Rethinking Meat

Last weekend Ellie and I went to Time Out For Women in Portland.  We had a great time . Darren came over separate with our friend Dr. Laury ( DL).  I was going to blog about it tonight but my card in my phone has been corrupted and I lost all my pictures!!! AHHH! Hopefully I can find a way to recover them.  
Anywho, what I want to talk about tonight is something that has been on my mind since we have been hanging out with Dr. Laury.  DL is a Pescatarian.  That is: a person who does not eat meat but does eat fish. When you hang out with someone who doesn't eat meat you realize something- You realize how much meat you eat.  Which for me and my family is a lot!  Really, I eat meat about twice a day, lunch and dinner.  When I plan my dinners I usually plan it around a meat; I do a chicken meal, a hamburger meal, roast, pork, etc.  We had a long conversation about eating meat.  And I have really been thinking about it lately.  Is eating meat everyday keeping the Word of Wisdom?
I went straight to the source- the temple recommend questions- what does it say specifically? Does it ask if you eat meat? Well here it is.. 
10. Do you keep the Word of Wisdom?

What does that mean exactly?  Well,  lets go straight to the source. 

Doctrine and Covenants 89.
 1  Word of Wisdom, for the benefit of the council of high priests, assembled in Kirtland, and the church, and also the saints in Zion—

 2 To be sent greeting; not by commandment or constraint, but by revelation and the word of wisdom, showing forth the order and will of God in the temporal salvation of all saints in the last days—

 3 Given for a principle with promise, adapted to the capacity of the weak and the weakest of all saints, who are or can be called saints.

 4 Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation—

 5 That inasmuch as any man drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold it is not good, neither meet in the sight of your Father, only in assembling yourselves together to offer up your sacraments before him.

6 And, behold, this should be wine, yea, pure wine of the grape of the vine, of your own make.

 7 And, again, strong drinks are not for the belly, but for the washing of your bodies.

 8 And again, tobacco is not for the body, neither for the belly, and is not good for man, but is an herb for bruises and all sick cattle, to be used with judgment and skill.

 9 And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.

 10 And again, verily I say unto you, all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man—

 11 Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the season thereof; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving.

 12 Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly;

 13 And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used, only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.

 14 All grain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, not only for man but for the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven, and all wild animals that run or creep on the earth;

 15 And these hath God made for the use of man only in times of famine and excess of hunger.

 16 All grain is good for the food of man; as also the fruit of the vine; that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground—

 17 Nevertheless, wheat for man, and corn for the ox, and oats for the horse, and rye for the fowls and for swine, and for all beasts of the field, and barley for all useful animals, and for mild drinks, as also other grain.

 18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;

 19 And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;

 20 And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.

 21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen.

First of all.. HELLO... We can make our own wine?  Why did I not know this?  Why haven't I done this before?  Oh wait, I just re-read it and I guess that's just for the sacrament. Dang.

Ok, so doesn't eating meat sparingly seem like something LDS people should take pretty seriously?   So from what I read He said: 1 time: to not use tobacco, 1 time: to not drink hot drinks (coffee),  2 time: not drink strong drinks (alcohol) and 3 times to eat meat sparingly.  Hmmmmm. Three times is a lot. 

 It's funny to me in our LDS society drinking coffee is a total huge sin, but we can eat all the meat we want and no one thinks twice.  Is one really worse than the other?  Wouldn't eating meat be more of a sin than smoking, and drinking- really?  

This is all so interesting especially with all these new studies about meat and colon cancer. 

 We had a conversation with DL about all this and it was very interesting.  He talked about how our bodies were designed to be herbivorous.  We weren't born to be hunters.  We weren't born with claws and sharp teeth. Our intestines are also designed like herbivorous. Another thing he said I thought was fascinating was our "dominion" over animals.   I always just thought it meant we could eat them- right?  What exactly does dominion mean? The word dominion means “rule or power over.” Ok, so if I'm the queen and I rule over a group of people does that mean I can eat them?  Or does it mean it's my job to take care of them?? Just because you rule then and have power over them doesn't mean you should eat them- it's means more that we should take care of them.  Definitely a new way of looking at things.  It kind of reminds we of how in the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve were told to take care of the garden.  Same thing with animals. Take care of them. 

Take a look at this article on what else the church has to say about animals.  It's fascinating.

https://www.lds.org/ensign/1972/08/the-gospel-and-animals?lang=eng

We know we aren't going to be eating meat during the millennial- so wouldn't that be the higher law?

I am very conflicted about this, because honestly- I really like meat! And it seems like it was be a HUGE change to cut meat out of my diet.  What would I eat? What dinners would I feed my family?  Would we get sick of food really fast?  Beans and rice gets old.  And Fish is expensive for a family of 7.  I'm not sure that I can cut meat out entirely, but I am defiantly going to start cutting back.  I think if I start slow it will get easier and easier.  I am thinking I will start by cutting out all meat and only eat chicken just a couple of times a week.  I'm nervous and not sure I can do it.  I really admire people who eat meat sparingly or not at all and hope someday I can get there.  Baby steps. 

What are your thoughts about eating meat?  Anyone else tried to cut back?  

Getting Ready For a Mission

One thing I have ALWAYS dreamed about doing is to go on a service mission.  The medical ones where they fix children's cleft palate and cleft lip.  My sister Athena did Hirsche Smiles in Guatemala.  She had an amazing time.   I have always had a problem though- I have no medical training! But now.... I am married to a CRNA! Which means, I can try to convince him to go and go with him! I could do clerical work or something.   And  I want to take my kids.  I want my kids to see how most of the rest of the world lives.   It's a big awakening for someone who has lived in America their whole life to see a 3rd world country.   I'll tell you, when you start to feel like you need a bigger house, nicer car, or whatever, just take a trip to Guatemala and all your wantings will be gone.  It's a great life lesson for kids.  I want my kids to experience it.
I  e-mailed the folowing letter to about 10 different organizations tonight.

Hello!
My husband is a CRNA and we are interested in going on a mission- in a year or two.  I would like to start now to get ready.  If he gets credentialed how long do the credentials last?  Is it something that needs to be renewed every year or two?

I would also like to go with him, but have no medical experience.  Do you have other jobs I could do such as clerical? 

I would also be interested in bringing my older children to help.  They are very responsible and helpful.  Do you have an age limit you allow people to come help?  My sister did a trip where younger people would play with the kids before surgery- keep them entertained.  They would also help them wash their hair, and taught them how do bath, brush teeth, etc.  Do you do things like that?

I am aware we would need to cover expenses for myself and my children.  I would really like my children to see how other people in the world live and learn to serve others. 

Thanks so much!!

Emily Ernst

Hopefully we will get some good responses. 
We watched the following video for Family Home Evening to start thinking about getting ready.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLyMZmtdI0E

I know it may take a couple of years to actually go, but I already can't wait!!!!

Halloween

I found all these pictures of Halloween on Darren's phone.  We can't forget Halloween, in fact, in Gabe's mind, Halloween is not over!  Actually, Darren and Gabe flew to Massachusets on Halloween, so we did some activities the day before to celebrate and let GAbe get some candy.  We went to Trick-or treat on Main.  Which was way too crowded- we just walked down the street and then left.  I wasn't standing in line for 5 min. for a penny candy.  Nor were my kids.  Paul was the 19th Doctor from Doctor Who.  I guess it's a BBC show or something.

Later that night we did the ward trunk-or-treat.  Paul decorated the trunk of the van really fun.   Gabe was a skeleton trying to be in a creepy pose for this picture. 

 Kyle and his side kick Carson were football players.  They have been wearing these costumes for weeks beforehand.

 At the begging of the trunk or treat Gabe was so excited!  He was running to go to the first car and fell right on his face and hit his nose really hard.  Like. really. hard.  Blood was coming out his nose and mouth and we thought it might be broken.  Luckily the bleeding stopped and it just ended up being a really bad hit, but it ruined the poor kids night.  He sat on Darren's lap the rest of the night.  No begging or pleading could get him to go have fun getting candy.  I felt so bad for him. 

 Ellie was the cutest little pirate you ever did see! Here she is with Savannah.  She and her buddies made Ninja turtle costumes. She wore her the next day for real trick-or treating.

 Cute little Luke made me hold him for most of the night.  I did put him down for a moment and got a couple of pictures of him. He was a skeleton in case you can't tell.

 Cute little kids tired out.  I love my kids. I love holidays, they make life so fun.

Sleep

I am a sleeper.  I wish I wasn't- as I find sleeping a big waste of time. But I can sleep...lots.  If I let myself- I'll sleep 10 hours a night- easy.   And then take a 2 hour nap during the day.  I can fall asleep almost anytime, anywhere.  I have to use an alarm to make sure I don't sleep longer than 8 hours.   It's especially hard when I have a super snugly, warm baby in my bed that want's to nurse and snuggle 12 hours a day.  How can I resist?  Get up and clean the house or snuggle in my bed with my sweet little baby?  Hmmm. Plus nursing makes me sleepy!
I wish I was a Martha Stuart type- that only needs 4-5 hours of sleep a night.  I could get so much done! I think some people just have that gene.
I 'm bringing this up because after getting a full 8 hours of sleep last night, I fell asleep nursing Luke today.  And woke up 2 1/2 hours later! Like no big deal for me to sleep that long.  I wonder if there is something wrong with me, or what? Maybe 5 kids and a new baby is just tiring.  Yea, lets go with that.
How much do you sleep??

Paul's Trumpet Solo

I am so excited about Paul and the progress he is making with his trumpet! He was chosen to perform the trumpet solo at their latest concert at the High School.  You have got to check it out! It's only about 1 min.  I am so impressed with him- It's crazy to think he has only been playing the trumpet about a year and a half!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoiqZjqjdEQ

Piano

Have I ever told you about how we got our piano?  Well, I'm going to.  Almost 2 years age Darren got a job and we moved to Hermiston.  I really wanted to get a piano, but Darren didn't want to get one.  First he didn't want to pay for one, and second, he didn't want to have to move it.   He said we would get a nice keyboard. Ughh. 
So it was an answer to my prayers when my Nana called me one day out of the blue and said she wanted to give me her piano. I was shocked!  I was so happy I cried after I got off the phone with her.  I was getting a piano for free, and better yet- it was my Nana's! It has a special place in my heart.
One of Darren's coworkers was heading to Utah for hunting a few weeks after my Nana called.  He was taking a horse trailer- so I asked him if he would pick up my piano.  He said yes!  I was so excited and happy the day we brought the piano into our home.  This is the piano my Nana has played for years, and this is the piano my kids will grow up playing. 
The week after we got the piano I had a piano teacher in my house giving all my kids lessons.  Even Gabe wanted lessons.  Over the last 2 years they have come so far.  This last weekend we went to Salem, Oregon for them to play in the State Piano Recital.  Thank you Nana. Thank you.  I am so thankful to you for the piano.  I am thankful to the Spirit for inspiring Nana to call me and give me the piano.  It truly was an answer to my prayers and I will always cherish it.

Hermiston Super Oval

Oh Hermiston, Hermiston, Hermiston.  I think I am getting sick of living here.  All over town there were advertisements for the Hermiston Super Oval Figure 8 Bus and Boat races! Well, I love to do stuff, so I thought it would be so fun to go.  I dragged Darren and the kids.  It was fun for the first half-hour and then it started dragging on.  Then it dragged on and on.

Gabe had to use the bathroom- so Darren took him and texted me this picture and said,              "you owe me!" EWWW!

  A dentist would have a lot of work to do in a crowd like this one.   And a washing machine.  And a dietitian.  It was loud, noisy, dirty, stinky, and uncomfortable.   We left before the bus-boat races.  I left with a headache from the smoke and dirt and smell of alcohol.  I was expecting a Heber Demolition Derby type experience and it was far from that.  Even the Rigby Demolition Derby put this place to shame. We had a fun time- but boy, well, lets just say it was an experience. I bought Darren a $5 Hermiston Super Oval t-shirt.  Just so we'll never forget and be tempted to go back.

Zombies

Gabe has an obsession with zombies.  Minecraft is to blame.  It's not like we let him watch zombie movies.  The zombies in Minecraft are Lego looking robots that walk around moaning.  They aren't scary at all and I'm not sure how he even knows they are supposed to be zombies? Gabe talks about them all the time.   Throughout the day I will hear things like this:  I love you mom.  But I don't love zombies.  Are zombies nice?  I love you mom.  But I don't love mom zombies.  Some zombies are nice and some zombies are mean. 
When we were in Hawaii and my mom came to babysit- one night Gabe said something about zombies.  My mom said, "Zombies aren't real!"  Gabe looked at her very seriously and said, "How do YOU know??!"  To which my mom had no reply! LOL

The Great Debate

Forget the current presidential candidate debates!  We have a serious debate going on at our house.  The debate is whether or not Halloween is over.  Gabe insists that Halloween is NOT over.  He tells all of us on a daily basis.  Then yesterday, he handed me a piece of paper and asked me to write, "Halloween is NOT over" on it.  I did it for him and then he took the paper to the neighbors.  To let them know.  I guess he thinks if he can convince the neighbors, maybe he can convince his family? 

Going to State

Did I ever mention my Nana gave me a piano?  She did- which was an answer to my prayers and I am so grateful for it.  We love it.  So my kids have been taking piano lessons, and starting to get good.  I love to hear them practice.  A few weeks ago they had a recital.   They did great and got chosen to go play at a State recital contest!  So soon we will be off to Salem, Oregon to listen to Paul and Kyle's duet, and Ellie and Kyle's duet!

Gabe was crazy running around before it even started.  I had to take him out and didn't really even get to hear my kids play.   Maybe next time.
Way to go kids!! I am so proud of them and they are so excited! 

Parenting Fail

All right, well here is a post that accentuates my imperfections as a mother.  If you ever thought I was the perfect mom here is a blog to show you that I'm not.  It's a little embarrassing, but I'm going to blog about it anyways because Gabe is so dang cute, and Darren is so dang hot.   Gabe had so many cavities he had to get put under anesthesia to get them fixed.  In my defense-the dentist said his teeth were so close together if I didn't floss everyday he was would get cavities in-between his teeth. And then I got pregnant and had horrible morning sickness-and you guessed it- I didn't floss his teeth every night. boo.  So he got cavities. He also had a front tooth that died from him falling and hitting it. I had nothing to do with that one. Anyways, we took him to the hospital to get them fixed.  Darren refused to do the anesthesia, but hung out with us a little bit and let Gabe ride on his shoulders back to the OR. Here he is beforehand with his favorite Baby Blue Blanket. 

He had to get into these cut pajamas!  Then dad came in to get him.

Luke sleeping on my chest.  I love snuggling with my babies! Below are pictures of Gabe after.  He was not happy! But he was cute!

After he rested a while he felt better.  Darren came in to say good bye.

He was happy when he got to ride a wheel chair out to the car.  All the nurses were so nice! Darren works at a great place! We went home and I had lots of ice cream treats waiting for Gabe in the freezer.  I laid him on the couch and let him watch movies all day and eat ice cream to his hearts content.