The Book of Mormon

For those of you with LDS/Mormon friends, you might feel a little overwhelmed today. Today is “flood facebook with the Book of Mormon” day. In theory, those who were made aware of the “party” will be posting their testimony of the Book of Mormon and how it changed their lives. I encourage you to not hide them from your newsfeed.  Each one was written with thought and from the heart. Take the time to read them, see what your friends believe, and perhaps ask some thoughtful, kind, open-hearted questions. I for one would LOVE to answer any questions you have!

That being said, here is my testimony of the Book of Mormon:

For anyone who doesn’t know, the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our Religion. It was translated through the power of God by Joseph Smith and tells the story of the American Continent. It is the other half of the “Stick of Joseph – Stick of Judah” for those familiar with the Bible. It shows how Jesus Christ came to the Americas. Rises and falls of civilizations due to wickedness – just like in the Bible. It has more teachings from Christ.

My favorite Book of Mormon story is that of Alma and Abinadi. Abinidi was a prophet called to preach in the city ruled by King Noah and his wicked priests, one of whom was Alma. Abinidi knew going was certain death but knowing that if he changed just one heart, it would be worth it and God wouldn’t send him somewhere that he couldn’t plant a seed. Just before he died, he touched Alma who went on follow his teachings, find God, and begin saving lives by helping others find God. Alma grew and had children, one of whom took his namesake. Alma the Younger was wild and didn’t want to live a righteous life, over which Alma lamented. He prayed and the Lord answered his prayer helping Alma the Younger realize his wicked ways. Nothing changes a heart like the Lord – not a spouse, not an article on the internet, not your neighbor’s ramblings…

That’s what today is about. I encourage you read it for yourself! I can get you a copy or you can request a copy! And then pray about it with a truly open heart. Plead with God to help you know for yourself and I GUARANTEE that he WILL answer you. You will feel it in a way unique to you. It could be a thought in your head, a peace in your heart, you could feel chills and you could even begin crying as you grasp what you’ve been missing.

The Book of Mormon has been a strength to me. My favorite chapter is 3 Nephi 11. It is the story of after Jesus descended to his Father and comes back down.  In this chapter His Father introduces Him. Later in the book of Nephi, He comes to the people of Nephi and blesses the children. When He tried to leave and go back to his Father, the people were devastated and knowing the desires of their hearts he stayed with them, prayed with them, comforted them, and when they were ready he left. God knows the desires of each of our hearts.

If you have the desire to know what your purpose in life is, what happens after death, how families can be together forever, how to enrich your life and find true joy, ask me and I’ll help you get in touch with the missionaries - they'll even weed your garden or do your dishes while they visit you! (http://www.justserve.org).

 Pray about it sincerely and honestly.

For those who made it all the way to the bottom, thank you. Your kindness and thoughtfulness and willingness to read this impress me. I pray it has touched you to take action and learn for yourself.

Thank you for your friendship.

I know that this book is true! It changes lives and it changes hearts. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Audrey Turns 1 !!!!!

Audrey officially turned a year old yesterday! She has changed so much!!!

She started out at 21.5" long, 7lbs, 6oz. Now she is 30" long and 17lbs. 

She can get anywhere she wants... She's a super climber just like her brother - who loves her so much!

 For lunch we had mac & cheese and dinner was spagetti. And we of course had otter pops (pop pops as Audrey calls them) all day long! They are her favorite!

We had so much fun with her gifts! I made her a dress, Eric's co-worker, Jana gave her the doll house, and then we got her more doll equipment (to go with the doll and crib from Gramma), princess figurines, and lots of clothes! I wrapped them in tissue paper so she could open them easier! Aaron even colored a picture for her!

 

According to Aaron, it isn't a party if we aren't outside so we went outside after dinner for the cake!

Today we took the kiddos to the zoo!

Aaron's favorite attraction was the construction machines and Audrey's was an older gentleman who looked like Grampa... they also both enjoyed the fish ;) Next time I'll just take them to the dentist. Just Kidding - they had tons of fun with the other animals too.

We had fun with the stroller!

Audrey loves to dance and sing. She'll move and "la la la" to any song that comes on.

She races to help her brother if he is ever sad (she'll pound on any door in her way and scream, "ahn! Ahn!") and is cheered fastest by him when she in turn is sad.

In the mornings, Audrey and I play in the play room while we wait for Eric and Aaron to wake up. She loves to come lay with me and then say, "awwwwwwwwwwww."

She loves her baby doll and will carry it around patting it's back and giving it kisses.

If any door closes, she is sad because it limits her freedom.

She plays great all on her own. She'll come show me something every once in a while and then head off to another room to play. We close the bathrooms and gates upstairs so she can go in her room and the playroom and then back to my room to find me. As long as she can get to me, she is happy!

She loves to call out, "Hey You!"

She is such a tease. She loves to take my phone and then race away giggling!

We love you Audrey! Thank you for joining our family!

Aaron Turns 3

I can't believe my crazy little man turned 3 today! Who said that was allowed to happen? 
He's gotten so big!!! He is 26.5lbs and almost 38" tall! 
I'll start out this post with today's activities and end with some unblogged stories and photos :)

Aaron has already received most of his gifts this year (Incredible's shirt & party, How to Train Your Dragon 2 & costume, Toy Story Figurines (Thomas, Lucy, Annie) and his b-ball hoop from Gramma) so he spent the day playing with them and making his sister super happy by sharing!

We had pizza panini's for lunch and baked potatoes for dinner. Yum!

 We got him Batman, Superman & Spiderman figurines along with a sandbox. He calls it his pirate ship. 

We had leftover cake from his 4th of July party and then took his hoop to the front yard so he could play with his friends outside. He had such a blast!

Now here are some of the fun things he has said and done recently. Enjoy!

• Gramma and Grampa are re-doing their backyard ... hardcore. And we are hard pressed to keep Aaron off of the machinery. Haha! The workers have learned to never leave the keys in the machines when Aaron comes over.

• We were at the church one day and Aaron informed he was looking for the ghost at the church. Not sure what he meant, I told him that there are no ghosts at the church. He insisted that there was indeed a ghost at the church and remained on the hunt. After a while I figured it out. "Aaron," I asked, "Do you mean the Holy Ghost?" "YES!!!" he exclaimed, happy to be finally understood. I was then able to explain that the Holy Ghost is actually inside of him. It didn't stop him from searching though.
• We went to a baptism for a daughter of some friends of ours and ever since, Aaron tells everyone he meets that he wants to be baptized. He wants to go in the water at the church with Daddy but he can't till he's 8. What a great missionary!
• Aaron randomly came up to me and said very sadly, "mama, my fire breath is not working..."
• I walked on on Aaron playing with his toys. One toy said, I have my sword!" the other replied, "and I have my pizza!" together they said, "Then let's fly!"
• 
• Recently, Aaron has been struggling with nightmares. After helping him through several nightmares, I'll still often find him in the morning curled up asleep on the floor beside our bed. We have offered prayers for Aaron to have good dreams but finally I felt prompted to have Aaron ask. I gave him the suggestion and then prepared to guide him through the prayer. He began the prayer and didn't see the need to wait for my help. "Dear Heavenly Father, we're grateful for Heavenly Father to help me to be happy and help it not be scary. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." Guess who had no nightmares that night, or any night since when he offers his own prayer for his dreams.

• Knowing we will be heading to Utah later this month, Aaron and I have had many discussions about the trip. He once asked me, "Mama, when do I get to see Grams and Papa?" "Good question, come over here, I need your help." "What are we doing mama?"  "We are making a chain for how many days till we go to Utah to see Grams and Papa." "Oh, how many till we get in the hair plane and fly and after when the plane comes back down then we see Grams and Papa?" "Yes Aaron." "Oh, Hey mama?" "Yes Aaron?" "Do they have flying cars?" "Flying cars? No, they have a van like us." "Like us? Oh ... oh well..."
• Upon seeing my necklace at church (my YW medallion), Aaron noticed I have a temple on it. He pointed it out and said, "It's a temple for Jesus Christ!" I said, "Yes it is, and there is Moroni on the top." "Oh, Moroni! He kills people..." "Not right now, he's holding a trumpet. He's protecting people..." "Yeah, he's protecting Jesus!" Well, at least we know he's getting something out of the scripture stories... He also thinks that all the pictures on the wall at church are of "people that need to go back to Jerusalem for the plates." Nice job kid.

• Having watched a lot of Care Bears recently, Aaron has picked up the word, "totally." So now things are "totally awesome," or "totally mine..." It's yours, huh? "yeah, it totally is!"
• Aaron, sitting in a cardboard box: mama, will you help me swim to the moon? Me: Well ... most people fly to the moon. Aaron: Oh... Can you help me fly then?
• One morning while eating breakfast, Aaron saw me eating biscuits and jelly as opposed to his yogurt. A: Is that chocolate? M: It's jelly. A: Is it chocolate jelly? M: Sure kid... A: Can I please have some? I passed one to him and he, very excited, took a bite... then he made a face. A: I don't like this. Maybe... Maybe I'll just look at it.  He pushed it away, settled his head in his hands, and stared at his biscuit. hahaha

Aaron and Audrey are great at making music together!

I love this kid! What joy he always brings to us! Happy birthday little man!