January 2nd

Our time to go to church switched from 1 pm to 9 am, and I LOVE IT! Being the first week of the month, it was fast & testimony meeting. We have lived in this area for over 10 years now, so the people we go to church with seem like part of our extended family. I love the warm, familiar feel whenever we walk in. I was truly edified by the testimonies that were shared. People, our friends, encouraging each other to live the Gospel a little better, to come to know Christ better. I just feel very blessed to be a part of this ward & neighborhood.
A funny story about fast & testimony meeting. Jonathan's friend Jared bore his testimony. 7 minutes later, his friend Russel, stood up. 2 seconds later, Jonathan stood up. What's funny is that earlier, their Young Men's President stood up, & was bearing his testimony about the importance of living a righteous life as young men & respecting the Priesthood. He looked over at the Young Men who were sitting together because they had passed the Sacrament, and as usual, they were goofing off & not paying attention. The YM president commented on their behavior. Apparently, they are great multi-taskers because at least one of them heard the comment, and as a result, the three, Jared, Russel, & Jonathan stood to bear testimony to prove they were indeed paying attention!
For the past several months, I've had the opportunity to help a little girl in our ward with special needs transition from nursery to primary. She moved in our ward in June. She was 4, & due to being a little behind developmentally, she was put in nursery. I bonded with her almost immediately. I was given the assignment of transitioning her from the nursery to the primary. By September, she was in Primary sharing time for the entire time, and I was assigned to be her Primary teacher for the Sunday School portion. Today, she went to her regular class with children her age and did really well! There are two teachers in her class, so I am no longer needed. And it feels great! It means I did my job well, and she has the skills to be successful in a regular class. I did love working with her, & I will miss her, but it is a great thing that she is able to move on.
So, I returned back to the nursery today. Most of our nursery kids were 3 years old, and moved on to Primary. Now, we only have 4 children, & it is a delight to be with them again!



Stephen also returned to the Elder's Quorum after serving in the Young Men's for 3 years. He said he enjoyed it. It was wonderful to take a nap after church.
The kids & I had to help Stephen with a little homework for his religion class. He is required to take Family Foundations class this semester. His first assignment is to post a picture of our family. Well, you would think with all the pictures I take, we would have a family picture. nope! So we set the camera up on the tripod & snapped a picture:



And now, for the most exciting news (hopefully)! Jonathan finished his paperwork for his Eagle and set up an appointment with the person in charge of reviewing the paperwork before scheduling his board of review! This is his second attempt, and hopefully, it will be accepted. His appointment is tomorrow!