mama's hands.

I have always loved this poem.


Mama's Hands

I saw you hide your hands in line,
Behind that lady fair,
I noticed too, hers soft and white-
Immaculate from care.
But Ma, I say, it’s no disgrace
To have workin’ hands like you,
And had she lived the life you have,
She’d have hands just like it too.

But her hands have never hauled in wood,
Or worked in God’s good earth.
They’ve never felt the bitter cold,
Or chopped ice for waitin’ stock,
They’ve never doctored sick ones,
Or dressed a horse’s hock.
They’ve never pulled a hip-locked calf,
Or packed water to the barn.
They’ve probably never patched blue jeans,
Or had worn ol’socks to darn.

They’ve never touched a young’n,
Or caressed a fevered head,
With hands so gently folded,
All night beside his bed.

They’ve never scrubbed a kitchen floor,
Or done dishes every day.
They’ve never guided with those hands,
A child who’s lost the way.

They’ve never made a Christmas gift,
Shaped by a lovin’hand.
They’ve never peeled apples,
Nor vegetables they’ve canned.
They’ve never worn a blister,
Or had calluses to show,
For all they’ve done for others,
And the kindnesses I know.

So you see, my dearest Mama-
Yours are hands of love.
And I bet the Lord will notice
When he greets you from above.

Tommi Jo Casteel

Taken from "Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul"

branson, mo and moving again.

Over the past month we have been to some fun places in Missouri.

(woah, a cardinal--a bird, not a baseball player--just ran into my sliding back door...) ok...anyway...

Three or four weekends ago we went on a little hike and I took some good photos of Connel and I. After our hike and site seeing of a small natural landmark, we went to Lamberts Cafe, where the servers throw their tasty rolls at you. Ok, so they throw the rolls TO you...but they still toss the rolls through the air! It was crazy, I didn't really like the food, but it was a fun experience anyway. I took lots of pictures, but I lost my 2 GB memory card FULL OF PICTURES!!! Wah. I am still looking for it, so if I happen to find the pictures, I will post them.

Two weekends ago we went with our friends the Taylor's to see old town St. Charles, MO. It was such a quaint little town. We looked through spice and candy shops, ate some St. Louis and Chicago Style Pizza (which was THE BEST!) and went to a brewing restaurant to see how they made Root Beer (and other brewery...). We also were able to catch a fire-eating guy's show as we passed by. It was a fun day. It was also a beautiful day, which made it even better!



Then, over this last weekend, Connel surprised me and took me to Branson! We went on a Duck Ride on Saturday Morning. A "Duck" is a military vehicle in that many people have turned into a tourist attraction. It is a vehicle that can drive on the land or the water. So they toured us through Branson and then we went out by the dam and got to ride on the water as well, I wish I would have gotten a video of when we were going to the water from the land it was like the Dukes of Hazzard! Our tour guide was awesome, he had theme music for all of the "sections" of the tour. Including the M*A*S*H Theme music when we drove past all the old army vehicles! What a comedian. Connel got to drive while we were on the water, and afterwards he got an Honorary Quackers Captain's Certificate!




Later that evening, we went to the Dolly Parton Dixie Stampede Dinner Theatre. The Dinner Theatre was very similar to the Medieval Dinner Show that I went to on high school ballroom dance tour in Las Vegas at the Excalibur. We sat in a small arena and ate with our fingers and while we watched the tournament style theatre show. They had the North and the South side and we were on the South. We were supposed to cheer and some people got to go out to the arena and participate. It was so fun and our "team" won the tournament! The only downer was that we couldn't take pictures!

But, we did get some great pictures after that, when we took a quick stop at the Hollywood Wax Museum and had some great laughs as we posed with the wax statues!

I always have fun with my honey, but this was just a much needed and relaxing weekend!

Thanks honey! I love you!

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Well, when all the fun is said and done, we have loved Missouri, we have loved the sights and mostly again, we have loved the people... But, even good things have to come to an end...

We are moving again!

We always knew that we would be moving again in a short time, but these moves seem to be coming so fast! We are sad to leave our little town, but excited to move to (or should I say return to??) our next location! I'll give you some hints as to where we will be moving...
Can you guess?

MySpace Playlist at MixPod.com

mother's day a little late.

This year, I was a little selfish during the weeks that preceded the big celebration of Mother's everywhere. It seems that there are plenty of reasons why one who has no children might slightly despise the "passing out the flowers" in sacrament meeting. I was really worried about how to handle Mother's Day...it was just going to be a little bit different for me this year. However, on Mother's Day, thank goodness that my thoughts were not so focused on myself.

I actually seemed to think more about my own Mother and Mother-in-Law and the great women that they are. Both of them have gone through so much in life, and both of them show their testimonies of the gospel in the way that they live. I am so grateful to have such wonderful examples of Motherhood and Womanhood in my life.

Sending TONS of love to our Mothers...to us, everyday is a day to celebrate you, because you are the reason why we are who we are, and why we are here! We miss you both dearly!