this past month. In the past month, all but two of Jacob's siblings have come down to visit. Considering we only missed two out of ten, that's a pretty good chunk of the fam dam! Well, we must also add in that we didn't get to see a brother-in-law and a niece. But still, we got great Israelsen coverage! Last week we topped off the family pilgrimage to Southern Utah with a visit from Mom and Dad Israelsen. Dad I had meetings T-TH down in Mesquite, and Mom I accompanied him down. She stayed with us while dad was being the professional and then he joined us for the rest of the week. I WAS SPOILED. I had a whole week of Grandma Entertainer/Dishwasher Loader/Housecleaner/Counselor. We even got to keep them an extra day because Dad I's work truck broke down and they couldn't get a ride back up north until Saturday. I'm afraid the snow storm on Friday put a major kink into Dad's "get-r-done" schedule and he was stuck inside the whole day. Torture for an Israelsen! But, we enjoyed all our time together. THANK YOU for all your help mom and dad. We really had a great time with you. And I'm not even saying that just to be nice! The girls especially loved all the TLC. Mom I deserves a serious upgrade in heaven for the million times she played Memory and Cooties. Not to mention the 1,259,301 books she read to the little girls. Monday morning I looked at the pile of dishes in my sink and just about called and begged them to come back. Love you!

Well, my little Allie Rae is having some major success with potty training. I am perfectly okay about that! My little two-year-old bundle of joy has also started into some MAJOR tantrums. I have never seen tantrumming like this. Out of control, freak out, send mom to the asylum, kind of tantrums. Fortunately I found a great resource on the internet that is helping whip these freak out sessions right into shape. It's a darn good thing, I was about to sell her to the gypsies. Hmm. Not sure they would have taken her. LOVE YOU ALLIE!

Another Good One

You may have already seen this, but this was so touching to me. What an incredible lesson on what it means to be a parent, and how to take our trials in stride. Great to watch after an afternoon of shopping with the girls who ran around like hoodlums and dropped a juice bottle that broke and spilled all over the floor in Smith's.

Food for Thought

Perhaps right now one of the biggest things going on is the H1N1 deal. I know there are many differing opinions about the flu this year and there has been tons of media coverage. What I have found is that there is quite a bit of research out there, a lot of which is not covered in the media. Now that I am a mom and have to make very important decisions regarding the health of my kiddos, I have been really trying to do research so I can make what I feel is an educated, objective decision. Before simply assuming the best preventative course of action to take, I highly suggest everyone to do their own research to make the best decision for them and their families. An example of many available:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/11/03/What-We-Have-Learned-About-the-Great-Swine-Flu-Pandemic.aspx (This one has some VERY interesting info and especially numbers to consider)

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/11/13/what-is-the-real-cause-of-influenza-epidemics.aspx

http://www.nvic.org// (this one is a non-profit organization therefore has no ties to any one program or company)

Just something to think about. Something I'm learning about myself is I often play the "devil's advocate," if you will, and try to see all sides of the story.

If any of you out there have some other interesting information you would like to share, I would love to hear it!