I have been working my way through conference the past few weeks. I haven't hardly begun to really study any of it but I already have a favorite talk, one that made my spirit sing. It's "Be Meek and Lowly of Heart" by Elder Soares. My favorite pieces:
"The Apostle Paul taught that meekness is a fruit of the Spirit.4 Therefore, it can most easily be attained if we “live in the Spirit.”5 And to live in the Spirit, our lifestyle must reflect righteousness before the Lord." I guess I hadn't given much thought to meekness being a fruit of the Spirit but when I read, hear, or ponder that thought I feel like smiling.
"Being meek does not mean weakness, but it does mean behaving with goodness and kindness, showing strength, serenity, healthy self-worth, and self-control." I love these attributes, and have been working at developing them the past several years. I especially love the four S words: strength, serenity, self-worth, and self-control. I think one of the hardest for me has been serenity but I feel like I'm beginning to feel it.
"President Lorenzo Snow, the fifth prophet of our dispensation, taught, “It is our duty to try to be perfect, … to improve each day, and look upon our course last week and do things better this week; do things better today than we did them yesterday.”11 So the first step to becoming meek is to improve day by day." Actually I loved all of President Snow's thoughts but I was touched by the gentle reminder that we need only work one day at a time.
I loved the story about Brother Mahlangu, who attended church "through the window" because his country did not allow him to be part of the congregation. I take so much for granted. It is a true spirit of meekness that a person would want to learn of Christ so much that he would willing and graciously sit outside an open window, alone, subject to adverse weather! And some days I complain in my head about finding/taking time to read my scriptures... So now when those thoughts come I can remember Brother Mahlangu's example.
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Sunday Summary
I'm giving up on writing any kind of synopsis of our lives since my last post. Here's news from the past week!😊
Eva's orthopedist said her stress fracture was healed enough to run. Sort of. What he said was to jog on grass and train on a bike and to let pain be her guide at the region race. What Eva heard was to let pain be her guide. She ran region Wednesday and qualified for state. Her entire cross country team gets to go to state and she is thrilled. But I can tell she's hurting because she has been icing a lot and she seems tired all the time. State is this Wednesday so hopefully she will have time after that to fully recover!
Ethan had a big Court of Honor Wednesday night. He got his Star rank and is working on his Life. He received several merit badges. The Scoutmaster made a point of telling everyone how helpful Ethan is. He has diligently worked to help other boys receive their merit badges and advance their ranks. We are so proud of him! Ethan also had a birthday Sunday. He's 14 now and was ordained a teacher last week. On Monday I went to his Parent /Teacher conference and was impressed again with his phenomenally high math and science scores. His core test results rival kids two grades above him. Which is great since he wants to be an engineer one day. I love seeing him work hard to develop his talents.
Ivy started taking piano lessons from me this fall. This has bee a bit of an adjustment for her because I do things a bit differently than her old teacher and since she is an intermediate student I expect things to be learned/polished better than she is used to. She is really improving! She practices diligently and she is doing quality work. She is enjoying orchestra and toying with the idea of private violin lessons. We'll see.
Nathan LOVES school this year! This is exciting for all of us! Nathan has been going to school for over 7 years and has disliked every day until this year. I can remember him hiding from me when the bus would come to take him to preschool and having to carry him to the bus kicking and screaming every time. Things have been better than that for a long time but it is a huge relief to have him looking forward to school and learning! It makes mornings and homework so much easier!
After several months of no dishwasher and some car trouble things are improving. Vince fixed our dishwasher yesterday. Washing dishes isn't the end of the world but after three months without it I know it will be easier to keep up with everything with a functional dishwasher! It turns out that our Expedition may not need a transmission after all. For now anyway. We are halfway through a month long trial to see if new transmission fluid solves the problem and this week it's looking really good! I think this is a tender mercy because we and a couple of mechanics were certain it needed a new transmission but after waiting and praying about what we should do we were all inspired to try this instead...a little miracle for us. We'll take it!
Eva's orthopedist said her stress fracture was healed enough to run. Sort of. What he said was to jog on grass and train on a bike and to let pain be her guide at the region race. What Eva heard was to let pain be her guide. She ran region Wednesday and qualified for state. Her entire cross country team gets to go to state and she is thrilled. But I can tell she's hurting because she has been icing a lot and she seems tired all the time. State is this Wednesday so hopefully she will have time after that to fully recover!
Ethan had a big Court of Honor Wednesday night. He got his Star rank and is working on his Life. He received several merit badges. The Scoutmaster made a point of telling everyone how helpful Ethan is. He has diligently worked to help other boys receive their merit badges and advance their ranks. We are so proud of him! Ethan also had a birthday Sunday. He's 14 now and was ordained a teacher last week. On Monday I went to his Parent /Teacher conference and was impressed again with his phenomenally high math and science scores. His core test results rival kids two grades above him. Which is great since he wants to be an engineer one day. I love seeing him work hard to develop his talents.
Ivy started taking piano lessons from me this fall. This has bee a bit of an adjustment for her because I do things a bit differently than her old teacher and since she is an intermediate student I expect things to be learned/polished better than she is used to. She is really improving! She practices diligently and she is doing quality work. She is enjoying orchestra and toying with the idea of private violin lessons. We'll see.
Nathan LOVES school this year! This is exciting for all of us! Nathan has been going to school for over 7 years and has disliked every day until this year. I can remember him hiding from me when the bus would come to take him to preschool and having to carry him to the bus kicking and screaming every time. Things have been better than that for a long time but it is a huge relief to have him looking forward to school and learning! It makes mornings and homework so much easier!
After several months of no dishwasher and some car trouble things are improving. Vince fixed our dishwasher yesterday. Washing dishes isn't the end of the world but after three months without it I know it will be easier to keep up with everything with a functional dishwasher! It turns out that our Expedition may not need a transmission after all. For now anyway. We are halfway through a month long trial to see if new transmission fluid solves the problem and this week it's looking really good! I think this is a tender mercy because we and a couple of mechanics were certain it needed a new transmission but after waiting and praying about what we should do we were all inspired to try this instead...a little miracle for us. We'll take it!
Monday, May 27, 2013
Tornado
This is a picture of my Brother Brian, his wife Marcella, and their four kids. They live in Moore, Oklahoma. Last week they survived the F5 tornado that hit their town. Marcella managed to get her their three oldest kids checked out of school and home to the next door neighbor's underground storm shelter before the storm hit. It was scary! These are pictures of the inside and outside of the storm shelter:
They were trapped in the storm shelter for a hour and a half before neighbors were able to remove the walls that had fallen on top of their shelter so they could get out. It must have been a long 90 minutes! When they got out, they saw devastation.
Here's the house of the neighbors who owned the shelter:
Here's the house of the neighbors who owned the shelter:
Here's an aerial view of their neighborhood. His home is located in the upper left hand corner to the right of the red canopy. It looks untouched. The shelter they used is located to the rear of the canopy between it and the destroyed house. You cannot see the shelter from the air.
Here's some pictures of their home from the ground:
They waited a long week for their appointment yesterday with their insurance agent. The van was totaled. Their house has some serious structural problems and will have to be stripped to the frame and foundation and rebuilt. In addition to that, they will have to replace all beds, mattresses, bedding, curtains, linens, clothing, etc. that was affected due to shattering glass blowing in and becoming embedded in the fabrics. None of that is salvageable.
The task is expensive and daunting. Our thoughts and prayers have been with them as we pray that they will be blessed with peace and clear minds as they make major decisions with regard to their property and family!
My sister set up a fundraising site to help them cover deductibles, belongings, etc. My kids are going to help me construct quilts for the four kids this summer. If you are looking for a way to help out with the recovery or think you might be able to contribute please consider this: http://www.youcaring.com/help-a-neighbor/oklahoma-tornado-recovery/61088
The task is expensive and daunting. Our thoughts and prayers have been with them as we pray that they will be blessed with peace and clear minds as they make major decisions with regard to their property and family!
My sister set up a fundraising site to help them cover deductibles, belongings, etc. My kids are going to help me construct quilts for the four kids this summer. If you are looking for a way to help out with the recovery or think you might be able to contribute please consider this: http://www.youcaring.com/help-a-neighbor/oklahoma-tornado-recovery/61088
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Congratulations Ethan!
Last week Ethan was recognized for his great cotizenship and character. He received the Mayor's Community Youth Recognition Award last Wednesday! He was nominated by his English teacher and then selected by the city. He was recognized at a City Council meeting with several other recipients and then a picture was published in the paper.
I was waiting to post on my blog about it because I was hoping to receive a copy of the nomination form with all the complimentary words his teacher submitted, but I never received it.
I remember that Ethan was recognized for being a helpful son and brother, for his respect for parental authority. He helps in the community by helping neighbors with yardwork, shoveling walks in the winter for single mothers, and helping neighbors move. He's a fantastic student. ..... OK, what the city rep read was waaaay better but you get the idea.
What I love about Ethan is his compassionate, empathetic nature. I remember a mother of one of his classmates in second grade stopping to thank me because her daughter was having a difficult time at school, feeling left out at recess. She said that Ethan came to this girl from across the playground to invite her to play with him and his friends. Just recently Ethan noticed a little boy drop his treat at a church activity and quickly gave the boy his own treat. During Spring Break we went on a family hiking trip and Ethan spent much of his hiking time walking with and taking car o his little cousin, R. You don't have to look long to find Ethan doing something for someone else!
Another great thing about Ethan is he takes his responsibilities seriously. When he is given an assignment you can count on him to finish it and do a great job. I love this at home, because when he deep cleans a room he gets all the edges and corners! He loves to serve in his priesthood quorum and faithfully attends all his meetings.
Ethan is really smart! He's a quick learner and he likes to research and learn new things. When we read scriptures I am impressed with his innate ability to understand symbolism and relate scriptures to everyday life. He has a goal to serve a mission and become a mechanical engineer. I know Ethan can do whatever he wants because of his hard working, selfless nature!
I was waiting to post on my blog about it because I was hoping to receive a copy of the nomination form with all the complimentary words his teacher submitted, but I never received it.
I remember that Ethan was recognized for being a helpful son and brother, for his respect for parental authority. He helps in the community by helping neighbors with yardwork, shoveling walks in the winter for single mothers, and helping neighbors move. He's a fantastic student. ..... OK, what the city rep read was waaaay better but you get the idea.
What I love about Ethan is his compassionate, empathetic nature. I remember a mother of one of his classmates in second grade stopping to thank me because her daughter was having a difficult time at school, feeling left out at recess. She said that Ethan came to this girl from across the playground to invite her to play with him and his friends. Just recently Ethan noticed a little boy drop his treat at a church activity and quickly gave the boy his own treat. During Spring Break we went on a family hiking trip and Ethan spent much of his hiking time walking with and taking car o his little cousin, R. You don't have to look long to find Ethan doing something for someone else!
Another great thing about Ethan is he takes his responsibilities seriously. When he is given an assignment you can count on him to finish it and do a great job. I love this at home, because when he deep cleans a room he gets all the edges and corners! He loves to serve in his priesthood quorum and faithfully attends all his meetings.
Ethan is really smart! He's a quick learner and he likes to research and learn new things. When we read scriptures I am impressed with his innate ability to understand symbolism and relate scriptures to everyday life. He has a goal to serve a mission and become a mechanical engineer. I know Ethan can do whatever he wants because of his hard working, selfless nature!
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Celebrating!
After approximately $7000 of clinic fees, 225 hours of sessions, another 450 hours of driving, over 17,000 miles, for the last 3 years......
Nathan attended his LAST speech appointment at the University of Utah last night!!!
He was soooo pleased! Jubilant! Excited! He got a diploma which he is rightfully very proud of!!
We are all thrilled but it hasn't sunk in all the way for me yet. I keep catching myself planning around this Friday's nonexistent speech appointment. And I have to say that while the costs have been almost too extreme for our family, the benefits are supreme. There is no price too great for me as a mother to pay in order to experience:
Nathan attended his LAST speech appointment at the University of Utah last night!!!
He was soooo pleased! Jubilant! Excited! He got a diploma which he is rightfully very proud of!!
We are all thrilled but it hasn't sunk in all the way for me yet. I keep catching myself planning around this Friday's nonexistent speech appointment. And I have to say that while the costs have been almost too extreme for our family, the benefits are supreme. There is no price too great for me as a mother to pay in order to experience:
- Understanding my son--when we started three years ago Nathan was 90% unintelligible. We could not communicate during the long drives because I could not work to understand him while driving safely. I could barely communicate with him under perfect conditions!
- Watching him begin to develop true friendships. Nathan has always been blessed with other little boys who liked to play with him, but he couldn't fully engage because his speech was so poor...now he can really play!
- Our growing faith. This is priceless. I have grown because there were so many times I wondered how we could continue and we were always blessed with the means and the time! More than that, Nathan and I had a few close calls in traffic, weather, etc. when we knew we had been protected. Several times in the winter, Nathan would be nervous about the road conditions and while I concentrated in the road, he would pray. And I could understand his prayers!
- This last year and a half I would leave the radio off and Nathan and I would talk. Or I would listen to him visit with his friend who also started coming to speech. Beautiful!
- This past year Nathan worked really hard on narratives, being able to communicate a story or event in an organized way that would make sense to a listener. This was really challenging. The first time I knew he was really understanding the process and applying the clinic work in his everyday life was when we were on the way home from speech one night and Nathan told his nonmember friend who was going to speech with us all about our church. He talked for over twenty minutes about our beliefs, his classes, his teachers, our callings, ... It was like when his tongue finally loosed all he wanted to do was share the gospel!
- Seeing his confidence build and his self-esteem grow!
Congratulations Nathan! We are so lucky you are in our family and we are proud of you and your hard work!!
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
December
The Christmas season is definitely my favorite time of the year! Between last week and Christmas a member of our family will perform somewhere 3-4 times a week between now and Christmas. I love it! Eva gets to play the most--she will play on Temple Square three times, at Primary Children's, nursing homes, church, school a few times, etc. Vince sang on Temple Square and has a few other things. I got to play at our community's Santa Parade and I am looking forward to a couple of church things. Christmas music is great!
We decorated our tree, set out our nativities, and hung a few lights outside. Still--there is no snow!! I'm starting to worry because we really need snow. In the meantime I go out in the yard most Saturdays and fill a trash can with ornamental grass cast-offs, weeds, leaves, etc. I love working outside when it's a little chilly.
Eva went to California with her cross country team. She had a blast! Her favorite part of the trip was a visit to Disneyland. She came home with a little fever and huge amount of schoolwork complicated by the choir and orchestra teachers pulling her out of classes more this week but I can tell she is loving it!
Ethan is loving that he doesn't have to perform any Christmas music this year but lamenting the fact that he has so many opportunities to attend music concerts. He was inducted into the Junior National Honor Society and they are keeping them busy with service opportunities. He's still enjoying Science club and sports after school.
Ivy gets to sing in her school Christmas program--she loves the choir and one of the directors tells me she loves having Ivy there because she is so happy and her face glows while she sings. There's no question that Ivy oozes personality! She is ultra responsible with her schoolwork and loves to read!!
Nathan misses piano lessons but he enjoys a little more free time. I finally hired a tutor to help him with the homework and that's been wildly successful. A 13-year-old neighbor comes over for an hour each on Tuesdays and Thursdays (I pay her $5 a day) and helps him. The first day I was excited because when they were finished there was only about 20 minutes of work left. Every day since they have finished EVERYTHING in the one hour! I'm so grateful! I still help Nathan with stuff but it seems like we have time to actually just visit about stuff non-school related.
Nathan's teacher has timed tests for multiplication and trying as hard as he can Nathan just cannot get all the problems answered in the allotted time. This was more frustrating for him because kids who do finish it get to have a "free recess". Which was very frustrating for me. So I told him if he does his very best I will check him out of school for lunch. We've been twice--the first time he missed the end of the test by 6 problems and this last time by 4 problems. I'm grateful I've learned to celebrate progress. Nathan and I have had delightful lunches together and he's still working where he very nearly gave up.
I know I write more about Nathan--probably because that's where I'm growing more as a person. And I need to remember what I'm learning so recording it somewhere seems wise.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Birthdays, etc.
Eva turned 15 in September, got her permit, and started driving!! Eva's a great driver! I have been enjoying the "fun" parts of teaching a teenage driver. Most of those things involve learning to drive the stick shift. Like when I took that car to the DMV so she had to drive it home if she wanted to drive her very first time. And when I brought that car to pick her up at the school after the cross country bus came. Poor girl--the whole team watched (and giggled) as she killed the engine about five times and her mother just laughed out loud. We all cheered when she got it out of first gear!! I thought I would be a basket case with a new driver but it turns out that I'm not and actually I have really enjoyed every minute. The great fun stuff is over now because she's already fairly proficient so I'll have to wait a couple of more years before I get another new driver to entertain me.
Eva had a great cross country season! She had some wonderful times, ran varsity at region, and became one of the fastest girls at her high school. Sadly, she wasn't able to finish the season as well as she wanted because of some severe shin splints. Vince and I have some ideas about that and we've been planning her off season training schedule. He and I are excited. Eva not so much. She's reluctant but willing because she hates her shin splints. We're going to have to give her time to heal well before she runs much but she can do some things with me in the evenings and I'm excited because I need a lifting partner!
Ethan turned 13 last week! He pretty much loves junior high. He ran for student council which involved performing a skit in front of the student body. My kids are amazing! I was so quiet/shy there was nothing that would have convinced me to get up in front of a single class in junior high and say or do much of anything. Eva and Ethan have not been afraid of anything in middle school. As an adult I still hate going to that building (any jr. high and I totally know how irrational that is)--I do not have any fond memories of middle school! He didn't get on the student council (47 kids ran for 4 positions--crazy!) but he is loving sports, art, clubs, math, and keyboarding. He even enjoyed the sewing class. He's pretty easy to please!
We have a four-day weekend this weekend and Eva and Ethan asked if I would take them and a few friends to the temple so they could do baptisms. It means 3 trips to Salt Lake in 2 days for me but who am I to argue with my kids wanting to spend their free time in the temple! They're already setting aside time to prepare names.
Ivy loves that there is 1-2 hours each Wednesday afternoon when only she and I are home. We read together or cook dinner and once we made a huge batch of cookie dough to bake and freeze. Ivy loves doing just about anything in the kitchen. Yes, I kind of think that's weird but I like to encourage it because she's very often very willing (excited even) to prepare meals, etc. She got a haircut the other week so now it's shoulder length instead of nearly to her waist. It looks adorable on her and she loves it!
Nathan loves scouts. He's a wolf now but if you ask him he will insist he's a "werewolf". I've not been able to convince him otherwise; he just tells me that I'm not a scout so I wouldn't know. I decided that was OK and I'll just tell everyone he's a werewolf--it works for both of us! :) Tonight while I was cleaning up the dinner dishes I cut myself and couldn't find a band-aid. Vince offered to get one out of the car first aid kit but before he could step out of the kitchen Nathan came in with his little first aid kit opened and was already getting an antiseptic wipe out to clean my small cut. Then he opened a band-aid, put it on my finger, and gave me a hug. It was so cute and he was so thoughtful and proud that he could take care of something and that he had a band-aid when no one else did. Very sweet!
Vince is fairly busy as our Bishop but as a family we seem to have adapted really well. Eva and Vince are often gone but the other three kids and I work together well. The hardest thing for all of us is the 3rd grade homework. It takes Nathan 1-2 hours a day to get all of his homework done. I don't have that much time to sit with him but we've found that we can work on it in the morning if Ivy helps get Nathan's lunch packed and that if Ethan, Ivy, and I work together in the afternoon/evenings we can all manage to help him and get our own things done. Last week there was one morning when Nathan didn't have as much homework to do and Ivy was running behind--he was so proud that he could make her lunch for her. He spends so much time getting help from others that he feels so happy to do something for someone else!! I think sometimes it's easy to forget the fact that we're ALL happier when we help others!
Eva had a great cross country season! She had some wonderful times, ran varsity at region, and became one of the fastest girls at her high school. Sadly, she wasn't able to finish the season as well as she wanted because of some severe shin splints. Vince and I have some ideas about that and we've been planning her off season training schedule. He and I are excited. Eva not so much. She's reluctant but willing because she hates her shin splints. We're going to have to give her time to heal well before she runs much but she can do some things with me in the evenings and I'm excited because I need a lifting partner!
Ethan turned 13 last week! He pretty much loves junior high. He ran for student council which involved performing a skit in front of the student body. My kids are amazing! I was so quiet/shy there was nothing that would have convinced me to get up in front of a single class in junior high and say or do much of anything. Eva and Ethan have not been afraid of anything in middle school. As an adult I still hate going to that building (any jr. high and I totally know how irrational that is)--I do not have any fond memories of middle school! He didn't get on the student council (47 kids ran for 4 positions--crazy!) but he is loving sports, art, clubs, math, and keyboarding. He even enjoyed the sewing class. He's pretty easy to please!
We have a four-day weekend this weekend and Eva and Ethan asked if I would take them and a few friends to the temple so they could do baptisms. It means 3 trips to Salt Lake in 2 days for me but who am I to argue with my kids wanting to spend their free time in the temple! They're already setting aside time to prepare names.
Ivy loves that there is 1-2 hours each Wednesday afternoon when only she and I are home. We read together or cook dinner and once we made a huge batch of cookie dough to bake and freeze. Ivy loves doing just about anything in the kitchen. Yes, I kind of think that's weird but I like to encourage it because she's very often very willing (excited even) to prepare meals, etc. She got a haircut the other week so now it's shoulder length instead of nearly to her waist. It looks adorable on her and she loves it!
Nathan loves scouts. He's a wolf now but if you ask him he will insist he's a "werewolf". I've not been able to convince him otherwise; he just tells me that I'm not a scout so I wouldn't know. I decided that was OK and I'll just tell everyone he's a werewolf--it works for both of us! :) Tonight while I was cleaning up the dinner dishes I cut myself and couldn't find a band-aid. Vince offered to get one out of the car first aid kit but before he could step out of the kitchen Nathan came in with his little first aid kit opened and was already getting an antiseptic wipe out to clean my small cut. Then he opened a band-aid, put it on my finger, and gave me a hug. It was so cute and he was so thoughtful and proud that he could take care of something and that he had a band-aid when no one else did. Very sweet!
Vince is fairly busy as our Bishop but as a family we seem to have adapted really well. Eva and Vince are often gone but the other three kids and I work together well. The hardest thing for all of us is the 3rd grade homework. It takes Nathan 1-2 hours a day to get all of his homework done. I don't have that much time to sit with him but we've found that we can work on it in the morning if Ivy helps get Nathan's lunch packed and that if Ethan, Ivy, and I work together in the afternoon/evenings we can all manage to help him and get our own things done. Last week there was one morning when Nathan didn't have as much homework to do and Ivy was running behind--he was so proud that he could make her lunch for her. He spends so much time getting help from others that he feels so happy to do something for someone else!! I think sometimes it's easy to forget the fact that we're ALL happier when we help others!
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