I have to say...I've been a mother playing a waiting game. Waiting for my daughter to show interest and desire to start her "Faith in God" projects. I thought for sure she'd be picking it up and asking me to help her OR I'd find her starting it on her own. My wake up call came when the activity day leader mentioned their was going to be a recognition in June. I realized my daughter had nothing passed-off, expect for what was done in class.
It's so nice to say, the waiting game is over. I knew better and needed to show her, teach her the importance of these projects. We sat down together and learned how valuable the book and requirements can be. We set a goal to accomplish one task in each category.
1.
Learning and Living the Gospel: Prepare a pedigree chart with your name and your parents' and grandparents' names. Prepare a family group record for your family and share a family story. Discuss how performing temple work blesses families.
2.
Serving Others: Plan, prepare and serve a nutritious meal.
3.
Develop Talents: Make an item from wood, metal, fabric, or other material, or draw, paint, or sculpt a piece of art. Display your finished work for others to see.
The first project was such a joy to do with Ally. I didn't realized how valuable writing and recognizing family names would be for her. She recognized the fact that she and her sister were named after great grandmothers. Both her parents were named after grandparents. She also recognized that her maternal grandpa was named after his mom's maiden name. And her maternal great-grandpa is a "Jr."
When it came to telling a family story...I'm grateful for the one I chose to tell. Her dad's family name wasn't always spelled the way it is today. Her great-great grandfather, who came from Germany, chose to change the spelling to accomodate the American ways, I gave her the old spelling. It was a very simple story....one I felt she could remember the details. I didn't realize it had an impact until the two days later. I was cleaning papers off the counter and found a zip-lock bag with Ally's name, last name (current spelling) and then the original spelling with a smiley face...all in Ally's writing. This was such a tender mercy for me...the time spent with my child was valuable, she's learning who she is, where she comes from and how important it is to learn how living the gospel can re-unite families.
The following Monday, our family night revolved around Ally's completion of the first task and passing off the second task. Ally planned, prepared and served a nutritious meal. She chose Chinese Chicken Salad with Strawberry/Rhubarb Pie for dessert. Ally did a wonderful job following directions and sticking to task. It seemed to take forever, but she did a magnificent job putting it all together!
She was certainly proud of her pie....she LOVES Rhubarb and was so excited when she saw it in the stores the previous week. Ally loved the fact that she got to eat most of it....since Kaitlyn and Dad dispise Rhubarb. We felt she could use the extra calories anyway :-)
For our family night activity: We chose to teach our kids more about the temple and answer any questions they had. This helped Ally to learn how to discuss the ways temple work blesses families.
What we've learned as parents, so far in this journey: The home is certainly the best place to teach your family the principles of the gospel. It brings so much joy to see our family grasping the gospel and appreciating the effects it can have when we put forth the effort. We're thankful our girls are learning that it is possible for our family (including extended family members) to live together forever AND that when we develop our talents and serve others, we find joy.
Thanks for your hard work Ally. We enjoyed every moment of it....including the reward of eating it!
We'll be excited for you to share goal #3 (your wood project) at the recognition night in June.
Happy Fathers Day to the amazing men in our life! You are great examples of courage, work, love, kindness, support and the ability to endure. Thank you for being the Father, Grandfathers and Great Grandfather you are! 
Kaitlyn's book deserves several posts!!! She's been working on it for months. It was exhausting to come up with ideas and the time to accomplish this GREAT idea she had...to make a book of 100 pages! We tried to encourage her to shorten the book, but anyone who knows Kaitlyn, knows that SHE KNOWS what she WANTS and is DETERMINED! The goal was to finish the book by the end of the school year so she could make a copy for her teacher. We had one month to go and I didn't know how it would be possible. We finally resorted to using the computer for the last 50 pages. It was awesome to get her on the computer; to choose some new pictues and learn to use the key board. We are so proud of Kaitlyn...she wanted to be done SO badly, but was NOT willing to give up. Way to go Kaitlyn! We are SO proud of you!!!
Our last two Saturday's have been beautiful! Last Saturday was almost 90 degrees. All I have to say is...it's about time we dry out!
One of the nights was at our house with our two little families. We LOVED the company! When eight o'clock rolled around it did get a little tricky....they didn't seem to care for the bathtub water...or our girls getting them ready for bed. We still had fun AND were able to get them to stay longer....thank goodness the babies are still in their carseats, aren't those the cutest pictures of them sleeping??!!! Look at Savannah's little arm propping her head ;-) 
This was our Memorial Day fun...our last night with the munchkins :(
More than likily, we won't see the twins until Fall of 2012. I can't imagine what they'll be like on the next visit. Have fun in Florida you guys...We'll miss you!!!!
...of school for more time with the out-of-towners. We were so happy to spend more time with Becky and Leif's families. We went hiking on the most beautiful day of the week, then stopped in at the fish hatchery. The girls LOVED riding with Becky's kids....it was so nice to see them enjoying time together. I loved the opportunity to hold Sydney's hand up and down the rock...we switched hands at each switchback (over 200 times), this was keeping her far from the railing to help her feel safe. I loved that Leif and Rachel were able to be with my girls during the hike. They loved having the 'aunt' and 'uncle' time. I'm so glad we were invited AND for the encouragment from Jeremy, to have the girls 'skip a day' and have some fun.....It was a good day!
The party was lots of fun. Most of Jeremys's family was able to be here (we missed you Kierstin, Wes, Westin and Jade). Since the weather turned sour, we met at the church (was going to be at the park)....perfect place for the kids to run and get energy out! We all ate dinner and mingled. The guys played basketball and kids played lots of fun party games. We got to see the twins show not too much interest in their cake....still cute ;0) So happy we all could be together to celebrate such an exciting day.
March 2nd - was our short trip to Great Wolf Lodge. This was at Kaitlyn's request for her pre-birthday. We had a good time....consider this was what we thought of the end of mine and Ally's illness and was the beginning of Kaitlyn's. We had a couple hours of fun each day and lots of relaxation in the hotel room. The girls loved getting pizza and eating in bed....that would never fly at home! 
