Compensation

I have been pondering recently, the principle of compensation.

When Elder Wirthlin gave his talk Come What May and Love it, I remember thinking. How will I be compensated for the loss of my mom and so many other dear friends in my life? I decided I should be compensated with a cowboy husband. I decided and I waited.

And I am still waiting because that is not how The Lord works. We don't pick our blessings do we?

In all actuality I am not waiting for my compensation.

I realized this a few weeks ago.

I had been outside playing with these two kiddos.

We even went fishing.
Later that night when I was holding this one tight as he fell asleep with a fever,

I looked down at him and thought "This is my compensation." I have 4 new eternal family members, that I wouldn't trade. If something happened to one of these guys my grief would be exponential. I lost one and gained 4. It isn't the compensation I picked out for myself, but I'll take it. I will more than take it. I will be eternally grateful for every sticky kiss, sassy expression, and story read.

I haven't given up completely on my cowboy husband.

Since you brought it up....

This is how I now feel about my cowboy man.
If you aren't an actual cowboy that's cool, you can be a cowboy on the inside.

Don't

• Look up Pizza Man on amazon.
• Let your friend read Pizza Man to you when you have a hacking cough. 
• Wear a Shade layering tee as just a tee. Layer it, trust me.
• Put off going to the doctor for two months when you have a hacking cough.
• Start liking a boy before he asks you out.
• Ask someone why he is trying to get into your hotel room until you make sure you are in the correct hallway. 
• Listen to Jason Aldean all the way up if you have cheap speakers. 
• Listen to your new favorite song *Kiss You Goodnight* 30 times in a row.
• Eat Cheetos, then iron your temple dress.

Seriously.... Don't.

If you give a girl a perscription...

She's going to want a date to go with it.

"I have always wanted an inhaler. Just think of the possibilities. Say a professor calls on you randomly and you aren't prepared. Just start sucking away on that thing and you are home free!" ~Spencer (co-worker at USU)

I have been sick since I drove home from Vegas. Seriously it was miserable. No one needs to have a horrible cough for 2 months. But I kept thinking it was getting better. My boss told me to go to the doctor I didn't. My friends told me to see a doctor and I didn't. I have had, in general, only horrible experiences with doctors. I know that typically they are amazing men and women who work hard, and save lives. My experience however, has been large bills for no improvement.

Finally, yesterday, I saw a doctor. Thanks to my adorably sweet bishop and his wife who made the appointment with a friend of theirs. Along with a lot of assurance that I would be in goods hands and taken care of.

What I wasn't anticipating was the incredibly ATTRACTIVE student doctor he brought in with him. That is not exactly the place you want to run into a sexy man. I am looking homeless, coughing up a lung, smoker voice, making a great impression I am sure. He also made sure he administered the nasal spray himself. Awkward having this incredibly attractive man stick medicine up your runny nose.

For the record that nasal spray is the worst tasting thing that I have ever had in my nose. Seriously so gross. I would trade in a heart beat for that pink bubble gum flavored stuff I choked down as a child.

The story gets better though because just when you thought you couldn't get any sexier he prescribes you an inhaler. Seriously. Maybe he was just trying to make sure no one else would want me. That is the story I am going to tell myself. Then he was going to get off work and hang out at Smith's Marketplace hoping I would need to stop by and pick up some cilantro for dinner. Unfortunately, when I stopped to pick up cheese for dinner he wasn't there. Maybe I should have checked the produce section.

P.S. I was going to include a picture with this post. However, when I googled attractive doctor, none of them were as attractive as my student Doctor... and don't type in hot doctor. WARNING!

P.P.S. My cough was gone when I left the office. No more cough! What a beautiful thing!

Where I come from: Mary No-Pee

I have always been teased by one of my Uncles about being a descendant of an Indian "princess" names Mary No-Pee on my dad's side. I decided to find out more about her.

She was born sometime between 1597 and 1603. She was said to have had flaming red hair and was from one of the Wampanoags tribes living on Martha's Vineyard Island. Wampanoags means white Indian, and it is legend that the tribe is of viking heritage. Her husband John Hyanno made an extremely favorable impression on the pilgrims with hospitality, generosity, and his incredible good looks. "A young man in his twenties, he was personable, gentle, courteous, and fair-conditioned; indeed, not like a savage save for his attire. His entertainment was answerable to his parts, and his cheer plentiful and various." (New York: Time Incorporated, 1964)

In a Captain's journal provided by the London Maritime, (I don't know which captain or which vessel) reads "We have, this day, met the daughter of one of their chiefs, by name of Iaano, called by them Mary. She seems upwards of some 20 years of age, is most self possessed even able to speak coherently in our tongue. Most surprising, she has hair like the setting sun, with eyes of a clear sky."

I find it curious that her name was No-Pee and her father is recorded as either No Took Seat and/or No Took Salt. I wish I knew the story behind that one.

Their daughter Mary "Little Dove" Hyanno married  Augustine Bearse in1639 who was a full blooded gypsy deported by the British on The Confidence of England in 1638. They were married under Pagan Indian ceremonial rights and later joined the Puritan church in 1650 for the protection it provided. Their marriage is possibly the first European/Native marriage on the Continent.

How about that? I not only have Viking heritage on my mom's side, which I have always known, I also have it on my dad's side. Throw in a little bit of gypsy and we are on our way to figuring out where I come from. 

Bookshelves

I found this picture some time ago and pinned it. I like the idea of a man who will build bookshelves for me. I like what I call a retrosexual man. A man who is a man, and it is only fair then that he gets a feminine woman.

I was raised by MY mom and dad however, and today when I was in Lowe's for much longer than planned and also Saturday comparing prices on power tools and purchasing the one that said 60% more power, I realized I am a lot like my parents. The woman who took welding classes, was learning to blacksmith, and restore her 55 Willies Jeep. The man who loves to use his chainsaw, and drive motorcycles in the desert.

Later I was at IKEA with a man who is all about being manly. I was teasing him and I said "I am going to purchase this bookshelf, I am going to carry it to my car by myself, and I am going to go home and assemble it with my own tools! How does that make you feel?" and he let me.

When I was home later, watching Gettysburg, assembling my new bookcase, and building my bench with Kyle's power tools. I thought "I could text a cute boy and tell him I need help and we could have a good time doing all these things together." But then I realized I was having too much fun to ask a boy over because without fail they always take over and I have to watch them have all the fun. (Like when I changed my brake pads and just wanted the boy to loosen a lug nut but he did the whole thing while I stubbornly protested that he was taking all the fun.) So I didn't call anyone and I did it myself and I enjoyed every stinking minute of it.

So I would like to revise the above to: I want a boy who will build bookshelves with me, let me use the power tools once and awhile, loan me his testosterone when I need it, and be okay with watching Gettysburg. Do you think I can get someone to print that out in vinyl for me? 

Where I come from: Martha and my Pioneer Dilema

I, like many in the church, have a pioneer heritage. However, I have never gotten into it much because while my ancestors on mom's side were handcart pioneers none of them, that I was aware of, stayed faithful members upon their arrival in Utah. I hear stories of sacrifice and faith and think "how come my family made all these same sacrifices to travel from Europe, walk to Utah, and then couldn't remain faithful upon their arrival?"

I had forgotten about Martha. On Memorial day we stopped to put flowers on mom's grave. She is buried in Peterson, UT right next to her great grandma Martha. Peterson cemetery is in a beautiful location in the foothills.

 The only thing visible from the cemetery is horses and mountains. I really really love it there. While there I was reminded of her story so I googled her online this morning. I didn't think I would find anything, but her and her husband Peter are listed in the Encyclopedia of Famous Mormons.

ANDERSON, Martha Hansen, wife of Peter Anderson, was born Feb. 27, 1829, at Elverom, Osterdalen, Norway, the daughter of Breda Hansen and Ingeborg Hansen. Becoming a convert to "Mormonism" she was baptized August 5, 1860, by Peter Olsen and immigrated with her husband Peter, to America in 1861 on the ship "Monarch of the sea." She crossed the plains in Samuel A. Woolley's Handcart Company, which departed Omaha and arrived in Salt Lake City on Sept. 22m 1861. She walked and carried a baby(My G-Gpa) in her arms the entire way. While crossing one of the rivers, where the water was very deep, she had to hold the baby (G-Gpa) above her head, the water reaching to her shoulders. As the stream was about to carry her and the baby away, a man by the name of Olsen jumped in the water from the opposite bank and saved them both. Sister Anderson became the mother of nine children, five boys and four girls (2 girls passing in infancy); she presided over the Ward Relief Society at Peterson about six years. She was a remarkable woman of very strong character, and in early days was often termed the "Good Samaritan," as her house was always open to hungry and weary emigrants or travelers. Her house was a typical country hotel, except that she never was known to make any charge. And when the appreciative traveler, whether stranger or acquaintance, would ask what the bill was for such royal good treatment, she would invariably answer with a pleasing and welcome smile, Always care for those in need as I have cared for you and thus your bill will be paid in full." Sister Anderson died April 15, 1901. 

So she sounds pretty great right? Well she was, and she was faithful her whole life. To me this becomes even more significant when you consider another part of her story. Her husband Peter served a mission to Norway from1882-1884. While there he married Dorthea Maria Gulbrandsen, without permission from Martha, and as far as I know without her knowledge. So Martha raised all 7 children who lived past infancy alone. In a time when many were illiterate, she taught them to read and write and many of her children became well known for their writings. Including Nephi Anderson who wrote Added Upon as well as a few LDS fiction novels.

So my pioneer dilemma has been solved. I do have an ancestor who joined the church, crossed the Atlantic, walked to Zion, and no matter what life threw at her, remained faithful.

Where I come from: Relative Finder

I have almost no apps on my facebook. I use facebook to chat with my dad, show off my cute siblings, tease friends I don't see often, and stay up to date on ward activities. BUT there is a one app I think is fantastic and you should all give it a try. It is called Relative Finder. You install the app and it will have you sign into New Family Search. Your log in is the same as it would be for any church websites, such as lds.org. Once you are logged in it will show you all the famous people you are related to.

Mine goes on and on forever, it really does, however I don't really care that I am 10th cousins with Richard Nixon. I also don't think that being 10th cousins once removed with Elder Holland will get me an invite for Sunday dinner. But it is cool. I am also 10th cousins with varied degrees of removal from Ballard, Hales, Oaks, and Perry, because I know you wanted to know.

There is also a feature, once you have logged on, where you can see how you are related to your facebook friends that also have the app installed. So log on and find out how we are related. You know you want to and maybe you will find some interesting people you are related to like I did. I am planning on sharing the interesting, and directly related ones here. GET EXCITED!