Aunt Donna canning her rice.
Cody was there, too, but was shy of the camera. He was our muscle.
Dallen helped with the labels, and put the oxygen packets in the cans.
Emily enjoyed helping Grandma can her 25# of candy. We all know where we're going when they drop the big one. We've got macaroni, wheat, and jam (and a little more), but Grandma has CHOCOLATE!
It's always more fun when Aunt Donna and Grandma are there canning with us. Those two sure work fast.
One of the best parts of homeschooling is getting to do anything and everything we want. FREEDOM! An important part of our homeschooling is learning Home Economics. We go to the cannery almost every month (sometimes twice per month) to preserve and can food for our family's use and storage, and everyone but the two littlest help. Two weeks ago, Adam, Brandon, and I (Tina) went and canned jam for 6 hours. The boys weren't 'thrilled' about going as they have put in a lot of time over the years in the garden, in the kitchen, and in the cannery, but they ended up having a good time and provided some great entertainment for the mostly older crowd. Those two can make fun of, and fun for, any occasion. We ended up bringing home 99 jars of jam... strawberry, raspberry, and marionberry (blackberry). They make a beautiful addition to our food storage, and they taste like summer.
Ahhh - what would Christmas be without new holiday "legends". Well, this one is sure to go down in the annals of history, at least in the Forsyth household.
Every Christmas Eve since I can remember, Steven and I have gathered our children together to celebrate our Savior's birth through scripture, song, stories, and a live nativity. We always read from Luke, and we sing EVERY verse of the hymns and carols (even though everyone else is rolling their eyes at Mom). Some years, each individual shares their testimony of the Savior through a talent (writing a poem, singing a song, playing a carol on the guitar, piano, etc.). Its always a deeply spiritual time for us. Some years we have guests, some years its just us.
This past Christmas (2008) was no exception. We had both sets of Grandparents here (a first), and a few other relatives. Emily (in her mother's footsteps as always) directed the other children all week in their roles and costuming for their parts in the Nativity. Dallen was all 3 Wisemen as Adam, Brandon, and Cody are all no longer fit for the parts, but they served nicely as our 3 Wise Guys. Ivie reprised her role (from church) as the ever-devoted and loving mother, Mary. Ivie's beloved, Dollar-Store baby doll, Sarah, went through a slight metamorphosis to be the newborn babe in the manger (which we always keep by our Christmas tree). Our seven year old, Noah, took on the supporting role of Joseph. Nathan didn't actually have a part, but practiced his improvisational skills as the "little lost lamb", meandering throughout the Nativity scene as it progressed.
The stage was set, the actors were prepared, and the audience was awaiting this wonderful scene. We opened with strains of "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful" (my favorite carol, in case you were wondering), and as we sang and read from the book of Luke, our little actors met their cues. Mary came in riding on the donkey (and really, anyone of us could have played that part). Emily had cast herself in this cameo, however. Noah guided his "betrothed" in. We had to say that they were "betrothed" because Noah had it written into his SAG contract that he would play "no married parts". So, "betrothed" it was. The baby was placed gently in the manger... and may I just say here that after 8 natural child-births of my own... Mary is my all-time hero. There was no screaming, pain, blood, NOTHING.
After singing "With Wondering Awe" (all verses again), our Wiseman came in bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I'm being really silly here, but it truly was sweet and touching. We finished our little scene and our devotional. It was great.
Well - in order to have enough memory on my camera card for Christmas morning pictures, I uploaded my previously taken pictures onto my computer, including the Nativity pics. Well - lo and behold. That's when I saw the Christmas miracle. What had not been seen in the play was now clearly visible on the big screen computer monitor. Not only had the Wiseman brought gold, frankinscense and myrrh to the manger, but Joseph, himself, had brought a gift for the newborn. He had brought jewels, as in the FAMILY kind. Yep, one of the pictures showing Joseph half-kneeling was quite "revealing". Talk about a prime-time wardrobe malfuntion. (No, I'm not posting it here). I brought Noah (Joseph) in and said, "Do you know how I'm always telling you how important it is to have on underwear?" He says, "Uh-huh." "Well - this is WHY -------" and I point to the computer screen. Noah laughed himself silly, and the next morning when he opened his package of underwear... he was actually so happy he kissed them.
This Christmas will always be remembered as the year that The Fourth Wiseman brought gifts of jewels. (P.S. I'm holding onto the pictures, just for insurance purposes....)
Tonight as I was unpacking yet another box of books... too many to count, I came across an old journal. Now, for a person who loves to write, I have been an utter failure at keeping a regular journal. This particular journal was from 1996. As I was browsing through the (few) pages, I came across some funny things I had written about my older kids when they were little, so I started to read some of them outloud to them, which they really enjoyed, as did the younger children. Frankly, I had the rapt attention of everyone.
I can't believe how many things I have forgotten... really important things that may seem insignificant to the world, but are priceless treasures to my family. Why, oh why, have I not kept a better journal? It was WONDERFUL to sit around with my DH and kids and laugh (and cry) about the old times. We all laughed when I was reading about our sweet little Emily being born, and then turned the page and she was two! We laughed, but its really not so funny. How much did I miss during those two years that I can never remember?
We also cried (well, I did big time) when I read the following, dated April 13, 1997, when we were expecting our fifth child...
"Things have been very tight financially for us. At times, I've wondered how we've managed to keep a roof over our heads. I do know it is the Lord's blessings. I returned yesterday from an overnight Youth Leadership retreat in Deer Valley, UT. After arriving home, found that we only had $20.00 left. I knew already that this Monday's paycheck had already been delegated to pay our rent and there would be no money for groceries, except a few for diapers for Cody. On Thursday, I had gone through what food storage we have left and made up a 10 day menu. Upon doing so, I found that we didn't have enough food to make 10 meals. We would have had enough rice, macaroni and flour for bread and enough powdered milk, but there would not be enough meat and cheese, etc. to be able to make healthy, palatable meals that the kids would probably eat. It would be quite difficult for the kids to eat plain noodles several days straight. To say the least, I have been greatly troubled by the situation. How am I to feed my little ones?
As I said, we had twenty dollars left for the next ten days, which I could have stretched and been able to buy the food I needed for my family. It really wasn't a hard decision to make. We knew that today would be Fast Sunday, and we knew we needed to pay our fast offerings. So, we wrote out a tithing & donation slip and put the money inside.
Just a short while later there came a knock at the door. It was brother Roskelley from the Bishopric. He was there with an igloo full of meat, cheese, hamburger buns, and chips (and soda). It was the leftover food from the Youth Retreat I had just returned from, which we were planning to freeze for an upcoming dinner the the youth were doing for the new move-ins from the ward. Bro. Roskelley said he and the Bishop felt that we needed it and wanted us to have it instead.
I have been asking for a stronger testimony on the importance of paying our tithes and offerings and I sure got one. I know the Lord is mindful of us and our needs and I am so grateful for His blessings. If we keep the commandments, the Lord will bless us and keep His promises.
We now have enough meat and cheese for me to fix well-balanced meals."
Prior to reading my journal entry, I had no recollection of this incredible spiritual experience. Even now, it is vague, but my children will have this testimony for the rest of their lives because I wrote it down. I am determined not to kick myself for the many other testimonies of faith that I missed writing down, but rather am resigned to not miss any more. No matter what else is going on, I will MAKE time. This lesson has shown me how vital it is, and perhaps one day my children will read my experiences and testimony during a time in their lives when they need strength and help and I'm not there.
Well, we moved into our new home over the Thanksgiving holiday so that we would have a full four days to get completely unpacked and set up in our new house. I am STILL laughing at that idea, and I'm still not completely unpacked. We didn't count on a week with no running water OR toilets. It will suffice for me to say that we easily go through a 24 pack of TP each week, so I'll ljust let you do the math regarding the number of bathroom trips our crew makes. Well - we spent the week trekking every few hours to the local Wal-Mart (about 8 minutes away) to use the restroom, and to Grandma's (not nearly so often) to shower and do a few loads of laundry. After six days it was finally determined that the sewage backing up into our basement was due to tree roots that had grown into the sewer line. Once those were removed, things were finally flowing, thank goodness. It would have been very helpful had Mom remembered that she had purchased a porta-potty for such emergency occasions. My brain's a steel-trap, I tell you.
We are happily moved in and LOVE our new (older) place with the huge trees and beautiful brick fireplaces. We live in an established section of Bloomington, UT (St. George), which is quite different from where we lived on the other side of town. We love our new ward. Everyone is so kind and welcoming. There are a lot of older couples that live in our ward, but there are some families as well, though ours is certainly the biggest. We also have two former Utah Governors and a recently released General Authority living in our ward.
I previously attempted a blog, but it failed miserably. Its no wonder given the subject matter... MOI! I attempted to blog about my own life, but never really got around to writing much. Well, any good writer will tell you that in order to be successful, a writer must be passionate about her subject matter. Well... hello... not even I am excited about MOI! (Okay, I'm starting to sound a little like Miss Piggy here). What I AM passionate about is my family, so I begin anew to write about the things and people I love. I hope you will enjoy our journey!
