FHE Treasure Hunt

Tonight for Family Home Evening we talked about seeking Christ. We sang "Seek the Lord Early", which is one of the songs we're learning for the Primary program this year. And we read D&C 88:63, "Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. "

I don't know that much of it sunk in with the boys. Per usual, they were bouncing off of the walls with excitement over having FHE. (Literally. They were bouncing off the walls. And couch. And ottoman. Any other surface.)

I often wonder why we put the effort into things like Family Home Evening, family prayer, family scripture study, and such. I know they're commandments. I know we're supposed to do them. But with the kids running around and acting up and being generally obnoxious, it's hard to think that there's a long-term benefit.

I guess it's just one more act of faith on our part. (And countless other parents, I'm sure!)

Anywho, the boys might not have paid much attention to the lesson, but they sure paid attention when our activity turned out to be a treasure hunt. (Get it? Seeking Christ... treasure hunt...?)


They raced from spot to spot, happily taking turns opening the clues.

Chubby little fingers clung sweetly to each piece of paper found.


Even with all of the running and laughing and shouting, it was the most peaceful part of my day.


The treasure turned out to be some glow-in-the-dark bracelets that I had bought for the Fourth but didn't get to use. The boys liked them, but weren't terrifically excited. In fact, Joshie wanted to do the hunt all over again and was quite dissappointed when we told him we couldn't tonight. (I guess it's all about the journey, right?)

We ended the evening making s'mores with our grill.


Spencer loved being able to catch his marshmallows on fire and then blow them out. Joshie got sand on his s'more and still ate it.


And it got me thinking. Even if the boys had actually listened to the lesson, what would they remember most about the evening? Not the song. Not the scripture. Certainly (hopefully!) not Lance and I grumpily getting after them for not behaving.

I don't think Family Home Evening is only about the actual doctrine taught. It's about the time spent as a family and the feelings of love and unity they produce. And which is more likely to influence my children while they are young?

So even though I'll probably continue to often wonder why we're doing this as my boys wrestle/run around like madmen/howl like wolves during our lesson, I'll keep doing it. Because the potential blessings that come from this are a treasure I'm more than willing to seek.

Milk Coma

Good and Not-So-Good

I've had some good and some not-so-good Fourth of Julys. Julies? July's? Independence Days.

Some (but certainly not all) of the good include:

• The first Fourth I actually remember was on the side of a small, grassy hill with our friends the Silcoxes, in Raleigh, NC. There were a few duds and loud bangs and I couldn't figure out why I could hear them but not see those fireworks. My dad told me they were black fireworks, and since it was night we couldn't see them. It was years before I realized the truth.
  
• Sitting on the side of a cliff overlooking Lake Powell. There were hundreds of boats with twinkling lights on the water, and the fireworks were shot just over the lake, making colorful reflections. It was impressive even to a grouchy, severely sunburned 13-year-old girl. (And that's saying something!)
• Sitting on the tarmac at the air force base in Fairfield, CA, with my parents and two little brothers. We ate Oreos, drank root beer, and enjoyed being together. Plus, it's cool to be on a tarmac.
• At a SF Giant's baseball game. Sure, we were in our winter woolies and shivering under heavy blankets (the bay makes SF cold in the summer), but the fireworks in the fog were actually pretty (eerily) cool.
• Watching Stadium of Fire from Squaw Peak with Lance the summer we were engaged. No - we weren't there for stereotypical Squaw Peak activities (*smooch*smooch*); we actually wanted to watch the fireworks. But we did watch this 40+ year old guy trying to put the moves on his date, and succeeding, which was just about as entertaining as the fireworks display.

The not-so-good include:

• The summer before my senior year of high school. I had just started what promised to be a lucrative career as a minion of our local Blockbuster Video, and as one of the lowest on the totem pole I was forced to work the night of 4th of July. We were getting close to closing when my boss asked me to go outside and wash down some of the windows. I could hear the fireworks from the air force base and knew that my family was out there watching them. Without me. *tear in eye* Let me tell you, it was one of the more depressing "growing-up-is-not-that-great" experiences of my life.
• There was one summer when my mom was sick and (I think) having chemo. I can't remember if she was home or in the hospital, but going to the fireworks show wasn't really an option. On top of that, they had stopped having fireworks at the air force base and instead had them in Suisun (a neighboring city right next to Fairfield). I was pretty angry and depressed about this, life, the universe, and everything. I spent the evening with my boyfriend and we ended up watching the fireworks from the top of his back yard fence. I don't think we could even hear them. Lame.

Well, yesterday started out with the possibility of being a not-so-good. It rained. All day. And it was actually chilly, only reaching the very low 70's. Seriously, it felt more like the 4th of April, not July. I'm a pretty big fireworks enthusiast, but not in the rain. With a newborn. And two tired little boys.

Fortunately, our wonderful friends the Souths saved the day! We had invited them over for a barbecue, and not only did they bring a yummy dessert (the brownies were good, Misty!), but they also brought some fireworks!

Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I have to admit I've always been against having fireworks at home. Really against. Because all you ever hear about the day after the Fourth is all the home firework-induced burns and deaths and whatnot. And I wanted nothing to do with that. But now I am coming to grips with the fact that I am a severely outnumbered female in a testosterone-laden home, and we're gonna have probably have fireworks whether I want them or not. Because all little boys are pyros. And all men used to be little boy pyros. That's just the way it is.


Anywho, my boys were in heaven. (Even though Josh claimed to be scared, I know he loved it.) And having the fireworks at home meant we didn't have to schlepp them out to the city fireworks display.

I suspect this will become a new Madsen family tradition.

Guido's 'Trunk of Fire'! (Just kidding, Paul.)

Cole stayed snug in the sling. True to form, he fell asleep and grunted little "I'm trying to sleep here, people!" grunts when things got loud.

The boys liked choosing which firework to set off next.

Lance liked reading the descriptions on the boxes. Our favorite was "Crackling Strobe Effect". I don't know why; it was funnier last night.

Okay, so Joshie was a little nervous around the fireworks. He held onto my leg for half of the show and Lance held him for the other half.

But being nervous was probably a good thing. Spencer wasn't nervous at all and we were contstantly yelling at him to get away from the fireworks when they were done but still smoking.

Dom actually running away from the fireworks. (Anyone who knows Dom is probably surprised by this!)

We also played with sparklers. Ashton seemed pretty impressed. (Although he did, in typical older brother fashion, try to touch Dom with one!)

Spencer loved the sparklers! (Fire! Fun! Little boy heaven!)

Josh wasn't so sure about the sparklers at first.

But he soon got over it.

Even Dom got in on the action. (Poor little guy - he later tried to touch a finished sparkler and got some blistered fingers. But it wasn't anything that an ice bag and a Dorito couldn't fix!)

This year's Fourth of July? Good.

Why America Rocks:

YouTube, the Muppets, and (most importantly) the Swedish Chef chasing a chicken.



Have a happy, patriotic, and weirdo-free Fourth of July!

A Few Thoughts from Cole

1. If the burp cloth is just out of reach, I will most definitely spit up. All over me. And you.
2. If you are wearing a v-neck shirt I will wait until just the right moment to spit up all down inside your shirt. (Extra points if you have to change as well!)
   
3. My first smile will be at my big brother. The second at my other big brother. Not the mother who gave all her energy and strength growing me for ten months and birthing me.
4. For some inexplicable reason, I just love the Plain White T's song "1 2 3 4". Seriously, I get this happy look on my face whenever I hear it.
5. I like to nap. Just not in my crib. On my Boppy on the guest bed or couch? Zzzzzz....
6. Yeah, that whole "'Does this suit make me look fat?' 'No, your face does'" line from Tommy Boy? It's getting a little old. (Just leave a baby and his chins alone!)
7. Don't think a baby can have a diaper blowout without getting anything on his onesie but smearing your pants? I'll show you!
8. No!!! I don't need to be burped! Quit it! I feel fine! I... BUUURRRRAAAPPPP! Ooh, that's better.
9. Noooo! I don't want to be in my car seat anymore! Take me out. NOW. Hellloooo? Is anyone listening to me? I said GET ME OUT!!!! I ...... Zzzzzzzzz.

Best. Parents. Ever.

When I was in college I took a racquetball class, which turned out to be great for two reasons: 1) racquetball is way fun, and 2) I made a really, really good friend: Karlea.

We just clicked. She was fun, had a great sense of humor, had a fab sense of style, and was just a great friend. We were in the same major, had many of the same classes and professors, and eventually even got married around the same time. (Even in marriage she showed her great taste - Don is great! In fact, she and Don are one of Lance's and my favorite "couple friends". It's not often you find a couple both people in the marriage like. You know what I mean?)

Even though we now live on practically opposite sides of the continent, we still keep in touch through blogging and emails. I miss her. And even though we haven't seen each other in years, I know that if she and her fam decided to come chill in Indiana next week (or, more likely, we decided to vacation in California) we'd pick up right where we left off and be perfectly comfortable together. We're all just cool like that.

So why all the glowing praises? Because I love Karlea and wanted her to know it! Oh - and also because Karlea and Don are looking to adopt a third child and are in need of some help finding a birth mother. And even though they are registered with two adoption agencies, a little (or a lot!) of word-of-mouth never hurt, either.

So if you know of any potential birth mothers or have an idea that might help Don and Karlea out, please feel free to visit their adoption site or pass it on to anyone else: http://don-and-karlea.blogspot.com/


Best wishes and good luck, Don and Karlea!

For the Love Of All That Is Holy! Put the Camera Down and Feed Me, Woman!