Instructions

Hello, it's been a good two days. Yesterday I got to spend lots of time with my baby K - SHE IS SO CUTE!

Just enjoying being present with her, not getting anything done. I love her little face.

Owen had trumpet yesterday. I left K home with Abi and Lily while I went to that. While I was gone, Peter threw up on Abi's sandals, and they all just left it there on the floor and tried to walk around it, which I shook my head at after I got home. It wasn't a ton of throw up, he just coughed a lot until he gagged himself. He and Katharine have been a little sick. So yeah, we've just been chilling at home. 

Katharine is a happy baby when she wakes up.

So, she's been feeling unwell and thus is wanting me to stay near. I don't get a lot done when I'm carrying her around. And when I carry her my arms get tired, so then we sit on the floor, which is the other place that I do not accomplish any tasks. 

BUT I have been getting a good refresher and practice in on solving the Rubik's Cubes we have. 

And I can solve them, but I don't know how I do it. Years ago when Joseph got a Rubik's cube for his birthday or Christmas, I read the instructions on how to solve it and memorized the patterns, so I don't get it, but I know the patterns, thanks to the instructions. And I have to follow the patters or I can't do it. Maybe I should look up other videos of other ways/patterns on how to solve it, and that might help my brain wrap around how to do it. Cause again, I don't know how to solve it like Ethan does (he is GOOD) but still, the kids are impressed when I solve it, so that's nice that they don't care - they think I'm smart. 

And I can guarantee that everytime I leave a solved Rubiks Cube on the floor, that the next time I see it, it will be all messed up. But I can do it again, cause I know the instructions. I think there's a spiritual metaphor there for life and keeping the commandments. Like as I follow the commandments, problems in my life eventually get solved, even if I don't get it "how". Things fall into place eventually, even though they look messed up along the way. Yeah, there are is definitely some analogy there in solving Rubik's cube. 

I love my beautiful Katharine. She is a sweet little piece of heaven. Corey and I have lost our lives in having children and taking care of our large family, but we were just following instructions. And I can testify that it is working and it gives us much happiness, fulfillment, and purpose. I'm really grateful for the Teaching of the Living Prophets class we took when we were engaged and married that directed our lives in this direction, especially the paper we did on birth control. A personal story that I don't think I've shared here before, but I did almost 10 years ago on my spiritual blog. But I'll put it here too - cause this has been like the Rubik's cube for us, I think. Corey and I got married over President's weekend in 1999.  No time for a long honeymoon cause we were both in school at BYU.  We did have President's day and that was good. So the week after our wedding, we both had research papers to turn in on a class we took together called "Teachings of the Living Prophets".  The assigned subject of our research papers: "The Position of the Church on Birth Control".  That paper was clear instruction from prophets and the fruit of that paper has proved to be the biggest blessing in our life together, as Joseph was born 11 months later and we now have 13 children. I am positive that we would not have all these precious souls in our life today if it weren't for that homework assignment.  I'm so grateful for that class, for our teacher Dale LeBaron for that inspired assignment and what it taught us.  The prophets truly do point the way to true happiness if we will follow where they direct us in this maze of life on earth.  As we've sought to follow the truths that we learned, we've been blessed abundantly.  I'm so grateful for my husband and children and for who I've become by being a wife and mother.  I have not kept many of the papers and assignments from my college days, but I do still have within easy access those two reports Corey and I did.  A quote by President Spencer W. Kimball is the one I remember most and have sought to live by:

"I have told tens of thousands of young folks that when they marry they should not wait for children until they have finished their schooling and financial desires... They should live together normally and let the children come."

We are so grateful for those instructions we received years ago.