...and his mother shall be called Mary

Yesterday I was determined to have more fun with my kids and we set off after supper to go to the Space and Science Center. Joshua was so excited to go. And then we got there, and found out that they close at 5pm most days. Boo-urns! Well, I had one unhappy little girl and one VERY disappointed  boy. We got back into the van, and I proposed to Joshua that we go play at McDonald's and get ice cream cones. That was acceptable to him.

Once at McDonald's, he actually wanted a toy instead of a tiny cone. I picked the action toy, the one that's supposed to fly. That darn tootin' toy doesn't actually fly very well. Should have gotten the Smurf toy, but we had already opened the other one. I was NOT going to buy another toy. Once again Joshua was sad, but we got to playing in the playplace and he soon forgot. There was another family there, with two little girls, and we
got to be friends with them and had lots of fun. When it was time for them to go, I went to say goodbye and noticed they had two Smurf toys they were just leaving behind. "We already have them all."

"Could I have them?"

YES!!

Tender Mercy 1, the Smurf.

Tender Mercy 2, Bethlehem Walk. It's this neat pageant-y kind of thing put on by a local church and we had gotten a flier in the mail about it. I had wanted to go, but thought that it finished on Sunday (I have a serious problem with mixing up dates and times.) But while we were playing some acquaintances from church came in and we got to talking. They had just gone to Bethlehem Walk and now were eating supper. IT WAS STILL ON!! I got the kids back into their coats, into the van, and away we went.

Now, you may be wondering what this has to do with Mary.

(image source)

I've been really struggling this year to grow my faith in Christ, to feel connected with Christ. I've been reading my scriptures, etc. and it's just been hard. It bugs me most, because this is the CHRISTmas season. It should be easy. But it hasn't been. We witnessed angels singing to the shepherds, through Bethlehem town where we ate tiny breads and saw animals, and past the inn with no room for anyone, past the carpenter making a cross and the blacksmith making spikes, to the stable.

There, amidst the straw and in the chill night air, was Joseph and Mary with their wee babe. And Mary looked at us and beckoned us closer, to see her baby.

I just about lost it. I took a few deep breaths to keep the sobs away but I couldn't say very much for a minute or so. Every time I looked back over at Mary I'd start to cry.

Because being a mother is something I can identify with. And because at a time when I'm not feeling as close to Christ, there was Mary, beckoning us closer, to see and remember the Son. And I started to feel the Christmas spirit a bit more.

Before we left I  asked Joshua how he felt. "Happy."

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints we don't worship Mary, but we do reverence her. She is a very special lady.

From the Book of Mormon:

            "And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning, and his mother shall be called Mary."

Mosiah 3: 8

 

 

For more insight on Mary, the mother of Jesus, check this out.

 



 



             

Water/World Part 1

(from swimbikerunofkentucky.com)

 I've been thinking about life-gospel comparisons. I used to do it all the time, especially right before and after my full-time mission. But since reading this blog I've been thinking it'd be a good habit to get back in.

So I've started up swimming regularily again, and I LOVE IT. More about that another time. I'm training for a triathlon that's in the fall, so I've actually looked up some pointers on how to train, how to improve your stroke, etc. And I've been trying to put what I've learned into practise.

 As I'm swimming and swimming the other morning, it was one of those times where, although I truly do LOVE swimming, I kind of wanted to quit every five minutes. I swim for half an hour when I go, and kept looking at my watch hoping the half hour was up. Nope.

The two things I'm trying to work on most are keeping my elbows up and out of the water instead of swinging them to the side, and kicking from the hip. These don't come very naturally to me. I'm a pretty okay swimmer, but these are two things that get me time and time again. If I don't consciously work on them, I don't do them.

I had a friend in high school (okay, maybe I had a big crush on him) that I thought pretty highly of. He got good grades, he worked hard, he was really nice and funny. He loved his family and his neices/nephews. A year or so after we graduated he dated a girl who was LDS. He even got baptized. But after that it just all seemed like too much. He felt like he was a pretty good person and yet was told he needed to change. And that was too much, he was done with it. Fair enough, right?

Well, would any coach just let his player be? And just say "oh, you don't want to be faster/stronger/more skilled? That's okay" ?Heck no. If you have the opportunity to be better, and know it is possible with a little (or a lot) of time and effort involved, do you do it? YES!

The gospel of Jesus Christ betters us, but it demand improvement on  who and what we are. And sometimes, that really doesn't feel comfortable. Or often. Perhaps even overwhelming.

A famous swimmer told the secret of their success "You have to stroke when you don't want to stroke and kick when you don't want to kick." Along the same lines on becoming successful in our everyday life, "We have to work when we don't want to work, Exercise when we don't want to exercise, Study when we don't want to study, Practice when we don't want to practice."-Elder Holland.

So you can do it! (And it's worth it.)"Just keep swimming". - Dory

We are learning...

...that little boys love kisses and snuggles and this helps them be nicer little boys.
...that little baby girls have big personalities that they are just born with. And big senses of humor for such little girls.
...that together is stronger than a p a r t.
...that school can be hard and some days you want to quit and so instead you eat some candy and do your homework very late at night and start again the next day with a little more hope.
...that a child's genuine smile is hard to refute even when you are in the worst mood.
...that because it's February, we have less winter left than we did in November, and that's a good thing.
...that unicorns poop candy and confetti but are gentle, fragile creatures sometimes.
...the more candy you eat in MartyParty, the more likely you are to win.