My New Favorite Song

Mascara Review

Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara- I love this mascara!!! It makes my eyelashes look super long and full without getting clumpy or messy. Try it!! I think you'll like it!

The Story of the Human Language Part One

Just a note: My blogs haven't been letting me space paragraphs lately. Sorry!! I don't know what the problem is, but it's really bugging me. I just finished listening to the first 12 lectures on The Story of Human Language. I really enjoyed them!. They are great to listen to while I clean the house or chauffer the kids in the car. Here are a few random things I learned:

1. A human language is always slowly morphing into another one.


2. Sounds often change to become more like the ones before or after them. Vowels shift around in the mouth, consonants soften, and the ends of words tend to fall off.


3. The first language has now morphed into 6,000 languages worldwide.


4. In language an expression that began as a colorful one (peach keen!) dillutes into normality or disappears altogether and is replaced by a new colorful expression.


5. Semantics shift over time. For example, silly originally meant "blessed," but over centuries the meaning gradually drifted until it eventually came to mean "silly."


6. Languages of the Indo-European family are spoken throughout most of Europe, as well as in India and Iran. According to linguists, the language most likely began in the southern steppes of modern Russia in about 4,000 B.C. Linguists assume it did not begin in the Mediterranean because there are no common words for "palm tree" or "vine". They probably did not originate in Europe either because there is no common word for "oak".

So there are a few of the facts I learned about language. I just received an e-mail notification from the library, that Part Two has arrived and I am looking forward to learning more.

Reading with Kevin

I have a wide variety of interests, most of which I enjoy sharing either through conversation or blogging. However, one notable exception, is my religious insights, feelings, and experiences. Those are very private for me and I rarely discuss them with anyone unless I am teaching a lesson. However, recently I had an experience that gave me pause. A sister I was visiting teaching mentioned that she had read an article about how a lot of missionary work was being done through blogging. I've thought a lot about her words since and decided that I need to share more of my spiritual insights in my blog. Of course, I am still of the belief that many experiences and impressions are far too sacred to share. Those I will keep private. But I am going to try to be more open about others and write more posts of a spiritual nature. So here goes.... Each morning I have my kids do their daily reading before they go to school, and this morning was no exception. When I asked Kevin, my five-year-old to go choose a book, I expected him to bring back, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?" his current favorite book, but instead he brought back this book: and this one I was pleasantly surprised. We first opened the "Tell Me the Stories of Jesus" book. Someone, my mom I think, had given it to us for Christmas, but we hadn't read it yet. Kevin really enjoyed it because it had pull-the-tab, lift-the-flap, and turn the wheel acitivities. What kid doesn't enjoy those?!! However, he also liked it because he loves learning about Jesus. He often tells me that he loves Jesus even more than he loves me, and that makes me happy. Next, we turned to the Book of Mormon. At our primary "Scripture Power" activity back in February we gave each primary child their own mini Book of Mormon. The primary children, including my own, all seem to love them. I asked Kevin what story he wanted to read in the Book of Mormon and he requested the story about Jesus and the children. So we turned to 3 Nephi:17 and read part of the account of Jesus and the children. To be honest, at that point Kevin was still pretty distracted by all the tabs, flaps, and wheels of the other book, but I still enjoyed having the experience with him. And yes, we do have family scripture study, so studying the scriptures with my children wasn't an unfamiliar activity, but studying one-on-one was and Kevin and I both really enjoyed it. I am so grateful that I am able to raise my kids with the knowledge of the Savior and His restored gospel.

Reborn

This morning I studied one of my favorite chapters of the Book of Mormon, 3 Nephi: Chapter 11. I've always found it interesting that I can study a verse of scripture that I've read countless times before and be suddenly struck with a new insight that somehow I missed every other time. Or perhaps it's an old insight, but it hits a different chord. This morning as I was reading 3 Nephi 11:37-38, I was struck by the concept of being reborn. Of course this was not a new idea to me, but it moved me in a way I had never experienced before. I love the concept of being reborn and I hope that to some degree I can be reborn every day as I repent of my sins, draw closer to the Savior, and do a little better than I did the day before.

Easter Dresses

I'm still searching for an Easter dress. I'm not concerned with it being traditionally Easterish (pastels and frills), just flattering and stylish. These are the top four contenders. Please leave your vote.

Still No Shoes

Just in case you're wondering which shoes I happened to pick, the answer is.....neither. They were both just too chunky for my taste. What I'd really like are these beauties by Badgley Mischka, minus the $225 price tag. Sigh.....

The Great Shoe Exchange

I ended up returning the "Witch" shoes I wrote about in my last post. The toe box was a bit too long and pointy, even for my taste. I sent for these two beauties instead and am anxiously awaiting their arrival. Once they do, I will no doubt try on each pair about a dozen times (at least), studiously compare and contrast every detail, then waste a great deal of time and energy trying to make up my mind which pair I prefer. The victor will land a permanent place in my closet, while the loser will win a one way trip back to the warehouse. May the best shoe win!!!

Heber J. Grant

During my youth, I had wonderful Primary and Sunday School teachers who taught me the gospel and strengthened my testimony, but after all these years, the lessons are just a blur. The one exception is a lesson about Heber J. Grant. I can't remember who taught it, or my age at the time, but I do know that the lesson greatly impacted my life.

The themes of the lesson were perseverance and determination, which Heber J. Grant exemplified. For example, he wished to obtain employment at the Wells Fargo and Company Bank, but his penmanship was far too sloppy. He practiced and practiced, using "carloads of paper," until his handwriting was so beautiful that he was frequently called upon to write greeting cards, insurance policies, and legal documents. He was even asked to teach penmanship at the University of Deseret.

On a similar note, he was downright awful at baseball, lacking the strength and coordination to bat the ball or to run from base to base. In fact, when he had the ball, his teammates would yell, "Throw it here, Sissy!" Heber decided that he was going to learn to play baseball and vowed to be a member of the team that won the state championship. He worked hard to earn a dollar to buy a baseball, then spent hours throwing it against his bishop's barn. Through great determination and hard work, he eventually became a member of the baseball team that won the championship in California, Colorado, and Wyoming.

Like baseball and penmanship, vocal skills did not come easily to Heber. His mother tried to teach him to sing, but eventually gave up because he couldn't learn to carry a tune. He joined a singing group, but sang so poorly that the professor told him that he could never in this world learn to sing. However, a friend told him that anybody could sing if they practiced enough. So practice he did, and eventally learned to carry a tune.

I think the lesson on Heber J. Grant stood out to me because I could relate to it. Few skills come easily to me, and usually only through hard work and determination do I become successful at anything. Over the years, I have reflected many times upon the lesson and it's message and gained strength to ovecome my weaknesses.


Heber J. Grant often quoted the following words by Ralph Waldo Emerson:

"That which we persist in doing becomes easier to do,

not that the nature of the thing has changed,

but that our power to do so is increased."

How perfectly these words seem to reflect the man he was and the values he held dear!!

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