Dear Dad.....

Dear Dad,

I have some good news...and some bad news...

Good News:  This weekend on my fun trip with friends to Fredericksburg (a darling little town!) I found a store that sells one of your favorite treats for just $.10 each!  The moment I saw the candies I remembered that you love them and grabbed a few to bring home and surprise you with.  I'd either send them to you in a cute package, or maybe have them here for you when you come visit this fall.

Bad News:  You have managed to pass down another genetic quality to one of your awesome offspring - your oldest daughter might also have a love affair with Walnettos candies.

Good News:  I now know where to get some more, and hopfully I'll make another trip before I see you next.  Sorry about that...

Love, Your greedy daughter....

Law of Chastity FHE Lessons

I have been working on my Relief Society Lesson for this month - Lesson #39 - The Law of Chastity.  Here are some links that I'm sharing that go along with the theme that can help families teach these same principles in Family Home Evening:

•  LDS FHE Lesson Manual - Chastity:  http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=4049be335dc20110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=198bf4b13819d110VgnVCM1000003a94610aRCRD
• Procreation and Chastity:  http://lds.org/hf/library/1,16866,4266-1,00.html?LibraryURL=/lds/hf/display
• Our Sacred bodies – Chastity, Modesty, and Morality:  http://thatgoodpart.wordpress.com/2010/08/31/family-home-evening-lesson-our-sacred-bodies-chastity-modesty-and-morality/
• Our Bodies are Sacred:  http://ayearoffhe.blogspot.com/search/label/Modesty
• Young Women Value - Integrity - https://lds.org/young-women/personal-progress/virtue?lang=eng
• Talk:  Guardians of Virtue - http://lds.org/general-conference/2011/04/guardians-of-virtue?lang=eng
• A Parent's Guide (this is an excellent guide to teaching our children at all different ages):  http://lds.org/manual/a-parents-guide?lang=eng
   

This lesson was very hard for me to prepare.  I literally spent most of the week - any chance I had to prepare for it. As I read our prophet's teachings, the scriptures, personal experiences and commandments the spirit whispered to me that THIS was vital.  This lesson and message - to keep our bodies clean and pure is of the utmost importance.  I MUST teach my children and prepare them for what Satan is going to throw their way.  I felt almost a heaviness and a scariness in that....but I know that I have a responsibilty to them.  I loved this quote I found in A Parent's Guide that changed the way I viewed what I am teaching my children:

"You are not simply caring for your children until they can leave home - you are training infinitely precious children of God to someday be worthy to receive all that the Father has."

(source- "A Parent’s Guide")

I also found a renewed energy in myself to live a virtuous and chaste life.  I have seen the blessings that come from following these commandments as well as the sorrow that results from not obeying the strictness of the law.  I've watched families and individuals fall away from truth as they've allowed Satan a place in their lives and his temptations into their hearts.  I loved the scriptures in the lesson that talked about how the Lord will not let us be tempted above that which we are able to handle.  He will prepare a way for us to escape if we will cling to the truth of the gospel.

I have a testimony of chaste and virtuous living.  I know that in living a life within these bounds that our marriages and families can prepare to be together through eternity and for that I am so grateful!

One of my favorite scriptures

I was sending an email to a friend and felt impressed to share this scripture.  It is one of my very favorite scriptures in the world and has helped to teach me in many instances in my life.

Mosiah 24: 10-16

• 10 And it came to pass that so great were their afflictions that they began to cry mightily to God.
• 11 And Amulon commanded them that they should stop their cries; and he ^aput guards over them to watch them, that whosoever should be found calling upon God should be put to death.
• 12 And Alma and his people did not raise their voices to the Lord their God, but did pour out their ^ahearts to him; and he did know the ^bthoughts of their hearts.
  13 And it ^acame to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.
• 14 And I will also ease the ^aburdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as ^bwitnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their ^cafflictions.
• 15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did ^astrengthen them that they could bear up their ^bburdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with ^cpatience to all the will of the Lord.
• 16 And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage.

 Specifically where they are told that the Lord will ease the burdens on their back - even so they cannot feel them. We often want the Lord to take away our burdens - make it all just go away and work out perfectly. Too often it doesn't work that way though, and the real lesson is submitting to His will and letting him carry us, as well as our burdens. I KNOW through times in my life that my burdens haven't gone away, but that I haven't carried them on my own. My own back has been strengthened and my ability to carry the burdens has been made possible by the help of my Heavenly Father.  I find such comfort in that message of peace and love.

Science Fun!

(oops - I don't have my pictures right here....I'll post those later).

The boys LOVE to do "science experiments" - or "kitchen science experiments" with me.  Gabe asks all the time.  Gabe's idea of a science experiment is anything that you mix together and it makes a mess.  I guess in some ways he's right.  So when I asked what some of the things they wanted to do before school started next week were - their loud reply was to do a "Science Day!"  Since we were having some friends over to play today I figured we'd mix up the play-time with some science fun too. 

I looked over the web and asked some friends for some ideas.  I didn't want to spend a bunch of money, make anything dangerous, or make messes I couldn't clean up with soap and water.  (What can I say - I'm kind of a mean mom in that department....)  I didn't have the aim of teaching the boys much - but wanted to have a little explaination of why the experiments turned out how they did - trying to teach them something acidentally.  So I looked for some ideas on Pintrest, other friends blogs and asked friends on Facebook for their suggestions.  Here's what we did:

GAK/FLUBBER
This was by far the most popular.  Putting it together I'll be honest - it looked like boogers/snot and kind of grossed us all out.  But after we kneaded it together more and more we had fun with it!  I'd love to try it again with clear glue - we used white.  I think I'll go stock up on some bottles of glue while school supplies are on sale still.

DANCING SPAGHETTI
This wasn't overly spectacular, but the kids all giggled and thought the dancing spaghetti were funny.

HOMEMADE LAVA LAMP
We did this over and over again - adding more salt each time.  It was cool to watch!

MAGIC INFLATING BALLOON
I want to remember this one to do for a science fair someday - it was fun.  I pulled the balloon off because it looked like it was about to explode and I was afraid of the mess it could have made....next time I'll use a larger balloon.

MAGIC MILK COLORS
We did it differently than this - and it didn't work out.  I think if we do it again we'll use this exact tutorial.


MORE FUN LOOKING IDEAS:
Dancing Oobleck
Ivory Soap Experiment
Diet Coke + Mentos
Websites with lots of ideas
Glow in the dark food!
Edible peanutbutter playdoh
Incredible bouncing egg (my own personal Kindergarten science project!)

Stay little just a while longer....

Tonight I was anxious to get my kids to bed.  We've had several busy weeks recently with a trip to Utah, YW camp, cousins visiting last week, and now some 2nd cousins visiting this weekend. It seems like our house might not ever be clean again, I doubt I'll ever "catch up" with laundry, and the idea of actual quiet for a few hours seems like a mirage - something I might not ever actually reach or realize...I was excited to get my kids to bed and hopefully have the cousins fall asleep fairly soon too so we could have a quiet hour or 2 before going to bed ourselves.

So when Gabe asked me to lay with him for a little while and rub his back my first response was to say no, he needed to go to sleep on his own and I needed some "quiet time".  But as I kissed his sweet cheek and started to tell him no I suddenly had a flash.  I had a small glimpse of him 10 years from now.  He'd be 16 years old and definitely not wanting me around to tuck him in - much less lay with him listening to night time music and scratching his back.  It was as if a little voice almost whispered, "Stop, stop for a moment and enjoy being with your sweet little boy.  These moments will come less often as the years go by."

My heart kind of broke for a moment as I realized it was true - my kids wouldn't be little forever.  It would be a very short time and they wouldn't want to snuggle with me, have their backs scratched or hear me sing them to sleep.  Before I know it I'll be begging them to let me read them stories before bed, or feeling sad that they don't want to go on "mommy dates". 

So I snuggled with my little guy for a few minutes.  Tonight he chose to listen to some soft Christmas music to help him fall asleep - (Peter Brienholt's "Noel") and as I snuck out of his room our favorite song from the album "Silent Night" came on.  I know it's August and for the most part I don't agree with listening to Christmas music - but that song made me stop in my tracks for the 2nd time in a matter of minutes.  In that moment I thought of our sweet Savior and His relationship with His mother Mary.  I thought about her swaddling that sweet little baby, holding Him close to her and knowing that in a matter of years He would be the Savior of the world.  I can't imagine as she knew parts of what He would undergo as He taught the world, as He atoned for our sins and as He was crucified for us so that we can live again.  Those tender moments between mother and son....a tender glimpse I would have loved to get a small peek of.  I imagine that her love for her son was similar to the love I have for my sweet boys - so amazing it's hard to put into words exactly.

As frustrating as it can be at times to be a mother to rambunctious children, I really wouldn't have it any other way - I love those boys!

Scrapbook Layouts

I haven't had as much time (or creative energy) as I'd like to scrapbook lately, but here are a few of the layouts I've done in the last while.  This has been over the last couple of months - so don't think I've been just sitting around lately scrapbooking :)

We Give Books

We LOVE reading at our house.  My boys love reading picture books, Hunter loves pretending that he knows the words to Dora the Explorer books (I love hearing him do his own version of sounding out each word - saying it extra slow like we do when I help Gabe sound a word out), they love having me read chapter books to them like Ramona and Beezus, Harry Potter, The Boxcar Children, etc.  I enjoy reading mindless fiction and Cory's a fan of self help and personal improvement books.

Recently we've been working on our summer reading programs from the local libraries.  The boys have earned all kinds of treats and goodies by reading through the summer - ice cream cones, light up magnets, kids meals from various restaurants, book marks, face paint, pizza - it's crazy all the goodies they're earning.  But it's fun to have a goal to read towards too.

I had a friend from our ward send me a link to a really great site that lets you read great books online while you are helping literacy charaties - http://www.wegivebooks.org/dashboard.  My boys are actually clamoring right now to read a few books on the computer with me, so it interests them, makes me happy to see them excited about reading, AND for every book we read this charity will donate a book to the literacy charity of our choice.  Awesome huh?  So check out the site and maybe some of your children's summer reading can be for a good cause!

Family Responsibilities & FHE Lesson

I have the opportunity to teach Relief Society in my ward once a month.  I LOVE this calling!  After years and years in Primary and Young Women (which I also love) I was excited that once we moved to Texas I got called to be in the Relief Society!  I love getting to teach because it gives me an extra opprotunity to learn.  I know that each lesson has something important in it for me to learn specifically and I feel blessed to study and learn these things. 

This month's lesson I was assigned was Lesson #37 on Family Responsibility.  We played a little game (because I think I'm actually still a kid at heart) where we discussed different family responsibilities - the parents, mother, father, and children's responsibilities as members of the family.  I thought it was kind of fun :)

But as I learned more about the distinct roles of family members I was led over and over to the Family:  A Proclamation to the World.  How grateful I am for our inspired church leaders who knew we as church members - and ultimately the WORLD would need to understand the importance and sanctity of family.  Family is such a vital part of society and I am grateful to belong to a church that emphasizes this and teaches us the importance of it.  What a blessing!!

Here are a couple of Family Home Evening (FHE) Lessons that could be taught using the theme of the Family:

• I loved the idea of a YW activity that used a copy of the Proclamation and the YW values.  They had the YW color code their copy of the Proclamation using the YW value colors.  It really helps to reiterate to the YW that the values they learn each week are intertwined in all aspects of our lives.  You can find this activity here.
• Great lesson for a family with kids from the website: www.ayearoffhe.blogspot.com - Week 14:  A Proclamation to the World
• Lesson from Deseret Book about families.

And here are some GREAT resources for other FHE lesson ideas:

• The LDS Church's website - this site has wonderful resources and links to the church's material. Also, some great reminders of why FHE is important.
• A Year of Family Home Evening Lessons - WOW!  This site has AWESOME resources!  Each week there is a new lesson, great printables, great layout - LOVE this site!
• LDS Living - There are literally HUNDREDS of lessons on this website for FHE lessons - almost any topic you can imagine!
• Scriptures for Kids - This resource has simpilfied lessons.  I really liked the ones I found that related to the themes of the Primary each month.  A great way to reiterate what they're learning in Primary already.
• Living Scriptures FHE Lessons - This site has so many great lessons!!!  Most of the lessons have things from the Living Scriptures animated dvds/videos that you can relate - but the lessons have lots of other pertinent information in them.  Plus - a lot of them have exerpts from the videos online that you can use in the lessons!
• Living Scriptures Activity Books - If you have ever purchased dvd's or videos from Living Scriptures you might have also ordered their coloring or activity books. They have books that go along with the stories that the kids are learning to help strengthen the things the children are learning.  Well, they are now available online!  That's right - you can print out your own copies.  Simply create your own account (for free) on their website and you are elligible to download the books.  Then you download them as PDF files and you can print them for your own non-commercial use.  It's awesome!
• The Family Home Evening Spot
• LDS Splash
• Family Home Evening in a Snap
• 100+ Quick and Easy FHE Ideas

(**I have added the game to upload if you are interested.  Click HERE for the game board pieces and click HERE for the questions for the game.)

Happy 4th of July

Cars 2 - Two Thumbs UP!

We went to see Cars 2 this morning - first showing on opening day.  I noticed that the theater had discount tickets for the "Early Bird showing" - the first matinee of the day @ 9:40 am.  Since movie tickets for the whole family can be pricey (in fact, we've kind of quit going to movies because tickets are SO expensive!) we decided to brave the opening day crowds.  I thought it would be crazy busy but we lucked out!  We were one of the first ones in the theater and got our favorite seats. (We always like to sit on the front row of the upper section - the row that doesn't have seats in front of it, but has a railing we can prop our feet up on.)  The movie was exciting, adventurous, cute, funny - a definite winner!

Gabe review of the movie: "I like it better than number one.  I like the new people.  I like the weapons.  It's cool.  It's mostly for boys.  They had disguises.  They had rocket boosters and one of the disguises was a taco truck. At the beginning there was a car that was in a dangerous place and he got crushed into a box by the bad guys. You should go see it - it's one of the best Disney movies ever!"

PAIN

I took a barbell weight lifting class today at the gym.  As happens often when I exercise I learned a little bit along the way.  The teacher (who does a great job inspiring just by the great shape she is in!) was talking us through a tough set of lifts and she was talking about pain.  She said something to the effect that the pain or muscle fatigue wasn't telling us to stop - it was telling us that change was on the way. She said, "I know you want that change, and that's why I'm here - to help you find your way to the changes you're looking for."  As she said this I swear she was looking right in my eyes....it was powerful. Change comes after we do the work, change comes often after the pain.

Think of the times in your life when you've felt pain and you've wanted more than anything for the pain to stop.  You wish it would just go away and you could go on in your life like you had before.  But guess what?  There is generally something better on that other side of the pain - a new version of you, a change.  Sometimes the change is good, sometimes it leads us to more pain and even more change than we had bargained for - but in my experience the pain almost always leads us to something better in the end.

The pain from the blisters after a long run - brings changes and calluses that help you run even further next time.  Not only that, but I love the feeling of putting on a pair of flip-flops after a long run and letting my feet breathe - it's a refreshing feeling I wouldn't fully appreciate without that momentary pain.

The pain from the loss of a relationship, or pain from friendships that might be in a troubling spot - help us to learn how to be a better friend or companion.  Those moments of pain give us eternal insights into relationships and ways that we can change into the companion we are looking for.

Pain from a tough workout gives us new muscles, give us new limits and gives us a new confidence we didn't realize we had before picking up those dumbells. 

Without pushing ourselves we won't change, we won't move forward.  Rarely is the destination we really want to be at a downhill course.  I believe more often than not it's up a sheer cliff that requires more muscle, more determination and more will than we normally realize at the beginning of our climb.

So think of the area in your life that you're feeling pain and then look a little further - does it bring with it the opprotunity for change in your life?  If so, look at those opprotunties and get a move on - change is good.

Little Visitor

I ran in from the garage tonight to head upstairs.  I glanced down on the floor and saw a little carpet piece on the wood floor (you know - just one of the fibers that had come loose?).  It looked like it moved - like from a little breeze from the fan - but then it kept moving - all across the floor!!!  That's when I realized that not only was there a little piece of carpet fiber, but there was a TINY lizard scurrying across the floor.  My screaming for Cory to come catch it scared the little thing and he froze in place for a minute.  Then when Cory came to rescue me (and might I add - it's a good thing I wasn't actually in danger, because Cory wasn't moving very fast....!) he started jumping all over the place, running around and being nuts.  It was SO small and so cute - but makes me a bit nervous that it was in my HOUSE!  I'm curious if there are other creepy crawlies hiding around the place....

So we caught it and let it go out in our bushes.  Hope he decides to stay there and not wander back into the house. 

Where we were yesterday...

So remember my goal to post a blog post once a day for the month?  Oops...yesterday I didn't get it done.  But I have a pretty good excuse - it was my birthday!  We celebrated with a little road trip (that didn't quite work out....more on that later....) and Cory and I had a nice dinner together in the evening while the boys got a babysitter.  Everyone was happy with that! (My boys LOVE babysitters!)

We also enjoyed a DELICIOUS bundt cake from "Nothing Bundt Cakes" - lemon with cream cheese frosting.  I can't believe I'm saying it....but it actually had too much frosting on it.  But I got over it :)  They make great cakes!

Thanks guys - here's hoping I'm not only another year older but wiser too.

Caramel Popcorn Recipe

I have recently had several people request this recipe so I thought it would be a good one to have posted on my blog.  It's a DELICIOUS crunchy recipe that my Mama Rhien makes.  I'm warning you though - it's highly addictive, so watchout!

Caramel Popcorn

·         5 quarts of popped popcorn

·         1 cup butter

·         2 cups brown sugar

·         1/2 cup Light Karo Syrup

·         1/2 tsp salt

·         1/2 tsp baking soda

·         1/2 tsp vanilla

Pop popcorn and take out any of the duds (so you don't break a tooth). Mix butter, sugar, syrup and salt and cook until boiling. Boil for 5 minutes. Pour over popcorn and stir to coat evenly. Place in an oven-proof pan and bake at 250 degrees for one hour - stirring every 15 minutes. After one hour pour popcorn out onto wax paper, tin foil or cookie sheets until cool. Break apart and enjoy!

(My notes: I used more than 5 quarts of popcorn. It didn't' seem like 5 quarts was enough. I also doubled the recipe each time I made it and cooked the popcorn in my large roasting pan - it worked great.)

Happy Birthday to one of my oldest and dearest friends

When I was in 2nd grade I met my best friend Tami Jewkes.  She had long dark hair, the sweetest disposition and I knew right away that we were going to be friends for a long time.  However, after a year in Mrs. Houser's class in 2nd grade they split our school and we'd be going to different schools for 3rd grade!  It was devastating, but we still played together all the time and kept our friendship going strong.  However, in 4th grade my family moved to Orem and chances of us seeing each other all the time seemed slim....BUT - we managed!  We'd spend long weekends together, meet 1/2 way to swap off where we stayed.  I went camping, hunting and on trips to Lake Powell or Green River with her family.  I LOVED the times we'd go on trips together!  We managed to stay great friends through college, we had our first babies within a week of each other and I love that we have facebook and email to keep up with each other.

One of my favorite things about Tami and my friendship was that our birthdays were just 2 days apart.  We had several birthady celebrations together and I remember getting matching pajamas one year for our birthdays.  (we also had miniature ones for our "My Child" dolls).  So when our birthday week comes up it makes me happy to know I get to celebrate it with one of the greatest girls there is!

This year Tami is doing something I'm SOOOOO proud of her for doing!  She's going to be running in the Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay!!!  I wish like heck that I could be there to cheer her on and to give her a huge hug at the end.  Having her come cheer me on at the Top of Utah 1/2 Marathon this past summer was one of the greatest things ever and I wish I could return the favor.  So good luck sweet friend, I can't wait till January when we do get to run together!  (YAY!)



I LOVED that I stumbled on this quote.  When we were in Jr. High Tami gave me a little tiny frame
with this same picture in it and I saved it all these years.  Love that girl!

Thinking about.....

...getting to see our Ellis family relatives at the end of July for Coby & Teah's wedding.

...enjoyed a great dinner out with girlfriends tonight to celebrate my friend Lisa's b'days. Love those girls!!!

...wow it felt hot today. The temp on my car said 104. Blech! And on that note, the van Cory drives for work's airconditioner doesn't work. Poor guy.

...I need to get a new pillow. I keep waking up with horrible headaches - I wonder if that's why?

...My hubby is so handy & talented. He's been helping a friend put a wood floor in her new yoga studio. He rocks.

...baby shower tomorrow night for a cute friend and a birthday party for a 2nd cousin in the morning. Yay, celebrating rocks!!!

Quotes

I love browsing through blogs/pintrest/etc for cool quotes.  I especially love when I find the PERFECT one for the PERFECT moment.  Here are some great ones I found recently and thought were great.  And if you like to browse for fun (AND fun looking) quotes check out this link. 

Summertime = Swimming Time

Apparently summertime in Texas is synomonous with swimming time and we're loving it!  From the local community pool, friend's neighborhood pools, the gym pool - we're going to swim all summer long.  It does get exhausting, but we're having fun too. 



Love This Girl!

I hope this doesn't come across that I have "favorites" (because I don't) - but I just want to say I just LOVE my sister-in-law Kori!  I just got off of chatting with her on facebook chat this afternoon and I just had that warm fuzzy feeling that reminds me that I have awesome people in my life.  You know the way you feel after being with a great friend and you want to say a quick little prayer to thank Heavenly Father for putting amazing people in your path?  Yeah - that feeling!

Kori is married to my husband Cory's little brother Chase.  Chase is a totally awesome guy too - and the two of them as a couple, and as parents to their darling kids - they rock!  Today Kori asked me if my husband had any funny towel habits (leaving wet washcloths puddled up in the sink, wiping weird things on the hand towels, etc).  She said that her husband did, but it was the ONLY thing that he did that drove her nuts.  I commented that for that to be the ONLY thing he did wrong was pretty amazing and awesome.  And know what?  She was serious!  She and Chase are so in love with each other - so cute and ooey-gooey with each other - it's darling!

Kori is an AWESOME mom too. She has 2 of the cutest little kids in the world and it just about breaks my heart when I look at their pictures and wish we lived closer.  Wish we got to spend birthdays together, celebrate more holidays together and just be regular participants in each others lives....

But since she's across the country in Indiana I'll have to settle on chatting on facebook, emails, ocasional phone calls (she totally gets that I'm not a phone person either - it's hard for both of us with 2 small kids!).  I'll be grateful for her understanding heart and good example to me.

Love you Kori!!!

(and sorry I stole these pictures from your Facebook page....)