Readin' and Singin'

James, on his own, has made a habit of reading his scriptures each night before going to bed. Always he reads in his closet, and always he reads just before bed. During family scriptures he loves to take his turn reading. He doesn't especially like reading books for enjoyment, and often causes a fuss about having to read his little homework books. When it comes time to read The Book of Mormon as a family, however, he is more than ready. He is good at it too, and reads some really big words without any help from us.

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In 2008 we gave the kids the challenge to read The Book of Mormon on their own. Joseph, who was 8 at the time, did a lot of reading, but mostly listened to the scriptures being read on tape as he went to sleep each night. We were so proud of the effort he put in, even if he did sleep through most of the reading. Christine read too, and finished her reading at Girl's Camp. Rebekah dutifully plodded along, but kind of lost her motivation after the other two had finished. At the beginning of this year, we challenged her again to pick up where she had left off, and finish the book. After a lot of effort, she finished her goal today. We took the other kids out to eat at the restaurant of their choice for finishing, so we're looking forward to seeing where Rebekah will choose to go. We're proud of you Rebekah for your commitment and your tenacity! I know that it hasn't been an easy for thing for you, but we're so proud of you for persevering and finishing!

Rebekah's winter band concert was the other night. She looked and sounded beautiful, as always. James fell asleep during the concert, which allowed the rest of us to sit and enjoy it. Jalen Andrew, true to form, entertained all the parents behind us, as he enthusiastically led the music. He was frustrated by the 5th grade beginning band, because their songs were so short. He would just get started leading, when the music would end, and the clapping would begin; he would wrinkle his brow, not sure of what was going on, and would patiently wait for the next song to begin.

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And as for singing . . . we all know how much Jalen Andrew loves to sing. He sings and directs the music at church, at football games, at band concerts, and during our family devotionals and family home evenings. He's good at it too, and is trying to match his voice to mine as he sings. Well, he did a new one the other day. He took my "to do list" and sang it -over and over and over again - at the top of his lungs. It was way too funny, and we couldn't stop laughing!