What God wants for moms

A friend posted this on Facebook and I was grateful. It was a much needed reminder that, as a mom, I do have important work to do! Read the article, it'll brighten your day!

ARTICLE: WHAT GOD WANTS FOR MOM WITH YOUNG CHILDREN

A Goal accomplished...almost

I started on the wood floors this week. It's spring break which means I don't have to play chauffeur all day, so I thought why not. The kids were pretty  helpful through the process, often times I just needed their body weight to hold something down. I'm pretty proud of myself. I did 90% of it by myself (and my back muscles KNOW it!) - Hubbie had the chance for over time this week and that doesn't come around very often, so he couldn't really help much.

 Good bye hideous white tile with nasty black grout!!

 This kid had a bit too much fun smashing tile. 

It's looking beautiful!!! This is my dining room, we still need to finish baseboards and the kitchen. I can't wait till it's done. It's gonna look amazing:)

Food for thought

I read an article on facebook about Celebrity Women and why they don't have children. Read it here. Their responses made me sad. Though a couple said things like "My life is amazing enough" several others said things like "Childhood was horrible, why would I do that to a child" or "I'm sure I'd screw them up" (granted I'm probably totally doing that to my kids) and another said that kids give her a headache (totally true there too).

The thing is, I just can't imagine life with out these little boogers.

I feel like they are why I am here. I was born to be their mother. I was born to teach them and raise them in love. Sure I threaten to strangle at least one of them on a daily basis. They know I do it out of love though!

Sister Julie B Beck said: "Who will prepare this righteous generation of sons and daughters? Latter-day Saint women will do this—women who know and love the Lord and bear testimony of Him, women who are strong and immovable and who do not give up during difficult and discouraging times. We are led by an inspired prophet of God who has called upon the women of the Church to “stand strong and immovable for that which is correct and proper under the plan of the Lord.”⁶ He has asked us to “begin in [our] own homes”⁷ to teach children the ways of truth. Latter-day Saint women should be the very best in the world at upholding, nurturing, and protecting families. I have every confidence that our women will do this and will come to be known as mothers who “knew” (Alma 56:48)."

FHE #11

With General Conference coming up, we went with a little "General Authority Trivia" for Family Home Evening.  I was pretty impressed with how much the three of them knew. Sienna only knew the First Presidency, but even that was impressive.

They had to match up the names to the pictures and then a fact about each. We all know that President Uchtdorf was a pilot, but did you also know that Elder Packer and Elder Hales were as well? I thought that was pretty neat!  I love getting the kids excited for General Conference!

My bucket list

Early on this semester, I had to come up with 50 things I'd like to do before I die. I seriously could think of like 4. So I put a plea out on facebook and had so much inspiration flowing in that I came up with my 50, and it was pretty fun. My sweet Tanner saw the list, and asked if he should start packing for Italy! I only wish. Here is my list, I should probably invest in some type of air-miles card if I'm ever to accompish any of this!! What is on your bucket list?

1. Visit Italy

2. Learn to play the violin

3. Start a blog people actually read

4. Get out of debt

5. Lose 25 lbs.

6. Visit Hawaii

7. Go skiing

8. Finish the list of renovation projects for my house

9. Visit New York City with my family

10. Build a table for my dining room

11. Grow a garden

12. Run a business I’m proud of

13. Have more children (foster, adopt, natural)

14. Visit the redwood forest

15. See the Eiffel tower in Paris

16. Write a book

17. Learn Italian

18. See the Pyramids of Egypt

19. See the castles in Germany

20. Visit Arches national park in Utah

21. See Mount Rushmore with my kids

22. Go to Harry Potter world in FL

23. Visit Washington D.C. with my kids

24. Visit Denmark

25. Go on an african safari

26. Learn to be a great photographer

27. Visit New Zealand

28. Learn website design

29. Travel somewhere by train

30. Ride in a hot air balloon

31. See the Golden Gate Bridge

32. Ride in a Helicopter

33. Visit Boston

34. Visit Pike’s place market in Seattle

35. Visit every temple in the US

36. Visit Alaska

37. Take my kids to Cedar Pointe

38. Go para-sailing

39. Go on a cruise

40. Hike the Grand Canyon

41. Become a campground host

42. Learn to fly fish

43. Take a cake decorating class

44. Volunteer at a hospital

45. Learn to play the Organ (better)

46. Become a professional organizer

47. Build a bed (frame) for myself

48. Raise an animal (other than dog)

49. Visit London

50. Visit Greece

Thought for the week

This week in my Family Foundations class we are studying how important it is to be a good parent. Of course, Hubbie & I both had amazing examples of how it should be done, so I hope we're on the right track!

I love this quote!  If we devote ourselves to our families, everything else will fall into place as it should. 

FHE #10

Today for family home evening, we planned our Epic Summer Road trip. It is going to be AWE.SOME!

I also found this really cool website called roadtrippers.com, it let's you plot your route and tells you all the fun things to do along the way. This is what my screen shot looks like:

 

Call me absolutely crazy, but we're going to cover 15 states in 18 days, see (almost) all the people we love, spend a fortune and have a blast!

This will help too:

Yup! A new van. I love it, I love it, I love it. It's so roomy, everyone has their own space, 

glory glory hallelujah! 

Goals- an update

This pretty much sums up all my goals... Basically, I suck.
But it's ok, because my goals are allowed to change. I've been so busy with homework that eating right and exercise have not been a real priority. I know that exercise will give me the energy I need, but so will Diet Coke, and it doesn't require a shower after, so I usually choose that option! (**Hanging my head in shame**)

I did make it to the temple last month! And I did take a birthday treat to one of the sisters I visit, other than that I've got nothing else to update.

We're counting down till the end of my semester and the end of seminary for Scott like kids excited to go to Disneyland.

Then we need to slow down. Our goal was less chaos and it's been worse than ever. Can't wait... Can't wait...

FHE #9

This week I've been studying about media use in my Religion class and so I thought we'd talk about it in FHE as well. We read an article from the friend magazine (found here). It's titled TV trouble and it talks about what to do if we find ourselves watching something we shouldn't, it was funny because right before FHE, Tanner wanted to watch a dinosaur movie and the only one he could find was SUPER bloody. After about 2 minutes of it, the kids all decided that they shouldn't be watching it and turned on something else. It was a perfect segway to be able to reward them for their good decision and talk about it more!  We also talked about how its hard to be the first person to stand up for yourself but often times when you do, others will follow.  We had ice cream cones for dessert. Yum:)

Sorry, no pictures, I just plum forgot.

We are powerful!

I was absolutely blown away by this quote from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland. In fact the whole talk was amazing.  It's titled "Of Souls, Symbols, and Sacraments.

He says this:

"Of all the titles He has chosen for Himself,  Father is the one He declares, and creation is His watchword- especially human creation, creation in His image. His glory isn’t a mountain, as stunning as mountains are. It isn’t in the sea or sky or snow or sunrise, as beautiful as they all are. It isn’t in art or technology, be that a concerto or computer. No, His glory-and His grief- is in His children. We- you and I- are His prized possessions, and we are the earthly evidence, however inadequate of what He truly is. Human life is the greatest of God’s powers, the most mysterious and magnificent chemistry of it all, and you and I have been given it, but under the most serious and sacred of restrictions. You and I- who can make neither mountain nor moonlight, not one rain-drop or a single rose- have this greater gift in an absolutely unlimited way. And the only control placed on us is self-control- self-control born of respect for the divine sacramental power it is.  Surely God’s trust in us to respect this future- forming gift is an awesomely staggering one."

Have you ever thought of being a parent in that way before? It's amazing what powers we do have. Find the article and read it if you can. Amazing!

FHE #8

Tonight was Sienna's turn to help with FHE, we talked about Faith and Daniel and the Lion's Den. She helped with the artwork and helped present certain dramatic elements to the story. It was too cute!

Her favorite parts were when God told the Lion's to "Shut your mouths!"  and then when the king pulled back the stone to the den and said "Daniel, did your God rescue you?"

I'm always amazed at the Faith of Daniel. Here he is, being told he can't pray at risk to his life, so he opens his windows and continues to pray as normal. I think I'd at least pray in secret. But that's where my faith lacks in comparison to Daniels.  Something to think about, that's for sure!

The Law of the Fast: A personal responsibility to care for the poor and needy.

I taught a lesson on this General Conference Talk, and thought I'd share a snippit from the actual talk. It was a great lesson to prepare and I appreciated the comments. I learn so much from my fellow relief society sisters!

The biggest thing that I learned today is that when we fast, we feel hungry, and for just a short time, we know what it feels like to be in the shoes of the poor and the needy. It puts us in a place that we can connect with our Father in Heaven and ask for help, and then gives us the opportunity to then be blessed, by paying a fast offering and sharing with those who need help.

Food for thought

cap

Food for thought...

I thought I'd share with you this cool quote I found while studying this week. Elder Bruce R. McConkie said

"When we as Latter-Day Saints talk about marriage, we are talking about a holy, celestial order. We are talking about a system out of which can grow the greatest love, joy, peace, happiness and serenity known to humankind. We are talking about creating a family unit that has the potential of being everlasting and eternal, a family unit where a man and wife can go on in that relationship to all eternity, and where mother and daughter and father and son are bound by eternal ties that will never be severed. We are talking about creating a unit out of which exaltation and eternal life grow; and when we talk about eternal life, we are talking about the kind of life that God our Heavenly Father lives." 

Isn't that so great?!? I feel so privileged to have this knowledge, that I can spend eternity with my husband and that the bond between me and my parents, and me and my children can not be severed. Satan is working overtime to try and destroy the sanctity of marriage, and he is proving successful in so many ways. Elder Bednar said "Satan does not have a body, he cannot marry, and he will not have a family. And he persistently strives to confuse the divinely appointed purposes of gender, marriage, and family. Throughout the world, we see growing evidence of the effectiveness of Satan's efforts."  I suppose the only reason Satan would try to destroy something so hard is if it is vital to our exaltation as marriage is. Sorry Satan, I refuse to let you win on me!

FHE #6

This week we talked about prayer. Chase read us a story from the friend. We talked about how we can feel comfort through prayer.

 We played a game of Clue. Anyone that has played Clue with a 5 year old knows that it is basically impossible, but we still had fun. We ended the night with Root Beer Floats. yum:)

Goals- week #5

I made 10 goals for 2015 and I'm going to report on them here, to help hold myself accountable.

FAMILY:

1. Family Home Evening every week. 
* Read about those here if you missed them

Last week we went to Peter Piper Pizza for family home evening (and Sienna's birthday!)

2. Family Fun Day every month

*We went and saw Paddington for this months Family Fun Day! It was adorable. Hubbie said it stuck to the story. I remember the book Paddington, but I don't remember the story line, so I can not vouch for his truthfulness! It was too funny though, because Tanner just could not get over the fact that nobody was freaking out that a talking bear was walking around London.

3. Epic summer vacation

*More on that in a few months.

HOME:

4. New Floors

*Boom! Taxes done and e-filed, I anxiously checking my bank account for my refund. Although, Uncle Sam was not nearly as kind as I was hoping, he's paying for my floors, so for that I am grateful!

5. Finish "the list"

 *The security door is in! It's all we've accomplished, but I feel safer knowing it's there. Also this week, I managed to lose my car keys and house key, Hubbie is convinced I lost them outside somewhere because we have ran-sacked the house and they are no-where to be found. So it was extra incentive to put the door in! He did it himself, only because the Handy Man we tried to hire canceled on us twice. Turns out he's pretty handy himself!

PERSONAL:

6. Get healthy/loose weight

*Though my February goal is to lose 5 lbs, I took a week off. I still lost a pound in the process, but I just couldn't bring myself to get up early and exercise. Tomorrow starts a new round of 21 day fix!


7. Sew a new wardrobe item every month.

Check out January's project here. I'm scouring Pinterest for February's project.

January

SPIRITUAL:
8. Daily, meaningful prayer. 
*I've been so busy with work, kids, school and life that I feel like my constant prayers are the only things holding me together.

9.Do my visiting teaching each month.
*This cracked me up! I need to talk to my partner for this month.

10. Attend the temple at least once a month.
*I'm going this weekend, come hell or high-water:)

Well, there's my report for the week. I'll check in again next week. 

Christ's Atonement

Ever have one of those days where you just can't get it right? I've had a month that way. So, this quote touched me today. Change is possible, and I will get it right:)

The birthday of all birthdays! (& FHE #5)

It's not everyday that you turn 5!  We celebrated with Grandma & Grandpa Sunday night with some ultra pink/purple cupcakes.

 She woke up to a bike, which she has been riding all over the house all day. 

 She also got to go to Build-A-Bear for the first time! She picked out "Miss Hearts"

 Who is appropriately dressed as Elsa (Who else?!) Then she went to preschool where all the kids sang happy birthday to her, and Andrew even gave her a hug. She was kindof gushing about that part!

For dinner and Family home evening, we hit up Peter Piper Pizza, cause Pizza is this girls FAVORITE food. She had a blast!

After a long exhausting day, she came to me at about 7:30 and said "Is it bedtime yet? I want to go to sleep, cause I got some good dreams comin'!" It was adorable. 

Happy Birthday Sienna, can't imagine life with out you!

5 years old!

There was a time, about 7 years ago, that I prayed to not have anymore children. After losing one to an ectopic pregnancy, it was more heartbreak than I thought I could ever handle again, and I just wanted to be done.  But, if God had granted that plea, I wouldn't have this beautiful, sassy, spunky, loving girl in my life. I'm grateful the Lord knows us better than we know ourselves!

Because now...
This little girl is 5 years old!

(This is, by the way, the photo I will be sharing with her Senior Class!!)

This sweet child has a fierce love of all things Princess.

She never misses a chance for a Selfie!

And lives to take silly face photos!

She's not a baby anymore, and it's kindof breaking my heart!

I found this on facebook and it's spot on. I love this little girl so much!

Sienna loves nature, her dogs, Doc McStuffins, she loves fruit, especially strawberries, pizza and chocolate. She cries if she has to eat chicken nuggets, she wants "healthy food." She is a little momma and takes good care of her brothers, I tell her she's babysitting when we go on dates, and I have no doubt that it's probably true. Chase can handle if an emergency arises, but Sienna is the one watching things. She loves sleep, bike rides, and reading. She hates to make anyone mad,  or have anyone be bad at her. She prays every night that her and Tanner won't fight any more.

I can't imagine life with out her!

Goals- week #4

Happy February!!  One month down on my goals, 11 more to go:)

I made 10 goals for 2015 and I'm going to report on them here, to help hold myself accountable.

FAMILY:

1. Family Home Evening every week. 
* Read about those here if you missed them

I found this quote I liked:  “We all know the struggle necessary to retain family home evening. There are thieves among us who would steal our Monday nights. But the promises of the Lord made 84 years ago and reiterated by our Prophets today, have never been revoked and are there for us: ‘If the saints obey this counsel, we promise that great blessings will result. Love at home and obedience to parents will increase. Faith will be developed in the hearts of the youth of Israel, and they will gain power to combat the evil influence and temptations which beset them.” Neil L. Anderson, Prophets and Spiritual Mole Crickets. October 1999 General Conference.

2. Family Fun Day every month

*"Family Fun Day" as my kids think it should be, didn't really happen. But you know what? We played a ton of games this week, and we saw a movie on January 1st. We've been so busy this month that that will have to count!

3. Epic summer vacation

*More on that in a few months.

HOME:

4. New Floors

*We're waiting for tax season on this one, but we've measured and Hubbie's arranged time off in the end of February. I've never been so excited to do my taxes!

5. Finish "the list"

 *The list is coming along, slowly but surely. I'm still waiting to put the security door in. A lot of "security" we get from it, laying in my garage. I had the hair brain idea to paint the door frame first though, and then it started raining, which put a stop to those plans. I'm going to try and get that done this week (in between the million other things I have to do). Also, I started to work on Chase's room, but he informed me he'd rather be playing Minecraft on a Saturday then paint his room, so I decided to not bother.

PERSONAL:

6. Get healthy/loose weight

*January's results are in. I'm happy and I'm not. I weighed myself on Thursday (which is my normal weigh in day) and I was down 7 pounds!!! I did a major victory dance around the house. Then I weighed myself on Saturday the 31st, just for a total for the month and I had gained 5 pounds back. WHAT THE HECK?? I had done nothing different, how does one gain 5lbs in 2 days? So I was pretty bummed, so my results for the month are 3 pounds lost and 4.25" lost. I even went down a pant size. So overall, it was a successful month. I'm shooting for another 5 pounds in February.





7. Sew a new wardrobe item every month.

Check out January's project here. I'm scouring Pinterest for February's project.

January

SPIRITUAL:
8. Daily, meaningful prayer. 
*I've been so busy with work, kids, school and life that I feel like my constant prayers are the only things holding me together.

9.Do my visiting teaching each month.
*It's a new month, and I got a third sister added to me. She's new to the ward, and since I haven't felt that this ward is super inviting, I'm gonna go the extra mile to make friends.

10. Attend the temple at least once a month.
*Ugh. January was a complete failure. So many things went wrong every time I had planned to go. I'm going to make it up in February.

Well, there's my report for the week. I'll check in again next week.