It's not about...

...the FROG!

When we were camping a few weeks ago we went for a hike. We passed a river and we spotted a frog. The kids were so excited to catch a frog and to watch him jump and swim!

When I got home and was looking through our pictures I realized I did not get a single picture of the kids! I only took them of the frog!

I am an analogy person so bear with me!

How often am I so focussed on what I am doing that I forget who I am doing it for? When we caught the frog, it wasn't for the frog, it was for the kids. What did they learn from the experience? Did they enjoy themselves?

The same is true with everything in life. We need to remember the purpose behind the things we are doing. Why do we take the kids to school? Are they learning that it is okay to be angry at our family when we are late or that we can yell when they can't find their shoes? It isn't about what we are doing but what we are teaching our kids when we do it.

Life is about individuals and loving and really, it isn't about the frog but what we do when we catch it. :)

Even though this was kind of more about parenting it totally relates to marriage too.

The Apple of the day is: when you are with your spouse today or tonight, stop and think about how this time could be made better. Do they need to know how awesome they are? Do they need you to tackle them to the floor and kiss them? Do they need a good laugh? Enjoy your time, even if it is for a moment!

taught by a child

We went camping this weekend. The kids went to sleep well in the tent and slept the whole night. Zach and I LOVED our time by the fire before we climbed into the tent. We kept the rain fly off and enjoyed looking at the stars before we fell asleep. Sweetness.

That night when we were roasting mallows with the kids Sarah noticed a boy walking past the camp. Zach and I had observed that he and his family were likely homeless. She called about to the boy, "boy, boy!" He didn't turn to look and then she told us as she picked up a marshmallow that "I wanted to give him a marshmallow.".

So, Zach took her over to their camp with the bag of marshmallows and watched as our sweet little girl gave this stunned boy a marshmallow. Seeing the look on his face, Zach then gave him two hands full of them to share with his family. They were shocked and so thankful. Zach overheard them talking as he and Sarah walked away and their daughter said "I feel like a little kid again".

We felt grateful, and yet like we've been ungrateful for what we have.

Sarah taught us something about acting on promptings we receive. Children are so fearless about that! They think something and say it or do it. They don't miss a beat! From a talk I listened to by Elder Scott a few weeks ago, "Let us act on the promptings of the Spirit with courage!".

Because I am still learning how the Spirit speaks to me, I am trying to just act when I think of something good to do and not look for reasons not to do it. As I do this I hope to develop a real relationship with the Spirit that I will always follow when He tells me to do something.

The Apple of the day: watch/listen for the promptings of the Spirit and act on them with the faith and confidence of a child.