Easter

I love Easter! It is such a wonderful holiday and time to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Last Monday night for family home evening Brad gave a great lesson on the resurrection. Kade was even getting good about repeating it himself! We've even watched a few good videos about it throughout the week. Yesterday we had a fun Easter egg hunt with friends and today we had a wonderful time at church learning more about the Savior and the resurrection.
For Sacrament meeting today I was able to play the piano for some beautiful singers who sang "I Know that my Redeemer Lives." We also had accompaniment by a flute. I felt the spirit so strong. It was such a wonderful Easter Sunday. Even the weather was gorgeous!

Good Friends

Last night we had our favorite friends over to watch some NCAA basketball games. They instantly turned my not so good day into a great one!
We talked a lot, ate yummy dessert, laughed, and watched some basketball too. They make me laugh so much!
We feel so lucky to have good friends who we not only love to hang out with, but who are also such good examples to us.

Time

I had a bad day today.
I don't know what it was or what started it, but I just wasn't myself today. I did/said a lot of things that I wish I could take back because I know that isn't who I am or who I want to be.
But sadly, I can't take it back.
Luckily though, I have time. Time that will allow me to try harder to be better and perfect my faults and weaknesses.
And, more importantly, I have so much more time in life to spend being with my cute kids and amazing husband. They make it all better. They make me so happy. They make me want to keep trying to be my best self.
I love them. I love this time in life. And I love every minute that we get to be together as a family.
Time is so special and precious. I need to always use it wisely.

New Clothes

Kade was in desperate need of some new pants. He has holes in both of his knees in my two favorite pair. And Tenley was in desperate need of everything, so today we went to my favorite second hand clothing store, Once Upon A Child, and got a few new clothes for my cute kids.
I love buying my kids clothes! It is so much fun. I really tried to limit myself today because buying little girls clothes is the most fun I've ever had! They are all so cute!
One of my favorite new clothing items for Tenley was this new jacket:

I just love the style and the color, especially on her!
My little miss is getting so big! She amazes me every day. She has really started trying to say new words. She can  say "please," "Mom," "Dad," "up," "uh-oh," "ouch," "hi," "bye," and "off" pretty clearly. She also tries to say Kade and any other word we ask her to repeat.
She is so independent. She like to do things on her own, but she still enjoys some cuddle time now and then.
She loves her big brother, even though they fight often, she still loves him a lot.
She lights up whenever Dad gets home. When she sees him she'll gasp, give him the biggest smile, and then run to him to give him a hug.
She has started singing along with music, or humming-whatever you call it at this age. I just love hearing her sweet little voice trying to match the tune.
Whenever I ask the kids if they're excited about something she'll raise both of her hands high up in the air and give me a happy squeal.
She loves to dance-but she doesn't really have a choice since we dance most the day around here anyway!
I love my little miss Tenley SO MUCH! She is so brave and loving and caring and sweet and funny and precious, and beautiful, and helpful, and happy. I just can't get enough of her!

And, of course I love my big boy Kade too! We'll have to save all the many reasons I love him for another post. But we were lucky to have a nice day today and we enjoyed it at the park with some friends.
Such a good day!

Sunrise

This morning after Kade woke up and we both said goodbye to Brad as he left for school, we snuggled on the couch and read a book together.

And then we got to watch the beautiful sunrise. 

It was a perfect start to my day!

Snow Boots

Kade was begging me all day to take him outside to play in the snow, so around 4 O'clock I finally gave in and took the kids out in the snow before it all melted away. I really hope it is the last time for a long time that we have to get all bundled up and strap our snow boots on.
We did, however, enjoy tracking through the snow, mud, and water in our snow boots. It was a fun afternoon adventure!

Snow Days

Normally at the end of March I wouldn't be grateful for a snow day, but the kids and I had a lot of fun together today, so I'm grateful that the snow kept us home bound. Kade did have preschool this morning, but when he got home we had a dance party, pillow fights, read books, built a tower with blocks, and laid on the carpet so we could stare at the ceiling (I know that sounds boring, but it was fun to talk about the different shapes and textures on the ceiling and then lift our feet up and talk about our feet and do the same thing with our hands)- we got creative!

They actually cuddled long enough for me to take a picture of them! I love these moments!

BUT...

I still can't wait until we can start doing things like this again:

Courage

Whenever I think of the word courage, I think of the cowardly lion from The Wizard of Oz. It's so ironic that a lion, who would normally be the king of all the animals, would be such a coward and have no courage. 

It's also sad to think that we, as sons and daughters of an Almighty God, would be cowards and not have the courage to do hard things.

I don't want to let fear hold me back from doing things that will help me grow and become a better person. I don't want to be a coward! I want to have all the courage I can muster to do hard things!

Here is a sad and embarrassing confession: When Brad and I were in college and I was working, every day after work I would stop at a gym on the way home to exercise. I loved it. It was convenient, easy and predictable  Then when we moved and I could no longer afford a gym pass I decided to try going running outside. I was so nervous to do it the first time for some reason. I didn't want to go alone, I didn't know where exactly I should run, I felt weird knowing that people might see me running by their house.  There was a list of cowardly reasons as to why I would have preferred just going to a gym. But I stepped out and did it anyway, and now it is one of my favorite ways to exercise! I would much rather go running outside than have to go running on a treadmill in a gym.

There have been many other times where I've been too afraid or nervous to do certain things, but I've found after you take that first step, it gets easier and easier each time you do it.

President Thomas S. Monson said:

"Courage is the word we need to hear and hold near our hearts - courage to turn our backs on temptation, courage to lift up our voices in testimony to all whom we meet, remembering that everyone must have an opportunity to hear the message."

I shared this scripture yesterday, but it is one of my favorites so I want to share it again:

2 Timothy 1:7

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

I am going to have more courage. I am going to let go of my fears and do hard things. I don't want to do these things just to benefit myself, but I want to do them so that my children will see that example and have the courage to do hard things themselves.

Time-Outs

Every time my kids are fighting or not behaving as I have tried to teach them to behave, I know it's time for them to go to time out. And sometimes, I've realized, I need a time out too. Not only because I might not be behaving as I should, but also because it is too easy to forget what my real purpose here on Earth is and where I'm headed. When I remind myself of that important perspective, I'm also able to re-evaluate my life and where I can improve; what I need to take out of my life, and what I need to add to my life.
That is why this weekend was so perfect. It was such a blessing to be able to attend Time Out for Women and to be there with my sister-in-law and my nieces. I wasn't originally planning on going. It is hard to sneak away from the house all weekend with such young children and a busy, studying husband, but since I had family going my great husband was willing to make it work so I could also go, and I'm so grateful for him and his sacrifice for me this weekend!
Friday night we heard the amazing violinist Jenny Oaks Baker. She is so talented and her music was beautiful! And then we heard talks from John Bytheway (a child hood favorite of mine) and Laurel Christensen. And today we heard from Mary Ellen Edmunds, Sandra Turley, D. Kelly Ogden, Jennifer Brinkerhoff Platt, and Emily Freeman. We also listened to great music from Jericho Road. It was all so uplifting! Here are some of my notes:

• In life, suffering is mandatory. Misery is optional
• The book of Job is not about suffering, it is about loyalty. Choose to love God and be loyal to him no matter what circumstance you are in.
• Don't look at God and tell him how big your problems are, look at your problems and tell them how big your God is.
• 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
• Fight your fears-don't let them hold you back. Identify your fear so you can fight it!
• 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
• When you stop praying for what your heart really wants, your heart stops wanting what you weren't willing to pray for.
• God will not waste a miracle on a doubter.
• Always, ALWAYS, pray for your children when you send them out into the world, as faithfully as you would put their coat on before you sent them out into the cold. The Lord's angels will protect them. They were His children before they were yours.
• Make time to pause and think. We can't become what we aren't thinking about.
• D&C 6:16 "Yea, I tell thee, that thou mayest know that there is none else save God that knowest thy thoughts and the intents of they heart."
• Spend more time reading, thinking, and being still. You will miss incredible help if you don't take time to ponder.
• "Greatness is best measured by how well an individual responds to the happenings in life that appear to be totally unfair, unreasonable, and undeserved." Marvin J. Ashton
• When our behavior is congruent with our beliefs then we are truly happy
• Give ordinary things a deeper meaning. Prepare, participate, remember.
• Sometimes the experiences we have in life are like a parable. Ponder them and look for the deeper meaning.
• Reading a [general conference] talk a day keeps Satan away.
• Leave behind what could hold you back from a better relationship with the Lord.

Visitors

My sister-in-law Kimber and her daughters Erin and Kellie are visiting with us for the weekend. They came to go to Time Out for Women/Girls with me downtown. It is so nice when we have family visit! I love it, but probably not as much as Kade. He was bouncing off the walls he was so excited!

Tenley was pretty sad when all the girls left and she had to stay home alone with the boys.

Kade just had fun falling backwards onto the air mattress. I love my cute kids!