OUR FIRST TEMPER TANTRUM

Last night she had her very first temper tantrum. It was over pancakes. Josh had cooked a really nice meal and she wanted pancakes instead of seasoned chicken and cheesy pasta. She LOVES pancakes! If she could have pancakes for breakfast, lunch and dinner she would. We told her that she couldn't have pancakes for dinner and she needed to eat what was already made. Within seconds, she started whining and then broke down crying. I thought to myself, here we go...here comes our very first tantrum. How are we going to deal with this? I have never had to do this before! A few minutes passed and within those few minutes, her crying and yelling got worse and got to the point where she was crying uncontrollably trying to catch her breath. We were taught in our training class about time-out and about setting routines and boundaries in their life. They need it. Bad. All children need routine and boundaries set. Josh and I looked at each other and for as hard as it was for us to place her in time-out, we knew that we had to. We knew we had to set the boundaries now otherwise she will take advantage of situations and think she can get away with anything. Josh picked her up and as he was walking towards our bedroom she was reaching out for me to save her. Josh placed her on a small kids stool that we have from IKEA and placed her in our room facing the wall. She hated it and it was probably so knew to her because she probably has never had any type of structure or discipline in her life. It broke my heart into pieces to see her cry like that, but I knew it needed to happen. In the end I know placing her in time-out will help her know how to deal with her anger, frustration and give her a chance to calm down. After she calmed down and stopped crying, she came out of the room and walked over to me to say sorry. We talked about why she was put in time-out and then we all cuddled on the couch and watched Aladdin.  
How do deal with your child's unruly behavior?  I would love to hear your thoughts, experiences and opinions!

FOSTER CARE ISN'T FOR ME..ITS FOR THEM.

Having her in our home since last Wednesday,  I have realized a valuable reality and important lesson. I have realized that fostering isn't about ME- it’s not about my fulfillment and needs or my wishes and desires- it’s about supporting the needs of the many children that will be placed in our care. Fostering a child presents a little bit of a dilemma because you welcome a child into your home and try to care for them as if they were your own child while at the same time being ever aware and respectful of the fact that they are not your child.  It is SO hard! It's so hard because I feel so torn and my emotions are all over the place due to this fact. This past week, I have been on an emotional roller coaster. The hardest thing is loving her with all our whole heart and realizing that she might just move on. Josh and I have fallen so much in love and attached to this little girl that its really hard to accept the fact that she might not be with us tomorrow, that there's that slight chance that she will be taking from us. Going into foster care and especially getting our first placement, it makes me wish that we could have a 100+ bedroom house so we can just adopt a bunch of children. I know that it not reality though. I have to keep telling myself that what does matter is the fact that we've been able to provide a great home for a child in need- regardless of whether that child stays in our home for days or months and regardless of how I feel about the judge’s final decision determining their future. These children are all in Gods hands. He is the one that has a plan for each of them. He has a future prepared for them.  I heard one foster Mom tell me  that "not only are you impacting the life of a child, but you are serving as a major resource and support to that child’s family as well.  In some cases your family may be the only reliable alternative that your foster child’s family may have to provide a safe and loving home for their children.  With this in mind, foster care isn't just for the children, but for the families of these children as well.  You are giving a family a chance to come back together again." How true is this! I keep telling myself that I just need to take it one day at a time and focus on what really matters most. Her. She matters most right now and God has a plan that is so much better than mine and He loves her more than I ever could.  Every night as I rock her to sleep and tickle her little back I sing "I Am a Child of God" to her and tell her just how much her Heavenly Father loves her. These are the moments that I will forever remember and will be forever ingrained in my heart.
Question for you Foster Mom's out there.
What is the hardest thing about fostering for you?

GOURMET FOOD-BUYING FOOD ONLINE

Have you ever thought to buy food online? I have heard from so many people that its fast, easy and convenient. There are also grocery stores nowadays that actually deliver your groceries right to your door. Haven't tried that just yet. Just a few months back, we bought some steaks from Omaha Steaks and they were so good! Recently a good friend of mine also told me about this website. Fine Food Specialist offers meat/poultry, seafood, mushrooms, specialty cheese, and truffles. She said she purchased some meat and cheese from their website and was very impressed with the quality and the short amount of time to have the food delivered to her house. If I was to purchase a few items from their website, these would be my top choices:

Oven Ready Quails

Gorgonzola Cheese

Olive Oil Trio Set

Check out their gifts sets here too!

OUR FIRST EASTER WITH A CHILD

Our Easter was definitely one that we will never forget. It was our first Easter with this sweet little girl. She was so excited to go Easter egg hunting at my Sister-In-Laws house. I couldn't help from tearing up as I watched her quickly scurry around looking for eggs with a giant smile on her face..and those dimples!! Oh man...I cannot get enough of those cute little dimples of hers! In just a few days, we have seen so many positive changes in her and it's so amazing to sit back and watch God orchestrate this entire journey.  

HER NAME MEANS HOPE-OUR FIRST PLACEMENT

It was completely unexpected. We had our last appointment last Tuesday night. I knew that we would eventually get a call..I just didn't think it would be the next day! As I was on my way home Wednesday night, Josh called and told me that the CPS worker called him and they had a 4 year old little girl. I was speechless at first and didn't know what to say. I couldn't believe this was actually happening! 
I continued to drive home and it seemed like I couldn't get home fast enough because I was so excited. Once I got home, Josh and I had less than two hours to get the house tidy and run to the store to get some last minute items which included a few pairs of pajamas, some kids food/snacks and a flower bed set. Josh also picked out the cutest baby doll for her too. We were both so excited and couldn't wait to me her. 
Less than two hours seemed like days to us as we waited with excitement and anticipation for a knock at the door. Finally around 7:15pm, we saw a car pull up. "Josh! She's here! She's here" I shouted.
We opened up the door and saw her for the first time. She was beautiful. She looked at us with her big brown eyes as we smiled at her and said hello. The CPS worker said that she cried and screamed the whole way to our house. He set her down on the ground. I knelt right next to her and asked if she wanted to see her room. She immediately grabbed my hand as we ran to her bedroom. As we entered her room, her big brown eyes got even bigger as she ran around looking at her room and all her toys. I loved seeing her laugh and smile. It made my heart happy. She looked at me and Josh all night for love, affection and safety. Little did she know that no matter how long she is with us, that she would getting all that and so much more!

DRESALE

 Dresale offers a large variety of wedding dress, party dresses, special occasion dresses and shoes.  Dresale contacted me and asked me to write some of my opinions about the cocktail dress that is featured below. In my opinion, I think that the dress is very different looking with the partial sheer fabric on the front, back and sleeves. Of course I am going to say I love the color because its black, but it would be nice to see it come in others too besides just black. Maybe red, blue, pink, etc. Would this be a dress that I would choose to wear out? Probably not, because it's not really my style and is not modest enough for me. I think the dress would look really elegant if it was floor length with a slight slit on the left side and minus the cutouts on each side of the dress too. Overall, its a pretty dress but it wouldn't be something that I would personally pick out for myself.  

Here are some shoes that I think would go great with this dress:

Glitter Pumps

Peep Toe Sling Back Heels

Peep Toe Heel

ANY DAY. ANY HOUR.

Last night we met with our ongoing worker for a "binder appointment". In foster care terms, a binder appointment is when your assigned ongoing worker comes out to visit your home with a binder full of (more) paperwork and (more) forms that you will need to keep track of when each child is placed into your home (incident report, health assessment, wardrobe checklist, emergency contact list, purchase ledger, and health/medical forms). One section in the binder that is very helpful is information with places for food, clothing, entertainment, and activity discounts. There is a place in Mesa called Helen's Hope Chest. They help foster children with all their basic needs. Everything is free. (school supplies, hygiene products, sports equipment, and clothing). You make an appointment and then you and the child can walk through from room to room and the child can pick out what he or she likes. I love that!
Our ongoing worker informed us that our name is up on the board already and it will be any day right now!!!! She said that we have two huge advantages to getting a placement fairly soon. #1: We told our agency that we would be willing to accept two children especially if they were siblings because we wouldn't want to have them separated. #2: Josh works from home. Different workers also switch weeks with carrying "the phone" around in case a call comes through with a child that has been removed from their home. Our worker has the phone this week, so we are crossing our fingers and praying that we get a call! 
I know that God has a child already selected for us and His timing will be perfect when he/she is placed into our home. It can be any day or any hour now. He is the only one that knows when that time is. He is so good!  

ITS OFFICIAL!

Its official!! Yesterday afternoon we were approved by the State and are now certified foster parents! Tonight we get to meet our ongoing case worker who will tell us about some of the ways we can prepare for our first phone call. After tonight, we just sit back and wait for that call to have a sweet little child (or two) placed in our home. We are feeling so very grateful and blessed that God would trust us with such a task to care for and love His children as if they were our own. This entire process has taken us a year to complete. Just to think....now we are only just a few days away from being able to open our home to all the wonderful children that Heavenly Father has prepared to leave in our care. So excited to see what He has in store for us and for these children!

I AM A MORMON MONDAY: MEET VALERIE

About me:

My name is Valerie and I blog at A Little Life Journal 

http://valeriebt.blogspot.co.uk/

My blog is really just a family blog although it has taken some unexpected twists and turns since it began. We live in a small cottage by the sea on the East Coast of Scotland, and despite the weather, we love it here.

What is hope and what do you hope for?

Hope is the surety that everything is working out exactly the way it is meant to. Feeling hopeless is feeling cast adrift with no course and no purpose. I hope for peace and happiness, which sounds like a cliche, but in the end its what my heart desires for myself and for everyone I care about.

How I live my faith:

I live my faith with love. Loving everyone does not come naturally to me (most of us?),  but its how our Savior lived His life and He is my Teacher. Love can be divided endlessly, love can build bridges, and move mountains and change lives forever. I try to live my life full of love. “Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye.” 

Thank You for including me in Mormon Monday Kimberly!

...................................................................................................................................................................

If you would like to be apart of I Am a Mormon Monday, 

please contact me and I will add you to the list! 

Email: bostonksox@gmail.com 

JEWELRY GIVEAWAY: MALL OF STYLE

Happy Friday! I am so glad that the weekend is finally here. Something else I am glad about?? To be able to offer this wonderful GIVEAWAY from Mall of Style to you today! Mall of Style is an online fashion jewelry store that was launched in 2012. Their primary focus are three things: Uniqueness, Quality and Pricing. They are up to date on the latest and greatest styles and include new pieces of jewelry in their inventory each week. I have picked out a few of my favorite pieces from their website. Take a few moments and head on over to check out what they have too! 

Crystals Choker Necklace

Pearls Bib Necklace

Rose Gold Bracelet

Fashion Earrings

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms & Conditions:

1.       USA Shipping : Cart value of the order needs to be minimum $10, excluding shipping and taxes

2.       Non USA : Cart value of the order needs to be minimum $25, excluding shipping and taxes

3.       Cannot be redeemed on ‘Sale’ jewelry

4.       Cannot be exchanges for cash.

5.       Coupon to be redeemed before the expiry date.

JUST IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING....

I testify to you that there is s God! He is real and personal and loving. He is also just. The fact that we can see, hear, and experience, all testifies of this fact that He is real and that He has a wondrous plan that allows us to partake of His goodness and creation all around us every day. I challenge you to try and find God in everywhere you look and in everyone you meet.

GILBERT ARIZONA TEMPLE.

 

 

A Commandment with Blessings

From the days of the Old Testament, the Lord has commanded His people to build temples-sacred structures where He could teach, guide, and bless them. For example, the Lord told the Israelites to build a portable tabernacle that would be their temple while they traveled in the wilderness (see Exodus 26-27; 40:35). Additional Old Testament references to temples are found in 2 Chronicles 5:1-14; 7:1-2 (Temple of Solomon) and Ezra 3:1-13; 6:3(Temple of Zerubbabel).

Portable Tabernacle

The Lord told the Israelites to build a portable tabernacle that would be their temple while they traveled in the wilderness  (see Exodus 26-27:40:35).

 

When Jesus Christ was on the earth, the only existing temple was known as the Temple of Herod. Jesus was often found in this temple (see, for example, Luke 2:40-49; Matthew 21:10-14).

After the rejection and deaths of Jesus's Apostles, there were no temples on the earth for many centuries. When the gospel of Jesus Christ was restored in the early 1800s, the Lord again commanded His people to build temples (see D&C 88:119; see also section 95). The earliest temples of the restored Church were built in Ohio, Illinois, and eventually in Utah. Today, the Church has 140 operating temples around the world. Regardless of the place or time period, temples are the most sacred place on earth-a place where earth and heaven meet and where we feel close to our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

*Pictures of the Temple were taken by my best friend yesterday*

INSPIRATION.

I AM A MORMON MONDAY: MEET JEN

Hi!  My name is Jen and Matt and I were married in the Salt Lake Temple almost 13 years ago after I graduated from Southern Utah University.  A year later we moved to Phoenix, Arizona so Matt could attend dental school at A.T. Still University.  During school, we were blessed with two, rowdy little boys, and a year after Matt graduated dental school we were blessed with a third little boy.  A short 8 months later I could not believe I was expecting again.  I almost didn't dare even hope for a girl, but our wildest dreams came true and we were blessed with a princess in 2009.  One more baby blessed our family in 2012.

4 months after the birth of our son, I had a seizure in a grocery store.  My husband insisted we go to the ER and when we got to the hospital they ended up admitting me and performing several tests.  Never in a million years did we expect to hear that my seizure was caused by a malignant brain tumor.  We were beyond devastated.  Who was going to raise my babies?  My newborn?  What was going to happen?  I was not ready to die!

We do not believe for one second that it was a coincidence that we chose to attend dental school in Phoenix.  We would have never decided to build a practice and live here had we not gone to school here.  Barrow Neurology is one of the best neurological hospitals in the world and we live 40 miles away.  My surgery, radiation and chemo has all been through Barrow and we could not feel more blessed or be happier with my success.  The cancer I have is bad (Stage 3)--my doctors give me 3-5 years to live, but I am doing so well we cannot imagine that statistic being true.  In the meantime, I live each day to the fullest and remember that life is a gift we must cherish.

My Heavenly Father wrapped His arms around me and carried me through the most unimaginable trial of my life and I could not have made it without Him.

What is hope?

Hope is the ability want something enough to keep going.  Hope is what got me through my trial.  Hope is what gets me through everyday.  When times are hard, hope will get you through the next minute.  When times are good, hope can keep your future bright.  Without hope we have nothing.  I had many dark days where I would BEG my Heavenly Father to take my cancer away.  I would cry and plead with Him for hours until it suddenly hit me that this trial is His will for me and I needed to let it go.  Instead of hoping for a miracle cure for cancer, I needed to become at peace within myself and hope for a "good day tomorrow", hope to instill the proper truths and values in my children now so if I do pass away, they will carry those on.  Hope is a raw and beautiful emotion that I've become very familiar with.

How do I live my faith?

I pray to be an example to others everyday.  I believe in the power of prayer with ALL of my heart.  I am far from perfect, but try to speak kindly, include others, have patience (this one is the hardest for me!) and be loving to those around me.  I serve in the Young Women and really love it.  I read my scriptures daily and try to teach my children Gospel Principles as often as I can.  I love the Gospel and truly, truly cannot imagine my life without it.  How blessed we are to have a loving Father in Heaven and a Savior and an atonement.  My heart is so full when I think of all of my incredible blessings.  

Thank you for this opportunity Kimberly!  

You can follow me on instagram: @jenniferroper or visit our blog: theroperfam.blogspot.com.

................................................................................................................................................................. Interested in being apart of I Am a Mormon Monday?  Email me for details! bostonksox@gmail.com