Thornton Mom

As I was sleeping last night I said a prayer in my dreams asking Father for help with our family.  I felt a yearning in my heart for a family that got along and was nice to each other.  When I awoke I felt that same yearning.  I feel like we spend all our time waiting for the next event that we are excpected to do and in the mean time we just watch television or stay in our rooms.  so when I woke I prayed about this again.  I truly want our family to enjoy being together. I opened my computer to begin my scripture study when I was drawn to an article entitled: Aiming at the Center, by Pres. Uchdorf .  In this article he talks about the center of our lives should be loving the Savior and our Father in Heaven. "If our primary focus, thoughts, and efforts are centered on increasing our love for Almighty God and extending our hearts to others, we can know that we have found the right target and are aiming at the bull’s-eye—becoming true disciples of Jesus ...

I have been struggling the last few weeks with depression.  It comes and goes but has mostly just settled over me and remains pretty constant.  Derek and I had the opportunity to have a couple of days to ourselves while our sister-in-law watched the kids.  At one point we started talking about my feelings.  I expresed that with the depression I am having a hard time with the life I have been given.  That I feel it is not the life I wanted.  That I do not enjoy being a mother and would have been happier with a different life.  I will often complain to God about this, about how the only reason I am a mother is because He wanted me to be one.  That each of these children that were born into our family are here because He wanted them here.  That evening Derek had a meeting for Bishops and Stake Presidency's.  When he came home he said that he had something he felt he should share with me.  He talked of Christ, how Christ only did ...

Monday was hard.  4 of our youth were in a car driving from early morning seminary to school.  As they took a left turn they were struck by an oncoming car.  Three survived but one died at the scene.  The young man who died in is our ward or congregation and his sister was driving the car.  This has been hard for all of us.  The young man who died is Braden Rock, he was 15 years old and amazing at the rubix cube.  I think I will forever see him holding the cube in one hand and playing the drums with the other, while solving the cube.  I had the pleasure of working with him a couple of years ago on a Young Men/Young Women project where we created Mormon Messages .  It was a delight to get to know him and since that event he always held a special place in my heart. I know he is in a good place now and know that the Lord must have a work for him to do.  How grateful I am that he was doing what he was supposed to be doing when this ...

Last night Samantha was working on some school work at the desk next to me.  She turned to me and said, "When I get married I am going to get married in the temple to a returned missionary who doesn't laugh at me and won't make fun of me when I break my bones."  She then smiled her beautiful smile with her cute dimple showing.  I commented on her cute dimple and she said, "I tell my friends that a dimple is where an angel kissed you."  It was nice to have some sweet exchanges with my daughter. From this moment I learned that some of the things I am teaching her are sticking, like get married in the temple to a returned missionary.  I also learned where she is vulnerable, being made fun of and having accidents that cause her pain physically and emotionally.  I also learned that she feels special because of who she is and that she has been touched by angels. The Infinite Atonement (Illustrated Edition) Tad R. Callistar Pg. 227--". . . the Savi...