F A M I L Y

I love my family! From my hubby and girls, to all of my extended family, and to all of my friends (you are close enough to be family) -- I love you all! We are so blessed! 💜💜💜💜💜

We enjoyed the snow we got this week, but we didn't think about the impact that snow and cold would have on the local farmers. When we were informed of the negative impact the weather was having on nearby farmers, we joined with other members of our church and community to fast and pray for their protection and the quick harvest of their crops. The weather is turning warmer again, and the trees are finally getting the memo that winter is on its way.

Just enough snow for some sledding fun!

The girls had a day off of school on Thursday. Becca got to play with friends, and Nicole went with her dad and I to his therapy sessions. Therapy wasn't so exciting on Thursday though -- most of the time was spent on helping Ryan walk through work procedures and processes (great practice for him, but Nicole found it "boring"). 😉 In physical therapy, Ryan was challenged with standing on one leg on a foam mat and trying to balance with his eyes closed. It was hard for him, but he did better than we expected for his first try! And Nicole had fun trying out some of the physical therapy equipment.

Yesterday we took Nicole to the Rexburg Temple to do baptisms for the dead. It was a great experience for all of us. 💜💙💚 Later that day, as a promised reward the girls had earned, we went to the Gravity Factory (a trampoline park/ninja gym). Ryan insisted on playing with the girls, in spite of my worries and protests that he might hurt himself. Fortunately, everything was padded, so every time he lost his balance and fell, he had a soft landing. It was lots of fun, and Ryan felt encouraged by the progress he has made the last few months.

 

 I know these videos are not great quality, but in the one above, Nicole is doing a flip into a foam pit.

It's hard to see, but Ryan does a back-flop in the above video, and then he gets stuck in the foam pit. It's not so easy for adults to get out of those pits, and it took Ryan at least 5 minutes to make his way to the edge of the pit! He said if it was easier to get out of, he would have done that trick a few more times. :)

We are big fans of the show American Ninja Warrior. Becca especially wants to train to be on the junior edition of the show. :)

After all of the falls Ryan had, he was pretty proud to have landed this one on his feet! :)

Today at church Ryan had another chance to appreciate the progress God has blessed him with. For the first time since June, Ryan led the discussion in his Elder's Quorum/class. He worked hard to prepare the lesson, and felt very nervous about expressing his thoughts clearly. In the end, things went well, and he was so grateful for everyone's support! His lesson was based on this talk from the April 2019 General Conference.

One of the speakers in our Sacrament Meeting today referred to a talk from this most recent General Conference, and I wanted to share a couple of quotes from that with you.

President Russel M. Nelson declared: "You were taught in the spirit world to prepare you for anything and everything you would encounter during this latter part of these latter days. That teaching endures within you!"

You are elect sons and daughters of God. You have the power to overcome the adversary. The adversary, however, is aware of who you are. He knows of your divine heritage and seeks to limit your earthly and heavenly potential by using the three Ds: Deception, Distraction, Discouragement.

Another speaker in Sacrament meeting today really got me thinking about why I go to church, why I study the scriptures, and why I try to teach my children what I believe and know to be true. It all comes down to the love I have for my Savior. He has done everything for me, and asks simply that I follow Him. "If ye love me, keep my commandments." I love Him, and I want to be like Him some day. Becoming like Him involves a lot of change on my part, but I want to change because I know I can be better than I now am. Change isn't easy, but the consistent daily effort to be better is definitely worth it!

The girls have reached the mid-point of their first trimester of this school year. Nicole is doing really well in her classes, and she especially loves Teen Skills class (home economics) where she has sewn an apron and is learning fun cooking skills. (I wish I could show you pictures of those things, but I don't have any...) And Ryan wanted me to share some of Becca's worksheets from kindergarten -- Becca is doing well with learning to read and write, and she particularly loves drawing, computers, and swinging on the tire swing at recess. 😄

One evening this past week, while I was busy with bills and things, Ryan made dinner for us. It melted my heart, because he went through the whole process of peeling potatoes to make mashed potatoes -- definitely not an easy task for him! Doesn't this look yummy?! (I assure you, it was!!!)

Ryan got more sleep at his sleep study this week than he did during his sleep study last month, but we won't get the results from this study for another couple of weeks. Hopefully we'll have more answers coming. Once again, we're just trying to be patient. Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers!