These are a Few of My Favorite Things - Basketball, Family, Friends

Little C and Lou played basketball this past Fall for the Y. They both were attentive and soaked in the knowledge their coaches had to offer. Lou, adorably hopped around the court mostly - excited to be part of the action and Little C now says he has found "his" sport. Which I totally knew he would, but I cannot display my knowing smile or excitement for our shared basketball love because it embarrasses him.  Tweens are F.U.N. 

We had a surprise when we showed up to Lou's first practice. My best friend throughout my school years, Camille, had signed her son up as well and he was on Lou's very team. They bonded instantly and Ruckus and Moo enjoyed playing with her little daughter  - such an unexpected, fun, welcomed reunion.  

Little C

Lou and Little C

Same Number! Little C about died when I made him take this photo.
Again, I'm so good at unintentionally embarrassing him. 

Little C's Team

Little C shooting a free throw

Lou dribblnig

Lou and Cyrus

Moo, Ruckus, and Lilianna

Me, Lou, Cyrus, Camille

Back - The Beloved, The Baby, Me, Camille, Mark
Front - Ruckus, Moo, Lou, Cyrus, Lilianna

Major Fail

Our kids didn't believe us for a second when we told them that a leprechaun used our facility to relieve himself on St. Patrick's Day.

Seriously, they were all forensic about it; disproving our innocence -

like they think their parents play tricks on them often. :)

Sunday Stroll to Table Rock

I love MY PEOPLE!
Moo, The Beloved, The Baby, Little C Lou, and Ruckus in the front.

The Beloved with our angel baby

He's a dare devil

Ruckus and Little C - a few seconds later a badger ran by - freaky.

You know that ZERO sun dared  to get in my eyes with these bad boys on.
Me with Lou and Ruckus

Little C and his Mama

The Beloved, Ruckus, Lou, and Moo

Little C didn't want to be in the photo - that is why The Beloved is holding him with so much love.

You Remembered.

Do you ever wish your kids would forget about dinner? Like, totally forget it, not feel hungry and not remember it is missing from their evening?

Especially when your spouse is out of town and you know you're going to have to put your game face on in order for any bites to be consumed?

I do. Often. 

Awhile back we were having a R.E.A.L.L.Y. slow day. Everyone was feeling lethargic  - we ate a late breakfast, had lunch around 4:30 and by 6 I thought - 

I should probably make dinner.... but we just ate an hour and a half ago.....maybe they'll forget? 

I talked myself into our late lunch really being their dinner and I felt great about it. (awesome parenting moment #1)

The Beloved was out of town and I just vegged, catching up on my DVR'd shows, watching the hours go by until I could put my kiddos to bed and relish in the joy of getting out of cooking dinner. So sweet.

Until Lou walked into my room about eight and reminds me we haven't eaten dinner.

"What?" I say, all surprised. "We did eat dinner, just really early. Remember, around 4:30?"

"No, that was lunch."

"Are you sure? Because I really felt like that was dinner."

Then he starts counting through all the different meals we've consumed today, the number only totaling two . 

Lame and darn and busted.

"Do you really think you need dinner tonight? Are you hungry?"

He replied, Yes.

That sucks.

And to my great joy my second awesome parenting moment of the day happened when I opened the refrigerator, begging for some inspiration as what to cook and I spotted the Lunchables my children has talked me into buying a few days earlier.

And dinner was served.

Relief.

T.o.u.g.h.

Living in a household where the male population strongly outweighs the female  - this Mama's gotta be tough.  About once a year Little C will instigate a strength contest to see if his muscles will prove victorious over mine. I'm proud to give a big HA! to him :) because I TOOK HIM DOWN in our arm wrestling competition. The Beloved, on the other hand, killed us all. As it should be. 

Little C and I -
So fun.

Little C and Lou have a go at it. 

The Beloved and Little C prepping for their match.

 All the boys against Dad!

He conquered them all!

Not just once -

but twice. :)

Even when I sang my own theme music I still couldn't overcome the Big Dog, The Beloved.

Sneaksters

Do you like how Moo and Ruckus thought they could hide their consumption of soda by incorporating it into the decor?

Busted my friends. Busted.

What if the Good Just Stood Together?

The Beloved and I are still kind of new to the Facebook life (I kind of wanted to call it "The Facebook" right then - like "the Twitter" or getting on "the line". My dad refers to these things as such and it brings a smile to my face every time) and the things I like and dislike about it aren't really what I was anticipating. I was surprised by all of the interesting articles at my disposal- whether they be about politics, raising children, religion - I dig this wealth of, hopefully useful, information. I also enjoy seeing this other side of people, What they technically "like" or I guess dislike if they don't "like" :), what they're passionate about, what's relatable, funny, or touches them deeply enough to "share", (Not sure why I'm loving the quotation marks so much right now.)

Once in awhile a post will pop up in my news reel that a friend has liked. If the topic perks my interest I'll read it but typically I just keep doing the scroll down. The other night there was one headline that significantly stood out to me though and I can't remember the title exactly but it was basically why Mormons are crazy and the wild things we believe.

I read the article. Nothing really new or surprising was found. Same old things taken out of context, made up, or exaggerated. One thing that made me laugh was a confused question that the on-the-brink-of-becoming-an-anti-mormon-person commonly shares, "but the Mormons I know are so nice" implying if you're telling us they're cray cray why do we find them kind and enjoyable? The answer from the author as to why: Mormons are nice because they have to be. If they're not they won't get into heaven.

HA! Can I just tell you that The Beloved had a New Years Resolution one year not to hate people? It hasn't appeared on his list since because he failed so miserably at it.  I like him.
But, I'm pretty sure he'll still go to heaven because in the end, he's a pretty fantastic guy who's working on becoming a better human being. 

I hope we all are.

The point....

I was very sad that one of my friends who I thought knew me pretty well would "like" an article attacking my identity.  I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This is my Purpose. My Life. I am a Mormon. If I am nice to you it is because I genuinely like you. Plus, I really like nice people. Some people don't - I think that's weird :). I naturally want to be nice. I think it's important to be kind and Christ-like because I care how I make others feel and I want them to know I think they're of great worth.

Sometimes I accidentally forget all that and can be a real beast. 

There's no secret agenda. 

Right now we are studying the New Testament at church and I couldn't find it more glorious. I love my Savior. I love His goodness, service, strength, endurance, example, and the love He has for every single one of us. 

I also love The Book of Mormon. And if my sweet friends have questions about my beliefs or this great book I invite them to have a conversation with me. Ask questions. Let's chat. But not attack or assume to know we understand the depths of a person's soul or their religion.

Why do we get caught up in the trap of the good vs. the good? That idea just enables us to forget this:

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

“This is the first and great commandment.

“And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Matthew 22:37–39).

That means, Mormons, Jews, Muslims, Atheists, Christians, Gays, Black, White, Who-ev. 

We love each other, take care of each other, embrace the good in each other, even though maybe at the end of the day we disagree -
We're neighbors. Pull out the stick. And let the good stand with the good.

P.S. Sorry I'm the Love Preacher lately :)

My, How He Loves Them

Ruckus is lovin' him some girls my friends. Which can become super complicated when there are so very many to be fond of.
The other day we had this conversation -

R - Mom, how do you decide which girl to marry first
Me - What do you mean?
R - Ya know, who to marry first, then second, then third....?
Me - Well, you only get married once sweetheart. You only choose "the one".
R - But you didn't. You got married twice.
Me - Right (shoot dog) , but that's usually not "the plan". What you do is date a lot of girls, figure out which one will make you the happiest man, be a good mama to your kids, love the Lord, and then you ask that one to marry you.

He walked away looking overly burdened with the decisions looming in his future.

Later on in the week one of my friends forwarded me this overheard conversation between her daughter, Londyn, and Ruckus:

R - I love Emma
L- You love Emma and not me?
R - No, I love both of you!
L -How do you love both of us?
R - Well, I am dating Emma and marrying you.
L - What is dating?
R - Hanging out, and marrying is forever.
L - Well I'm glad you are marrying me forever.... and I am glad you are marrying me without Emma.
R - Ya well....

Big smiles from this mom. Oh, how I love the ponderings of these little people I'm surrounded by.

Obama - From the Perspective of a Middle Class Homemaker

Is He American?

I know not.

But, it appears as if he's thrived from following the American Dream. He has overcome adversity - having an absent biological father and a mother who seemed to be more caught up in her own dreams then the pursuit of raising her child.  He is educated, employable, married, has two kids, a dog, and a very large white house with a fence. 

Does He Love America?

Yes.

He loves his idea of America.

He believes the United States is broken and believes in his progressive thoughts enough to fundamentally change the United States into something he views as better.

Is He a Christian?

I don't really care. Frankly, some Christians really suck as people and I have met Muslims who are so kind, genuine, and more Christ-like than some of the people I attend church with.

(Would I love some missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to teach him the gospel and for him to experience such a strong conviction of its truth that it is undeniable and he is then determined to live the gospel standards for the rest of his life? Hells yes. But, only because it would bless his life and bring him extreme happiness. Do I think it would change his political agenda? Negative ghost -writer.)

Do I love the same America He loves?

No. I love my rights, my freedoms, following the direction of our Founders, and the more the government can stay out of my biz the better. But I define rights and freedoms fundamentally different than Obama.

The point is -

I get fed up with the argument over trying to prove and disprove who this man is. Do his policies make me want to throw up in my mouth? Absolutely. 

But in the end - who he is doesn't matter. 

It matters who we are.

Who I am.

And who I'm striving to be.

Worth.

I work with the youth, specifically the girls, in my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I was asked to share tonight an experience with the young women that I have had regarding my own divine nature.

 The impressions I felt as to what to share weren't to my liking. They take me back to a time of high personal insecurity. A time when I didn't like myself a whole lot and I'd like to forget that, that Cammy existed.

But alas - it's not my plan folks. It's His.

I've also been feeling like once in awhile I, much to my chagrin,  should share more personal stories regarding my past life :) and how change is possible on my blog.

Oh goody. 

Anyhoo, here's a glimpse into what I shared with the young women tonight.

This is what I know about my Divine Nature  - I was born good. We are all born with goodness. Every precious newborn baby I see I look at in awe.  How perfectly exquisite are they? Beautiful little spirits. I was also born loved. Not only by my parents and family but I was very loved by my Heavenly Father. I'm His Kid - and even though I can't remember a time before this life I still know I was born with His divine heritage. My spirit was created by God. By His majesty. Which means I - and you - are pretty magnificent.

It's a huge door that he's opened to everyone of us. We were born with greatness, goodness, kindness, virtue and extreme worth because we are His creations. We stem from perfection.

When my parents took me home from the hospital they brought me home to the very house I live in now. I'm the baby in my family and I have three older sisters whom I pay tribute to. 

I attended elementary school at Hillcrest and I felt like I was friends with everybody. Life was easy - uncomplicated - I was confident and I had five best friends who meant the world to me. We formed a little club with the original name of - The Best Friends Club. We even purchased membership cards from Claire's to make our group official. I was the only LDS friend in the group but our values were basically the same. They were good, fun kids and I enjoyed them immensely. 

During the summer months I usually spent time with my family. We went on family vacations, attended family reunions and I saw my friends once in awhile. 

When it was time to attend Junior High I was sad because My Best Friends Club was being split in half. 3 of us went to West, the other 3 to South. But at least I wouldn't be all alone.

I found out on the bus that first week of Junior High that Junior High People were way different than Elementary School People. My two close friends from the Best Friends Club were like foreigners to me. Something had changed. It's like we didn't even know each other. People were cussing - I saw one of my old friends with a pack of cigarettes - they all acted so grown up and cool. I just wanted to play basketball and do the same stuff we used to do -they were living in a world that I was completely unfamiliar with. I was alone.

Then reality hit me. I was a goody goody. That's so not cool.

I managed to make new friends that year who had pretty good values - they swore once in awhile but I never protested. No big deal I thought; and for the first time I gave myself permission to begin closing that door of divine goodness and purity that encompassed me.

After another summer hit, WOW, people changed again. While I had been protected in my realm of peace, security and a gospel centered environment - others had not.

Again I felt uncertain. I didn't fit in. I was peculiar. I was alone. 

I had remained super close to one of my friends who went to South throughout this time. She knew all the latest fashion trends, all about boys, famous people, musicians, drinking, drugs - she watched rated R movies. All. the. time. Like it was no big deal. We were very different but when we began drifting apart my alarm button went off!!!! I couldn't lose another friend - 

So I decided to inch that door closed a little bit more because it wasn't convenient or comfortable to have my values.

And eventually after many years I was successful in making sure it wasn't even open a crack.

The thing I didn't realize at the time was that door I was closing was ME. The goodness and divine gifts I had been given were now missing from my existence by my choosing.

I had lost "me" all on my own. My friends would have liked me regardless. It was me who had set these fake standards of grandeur for very opposite decisions than the ones I knew were right.

I remember driving home in the rain one evening, tears streaming down my cheeks, feeling sad because of the last 57 million bad decisions I had made. I was so incredibly unhappy. 

And that was my pivot point. Something had to change. A different direction was needed. 

I timidly turned the handle on that door and slowly opened it a notch to see if my divine worth was still there.

It was.

And He was. 

Our Heavenly Father loves us so very much and desires to bless us abundantly. We just have to make sure we're not closing the door on our divine nature, on ourselves, on Him.

Elder Faust, an apostle of the Lord said,  -  Being a child of God means that if you seek it, you can find your true identity. You will know who you are."

This Girl.

She's Like -

Uh,

What's the Problem?

Come chill in the pantry with us

Please???

(And yes, sometimes we randomly wear purple vampire teeth. )