Boys will be boys

My poor little Parker was playing with Ashley this weekend, when he slammed the bridge of his nose into the edge of the stairs. Of course, as timing would have it, the whole ordeal happened at eight at night--right when we were getting ready to put him to bed...not worry about whether or not he had a concussion. The result was not pretty, to say the least. His poor little nose immediately started to balloon right up, and his cute little face really didn't look like the Parker we all know and love.



Fortunately, he is one tough little guy and the tears did not last too long. Now that the weekend has come and gone, he has mild swelling and two green and yellow circles around his eyes. We are all so grateful that Parker is doing better. All I can say is that, given Parker's affinity for fun and adventure, I have a hunch this is just a sign of many more of these moments to come!

We CAN Do Hard Things

This past year has caused me time and again to reflect upon each one of my children and their personal journey upon this earth. During these past few months, I have seen each of my children stretch and grow, sometimes falling, and sometimes even struggling to get up and move on. I have felt really strongly that one of the greatest gifts I can give my children is the gift of inner-strength and independence. This life can sure get rough, at times, and if my children know deep down inside what they are made of, or better yet, what they are capable of, they will be able to face their challenges and fears head on. So, as a family, we have decided to make our 2010 motto "We CAN Do Hard Things!!!" We have encouraged each one of the kids to set one goal/month to accomplish at least one thing that seems hard to them. Keep in mind, each child is unique, has their own individualized set of strengths and talents, but they also have their own individualized hesitations and reservations regarding certain things they think they REALLY can accomplish. It will be interesting to see what goals each of them set and I look forward to seeing them conquer their inhibitions!!! I see so much potential within each one my children and I hope that this year will help them to likewise see this great potential, as well.

Ashley's First Talk

This Sunday Ashley had the opportunity to give her first talk in Sacrament Meeting. Given that Ashley loves to talk and also lives a live audience, she was more than happy to share her thoughts and feelings regarding Service, as it relates to the For the Strength of Youth pamphlet.

Since Ashley had abused some computer-time privileges earlier in the week (playing on the computer and surfing the net vs. doing homework), her mean ol' mom held strong to her computer-free grounding and made her research her talk the good old-fashioned way: BOOKS. To Ashley's credit, she hunkered down and put some serious time into reading through numerous books that covered the topic of service. The end result was fabulous. Ashley wrote and delivered a wonderful talk and bore a beautiful, heart-felt testimony. We are so proud of you, Ashley! You are a sweet, wonderful daughter of God!