Ellie
I’m thankful for the world and Heavenly Father. When I walk home from school, I notice the plants and the grass, because they are shiny and pretty.
Miriam
I’m thankful for my Home, if I didn’t have a home, where would I go?
Enoch
I am thankful for blankets to keep us warm and trees to give us oxygen.
Natalie
I’m thankful for Joseph Smith and being able to read the scriptures and know about the gospel.
Isaac
I am thankful for seminary because now that I can go on a mission earlier, it will play a bigger part in preparing me for it.
Auriana
I thought it was neat to be able to set aside a day to focus on being grateful for Young Women’s and Personal Progress. It helped me realize what a big part they play in my life.
Becky
One thing I personally noticed through doing this experiment is how easy it is to change my mood through gratitude. I’ve learned that focusing on my blessings can instantly improve my outlook, it’s almost as if one tiny thought of gratitude has the power and magnitude to chase away any number of negative thoughts.
Last night, I asked the kids what their favorite thing to be grateful for was. I was happy to hear them say, Personal Progress, Activity Days, Seminary, friends, and family. The day we focused on being thankful for family was probably the most memorable of all the days. We just happened to do family pictures that day and so we had extra time to be together and appreciate each other. As we commented about our gratitude that evening, these were the comments that were made. Family gives purpose to life and makes it joyful. Family is the source of the best memories and the motivation for living righteously so that we can all be together. Gratitude for family eliminates contention in the home. My family helps me all the time. Family makes things more fun. If I didn’t have a family I wouldn’t be happy. If I didn’t have a family, I would be lonely. If I didn’t have a family I wouldn’t be alive!
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Sunday, November 18, 2012
OCTOBER 2012: by Becky
Birthday season is officially over at our house…just in time to start thinking about Christmas.
Ellie wanted to have a dolphin party. She wanted to invite friends over and dress up as dolphins and pretend to be dolphins. I’ll have to say it was hard to find ideas for this party, but it turned out fun! Natalie and her friends came over to help and they made a very fun dolphin playground in the family room, complete with an octopus, a cave, waves, and seaweed. We hung up blue streamers, blue crepe paper, blue balloons, and we waved blue plastic around. It felt very “oceany.” We ate blue jello with gummy fish and even spent some time in the backyard trying to catch fish (crackers) in our mouths. Berry had fun eating all the fish we didn’t catch! I can’t believe Ellie is seven!
Natalie wanted to go on a scavenger hunt for her birthday, so Bjorn and I had fun devising one with 13 clues for her 13th birthday. She and her friends (The Magnificent Seven) had to go around town doing & saying silly things to get their next clue. They did a lot of service along the way and Bjorn and I had a blast watching them from a distance. We wanted to keep an eye on them without them knowing we were there.
Auriana’s been talking about taking the ACT test soon. Isaac made the 9th grade basketball team. Natalie, Enoch, and Miriam have all started into basketball, and we were talking about going to the church to practice because Natalie has a homework assignment to do 100 layups. Ellie said, “I want to do layups with you Natalie,” and she got down and started doing sit-ups. Natalie, Miriam, and Ellie have started back into Irish dance as well.
Congrats to Brandon on his ordination to the Aaronic Priesthood. We’re glad we were able to be there to support him in that and also to spend time with family and enjoy a yummy dinner prepared by Barbie. It was sure great to see Mom and Dad safely back in the States. We enjoyed having them here and spending time with them. It kind of seemed like just another visit during one of their breaks. It won’t feel like they’re really home until we actually see them in their home. We are looking forward to seeing you all soon – in Rexburg. Yay!
Ellie wanted to have a dolphin party. She wanted to invite friends over and dress up as dolphins and pretend to be dolphins. I’ll have to say it was hard to find ideas for this party, but it turned out fun! Natalie and her friends came over to help and they made a very fun dolphin playground in the family room, complete with an octopus, a cave, waves, and seaweed. We hung up blue streamers, blue crepe paper, blue balloons, and we waved blue plastic around. It felt very “oceany.” We ate blue jello with gummy fish and even spent some time in the backyard trying to catch fish (crackers) in our mouths. Berry had fun eating all the fish we didn’t catch! I can’t believe Ellie is seven!
Natalie wanted to go on a scavenger hunt for her birthday, so Bjorn and I had fun devising one with 13 clues for her 13th birthday. She and her friends (The Magnificent Seven) had to go around town doing & saying silly things to get their next clue. They did a lot of service along the way and Bjorn and I had a blast watching them from a distance. We wanted to keep an eye on them without them knowing we were there.
Auriana’s been talking about taking the ACT test soon. Isaac made the 9th grade basketball team. Natalie, Enoch, and Miriam have all started into basketball, and we were talking about going to the church to practice because Natalie has a homework assignment to do 100 layups. Ellie said, “I want to do layups with you Natalie,” and she got down and started doing sit-ups. Natalie, Miriam, and Ellie have started back into Irish dance as well.
Congrats to Brandon on his ordination to the Aaronic Priesthood. We’re glad we were able to be there to support him in that and also to spend time with family and enjoy a yummy dinner prepared by Barbie. It was sure great to see Mom and Dad safely back in the States. We enjoyed having them here and spending time with them. It kind of seemed like just another visit during one of their breaks. It won’t feel like they’re really home until we actually see them in their home. We are looking forward to seeing you all soon – in Rexburg. Yay!
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August: by Bjorn
Well, the 3 younger kids are off to their first day of school! Can't believe Miriam's in high school! We did father's blessings...
