Merry Christmas!

A Light Unto All: A Christmas Gift

New Updates

I finally put some new updates on the PRIVATE blog. Come over and read all about it.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Birthday

You say it's your birthday
It's my birthday too - yeah
They say it's your birthday
We're gonna have a good time
I'm glad it's your birthday
Happy birthday to you.

Come over to the PRIVATE blog to see whose birthday it was!

Kid's Blogs

I created all the kids their own private blogs.

Come over to our PRIVATE blog to get the address, or ask for permission.

Updates...Get Your Updates!

I spent a couple hours today trying to catch up on posts this last month. Head on over to the PRIVATE blog to see what you've been missing out on!

Heed the Words of the Prophets

Great video! This is what the LDS Prophets predicted 40 years ago that would unfortunately come true, and we are experiencing it right now.

*Updates*

I've just finished putting up 6 new posts that I was behind on. Come over to the PRIVATE blog to read what we have been up to the last few weeks. Plenty of photos and details!

Old School iPod

Come to the PRIVATE blog to see who put together an old school version of the iPod and jammed out to some music

Embarrassed

I'm not sure why, but Michelle just posted some of the most embarrassing photos of her and I on the PRIVATE blog. So if you have access, I'm not sure if you want to consider yourself lucky for being able to see them. But if you dare, sign in and come take a look!

Church Service Project

Our ward (church congregation) has come up with a service project for the entire congregation. It includes clearing 1 acre of land (for planting a garden) and raising a pig (to eat for our Christmas Party). So log into the PRIVATE blog to see some actual pictures of the work in progress.

Camping

The Sherman's went CAMPING! Head on over to the PRIVATE blog to read what it was like to take 5 young children on a overnight camping trip!

Diamondbacks

Come to the PRIVATE blog to read about what the Sherman's did at the Diamondbacks Game!

What You Will Find...Inside a Mormon Chapel

SALT LAKE CITY 19 August 2008

Most first-time visitors to a Mormon church building comment on the number of rooms. Many expect to find one large interior space, such as in many other Christian denominations’ buildings of worship.

But meetinghouses for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are different from those used by many other religions. They include classrooms, offices, a font for baptisms, a kitchen and in many cases a cultural hall with an indoor basketball court. Cultural halls in Mormon buildings usually also have a stage, for dramatic and musical productions. And the basketball court doubles for a dance floor or dining area, among other uses.

This is all in addition to a large room that seats 200 to 300, called the chapel, used for Sunday worship services. The word “chapel” is also sometimes used by Mormons to describe the whole building or meetinghouse.

“The building was so simple,” said Sandra Yeo after visiting for the first time one of the Church’s meetinghouses in her native England.

“There were no crosses, no murals, no statues or icons of any kind as far as I could see. I had never been in a Christian church that didn’t have that sort of thing. I found the simplicity very appealing.”

For Latter-day Saints, the church meetinghouse is a hub of religious and social life. The most important part of the week, though, is the hour-long sacrament meeting. This takes place on Sunday and is similar to other Christian worship services. Men, women and younger members offer prayers and give sermons, hymns are sung, and the sacrament, similar to other traditions’ communion, is administered. Members teach the principles taught by Jesus Christ.

When Brian Sharon attended his first meeting of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Wisconsin, he was impressed with the worship service itself.

“I was used to a very formal, highly structured worship service in the church of my childhood," Sharon said. "I was intrigued by how smoothly and efficiently things were handled, without extensive ritual or ceremony. And I was touched by how friendly and open everyone was, especially to visitors like my family. It was refreshing to me.”

In addition to the sacrament meeting, there are other meetings on Sundays as part of a three-hour span from 9 a.m. until noon, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., or some other variation.

These other meetings include classes for youths and adults and what Mormons call “Primary,” a time for lessons and singing for children 12 and under.

Mormons tend to have large families, so be prepared to see — and hear — a lot of children. And though Mormon parents try to teach their little ones to be reverent, children are also encouraged to be involved.

In the children’s Primary, for example, you will see 7-year-olds, or even younger children, give talks, read scripture and pray in front of their peers. The songs taught and sung in Primary focus on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, on scriptural themes and on simple ways children and others can put into practice what is preached.

Mormons are generally a friendly people, so a visitor should not be surprised when someone, seeing the new face, comes over to talk and offers to shake hands and help the visitor find the right meeting or class.

A common misperception among those not of the Mormon faith is that only Latter-day Saints can enter their chapels. This is most likely based on a misunderstanding about temples and chapels. While temples, of which there are 140 (including existing ones and those announced or under construction) worldwide, are open only to members of the Church who are fully engaged in their faith, anyone can enter a Mormon chapel to visit or worship with their Latter-day Saint neighbors. There are over 17,000 chapels throughout the world with a new one built, on average, each day.

The physical design of Latter-day Saint chapels reflects Mormons’ depth of religiosity that goes beyond pulpit and pew. To be a member of a Mormon ward (or congregation) is to be part of a faith community that intersects weekly as a group and in smaller gatherings several other times throughout each week.

In some cases Mormon meetinghouses become launching areas for community service initiatives, such as in times of natural disasters. On many occasions, such efforts are in conjunction with those of other community and faith groups.

Mormons say that while the activities that bring them together within their buildings are wide and varied — some cultural, some sporting, some educational and some social — the underpinning motivation for all that is done is for individuals and families to help each other to overcome life’s challenges by learning about Jesus Christ and striving to become like Him.

For Latter-day Saints, the buildings they use for their various worship services and other gatherings are important — but not as important as the building that goes on within their walls. It is the building of strong individuals and families, of knowledge, of relationships and of faith in God that matters most to Mormons.

“Our chapels are not all constructed with the same design features,” said Church apostle Elder L. Tom Perry in a worldwide conference. “However, each one centers on the mission of our Savior. They are buildings dedicated for the purpose of worshiping Him.”

http://www.newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/what-you-will-find-when-you-step-inside-a-mormon-chapel

Caught Up!

Well I'm just about caught up on our PRIVATE Blog! So if you have access, come on over and check it out!

Let The Blessing Flow...

New Temple for Phoenix Arizona Announced

SALT LAKE CITY 24 May 2008 President Thomas S. Monson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced today that the Church plans to build a new temple in Phoenix, Arizona. This will bring the worldwide total number of temples built or under construction to 140, including five in Arizona.

Latter-day Saint temples differ from the tens of thousands of local meetinghouses where members typically meet for Sunday worship services and midweek social activities, and where visitors are always welcome. Temples are used solely for the performance of sacred ordinances and religious instruction aimed at strengthening members’ relationships with God and their fellowman.

To members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, temples are houses of the Lord, the most sacred places on earth. Temple services bind families together forever, teach the purpose of life and explain God’s plan of salvation. Temple attendance strengthens Latter-day Saints’ commitment to living Christian principles, emphasizes personal spiritual growth and increases devotion to family.

“The blessings of the temple are eternal,” said President Monson. “Those who come to this holy house will feel of God’s love for His children and come to a greater understanding of their own divine origin and potential as His sons and daughters.”

There are currently two temples in Arizona, in Mesa and Snowflake. Two additional temples were announced last month for Gila Valley and Gilbert, Arizona.

The Church’s Temple Department reports that the Mesa Arizona Temple, close to the city of Phoenix, is attended by more worshippers than any other Latter-day Saint temple in the world outside of Utah.

The announcement of eight new temples in Arizona, Idaho, Utah and British Columbia over the last two years reflects the Church’s steady growth in North America.

After Latter-day Saint temples are built they are opened to interested members of the public and the media for open house tours before being dedicated as places of worship. The Church’s last temple to be completed is in Curitiba, Brazil. Over 40,000 guests have visited that temple this month in open house tours for the media, dignitaries and the public.

http://www.newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/new-temple-for-phoenix-arizona-announced

New Temples in Arizona

This past Sunday they announced over the pulpit this wonderful news. I did a little research and found it online.

http://www.newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/president-monson-announces-two-new-temples-in-arizona

SALT LAKE CITY
28 April 2008

Plans to build two new temples in Gila Valley and Gilbert, Arizona, were announced today by Thomas S. Monson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This will bring the total number of temples to 139 already in operation or in the planning and construction phases. “It is my personal priority to make sure members of the Church have access to the blessings of the temple,” said President Monson.

“It is here where members learn of their divine origin and destiny, where they are strengthened spiritually as individuals and as families. Temples are sanctuaries from the storms of life.”

To members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, temples are the house of the Lord, the most sacred place on earth. Temple services bind families together forever, teach the purpose of life and explain God's plan of salvation. Temple attendance strengthens Latter-day Saints' commitment to living Christian principles, emphasizes personal spiritual growth and increases devotion to family.

There are currently two temples in Arizona: one in Mesa and another in Snowflake.

Latter-day Saint temples differ from the tens of thousands of local meetinghouses where members typically meet for Sunday worship services and midweek social activities and where visitors are always welcome. Temples are used solely for the performance of sacred ordinances and religious instruction aimed at strengthening members’ relationships with God and their fellow man. They are closed to the public after they are dedicated.


http://mormontimes.com/WC_headquarters.php?id=981

LDS Church News
Published: Friday, Apr. 25, 2008

Plans to build two new temples in Arizona, one in the Gila Valley and the other in Gilbert, were announced by President Thomas S. Monson. This will bring the total number of temples to 134 already in operation or in the planning and construction phases.

"It is my personal priority to make sure members of the Church have access to the blessings of the temple," said President Monson. "It is here where members learn of their divine origin and destiny; where they are strengthened spiritually as individuals and as families. Temples are sanctuaries from the storms of life."

There are currently two temples in Arizona: one in Mesa and another in Snowflake. The temples in the Gila Valley and Gilbert will bring the total number to four.

The two new temples are the first to be announced by President Monson since he became president of the Church on Feb. 3.

The history of the Church in Arizona dates back to the earliest days of the western migration of the Church. The Mormon Battalion marched through the area now known as Arizona in 1846 on its way to California.

Various efforts to colonize the area followed with the first large-scale effort coming in March of 1873. By Jan. 27, 1878, the Little Colorado Stake, the first stake in Arizona, was created.

Eventually, more than 30 colonies were started, with others in northern Mexico. These hardy pioneers overcame severe hardships in the early years, including drought, crop failures, difficulties with neighbors and floods.

Over the years, members gained prominence and were involved in the progress of the state. They earned a good reputation for their industry and integrity.

On Oct. 23, 1927, the first Arizona temple was dedicated in Mesa. Prior to that time, members traveled to the St. George Temple in Utah. So many bridal parties traversed the trail during the early years that the wagon road to St. George became known as the Honeymoon Trail.

President Spencer W. Kimball, 12th president of the Church who served from 1973-1985, was reared in the Gila Valley community of Thatcher.

Today, membership continues to flourish with approximately 370,000 members divided among 84 stakes and four missions.

(This story is provided by the LDS Church News, an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is produced weekly by the Deseret News. The contents of each week's edition of LDS Church News is available to subscribers online at ldschurchnews.com. To subscribe to LDS Church News, please click here.)

Doctor, Doctor?

Anyone know a good Doctor?

Michelle and I would really like to find a good "adult" doctor. We have had plenty of referrals from everyone at our church for pediatricians, but nothing for us old folks.

If you could either please leave a comment and let us know who you use or recommend, we would greatly appreciate that. If you care to share a personal experience on why you recommend your Dr. feel free to do so in the comments or e-mail either Michelle or I.

Thank you!

Field Trip

Come over to the Private Blog and see who got to take a field trip to the Desert Botanical Garden.

Where Are You?

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to leave a quick post to those that are still reading this. We have quite a few invited readers on our PRIVATE blog now. But there are a few of you that have either mentioned to Michelle and I that you want to be invited, or said you would send us an e-mail. We do not have most of your e-mails to just invite you, so you will need to send us your e-mail first.

If you don't have access to the PRIVATE blog by clicking the link in the top right, then please send us an e-mail and we'll give you access as soon as possible.

Remember - you'll have to type in the address, because I put spaces around the "@" sign so that it doesn't automatically link to our e-mail address. I've heard you can get spam if you put it out there like that. I could be wrong, since I have been proven wrong 6 times so far in my life! HAHA j/k

But anyways, send an e-mail to the address in the top right corner, so you can read and see more that is going on with us.

Number Nine

It was Kaden's Birthday on Wednesday! Come over to the Private Blog to find out what happened.

Spring Break Adventures...

My wife has to be like the coolest mom in the world! She helped the kid's creative juices start flowing, by helping them build this cool fort in our backyard. Come to the Private Blog to see more photos of this amazing structure, and the kids inside it!

Food for Thought

Come over to our Private Blog to find out the story about this.

Growed Up!

Come on over to the Private Blog...to read my lengthy entry on what I want to be when I grow up!

It has finally happened...

Well after having our blog up for over 4 months now, we have always expected this to happen. It finally happened...Michelle's ex-husband has found our blog! =)

Hello Brandon!

It seems he and his new wife have become a little obsessed over what they found. Here are their log in times over 24 hours, and let me know what you think.

3/1 - 7am - 40 mins
3/1 - 10:30 - 20 min
3/1 - 12pm - 1 min
3/1 - 6pm - 1 min

3/2 - 8:15pm - 1 min
3/2 - 11:30pm - 21 mins

3/3 - 7:50am - 1 min
3/3 - 8:30am - 12+ mins
3/3 - 9:15am - 5 mins

WOW! With that much time, you would think they have learned all they need to know.

As most of you that have been diligent readers, you know this has been a concern. So we have taken the necessary steps to make a Private blog. The link will be over on the right hand side.

Only those that have provided us your e-mail address will have access to it. You will need to log in with your e-mail address and password every time you want to read it. We will not be closing this blog down, but keep it open and periodically post the fun things we are doing along with our photos. But the Private blog will be where more information is found, that I can be more candid and open up about things going on in our lives!

So please read the message to your right, and come check out the Private blog and provide us your e-mail address so that we can grant you access to it. I'm sorry for any inconvenience this must cause for anyone, but you have to understand where we are coming from. Thank you all for being such wonderful friends, and sharing our lives.

Fun Photos

Ok. So I've had this camera for over a year, and just now getting back into it. I went through a phase there for awhile where I was taking pictures of anything and everything when I first got it. Then I would go month without taking a picture. But now I'm starting to get back into a more "normal" phase, where I will take pictures more frequent.

Here are a couple samples of playing around with the camera.

For some reason Jasmin thinks her eyes have to be closed when she smiles. After a couple photos like that, she got the idea in her head that she had to open her mouth. So this pic looks like she is either yelling, or showing off her full mouth of teeth!

This one is probably my favorite of all of them. I took the Color Accent feature and focused on a pinkish color so it brought out her lips and a little on her shirt. She looks somewhat innocent in this picture (like she just did something wrong, and batting her eyes to get out of it).

HAHA! This one cracks me up. Everytime Jasmin looks at this photo, she reenacts it with putting her bottom lip out, or her tongue. What a cutie!

Ok. Yeah! This picture scared me too. It almost looks like she is dead or a zombie. It's what I would imagine in a horror movie about a dead kid that haunts her family. But it's kinda cool at the same time. I did this with Color Accent as well. This time I focused more on a brownish color, and it produced this image.

Keep checking back to see what else I can take photos of. Halle is quite the little diva and model, and I already have some of her I can post up on here at a later date.

Flowers

So trying to go back to my romantic roots...I purchased a great arrangment of 200 bloom lillies for my wife for Valentine's Day. They are on their last leg, so I thought I would take some pictures (to remember them by) before they completely died. Luckily I took these about a week ago, and Michelle just threw them out yesterday. So here are a few pics that I took using the Color Accent feature of my camera, and then a regular one at the end. Hope you enjoy.

Adventures of SuperCam and Blue Kaden

Once upon a time...

(errr...wait, it should be)

In A Galaxy Far Far Away...

We find our favorite superhero, fighting the villian known as Blue Kaden. Luckily for SuperCam, this is not his first run in with his arch-enemy.

After what seemed like hours of yelling back and forth, SuperCam threw the first punch. Blue Kaden was waiting for it, and with a quick Kung-Fu swipe of his hand, he blocked the super punch.

Blue Kaden then turned the tables on our hero SuperCam. With his mighty grip Blue Kaden grabbed SuperCam's hand and began to squeeze with all his might.

But our hero was not going to let that be the end of him. He spun around quickly and put Blue Kaden into a choke hold.

Before Blue Kaden could counter-attack, SuperCam threw him to the ground and proceeded to whoop his hiney.

And just as the story was headed into our hero's favor, he made a fatal mistake. With his last remaining strength, he picked up Blue Kaden and lifted him over his head.

As he held him above his head, his super powers were drained, and Blue Kaden came crashing down onto our hero. It proved to be too much for SuperCam, and he passed out.

Luckily, SuperCam had recruited a new sidekick. This sidekick is well known among children of all ages, and even adults. His name is....Elmo! With his funny and witty charm, Elmo was able to distract the villian. While Blue Kaden was distracted our favorite sidekick, at the speed of light, lunged at him in revenge of SuperCam.

Our sweet little Elmo, was no more. He proceeded to give the villian what he deserved. Elmo has once again saved the day, and made our streets (and Sesame Street) safe to walk on again.

The End.

Brought to you by the letter S

and the number 7

Turn That Frown Upside Down

Hello everyone! I have been meaning to put an update here in the last little while, but time seems to have been extremely scarce. Thankfully some changes have occured in my life (break from school) which will allow me quite a few extra hours each week to get caught up on everything I've wanted to do. So I'm hoping to give a little more TLC to my blog.

I have felt quite depressed everytime I've visited our blog because of that "frustration" entry. This was only confirmed by one of my best friends, that she felt the same way. So it's about time that I add something new on. Sorry to everyone if my entry brought you down a little...

I've been in a "blog stall" mood lately. I just keep feeling that it needs "something." So I've played around with the template, and think I finally found one that I like. I've tried adding some Elements on the side, and can see the potential that will offer. I've been visiting some friends and relatives blog and have come to the conclusion that I'm not as creative as I thought. I wonder if there is a Blogger tutorial I can run through sometime? Maybe I just haven't played around with it enough to really reap the benefits. But anyways...I've also noticed I haven't been taking as many pictures or using my brand new camcorder for Christmas...as much as I should. So those are some things I want to work on.

Also, I've been battling internally on what my blog should be or represent. I've seen a lot of friends and family who use it as a "journal" for their kids. But when I started this, my vision was to keep friends and family informed of our lives and what we were experiencing. I'm also torn between keeping it a public blog or making it private. It seems recently quite a few people have made their blogs private. Having a private blog definitely has its benefits, and I would feel like I could be more open of whats really happening with us. So the battle continues...

Feel free to comment and share your thoughts and opinions about blogs. What was your purpose for starting one, and has that idea changed since you started? Do people really carry their cameras around that much to have pictures of almost everything that happens? For those people lurking our blog, feel free to leave us a comment so we know who you are! Love you all! Make it a grea day...

Frustrated...

Man...I'm really getting frustrated at this Blog "editor". It seems almost impossible to do what I want with it, and be constrained by all its pre-set standards. I think I'm understanding why I wanted to do my own family website instead.

I would love to hear from everyone on what their "techniques" are to posting, and working around this good for nothing editor. Maybe there is a different way of creating posts that I haven't searched out yet? Maybe people use a different editor, and then just copy and paste it in here? My biggest pet peeve is when I try adding photos after I write my entry, and the pictures are all misaligned or don't enlarge after posting. Grrrrr!

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

CoverGirl

What do you get when you combine...

+ =

Cover Girl Outlast
All day Lipcolor

That's right! I had that experience of "ok, why is it so quiet in the house?" so I went immediately running into my room. On the floor, next to my side of the bed, I saw this face looking up at me. I grabbed her and brought her downstairs so her mother could see our little girl wanting to be all grown up.

We broke out the baby wipes and preceded to give her a thorough cleaning and scrubbing off the lipcolor. Unfortunately, this stuff actually works. This was after 3 wipes.

Not much of a change you say? Exactly our thought as well. If any of the ladies reading this want a proven product, this would be it. CoverGirl's Outlast All Day lipcolor will outlast any scrubbing, smearing, wiping you may do to it.

Thankfully my wife is not just another gorgeous woman, but is incredibly smart as well. She suggested we put some baby oil on a rag and use it to wipe down. This was the end result after quite a few minutes of scrubbing.

As you can see in the enlarged image, its still a little red, but that has to do with the amount of scrubbing we had to do. She was a little sad afterwards, and hamming it up for the camera.

But our little girl is saved, and we won't have to worry about answering questions like "whats wrong with her face?"...whew!

Here are some more candid shots...

Lucky #7

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAMDON!

Camdon celebrated his b-day last Sunday, and had a blast. Unfortunately not all his friends he invited could come, but he had a great time with the ones that did. You would have thought they were all here, with the amount of noise that was going on upstairs. haha
Michelle and I got him a couple little gifts, and opened up a savings account for him. We did the same thing for Kaden when he turned 7, and it has been really beneficial for him. We are hoping Camdon will catch the same spirit of saving. My parents sent a gift down for him (he still hasn't been able to open it up because of time constraints) and Michelle's parents sent him some money (hopefully he will put it in his savings). Thank you to his aunt and uncle (Jason & Alyson) for sending a card.

My awesome cake-decorating wife made his cake (of course). She did an excellent job as always.

And by the look on Camdon's face...he was pretty impressed with the cake as well. A little awe struck?

President Gordon B. Hinckley, dies at 97

What a sad, sad day! My mother-in-law called us last night to tell us the grieving news. Our beloved prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley passed away of natural causes last night. It doesn't seem real. This great man has played a major role in my life, and has been the prophet I have grown the closest to. He became the prophet 2 years before I embarked on the biggest life changing event of my life (my mission). I have feasted upon his words through General Conference, and his Ensign messages. He was such a rock and foundation for me, and I truly loved that man. He has taken The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints into a whole new realm.

We will miss you President Hinckley, but are excited for you to be reunited with the love of your life and other family members. How excited I will be to meet you one day in the afterlife, and express to you my gratitude for all that you did for me. Thank you for being such a strength in my life and my testimony. You have glorified our Heavenly Father in your actions, and a great example of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. You taught us to love our neighbor regardless of their religion, and to embrace them. You helped us grow closer to our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ through temple work, and made it possible for those who couldn't to attend.

Thank you!