Labels

Have you ever noticed how obsessed we have become as a society with labels? Labels seem to be lurking everywhere. We have labels on our clothes, the food we eat, phone numbers, zip codes, cities, states, race, ethnicity, gender, pictures (i.e. # on social media), we label others and ourselves as successes, failures, winners, losers, pretty, ugly, fat, skinny and the list goes on.

I was recently listening to a Face-To-Face event with Elder Oaks and Elder Ballard and they started talking about this very subject. They cautioned against labeling ourselves and others. I haven't been able to find the exact quote, but Elder Oaks said in essence that the most important label we have is "I am a child of God." These remarks have caused me to do a lot of thinking, pondering and introspection. Do I label others? Do I label myself? Why do labels matter? Are they important? Do labels matter to God? Do I care how others label me? What's the big deal with labels anyways?

As I have contemplated these questions I was brought back to a time in my life that wasn't a very happy time. Growing up I didn't care what people thought or said about me, I marched to my own drum and did my own thing.

Sometime in college things changed. I found myself in situations I had never been in or ever imagined that I would be in. I didn't have a lot of space and I didn't have a lot of privacy at this time in my life. About this same time some people entered my life that I thought loved and cared about me-- hindsight is 20/20 and I was wrong about them loving or caring about me. These people made it a point on a regular basis to point out what they perceived as my flaws and weakness and compared them to their strengths. And they said a lot of terrible, awful things and cruel things about me not only to my face but behind my back to others. These remarks changed not only the way other people perceived me, they changed the way I saw myself.

My self-esteem and self-worth were pretty much gone at this point. I would look in the mirror and tell myself that "so and so says I am (insert put-down-of-choice here) so it must be true." I started to feel really down and defeated.

The mistake I made was that I didn't tell these people to stop it soon enough. And I didn't remove myself from the situations I found myself in fast enough.

Since that time I have been learning how to standup for myself. I have learned that it is okay to not associate with people, even family if they don't treat you kindly. It hasn't been easy to change my perspective. It hasn't been easy to regain myself esteem, but I have done it.

I have learned that what other people say about me doesn't matter. I am a daughter of God. My worth in His eyes never changes. He will always be there. His love is constant. He loves me for who I am and where I am in life and that is what is most important.

Sunshine, Slides & Sunday

It has been so beautiful outside lately. The sun has been shining, the sky is blue and the temperatures have been in the high 60s and low 70s, for Oregon this is an unusual thing for February. We soaked up all the sunshine we could get.

We went on walks around our neighborhood and on the river trail with some friends. We also went to the park and we spent some time in the yard.

One day while we were at the park, you surprised me my pulling yourself up the slide. Not only did you pull yourself up, you tried to climb up the slide to the top. You are some determined little boy.

Beets are YUM!

You did something really funny yesterday. We got you all dressed and ready for church and you decided to pull your church pants off. You are really skinny and your pants are a little loose, so we know that's why you were able to get them off. You were walking around the house in your diaper, socks, dress shirt and sweater vest. We decided that for the time being, you will be wearing jeans to church as all your church pants are too big in he waist.

First Time Playing Outside

Well, I already shared how awesome Monday was. Thankfully, the rest of the week went much better than that.

The weather has been exceptionally nice lately. We were able to get out and go on several walks. You know what they say, sunshine is good for the soul!

Bubba, you finally cut that tooth that has been trying to come in for about a month now. You officially have four teeth on top and four teeth on bottom. Before we know it you will be cutting molars.

We spent most of Saturday working outside in the yard. We mowed and edged the grass, we pruned the bushes and raspberry plants and we planted some flowers and more bushes.  Bubba, you enjoyed playing in the grass and mud for the first time. You walked all over the yard and up and down the sidewalk. You enjoyed carrying rocks around and watching the chickens in their pen.

Silly Daddy, socks goes on feet not hands.

In other news, the chiropractor wants you to be in their next commercial. I'm not sure when that is going to happen but I think it's kind of exciting news.

Food For Thought

President Spencer W. Kimball taught, “Sometimes it seems we take the scriptures too much for granted because we do not fully appreciate how rare a thing it is to possess them, and how blessed we are because we do have them. We seem to have settled so comfortably into our experiences in this world and become so accustomed to hearing the gospel taught among us that it is hard for us to imagine it could ever have been otherwise.”

I have often wondered what my life would be like without the Gospel of Jesus Christ, it is a scary thing to think about. What kind of person would I be? What kind of life would I be living? I truly am blessed to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My knowledge of the gospel brings so much meaning, purpose and direction to my life.

Monday Adventures

Hopefully your Monday was better than mine. Normally I don't mind Mondays, but yesterday was brutal! The day started off with learning that something I had been working hard towards wasn't going to happen. It was a bummer, but that is life sometimes.

Just as I was getting ready to head out the door to an appointment Bubba decided to eat my stick of deodorant. We got to make a first call to Poison Control, oh boy! He should be okay, but I was late to my appointment.

Our insurance coverage recently changed. My husband's workplace claimed that the changes would save us money, I learned that that was not true. The change is going to cost of several more thousand dollars out of pocket. This wasn't happy news.


Then Bubba and I ran to the store to get supplies to make Valentine's Day cards. Bubba ripped an item off the shelf and broke it and you know who got to pay for it. My phone decided it didn't want to work and I wasn't able to pull up the coupons I was planning on using.

When we got home I attempted to put a very tired Bubba down for a nap and he protested for quite some time, this was not an enjoyable experience for either one of us.

By this point in time I was starting to feel depressed and pretty defeated. While Bubba slept I worked on Valentine's Day cards to try and help myself feel better.

The cards helped a little bit, but I needed something more so I decided to surprise our neighbors who have been sick with dinner. They were incredibly grateful!

The day ended with Bubba throwing an entire roll of toilet paper in the toilet (tube and all) and attempting to flush it. He wasn't very happy when the roll didn't go down the hole and Daddy discovered what he was up to. Busted!

I can't say that it was the best day I have ever had but, I survived.

Update

The weeks have been flying by, I can't believe it is already the end of January!

I don't have a lot to share this week. Andy and I decided to go refined sugar free for 30 days, so far it has been an interesting experience. I am looking forward to sharing more about our experience when we are done.

Bubba likes garbage cans!

Aside from that, we have been staying busy and living life. Bubba becomes more active each and everyday. It really is amazing how quickly he grows, learns and continues to develop.

We went out for Barbara's birthday lunch.

He loves fries and fry sauce.

Andy and I went on a date, Friday night. We went mini golfing and then stopped at the grocery store to stock up on some of our healthy favorites-- you know your getting old when you enjoy time alone at the grocery store with your spouse. It was nice to get out, just the two of us.

The Lord's Hand

Sometimes it is easy to feel weighed down by the stresses of life. Sometimes we are so caught up in the hustle and bustle that it is easy to forget to take time to nourish ourselves spiritually. We may go for long stretches of time without replenishing those spiritual reserves. At times it can feel as though the weight of the world is on our shoulders and we may even begin to wonder if God is there. If He is there, how come I can't see His hand in my life? Why won't He answer my prayers?

A sweet cousin of mine sent me a little note one day and the back of the note said this...

This sweet little not has become one of the things that I cherish. The words that are written on it are SO TRUE! If we are living our lives the way we should be and making a diligent effort to keep God's commandments, He will bless us with ALL THINGS, not just some. As we make time for the Lord in our lives we will see His hand more frequently.