The worth of a Mother is...

incalculable, right? Who in their right mind would do what mothers do, day in and day out? Who in their right mind would take on a job that requires being present and accounted for 24/7 to infinity and beyond? Who in their right mind would take on the responsibility of being RESPONSIBLE for another human being or even multiple human beings? Who in their right mind would willingly march into a job that they may not be completely qualified to have yet they do it with a smile on their face? There is no test to take, no practical exam to pass, no training involved, no expectations clearly outlined, and yet women often jump at the chance to be counted among the ranks of Mother. it is the most important and fulfilling job in the whole wide world. People sometimes pay big money to have children and some pay big money to pay someone else raise those children. Mothering is a complex undertaking yet it is completely simple and serene at the same time. Mom's are worth a lot. Their value cannot be underestimated. Try putting a dollar figure on what they do. If they were paid even a small amount for the tasks that they perform, this is what they would make financially. And just think...there is a lot more they do that isn't even on this list. They're obviously not in it for the money. I wonder what's in it for them?? Stay tuned.

The Mother's Day Index 2011

Mom job	BLS occupation used	Hours per week/weeks per year	Hourly wage	Weeks per year	Annual Mom cost
Cooking	Cooks	14 hrs./52 weeks	$9.53	52	$6,938
Driving	Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	9 hrs./52 weeks	$13.43	52	$6,285
Helping with homework	Other teachers and instructors	10 hrs./40 weeks	$17.85	40	$7,140
Taking care of the kids	Child Care Worker	40 hrs./52 weeks	$9.95	52	$20,696
Nursing wounds	Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses	2 hrs./12 weeks	$17.90	12	$430
Cleaning up	Maids and housekeeping cleaners	10 hrs./52 weeks	$9.40	52	$4,888
Planning parties	Meeting & Convention Planners	64 hours a year	$23.11		$1,479
Summer activity planner	Miscellaneous community and social service specialists	40 hrs./12 weeks	$18.18	12	$8,726
Haircuts	Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists	0.5 hrs./52 weeks	$11.55	52	$300
Shopping for the family	Personal and home care aides	3 hrs./52 weeks	$10.13	52	$1,580
Family finances	Accountants and auditors	0.5 hrs./52 weeks	$23.83	52	$620
Yard work	Grounds maintenance workers	1 hr./52 weeks	$10.83	52	$563
Fixing up the house	Interior Designers	40 hours a year	$24.99		$1,000
Finding out what the kids are up to	Private detectives and investigators	40 hours a year	$19.78		$791
Total annual Mom cost: $61,436
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

There's oil in them thar hills

North Dakota. We drove there six years ago. It was very far away. There wasn't much going on, but we went, we saw, we did. We also checked it off of our 50 states list. Little did we know that we were walking on a oil mine. Seriously.
My friend Sue B. sent us this information. She stays well connected to current events and I appreciate her keeping us informed.

"About 6 months ago, the writer was watching a news program on oil and
one of the Forbes Bros. was the guest. The host said to Forbes, “I am going to
ask you a direct question and I would like a direct answer; how much oil
does the U.S. have in the ground?” Forbes did not miss a beat, he said, “more
than all the Middle East put together.” Please read below.

The U. S. Geological Service issued a report in April 2008 that only
scientists and oil men knew was coming, but man was it big. It was a
revised report (hadn’t been updated since 1995) on how much oil was in this area of the western 2/3 of North Dakota , western South Dakota , and extreme eastern Montana …… check THIS out:

The Bakken is the largest domestic oil discovery since Alaska ‘s Prudhoe Bay,and has the potential to eliminate all American dependence on foreign oil. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates it at 503 billion barrels. Even if just 10% of the oil is recoverable….. at $107 a barrel,we’re looking at a resource base worth more than $5….3 trillion.

“When I first briefed legislators on this, you could practically see
their jaws hit the floor. They had no idea.” says Terry Johnson, the Montana Legislature’s financial analyst.

“This sizable find is now the highest-producing onshore oil field foundin the past 56 years,” reports The Pittsburgh Post Gazette. It’s aformation known as the Williston Basin , but is more commonly referred to as the‘Bakken.’ It stretches from Northern Montana, through North Dakota andinto Canada . For years, U. S. oil exploration has been considered a deadend. Even the ‘Big Oil’ companies gave up searching for major oil wellsdecades ago. However, a recent technological breakthrough has opened up the Bakken’s massive reserves….. and we now have access of up to 500 billion barrels. And because this is light, sweet oil, those billions of barrelswill cost Americans just $16 PER BARREL!

That’s enough crude to fully fuel the American economy for 2041 years straight. And if THAT didn’t throw you on the floor, then this next one should – because it’s from 2006!

U. S. Oil Discovery- Largest Reserve in the World

Stansberry Report Online – 4/20/2006

Hidden 1,000 feet beneath the surface of the Rocky Mountains lies the largest untapped oil reserve in the world. It is more than 2 TRILLION barrels. On August 8, 2005 President Bush mandated its extraction. In three and a half years of high oil prices none has been extracted. With this motherload of oil why are we still fighting over off-shore drilling?

They reported this stunning news: We have more oil inside our borders,than all the other proven reserves on earth. Here are the official estimates:

– 8-times as much oil as Saudi Arabia

– 18-times as much oil as Iraq

– 21-times as much oil as Kuwait

– 22-times as much oil as Iran

– 500-times as much oil as Yemen

– and it’s all right here in the Western United States .

HOW can this BE? HOW can we NOT BE extracting this? Because the
environmentalists and others have blocked all efforts to help America become independent of foreign oil! Again, we are letting a small group of people dictate our lives and our economy…..WHY?

James Bartis, lead researcher with the study says we’ve got more oil in this very compact area than the entire Middle East -more than 2 TRILLION barrels untapped. That’s more than all the proven oil reserves of crude oil in the world today, reports The Denver Post.

Don’t think ‘OPEC’ will drop its price – even with this find? Think
again! It’s all about the competitive marketplace, – it has to… Think OPEC just might be funding the environmentalists?

Check it out at the link below. GOOGLE it, or follow this link. It will blow your mind.

http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=1911

And to think that we have family members working in various ways in North Dakota to tap into this oil. I'm very happy about that and wish them all well!

Also, Claire just tipped me off to this article about the oil fields in North Dakota in her beloved New Yorker magazine. Check it out here.

iPreserve

One of Andy's summer jobs is selling services to digitize important memories or files. It's called iPreserve. You can check it out HERE.

• Do you have old slides or photos that you would like to have digitized to preserve them forever?

• Do you have tapes from video recorders that are all jumbled and disorganized?
• Do you have old VHS tapes that are fading and losing their picture quality?
• Do you have business files that need to be saved but are taking up too much space?

Just contact Andy at aromney@ipreserve.com to find out more information. He's ready to talk to you about this new opportunity to get your keepsakes digitized and put on CDs or DVDs.

iPreserve provides the following services:

• Photos
• Videos
• Audio
• Slides
• Negatives
• Film
• Documents
• Extra Services

no explanation needed

The classy Brits

In case you need to brush up on your Royal history, may I suggest three movies? They are all so extremely well done. If you watch them in order it will make more sense.



It's been so much fun to watch the royal wedding. I may be a little girl at heart that loves a good fairy tale with a happy ending. This story came complete with princesses, princes and wicked step mothers and really cool hats! It's about the nice girl who makes good and finds her prince charming. It's about watching all that is royal that we here in the US don't have. It's like having all the holiday celebrations wrapped up in one complete with party favors, decorations, horse drawn carriages and authentic English food to boot! It's about celebrating and happiness. I was dying to see what Kate would wear and she didn't disappoint. I thought her choice of wedding dress was so classy and lovely for the wedding of the decade that was being watched by a billion people. What's not to love about a little escape from reality while listening to really cool accents?
Our daughter Claire held a very fun and festive royal wedding party on the day of the wedding. It was a smashing hit. Here are some pictures of the celebration.
Also of note is the fact that Jordan's in-laws are living in London serving an LDS mission. They got to watch all the festivities. Jake's brother Christian and his wife Sarah were on the street in London and took these fun pictures. It's great to read Sarah's write up and hear about what happened from their perspective on the street. What an event to remember!
In case you didn't get enough on the wedding day, check out this official wedding site to see some great photos.

I love this photo. It shows Kate helping out a little flower girl who is overwhelmed by the sound of hundreds of thousands of adoring fans cheering and the sound of fighter planes flying overhead. So sweet. She'll be an awesome Mom someday!

Congratulations to Kate & William.

I hope their marriage is a long and happy one.