It has been a week of transitioning. All of the kids are now in school, except of course Mikayla, and she is working all of the time, so I will be home alone quite a bit now. Mentally preparing for that solitude has made me over anxious for the past two years, but when the time finally comes, I have been surprised with how quickly the hours move in the day. I'm highly motivated to accomplish a lot while the kids are gone so I can focus on family when they come back, so I stay busy and school is out before I can ever finish everything in my Franklin. It's good for me to have a stopping point for cleaning and gardening.=)
We found out the first day of Abe's school that they had a stringent dress code. (Minor oversight=) Luckily, I hadn't purchased him any new clothes for school, except some sandals, because his summer wardrobe was still in great shape. He has to wear solid colored polo's and solid colored pants or shorts--no jeans. We had to run out that night and get him outfits. Luckily we found almost everything we needed at Savers. I'm glad he won't have the distraction of immodest girls at school or that "brand name" pressure that is so prevalent in the Middle School years. I think the dress code would be more of a disappointment to our girls, because style can be fun, but Abe is comfortable with it. He seems to be enjoying the Charter school, except the fact that he doesn't feel like he has time to dress down for P.E, which is outside, the last period of the day and the weather has been in the 90's. He also has to ride the bus,so he comes home hot and sometimes a little irritable. He is allowed to check out books as fast as he can read them and so far he has gone through one chapter book a night--and they aren't tiny, so that is his outlet.
I got serious about looking into going back to school and called BYU and talked to a counsellor. He verbally walked me through the process for getting my Bachelor Degree through Independent Study and I was getting so excited until I realized that one average class would cost $471 and then I had trouble breathing. I've been through the process of getting two children into college and so I'm not oblivious to the current costs of tuition, but somehow, in my mind I had this naive idea that taking one course at a time--over the computer-- would fall somewhere under $200. I have no idea where I came up with that number--it was just there, but close to $500 sounds so ominous and selfish and overwhelming and insurmountable right now. I started going through my mental calendar to see if there was a financial break somewhere, but with missions and college and braces and weddings continuously surfacing, who has a "break".The goal is still there and I haven't given up all hope, but I'm going to have to start thinking creatively. My friend suggested looking into Pell Grants and Scholarships, but Mikayla spent HOURS looking for Scholarships (in fact that was one of her 10 hour+++ projects to finish her Personal Progress goals, but the sifting is so tedius that she finally gave up on that idea. Spending so much time in the yard has made me wonder if I should maybe look into the Master Gardener program through the Extention Agency and glean knowledge there while I try to come up with a solution for finishing my traditional education. I am sure there are opportunities for non-traditional learning all around me to engage my mind while I am working toward other avenues and I know "where there's a will there's a way!" I haven't really planned this second phase of life yet. Raising a family has been my life's dream. But I guess I have to embrace adulthood and decide what I want to do that is really meaningful during these hours in my day or I will blink and they will be gone and all I'll have to show for them is a fairly clean house and a semi-manicured yard. Not very eternal.
Our friend's hosted a neighbor b-b-q last Monday to formally end the summer vacation. The younger kids swam in "schools" in their tiny pool and had fun running in packs through all the yards. Eden was the only teen, since Mikayla was working, and kept disappearing back home, but it was nice to be among friends. Though the conversation was focused, almost in it's entirety, on sports, which kept me an uninterested, quiet observer, we are truly blessed to be surrounded by such good neighbors. Every direction we turn are kind and thoughtful people. Friday, a neighbor came over with three gallon bags of cherries. Two weeks ago a different neighbor gave us a box of apricots. Today we were offered peaches. We haven't had any fruit in bulk this year, so it has been a blessing. We were all excited...it was better than candy. Way better! Tonight we will be service picking at the orchard and afterwards can glean off the ground, so maybe I will actually can something this year. That is one thing I will actually make the sacrifice for. I'm hoping that we still have enough warm weather for my mammoth tomato plants to ripen the hundreds of green tomatoes on their vines so we can "share back".
Mikayla went to a Branch campout over the weekend. The idea sounded a little concerning to me at first, but it was approved by Pres. Evans and the whole Branch presidency and their wives were there, so Mikayla went and had a blast. She said there were a few circumstances that "seemed a bit sketchy" when the chaperones weren't around, but I suppose those circumstances come up in any environment and you can only micromanage to a certain degree. After all, agency is ultimately the only true test. I feel like there are so many good kids just propelling the gospel forward in this branch, that it is a huge blessing here.
Mikayla has a friend from work whose family is catholic. He isn't actively involved but traditionally tied and has recently become discontented. He has been investigating Budaism and has found a listening ear in Mikayla (no surprise there). She says he has a good heart, though his lifestyle reflects the fact that he doesn't have an understanding of the principles of the gospel. The other day he found her in the cornfield, and was excited to share an experience with her. He told her that he had been "asking" to know if he should convert to Budaism and right there in the field, on a cloudless day, he asked to have a raindrop hit his cheek if the answer was yes and suddenly a black cloud covered the sky and huge raindrops started falling. We experienced that strange cloud cover here, without the rain, for just a few minutes. Mikayla wasn't quite sure how to respond, so she just listened, but as she shared the story with me I could tell that this was a boy who is searching for answers. He is trying to be in tune, even though he probably doesn't understand what that means. I'm sure he doesn't understand that Heavenly Father doesn't generally respond affirmatively to "sign seeking", but Satan knows that and he is the master of disguise and counterfeit and confusion. Right now, this young man is all about finding a religion of "freedom". He doesn't want anyone telling him what he "has" to do. Truly, none of us want that. The key is to understand the truth about freedom and bondage and make that "choice" for ourselves. He has a skewed perception of "Mormonism", but Mikayla is slowly redirecting those misperceptions, just through her example. He has some hard questions, that without a full understanding of the gospel, don't make sense to him, but she's planting a good seed. He floated the river with Mikayla and her best friend Tessia last week, so I got to meet him when the rendezvous point was our home. I was impressed by his manners. I know just continuing to go to work each day is a huge challenge for Mikayla because the environment, created by so many of the employees is at a moral low. She says it is spiritually draining. She tries to listen to books on tape or talk radio all day, but she has to keep one earphone out to listen to her team leaders, so she can't drown out the filth. That's a lonely position to be in, but maybe her decision to see it through will make a positive difference in the life of this young man. We just never know who is watching and with Mikayla, it seems like someone always is. I hope she can find a job where the environment is uplifting after the Harvest is in, but for now, her sacrifice is someone else's gain.
We watched the movie, "One Good Man" the other night. Jordan said his ward in Chile enjoyed it for an activity. I'll admit I have a hard time with most Mormon pop-culture media. This wasn't disrespectful like some, but it was still very cliché. I could relate to all of the circumstances and the missionary son experiences made me feel vulnerable, but it just felt flat. Why is that? Mikayla says it's because it's all "the culture", but none of "the Spirit". The scripting and acting were expectedly mediocre, but it wasn't offensive, and yet I think she's hit the nail on the head. You just can't contrive spiritual experiences. However, there have been times where I have been watching a movie that was actually produced by the church but also had mediocre scripting and acting but felt intense spiritual manifestations. What makes the difference? I really don't know...I'm still searching.
Quotes of the Week:
I asked Aunt Linda for a copy of her family's newsletter and these were some notes she took from BYU TV devotionals, that inspired me:
"We are not here to prove to the Lord that we can live the Gospel without making mistakes. That thought, that kind of pride will make it difficult to admit our mistakes and faults and to repent. We are here to prove to Heavenly Father that we will search out our sins and repent and with our whole hearts, strive to continually do better in keeping His commandments."(Byu devotional "Finding Joy in Progress" Doug Prawitt, July 19th)
"We can use Satan's temptations and our trials to propel us into the presence of God. When we are tempted or discouraged, if we fight back and turn our hearts to God in prayer and hymn singing, in service and study of the words of the prophets etc. then the very thing that Satan tried to use to damage us will turn to our good just as it did to Adam and Eve's when Satan tried to thwart the plan of God in the Garden of Eden, for it will turn us to God. If we are really committed to go with the Lord's plan, if we are really seeking to become like the Savior in learning to submit ourselves to the will of the Lord, if we are sincerely striving to recognize and overcome our faults, if becoming perfect is really our goal, the Lord will put us in positions or situations that will make our weaknesses more clear and will stimulate our growth as we work to overcome them." (BYU Hawaii devotional, Quinn, 2011)
Back to School Portraits:
We found out the first day of Abe's school that they had a stringent dress code. (Minor oversight=) Luckily, I hadn't purchased him any new clothes for school, except some sandals, because his summer wardrobe was still in great shape. He has to wear solid colored polo's and solid colored pants or shorts--no jeans. We had to run out that night and get him outfits. Luckily we found almost everything we needed at Savers. I'm glad he won't have the distraction of immodest girls at school or that "brand name" pressure that is so prevalent in the Middle School years. I think the dress code would be more of a disappointment to our girls, because style can be fun, but Abe is comfortable with it. He seems to be enjoying the Charter school, except the fact that he doesn't feel like he has time to dress down for P.E, which is outside, the last period of the day and the weather has been in the 90's. He also has to ride the bus,so he comes home hot and sometimes a little irritable. He is allowed to check out books as fast as he can read them and so far he has gone through one chapter book a night--and they aren't tiny, so that is his outlet.
I got serious about looking into going back to school and called BYU and talked to a counsellor. He verbally walked me through the process for getting my Bachelor Degree through Independent Study and I was getting so excited until I realized that one average class would cost $471 and then I had trouble breathing. I've been through the process of getting two children into college and so I'm not oblivious to the current costs of tuition, but somehow, in my mind I had this naive idea that taking one course at a time--over the computer-- would fall somewhere under $200. I have no idea where I came up with that number--it was just there, but close to $500 sounds so ominous and selfish and overwhelming and insurmountable right now. I started going through my mental calendar to see if there was a financial break somewhere, but with missions and college and braces and weddings continuously surfacing, who has a "break".The goal is still there and I haven't given up all hope, but I'm going to have to start thinking creatively. My friend suggested looking into Pell Grants and Scholarships, but Mikayla spent HOURS looking for Scholarships (in fact that was one of her 10 hour+++ projects to finish her Personal Progress goals, but the sifting is so tedius that she finally gave up on that idea. Spending so much time in the yard has made me wonder if I should maybe look into the Master Gardener program through the Extention Agency and glean knowledge there while I try to come up with a solution for finishing my traditional education. I am sure there are opportunities for non-traditional learning all around me to engage my mind while I am working toward other avenues and I know "where there's a will there's a way!" I haven't really planned this second phase of life yet. Raising a family has been my life's dream. But I guess I have to embrace adulthood and decide what I want to do that is really meaningful during these hours in my day or I will blink and they will be gone and all I'll have to show for them is a fairly clean house and a semi-manicured yard. Not very eternal.
Our friend's hosted a neighbor b-b-q last Monday to formally end the summer vacation. The younger kids swam in "schools" in their tiny pool and had fun running in packs through all the yards. Eden was the only teen, since Mikayla was working, and kept disappearing back home, but it was nice to be among friends. Though the conversation was focused, almost in it's entirety, on sports, which kept me an uninterested, quiet observer, we are truly blessed to be surrounded by such good neighbors. Every direction we turn are kind and thoughtful people. Friday, a neighbor came over with three gallon bags of cherries. Two weeks ago a different neighbor gave us a box of apricots. Today we were offered peaches. We haven't had any fruit in bulk this year, so it has been a blessing. We were all excited...it was better than candy. Way better! Tonight we will be service picking at the orchard and afterwards can glean off the ground, so maybe I will actually can something this year. That is one thing I will actually make the sacrifice for. I'm hoping that we still have enough warm weather for my mammoth tomato plants to ripen the hundreds of green tomatoes on their vines so we can "share back".
Mikayla went to a Branch campout over the weekend. The idea sounded a little concerning to me at first, but it was approved by Pres. Evans and the whole Branch presidency and their wives were there, so Mikayla went and had a blast. She said there were a few circumstances that "seemed a bit sketchy" when the chaperones weren't around, but I suppose those circumstances come up in any environment and you can only micromanage to a certain degree. After all, agency is ultimately the only true test. I feel like there are so many good kids just propelling the gospel forward in this branch, that it is a huge blessing here.
Mikayla has a friend from work whose family is catholic. He isn't actively involved but traditionally tied and has recently become discontented. He has been investigating Budaism and has found a listening ear in Mikayla (no surprise there). She says he has a good heart, though his lifestyle reflects the fact that he doesn't have an understanding of the principles of the gospel. The other day he found her in the cornfield, and was excited to share an experience with her. He told her that he had been "asking" to know if he should convert to Budaism and right there in the field, on a cloudless day, he asked to have a raindrop hit his cheek if the answer was yes and suddenly a black cloud covered the sky and huge raindrops started falling. We experienced that strange cloud cover here, without the rain, for just a few minutes. Mikayla wasn't quite sure how to respond, so she just listened, but as she shared the story with me I could tell that this was a boy who is searching for answers. He is trying to be in tune, even though he probably doesn't understand what that means. I'm sure he doesn't understand that Heavenly Father doesn't generally respond affirmatively to "sign seeking", but Satan knows that and he is the master of disguise and counterfeit and confusion. Right now, this young man is all about finding a religion of "freedom". He doesn't want anyone telling him what he "has" to do. Truly, none of us want that. The key is to understand the truth about freedom and bondage and make that "choice" for ourselves. He has a skewed perception of "Mormonism", but Mikayla is slowly redirecting those misperceptions, just through her example. He has some hard questions, that without a full understanding of the gospel, don't make sense to him, but she's planting a good seed. He floated the river with Mikayla and her best friend Tessia last week, so I got to meet him when the rendezvous point was our home. I was impressed by his manners. I know just continuing to go to work each day is a huge challenge for Mikayla because the environment, created by so many of the employees is at a moral low. She says it is spiritually draining. She tries to listen to books on tape or talk radio all day, but she has to keep one earphone out to listen to her team leaders, so she can't drown out the filth. That's a lonely position to be in, but maybe her decision to see it through will make a positive difference in the life of this young man. We just never know who is watching and with Mikayla, it seems like someone always is. I hope she can find a job where the environment is uplifting after the Harvest is in, but for now, her sacrifice is someone else's gain.
We watched the movie, "One Good Man" the other night. Jordan said his ward in Chile enjoyed it for an activity. I'll admit I have a hard time with most Mormon pop-culture media. This wasn't disrespectful like some, but it was still very cliché. I could relate to all of the circumstances and the missionary son experiences made me feel vulnerable, but it just felt flat. Why is that? Mikayla says it's because it's all "the culture", but none of "the Spirit". The scripting and acting were expectedly mediocre, but it wasn't offensive, and yet I think she's hit the nail on the head. You just can't contrive spiritual experiences. However, there have been times where I have been watching a movie that was actually produced by the church but also had mediocre scripting and acting but felt intense spiritual manifestations. What makes the difference? I really don't know...I'm still searching.
Quotes of the Week:
I asked Aunt Linda for a copy of her family's newsletter and these were some notes she took from BYU TV devotionals, that inspired me:
"We are not here to prove to the Lord that we can live the Gospel without making mistakes. That thought, that kind of pride will make it difficult to admit our mistakes and faults and to repent. We are here to prove to Heavenly Father that we will search out our sins and repent and with our whole hearts, strive to continually do better in keeping His commandments."(Byu devotional "Finding Joy in Progress" Doug Prawitt, July 19th)
"We can use Satan's temptations and our trials to propel us into the presence of God. When we are tempted or discouraged, if we fight back and turn our hearts to God in prayer and hymn singing, in service and study of the words of the prophets etc. then the very thing that Satan tried to use to damage us will turn to our good just as it did to Adam and Eve's when Satan tried to thwart the plan of God in the Garden of Eden, for it will turn us to God. If we are really committed to go with the Lord's plan, if we are really seeking to become like the Savior in learning to submit ourselves to the will of the Lord, if we are sincerely striving to recognize and overcome our faults, if becoming perfect is really our goal, the Lord will put us in positions or situations that will make our weaknesses more clear and will stimulate our growth as we work to overcome them." (BYU Hawaii devotional, Quinn, 2011)
Back to School Portraits:
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| Eden Camilla |
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| Abrahm Jeffrey |
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| Lily Elise |
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| Sophia Grace |
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| Double the Fun! |
