Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

Tuesday we were able to attend the open house of the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. I couldn't believe how close this temple was to the Jordan River Temple! They are the closest two temples in the world. We are well on our way to our goal of visiting all of the Utah temples with our kids. I have been especially grateful that we have been able to attend 2 open houses with them so that they can really see what the inside of God's house looks like! There is nothing that can compare to the Celestial Room. We were able to attend the open house with 3 of our nephews: Braden, Adam, and Conner Walden who are visiting from Korea for a week with us. Afterward, we went to the new waterpark in Draper called "Cowabunga." We have really enjoyed having them here this week!

White Water Rafting, Yellowstone

I finally got my picture in the mail from our rafting expedition in Yellowstone. I was a little nervous because Kristen of course signed us up for the tour with the wilder rapids and I had never been, but it was totally invigorating!! It was me, Christian, my Mom and Dad, Krissy and Zack, and my brother Stephen. Some of the highlights were hearing my Mom scream at the top of her lungs almost all the way down, Stephen having to go to the bathroom right after he started and then not having to go anymore after a couple minutes (hmmmm), my Dad white-knuckling it all the way down and not admitting it, and experiencing this for the first time with Christian. What a grand adventure!

CAUTION: Opinionated Post, Proceed at Your Own RIsk

This blog is like a journal for me, so I would like to write about a topic that has been a hard one for me to come to a conclusion that I feel good about, and that is Same-Sex Marriage. This is the first time I have found myself desperately trying to stay "mainstream" with the church's views and really struggling and here are the reasons why:

*I completely believe that there are some who are born with an attraction to the same gender, as well as those who, through abuse or other circumstances, find themselves attracted to the same gender. In other words, I don't believe that in most cases it is a choice and I don't believe that they can be "counseled" out of their feelings.

*Because of this premise, I wonder how is it possible for these people to live alone without human affection or companionship their whole lives? Yes, there are some heterosexual people that never marry, but they can still date, and show affection and have relationships throughout their life. The other option for gay people would be to live a lie and marry someone of the opposite gender with a high probability of this ending in divorce.

*I didn't see for a long time, how gays being able to marry had an effect on my marriage. I believe that it is HETEROSEXUAL MARRIAGE that has fouled up society, with the skyrocketing divorce rate, rampant infidelity, and resulting single parent families. It's not like conventional marriage is highly successful in the present.

*It's hard for me to see one group of people singled out by the church. Now I realize that it is they who have put themselves in the spotlight, but this is a group of people who have had so much history of discrimination that I really feel bad for them.

*We, as LDS people, have a history of polygamy which is also an alternative marriage lifestyle. Yes, I know that it was "commanded" for whatever reason, but from an outsiders view, this seems hypocritical to want to be accepted for our views on marriage, and then not allow others' to have a marriage of their choice. We felt OUTCAST in those early church days, and that is how THEY feel now.

*The 11th Article of Faith states, "We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may. If marriage is a religious act, then why are we not allowing others to worship "how, where, or what they may?"

*We consider sexual relations outside of marriage a sin, but we won't allow them to marry and thus no longer live in sin.

*I believe that by the church taking this stand, that the result, all though well-intended, will be more discrimination against the gay population. The church has wisely stated that it's the sin, not the person that we oppose, but I don't think that most people can separate the two. There has already been some evidence of this in the news of protests happening downtown and members picketing about how "filthy" the gays are. Yes, I know that they are provoking us, but we should always live a higher law.

*Do I think that gay sex seems unnatural? Yes, I do. But let's be honest people, none of it's pretty when you think about it; gay or heterosexual. And I truly believe that if I was gay, that heterosexual relations would seem just as unnatural to me as gay sex does to me now.

*Even if they are not allowed to marry, it's not like they are going to say, "Okay. Well then I guess I will go find myself someone of the opposite gender, give up all my feelings and raise a traditional family." We won't be changing anything in their behavior. They will still continue to live their lifestyle, just not within a marriage.

*Our church believes that marriage is a religious act, and for me it was the ultimate religious act. However, I don't believe that for most people it is anymore. I think to most people, it is a civil act, and if this is true, than it is indeed discriminatory to not allow gays to marry.

*The biggest reason I DON'T support gay marriage is that I believe in a division of church and state. I worry that if they are allowed to marry, that the government will start forcing different religions to let them marry, even in our temples, all in the name of "fairness." This would be a travesty.

Now, before you judge me, please know that I genuinely with all my heart, want to come to a conclusion that I feel comfortable with and that is in alignment with the church's stance. I have spent HOURS upon HOURS talking about this with Robert and reading different opinions on the issue. I truly wish it was clear cut for me and would love any educated feedback anyone has. I have, through prayer, been able to accept the church's stand with faith and would never do anything to take a stand against the church, but I still have a hard time with this issue.

What I have been able to come to a conclusion about is that traditional marriage IS under attack, but not just by gays. I cannot believe how many people these days are having babies out of wedlock, some by choice! I firmly believe that the IDEAL situation is a loving mother and father committed to raising their children within a stable marriage. There are really so few of these, even within the church though! I really don't know very many happily married, stable, normal people that are married. Do you? I just don't necessarily believe that a teenage out-of-wedlock baby being born is any better than two committed people of the same gender raising a child. Both are not ideal, but is one better than the other?

If gays are indeed expected to live a life alone, with no human affection and never to act on their attractions, than to me, this is the hardest and heaviest burden I can ever imagine anyone having. I have the upmost respect and admiration for those very, very few who are able to do this, and I hope that they can be treated with dignity, understanding, and respect by those around them.

Spectacular Yellowstone

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Summer Is Flying By!!

Wow. The summer is flying by! Here is what we have been up to so far:

Christian, Madison, and Hunter did a week of basketball camp. Madison is starting a competitive soccer league tomorrow.

Madison and I went to the Kelly Clarkson concert with some friends. It rained, but we loved it! (See picture)

All the kids have swim lessons.

Robert and I got new bikes! My newest passion--mine is a mountain bike/road bike mix so it can do both. Basically, it's a road bike with bigger tires. I go riding several times a week, and Robert rides to work now. We LOVE it!!

We were able to go to the Manti Pageant with our friends. The kids really liked it, but Robert and I didn't get much out of it because we were chasing our hyper 2 year old. The Manti temple was gorgeous and we were able to mark another Utah temple off our list of temples to see in Utah. (See pictures)

My sister Becky's husband, Neal, had a cancer scare which was sooooo scary, emotionally draining, and hard for our whole family to say the least. Thankfully, he is going to be okay, AND I was able to visit them at their beautiful new home in Spokane, WA. I am trying to trade off taking each of the kids on short trips, so this time it was Hunter's turn. He had an amazing time with his cousins and I thoroughly enjoyed being with just him for 5 days. Thank you sooooo much to those who helped me with the other kids while I was gone; Samara, Mom, Krissy and Zack, and of course Robert. I can't wait to go back again!

We had a great Father's Day. The kids and I made french toast with strawberries and whipped cream for breakfast. We also made Robert some garden steps made out of cement and decorated with their handprints and colored glass. (See picture) Later that day we went to Stephen's house for a barbecue.

Our huge theater room, exercise room, kitchenette project is actually nearing completion! The rubber exercise flooring got installed on Friday, and the carpet for the theater room was installed today. The wood work looks AMAZING and the actual theater equipment (screen, projector, and speakers) will be put in tomorrow. The attached pictures show there is still work to be done, and a lot of mess, but you can get the basic idea. Can't wait for our first official movie night!

Hunter's Baptism Day

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On Saturday, June 6 2009, my precious Hunter was baptized. There is nothing more beautiful than an innocent, sweet child trying to do what is right. After the confirmation, Hunter told me he felt "fuzzies" inside and I told him that was the Holy Ghost telling him that what he was doing was right.
Hunter chose Madison, his best buddy, to give the talk and she did a wonderful job. We were able to share the day with our good friends, the Ashtons who had their daughter Caroline baptized as well. Christian was the chorister and really amazed us at the great job he did! Afterwards, we went to our best friends, the Underwoods for some swimming and then out to dinner at Red Robin with my parents. We are thankful for everyone who supported us and made the day so special for Hunter.
I am overwhelmed with gratitude and pride for my 5 spectacular children who teach me each day about love, faith, humility, honesty, and living in the moment.

Post Inspired by Krissy

You know you're in for a long summer when you find yourself HIDING in your closet, hoping your kids won't find you on day 3 of summer break.

You know you're having a bad day when you flip off a dog that barks at you on your exercise route, and you feel a sense of great satisfaction.

You know you have a horse's mane for hair when you go to sleep with wet hair, have a fan pointed 6 inches from your head for 8 hours, and then wake up and have to blow dry your hair for 30 more minutes. (This one's for Krissy :))

You know kids have taken a toll on your body when you contemplate thanking God for spandex in your nightly prayers.

You know you're a bad Mom if your child wants Reese's Puffs cereal for lunch and you happily oblige, secretly thankful you didn't have to make something time consuming and healthy.

You know it's going to be a long day when you have run out of ideas for things to do with the kids, and realize it's only 9am.

You know you're stressed when you daydream of being a wad of gum on a far away, random sidewalk or wonder how nice it would be to trade places with a grazing cow on a grassy mountain top.

You know you have more than 2 kids when you realize that "lowered expectations" is the key to happiness.

You know you have more than 2 kids when your oldest comes to you and says the youngest is playing with a knife, and you ask if it's just a butter knife.

You know you're a Mom when anything brown on the floor is suspected of being poo.

You know you're overwhelmed when you think of who you're best friends are and feel the need to include your bed and the TV on the list.

You know you have it bad when you realize those awkward, ugly teenage years lasted from 14 until you were 25.

You know you're lazy when you decide not to watch TV because you have looked all over for the remote and can't find it, and it's too much effort to just get up and turn the actual TV on.

You know you've hit 30 when you couldn't care less about what people think about you. (This one is a perk)

You know you've had too many kids when you don't care that your car smells like it's rotting because at least you kept your sanity for a few minutes while they munched on the food you threw at them (I mean to them).

You know you've had too many kids when you've mastered the art of driving 70 mph and swatting someone in the back seat.

You know it's going to be a long day or couple of days when you had an unfortunate binge of Oreos at lunch and that you have now consumed your daily caloric needs for 2 days.

You know Sunday is not a "special day" when you literally get a migraine EVERY Sunday and can't wait for Monday to start.

You know that you're anti-social when you hope with all your heart that the answering machine picks up when making calls so you don't have to talk to an actual person AND you feel like having visiting teachers come over is a great sacrifice on your part.

I am sure there are many more "gems" I could come up with but I need to go find my 2 year old because it has been way too quiet for too long. And by the way, I really do love my kids and love being a Mom. Really.