Serendipity

~ We all have one of these family pictures… you know, the one where the toddler refuses to cooperate and simply smile for the camera no matter how much coaxing or bribery you do! ;-) The moment I saw this picture on my digital camera tonight I laughed out loud… It reminded me of something I recently read in 'A Mother’s Book of Secrets' by Linda Eyre.


She wrote, “The definition of serendipity is “Through awareness and sagacity, finding something good while looking for something else. Serendipity usually happens because of a crisis or when you are least expecting it. It might be getting a great idea because of something your kids said or did. It might be taking a minute to enjoy a gorgeous sunset. It might be getting a call from a long lost friend, just when you though it was so important to accomplish something else. An annoying interruption by a child becomes an opportunity! … When you get really good at looking for serendipity, instead of rolling over in the morning with your first thought being a heavy, “What do I have to do today?” you might be able to roll over and think, “I wonder what’s going to happen to me today?”


~ This picture was my serendipity today. Instead of finding the perfect family photo on my camera, I found a priceless memory where everything was out of my control and just the way it should be.

(Christopher Creek this 4th of July weekend)

Celebrating 10 Years

Now for the sappy part... I promise to keep it short :-)


10 years ago we sat on the floor in my parents dusty attic in Utah and made a plan. We casually talked about what we wanted our future lives to be like ~ who we wanted to become ~ how to raise our 10 children-haha ~ what our home environment would be like and what we could accomplish together... Over the past 10 years I have watched as we've lived the life we planned. Yeah, we've had our share of mountains to climb along the way... and we are stronger because of them.


This man was designed to fit me perfectly... He's been the never ending supportive force behind my wild vision for our family's education, makes me laugh, gives compassion when I need it, teaches me when I am impatient, gladly takes over the children and household when I am in desperate need of ME time and is an amazing father to our 5 (not 10 :-) children... and I could not ask for more.


~ Looking forward to creating the next 10 years together :-)


We took a relaxing get-away ~ Dinner, movie and a little shopping. We stayed at the Camelback Inn JW Marriott Resort & Spa. It was quiet and relaxing with a great view and a lot of fun AZ history.

Confessions of a Converted Reader

I started collecting Children’s Literature my first year of college. Since then, I have steadily added to my Home Library each year. In the past I have been a reader of scriptures, parenting books, how-to manuals, self-help, and nutrition books.

Once in a while I would hear about those people who eat books for breakfast. Looking back, I think my dad was one of them… But, for those of you who HAVE been hearty readers your whole life… I have some catching up to do!

This past year I completed the first half of a 5 Pillar Certification Program which was created by George Wythe University. It was an inspiring and transforming experience and Wow - I believe in the power of self education! I have caught the reading bug and now “I cannot live without books” as Thomas Jefferson said.

"Because life and time are short, we will be able to read only a few thousand books in our lifetimes. When we pick any book, we are ruling out hundreds and thousands of other books. How important it is, then, to choose time-proven great books that will [uplift and transform us], and enable us to rise to greater levels of truth and beauty and insight and understanding and, hence, spirituality. Many great men and women have found that a steady, systematic approach to literature has enabled them to fill their beings, in a lifetime of good reading, with the great thoughts of men and women of all the ages, for through reading great books we are put in touch with the great minds of all time, and we become their spiritual and intellectual heirs.” George W. Pace

In the last 2 weeks, because I have a break from my 5 Pillar group, I have finished The Anatomy of Peace, listened to 3/4 of Pride and Prejudice and 1/2 of The 8th Habit by Steven Covey. I like to keep a "classic" going along with a "principle" book. I admit that I listen to the audio books of about 1/2 of what I read on my ipod and follow the actual book when I come to something I want to mark. By using audio books, I can do housework at the same time ~ gotta multi-task with a house full of 5 little ones! :)

Awareness

The last two days have been full of busy-ness and urgent things… running kids here and there, shopping, mountains of laundry… In those moments it was easy to allow my mind to see the urgent things as more important than the little people begging for my attention. I love Thursdays because it means that I can slow down and take care of the people and things in my little corner of the world.

This morning I was having our Morning Devotional with the kids and received a phone call from my mom letting me know that my grandfather had lost his battle with cancer late last night. For a few minutes I sat and pondered on his life and how he will be missed by those he left behind. I was reminded of the most important things I can be spending my time doing... grateful to have all of my children gathered around me and to be holding my usually active two year old close to me as I read scriptures to them. It was one of those joyful moments that a mother cherishes :)

Baby #5 is finally here!

Born on Friday November 7th weighing 8lbs 5oz. Here he is at 1 day old. We brought him home after 24 hours and are grateful he's so healthy! We're excited to have him join our family:-)

My Masterpiece

I have some amazingly talented friends... authors, public speakers, singers, teachers, life coaches... they have spent time developing these talents (as well as being born with them:-)  I am grateful to each of them for blessing my life with their talents!  I have pondered this weekend where I am spending my time, being reminded that JOY comes in the smallest moments of my life and that I can have it with me as often as I CHOOSE it.  From the time I was a little girl I have sensed a GREAT calling and mission, I just didn't know what FORM it would show up in! Time continues to open my eyes to one of my greatest purposes and teachers... motherhood:-)

"She who can paint a masterpiece or write a book that will influence millions deserves the admiration and plaudits of man, but she who rears. a family of beautiful sons and daughters, whose influence will be felt through generations to come, long after paintings have faded and books have been destroyed, she deserves the highest honor that man can give and the choicest blessings of God. In her high duty and service to humanity, she is co-partner with the Creator himself."

President David O. McKay

Mama On a Mission

Lately a popular topic of conversation with people is the number of children we will soon have. When my handsome husband and I are out alone, strangers often comment, "Oh, is this your first baby?" (I know, we look young)

The past few years I have felt inspired to teach my children and have strongly felt their individual purposes. Being pregnant again and not always feeling like myself has caused me to ponder even more why we bring these special spirits into this sometimes crazy world.

This morning I was reading a talk by Elder Boyd K. Packer from the 2006 Women's Conference titled 'Children of God.' He quoted the poem ..."the hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world." He goes on to say, "Now the birthrate is declining in every country in the world. In order for a nation's population to remain stable, the birthrate must be just over two children per woman of childbearing years... worldwide, the birthrate among members married in the temple is notably higher than in the world, but this rate too has been declining... we face a particular set of issues because the pool from which missionaries are drawn is in steady decline."

I never imagined I would be the mother to so many boys... but I know that there is a purpose for them to fulfill. I hope to be more aware of my own purpose in preparing them.
Who am I BEING when I am with them?
How do I speak to them?
What true/false beliefs am I teaching them through the things I choose to do with my time?
It can be a little overwhelming to think about the huge influence a mother is on her children and what they will take with them into their own future families :-)

Elder Packer concluded, "The ultimate end of all activity in the Church is that a man and his wife and their children can be happy at home, sealed together so that the family can continue throughout eternity."

Thanks for the LIFT Elder Packer :-)

It's a BOY!

No mistaking this one for a girl! It's a BOY!

Together Forever

Lately we've been working on teaching our kids Spanish... okay, so mostly my handsome husband is doing the teaching and I am learning along with the kids :) We frequently talk about other languages and cultures and to go along with that, we had an FHE lesson last night on 'Going on a Mission'. As we talked, the twins were SO excited...
One said, "I can't wait to go on a mission, I wonder where the prophet will send me!"
The other said, "Awe, we have 12 years left to wait!"
We explained that they could go at the same time to different places and teach the gospel and then watched 'Called to Serve.'
Half way through the movie one of my compassionate little guys leaned over to me with tears in his eyes and said "Do you think the prophet would decide we could go together since we are brothers and twins?"


My future missionaries on their 4th birthday...



I think it was the first time he realized they wouldn't be together 24/7 for the rest of his life. LOVE the special bond they share...

Love This Guy:)

He has been home sick now for 4 days with a 103 fever.... just a yucky virus! I have loved spending extra cuddle time with him... He often takes on the oldest child role in our family and with so many small children... he is growing up too fast!

Some things I love about him:

- He is a smart boy! He asks questions about everything all day long. He is able to grasp difficult concepts and I can't get away with sugar coating things for him:-)
- He has the cutest dimples when he smiles
- He is very creative and loves to draw, paint and create his own crafts
- He is very coordinated and loves soccer, baseball and walking on his hands
- He is always singing a song
- He is a great helper with his little brother
- He loves to plan things on paper and watch them happen. He takes his job so seriously when he is in charge of planning family outings!
- He likes to do things his own way and often comes up with a better way than what I showed him (He often teaches me the meaning of the word 'ALLOW' :-)
- He loves to be silly with his twin brother and make people laugh
- His favorite colors are green, black, white, orange and red
- One of his favorite things to do is have family dinner time with lots of food and give everyone hugs.

How do you do 5?

Yep... we are expecting number 5 the beginning of November! I always knew my max was 5, but it came really fast and now I'm wondering if I am ready???? 5 kids in 7 years! I had a sense of family completeness a few days ago and it felt really good. I am soooo sick and I have to say that I LOVE ZOFRAN!

Favorite President Hinckley Quotes

A few months ago we decided to get cable so we could have the BYU channel (& a few others :-) I have enjoyed watching the tributes to President Hinckley and feeling like I am actually there... I am so grateful for the quiet moments in my living room learning more about the life of our new prophet President Monson. I LOVE words... I learn so much through words and I hope to keep these words of our beloved President Hinckley in my heart.

"In all of living, have much fun and laughter. Life is to be enjoyed, not just endured."
"The way will be lighter, the worries will be fewer, the confrontations will be less difficult if we cultivate a spirit of happiness."
"Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds."
"The greatest need of the world is a generation of men and women of learning and influence who can and will stand up and go forth and, in sincerity and without equivocation, declare that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ and that all men are brothers, with an obligation to serve one another."
"Reach out to help one another. All of us need help from time to time. We need encouragement. We need friends who will stand by us through thick and thin. I ask each of you to be that kind of friend."
“…we will be a better people, we will be better fathers and husbands, we will be better wives and mothers. I make you a promise that if you will go to the house of the Lord, you will be blessed, life will be better for you.”
"Parents, work at the matter of creating an exciting atmosphere in your homes. Let your children be exposed to great minds, great ideas, everlasting truth, and those things which will build and motivate for good."
Gordon B. Hinckley

Boys Boys Boys

Some moments I wonder if I will ever survive these CRAZY boys! The next moment I laugh and remember what they are here to teach me! I'm sure that many of you with boys will agree that there is something about having boys close together that creates a louder home :-) This is what I found them doing downstairs... playing baseball in their batman slippers, race car suits and bike helments!

How You Live

Last year was a HUGE refining year for me and I am so grateful for all that I learned. It is worth more to me than my college education because I am at peace with myself and (almost) every person and thing I am connected to.
Joy is the BEST feeling that comes during the small simple moments of the day. I can’t have it every minute of every day, but I can have the mentality that ‘Perfect’ is right where I am right NOW in this moment.

I LOVE this song. It is called How You Live Enjoy!

(You'll need to pause the music at the bottom of the page :-)


Wear your red dress, use your good dishes
Make a big mess and make lots of wishes
Have what you want and want what you have
And don’t spend your life looking back…
Don’t run from the truth because you can’t get away
Just face it and you’ll be okay…
Wherever you are and wherever you’ve been
Now is the time to begin…
Make peace with God and make peace with yourself
Cause in the end there is nobody else…

Cause you won’t regret it
Looking back to where you have been…
It’s not who you knew
And it’s not what you did
It’s how you lived…

Clean or Keep or Both?

I confess that I've been known to be obsessed with my house being in order, not perfectly clean... I just need to be able to find things in 1 minute or less. With 4 small children, I don't have time to search for things!!!

So this weekend was a little CRAZY and I've been thinking a lot about JOY. Sometimes I forget that it is my job to CREATE it in the chaos of everyday living. I was looking through A Joyful Mother of Children by Linda Eyre and this stood out to me:

"He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord." Psalms

"...to keep house means more than working with Windex and Pledge. To me it means building an atmosphere at home where husband and kids want to be, where they like bringing their friends, where memories are made, and where they can be inspired to fulfill their dreams. The word barren in the dictionary has an enormous list of synonyms including deficient, depleted, bleak, empty, exhausted, harsh, hopeless, simple, unproductive, vain, without and wanting..." So,

"He maketh the barren (depleted, exhausted) woman to keep house (create a nourishing place for a family to live and love) and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord."


(Thanks for the picture Kasey :-)
So, maybe this week when the cleaning and organizing has to be done, I will think of keeping house, creating joy, building an atmosphere and inspiring my husband and children! (We'll see how it goes?? :-)

Defenders of the Family

Any Thoughts On This? (It's Long... I Know :-)
Taken from President Gordon B. Hinckley Standing For Something

“The health of any society, the happiness of its people, their prosperity and peace, all find their roots in the strength and stability of the family…We cannot effect a turnaround in a day or a month or a year. But with enough effort, we can begin a turnaround within a generation, and accomplish wonders within two generations- a period of time that is not very long in the history of humanity.”

10 Specific things we might do to help bring about such a turnaround:
1. Accept responsibility for our role as parents and fulfill our obligations to our children.
2. Get married and stay married.
3. Put the father back at the head of the home.
4. Recognize and value the supreme importance of mother.
5. Celebrate and treat children as our most priceless treasures.
6. Discipline and train children with love.
7. Teach values to children.
8. Teach children to work.
9. Read to and with children.
10. Pray together.

Aside from the tremendous importance we have as mothers in nurturing and teaching our children in our homes, we also have a responsibility to be a voice. The time and season to be a voice will come at different times and in different ways for all of us. I am just beginning my journey of becoming more aware of these issues and becoming a voice, even if it is only receiving weekly emails, reading articles from my computer, voting and signing petitions for the things I feel will affect my children’s future.
Sarah Brooks

United Families International is a public charity devoted to maintaining and strengthening the family as the fundamental unit of society.
Websites: www.unitedfamilies.org

“Truly, as women who care about our families in particular and about the family in general, as mothers and wives, grandmothers and sisters and aunts, we no longer have the luxury of standing by and watching what is happening all around us. It is time to stand up and be counted. The time has come to stand up, to defend, and to protect the family.”
Sheri Dew No One Can Take Your Place, Defenders of the Family

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Through You I Can Become More...

Good Sunday

I LOVE this quote by Parley P Pratt:

The Spirit "quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands, and purifies all the natural passions and affections, and adapts them, by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires, develops, cultivates, and matures all the fine-toned sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings, and affections of our nature. It inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness, and charity. It develops beauty of person, form, and features. It tends to health, vigor, animation, and social feeling. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man. It strengthens and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being."