Letters

Hey Soul Sista ain’t that Mr. Mr. on the radio? Love that song and now its stuck in my head this morning!

I love the new direction you are going!  It is silly that we first have to fight against the opportunities we are given.  This is such a great time for you to go out and experience all kinds of new thing and new people.  Some you will really enjoy and some you can just check off your list and move on.  Try not to get stuck in any one thing unless you find a real passion for it.  You never know where the road will lead so just always have your bags packed!  I am so excited for you.  I’ve been thinking a little bit about why Len was called to be the Bishop again and I got stuck on one thing (that probably isn’t right) but I wondered if the lesson he is trying to be taught is that even with the responsibility he needs to not be so linear and needs to expand to not only care for the ward family but to not lose his own family in the process.  It just seems that he has the skills to lead a ward but the piece he misses is putting his home responsibilities second.  Just saying…but also I think you are grabbing on to the part you need to learn and that is to not lose yourself in Len’s calling, but to blossom in your own right and I see you doing that so I am happy.  This is it, the time for Karen to be Karen and to not only make your list of things to do and be but to take the leap and start doing them.  Be bold and be fearless, the only failure in life is not trying.  I love ya tons and was so happy to get this note.  You ROCK! And you need to make that bread for me next time we’re together. 

You GO Girl!

From: Len & Karen Mendenhall [mailto:gardeng8@gmail.com]
Sent: Thursday, September 22, 2011 6:46 AM
To: annanderson373@aol.com
Subject: Hey Soul Sista

Hey Soul Sista, Do you think they wrote that song for us?! Probably not! But anyway, I didn't have any pictures to post to the blog so I thought I would just write and email instead. I love the blog, it is fun to post things from the heart and we will print a book down the road - it will be great. I am doing really well, thanks for the support and love you have given me. I get in some funky moods sometimes and need a swift kick in the pants to get out, thanks for standing ready with a good pair of boots. I have really done some soul searching and some reviewing of my past life and behavior and feel very inadequate to express my feelings, but I will give it a try. I have always yearned for time to read a book, go for a walk, sit in the lawn chair and watch the clouds float by. I have always longed for some 'me' time, for some do what "I want to do" time. Now I have some of that and I am begrudging it? Feeling sorry for myself because of it? NO I am not going to do that, I am going to embrace it for all it's worth, I am going to spread my wings, learn new things, make new friends, be a good neighbor. Be the best grandma, the best mom, the best sister, the best daughter I can be. And in there I am going to be the best wife I can be. I am so blessed, so loved, and so nuts about life. I want everything, I want to travel, I want to learn, I want to experience all that is out there for me and it starts now.

I have made two new friends this week. I went Tuesday to a friends house in La Verkin, her name is coincindentally Susan DeMille, but not my childhood friend Boozer. We walked in her garden, harvested some great squash, she taught me how to cook the squash and it is my new favorite. We then went into her kitchen and she showed me how to make wheat bread from the very beginning, we ground the wheat and made the bread. We made quesedilla's and tried out my newly made peach salsa ( a big hit, yummy ). We are planning to come to my house next Tuesday and we will make bread again only this time she will watch me make it, using my new wheat grinder. This way I will learn better than watching! Fun! Tuesday is Len's busiest night, and coicidentally her husband is the Stake President in LaVerkin so he is gone on Tuesday, we are going to plan to meet many Tuesday nights for projects and learning time together. Then my neighbor Shanna (Campbell) Holt came over and told me how to make laundry soap using Felsnathea bar soap, Borax, and Arm & Hammer Washing soda. Makes 2 gallons for around $3. Can also be used as dishwashing soap before your dilute it in water. Now we talk back and forth about making different things, she makes her own line of mineral makeup that she shared with me and it is fantastic stuff. I love how my skin feels at the end of the day and I still look as fresh as when I first put it on. She is remodeling her kitchen and anyway it is fun to learn new things. I love old fashioned things like that. I will send you the recipe but you can also get it online I think there is a youtube video showing how to make it.

I am busy at work, Justin has not been there at all this week so I feel I am getting back in my groove again. feeling useful! I have planted a fall garden and it is doing well, the temps are so much better so my spirits are higher. I have made a pack with myself that I will get my diet under control starting today!!!!! No more putting it off, there is no excuse except my laziness, (and my love of food) that is stopping me. I will do portion control, watch my sugars/carbs, and get more exercise. I plan to not only walk in the morning but do something in the evening. Maybe some Zumba if I remember to buy a dvd. Anyway something maybe even do a little light running (yea like that will happen :)! I said I was going to try! And I will. I just want to be happy, and that is the first step, I am bound and determined so I know I will succeed. Thanks for having my back, for being my rock. Good luck with your float certification, you will be awesome yet again. I love you more than you can know, have a spectacular day!

Love the Beanie!