Lunchtime Philosophers: Death

Eat lunch with the kids.  Actually, eat every meal you possibly can with your kids.  They learn the art of conversation and polite table manners because you are there; and you learn everything that goes on in their precious little heads.

Today's lunchtime topic: Death

Faith: "Momma, I have been wondering for years and years and years now why it is that our bodies die."  I love the insistence of a six year old of emphasizing importance in the term of nearly half their life pondering one question, and in Faith's term, the question of life and death.  Did she really start thinking about that at age 3?

I commenced telling her that sometimes bodies die of illness, accident, or age.

Faith: "But why does your body just die at the end for no other reason?"

Danny: "Because it is old and tired."

Viv: "flbleh blehwe dsbowe"  she still has a hard time remembering that you have to finish chewing your food before entering a conversation.  I reminded her.

In an imperfect marriage of science and faith I explained the best way I could figure to Faith why we die in old age.  As I reflect on the answer now I am grateful for connections made and have one last question which I will pose at the end of my explanation:

Science tells us that our bodies grow and get strong until a certain point in our life and then they start getting weaker.  That is why it is so important that we make our bodies as strong as we can while we are young so we will be able to be strong for a long time when we are older.  We also have to keep using our brains and our muscles so they don't get too old too fast.  Also, you know how God planned for us to come to Earth to learn for a while, but really our point here is so that eventually we will get back to Him.  Isn't it marvelous that God created our bodies so that they would be ready to die so we could return to him before we started repeating too many lessons.  Once we have learned something then we have fulfilled our purpose on Earth and we can return to God.  When you are young you learn as a child.  Then you learn how to be an adult.  Them you learn as a parent.  Then a grandparent.  After that it is just adding 'greats' to grandparent, and doesn't that sound like you are repeating the same thing?  Perhaps that is one way we can see that it is okay that our bodies are ready to relax and let us go home to heaven.

My explanation gracious cleared up Faith's long time concerns as to why people 'just die' when they are old (I can imagine that this question has been in her mind for a couple of years since her first encounter with death was that of my Grandpa Ellis Rasmussen who died gracefully of old age).  It seemed she was at peace with lovely 'angels' as Josh calls the white haired sweet elderly he treats are finally replaced to Heaven with not fault or no apparent reason.

Her question answered I mused a bit longer in my own thoughts and wondered:
Assuming that medically the body stops growth and begins degeneration around the age of 30 (as I understand it), could we assume that by that age God figures we learned enough on Earth to start the process of going home (to speak nothing of life expectancies over the ages)?

Yet another wonderful lunchtime philosophizing session with my children. Oh, I am glad that I was the one talking with them rather than an uniformed peer over a school lunch table absent of love, concern, or the Spirit of God.

What?...for real she is still 6

 I am ever reluctant to admit that my babies are growing up.  Perhaps that is why I have been waiting for a couple of weeks to post Faith's 6th birthday photos; I had to make sure it stuck.  I am still in denial that she is really as big and grown up as she is.  I was looking at photos in a magazine and they kept labeling this big girls as 6 and I thought, no, my Faith isn't that grown up.  But she is.  She always  has been quite mature, but now she is elegant and articulate in a new sort of way.  Not to mention a bit more emotional.

When asked what she wanted for her birthday meal she promptly replied that she wanted sushi.  I have to admit, it threw her into a whole new category of grown up for wanting sushi for a birthday meal (long lost are the years of ramen and hot dogs).  The day was a bit spread, she got to open her gifts at breakfast with Daddy home, then dinner before ballet, then cake after.  Faith got to move into the 6-7yr old ballet class, yet another shock to my system to see her with girls her own age that are also elegant and mature.  Faith is classy, and really does fit in with these big girls.  She also requested a fresh strawberry cake with a light pink fluffy frosting.  Particular, and so beautiful.

the bun on her head put a little oriental flavor to add with the sushi

Graciously, the cake turned out just as Faith requested.  This is two good cake turn outs for me  in this lifetime!

Josh gave her trick candles.  The funniest part was that she  kept making the blowing noise but not really blowing on the candles even if they did come back to flames.

I am so very very very glad that this girl is mine.  She makes each day a joy.  Just yesterday as we have all been convalescing from colds I asked her how she was feeling as she cuddled into bed with me, her response "Much better when you are by my side."  I love my 6 year old and will learn to accept that she is growing up, even without my permission.

Winter Wonders!

One of the reasons we moved to Indiana was seasons!  We have so enjoyed having a winter season this year!  The snow didn't stay for long, but we made the most if it everyday!  The kids went out and froze daily for at least 30 minutes and we had a great day that the snow fell and was so pack-able that Daddy helped them create a wonderful snowman.

While inside the I have been teaching the kids about what seasons are and where they fall.  It is fun to see them figuring out the months of the year and how the Earth travels around the sun.  And best of all is the art projects!  Their little personalities come out in everything they do. I love giving them open ended art!

It was so adorable to find them outside playing in the snow once we got them all snow pants.  I just did my work on the counter so I could watch them outside.  At first Faith looked a little grumpy sititng all alone, but of course once I got the camera everyone decided it was the perfect little perch.  The little woodchucks just climbed right onto the wood pile.  I remember having the exact same kind of fun when I was a kid, wood piles and all!  

These little people are the wonders of my winter land.  The look so beautiful all matchy-matchy.  Can't help myself.  These are their Christmas outfits.

Fulfillment in NYC

As an actress, it is only natural that I dreamed of someday visiting Broadway.  I have likewise always been enchanted with the city of New York as portrayed in all my favorite films from 'Easter Parade" to "Serendipity."  So many of my favorites take place in NYC.  The time had come to bring the dream to fruition.  In the frustration of a really bumpy ride through 2012, my best friend and I decided that we were gonna take a girls trip no matter what.  We scheduled the trip last year in October or November and it was the last link to sanity for us getting through the final spurts of 2012.  We were ready to bring in the new year in style, city style.  So off I flew, by my onsies to join my sister and my best friend since third grade to have a big girls retreat in the big city.  Admittedly, I was a bit nervous about traveling by myself, it has been 7 years since I traveled solo and I didn't know if I could do it.  No probs.  The big city is not so scary.  But even better was having Jill around as the ultimate guide.  We joked with her all weekend that she was better than an iPhone Siri because we didn't even have to ask a question to get the answer, we just followed her as she new our own mind before we did and walla!  We arrived at awesome places in the city.  We didn't hit as many tourist sites; the objective was to see as many Broadway shows as possible and just be familiar with the city.  I was rejoicing in being with fine ladies very much like myself, or at least indulgent to my little fantasies, and we spent time on 5th Ave just window shopping and walking around, and up and down most of the city streets.

I arrived Thursday night around 6:30pm and Jill and I made no wasted time heading down to Times Square, which was a mere 5 blocks from our hotel, and purchased tickets to "Avenue Q" an off broadway show.  It was a fun, semi-crass, commentary on this generations struggle to find purpose.

The next morning we were up and walking around Central Park for our morning shake out.  And that started the walking for the weekend.  The objective was to see as many Broadway shows as possible and get a feel for the city.

We spent plenty of girly time on the tour of 5th avenue.  I am pretty obsessed with high fashion.  I will never be able to afford the stuff, but my is it pretty to look and and wonderful to touch!

Ice Skating at Rockafeller, no we didn't pay to play

We stopped into St. Patrick's Cathedral right around noon and found oursleves in the middle of mass.  It was my first time attending a Catholic mass and loved the music.  I certainly believe we are all in this life game together and religion is a great way to find some meaning and purpose.  Additionally I am glad that I a member of the Church of Jesus Christ that helped me even understand a Catholic service better (I don't know if I would have understood it the other way around).

Jill was awesome and made reservations for us at Serendipity 3, an eclectic little diner featured in one of the quintisential rom-coms of the early 90s.  Great food.  This was one of the highlights of my trip. I think we sat there and talked and ate great food for two hours.  It was slightly drizzly outside and I was warm, inside, with a few of my favorite people laughing and connecting.  I could do that every week and call it almost as triumphal a vacation as the whole NYC experience.

Friday night we saw Rock of Ages which was by FAR our favorite!  It was like being in a live concert that was narrated by a comedian.  Everyone was singing along and dancing in their seats.  Oh it was fun!  We came out of that one on a high!!!  Kristen even woke up the next morning singing songs from the show (which is saying something cuz Kris is super crusty in the mornings).

Saturday morning we couldn't determine online whether or not SNL was back to live tapings so we went down to Rockafeller early again to see if we could get tickets.  They weren't taping live, but we made it worth our early morning walk by sticking around for some of the early taping of the Today show.  We are in the first 30 minutes waving after coming back from a commercial break.

We went to the 9/11 memorial that day at noon.  Amazing memorial.  That day is for my generation what Pearl Harbor is for the older generation.  We all remember exactly where we were.  I remember watching the second plane hit Live on the news and was shocked. I kept thinking it was just a TV movie and couldn't be real.  The hopeful thing, that I realized while reading the information, was that although we lost 3000 of our citizens that day, including 400 first responders who were valiantly doing their duty, there were over 35,000 people in those two buildings. So many people did get out!  That is miraculous.  It was really neat to get a lay of the land and understand more about that area.

We waited in the tkts line 5 different times.  It really is the only way to reasonably see Broadway.  We did not see the two shows we set out to see that weekend (Once and Newsies) because the tickets were not on a good enough discount, but the ones we did see were super fun.  They also have workers there that have seen all the shows to give you reccomendations.  We talked to Mike every time we were in line.  He gave us some of the quotables of the vacay.  When we asked if we should see Mamma Mia!  he responded "Just go to a karaoke bar and watch a bunch of middle aged women sing Abba and you've got it covered."  Funny, although in retrospect we wished we would have seen Mamma Mia! Saturday night rather than Newsical the Musical which he reccomended.  But hey, 4 out of 5 is good advice.

Saturday matinee was Nice Work if you Can Get It.  This was my favorite.  Classic Broadway with all the Tony award winners.  There is something to be said for Tony winners, they just know timing and staging so very well that it is a delight to watch.  I love the big group numbers and zany characters.  Best part was actually seeing Gershwin music done without taking it too seriously!  Loved it.  Another quotable came from the elderly usher there who noticed that our seats were on the inside of a row where all the other women were already seated.  She casually hollered at the women in our row "Alli-oop Gals!"  just fit with the whole vibe.

Between matinee and night show on Saturday we filled it with what seemed like another show.  We went to the Stardust Diner on Broadway where hopeful actors are the waitors and sing between busing tables.  Again, another sing along party, which is perfect after you just came out of a show, you just wanna sing!  Diner food, fun entertainment.   Like I mentioned above, we saw Newsical the Musical that night.  It was lame.  It was to be the same flavor of SNL, but it was a bad SNL night.  If it weren't for Christine Pedi who is a master immitator, the show would have been poop.  Sheri O'Teri was the guest star and she was not so good as she was in the old days of the Spartan cheerleader skits, or rather she was exactly the same, which is kinda more disappointing.

Not to leave on a low note, we determined we could still get a matinee in on Sunday before planes (I had to leave before the end of the show to get to the airport on time) and it was so worth it!  We took a walk after breakfast down to the Hudson River and saw the Intrepid.  I realized after that it is the ship that Nathan Cage jumps off of in National Treasure.  I was just taking a big picture for the kids to see how giant that boat is!  Then it was a brisk walk back to SpderMan the musical.  SOOO cool.  All the spectacular staging that can only be done really well on a Broadway stage, not to mention the arial stunts.  The music was beautiful; classic Bono and The Edge, which fit the tone of the show so well.  The set angles and costuming were by far the best part of the staging.  Our Mary Jane was a bit off, but the gal who sang Arachne was intrancing!

There it was, whirlwind through the end.  I made it to my plane gate on time, but the Spirit staff was retarded and did not let me on my plane, which was a bit more drama that I liked.  She basically shut the plane door in my face saying she couldn't let me on because I was not there at 4:30 as I showed her the clock on my phone saying 4:28.  Spirit Airlines is awful.  The wouldn't make any accomodations and the snarky girl was not even servicable enough to get my refund taken care of on the spot.  The service was bad on both ends and I have never been in smaller seats in more cramped situation.  I got a Delta flight after that drama (costing way too many pennies, which is why I went with the cheap airline before) and was happy to have friendly service and pretzels.  I suppose you really do have to pay for quality to get it.

I was so happy to have a trip with my lady friends!  I fullfilled a life long dream, and in the middle of it had the realization that dreams really do change as you get older.  I still want to see every Broadway show I can get to, but I don't need the sensationalism of the city.  I am happy at home with my lovely kiddos and my happy husband.  What a blessed way to start out 2013.  I hope to have more and more fun as the year continues!

Teaser

Got Wisdom?

Recent thoughts and reflections have led me in discussions with great friends and family to the following resources which I feel have deepened my own personal wisdom.  In fact, it was in the conversation of asking how do I understand _____ better that answers from others have guided my own thoughts.  Perhaps I will have time in the near future to articulate all the thoughts, but for the time being, I find it wise to pass on the following:

The Journey by Brandon Bays
- recommended to me by my sister Jill. I have read through this book in three days very intrigued and embracing a whole new way to look at the connection of self, soul, and physicality.  Bays espouses a new version of healing in the mind-body healing process that resounds with my own philosophy that therapy is not just to bring up old issues, but to resolve them, learn from them and grow into a better sense of self.  She quotes the following from Marianne Wiliamson's book A Return to Love, which I read to Josh and he surprisedly said he had heard it, actually used it as a quote during his mission, cited wrongfully as from Nelson Mandella.  Williamson's book is on my 'to read' list:
     "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.  Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.  We ask ourselves, "Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?" Actually, who are you not to be?  You are a child of God.  Your playing small doesn't serve the world.  THere's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that people won't feel insecure around you.  We are meant to shine, as children do.  We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.  It's not just in some of us: it's in everyone.  And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.  As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
[side note: this quote is also found in the pinnacle moment of the movie Coach Carter with the omission of reference to God.  The movie is also on my to watch list; Josh had already seen it and says it is similar to "Stand and Deliver," one of my favorite genre of movies.  "Freedom Writers"is in that class, which I also recommend.]

Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who WIll Change the World by Tony Wagner
- Just recently published in 2012 as a report on the most innovative young Americans and where they came from.  Wagner studied kids and then went backwards through their history to figure out the commonalities.  He then boils down the threads to Play, Passion, and Purpose.  I love his repetitive triumverant of P.  His study also critiques modern education and suggests solutions and changes.  I have read the book for the purposes of guiding our own purpose in educating our children at home and through life.  It gives me hope for the future and for my children and faith in the greatness in each of us.

Teaching of the Presidents of the Church: Lorenzo Snow
-soon to be given to all adults in the LDS Church as the curriculum for auxiliory lessons, the next in succession of teachings of the Presidents.  My awesome friend Kristen, who will be teaching from this text, thus having taken an early sneak peak got me hooked right away.  Chapter 1 "Learning by Faith' is such a fantastic introduction to what promises to be a full year of learning from a fantastic learner.  His personal history is fascinating.  This from the first chapter struck me : A little spiritual knowledge is a great deal better than mere opinions and notions and ideas, or even very elaborate arguments; a little spiritual knowledge is very important and of the highest consideration.  Go to the LDS Church on Sunday and you can get a free copy to read, or you can peruse it online at http://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-of-presidents-of-the-church-lorenzo-snow?lang=eng

And for the shorter read: 
Reverence for God Is the Beginning of Wisdom by Elder Neil L. Anderson, Ensign Jan 2013
-Before becoming an apostle, Elder Anderson was an astute buisnessman.  His professional experience exudes in this article through his awareness of current trends and economic positions.  Happily for me, he is also a literary man and quotes T.S. Eliot along with Paul and Nephi.  With the specific word 'wisdom' in my personal pursuits I really appreciated Elder Anderson's definition of Godly wisdom, and wordly wisdom in both positive and negative connotations.  For me, the article is summarized in the following: Seek after this wisdom—be reflective, observe carefully, think about what you experience in life.  This article in conjunction with Bays' book clarified a lot for me personally regarding individual understanding and personal growth.

Amazing how much I can read and assimilate while still coming off of the research paper mode and having now assigned readings for a full month!  An inquisitive mind is such a gifts.  As are the silent moments of doing dishes in which all the glorious connections of thought and learning are melded into a personal wisdom and understanding.  

The Next Best Day on the List of our Lives

Saturday December 15th was the next day on the list of the best days of our lives.  Number one on the list was the day that Josh and I were married and sealed in the Idaho Falls temple.  Being married is great, being sealed is awesome.  So it is no question that the day that we had our daughter Viv sealed to us in the Chicago temple is the second day on that list.  

I have been pondering a lot on why that day was so significant; why it made the adoption day seem as only a stepping stone.  It comes down to my core belief, that I share with my eternal companion and we are teaching to our kids: this life is not the point of living.  We do not just wake up in the morning to live one more day and then another with whatever ambition suits us for the time.  We are here on Earth to become the best versions of ourselves so that we can return to a perfect place with the Ones we love dearest: Our Father, Our Savior and Brother Jesus Christ, and our Eternal Families.  

I believe that each person on this earth not only has a destiny to become great, but a purpose in doing so each day.  The best possible way I have learned to reach that potential is in families.  I love the family I came from so dearly.  My parents taught me righteousness and hard work.  My siblings taught me compassion and deep love.  When I met Josh I learned about commitment and willingness to change, and wanted to add him to that circle of amazing people I want to be with for forever.  So Josh and I chose to be sealed in the Temple of our Lord, in the way we know best on this earth to make a commitment to each other that will be honored by God.  That moment in which we made promises to each other and were promised greater blessings from on High started a pattern of life for us that we have continued in.

That life now involves three amazing little people with giant souls.  If I hadn't had a sure knowledge that people came from another sphere before this life before I had children, it has become extremely apparent after.  I know that all the goodness and brilliance that my children have did not come from me.  Sure, we are nurturing the best we know and teaching all the good I can; yet still, Faith, Danny and Viv are so much wiser than I could ever believe I created.  Parenting throws the purpose of life into a whole new belief bracket.  As we get into adult life we begin to learn from "the school of hard knocks." Choosing to become a parent enrolls you into "the school of sweet lessons."  It is still work daily, but it is the sweet lessons of life that come through the purity of innocent eyes and brilliant minds untainted by skepticism or sarcasm.  Kids are amazing.

The more I have gotten to know each of my kids, the more excited I have been to think that having been sealed to Josh on our wedding day ensured that I could have the privilege of being with my kids forever too.  They were already linked through blood, Faith and Danny, and I never worried about their qualification for heaven.  I kept working on my own qualifications for sure so I would be as good as they, who are comfortable in the presence of angels.  So even more true was the feelings I had for Viv. 

The more I have gotten to know Viv, the amazing valiant fighter that she is, the more I was scared spit-less that I wouldn't have her with our family forever.  It sounds a bit like a crazy lady - but my worst fear that haunted me from the day that Viv was legally severed from her biological mother to the day we were sealed was that Viv would die an orphan and her soul would be floating around in heaven, socializing with everyone no doubt, but nevertheless unconnected and lonely.  I am sure she would be wrapped in Jesus's arms, and I believe that all gets sorted out perfectly on the other side, yet in my worst dream I saw her floating away from me in space with a sad look in her eyes that pleaded "Mama, don't you want me?" It gripped my heart daily.  As the adoption process looked like it would get hung up on dumb details of payment this-or-that I nearly clawed at anyone near me to get them to understand that none of that was important to me, I just wanted my daughter!  I couldn't face the image of her little lonely soul floating away into darkness.

Of course, in God's goodness and grace Viv did not die between February and December and I was given moments of peace that all would turn out right in the end.  I cannot say I was always faithful in the great turns of the universe getting paperwork done on time, but I plunged forward as much as possible, pushing and bullying to make sure I felt I had done my best.  Faith and a great deal of dog-faced work got us to a committed adoption date.  As the days neared and others were making plans to join us for the sealing, my fears did increase and I held Viv a little closer.  Half consciously I didn't take the kids out and about much the week before the adoption and sealing finalized.  

I set the date of the sealing as close to the adoption hearing date as I possibly could.  I wanted to be gracious of family members that would be traveling to celebrate the big day with us and so we arranged to go to a temple nearest to us and a major airport.  We spent half a day on Friday after the adoption getting ready to head to Chicago, then picked up Josh and headed for the city.  The main destinations for the weekend were the temple, Legoland, and dolphins.  In that order of importance.  Rain or shine, a child's expectations are a powerful force.  

Friday we headed straight to Legoland discovery center (thanks to our homeschool science lesson unit of "Mom, how do they make....." sponsored by YouTube in which we learned exclusively about legos for three days because the kids were fascinated)  and played until family flew in.  Saturday morning despite freezing rain we headed to the Brookfield zoo to make sure we saw a dolphin show (Danny has recently decided he will be a dolphin trainer) before getting to our appointed time for the sealing in the Chicago LDS Temple.  I was so grateful to have our righteous family surrounding us in that glorious place, reminding me of heaven and giving me a glimpse into the heaven I believe will come.  Both sets of grandparents were there: Dan and Michelle Button and J.D. and Ann Hancock, as well as my two sisters Brooke and Jill.  

Entering the temple as a family was a wondrous experience.  The kids make the monthly temple trips with Josh and I to the temple so that we parents can serve there.  Being children, they do not yet enter the temple to preform the vicarious service.  They are okay with that.  They have so much wisdom to accept things that would be hard to explain to an adult.  The love being at the temple with us though and look forward to our trips.  They were innocently excited to be able to go into the temple for this special occasion.  Admittedly, Viv seemed most excited about wearing her new white dress.  The kids strode into the temple more comfortably than anyone I had ever seen.  It was as if they were visiting their best friend there.  All that big soul wisdom seemed to sustain me in the moment that I was to leave them in the care of temple workers until the time we would meet in the sealing room.  They looked at me with true confidence in the process and assurity that we were all doing just the right thing.

Once dressed and all the paperwork double checked, Josh and I entered the sealing room.  The hush and loving anticipation of guests and family felt very familiar.  I could feel within me that I was certainly seven years older and further on in life, but the newness of that moment was precisely the same as my wedding day.  It was almost perfect.  Almost because my kids were not yet with me.  

The wise sealer spoke with us a moment before the kids came up to clarify our understanding of the sealing ordinance, specifically what it would mean for Viv.  His words were a balm of Giliead to my guilt ridden worried mother's heart.  Viv is a gem and a trial all in one.  I have committed to take full responsibility for her as if she were born of me, and in that bargain I have got a whole lot that I am unfamiliar with or do not understand.  The sealer mentioned that the ordinance of sealing children to families is one of the very few choices that I am able to make for her that will assure her blessings in heaven based on my righteousness.  We all know I can't make her do anything, but I can make sure that there will be the basics of good assured her because of the choices I make.  That's when I cried.  It was the peaceful assurance I needed that I can be an okay Mama for this one.

They then brought the kiddos in.  All in white, they reflected the perfectness of heaven on earth, which is perfection within imperfection.  I couldn't help but notice how Danny's dinosaur print underwear was visible through his white slacks and the embroidered dog emblem on his white shirt was seriously misplaced for the occasion.  But he was happy and comfy.  The girls were lovely and decidedly more aware of how pretty they looked in white.  

The moment of the ordinance was quick and quiet.  Viv, similar to adoption day was more solemnly aware of things.  Contrastingly from the adoption day,  she was beaming. Absolutely radiant.  She was sure of herself and confident that this was all real.  There was no fear lurking behind it, just joy.  It relaxed me to see Viv as her best self.  She didn't ask her usual barrage of questions, she quietly smiled and did just as she was told.  Her tiny hand on mine.  A promise given.  No applause or hurrahs, just happiness.  Softly and quietly, Faith and Danny gathered around us all at the altar, happy and white and TOGETHER.  We looked briefly in the reflection of our family in white, all smiling, all embracing.  Then the moment passed.  As if a still moment when we could all feel what it really meant to be eternal and where happy with that and moved on in life's good blessing.

The kids hugged the rounds and Danny kept pouncing on the chairs like a puppy in his happy silliness. Faith wanted to stroke pretty things.  Viv just stayed near.  Quietly.  The children were escorted out.  Josh and I went to change. 

 I went back into the bridal changing room, which originally I had felt sheepish taking.  I was just changing into my normal temple clothes, but they were making such a big deal out of things.  Then I paused in that beautiful room full of mirrors for a moment of true reflection.  That day was something special and I was absolutely humbled with gratitude for life, love, family and my knowledge of it all.  God's Spirit filled my soul and I sat down for a moment to collect it in.  He had given me a daughter and also given me the tools I need to teach her.  He had given me His daughter.  And Viv is beautiful.  She is amazing and special beyond all I know.  Perhaps beyond allI will ever get to know.  Only in the reflection of eternity and myself could I feel that truth, inside the Lord's Holy House.  

Prior to December 15th we had talked a lot in our family about the reason we were going to the temple for the sealing ordinance.  This was something that most other adoptive families don't do.  We feel blessed to teach our children the truth we know and share with them the joys of revealed ordinances for our continued happiness.  Even when talking with the kids about what 'sealing' is, like welding, like welding a whole bunch of links together.  Once all welded together they they are stronger.  Our family linked together here on Earth and through that veil that separates heaven and earth is vast and strong.  All of those links are lifting me up and supporting me in my choices and failures.  Now my little Viv is linked right in there in the middle.  With all our mighty linked heart and faith we will all lift together in raising this lovely daughter of God.  We can rely on our collective strength that links us, seals us in deed and love, to our Eternal Family.