Things I am grateful for after 8 inches of snow and 52 hours without power:

1. Heat (we have a gas furnace, but the fan is electric)
2. Lights
3. A campstove and propane to use with it.
4. Food to cook on the cookstove.
5. A husband with the motivation and the willingness to help me do the work of doing ALL the dishes with water boiled on the campstove.
6. Children who put up with a cold house for 24 hours.
7. Elder Bryant and Elder Buchanan who, on their way out contacting, stopped and took over clearing our driveway of all the snow (we only had two shovels anyway)--and then helped Steve maneuver turning the van around in the snow that was left so we could get out.
8. My sister Marian and her husband Tommy who opened their home to all of us for the second 24 hours.  Her children, Erik, David, and EmmaLeigh, and mine were VERY excited about it.  I just had to put up with the stress of 7 children--plus a babysittee--running through the house!  (Didn't seem to bother Marian much--I was amazed.)
9. Having the feeling of Sunday even if we didn't go to church.  (The roads were still slick, and the parking lot wouldn't have been cleared.)
10. Having lunch at Mom's (well, that would have happened anyway, but I am always grateful for her putting up with--and cooking for--so many people in her house.)
11. Quantity and Quality time with our children--we played more games in the last two days than we usually do in a week, and Benjamin especially was very happy!
12. Ancestors that lived--happily, in most cases--through life harder than the one I put up with from Friday night 'till Sunday night, and still found the hope to find the gospel and move across a wild country to Zion.  The last two days have made me very very grateful for them--and very grateful for the life I have right now.

Lake Lure

One fine Saturday evening, I took the kids on a drive down to Lake Lure while Martha got a much needed break. (Though her break included studying for a test she had on Monday morning.) The drive down to Lake Lure is fantastic along old two-lane highways that twist and turn through the mountains of western North Carolina.

Along the way there are a number of touristy-type shops--some of which I noticed have closed down due to the struggling economy--but the shops around Lake Lure and Chimney Rock still seem to be doing some bustling business.

The kids and I had a great time walking along the lake and playing at the playground.

Bipolar happens

Just a note that I'm starting a new blog--not to replace this one--detailing what is happening with me regards to my health. It is mybipolarfamily.blogspot.com. I guess this is my attempt to come out of the proverbial "closet" so to speak.

Unfortunately, bipolar disorder has a lot of stigma associated with it which makes it even more difficult to recover from episodes, etc. In an effort to reduce some of that stigma and show that this is an illness similar to diabetes or cancer or... I am recording my experiences with the disorder.

Regarding the name, I called it Bipolar Family partly because mental illness has hit my family so hard. Both my brothers are largely incapacitated by mental illness. They are still great, wonderful, loving people but they are not going to amass a wonderful resume or head a large happy family. What they offer the world is very different from what we unfortunately call success.

The other reason I call the blog Bipolar Family is that in a way those of us who suffer in whatever way from the effects of mental illness are all in this together. I love what the actor Glenn Close and her sister Jesse are doing with their newly launched foundation, Bring Change 2 Mind.

Part of me wants to apologize for being open about having bipolar disorder. It isn't a pleasant subject. I read recently about Sandy Naiman, an award-winning journalist who suffers from schizoaffective disorder and has been successful in battling the stigma of mental illness in her environment. She indicated that fifty years ago cancer had a similar stigma. It was not something you talked about and was referred to as the "C-word." People with cancer feared that if employers found out about their illness they would lose their jobs or never work again. Those who suffer from mental illness face that same level of stigma. They worry about losing their jobs, their families and their friends.

But those with mental illness are more than their mental illness. The illness is something they have. It is not who they are.

I'm hoping that in our era of rapid change that it won't take decades to overcome the stigma of mental illness.

As Glenn Close's sister Jessie mentions in one of the videos, it's uncomfortable at times wearing the "bipolar" t-shirt. But I'm hoping that it will be worth it.

Fall Pictures

This past weekend (while Benjamin was away with the Scouts, camping) we went up on the Blue Ridge Parkway to see the Fall Colors.  They are gorgeous!  I thought I'd share some pictures:

Bright Colors

A variety of muted colors

Steve and the kids

Me and the kids

Joshua being goofy

I liked these rocks

Jessica liked this moss

Jessica on the barricade - this part of the Parkway is closed during the winter

Jessica took this picture of the leaves

Carolyn in her colors!

Wacky Hair Day

Our county School System sponsors a fund raiser for Eblen Charities every October. To make it a little fun, my children's elementary school has a "Wacky Hair Day" at the first of the month to encourage donations for the fundraiser. All the children that bring in money that day get to wear their hair any wacky way they want. So Jessica and Joshua wanted to go all out and spray their hair this year. So here are the results:

Front:

And Back:

They had a lot of fun!  Now, though, can anyone tell me the trick to getting the spray out?  They've both washed their hair already, and they STILL have green in their hair! :P  (Hee, Hee! What a hoot!)

Seattle Vacation

This year our family vacation took us back to Steve's home of Seattle, Washington. Too many years had passed since the last time we were able to spend time with family in Seattle. (One of the really hard things about living across the country from Steve's family.) We were able to take in a lot of sites.  (By the way, these photos—and more—can be seen in here)
Newly completed light rail. We caught it about a block away from our hotel and took it into Seattle.
Views from the Space Needle at the Seattle Center
Mount Rainier. Steve thought it was the best weather he's ever seen while on the mountain--made for great views.
Ferry ride from Anacortes to Orcas Island in the San Juans
Once we got to Orcas Island, we drove to the top of Mt Constitution to Moran State Park. Some awesome panoramic views of Puget Sound!
To top everything off, we finished our week in Seattle with a trip to the Oregon Coast. It was great to see all the sights and especially to spend time with Steve's parents, Cherie's family, and Steve's brothers. We intend to make our next visit much sooner. Five years is too long between visits!

Some fun pictures taken this summer