Merry Christmas!

"At this Christmas time of year, we rejoice in the birth of Jesus Christ, the Light of the World, who has invited us all to come unto Him and into the light. We can read in the scriptures of the men and women who were blessed to literally come to Him at the time of the Nativity. Some came from afar, while others were closer by. Some received angelic visitations, and others acted on personal revelation. But each accepted the invitation to come to Him.”

 

“Our journey to Him isn’t physical; it is spiritual and behavioral. It involves accepting and embracing the fact that His Atonement is infinite and covers every aspect of our lives—our sin, weakness, pain, sickness, and infirmity. It means that we can let go of those things that hold us down in the gloomy fog … and live instead in the warmth and love of the Light of the World. As President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency, has taught: ‘The words ‘come unto Christ’ are an invitation. It is the most important invitation you could ever offer to another person. It is the most important invitation anyone could accept.’” 
-Elder Patrick Kearon

Thank you to my enablers past and present!

Moving Forward

As news broke about last Friday's elementary school shooting in Connecticut, I experienced a range of emotions- disbelief, sorrow, fear, and anger. As a mother, news stories like this are especially unsettling, because it is instantly personalized. I asked myself, what kind of society am I raising my precious children in? Truly, I realized, we are living in a time when "men's hearts wax cold" (Matthew 24:12). I can only have faith that our children are born strong enough to meet the challenges they will be faced with.

I find great comfort in John 16:33, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of  good cheer; I have overcome the world," as well as Sister Burton's teaching that "All that is unfair about life can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ." The Atonement will heal our wounds.

In the meantime, I believe that these events are a symptom of a deepening infection in our country- a disregard for human life and glamorization of death/darkness. I hope that our nation can honestly, boldly, and shamelessly pinpoint the causes of this sickness (and I have my opinions about what those are, but that's another post for another day) and take the necessary steps to eliminate it for the welfare of our children and our country.

Children's Christmas Books

Every year, I try to pick up a Christmas book to read with my children (and because I like picture books). Last year, I picked up "The Story of Christmas" on a gamble and was pleasantly surprised. It tells the story of Jesus' birth using text from the King James Bible, and the accompanying Scherenschnitte (bless you!) illustrations by Pamela Dalton are beautiful.

This year I got "Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree" by Robert Barry. I was unintentionally being very responsible in my selection, because all of the reviewers raved about it's green message of recycling (which is what Christmas is all about, right?). I just thought it's seemingly infinite storyline was clever- like a Fibbonacci spiral... kind of. My son, on the other hand, declared the story "annoying" when we finished. Ahhh, the christmas memories I'm creating with my little ones.

I have a handful of other books. Do you have any recommendations?

"I Det"...

... or, "I do it," for those who don't speak my daughter's language. 
These three words can strike fear in the heart of any within hearing distance... or at least those involved with said toddler. When those three words are spoken, I know 3 things: 

1. My daughter has had a sudden stroke of independence, 
2. A task that normally takes 30 seconds will now take 7 minutes.
3. Any form of "help" (even the smallest gesture) will result in my daughter protesting, undoing what I did, and doing it herself from the beginning- increasing a 7 minute process to 15 minutes. Crying can commonly accompany this process.

I then have 4 choices:

1. Choose my battle- If we have all the time in the world, I can indulge my daughter in her desire to learn to be independent.
2. Bribe/Reward- If we are short on time, this will sometimes speed up the process.
3. Rasslin' Time- If option 1 & 2 are not working or not an option, it can get ugly. She is surprisingly strong and determined for such a little thing.
4. Curl up in the fetal position until the moment has passed- If options 1,2, 3 have failed, this is the only choice left. I have not yet made it to this level, but I have been close.

I suppose history has proved that the road to independence is never easy. Especially, when you have tyrant that insists on buckling your car seat or helping you with your jacket.