The Blessing of Missionaries
I have written before about the life changing experience of leaving the city and converging on a piece of ground in southern Utah to build a homestead. That was back in 1976 and both a memorable and momentous time for me and my family. But interestingly, as noteworthy...
What’s Up with This Election?
I'm like a lot of Americans. I need to feel good about a candidate for office before I can vote for them. And it's breaking my heart, while bringing my blood to a boil, to see the candidates for the two major parties stand up on stage and verbally duke it out. One...
This is Hard
Caution- this blog post is rather raw. My emotions are raw, and I am being honest in a way I rarely am. I ask for forgiveness in advance. Being a special needs mom is HARD, and lonely. There are good days and bad days, like everything in life. But for some...
Weighty Topics and Children’s Tender Hearts
The recent events in the news and the over sexualization of society have opened up all sorts of opportunities to rip children from their innocence and childhoods. I don’t want those burdens for my children, neither do I want to leave them ignorant. This has brought up...
Integrity
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the way I grew up. I don’t think there was anything more important to my parents than personal integrity. Yet, I don’t remember that many conversations about integrity as a child. All I needed to know about integrity I learned...
Conference’s Modern Day Parables
As I enjoyed the comfortable, soothing words of General Conference, I felt an unexpected jolt. Our church leaders invited us over and over again to become more converted. I suddenly wondered when the next tumultuous wave would hit. I felt like each talk was an Alma 5...
God’s Idea of Success is Different Than Mine
When I was 13 or 14 we had a carnival at my church. Each person earned tickets for winning games. Those tickets could be taken to the prize table that was decked out with amazing prizes! I was dazzled! I found this gorgeous musical merry-go-round with majestic...
When Anticipations Go Awry
My dog and I are creatures of habit. He calculates what I’m doing next based on the clothes I wear. For instance, whenever I put on a skirt he knows I’m going to “church.” I’ll be gone for a while and he won’t be going with me. He barely lifts his head to say...
Falling Through Grief
“My face was in the floor. I was crying and crying. I thought it would never end.” A friend told me of her divorce experience five years ago. “There was no place in the world I’d rather be than with him, to just hug him one more time,” said another friend who lost...
God’s Great Gift
My father used to teach me about the scriptures. Listening to one of dad’s discourses on gospel topics was a privilege and an honor. I was just a young man—a boy really—when his stories and instruction began to change my life. I wanted to be like my dad. He told me...
Getting Your Child Excited for Kindergarten
This article was previously published on Latterdaysaintwoman.com School starts in a few weeks, and for your little one, it’s the very first day. You hate to see him go, but since he is going, you want him to look forward to kindergarten and to have fun once he’s...
What an Autistic Boy Typed on His iPad Shocked His Mother — and Sparked Questions About Heaven
This article was previously published by the Deseret News. When Tahni Cullen saw what her 7-year-old son had typed on his iPad, she was absolutely stunned. "I thought maybe I was on candid camera or I was losing it or something," she recently told "The Church Boys"...
Keeping the Immune System Healthy
Passing the autumnal equinox here in the Northeast, cool crisp nights have begun to follow pleasant days. Color has blossomed out on the trees in northern regions and in higher elevations. We have gratefully begun to open the windows and turn off the air conditioners...
Define yourselves
Jesus Christ taught through his example and his prophets that we are to do all things in wisdom and in order. But what does that mean? Today I would like to analyze that commandment and interpret what that guidance may mean for you and me. King Benjamin counseled. 27...
Being an Instrument
Celiac disease is not just an allergy, sensitivity, or an intolerance to gluten. Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that makes it impossible for your body to process or break down gluten, causing malnutrition, inflammation, etc. It’s not fun. I had two months...
The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy by Carol Lynn Pearson
I have always loved the writings of Carol Lynn Pearson until the publication of this book. I was devastated from reading The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy: Haunting the Hearts and Heaven of Women and Men by Carol Lynn Pearson. She has promoted and even encouraged the idea...
Drowning Out the Voices around Us
We have been given everything! Isn’t it beautiful?! What wondrous beauty is all around us! We should spend every waking minute with a prayer of gratitude in our hearts for the beauty of the earth, our families, our homes, and our very lives. No matter what our...
Why Jean B. Bingham is my Hero
When I was twelve years old my parents moved us from a small Midwestern town to a larger Chicago suburb. I was nervous but excited, because turning twelve meant that I would be able to attend Sunday School classes with the "cool kids" — the other teenage girls at...
Family Movie Night: Star Trek IV
Without realizing 2016 is the 50th anniversary of the first airing of Star Trek, back in May my friend Tom and I started podcasting about each of the Star Trek films. I did this not having seen a single episode of the show. I had seen Galaxy Quest and the 2009 Star...
When We Crash Into Each Other
I crashed. As I slid to a stop on my side on the pavement, I saw the whole thing flash before my eyes again. Before I hit the gravel, I knew in my mind’s eye what was going to happen. I saw the motorcycle hit the mountain and then ricochet across the pavement. I...