Like the Big Kids

Lists

I made a To Do list on Monday to help us remember what we needed to get done. 

When Topher saw what I was doing he grabbed another whiteboard and asked me to make a list for him too. He was very specific about what he wanted it to say: my candy, water bottles, marshmallows. I'm not sure if this is a To Do list or a shopping list, but Topher seemed happy with it.

Decked Out

Too Many to Just Pick One

Now that all the talks from last weekend's General Conference are available online, I feel like I can share my favorites. We still have not reached the magical age where all my kids are quietly listening and taking notes so I can actually hear what is said during each talk. I suspect that will coincide with Topher moving out. In the meantime, I listened as much as I could and will relisten over the next six months. Here are the talks that I loved:

• Elder Holland's The Greatest Possession
• I always love Elder Holland's talks, but this one had a different feeling to it. He was so understated and yet so direct and earnest. His message could have been difficult for some to hear, but I could also feel the love behind it.
• Elder Soares' The Savior's Abiding Compassion
• I loved his reminder that the Savior treated others with compassion and charity and that we should always look to the Savior as our example and show that same compassion and charity. 
• Elder Kopischke's Addressing Mental Health
• Elder Kopischke's story about his son's mental illness was so honest and tender. I think we all need to remember that many people who appear to be fine on the outside are actually falling to pieces on the inside. This was another talk about withholding judgement and choosing instead to love those that are hurting.
• Brother Wilcox's Worthiness is Not Flawlessness
• I have loved listening to Brad Wilcox ever since I was a Freshman at BYU and he came and gave a fireside in the cafeteria for our dorms. I've listened to several of his books and talks and think he is so insightful and engaging. His professional experience as a speaker certainly came through in his first General Conference talk. But beyond his delivery, his message about repentance and realistic expectations for ourselves and others was unexpected and welcome.
• President Johnson's Invite Christ to Author Your Story
• I loved that she talked about writing the narrative of our lives, that metaphor resonated with this bibliophile. And her focus on the Savior as the author and finisher of our story spoke to me deeply.
• Elder Renlund's The Peace of Christ Abolishes Enmity
• Elder Renlund is quickly becoming one of my favorite speakers. He is not afraid to talk about hard subjects and he does so kindly but directly. I was so touched by his story about the Finnish and Russian Saints coming together for Temple work.
• President Nelson's The Temple and Your Spiritual Foundation
• The video he showed as part of his talk about the foundation of the Salt Lake Temple and the updates that are taking place helped me connect his teachings to myself. Yes, the Temple is strong and beautiful and important. And it's important to keep it that way by making sure the foundations are strong. Likewise, working on my own foundations doesn't mean I'm faltering in any way, it means that I recognize that a strong foundation on the Savior requires continual reinforcements.

All of the talks I loved were focused on the connected themes of love God and love your neighbor (which means you need to love yourself) and build your foundation on Christ.

Doppleganger

We were looking at pictures that were taken this week from the last several years on Google Photos. We made it back to 2008 and this picture popped up. This is Peter sitting at the kitchen table of Bryan's grandparents' house.

When we asked Topher who was in the picture, he was adamant that it was him. We told him it was actually Peter, but he wouldn't hear it. "See that gray hair? That's the same as this gray hair." He pointed to his own head. Also, brown and gray are the same in his mind.

Handy Mommy

Today I learned the difference between an oval head screw, a flat head screw, and a truss head screw. And I learned what machine screws look like. By the time this house is livable I'll be able to fix (or at least identify) all kinds of construction related things.

School Daze

The Name's the Thing

Near the end of her school day today, Sophie burst out with the following:

"I just LOVE MY NAME! I LOVE IT! The swoosh of the S, the curve of the O, the swoosh of the P, the H, the I, the E! It's magnificent!!!"

And then she spontaneously composed a musical number all about the wonder of her name and how it perfectly fits her.

It was awesome.

General Conference Amidst the Chaos

Slow Motion

The kids had fun running and jumping off the deck this week. One of them asked me to take slow motion videos of them so they could see what it looked like. Somehow this turned into practicing death scenes...I'm not sure how we got there. Cooper was part of the fun too, he just isn't in this video. Watch until the end so you can see Topher's contribution.