The Spirit of Elijah

I taught a lesson Sunday on Elder Bednar’s Oct. Ensign talk, “The Hearts of the Children Shall Turn.” 

Elder Bednar’s talk focused heavily on genealogy and temple work of course, but he also encouraged the youth to get involved in genealogy. With so many genealogical resources now on technologies' fingertips, the youth are well-equipped to master it.

I was curious about so much of what Elder Bednar said that I started looking at additional sources and what I found was highly enlightening.

The Piano Guys

Saw The Piano Guys guys on MMB and fell in love with the song. Alex Boye is their guest singer and is phenomenal!

The Piano Guys are from St. George, UT and as if that fact alone weren't cool enough, they have their own YouTube Channel at: http://www.youtube.com/user/ThePianoGuys/featured.

Hope you love it as much as I did, and here's a bonus one for fun:

Cheerio Glue

Have you ever stubbed your toe on a Cheerio…sounds like a title to a Ray Stevens song. But seriously, I have and it hurt. (BTW, if Ray Stevens is reading this, I’ll cut you a deal on the title and maybe even throw in some extra lyrics…let’s talk…)

Who knew that Cheerios mixed with milk, plus the added element of toddler, could make a mortar-like substance that once it adheres to your floor is almost impossible to remove.

A Peeping Mom

I peek out the window each morning my daughter waits at her school bus stop. Our stop is blessedly close, and I find comfort watching her safely get on the bus.

Thinking a Reality

My husband returned from his out-of-state trip recently much to my relief. Every time he flies or drives long distances my worry-factor kicks in and I live with my fearful what-ifs for the duration. Not that I don’t fret and worry even when he’s not traveling. I’m afraid being a mother for me has ramped up my worrying skills.

I’m sure there are other women out there who presuppose every potential danger for their child and live it in their minds a thousand times over. I’ve got scripts of possible threats to life and limb playing out in my mind far too often. Obviously, its no way to live and, well LIVE.

Out of the Mouths of Little Boys

My son is going through a particularly funny phase. We had tithing settlement a few days ago and decided to take our kids with us. My oldest was sitting nicely but the two youngest were everywhere. It was like watching an ant swarm. Our attempts to corral them in such a new and exciting place were futile.

Fortunately, our Bishop has the patience of Job, and lots of little kids himself, so he worked with it. Just to warn any of you out there living in Virginia. If you’re not sure whether or not I’m in your ward, don’t use the tissues in your Bishop’s office. My baby was sitting by the bishop taking the tissues out, using them and stuffing them back in.

Red-eye Olives

Contrary to what you might expect from the title, these are not olives that stayed awake too long, but merely the name my son gave our pimento-stuffed green olives…yum.

He saw them in the fridge last night and wanted some "red-eye olives." Now for a son with a history of being a picky eater, you’d think green olives would be off his short list of food-likes, but no. He gobbled them up, as did his big sister, who has been an angel of a child when it comes to food. This was a girl who as a toddler would devour spicy Ethiopian-style beans and sushi (minus the raw fish that is...which I guess technically disqualifies it from being sushi, but you know what I mean).

A Memorable “Tea Party”

This has nothing to do with the political movement. I was strolling down memory lane this morning thinking about wide-brimmed hats and a sunny afternoon in Finland.

My mission companion and I were “dog contacting.” Like most people, Finns are more comfortable saying no to you when there’s a door between you and them, so we decided to contact them in the great outdoors. Finns love dogs and they have glorious parks, so we’d walk the park see a dog and ask the person about it.

I love dogs, so it was bliss for me and inevitably, they’d hear our really bad Finnish and ask where we were from and why we were there. We could then tell them and ask if they were interested in more or leave them with information if they weren’t.