We are back up at Bear Lake getting ready for the onslaught of 42 family members and a plethora of friends who will be showing up during the month of July. Although our days are filled with hard work, clearing mice from their “winter quarters” and pulling endless grass and weeds from the flower garders, repairing lawn chairs, and unending places to organize and clean, the evenings remind us of … Continue reading
Our daughter Shawni, mother of five has had a particularly difficult week. Her youngest daughter Lucy has a rare syndrome called Bardet Biedel which means that her genetic make-up will not allow her eyes to receive enough protein and, unless science can intervene, she will be blind sometime between the ages of 9 and 15. She also lacks a hormone that tells her when she if full. Therefore … Continue reading
As Memorial Day comes and goes this year, I (Linda) am celebrating those heroines who came before me: my Grandmothers! Most of them I never knew but their stories find me and bind me to their heroic lives! In addition I’m thinking of the lives of the Mothers who came after these great women who are also influenced by their sacrifices. This article appeared in the Deseret News … Continue reading
Even though Mother’s Day has come and gone, the omniscient power of Mothers hasn’t. Yet, sadly the choice to become a Mother is plummeting all over the world! In London’s Daily Telegraph we found this: ”An ONS study in 2010 found that just one in nine women born in 1938 remained childless, rising to one in five women born in 1965. It is projected that a quarter of 45-year-olds … Continue reading
Last weekend we had the privilege of hosting an annual Power of Moms retreat at our home. Eighty women had the opportunity to have what almost all important careers have: job training! We spent a regular work day…from 9-5, delving into methods, not only to survive but thrive in life’s most important career: Motherhood. Over 300 children represented by the Mothers who were there were left in someone … Continue reading
For most people, Maui is not a cheap place to live. For our son Jonah and his wife Aja and their four creative children, it’s a different story. In December we visited them and their new life style after they bought and were in process of remodeling a dilapidated old historic home in Makawao, an up-country town in Maui. Their commitment to living green is nothing less than inspiring! Since … Continue reading
We have become recent fans of Bruce Feiler who posted an article in the New York Times on March 17th about his long search to find how to create resilience and self-confidence in children. He found the answers somewhere you might not expect. He says, “The single most important thing you can do for your family may be the simplest of all: develop a strong family narrative.” This … Continue reading
This should qualify as the eighth wonder of the world! Last week when we were in Columbia we were treated to a tour of one of the most amazing things we have seen. It was a Cathedral carved in an enormous Salt Mine in the Zipaquirá Mountain near Bogota. When the mining was finished, the government assigned 100 architects and sculptors to create a truly incredible structure to commemorate the last … Continue reading
We are on a Latin American speaking tour and learning so much! Presently we are in Bogota, Colombia with some delightful families! Soon we will be moving on to Monterrey and Guadalajara. Every time we visit Latin America we are incredibly impressed with the quality of the families. The nurturing, love and respect that they give their children is mirrored in the respect that their children show … Continue reading
Every night I find a place to recharge the battery on my computer and my phone. It seems that it’s rarely in the same place as we so often on the road. But plugging in is very important! Those “machines” have become my lifeline to the rest of the world, especially now that our children and their families are flung far across the globe. I need those useful … Continue reading