LDS/Mormon Support Only Thread

[guestmama9911]

This thread and hopefully more like it is intended for thise of us who would like support for living the LDS faith without criticism and negativity. If we have struggles with certain aspects of the Gospel, those experiences are welcome. However, if you don't like or disagree with established doctrine, Church publications or programs, or the apostles or prophets, we ask that you reserve those kinds of comments and discussions for other threads.

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Grace and peace to you all,
~Cynthia

Thank you, and I hope this thread will be a source of comfort, encouragement and inspiration instead of discord or defensiveness.

[guestmama9911]

To start us off on the right foot, here are some discussions I would love to have with you.

1. What have been your most succesful family nights with toddlers?

2. What are your favorite books written by Church leaders and LDS authors?

3. How has the AP and NFL enhanced your spirituality?

[brightonwoman]

Originally Posted by alisaterry

1. What have been your most succesful family nights with toddlers?

We did a few that involved watching a veggietale and then talking about the scripture story and/or the lesson learned from it. For example, one night we watched the "Daniel" segment (not the other half of the movie) and talked about prayer, how to pray, when to pray, etc. We tried to stick to the ones that were more scripture story and less pure silliness...
We've also done acting out scripture stories.
One major thing I think is to never underestimate the understanding of a child--they 'get' so much more than we usually give them credit for.

2. What are your favorite books written by Church leaders and LDS authors?

Hmmm...John Bytheway wrote one about the priesthood that my mom said is GREAT (haven't read it yet myself) but she said every family with a son should get the book and use it in preparation for his ordination.

We just ordered "Preach My Gospel" and we are going to use it to help Willy as he's preparing to be baptized this summer.

I don't care for LDS fiction as a general rule. There is jut better stuff out there.

3. How has the AP and NFL enhanced your spirituality?

I think more than anything it's taught me to rely more on the spirit as I make decisions. The more I learn of gentle discipline, for example, the more I realize that some of the things I was raised with (the things that come easily to me) are not Christlike...so I am forced to turn to the Lord for guidance for what I SHOULD do.
In particular to NFL, I think the more we seek to be in harmony with all of the world (environmental awareness, peaceful human interaction, non-interventitive health, etc) the more we are in tune with the Spirit. Christ made all of these things for us, and when we behave in a respectful way, we are able to be aware of so much more of creation... just my perspective on that anyway!!! (Hubby says I should go be a wiccan in the woods and he's probably right...I have odd moments where I am sorely tempted to start a mormon/pagan sect!)

[marlygf]

I'll bite

I love the Children of The Promise series. I feel like it taught me a lot about the different wars and how those with faith dealt with it.

FHE is interesting in our house. We mostly just pick a story our of the friend and have that for our lesson. We're a work in progress. I'm mostly overcoming my own issues with not having it growing up.

[brightonwoman]

Teaching him 'no'

Here's a question--how do you go abuot teaching a child 'no'???
Sam is 13months old. He really loves to get into the dog's kennel (where her food and water dishes are) and splash in her water and put her kibble in the water etc. We are not in the habit of closing the dog into the kennel--more it is 'her space' where she can go to get out of the way, have her dinner in peace, etc. We try to respect it as her space, and if she goes in there we leave her alone.
Sam doesn't get the 'her space' thing though. We have pulled him out of the kennel countless times, and held him and looked him in the eye and said clearly 'no'. We're not yelling or anything, just making sure he hears us. Several times we've locked the door of the kennel so that he can't get in, but I hate to lock the dog in or out (I don't want her to feel punished, nor do I want her kept away from her water dish!) Sam will often go up to the door of the kennel, turn and catch my eye, then shake his head 'no' (with a grin) then turn and crawl in... I think he understands that he should not go in, however he continues to do it. I appreciate that teh water splashing is fun etc, but this is something he needs to learn, and I don't know anything else to do except constantly just pulling him out again and again and again...this has been going on for a couple of months now, and we're getting really tired of it.
Ideas? Suggestions?
The dog is very good and gentle with him, but she deserves to have a place where she can go to get away from the ear-pulling and over-zealous hugs too!

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

Cubby ... er ... I mean Bryan here.

[marlygf]

When you said he likes to splash, maybe you could give him his own container to splash with and teach him which is his and which is the dogs. Thats really my only thought. i can't really remember how I taught my boys no. I guess I'll have to remember when this baby is old enough

[brightonwoman]

"The Mormons"

A neighbor of mind recently saw that show "The Mormons" which aired on PBS last spring...I guess it aired here last week. She had never met a mormon until us, and had been curious. She actually commented that she had been wanting to ask me some things and then voila, there was the show. So she watched it (all 4 hours) and then asked me lots of questions. I was curious about what the show covered--wondering whether there were more things she should be asking, you know? Stuff they left out or were vague about etc. I didn't see it when it initially came out. Anyway, I've been watching it online here, and it's been really interesting.
I'm wondering if others of you have seen it? What did you think of it? I feel like they tried really hard to present an objective view of things, but that some of their sources (some of the people they interviewed) were anything but objective... For example they had a woman who had been excommunicated for articles she had written saying that women should have the priesthood and that we should worship Heavenly Mother too. She seemed to feel that LDS women are really held down by the patriarchal culture of the religion. (I know we talked about some of that stuff after Sister Beck's talk last fall).

Anyway, yeah, I'm just wondering if anyone else here has seen it, and what they thought of it...(?)

[guestmama9911]

Connor didn't care at that age. Our job was to remove the distraction more than anything else! I think it takes until 3 before a child can be reasoned with - until then they know we don't want it but don't know why that is more important than what he wants. Does that make sense? It does in my head...

1. We don't have FHE since Connor became a toddler so that's why I ask for the suggestions. It's something I know would make a tremendous difference in our family - it just seems overwhelming to create spiritual experiences for a two year old.

2. I actually really like Chieko Okasaki. It's seems cheesy but I really did find her books uplifting. I also like the book Believing Christ and should probably read it again.

3. I agree with Jenni - AP has made me rely more on prayer and inspiration. It's not easy to do the gentle thing in lieu of the thing that will work now. I also think that things like baby wearing and co-sleeping help me feel so much more connected to my role as a mother.

For NFL, we've been encouraged to be wise stewards over the earth. WE've also been told that when we obey the laws of health, we will receive wisdom. I think that showing God that we care about our bodies and the earth He gave us in return shows God that we can be trusted to love and care for His gifts.

[guestmama9911]

Originally Posted by brightonwoman

A neighbor of mind recently saw that show "The Mormons" which aired on PBS last spring...I guess it aired here last week. She had never met a mormon until us, and had been curious. She actually commented that she had been wanting to ask me some things and then voila, there was the show. So she watched it (all 4 hours) and then asked me lots of questions. I was curious about what the show covered--wondering whether there were more things she should be asking, you know? Stuff they left out or were vague about etc. I didn't see it when it initially came out. Anyway, I've been watching it online here, and it's been really interesting.
I'm wondering if others of you have seen it? What did you think of it? I feel like they tried really hard to present an objective view of things, but that some of their sources (some of the people they interviewed) were anything but objective... For example they had a woman who had been excommunicated for articles she had written saying that women should have the priesthood and that we should worship Heavenly Mother too. She seemed to feel that LDS women are really held down by the patriarchal culture of the religion. (I know we talked about some of that stuff after Sister Beck's talk last fall).

Anyway, yeah, I'm just wondering if anyone else here has seen it, and what they thought of it...(?)

I haven't seen it. Thank you for sharing the link. That may be an interesting FHE activity, actually - to watch it together and see what we think...

[guestmama9911]

Originally Posted by NewCrunchyDaddy

Cubby ... er ... I mean Bryan here.

M - I - C...see you real soon! K - E - Y....why? Because we LIKE you! M - O - U - S - EEEEEEEEEE!!!!

[Aurora]

I would love to be a part of this thread and I thank you for starting it.

I need to go have FHE but I will be back tomorrow to participate.

[lacysmommy]

I'm really emotionally drained today. We're dealing with dental problems and I don't like the way they are being approached. Plus my DD1 is running on 10 hours of sleep (she needs 12-13 to act normally) and I'm feeling overwhelmed today.

[lacysmommy]

And the day gets better... my DD2 just peed in my shoe.

[sebarnes]

Hi all! I will endeavor to keep up, although I really suck at it. Let's see...

1. What have been your most successful FHE with toddlers?

Um...getting ice cream at the creamery?
Seriously, though, the best FHE's have been when we haven't set our expectations too high. There is no way a toddler can sit for more than 5 - 10 minutes or so. We got this really great book called 52 Weeks of Family Nights that we have used a lot. I'll be glad to let you borrow it, Alisa. It's basically set up for those of us who have families with young children and just often do not have the time to sit and plan this super duper FHE. It has 52 different lessons on things such as tithing, baptism, missionary work, etc. Each lesson has a preselected song, scripture and then a 2 or 3 minute lesson. In the back there are 52 different pictures/numbers that correspond to the lessons, and if you want to you can cut them out and laminate them and each week let a child draw them out of a bag and viola! Your FHE is done! We were to lazy to cut and laminate, so we just open and point. We throw in a game and a treat to round things out.

2. What are your favorite church books?

Well, I have to say my all time favorite is Eve and the Choice Made in the Garden of Eden It's a fabulous study of Woman's beginning which looks at the actual Hebrew text along with what prophets have said to really show how Eve was integral to the plan and actually doing exactly what Heavenly Father wanted her to do. I recommend it to all those who feel conflicted about women's roles in the church. I also pretty much like any books by comedic members of the church. I like my gospel with a lot of humor. Um, let's see...I like the books that really look at doctrinal issues deeply, and tease out the things in them that often we as members do not realize are there, I guess some of the more controversial topics within the church. I do like Jack Weyland - you can hate me all you want.

3. How has AP/NFL enhanced my spirituality?

I think that APs emphasis on respecting your children as their own individual selves, whose importance is equal to mine really brings me into remembrance that although ds and dd are my children now, when we were in the Spirit World, we were brother and sisters, both children of God, and gods in embryo. My job is not to raise subjective "yes" men, but to raise a future god and goddess, who will have the internal compass to rule worlds and principalities. While popular methods for raising uber obedient, super independent children may have returns in mortality, I am interested in treating my children as my co heirs in godhood, with the greatest returns to come beyond this life. I want to foster a close, attached relationship with my children that will teach them the type of relationship they should have with their Heavenly Parents.

As for NFL, I agree with what has been said previously that the gospel teaches us that we are supposed to live in harmony with the earth and nature. NFL helps me more fully to do that. 'Subjugate the Earth' does not mean 'Use it and Abuse it until there is nothing left.' Once again, we are learning how to be gods and goddesses, and we have to know how to respect and balance the elements to do that. I mean, Heavenly Father (or HF as I will hence forth and forever in posting refer to Him as) had to subjugate the elements and intelligences in order to form our universe, and he mananged to create all of the wonder we see without overwhelming or destroying the free will of the elements and intelligences involved. Isn't that what we should be striving for, also?

Does any of that make sense??

[sebarnes]

Originally Posted by lacysmommy

And the day gets better... my DD2 just peed in my shoe.

It's always so much fun to get bodily fluid on ourselves...

[guestmama9911]

I

Originally Posted by lacysmommy

And the day gets better... my DD2 just peed in my shoe.

Ha ha ha - I shouldn't laugh but I just washed our bed twice in one week because the kids BOTH wet the bed, DD while she was sleeping on my chest...

For you!

[lacysmommy]

Originally Posted by sebarnes

It's always so much fun to get bodily fluid on ourselves...

LOL... I wasn't actually wearing the shoe at the time. Though she managed to pee on me at the same time. For three days in a row, she had zero accidents. Today, so far, at least 5. Ugh.

[brightonwoman]

Originally Posted by lacysmommy

LOL... I wasn't actually wearing the shoe at the time. Though she managed to pee on me at the same time. For three days in a row, she had zero accidents. Today, so far, at least 5. Ugh.

I think I can top that!
Last Christmas we were staying with my folks in WA. hubby had to leave two days earlier than we (me and the boys) so he could bring the van up on the ferry (we flew). So for a couple of days it was just me with the boys...that's all fine and dandy unless Will (7) has trouble in the night...which one night he did. He is a very heavy sleeper, so when he needs to use the toilet in the night, he often needs someone to help him figure out that that is what he needs...he'll wake halfway, but not fully, and can't seem to figure out to walk to the toilet etc... SO, middle of the night, Will starts moaning and I realized what he needed. We were all sleeping in one little room though, so his moaning woke Sammy as well. So I snuggled Sam in and tried to talk Will into getting up--wasn't gonna happen, so I grabbed baby in one arm and pulled Will out of the bed. I walked him over to the potty but he was too asleep to get his pants down...so I'm doing the one-handed-yank trying to get them down for him (without waking baby too much). But he was also too asleep to hold himself to aim into the bowl...so yours truly held his penis and pointed it down........ the stream of pee stopped, so I let go, just as he had a little 'aftershock' of a few more drops--straight onto my pants.
Even with all of this, he still wasn't awake enough to even pull up his own pants. It's a good thing he can walk in his sleep or I'd REALLY be up a creek!

Needless to say, I hate nighttime parenting without a hubby.

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

Originally Posted by sebarnes

Jack Weyland

Who?