The Armor of God & A Little Skype Action

Tonight it was my turn for our Family Home Evening lesson, knowing that my turn was coming, Saturday I purchased a suit of armor dress up set; I knew it would be perfect for FHE, church, and dress up fun! It helped my lesson so much tonight! First I asked them what a suit of armor was used for and who would wear one; we discussed how those in battle used to wear them to protect their bodies, because their enemies wished to destroy them. We then talked about who wants to destroy us, Satan. We talked about how Satan wants us to be very unhappy, so he tempts us to do things we shouldn't; I then explained how we also wear armor, the Armor of God. We discussed how as we do things that are right we build up our armor and our strength to fight against Satan. Next we read Ephesians 6:10-18, and we suited Braden up with the armor as we read each verse; once Braden was suited up, we had him stand on the bench in the den, for full dramatic effect. As he stood, I asked the kids what kind of things we need to do to build and strengthen our Armor of God: pray, read your scriptures, go to church, and follow the commandments. We then took a piece of Braden's armor away at a time, and discussed how vulnerable you are against Satan when you stop doing the things that are right, the things that protect you from Satan's temptations. Next, I put the armor back on Braden, piece by piece, again explaining as we and Braden do the right things, our armor is strengthened and a protection; after this we watched the following video (We have it on old school VHS, gotta upgrade to the DVD version.). It is broken up into two parts.



As we watched the short video, I explained what was happening. After the video was over, I reiterated what we had learned about the Armor of God, and then I bore my testimony about how doing the right things does make us stronger and better able to withstand Satan's temptation. We then adjorned to the kitchen for a little ice cream in a bag http://crafts.kaboose.com/ice-cream-in-a-bag.html.

Here are some pictures of the creative process.

After creating our fun treat, Mama called to let us know she was finally and officially on skype; we were honored to be her first Skype call. To show their excitement, the cuties decided to dance for Mama in honor of the grand event, and here, for your viewing pleasure are our resident booty shakers (the pictures will have to do, because the video was not cooperating).

All in all, it was a fun family night, and now all four cuties are sound asleep; it doesn't get better than that!

What do you do?

What do you do?

What do you do when your four year old scratches her two year old sister all over the face?

What do you do when you sit down and ask your four year old what possessed her to do such a thing, and her answer is, "I just felt like it."

After some quick soul searching, don't have much time to think on the spur of the moment, I decided to pull out the ole' consequence jar. I thought, 'Rich and I don't really spank the cuties, but she needs to understand the severity of her actions. I think some good hard work will do the trick; she can think about what she is done while she works, after of course apologizing and hugging and kisses her little sister.'

So here is the accused, cleaning the baseboards in our dining room; I may have possibly, perhaps, a very good possiblity, most definitely, arranged it, so she got a harder job (gives her more time to think about what she has done, it's not supposed to be easy after all).

I LOVE this little boy!

I LOVE this little boy! I love his sweet, precious toes, his chubby cheeks, his tiny hands, his delightful coos, his gorgeous, blue eyes, and that smile, oh that smile! No matter how hard I try, I can't stop kissing him, the top of his sweet little head, the apples of his cheeks, the tips of his toes, and that adorable nose!

This dear little baby has won my heart!

Happy Father's Day! (a couple days late)

When The Good Lord Was Creating Fathers

Written by: Erma Bombeck

He started with a tall frame.

An angel nearby said "What kind of a Father is that?
If you're going to make children so close to the ground,
Why have you put the Father up so high?
He won't be able to shoot marbles without kneeling,
Play pretend drinking tea, and kiss dolly goodnight,
tuck a child in bed without bending,
or even kiss a child without stooping."

God smiled and said,
"Yes,but if I make him child size,
who would children have to look up to?"

And when God made a Father's hands, they were large.
The angel said, "Large hands can't manage diaper pins,
small buttons, rubber bands on pony tails,
or even remove splinters caused from baseball bats."

Again God smiled and said,
"I know, but they're large enough to hold
everything a small boy empties from his pockets,
all the paper dolls, sing songs, jump rope,
and teach her to turn cartwheels.
Yet small enough to cup a child's face in them."

Then God molded long slim legs and broad shoulders,
"Do you realize you just made a Father without a lap?"

God said, "A Mother needs a lap.
A Father needs strong shoulders to
pull a wagon, to balance a bicycle,
or to hold a sleepy head on the way home from the circus."

When God was in the middle of creating
the biggest body any one had ever seen,
the angel said, "That's not fair.
Do you honestly think that form is going to get
out of bed early in the morning when the baby cries,
or walk through a birthday party without
crushing one or two of the guests?"

God again smiled and said,
"It will work. You will see.
It will support a small child who wants to ride to Banbury Cross
or scare mice away from a summer cabin,
or walk in shoes that will be a challenge to fill."

God worked throughout the night,
giving the Father few words,
but a firm authoritative voice;
eyes that see everything,
but remain calm and tolerant.

Finally, almost as an after thought,
He added tears. Then he turned to the angel and said,
"Now are you satisfied he can love as much as a Mother can?"

The angel said nothing more.

On this Father's Day (a couple days late), I would like to wish a couple special men a Happy Father's Day, first to my own father, who I affectionately call Daddy, and

second, to the love of my life and the father of my children, Rich a.k.a. Hubba Hubba.

Preparation and Planning

Preparation and planning, that is what my life has consisted of the last few days, in anxious anticipation of Father's Day this upcoming Saturday, presents to make, pictures to take, packages to mail, menus to plan, and things to buy. As a result, my blog has felt neglected the last few days, so you will understand some of what I have been up to, here are a couple pictures I took today of my sweet little boys; I alas, did not get this picture taken in time to use for my Father's Day projects, so I can share it with you. I will share the others after Father's Day, just in case my darling husband or my wonderful father happen to see the pictures.

Mr. Pessimist Vs. Mr. Optimist

What kind of battle would that be,

Mr. Pessimist Vs. Mr. Optimist?!!!

It is the battle that has been raging inside of me all week!

Rich being gone is always hard, and often it takes a little more work on my side to see the positive.

He leaves and the battle begins!

Situation: My husband is out of town for work.

Mr. Pessimist says, "I HATE this! I am so tired of him leaving for work! I feel like a single parent!"

Mr. Optimist says, "We are lucky that he has a job in these hard economic times, and that it is a good one! This is also his last trip for a long time."

Situation: I walk into the kitchen to notice that Brooke's goldfish is laying on its side at the top of the fish bowl, struggling to breathe. I have to quickly get the fish out and clean the bowl, in hopes of saving the fish.

Mr. Pessimist says, "Why didn't these blasted fish just die a few weeks ago?!! How did they even make it this long! Why in the world did we even let the kids have these? I thought they would make it a week, tops! I wish Rich was here to do this!"

Mr. Optimist says, "It's a good thing you came in the kitchen when you did! You wouldn't have been able to save the fish otherwise."

Situation: You get home from the pool: tired, hungry, and grumpy; you have to feed all the kids, before you can even think about feeding yourself.

Mr. Pessimist says, "I wish these kids could just make themselves lunch; I need a nap, and a break!"

Mr. Optimist says, "At least you were able to go to the pool and have some fun; it also made some of the time Rich is gone go a little faster!"

Situation: Braden runs into the living room exclaiming that his two year old sister just pooped in the bath tub.

Mr. Pessimist says, "So sick! Why as a mother do I have to deal with so much bodily excrement?!!!!! Now I am going to have to not only get Emma cleaned off, but scrub the tub down with Comet before Braden can take a bath!"

Mr. Optimist: "I've got nothing!" (See sometimes I even stump Mr. Optimist!)

Situation: The kids are yet again whining about having to work.

Mr. Pessimist says, "These kids are so ungrateful sometimes! Don't they understand all the work I put in day in and day out?!!!! It's not going to kill them to do their part and be part of the team. Where is that consequence jar of mine?"

Mr. Optimist says, "This is hard, but they will learn valuable life lessons; it will be worth it in the end."

Situation: Brooke is yet again tattling on her brother.

Mr. Pessimist says, "What is this, like the 100th time she has told on him today?!!!! Can't they solve any of their problems without a referee?!"

Mr. Optimist says, "At least she feels like she can come to me when she needs something."

Situation: Overwhelmed with all that needs to be done on a daily basis, and a husband missing in action for a few days.

Mr. Pessimist says, "Why can't I just have five minutes of peace? Why can't I just take a day off?"

Mr. Optimist says, "Be grateful you have been blessed with your beautiful children. One day you will miss this time you have with them!"

Situation: Mr. Pessimist finally reaches his limit, no longer able to handle Mr. Optimist's incessant cheerful utterances, he pushes him off a very steep cliff!

Mr. Pessimist says, "Oops, did I do that?"

Look what I can do!

Colton's thoughts:

'It's amazing folks, I roll over from my back to my front, I prop myself up on my arms, and you would think I had conquered a country! My family giggles, claps, and pulls out that dreaded camera! Now if you will excuse me, I must do my duty and look cute for that crazy mama of mine; the things I do for those I love!'

Picture Post

Due to the fact that I have once again stayed up way too late, which is due to the fact that I don't sleep as well when Rich is gone; I will for tonight simply post a few pictures of brotherly love I have captured.

Okay, I feel guilty; here is also a video of Braden and Brooke rocking out (Brooke does most of the rocking), playing the paper guitars Braden made for them (you never know what he will create next).

*Just so you know, Brooke again created her fashion statement.

(don't forget to turn the music off at the bottom)

Brooke's Dance Recital

The weekly trips, the hours waiting at the dance studio, the money spent, all led up to this, the dance recital. Saturday morning Brooke had her first dance recital, and she LOVED IT! Mama and Elizabeth even drove down from South Carolina to be in attendance, which we were very grateful for! I think it would be accurate to say that she had zero stage fright; she was in heaven, and has since informed me that she wants to be on television. I don't know about that, but I can support another year of dance. Here are some pictures and video from the big day. Before you watch the video, let me explain; it is VERY poor in quality. The reason of the poor quality is this; we weren't supposed to bring video cameras, camera phones, or anything that remotely resembled a camera, so I sadly came unarmed. Once arriving at the recital though, I realized that very few parents decided to follow said rule; when I saw other parents whip out their Canons and Nikons, I was a little disappointed, but then I remembered my back-up, my saving grace, my wonderful, life saving, diaper bag camera.

It wasn't quite the same, but it would have to do. So, I whipped my little life saver out, handed it to Rich, and he got to work trying to capture the moments the best we could.

First up, pictures from the day, including some from our celebration lunch at Olive Garden, our quick stop at Homegoods, and pictures from the awards ceremony they had earlier this week at Brooke's dance class.

Next up, some videos from the recital. Again, these aren't the best, but they will have to do for now (we ordered a DVD of the performance).

First, here is a video from Brooke's tap dance; this is my all time favorite costume! I think it is adorable! I had issues with her ballet costume and the thin, see through fabric they had across her midriff, just saying. Brooke is the one next to last on the right, the one missing a black bow from one of her tap shoes; yeah, not quite sure what happened to the other one.

Here is a short video of part of Brooke's ballet performance; sorry about the head chopping at the end, Rich said he let the camera drift.

(Brooke is in the middle.)

Here is a video of the grand finale at the end, mainly just Brooke's class coming out, bowing, and sitting down.

(Brooke is the first one, the one holding the woman's hand.)

All in all, it was a great day!

World's Strictest Parents

Ever heard of the show World's Strictest Parents? I hadn't either, until I found out that the man who was the second counselor in the stake presidency (church stuff) and his family were going to be on it. Cool, huh?!!! At least I thought so. Well, as many of you know, Rich and I don't have cable, so I had to wait until they put the entire episode on www.cmt.com; it was worth the wait! I got some great ideas from it, the consequence jar for example (which I will blog more about later). I also sooooooooooo want a skirt like the one Dana Cork (the mother of the family) helped one of the visiting teens make (ADORABLE). In case you want to check it out, here is the link, http://www.cmt.com/videos/misc/391878/worlds-strictest-parents-105-the-cork-family-1.jhtml?id=1611505

They are a fantastic family, and it let me know that having respectful, hardworking, loving teenagers can be a reality! I have been so scared that my children will grow up, turn 12 or 13, and turn into disrespectful, lazy, ungrateful children! Around me lately I have witnessed teenagers talk back to their parents, completely ignore their parents, act as if their parents are simply things or beings to do their bidding, and totally disprespect their parents!

Thankfully, this family

let me know, that by laying the groundwork (which Rich and I are trying so hard to do), we can have loving, respectful teenagers.

Thank you Cork family for opening up your home to America!

Your family is an inspiration!

Cuteness Personified

He gets a little bigger and a little cuter every day!

Bittersweet Pride

As I look at these pictures of my children, I am filled with so much pride, but the pride is bittersweet. In these pictures my children are cutting up strawberries to make jam and decorating cards; they are in fact trying to put a smile on someone's face, herein lies the bittersweet. A week ago tomorrow, my dear friend LaNae found out that her mother had died, quite unexpectedly. It was the perfect opportunity to teach the children lessons about death, the resurrection, eternal families, friendship, Christlike love, and service. The children were thrilled to have the opportunity to help cheer up someone they care so much about, and I was so proud to see their Christlike love in action; I'm glad they were able to bring LaNae some joy amongst her pain, bittersweet. It also let me know, that I need to look for more opportunities that will allow them to use their talents, gifts, and time to serve others.

See this man?!

See this man?!!! I miss him like crazy!!

See these kids (posing with their Grandma); they miss him too! We all miss him!

He is once again in the dreaded Atlanta, but thankfully, this is his last trip!!!!

What do I miss about him?

ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING!!!!!!!

What do the cuties miss about him? I don't know, let's ask a couple of them.

Let's start with Braden.

"Braden, what are some things you miss about your daddy?"

"He reads Junie B. Jones to us. He always goes on dates with me. I love when he reads books to me, and when he helps me write words that I don't know. I miss when he tucks me in and sings a song to me."

Sounds like a pretty missable guy to me. Let's ask one more cutie, just to make sure.

How about Brooke?

"Brooke, what are some things you miss about your daddy?"

"He does great explosions!

(An explosion meaning filling up empty milk containers with water, going outside, throwing them high up into the air, and watching them explode when they fall; Rich uses it quite often to bribe the children, because they think it is just the greatest thing! It is amazing how quickly they will finish a job if the promise of an explosion hangs in the air!)

"He does flips, and the flips he does are great; he teaches me Spanish while he does it. He helps me draw things what I can't do. Because Daddy really helps me a lot, because I love him!"

There you have it; it is unanimous in the affirmative!

We all miss Rich like crazy!!!!

He is a great father and husband, and we want his little tushy home!!!!!!!!!

Summer Reading Program Kickoff Party

Today the cuties and I (as per tradition) went to the library for their Summer Reading Program Kickoff Party. We signed up for the reading program, collected our reading logs, and then had some fun!

Here are some pictures of our mini adventure:

(I would like to point out that Brooke selected her shirt hairbow combo, in case anyone was wondering.)