Nor'easter

We had a huge snow storm on Friday night and Saturday morning. Here are some pictures. The Hershey area got about 18 inches, in 24 hours. South of us had alot more. We had a fun time playing in all the snow. Asher was drowning in it, so he didnt go out much. Here are some of the rest of us.

Guess who's FIVE?

Today is Zachary and Tanners 5th Birthday! I cant believe how big they are. I still remember the day they were born. It was full of excitment and fear. They were born prematurely, when I was 32 weeks along. Zachary Welker weighed just 3 lbs 6oz. Tanner Michael was a tiny 3 lbs 13 oz I was so happy to finally be a mommy! They were so little and required so much attention! As they grew they have been able to play with eachother and bond with eachother in a way I may never fully understand. They are BEST FRIENDS!

The years have flown by, and now I have these two healthy, happy, smart little guys. They are the light of my life. They truely bring such joy to our lives. We are so blessed to have them both. We celebrated their birthday early over the weekend. We drove to Easton, PA to visit the Crayola Factory. They are at the perfect age and had the perfect attention span for such a cool, busy place. We loved the demonstration of how they make crayons. Zach like that the orange crayon was renamed MAC 'N CHEESE.

We also went to the National Canal Museum. I know what you are thinking, "a canal museum?" It was on the top level of the crayola factory. I thought it was cool. They had 90 feet of "canal" and locks that you could play with. The boys loved it! It was facinating to learn about the canals, and locks. We even got to play on a pretend boat and mule.

There was a pizza party and we dinned on cake and ice cream with Grandma and Grandpa Chamberlain. Grandma made the boys each a special cake. Tanner wanted a green one. Zach wanted Orange. So these are what she created. A tiger and a dinosaur. The kids loved them. Thanks so much Grandma! div>



The singing is horrible, I know. I was a bit distracted.

Happy Birthday my sweethearts. I love you both!

Things that Matter Most

As you may have guessed, Zumba is something I adore. I love the music, the history behind the basic steps, the people who attend, and the good vibes I feel when working out. It really has become something I am passionate about. I started teaching at a small local gym. The class is small (compared to the 104 people they had Wednesday night at Golds Gym) but, I enjoy every second of it.

Zachary asked me today "Mom, where does Zumba live?"
ME: "What do you mean Zach? Zumba doesnt live anywhere."
Zach: "When you go with Zumba to the gym, does she go home with you?"
ME: "No, Zumba is not a person. Zumba is a class I go to at the gym."
Zach:"Oh. Its not a girl?"
ME: "Nope"
Poor kid. I think he thought I was going with someone named Zumba all the time to the gym. It made me feel bad because he thought I was spending all this time on Zumba, and he wanted to know who I was sharing my time with. Maybe he was feeling like I was with someone more than him. It worried me a little. Dont get me wrong, heaven knows I need some time to myself. To refuel myself and "fill my well". I just dont ever want to have something like a gym class become a distraction from my real love...My family.
Its hard to find balance in the world. Its hard to wear so many different hats as mother, wife, sister, friend, a human being and not feel disconnected to some of the responsibilities of daily life. I am trying to maintain that balance. Sometimes I do better than others. Its a challenge to all women to balance their desires, needs, wants and expectations with everyday responsibilities and realities.

In light of these feelings, I went back and read a Confrence Talk from Oct 2009 .

I'll put a few excerpts of it to make my point. It gave me some much needed guidance.
"On a dark December night 36 years ago, a Lockheed 1011 jumbo jet crashed into the Florida Everglades, killing over 100 people. This terrible accident was one of the deadliest crashes in the history of the United States.
A curious thing about this accident is that all vital parts and systems of the airplane were functioning perfectly—the plane could have easily landed safely at its destination in Miami, only 20 miles (32km) away.
During the final approach, however, the crew noticed that one green light had failed to illuminate—a light that indicates whether or not the nose landing gear has extended successfully. The pilots discontinued the approach, set the aircraft into a circling holding pattern over the pitch-black Everglades, and turned their attention toward investigating the problem.
They became so preoccupied with their search that they failed to realize the plane was gradually descending closer and closer toward the dark swamp below. By the time someone noticed what was happening, it was too late to avoid the disaster.
After the accident, investigators tried to determine the cause. The landing gear had indeed lowered properly. The plane was in perfect mechanical condition. Everything was working properly—all except one thing: a single burned-out lightbulb. That tiny bulb—worth about 20 cents—started the chain of events that ultimately led to the tragic death of over 100 people.
Of course, the malfunctioning lightbulb didn’t cause the accident; it happened because the crew placed its focus on something that seemed to matter at the moment while losing sight of what mattered most.The tendency to focus on the insignificant at the expense of the profound happens not only to pilots but to everyone. We are all at risk.
Sometimes the things that distract us are not bad in and of themselves; often they even make us feel good.It is possible to take even good things to excess. One example can be seen in a father or grandfather who spends hours upon hours searching for his ancestors or creating a blog while neglecting or avoiding quality or meaningful time with his own children and grandchildren. Another example could be a gardener who spends his days pulling weeds from the soil while ignoring the spiritual weeds that threaten to choke his soul. we must not lose focus on the things that matter most.

I need to write this down. Read it often. And put it into practice everyday.

Haiti

The Earthquake in Haiti has been unreal. I cannot imagine the devastation. It only concerns me even more about an earthquake here in the US. Its only a matter of time. I wonder if I am prepared. I wonder how to prepare. Im glad I left the fault line in Farmington, Utah...:)- Seriously though...I cannot begin to comprehend what they must be going through. I saw a few of the performances that Hollywood stars put together to raise money. Most were fine. A song preformed by Justin Timberlake touched me the most. It was very sweet. I love the song. Thought I would share it, if you didnt see it.

<a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/" target="_blank">Justin Timberlake Performs Live! Hope For Haiti</a>

Justin Timberlake Performs Live! Hope For Haiti

RMH Fundraiser

I recently participated in a fundraiser for our local Ronald McDonald House. It was really fun! 75 women donated money to come Zumba for charity. What great people! I got to teach a couple songs and shake it for a good cause. What a fun idea,eh?

Michelle Weber who is a Zumba instructor at the Hershey Golds Gym was in charge of the event. She did a great job. If I havent told you, she is the best Zumba instructor I have seen. She is amazing. She is my muse. Im fortunate to have been mentored by the best.-:)
Anyway, here are some pictures from the event. Thought I would share.


Veronica, Meridith, Michelle- Zumbalicious instructors.

There is no Dana, only Zuul.

This seems to be the never ending catch phrase out of my mouth these days.
" there is no Dana, there is only Zuul".

Mike is afraid when he comes home. He peaks into the kitchen timidly.
"Um...whos there?" he asks with trepidation.
If its been a good day I will reply " Hey Mikey". The conversation will progress from there.

If its been a bad day, the repose follows "there is no Dana only Zuul".
(If you are not getting this post, this is a quote from the movie Ghostbusters.Zuul is a demigod and the gate keeper of Gozar the Gozarian. She takes the shape of a large demonic dog. It was a real demi-god worshipped around 6000 BC by the Hittites, the Mesopotamians and the Sumerians also.)
Then my head spins around and I shoot red lasers from my eyes, then implode myself into a ball of flames and scream hideously. (ok, ok. maybe its not that crazy, but close)

All this because no one will eat what I make for dinner.- Why, Why wont anyone eat normal things like spaghetti or chicken nuggets, mashed potatoes, or rice? Why cant we have hamburger or cheese? Why cant we eat fresh things instead of frozen dinners? Is it really too much to ask for all 5 of us to eat the same thing for once?
Dinner Drama. Its the story of my life. The thorn in my side. The axis of evil. I hate dinner time. The worst part is, I love to cook. Its something Im good at. No one appreciates it, cuz they cant eat onions,celery, sour cream, peas,tomatoes, CHEESE (did I already mention this?), green things, peppers, salsa, etc...

Im Zuul again tonight.

Hymn Angels

Have you ever heard the hymn angels? I do, all the time. Isnt that odd? I swear I will be in the strangest places and hear the strangest things. I was standing in Manhattan over New Years, looking at time square, seeing all the people and the song
"Oh, If I were an Angel" came to my mind. If you aren't familiar with this song, its a song about preaching the gospel to all the world. Another moment, on the same trip to the city, I looked at the Statue of Liberty and heard the song "somewhere" from west side story. "Theres a place for us. Somewhere a place for us"...it brought me a moment of reflection. Strange I know.- Anyway this kind of thing happens to me all the time. Sometimes its not even church songs that pop into my head, but the song usually brings me peace or enlightenment of some kind. Just touching my soul in some way.
So, in light of this I wanted to share a little moment I had last night. I was laying in my bed thinking about what would happen to my children if I died. Who would take care of them, what would they remember about me, what would my funeral be like?- Have I declared any of my thoughts and wishes about these matters?
So...Im finally going to put my living will together. Get things organized.
Hopefully, Im not having these thoughts because of impending or looming events. It just got me thinking. One thing that I wasnt sure that I had ever mentioned to my husband was the songs I wanted played at my funeral. They are mainly songs that have significance to my life. Ya know, stuff the hymn angels play over and over again at the right moments.
So, with that said I created a montage of songs in my player to share some info about them. (Please excuse the major cheesiness of this post, but when I am gone someday, know I will haunt you if my wishes are not met!)

1) The impossible dream- I want this song played or sung at my funeral. Its always been one of my favorites. I once heard it played on a cello, no words were being sung, but I knew every line. It pierced my very core to hear them internally.
You can all dress up in costumes from the play ( Man of La Mancha) if you want. I wont mind. :)
2) Out of Africa- My mom played my the soundtrack to this movie on tape every night as a little girl. The opposite side of the tape had the Man from Snowy River soundtrack. I loved the tape. I still feel the security and love of a family when I hear this song. It brought me such comfort to hear it snug in bed with my family safe in our house. It should also be played at my funeral.
It wasnt until my adult years that I saw the movie. Ahem...(clearing my throat). Good thing. Its a passionate movie to say the least. Two words Robert Redford!

3) Romeo and Juliet- My mother played this on the piano all the time growing up. It still reminds me of her. Love you, momma!
4)Pride and Prejudice- My favorite movie and book. This song takes me away.
5)Some Enchanted Evening- South Pacific is my favorite musical. Its a classic that always makes me cry, laugh and love a little bit more. This was the song Mike and I danced to on our wedding day. It will always evoke beautiful memories of that day, and the day we saw each other from across the room. Engaged 3 weeks later. Married less than 4 months after our first date. Still happy 8 years later.- "Once you have found him, never let him go!"
6)Baby Mine- I listened to this and cried for the first week after the twins were born. Im not sure why I subjected myself to the pain of it. Especially when I left the hospital without any babies. I wasnt sure from day to day if either of them would survive. It was torture to hear it. But, I needed it for some reason. Looking back on it, I think I needed to know that even if the very worst happened "rest your head close to my heart, never to part, baby of mine".-It still brings tears to my eyes to hear it. I cant separate this song from Zach and Tanner.
7)This could be Heaven- Again, this song will forever be associated with Ashers birth. I turned this song on when I brought him home for the first time. I laid there and listened to it on my ipod and just stared at him. Thinking "I am the mother of three boys. I wasnt supposed to ever have any kids. I actually have a family. And this surprise baby is AMAZING!". It really was heaven. Still is.

Have you heard any hymn angels?-Im sure you have. Im a little crazy about music and its influences. But, its how I make connections I guess. :)