Lofty Goals

Today is the first day of school, and I've got some pretty lofty goals. First of all, I must say that I have mixed feelings right now. I will miss the freedom of summer, being able to go and do things with the kids, but I am so happy to be back on a schedule. This summer has been absolutely NUTS!! I will definitely miss having the boys home, but at the same time, I am ready for some peace and quiet! Not that the boys were always playing at our house, but when they were, I swear, half the neighborhood kids were with them!

Jace is in first grade this year, Caden is in fifth grade and Jackson is in his second year of pre-school. I cannot believe how big my boys are! I got suckered into doing pre-school again, so I get to be Jackson's teacher this year, too. I am glad about that. I get bored during the day and I'm used to having lots of things to do...especially since my Texas schedule was so hectic with daycare AND pre-school. And I am glad to know exactly what Jackson is learning. It's so fun to watch his expressions as he is exposed to new things...he LOVES to learn!

Jace was nervous to go to first grade this morning. He's been so excited all summer that he gets to play on the "big play ground" this year. He's six and has quite the attitude for a six year old. Plus he has selective hearing loss and doesn't listen to a word I say. Last night I wanted to make sure that he KNEW it was not okay to be sassy to his teacher and that he needed to be a good listener. So I called to him in the other room, this was our conversation:

Me: Jace, tomorrow you meet your teacher. Are you going to be nice to her?
Jace: What?
Me: (a little louder) Are you going to be a good listener for your teacher?
Jace: (a lot louder!) What?
Me: (to myself) Never mind

I am sure he will do great, she is not "mom". Once we got to school and met his new teacher (she's young and really cute!) he said, "I think I will like this class." I know he will and I know he'll do great this year. He's a very smart kid and an excellent student. All of his teachers have absolutely adored him!

Caden is always excited about school. He's in class with a few of his friends from last year so he's pretty happy about that. His teacher speaks with an accent and he thinks that is pretty cool. We missed back to school night since we were out of town last week so we went a little early this morning to meet both of their teachers, find their classrooms and find their desks. Caden will do just fine, he couldn't get rid of me fast enough!! This was our conversation:

Me: Are you going to be able to find you class room?
Caden: Yeah, I am going to go play.
Me: Well, do you need anything else?
Caden: No, I'm good. Can I go?
Me: Okay....have a good day!
Caden: .... (he was around the corner and out the door)

He is in fifth grade and I suppose it's uncool to have your mom walk you to class. At least no one else was inside the building, so none of his friends saw. I wouldn't have walked with him to class if we'd gone to back to school night! Poor thing! Oh well.

So about those "lofty goals"...I am aiming really high this year!

This is our schedule and we did great this morning!

6:00am Get up and work out for 30 minutes (this is just for Mark and I)
6:30am Get the kids up and read scriptures until 7:00
7:00am Make hot breakfast while the kids get ready for school
7:20 am Eat breakfast
7:50am Car pool

It took a few minutes for Jace to wake up, but he finally joined us. I wouldn't dream of disturbing Jackson's slumber for scripture reading...he's a bear if he gets woken up. But Caden did great! He was tired, but a willing participant. I am really excited about this. I hope we can get into the habit of reading scriptures as a family, everyday. I know it will benefit our family.

Temple Square

We went to Temple Square a few weeks ago with Mark's brother, Joe, and his family. It had been so long since Mark and I had been there and we really wanted to take the kids again. We took the tour of the Conference Center (which we had never done before. It's pretty impressive!) and we watched the Joseph Smith movie at the Legacy Theatre in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. Then walked around the temple grounds. Jace and Jackson asked alot of questions after the movie and it gave Mark and I a great opportunity to share our testimonies with them. Caden got to talk to a Sister Missionary at the Visitor's Center about the Saviors visit to the America's and I was really impressed with his comments and questions. He's a smart kid! It was such a nice way to spend a Saturday afternoon. I feel so blessed to live so close to Salt Lake and to be able to do things like this. It is a great reminder of our Church's heritage, and a wonderful way to feel the Spirit.

Texas Snow and "Jay-Dubs"

(Our front yard in the snow - March 2008)

It snowed last night. It was the craziest thing! In the two winters we have lived in Texas, we have never experienced snow. Yes, thunder and lightning storms, wind storms and sleet, but never snow. It was actually kind of cool. The kids were all excited that the ground was white and I had to make Jace and Caden promise that they wouldn't stop to play in the snow until after they got to the bus stop. I could not have them missing their bus! They were good listeners, they ran all the way, cute things!

A little later on this morning I was in the daycare room with all my cute daycare kids. They were coloring as I was de-cluttering my filing cabinet, preparing for the big move. We had fun songs playing on the cd player and everyone was happy. It was very nice because I was actually able to get some things done. Mark called to discuss our moving plan and as I was going over that with him on the phone, there was a knock at the door. "Oh great," I thought. I told Mark that I had to go, there were "Jay-Dubs" at the door. Just as I was thinking, "I don't have time for this! Maybe I'll just pretend I'm not home." the kids all ran over to the door to see who it was. A little frustrated that the kids had blown my cover, I got up and walked to the door. I probably had a scowl on my face as the door opened, but then the weirdest thing happened. As soon as I opened the door, I absolutely felt for this couple. Maybe it reminded me of my mission, with their long coats, and the snow covered ground, going door to door out in the (freezing) cold winters (of New York) for what they believe. It was a man and his wife. They were Jehovah's Witness. They handed me their literature and invited me to read it in light of the upcoming Easter holiday. I was not interested in the literature, but I did not want to be rude or make them feel bad, like I did after having so many doors slammed on me in New York. Williamsburg Circle Drive came screaming back to my memory. I was a brand new missionary, still with my trainer, Sister Kenny and my MTC buddy, Sister Moya (We were The Gruesome Threesome).

We encountered so many people that day who were not just rude, but they were MEAN! It was rainy, all three of us were freezing cold and wet. I think we went home and cried when our day was over. That was truly the most discouraging day in the mission field for me.

I do not share the ideas and beliefs of this couple, but I would never wish that type of discouragement on anyone so I gracefully took their pamphlet and thanked them. They asked how we were enjoying the snow and I told them that we were originally from Utah so it was nice to see snow again. They thanked me for my time, I told them to stay warm and I closed the door as they walked away. I wondered if my telling them that we were originally from Utah is the reason they ended the conversation or if they were just there to pass out their literature. Either way, I was glad for the reminder of my mission and I am glad that others are motivated enough by their faith to go out and share it with others. I am SO GRATEFUL for the missionary program in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My mission is what molded me into the person I am today. And even though, I had discouraging moments like the day we tracted Williamsburg Circle Drive in Fairport, New York, I wouldn't trade one day of my mission...not ONE day!

(The Gruesome Threesome: Sister Kenny, me and Sister Moya on P-day on the walkway to the Sacred Grove April 1996)

President Hinckley, Remembered

Our Dear Prophet, President Gordon Bitner Hinckley passed away two Sundays ago on January 27th, 2008. I have such a great love for him that the news, although it was expected, was still very difficult for me. I understand how the leadership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints works, and that the Lord has promised that we will always have a living prophet on the earth to lead, guide and direct us, so I didn't feel lost and confused as to who would be our new prophet. But I did feel great loss because I have felt so much love and admiration for this wonderful man. He was the Prophet who signed my mission call to serve in the New York Rochester Mission. As a missionary, I sat and listened to him as he spoke at our All-Mission Conference in Palmyra, New York and heard him testify that a young farm boy walked into a nearby grove of trees early in the spring of 1820 and actually saw God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only Prophet my children have ever known. He did so much to make Christ's church known throughout the world and I LOVE that he had so many temples built!

One of my favorite stories of President Hinckley is from his mission in England. He had been sick, he was feeling discouraged and frustrated and he wrote home to his father and told him that he should just come home because he was wasting his time and his father's money. Shortly thereafter, Elder Hinckley received a letter from his dad. It said, "Dear Gordon, I have your recent letter. I have only one suggestion: Forget yourself and go to work." And he did. He made a pledge that day to the Lord that he would try to forget himself and lose himself in the work and service of the Lord. It is a pledge that he kept until the very end. (Click here to read the article from the New Era.)

I am so grateful for his example of service, charity and love. He was so full of life! One of my favorite quotes from him is on my wall where I can see it everyday:
Another is in Caden's room, so that he has a constant reminder of how to "be."

I am so grateful for President Hinckley's example and that I was allowed to live here on earth while he was our Prophet! I am so glad that he is now with his wonderfully sweet wife, Marjorie, whom he has missed these past (nearly) four years.

With all of that said, I am excited to have President Thomas S. Monson as our new Prophet, Seer and Revelator and I know for myself that he is called of God. I look forward to having him lead and guide us.

President Thomas S. Monson - Prophet

President Henry B. Eyring - 1st Counselor

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf - 2nd Counselor

I Want To Be More Like Nephi

Today was such a good day! Aside from Mark being gone and dealing with the woes of being a single parent, things here are great. It is usually Jackson who wanders down the stairs in the dark in the middle of the night in search of comfort from mom or dad. But last night I was woken up several times by Jackson and by Jace. I finally gave up and just had them sleep in my bed. Then Jackson, who was taking up more than his fair share to begin with kept getting mad at me for "squishing" him! Oh Pa-lease! Needless to say, I didn't get a very good nights sleep and I wasn't expecting much out of today just because I was so tired! But today has been great so far!

Church was excellent. That is actually what I wanted to write about. Sacrament was really good, but our lessons in Sunday School and Relief Society were great. In Sunday School, our teacher was talking about Nephi being commanded to build this ship, a task that he had never undergone before. This was all new to him, but he never complained, he just did as he was commanded (Oh, how I need to learn to be more like Nephi!).

1 Nephi 17:9 "And I said: Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me?" Nephi knew that he needed tools to build this ship. I find it intersting that he didn't ask the Lord where to find the tools to build the ship, but he asked the Lord where to find the ore so that he could make the tools to accomplish this task. The Lord does not usually do for us what we can do for ourselves. If Nephi would have said, "Hey, I'll build this ship, but I don't have any tools. Will you make me some tools?" I doubt the Lord would have responded in a way that Nephi would have liked. Instead, Nephi knew that this was something he could do for himself and asked the Lord for guidance in finding the ore. 1 Nephi 17:10 "And it came to pass that the Lord told me whither I should go to find ore, that I might make tools." It was just that simple to Nephi. Sometimes I need things spelled out for me. I am so grateful for the scriptures...because I do have things spelled out for me. Simple little lessons that I learn each time I read. Things that make me realize, "I want to be more like Nephi (or Ammon, or Chief Captain Moroni)!"

Anyhow, I just wanted to say that I am grateful for the gospel and that even though it may be tough at times to get out the door with three young boys who don't always want to go to church, it is well worth the struggle! I love feeling edified and learning more about the Savior and his gospel. Today was a great day!