Elise's piano recital

She is so cute!  Elise set up and did a wonderful job on the William Tell Overture.  I was to play the duet part for Lieberstraum.  We each tried to compensate for the other, guess we hadn't settled that she should play and I would catch up with her.  But we got it together for the second half of the song and ended well.

Trisha wowed us all with her Racmaninoff!  Amazing!!!

Dance Festival and 6th grade graduation

"Cotton-eyed Joe" and the "Virgina Reel" were the 2nd grade songs.

The sixth grade boys danced to "I'll be Your Everything" and then combined with girls for the "Ho Down Throw Down."

Parker with Mrs. Hoyt

And with Mr. Finch

Everyone really should have a Parker

May 24: Nuf said!

End of Days

Really I must be getting old because it seems absolutely impossible to consider we have completed yet another school year. We've made it through early morning seminary and three different school schedules and taking three hours each day to launch all the children.

Cambry has had her final choir and band concerts. She's attended her honor society banquet. She danced at all the dances available to her. She has graced through the transition into high school. She has met her goal of staying boyfriend-free this year, two more to go. She's progressing as a bassoonist and has a wonderful group of friends; what would we ever do without Brittney? She has her typical 4.0 almost all year long. She stands out and is appreciated.

Riley has completed some fun projects in Mr. Aston's class including video game programming and a beautiful wood encased pen he made me for Mother's Day. He also had a wonderful time making a compound machine using milk boxes from Costco, steelies, motors, and a wood car that finally popped a balloon. He played his final concert of the year as a wonderful first trumpet. Oh yes, and let's not forget that he finally met his goal for the year of a 4.0 (at least we're pretty sure that's the final score).

Parker is making it. Two weeks ago he was completely failing all of his subjects except one. But he has worked, most independently complete and turn in his assignments. Within 12 days he brought all those grades up to passing. When he was writing his talk for Mother's day, Dave had him list women who have influenced him for good. His current teacher, Mrs. Hoyt, was on the list. He has learned some important lessons, worked through some relationship troubles, taken responsibility, and learned a thing or two about reading, writing, and 'rithmetic on the way.

Elise has made it through a wonderful second grade year. It seems funny from this point to remember that she was not happy with the class selection she'd gotten. Today she loves Mrs. Hutchinson and all of her friends. She has developed quite a discipline with her school work. She is looking forward already to next year.

Spring Fling

For spring fling, a girl's choice dance, Tiffany, Britney, and Cambry took dates Steve, Chris, and James. Cambry knew James from early morning seminary and she was his first date.

The group got together Saturday to decorate their t-shirts and take pictures. Some of the group then walked down to the river bottoms and colors the walks with chalk. For dinner the girls served lasagna, rolls (which Cambry made solo for the first time, go girl!), and salad over at Brittney's. They had a nice time.

Mother’s day

I'm getting better at this Mother's Day thing. It used to be that I didn't want any fuss put up for me. This year, I basked in the gifts of the day.

I got a yummy bagel and cream cheese breakfast with yogurt and fresh fruit. Cambry made a dessert for a big family gathering up in Layton. I soaked in a yummy bath with sandelwood and rose oil. I fixed a dress I've had but only worn a few times. Dave helped Parker prepare a talk. I got to speak in deacon's quorum for a few minutes.

My mom and dad have brought Grandma and Grandpa Bramwell into their home for a few weeks while Grandpa receives treatment for a serious blood infection. After a nice dinner at Ben and Nanette's with family, we got to go visit with them. It was marvelous to get to talk to them. Grandma requested that we tell her the story of the prom dress again, though she'd already heard it.

While we were in visiting Grandma and Grandpa, the kids played hide and seek. Riley, nicely attired in his Sunday best, found the best hiding place and enlisted Eric for diversion.

It was a wonderful Mother's day and I sincerely appreciate my dear Dave for his insistence that my Mother's day feel queenly.

Pure doctrine

Sincerely seeking for answers, I opened my fast this month praying for direct revelation for how to handle the problems in our home. The only answer that came was, "teach pure doctrine." Don't we do that every day in our home?

I had to ponder for a while on this, but Sunday morning I called everyone down to a discussion. I labeled the problem I saw in our home: children were accustomed to obeying if they felt like it or at least if they didn't want to pay the price for disobedience. For the most part, this approach will serve them in life. But God has given children a commandment to honor and obey their parents. We talked about why this made sense: parents really want what is best for their children, now and in the future.

So pure doctrine taught, I established a plan for establishing change. I walk into their presence when I have a request for them to accomplish. I ask them to do it and come find me when they are done. The attitudes in our home improved and I had the opportunity to thank and praise my children for even the smallest of things.

This was especially powerful for Parker because of his defiance. First of all, it narrowed the behavior down to one simple thing. If he misbehaved, we asked him to do a service like making a bed for the person he was mistreating. We tracked his obedience with a behavior modification chart. At the next taekwondo practice, if there were more marks in the yes column than in the no, he could go. If not, we start a new chart and hope for the next practice. It was exhausting. But cooperation has increased and he even started doing things he knew were expected because I marked two yeses for indirect obedience.

Direct revelation, pure doctrine, happy home.

Crouching tiger, or hidden dragon

So after a spiritual feast at women's conference and a very short night's sleep, I woke early Saturday morning to take Parker up to his first taekwondo tournament. For the second day in a row, Dave was running things at home. It was a crazy event and pretty much the entire time I was wondering if I was really cut out for tournament life. After waiting for hours, Parker was able perform well at board breaking. He did a complicated kick series, but his first board didn't break the first contact. Splinters were flying as his other boards broke and he divided the first board when he came back to it. It was only he and a teammate in that division and Parker got second place in that category.

Then we realized we needed an athletic cup for the sparring competition. I hate driving in Salt Lake. I always get turned the wrong way and want to turn left when it is not allowed and go east on a westbound one-way street. I left Parker at the tournament and got on with the business of getting nowhere. After a few crazy turn-arounds, I got into a huge supermarket. I was able to find the sports section, but they didn't have an athletic cup. Darn. They pointed me to the Dick's sporting goods down in the Gateway. Well that miss had only burned up 45 minutes: I could have driven home in that amount of time!!!! So assuming the next leg of my journey had to run smoother, I trekked out in pursuit of the cup.

Turning south to avoid an unwanted entry onto the freeway, I kept going south to avoid going the wrong way on a one-way. Then I had to stay southbound to avoid another freeway entrance. Augh!! Finally, 30 minutes more into the journey, I made it to the gateway, but I had absolutely no idea where Dick's was. Navigating as well as a blind-deaf mariner, I turned again to try to find my way back through the maze. I stopped at a stop sign and verbalized a prayer: "You know where Dick's sporting goods is. Can't you help me get there? I have a little boy alone at his first tournament, anxious to compete." I rounded the corner and without the angelic chord that easily could have accompanied the vision, I saw the long-pursued goal. I still had to make a few wrong turns and get turned around, but the goal was in sight. I got the cup. But I forgot the mouth guard.

Flustered and rushed, I started the journey back. I got lost again. Who designed the streets around the U? Insanity. But I did arrive, a full 2 hours from the time I'd left, before Parker was called up to fight. But then I realized the mouth guard mistake. His match was delayed as I went out again. But this time, I am happy to report, I didn't have any trouble. You see, I knew all the wrong turns not to make. Round trip only took 30 minutes!

Here's where it all turned worth it. I waited another hour or so for Parker to be called up. He went out onto that mat and revealed the tiger inside. He was smart and aggressive and effective. He lost a point for accidental head contact, but he had it to give. He won the match 9 to 2. To see what I saw in him for those three minutes, I can definitely be a tournament mom.

By the way, I really missed my camera!!!!

The demo team has been invited to Nationals in Florida at the end of June. Parker is standing in the back with his head down.

Here is the first board.

There was a bit of power in that break. He's winding up for the final break.

The sparring match. Sorry, I was too caugh up in the match to capture it.
Final score, 9:2

First place.

Shouldering the burden

Having to go into the office everyday to accomplish in batch what I used to do from home in bits and pieces has been very taxing. Added to, and perhaps even exacerbated by my burgeoning responsibility, Parker started falling apart all the time. I was at my whit's end. I spoke to my mom who told Lestelle who reiterated her invitation to come to women's conference with her. I just really couldn't see how I could steal away an entire day when I was hardly getting sleep or regular meals.

That Friday was not only payroll, but the filing deadline for quarterlies. Everything was more complicated because we had to change all of our work accounts as well as our personal. By the time I left work Thursday the quarterlies were filed. Dave had to go back at night and I went with him to complete payroll. When I left that night, the week's work was done enough. I was too tired to plan Friday's list of things to do, so I just went to bed. As I was saying my prayers, I pleaded with the Lord to help me shoulder these burdens. I simply was not capable of doing it alone.

Friday morning I got up and made breakfast, started bread, and was dressed in my workout clothes deciding to get moving when the phone rang. It was Lestelle and she just wanted to make sure I couldn't meet her for Women's Conference. It was 8:10 and I would need to leave in 35 minutes if I were to make it. Dave heard me talking and offered to take Aleah for the day. And so as quick as that, I was getting ready and leaving for BYU.

When I met up with Lestelle at the Marriott Center for the opening session, I told her I didn't even know what I wasn't doing today!

The entire day was power-packed with just what I needed. I cried in every class as the Spirit confirmed the truths that had been prepared for me to receive that day. It wasn't until probably 1:30 that I remembered that I had started bread dough in the bread machine and it was going to be all over. That was a good joke. But I was gathering spiritual food.

I was going to leave before the closing session because Cambry had a YW camp fundraiser dinner. But when I called home to see how things were, Dave's report was that Parker was being terrible and I didn't want to leave the Garden of Eden just yet, so I sent notice that I was staying through the end of the conference.

Once again, Elder Oaks shared something just for me. Women's Conference was an answer to my prayer the night before. I came home fortified, and in time for Cambry's dinner. I cried as I shared some of the things I'd learned with Dave. I felt that Dave and I knew that raising Parker would be a challenge but that together we could do it. I could almost hear Dave saying, "It'll be fun. Beauty, we'll do it together. Come on, it will be fine." I was ready to slay dragons again. Which is a good thing because here there be dragons.

Good from bad

It would seem reasonable to call the circumstances of being burglarized bad. David asked me to voice family prayer the night of the burglary. I asked God that we would be able to see the greater good that could be worked through this experience.

A few days later as we were reading the New Testiment as a family, we read the following in Mark 10:29 "And Jesus answered and said, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, (I added as I read, or laptops, or cameras) for my sake and the gospel's (or to go to church), But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life." I cried as I read that aloud and knew that the law of compensation would cover our loss.

Later that afternoon as I was ironing seams on the lining bodice of Cambry's prom dress, I had a question pop into my head with force: Were you dispitefully used and abused. Of course the answer was a solid, Yes! Then came the council: pray for them. There have been people with whom I have shared this story who think I exhibit a grand degree of character in my response. But this did not come of me, it would not be in any person's nature as we of ourselves are not capable of good.

But as I have considered these events, I can see that my response to the burglary will live with me longer than it will the burglar. Being able to pray for them made their capture a sweet experience, an answer to prayer. I hope they can make a change. I don't wish them ill, I wish them better.

Amy Gibb was arrested April 23 outside of Park's sportsman, 12 days after she burglarized our house. She had only that day's burglarized property on her. She is a 36 year old meth addict. She was part of an identity theft ring. Police arrested others in the following weeks. She was responsible for a number of daytime home invasions and vehicle burglaries in parking lots. She was linked to the burglary of the Thomases five houses down and a few days after ours. She had been seen at both locations at the times of the burglaries. She has a lot of charges against her and will be put away for a long time already. Police hope to continue expanding charges. We may not have our property returned, they may not even be able to solidly link her to our burglary and charge her for it. But she has a chance now. Of course, she's been there before and it yielded her new contacts for her crime life. But if God can prompt me to pray for her, He must not have given up yet. There is yet potential for good from bad.

Another compensation was that I changed all my passwords in a fit of addrenaline that Sunday night. I got into quickbooks at work later that week, but as the stress accelerated, I completely forgot the new password and the automatic reset wouldn't work. So I had a long conversation with a nice tech guy as we went through some technical hoops. As we were talking I learned that the 2007 version we've been using would no longer support some of the services I use. Plus a new laptop will likely run window 7 and the only Quickbooks compatible with that operating system is the 2010 version. Bad. That's a big upgrade for the entire company. A funny aside, as soon as I was off the phone, I went to log in and remembered the password I'd not been able to recollect for days. Within a few days, I got an email blast announcing a one-day-only half off sale on QB 2010. So you see, I was going to have to upgrade anyway, but may not have paid attention to the offer without that conversation. The savings covered the cost of my new laptop. Bad to good.

My dad got me set up and secure. I felt his love and protection. Bad to good.

And don't forget that I sewed a prom dress in A1 Vacuum and Sewing with help from Anna and Karen. Bad to good.

There is no power on this earth greater than the atonement of Jesus Christ. His atonement makes compensation possible to those who will turn to Him in all circumstances. Good from bad. There is hope for all of us.

Bibbidy-Bobbidy-Boo

Trying not to reveal the panic that was worming its way into my voice, I explained to the woman on the phone that I couldn't get my serger working. You see, it had been a long week of changing accounts and securing property as a protection from those who had violated our home. And here it was Saturday, the big day of prom, and the dress was far from ready for the 6:00 deadline.

I started the dress with plenty of time. We actually bought the pattern(s) sometime in February. But as it turns out, you can't buy even a pattern for a modest evening gown. I made a bodice mock up of the strapless pattern gown, with the intention of modifying it. Turns out there was no way to make the dress not looked peiced together. So after combining four different patterns, and making three mock-ups, and finishing a custom peice to accent the waist just before we left for church that fateful Sunday, I felt ready to begin the actual dress.

Returning home from church and realizing that we'd been burglarized, we all looked for something different. Cambry first reached for her dream: "Did they take my prom dress fabric?" So if I couldn't finish the dress for her that week, it would have been just as pitiful as though they had.

On the other end of the line, Karen calmly assessed the situation. She could look at the serger between other customers, but she would have to attend to the potential sales coming into the store. I packed up my stuff and zipped over to A1 Vacuum and Sewing almost as soon as they opened.

It took Karen all of one minute to realize that my serger required mechanical attention. Still believing all things can work, I left it there with the hope of picking it up in running condition by 12:00. I ran home, where Anna had been putting sleeves to sleeve linings. She worked on the slip ruffle while I put the sleeves on the bodice. Finally we were coming to a place where we needed a serger to secure the organza seams. We called A1 at 1:00. Karen delivered the bad news: no repair possible today. But then she waved a magic wand and said she would let me serge on her demo machine in the store.

Organza and hope in tow, I ran into the store by 1:30. I figured if I could just get the overskirt put together and hemmed, we could do the rest at home on the sewing machine. But working with the organza, I soon realized that it would have to be sergered to the gown if we didn't want it to frey apart. After I rolled-hemmed the overlay skirt, I realized I could do the same to the gown skirt and the lining to save time. I called home and had them courier over those pieces, luckily Anna had just finished sewing the ruffle to the lining skirt.

They arrived and I hemmed them while Karen started the stitching to gather the overlay on a different machine. I might add, this was the only period all day that no one came into the store and she was able to sew for me. Then I realized I was going to have to serge the skirt to the bodice if I didn't want the gown to fall apart in the middle. So I called again and Anna dropped the finished bodice off to me while taking Cambry to get her boutineer.

It took three fairy godmothers, a lot of cool thinking, and solid hope, but I walked out of the A1 Sewing at 4:55, five minutes before closing, with a dress nearly ready to waltz the night away. Anna came over and put in a zipper for me while I went to pick Cambry up from getting her hair done.

Her date, Nick Pope, waited while we finished the zipper, but she says the look on his face when she walked up the stairs in her Cindrella dress was not laced with irritation, but expressed only pure awe and adoration.

Bibbidy, Bobbidy, Boo!

PS - I have cried only a few times times through this unfortunate burglary. The first was when I took an accounting of all the photos I'd lost and the landmarks they'd documented. The second was during a panic attack which caused me to stay home Thursday, thereby avoiding a second victimization - apologies to my neighbors who got hit instead. Also that night, in thanking my mom and dad for coming to my aid. The final tears were shed Saturday night when the relief of the miracle I'd participated in washed over me. God must love His faithful little Cambry! Heaven knows I do.

Violation

So here is the sad lesson of leaving for tomorrow what can be done today:

Dear family,

Our house was burglarized while we were at church yesterday. The thief took my laptop and bag with work files, my camera, kids library cards, a deposit book, and keys. That's what we're sure of today. It was not a forced entry; the laundry room door was unlocked when we got home, it may have been picked. Plus when the boys got home, the sliding glass door was found not just unlocked, but open. The intruders had rung the doorbell (it sticks) and when no one answered, they let themselves in. We have taken action to secure our home and our accounts, and have given the case over to authorities.

It was a sad realization tonight that I had not downloaded my pictures, except to my now missing laptop, since November. That means that I have no pictures of Thanksgiving, Christmas, Dave's birthday, Cambry's sweet 16, Aleah turning five, Elise turning eight and being baptized, Riley's participation in "Annie", Parker turning 12, or even Easter. Too bad I decided to work on Cambry's prom dress rather than updating my blog Sunday morning!

So I am asking if you have any pictures of our family from November 2009 forward that you will share with us. Praying that we get the memory card back intact couldn't hurt. Most of it is just stuff, but the tokens of the memories of so many significant events will be missed dearly.
We love you,
Leadelle

Parker’s progress

When Parker was small, we used to say he had two modes: asleep and loud. That didn't even prove true as he would sometimes have night terrors and be asleep AND loud. A little over a year ago he was diagnosed with ADHD and ODD (oppositional defiance disorder). The months preceding the diagnosis were intense and painful. However we dug deep, got lots of practice using Love and Logic parenting principles, and worked as hard as we possibly could to help Parker conquer the foe.

Once we had the diagnosis, we began a nutritional protocol and homeopathic drops to support him. He really improved a lot. We were all working hard. But over the last few months we had a new swell of oppositional behavior. There were times when I handled it so perfectly. Then, thankfully, there was the day that I did not.

I was in charge of the March Relief Society birthday dinner with a friend. The food was primarily my responsibility and I don't know how to do things the easy way. So the day before this dinner I was intensely involved in the preparations for the food. Parker wanted something and I was requiring that he meet the standard family criteria to have it. When he was told that he had to finish something, he went from a reasonable voice to rage in less than a breath. He started screaming instantly and intensely. This is usually my cue to remove myself and everyone else from the area as it's a rare thing that he'll stay in his room for discipline. But I was actually walking over to his proximity to take care of some food as this all played out and he was right next to me as he cut loose. Out of instinct I reacted to the pulsing pain in my ear drum by slapping his face hard. Now on most kids, the shock of that slap would stop, at least for an instant, the progression of their behavior. But on Parker, it escalated it. He screamed louder, truly insanely, and ran out of the house. I locked to door behind him to give me some space to consider my course.

We made it through that night; he came back after a few hours and apologized. But the entire event made me evaluate where he really was and what toll being battle-weary was taking on my approach to him. And it wasn't just me, a few weeks earlier he'd been sent home from school for a serious fight with a friend. When I came home from the RS dinner, I did some research. I was ready to move to pharmaceutical interventions, but I don't ever like handing over full control to someone less vested than me. So I felt that I needed to be prepared to advocate for my son.

The research led me to see how very much we had already done correctly. In addition to immediate drug therapy, I was led to consider neurofeedback for long-term ADHD management. Researching that, I found a psychiatric clinic in Salt Lake that uses neurofeedback for a number of things including ADHD. Then I found a neurofeedback unit for home use that plugs into your video game system. The same psychiatric group he was scheduled to see was listed a professional group to facilitate home training sessions. The night that I had watched about this technique, I could scarcely sleep. I was so excited and happy. It was not unlike the sensation I had after my first real conversation with Dave: I knew something life-changing had crossed my path.

The appointment came quickly and the counselor prescribed for Parker. You would think that would be that. But I'd put Parker back on the homeopathic drops and he was working really hard and… I don't know all what. But the fear of abuse and addiction tugged at me. Plus the cost of the particular drug was high if we didn't have a pharmacy benefit on our insurance, a reality less than three weeks away. So I didn't fill the script immediately.

Again, luckily, two weeks later Parker had a moment of weakness and I could see that we were asking an awful lot of ourselves for a number of months in the future. I filled the prescription and actually found a way to accomplish the filling of it in coming months if we require.

Four days later, we have just celebrated our first holiday without a negative interchange with Parker since he was about four. He is a different kid this week from last. Yesterday we noticed how many times circumstances that would have been a match to kindling simply didn't ignite. I appreciate how hard he has been working as I see how light and enjoyable he is today. To make the week even better, his neurofeedback unit arrived yesterday. This could be Parker's, and subsequently, our family's year!

The obstacle of perfection

Looking back to last Easter, I realized I did not add it to the blog! There has been much happening in the past few months, so much that I have been neglectful in recording. But as I went back through the blog entries in March and April last year, there is so much that I'm glad I did record. Part of what keeps me from writing each subsequent week in 2010 is that I feel a need to make things perfect, to flow from Christmas forward to today…. a task that is grows ever more monumental.

But in repentance I turn from past and record today.

This Easter was general conference weekend. I love conference and the feeling it projects into our home and family. But it is always a challenge for me to feel prepared for Sunday when four hours are spent in study and worship on Saturday. Add a holiday to that Sunday, and I'm sunk before I start!

We did not have even one jelly bean in our house before 6:30 last night. That sounds like I hadn't even considered Easter, which is not the case. I even had some candy and things in my shopping basket a couple of different times in the last weeks. But Parker is so profoundly and negatively affected by artificial food coloring; it just felt like purchasing a form of poison, enticing poison, for my family. So I always put the colorful bags back on the shelf. Rest assured today that everyone has enjoyed far more attractive poison than common sense dictates prudent.

In the pursuit of a Parker-friendly Easter, I spent several hours Friday night boiling different natural coloring agents to dye our eggs in Saturday morning. That was a labor-intensive process with poor yields. After trying a couple of different colors, I took the lack-luster eggs out of their several dye-baths and declared that Parker could wear gloves and we would proceed with our traditional process. As we opened the egg boxes back up to dye the eggs in the plentiful artificial color baths, the natural-dye eggs had dried and were much prettier. But the natural dyes were long since down the drain and no one was one smidgen regretful.

Dave took the boys and Chris Kelsey up to Salt Lake for Parker's first Priesthood session yesterday, trying to get into the meeting on stand-by. They didn't get in. It was a good effort though, and they did enjoy the meeting (in an overflow for an overflow) and a dinner our after. In fact as I was preparing goldenrod eggs for breakfast this morning, I asked everyone about their favorite talk of conference so far. Both boys mentioned talks from their evening Priesthood session.

Today has been very nice. I always love the actual day so much because the preparation, however effective, must be accepted as complete. We awoke to two or three inches of fresh snow! Happy Easter! At least the Easter Bunny had taken the time-tested approach and hidden the eggs and baskets in the front room. Everyone was so delighted and happy enjoying the holiday spoils. Those moments are treasures to the mother-soul. I would also like to note that this is the first holiday in years that we had complete peace in our home in the anticipation and execution of our traditions. I will write more about that in a new entry.

I would like to close this entry with my testimony that Jesus Christ came to earth, the mortal son of our Eternal Father. He walked among men, teaching and working for their salvation in body as He had in spirit. He suffered for the errant choices of all men that we, through His suffering might be free from the bonds of iniquity. He was scourged and crucified. He rose from that mortal death in beautiful resurrection. He appeared to multitudes as testament of this fact. His perfect atonement and resurrection qualify all men to rise from death to stand before their God and account for their lives. We have the opportunity to apply the justification of Christ to our lives, to be given better than we deserve or merit of ourselves. Through faith in Him and obedience to His commands we qualify for the best gifts God has for His children, eternal life in His presence. I know this salvation is real. I have been instructed, nurtured, and led to this truth through the Holy Ghost whose mission it is to testify of Christ and truth. Christ's power has healed me in life. It will raise me in resurrection. My hope is to accomplish in my life all that is required to merit the fullest of God's blessings in the life to come. By doing so, the blessings of perfect Easter will never die.

Christmas Angel miracle

Before you want to make me into a Grinch, hear me out. This Christmas was booked. We had many nights with two different events and some with three, but hardly one December evening without something. Here’s a little admission I don’t like to make: I can’t keep up even when it’s not Christmas and crazy busy, so adding more just felt like more I couldn’t accomplish. I started to get grumpy and that made me feel even more guilt. So I did what I always do when I don’t like where I am: I prayed. The Sunday before Christmas I told Heavenly Father that I wasn’t feeling the Christmas Spirit and I desperately wanted to so I could share it with my children. I plead for that Spirit to come to my heart and figured it would happen at church.

Cambry sang in the choir and the program was beautiful. My sweet, pure Cambry was the voice of Mary and she did a wonderful job. You’d think that would be enough, but the Christmas Spirit was still out of reach. I left the meeting feeling a bit forsaken.

That night we got a call on the cell phone. Our friend in India, Shama, has a grown son living in Santa Clara. Pushkar called to ask if it would be appropriate for him to come spend Christmas with us. Well of course it was. Now here is the ironic Grinch conversion. Doing more, could that honestly be the answer? But it was.

That evening Lestelle told me a true story she’d heard in her meetings about a stressed out mother and a man named Angel who she believes was sent to her door on a cold December day to help her unwrap the gift of peace and love in her heart while she found a way to give generously for the holidays. Pushkar became my Christmas angel, and thereby a blessing to my family.

Special needs

Riley had a conflict back in December. His first obligation, I thought, was to support his program and perform with his band at their holiday concert. Riley spoke with his teacher about a conflict that arose with his mutual group. They had been offered the chance to sponser a special needs ward for their weekly activity. Riley really wanted to attend that activity with a few other band kids in our ward. The teacher gave him a pass and let him write an essay to get credit back.

Both Cambry and Riley came home and told me how neat it was. Riley mentioned they'd played a game he was familiar with where you try to pop balloons tied to ankles without having yours' popped and how much fun it was play with these special needs kids. Cambry had a girl who wanted to sit by her and be her best friend.

That Sunday the special needs ward came and presented a sacrament meeting program to our ward. What a touching meeting!!! One leader told us how unusual our youth were, as they have wards meeting with them weekly. She said that a lot of boys are very competetive when it comes time to play games. But our youth were playing with the special needs people and some of our boys actually held out their balloons to be popped.

During the meeting, Cambry's special friend waved to her from the stand. When Cambry responded, the girl motioned to Cambry to be certain that the gesture was directed to her and upon getting an affirmative, demonstrated pure glee.

At the conclusion of the meeting, a mother whose child is in the specials needs ward approached Riley with tears in her eyes. She grabbed his arm and told him how impressed she'd been with him and that it was an honor to witness him passing the sacrament.

Those are moments a mother can't create.