Saying Goodbye

We said goodbye to our four-legged pal, Gracie, on Saturday.  It was a sad day.  Gracie has been a part of our family for 16 years.  She is almost exactly one year younger than Jess.  Neither one of my kids know life without her.

Choosing to put her to sleep was dramatic and sad.  I didn't think it was fair for me to choose to end her life.  I felt that she needed to die naturally.  In the end, Gracie just didn't have any plans to die naturally and was suffering.  Thursday night was very rough and Fred said that we needed to let her go.  And, I angrily explained to him that he would be doing it by himself.  However, my heart softened.  I knew he was right and I certainly knew that I owed it to Gracie to be with her during her last moments.  She has been dependent on me for everything these last couple of years.  How could I leave her when she really needed me?

We didn't take her to our regular vet.  We took her to a friend's vet in East Plano.  Gracie is petrified of riding in the car.  She didn't make a sound the entire drive. The vet was so sweet and compassionate.  She made sure that I knew that we made the right decision and that I didn't feel guilty.  The act of euthanizing her was so sad and awful.  I will remember it forever.  When it was finally over, the sweet vet led us out the back door and told us we could call on Monday and let them know what arrangements we wanted made for Gracie.

It feels so different not having Gracie.  We miss her so much and there are reminders of her everywhere.  Having a senior dog is hard.  I wish we hadn't had to experience the last two years, but they were also really sweet years.

Mostly, I want to remember the crazy dog that drove us all nuts.  The dog that slept at the foot of our bed for way too many years.  The dog that stayed close to the kids waiting for food to fall.  The dog that loved to eat crayons.  The dog that stayed ever vigilant when Fred was out of town.  The dog that sat on my lap at all times.

We love and miss you, Gracie.  Our home will never be the same.

U Make Me Smile

We hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas celebrations.  We finished up last night and we are pooped, but happy!  I will sort through the pictures and post this weekend.  Until then, here is my favorite.

The Christmas Card Debacle of 2013

For some reason, this has just been an off year for me.  If you know me, then you know that I truly LOVE Christmas cards. There has only been one year that we didn't send out Christmas cards and that was the Christmas that Jess was at Meridell.  I took the pictures before she left and ordered the cards.  However, I ended up not sending them, because she looked so sad.  

That being said, I don't know what happened this year.  I had it on my mind that I needed to have pictures done.  Then before I knew it November was upon us.  Do you know what November is?  No shave November!  The mustache is not a good look for my husband.  Last year, we went forward with family pictures and it was bad!  From there we started planning for our sealing and it just started snowballing after that.

Long story short,  I threw my kids in front of the tree and took their pictures.  My camera broke the day of our sealing.  I have to send it off to get it fixed.  (Sad story, I know).  A couple of years ago, I thought it was a good idea to paint my living room a soft green, because it was tranquil.  However, when you take a picture, it makes everyone look like death.  So, my pictures had a less-than-desired-effect.  I picked out a super cute card and made the pictures black and white hoping that would help make up for bad photography.  I ordered the cards.  My gut told me to pay the extra for expedited shipping.  After all, this girl has only gone one Christmas without cards.  But, no!  I went with the free shipping offer that said I would have it well before Christmas.  

Everyday, I anxiously tracked my cards.  Everyday they were in Frisco, but didn't deliver.  Turns out it was a FedEx package that had been handed over to USPS.  Friday night I tracked my package.  It said that they attempted delivery at 6:47 p.m. but there was no one home and that they left a notice.  First of all, I was home and second, I couldn't find a notice.  I called and entered in my tracking number and it said that the post office had my package.  

On Saturday, I headed out to the post office.  I got there too late for package retrieval.  However, while I was at the post office the mailman was delivering my package.  So, my theory is that he didn't get all of his packages delivered the night before and put it in his system that he attempted delivery.

I had address labels already printed out, so I quickly put labels and stamps on them.  We dropped them off at the post office.  They went out some time Monday and you will all get them after Christmas.  

One would hope that I learned my lesson!  Don't procrastinate and don't forget Movember.

The Unfortunate Sunday Picture

I asked my two favorite guys to pose with me for a picture on Sunday.  They look like they are in immense pain.  One might look at these pictures and think they only go to church on Christmas.  Nope.  Here was the problem.  Fred is a last minute dresser.  He showers about 15 minutes before we need to leave, so I couldn't take a Christmas picture before church.  My boys are literally throwing off their clothes as they walk in the back door on Sunday.  I asked them to wait for about 5 minutes while we took a couple of pictures.  Judging from their faces, it was torture!  To add insult to injury, I offended them when I said we looked cute in our Christmas attire.  Apparently, cute is a bad thing!

Blessings

I love this time of year!  I really do, even if I let the hustle and bustle stress me out a little.  It is a great time to reflect on the birth and life of our Savior.  It is also a great time to think about our many blessings.  Although, we can and should do those things all year long.

Two of my greatest blessings are Jessica Taylor and Jonathan Andrew!  They bring us such joy.  I love them to pieces.

Jessica is a senior at The Saint Anthony School in Carrollton (a therapeutic private school).  She loves working with special needs kids. She is given the opportunity to work with kids in the lower school most days and those kids adore her.  She also loves serving in any capacity.  The seniors recently went to the Salvation Army and helped them get the packages ready for Christmas and she was extremely touched by her experience there.   And, let's not forget that she loves all things Doctor Who!

Jonathan is in 8th grade at Wester Middle School.  He plays the  tuba and is excited to play a song for us on Christmas morning.  It is a compilation of Christmas hymns; he has been talking about it for weeks.   Jonathan has been working very hard in Scouts and is a project and a few partial merit badges away from being an Eagle Scout.  He will finish all of those partials except for one before Christmas break is over (do you feel Mom cracking the whip)!  Jonathan loves video games and could play them for hours.  We are working on helping him to develop a few more interests!

If you are reading this, then we count you as one of our many blessings, too!

Merry Christmas

The Fortenberry's were slow to get ready for Christmas this year.  It seems we get slower and slower every year.  I should be getting more on the ball now that my kids are older, right?  It seems like there is more to do now that they are older.  More activities and more places to be.  I am feeling more settled now that all the presents are wrapped - except for the kids' presents.  I always wrap those at the last minute.  I like to spread them out and make sure they are even.  We number the presents.  The kids draw numbers.  So if we draw #3.  Then they have to dig through and open present #3.  It makes Christmas last just a little longer.  Especially now that they don't have as many presents.  We also hide their Santa present and make them look for it.  I'll do all that Monday or Tuesday night.  At least the other stuff is wrapped, so that I can relax and enjoy time with my family.

We will celebrate Christmas with my family on Christmas Eve.  That is so much fun now that we have a 3-year old in the mix.  There is nothing better than a 3-year old.  They are sweet, sassy and crazy all at the same time.  What better time to spend with a little one than at Christmas.  And, of course, we love to spend time with my parents, brother and sister-in-law, too!

Christmas Day will bring our little family celebration and then we will go to my parents' home to celebrate with my mom's side of the family.  With Christmas falling in the middle of the week, I think we might only have my Auntie Jan, Uncle Joe and Grandma.  But, we will make the best of it and have a blast.  We always have a great time playing games.  We were told to bring a $20 white elephant gift and something that we already had that we want to 'regift.'

We had the opportunity to have Fred's parents spend Thanksgiving week with us, so we won't get to see them.  And, we hope to see Fred's sister some time over the holidays.  They have four kids, so they are always running.

In between the family celebrations, we are getting together with friends.  We are truly blessed!  

In just a little while I am going to teach the sweet young women that I work with at church.  Our lesson is called 'How can I prepare to establish a Christ-centered home.'  Such an appropriate lesson on the Sunday before Christmas.

We wish all of our friends and family a very happy, safe and blessed Christmas!

Mall Time!

Jonathan has been participating in a great little social skills group.  They have been meeting once a month. This month, they met at the mall to eat dinner, participate in a scavenger hunt, do a little shopping and work on their social skills.  First of all, I love that two of the boys have their drink shoved in their mouth!  Second, Jonathan insisted that I give him money for dinner, because he was NOT going to be spending his own money for dinner.  I gave him $10 to eat on.  He was concerned that was not going to be enough.  I informed him that if he spend more than $10 then he needed to use his own money, because that was all Mom was covering.  Lastly, Jonathan brought his own money to shop with.  He bought two presents - one for his sister and one for himself.  You gotta love that kid!

Sweet Memories

Jessie and her classmates are putting together their yearbook.  They asked for old pictures of each Senior.  Jess and I went digging through the pictures.  We didn't always agree on our favorites, so we had to compromise!  What is for sure is that I dearly love that sweet curly hair and big brown eyes!

November 16, 2013

We went outside after our sealing and took pictures.  There are certain things you can always count on when we take outdoor photos: 1) my clothes will be ill-fitting, 2) the wind will blowing my hair and clothes around and 3) while the wind is hitting me personally, the rest of my family will look perfect and untouched by the weather.

We asked the Palmer's to take our pictures for us.  When we were doing the shots of all three of us, I think Jonathan and I both were looking over at Kelly (who was not the one taking the pictures).  Tony told us to stop looking at Sister Palmer and to look over at him.  I don't know what made me say it, because my son is so literal and I should have known he would give me an honest answer.  But, I said something like "She is much prettier to look at it than Brother Palmer."  My honest Asperger boy's reply was "No, she was talking - that is why I was looking at her."  I know he didn't mean that Kelly wasn't pretty.  He just meant the reason he was looking at her was because she was talking.  Sometimes I smile to think about how his mind works and sometimes I want to scream.  It just depends on the day.

We were fortunate to have very sweet friends that went to dinner with us after our sealing.  They were very patient, because it seems like it took forever for us to do everything that we needed to finish up at the temple and then get Jonathan dropped off at home.

I had one small crisis on Sunday morning.  I was excited to download my pictures from the memory card.  I have no idea why, but I always use a card reader instead of the cord for my camera.  When I took the card out of my camera a piece of the card chipped off.  I couldn't get the card reader or my camera to read the card.  I was a nervous wreck and praying like crazy.  Finally, I taped the card back together with scotch tape and carefully placed it in the card reader.  You can't imagine how relieved I was when the computer pulled up all my pictures.  I pulled everything off my memory card and whispered a prayer of thanks!

These are probably the worse pictures anyone has ever had made at the temple, but I am so thankful that I have them!

Time and Eternity

Yesterday was a special day for us.  Fred and I were sealed as husband and wife for all time and eternity in the Dallas, Texas Temple.  Our son, Jonathan was sealed to us.  We hope that one day our Jessica will choose to be sealed to us, as well. 

A sealing is performed in the temple where a husband and wife, along with any children they might have are joined together as a family for eternity. 

I am so thankful to those that were there with us yesterday. This was a long time coming and I'm pretty sure there were times that I thought we would never be standing in the temple together.  I am grateful to my sweet husband for finding his way back to church and doing the things he needed to do so that he could take Jonathan and I to the temple.

 Jonathan said it best, "The waiting part sure was boring, but good things happened there today."  (It should be noted that because of the sacred nature of the temple, Jonathan had to spend most of his time waiting in the children's room.)

Fortenberry Four Halloween

The Fortenberry's love Halloween.  I'm pretty sure that it is Jessie's favorite holiday.

We enjoyed our annual celebration in Allen at the Garstka's.  The men (and Jonathan) handed out candy and the women took the kids around the neighborhood.

We don't know what Jonathan's was supposed to be.  He and Fred threw his costume together about 5 minutes before we left the house.  Jonathan loved it and that is all that counts.

And, here is Jessie's much anticipated costume.  She and MaMaw worked very hard on it.  She was the TARDIS from Doctor Who.  Doctor Who is her current obsession right now.

Last, but not least, Jess made this awesome craft at church.  Our girls made Halloween blocks and Jess did a great job on hers.  I can't wait to display it next year - unless she keeps it for herself!

We had a wonderful Halloween with great friends and hope you did, too!

Sexy Sistas Love to Celebrate Halloween

Jess and I workout with this awesome group of women.  Our silly little group is called 'The Sexy Sistas."  We aren't very good at what we do, but we are having fun and we are seeing results, so I think that is what counts.

We had so much fun celebrating Halloween.  We enjoyed a week of Halloween themed music (think Phantom of the Opera, Ghostbusters, Thriller, etc.), worked out to very dim lighting and enjoyed fun costumes.

Honestly, I probably wouldn't have joined the group if Jessie didn't enjoy it so much.  I am glad that we did.  It is awkward and embarrassing.  If you know me then you know that I hate awkward and embarrassing... but it is so much fun!  I love my Sexy Sistas!

Sweet Girls

Last week was our annual Young Women in Excellence.  These girls looked so beautiful and royal in their crowns that they wore to remind them that they are daughters of a king.

They are so fun, sweet and special and I love working with them each Wednesday and Sunday.  I receive so many blessings from my calling and I am so happy to be back in the Young Women's program.

A Doctor Who Halloween

Halloween is around the corner and Jessie is getting ready!  It is one of her favorite holidays.  Here is a sneak peek at what she has been doing.  She carved a pumpkin for a contest at her school.  The pumpkin is carved to look like a Dalek (something from her current obsession, Doctor Who).  And, she and MaMaw worked very hard on her costume.  She will be dressed like the TARDIS (also from Doctor Who).  Get ready, Garstka's.  We're heading your way for Halloween!  Jessie can't wait! (Is she 7 or 17?)

Week of Education

We have spent our week on the run, which is not unusual.  It seems like it has been a week of education.  Jess and I workout together and we received a little bit of additional education in class on Monday.  Tuesday was a Relief Society activity at church where we learned about The 5 Love Languages.  Wednesday brought Living Better, Eating Better education at work.  Then on Thursday, Jonathan and I received some education.  Jonathan went to a “Teen Talk” social skills group for kids on the Autism spectrum and I went to a parent education class.  I think Jonathan enjoyed his group quite a bit. 

The parent education class that I went to was on Behavior Management – I don’t remember what they specifically called it and the speakers were the ladies that train teachers and behavior specialists in the school district.  There were some portions of the seminar that were excellent.  There was a portion of the seminar that was missing.  It was so blatantly missing that this girl that doesn’t like to speak in front of strangers had to raise her hand and ask the question!  They had completely left out coping skills.  If we aren’t teaching our children/students to use coping skills to learn how to manage their stress then of course teachers and parents have to step in!  Just listening to this training, it made me so thankful that Jess is in a therapeutic school where I know all of the administrators and teachers are so wonderfully trained.  Not only do they remind her to use her coping skills daily, but they know which ones work best for her.  They have a working knowledge meds and treatment plans.  They completely understand her and how she works.  (And, that is the end of my soap box.)

We have a busy Friday night with lots of places to be and then we are hoping for a quiet weekend!

I’m not sure what it says about me that I was given so many learning opportunities this week. I’m sure they were all necessary for my continued growth!

“Education is not a posture, stance, or recognition.  It is, in fact, a continuing process.  When learning is applied properly, it can become power.  Wisdom and integrity must become an integral part of truly educated person.  Education is not an arrival achievement.  It is a journey.”  -Marvin J. Ashton

Little Miss Gracie

My sweet Gracie is 16 years old.  I took her to vet on Saturday and found out that she now weighs 6 pounds.  That is no good for a little Shihtzu that once weighed 12 pounds in her heftiest days.  It is so sad watching your family friend get old.  I always thought I would know when it was time to put her down.  Sadly, I don’t think I will.  Fred and Jessie keep telling me it is time.  Jonathan and I, we are in denial.  We believe her quality of life is ok.  We’ve changed her food and we’re trying medicine.  And, we’re cleaning up lots of accidents.  The saddest of all is holding her in my arms, because you can feel bones – lots and lots of bones. 

You know I love this dog, because I’ve switched her to canned dog food.  This food is expensive, but that is not where the love comes in.  I swore I would never feed one my animals canned food, because it is so disgusting.  It stinks… it makes my house stink… it makes them stink… worst of all, it makes Gracie’s poop stink (she has fecal incontinence).  I just go around spraying Febreze Apple and Spice room spray.

She has been eating better and that is what counts.  So, hopefully, little Miss Gracie can be happy for a little while longer.   

Miracle Whip Vs. Mayo

I grew up on Miracle Whip, but many years ago I compromised and switched to mayo.  I wanted family harmony and chose to switch to mayo, so that Fred would be happy, or so I thought. 

The other day we were at the grocery store and we went to grab a container of mayonnaise and Fred grumbled, “I really like Miracle Whip, but I know you prefer mayo.”  Confused, I let him know that I had been raised on Miracle Whip and had switched long before the kids had been born to make him happy.  Fred countered that he was the one raised on Miracle Whip and was the one that had switched to make ME happy.  We stood arguing in the grocery store about this miscommunication.  Probably what happened was that we grabbed mayo just one time for something different and then each of us got it all twisted in our head that the other preferred mayo. 

So, we looked at each other, and with great excitement, Fred bought a bottle Miracle Whip.  It was probably our first container of Miracle Whip in almost 19 years.  I don’t eat a lot of mayonnaise, so it wasn’t a huge deal to me – once I got used to the taste of mayo verses Miracle Whip. 

So, what do you think happened?  Jonathan came home that first day after school and said, “There was something wrong with my sandwich.  It didn’t taste right.  I think the mayonnaise was spoiled.”  With great sadness, Fred had to give up his beloved Miracle Whip and start buying mayo again. 

Who knew two people could have such poor communication skills?

Spreading Sunshine

Kerstin and Jessica

This beautiful girl, Kerstin, is such a sweet and righteous daughter of God.  I love spending time with her.  She just spreads sunshine wherever she goes and makes people smile.  The best thing about Kerstin is her laugh.  She has the best laugh.  There are two people in this world that brighten the room with their laugh – Kerstin and Fred.  Their laughs are very different.  Fred’s is more of a cackle and Kerstin’s is a loud infectious laugh that has probably gotten her in a lot of trouble at school.  I have only spent a short time with her age group in church.  I have always served younger ages.  I love teaching Kerstin.  She brings her fluffy pink journal to class and sits on the edge of her chair ready to take notes and participate in class.  I always tell her she looks like Elle Woods (from Legally Blonde) with her cute little pen and journal taking notes.  She squealed in delight. 

On what I think was probably Kerstin’s last Sunday in Young Women’s, she bore her testimony in church.  It was a simple and beautiful testimony and I was moved to tears.  I told Kerstin that I loved her testimony so much that I cried.  Kerstin’s reply was, “Everything makes you cry, Sister Fortenberry.”  I acted like I was completely offended and I have taken every opportunity to point it out when I see Kerstin teary-eyed.

Last night was our annual Young Women’s in Excellence program. I was excited to see Kerstin, since she has moved up to the ranks of Relief Society. Jessica and I sat next to her. One of the sweet girls that I had worked with back when I was 2nd Counselor talked about why Personal Progress was special to her and I started crying like a big baby. I just remembered all the work she had put in to the program as a Beehive and all the times she texted me about her projects. Afterwards, she came over to talk to me and I cried some more. Kerstin didn’t know any of this. She had started crying over the closing song that the girls sang. Kerstin comes up to me with tears running down her face and squeals, “Hey, Sister Fortenberry, I’m just like you.” I turn to her and I have tears running down my face and we hug. I think we are kindred spirits, Kerstin and I.

I am so excited for Kerstin.   I know that whatever she chooses to do with her life she is going to be great.  However, I know that without a doubt she is going to be an amazing missionary whether it is in the mission field or in her home town of Frisco. 

I love you, Kerstin.  Thank you for being such a great example to me and my family.

Happy 41st Birthday to Fred

 

We are celebrating Fred's 41st birthday today.  Nothing fancy.  Just a cake.  I don't even know what we are doing for dinner yet.  It will just be our family.  I need to plan something bigger, since we never got to celebrate his 40th last year.  It is so hard to celebrate with him, because he is such a busy man.  He just got home from camping with his Boy Scouts and he will be doing Scout training next weekend.  Looks like it will be the following weekend. 

I am so proud and excited for Fred.  He went to the temple for the first time (a very big deal in our church) on September 21st.  I am so glad that he did that before his birthday.  I don't know why, because age doesn't really matter, but it was a very happy day for our family.  We still have a big milestone to hit in the upcoming month or so, but that was one hurdle accomplished.  I am so thankful to all those men that have touched Fred's life and inspired him to come so far.  We are truly blessed (cheesy but true).

Happy Birthday, Fred!  We love you.

A Whole Bunch of Nothing

Hello Friends,

I typed a post last week, but never posted it.  It was a "poor me" post that no on would ever want to read.

Instead of whining about it - I will just tell you that it has been a wild, crazy and exhausting couple of weeks.  Fred has been feeling under the weather, so I think that has added to my melancholy mood.  Sympathy illness, maybe? 

It just felt like nothing could go right.  I think it started with a leaky rough (while my husband was out of town) and ended with a poor sweet lady backing into my car.  Thankfully, I can't remember the other things that went wrong.  However, if you had asked me last week, I would have given you an earful. By Thursday, I was feeling so much better.

We received quite the surprise Friday night.  My sister-in-law was stuck at the airport and needed us to come save her.  We picked her up at the airport at about 10:30 p.m. and brought her back to our house where MaMaw and Grady were waiting to take them back home with them.  It was great to see her for a few minutes.  My kids missed it, because they were asleep by the time we made it home with Aunt Emma. 

This is our church's General Conference weekend, which certainly helps you put your life into perspective.  You can't be in a bad mood while watching conference.  Getting my family excited about conference has always been a challenge. However, we managed to enjoy the Sunday morning session together. There were edible incentives and that seemed to make all the difference in the world.

I apologize for this post, because it has been a rambling one that is all over the place.  I hope you all have a great week.

September in Pictures: Count Your Blessings

"When you take the time to see the hand of the Lord in your life, to 'count your blessings one by one,' it might just 'suprise you what the Lord has done.'"

-John Bytheway

I pooped out on my 'September in Pictures' project!  I am so disappointed in myself.  I was having fun with it, but the last two weeks just kicked my rear and I ran out of steam last week.

September in Pictures: Integrity

"The bedrock of character is integrity."

-Richard G. Scott

September in Pictures: Walk by Faith

"In this world, everyone is to walk by faith."

-Jeffrey R. Holland

September in Pictures: Endless Friendship

"We build our marriages with endless friendship, confidence, integrity, and sustaining each other in difficulties."

- James E. Faust

September in Pictures: True, Fair and Faithful

"True to yourself, fair with your neighbor, you will not find it difficult to be faithful to your God."

-Thomas S. Monson

September in Pictures: Spiritual Light

"Spiritual light rarely comes to those who merely sit... waiting for someone to flip a switch.  It takes an act of faith."

- Spencer W. Kimball

September in Pictures:The Temple At Night

"It is worth every price we must pay to be able to enter and involve ourselves in the blessings of the House of the Lord."

-Colleen W. Asay

September in Pictures: Joy and Hope

"We should find joy and hope in the promises that the Lord has made"

-John Bytheway

Morning Walk

Saturday morning, a small group of our young women went on a walk to prepare for a Temple walk.  We hope to walk from our church building to our Temple in Dallas.  We need to start now preparing for the long walk.  We started with a 5 mile walk.  We left bright and early at 6:00 a.m.  We took Coit to Rolater.  We then went West on Rolater; South on Hillcrest; East on Lebanon; and, then North on Coit - back to the church.  The girls had an amazing attitude and were so fun to be with.  There were 6 beautiful girls there and I was so inspired by them.  It was an eye opening experience, because I don't think they realized how hard 5 miles was going to be, and when we go the temple we will have 16 miles to walk.  Of course, there will be water/snack stops and devotionals along the way. 

I love these girls, their amazing attitudes and their sweet example!

September in Pictures: The Path

 

The path toward fulfilling our divine destiny as sons and daughters of God is an eternal one.  My dear brothers and sisters, dear friends, we must begin to walk that eternal path today; we cannot take for granted one single day.  I pray that we will not wait until we are ready to die before we truly learn to live.

 

-Dieter F. Uchtdorf