May Photos
Happy Mother’s Day! Check out the latest pictures of your grandkids, cousins, and friends!
Read MoreHere It Goes Again… and Again… and Again
In order to fully appreciate this post, you must watch these videos in order. First is the song by OK Go “Here It Goes Again.” How did they come up with this? Who would think to choreograph a video with treadmills!
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv5zWaTEVkI
Now watch these high school guys do the song for their school talent show. They must have practiced a million times!:
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gq7r3F1SoX0
And finally, a side by side comparison of the two videos. Pretty impressive!
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6STO7TCFik
Read MoreBeliefs
At church today our Sunday School teacher told about a church near where he works that’s title is “Ex-Mormon Church of …”. I thought this was fascinating, and started wondering why people would put “Ex-Mormon” in the name for their church. What was even more interesting to me was that 95% of the membership never had been members of the Mormon church at all. They just thought that the idea of being against the Mormons was appealing. Our teacher talked with one such member and asked him what their church believes to which the man answered something like,
“Joseph Smith was not…”
-No, what do you believe?-
“The Book of Mormon is not…”
–What do you believe?-
The man could not seem to answer my friend’s question because of his focus on what he didn’t believe. I am so grateful that I know what I believe in: We are children of a loving Heavenly Father, who wants us to be happy. One of my favorite quotes is by Joseph Smith and he said, “Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God.” I truly believe that and believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the source of true happiness. Our purpose is not to create a Utopia, but a Zion. Zion is any place where there are the pure in heart. Not the perfect, but those with a sincere love of God and of their fellow beings.
For me it all boils down to a scripture from the Bible in Luke 6:43-44: “For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.” In a church that currently has almost 13 million members each with their own ideas and personalities, I think we have an incredible track record for doing good. This is comforting to me when I hear criticism of individuals within the church because I know that the gospel is still true in spite of the imperfections of the people within it, and that it is a force for good.
Russel M Nelson gave an example of this in 2004 that I really like:
“Our religion is known by the fruit of its branches. Recently I met with government officials from a land far from here who were deeply impressed with the Church and its efforts throughout the world. They liked our teachings about the family and wanted copies of our proclamation to the world and guidebooks for family home evening. They wanted to know more about our welfare program and humanitarian help. We complied as we could and then shifted attention from what we do to why we do it. I explained with an analogy to a tree. “You are attracted by various fruits of our faith,” I said. “They are plentiful and powerful. But you cannot savor this fruit unless you know the tree that produces it. And you cannot understand the tree unless you comprehend its roots. With our religion, you cannot have the fruits without the roots.”
Read MoreCalling All First Grade Girls
Top-Secret Personal Beeswax: A Journal by Junie B. (And Me!) is a book that Emma just loves. There is a whole series of Junie B. books that the kids really relate to because “she” thinks a lot like they do. I discovered this book when my friend Mary and her daughter Ashley were telling me how much they liked it, and how Emma would love it too. I thought they were right and gave the book to Emma for Christmas. It is still one of her favorites. Inside are entries with a page that “Junie B.” wrote, and on the next page is a space for Emma to write what she thinks. There are also entries for artwork and your favorite jokes and nicknames. Junie B. lists her favorite food as Fruit Loops—the kids get a laugh out of that one every time. Emma took a wallet sized school picture and cut out her face which we taped on the front cover and it looks so cute. Emma loves to write in it, and I think she has finished filling in the pages, but I still catch her erasing and rewriting entries. Either she has changed her mind or figured a better way to write it, I’m not sure. I think it is the perfect way to get kids to write about who they are and get some confidence in expressing themselves. With Junie B’s entry there too, it gets them thinking about clever answers, not just a bland yes or no. Highly recommended!
Preschool Twister
A few times we have played a family game of Twister as a fun activity. The kids all laugh and it is a silly game that makes us happy. The other day Hannah wanted to play it, and we had more fun than I expected. It turned out to be a nice teaching tool too. She loved putting her hands and feet on the colored dots as I called out, “put your hand on green, put your foot on red…” We’re not quite to rights and lefts yet, but what a fun way for her to practice her colors, her coordination, and get a little bit of exercise. It can be kind of like yoga with all of the stretching in crazy poses, right? Hannah and I took turns and she loved telling me what to do too. Sabrina had a blast slapping the mat and laughing as she crawled around. Who would have guessed Twister would be not only fun, but have a teaching purpose too?
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