Easton is going through a wonderful phase right now where he always wants to help. If I’m making muffins, he’s on the counter helping me count cups and teaspoons. At least once a day, he’ll get the broom and “sweep” (though this usually derails into riding the broom like a pony). If Bryce is putting something together, Easton’s right there ready and willing to help. His current catch phrase is “Me good helper!” He always says it with such pride. And I always say, “Yes, you are a good helper!” I hope he always feels this way, like he can help those around him and that what he does is meaningful and appreciated.

My big helper helping me make dinner. Classic Easton expression.

Here’s today’s prompt:

List 5 of your weaknesses and 5 of your strengths.

5 Weaknesses

I should preface this part by saying that I do believe we can overcome our weaknesses, and even make them strengths. So when I say, “I am,” I don’t necessarily view it as a permanent condition.

1. I am impulsive. I always feel like once I’ve had an idea, I need to take action right that very second. Sometimes, this is good and I come across as on the ball. Often, however, it means that I make decisions I regret and sometimes I have to go back and take steps to undo the choice, which makes things complicated.

2. I have a sweet tooth. Well, it’s really a sweet/carb tooth. I love to bake cookies and sweet breads and muffins. This really gets me into trouble when I’m pregnant and is probably a large reason why I always end up with at least 40 pounds to lose after I have a baby.

3. I can be short on patience. This is something I am constantly working on. I always thought I was a very patient person, but then I had children and my impatience reared its ugly head. Constantly working on speaking with respect and in a calm tone with my children and trying to remember that they are little.

4. I am not a good parker. I often have to try two or three times before I park the car straight. And don’t ever ask me to back into a space. I can only imagine how many tries that would take!

5. I can get too involved. This relates to one of my strengths, actually, but sometimes my compassion drives me to get too involved. I care so much that I step in where it’s not my place to step in.

5 Strengths

1. I love easily. My patriarchal blessing tells me that I have a great capacity to love and I think that is spot on. It’s really hard to make me not love you.

2. I am optimistic. I always try to see the bright side of things and to focus on the good parts of a situation. I have great hope for the future.

3. I am a good listener. I try to make it a point to stop whatever I am doing and look at a person when they are talking to me. I try to be a good listening ear. I do need to do better about this with my kids–to stop what I am doing and really really listen to them.

4. I am cheerful. This isn’t always the case, but I usually try to be happy and cheerful. Bryce has told me many times that this is something he appreciates about me, so I think it must be true.

5. I am committed to my children. Even on the days that I am not as patient as I should be, I am always committed to them–to their educations, to trying to do what is best for them, to trying to make a good home for them. I hope they will look back one day and see that.

A couple weeks ago, Bryce and I got to go to a fantastic concert. Pentatonix is an a capella group that won the T.V. show “The Sing-Off” a couple years ago. Since then, they’ve gotten pretty popular, especially on YouTube, where some of their videos have over 50 million views. I love their stuff, so when I saw that they were coming to Salt Lake, I snatched a couple tickets for me and Bryce. I’m so glad I did because the tickets sold out in just a couple days!

We got there early to wait in line outside the venue. By the time doors opened, the line wrapped all the way around the block behind us.

It was an awesome concert! The venue was definitely a little different for us. It was at a place called The Complex and there wasn’t any seating (unless you had a medical reason). So, there were 2500 people all standing up against the stage. Crowded, hot, and not the most comfortable place I’ve ever been, but it was totally worth it.

Brock and Cortney ended up getting tickets, too. It was so fun to experience this with them!

Pentatonix!

This was a crowd of adoring fans, let me tell ya. There was so much energy in the room and everyone was loving the music. The band kept saying what a great audience we were and that we were the best audience yet on their tour. Their performance was just top notch. Fantastic harmonies and arrangements. I was clapping and dancing the whole time. Sometimes you worry that a person or band won’t be as good in person as they are on their recordings. Well, Pentatonix was even better live. You could feel the bass reverberating off your bones and their sound as a group was brilliant.

The group.

Just a stellar concert. I’m so glad we got to go! It’s great to see real talent like this and I love that they’re helping to make a capella cool. Their beatboxer even showed off how he can play his cello (excellent) and beatbox at the same time. Pretty cool effect.

One of my favorite parts of the night was when they sang Run to You. This is a song they wrote and it’s just gorgeous. Everyone in that auditorium was quiet and listening. It was honestly one of the most reverent moments I’ve experienced lately.

So, yes, definitely worth the 5 hours of standing!

Remember this list I was working on? I got to this next one and just didn’t feel particularly inspired and then there was the whole building a house and moving thing…

Prompt #13: What’s the hardest part of growing up?

This has been an interesting question for me to consider. I feel like I had a wonderful childhood and “growing up.”  Parents that always made me feel special and loved, that made me feel like my presence was a joy to them. The unique experience of moving all over the world. A religious community that gave my teen years a backdrop of morality and a place of belonging. I would say it was a pretty charmed life.

But since I have to answer, I guess I would say that transitioning from child to adult had its hard moments. I spent my 11th grade year in Honduras while my parents served there as mission presidents. Something inside of me pushed me to apply for early admittance to BYU and I ended up skipping 12th grade and heading to Utah at the young age of 16. I was 16, starting college, miles and countries apart from my parents, and pretty much on my own. Talk about a learning experience, in big and in little ways! For example, I went from having a maid that did my laundry and cleaned house (totally normal in Latin America) to suddenly having to fend for myself. It wasn’t a huge deal. Learning those kinds of skills was more about practice then anything else. And I am grateful for how my parents handled it. They didn’t step in and try to do everything for me. Now, maybe that was helped by the fact that they were in another country. But I really felt like they trusted me and knew I would do my best. Looking back on it, that was pretty amazing! I hope I can have the same level of trust with my children when they are 16. Because of that trust, I had the chance to learn basic homemaking skills, be fully responsible for all my academic work, handle my own finances, make friends, and live a pretty independent life, mistakes and all.

Was is a struggle sometimes, straddling my youth and my new adulthood? Of course! And, I will admit, there were times when I would come back home and feel like I was still being treated like a child, even though I thought I was all grown up. That just goes to show how young I still was, trying too hard to prove I was a big girl. I found myself dealing with those same feelings when I got married. Here I was, a married woman, but I still felt like a child in my parent’s home. But wasn’t I? And aren’t I still? When I got married at 19, I was still a teenager. At 29, I think I’ve realized that I always want to be a child in their home. I still feel special and loved and now that I am a mother myself, I think I understand a bit more. What on earth am I going to do when Amelie decides to get married, or move out? Cry, that’s what. And then send her on her way with love and trust so that she can have the same opportunities that I had.

So, the hardest part about growing up for me was also one of the biggest blessings. Thank you, Mom and Dad, for believing in me, trusting me, and loving me. And for the constant support you give me now. I’m a pretty lucky girl.

Here is a short little video we put together to remember Liam’s birth. I know, I know–he’s almost 10 months old! Better late then never, right?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_f8YDoJGxI&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Click here to watch the video if you can’t see it above.

Making this brought back lots of memories and feelings and emotions. So glad to have this little guy in our family.