The Stapley Story: July 2011

Thursday, July 28, 2011

To: the Main Man in My Life

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY LOVE!!!

It was just days after your birthday, 8 yrs ago, that we met for the 1st time.

I'm so glad that I have gotten to spend every one of those w/ you since that time!

And I plan on being there for every birthday you have in this mortal life (& beyond, if bdays work

that way on the other side;).

And now we're off! To celebrate you! For the next two days!

I am grateful that you are eternally mine!

Monday, July 11, 2011

      A couple of weeks ago, Cole gave his very first Primary talk in church. He did fantastic! We were so impressed! It was one of those moments as a parent that you feel so very proud of your child & so very grateful to Heavenly Father, to know & see that what we are teaching him, is really sinking in.

     We practiced a few times during the week in preparation for the moment & when it came time, he went right up there, spoke loud & clear into the microphone, & looked out at the audience. He was not shy at all. He has an amazing memory, & while I was standing next to him whispering the lines we'd rehearsed just a few times, he was jumping ahead of me & even adding in his own phrasing or wording.

   He had the whole primary presidency very impressed & said he is like his daddy; very comfortable up there speaking. He touched the hearts of many of the adults in the room & we could definitely feel the presence of the Holy Ghost. The primary pianist came up to me after church & said, as she started to cry, "I felt the spirit so strongly during Coles talk that I began to cry & was crying so much I had to duck my head down behind the piano."

   I do not wish to share this to be "braggy" on our kid. Only to remember & share how true it is that at such a very young age, it is incredible that our children our capable of so much, can teach us so much & have such pure hearts to testify of the basic principles of Christ's church. Kids are still kids & will do crazy, silly, sometimes annoying things, but they are often the ones who most sense the spirit quite easily & those things beyond this world.

Here is what Cole said :

Every day at my house, I pray for & invite the Holy Ghost into my home w/ my family to help us & protect us.

Sometimes when I’m scared at night, because I had a scary dream, I say a prayer to Heavenly Father, asking the Holy Ghost to help me feel safe & calm. And when I do that, right away, I feel safe & much better.

This is the picture we took that he shared in his talk.

Joplin, Mo.

A few weekends ago, I went w/ my family to the city of Joplin where they had the big Tornado.

And I saw: baby & Kids toys, houses broken, & trees ripped apart.

I said to my mom & dad – “We need to stop the car & have a prayer for these people." (Cole truly said exactly this when we were in Joplin)

And after we did, "It felt like someone was hugging my heart!" (Previously during the week, while discussing the "Holy Ghost" during dinner, we asked Cole how he felt when he felt the Holy Ghost & the above is what he said) (When he said this during his talk, you could hear all the woman in the room go, "Ahhhhh", it was so sweet. And quite original; Jace & I had never heard it put that way before.)

That was the Holy Ghost letting me know that Heavenly Father was happy w/ me making a good choice & that I was choosing the right.

The Holy Ghost is a special friend to you & me. The Holy Ghost can bring feelings of warmth, love, peace, joy, & wanting to do good. When you feel the Holy Ghost with you, thank Heavenly Father for this blessing. The Holy Ghost is one of the greatest gifts Father in Heaven can give you.

Whenever I feel the Holy Ghost - “I feel like someone’s hugging my heart!”

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen!

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Friday thru Sunday

FRIDAY : Annual free Chick-fil-A day w/ friends. The boys made their cute little "cow" shirts that morning together & the mommies helped out w/ the ears & tails.

Our Date Night @ Beaver Lake

Our 1st visit to the beautiful Lake, just a 1/2 hr. away from our home.

We had fun play'n around.

And, no, we did not intentionally wear the same color shirt.

Jace pointed it out as we were walking into the mexican restaurant for dinner.

I guess great minds think alike! :)

Sunsets can be so romantic.

Yep! Definitely are!

I love my dear hubbie so much. We had fun chatt'n it up.

That one on one time is so important.

SATURDAY: Cole's Day Date w/ mommy & daddy to see Cars 2. After working hard on his chore chart for 2 weeks to earn it.

Well worth it! He loved it! And was eating it up!

Having Cole there made the whole experience that much more fun.

He was so cute during the movie - getting so excited & making

such cute or funny comments occasionally throughout the movie.

He was making the people around us smile & laugh a little

at his excitement.

Kids are great at that.

Off to Braums afterwards!

SUNDAY: The boys were having a "tough time" in sacrament mtg. today, so we came home very early & created our own. To "practice" our reverence. I've recently started practicing w/ them during the week & setting the timer for 70 mins( the length of the entire mtg.- our longevity of making it til the timer goes off is increasing). I call it "Reverent Hour". Since all 3 boys were "in deep" w/ mommy today, I was pleased that they all made it through pretty dang good! After thinking about things & praying for the spirit for additional insights on how to best carry out our little "meeting", I had Cole come out of time out, help me pick up the family room, get the kitchen chairs into the family room (since the couch is a bit too "comfy" & "bouncy" I've found), & get a "grown up" church film on - no cartoon characters (to get as close to a sacrament talk as possible - I've done Gen. Conf. talks as well). And it worked out great that everyone was already in church clothes & I had the diaper bag packed w/ snacks, drinks, & church activities. So off we went! Still a bit of room for improvement, but you know what, not a bit of whining or crying & no one had to go back to time out. We are going to continue w/ our "Reverent Hour" as much as possible during the week so that we don't have to "loose the privilege" (is what I told Cole) of getting to go to church, anymore.