With apologies to MLK and all those who love his original version

With apologies to and veneration of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his epic speech, and in celebration of his month of birth, I offer this humous, yet completely heartfelt interpretation on his famous discourse:

I have a dream that Sunday this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all children are created equal, and that they too are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness through playing with toys daily.

I have a dream that one day even the church of old men who are trying so hard to follow the handbooks and good women just trying to carve themselves a small place to keep a few special things, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom for small children to play with germ covered toys.

I have a dream that my seven little nursery children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the amount of stuff they require to make it through three hours of church, but by their loving hugs and cheerful smiles.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day down in the nursery, despite its careless grownups, with their lips dripping with the words of anger and frustration, thoughtlessness and inattention -- one day right there in the youngest nursery class little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and little brown boys and little brown girls, and if it so be, little green boys and little green girls - they will all be able to join hands as sisters and brothers and play Ring Around the Rosie.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every Playland ball shall be exalted, and every Matchbox car shall be made to go, the lost toys shall be found, and the found toys shall be unbroken, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together in the faces of those blessed children.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the nursery room with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair of the fight over space in the building a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our ward and stake into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood and sisterhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning "My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my father's played, land where my mother's prayed, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!"

And if Zion is to be a great nation, this must become true. And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi -- from every mountainside even those in desolate Utah and Idaho. Let it ring from all the corners of the Blessed Earth.

Let freedom ring.

And when this happens - when we allow freedom to ring -- when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children -- will be able to join hands and sing in the words near unto those of the old Negro spiritual: "Toys at last! Toys at last! Thank the Lord God Almighty, our Toys have returned at last!"

From the Handbook of Church Use

Dear Sister Jeri,

Article 2.C.37 States:

"Bubbles are not for use in the church buildings. They interfere with the emission of noxious gases from the carpets. Please refrain from using them at all costs."

Thank you very much for your compliance.

Building and Facitlity Coordinator

To the Leaders of the Church Monitoring the Stuff Allowed to Clutter the Buildings

Dear Editor,

I am writing to express my irritation and dismay at a small faction of the public who insists on having toys and supplies in church nursery settings; specifically with the youngest church scholars.

This annoying habit uses rare and precious space which could better be employed storing various bi-annual supplies and even things we never use but might need at some future point in time.

Nursery toys are superfluous. They are germ-holders and often used as weapons. Couldn't the small cherubs just sit in a quiet circle, or take a little nap?

If the adult leader of said children insists on having toys and supplies, he or she could transport them to and from home each week. It wouldn't put me out a bit.

Perhaps we place our children in a classroom setting prematurely anyway. It's so quaint to see a loving parent walk/run the hallways with their little charge, and everyone enjoys a little diversion in a boring meeting.

In my opinion, if the class is to remain, it is the responsibility of the nursery leader to transport snacks, cups, wipes, kleenex, toys, puppets, visual aids, art supplies, lesson materials, books, puzzles, instruments, hand-sanitizer, blankets, band-aids, bubbles and any other supplies necessary to church each week.

These should be gathered and removed as soon as possible each Sunday so as not to inconvenience any of the other ward members.

Thank you.
Sister Jeri

To All the Dear People Helping Me to Lose My Mind

Dear Bishop, Brother and Sister So and So,

I really don't hate you. I really don't even blame you. It is just that look out for myself-itis has hit this part of the vineyard and things are gettin' ugly.

Even if you don't bring my toys back. Even if (heaven help us) you donated them to DI. I promise I won't sharpen my Tinker Toys and come after you.

But I have need to roll my eyes a bit longer, because as you probably don't know this has been a week full of selfish people, tense perfectionistic procrastinators, bi-polar folks in manic fazes, and demanding individuals bent on getting me to do something (so they don't have to).

If I stop rolling my eyes, or writing these witty posts, my brain will explode and the few pieces I've saved will be lost.

Sigh.

I feel better now.

BRING BACK MY TOYS.

Thankyou,
Me

Missing More Than My Mind

It must be noted that today (1/27/12) the Stake Primary President called me, and she is a very sweet and loving woman who was only following the misinformation given her by a well meaning but misinformed Priesthood leader. I apologize to her for any maligning of her character that may have occurred due to this post in frustration.

To the Stake Primary President who is trying to take over closet "B" in room 110 because she is tired of storing stuff at her home and hauling it to church once a month for the Stake Baptism,

The 16th Ward nursery toys formerly stored in closet "B" are missing.  They include one large tub of play place balls - multi colors, one organizer of puzzles including puzzles, a large and split open plastic zipper bag of Megablocks, various board books, a round tub of blocks with a sorting lid top, two play cell phones,  a whole bunch of other little toys that I can't remember because they are rarely played with, and most importantly the car garage that entertains for hours.

If you know where they are please return them. Otherwise I'm thinking that I might take my seven little charges and head over to join the Nazarene Church where they not only allow the nursery workers a closet. They give them a whole room to store the toys. And don't make them store shelves of snacks and  bring their own toys EVERY STINKING SUNDAY OF THE BLOOMING YEAR!!!! (THAT'S FIFTY TWO TIMES A YEAR!!! AND LAST WEEK IT REQUIRED THREE BAGS TO GET IT ALL TO THE BUILDING!!!!!!!!!)

Sincerely The Leader of the Youngest Nursery Class

A to Z Reading Challenge 2012 - Completed

A to Z challenge: Read books alphabetically by title and/or author.
I've done this before. It almost killed me in 2010, but why not do it again? Right?

Authors

Arkin, Alan - The Lemming Condition
Bauer, Joan - Peeled
Cather, Willa - Alexander's Bridge
Devereux, Jude - Moonlight in the Morning
Estes, Eleanor - Rufus M.
Farmer, Nancy - A Girl Named Disaster
George, Jessica Day - Tuesdays at the Castle
Hannigan, Katherine - True (sort of)
Ivey, Eowyn - The Snow Child
James, Will - Smoky the Cowhorse
Kilpack, Josi - Pumpkin Roll
Lemmon, Gayle Tezmach - The Dressmaker of Khair Khana
Myracle, Lauren - Peace, Love, & Baby Ducks
Neville, Emily Cheney - It's Like This Cat
O'Dell, Scott - The King's Fifth
Peck, Robert - Soup
Queen, Ellery - The Tragedy of Y
Richmond, Alyson - The Lost Wife
Sankovitch, Nina - Tolstoy and the Purple Chair
Trigiani, Adriana - Viola in Reel Life
Ullman, James Ramsey Banner in the Sky
VanLiere, Donna - The Angels of Morgan Hill
Willig, Lauren - The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
FoX, Paula - The Slave Dancer
Yelchin, Eugene - Breaking Stalin's Nose
Zhang Bin, Benjamin - Orange

Titles

Aquamarine - Alice Hoffman
Billy Creekmore - Tracy Porter
Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy - Ally Carter
Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover - Ally Carter
Enchanted Ivy - Sarah Beth Durst
Finally - Wendy Mass
Gone: A Novel - Cathi Hanauer
Here Lies Bridget - Paige Harbison
Interrupted: A Life Beyond Words - Rachel Coker
Just One Wish - Janette Rallison
Kneeknock Rise - Natalie Babbitt
Leviathan - Scott Westerfeld
Make the Bread, Buy the Butter - Jennifer Reese
Not Becoming My Mother - Ruth Reichl
O Pioneers! - Willa Cather
Petey - Mikaelsen, Ben
Q: A Novel - Evan Mandery
Room - Emma Donoghue
Song of a Lark - Willa Cather
Till We Have Faces - C. S. Lewis
Unmeasured Strength - Lauren Manning
V is for Vengeance - Sue Grafton
Where the Red Fern Grows - Wilson Rawls
HeX Hall - Rachel Hawkins
Yellow Star - Jennifer Roy
Zora and Me - Victoria Bond

This is it for challenges. (Unless I really find something I can't live without.)

2012 Dewey Decimal Reading Challenge - Completed!

The Challenge:  Read any non-fiction book(s), adult or young adult. That's it. You can choose anything. Poetry? Yes. Memoirs? Yes. History? Yes. Travel? Yes. You get the idea? Absolutely anything that is classified as non-fiction counts for this challenge.

I always like levels in my challenges, so here are mine:

Dilettante--Read 1-5 non-fiction books

Explorer--Read 6-10

Seeker--Read 11-15

Master--Read 16-20

This challenge will last from January 1 to December 31, 2012. You can sign up anytime throughout the year. Visit this post.

So I want to read 12. Maybe I'll get more. We'll see. 

1. The Man Who Never Was by Ewen Montague 
2. Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese
3. The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tezmach Lemmon
4. How to Talk So Teens will Listen and Listen so Teens will Talk by Adele Faber
5. Entreleadership by Dave Ramsey
6. The Grantwriter's Internet Companion by Susan Lee Peterson
7. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carvarnon
8. This is Believe: On Motherhood by Dan Gediman
9. Who Dares Wins by Bob Mayer
10. Mud, Sweat, and Gears by Joe Kurmanskie
11. The Man in the Rockefeller Suit by Mark Seal
12. Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman
13. Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan
14. Dibs in Search of Self by Virginia Axline
15. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
16. Swagger: 10 Urgent Rules for Raising Boys by Lisa Bloom
17. A Course in Weight Loss by Marianne Williamson
18. Farm City by Novella Carpenter
19. Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer by Warren St. John
20. The Woman Who Wasn't There by Robin Gaby Fisher
21. Cheating Destiny by James S. Hirsch
22. Unmeasured Strength by Lauren Manning
23. The Clumsiest People in Europe by Favell Lee Mortimer
24. Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter by Melissa G. Moore

Update 12/29/12 - Well I guess I  doubled my goal. Go me!

Resolutions - Focus on Being Mindful

I resolve to do something with myself this year.
In other words I will hang out with myself and enjoy the time I spend together with myself.

I will also do something with myself by changing who I am. 
This will occur as I continue my quest to health and happiness by lessening my reliance on food and deeping my relationships with my husband, children, and the elliptical machine.

I will finally do something with myself by getting done already.
I will plan, organize, and accomplish some projects that have been hanging around since the children appeared to slow me down from being with myself and doing stuff which I enjoy, as opposed to spending time with people who I enjoy, mostly.