Vignettes of Wisdom, and my own musings on them

I, like everyone else, has heard numerous bits of wisdom and advise over the years (I know I received TONS in YW alone). But, really, only a small handful have really touched me enough to remember and use on a regular basis. I just thought I'd share a few of them, and some of there actual applications as well.

A successful marriage means falling in love with the same person over and over again.

From my Grandma and Grandpa Seguine, and it's true. I love Eric so differently now than I did 11 years ago. My most recent reason to love him is how he handled last weekend with me being down for the count with a stomach bug. He sat on the couch in the living room to ensure that the kids voices didn't drift upstairs to disturb my staccato-ed sleeping, but also so he could hear me and come to my aid each time I needed it.

Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

From my Grandpa Munt. For some reason my husband feels that it counts in laundry too. He gets his dirty clothes on top of the laundry hamper, or next to it, and his suit pants always seem to make it on to the shelf next to the hangars in the closet. But it is better than when he used my quilt rack as a haberdasher...

A soft answer turneth away wrath...

From my Great-Grandma Hoffman, and Proverbs. I've used this one so much, and yet not nearly as often as I should. It has come in handy with children as well as adults, it is amazing how more in control of myself I can remain when I remain calm and not fight back. There is definitely a spirit there helping, when I chose not to lose it. (this one goes hand in hand with my mom's "contention is inevitable, but fighting is a choice.")

Oh well, no one will notice.
Okay, this one isn't quite right. My favorite adaptation corrects this to:

Oh well, everyone will notice, but no one will care.

Which is true, everyone can/does notice the imperfections, but who really cares? This one has been crucial to me as a parent raising small children, things get spilled on me constantly, they get dirty quickly, we leave the house with Eme's hair uncombed regularly, they've thrown fits in the store. I know everyone has seen the chaos, so I have often had to remind myself with Oh well, and move on. It has also been important when it comes to quilting. Sometime I've found a BIG mistake at a time that it is no longer possible to use the seam ripper. At times like those, first I cry, and then I move on, and hope that no one will notice it, or if they do, won't care.

And lastly, I have taken a page from my Grandma Seguine. When she and Grandpa would get upset with each other, Grandpa would retreat to his workshop to tinker, and Grandma would go bake cookies. She did this for 2 reasons: 1. cookies required the baker to hand cream the butter-a great way to get out frustration; and 2. because when we perform small acts of service, we remember why we love them.

So, I bake cookies for my kids, a lot...even more over the summer.

I have used this story so many times in my relief society lessons, that a friend of mine is now dieing to try my cookies because I must have perfected them by now. Perfect? Not quite, but I do know the exact right butter/shortening ratio to use depending on the temp outside. My other secret is to only bake half the dough at a time and then freeze the rest for later, when we're happy too.