Rachel Ann Rencher's Blessing - December 30, 2012

Blessing given by Mitchell J. Rencher, father.

Heavenly Father, By the power of the Holy Melchizedek Priesthood we take this infant in our arms to give her a name and a blessing.  The name we have chosen at this time, Father, is Rachel Ann Rencher. At this time we would like to give you a blessing, Rachel.  We bless you with continued health and strength throughout your life that you can accomplish those things that Father in Heaven would have you accomplish here on earth. Rachel, we bless you that you can maintain your sweet temperament and continue to be a help unto your mother and your brother and your sister. You have been blessed with a wonderful support system as is evidenced today.  We bless you with the ability to recognize those abilities and skills and talents which you have been blessed with and others in your support system are blessed with. We bless you with the capacity to learn and the love of learning that you can gain an education, not only formally but informally, you can surround yourself with friends and family that will bless your life and sustain you while you are here on earth. Rachel, we recognize that there are guardian angels around you throughout your life.  You are a sweet spirit and you have blessed your family and you will continue to bless your family. We bless you with the ability to make correct choices and listen to the Spirit and that when you are eight years old you will choose to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost that he may be your permanent companion and help you make those correct choices that will bring you happiness in this life and in the world to come. We bless you that when the time is right you will seek a worthy companion who will take you to the Temple, will become sealed to you for time and all eternity; that you will be blessed with the skills and abilities you will need as a mother and as a representative of Jesus Christ here on earth. We bless you with these things and any other blessings that your Heavenly Father has in store for you and do so in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Matthew Bradley Rencher's Blessing - December 28, 2014

Blessing Performed by Mitchell John Rencher in the Jennings Lane Ward in Centerville, UT
Priesthood holders in the circle: Steven Johnson, Donald Anderson, Charles Stamper, Woody Johnson, Logan Johnson, Andrew Weber, Kris Anderson, Lael Carter, David Rollins, Brandon Green, Brad Rencher & Andrew Rencher.

In the name of Jesus Christ and by the Power of the Holy Melchizedek Priesthood we take this infant in our arms to give him a name and a blessing. The name which we have chosen by which he will be known on the records of the church is Matthew Bradley Rencher. At this time, Matthew, we bless you with the knowledge of the marvelous support system that you have all around you. We bless you that you will maintain your pleasant demeanor. That you can grow and develop as a healthy normal boy and that you will be blessed with safety throughout your life. Matthew, we bless you that you can be obedient to your parents that they can teach you and guide you throughout your life. Matthew we bless you that you can develop a passion for learning that you can take pleasure in learning to things, understanding new concepts. Matthew we bless you that when the time comes that you can receive the A & M priesthoods. That you can understand the joy that comes through service in that priesthood and understand the remarkable gift that it is to receive our Heavenly Father's power to act on His behalf to serve those around you. Matthew, we bless you that you can receive and understand the love of those that have gone before you. The remarkable examples that have been set and that you can have guardian angels around you to guide you and show you the way in which you should walk. Matthew, we bless you that when the time comes that you can be worthy and that you will serve an honorable mission. That you can bring others to the knowledge of the Plan of your Heavenly Father. That you can help others feel the healing power of the Atonement. That you can help others see the same blessings of the family that you will receive. Matthew, we bless you that when the time comes you will meet an honorable young woman, and that you will marry her in the temple. A woman that keeps the commandments and will teach your children just as your mother will teach you. As we bless you with all of these things and everything else that your Heavenly Father has in store for you and we do so in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Seven

Seven years ago on July 21st, my husband and I entered the Salt Lake Temple and made promises to each other and to our Heavenly Father as we entered into the sacred covenant of marriage. In the temple, when we commit to those covenants, we say "yes" rather than "I do". I was so anxious and excited to marry Mitch that I said 'yes' a little too early in the ceremony and when the right time came, I made sure to say it twice. My father-in-law loved that. He often teased me about it. 

For some reason I have been reflecting a great deal on that day. I can remember thinking that I could never feel any more complete. I could never feel any more joy than I felt that day. 

I realize now that I didn't know what real joy was yet. 

Before our wedding, Mitch's dad gave us a small Precious Moments canoe statue called "Many Moons". He had written a parable that he had developed to illustrate some of the challenges of marriage. I'll share it at the end of this, but what I love about the analogy is this: You need to rely on one another and really work together to stay on course and the most successful position to make it through rough waters is on your knees.

Tonight I pulled out some mementos from our wedding and on the back of our wedding announcement we had this scripture, 

"Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord" 1 Cor 11:11

I am not complete without this man and I am just as anxious today for our future as I was seven years ago when I said yes, three times.

The Parable of the Canoe

If you have ever ridden in a canoe, you know what a great feeling it is. On smooth water, you just seem to glide endlessly across the water with so very little effort. What a fun activity.

Now the canoes are different than the birch-bark canoes of old. In those days, the canoeist would kneel in the bottom of this canoe. Today, many of the modern canoes have seats where you can more comfortably sit. 

However, there is a reason for kneeling. If you learn to properly canoe, you are told that you can sit on the seat when it is calm, but if you get into rough water, you need to kneel down. this lowers your center of gravity and makes the canoe more stable. It obviously becomes clear as well that while on your knees looking for stability, you can also ask for some help from above. 

Now you are about to embark on a tremendous canoe trip as you marry. You are facing a great big lake. You can't see the other side but you are told that it is there. Up until now, you have been riding in your parents' canoe. You have been leaning back, relaxed, eating snacks and not helping much with any paddling. Oh, how things are about to change. 

You see this lake is the lake of life and you are going to be issued a brand new canoe for this trip that the two of you are about to embark upon. It is a special canoe... it is expandable. It will stretch with the arrival of each of your eight (or more) children. 

I realize that the two of you have not canoed together before so there are some interesting things that you will have to learn about using your paddles. Do you know what happens if you both paddle on the same side of the canoe? Yup, you will go in circles (until you become more experienced when you can use a special canoe stroke to go straight). Most beginners will paddle on one on one side and one on the other side of the canoe. Doing this can keep the canoe going relatively straight.

You will bring some special items with you that you have prepared in preparation for this trip. Because you can't see your destination on the far shore, you'll bring along instructions on what you need to do to get there. You see, you'll find these instructions in the scriptures. In addition you will each bring with you a personal compass (maybe like your own personal Liahona) that can give you special personal guidance. Yes, this is your patriarchal blessing.

Now as you arrive at the harbor to begin this trip together, you'll find lots of family and friends there to watch you start out. They are there to cheer you on and laugh with you as you weave all over the place trying to go straight. 

Finally you are on your way. One by one the other families in their individual canoes will leave your side as they continue on their individual courses of travel. Soon they are out of sight over the horizon and you two are all alone. But you don't mind. It is so beautiful on the lake. The water is smooth as glass, the canoe seems to glide forever with each stroke. The sky is a beautiful blue and it is so much fun to be sharing this with your chosen loved one. You have thought about this day for years and years and finally all of your hopes, dreams and plans are coming to fruition. 

All conditions are absolutely perfect as you continue gliding along. Things can't be any better. then you look up and notice that a small cloud has covered the sun. As you watch it, it grows bigger and darker. A gentle breeze grows stronger and waves start to grow larger.

You remember the canoe instructions that told you to face your canoe on the wind to avoid capsizing it and turn the canoe into the oncoming waves. About this time the first drops of rain announce the arrival of your first storm. The wind and rain increase and you kneel in the bottom of the canoe trying to keep upright. Suddenly, you realize that the ease of the trip has gone. Your knees hurt, your arms ache from paddling, the wind and rain are making you cold and your back muscles are beginning to cramp. Your hair is wet and water is streaming down your face. Then you remember how nice it was back in mom and dad's canoe when you could just sit back and relax. 

Okay. let's change locations on the lake. Just over the horizon, your parents are paddling along. By just raising up a little, they can see you. they look over from time to time and finally they look over, see you in your little storm and mom says to dad, "It's time we visit them, she just hit him with a paddle!" They change course and within moments pull up alongside.

the father of the bride makes some kind of comment like, Nice hairdo, daughter!" as water continues to drip off her nose. His wife says something like, "be quiet, dear. I'll hold on to their canoe. You keep paddling". Then to you, they say, "You two relax. Put your paddles down and hold on to our canoe for a moment. We'll paddle while you two rest for a minute".

After a short rest, they will tell you how well you are doing, giving you hope. they likely will even share some of their challenges with you and you will learn that you can find strength to continue because you have resources around you to help. In a short time, they will tell you, "so long" and will leave to continue their course once again. 

You will pick up your paddles, express your continued commitment and love to each other and start again paddling. You might even find that the sun has come out and the water has calmed.

Now you need to be aware that the time might come that for a while, your partner will not be able to paddle and yoiu might have  to say, "Dear, put your paddle down and rest. I'll paddle. We won't go as fast, but I'll keep us on course. You do what you need to do to get better." Maybe for a while it will not be a 50-50 relationship. It might be a 5-95 or a 95-5 relationship for a while as you work together to accomplish your eternal goals.

Happy canoeing! I hope to see you from time to time out on the lake of life. May most of your days be smooth sailing. May your storms be minor and short. May your canoe be full of pleasant memories and a wonderful family.

-Irvine Rencher

Real life in action...

My last post was a bit of a downer, but I have to say we have been having quite a bit of fun this summer. The sun and warm weather seem to uncover all of the beauty in life.

Videos have been a big request for my posts, so I'm going to go way overboard...

RACHEL

Since this video, Rachel has mastered sitting up on her own and is on the verge of crawling... Oh man, this girl has stolen all of our hearts. 

SERIOUSLY SWINGING INTO SPRING

There is a Curious George special episode that is called, "Curious George Swings Into Spring", so all spring we were finding ways to "swing into spring". After some failed attempts, we finally found the perfect way.

DANCE OFF

THOUGHTS OF A 4 YEAR OLD

Ben started doing this "game" with me a while back and I have no idea where it came from or what it really even means....

Now you have a taste of the 'everyday' events at our house.

Why my blog is private...

NOTE:  I have gone back and forth on putting the majority of the text into this post. I really wanted to share my thoughts, but didn't want to come off sounding like a victim. As you read this post, know that I did make the choice to become a full-time mother because that is what I wanted. I am eternally grateful that I have the blessing of actually being able to make that choice. I know there are many many women who would make amazing mothers and are desperately longing to have children of their own. To those women, I hope you do not take offense to my venting. I love my life. I love my children. I know I am blessed. Sometimes it just feels good to let it all out and for me, I really find comfort in reading or hearing about other women who go through struggles and how they work through them. That is the purpose of this post. I don't mean to complain or seem ungrateful. . . and on that note - here is the original text:

I'm not a fan of having a private blog. Mitch asked me to make the blog private years ago, but I refused until we moved to Chicago. Private blogs feel so restrictive to me. The privacy setting make it hard for people like my own mother to log in and see the posts that illustrate what we are up to. Maybe it's because I am a total blog stalker and love to read the blogs of people that I don't know very well or at all...

Anyway, this is one post that I am grateful that I have a list of people who have permission to view my blog. That way, if I get reported for the content I am about to reveal, I know who to go after. :) That being said, I am also writing this post after a week that has provoked a great deal of thought and retrospect into my life and what I am doing. In other words, I am going to vent to the perfect audience. An audience that won't interrupt and won't give me any judgmental looks. And I can decide to approve or not approve comments at my own discretion.  :)

Last week I led the discussion in Relief Society. The lesson was from The Teachings of Lorenzo Snow (Chapter 9 - Sacred Family Relationships). The sisters in my ward are particularly wonderful at participating and sharing their own thoughts which made such a positive impact on how the discussion went in class. 

The entire lesson is one that I think to be of enormous importance, but this was the question that seemed to provoke the most participation: 

How can we encourage our youth to have the desire to marry and to have children in a society that views children as an encumbrance and marriage as a formality? 

The discussion was wonderful and had a great deal of variety in responses. I wish I could list them all, but ironically, since it was Mother's Day, the comments that seemed to really sting and stick with me were from the women whose children were now adults. They kept reminding us young mothers how precious and sweet this time of our lives is and how we need to really treasure it. Over and over I've heard women say how much I will miss these days of babies and toddlers.

I have to be perfectly honest, I had to fight the urge to tell these women they were all suffering from amnesia. If they could come to my house and spend a week with 3 children ages 4 and under, they might want to eat their words - and my children. The next day, I had an extremely difficult day with my Benjamin. By the time Mitch made it home at 11pm that evening, I was beside myself. The minute he walked in the door, I exclaimed "So this is as good as it gets!? It is all downhill from here? Because I can't think of anything more discouraging than the thought of failing even more than I did today." Mitch knew exactly what to say... just kidding. There is probably nothing that could have been said. I was tired, it was late and I was too emotional to reason with.

As the week progressed I had even more challenges. Just to give you some good mental pictures, Ben decided to use the blinds in the basement to "swing into spring" and tore them right out of the wall. Lydia tried to entertain her baby sister by climbing up and finding a steak knife and handing it to Rachel by the blade. Fortunately, I was steps away and retrieved the blade before any real damage could occur, but inflicted damage of my own as I screamed in panic at my 2 year old daughter for being so "careless". Yes, I realize I was the one who was reckless enough to leave the 2 babies alone - even if it was for only a few seconds. Obviously, I'm bringing up the worst events of the week and they seemed to be blinding me. 

Are you ready for my big epiphany? Well, don't hold your breath. I haven't figured out any miraculous answer to keeping a balanced perspective. I didn't have an overwhelming experience that just made me realize how perfect my life is. What did happen was I kept going. For every big Mommy Meltdown, I tried to keep reassuring my kids what good boys and girls they were and repeat over and over that I love them. As much as I wanted to just stay in bed while Mitch was home on Saturday morning, I got up, got ready and it ended up being a beautiful day full of quality time with my precious family. 

Sunday morning, when Ben woke up with a fever, I could have easily said that I needed to stay home with my sick baby boy, but I didn't. Somewhere along the road I learned that on the days I don't want to go to church are the days I need to go the very most. I came away feeling uplifted and a little more motivated to do better. 

Finally, as I prepared to share some pictures and videos on this blog, I looked at the images of my children and had a small glimpse of what those women were talking about in Relief Society. I looked into the sweet, innocent faces of my children and I saw joy. I felt joy. The love I have for those little people is more powerful and overwhelming than anything I ever imagined possible. Being a mother has given me a small glimpse into how much my Heavenly Father must love me. What a humbling thought that is. 

Obsessed with picking these weeds! He begs me to stop the car if he sees a big patch of yellow dandelions.  

This was one of the best Mother's Day surprises I've had. We got a phone call on our way home from church from Alli who was in Chicago on a layover and needed a place to sleep! That Lydia felt like all her prayers and conversations with Jesus had been answered (I'm not being sacrilegious  Lydia talks to Jesus all the time. She talks to him like she talks to me and she is always saying, "Mom, where is Jesus? I need to find him.")

My little spy monkey. He and I made this para scope so he could spy on people. 

The story behind this garage is that the wife left one Saturday morning asking her husband to make sure the garage was painted before she returned. He let his daughter pick the color and this is what she came home to. Every time we walk by this door Lydia asks, "Where's the pink one, Mom?"

I do love these kids and feel blessed to be their mother. Don't let the negativity in this post get to you. I just haven't had a good burger in a while...

The Island of Enchantment

Here's a history lesson for you. Mitch and I grew up less than 3 miles apart. We attended Jr High and High School together. Our Senior year in High School, Mitch and I both served as Student Body Officers with the group of yahoos below:

I love this group of people. You see Mitch and I up there at the top. Not sure what Mitch is up to in that picture, but look below him at the fellow with the white arrow pointing to his head. That's Brandon. 

Over the years, I have done a lot of odd little jobs for Brandon. I will get phone calls and emails asking me to make it look like his friend is at a strip club having his identity stolen or put a girl next to him in a photo kissing his cheek etc etc. One particular piece of work caught the eye of a strapping JetBlue professional. Somehow he was able to incorporated my masterpiece into a JetBlue presentation of sorts. I'll spare you all of the little details, (mostly because I don't know them) but the important part is that this exceptional young man was able to reward my talent with some free JetBlue buddy passes.

Who is this wonderful man? Allow me to introduce Rhett.

He does bear a striking resemblance to Brandon, doesn't he? It's almost as though they are related :)

Anyway,  when Brandon called and told me that Rhett was able to give us these passes, he also informed me we only had about 3 weeks to use them. I was elated, but extremely doubtful we would be able to go on a trip with such little time to plan for it. Mitch was working long hours and it just seemed unlikely he would be able to break away any time soon. Then there was the matter of my children. Who could I ask to care for them while I soak up the sun on white sandy beaches?

Grandma, of course. 

Bless my mother's heart, with only a week's notice, she was willing to drop everything and fly out to spend 4 nights with my little crazies in the big bad city. And you want to know the really sad part? My kids didn't shed a tear when I walked out the door for my vacation, but when we dropped Grandma off at the airport, you would have thought they were at her funeral. They screamed and cried the entire ride home...

So the stars aligned and we were able to use those wonderful buddy passes to go to The Island of Enchantment, Puerto Rico. Free of responsibilities for a few days.

You know what they say, size matters. When deciding where to go, we kept that in mind and picked the absolute largest resort we could find on that small island. El Conquistador Golf Resort (all of the large buildings are all part of the resort. We even had to ride a gondola to get to our room.

The truth is, we actually took the last room available on the island, as it would seem. 

As you enter the lobby, you are greeted by a few exotic birds. This is Chuckles... or Giggles - I can't remember which. Either way, we looked like idiots trying to get that bird to giggle and the only chuckles I heard were from people walking by us.

I could get used to waking up every morning to this view.

The first day we spent on the resorts private island where we baked like lobsters. We laid on the beach, swam, played beach games and even rented wave runners. It was as fantastic as it sounds. 

Even when we were shivering that night in 90 degree weather from our sun burns, we were loving it.

After a wonderful nights sleep, we woke up the next morning a little hesitant to spend as much time in the sun

We decided the spa was the destination for the day. We enjoyed the steam rooms and the hot tubs and even had a couples massage. After that we hung out at the pool side and read our books for the remainder of the afternoon. That night we went on Bio Bay Kayaking tour. I felt like I was in the movie Avatar. In certain areas of the ocean, you can find these molecules that actually glow when they react with oxygen. So when you stick your hand in the water, the water around it glows.

(we couldn't take our camera, but if we were to jump in the water, this is what it would look like.)



This is the only picture we have and it is kind of telling, actually. See how determined Mitch is? Well, apparently this Kayaking tour was a kayaking competition. Nobody else knew it, but it was a race to the finish line and Mitch was determined to win. We had to pass everyone in our group at all costs!

The only problem with our great and spacious resort was that they trap you in. It is right on the coast and the golf course is between you and the rest of the island. To get to the nearest restaurant is like a 2 mile walk and even then, you'd probably get lost because the streets don't have any signs! That just means that you have to eat at their restaurants and if you want to buy anything, it has to be from the resort. For my foodie siblings, the food was not that great at this place. Their rice and beans were amazing, but that was about it. Everything was average, at best and was even more overpriced than Disney Land.

We decided on our final day on the island to rent a car and drive up to Old San Juan.

We toured the old forts and dined at one of the local restaurants (which was really amazing and MUCH cheaper than the food we had been eating).
On our way back to the resort, we stopped by a local grocery store. It was an unusual one, pretty unique to the island, I'm sure. They called it Walmart. There, we picked up a gallon of milk and some cereal. It was a royal feast!

And when we returned, we were delighted to find the Tulip Festival in our home. 

(Can you find the hidden Angry Bird that Benjamin put in the picture?)

The trip was delightful and I cannot thank Rhett, Brandon and especially my mom for making it possible. 

Lessons Learned from Potty Training

What goes in must come out

Let's just say that Lydia ate about 6 of those rolls along with the green pancakes we had for breakfast and 2 bowls of that green pasta. It was a St Patrick's Day surprise for the toilet (let's be real, the surprise didn't make it to the toilet)!

And Lydia had so much fun dying eggs for Easter, she ate eggs for breakfast, second breakfast, lunch, second lunch, dinner, second dinner and dessert! That's why she isn't really wearing pants in this picture. I was tired of washing her royal princess underwear!

Peer pressure is POWERFUL

For the first day of Lydia's potty training, we brought in the experts. (AKA Claire). Lydia worships "Clairsy" and would do anything Claire told her to do. Claire came prepared with prizes for Lydia and some light bathroom reading. She was more prepared than I was! All I had was a sticker chart.

Speaking of peer pressure, Ben decided he needed to join the fun too. While I was cleaning up a big puddle of urine off the kitchen floor, Ben walked in and proudly announced that he peed his pants too! I thought he was joking... he wasn't.

Sometimes it can be a little painful.

Like when you fall into the toilet. That hurts.

Just when you think you are in the clear, disaster will strike!

After a couple days of being cooped up inside and running to the potty every 5 minutes, I was ready to get out. We went for an Easter Egg Hunt with our church playgroup. She did great! No accidents. We left with LOTS of chocolate and the same pants we came in. Hooray!

A couple days later, she was doing wonderful at going to the bathroom and telling me she needed to go BEFORE she went. We made it through 3 hours of church without incident. I was doing the extreme celebration dances after every successful 'event' on the potty. Things were good.

Our neighbors who live above us graciously invited us to Easter Dinner at their place with some of their friends.

(This is Olivia & Rachel. They were born a little over 2 weeks apart)

The food was delicious. The company was delightful and the kids were de lovely. (that was for you, Mom)

... until we smelled it. Those poor parents who had to change that poopy diaper. It was a smelly one! Oh wait... that wasn't a diaper that needed to be changed! 
While I was cleaning up the mess, Lydia had this exchange about 30 times:

Mom: Lydia, we don't go potty in our princess underwear! We go potty in the toilet.

Lydia: That's right, Mom. 

It can be exhausting

I saw something on Pinterest a few days ago and this picture really sums it up for me:

"I don't want to sleep like a baby, I just want to sleep like my husband!"

Sometimes you just need to take a breather

Thank Heaven for Mitch. Potty training really brings out the devil in me and he has the ability to swoop in and bring me back to a semi-sane state. (Because we all know I have never been fully sane in my life)

This is a video of our walk home from lunch at Potbelly's. 

(don't mind the watermark, I used a free trial to do the editing)

Success is sweet!

And these are mostly for Grandmas: