November 6th and 7th

6th: I am grateful for how our physical trials could have been worse, but were not. Laneah only fractured her wrist, did not fully break it. Only my kneecap dislocated, not my whole knee. I have seen God's mercy in sparing us from worse.

7th: I am grateful for the things that make my life as a mom easier. Pregnancy pillows, nipple cream, baby gear that vibrates, disposable diapers, I could go on and on. I live in a day and age where there is so much available to me, and I love it :)

November 3rd, 4th, and 5th

3rd: I am so grateful I get to homeschool. Indiana does not have laws that make it really difficult or stressful to homeschool. Even though it is difficult, I just love being there and seeing when things click :)

4th: I am so grateful we live in a house. We are still renting but I love not being connected to anyone else. I love having our own yard. I love the fact that Bo just has to walk across a small field to get to work. I love how we are in a safe, secluded place in the city.

5th: I am so grateful we are in a position in our lives to be experiencing independence. While Bo was going to school, we were on all kinds of government assistance. I am NOT complaining, I am counting another blessing! It helped us through! Now, we only need help with health insurance and even then, we have monthly premiums. It makes me happy to know we do not need that much help from fellow taxpayers anymore. (Pretty sure we could afford our own health insurance if it weren't for a certain act, but that's a different story :P)

Happy 4th Rhycherd!

I can't believe this boy is 4! Happy Birthday little man!

Rhycherd is obsessed with Transformers right now. So before Halloween, we nabbed a Bumblebee costume for him to wear :) He doesn't know it, but between us and Santa, he is getting the whole Rescue Bots group! :)

Nov 1st and 2nd

I am going to try to share something I am grateful for every day this month. (There are way more than 30 things but I don't think I could keep this going for that long)

1st: I am grateful for holidays. The serious aspects of them (Christmas- Christ's birth, 4th of July- our country's independence, etc) and the fun that comes with them. I love seeing my kids have fun! I loved watching my kids run up and down streets getting candy. I know I will love watching them see the gifts left under the tree from Santa.

2nd: Rhycherd just celebrated his 4th birthday (I will make a post of this). So I have been thinking about my kids and how grateful I am for them. I am so grateful that I have been able to get pregnant easily, have easy pregnancies, enjoy vaginal births, and deliver healthy babies.

Doubt your doubts, before you doubt your faith ~Deiter F Uchtdorf

One of my apologetics books had a section called "Mormonism." I was already nervous at what I was going to read. (The book was written by evangelical christians). Even though you got the sense they didn't believe a lick of it, they got several things right... and a few things wrong; especially the part where they said we "have a different gospel and a different Jesus than theirs."

After reading this chapter, my faith started to shake. But I have had too many feelings, blessings, and revelations to find this gospel false. Just like you don't go to the podiatrist to fix your heart; you don't read an evangelical chapter on the restored gospel. So I went to lds.org... and Jeffrey R Holland did it again! (I don't know how many times his messages have helped me). I found "The Only True God and Jesus Christ Whom He Hath Sent." This article strengthened my faith and increased my knowledge.

For anyone who wishes to know, read/listen/watch this article:

Elder Holland "The Only True God and Jesus Christ Whom He Hath Sent"

Satan then: No Choice, Satan Now: No Accountability

Us Mormons know the story. But for those who don't know...

Before coming to Earth, all of us, existed with God in heaven. We wanted to become like He was. In order for this to happen, we had to receive bodies and come here to be tried and tested. We were given 2 options: Jesus' plan and Satan's plan. Jesus presented a plan that went along with everything our Heavenly Father said. We would come here and be tried and tested. That meant we would need agency. God GAVE us the right to choose! BUT, if we wanted to get back with Heavenly Father, we would need to choose the right. Because we are imperfect men, we inevitably would sin. That's where our savior, Jesus Christ, comes in. He suffered and died for our pains and sins. Jesus did all this and still gives all the glory to God. Satan, had a much different plan in mind. He wanted us to make it back to God as well. BUT, he would force us to do so. We would not have had agency. We would not have grown. Therefore, we could not have become like God. On top of this, Satan wanted all the glory for himself. There was a war in heaven. 2/3 of us (All of us who have lived, are living, or will live on Earth) agreed with Jesus and God. 1/3 of our brothers and sisters sided with Satan. The third, along with Satan, were cast out. They were denied bodies and can never become like God or join Him again. What do they do now? Whisper evil thoughts into the hearts of men. They want us as miserable as them. After all, misery loves company.

So, back then, Satan wanted to take away agency. Now, He has a much more different plan and a very destructive one at that. He is seeking to destroy accountability. You see it everywhere. The world chants things like "My choice!" "It's my choice!" Yes, it is your choice! It is your God given right to choose! BUT, that does not mean there are no consequences. There is still right and wrong. And although Satan is very much winning at people escaping man's consequences, he will NOT succeed in stopping the consequences set forth by God.

I hope and pray that we will not fall prey to the evil whisperings of our fallen brother. He would love nothing more than for us to join him and not our Heavenly Father.

Spiritual Thought

I was thinking about how some people obey the speed limit in construction zones and some don't. I know for me, I follow it because I know it is there for protection of the workers lives. It is a request made out of care. I wonder if the people who do not follow it, view it as a burden and unnecessary. I believe it is the same with God's commandments and standards. Those who view them as being given out of love, tend to follow them better. They know they are there to keep them safe. Those who view them as a burden and unnecessary, tend to rebel and not follow them. I know for me, when I was younger, I would follow God's commandments because it's what He said. I didn't want to at times, but I did. Now, it is so much easier to follow them because I know it is there for my protection. They are given out of love :)