Lily's Dance Class 2015

Little Miss Lily LOVES to dance! When she hears music, or even when she looks in the mirror, her first inclination is to dance, it's always been her first response. On the last day of Fall semester her class had a mini concert and some grown-up helper time. Daddy and Mommy were there to watch, but so were Nana and Papa. Lily chose Nana to do some dancing with her. It was precious!



This Fall she has been in Miss Susan's class at Southwest Dance. This is the dance studio that Mommy grew up dancing in, so it's a special place for our family!



On the wall behind Lily is a beautiful quote by Miss Candy, my original teacher. Of Southwest Dance she said, “Our dancers know … that they are loved … that they are important … that they have their own statement, their own music, their own dance waiting to be created. Southwest Dance Theatre is a lab for young, inventive minds. We are the keepers of innocence, the makers of dreams.”



Lily has loved dancing and couldn't be cuter! I can't wait to watch her in the final dance concert. I have a feeling it will be quite memorable!

Benson's Recent Quotes

This little guy has been keeping us laughing recently. He seems to learn new words by association which lends itself to some pretty funny vocabulary choices.

For example, Benson really likes quesadillas and recently BJ introduced him to the idea of an open-faced quesadilla. The cheese gets a little crispy and tasty. Benson really likes it. So, the other day for lunch he said to me,

 "Mom, can I have an open-head?"
"What?!?" I replied.
"You, know, like a quesadilla with crispy cheese." He said.

It took me until I'd made the whole quesadilla, puzzling the entire time about what he meant by "open-head" until I realized he was trying to say "open-face". We now refer to open-faced quesadillas by using Benson's term. Don't be alarmed if we ever offer you an open-head.... its not half bad!



Tonight at the end of dinner I said to BJ, "Oh no! I just ate that entire salad!" Since finishing your dinner is usually heralded as a major victory among the kids, they were confused by my distress. McKay said,
"Mom, why are you worried about finishing your dinner?"
"Because I'm trying to lose weight, honey."
McKay asked why but before I could explain Benson jumped right in and said,
"I know how you lose weight! Eat lots of burritos!"
"What? Why do you think that, Bens?" I asked.
"Because I saw it on grandma's TV! If you eat lots of burritos and other tacos and meals then you'll lose weight!"
Apparently he saw a commercial about weight loss meals. That's the kind of diet I'd like to be on!!



He is also the cheerful peace-maker in our home. More and more often I see him giving over to his siblings to help them be happy and keep the peace.
Last week Nana brought a little treat bag over for the kids to share. In it, among other things were 3 Gatorade drinks, each a different color. Apparently Benson wanted the yellow drink and McKay the blue. However, by morning McKay decided he wanted the yellow drink.
Throughout the morning I heard McKay trying to bargain and trade with Benson but Benson really wanted the yellow. Since I feel like Benson usually gets the shorter end of the stick in these types of situations I told McKay that after school we could go to the store and get another drink for each of them and McKay could get the yellow then.
McKay still wasn't satisfied but I told him he wasn't allowed to bother Benson about it anymore. Just then Benson said,
"Here McKay, you can have the yellow. I want you to feel happy."
I was so touched, I almost started to cry. It was such a sweet thing to do. Benson is like that. Always wanting those he loves to feel happy. He is like BJ in so many ways. So grateful for this sweet boy!

Glorious

On Friday night BJ and I went to David Archuleta live at the Tuacahn Amphitheater. A finalist on American Idol at age 16 and a Mormon, he's been an interesting person to follow. He gave a fabulous concert. He sang just as beautifully as he did on American Idol. He has an amazing high range! During the concert he talked to the audience about the difficulty of deciding to serve an LDS mission when he was a rising star in the music industry. He said that he was told by all the people in the business that if he left for 2 years when he got back there wouldn't be a career for him. But, he said, "the same voice the prompted me to go audition for American Idol was prompting me to serve a mission so against everyone's advice, I went." He said his mission was the happiest he'd ever been in his life.

I was touched by his sincerely and goodness. On Saturday morning during breakfast BJ and I told the kids about David, his concert and the message he shared about deciding to follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost. Then we played one of his most popular songs which he sang as his encore, "Glorious".

David Archuleta's "Glorious"

The kids were really impressed with him and the choices he made. They liked the song a lot too and wanted to talk about it. I explained that the song says that everyone has a purpose, a special mission to fulfill here on earth that only they can do. McKay was amazed by this and said, with eye's wide, "Mom, you mean I have a special mission too?" I answered yes and he said with wider eyes and all the sincerity of a 7-year-old, "But Mom, how will I know what it is?" I told him he could pray to know what the Lord's mission for his is and that if he listened, the Holy Ghost would help him know. It was a sweet, beautiful moment in our home as the Spirit testified to us both of this glorious truth.

General Conference Reflections Fall 2015

Oh how I love General Conference! I was just amazed at the power of this General Conference. It seems as the world grows more wicked the Savior imbues his church with added power and courage. I felt so renewed as I listened to the divine messages of our inspired leaders.

In particular, I heard messages about the Holy Ghost and much encouragement to listen to and follow His promptings. I felt the Holy Ghost throughout each session as I listened, testifying of the truth of the messages and their relevance in my life. 

During the closing session of the Saturday morning session, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir was singing "Come, Come Ye Saints". It was a beautiful version and as I listened I thought of my grandma Brady and the saintly woman she was. She had many struggles in life yet was always valiant. It brought tears to my eyes as I thought of her and felt the strength of her spirit. Suddenly, from the kitchen table McKay's voice permeated my thoughts as he said, "Mom, I feel like I'm about to cry." I asked him why and he said he didn't know. It was a beautiful opportunity to help him understand he was feeling the Holy Ghost through the beautiful song. I told him I felt like I might cry too because the Holy Ghost was touching my heart they way it was touching his. I'm so humbled by moments like this that allow me to teach the amazing little spirits the Lord has entrusted to me. 

I was inspired by the messages directed to the women of the church. I am a covenant daughter of God and it is my desire to fulfill the mission the Lord has for me and to do it well! I want to be a woman like this: 

As a young mother, I want more than anything to have happy, healthy, joyful children, who know who they are, and have a love for and relationship with their Heavenly Father and Savior. 

I have given up some things this year that mean a lot to me in order to be a better mother. I know it is my most important role--the most useful, vital, and significant role I have. Yet so often I feel so incapable of meeting the demands of my young family. The amount of mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual work it takes to be a good mother is both overwhelming and exhausting. Over the last several months Kate has struggled with digestive issues and Lily with immune issues. Lily is often seriously ill and Kate, since birth, has rarely slept longer than two hours at a time. This leaves me full of worry and deplete of energy. Though I try my best, I often fail to be the cheerful, tidy, energetic, creative, fun mother I wish I were. From this vantage point, Elder Holland's words were my balm in Gilead. More than anything, I don't want to fail my children or the Lord in the work of our family. Elder Holland's words soothed my weary soul. "No love in mortality comes closer to approximating the pure love of Jesus Christ than the selfless love a devoted mother has for her children."

I love this quote. I summarizes my renewed determination:

Laie LDS Temple

On Sunday we spent some time on the Laie Temple grounds. The temple there is so beautiful and the gardens surrounding it are lush and tropical. 

We were planning to do family pictures on the beach just in back of our house. However, little Mark had ocean-a-phobia and began screaming if he even heard the ocean. So, we decided we might have happier faces if we did our family pictures on the temple grounds. 

Todd brought along his camera and took some family pictures but here are some pics from my phone.

Nana and Lily

Angie and Kate

All the boys

Silly Faces

Pretty Lily

Dole Plantation and Shark's Cove

We tried to spend most days doing activities as a whole family but on the day the adults went to see Pearl Harbor we decided to do something else with the little ones. So, those of us who had already been to Pearl Harbor on previous trips took the kiddos to the Dole Plantation.

The highlight was definitely the train ride. Look at these happy faces!

The train takes you through the plantation where there are tons of pineapple plants (of course) and lots of red dirt! That was a surprise. It felt like home...but Hawaiian.

After the train ride we grabbed some Dole Whip (A-mazing!) and headed home.

The whole crew at the Dole Plantation

The Dads (Todd and Dan) with their boys

Another highlight was Shark's Cove. The name sounds terrifying but really there are no sharks in the area and it's an incredible spot for snorkeling and wading. We spent a few hours wading through the tide pools observing lots of sea creatures. There were lots of crabs--McKay even caught a few! We found a sea cucumber which McKay picked up, saw fish and sea plants. It was fascinating!

McKay holding the Sea Cucumber

Polynesian Cultural Center

One of our favorite activities on Oahu was the Polynesian Cultural Center. It is an amazing place! I went there about 10 years ago and I didn't remember it being quite so amazing. There were tons of activities and demonstrations all day long! There was something for every age level and interest. We spent some time as a whole family but eventually split up so that the kids could do the hands-on activities while the adults went to the demonstrations. It was a great day for everyone!

We spent the day doing the activities at the PCC then went to the Luau. It was really fun! The kids especially liked the show during dinner. 

Becky, Dan, and Angie sampling the Hawaiian fare

Rachel and the Boys

At the incredible "Ha: Breath of Life" evening show. We loved the fire dancers!!

Lily at the entrance to the PCC

Being greeted by the beautiful Polynesian ladies 

We loved being all together in Hawaii!

Cute Mom and Dad

Mom and Dad provided the trip for everyone! What a gift!

Learning to make palm leaf fish

Playing Hawaiian games at the PCC

Though we don't have a picture, I must note that the kids loved the PCC gift shop too. They spent a long time looking at all the interesting souvenirs and ended up deciding that more than anything they needed some tiki statues. Benson chose the tiny stone statues while McKay opted for a larger wooden one. They use them at home in their Lego games.