13 Articles of Faith

Danni and Angela were recognized in a stake meeting tonight for Memorizing all 13 Articles of Faith last year. The Stake invited 13 kids to recite each Article of Faith and Angela was asked to recite the 9th one. She practiced all week on memorizing the 9th Article of Faith again and it was awesome to hear her recite it in front of her peers. Last year, Danni and Angela didn't attend the meeting, so it was so rewarding to attend this special meeting with my girls. I'm so proud of my girls!!

Martin Luther King Day Parade

Josh marched in the Martin Luther King parade today. It was so much fun to watch the parade with the Clawsons. We waited patiently for the Taylor Junior High Band to make their appearance in the parade, and it was worth it. When we saw the band from the distance, we cheered them on. Mr Quamo and Mrs. Piraino held the Taylor Jr. High banner while the Trojan mascot marched alongside the band. We were able to get a really good view of Josh when he marched past us. It was great to hear the band and we think they were the best band in the parade. The kids enjoyed the parade especially when balloons and candy was given out. It was great to see Josh march in the parade.

Memorable MondayParents

Jim and I are taking a "Strengthening the Family" course in our stake to help us become better parents.  The course started last week and we are learning so much.  It's amazing how much work goes into being great parents.  Both Jim and I have great parents who have been great examples to us.  We have a lot to learn and hope that we can raise our children in the ways that we have been taught.

Paces

Walls

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No More Braces for Me

Danni was thrilled to finally get her braces off today. She has been a patient of Dr. Robison since she was 7 yrs old. She look gorgeous with her new smile and we couldn't be happier.

Thanks Dr. Robison!!!

Memorable MondayChanging Nicknames

Dani is changing the spelling of her nickname to Danni. I remember changing the spelling of my nickname just before high school. My nickname was spelled Tammy and it worked for me in elementary and middle school. I realized that a lot of people with that particular spelling. I wanted to have a unique spelling and practiced the summer before high school spelling my name Tami. Since I was going to a new school and meeting new people, changing the spelling of my nickname wouldn't cause any problems. I love spelling my name Tami and I'm so glad that I made the change. When Danni talked to me about changing the spelling of her name, I was a little sad a first then I realized that she was doing the same thing that I did and I should support her. I need to practice writing Danni just as I did with my own names several years ago.

Family Proclamation

So much has happened to my family this year and it's only the second week. We have been studying the Family Proclamation in our parenting class and found this section to be very comforting at this particular time.

"Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. "

I'm so grateful for this document and the powerful message that it sends. Families are so important to our Heavenly Father's Plan.  It is through families that we can learn the principles of repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, and compassion.  I've seen these principles in work with my family this year so far.  I love my family dearly and so glad that Heavenly Father organized us into families.  

Memorable MondayA Hour

Josh took an A hour PE class last semester to give him an extra class during school hours..  This semester, Mr. Quamo is holding an elective A hour class three times a week for those kids who want to spend that extra hour in band.  Josh really loves band and wants to have that extra hour in band.

I remember taking A hour seminary with Tracie so that we could have an extra hour during school to practice.  Tracie would pick me up early in the morning and we would go to early morning seminary.  It was hard to go to seminary that early in the morning, especially when it was still dark outside.  It seemed worth it when Tracie and I went to a small practice room in the band room to practice during the last hour of school.   Tracie and I worked on duets and solos that we planned to take to competition.  We even found some time to talk.  That last hour of the day was one of the highlights of my senior year.  Tracie is such an amazing musician and I was so lucky to learn from her. We need that A hour seminary class to get that free hour and I'm so glad that Tracie and I took advantage of that opportunity so we could spend so much time together our senior year.  In the fall, Tracie headed off the the U and I moved to AZ.