Merritt Memories

In our house we always try to do what is right and what is important. Reading our scriptures is something we try to do. We are not the best at sticking to it. I don't know what it is, why it's so hard. We have tried illustrated versions, those worked well, but we finished them. Mom, I'll get those back to you one day! :) We have tried reading straight out of the scriptures. I think this is ideal. They become acquainted with the "lingo." And behold... And it came to pass.. thou, thee, ye, yay. You know what I"m talking about. Becca and Kate really struggle this way though. I was trying to think of how to put some life back into our scripture study, a little excitement. After much thought and a little searching I found this: I love this book! We use it for FHE too. We study 1 verse (they are all scripture mastery) for a week. You read it, memorize it, and discuss it. We print out activities from the cd-rom it comes with. I have been amazed of the outcome. My ki...

Do you ever have those moments when reality hits you and you realize you have been living in denial. This month it has happened twice! It is our civic duty to fill out the Census 2010. Well, I was filling mine out like the good American I am. I was doing fine until it came to that certain question. Your age____. I was ready to write 31. For some reason that didn't seem right. I counted the years and when I figured out that I was actually 33, I about lost it. 33?!! I then reminded myself that I was almost 34. I wanted to puke. Really. The last time that happened I was turning 25. Now-a-days I think I'm still 25. Today was another one of those moments. Ryan gave his first talk in Sacrament meeting. He did a great job. He wrote the majority of it himself, we just made a few suggestions. HE talked of honesty, one of my favorite subjects to go over with my children. We need constant reminders in our home. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind getting older. I just wish my brain w...

I'm sure you might remember that I mentioned in my Jerry Seinfeld post that our kids were saving up for a Wii. Dustin and i agreed that they would each earn $20. After re-evaluating this idea, we decided the little ones wouldn't have to pay as much since the older ones would be doing all the playing. Kate and Becca were required to kick in $10 each. I'm happy to report that they did it!! I'm happy they took this challenge and saved. Grace even had ten dollars left over! The boys will have $5 left when they earn back the money they had to pay me for cleaning up their disgusting room, it has stayed clean ever since!! I"m proud of the fact that they did this without a lot of complaining. They seemed to understand that it was fair to help pay for it. When Dustin, Ryan, and Grace brought it home, the two of them even mentioned that it was "all of ours." In reality it was. Dustin and I couldn't say it was ours because we had an extra ten little hands workin...

This morning all my kids woke up early to put on the color green. They, like most of us today, were excited for St. Patrick's Day. They also didn't want to chance getting pinched by anyone. Does anyone know why we celebrate this holiday? According to Veggie Tales we celebrate it because a homeless orphan discovered the value of Christianity in his life and then spent the rest of his life sharing his religion with others, especially those of Ireland. The three leaf clover became a symbol because he taught the Pagans it represented God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Where did all the other stuff come from? Rainbows, leprechauns, pots of gold? And what is the fourth leaf on the clover represent? I don't know. (this paragraph has no point, just a history lesson) I thought it was funny that Kate came to me after she was dressed and asked in a sad voice, "Mom, I won't go to jail because I'm breaking the law?" "What law?" I wondered. "I'm ...

Have you ever wondered if you were doing the right thing? I know I have. I have always wanted to be a mom, but sometimes it is so challenging I question myself. I can honestly say it is the HARDEST thing I have ever done. Some of you might think I'm crazy! I know there are those women who just think it is WONDERFUL. They are always able to focus on the positive and see the rainbow through the clouds. I'm not (always) one of those people. I try to be. So is it a bad thing that motherhood is so hard for me? I don't think so. I think it was meant to be that way. We learn through struggle. I believe I will become the person I was meant to be just by simply being a mother. I realize there are some who will never have that opportunity in this life, but for me it was needed. Why all this talk? I follow a family that used to be in our stake. I met Greg playing volleyball with other people from our stake. His wife is amazing to me, and I have never met her, just Greg. They travel th...

Dustin is officially off training and all on his own. He is happy for that part of the job to be over. To be honest, so am I!! It was nerve racking for him to always be under scrutiny. We celebrated by having an ice cream sundae party. Now that he is on his own, he is able to bring this home: We have seen some benefits of having a cop car sitting in our driveway. People are more cautious as they drive by. We live on a busy road, so it is nice not to have people screaming by at 35-40 mph, especially when the speed limit is 25! The kids have been able to get a ride and even work the sirens. If I was really on top of things, i would have a picture, but I'm not so sorry!! A week before he was cut from training, they told us he would be on the day shift. I was so excited! He would work 6 am - 4 pm. No better shift than that! We later found out that someone had quit and he would have to take his spot on the graveyard shift. this has been really difficult. He leaves for work at 7:45 pm an...