Only 6 months ago???

It feels like so much longer than just six months ago.  So much living in just that short time.

Last General Conference, April 2017, we were in Canon City.  We came for Rhett's baptism, which was on Friday.  We arrived just about an hour or so before the baptism.

Kira was chorister, sweetly conducting.  I said the opening prayer.  For a musical number Kira and Mary sang, "Baptism", the one of "Jesus came to John the Baptist, in Judea long ago..."  Their voices blended well.

Dad spoke about baptism.  Glen baptized Rhett.  A friend in their ward who is Rhett's cub leader, spoke about the Holy Ghost.  Rhett was then Rhett  confirmed by his dad, with Grandpa Alan in the circle.  

Sienna said the closing prayer.  Mary actually had printed programs too, I should find it and post it.

Rhett took seriously his commitment and covenant.  He said, "I'm getting baptized so I need to be nice."

Mary had prepared some snacks to serve after the baptism that were yummy and of course there were healthy options too.  :)

 I think Dad helped with some chores Saturday morning and maybe even some the night before.  They had a few goats at the time and Dad helped to milk them.  

We watched conference at the neighbor's guest/vacation house where Dad, James and I were staying.  In between sessions we went to Rhett's soccer.  The day became cool and cloudy with rain falling just towards the end of the soccer game, so good timing.

We watched the Priesthood session altogether that evening while eating dinner.  James had been under the weather the entire time and became more feverish and sick.  We decided to leave Sunday morning, to get James home and not spread any more germs than necessary.

We were glad to be there and see Rhett choose this important step.  We enjoyed our time with Glen and Mary and their family and learning more about their world.

I Would Not Be Married

President Nelson asked, "Where would I be without the Book of Mormon?"  I would not be married.  There would also be other terrible consequences in my life I'm sure, but that one I know would have happened as I faced lots of stress. 

I've shared this before, but thought I would get it here on this blog as a kind of family history and also in reply to Nicolina's post on her blog, "How Do You Do It All?"  http://threekindsoftanners.blogspot.com/

This was in reply to an email from Angie Berezay who was working on a Personal Progress goal.  As part of that goal she was to talk to a mother she admired to learn how to be a good mother.  This was my reply:
Hi!  Well, where do I start?  I did that requirement in PP not long ago too.  I'm working on PP along with Esther.  Can you believe she'll be 15 in Sept?  Wow, time surely flies.

I must say that people think I'm a good mother, but it's really because Alan is such a good father, that he makes me look good!  I know you have a good man by your side too.  That surely does make all the difference and I hope young women will realize that.  Finding a good husband is the first ingredient to a successful marriage and family.

I had a good example with my own mother.  I know you have had with yours too.  My mother said that consistency and a good sense of humor are both essential to be a good mother.  I've struggled with both of those things.  Nicolina has read a lot of the love and logic and she is very consistent with her kids, and gives them the ownership of the problem type of thing.  I recently read a book I checked out at the library, "Kids are Worth It!  Giving your children the gift of inner discipline"  By Barbara Colarosa, I think is her name.  General conference talks are always good resources and encouraging.  

One of the most important lessons about being a good mother was inspired by your mother.  I'll tell you the story.  Once upon a time...

   We were living there in little Huson, Montana.  Alan was working out of a home office with his own lumber selling business.  It started off well, but after about a year got worse and then worse and we were very tight financially.  Esther was born, and she was kind of a fussy baby.  I've learned since some things I could have done for her, but at the time I didn't know.  We had hospital bills in addition to some of the other financial pressures.  When Esther was about 4 months old, Chrystal and Mary were in a car accident.  Chrystal was giving Becca Fallentine a ride home from school, it was January, snowy roads and she slipped on the ice and crashed the car into a tree.  The ambulance came, our car was totaled.  Thankfully the girls were okay.  They had some stitches.  Mary had an MRI because they wanted to check for brain damage.  More bills.  Then about 6 weeks later Esther got RSV and pneumonia and had to be in the hospital for two nights.  She was still a nursing baby and so I stayed with her.  She pulled through.  More stress, more bills.  (We had limited insurance at the time)  Then about 6 weeks later a greenhouse that Alan had constructed that had lots of little plants growing in it, we were planning to do this as a side business, the greenhouse blew over in a freak wind and was completely damaged, all the plants were exposed, all that time, effort and money to get it going.  We were able to sell some plants at a reduced price so it wasn't a complete wash out, but that quickly put an end to our side business.  Sometimes at night I would lay in bed and think "I'm out of here!  I don't know where I'm going, but I'm leaving, I can't handle this.  I love my husband, I love my kids, but life is just way too hard!"  But then somehow each morning, I would find the strength to  hang in there and not run away.  Life got better a little at a time.  We decided to move to Star Valley, sell our home use the profit from it to pay some bills and debts and such.  At one point when I felt optimistic and like some of the pressure was off I prayed with gratitude.  I had a very clear understanding at that time that the reason I hadn't run away, the reason I somehow found the strength to make it every day was because I was faithfully reading the Book of Mormon.  Your mom had turned me on to reading personally every day from the Book of Mormon before all of this mess came into my life.  She told me so often about how much she loved it and what power we could get from reading it, and so I put it into practice in my life and it became a habit for me.  When I realized that it had saved me during that troubling time I made the commitment to read it every day for the rest of my life. And I have.  It is my lifeline, my staff, my comfort, my iron rod!  It brings the spirit and the spirit is what helps to be a good mom.  Education, classes, time off now and then, good girlfriends that you can hang with at times, or sisters or your own mom, all of those things help to be a good mom, but the best thing is the Holy Ghost and living in such a way that He can inspire you, guide you, warn you, comfort you and tell you what a great job you're doing!  I'm sure you are doing a great job too.  So keep it up!  Keep that great smile and great laugh you have going.  Have fun with your kids, enjoy them at this stage because it changes so fast.  Pray lots and hang on to the Book of Mormon and you'll make it!  Thanks for letting me share with you.  We love the Berezays and the Durbins too!  Love, Sheri

 I think a blog always needs photos - so here's the latest happy family photos of Angie!

 This has always been my "go to" story of  how the Book of Mormon saved me.  I recently shared it in Relief Society as part of a lesson.  I said, "when you hold on to the iron rod, it holds on to you."  But that's not really right.  What I should have said was, "When I hold on to God's word, He holds on to me."  He does the holding, uplifting, strengthening and cheering.  Also my life has not been stress free since that pivotal time 17 -18 years ago.  

This last summer I felt a near breaking point.  I felt like the farm was swallowing Dad.  It felt like more that swimming upstream.  It became to me a riptide, or crashing waves that I couldn't swim past.  And of course I couldn't share that in the Bedford Relief Society, because Grandma is sitting right there, but when I shared this older story, the Spirit once again confirmed to me the power of the Book of Mormon, in helping me through the trying summer.  Of course Dad and I had to communicate and work through how to address the farm difficulties.  Some of our "conversations" weren't always calm.  And not every issue has been completely smoothed out.  Some of it is the change of season that has lightened the load.  The first of July I started the Book of Mormon over again and this time before I start reading, I write down some of my concerns for the day and then see if the answer is in my reading.  I record some of the inspiration or lessons the Spirit is teaching me. I love the Book of Mormon.  I love my Savior.  His power is in that book, just like President Nelson said.     

Light Bulb Moment

I'm almost done with school this semester - Yay!

I've taken CHILD 320 - Adolescent Development and COMM 352 - Persuasion.

For my COMM class our final project was an Issue Book.  You may have seen these at doctor's offices or school offices or such.  We were to take a societal issue, address it, and persuade our audience of the problem with a call to action.

My group chose Pornography.  Wow!  What an evil plague!  Avoid it and teach your children to avoid it as the deadly poison it is.  You may already have used this, but a helpful link for teaching is this one:  https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/addiction?lang=eng

Dad taught James that when pop-ups or similar situations happen and an image appears, quickly close it or walk away or  leave the friend  or group or whatever.  If it's something that he hasn't looked for, he is innocent and Heavenly Father will help him to forget it.  But when he continues to view it or seeks it out, then it's damaging and requires extra spiritual help and cleansing.

For all the times that I may have resisted putting a pillow up to the TV screen or fast forwarding a part, I'm so very thankful for Dad's pure nature that guided me and helped me to guide our viewing.

 As I researched for my portion of the project I learned that mafia control is heavy with pornography.  I guess because of all the money involved.  During the time of this research I was also reading in Ether about the daughter of Jared dancing for Akish.  The men who wanted the kingdom formed a secret combination, which initially was fueled by live pornography, basically.

I usually think of corrupt senators or presidents or behind the scene lobbyists and such when I equate our time to the Book of Mormon and the secret combinations that caused the destruction of the country.  But then a "Light Bulb Moment" hit me when I realized there are secret combinations involved with pornography with men (and women) intent on gain, control and the destruction of our country.

If you're interested here is the link to my group's project:  https://issuu.com/tinadittmar92/docs/issue_book_final_0f40c7c564fe31

Another group from class did human trafficking which is also connected with pornography and a second light bulb moment hit me about the innocent victims of women and children that were abused and exploited by wicked Lamanites and wicked Nephites.

But we also know that there was a Mormon and his son Moroni (and Mormon's wife/Moroni's mother) who were valiant and true despite the wickedness around them and I know that all of you and all our grandchildren are being raised to be like Moroni.  So keep up the good work!

Reunion Picture Request and Christmas 2017

I had a jolly good time at the reunion and I can't wait till next year to do it again. Or the year after. Thank you to everyone for sacrificing, planning, and making some darn good memories. I would like a few pictures of those memories so if you have any, even one, throw them up on the blog for all to enjoy. Here is my collection. It was going to be purely selfies, but alas...I had to take a few groupies.

Pre-reunion fun. Cliff jumping.

First night groupies.

 Early morning breakfast. Made it out the door on time. Booyah!

"Hi everybody else."

Scott flashing the camera. I told him not to take off his shirt. 

Beautiful Tuacahn and the crazy attendees.

Waiting for our seats. Glen is playing a little frogger. 

Liza was hoping that Joshua would sit by her. 

Luke is one of my favorite groupies.

The Vegas crew enjoyed some barrel racing the last night together.

 Well if you made it this far then you have the good fortune of seeing the Christmas list for this year. Gifting can be for the entire family or just for the couple. I think Eliza and I want a couple's massage. Maybe I should ask her. Second column is who you are gifting to.

Mom, Dad, James - John and Heather
Tillerys - Jared
Taylors - Esther
Tanners - Mom, Dad, James
Daltons - Tillerys
Joseph and Eliza - Taylors
Joshua and Briana - Tanners
John and Heather - Daltons
Jared - Joseph and Eliza
Esther - Joshua and Briana

Buccaneer/Buckaroo

Have you ever seen a buckaroo?

Is this a buckaroo?

For some reason I always think of a buckaroo as a kid playing around. 

What if the buckaroo is a kid riding on a real horse?

Can a buckaroo have a hat?

What if the buckaroo is riding on Grandpa's shoulders?

Or what about riding a panda? Does that make Anna a Chinese buckaroo?

This is a buckaroo.... or at least this is the origin of the word...

Buckaroo comes from the Spanish word vaquero. Vaquero basically means "cowman". (Yes I know that Jim Craig is a horseman. Briana just loves Jim Craig) Vaca is cow. The 'v' in Spanish sounds exactly like the 'b' in Spanish. So the modern pronunciation of Vaquero sounds like "bah-CARE-oh". It is relatively easy to see that with a change in emphasis and vowel sounds the word morphed to "buh-ka-ROO"

What about a buccaneer? What is that? Where does the word come from?

Well, for John, a buccaneer probably looks something like this...

For Luke it is something like this...

We all know that a real buccaneer is an invisible track star...



And I myself have an illustrious career as "Cap'n Sweetbeard - terror of the Krispy Kreme".

The origin of buccaneer comes from "boucan" or "buccan" which is an indigenous word from the Caribbean meaning smoked meat. It also refers to the smoking rack. The French and Spanish took that word and applied it to the pirates in the area because they would mostly survive off of the meat they would cook on fires on whichever island they were on. Like the picture below.

A related form of the word appears in our modern vocabulary. It is featured on sauce labels, chip bags, and family reunion itineraries. It is....Barbecue! The Spanish version of the word, derived from the original "boucan" is "barbacoa". So, the fun word that means so much deliciousness in our lives comes from the original inhabitants of the Caribbean.

Barbecue, as you can see, brings so much happiness to the lives of all who partake...

Family Tree of Life

"And it came to pass that I beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy."

-Lehi's vision of the Tree of Life

When Lehi tasted the fruit from the tree in his vision, he knew that he wanted his family to partake of it as well. He knew that the joy he was experiencing would only be more fulfilling with those he loved most. From Nephi, we learn that the tree represented "the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men." It turns out that the family is a great place to feel the love of God. Do you remember a time with your family that you felt that God loved you, that your soul felt fulfilled, that you'd found something special, that you would do anything to keep your family in your future?

"The family is ordained of God."
          - The Family: A Proclamation to the World

Thanks to the restored priesthood power of God, an eternity of family joy has become our regular course of thought. We may not think of this when the house is a mess, the kids are crying, the diapers are stinky, the food is burnt, the bills are due, the road is long, or the day is dark. We may not even think about our eternal family when the sun is shining, the house is clean, and everyone is happy. But, just like the green highway signs that don't always list our final destination, when we are following the easily discernible example of Jesus Christ, we will reach the end goal of an eternal family. And that brings a lot more joy to our journey as well. Like the Family Proclamation says, "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded up on the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ."

This is a small version of our family tree. Since we have the restored gospel, "family life" for us includes our grandparents, cousins, etc. Even though there has been a lot done on our family history, or rather because there has been a lot done, we have lots and lots of starting points to look for other people who we can help connect to the family. With our big family can you imagine how many cousins are linked to our family tree?!

I know that the leaders of the church have talked about a lot of blessings from family history work. They talk about protection from temptation, blessings from serving others, and blessings from actings as saviors for these people. Well, I was reading an article that talks about blessings for the family right here right now! In the link below, it talks about families who know their history. Families who know their history are more connected and the kids are more likely to deal better with adversity. The article says that the best family narrative is one where there are stories about the good times and about the bad times. When the family feels connected to something bigger than themselves, they are more likely to take courage through the difficult moments.

I love you all, and I want you to experience these blessings. I want you to try it out! Take a look on FamilySearch, look at the hints on the right side, look up the tutorial videos, talk to a friend, learn the stories, try indexing, find the names, go to the temple, and reap the blessings!

Just like the tree described by Lehi, our family tree contains fruit that is "desirable to make (us) happy". God has given us family life where we can experience the blessings of the gospel, be changed by the power of Christ's Atonement, be strengthened by our efforts together, and become an eternal family.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/fashion/the-family-stories-that-bind-us-this-life.html