Life's Journey

I just recently past the year mark of my last post.  Time and time again I have thought that maybe I'd add a few words and the timing never felt right and I never had something I felt needed to be said.  The year long break started at a transitional time when our third child had recently been added to the bunch.  Sleepless nights, adjusting to life with three little ones, and helping three little ones adjust to life with each other, sending my oldest child off to his first day of school (adding many trips to and from), and other numerous tasks and experiences and trials have filled the time.

The past month has felt personally transitional.  It has felt transformational. I have felt taught.  My heart has been stirred and learning has taken place.

Several weeks back I sat in a doctor's appointment with my 6 year old son.  He had been experiencing shooting pains in his head, through his eyes, and sometimes down to his toes.  He mentioned that his hands felt "itchy" on the inside and I wondered if he meant that were fuzzy, asleep.  Some things were bothering his tummy and he was extra emotional, among a few other ailments. In this case, Google is not your friend.  I searched and of course came up with some scary options.  Namely one, one really scary one.

Brain tumor.

I often blow things up to a level that is not necessary and I hoped that this was the case this time, more so than ever before because this time it wasn't about me it was about him, my son.  As we sat in the office and rattled off symptom after symptom to the doctor it became apparent that my ideas weren't so far fetched.  It was an option.  The doctor explained that he didn't think it was a brain tumor but with all of his symptoms it needed to be ruled out.  An appointment was made for that night to get a CT scan and some blood tests at the hospital.

In the car on the way home, I explained that we would be going to the hospital that night and what would take place.  He, of course, did not like the idea.  His scope was small. He was worried about the blood tests and I was terrified about the potential outcome. The nurses who were drawing his blood were amazed at how he carried himself.  They held his arm but they didn't need to.  Not a tear was shed.  The CT scan was easy and kind of entertaining to him. I held his hand and he tried to hold still. He was so brave. I was seriously a Mommy kind of impressed.  I expected more drama but he was a amazing.

We were told we would probably hear the results back about the CT scan the next day and if we hadn't that we should call in the day after.  Of course, I called the next day because I just couldn't wait any longer.  I prayed and prayed and prayed. I tried to prepare myself mentally, and emotionally, and spiritually for what could be some major changes in our lives.  I thought both about the things that would take place immediately if the results were not in our favor but I also thought about the possible end result. I paced.  I waited.  I tried not to let my whole world be consumed by not knowing but my day was a day of hoping, praying, and waiting.

I received a phone call from the doctor's office with some of the blood results but no word about the CT scan that the doctor hadn't had a chance to look at yet.  I felt like the nurse was TOO nice on the phone and thus the results must not be good.  I worried that the reason the nurse didn't tell me the results of the CT scan was because the doctor wanted to talk to me personally.  Again, I started to blow things up.  The day was long. Definitely the longest day I've had as a Mother and maybe my longest day ever.

Finally nearing the closing hours of the doctor's office I received a phone call and headed to a room to hear the results away from little voices.  I was glad to hear a women's voice on the line and not the male voice of the physician and even more glad to hear these words, "He was able to look over the CT scan results and everything was perfectly normal."

Perfectly normal. 

I can't even begin to tell you the feelings of relief and pure happiness that came over me as those words were processed.  Although this all happened over a 36 hour span between doctor visit, to hospital visit, to results I felt like I had been on an emotional and spiritual journey.  Amidst my prayers of hope that everything would be fine with my son I also prayed for faith to face whatever happened.  The reminder of what is most important was all so real and the encouragement to be a better Mother, a Mother of children of God was needed and accepted. 

Has everything been perfect since. No.  Have I immediately become the Mother that I hope to be, of course not.  I will continue on my journey.  A journey that continued as prophets and apostles spoke to me personally at General Conference and as local leaders the following week shared their insights with me at our Stake Conference.  I am trying to remember that that is what life is, a journey and that I need to start where I am. In my journey I hope to fill my life with things that matter most.

Simple FHE Plan for 2012 and Some Additional Family Scripture Study Thoughts

So we have our new scripture plan rolling and so far so good, although I did change from making a poster to using a 3 ring binder for our characterisitics instead.  Right now it is filled with blank pages and we will add characterstics and our characteristic sentences as time goes on and we discover them.  I think it will work well but we are still in the new transitional period and I am sure things will be revamped as time goes on.  I also realized that we are going to bite off even smaller chunks of scripture each day.  More along the lines of somewhere between 2-8 verses rather than 5-15.  We just took about 6 days to get through the introduction to the Book of Mormon and the 3 and 8 witnesses and I also planned out our readings for the next month and by the 5th of February we are only going to be at 1 Nephi 6.  Nice and steady. I think it will work, I guess we shall see.  It may take us a year and a half to finish this scripture plan or maybe it'll go quicker than I think and we will head into the Bible after this.  :) Who knows.  If anyone wants more details I'd be happy to share if you have specific questions, that is if I have answers.  Hey, I'll take additional suggestions and thoughts too.   

Now onto our simple FHE plan for the year....Gospel Principles manual.  Yep, that's it.  Nothing fancy or over the top but something so perfectly simple and essential that I don't think we can go wrong.  There are 47 lessons total which gives us leeway on 5 weeks out of the year.  We plan to go in order cover to cover but that may change as we see the need for a specific chapter as we go along.   We'll each just take turns on our week to take care of the lesson and can do whatever we wish with our chapter.  The first week went well. Our almost 5 year old sat and listened intently about our Heavenly Father.  He asked good questions and I could tell that he got something out of it. When it is his turn I'll help him write a lesson, more like a talk to give. He always does a great job when we do this.  He actually loves to stand up on our step ladder as he presents his lesson like he is giving a talk in church.  Sometimes he even gets out his play microphone to add to the fun.  It is good fun.  I am excited to continue to learn from this great resource and to teach our children these simple, essential gospel truths. 

Do you have a plan for your family FHE and scripture study in 2012?  I feel like I am usually floating from week to week and haphazardly figuring things out so I hope that these plans stick it out for the whole year and we gain something from it all. Here's to a good year!

BINGO New Year's Resolutions and a New Family Scripture Study Plan

So with a strike of the clock at midnight and a change from December to January a new year has begun.  Time to transition from writing 2011 to writing 2012.  Time to check in with yourself and say out with the old and the ugly and in with the new and the more worthy.  I really enjoy this new period of freshness. Of course each day can be a day of resolving to be better or the change from each month or week can bring a newness that stirs up change but there is still something about a brand new year that is so liberating.  I am excited. 

How do you make resolutions at your house?  Do you think up one giant goal and go forth?  Do you write it down in your journal?  Do you list off so many that there is just no way you could ever complete it all?  Do you involve your family or is it totally individual? 

How do you keep yourself motivated?  Do you tell your spouse or child so that you have some accountability to someone? 

I'd love to hear your New Year traditions.  I'd love to hear how things roll at your house.

This year we decided to try something new and kind of fun. I read in a comment on a blog during the last week or so someone who puts their resolutions onto a BINGO card.  I am not sure of any details.  They mostly put on their board simple things that they wanted to do as a family that year like build a snowman, or go to the beach, etc.  It sounded like a fun idea and I thought I'd try our own version of their BINGO idea. 

I thought about doing a card together but my son really wanted to do individual ones, so today we are all thinking about what our 24 squares will contain.  They must be measurable.  Something we can put a sticker on to say we've completed it or vastly improved.  We are going to see who can get BINGO first and then who can get black out first. 

Now 24 resolutions could be quite unattainable if made too large so we plan to have our BINGO cards contain a few more difficult and needed resolutions and somethings we'd like to do this year just for fun. 

For example, I'd like to dejunk and organize our entire home but that is quite a lofty goal and thus I have turned it into 7 different squares on my BINGO card and mixed in there I'd like to read a parenting book or two, run a 5k this summer after baby arrives, etc. 

Among the list that is slowly developing is this very important resolution of a Revamped Family Scripture Study  - Yeah, so we have been in need of a change for a while.    In the past we have done topical scripture study, gospel art kit scripture studies with direction, and more, but things have become a little laxed.  We have been reading (mostly telling) the scriptures every day but for the past little while it has been without much thought or real investment or purpose and that is about to change.  Now I don't have all of the kinks worked out but our plan will go something like this:

We are going to READ from the Book of Mormon directly.  We will focus on a particular scripture story or block each week.  In the January Friend they have THIS weekly reading schedule but I am not sure it will fit what I am looking for.  I'd love a schedule that covers the main stories and characters of the Book of Mormon but that does not require a cover to cover read.  I'd love to read anywhere from 5-15 verses a day but still keep some continuity in story lines and such.  Does anyone have a family plan you've created or something you've seen online that would work? 

Unless one of you sends me a perfect schedule I plan to use the Book of Mormon Stories book to guide me in my verse selections for each week.  Then we will read from the pages of the actual Book of Mormon, 5-15 verses each day.  I will sometimes use pictures for the Gospel Art Kit or Book to give visuals.  At the end of each week we will review the story we have just learned from the scriptures by reading the story in the Book of Mormon Stories book. 

Now so far this sounds like a typical family scripture study regimen but here is the twist.  We are going to be focusing on CHARACTERISTICS of people in the Book of Mormon.  I am going to create a poster (yea still have some work to do :) and as we discover worthy characteristics then we will add them to the poster in this fashion:

OBEDIENT:
Nephi was obedient when he built the boat.

And as time goes on our list will expand and be added to.  We will also add how we have seen those characteristics in people in our family or people we know, for example the obedient characteristic may grow to look like this:

OBEDIENT:
Nephi was obedient when he built the boat.
Bob was obedient when he cleaned his room.

I am hoping that this will help our little family to see the things we can improve in, how we are like those in the scriptures, and motivate us to be better.

I am excited to try out this year long Book of Mormon reading feast and to put this promise to the test:

President Marion G. Romney said:
       
'I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase; mutual respect and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will counsel their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope, and charity—the pure love of Christ—will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness' (Ensign, May 1980, p. 67).
       
"These promises—increased love and harmony in the home, greater respect between parent and child, increased spirituality and righteousness—are not idle promises, but exactly what the Prophet Joseph Smith meant when he said the Book of Mormon will help us draw nearer to God."

  "The Book of Mormon - Keystone of our Religion" - President Benson - Oct. 1986 Gen. Conf.    

We could use that!

So there is a little bit of what is going on at our house, so what's happening out your house this year?

FHE Idea: Thanksgiving - Gratitude Tree

Okay, so I am finally back to posting...I think. ;) 

I am sure that many of you have seen or done something similar to this at your homes but just in case I thought I'd share something we started last FHE at our house that would work just as great to start tonight or next Monday as well.

First, we told the story of the Ten Lepers and how only one came back to tell Christ thank you and how it might have made Him feel.  We talked about how we feel when someone thanks us or maybe when they don't.  We talked about specific things we could say thank you for and how we need to always remember to thank Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and others for all of the things we are blessed with in our lives.

And then we created this beautiful Thankful or Gratitude Tree.  I had previously cut out all of the leaves (I'd highly recommend sticking with simple patterns or just cutting out free hand.)  We created the tree on the spot.  I cut out random shapes and sizes of branches and my husband and two little ones created this masterpiece of a tree.  It was fun to create the tree together. 

We each chose three leaves that night and wrote down something we are thankful for on them and shared them with each other.  Since last Monday each morning as part of our Morning Devotional we have added a leaf or two to the tree.

It is fun to hear what my 4 and 2 year old come up with.  We have things on the tree like,

• When people say I love you.
• Smiles
• Temples
• My little sister.
• Friends.
• Family.
• Baby (doll)
• The Priesthood

It has been good to stop each morning and think of something we are thankful for as we start the day.  I hope we all can have an enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday and one filled with gratitude!

Hiatus

So I have been MIA for the last little bit and this my friends is why.  Well, about a month back I had a lagging in posts because well, I was sick, not just a day sick or a few days sick, but weeks and weeks of sick, which turned into months.  Then I started to feel a little better but not great but it felt good to sit at the computer and do something somewhat productive and thus posts began again.  Then I got EVEN better and well, I could ACTUALLY leave the house, with kids in tow and everything..  What an amazing thing!  And I could clean, yes I said could.  I could do laundry.  I could play and laugh with my children.  I could go shopping.  I could do anything I wanted and, well, blogging has taken a back seat to all of that.  I am going to jump back in sometime.  I do have a slew of Book of Mormon posts I promised.  But it may take me a day or two or a week or who knows maybe sooner but for now I am going to enjoy this little one in my tummy and do anything and everything a not sick person can do.  :)  Are you with me?  Hip-Hip-Hooray for health!

Your Insight Can Help...Pretty Please

So one of the most frequented pages on my blog is the page about becoming a member of the Church. Recently this caused me to search the terms "becoming a mormon", "becoming lds", and "becoming mormon" on Google and the results have me feeling like I'd like some input.  My blog came up as the first result in each of those cases which has me feeling a greater sense of responsibility and urgency in making that page the best it can be.  So please, please go check it out HERE and come back and leave a comment on this post of what suggestions you might have.   This isn't for me, it is for everyone who comes searching. 

Thanks in advance for your help!

Behind the Scenes

Sorry for the lack of posting.  Behind the scenes there have been some opportunities to share the Gospel  and I have been occupied by that.  It is neat to see the Spirit work in other's lives. I have been amazed by an individual who has taken so much initiative in learning about the Church.  This person has read many books including all of the standard works, Church History, and Articles of Faith.  What an example to us all. 

I Finally Did It!

Yep, that's right I created my profile on Mormon.org.  I am not quite done, I don't think. I think I will head back and answer a few more questions and add a few more stories, but it is there.  And yes, this means my identity will be revealed, well at least a picture.  Oooo, aaaaah!  I know, I know, not that big of a deal but I have been pretty private thus far.  This is a little weird for me.  So enjoy!  Now join me and create a profile of your own, you never know who it might help. 

Focus Desires...Simplify Life...Become Better

Yep...so that is what has been on my mind lately.  Cutting things out.  Adding things in.   Intentionally noticing where improvements are needed. 

I've started to realize that although I do many good things some of them aren't necessarily the best or take time away where it is more importantly needed.  I've been letting some things start to slip from my routine or at least not be so high on my list.  It has been good.  I am looking forward to a continued journey of simplifying.

This all started from this talk - Desire by Elder Dallin H. Oaks.  I actually sat down and started writing down what my desires are and then I realized that what I was really writing down was what my desires SHOULD be.  Some of them match the actions that I take and some I realized I am not truly following through with.  I realized that some of the ways I was using time showed that different desires were somehow eeking up on my priority list.  Not good.

So of course while I was thinking on what I desired most and what I desire to BECOME I thought back to another one of my favorite Conference gems:  What Manner of Men and Women Ought You to Be? by  Elder Lynn G. Robbins. 

My brain and my heart and my spirit have been churning with all of these ideas of simplifying, righteous desires, and becoming who I can become.  It has turned into a mush of goodness and still has me making changes and pondering and trying to grasp what needs to be done and what needs not to be done, and where things need to slip and where things need to expand or be emphasized.  I sense a great push to simplify life and yet a great push to expand spirtual things and be more intentional and present at each stage of rearing my children.

After much of this reading and thinking and pondering was done I went and read this talk - Daughters of God by Elder M. Russell Ballard.  So good.

It is time to focus my desires, simplify my life, and strive to become better in very specific and intentional ways.  Off to work (well, off to bed of now but you know what I mean). 

Can You Help Me Discipline? A better way. A teaching way. A new way.

This is last night's post "Calling All Discipline Experts" with a new title.  I guess no one feels like an "expert". ;)  But I really would love some responses.  I feel like this was a powerful talk and a powerful realization when reading this specific line.  I am sure we could all benefit from each other's words.  Please Share!

I just re-read Elder Robbin's talk from Conference again. It was one of my favorites. I am excited because we get to discuss it in Relief Society this Sunday.  And it has given me much to think about.

I hadn't noticed this line when I'd read it before and boy did it shoot out to me this time:

"We will never have a greater opportunity to teach and show Christlike attributes to our children than in the way we discipline them."

Yikes!  I need to work on this.  Often I think I do exactly the opposite.  Sometimes I end up being the one in the wrong. I react too quickly, or too loudly, or just simply overreact. Not good. 

I loved some of the ideas that he gave in the talk about disciplining but I'd love to hear more.  What do you do to make sure you keep your cool in a heated moment?  What types of consequences do you use?  I want to cease the opportunity to teach Christlike attributes rather than give them examples of how NOT to act.  Let the ideas roll.

You "Saved" the Day

I've had a lot on my mind.  Change. Newness. New goals.  BECOMING something better.  Creating.  Desires.  Priorities. Time. 

I've determined it is time to Simplify and to Organize. Some things are going to slip away and some new things may take their places. 

I am one who gets overwhelmed, stressed, and anxious pretty easily and yet I tend to add things to my plate by my own choice.  Good things.  But there are better.

We just got back from a vacation and while we were traveling near a larger city my husband took a wrong turn and we ended up downtown with two tired children (it was bedtime) one of them crying.  I was grumpy, impatient, and frustrated (this was not the first time this has happened ;) I was getting after him and saying things like, "why didn't you just go the way we came?"  On and on.  Contention.  Then just as we were about to get back on the freeway in the right direction my son said, very enthusiastically, "It's okay Mom.  It's good.  We saw flags.  You saved the day!"  He felt the contention and in his 4 year old way brought a smile to my face. I didn't even see any flags but to him that drive, that wrong turn saved the day because of a few simple flags! And I was again reminded that I need to find joy in each moment and strive to be positive.  Later I found out that despite my pessimism and criticisim in that moment that little adventure that led us downtown was one of my husbands favorite moments from the trip.  He enjoys exploring new places.  But there I was and I couldn't see it.  I couldn't see that moment with my family with eyes of joy.

Then today I taught the lesson in Relief Society on families and again was reminded that I need to enjoy and take hold of each moment as a Mother not just get through each day but SAVE each moment and cherish it.  Not just go about my agenda but grasp those small moments in time that truly matter.

And then yet again I came across another reminder in this video. It is too perfect for all of the thoughts I have been having. I think the Lord is trying to teach me:



Let us all cherish the moments that matter most. Let us all try to "Save" and enjoy each day and recognize each moment for what it is. Let us all recognize the things that need to slip from our lives so that we might simplify and have our eyes opened to the joy that those little moments bring.

A Thank You to the Youth for Easing My Fears

So sometimes I look at what is going on in the world and I look at my two young children and I worry. I worry about the people they will choose to become.  I worry about the world seeping in too much.  I worry that I am not doing enough.  I worry about their futures.  I worry about what is happening here and now. I worry.

It IS a rough world with many temptations and many choices to be made and I think I will always be concerned (and in some ways I think I should be).  I want to be as conscious, consistent, and intentional about raising them as I can.  There are so many things to think about and to prepare them for.  The future (and sometimes even the present) truly can be overwhelming to think about and that is why I am so grateful for all of these wonderful videos put out by the Church.  They give me hope in the future and peace to know how strong so many of the youth truly are in this chaotic world.  I am grateful for their examples to children, youth, and adults alike. 

Thank you to the great youth for easing some of my fears.  You are Wonderful!!!











To view more Mormon Messages for Youth visit HERE.

Stressed, Overscheduled, Overwhelmed...You Are Not Alone

Standing in line at a grocery story, beep, beep, beep.  Hand her some cash and again beep, beep, beep.  I have two transactions.  It's 9:30 pm. I turn to the lady behind me and apologize for my double taking of time.  She shrugs her shoulders and says, "I'm in no hurry.  I'll just be heading back to cleaning and doing laundry."

I hurried out to my car and thought as I rode home about what that women had said.  I wasn't going home to clean (although I am sure I had plenty of cleaning to be done) but I had just come from putting two munchkins to sleep and needed to grab a few items and hurry home to get ready for the upcoming day, a Sunday.  And then a thought came to me, "we are all in this together".  We all have our to do lists, we all have our stressors, most of us have similar goals.  We are not in this alone. We are all busy.  We all get overwhelmed.  We all have various roles and obligations but we are truly all in this life together.

Then a night or two later I read from Matthew 14 and 15 and had a great moment of being taught:
Christs' good friend John the Baptist was beheaded and when he heard of it He went to be alone.  A mulitude followed him and even in his time of need he had compassion on them and healed their sick.  Then that very evening that multitude needed to eat and so He fed the 5,000 men and also many women and children.  Straightway he sent his disciples to get in the ship and He went to pray.  Meanwhile a storm came between 3 and 6 in the morning and Jesus walked on the water with Peter and calmed the storm.  When they got off the ship in the land of Gennesaret the people recognized him and brought those who were diseased and He healed them. Then came the scribes and the Pharisees to question him and contend against him. Then he calls the multitude around him to teach them.  He goes on to heal a girl and feed 4,000 more.

I could just keep going and going.  I don't think I had ever realized the time frame of these events. In such a short time He lost a dear friend, He healed many in the multitude, He fed 5,000, He walked on the water and calmed the storm, He healed the diseased, He stood firm against the Pharisees, He taught the multitude, healed a girl, and fed 4,000 more. 

He truly understands.  Not only did He experience everything through the Atonement but He also experienced the stresses and demands of life to the fullest.

I know often we feel like our own lists could keep going and going.  In such a short time, we can get our kids off to school, change 10 diapers, make lunch, run to the store, send a note to a dear friend, plan a lesson, calm tears, make dinner for a neighbor, take kids to soccer practice, read scriptures, plant a garden, and pray for and have heartache over our families.  And the list could go on.

But we have the Savior and we have one another.

President Monson's words fit so perfectly here, "Life is perfect for none of us. Rather than being judgmental and critical of each other, may we have the pure love of Christ for our fellow travelers in this journey through life. May we recognize that each one is doing her best to deal with the challenges which come her way, and may we strive to do our best to help out."

I hope that we can all look at the world in this way.  That we can see that our "fellow travelers" are trying their best and let them lean on us when they need to and that we may find that we have those that we can lean on in our times of need.  I also hope that we will recognize that we all need to take a step back and have a moment to ourselves.  Even the Savior sought moments to be alone and to speak with His Father.  Sometimes those moments may be interuppted by something more important but we all need those moments to draw us nearer to the Lord and to bring peace nearer to our hearts. 

Never forget that you are not alone.

How Do You Journal?

I have not been doing good at the whole journaling thing.  Not one bit.  Yeah I have a private blog to write down the little funny, cute, and crazy moments we have in our family but I'm not even that good at keeping up with that.  I recently found my journal and well let's just say, ummm well SAD. I last wrote while I was pregnant with my little girl and yep she is 18 months old now.  Really?  I always do this. Write some here and there and then a long, long hiatus.  What to do?

How do you journal?  Do you use a blog as your journal? Do you type up your thoughts?  Do you do the whole hand written journal thing?  Do you pick a question out of a jar?  And whatever method you use what helps you to be consistent and motivated?  I need to be better.

Bringing Me Joy

So after posting that last video for Mother's Day I just had to find out who was playing the song in the background.  I found it and it is an arrangement by Jon Schmidt!  I can't tell you how much I love the whole song.  I have probably listened to it 30-40 times already.  It is seriously bringing me joy! 

Enjoy it HERE!

Do you want to serve with me....and my kids...and my neighborhood?

Then come right along.  I knew you'd say yes. :)

So I recently started a little service group of moms and their kidlets in our neighborhood.  After Conference I felt like I needed to serve more, serve more in general, but mostly that I needed to serve more along side my children.  So that was my plan and then one night as I was reading my scriptures a thought popped into my little head that said something like, "hey, why not make it a group effort" and then with some teetering back and forth on the idea I finally succumbed and our service group was born.  It has taken over my brain for a while and finally I feel like things are falling into place.  Whew!

Then you see...a new idea came to me and I thought hmmm why not bring the whole blogging world (well the miniscule portion of that world who actually peeks at this blog) along and see what we can do.   So of course this will take a lot of initiative on your part since you don't actually live near me but if you want to follow along and do something similar in your area then please join us.  I will periodically post things that we are doing here and if it is something that would work for you and your family then please serve away and let us know how it goes.

Our current service opportunity is making a tape for an elderly Sister in our ward who is unable to attend church due to health issues.  She spends her Sundays listening to and watching Conference and other Church materials. The children will be leaving short messages and singing her primary songs on a tape.  We will then deliver it to her as a group.   I am already super excited to bring her our creation, I think she will love it.  I am almost giddy about it. 

This one is still on.  So if you know of an elderly person in your area who could use a visit, a card, a treat, or maybe even a tape make an effort over the next few weeks to make their day.  Then come back and share your warm service fuzzies. :)

Isn't service fun?!?

Bee Changeful

Over the past few months we have dealt with many various difficult situations and behaviors with our children.  It has been a ride and it is, for the time being, slowing down a bit.  Whew! One day while thinking about what I could do to change the way things were going once again I actually had an idea that "worked"! 

My 4 year old son and I sat down at the computer and printed out a beehive, some bees, and various flowers and then for FHE we colored and colored and then later I cut and cut and when all was said and done we created this:

The idea originally stemmed from President Hinckley's B's but we put our own family twist on it so that it would encourage us to work on the things that our little family needs to work on right now.  Our "Bees" include:  Be Prayerful, Be Patient, Be Polite, Be Kind, Be Brave, Be Happy, Be Obedient and Be Clean. 

At FHE we talked about all of these things we were going to try to become and we set off to become better each and everyday.

Here is how it works:  We try to do things that will help us be more like the Bees we have chosen and make an effort to notice when we are doing them and at the end of the day we head to our chart for "Bee Time".  We even have a Bee Song that we sing each night before our bees start flying around on our chart.  And if you read THIS post from a while back this song will be familiar, it comes from a cheerleading chant from Saved By the Bell.  "B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B. B-B-B-B-B-B-B. It's Bee Time!" Repeated two times.  You gotta love it. 

After our ever so lovely song we notice what others in our little family did during the day to be more like one of the attributes we have selected.  For example, if we saw someone being really patient then the Patient Bee gets to fly to his next flower (each attribute has a certain color of flower and each flower is numbered).  When all of the bees have made it back to the hive we get to do something special as a family, because we are doing this TOGETHER.  We just received our first family reward last night when we went to Chuck E. Cheese (it took us a while to redeem it we are about to reach the end of another round).

As simple as it is, it has helped a ton.  When my son is doing something that doesn't match one of our bees, I will sometimes say, "Are you being like one of our bees?"  Or "what bee should you try to be like right now?"  Or sometimes I will be specific and say, "are you being kind?"  Occasionally I will simply make a buzzing sound at him as a little reminder.  Kind of silly but hey it works (some of the time :).

It has been amazing what an incentive it is to just simply get to move a bee or two each night.  Of course the family "prize" helps as well but it isn't an immediate reward.

So here we are buzzing along and Conference comes shortly after with this perfect gem from Elder Robbins "What Manner of Men and Women Ought Ye to Be?".  It was perfect.  It helped to pull all of my thoughts together and to expand and teach me so much more.

Those of you who have followed my blog for a while know that I love the word "BECOME" so our Bee Chart and this talk about Being were right up my alley.  Here are a few tidbits I pulled out of this great talk:

• To become as He is, we must also do the things He did: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel; and ye know the things that ye must do in my church; for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do” (3 Nephi 27:21; emphasis added).
• To be and to do are inseparable. As interdependent doctrines they reinforce and promote each other.
• While He recognized the importance of do, the Savior identified be as a “weightier matter.”
• Many of us create to do lists to remind us of things we want to accomplish. But people rarely have to be lists. Why? To do’s are activities or events that can be checked off the list when done. To be, however, is never done. You can’t earn checkmarks with to be’s.
• Because be begets do and is the motive behind do, teaching be will improve behavior more effectively than focusing on do will improve behavior.

I hope that we can do more to become better and be more by doing better.

Oh and if you are still wondering what the title is about.  Ever since we have started doing all of this Bee Business my son has asked for help in his prayers by saying, "Help us to be prayerful.  Help us to be kindFUL."  Too Cute.  Let us all BE CHANGEFUL!

Turned it Off and a Light Bulb Turned On

Can I just say wow, what a crazy week.  What a busy week. What a week of learning.  This week our TV was turned off, a sign was placed on the screen that read, "No TV Week!" and was colored so beautifully by my 4 year old son.  Every once in a while he would open our armoire doors to peak at his handy work but never once did he try to turn the TV on.  We had a good week.

Here are some of the many light bulbs that turned on in my TV-less head:

1. Wow, do I seriously turn the TV on that much?  I started noticing every time my thoughts turned to the TV and realized I would've turned it on now.....and now.....and now.  Really?  The kids are playing nicely by themselves...a few minutes of Mommy screen time.  Folding laundry....a few more minutes of Mommy screen time. Or I need to get this done really quick...children screen time.  Or I need to make a quick call.....a few minutes turned to full show of children's screen time.  It really adds up, little by little and I was amazed at how often my natural tendencies gravitated to that little on button.
2. I got a housekeeper.  Seriously, push the off button on your TV for a week and watch your house whip into shape.  It is quite amazing. My house is the cleanest it has been in a long, long while.  Yes, I did have the motivation of guests coming on Friday but I also devoted more time to it without the distraction of the TV and the kids joined in as well. 
3. My kids are friends.  They ACTUALLY like each other. Really they do.  There were still moments of an 17 month old's squeals from a brother's "love" but they played together way, WAY more than I have seen them play, I think EVER.  And they laughed.  I loved running to a room filled with laughter to soak it in rather than running to rescue a little girl in tears. TV off meant for good old fashion fun for siblings (it also helped that their rooms were clean and the toys organized and ready for little hands and eyes to find them easily.)
4. Did we really miss anything?  Does it really matter that I missed watching Rachael Ray make her meal that looks yummy but I know I'll never make it?  Does it really matter that I didn't see that cute craft on Studio 5 that looks awesome but again I wouldn't spend the money or the time to make it myself?  Does it really matter that I didn't see some soon to be "idol" perform?  Does it matter that my son didn't see Curious George get into trouble and somehow get out of it once again?  Yes, actually it does matter. Why?  Because all of that time was spent with one another and making our home a more enjoyable place to be.  We didn't miss a thing.
5. Conference is the best 8 hours of TV we could ever watch  (more thoughts on wonderful General Conference coming soon in an upcoming post).
6. Lastly,  our TV world is about to go through a whirlwind of change.  We haven't finalized exactly how it is going to pan out but big changes are to come and it will be good.

Yea, for No TV Week.  I learned a lot in our last two TV fasts but this time something different happened.  Something changed in me and now something is going to change for our family.

How do you regulate TV time at your house?  What have you done to make sure it is not over-used?  Have any of you gotten rid of your TV all together?  If so, how did your children respond and how did your life change?

Checking Back In

So it has been over a month since I last posted.  I honestly don't know what caused such a lengthy break.  There have been little snid-bits of extra happenings but nothing that would typically issue a month long hiatus but obviously it did.  So I hope that me "checking out" for a little while hasn't caused all of you to check out completely and that you might just consider revisiting my typical ramblings and thoughts. So here are a few of the latest happenings, random thoughts, or whatever floats my boat right now:

• My little man turned 4. What, he is halfway to 8?  When did this happen?  It is amazing how quickly time passes by.
• This week we have had a house full of sickies.  In fact right now I am missing church with my little one fast asleep.  Cold, cough, fever, and a handful of teeth coming in does not make for a happy munchkin.
• I think I have been experiencing heartburn.  I have never had heartburn before so I am still in the figuring out stages.For all I know it may be something completely different.  Either way, not fun.
• I need to go to the temple. Our temple is closing soon for renovations and I have been slacking as of recently.  The talks today in our Sacrament meeting were a great reminder of where my priorities should be.  It is time to reevaluate and get my priorities straight.
• I love playing basketball.  I played in high school and have been playing stake ball lately and boy does it do something for me.  So fun!
• I started reading (aha, my absence is clearer now) again.  I just finished reading the Chronicles of Narnia and quite enjoyed them.  I realize now that when the children were in bed instead of typing my thoughts here I would end up devouring several chapters in anticipation of what was going to happen next.  I started them at the beginning of January and flew through them.  I had forgotten how much I love to enter a different world through reading and my "ME" Time has been great for this.
• I have become a crazy coupon lady and have found that Rite Aid is my friend.
• My upcoming lesson in Relief Society is going to be on Charity.  I have already learned some new things and will be sure to share as more unfolds.

My little one is stirring and starting to cry.  Must be off.  

Family Home Evening Idea: Practicing Reverence

Well last week I wrote about wanting to be more prepared and intentional with our Family Home Evenings and last week we did it! Yea! It was all about being reverent. We have been having some troubles lately with reverence in sacrament meetings all together but I was specifically worried about behavior and irreverence during the actual sacrament. It was starting to really not look pretty. Our family prayers were reaching a similar state and thus my idea to hold an FHE on the topic.

We started out singing "Reverence is Love" from the Children's Song Book and then I asked my three year old what it meant to be reverent and he said, "to be quiet". We then talked about how we should be quiet and sit nicely but we also should think about Jesus and other good things.

We talked about how we should be very reverent while we pray and I asked him to show us how to be reverent during a prayer. He demonstrated perfectly. Because of recent happenings I was almost starting to believe that he didn't know how to anymore but he knelt down, folded his arms, bowed his head, and closed his eyes. We praised the perfect demonstration and talked about how we needed to try to do this whenever we are praying.

Then came a real practice. We talked about how we needed to be much better at being reverent during the Sacrament. I had gathered all of the things that I like to allow our children to look at during the actual sacrament (we try to wait on snacks, coloring, etc) like gospel art books, hymn book, children's books like "Noah's Ark" and "I'm Trying to be Like Jesus",small family picture books, etc. We all sat on the couch and pretended like it was the pew at church. I told them that we could only whisper and we were not allowed to get off the couch and play on the floor. We set a timer for 10 minutes and practiced what our behavior should be like during the sacrament. It went awesome for both our almost 4 year old and our 15 month old. We cheered their behavior on and I challenged our little boy to try to do the same on the coming Sunday which was today.

Let's just say I was a proud Momma and you bet I let me son know that! They both did awesome, better than I have seen in a long time. And to top it all off between Sunday School and Relief Society I had one of the primary leaders come up to me and say that my son was so cute and had done an awesome job in Sharing Time (he just barely became a Sunbeam and I have been worried about this) and get this, she said that he was so reverent. I mean really what better words could a Mom hear who just tried to teach that very principle. It was a good and reverent day at Church today and I hope that we can continue on our intentional, purposeful Family Home Evenings. I just had to grin this afternoon as I heard my honey and my little guy planning their lesson for tomorrow. We're off to a good start.