Joan's Girls: September 2009

Our Message

Joan Ruth Smith Stout passed away on September 5, 2007. She was my beloved mother and grandmother of the beautiful girls pictured to the right, Kim, Tiffany, Tara, Chelane, Stephanie, Tristen, Sara, Telisa, Mikel, Jenny and Ashling. My mother died due to complications from malnourishment, or in other words, an eating disorder. I believe it started in her teens and she was completely unaware of the insidious disease that took route in her mind. She was somehow blessed to give birth to four children, three boys and a girl. Joan loved her children with devotion and passion even though much of the time, she felt poorly. Stomach problems, headaches and heart palpitations were a daily occurrence for her. As her only daughter, I was oblivious to her plight until my very own sweet daughter started on that same journey in her teens. By then my mom had been suffering from her eating disorder for a good fifty years, and there was no redirecting her thoughts. Unfortunately for me, I was angry for a while when I realized that the route of all her illnesses was through lack of nutrition. That was shameful on my part, and I am sure that only added to my mom's illness. I hope she knows now how foolish I was. However, through the journey of Telisa's eating disorder, the girls in our family have learned much, especially Telisa! It is for this reason that we collectively, as Joan's Girls, are choosing to send the message out to the world of what real beautiful bodies need to support good physical and mental health!!!!!!! We watch with horror the unhealthy and unattractive images on TV, Movies, Magazines etc. We witness some of our dear friends struggle with body image issues, and frankly we are sick of the comparing and obsessing over one's size versus one's health!! We believe in good health, we believe in eating the food provided for us by our Heavenly Father, we believe in balance and moderation, we believe in exercise in moderation, we also believe the best exercise is done while serving others, we believe that God created many types of bodies and we thank Him for that! We believe in modesty and we believe that our bodies are a gift from Heavenly Father! We believe that true beauty comes from within. All of Joan's granddaughters are true beauties. Our legacy to her will be our commitment to the TRUTH of what is beautiful and praiseworthy. We seek after these things. We will strive for good health and the truth in all we do!

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Letters to Grandpa

I know my turn to post a blog on here has come and gone several times and I have dropped the ball each time. I don't have any great recipe, story, or words of wisdom to share, just a simple request. As we all know our dear Gramps is not doing so well, and he has been on my mind a lot lately. Unfortunately I have not been up to visit him near as often as I would like. My days just seem to fly by as I am running from one thing to the next, so I have been trying to think of something I could do to let Grandpa know that I love him and that even though he is feeling alone without Grandma, he is not really alone. So this is where you all come into play. I was thinking that maybe we could each write Grandpa a letter sharing some of our favorite memories we have of him, advice he has given us, or something he has done for us that has made us feel loved. I know he has touched my life in ways he probably doesn't remember and I would like to remind him of those things. So there is my challenge! I hope you will all take it to heart!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Peanut Butter, Marshmallow, Chocolate Covered Oreos

12 Oreo Cookies
12 t. Peanut Butter
12 T. Marshmallow Cream
1/2 c. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
2 T. Heavy Cream

1. Place Oreos onto a wax paper covered baking sheet. Spoon peanut butter evenly over Oreos, spreading gently. With cookie scoop, place marshmallow cream over peanut butter layer. Place entire baking sheet of oreos into freezer for 30 minutes or until firm.
2. Place chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals until chips are melted. Stir in heavy cream until shiny and smooth. Spoon chocolate over cookies, spreading carefully around edges. If marshmallow cream starts peeking through a few minutes after coating with chocolate, just add additional chocolate over white areas.
3. Place in refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes and serve. Keep leftovers in refrigerator. Makes 12 Cookies

Friday, September 11, 2009

Happy for No Reason!

This is a book I am currently reading and enjoying very much! Here is a questionnaire from the book. If you want to take it you can find out where you are on the happiness chart according to this author! It might be fun to take the test with your spouse or older kids. Dennis and I took it together with our friends in St. George while we were there last week. It turned into about an hour long fun discussion.
Rate each statement on a scale of 1 to 5:

1= Not at all true
2= Slightly true
3=Moderately true
4= Mostly true
5=Absolutely true

1. I often feel happy and satisfied for no particular reason.

2. I live in the moment.

3. I feel alive, vital and energetic.

4. I experience a deep sense of inner peace and well-being.

5. Life is a great adventure for me.

6. I don't let bad situations keep me down.

7. I am enthusiastic about the things I do.

8. Most days I have an experience of laughter and joy.

9. I trust that this is a friendly universe.

10. I look for the gift or the lesson in everything that happens.

11. I am able to let go and forgive.

12. I feel love for myself.

13. I look for the good in every person.

14. I change the things I can and accept the things I can't change.

15. I surround myself with people who support me.

16. I don't blame others or complain.

17. My negative thoughts don't overshadow me.

18. I feel a general sense of gratitude.

19. I feel connected to something bigger than myself.

20. I feel inspired by a sense of purpose in my life.

Scoring: 80-100: To a great degree, you are happy for no reason.
60-79: You have a good measure of being happy for no reason.
40-59: You have glimpes of being happy for no reason.
Under 40 You have little experience of being happy for no reason.