Soaping Adventures!

For a few months now, I have been putting my creative skills to work.  To further stimulate my mind, I decided to try to make cold processed soap.  This is a very scientific process requiring MATH...something in which I am profoundly ungifted.  Needless to say, I have had a few failures. However, I have had a few successes as well!  Here is what I have to show for my efforts thus far.

 Above is my Heavenly Jasmine French Milled Soap.  It is has a wonderful scent.  Due to the processing style it has a speckled look, which I love.  It is very mild and creamy, but lathers nicely due to a little addition of Castor Oil in the recipe.  This has been a family favorite for the last 6 weeks or so.

 Above is my Pumpkin Spice Soap, which is also very mild, and suds beautifully!  This soap is a Bastile soap, meaning it is not quite a Castile (which uses only olive oil for the base) because I used a small amount of Coconut oil and Apricot Kernel oil to add some bubbles and hardness to the bar.  This soap also contains vitamin E.

Last, is a sampling of my French Milled Rustic Lavender soap.  It has lavender buds sprinkled throughout the soap and therefore has excellent exfoliating ability.  This is my favorite and my friends and family are really enjoying it as well.  Because this soap had such a conditioning formula and because I accidentally overfilled the mold, I had a challenging time removing it from the mold without damaging it. After a few days, I got tired of trying and decided to just go for it...well it was still soft so I ended up having to cut off the parts I smashed. So, it is unevenly cut, but has cured and hardened quite nicely since.

Currently, I am advertising my bars for my friends to buy from me at cost, so I can continue to afford this hobby.  If you would like to buy my bars, they are between 2.5 and 3.2 oz each and cost between $2.00 and $2.50 each depending on the size of the bar.  I am only charging for my materials at this time since I'm still in learning mode.  I assure you these are quality bars!  Don't worry I am not selling you some inferior beginner lye bomb!  All my soaps contain organic and high quality ingredients!

Next I making lemon poppy seed soap! :)

Posting this message from Carson yesterday to go with my blog entry.

The power of staying positive and focusing love on others

Years ago while living on Vandenberg AFB in California, we met this wonderful family in our ward - the Tuellers'. This family inspired others to do their best. They were natural leaders, always loving and supportive. We were definitely inspired by them and sometimes even envied them because they were so talented, yet so humble and faithful,which is so not fair! (In our family we've joked many times that the Tuellers' were at the head of the line in the premortal world when God was handing out talents. They got second helpings before we Nelson slackers even found our way to the back of the line. Of course, by the time we got to the front of the line, we got the talent leftovers! Anybody up for some lame jokes?  I got 'em!) Anyway, the Tuellers' are a pretty amazing family athletically, musically, and in communicating, and in...well everything. Luckily for us, the Nelson kids and Tueller kids spent a lot of time together, starting from the moment we moved in. Ann was Madeline's very best friend, Dallas was Tanner's best friend, Carson babysat our kids a lot, and Braun, the Tueller's oldest son, taught our kids' piano lessons. Camille and I spent many hours talking and enjoying each other's company and sometimes our families would get together for dinner or something. In short, we became very well acquainted and enjoyed our extended network of friends on base together.

Then we moved. Let me tell you, that is BY FAR  the hardest thing for our family to deal with in this  military life; saying goodbye to the wonderful friends we make along the way.  Because Steve Tueller was not in the same career field as Jared, we didn't think we'd ever run into each other again. It was terribly sad to say goodbye, knowing it might be for good.

So, imagine our delight, dear blog readers, when we found out that the Tuellers were moving to our neck of the woods again in 2009!  While we weren't able to be in the same ward boundaries, we were in the same stake and didn't live too far from each other.  It was an awesome reunion!  Our son, Tanner, and their son, Dallas, ended up in same high school and spent a lot of time together, rekindling their friendship. It was so neat to see how much all the Tueller kids had grown and yet they were the same people, just more mature. They were all even more tall and beautiful - like a bunch of  models, truth be told.  In fact, that is another joke we sometimes say to each other with a wink; we think they double dipped in the looks department too!

So, that is my big introduction to what I want to talk about.   You see, it's actually Carson, a Tueller child without a peer in our family, but who somehow still inspired the best in my kids, who has always stood out to me among the Tueller children. I love them all, but Carson is truly unique. I would like to focus on him for the rest of this story.

You see, for us, VAFB was full of friends and fun. Everyone in the Nelson and Tueller families seemed to find a friend with whom they truly connected, amongst ourselves and in our wonderful neighborhood. In fact, Tanner and Dallas had a gang of boys whom they regularly hung out with.  Madeline and Ann had a couple of other girls they hung out with regularly.  Even their youngest son, played well with my Rebecca and several other preschool kids in the neighborhood and their oldest son, Braun, was in high school and had all kinds of friends.  But Carson was going through a tough time at VAFB. He was in dreaded middle school and didn't have many friends to hang out with who were his own age in the ward or neighborhood.  Sadly, he was teased mercilessly in middle school because he played the flute, was tall and gangly,  like a gazelle, and was just starting to understand his sexuality; though he was very masculine, in some ways he seemed effeminate too.  The other kids were mean about it, and Carson didn't know what he was doing that was so "wrong".  He was just being himself. Well, the striking thing about this, is that I had no idea that Carson was going though such a trial because he's the kind of guy who focuses so much on others that he doesn't seem to be human sometimes.  He smiles ALL the time.  Literally.  I learned of his struggles much later, but looking back, I can see it now.  I see the turmoil was there and he just tried to bury it because it hurt and because he truly loves to stay positive.

Well, anyway, when we saw that Carson had grewn up into this super tall stud muffin with that same amazing Carson smile, we were not surprised. He was the same Carson, only more mature and very handsome. Shortly after moving to NV, Carson left on his mission where he served the Lord valiantly in Chile.  Of course there were tough times for him there, a horrible earthquake, just to name one. While there serving the Lord, he continued to plead with the Lord to take away this seeming millstone hung around his neck, his now identified homosexuality.  But it didn't happen.  Within a year of arriving home from his mission, Carson decided to just accept it as the Lord's will; he knew that he had to embrace his sexuality.  Last year he took the time to write me personally and many of his other friends, to tell us about his decision to just come out with his homosexuality. I was not surprised that Carson was gay. I've not been surprised either by how well he has embraced this challenge. A diligent communicator of what it is like to be homosexual and also part of a religion that seems to frown on it, Carson has tried to bridge the gap between religious ideology and homosexual identity in our LDS community. He's been a positive role model to every gay or straight person he's met. Very open about his uniqueness now, Carson seems more at peace with himself and with this special mission he's been given.  He continues to be guided by the spirit and lifts and inspires everyone around him. To be sure, he's one of the most loved people I have ever met.

Unfortunately, as some may have noticed on my FB page, Carson suffered from a terrible accident on the 30th of December.  His family was at a trampoline activity when Carson did one of his trademark triple flips; yes, you heard it, he's amazing at gymnastics too.  Anyway, he somehow landed it incorrectly and shattered his c7 vertebrae. He has been paralyzed ever since and in the hospital, going through multiple surgeries to stabilize him. Funny enough, I'm not the only one truly touched by Carson's ability to handle this trial he's been given thus far. Carson has been absolutely remarkable.  He was comforting his father from the moment he realized he was paralyzed and his Dad came rushing over to help. He's been smiling and chatting with his nurses, taking time to ask them about their lives despite his pain and discomfort. Recently, a nurse wrote on Carson's blog that she has witnessed and nursed many people with injuries like Carson's, but has never met such a uniquely positive individual and that she will never forget him.  As you can see, Carson trusts in the Lord and knows he can do whatever the Lord requires of him.  Be a happy gay mormon?  No problem.  Be an inspirational paraplegic?  Got that.  Carson has shown me that if we stay positive and focus our love on others, we can be the person the Lord has seen inside us all along, more importantly, we can help others reach higher ground.

To end this long epistle, let me just say we fasted and prayed for Carson Tueller today. I don't say that to praise ourselves or something. That's just ridiculous.  I say that because we fasted a full 26 hours because Carson inspired it in us. We've never done it before and we weren't even that hungry!  I felt the spirit testify in me that if I fast with a real purpose the Lord sees the sacrifice and then helps me in my effort.  Wow!  I'm 45 years old and have fasted once per month (rather abysmally though) half my life.  I just received a powerful witness to how fasting can draw me closer to God. Anyway, we hope Carson will reap the benefits of the faith and prayers today of the many people across the country fasting for him and his family today. If you are a prayer please pray for Carson Tueller tonight before going to bed. Pray that he will pass his swallow test tomorrow. The feeding tube is really bothering him and that's really saying something because Carson isn't a complainer.

The one thing that is helping Carson the most right now is hearing from all kinds of people, those he knows and especially those whom he's never even met, these are people who are reaching out to him because they are inspired by his character. If you'd like to get to know who Carson is, please visit a blog created recently to help disseminate information about how he's doing at:

http://prayforcarsontueller.blogspot.com/

Don't worry, I have not divulged any information here that Carson would feel uncomfortable with.  He is quite comfortable with sharing his life with others.

Our God gives us challenges to help us learn to become like Him, but also to inspire others to become like Him. Carson magnifies this calling he's been given.

Best wishes for 2014 to all our friends and family-
Jeanette

Crunch time

Some people have told me that my husband might have been right to suggest my blog's name be, "Jeanette's Fantasy World".  Well, I'm not just another well intended blogger, dear sister. Here's the deal. I don't plan to update my blog daily, or even weekly. Only when I have time and desire. Anyway, that is the excuse I am offering.  That, and, "I've been too busy to write much" which is usually true for everyone when it gets to December, probably. However, this holiday season has been unusually frantic for me. I mean, you should see the status of my purse!  That's always a good indicator of how fast my busy hamster brain is running on it's little wheel. The little guy has to be soaked in sweat by now.

Hmmm...that's kind of a crazy little image. Soaking wet hamster, panting, and running for it's life on a little wheel...inside my head...

Anyway, I'm sure my three readers are just dying to know why my poor hamster brain is so crazy active.  Let me enlighten you, dear readers!

Since my first blog entry, we've celebrated Thanksgiving by preparing a delicious meal, including a record 9 pies (including the three delicious winners my talented girls made.  Rebecca made banana cream, Emily made a pecan pie, and Madeline made the award winner, chocolate ganache pie!). We also enjoyed our annual rotisserie turkey, along with a ham this time, and mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes  rolls, stuffing, cranberry sauce, green beans, etc. It was all so delicious and we had great company! Even though we had a couple friends who couldn't make it, we welcomed other guests we weren't originally expecting, so it all worked out and there was PLENTY of food.

Sadly my favorite holiday came and went so fast it gave me whiplash. Well, truth be told, I haven't actually felt the pain of whiplash yet, because my head just keeps spinning. On Dasher, on Prancer! On Donnor and Blitzen! On Comet and Cupid, and Frosty and Rudolph!  

Yes, the Nelson's hit the ground running with the Christmas preparations. This is something I usually avoid every year since I like to have a few days to simply enjoy my Thanksgiving food, I mean blessings, before I head into the consumer driven Christmas festivities. However, this year we put up our Christmas decorations in record time, including the tree, which we've decorated at least 9 times by now, thanks to our darling kitten Wembley. Yes, we've put the lights up outside, done all the Christmas shopping and wrapping, hung the stockings by the chimney with care in hopes that St. Nick would soon be here...and what do you know?  He came already!  We're THAT GOOD. :)

Yes, the Nelson's had an early Christmas! We enjoyed opening all our gifts to each other on the 16th this year, due to Jared's deployment to Kuwait, which is fast approaching- coming up here in 36 hours.  The gifts were especially thoughtful this year with that in mind.  In fact, I think one of the favorites was a video Madeline created for her Daddy that featured all of us in it.  Each one of us took a turn sharing why we loved Jared and what we will miss most about him. Tanner wasn't featured, of course, because he's still serving a mission.  But Lisa, my sister in law, who lives with us now, was and I loved hearing what she had to say about her wonderful brother.  Everybody had such thoughtful responses and then Madeline added some music and pictures of all of us, including some of her brother's missionary pics.  It was so well done and made us all emotional.  I'm a bawl baby anyway.

I'm so grateful that my girls are learning what real gift giving is like.  They really went out of their way to consider their family member's individual needs and desires.  They made hats, scarves, videos, pajama pants, picture frames, etc.  It was the best part of Christmas, seeing what my girls made for each other.  Then they presented a song that they dedicated to Daddy that they'd been practicing for awhile.  Madeline played the guitar, Emily played the piano, and Rebecca sang.  Of course, Emily and Madeline sang the chorus with her.  It was beautiful!  They covered a great song.  I think it's called 3000 miles.

Santa brought us movie tickets so we could go see our annual Christmas movie too.  This year we saw Frozen, which is a super cute movie, by the way.  We pulled the kids out of school, of course, for our Christmas celebration, because that had to be part of the deal. I thought I detected a curious look on the face of the woman who sold us our movie ticket that afternoon. However, I was wrong. When I told her we were celebrating Christmas early due to hubby's deployment, she didn't even look up. In fact, it looked like she could care less. I think she even yawned! Apparently, we aren't the only people dragging our kids out of school to see a movie and she's heard all the excuses. I found that mildly amusing.

Tanner will skype with us tomorrow for awhile and we are looking forward to that,  but it's bitter sweet to anticipate his call this Christmas, knowing after we hang up with him, we're taking Jared to Baltimore to get on the rotater to Kuwait.  We will be without any priesthood in our home for the first time since 2005. That's a big bummer...especially since I love them so very much.

Anyway, I promised to keep my blog uplifting. So here's the good news. It's not a year and it's not Afghanistan. We can thank the Lord for those two things!  We've been very fortunate to have gotten away with only two short deployments thus far (5 months and 7 months), and both to safe locations. I've known many others who've felt worried constantly for the safety and security of their spouses in war torn areas. I feel exceedingly lucky to be spared that concern, for the most part.  Of course, one always worries when someone leaves for so long and they are so far away, but by in large, safety will not be an issue where Jared is going.

Well, this has taken all morning to compose, so I'm off now.  To my whole family and all my friends, I wish a peace filled, wonder filled, love filled Holiday Season.  May your days be merry and bright.

Merry Christmas!
Jeanette

I started a blog today.  

Do you want to know why?  All the hip people I know have blogs and I feel so old without one!  Well, that is only a tiny reason why. Okay, it's totally not the reason. But I do feel like an old blogger - seems like most people in the blogosphere are hipster twenty/thirty somethings. Why, yes, I'm glad you noticed how I totally know the word "hipster" and thanks to urbandictionary.com I even know what it means.  Here's the link, just in case you are not in-the-know like me:  http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=hipster


Anyway, I feel like a closet hipster, sort of. I mean, granted, I don't look twenty something and my tight jeans aren't intentional, but I'm totally hip, in a wrinkle cream and minivan kind of way. After all, I am getting a Liberal Arts degree and I totally wear my old sneakers sometimes.
No, the real reason for starting a blog is that I've recently been thinking about how each individual effects the world in some small way either positively or negatively. Everybody has a reason for being on this big blue ball. thus one can't help but to change the world just by being on it. What kind of  effect one has on this earth depends on how one chooses to interact with one's neighbor. In this digital age, everyone is our neighbor.  But I don't know if you've noticed,  it's kind of hard to just drop by a digital neighbor's house. So, I thought that one way I could be a better digital neighbor is to invite friends over to my "blog".  I happen to believe I'm not only a closet hipster, I'm a pretty good person with a lot of witdom to offer...er, wisdom, I mean. Anyway, I promise to bless the whole universe with my really positive and relevant musings. 
Besides all that, paper journals are so old school. Why not post my life lessons online for the entire universe to relish and enjoy?  I mean, why hog all the laughs to myself? That would be selfish!

Anyway, I hope you, at least, noticed my catchy cool blog name: Ironic illuminations. I thought about my blog name for a long time before I went with it. It took at least a half an hour. As I was finessing my thoughts for my new blog, I asked Jared, my dearest darling of a husband, what I should name my blog. He deadpanned, "Jeanette's Fantasy World," the implication being that I won't actually blog. I told him that wasn't catchy enough. Hmmph! We needed a big turkey for Thanksgiving: I think we have ourselves winner!