@donnajean8109

Last night, our cute Young Women and leaders worked hard to prepare for camp.  By worked hard, I mean that we tried our hand at some crafts.  I am not the craftiest of crafters.  We made some little nap sacks for the ride to camp, and to use at camp, if we want. 

I was telling Celeste (one of the leaders) that she was super hip for putting a hashtag on her bag.  Her 15 year old daughter let us know that absolutely no one uses hashtags anymore.  People, you heard it here.  Hashtags are out!  I was teasing Cassie telling her that she forgot to add her hashtag on her bag.  A few minutes later, I was called over to look at the finished product.  Instead of a hashtag, she had added my Instagram address on her bag.  Ha! That should get me a good 5-10 new followers. 

I really didn't want to paint on my bag.  Because, well, it's PAINT!  I'm better with a sharpie or a Flair pen.  There is so much pressure with paint.  My torch looked like the flame threw up everywhere.  Let me tell you, the yellow was substandard. It looked like mustard.  And, just like mustard, it splattered.  In the end, it didn't really matter.  

Me and my wet bag went to survey the situation at the end of the night.  I didn't see the men in my life, so I thought I was safe to go home.  However, just as the Bishop was telling me that my hubby was in a meeting (that he forgot to tell me about - but I'm so not blaming him for this incident - very much), I turned and smeared some of my paint.  The Bishop-- who doesn't have daughters and whose wife doesn't seem to be overly dramatic-- had the nerve to tell me it would be ok.  He clearly didn't know that I had paint all over my cardigan, my jeans and there was a near miss with my Vera Bradley purse.  This was the real catastrophe.  I seemed to have ruined two pieces of clothes.  I told him that I would be taking my drawstring bag to the car and THEN and only THEN would I be gathering my son and our neighbor to take home.  I think he made a note on some piece of paper where he tallies church members that might need some special help.

The girls made cute torches.  Thankfully, there weren't enough for the leaders.  That just might have been too much crafting for me.  Although, the torch kind of crafting might have been more my speed.  There was NO paint involved.  Cellophane, scissors, sparkly tape and rubber bands-- all mediums (is that word used correctly here?) that I can work with!

I'll keep you posted and let you know how my Instagram audience grows after camp!  I'm sure Cassie is going to drum up some followers for me!

Super Scouters

I am very proud of these Super Scouters-- by the way, I just made up that title.  It's not a real BSA title. Fred and Rod earned their Wood Badge tickets, which is a really big deal in the Boy Scout world.  They attended six days of training, which was divided in two long weekends.  This meant that they took time off from work and their families.  After they finished their training, they still had to earn their tickets which basically meant they had to complete several meaningful projects.

Last Thursday, we gathered together for their "beading," which was very exciting for both of them.  I would like to add that one of my kids was relieved to hear that it was a beading and not a beating-- seems there was a little miscommunication at our house.  

The families participated which was a little awkward, yet very special. The Fortenberrys specialize in awkwardness.  The wives placed beads around the husbands' necks, and the kids placed the new neckerchief and woggle on their dads.  The new neckerchief and woggle signifies that they have completed their Wood Badge.

I don't have any pictures of the actual beading, because there was an entire row of people there and we all went up front for this event.  There was not a soul around for me to signal to or ask to take pictures.  It's probably best.  Who knows what we looked like.

Fred had individuals from his patrol (or whatever it is called-- I'm not real savvy on the terminology) there to support him.  I know that he was appreciative of all those that came to support him. I would like to remember that Tony and Alisara were there.

I am so thankful to have a husband that works so hard for our boys.  He puts in so many hours that no one sees.  

Fred and Rod are both such great examples for our Young Men!

Welcome!

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to put together a welcome basket for a new intern at my office.  Can I just say that everyone should get a welcome basket when they start at a new company.  I think I got a TorsionBridge note cube.  TorsionBridge was a feature on our Van Heusen men's frames.  They made about 5 billion note cubes so everyone had one at their desk.  We had so many that I pretty much hate those TorsionBridge note cubes and hope I never see another one.

I had so much fun putting Cameron's welcome basket together.  None of us had met her yet, so I just hoped that she liked all of my favorite things.  Fun post-it-notes, pretty post-it-flags, cute sharpies, designer file folders, adorable notebooks and spirals.  And, let's not forget... Flair pens and a welcome card signed by the team.

I wish I was crafty and had tons of money.  All of my friends would receive a gift basket from me pretty much every day.  How fun would that be?

That Time I Lost My Wedding Ring Forever

After I had Jessie, I found that I had about ten pounds to lose.  Then I started taking migraine meds and I gained a ton of weight.  I began a long journey with my weight.  I don't even like to look at the pictures.  Only once have I been truly happy with my weight and that was about 1 1/2 years ago when I was about 11 pounds less than I am right now.  I don't even know how to get there again, so we won't even talk about it.

What we will talk about are my rings.  My wedding band and engagement ring were soldered together, so it was super wide.  My fingers had gotten a little pudgy during my weight battle, plus they often swell at night. When my rings started getting tighter it became really troublesome.  I would wake up in a complete panic, because my already pudgy fingers would be swollen and I couldn't get my ring off and I would just completely freak out.  Finally, I just completely stopped wearing my rings.  At first, I didn't wear a ring, but felt weird, so I started wearing my grandmother's ring that was sized down.  You know, I had to let all those interested men know that I was married.  Because, there were so many that were lined up...

I wore my grandmother's ring until it fell apart, because it was really old. I decided that my fingers weren't so pudgy anymore and that I could start wearing my old set.  I went to pull it out.  One problem.  It was gone.  How do you tell your husband that you lost your ring?  You know, the one that he paid for with a Zales credit card when he was like 20 years old and had no money!  So, we literally sifted through everything in our entire house and it did not turn up.  To this very day, we have no idea where it is.

At the office, we used to have this guy named Mikey that would come by about once a week with an envelope of jewelry.  The women would rush back to where he was and gather around to look at what he had to offer.  So, one day, I bought one of Mikey's rings for about $250 and paid it off in installments of $25 or $50 a week until it was paid off.  It was about a size 10.  It was way too big for my finger and the jewelry store had a hard time sizing it down properly.  But, all the eligible men in town knew that I was taken.

Fast forward to this week, I was at the Walmart with a couple of co-workers on a field trip for work.  We stumbled on some wedding sets.  I kid you not, I tried one on that was $8.88.  Fred Fortenberry can never know that Walmart sells them at the bargain basement price of less than $10.  He would never have let me buy a ring from Big Mike.   Nothing says love like an $8.88 ring, but I guess you're thinking-- nothing says love like a ring bought out of an envelope and paid for in installments, so I can't judge!  Even thought we've literally turned my entire house upside down, I still have hope that my ring turns up one day.

P.S. There are many typos in this post!  So sorry!  

Jello Night

(Wearing my 1970's House Dress to Church - I am such a Fashionista)

I just love a good song.  And, my kids are constantly spoiling my fun.  I guess the problem with me and music is that I just enjoy the tune and the catchy lyrics.  I don't really listen to the words or maybe I'm not listening for some hidden meaning.

Jonathan told me the other day that he didn't understand why on earth I liked Country Music so much, because all country songs are either about drinking, cheating or domestic violence.  Gee, that's kind of a downer.

Then, Jess and I were having a disagreement about what song to listen to on the radio and I told her that I really liked Maroon 5's song, Sugar.  I was informed that I shouldn't be listening to that song, because it is about sex.

The worst instance was when Jonathan came home and announced that I needed to remove Take Me to Church from my playlist.  What?  I thought it was just about a guy wanting his girlfriend to church. Seriously?  

I also like the song Honey, I'm Good. As in I could listen to it over and over.  My music screeners have informed me that it is also very bad.

At what point in my 43 years of life have things switched for me?  My kids now need to screen my songs for me, because I'm just bopping along to inappropriate songs.  I never thought this would happen.  I guess it will be jello night at the home before we know it.

Have You Ever Been This Scared?

This cute girl let me sit on her squishy ball.  It looks like an exercise ball, but I am here to tell you it is nothing of the sort.  Your entire body sinks to the ground and you are in no way stable.  The first time I sat on it, I completely flipped over. Did you ever do the Jane Fonda workout in the '80s?  The one that came in a 2 record set and Jane wore leg warmers on the cover?  Well, I did and the last move of the record you laid down on the ground and flipped your legs over your head.  That's exactly what I did.  Cute little, Avery and her mom, Cara just laughed.  I don't think anyone came to my rescue.  I had to find my own way up.  I heard, "Man I wish I was videoing this right now."  But, nothing like, "Let me help you."

The second go around, I knew what to expect and Cara had her camera ready to take a picture of Avery and I.  What you see on my face is complete terror, because I was so afraid that I was going to pop the ball.  I was laughing hysterically-- having fun and frightened all at the same time.

This all happened because I wanted Avery to think I was fun.  Boys and girls, trying to prove that you are the fun one can get you in trouble!

The Nail Lady

Jessie and I got our nails done last Friday.  Now, I get my nails done every couple of weeks.  Jessie, not so much.  It is a treat for her to get her nails done.  I figure I didn't start getting my nails done regularly until I was in my 40's.  She can just sit in her bedroom and paint her nails until she can afford to pay for them -- just like I did.  On occasion, I will bring her with me.  Usually, the nail ladies will yell at me (I don't know why I always feel like they are yelling) "Where's your daughter?"  I just tell them that she's at home.

I guess it has been a while since Jess has been in.  She said that she heard two of the nail ladies talking in their native language.  They would speak their language and then she would hear the word weight ever so often.  Finally, the owner came over to Jessie and told her "Oh, you look more beautiful.Your hair look much better, too. You lose weight?"

Jess just laughed and said that she did. So, the questions continued with "Yes, you lose weight?  That's why you look so much more beautiful.  How much weight did you lose."  Jess replied that she didn't know.  This brought complete shock!  Then the nail lady turns to me and says, "Donna, your daughter have boyfriend?"

These questions just kept going.  I was torn between feeling sorry for Jessie and wanting to fall in the floor laughing!

The Perfect Tent

Last year, I was getting ready to go to Girls' Camp for my first time ever.  Camp was being done on a Ward level so we needed lots and lots of supplies.  We packed everything Fred owned.  What we didn't pack-- we bought.  

We needed tents and we begged and begged for 10 man tents from our fellow church members.  We received lots of offers, but the offers weren't quite what we needed.  We ended up one tent short.  The week before we were leaving, Fred and I were at Walmart buying One hundred-bazillion dollars worth of stuff for all of our summer camping trips.  I mentioned that we were still one tent short.

So, we went over and looked at every single one of the tents that Walmart had to offer.  And, I truly mean that we looked at every single tent that Walmart had to offer.  And, we scrutinized which tent to get.  I remember the concern I had that this was a big purchase and we were already purchasing so much.  I also remember my snooty thoughts that Walmart really isn't the place to buy a tent.  I thought we should be at Academy, instead.  I gave Fred my thoughts about quality and that we should buy a good one that will hold lots of girls.

Fred assured me that this was a good choice and that we would use this tent again. I texted my fellow Young Women leaders and let them know that Fred had bought us a tent and that we could call off the begging. They were ever so thankful. Trust me.

I have to say that Fred bought the perfect tent.  Walmart, I owe you an apology!  It pops up in 2 1/2 minutes.  Now, that is my kind of tent.  It is nice and roomy.  And, in less than a year, it has been used for Girls' Camp, High Adventure, miscellaneous Boy Scout adventures and most recently our 4th Year Girls took it for their camp out.  Oddly enough, our family has never had the opportunity to use it, but maybe this summer we'll get to go on an adventure.  It's definitely been used by the youth.  We've cleaned out coke spills, blood and red sparkles (Girls' Camp theme was 'There's No Place Like Home').

My favorite thing about my husband is that he will give you the shirt right off his back or buy a tent for the Young Women to use and never think twice.  He's pretty much a keeper!

The Failed Selfie

Firsts things first, I found out that I know lots of Anne fans.  Fred told me to go ahead and order my movies - he secretly loves Anne, too!  And, sadly, I learned that the actor that played Gilbert Blythe passed away in April. I had no idea.  My friend, Ruth kind of ruined my day with that one last night.  So, I found the article and sent it to my friends at work.  It was the first thing they read this morning.  It pretty much made them start their Monday out on a sour note.  I guess I should have thought about that.  Now that I have my ramblings of Anne out of the way, I'll just go ahead and recap my weekend for you, because I know that is what you live for is to hear what The Fortenberry Four did this weekend.  Right?  No?!?  Okay, fine.  I won't bore you with the details.

But, I will say that we gathered up friends and family, near and far and went to see Avengers: Age of Ultron. The cute little Palmers took the perfect selfie, but couldn't reach the button.  So I gave them a hand (or a finger) and pushed the button for them since they had their phone held out but couldn't quite get the picture taken.  It was cute and perfect.  Kelly uploaded it to Facebook with something cute and sweet like "Seeing Avengers with my man."  So, I was in charge of mine and Fred's selfie and I forgot all the selfie tricks that Lynn taught us in New York. She taught us how to take the perfect selfie so that you look young and perfect.  I really needed Fred's long arm because  I didn't hold it up and tilt it like Lynn taught me.  I ended up with with the couple behind us in my picture.  I didn't quite know what to do with my failed selfie.

Kelly asked me if I had posted my picture to Facebook yet, so that she could "like" it.  I decided to go forward with my failed attempt and posted it to Facebook and Instagram.  Oh, my goodness.  All the comments that I got about this poor couple in the background of our picture.  They were very involved in their phones and not paying attention to each other.  Bless their hearts.

If I had to do some sort of ranking, I would say that Jessie enjoyed the movie the most.  She always does!  Love that girl.

We had a great time and I mostly enjoyed Captain America. I have no need to break down the plot of the entire movie.  Captain America was all I needed.

Anne with an e

Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think.

It's splendid to find there are so many of them in the world.

Is it wrong (and just a little bit weird) that I told my family that I wanted the Anne of Green Gables trilogy for Mother's Day?

It all started when a co-worker complimented my personalized note cards.  I told her that we were kindred spirits like Anne Shirley and Diana Barry.  She exclaimed that she loved those movies.  We asked the other women if they knew Anne Shirley and they were confused.  However, one was our kindred spirit.  Not only did she know Anne, Diana and Gilbert, but her husband gave her the set for Christmas.

So, now we go around calling each other kindred spirits -- it's like we're in a secret club since the others don't know what we're talking about.  I sort of want to read the books, too.  Because the books were even more amazing than the movies.

It's like stepping back into 1985 for me.  I want these movies bad.  And, I'm making Jessie watch them, too!  I am, you can bet on it.

Lovin' Where We're At

I attended Jonathan's ARD Review at his school this week.  Can I just say that I love, love, love Independence High School.  They have been so amazing.

About a year and a half ago, my husband was starting to get a hankering to move.  He started picking up flyers from those little For Sale tubes in front of people's houses.  I believe that my house is too small and that we have been stuffed in our house for far too long.  We are really living in an oversized apartment.  We are living in our starter house.  We were just going to live here for five years.  Only it has been 18+!  Good grief.  Anyway, I started getting heart palpitations every time he picked up a flyer and showed me his latest find, because I gently explained to my sweet husband that "if" we moved we would need to find a house very close to Centennial High School.  Just like our current house.  See, our house is within walking distance of Centennial High School and I knew that my Jonathan would soon be starting his freshman year at Centennial and I needed to make sure that he was close enough to walk home.  So, Fred, feeling defeated, never picked up another flyer from one of those little tubes ever again.

The funny thing about my little declaration was that we were rezoned and Jonathan ended up going to Independence instead of Centennial.  I was heartbroken, because I felt like he needed to be able to walk to his school and that he might get beaten up on the bus ride to and from school.  For the most part, the bus ride has been okay.  Occasionally, we have to do some fancy scheduling to get him picked up and wish that he could walk home.  The school and the staff are amazing and that is worth more than anything.  I believe that this is where we needed to be.

No matter what event or meeting that I've attended at the school, I've been super impressed.  They've helped Jonathan to feel at home and well-adjusted.  His ARD review went so well that I didn't cry a single tear.  I usually leave those things bawling with frustration.

I am so happy that we are an Independence Knight!