I *have* posted a lot of video lately. I know.
Hard not to in this day & age.
So, from another of Elder Dallin H. Oaks' powerful BYU-I Devotional talks, came not only the familiar admonition to stand as witnesses of God but three specific HOWS:
by asserting faith in private prayers and personal greetings
publicly recognize the blessings of God
and contend for the free exercise of religion.
In the scriptures we find our baptismal covenants; our obligation as children of God & members of Christ's church is to "stand as a witness of God in all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in..." (Mosiah 18:9) And that includes online. (Really isn't that much to ask of us, considering Jesus Christ gave his life for each us. The least we can do is be His witnesses at all times and in all things and in all places, in exchange for the precious gifts of the Atonement & Eternal Life.) As a result, our ward's youth joined the Mormon Channel's efforts to do encourage just that, through the #DidYouThinkToPray? campaign that started in March. Thanks to the participation of people like Al Fox(now Al Fox Carraway), the movement is all about taking a moment to show why or when you pray, at anytime and about anything, with a simple little Instagram or Tweet or FB post that includes the hashtag #DidYouThinkToPray? with the pic. From there Mormon Channel plucks the images up and shares them worldwide via their Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter & Instagram feeds. It's universal in & open to all faiths really. It's all about prayer. It's all about God. For Mutual a several weeks back (before there was a video), my sweet friend asked me to help her pool as many of these images as I could for a slideshow to keep the youth occupied while they waited for their turn to be photographed with their own sign. We even tossed in a few of the new YW leaders' own pics as surprise Easter Eggs for the kids! The slideshow makes my spirit & heart happy. I love how it perfectly goes with my 2014 word! Once all the kids' photos were taken they were then individually posted to my friend's Instagram, they became part of the #DidYouThinkToPray? movement or virtual gathering. Reminds me about prophesies of the Last Days, that things will be happening at the speed of thought. So true. It's happening. Right.now. So we should be standing as witnesses of God in every lightning-quick thought. In every instant. Just like Mini-Me's fellow youth.
The holidays were lovely, yet filled with weeks & weeks of illness. Something about oxygen & my lungs' addiction to it -- hard to explain, but I really like breathing. So fingers-crossed that this passes soon & my addiction can continue. :)
A great help in the health department was the fact that LatchKey Photography was closed for a majority of the month of December. Technically, it doesn't reopen until tomorrow. Doesn't mean I don't have plenty of work to do, but I learned this year that my family needs to be my top priority, along with my health, and if I'm not allowing time in the schedule to devote to both then the stress will overcome all aspects of life. Frankly it'll lead to misery. So this year will bring big changes to how we run LatchKey Photography. Kinda relieved about them & secretly celebrating them!
I'm also excited by the fact that with 2014 comes a new One-Word focus for me. Though I probably should have chosen NO for my new word, the one I've selected has been heavy on my mind for a couple months now, so it seems only appropriate that it be my new mantra.
My new word is: P R A Y.
In all things, PRAY.
The companion scripture I've selected for this year is Alma 37:37 "Counselwith the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day."
It's practically perfect (for me) in every way!
Our stake has chosen a new them for this year as well: "Centering our daily lives on Christ." Lovely theme, in the spirit of which, I've decided to participate in the #BofM365 project on Instagram. If you're interested in reading the Book of Mormon by December 31st, 2014 then you should check it out! In the past I've struggled with feeling like I don't have the kind of time I'd like to pour into my scripture study; the thought of which overwhelms me so I usually give up. (But studying slow & steady beats sporadic studying, or no studying for that matter.) However with this project simple reading prompts, of a few verses to a couple chapters, pop up in my Instagram feed daily. And since it's right at my fingertips with either my smart phone or tablet, just one swipe over are my scriptures as well. Management + access = a win win!
In addition to a new word & new scripture project, I have new callings at church as well. Though I miss my YW, I'm looking forward to a refreshing new adventure. I'm now handling our ward bulletin, managing & updating our missionary bulletin board, and co-teaching the 6 & 7 year olds in Primary. (My co-teacher is Mr LKP's aunt whom I adore very much!) Seems like a lot, but really as long as systems are in place, it will all be quite manageable. Oh how I love systems & protocol! <3 p="">
Considering my OCD leanings, I felt I needed to clean our ward bulletin up, to streamline it really. Plus with all the technological changes that have come about in the past few years (ex: no more printed ward directories every year) added to many new ward members, it seemed important to at least have phone numbers for leadership & other important points of contact in the ward. So in order to meet all of our needs, I went to Pinterest for inspiration (which there is a surprising lack of), then I turned to Excel & went to work. If anyone's interested or looking for a fresh & clean approach to their Ward Bulletin, I'm happy to show what works for me. Message me here if you'd like a copy of the Excel file emailed to you. :)
However, unlike a lot of our previous YW events, we have all of the various tasks divvied up between the YW classes. Mostly the reins has been turned over to the girls, within reason of course based on the maturity of each age group.
My Beehives were in charge of planning the program, including finding the musical numbers and speakers. We've also been in charge of designing the programs that each guest will receive that night. Again, back to the limitations of maturity, what the other Beehive leader and I have found is most effective with our girls is to have a pow-wow, get an idea of what they like, then away from that meeting we organized a plan A, plan B & plan C, and then have them make a final decision between the two. MUCH EASIER, especially if there are any ADD/ADHD types in the mix. Best to keep the distractions to a minimum.
All that being said, our patience and hard work (sitting on our hands as much as possible) has paid off. So much so, that AFTER I had finalized the program design, I finally opened our invitation that the Mia Maids handed out last Sunday... and frankly, we are all SO very much in-tune!
As I mentioned to another of my fellow leaders, it's times like these that I can truly recognize that we are on track and following HIS will. Such a good feeling!
I won't actually share the program out of respect for those names listed on it, however know that extending below the evening's theme is the program's line-up. Takes my breath away kinda.
In addition to invitations, our Mia Maids are handling all the decorations. So that's Mini-Me & her presidency's ball of wax. The fruits of their labor will be EPIC!(Helps that the creativity was fostered at a pretty rad IHOP planning brunch Mini-Me called for a couple weeks back. She's so awesome!) Rest assured, there WILL be pictures that follow.
Our Laurel class is handling a skit for the program, as well as the light soup dinner. What was awesome is that they're thinking of a parting gift of a giant cookie. As soon as the leader and I were talking about this, my mind raced back to a packaging idea I once saw from Martha Stewart involving plain white CD sleeves. Considering that idea, I decided to throw together our own versions of sleeve labels that matches this year's Mutual theme "Stand Ye in Holy Places," as well as what we've already got going on with the programs. Continuity is a BEA-U-TI-FUL thing!
Figured I'd share if anyone else out there was searching for YW ideas this year, whether for their own late New Beginnings or for YWIE (Young Women in Excellence) or simply a great gift (I think Easter's coming up pretty soon, just sayin'). Feel free to use these as you feel inspired to do so:
2013 has brought a new curriculum & approach to teaching our Young Women every Sunday.
Long gone are the old teaching manuals I grew up with. Now the lessons are updated using more current technology and teaching them is to be patterned after how Christ, our Savior, taught:
with love, patience, and through the Holy Ghost.
We as teachers are now encouraged to be more facilitators rather than sermon-givers. Silence is encouraged as well, for in moments of silence there stronger bonds with the Holy Spirit can be forged, testimonies fortified, and life-changing lessons can be learned.
As a Young Women's group, we had a chance to experience the power of silence in a Sunday lesson for our Christmas lesson. It was humbling & empowering all at the same time. It felt as though Jesus Christ were sitting right there with us in that room!
(Pretty sure our YW president borrowed from THIS lesson idea, but changed some stuff up. Also a member of our ward already had the stable & manger set-up, and were kind enough to let us borrow it. The manger was empty, and we had multiple different pictures around the room depicting different events in Christ's life. Each seat was assigned. Those are LED candles in clear cups, so each girl had her own light by which to read & write. The entire room was dark except for the faux candles, a few strategically placed lights to better emphasize the pictures, and the video screen. Only sounds were prayerfully selected songs and videos of the Savior. It made me tremble inside with joy!)
Now, granted the lessons shouldn't be great productions, and not all of our lessons are to be in complete silence either. Spiritual discussion amongst the youth is ideal, as often some lessons are learned better from each other, as they are more receptive to their peers and often tune adults out. Journaling & meditation play a big role in this new curriculum as well.
Needless to say, I am very excited about this new direction. Our youth are pretty brilliant, and very in-touch with the Spirit. I adore playing a small role in facilitating opportunities through which our youth can grow in spiritual strength. Think back to ancient scripture... often great spiritual epiphanies & miracles came about on mountain tops. Now we live in the desert here, with the nearest mountains about 90 minutes away. However, even our humble classroom can feel as removed from the outside world if we've work hard to make it a refuge. So I am hoping these Young Women will have mountaintop experiences together in our class.
Within our ward, our Bishopric procured a case of small composition notebooks for each of our kids, so as to further encourage them to journal their spiritual experiences or favorite quotes or scriptures or lessons learned. Kind of like how Nephi kept plates: the historical record went on large plates, and the sacred spiritual record went on small plates, this Bishopric has asked that our youth each keep their own "small plates" along this new journey.
So as to keep these small comp books in better shape, and unique for each of my girls, I spruced them up a tad. I can't WAIT to give them out on Sunday!
If you'd like to do something similar, you're welcome to use the simple bookplates I whipped up for the covers. Enjoy! My Small Plates Book Plate
Ya know, sometimes it feels like an ambush from every direction. And it's tempting to become discouraged... tempting to really hate life.
Those are the times that I'm grateful for Little Orphan Annie's musical advice, that the sun will come out tomorrow. That, it will do. No matter how the current tempests may rage, there will always, eventually be a tomorrow.
Law of nature.
Sticking out our chins,and replacing our furrowed brows & frowns with grins often takes all we may have. Yet it's part of enduring to the end. So we've gotta hang in there for the promised forecast of tomorrow's sunshine.
"And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake:
So on my roughest days, I lock myself in the bathroom and sing every word of "Tomorrow" with all the effort I can muster. And when I'm done, I sing it again. And again. Until my chin is out & I'm able to not just smile, but FEEL like smiling. Then, I'm better. :)
Hope you too have found an "emergency radio channel" you find you can tune into during times of trial. And that you're able to find whatever's required within yourself to turn that frown upside down.
I'm pretty much thinking I can get up in class on Sunday, read the title of the lesson, and that it would be a pretty solid lesson... beginning & end, right there. No need for me to add to it, or derail it since I'm a terrible example.
However, I'm probably wrong. Matter of fact I know I'm wrong, for if that was all it took was a gentle reminder of the value of truth in this life, then our youth wouldn't even need teachers & lessons & classes.
Not to mention the fact that the lesson manual has some pretty in depth resources that go right along with that title. Guess I'll trust the manual and actually teach rather than simply read.
TRUTH. It's sadly a rare virtue these days.
Around every bend there are little white lies to nip at our heals & big ol' doozey lies to jump us down a dark alley. Satan's wily like that. Always the opportunist, he's looking for a way to ensnare us or distract us from our present course for good.
I lied yesterday as a matter of fact. *palm-to-forehead*
Well actually I lied a few years ago, possibly the lie may have started even a few years before a few years ago.
Let it be known that yesterday I didn't just lie, but I also coerced an accomplice to back me up!
This dishonesty wasn't just for Joe Schmoe, no in fact I'm apparently more diabolical than that. It all went down whilst dealing with people who are sworn to uphold laws & keep us accountable. I was at the DMV. (Yep, I'm getting old enough for another renewal - thanks though for thinking it was my first).
So when the guy behind the counter starting verifying that my address hadn't changed, etc etc, he stated my lack of height (which made me cringe) and then asked "Are we still 135 lbs?" I scoffed a little, and remarked that, "Perhaps there might be 20 more lbs on-board now, but between you, me, and that dinky little card? Yeah, I'm still 135 lbs!"
He chuckled, then with a wink said, "Alright, you're 135 lbs. Please sign inside this little yellow box." Presto-change-O, my secret was still safe, and I now have an accomplice. (I wonder if I am obligated to send him a Christmas gift or card to keep him silenced. I'll have to consult my mob-ties for proper etiquette in the matter, I guess.)
But does everybody see what I mean in sharing this embarassing little story with all ya'll? Not that I really am proud of my deceit, but it is THAT easy and THAT acceptable to be sneaky.
Of course no one will lose an arm or an eyeball over my little lie, but where does it leave my integrity? I am sacrificing my integrity everytime I fib a little.
If fibbing or being slightly dishonest was okay, then there would be no guilt. And really, which is worse, the guilt for gluttony or the guilt for sacrificing the truth?
In my head, no one can tell that I've put on weight. But in reality, it's hard to miss... and I know what's being whispered here & there. So lying about my weight is doing nothing but fooling myself, and even then it only fools me a fraction of the time. Therefore I declare that the guilt for dishonesty is WAY worse than the other.
My lies at the DMV are obviously not the same severity as other lies we may tell ourselves or others. And sure, in a few months perhaps my license won't be lying (that is unless this second round of infertility meds goes the way we'd like), because my fat levels do fluctuate or change.
Truth, however, does not change. Period.
I'm always reminding my Beehive girls that Truth = Light = Christ.
Truth illuminates everything, therefore it is of Christ. Christ may be compassionate, and hate the sin but love the sinner, however His doctrines do not change simply because our level of sin has changed.
We can still be made clean through exercising His Atonement & repenting. His Atonement is in place for everyone, yet it doesn't change either. The only thing that changes is how much further sacrifice is required on our part in order to become clean or worthy again.
If we don't want the repentance process to be as difficult, then we must be sure we're not compounding or complicating our lives with sin in the first place. Just as major sins & lies require major repentance, a little sin or lie still requires repentance.
The actual act of lying aside, let's focus on getting back or keeping our lives on-track.
Eliminating sin in our lives is the answer. No one but Christ is perfect, I get that - so did Jesus Christ & our
Heavenly Father. That is why Christ's Atonement was necessary, so we
could repent & return. Due to our human nature, eliminating sin may seem like a daunting task. However it is by clinging to truth that we can accomplish this.
Remember Truth = Light = Christ?
Same goes the other way, Sin = Darkness = Satan.
Much like we would solve an algebraic equation by canceling a negative out with a positive, only light can overpower the darkness. Only the strength we gain through the Lord, Jesus Christ, is enough to overpower the influence of Satan in our lives. It's that simple. Both cannot coexist. When one is present, the other is absent.
We know now the power of truth, and WHY we must cling to it. Yet do we comprehend the HOW, or in other words, the recipe to follow in order to cling to truth?
President Spencer W. Kimball taught us the HOW in 4 simple steps: "The necessary procedure is: study, think, pray, and do.
… The Lord has promised repeatedly that he will give you a knowledge of
spiritual things when you have placed yourself in a proper frame of
mind. … ‘And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.’ (Moroni 10:5.)”
We've got to literally be in our scriptures daily. Not just scanning over them, but INVESTED in them. Gone are the days that we can skate by on basic scriptural understanding or recitation of the stories between the covers. It is time to search out the doctrine & spiritually feast upon it. That's only possible when we're anxiously engaged in our scripture study daily.
Thinking is vital. Not from just a logical 1+1= 2 stand-point. We are divine, spiritual offspring. Our spirits yearn to be at our Heavenly Father's feet gleaning all we can of His understanding. Currently, we may physically be distant from Him, however we can still glean all He will give us as we think & meditate upon His teachings. The Holy Ghost will confirm the truth. He's Heavenly Father's bonus gift to us. Our compass to direct us in the true direction we should go.
Prayer is the glue. Without prayer, the proximity of our relationship to Jesus Christ & Heavenly Father is like that of the fault-line of two tectonic plates, decreasing in stability & increasing in distance. Prayer is what connects our spirits to our God, what enables further learning through study & thinking to transpire. It holds us fast to the Father's will, like mortar secures two bricks together. Our submission to the Father through prayer is the method by which we can be edified, and our mission here on earth can be made crystal clear.
Doing is so much easier said than done. Doing is the follow-through, the verb to this recipe. Heavenly Father's entrusts us with light & knowledge, which come with an expectation that we will righteously act-upon the truth, refine ourselves in our life, and come away from this mortal experience more perfected than had we faced this life independent of He who created us. Doing as Heavenly Father would have us do is what propels us forward along our quest.
Doing the opposite propels us backwards & down instead.
In which direction would you prefer to go?
The 4 steps President Kimball taught about are not ones we take once in our journey.
They are the steps that we must repeat, much like that Christmas special song
"...put one foot in front of the other, and soon you'll be walking
'cross the flo-o-or...put one foot in front of the other, and soon
you'll be walking out the door!"
There is a Disney movie that is one of my most favorite, called Sleeping Beauty.
In true Disney fashion there is a beautiful, musically gifted maiden (Princess Aurora), a dashingly handsome fellow (Prince Phillip), adorable woodland creature sidekicks, some good magic (the fairies: Flora, Fauna, and Merriweather), some goons and evil magic (the villain: Malificent; the goons: her pig-dragon things).
Because of one individual’s selfishness, an evil spell is cast that would ensure the death of Princess Aurora. The King & Queen take all protective measures possible, including the elimination of every obvious weapon of their daughter’s demise, and eventually they send their precious infant daughter into hiding with the good fairies so she cannot be found by the bad fairy.
Years pass, and temptation befalls even the good fairies to risk the princess’ & their identities – even for the purest reasons. The evil villain zeroes in on the opportunity this stumble presents, and lures Princess Aurora to a secret threat, by which the original prophecy of her spell would begin to come true.
There is no way the good fairies, the King & Queen, or even the princess herself could have anticipated how cunning the evil fairy would be, nor the means by which the spell would inevitably come to pass.
To protect the princess from death, and to protect the kingdom from heartbreak, the good fairies cast a spell of their own that changes the evil spell's effects from Aurora’s death into instead a deep sleep, that also applies to those in the castle. The spell then of course can only be undone by true love’s kiss.
Enter the handsome Prince Phillip. After an earlier “chance” meeting with the then-disguised singing princess in the forest, he is smitten. He had planned on meeting up with Aurora again, yet fell into Malificent’s trap. At the evil fairy’s enchanted castle he is imprisoned, so as to keep the prince from breaking the spell & setting the kingdom free.
The good fairies, however, are not about to give up the fight, so those magical winged-ladies sneak into the evil one’s castle. There they free the prince & arm him in preparation for the battle of his lifetime. These lines of defense are the only way he can defeat Malificent (who transforms herself into a fierce dragon), flee the enchanted castle, blaze a trail through the deadly forest of thorns & vines between him and his love’s resting place.
When bestowing these items to Prince Phillip, the fairy Flora says:
“…Arm yourself with this enchanted Shield of Virtue, and this mighty Sword of Truth, for these weapons of righteousness will triumph over evil.”
In the end, the prince follows the counsel of the fairies, defeats evil, overcomes the hurdles in his path, climbs the treacherous tower to where Princess Aurora lies in an eternal sleep, kisses her lips, and life is restored to Sleeping Beauty, as well as the kingdom.
Righteousness will always prevail over evil. Virtue & truth are the weapons by which this is accomplished. Use these weapons in your own life, so you too may claim your own happy ending.
----------------------------
And with that, folks, I am at an end of my thoughts. What are yours on this topic?
The handout I prepared for this week is two-sided. It features a quote from that all-time favorite Disney classic of mine, as well as one of my all-time favorite scripture references ( I know we used it last week, but it simply is one of the greatest).
The back features the diagram shown earlier in this post. If you feel one or even both sides can bless you & your family's life, feel free to download the handouts below:
P.S.
Mini-Me is fairing quite well.
Her surgery went beautifully, and the reduction wound up being "closed"(meaning they didn't have to cut her toe open to clean out any calcifications to re-set it). The surgeon was able to manipulate the bone pieces back in place and then surgically place the pin in her toe. He is one talented guy, and has been a great blessing in this whole ordeal.
Before the anesthesiologist entered...
after the anesthesiologist...
Some new jewelry!
It's a little gruesome, but not gory. We lovingly refer to her toe as "Franky" which is short for The Frankenstein Toe. She's handling that in stride alright, as well as the nicknames her friends have dubbed her with, like "Cripps" and "Handi" and "Pogo Girl" and "Hop-Along-Cassidy."
Glad they got it right! ;)
Best. foot-rest. Ever.
Meet Franky!
Mini-Me's only relying on her crutches a little here & there, depending on her energy levels, otherwise she's walking on her heel. She's focusing mostly on her upper body in her weights class. And she's currently taking stats from the bench at her team's volleyball games, so that way once her surgeon releases her she'll be able to get right back into the season & hopefully play in the 4 or 6 remaining games. Thanks for thinking of her & praying for her. ::hugs::
Mini-Me had a freeze-tag-canoe-surfing mishap this last week. The game started innocent enough, but ended gruesomely.
Well, for her feet that is.
She was "It" and trying to tag the others. She happened to be standing in our friends' canoe that was safely on the grass in their yard. (Mind you, its us parents' faults since the kids were threatened almost for life & limb to go outside & play while we visited.) While she was standing inside the canoe, bent on snagging the next kid to get close enough, one of her friends snuck-up from behind and lurched the canoe forward in an otherwise deft & smart offensive move.
However, as a result, her knees buckled, she flew back, and her toes bent all the way up against the top of her foot. There's no way she WASN'T going to have something broken from that, just being honest! She hit her head, bruised her self in all sorts of places, yet her biggest concern was the fact she could not feel her left foot.
(The boy felt so bad as soon as she started crying. And she WAS howling something fierce, considering she's never broken a bone before. However let the record show that
if it had been me in his shoes, I'd have totally done the same thing.
Promise! Now, though, that I can see more clearly the risks, I probably wouldn't choose that option anymore. And I bet he feels the same way.)
10 minutes or less went by, and suddenly the numbness was only in one toe, and the last 3 on her left foot were in excruciating, hysterical, hyperventilating kinda pain.
She received a priesthood blessing as soon as the consecrated oil could be located.
Then she begged us to take her to the E.R. Being 7-almost-8 on Sunday night, that's exactly what we did. No screwing around with clinics & PA's this time.
Once we arrived & Mini-Me weighed in, triage sent a map with us and her in a wheelchair to a different E.R. area called the "Yellow Zone"(with all the signs in bright yellow with sweet white daisies on 'em, it was too cute!) where a room as already waiting for her.
BEST.EMERGENCY.ROOM.EXPERIENCE.EVER. (Besides, perhaps the ones I'm pretty sure Tauna was a part of way back when we lived in the 'Berg, even though we didn't know Tauna -nor how cool she is- at the time. Way before the MMH remodel went down.)
Their timing was impeccable. Their bed-side-manner top notch. The sugar-coating was ziltch. It was perfect!
It literally went down like clockwork, like this: Dr came in and intro'd himself, got the incident details, examined her super swollen foot & subsequent bruising, ordered her a couple Vicodin, cracked a few jokes, partially numbed the outside of her foot & removed some foreign material (gravel and such) from her foot, told her what a champ she was being & that tears were okay, had her take the Vicodin, a set of x-rays were taken to confirm there was in fact a break, she was wheeled back from radiology & the pain meds had kicked in. (Suddenly everything was shiny & rainbows & unicorns!) More jokes were cracked (a video may or may not have been shot of her in her wheelchair - if you're on my FB, then you've probably seen it), x-rays were reviewed. Mini-Me repeatedly wheeled back & forth in front of the sliding glass doors to the room and made faces and waved at all the nurses & docs at the nurses station (no more tears at that point), Dr came in to attempt a "reduction"(aka re-set the toe), oodles more tears flowed since her foot was only partially numb and apparently the drugs weren't QUITE enough in this case. Mini-Me was again applauded for her bravery, then wheeled out for more x-rays. X-rays showed the reduction was unsuccessful, and an orthopedic surgeon was called to weigh in on the matter - a personal visit to his office on Tuesday (blast that stinking holiday in there). Mini-Me was then fitted with THE most unattractive universal/unisex Velcro shoe + some crutches, given some more pain meds & anti-B's for the road. We were home & in bed BEFORE midnight. I'm telling you, people, this was an E.R. visit for the record books!
From there we spent the holiday filling prescriptions, and then laying low. Tuesday afternoon we met with the surgeon who said our options were to either let the bone heal as-is for the next 4-6 weeks and hope it didn't bother her. Option B was to have him surgically set the bone & pin it in place so it would heal as close to normal as possible for about 4-6 weeks. Option C was to go with Option A, and then Option B if the way the toe healed bothered her - which would be 4-6 weeks plus another 4-6 weeks in healing time. He told us it was up to us how we proceeded.
Mini-Me was frightened at the idea of surgery of ANY type going down -- hang it all, homegirl flat didn't want another injection, let alone a surgery!
However, after we discussed all the pro's & con's & risks in each situation as a family, surgery makes the most sense for her foot's structural make-up & busy life. So that'll go down next week. Keep her in your thoughts, as she needs as many of those + as much fairy dust as she can to get through she thinks -- well and any prayers would be bliss too. :)
So there you have it. Besides a delish dinner Sunday night with our friends, and some grubbing Costa Vida with my mom & brother after the appoint with the surgeon, one little broken toe has consumed our lives, entirely. (Truth: The smallest, otherwise most unassuming things pack the biggest punch in life!)
Oh, and about that handout? Yep, I get to teach the Beehives & the Mia Maids this week, and I'm totally stoked about it!
The lesson is about how worthy thoughts lead to/help maintain a virtuous life (YW Manual 1 Lesson #34). A really great pearl-before-swine discussion should take place, and I love watching these girls have their spiritual eyes opened, so I can't wait!
“...Our thoughts are the switchboard, the control panel governing our actions.”
- Elder Boyd K. Packer
Plus it doesn't hurt that this hand-out rocks socks. Will be sharing some lovely Sprite with them, however they'll have an uninvited guest in each cup. BOOM!(All thanks to Target for having the most perfect fake flies in fake ice cubes in their dollar section, hee hee.)
The handout has a retro flavor to it in colors, which I adore, and the message couldn't be better. I'm all about letting the scriptures speak for themselves. :)
If you're feeling inspired for your class or family, feel free to use the handout below. And stop by Target's Dollar Spot pronto, cause I'm pretty sure those trick flies won't last long, especially when you get 2 of those handy critters for a buck!
a larger workflow which I've been chipping away at this week.
Have been gutting & re-organizing the teenager's room of all the stuff she doesn't know what to do with, so instead it's been stock-piling. Hard work. The most rewarding part, though, is hearing her say how much more she likes her life when it's purged of all the distractions & confusion.
Just thinking...can't we all relate to that statement?
Lastly, I'm prepping for this week's lesson on self-discipline.
Should be a good one, and in my humble opinion, the timing couldn't
be better since the girls are gearing up to start a new year of school in a matter of days.
Almost forgot, infertility treatment efforts have started... and oh yeah, I cut my hair!
(La-la-la-LOVE it!) Liberation from oppression of any form is delicious... even if it's just from a dusty old womb or too much lackluster hair. Feeling like myself again!
(Those are sunglasses, NOT headgear - lol!)
So that's our most current update from the Ranch. Hope all's well with each of you.
Please keep your fingers crossed for us & maybe a baby.
Plus, feel free to use the handout below if you find it pertinent to your needs. ::hugs::
In Beehives today we discussed Lesson #31(from YW Manual #1), "Group Activities: A Basis for Wise Dating."
How do you teach the wisdom of this to 12 and 13 year old girls... who most of still think boys have cooties? ...And the few who no longer stress about cooties, have already chosen to date early?
Dating is a hard subject at this age. But broach it, as well as the consequences of not following the prophets' counsel (= commandments from Heavenly Father), we did.
Rather than dwelling too much on the group dating aspect of the lesson, instead the discussion seemed to focus on not dating at all until the appropriate time. We called it what it is: early dating = disobedience to commandments & unnecessary risk at this age.
Impressively, the girls handled it well and were QUITE engaged in this lesson. We laughed & talked turkey. Not one of them seemed shy about asking questions, nor were they unable to grasp the gravity of possible consequences that follow (such as teen pregnancy)... not to mention what sacrifices may have to be made if they were to choose to date earlier than Church standards or their parents' rules. Definitely brought a wave of relief over me that they were "getting" it.
So the companion handout for today's lesson (tastefully) did not mince words:
On top of the lesson, each girl was given a quote from the lesson to ponder, study out, and pray over for the next week. From that quote and study, each girl was asked to record their thoughts, official stand on dating & personal declaration of their standards regarding the temptation to date early. The hope is that this lesson will stick, and their documented declaration of obedience will be more powerful in their lives than the temptations which they will eventually face.
I will say that I loved this lesson. My touched heart was poured into it.
Even one of my favorite quotes, from one of my new-favorite movies, came to my mind & was incorporated into the lesson (from Courageous):
"You can't go out on a date with anyone until they come talk to me, and
they have no business talking to me until your 17. If a boy has asked
you to go anywhere with him, it's a date." -Nathan Hayes (emphasis added)
(If you haven't seen that movie yet, do it. The full conversation that character has with his daughter is priceless & quite validating!)
And if you haven't taught this lesson yet, or feel it would be a great Family Night lesson, feel free to use the handout printables below.
***OH! And by the way, got to spend a beautiful Friday morning photographing the most splendid little miracle baby this past week. You should go see how lovely the session turned out with Lil' Miss J!***
