Sunday, April 24, 2016

It is requisite that I write something

My kids want to play rook though so this will have to be fast.

All wrestling is officially over!  I am glad and my daughter is VERY glad and well, maybe not my boys so much.  They will keep practicing over the summer though so until next November I'm saying goodbye to those long days spent at tournaments!  And while I love my boys, and I love that they wrestle (I could write a long post here on the benefits of boys wrestling but I don't want to raise any family controversies and I'm already treading that line enough with my die hard basketball family), I am celebrating the return of my Saturdays.

It was a beautiful, sunny day today.  I tried to enjoy it because rain is headed our way for most of the week.

I watched the musical Hairspray with my daughter McKenzie the other day because she learned one of the songs in DPAC, "Welcome to the 60s".  A perfectly, cute song and I thought...cute musical, right?  Amazing though how when I watch something with my child all the inappropriate things I didn't notice the first time I watched it pop up all over.  Anyway, just couldn't believe some of the things they put in there.

Read the book "Brooklyn" recently.  It was okay.  I thought the movie was better.  Reading the book, "Half Broke Horses" currently and am enjoying it immensely.

Coming up on Wedding Anniversary #18 for Brad and I.  Crazy how the years pass by so quickly.  Crazy that we've made it this long.  I found an article I liked the other day about marriage so to end my post I'll share it.

During a seminar, a woman asked," How do I know if I am with the right person?"
The author then noticed that there was a large man sitting next to her so he said, "It depends. Is that your partner?" In all seriousness, she answered "How do you know?" Let me answer this question because the chances are good that it's weighing on your mind
replied the author.
Here's the answer.
Every relationship has a cycle… In the beginning; you
fall in love with your partner. You anticipate their calls,
want their touch, and like their idiosyncrasies. Falling in love wasn't hard. In fact, it was a completely natural and spontaneous experience. You didn't have to DO anything. That's why it's called "falling" in love.
People in love sometimes say, "I was swept of my feet."Picture the expression. It implies that you were just standing there; doing nothing, and then something happened TO YOU.
Falling in love is a passive and spontaneous experience. But after a few months or years of being together, the euphoria of love fades. It's a natural cycle of EVERY relationship.
Slowly but surely, phone calls become a bother (if they come at all), touch is not always welcome (when it happens), and your spouse's idiosyncrasies, instead of being cute, drive you nuts. The symptoms of this stage vary with every relationship; you will notice a dramatic difference between the initial stage when you were in love and a much duller or even angry subsequent stage.
At this point, you and/or your partner might start asking, "Am I with the right person?" And as you reflect on the euphoria of the love you once had, you
may begin to desire that experience with someone
else. This is when relationships breakdown.
The key to succeeding in a relationship is not finding the right person; it's learning to love the person you found.
People blame their partners for their unhappiness and look outside for fulfillment. Extramarital fulfillment comes in all shapes and sizes.
Infidelity is the most common. But sometimes people turn to work, a hobby, friendship, excessive TV, or abusive substances. But the answer to this dilemma does NOT lie outside your relationship. It lies within it.
I'm not saying that you couldn't fall in love with someone else. You could. And TEMPORARILY you'd feel better. But you'd be in the same situation a few years later.
Because (listen carefully to this):
The key to succeeding in a Relationship is not finding the right person; it's learning to love the Person you found.
SUSTAINING love is not a passive or spontaneous experience. You have to work on it day in and day out. It takes time, effort, and energy. And most importantly, it demands WISDOM. You have to know
WHAT TO DO to make it work. Make no mistake about it!
Love is NOT a mystery. There are specific things you can do (with or without your partner), Just as there are physical laws Of the universe (such as gravity), there are also laws for relationships. If you know how to apply these laws, the results are predictable.
Love is therefore a "decision". Not just a feeling.
Remember this always: God determines who walks into your life. It is up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay, and who you refuse to let GO! 



Sunday, April 17, 2016

What it means to be Mormon

So I have this young friend who is thinking about being baptized in our church.  Her Dad said she could be baptized when she could answer what it meant to be baptized.  Thinking of this I wrote a letter to this friend, explaining to her what it meant for me to be Mormon.  I thought I'd include it here, since I also want my own children to know what it means for me to be Mormon.  The letter follows.

I was supposed to write this letter a long time ago.  I just ran across a note on my phone that said, “What does it mean to me to be a mormon?” and with that some thoughts that I jotted down.  I made this note to myself when I heard that you were taking the discussions and that your dad was going to let you be baptized when you could tell him what it means to be a Mormon.  I don’t know where you are in this process currently, but I wanted to let you know what it means to me to be Mormon. 
I grew up in the church.  My parents were Mormons before I was born so going to church is what I did from a young age to now.  It was what our family did together.  Despite this, I have many times in my life questioned is this where I should be?  Are the teachings of the church true?  Does Heavenly Father really have a purpose for us here?  Is there a living prophet?  Is the Book of Mormon really true?  And each time, I come back to the answer of YES, this is where I need to be and all these things are true.  I know because of the great happiness I have from being a “Mormon”.

Being Mormon means first that I believe in God or Heavenly Father.  I believe he created us.  I believe he loves us.   I believe he wants us to become better, like him, and because of this he sent us to earth.  I believe he loves all of us equally and wants us to return to his presence…all of us.

Being Mormon means I believe in Jesus Christ.  I believe that Jesus Christ is God’s son and that he is a separate distinct individual from Heavenly Father. I believe he came to earth to show us the example of how to live.  Being Mormon means I try to follow his teachings as best I can.  Being Mormon means that I believe in the atonement of Jesus Christ which means I can repent of my wrongdoings when I don’t follow what Jesus teaches.  Being Mormon means I believe we will live again after this life and be resurrected because of what Jesus Christ did. 

Being Mormon means I believe in the Holy Ghost.  I believe Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ use the Holy Ghost to help all mankind know what is right and wrong.  I believe that through the Holy Ghost I can receive answer to my prayers.  I believe that through the Holy Ghost I can receive revelation for me and for my family.  I believe that when I follow the Holy Ghost I can become more like Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father.

Being Mormon means I believe in the Bible and the Book of Mormon.   It means I try to read these books because they testify of Jesus.  It means that I believe that God spoke to man and taught us about Jesus anciently, not only the jews, but all mankind.  He gave us these teachings to help us remember.  Believing in the Bible and Book of Mormon means I believe in prophets of old.

Being Mormon means I believe there is a prophet today.  I believe that God and Jesus Christ did appear to Joseph Smith.  God and Jesus Christ did help him translate the Book of Mormon.  God and Jesus Christ did help Joseph Smith restore the true church of Jesus Christ upon this earth complete with the priesthood and ordinances we need to return to the presence of Heavenly Father one day.  I believe that when Joseph Smith died, that God continued to speak with called men, prophets, to deliver his message to us.  I believe Thomas S. Monson communicates with God and helps us know God’s will for us during this time.  Because I believe in a prophet, confusing questions that I have become clear when I know what it is that God has taught.

These are the basics.  But I want you to know that being Mormon means so much more.  It means I try to be kind to all.  I try to serve others.  I try to be clean in my thoughts and actions.  It means I don’t drink or swear (although not swearing challenges me at times). It means I don’t have sex before I am married.  I don’t have relations with other men while I am married.  It means I believe my marriage can last forever.  It means I try forgive when someone offends me.  It means I believe in family.  It means when everything else in my life has gone wrong, I can put one foot in front of the other and keep moving because I know God and Jesus Christ love me.  I know that when I have done all I can, they will make up the difference.

I love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  I love our prophet.  I love the pure and simple teachings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Being Mormon doesn’t make me better than other people, it makes me a better me than I would be without it.

If you ever need anything, as a friend and your primary teacher, I am here to listen and help, regardless of whether you choose to be Mormon or not.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Ben, Birthday interview

Ben, age 12

Favorite color: blue-green
Favorite food:  a good hamburger
Favorite treat:  Fudge jumbles
Favorite school subject:  math
Favorite sport: wrestling
Favorite hobby:  dirt biking
Favorite movie this year:  Zootopia
Favorite book:  Lord of the Rings
Favorite animal:  monkey
Favorite song:  Handlebars
Favorite restaurant: Three peaks deli
Favorite vegetable: tomato  
Favorite fruit: apple
Favorite place to visit:  Bishop Phillip's house
A place he wants to visit someday:  Alaska  
Best friend: Jacob Fenberg
Favorite thing to do with his brothers and sister: Water ski
Favorite thing to do with Dad: dirtbike
Favorite thing to do with Mom: talk
Where he wants to go to college: BYU-Idaho
Where he wants to serve a mission:  Argentina
He wants to learn how to: wrestle like a champion
His greatest talent: riding a dirt bike 
Some other things Ben does well: wrestling, rock climbing, water skiing, snow skiing, back country skiing, school
Ben wonders about:  Deep questions about God like do we have a Heavenly Mother
Ben misses:  our old monument rental and the land around it.
Something that makes Ben nervous is: Someone thinking I am dishonest.  
Something that makes Ben happy is:  Being around my family.
The age that Ben looks forward to being is: The age that I am.  If I hurry life along I won't get to sit back and enjoy it.

Ben just recently took 2nd in middle school wrestling regionals as a 6th grader!