Quick Update

Katy

- Started Dance at her school. She is super excited. It is ever Thursday right after school for an hour. She is loving it! I am so grateful to provide dance for her again! She has begged to get back in ever since she was taken out in the middle of her 1st grade year! She is learning ballet, jazz and hip hop.

- She had a field trip yesterday, Friday, September 10. It was a walking field trip and I went with her. It was super fun. I wish I had been nicer to her when she wasn't listening though! I hate that I got a little cross with her :( I wish I were a perfect mom! Other than the math homework glitch in not listening, it was a super fun day! It was fun to play and talk to the kids. I even introduced our favorite treat of apples and peanut butter to Katy's best friend and another good friend of hers!

- Katy's best friend is Lexi Green. Her second best friend is Claire Owens.

- Katy is a wonderful, amazing, sweet, kind girl that tries hard to do what is asked of her and what is right. Her prayers at night are always very heartfelt!


Lyse

- She is LOVING dance as well. Her classes are also on Thursday following Katy's class. It truly is such a fun thing to watch her dance. She loves it more than anything else! She took dance for a short time when she was 3 but refused to go without me and I took her out. She has not been back to dance since. She wanted to start last year but the funds just weren't there. This year she begged and begged and I was grateful for the school program. She is also learning ballet, jazz and hip hop. She has the same teacher as Katy but some different songs and such. She loves the "Singing in the Rain" dance :)

- Kindergarten is going fantastic. She loves school and she loves her teacher. Couldn't ask for a better start to her education than her amazing preschool last year and her fantastic Kindergarten year so far. I am the room mom in her class and super excited to get to be that involved in her life.

- Lyse tries so hard to do what is right and have fun doing it. Her prayers ALWAYS ask for us to have fun - which I find very sweet!


Ben

- His faith and Spiritual growth this last year is amazing. The other day when I was saying how much I was not liking our current situation he said, "Even though I know it isn't easy and I know it is hard, I am grateful I am not at that job. I have grown Spiritually in ways I never could have working there. I am better off spiritually not having that job." I guess I always need to remember the bigger picture! Eternal life and Spirituality is much more important than a prestigious job with money; although, I really would love enough money to survive without me having to work.

- The company is not doing as well as we had hoped. I feel horrible that my going to work as he puts it "makes me feel emasculated". I know and feel that this is the path we are meant to be on but I wonder for how long. Is it really going to work? Thankfully Ben is great about having and keeping faith! He is getting and securing more contacts - which is HUGE in the business.

- Elder's Quorum President is something Ben has finally embraced. He loves his calling but still struggles with accomplishing everything. He was telling me the other day, "I wish more people would realize that Home Teaching in the church isn't about numbers. You can cheat the numbers if you have to. Home teaching is in place for the people. The church is about the people, making sure they are ok, helping, leading and guiding them. I wish I could just get my guys to realize that Home Teaching is doing the Lord's work in the simplest form. People need to know that they are not forgotten, that people still care about them. Home Teaching is part of that! The church is really about helping others."

Let me just say - WOW! 1 year ago Ben was trying to find ways to get out of his calling, now he is trying to find ways to helps others in his stewardship realize the importance of their Priesthood responsibilities. He truly has grown and I am grateful for that!


Tauni

- Most likely starting work for Jetblue in October 2010. Going back to work after being a solely stay at home mom is really hard. I am grateful the Lord hasn't blessed us with a baby and kinda fear he suddenly will after I start work. I don't know if I could work with a little one. I know my girls are still young and little but at least they are both in school. I feel REALLY blessed with this job and eternally grateful to a Heavenly Father who does provide a way...it may not be easy but it is a way!

- I got a blessing from Ben, before all the Jetblue interview and such. In the blessing I was blessed with the strength I would need to follow the plan set forth. I thought that was odd because getting the job with Jetblue would be "easy emotionally" - I thought. Um WRONG!!! It has been really hard emotionally on me...much, much harder than I expected. I keep thinking back to that blessing - so grateful I do have a Father Heaven that in his infinite wisdom blessed me with that strength before I even knew I needed it.

- I LOVE my calling in Primary and I pray and hope that nothing will mess with that. I have faith that our Father in Heaven KNOWS my desire to keep my calling and still serve. I also have faith that He will make a miracle happen with my Sunday shifts so that I can still fully participate in church and my calling.

- Primary is super busy right now. We have the program in 2 weeks and then the activity the next week (so in 3 weeks). We are super busy and I think we will ALL be grateful for a week "off" for General Conference after our program and then activity. Ok truth is, I am just looking forward to a weekend of listening to men of God teaching us the words He is wanting us to know and follow right now!


Family Life

- We are still managing to read scriptures every night before family prayer. I really hope we can just make this part of our schedules, part of our routine. I LOVE the Spirit that comes into the home as we read the words of God!

- Still in the condo. Still have the minivan.

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