Hello Leland Ladies! Prepare yourself to be blasted with the Jo-Unload...

You may want to grab a seat and a warm drink, it'll be a while....

Favorite Whole Food: Hmm, my favorite all-time food is a backyard peach straight off the tree and still warm from the August sun. But ANY perfectly-ripe, local (where'er I may be), seasonal fruit is a winner in my heart. Some that come to mind: AZ citrus (lemons, oranges, grapefruit, kumquats), Mexican avocados/mangoes, UT stone fruit (cherries, apricots, nectarines, peaches!) , NW berries (straw/blue/marion/rasp/black), and garden anything: WATERMELON, CORN, TOMATOES, etc!...How can i forget apple? I eat at LEAST two a day. Which brings me to my next fave:

Favorite Meal O' the Day: LUNCH. Or more appropriately, Brunch. You can serve/eat all my favorite food groups which is anything from muffins, grilled veggies, fruits, yogurts/creams/cheeses, soup/salad/sandwich(ALLTIMEFAVECOMBO...I'm also dang good at making these three things if I do say so), savory, sweet, simple, complex, etc! It's when I'm the most hungry and the most creative. Dinner time just plain stinks and I'm worn out by then to enjoy the process or the eating.

Favorite Restaurant Order: Hands DOWN sushi! I had no idea what I was missing in life until I met this fabulous Japanese Cuisine. I have never or will never stuff myself fuller at any time or holiday in my life than when I sit down to an all-you-can-eat- Sushi Bar. I could go on forever about my love for this and if you ever want to do something special for me: take me to sushi, give me a sushi Gift Certificate, or watch my kids so I can sneak in a few fresh rolls without breaking the babysitting bank. Because, let's be honest, it's not the most affordable item on the menu. Ok, I could almost always go for a good Thai meal too.


Favorite color: Oh dear.  I have to say I tend to drift toward the cool pallet such as sages, teals, cobalts, emeralds, and sea-foam...but what would skyblue be without sunshine!? And what would turquoise be without coral? Do you get my drift? It's color-combos that literally make my brain and heart buzz.          

Favorite season: When Fall comes around I always wonder where my heart really belongs, because I do so love the soothe of those months. But truly, Spring is a bliss beyond comparison in my world. It is the light after the dark and that makes me come alive in full-glory, along with everything else in Nature. I have to say though, the seasons would be nothing without each other, so I deeply appreciate the godliness in each. They are a preparation for the next to come and each is so wonderful in its own with both its pros and cons.          

What does your name mean: Literally translated (Hebrew origin) is "down-flowing". Jourdan is the French version. Which works out nicely since Rod's (Old German origin) name means "island". So I am the river to his island, never here nor there but always moving swiftly on while he stand firm. I would say this applies to us, but we have a bit of work to do there.

Embarrassing memory or secret: oh dear, the only one I can think of may even be too embarrassing for this forum.

Secretly wished-for secret power: I don't do these foolish, illogical things. Ok, I just though of one I may have though of over the years: I wish I could see my baby develop and how my body works during pregnancy. To know why I feel as crappy as I do and understand how a human can turn from fish to mammal at birth is the most miraculous thing and yet it's been done for centuries upon centuries and billions of times. It's incomprehensible to me that a live human can grow INSIDE MY BODY and with all that could go wrong and still come out PERFECT!

Clever housekeeping/kidkeeping trick: I don't have much to offer here. In fact I pretty much stink at both, but if I can remember to do two things then we all keep at a reasonably functioning level. They are: pick up as you go (don't leave a mess to "clean-up later)/ clean a little at a time instead of leaving it all for one day, and whatever you do it's usually worth your time to involve your kids in everything you are trying to get done (or it just plain WON'T get done). The second one is very tricky and you have to lower your expectations for almost everything, but in the meantime they are learning , you are developing patience (this is the goal) and they are also spending time with you in productivity rather than being shooed away into destructive behaviors (SO HARD NOT TO DO).  

Most hated chore: Dishes. I could keep my entire house tidy with a sink overflowing with week-old dishes and feel just dandy about it. I HAaaaaaaaaate doing dishes. I blame it on the nasty copper sinks we had as children that got smelly and gloopy when we were finally forced to do the dishes that had piled up for two weeks. If Rod wants to save our marriage he knows that his only chore is to do the dishes as often as possible/needed. True fact: I do at least five major rounds of dishes a week to stay sane, because afterall, no one can keep up with the amount of dirty dishes we put out. 

Biggest Dilemma in Life: Do what needs to be done (maintain house and children) and do what "wants" to be done (pointless projects/books/etc dominate my day-dreams). It's amazing to think of how much I really appreciate and enjoy a clean home and how often it is actually reasonably tidy (almost never). I obviously have not learned the answer to life's biggest dilemma.

Loved book or author: I love books that challenge my brain (it really doesn't take much) and have beautiful but still understandable language. I LOVE romanticism which can be either about nature or people, preferably both! I love to read about outdoors scenes and how the beauty of the earth affects the characters like it does me. Jane Austen is pretty awesome but I'm not sure I have a favorite...I feel like I am a baby in the world of classics and modern literature and got such a late start in the world of novels! Non-fiction is usually not my first pick but I do really enjoy learning history and science in terms I can understand. Fitting together the pieces of this life and our world in any way is very satisfying for me whether it be through relationship imagined or history/science defined. But again, comprehension has never been a strength so I hope to slowly develop that skill. There is too much out there to be a slow reader!

Place & time in history you would visit if you could: There has been so much suffering and so much good taken place over time. I feel so comfortable in my life that I feel any other time-period might shock me out of my pants. Think how eye-opening it would be though and how much you could learn by just getting a glimpse at single acts of kindness or understand why others had to suffer. I  think witnessing any single moment of Christ's life, with what I already know, would change my perspective forever. Sometimes I wish hard things upon myself because I so under-appreciate my blessings, but a nice glimpse of the future or past may just do the trick! Any time period would be equally fascinating in my opinion...people are people and have lived through so many things all equally important to our race and progression!

What Makes You OOBER happy: Laughing. I wish so badly I learned how to find more reasons to laugh. Laughing with Rod fills my cup to overflowing and laughing with my kids is just as good. Though I'll take a good genuine laugh with anyone and call it bonding! Good weather has and always will be appreciated to the fullest extent possible in my book.

 Best Moment in Life so Far: the anticipation of a new baby when in labor (or close to) and the few first days of meeting them (usually the quiet hours of the night are the most precious). I don't think I will every forget the moment Milo looked into my eyes after he was pulled from my body...it is something that (I HOPE) will never leave me and changed me forever. Though I don't necessarily remember Elliot or Flora's first gaze...oops :) 

Pet peeve(s): Good Question! I have a million and a half more when I'm pregnant, so here we go! Being LATE. In therapy-terms, this is a very strong trigger for me and I become unbearably anxious when I'm supposed to be somewhere or someone's waiting on me and I know I'm late. I also HATE radio chatter (anything beyond the actual song) which is why I just cannot listen to most stations. When my kids brainlessly destroy property, mostly mine or belonging to our home, knowing it will take either time, energy, or money (not had) to fix/clean/replace it. In fact, I'm really surprised they do it as often as they do knowing how bad I freak out about it (think Cruella deVil with red eyes). But you know, two-year-olds just do what they do best and boys just don't use their brains most days. Changing poopy diapers while pregnant has got to be more than a pet peeve, it's just wrong. And of course, it must be done, daily. Bother. Ok, and if I were to be honest being pregnant makes me want to jump out of my skin like a 10-month-long claustrophobic attack. 99.9% of it is loathed on my part beyond explanation. But also in honesty, children are worth even that. That's pretty amazing considering they are the source of at least three of my worst pet peeves :) See next point.

Favorite Sound: My children's laughter. Not a single comparison in the world. Please don't include willy wildness...it's not the same. My kids have some pretty awesome belly laughs when their funny bone gets tickled (inherited from Rod).

Type of music: Gee, I'm really touched by music but it's always been a very overwhelming piece in my life. I feel like there is too much out there and my memory just isn't cut out to organize (or budget) things like songs/artists so it gets pushed pushed to the back-burner often, almost always. I have a hard time hearing lyrics in songs and am more moved by the melody and mood and rhythm of a piece than I am the words- and that is sad! Because think how amazing some of those lyrics are! The type? Not everything, but my interest is too broad to have a favorite. The artists that are music to their core more than they are money/fame are obviously the most powerful/influential to me. 

Most essential make-up piece: I have recently discovered (last few years) that if my eyebrows are shadowed in, I give the perception of real human eyes and maybe even some bone structure! Even if you do have eyes as big as saucers they are still important (see above). So, I first go to shadowing my brows (plucking is a minimal job around my parts) then darken my outside lid with the same color. I like a bit of bronzing powder or blush for some skin-tone glow as priority #2. Numero three would have to be some mascara and lash-lifting! I never feel complete with-out a coat of burt's bees on my lips... and if I want to really knock'em dead I'll apply liquid liner to my eyes and finish off with some lip-liner and color.

Morning or night person: Good question, I'm not sure. I like early to bed-early to rise a heck of a lot better than staying up until my nose runs and not being able to sleep in. BUT I am most productive mid-day...it takes me a while to get motivated if I've woken up early and sweat my guts out. But if there is a par-teh going on, I can stay up with the best of them.

What do you most look forward to in the week: Weekends. I don't particularly like going to church (the stress!) but I do like the family togetherness of Saturdays and the restfulness that comes with no-homework/no-chores on the Sabbath. Plus, I get a second pair of hands to help on those two days too, that's nice!

If someone gave you the day off, what would you do: Ha! I guess it depends if I had anything pressing that needed to be done (read: pressing things don't mix well with child-care). If I wasn't exhausted and if my house wasn't a disaster like it normally is (in that case I'd be forced to either sleep most of the day or do a deep clean before I could concentrate on anything else), then this is how it'd go down: Wake up early and enjoy the weather if it was good outside or get in exercise otherwise. Make a really great breakfast and get myself ready for the day, as in maybe a little make-up and something cozy yet classy (do I own that?!). Then I'd plan out what project was a priority in my mind, usually something along the lines of a dress for me/Flo or maybe something I'm working on as a gift...but it'd most likely be something fairly small scale since large projects take more than a day and I like to feel like I've accomplished something on my ONE day off! I'd make myself a huge stacked sandwich or salad for lunch and bust out any audio book I had on hand. I may even have to make a library run if necessary for the right mood. I'd want a good 4-6 hours of uninterrupted time to just sew/paint/whatever.... then, I'd plan a group date to sushi where we all ordered a dozen rolls and shared! If I was still going strong, I'd love to have a game night, if not, I'd cozy down in bed with some tea and read through the hours of the night (assuming my one day also meant I could sleep in the next morn :). 

    

Truthfully, how many pairs of shoes do you have: um, not sure. But these days I only buy about one or two pair of "in" shoes a year (usually pretty cheap) and I keep my shoes FOREVER so I must have at least 30. Too lazy to go count. Lots and lots of them are old school and not worn much or saved for a one day when I may be thin. Sad story. I do love a good pair of sassy shoes though.

Personal Hygiene Habits: So ladies, I am discovering something about age...I learn a new trick or two every year about beauty practices that REALLY WORK! I feel like even though I am losing the assets of youth by the minute, I can play up the strengths better than I ever have. Meaning, I'm no beautician but I can do my own hair, wear make-up, pick flattering clothes, etc, better than I did ten years ago when I probably didn't even need it as much but made myself look like a nerd on a daily basis! The most recent discovery is that  I only have to wash/wet/do my hair ONCE a week...that's it! I can use whatever heat/product is needed (usually some high-quality oil smoother and some large curl heat) and it's PERFECT for 7 DAYS! I don't even have to brush it most days! Of course, this has been discovered during the last 20 weeks of VERY minimal exercising on my part, which means my head doesn't get sweaty enough to wash. I take showers about once every other day and soak in a bath at night on the off days. I only shave once (if that) a week and I NEVER wear deodorant, even when I'm exercising daily. I find that if I drink enough water, I don't need it and it keeps my G's/shirts nice and white at the pits. I also never take off my make-up at night and only scrub my face when I shower, but always lotion-up after a bath/shower. There are benefits to dry skin! Also, I am a night-bather. I MUST be clean when I go to bed at night and have very clean feet. Anything else? Oh, I think clean sheets is a luxury in this life and if I had a housemaid, I'd demand new sheets every night! But alas, by the time I get to mine, let's be honest it sometimes goes past a month (that's when I'm feeling pretty on top of things)! Gross! But hey, I'm just being honest and it just all can't get done...

Comment or memory regarding Grandma: Maybe I've glamorized my childhood but the things she facilitated for me/us make up much of what is important to me as a mother and future grandmother. Although her love of "things" was/is totally out of control, there was beauty in providing those to me and passing on that love. Meaning having stuff to read, snuggle in, eat, make sock puppets with, bake, play with and imagine with is quite important, at least to me. She also loves to work with her hands and beyond my children's progression, that is my number one love in this life. She has shown me that no matter how many times you fail, your strengths can still make a positive difference!