Half the Sky

A friend of mine on Facebook who I went to high school with probably has no idea that I love to devour the books that he posts he is reading or just finished reading. He is a world traveler and not just as a tourist but as someone who cares to serve and help others. I just think he's super cool.

So when I saw his recommendation to read Half the Sky, I quickly went and checked it out at the library. And now this is me passing on this recommendation to you. From their website it reads:

Half the Sky lays out an agenda for the world's women and three major abuses: sex trafficking and forced prostitution; gender-based violence including honor killings and mass rape; maternal mortality, which needlessly claims one woman a minute. We know there are many worthy causes competing for attention in the world. We focus on this one because this kind of oppression feels transcendent – and so does the opportunity. Outsiders can truly make a difference. (here's their website)

I've been exposed to global women's issues through some of the sociology classes that I've been taking the past couple of years and it has turned into one of my greatest interests. I feel like it is so important for everyone, male and female, old and young to be educated about what is happening to others, particularly women, on a global level because I truly do believe that individuals can make a difference for the better in the lives of others.

Just like those who fought for the emancipation of slaves and equal human rights for all back in the 1800s, we have a fight of greater magnitude facing us today. At the height of slave trade around 1780 there was an average of just under 80,000 slaves who were shipped annually. Half the Sky brings this point up to illustrate the difference between that appalling part of our history and what is happening today. The US State Department estimates there are 600,000 to 800,000 human beings who are trafficked across international borders annually TODAY. (That is a generously low estimate.) And the estimate is that about 80% of those people are women and girls who are trafficked mostly for the sex trade.

The very first thing that can and should be done to help these people is to become aware and informed of their plight. Half the Sky is a great starting point for that. And another reason why I really loved this book is because when finished you aren't left with the question, "now what?" The authors have provided many resources and ideas of things you can do to make a difference RIGHT AWAY, inviting you to take action in a cause that I believe is one of the most important world issues facing us today.

Want to know what I did after reading this? I was so excited about it! I participated in a Kiva group loan to these 10 beautiful women in Koula, Mali.

These women's average age is 40 and they average 6 children each between them. The average yearly income where they live is $1200. Their loan will help them pay for labor, agricultural inputs and small farming equipment and has the potential to lift them out of their poverty and bring them respect and self confidence among their community and in their family. Kiva loans are an awesome way to get involved and make a difference! (Check out their site here.)

I want to do so much more... I'll be continuing on this path for the rest of my life. Care to join me?

So Much

I'm so grateful for my life and for the wonderful opportunity it is just to be alive, to bask in the love of my family, enjoy the smiles and laughter of my beautiful children, expand my mind and heart through education and the books I read. Life truly is beautiful for me and I consider it a precious gift.

That being said, here's an update. :)

I took two online classes this summer semester and am happy to say that it's over. I passed them both, and really, that's all I care about at this point. It was rather crazy. It was really stressful, especially towards the end. John's family planned a little trip out to the Grand Canyon one day and invited me to come. I had so much school work I should have been working on, but decided to take my kids and go with them. I really enjoyed my day with them. That was my first time to the Grand Canyon, even though it's only about 150 miles from where I live.

The past two years have been a roller coaster ride in regards to having a steady source of income. John had a few interesting jobs this summer that I'm sure he'd like to forget. One, I know he never will though because he spent a 12 hour work day simply wiping off dressing packets at Litehouse Foods! He has been quite anxious to find work that is not only stable and enough to provide for our family, but also something where he can put his skills to use. Cleaning off dressing packets wasn't quite it, although we both get a good laugh at the thought of him spending 12 hours doing so! He applied at a company that just opened up shop in St. George who were looking for people with the qualifications that he has. They are a national company in the trade show industry. He was really hoping to get the job because it purportedly paid really well. Well, turns out, he landed it! They hired him as their CNC operator and he has been working there for a month now. The company is called Czarnowski. We are really grateful to have a steady income, that's for sure. Although John really misses working with his old boss and would probably go back there in a heartbeat if the work became stable again.

On July 26th my hubby celebrated his 30th birthday!

And I can't believe it. It just occurred to me that I didn't even snap one single picture!! How in the world did the thought to take a picture of him on that milestone birthday ever escape me!? wow. ANYWAY. My gift to him was a lunchbox and the promise of 30 consecutive homemade lunches to take to work with him, along with the hope that I'd develop the habit of consistently doing so for him even after that. So far, it's been going well and it isn't as hard as I had imagined it to be.

The first weekend in August, we enjoyed a little getaway at a family reunion for John's mother's side of the family up at a cabin in Fairview. Joseph absolutely loved riding the 4-wheeler and playing outside.

It was a nice weekend. I wish I had made the effort to do more star gazing at night though. The stars were spectacular up there.

The next weekend some of my family came down here to celebrate my niece's 1st birthday.

It's always so nice to get to spend time with family. We hung out at my brother's house for a bit and then went swimming.

Our past swimming experiences with Joseph have never been all that great. He would take an hour before he'd even crack a smile about being in the water. This time, thankfully, that was different. He did need a little warming up to it, but it was only like 10 minutes or so. He enjoyed jumping off the side of the pool into John's arms and going down a little kid slide all by himself.

Every few days since then he's talked about going to the pool again, so I know he really had a blast. And little Kaili just loved her first time in the pool. She went in without a hitch.

Later that same day we went to the county fair and rode some of the rides. Joseph went on a little train ride (twice) with Saydi and McKay. Oh, he really loved that!

And the weekend after that, John and I celebrated our 7th year anniversary!

For the first time we didn't stay anywhere at a hotel, but we did still do something special. We bought tickets to go see The Phantom of the Opera in Las Vegas. What an incredible show!! We both loved it. That stage and theater was so amazing. It was custom built for the show at a cost of 40 million dollars!! But really, there were times when I thought I was looking at a movie screen because there was just no way what I was seeing could be happening on a stage... it was really spectacular.

Now fall semester has started for me and I'm back at school again. Although I'm sure this is not going to be so crazy this semester because I'm on campus, and it's 4 months instead of 2! That summer was just too much! Anyway, the classes I am taking are motivation & emotion, and personality theory, both with the same professor. I already totally love both of them.

Now a quick little bit about the kids...

Joseph is a very intelligent little boy. He's been learning how to work the computer and has become quite proficient with clicking and dragging. He loves the little phonics ABC activities on starfall.com and I would not be surprised if he begins reading within the next year. He is always surprising me with what he knows and I just love listening to his cute little voice. He's quite the talker.

He does watch more tv than I care to admit, however, it's only his favorite shows of Blue's Clues and Ni Hao Kai Lan over and over and over again. Some days I'm really ready to just throw that tv out of the house.

Joseph is such a cute big brother. Lately he goes to Kaili and smooshes her cheeks and says, "hi punkin!" And he loves it when I take pictures of him with her.

He is a HORRIBLE eater. Not only does he refuse to try ANY sort of new food, he's recently decided that he doesn't even want to eat the things that he DOES like. So I've given up on trying to feed him... I just let him tell me when he is hungry so I don't waste the time and food making something (that he DOES like) just to have him tell me he won't eat it. His diet consists of milk, yogurt, cheese, cereal, bananas, chicken nuggets, spaghetti, mac & cheese and peanut butter & honey sandwiches. That's about it. I am SO jealous of friends who have kids who will actually eat different foods and try new things. My neighbors little girl's favorite foods are fruits and vegetables. *whimper whimper* I've finally decided to really stick to it with the whole potty training thing and Joseph has been doing really great.

He's down to one, maybe two accidents a day and has even had a few days where he didn't have any accidents at all! I feel extremely brave keeping him in underwear when we'll be out of the house most of the day (like today was), but he has been doing really great.

Kaili is doing so fabulous!

I'm still breastfeeding with her and am really proud of myself for having stuck it out. I tell you what, it was a really big challenge for me and there were plenty of days I was ready to quit! But it has been really nice to be able to do it this time with her.

And she's apparently getting all that she needs cause she's basically doubled her birth weight already! She weighed 6lbs 6oz when she was born and she weighed in at 12lbs 3oz at her 4 month check up last Wednesday. She is a very smiley baby and has the cutest little giggle.

Within the past few days, Joseph has been able to be the one to get her to laugh the hardest. Kaili has also taken to sucking her two middle fingers. She loves sucking on those fingers!!

Those happen to be the same two that John sucked when he was little too. She rolled over from her back to her tummy one and only one time so far and that was a week ago. She doesn't so much like her tummy time and always makes a lot of noise when she's there.

Kaili has this awesomely fat double chin that has a way of always really showing up when I'm trying to take her monthly picture. Although she doesn't really look like this all the time, I just though it was too cute to pass up sharing.

Kaili at 3 months old


Kaili at 4 months old

Well, it's getting super late, and I'm caught up. So goodbye! :)

Time on the Outside

Once these little babes get outside the womb, doesn't time seem to go by so quickly? Kaili is already almost 3 months old! I've been taking two online classes this summer, which, because of the condensed semester, is like taking 4 classes. It's a lot more time consuming that I thought it would be. So combined with caring for a newborn, a toddler, and all the mundane duties of household care leaves very little time for blogging. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, right? Well then, here is me compensating for the hundreds of thousands of words I could write about the past three months... with 160 pictures! (and a few captions...)

*Thank you Picasa collage maker for your wonderful assistance with this blog post!*

Click on the collage pictures to see them bigger.

After giving birth at home, it was lovely to have so many bedside visitors to my room. I loved it!

Joseph woke up in the morning to find his new baby sister! He has been a wonderful big brother ever since. I've yet to see any signs of jealousy. Even when he's tired and cranky, he still loves and cares about his sweet little sister and I find that totally adorable.

It was fun having my younger siblings here after Kaili was born. Take note of these happy uncles and aunt... Saydi is just full of gorgeous personality, McKay has THE most adorable toothless grin, and Chandler is one happy uncle since Kaili shares his birthday.


My mom was able to stay with me for a couple more weeks after she was born and it really was such a blessing having her around. She was my lifesaver! (how do you like my fatty post pregnancy face here? lovely huh...)


These are from Kaili's first photo shoot. My friend wanted more practice doing newborn shots and I think she did beautiful work. My favorite is the one with the purple flowers in her hair.


My mom got these awesome shots playing around with Joseph and I am in love with my son, I tell you what.


Kaili's first month. Notice how skinny her little arms and legs were! The upper left picture was taken on her first month day, so you can see how much her face has filled out. (yes, breastfeeding is going marvelously...)


One month old


And these are the pictures I took for Joseph's two and a half year mark.


We went to Fillmore for a Ball family get together on Memorial Day weekend. It was the first time Grandma Ball got to meet these two granddaughters! It was great all being together. Notice the bottom picture of my niece doing what looks like a sit-up... this cracks me up! She's done it for quite a while. That girl will have some serious abs!






Here's a random sleepyhead picture. The ones of me were taken only when my mom was still here. I don't get a whole lot of sleepy time like that anymore! And the one where Joseph is sleeping on the floor marks a first... the first time that he's ever fallen asleep on his own on the floor like that. I didn't even know he was tired! (and do you love how he still sleeps with his binky and little baby blankie? yeah, me too. okay, so the binky is a little ridiculous...)


We blessed Kaili on June 5th at John's sister's home. John's mom crocheted both of those beautiful blessing dresses for Kaili and Airika (cousins 4 days apart.) Aren't they just stunning?


Kaili's second month


Two months old


We are loving bubbles this summer.


Grandpa Ball stayed the night at the end of June on the way home from his Skeptic's conference. We told Joseph to sit close to Grandpa for this picture and he did and then said, "we're a family!" I've heard him say it a couple times whenever he is sitting really close together with us or other extended family members and I absolutely love it.


We spent the 4th of July in Enterprise. We took Joseph to run in the races and while he loved it and kept mentioning it for the rest of the day, he did not actually run. He walked. And as far as fireworks that day, we learned very quickly not to even say the "f" word around him. He was TERRIFIED of them... the little backyard ones and the big ones at night.


Kaili under the grape vine at Grandma VanDyke's house. We went up for a quick trip last weekend. I am absolutely in love with my sweet little girl and was so excited to capture these cute pictures!


Joseph absolutely loved spending his entire day outside up there. The weather was so nice, compared to the heat we are used to.


Well, there ya go! I'm caught up! And I won't let another three months go by before I blog again, I promise!