Gentle Reminders.....

It has been busy....nothing new there.  

The pictures will prove it.  They are almost hard to look at for the full content.

This is what happens if I get behind and wait several days to blog....also I start to forget what happens from one day to the next.

I guess I am mostly writing this post for me then....

so I don't forget.

The Feast!

I had a very fun time with McCauley at the big parent lunch/book fair day last week.

I will say, I was surprised to see many cooks and staff bustling around behind the counter on this day.

Does this not look MAGNIFICENT??

I was loving life with this early Thanksgiving meal.

My tray was clean when the lunch bell rang.

McCauley is a huge fan of her schools cup cakes....so I had to get one to try.....not to shabby.

She is on a restricted plan now though...one cupcake per week.

(there is always a desert included w/ purchased lunches....

the c cakes are .50 additional so it is not an everyday event.)

I was sooooo glad I went....only three children did not have a parent show up....they were wisked away back to the room w/ the teacher.

Scouting For Food

Every year this is a really fun event for the boys.  One Saturday they go and place the bags, the next they go and gather any bags of food that have been left out.

A great Service, and Big Time fun.

Brother Wilson always brings doughnuts and water bottles.

I am usually one of the drivers, me and M hang out in the car.  

Sometimes she heads out to take part in the action.

After the placement of bags, the gang comes to our place for the
Founders Day Parade

(the sound works for once!  pause the music, and listen.  I LOVE band music don't you?)
....it goes right by our house.
The candy they get is unbelievable!

Cub Scout Pack Meeting

We have a great group of boys,
and leaders!

Never Ending Science Projects

I want to say here and now that Kevin is the 

BEST HOMEWORK HELPER ON THE PLANET!!

This guy is All In!

Occasionally I may give Kevin a hard time on my blog...

....but I think he knows, as well as anyone who reads it, 

that it would sure be boring with out him being included....

Since the beginning of public school Kev has been hands on with the kids and their assignments.

Thank you my dear, as you know, Science is not my thang.

This is what I came home to last night.  It was after 9:00 pm.

Ethan's DNA project.

He seemed a little concerned...do you like it??  Does it look good??

Yes.  Yes I do.  Indeed it does look amazing.

(styrofoam balls are a HUGE rip off!)

Lawson's Buoyancy Experiment 

He has been diligent in weighing them every 8 - 10 hours....and keeping track of the data.

Don't forget the baseball..... three or four days per week for both R and E....go, go, go...

My little 6 year old lady.

My tiny little dream girl.

Our only daughter had a question for me a few Saturdays ago.....

We were at the church, bustling about, the boys were still on their hunting trip with Kevin.

We were heading back down the hall, we had just gotten the journal and baptism blanket for the young boy whose baptism we were there to attend.

She said, mom, What would happen if I marry someone who is not like us?

My heart skips a few beats...

I mean, someone who is not....ya know....a "saint".

I said, you mean someone that is not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints?

Yeah.

No....no, you would never want to do that because if you did you would not be able to be sealed together in the temple for time and all Eternity.

She raises her shoulders and says....So.

I was blind sided.

I was looking at a teenage young woman.

Is my time up that quickly?

Have I squandered it all away?  

This beloved daughter is very unclear on the blessings of the temple in her own life.  

It is obvious she does not see the blessings of the temple in the life of her family.  

And most importantly it is not apparent that she will be missing a single thing in her own marriage by not marring in the temple.

Time stands still.....no it goes speeding by far too quickly.

What have we been doing besides the mindless daily drivel that keeps us running 24/7?

ARE WE TEACHING OUR CHILDREN THE MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE OF ALL?

it is clear we are not there yet.

I have been brought down.

 I have been made aware by a simple question.

One that I know was prompted by a loving Father.

 A Gentle Reminder.....a nudge in the right direction.

This is far more effective than a red hot poker.

An unsolicited wake up call.... 

It just so happens that the very next day I was to instruct the primary children on the blessings of the temple.  I have a feeling that he was not appreciating the casual attitude I had taken in my preparation.

My planning took a major turn and became very personal, very heartfelt, very quickly.

A few weeks back we had gotten our October issue of the Ensign.

It was a special Temple issue....I remember getting it, seeing that is was all about temples.  

I was like, hmmmm, that's nice..... literally raising my shoulders,   

and setting it aside, with no real intentions of delving into it much.

Been there done that....was my overall attitude.

Things have a way of coming back don't they?

I am getting the priceless message.

My recent gift.

I have read this beloved issue....almost...cover to cover....it will happen...first time ever.

Now to put the words into action.

Kev and I are making strides, making a point of talking more of the temple with our kids,
including our thanks for them in our prayers, FHE focus...etc.
it is good.

Having a temple recommend, and being worthy is great, but it won't do me or my family any good if we never speak of the temple or make attending a priority in our life.

The day after M's question, like I said, I was teaching sharing time.  

I got out our wedding album....sad as it is.  It had been stuffed way back in a dark corner of a closet.

During sacrament M scanned, and ooooed and awwwwed the beautiful pictures

of Kev and I's glorious day at the Salt Lake City Temple.

She loved this one....why is dad jumping?

Because I was so excited to be sealed to your mom for time and all eternity!!

McCauley kept saying she didn't know it was so beautiful at the temple.

Yes, nothing is more beautiful and special.

(two of these are at the Joseph Smith Memorial building)

One of the talks that struck me the most was 

Blessings of the Temple, by President Thomas S. Monson

How far is heaven?

It’s not very far.

In temples of God,

It’s right where we are.

The Lord said:

“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

“But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

The temple is for families, one of the greatest treasures we have in mortality.

The late Elder Matthew Cowley, who was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, once recounted the Saturday afternoon experience of a grandfather as hand in hand he took his small granddaughter on a birthday visit—not to the zoo or to the movies but to the temple grounds. With permission of the groundskeeper, the two walked to the large doors of the temple. He suggested that she place her hand on the sturdy wall and then on the massive door. Tenderly he then said to her, “Remember that this day you touched the temple. One day you will go inside.” His gift to the little one was not candy or ice cream but an experience far more significant and everlasting—an appreciation of the house of the Lord. She had touched the temple, and the temple had touched her.

It is easy not to go to the temple. 

It will never be convenient.  

The perfect time won't "happen to come along"

It will have to be a conscious decision made by K and I.

No one will teach our kids and show by example but us.

On Veteren's Day K and I got away and were able to attend a session.

Thanks V - for keeping the kids.

My Patriarchal blessing says that I will be given a clear and sharp understanding of the purposes of the temple.

I am not there yet....can't picture ever being there.

My mind wanders, I sometimes start to doze off a bit, I judge slow dressers sometimes....and on and on.

BUT - I will continue to strive,

and make every effort to learn, grow, and teach our children. 

When we got home from church on that Sunday M wanted to know where the blocks were.

I said I thought they were in the office....

oh great....I want to make a temple out of blocks for my Polly Pockets.

Deep breath.