Every second Thursday we take the day off of school and do some deep cleaning. The kids are so great to help out. They scrub and organize and sing along the way. Today they are scrubbing the kitchen and playing that they are opening a restaurant this evening. They are planning on serving homemade pizza! Yum! I'm glad they have each other and get along so well together.
Jessica and I are eating raw vegan for six months. Well, about 90% raw vegan. It's fun, but there are times it's really difficult. I need to lose about 20 pounds and get buff. I know I can do it, but it's hard to push myself out of my comfort zone. I need to push harder in my workouts and in my eating habits. It's okay to be a bit hungry. It's okay to breath really hard. It's okay to do something besides eating to relax. It's difficult, but I can do it! I am doing it! So much depends on me keeping myself healthy, attractive, and strong! I'm grateful Heavenly Father has blessed me with an amazing body to care for.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Priceless Motherhood
Lately, Heavenly Father has been reminding me how important and wonderful motherhood is. I'm grateful I can read talks from the prophets that tell me how Heavenly Father feels about motherhood. There is nothing more important that I could be doing. I can do it marvelously well because He will help me. This is where I need to be. This is where I can do the most good. This is where I love to be.
These precious little ones are amazing. I wish we could have cameras all over the house documenting all the cute things they say, all the sweet moments, and even the rotten moments. I sometimes get frustrated with my tiny, dull journal entries. I just don't have time to catch it all or project it well. However, a bit of my feelings or events are better than none. But in a way it almost mocks all the amazing, dear moments because it is so sparse and random. Oh, well! Hopefully, the angels assigned to our family are getting some great videos and editing them perfectly. I'm grateful Heavenly Father does send angels to record "the good and bad [we] say." I hope we can say and do more good, cause more rejoicing in Heaven, and maybe more laughing.
These precious little ones are amazing. I wish we could have cameras all over the house documenting all the cute things they say, all the sweet moments, and even the rotten moments. I sometimes get frustrated with my tiny, dull journal entries. I just don't have time to catch it all or project it well. However, a bit of my feelings or events are better than none. But in a way it almost mocks all the amazing, dear moments because it is so sparse and random. Oh, well! Hopefully, the angels assigned to our family are getting some great videos and editing them perfectly. I'm grateful Heavenly Father does send angels to record "the good and bad [we] say." I hope we can say and do more good, cause more rejoicing in Heaven, and maybe more laughing.
Monday, February 2, 2015
Foreordained
I was foreordained before I came to earth to be a mother of many sweet children and the beautiful wife of my dear husband. I'm grateful I've been reminded of this. It is not too hard. I can do this job beautifully for I was designed, tutored, mentored, and trained for ages to do this job gloriously.
The constancy of motherhood enables our true selves to be exposed and molded most rapidly. I'm grateful I have one opportunity on top of another to mold patience, love, kindness, and gentleness into the deep fibers of my soul. Heavenly Father has placed me in a perfect workshop for building character. And as I form my character I also form the generations to come. I'm grateful for this trust. I'm so grateful for the aid and comfort He gives me along the way.
The constancy of motherhood enables our true selves to be exposed and molded most rapidly. I'm grateful I have one opportunity on top of another to mold patience, love, kindness, and gentleness into the deep fibers of my soul. Heavenly Father has placed me in a perfect workshop for building character. And as I form my character I also form the generations to come. I'm grateful for this trust. I'm so grateful for the aid and comfort He gives me along the way.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Answers to Prayers
On Monday I was struggling with thoughts of failure. I felt like what I was doing wasn't making a difference. Maybe it's a combination of postpartum blues and midlife crisis. I don't know. I kept feeling like I should be further along in my character development by now. For the first time in my life I started to doubt my worth to God. I felt like a total disappointment to Him. Because where much is given much is expected. I prayed for some help, because I know these feelings don't come from God. I wished I could have an angel come and tell me exactly how I should be feeling and how God felt about me.
During Family Home Evening Natalie gave an excellent lesson on faith. Then she asked Jaremy to bear His testimony of Christ. I haven't talked to Jaremy about my feelings, but it was like what He was saying was an answer to exactly what I'd been praying about. I wish I could have had a voice recorder right then. But at least I remember Heavenly Father was answering my prayer; He had heard it.
Yesterday I took the kids on a ride on some dirt roads in the mountains. It has been an extremely mild winter, so I was happy to take advantage of the dry roads. We were enjoying the cedar trees and mountainside while we listened to a book about the pilgrims. Then as we went down a huge hill it became extremely muddy and slippery. I barely got down the hill without sliding off the road and rolling down the hillside. We didn't get stuck because gravity pulled us down the hill. When we got to the bottom there was another steep hill on the other side covered in deep mud. We were trapped. I had no idea what to do. I was afraid we would have to be towed out of there...in the spring. I was afraid if I tried to go either way I would slid off the road and roll down the ravine. At the very least I figured we would get stuck in the ruts of deep, slimy mud.
Right then I told the scared kids I had no idea what to do. I had been silly coming on this drive and getting us into this mess. I said we needed to pray because I really didn't know what we should do. I prayed. I asked if we should go forward. Didn't feel terrific about that. Yes, a stupor of thought. Same with turning around and going back up the hill we had come down on. Again, I didn't feel good about it. I wasn't sure I was getting an answer. I felt like an idiot for getting us into this predicament. I thought well I guess I'll just go forward. But as I started it looked terrible and I felt bad about it. Then Heavenly Father gave me an idea. Back up the hill the way we had come. I thought backing up would be even more difficult, so I knew the idea hadn't come from me. So that's what I did. It worked. I had better traction and control. As I started to back up, self-doubt crowded in, I ask myself, "Now do I turn left to go right or is it the opposite." Again I felt an answer. I didn't hear words, but I felt, "Don't over analyze this. You know how to do this without thinking about it. Just trust yourself." Then a picture of myself as a child in our tiny pickup truck in Honeyville popped into my mind. My dad had me practice backing up along a road in our field for hours (well it seemed like hours). So I just turned on auto-pilot.
The hill was at least a quarter of a mile long. But I was again given the idea, just take it one bit at a time. That's what we did. Yes, we still slid and got stuck a few times. The kids screamed in the back of the van when they feared we were sliding over the edge. But we made it a bit at a time. We backed up, got stuck, wiggled our way forward and backward, got out, then back up again. At first it didn't seem like we were going anywhere, but we kept at it. Finally, we made it to the top of the hill where we could turn around on dry ground.
Heavenly Father has taught me a lot while I've thought about this experience. In life we are going to get stuck. Sometimes it's our own fault, sometimes it's just life. Either way Heavenly Father can and will help us if we turn to Him. I also feel Heavenly Father was answering my prayers about my feelings earlier in the week. I need to have more confidence in myself as I try in my backward way to follow His teachings and promptings. I don't need to over analyze. I can just act in love, follow my gut, and keep trying to improve and build the Kingdom. Most of the time it doesn't seem like we are making progress, but that's okay, just focus on the moment. If I make progress in that moment, no matter how small (smiling instead of frowning, hugging instead of spanking, singing instead of yelling, blessing others instead of whining, helping a child with school instead of watching the news, etc.) eventually I'll get to the top of the hill. I will slip and slid a bit. That's just part of the fun! I don't need to worry; Heavenly Father is helping me. I need to have confidence that I am a precious daughter of God, with great potential, and with great accomplishments already under my belt. I just need to be humble, hopeful, and faithful. Then with the Lord I can get through any situation big or small.
During Family Home Evening Natalie gave an excellent lesson on faith. Then she asked Jaremy to bear His testimony of Christ. I haven't talked to Jaremy about my feelings, but it was like what He was saying was an answer to exactly what I'd been praying about. I wish I could have had a voice recorder right then. But at least I remember Heavenly Father was answering my prayer; He had heard it.
Yesterday I took the kids on a ride on some dirt roads in the mountains. It has been an extremely mild winter, so I was happy to take advantage of the dry roads. We were enjoying the cedar trees and mountainside while we listened to a book about the pilgrims. Then as we went down a huge hill it became extremely muddy and slippery. I barely got down the hill without sliding off the road and rolling down the hillside. We didn't get stuck because gravity pulled us down the hill. When we got to the bottom there was another steep hill on the other side covered in deep mud. We were trapped. I had no idea what to do. I was afraid we would have to be towed out of there...in the spring. I was afraid if I tried to go either way I would slid off the road and roll down the ravine. At the very least I figured we would get stuck in the ruts of deep, slimy mud.
Right then I told the scared kids I had no idea what to do. I had been silly coming on this drive and getting us into this mess. I said we needed to pray because I really didn't know what we should do. I prayed. I asked if we should go forward. Didn't feel terrific about that. Yes, a stupor of thought. Same with turning around and going back up the hill we had come down on. Again, I didn't feel good about it. I wasn't sure I was getting an answer. I felt like an idiot for getting us into this predicament. I thought well I guess I'll just go forward. But as I started it looked terrible and I felt bad about it. Then Heavenly Father gave me an idea. Back up the hill the way we had come. I thought backing up would be even more difficult, so I knew the idea hadn't come from me. So that's what I did. It worked. I had better traction and control. As I started to back up, self-doubt crowded in, I ask myself, "Now do I turn left to go right or is it the opposite." Again I felt an answer. I didn't hear words, but I felt, "Don't over analyze this. You know how to do this without thinking about it. Just trust yourself." Then a picture of myself as a child in our tiny pickup truck in Honeyville popped into my mind. My dad had me practice backing up along a road in our field for hours (well it seemed like hours). So I just turned on auto-pilot.
The hill was at least a quarter of a mile long. But I was again given the idea, just take it one bit at a time. That's what we did. Yes, we still slid and got stuck a few times. The kids screamed in the back of the van when they feared we were sliding over the edge. But we made it a bit at a time. We backed up, got stuck, wiggled our way forward and backward, got out, then back up again. At first it didn't seem like we were going anywhere, but we kept at it. Finally, we made it to the top of the hill where we could turn around on dry ground.
Heavenly Father has taught me a lot while I've thought about this experience. In life we are going to get stuck. Sometimes it's our own fault, sometimes it's just life. Either way Heavenly Father can and will help us if we turn to Him. I also feel Heavenly Father was answering my prayers about my feelings earlier in the week. I need to have more confidence in myself as I try in my backward way to follow His teachings and promptings. I don't need to over analyze. I can just act in love, follow my gut, and keep trying to improve and build the Kingdom. Most of the time it doesn't seem like we are making progress, but that's okay, just focus on the moment. If I make progress in that moment, no matter how small (smiling instead of frowning, hugging instead of spanking, singing instead of yelling, blessing others instead of whining, helping a child with school instead of watching the news, etc.) eventually I'll get to the top of the hill. I will slip and slid a bit. That's just part of the fun! I don't need to worry; Heavenly Father is helping me. I need to have confidence that I am a precious daughter of God, with great potential, and with great accomplishments already under my belt. I just need to be humble, hopeful, and faithful. Then with the Lord I can get through any situation big or small.
Thursday, January 22, 2015
Mom & Dad's Visit
My parents are learning to paramotor. Exciting! Their lessons are around here so they stop by afterwards. It's fun to visit with them! I love my daring, amazing parents. They have always tackled learning, projects, and life with a can-do attitude! I'm grateful Heavenly Father blessed me with such wonderful parents!
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Bathroom Remodel
Yesterday the kids had the day off school. We spent the whole day building a wall in the bathroom, sheetrocking it, plastering, and problem solving. It was wonderful to see the kids work together and figure things out together. They learned a lot and developed their creativity and team working skills. They also worked harder than a usual day. I thought we need a lot more days like this. We need to experience real problems and challenges and fix them regularly. Book learning is wonderful, but working in the real world is also critical. Developing patience with each other and a good work ethic is essential as well. In some ways I feel we've become a little soft. So I'm going to make sure days like this happen more often. I'm grateful Heavenly Father gave us each other. I'm grateful I know we can be together forever. My heart would break if this wasn't the case.
Friday, January 16, 2015
Personal Progress with Natalie
Natalie just turned twelve. She is determined to earn her Personal Progress in one year. She is amazing! She already has developed so many of the qualities of a righteous woman. She is anxiously engaged in a good cause. She can do so much in a day, a lot like my mom. She has tremendous energy and focus. Yet along the way she thinks about others and instinctively helps them. Natalie is always happy; her smile is contagious. She has such a loving, fun personality. She is a planner, an organizer. There is nothing she can't do. And she does it all with a baby on her hip and a smile on her face. I watch her everyday and pray I can be more like her. Natalie, I love you so much! I'm so grateful Heavenly Father let you be my daughter; you are a beautiful blessing!!!
Natalie has also encouraged me to earn my Personal Progress along with her. That's going to be a challenge, because she is hard to keep up with. Right now we are working on having the faith to say our prayers, morning and night. As I've taken a bit more time to communicate with Heavenly Father I've felt His Spirit and encouragement more. Prayer is such a blessing!
Natalie has also encouraged me to earn my Personal Progress along with her. That's going to be a challenge, because she is hard to keep up with. Right now we are working on having the faith to say our prayers, morning and night. As I've taken a bit more time to communicate with Heavenly Father I've felt His Spirit and encouragement more. Prayer is such a blessing!
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