MONDAY NIGHT MUSINGS

- CJ has started saying "oh" when he's disappointed about something

- We finally had a beautiful day on Tuesday, so Gramma got out the kiddie pool. The kids loved it! We couldn't get Mattie in at first...then we couldn't keep Mattie out (she got in fully clothed). And we couldn't keep CJ's clothes on! He kept taking off his pull-up and walking around naked!!

- Yes, pull-ups. Ugh, still waiting to potty-train...again

- Bryce and I spoke in church on Sunday about Joseph Smith. There were four speakers so we didn't have to speak for a very long time, which was nice. I spoke about the First Vision, and Bryce spoke about the martyrdom. It was a really great experience. As I prepared for the talk, I thought back to when my testimony of Joseph Smith began. It was really touching to remember some of my earlier experiences, and to compare them to Joseph Smith's experiences. To think about who I was when I was 14, and then compare that to who Joseph Smith was when he was 14 - I can't even imagine the faith that boy had! Anyway, I really enjoyed being able to speak about Joseph Smith and was grateful for how it made my testimony of him grow.

- I am the youngest of 6 - my oldest sibling is 16 years older than me - and because of the age differences, sometimes I feel like I barely even know half my family. It kind of bums me out. But this week my brother, Chris, came into town for 5 days to run the marathon with me. He went on his mission when I was 7, and he got married shortly after getting home, and then moved out of state just a couple of years later. I hadn't been around him in so long that I had forgotten how genuine and thoughtful he is. But as we hung out, I started to remember...things like how he used to get me Nesquick chocolate milk mix for Valentine's Day, or how he is so positive, or how he hardly ever says anything bad about anyone, or how it is so important to him to lead by example for his kids, or how gentle he is with children, or how willing he is to help others (he stepped right in to help with kiddos at church and getting them ready, etc). Most importantly, he gave up his goal to help me cross the finish line. Wow, he's amazing.

- On Sunday, I took CJ to nursery and the nursery leader asked him if he was going to stay with them today. Shocked, I asked her if he had been running away. Sure enough, we have a little escapee on our hands. So we had a nice long talk about how he needs to stay in nursery and that next week, if he tries to leave nursery, his teacher is going to come and get Mommy or Daddy. So we'll see how it goes...

Happy Monday!