"Love & Logic"

A good friend of mine has been attending a class called "Love & Logic Parenting". She has been telling me how much it has helped the atmosphere in her home. I decided to attend the last 5 sessions, starting last night. Five minutes before I had to leave, I asked Troy if he would like to attend with me (I had been telling him about it recently already). I was shocked when he threw on his shoes and said, "Let's go!" We were thrilled with some of the skills we learned our first night. It will take practice and discipline to follow through, but I'm sure it will be worth it. Our only regret is that we didn't do this years ago. Our Kevin is a strong willed stinker. He has a great heart, but some nasty habits and a crappy attitude a lot of the time. I figure the attitude is just a pre-teen thing, so we need help now before it totally gets out of hand.

Kevin is a Deacon

Kevin recently turned 12 and was ordained a Deacon. He was so excited! In our ward, when kids graduate from Primary, if they are able to recite all 13 Articles of Faith, they are given the choice of either cutting our Bishop's tie or keeping it. He recited all 13 in order from memory and chose to cut the tie rather than keep it. Now he wishes he had kept it. Afterwards, the Deacon's Quorum came and "kidnapped" him away to Priesthood for the first time. Since Troy and I serve in Primary, we watched him go. It was kind of bittersweet.

On February 3rd, he passed the Sacrament for the first time. He was very excited and a little nervous. It turned out most of us had the flu over the weekend, so he got a ride with a friend to church. I snuck in the back of the chapel so I could be there for his first time. He was glad I was there. So was I. He said he really enjoyed doing it, was a little nervous, and a lot proud of himself. He said it felt good to be doing it.

My boy is growing up.

February Ensign

Have you ever picked up the latest Ensign and felt it was written just for you? Last night, I read cover to cover and just felt that it was a real answer to some prayers I've had lately. As I laid in bed reading (with a night-light until almost 1am) I just felt the Spirit and felt a surge of knowledge that what I was reading REALLY applied to me. I haven't had (or taken) the time to really pour through the Ensign for several months, and it felt like "coming home".

How grateful I am for inspired leaders who prayerfully teach us what the Lord wants for us. The Ensign is such a lighthouse in my life. What a gift.

Does that make sense? I may be a month late for resolutions, but I've kind of mapped out in my head some new resolutions, set new priorities, and given myself some new challenges for self-improvement in several areas of my life. Nothing huge or dramatic, but I've "taken a look in the mirror" and see some need for improvement. What's a new year without new goals? 'Nuff said.

97 Day Book of Mormon Challenge

Last night our family accepted a new challenge. We are going to read the Book of Mormon in 97 days, in honor of Gordon B. Hinckley, who lived to the age of 97. This equates to 5-1/2 pages per day. So in roughly 3 months we will have finished it (...again, as Kevin puts it). I heard about the challenge via email and went to www.hinckleychallenge.com to sign up. It gave our family a real purpose in reading the BOM again. I am excited! Go the the site and check it out. It's a great way to pay tribute to our late Prophet.

Kevin's Hunt

For those of you who may not know, Kevin was chosen to go on a Life Hunt with BUCKMASTERS and the Jackie Bushman show. He went hunting with 10 other hunters. All the hunters had life-threatening illnesses or disabilities. There were a few kids with different kinds of cancer. A little girl with kidney problems, a boy who is a burn victim (who we later found out has cerebral palsy and a heart problem... breaks your heart, don't it). There were also two "wounded warriars", soldiers who were wounded in Iraq. The kids just had a great time getting to know eachother and sharing their love of hunting.

Kevin got to meet celebrities Jackie Bushman and Mark Chestnut, as well as several important people in the hunting industry. Troy and I enjoyed spending time with the Buckmasters staff and parents of the hunters. There were ARMY personnel that we got to know pretty well. We came home feeling pretty patriotic. Those guys left quite an impression on us.


On the final hunt on the last day, Kevin shot his deer. A 3 point buck. We were all so happy... not to mention relieved. He had a camera man there with him, so he might be seen on the Jackie Bushman show on the Outdoor Channel in the upcoming season. The deer head will be mounted and sent to him later this year. It will hang in HIS ROOM.