A girl after my own heart

I love Sophie's age right now.

She is still funny, sassy and awesome, but she is growing up and soaking up stuff like a sponge.

Her sunbeam teacher at church, whom she LOVED dearly, was recently made Primary Pres.  When they announced it in church she started tearing up.  Seriously.  I did too.  She was so sad that Mandi wasn't going to be her teacher anymore.

I assured her they would give her a new, great teacher whom she would love just as much.  

Guess what?

They did.  Her name is Jennifer Cunningham, but Soph calls her Sister Cunnin'ham.  So cute.

She does the cutest handouts and Sophie just loves her.  

Tonight in her prayer she said she was thankful that Sis. Cunnin'ham was back (she had sick kids for a long time and her hubby is deployed) and she was grateful she could learn about the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

Meanwhile, the primary presidency has been urging the kids to read their scriptures every day.  Sophie and I started mid Jan, I think, with the Book of Mormon stories for kids.  They gave each family a Mormonopoly board and challenged the kids to get all away around the board and read the entire book.  She has loved it.  We have also borrowed the living scriptures DVDs for her to watch and those have helped a LOT.  I would buy them myself but the whole set cost $250+ dollars.  Along this Mormonopoly board, they have question marks where the the chance or community chest spots would be.  The kids can be quizzed up to this point and get a tootsie roll if they get the answer correct.  She gets SO excited to be quizzed.  I quiz her at home and we quizzed everyone we spent time with on our Portland trip.  

It's no surprise that this delights me to no end.  I love the Gospel and I love the scriptures.  I want all my kids to know them and love them too.  So, while she is so interested in learning, I am doing the most that I can to help her.  It is so great to know that she is recognizing names of prophets when she hears them in church now, or that she is starting to understand gospel principles.  Last night, she was watching the video, Christ in America.  She came out and told me that when Chris was there, he broke bread.  So we talked about what that meant and what it is so important that we go every week to take the sacrament and what it represents.  She has not really liked going to sacrament meeting, because she thinks it's boring.  Well, for a 4 year old, it probably is.  But I know that the principle clicked about why we need to go.    I tried to reiterate that same thing this morning and she looked at me and said, "boooooorin'".  So, she is still 4, and a lot of it is still over her head, but feeling the Holy Ghost isn't and that is what I am going for.  Then, I was trying to explain the resurrection, so I explained about how she was a spirit before she came and got the body mommy and daddy created for her on earth.  And when we die, our body stays here on earth and our spirit goes back to live with Heavenly Father.  And after we are resurrected we get our bodies back but they will be perfect.  As she walked away she said, "dying is so booooorin!"

Tonight, she was watching the same video, and came out and asked, "mommy, when do I get to be blessed?"  I said, you mean blessed by Jesus, like he did to the little children when he appeared to the people of America?  I was on the phone, but I sent her to ask her daddy.  He explained to her that she was blessed when she was a baby and she could get a blessing whenever she felt like she needed Heavenly Father's help, or didn't feel good.  She said she wanted a blessing next time she had a tummy ache:)  

I know it is so important for her to know how special she is and how much we love her as well as her Heavenly Father.  The other night we were brushing teeth and I told her how much mommy and daddy love her and how much Heavenly Father and Jesus love her.  She asked me, "Well, who loves me more?  You or Heavenly Father"?  Good question!

Her favorite story right now in the Book of Mormon is Alma the Younger.  And today in church she told the Primary President that she was all the way to the book of Helaman.  So proud.

That's what we have been doing around here.  I am sure there are more funnies she has said, but we love her and I am so grateful she came to our family.