MITT ROMNEY

Mitt Romney came to Idaho Falls this week. I wanted to go, but it was in the middle of the work day. Hearing all of the buzz about it got me thinking...

I am not very political. And there is a lot I don't understand about national debt and taxes and social security...but I do know I believe in:

1. Traditional family values
2. More money for education with less federal regulation
3. The Death Penalty
4. Eliminating the option to live on welfare for years without accountability
5. Drilling for oil in America starting...yesterday
6. Big army
7. Small government that butts out of people's personal lives 

I am definitely a conservative.

With Mitt Romney--a Mormon, being the republican front-runner in this upcoming election, I am put in a unique situation, being a Mormon myself. I feel a greater responsibility to make an informed decision here. 

Romney's religion seems to generate a lot of media attention. And right or wrong, it may be the deciding factor for some whether they will, or will not, vote for him. 
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I don't understand the person who would never vote for him in a million years based on his Mormonism alone. This is so closed minded.
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For example:
"Ahh! Don't vote for him! He's a MoRmON! We don't want a cult member in the White House! His prophet will end up making all of the decisions, and it's a conspiracy to convert the world!"
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But it would be just as closed minded to vote for him because he is Mormon. 
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In contrast:
"Hooray! A Mormon in the White House! Any decision he makes in office must be the right decision! It will solve all of the world's problems!"
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Just because Mitt Romney is a member of the religion I believe and live, does not mean his views on government will match mine. And there is no guarantee he will be an honest, upstanding politician either. Nobody is perfect.

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I don't want to be the kind of person to vote that way...or ever be accused of such. Instead, I will understand each of the candidates' platforms, backgrounds, and track records. So then IF I do end up voting for Mitt Romney, it won't be because he's Mormon, or because he's probably a shoe-in for the Republican candidacy anyway(if he's going to win, I might as well vote for him, right?). It will be because he is the one I can trust to most closely match my personal, political views based on my research.


Well, there you have it. My extremely limited spouting on politics. Take it for what it's worth. I am not campaigning for any certain person, just encouraging you all to be informed. 

                                                  Source: google.com via Rachel on Pinterest

I welcome any comments...even of different opinions. But I am NOT opening it up for vicious attacks on me, my religion, or my political views. Be polite. Please and thank you. 

DEAR FRIENDS,

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That's all. 

Love,
Rachel

NOTHING BUT THE KITCHEN SINK

Source: flipflopsandpearlsdesign.blogspot.com via Rachel on Pinterest

Hi. It's just me trying to make another decision for this house of ours. 

My dream would be one of these deep, white apron front kitchen sinks I've seen everywhere lately. Unfortunately, from what I've seen so far, they cost a thousand buckaroos...at least. 

But I found this IKEA copycat for a third of the price. I think it's pretty, but it isn't very deep. Because of some poor planning on our part, after taking 4-5 steps through our front door, you get a clear shot of the kitchen sink. I'd like to have the option of keeping my dirty dishes out of sight, because I don't want them to be everyone's first impression of our home. 

This is a picture of the IKEA sink installed. The white farmhouse sink seems timeless and will look sharp with our white cabinets and black counter tops. 

But we also found this pretty, under mount sink from Home Depot for about 40 bucks more than the IKEA one. This one is SUPER deep and it would match our stainless steel appliances. 

This isn't the best picture, but it gives you an idea what the Home Depot sink looks like installed. 

Any advice? Anybody own either kind or have a preference one way or another? We'll need to get one ordered in the next few days! 

WEBSITE WEDNESDAY {This Healthy Homemaker}

Check out This Healthy Homemaker. 

From a passionate, well-informed mother of 3, you can find:

1) Healthy snack ideas
2) Sugar ins and outs
3) Home remedies for common ailments
4) Vitamin and supplement info
5) Book recommendations 
6) Healthy meal recipes
7) The truth about white flour and processed foods
8) Links to sources and research-based articles 
9) And many more useful tips about about things like washing produce, homemade laundry detergent, sneaky ways to get kids to eat healthy, and even the ketchup brand to buy without high fructose corn syrup!

After perusing the posts, read the comments too. Apparently, there are mothers everywhere struggling to raise healthy families in this junk food obsessed, fast food eatin', sugar-addicted society. Check it out and join the conversation!

Say "hi" to my super fly sister-in-law Andrea, while you're at it.  

HOUSE UPDATE {stucco and painting}

The stucco seems to change colors with the light. Direct sunlight shows it is a light brownish tan. Low light gives it a slight greenish tint. I love it. 

It will look more complete with the stone and white Azek around the doors and windows. The outside of the house has actually been like this for a month. Most of the change has been going on inside instead. 

Andrew painted the interior doors and trim a bright white. 

Here I am prepping for the master bedroom crown to be sprayed by papering off the ceiling. 

Apparently, this was a day I felt styling my hair was optional.

The wainscot looks so nice and complete with the paint. I'll post more about how to get this look later. 

While Andrew built cabinets at the shop, I spent my 3-day weekend painting walls. Here, the master bath has paint just in the corners and along the edges of trim. 

Then I rolled on my Sherwin Williams North Star. I love, love, love, this color.

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The perfect blue-gray.

It also went in the guest bath.

And the dining area. It is exactly what I envisioned and more. 

This space is not finished yet. The ceiling (which I can't WAIT to share more about later), will get some white trim around the edges and white beams going across. 

I've also started the Repose Gray in the kitchen...but no pictures yet. After all this painting, my body is exhausted! Only about 3/4 of the house left to go!

CHUCKY IS COMING FOR YOU

1) The snowman in our yard seems to illustrate this year's strange winter with one half of its body and face literally melted off. 
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And at this point, I think all that remains is a carrot in the grass. 

(Boxed shower tiles ready to install in the new house)

2) We just made a list of everything left to do on the house. 

1. stain wood ceilings
2. fix broken window/ add trim
3. paint prep
4. paint indoor trim/doors
5. kitchen beams
6. paint walls (2 rooms down!)
7. build/install cabinets
8. tile shower
9. make/ install concrete counters
10. tile floors
11. wood floors
12. finish trim
13. electrical outlets
14. lights
15. plumbing hardware
16. stone on fireplace/ wood mantel
17. appliances
18. carpet
19. pour concrete sidewalks
20. build back deck
21. build stairs to front door, back door, and in garage
22. stone on front of house
23. white Azek trim around outside doors and windows
24. shake tiles 
25. front porch columns

 It seems to go on forever. 
*sigh*

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3) Challenging student #1 wrote apology letters to several students, as was assigned. The first two were sweet and sincere. The third one, I happened to intercept before its intended recipient read it.

Dear _________,
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Chucky is coming for you. You better run! I am sorry if I got you in truble. 
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From,
_________

Apparently, Andrew has been aware of the (more than usual) number of stressful days I've been experiencing lately. I found this in my lunch. 

4) Valentine's Day is the best. I can always count on tulips. 

One thing I wasn't counting on was Andrew's dinner plans. You can imagine my confusion when he handed me a suit and board shorts and sent me to our room alone instructing me, "Put these on and don't ask any questions." 

Believe me, I had a lot of questions. First off, did he not know it was below freezing outside? And weren't we going to go eat something? Lucky for him, I put them on and waited nervously for the okay to come out. 

Eventually, I was lead out to a beach-themed picnic with Chinese food and Martinelli's on the living room floor. Major brownie points for my man. 

FOG

Driving around Saturday morning, I couldn't resist pulling over to capture the patchy, wintery landscape shrouded in fog. 

These pictures feel so much like home.