Mothers Who Know

lds.org media images Interesting fact:  the term "unconditional love" appears no where in scripture. Did you know that?  It's not even an actual scriptural term.  Instead, you will find words like great, wonderful, perfect, redeeming, and everlasting to describe the kind of love that Christ has for us. The word unconditional is an adjective meaning; not subject to any conditions.     That does not coincide with what I understand about God, His laws, principles.  His love is everlasting and great, and He will always love us, but God does not tolerate any and all behavior. No good parent does. There is a mistaken impression in the world today that God tolerates and excuses anything we do because His love is "unconditional" or that God makes no demands upon us because His love is "unconditional" or we are ALL saved because His love is "unconditional". Loving Christ, coming unto Him, and letting our will be swallowed up in His enable

One of my favorite motherhood quotes is : "Life doesn't come with  manual, it comes with a Mother". Another one is, "When we mother, we are mothering generations." When I started having all girls,  I received a lot of comments about how terrible the teenage years were going to be for me. Our first four daughters are 3 years apart due to having our first two  15 months apart, and then twins. I  had so many sympathy blessings given to me in dread of what was to be the worst and most painful part of my whole mothering career: the teenage years. I am embarrassed to admit, when my children were little, I lived in fear of those years.  How was I going to safely steer that time with my sanity in tact?? I am happy to report that after successfully navigating the waters of 8 teenage daughters so far, that it has been a pretty good experience. I have been pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed my teenage daughters, and their friends. In fact, I can honestl

Birth is truly such an amazing experience!! I participated in it 7 times bringing our 8 children into this world! However, it was a totally different experience when our daughter gave birth, than when I did.  Not participating in the pain and  laboring through child-birth gave me a whole new perspective.  Our daughter Aubrey had a pretty healthy pregnancy, but then developed pre-clampsia during her 37th week.  Her blood pressure, as well as protein in the urine was so high, they induced her at 37 weeks and 5 days  (to be exact) . We knew from ultra-sounds that they baby was fully developed and already weighing 7.5 lbs. After 25 hours of labor, I watched our first grand-daughter come into this world.  It was so beautiful and so special!!  Have you ever been apart of a birth?  (besides your own) Do you remember the very special spirit and feeling  you felt in the birthing room? I remember feeling this with all my children, but noticed it especially when my daughter wa

What is a clarion? ? Definition : The clarion was an instrument, the predecessor to the trumpet, used between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries. It was quite typically used during wars to signal. As a result, a clarion call refers to a summons of sorts: one that should not/cannot be ignored, as it would have been during a medieval war A clarion call is a powerful request for action or an irresistible mandate. It derives from the cloud of a clarion, a medieval trumpet. The Family: A Proclamation to the World remains a clarion call to protect and strengthen families. What a great time we live in! There is so much excitement in the air! We have The Family: A Proclamation to the World to guide us and keep us focused and grounded on what is most important: our families and our marriages. On September 21, 1823 another clarion call was made to the world.  Moroni, the last prophet of the Book of Mormon, came to Joseph Smith, as if with a trumpet in his

 Heceta Head lighthouse before sunset in all her beauty!! My husband   and I went on an anniversary trip to the Oregon Coast. See my previous post   My Heceta Vacation .  I was mesmerized by the deep symbolism and parallel that lighthouses have to motherhood. So much, that I couldn't stop thinking about it!   Here are a few thoughts from inside my head.... Heceta Head Lighthouse Lighthouses stand on the shores and coasts of our world, and their purpose is timeless and constant.   They know who they are there and why they are on this planet.  They are on the shores as l eaders , who lead with strength, not uncertainty, and they are a guide to ships out at sea, trying to get to shore safely.  Their light shines 24/7  consistently through calm still waters, or through turbulent storms.     Heceta Head Lighthouse See the symbolism?! In my lighthouse touring...(if you want to call it that)...I learned a lot! I was like a spon

Taken near the Heceta Head Lighthouse,  Newport, Oregon taken near the Heceta Head Lighthouse Sometime in early April, my husband and I took a trip up to the Oregon Coast. It was an early 25th Anniversary trip.  We had been there once before and completely fell in love with the Heceta Head Lighthouse and coast.  When we arrived there, we had this great reassuring sense of relief that our dream location was indeed still as beautiful and dreamy as it was last time we came.  taken near the Heceta Head Lighthouse taken near the Heceta Head Lighthouse We had these  moments of.....complete bliss,     joy, and laughter as we walked along the rocky shore, listened to the waves crashing and splashing and spurting against all the rocks as well as watched each wave come cascading onto the shore.  It was mesmerizing to say the least! taken near the Heceta Head Lighthouse I stood there for a while just watching it all happen. .  It was a ni