Carter's

You may be surprised to discover that my favorite store in the whole wide world is Carter's. Carter's is a huge company with outlets in nearly every state in the U.S. Carter's and Osh Kosh are owned by the same company, I love them both. These companies make high quality children's clothing, with style. Outside of cute socks, adorable dresses and comfy play clothes, my favorite things about Carter's is their marketing department. You know I'm a sucker for a company with A+ marketing efforts. Carter's gives me a new coupon every 30 days via email. They give me more coupons every time I shop in the store. They also have a very respectable customer loyalty card program; after spending $100, I get $10 off my next purchase. So when I combine sale prices, with coupons, with customer loyalty dollars I end up with lots of cute clothes and SUCH good deals.

I went to Carter's today because Mia and Teryn have starting growing out of their winter clothes. I walked out with:

6 adorable long sleeve tee's

5 pairs of pants

2 tunics

3 dresses

2 pairs of Spring capri's

and 4 pairs of socks

All for $45. The regular retail price for all of these items was $327.00

I am a very happy Mommy. I also learned today that they do double stamps on Loyalty Cards if you shop on Tuesdays. Good to know. Give it a shot, Carter's is awesome.

Prayer

We discussed prayer at Church Sunday afternoon. I was not surprised by the number of woman who feel like their prayers aren't being answered. I admit that sometimes I feel the same way. But, I have a fundamental belief that flies in the face of this premise. I believe that God, our Heavenly Father always hears and answers our prayers. The trouble is our ability to recognize those answers for what they are. I can illustrate this point with a story from my life. When I was 20 I started to pray for a baby. I didn't actually have a baby for 5 years, and when she was born she was so premature that she died an hour later. Were my prayers answered? Yes, they were answered by a loving Father who knows what I need better than I do. His answer was "no." His answer was "wait." His answer was, "'Having' a baby may not be what you had in mind." His answer was, "I have things in mind to teach you that don't involve babies right now." And so it is with each of us.

I think we human beings think that if we don't get the answer we want, or we don't see angels then our prayers aren't being answered. Sometimes finding the answers just requires a little bit of meditation on our part, and perspective. Today I'm meditating and trying to gain perspective on prayer itself...so I look for all the wisdom I can gather on the subject.

Prayer is handled in a variety of different ways across the world. Many Christians say the same prayer every day, The Lord's Prayer, as recorded in the Bible. It is beautiful.

The Lord's Prayer Words

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,

the power and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.

Muslims say 5 Obligatory Prayers each day. These prayers are also beautiful, here is an example of a daily Muslim prayer.

God is great. (x4)
I bear witness that there are none worthy of worship except God. (x2)
I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of God. (x2)
Come to prayer. (x2)
Come to felicity. (x2)
[Fajr only] Prayer is better than sleep. (x2)
[Iqama only] Our prayers are now ready. Our prayers are now ready. (x2)
God is great. (x2)
There is none worthy of worship except God.

Buddhists pray, however, "the purpose of Buddhist prayer is to awaken our inherent inner capacities of strength, compassion and wisdom rather than to petition external forces based on fear, idolizing, and worldly and/or heavenly gain. Buddhist prayer is a form of meditation; it is a practice of inner reconditioning. Buddhist prayer replaces the negative with the virtuous and points us to the blessings of Life." I'm a big fan of strength, compassion and wisdom...I hope to have more of all those things on a daily basis.

My favorite author, Carol Lynn Pearson wrote a poem called Prayer:

This radio set

Called prayer

Is designed

For remarkably

Simple repair.

When the lines fail

There is no doubt

Which half

Of the set

Is out.

Strength and Energy

It seems that there is a gimmick for everything these days; berry juice can give you vitality and health, Box "rescue remedy" can ease stress, you can even get "Slim in Six" days, etc. Today I learned about a new product on the market for gaining more strength and energy. The I-Renew bracelet is available everywhere, even Best Buy apparently, for $19.99. It claims to give the wearer more strength and energy. I bet they'll sell a billion of these bracelets, including 2 they sold my husband.

I'm no RN, and I don't have a ton of experience with anatomy and physiology, but here are my favorite ways to gain more strength and energy:

Lindsey's Top 10 Suggestions for Gaining More Strength and Energy

1. Lift Weights

2. Play with children

3. Get a good night sleep

4. Eat as if it was 1920

5. Take a multivitamin

6. Get a chiropractic adjustment

7. Drink plenty of water, NOT soda

8. Spend some time in sunshine and fresh air

9. Eat less sugar

10. Laugh

I'm not saying I'm great at doing all those things, but when I do them, they are sure-fire ways to improve my strength and energy. I'm not so sure a $20 bracelet will. I guess we'll see. I'd love to know your thoughts about the bracelet if you've tried it. In the meantime, drink some water. :)

Art

I love art. Albert Hubbard once said, "Art is not a thing, it is a way." I have always wished that creating art was more a part of my way. I've embraced art in different ways over the years. I've played the cello, written books, danced, painted, taken photographs, sung, and designed aesthetic environments. Despite my experiences I've never really considered myself an artist.

I want my daughters to experience art, to create art and to be artists. Art is an important form of self-expression and I want to introduce them to as many forms as possible until they find the forms they love. With that goal in mind, I took a few hours and facilitated the girls (ages 2 and 3) creating their first paintings. Their final pieces are above. I love them. They bring me so much joy every time I walk past them. My girls did not do what I asked them to do. They mixed colors and used different brushes than I intend, but I let them do it their way. I wanted to see what would emerge from inside of them. Minnie Mouse once said in an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, "There's no right or wrong, when it comes to making art. Making sure that you have fun is the most important part." I'm pretty sure my kids had fun, I did too; the kind of fun I need to indulge in more often.