Twice a year our church holds a worldwide conference where we get to listen (by radio, satellite tv, or on the internet) to the church leaders give counsel on various topics. This was one of my favorite talks from the April conference session this year:
Daughters of God
Elder M. Russell Ballard Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
"There is no role in life more essential and more eternal than that of motherhood.
Brothers and sisters, recently my wife, Barbara, had back surgery and could not lift, twist, or bend. Consequently, I have done more lifting, twisting, and bending than ever before—and it has made me more appreciative of what women, and especially you mothers, do every day in our homes.
While women live in homes under many different circumstances—married, single, widowed, or divorced, some with children and some without—all are beloved of God, and He has a plan for His righteous daughters to receive the highest blessings of eternity.
This afternoon I want to focus my remarks primarily on mothers, particularly on young mothers.
As a young father, I learned the demanding role of motherhood. I served as a counselor and then as bishop for a period of 10 years. During that time we were blessed with six of our seven children. Barbara was often worn-out by the time I got home Sunday evening. She tried to explain what it was like to sit on the back row in sacrament meeting with our young family. Then the day came that I was released. After sitting on the stand for 10 years, I was now sitting with my family on the back row.
The ward’s singing mothers’ chorus was providing the music, and I found myself sitting alone with our six children. I have never been so busy in my whole life. I had the hand puppets going on both hands, and that wasn’t working too well. The Cheerios got away from me, and that was embarrassing. The coloring books didn’t seem to entertain as well as they should.
As I struggled with the children through the meeting, I looked up at Barbara, and she was watching me and smiling. I learned for myself to more fully appreciate what all of you dear mothers do so well and so faithfully!
A generation later, as a grandfather, I have watched the sacrifices my daughters have made in rearing their children. And now, still another generation later, I am watching with awe the pressures on my granddaughters as they guide their children in this busy and demanding world.
After observing and empathizing with three generations of mothers and thinking of my own dear mother, I surely know that there is no role in life more essential and more eternal than that of motherhood.
There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. The choice is different and unique for each mother and each family. Many are able to be “full-time moms,” at least during the most formative years of their children’s lives, and many others would like to be. Some may have to work part- or full-time; some may work at home; some may divide their lives into periods of home and family and work. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else.
I am impressed by countless mothers who have learned how important it is to focus on the things that can only be done in a particular season of life. If a child lives with parents for 18 or 19 years, that span is only one-fourth of a parent’s life. And the most formative time of all, the early years in a child’s life, represents less than one-tenth of a parent’s normal life. It is crucial to focus on our children for the short time we have them with us and to seek, with the help of the Lord, to teach them all we can before they leave our homes. This eternally important work falls to mothers and fathers as equal partners. I am grateful that today many fathers are more involved in the lives of their children. But I believe that the instincts and the intense nurturing involvement of mothers with their children will always be a major key to their well-being. In the words of the proclamation on the family, “Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Liahona, Oct. 2004, 49; Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102).
We need to remember that the full commitment of motherhood and of putting children first can be difficult. Through my own four-generation experience in our family, and through discussions with mothers of young children throughout the Church, I know something of a mother’s emotions that accompany her commitment to be at home with young children. There are moments of great joy and incredible fulfillment, but there are also moments of a sense of inadequacy, monotony, and frustration. Mothers may feel they receive little or no appreciation for the choice they have made. Sometimes even husbands seem to have no idea of the demands upon their wives.
As a Church, we have enormous respect and gratitude to you mothers of young children. We want you to be happy and successful in your families and to have the validation and support you need and deserve. So today, let me ask and briefly answer four questions. While my answers may seem extremely simple, if the simple things are being tended to, a mother’s life can be most rewarding.
The first question: What can you do, as a young mother, to reduce the pressure and enjoy your family more?
First, recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction.
Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. She said: “The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less”(Loud and Clear [2004], 10–11).
Second, don’t overschedule yourselves or your children. We live in a world that is filled with options. If we are not careful, we will find every minute jammed with social events, classes, exercise time, book clubs, scrapbooking, Church callings, music, sports, the Internet, and our favorite TV shows. One mother told me of a time that her children had 29 scheduled commitments every week: music lessons, Scouts, dance, Little League, day camps, soccer, art, and so forth. She felt like a taxi driver. Finally, she called a family meeting and announced, “Something has to go; we have no time to ourselves and no time for each other.” Families need unstructured time when relationships can deepen and real parenting can take place. Take time to listen, to laugh, and to play together.
Third, even as you try to cut out the extra commitments, sisters, find some time for yourself to cultivate your gifts and interests. Pick one or two things that you would like to learn or do that will enrich your life, and make time for them. Water cannot be drawn from an empty well, and if you are not setting aside a little time for what replenishes you, you will have less and less to give to others, even to your children. Avoid any kind of substance abuse, mistakenly thinking that it will help you accomplish more. And don’t allow yourself to be caught up in the time-wasting, mind-numbing things like television soap operas or surfing the Internet. Turn to the Lord in faith, and you will know what to do and how to do it.
Fourth, pray, study, and teach the gospel. Pray deeply about your children and about your role as a mother. Parents can offer a unique and wonderful kind of prayer because they are praying to the Eternal Parent of us all. There is great power in a prayer that essentially says, “We are steward-parents over Thy children, Father; please help us to raise them as Thou wouldst want them raised.”
The second question: What more can a husband do to support his wife, the mother of their children?
First, show extra appreciation and give more validation for what your wife does every day. Notice things and say thank you—often. Schedule some evenings together, just the two of you.
Second, have a regular time to talk with your wife about each child’s needs and what you can do to help.
Third, give your wife a “day away” now and then. Just take over the household and give your wife a break from her daily responsibilities. Taking over for a while will greatly enhance your appreciation of what your wife does. You may do a lot of lifting, twisting, and bending!
Fourth, come home from work and take an active role with your family. Don’t put work, friends, or sports ahead of listening to, playing with, and teaching your children.
The third question: What can children, even young children, do? Now, you children, please listen to me because there are some simple things you can do to help your mother.
You can pick up your toys when you are finished playing with them, and when you get a little older, you can make your bed, help with the dishes, and do other chores—without being asked.
You can say thank you more often when you finish a nice meal, when a story is read to you at bedtime, or when clean clothes are put in your drawers.
Most of all, you can put your arms around your mother often and tell her you love her.
The last question: What can the Church do?
There are many things the Church offers to mothers and families, but for my purpose today may I suggest that the bishopric and the ward council members be especially watchful and considerate of the time and resource demands on young mothers and their families. Know them and be wise in what you ask them to do at this time in their lives. Alma’s counsel to his son Helaman applies to us today: “Behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass” (Alma 37:6).
I hope all of you dear sisters, married or single, never wonder if you have worth in the sight of the Lord and to the leaders of the Church. We love you. We respect you and appreciate your influence in preserving the family and assisting with the growth and the spiritual vitality of the Church. Let us remember that “the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World”). The scriptures and the teachings of the prophets and apostles help all family members to prepare together now to be together through all eternity. I pray that God will continually bless the women of the Church to find joy and happiness in their sacred roles as daughters of God.
Now, in closing, I want to add my witness of President Monson’s prophetic call. I have known him since he was 22 and I was 21. That’s 58 years. I have watched the hand of the Lord prepare him for this day to preside over the Church as the prophet and President. And I add my testimony, along with all of the other testimonies that have been borne through this conference, of his special calling as President of the Church, and add my testimony, along with all of the others, that Jesus is the Christ and this is His Church. We are doing His work, to which I testify in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen."
Showing posts with label Talk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Talk. Show all posts
05 May 2008
15 February 2008
Last Week
The past week was our first full week back in Milwaukee, and we had so much fun playing games and spending time with friends. It took a few days to get everything unpacked and back in the right places. We also got the Christmas decorations down and put away. After taking all the Christmas boxes and luggage to our storage unit, we had room to finally move the piano out of our bedroom and back into the front room, which has been so much nicer to play. The boys always want to play with it too.
I started into my new rotation, which is surgical pathology. I am with one other student and we sit in a room and look at pathology slides with the residents and fellows. I am amazed at how fast they can look at a slide under the microscope and know within seconds what they are seeing. This is good for me to start getting used to looking under the microscope, since I will have to do this in my dermatology residency.
Last Wednesday we had a huge snowstorm that swept through the area, dumping about 12 inches of snow. There was also a really gusty wind, so being outside and on the roads was bad. The director of our rotation on Tuesday said to not come in Wednesday if the snow was bad enough, so I ended up having a snow day, which was so nice. Steph and I were able to get a lot of little things done at home that day and that night we had the Kearls over for games. We played out in the snow when they first got here and the boys had so much fun because there was so much.
Thursday night we went to dinner with Tyce and Faith to celebrate Faith’s birthday, which was Saturday. We went downtown to the Pizza Shuttle and they had really good gourmet pizzas – we got a bbq chicken, alfredo vegetable, and spinach with feta. We thought it would be more than enough food, but the boys ate so much, and there were no leftovers. They have definitely gotten their appetites back since coming home.
Friday was Eli’s first day of preschool. He is in the same classes with Kolby. We got some really cute pictures of him and Kolby dressed up for his first day. He had so much fun and loves school, especially since he is with Kolby – they are such good friends. Steph said that as soon as they got there the boys were off playing and didn’t need her to stick around.
That night the Kearls had asked us to babysit for them so they could go curling. We went to their house to help out, and when they got back some others showed up for cake and ice cream and games. By the time we were done playing Killer Bunnies, it was pretty late, and all the kids were already asleep, so we just decided to spend the night in their front room. It made me feel like I was back in college. Saturday morning Nathan came out around 6:30 with a little flashlight, and when he saw Steph sleeping in the recliner, I guess he thought she was his mom and got really excited that she was out in the front room. He came over and shined the light on her, but when he realized that she wasn’t his mom, he started screaming and ran back to his parents’ bedroom. It was really funny.
Saturday we got to listen to the worldwide leadership training conference over at the church. The topic was on raising a righteous posterity and the focus was on how to better help our kids to learn the gospel in the home and to make sure that we made our homes safe havens from the evils of the world. I thought it was neat how often they spoke about making the sacrifice of faith to have a family while still in school and not making a lot of money, and that if you would obey that commandment to multiply and replenish the earth, then you would be blessed immensely for it. As I look back on our marriage so far, I can definitely see how much we have been blessed and helped as we have tried to follow the counsel of the prophet and keep the commandments. In the conference they also gave advice on things to do to have more love and unity in the home. Steph and I are continually trying to improve on making sure that our children always feel loved and that we are spending good quality time with them. We decided to set up a weekly night out with one of the boys so that we could spend more individual time with them. We will start with Kolby this week. Saturday night we had Peter and Cynthia Hedgecock over for games and had fun catching up on each others lives for the past few months. They brought a new board game that is now our favorite game for the time. It is called Carcassonne and is similar in some respects to Settlers of Katan, but easier to explain and quite a bit faster to play. Basically, you take turn picking up pieces to add to the table as you build up cities with fields and roads and you get points based on what you build.
Sunday was probably the coldest day that we have had so far since being back – the high was only around 10 degrees, and there was a really cold wind blowing all day. Kolby gave a talk in primary on the topic of how the scriptures teach us about Heavenly Father and Jesus. He said that his favorite parts of the scriptures are those about the Lamanites, and his favorite stories are Nephi building the boat, Noah and the Ark, and Ammon and the sheep. He wanted to do the talk without our help and he did a good job with the primary president helping him. I am really looking forward to next month when Camden will be old enough to go to nursery, because one of us ends up spending the hour in the hall with him because he just doesn’t want to be quiet. :) I also got released from my calling as the ward physical facilities representative and my assignment as the stake building coordinator. For now I will just be doing home teaching, which is different, especially since I have had those callings for almost the whole time we’ve been in Milwaukee.
After church we had dinner over at the Hedgecocks. Peter is an excellent cook and we love eating his food. He made us salmon that was so delicious. I had to run for a few hours to do my home teaching with Jason. We had fun catching up on the lives of Steve and Kara and Kyle and Tracy and their kids. When I got back to the Hedgecocks we got the kids in bed and then played another round of Carcassonne. We are so grateful to have such wonderful friends here in Milwaukee and are not looking forward to possibly having to leave them when I graduate.
Grandpa McIntosh also had his back surgery on Wednesday. It sounds like everything went well, although things were a lot worse than the doctors had thought once they got in and started working. He is out of the ICU but had to have a blood transfusion Sunday night. It is good to hear that he is continually improving, if not as fast as he had hoped. You are in our prayers grandpa and we hope that this will help to alleviate some of the pain you have been dealing with for so long.
We hope everyone else is doing well and love hearing from you.
I started into my new rotation, which is surgical pathology. I am with one other student and we sit in a room and look at pathology slides with the residents and fellows. I am amazed at how fast they can look at a slide under the microscope and know within seconds what they are seeing. This is good for me to start getting used to looking under the microscope, since I will have to do this in my dermatology residency.
Last Wednesday we had a huge snowstorm that swept through the area, dumping about 12 inches of snow. There was also a really gusty wind, so being outside and on the roads was bad. The director of our rotation on Tuesday said to not come in Wednesday if the snow was bad enough, so I ended up having a snow day, which was so nice. Steph and I were able to get a lot of little things done at home that day and that night we had the Kearls over for games. We played out in the snow when they first got here and the boys had so much fun because there was so much.
Thursday night we went to dinner with Tyce and Faith to celebrate Faith’s birthday, which was Saturday. We went downtown to the Pizza Shuttle and they had really good gourmet pizzas – we got a bbq chicken, alfredo vegetable, and spinach with feta. We thought it would be more than enough food, but the boys ate so much, and there were no leftovers. They have definitely gotten their appetites back since coming home.
Friday was Eli’s first day of preschool. He is in the same classes with Kolby. We got some really cute pictures of him and Kolby dressed up for his first day. He had so much fun and loves school, especially since he is with Kolby – they are such good friends. Steph said that as soon as they got there the boys were off playing and didn’t need her to stick around.
That night the Kearls had asked us to babysit for them so they could go curling. We went to their house to help out, and when they got back some others showed up for cake and ice cream and games. By the time we were done playing Killer Bunnies, it was pretty late, and all the kids were already asleep, so we just decided to spend the night in their front room. It made me feel like I was back in college. Saturday morning Nathan came out around 6:30 with a little flashlight, and when he saw Steph sleeping in the recliner, I guess he thought she was his mom and got really excited that she was out in the front room. He came over and shined the light on her, but when he realized that she wasn’t his mom, he started screaming and ran back to his parents’ bedroom. It was really funny.
Saturday we got to listen to the worldwide leadership training conference over at the church. The topic was on raising a righteous posterity and the focus was on how to better help our kids to learn the gospel in the home and to make sure that we made our homes safe havens from the evils of the world. I thought it was neat how often they spoke about making the sacrifice of faith to have a family while still in school and not making a lot of money, and that if you would obey that commandment to multiply and replenish the earth, then you would be blessed immensely for it. As I look back on our marriage so far, I can definitely see how much we have been blessed and helped as we have tried to follow the counsel of the prophet and keep the commandments. In the conference they also gave advice on things to do to have more love and unity in the home. Steph and I are continually trying to improve on making sure that our children always feel loved and that we are spending good quality time with them. We decided to set up a weekly night out with one of the boys so that we could spend more individual time with them. We will start with Kolby this week. Saturday night we had Peter and Cynthia Hedgecock over for games and had fun catching up on each others lives for the past few months. They brought a new board game that is now our favorite game for the time. It is called Carcassonne and is similar in some respects to Settlers of Katan, but easier to explain and quite a bit faster to play. Basically, you take turn picking up pieces to add to the table as you build up cities with fields and roads and you get points based on what you build.
Sunday was probably the coldest day that we have had so far since being back – the high was only around 10 degrees, and there was a really cold wind blowing all day. Kolby gave a talk in primary on the topic of how the scriptures teach us about Heavenly Father and Jesus. He said that his favorite parts of the scriptures are those about the Lamanites, and his favorite stories are Nephi building the boat, Noah and the Ark, and Ammon and the sheep. He wanted to do the talk without our help and he did a good job with the primary president helping him. I am really looking forward to next month when Camden will be old enough to go to nursery, because one of us ends up spending the hour in the hall with him because he just doesn’t want to be quiet. :) I also got released from my calling as the ward physical facilities representative and my assignment as the stake building coordinator. For now I will just be doing home teaching, which is different, especially since I have had those callings for almost the whole time we’ve been in Milwaukee.
After church we had dinner over at the Hedgecocks. Peter is an excellent cook and we love eating his food. He made us salmon that was so delicious. I had to run for a few hours to do my home teaching with Jason. We had fun catching up on the lives of Steve and Kara and Kyle and Tracy and their kids. When I got back to the Hedgecocks we got the kids in bed and then played another round of Carcassonne. We are so grateful to have such wonderful friends here in Milwaukee and are not looking forward to possibly having to leave them when I graduate.
Grandpa McIntosh also had his back surgery on Wednesday. It sounds like everything went well, although things were a lot worse than the doctors had thought once they got in and started working. He is out of the ICU but had to have a blood transfusion Sunday night. It is good to hear that he is continually improving, if not as fast as he had hoped. You are in our prayers grandpa and we hope that this will help to alleviate some of the pain you have been dealing with for so long.
We hope everyone else is doing well and love hearing from you.
11 February 2008
"I Don't Eat Things With Feet"
So, Kolby had an assignment to give a talk for his primary class in church yesterday. The talk was supposed to be about the scriptures and how they teach about Heavenly Father and Jesus. We asked Kolby what his favorite scripture story was, and his response was, “the part about the Lamanites.” (For those of you who are unfamiliar with The Book of Mormon, the Lamanites were a tribe of people who were the enemies of the Nephite tribe, who mostly did not follow the commandments, and who loved war and contention – so Kolby’s choice of a the Lamintes as his favorite people in the book was a rather funny one). So, here is the talk that Kolby helped write and presented in front of the other children at church yesterday:
“I like to sing “Book of Mormon Stories” with my family. I like to read the scriptures because they teach about Jesus and Heavenly Father. I like everything in the Book of Mormon. I read the scriptures with my family at family home evening. My favorite part of the scriptures is when it talks about the Lamanites. I also like to read about when Jesus was born. And some scripture stories I like are Noah and the Ark, Nephi building the ship, and Ammon and the sheep. Reading the scriptures makes me feel good inside. We should read the scriptures because Jesus commanded us to.”
So after we helped Kolby prepare his talk the other night we were reading the children’s scripture stories with the pictures and Kolby wanted to read about the Lamanites. So Michael found a chapter that had several illustrations of the Lamanites and one was some men hunting for a deer. So in the middle of our scripture reading, we ended up having a long conversation about that illustration. Kolby asked what they were doing to the deer, and Michael said they were going to eat it. Kolby thought that was gross, and he said that people don’t eat deer. We told him that some people do eat deer, and he let us know that he does not eat deer. “I don’t eat things with feet,” Kolby added. Michael asked him if he ate chicken, and he said yes. And when Michael explained that chicken have feet too, Kolby said that he doesn’t eat their feet. After we explained to Kolby that the people were not going to eat the feet or the outside of the deer, and they would only eat the inside and cook it so it would be healthy for them, he told us that he would eat deer too.
“I like to sing “Book of Mormon Stories” with my family. I like to read the scriptures because they teach about Jesus and Heavenly Father. I like everything in the Book of Mormon. I read the scriptures with my family at family home evening. My favorite part of the scriptures is when it talks about the Lamanites. I also like to read about when Jesus was born. And some scripture stories I like are Noah and the Ark, Nephi building the ship, and Ammon and the sheep. Reading the scriptures makes me feel good inside. We should read the scriptures because Jesus commanded us to.”
So after we helped Kolby prepare his talk the other night we were reading the children’s scripture stories with the pictures and Kolby wanted to read about the Lamanites. So Michael found a chapter that had several illustrations of the Lamanites and one was some men hunting for a deer. So in the middle of our scripture reading, we ended up having a long conversation about that illustration. Kolby asked what they were doing to the deer, and Michael said they were going to eat it. Kolby thought that was gross, and he said that people don’t eat deer. We told him that some people do eat deer, and he let us know that he does not eat deer. “I don’t eat things with feet,” Kolby added. Michael asked him if he ate chicken, and he said yes. And when Michael explained that chicken have feet too, Kolby said that he doesn’t eat their feet. After we explained to Kolby that the people were not going to eat the feet or the outside of the deer, and they would only eat the inside and cook it so it would be healthy for them, he told us that he would eat deer too.
27 November 2007
A Busy Week
So, it has been a busy week. I think we will continue to be very busy until we leave on our trip on Saturday – there is so much that I’d like to get done before we leave. I guess we’ll probably continue to be pretty busy after we get there too, with Michael’s interviews and working at the dermatologist’s office and with all the boys. I guess with this many little kids we’ll probably be busy more often than not the rest of our lives. But we wouldn’t want things to be boring around here, I guess. :)
So, on Monday after taking Kolby to preschool I took Isaac for his follow-up appointment with the ENT doctor who did his surgeries while he was in the NICU. He said that Isaac has now recovered fully and can be treated like a normal baby his age. That was nice to hear. Then we stopped at the pediatrician’s office for a weight check, and Isaac had gained a few ounces from his birth weight. I wasn’t surprised that he had at least gained a little weight, because he has had trouble nursing so I had been pumping and feeding him with a bottle for almost a week at that time, so I knew exactly how much he was eating and he was getting enough to eat.
On Tuesday Michael had his second transitional year program interview here in Milwaukee at St. Joseph’s Hospital. He said that the interview went well, was pretty relaxed, and went by pretty quickly. He got home early after his interview, so he was able to go with me to an appointment at the hospital for Isaac to try to help with his nursing in speech and sucking therapy. There was a nutritionist and a feeding specialist who both work with babies who met with us and watching Isaac suck on a pacifier, eat from a bottle, and nurse. They were both really nice, and after watching him they said that he was efficient and he had a good sucking and breathing pattern, and they didn’t know why he was having trouble with the nursing. They didn’t really have any more suggestions for us, other than the fact that they said we should supplement with formula as needed so that he could have 4 to 5 ounces to eat at each feeding. They told us a nice little way to know how much a baby needs to eat: take the baby’s weight and convert it to kilograms, and that is about how many ounces they should have at each feeding. Isaac was a little over 4 kilograms, so we have been giving him breastmilk and formula since then, because I have only been pumping about 2 ounces at a time. (I’m sure you all really needed to know that – oh well). So, I have continued to pump since then, and I plan to do so until we leave town. Then he will at least get the breastmilk until he is six weeks old. One thing that sure has been nice this last week is that since Isaac has been eating from a bottle, Grandma Faun has been getting up with him to feed him at night so I can sleep. That sure has been nice to be able to get my rest at night so I can keep up with things in the daytime. Thanks, Grandma!
On Wednesday Kolby had preschool and then he had his swim lesson that night, and Grandma went with so she could watch him swim. Today I signed Kolby and Eli up for the winter session of preschool and swim lessons. Eli will be going with Kolby three days a week to preschool, which I think both of them will really enjoy, and both boys will be taking their swim lessons on Wednesday nights. It will work really well because Kolby and Eli will be in different classes, but their classes will be held at either corner of one end of the pool, so I will be able to go sit in the middle of the two classes and watch them both do their lessons, but we won’t have to go out two nights in a row. I think that will work out really well.
On Thursday we had a fun Thanksgiving day. In the morning Michael got up early and went to play football with the other guys from church, and he said he made a couple touchdowns. Michael roasted a turkey, and Grandma and I made a lemon jello salad with bananas that my great grandma, Grandma Moore, used to make; a fruit salad with marshmallows that my other great grandma, Mamaw, used to make; a layered green salad with peas, swiss cheese, and red onions that my mom makes; funeral potatoes, and deviled eggs. We decorated the table with a new tablecloth and we used the china. It was fun.
On Friday morning I took Kolby to preschool and when we got there, there was a sign on the door saying that preschool was cancelled due to the holiday and a lack of attendance. So I took him with me to the DMV because I needed to renew my license before we leave town (and the paperwork that they sent in the mail listed the holidays that the DMV would be closed, and only listed Thanksgiving but not the day after Thanksgiving), but when I got there they were closed too for the holiday. Kind of wasted my whole morning, but oh well. That night the Hedgecocks came over and the boys played together and we got to play a card game, which was fun. It was nice to see them again after a while.
And then on Saturday we got a lot of errands run and that evening after dinner we took a little trip to Cabellas. It is a hunting and fishing store, and Grandma told us that they have the best licorice that she has ever had (although once we got the licorice there, she said that the stuff they sell at the Cabellas in Utah was better than here). But it was a fun little activity (and nice to get the whole family out of the house). It’s not only a store, but they also have giant fish tanks with trout and catfish and other fish, and lots of animals (stuffed) – all sorts of animals from the forest, and a little section with African animals. It was a really big store – we didn’t even have time to see the upstairs before it closed since it was pretty late when we got there. But the kids had fun – that was our first activity with the entire family out of our house since Isaac was born.
Sunday was kind of crazy. I woke up at 7:30 in the morning to Michael yelling for help. I guess Michael was helping Kolby and Eli brush their teeth before church and Camden walked into the bathroom and fell and hit his mouth on the edge of the bathtub. We know that cuts in the mouth bleed a lot, but his was bleeding more than any other injury any of our children have had in the past. After we got it to stop bleeding and got him calmed down, Michael took the older boys to church. I noticed that one of Camden’s teeth looked like it was pushed back a little further than the other ones, and I called the pediatrician’s office to see if we needed to worry about that, or if it didn’t matter because it was just a baby tooth. The doctor on call suggested taking him into the hospital to have it checked out just in case there was root damage to the tooth. So Grandma stayed with Isaac while I took Camden to the emergency room. They told us that his tooth cut almost all the way through his top lip when he fell, but that they rarely do stitches in the mouth because the mouth heals on it’s own so quickly and because of the bacteria there is a high risk of infection when they do stitches inside the mouth, so they will only do that if it is a serious cut, like a really forked tongue or something. And they felt the tooth and said that it didn’t wiggle at all, so they weren’t concerned about that. So I don’t know if his tooth did move, or if it was already a little further back than the others and I had never noticed it before. So Camden is fine now – but he still has a big fat lip. Hopefully that will go away soon. After we got home from the hospital we decided to try to catch the second half of church. I wasn’t planning on taking Isaac this week, but Kolby gave a talk in primary, so Grandma and I wanted to be there to see that. He did really well, it was very cute. Then that night after dinner we had the Wellses, the Kearls, and the Hymases over for dessert. It was fun to get together with all of them before we leave.
This week has been crazy busy so far, and I think it will just continue to be really busy until we leave. Yesterday I had to get all the errands run that needed to be done because I knew we would not have a car today because we had to take it in to have the breaks and rotors replaced. So yesterday morning I took Kolby to school, got stamps at the library, went to the DMV and renewed my driver’s license, went home to call the doctor’s office to get Isaac’s medicine refilled, went back and picked up Kolby from school, signed the boys up for preschool and swimming lessons for the winter session when we return in February, went and got ink for the printer, picked up some diapers at the store, and then went to pick up Isaac’s medicine. When I got home and helped Grandma to finish feeding the kids lunch and put them all down for their naps, Grandma said that my visiting teacher had come while I was gone. I totally spaced the appointment she had set to come visit with me. Ooops! It seems like with so much going on I can’t manage to remember everything that I need to. I was thinking that my visiting teacher is going to think I am a forgetful person, but I’m really not usually like that (but maybe now that I have four little kids I am going to turn into a forgetful person – hopefully not, hopefully I will feel less forgetful after a few months when things calm down a bit and we get into some kind of regular routine).
So, last night we did have some fun. After running a few errands we went to the McDonalds down in West Allis and let the boys play in the big play area there. It is a two-story indoor playground with tunnels to climb through and two big slides, and it was especially fun because Camden went up in the play area for the first time. The first time he went up with Kolby and Kolby helped him through the tunnels to the slide. Then Michael and I each took a turn climbing up and helping him get up to the slides. The boys really enjoyed that.
And this week we have a lot planned. Tomorrow Michael leaves for his first dermatology interview in Temple, Texas with Texas A&M. He has a dinner with the residents Wednesday night and then the interview on Thursday. On Wednesday we also have a doctor’s check-up for Camden and Eli’s flu shot. Then on Thursday I am taking Isaac to Children’s Hospital to have him circumcision done (they didn’t get it done before he was discharge from the NICU, so this was the earliest time that we could get an appointment for him). And then on Friday I have my 6-week check-up after having the baby. And then we will be leaving early in the morning on Saturday. Our friends, Faith and Tyce, were so nice to say they would take us to the airport. Our family is getting so big, that we will need to take two cars to get to the airport now – with our family, my Grandma, a driver, and all our luggage for a two-month trip there is no way we could fit into one car. I don’t even know how we are going to pack for this trip, but I guess I’d better figure that out pretty soon. Well, Isaac was asleep and he keeps flailing his arms about and waking himself up – I guess I’d better go swaddle him so he can stay asleep.
Oh, here is the talk that Kolby gave in church on Sunday: (I helped him a bit with the beginning and end of the talk, but he came up with all the things he was thankful for all on his own).
“I have faith in Jesus Christ. I have blessings in my life. I am thankful for my blessings. I am thankful for Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. I am thankful for my brothers. I am thankful for the temple and the church. I am thankful for our Christmas tree. I am thankful for my whole family. I am thankful for my grandma. I am thankful for my friends. I am thankful for my manta. I am thankful for songs. And I am thankful for our food and our clothes. I show that I am thankful in my prayers to Heavenly Father and Jesus. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.”
So, on Monday after taking Kolby to preschool I took Isaac for his follow-up appointment with the ENT doctor who did his surgeries while he was in the NICU. He said that Isaac has now recovered fully and can be treated like a normal baby his age. That was nice to hear. Then we stopped at the pediatrician’s office for a weight check, and Isaac had gained a few ounces from his birth weight. I wasn’t surprised that he had at least gained a little weight, because he has had trouble nursing so I had been pumping and feeding him with a bottle for almost a week at that time, so I knew exactly how much he was eating and he was getting enough to eat.
On Tuesday Michael had his second transitional year program interview here in Milwaukee at St. Joseph’s Hospital. He said that the interview went well, was pretty relaxed, and went by pretty quickly. He got home early after his interview, so he was able to go with me to an appointment at the hospital for Isaac to try to help with his nursing in speech and sucking therapy. There was a nutritionist and a feeding specialist who both work with babies who met with us and watching Isaac suck on a pacifier, eat from a bottle, and nurse. They were both really nice, and after watching him they said that he was efficient and he had a good sucking and breathing pattern, and they didn’t know why he was having trouble with the nursing. They didn’t really have any more suggestions for us, other than the fact that they said we should supplement with formula as needed so that he could have 4 to 5 ounces to eat at each feeding. They told us a nice little way to know how much a baby needs to eat: take the baby’s weight and convert it to kilograms, and that is about how many ounces they should have at each feeding. Isaac was a little over 4 kilograms, so we have been giving him breastmilk and formula since then, because I have only been pumping about 2 ounces at a time. (I’m sure you all really needed to know that – oh well). So, I have continued to pump since then, and I plan to do so until we leave town. Then he will at least get the breastmilk until he is six weeks old. One thing that sure has been nice this last week is that since Isaac has been eating from a bottle, Grandma Faun has been getting up with him to feed him at night so I can sleep. That sure has been nice to be able to get my rest at night so I can keep up with things in the daytime. Thanks, Grandma!
On Wednesday Kolby had preschool and then he had his swim lesson that night, and Grandma went with so she could watch him swim. Today I signed Kolby and Eli up for the winter session of preschool and swim lessons. Eli will be going with Kolby three days a week to preschool, which I think both of them will really enjoy, and both boys will be taking their swim lessons on Wednesday nights. It will work really well because Kolby and Eli will be in different classes, but their classes will be held at either corner of one end of the pool, so I will be able to go sit in the middle of the two classes and watch them both do their lessons, but we won’t have to go out two nights in a row. I think that will work out really well.
On Thursday we had a fun Thanksgiving day. In the morning Michael got up early and went to play football with the other guys from church, and he said he made a couple touchdowns. Michael roasted a turkey, and Grandma and I made a lemon jello salad with bananas that my great grandma, Grandma Moore, used to make; a fruit salad with marshmallows that my other great grandma, Mamaw, used to make; a layered green salad with peas, swiss cheese, and red onions that my mom makes; funeral potatoes, and deviled eggs. We decorated the table with a new tablecloth and we used the china. It was fun.
On Friday morning I took Kolby to preschool and when we got there, there was a sign on the door saying that preschool was cancelled due to the holiday and a lack of attendance. So I took him with me to the DMV because I needed to renew my license before we leave town (and the paperwork that they sent in the mail listed the holidays that the DMV would be closed, and only listed Thanksgiving but not the day after Thanksgiving), but when I got there they were closed too for the holiday. Kind of wasted my whole morning, but oh well. That night the Hedgecocks came over and the boys played together and we got to play a card game, which was fun. It was nice to see them again after a while.
And then on Saturday we got a lot of errands run and that evening after dinner we took a little trip to Cabellas. It is a hunting and fishing store, and Grandma told us that they have the best licorice that she has ever had (although once we got the licorice there, she said that the stuff they sell at the Cabellas in Utah was better than here). But it was a fun little activity (and nice to get the whole family out of the house). It’s not only a store, but they also have giant fish tanks with trout and catfish and other fish, and lots of animals (stuffed) – all sorts of animals from the forest, and a little section with African animals. It was a really big store – we didn’t even have time to see the upstairs before it closed since it was pretty late when we got there. But the kids had fun – that was our first activity with the entire family out of our house since Isaac was born.
Sunday was kind of crazy. I woke up at 7:30 in the morning to Michael yelling for help. I guess Michael was helping Kolby and Eli brush their teeth before church and Camden walked into the bathroom and fell and hit his mouth on the edge of the bathtub. We know that cuts in the mouth bleed a lot, but his was bleeding more than any other injury any of our children have had in the past. After we got it to stop bleeding and got him calmed down, Michael took the older boys to church. I noticed that one of Camden’s teeth looked like it was pushed back a little further than the other ones, and I called the pediatrician’s office to see if we needed to worry about that, or if it didn’t matter because it was just a baby tooth. The doctor on call suggested taking him into the hospital to have it checked out just in case there was root damage to the tooth. So Grandma stayed with Isaac while I took Camden to the emergency room. They told us that his tooth cut almost all the way through his top lip when he fell, but that they rarely do stitches in the mouth because the mouth heals on it’s own so quickly and because of the bacteria there is a high risk of infection when they do stitches inside the mouth, so they will only do that if it is a serious cut, like a really forked tongue or something. And they felt the tooth and said that it didn’t wiggle at all, so they weren’t concerned about that. So I don’t know if his tooth did move, or if it was already a little further back than the others and I had never noticed it before. So Camden is fine now – but he still has a big fat lip. Hopefully that will go away soon. After we got home from the hospital we decided to try to catch the second half of church. I wasn’t planning on taking Isaac this week, but Kolby gave a talk in primary, so Grandma and I wanted to be there to see that. He did really well, it was very cute. Then that night after dinner we had the Wellses, the Kearls, and the Hymases over for dessert. It was fun to get together with all of them before we leave.
This week has been crazy busy so far, and I think it will just continue to be really busy until we leave. Yesterday I had to get all the errands run that needed to be done because I knew we would not have a car today because we had to take it in to have the breaks and rotors replaced. So yesterday morning I took Kolby to school, got stamps at the library, went to the DMV and renewed my driver’s license, went home to call the doctor’s office to get Isaac’s medicine refilled, went back and picked up Kolby from school, signed the boys up for preschool and swimming lessons for the winter session when we return in February, went and got ink for the printer, picked up some diapers at the store, and then went to pick up Isaac’s medicine. When I got home and helped Grandma to finish feeding the kids lunch and put them all down for their naps, Grandma said that my visiting teacher had come while I was gone. I totally spaced the appointment she had set to come visit with me. Ooops! It seems like with so much going on I can’t manage to remember everything that I need to. I was thinking that my visiting teacher is going to think I am a forgetful person, but I’m really not usually like that (but maybe now that I have four little kids I am going to turn into a forgetful person – hopefully not, hopefully I will feel less forgetful after a few months when things calm down a bit and we get into some kind of regular routine).
So, last night we did have some fun. After running a few errands we went to the McDonalds down in West Allis and let the boys play in the big play area there. It is a two-story indoor playground with tunnels to climb through and two big slides, and it was especially fun because Camden went up in the play area for the first time. The first time he went up with Kolby and Kolby helped him through the tunnels to the slide. Then Michael and I each took a turn climbing up and helping him get up to the slides. The boys really enjoyed that.
And this week we have a lot planned. Tomorrow Michael leaves for his first dermatology interview in Temple, Texas with Texas A&M. He has a dinner with the residents Wednesday night and then the interview on Thursday. On Wednesday we also have a doctor’s check-up for Camden and Eli’s flu shot. Then on Thursday I am taking Isaac to Children’s Hospital to have him circumcision done (they didn’t get it done before he was discharge from the NICU, so this was the earliest time that we could get an appointment for him). And then on Friday I have my 6-week check-up after having the baby. And then we will be leaving early in the morning on Saturday. Our friends, Faith and Tyce, were so nice to say they would take us to the airport. Our family is getting so big, that we will need to take two cars to get to the airport now – with our family, my Grandma, a driver, and all our luggage for a two-month trip there is no way we could fit into one car. I don’t even know how we are going to pack for this trip, but I guess I’d better figure that out pretty soon. Well, Isaac was asleep and he keeps flailing his arms about and waking himself up – I guess I’d better go swaddle him so he can stay asleep.
Oh, here is the talk that Kolby gave in church on Sunday: (I helped him a bit with the beginning and end of the talk, but he came up with all the things he was thankful for all on his own).
“I have faith in Jesus Christ. I have blessings in my life. I am thankful for my blessings. I am thankful for Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. I am thankful for my brothers. I am thankful for the temple and the church. I am thankful for our Christmas tree. I am thankful for my whole family. I am thankful for my grandma. I am thankful for my friends. I am thankful for my manta. I am thankful for songs. And I am thankful for our food and our clothes. I show that I am thankful in my prayers to Heavenly Father and Jesus. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.”
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