January Fun

Just playing with Dad's Legos:

P1 used to put all his toys on the couch, out of reach from his sister. Now that she can get on the couch, his new spot is the kitchen island. They also love playing in the coat closet. Maybe they are looking for Narnia.

P1 and I had an epic snowball fight! We had fun playing outside, just the two of us. 

P2 is always stealing P1's toys, poor kiddo.

Selfies!

A sweet couple in our ward were the nursery leaders while P1 was in nursery. The children all loved them, and called them Grandma and Grandpa. They were released in the fall because Grandpa was getting a lung transplant. Then, on Christmas Eve, they were told he had cancer and would not have much time left. We found out on Monday, January 4, that he had passed away the night before.

I was thinking about this dear family, and how good they were with the children in nursery. I contacted the other moms and suggested we put together a gift for them from the children. I was thinking something simple with their handprints on it. After many emails, we decided to make them a quilt. I have very little experience quilting, so I wasn't sure if this would work out. We had 1 week to put it together before the funeral.

Well, miracles do happen! We started the quilt on Tuesday, and it was finished by Saturday night! And it turned out so well! I was very impressed by all the young moms who were so willing to help, despite the fact that we are all so busy with young children. It's amazing what a group of women can accomplish!

The Tree of Life: A Weekly Journey

The vision of the Tree of Life in the Book of Mormon (1 Nephi 8) is full of beautiful symbolism. Much of the symbolism is explained by Nephi in the following chapters (1 Nephi 11).

I used to view the vision as a lifelong journey to partake of the precious fruit, which represents eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God (D&C 14:7). While it is a valid interpretation, I have found it more helpful to view it as the journey we take each week.

The Tree of Life represents Christ, which is the embodiment of God's love. It bears fruit that we partake of. Next to the tree, is the fountain of living waters which also represents the love of God (1 Nephi 11:25). Christ often referred to himself as living water (John 4:10), and the bread of life (John 6:35). And to help us remember Him, Christ instituted the sacrament where we partake of the bread and the water.

Every Sunday (except for Stake and General Conferences) we have the opportunity to come to the Tree of Life and partake of the precious fruit which is desirable above all else. We have the sacred privilege of partaking of the sacrament.

Each week is a journey to the Tree of Life. During that week, do we hold onto the rod of iron? Do we study the word of God daily? Viewing it as a 7 day journey suddenly makes each day more critical. Missing one day equals traveling 1/7 of the way without holding onto the rod, never knowing when the mists of darkness will appear.

Lehi saw 3 types of people. The first group never made it to the tree (1 Nephi 8:21-23). The second group made it, but cast their eyes about while partaking of the fruit and then they fell away (1 Nephi 8:24-25, 28). The third group made it to the tree, and fell down while partaking of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:30). Their full attention was on the fruit, and in gratitude, they fell down and worshipped God.

I have been in all three groups.

There have been some weeks that I did not make it to sacrament meeting when I was physically able to. Mists of darkness in various forms caused me to lose sight of the tree.

The have been many weeks where I was physically present for the Sacrament, but my mind was elsewhere. I was casting my eyes about.

And lastly, there are weeks where I fall on my knees and prepare to partake of the holy sacrament. Sacrament meetings where my mind is focused on my Savior and His Atonement. Weeks where I truly partake of the fruit, and it fills me with joy.

If we desire to never fall away, then we must strive to be in the third group, for they are the ones that never fell away. It's not always easy, especially if you have young children. But I have found it helpful in my life to think about which group I am in each week.

Each week is a new journey. May we hold fast to the iron rod, make it to the Tree of Life, and truly partake of the love of God.

Dance Party

For Christmas, we got some fun Lego Star Wars action figures. PE likes to pose them, and when our nephew came over they were posed ready for a dance party.

PE tried to convince the kids to have a dance party too. They didn't quite understand.

But they sure are cute!

 

2015 in Review

2015 was a good year. It was a very challenging year, but we have learned a lot and been blessed greatly. Nothing really big happened, except for watching my little kids grow up a little more (where did my babies go?).

P1 is growing up fast. We tackled potty training this year, and he is good about it most of the time. His favorite color has changed from orange to blue.

 

P2 seems like a whole new person! She has changed a lot in these last 12 months. Walking, talking, and hair long enough for pig tails!

 My health has improved a lot over this last year. Dealing with ulcerative colitis has been one of the most difficult things I have done. But amazing family and friends have helped me through it. And I have felt the Spirit guiding me and comforting me through out this year. It took a whole year to get here, but I am finally in a really good place! Yay!

Happy New Year!!!

18 Months

Our silly little goose of a girl is 18 months old! Yay for nursery age! P1 and P2 shared one week in Nursery, and next week P1 will move on to Sunbeams.

Stats:

Weight: 23 lbs (56th percentile)

Height: 32.5 inches (72nd percentile)

She loves taking selfies and can't wait to have her own phone:

She loves to pretend cook with her brother:

She loves to color with her brother:

She loves babies, and likes to rock them and kiss them. She can also say "Baby". 

 She finally lets me put her hair up! She likes to do what Mommy does. She wants to use my chapstick, and my lotion. She likes to watch me do my make-up, and she always wants me to brush her checks with my brush. She loves to brush her teeth. She loves shoes, clothes, and the color pink. Definitely the opposite of me as a child!

She loves loves loves to read. If you sit down for half a second, she will grab a book and come sit on your lap before you can get up! She is also very cuddly, and likes to be held.

She adores her big brother, and loves to play with him. He is a good sport, and usually enjoys playing with her too.

She got a beautiful new coat from her grandma, and she never wants to take it off! She is still our professional pouter, and if looks could kill, her's would!

 

We love our sweet, energetic, and dramatic little girl!

Christmas Day

My family came over Christmas Day and we exchanged presents. It was like a second visit from Santa! Our living room was buried in toys and wrapping paper!

We gave my dad and brothers Japanese hand puzzles, so they spent most of their time trying to solve them.

The kids got some plastic food to play in their kitchen with:

Grandma gave the kids some cute aprons to wear for all their pretend cooking!

  P1 loved the dinosaurs his aunt gave him! He wanted to play with them the whole time! She also gave them some neat books called "The Little Boy (or Girl) that Lost His (or Her) Name". It's a cute book that takes the child on an adventure to discover their name, and all the characters they meet give them a letter that spells out their name.

My brother gave the kids a lot of great books. P1 loves "Harold and the Purple Crayon". We've already read it more times than I can remember. The kids got cute clothes from Grandma. P2 wanted to wear everything. She got an adorable coat that she never wants to take off. I got a bunch of holiday dish towels and table runners from my mom. When I opened them, P2 saw the fabric and wanted to wear them!

P1 was funny when we were opening presents. He would be excited getting the wrapping paper off, but then he would be disappointed and say "It's just a box".

This year I made Nativity stocking holdings. I liked how they came out. And yes, there are 5 of them, and no, it is not an announcement.

This year, the Church did #ASaviorIsBorn campaign. I really enjoyed all the uplifting Christmas videos that were added to YouTube.

My mom gave us a 25 Days of Christ ornament set at the beginning of the month. The kids really enjoyed doing the ornament each day. Each was a symbol of a different event in Christ's life. P2 would always run and grab our gospel art book so that we could look at the picture that went with the story. My mother-in-law sent the kids the Fisher Price Nativity Set at the beginning of the month, and they really enjoyed playing with that. We also have a Fisher Price advent calendar that they enjoyed. It didn't work well as a countdown, since they would always just take all the people and animals off. And I think we lost one of the wisemen. I keep waiting for him to turn up, but it appears he got really lost on his journey.

We are so grateful for the birth of our Savior. He is our source of hope, peace, and joy during all the ups and downs of life. We love this time of year when we can celebrate His birth. Merry Christmas!