Happy Birthday Alexander!

My Alexander turns 29 today. I could go on and on about how wonderful he is but I don’t want to bore you to death or embarrass Alexander too much. Here are just a few reasons (in no particular order) why I am so thankful to have him in my life:

He makes me laugh every day
He is one of the most intelligent people I know but also one of the most humble
He loves to teach others what he learns and he teaches me something new every day
He has great compassion for others, including animals
He is slow to anger
He loves music and he hums when he’s happy
He has the most gorgeous blue eyes
He is very talented at imitating accents and I find it very entertaining
He has a child-like excitement that is infectious
He can make a mean spaghetti dinner
He loves and takes care of the dog even though he is allergic to her

Happy Birthday darling!

One Year Ago

One year ago today I was packing up and cleaning my beloved home in Provo. To say I was an emotional wreck would be an understatement. I was beyond devastated and my heart felt like someone I loved had just died. I unconsciously dragged out the entire process, delaying the inevitable: the moment when I would have to get into the car, turn it to the east and drive 1100 miles away. At one point in the afternoon our good friend came to take our fish. I knew the fish wouldn’t survive the drive and they graciously offered to provide a home for our pets. When he took them it was just one more goodbye we didn’t want to make and we cried even though they were “just fish”. One year ago today was a horrible day.

One year ago I started over in a house I had never seen before, in a city I didn’t know. Sunday came and I dreaded it. Sunday was the day when we usually had gone to my parent’s house for a wonderful dinner and fun evening with my family and I was dreading a lonely evening in a house that still didn’t feel like home. Despite my heartache, homesickness and loss of direction, I knew the Lord was watching out for us. That first Sunday in our new ward the members rushed to greet us and I am sure nearly every person in the ward came up to welcome us. I was relieved to be in a place that seemed to want us. That afternoon the elder’s quorum president called and invited us to dinner and we eagerly accepted. We were blessed to spend the evening with 3 wonderful couples who have since become dear friends. That night was the beginning of healing.

The next Sunday I was called to be in the Young Women’s Presidency and another piece of my heart was healed. I was given a calling where I was able to be spend time with wonderful ladies while serving some amazing girls. Just knowing I had a job to do was a blessing.

Gradually we began to discover the joys and beauty of Kansas City. We found the huge Irish Festival, the incredible Renaissance Festival and the Nelson-Atkins with its free admission to view masterpieces by Van Gogh, Monet and others. We discovered Fall and the crisp autumn perfectness that results in tasty apple cider and gorgeous trees of orange and red.

Slowly we began to appreciate what self-reliance and independence really means, being too far away for my dad to fix anything. Alexander and I have also grown closer and more co-dependent than we previously had been (if that is even possible). Godiva has become more entrenched as a member of our family and I am convinced that she adds a whole new level of comfort that we desperately needed.
Alexander has found his niche and is performing better than expected in school. We have high hopes and expectations for the future and we know that he can accomplish anything he puts his mind to.

The miracles keep coming and our faith in the Lord is being tested and strengthened every day. One year from last year we have grown and stretched ourselves beyond what we thought we could. Our eyes are open to the daily miracles we receive and our hearts have found room to love Kansas City like we love our home in Provo.
One year down, the rest of our lives to go.

Girls Camp

When I was first called into YW, all I could think about was how cool it was that I would get to go to girls camp. :) I loved it when I was a teenager so I knew I would love it as an adult. Our stake theme was "We're S.E.T (Seeking Eternal Treasures)". We decided that our ward would be Indiana Jones in Egypt and the girls were super psyched.

Growing up we always had little accessories to wear to let everyone know what ward we were in, so I took that as my job. I made little specimen bags similar to what Indiana Jones wears, little compass snakeskin wristbands, and then got little camo lanyards and put tiny binoculars on them (that actually worked!). I also made neck cooler snakes which had a gel in them that when dipped in water would stay wet and keep you cool. These were serious lifesavers when the afternoons got hot and humid!



Before camp, I had three main concerns that made me sort of nervous: ticks, chiggers, and super hot humidity. All of these were super valid. First, there are WAY more ticks out here than in Utah, it was practically guaranteed that you would get at least one. Also, chiggers are horrible. They are worse than any tick or mosquito, leaving red itchy circles that torture the person for days. As for my third point, the temperatures have been up in the 90's with really high humidity making it feel suffocatingly hot. Before I left I prayed that these wouldn't be a problem for me and I can gratefully say that none of these were issues for me. Pretty much every girl found at least one tick on her, some of them just walking on their arms or legs, some embedded. However, I escaped without ever seeing one on me. Also, only one girl got bit by chiggers so that was a miracle (sadly not for her, but she was a trooper). The temperatures were not AS hot as they could be and the humidity was low, so with our neck coolers and shade, we survived.

I had a blast with the other leaders and the girls. We pretty much laughed the entire time, creating hilarious inside jokes that will probably haunt us forever. One of my favs was with one of the MiaMaids named Bille.
Bille: Sis Strub, you look different.
Me: Because I just took my sunglasses off that have been on all day?
Bille: No, like different than usual, like on Sundays.
Me: Oh, you mean cause I don't have any makeup on and my hair is a disaster?
Bille: Oh yeah! That's it!

Yeah, we are never gonna forget that one. ;)

Another funny moment was when I was doing a tick check on Kyra. I said, "Ok Kyra, do a more thorough check in your tent. I don't see any, but check up your shorts". Those nearby swear that I paused after 'check' and that it sounded like "butt check, up your shorts". Haha! I know, it's not as funny here, but it was HILARIOUS then!

Anyway, I could list a hundred similar moments like this, but suffice it to say, I had a blast and girls camp was a total success. :)

I only took pictures the first day, cause after that I apparently forgot I had a camera. Here are some of the pics, most of them were taken during the level skits:

Kate modeling the awesome snake neck cooler:


Boy, I looked like a mess!


Some of my beehives peeking in my tent:


Kyra as the Tinman in the 4th yr skit:


Jasmyne as the Cowardly Lion in the 4th yr skit:


School of Fish in the 3rd yr skit:


Our wonderful stake leaders doing a synchronized swimming skit:


Watching Skits:


After the Skits:

Tornado Warning

About a year ago I posted a photo of the "totally awesome" tornado that we saw on our road trip outside of Peoria, IL. Today I had plenty of time to to reflect on our stupidity of stopping to take a picture of the twister (you can see our picture here). There's really not much to do while waiting out a tornado siren in the stairwell of the 10 story building I work in, so I thought about that tornado and hoped I never saw another one ever again.

Today was my first real tornado warning and it wasn't super pleasant. The entire building was crammed into the stairwell as we all tried to figure out what was happening outside in relation to us and our families. We heard reports that a tornado had touched down just blocks away from where I work and was headed straight for my home, where Alexander and Godiva were. I will admit that I started to get a little panicky as I tried to get a text out to Alexander to warn him to get the dog ready and get the tornado kit (I made the kit in the middle of the night a couple weeks ago when I was freaked out by the Alabama tornadoes).

Finally he sent a text back and told me he had just gotten Godiva on her leash when the sirens went off. Just then I heard that a tornado touched down less than 5 miles away from our house and was heading right towards them. Alexander couldn't get Godiva to get down the stairs and I was a nervous wreck trying to find out if they were okay and if the tornado was still on the ground. Needless to say, it was sort of hard to get minute by minute info while sitting in the stairwell. Luckily for everyone, the touch downs were only brief and none hit our immediate area. Nonetheless, the storm was raging over our home for awhile and the sirens continued to blare for an hour (which Godiva really didn't like). That must have been a really long hour for Alexander dealing with the crazy dog in a bare basement filled with cobwebs and yuck.

I think the neatest part of the day though was this morning before I left for work. I wasn't feeling totally up to par and was rushing out the door as usual, but Alexander pulled me over and said that we needed to have family prayer, which we usually forget to have. I felt that he was inspired that we would need a little extra comfort and help today and I am so thankful to have him as the priesthood holder in our home. :)

My prayers go out to all those in Sedalia, MO who really got hit with a tornado today and to all those in Joplin, MO still recovering from the horrible tornado they got over the weekend.

The Eternal Nature of the Family

I am a frequenter of Yahoo's Shine, a page compiled with random blog posts in all sorts of topics. Generally, for no reason I can explain, I stick to the parenting section and read all the blogs of mothers and their various experiences or complaints. Apparently I think of myself as a mother without kids.

However, today I wandered upon a blog post written by a woman named Abby, a sex-writer and nude model (not the type of post I would generally read). She explained that she is a feminist who was raised in an unconventional home where her dad stayed home and her mother worked. She is working on a degree in Feminist, Gender, Sexuality Studies but has a secret (or not so secret anymore) desire to be a stay-at-home mother with at least 3 kids. She says, "I just want to fall in love with someone for the rest of my life, have kids with him, and watch those kids grow up".

Reading her post struck such a chord with me. The past two weeks I have been teaching my YW Beehives about the eternal nature of the family: how before this life we were a family unit and that pattern continues in this life and if we are worthy, will continue in the life to come. Admittedly, Abby is anything but traditional and her ideas are considerably liberal, however, even she recognizes the unconscious pull toward a family that has all the potential to be eternal.

I loved this statement that she makes: "I know that marriage and the nuclear family is a screwed-up social construction. I’ve even written papers on the topic. But this argument is based on logic (and a desire to get an A). My happiness is not logical. My choices are not logical." I felt that this is a witness toward the sanctity of marriage and of raising children. She may not realize it and her mind can't make sense of it, but her spirit does.

Along those lines, isn't it amazing that with all the wickedness that this world has experienced, that the traditional ideas of marriage and the nuclear family are still the mainstream? I find this to be a testament of the eternal nature of families.

Additionally, I absolutely loved this statement that Abby used to conclude her post, "Being a feminist is about having the right to choose what you do with your life. My choice (as of today) is to be a stay-at-home mom. Therefore, I am a feminist". With all the negative pressure against women who decide to stay home with their kids, I love this affirmation. Women who choose to stay home aren't giving up their right to be independent free-thinkers, they are actually asserting those rights. (FYI, I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with women who choose or who are unable to stay home, just appreciating a feminist woman who is not bashing on stay-at-home mom's.)

So bravo to all the women (not just conservative, traditional types) who, in their search for happiness, acknowledge their desires for a nuclear family life that may not always be the popular choice.

*If interested, you can read Abby's post here: "I'm a White-Picket-Fence Feminist"

Drooling Yet?

Yeah, I know how to bring it in the kitchen. ;)





Did you notice my new catering company name stamped on the photo?

Ambrosia

In Greek mythology, ambrosia was the food of the gods and I feel that nothing says heaven more than a few delectable chocolate covered strawberries. I made these for a class I had tonight. :)





And yes, they were delightful!