Trash, Treasures and Dress Up

Trash

This weekend was a very busy one!  We signed up to clean the church early Saturday morning.  We didn't realize it was the same day as the cub scout and community trash clean up day.  It is officially called Johnny Horizon Day.  So, we went from cleaning the church, to cleaning up trash from the road sides.  It was a wet morning and we had thoughts that they might cancel it due to the rain...but to no avail, we carried on.  We really weren't dressed appropriately for the rain, but we just happened to have some extra garbage bags in the suburban, which made great rain pull-overs.  So, off we went to clean up our mile of trash.  The girls heading east down one side, and the boys heading west down the other.  It only took us about an hour because we are just that fast...and well, Idaho country is pretty clean and there was only 1 total bag of garbage.  We felt pretty lucky.  Everyone had some slushy feet by the time we got home.  It felt good to spend the morning serving our community and our church.   

 Upon returning home, Mason prepared to go to his Primary Pizza Party.  We have been  hearing him talk about this since the beginning of the year (4 full months to be exact) because his teachers told them in January that if they could be reverent they would have a pizza party.  Wow, to give 4 year olds such a promise and then have them wait until May...we are so glad that the day finally arrived.  :)  At least we won't have to answer "the party is not today" anymore.  He had a blast and his teachers really do go above and beyond the call of duty.  We appreciate all they do for Mason and his class.

Treasure

Well, Daddy found a real treasure yesterday at work.  He caught it and brought it home for the kids to admire.  Matt said that when he found it, there was a bulge in it as if the snake had recently eaten something.  By the time he got home and showed it to the kids, the bulge was gone, but he did provide a warning to be careful so it didn't get sick.  Carter is normally very careful with animals, but this time he must have had the snake in motion a little too much, because it threw up all over his leg.  It really scared Josie and she came running in the house at full speed telling the horrifying story.  Gross!  (That's what I have to say!)  I didn't know that snakes actually throw up, but I guess why would they be any different with an upset stomach?

Dress Up

 So, the day moved along with errands and costume designing.  Tonight was our ward party with the theme "Finding Yourself in Lehi's Dream."  It was a nice activity.  Matt was asked to be one of the four group leaders.  They asked him to represent Nephi and to dress up like him.  Matt thought about his costume all week and of course recruited some help from myself and (mostly) Memaw.  She is very creative and this amazing costume is what they came up with.  Matt made all his leather accessories, all but the shoes which is where I helped.  Anyway, I think he makes a pretty awesome Nephi and mostly everyone at the activity thought he was pretty great as well.

"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father:  I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."

1 Nephi 3:7

On our tour of Lehi's Dream, they gave us each one of these little booklets.  In one of the rooms, we got to sit and reflect on the dream and then write our thoughts.  I enjoyed reading Carter and Chloe's on our way home.  There were 3 statements for us to fill in the blanks, looking something like this...

I __________am desirous to know...

______________________________

______________________________

I___________will go and do...

______________________________

______________________________

I_____________have a testimony of...

______________________________

______________________________

Carter's Booklet said,

I, Carter, am desirous to know..."Where in the world am I?"

I, Carter, will go and do..."What Heavenly Father wants me to do."

I, Carter, have a testimony of..."Lehi's dream."

Chloe's Booklet was only partially filled out, but said,

I, Chloe, have a testimony of..."I know that Jesus is my Savior."

I, Alice, didn't take the time to write anything down, but I do have a testimony of Lehi's Dream.  Some of my favorite parts of this dream are as follows.

Lehi's words in 1 Nephi 8:12, "And as I partook of the fruit thereof it filled my soul with exceedingly great joy; wherefore, I began to be desirous that my family should partake of it also; for I knew that it was desirable above all other fruit."

Verse 30, "...he (Lehi) saw other multitudes pressing forward; and they came and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press their way forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree."

Verse 37, "And he did exhort them then with all the feeling of a tender parent, that they would hearken to his words, that perhaps the Lord would be merciful to them, and not cast them off; yea, my father did preach unto them."

Verse 38, "And after he had preached unto them, and also prophesied unto them of many things, he bade them to keep the commandments of the Lord; and he did cease speaking unto them."

I believe that each of us are in Lehi's dream and I hope and pray that we may all be amongst the group that are "holding fast to the rod of iron" which represents Jesus Christ.  How grateful I am, to have this path already set out for me to follow.  I do bade my children and family to keep the commandments of the Lord.  I know it is the only path to true happiness.

Wood Badge

Over the last 18 months, Matt has been working on his Wood Badge "Tickets Items" which were part of his requirements to receive his Wood Badge Beads.  This weekend Matt received this Award. 

Wood Badge is Scouting's premier training course and is designed to be a pinnacle experience.  It is learning by doing the skills and methods of Scouting.  The entire adult troop lives in the out-of-doors for a week, camping, cooking their own meals, and practicing Scouting skills.  It is an amazing Leadership Training Program.  Here are some pictures of Matt receiving his awards. 

Mason and Josie were a little rambunctious, to say the least during this ceremony.

Here is a little poem of what the beads represent...

Two Tiny Beads

Two tiny wooden beads on a leather thong doesn't sound like an outstanding badge and

mark of distinction, but it is known and respected as such around the world.  It is symbolic of the

efforts and interests of one man, on behalf of others, that created and launched the

greatest movement for youth the world has ever known. 

It is the mark of those who have demonstrated that they are people of character and

who are devoted to a cause; adults who strive for perfections, well knowing that even the

best is not enough; adults who hold the welfare of others before self; Scouters who live up to

all that the name implies.  The Wood Badge is awarded to Scouters on the basis of

what they think, more tan on what they know.  They  must demonstrate that they

"know how," also.  Good intentions count for little until, by the application of ability

and determination, they produce results that count.  Striving for perfection in themselves

that they might better train and coach others to this end, exists the wood badge. 

It is doubtful that the thought ever entered the mind of Robert Baden-Powell, that his

efforts on Brownsea Island would grow to influence the youth of the world and that in the

days ahead, thousands upon thousands of men and women would carry his efforts forward to

an ever increasing number of young people and adults. 

Who knows, but to this effort, this crusade may flourish to the end that two tiny wooden

beads on a leather thong may yet become the symbol of a succeeding effort to bring about a

world brotherhood of people under the watchful eye of God.  To that end, may the wood badge

serve and the Scouters never falter or fail.  Two tiny wooden beads on a leather thong; they

could symbolize the hope of the world.  It's up to you.

Matt worked really hard to finish up his "ticket items" while finishing up his last semester at UNM.  He graduated with his BAFA December 18th, 2009 and completed his Wood Badge Requirements

December 19th, 2009.  Just in time!  It is a great honor for him to finally receive his

recognition for this great accomplishment. 

Way to go Matt!  We are all so proud of you!

For more information on Wood Badge Training go to http://www.woodbadge.org/.

Marathons, Mud & Muscles

When I was serving a mission in North Carolina, I saw a sign on a church's bulletin board that read "Life is hard, but God is good!" I have reflected on the truth in that message many times throughout my life. Needless to say, life has been very hard for our family this past several years...in every aspect. We have experienced many trials ranging from bruised knees to death of loved ones. Somehow, in the midst of these trials, we have chosen to count our many blessings to see how good God really is...and he really is ~ Good. He really, truly, unconditionally loves us...even in our weaknesses.

I reflect on one of the greatest blessings I have received in this life...and for eternity...my dear husband Matt. He is an amazing man and for the past (almost) 12 years, he has continued to suprise me with his "skills," talents and (unknown to me) abilities. He is strong in stature and enormous in spirit. I mean that with the utmost respect. He has worked so hard to provide for our family temporally and spiritually. He takes great pride in taking care of his stewardship. He is in his last semester of school (10 1/2 years) and we have recently compared it to running the last leg of a Marathon. It seems that the end is so close, but there are days when it seems like his legs are jello and there is not an ounce of energy left in his body. He has come so far and the only way to go is forward, because the way is closer to the finish line than the starting line. It also feels like we are trying to swim in Mud. As we think about these analogies, we realize the many Muscles that are strengthened in the trial process. We realize how strong we have become and will become when this part of the race in life is over. We will be prepared for the next challenge and we know there will be more challenges, for that is why we are here on earth.

I am grateful to have a companion who knows the values of work, persistence and endurance. I am grateful to be by his side as we go through this life's experiences. We are a team and we work together. When one of us struggles, the other is there to pull us up, and this exchange happens quite frequently. How blessed we are to have each other!

I love you Matt!

Eternally yours, Alice.