Here's to the New Year!

I can't even express how much I'm grateful for the beginning of a new year and the ending of 2013!

This is has been a rough year to say the least, and although blogging has been fun and therapeutic I've decided it's time to move on to other things. I think we've been really open about somethings, and other things I've realized are better to keep private. This year Kevin and I received a lot of revelations from Heavenly Father, and some of those weren't the easiest to accept. So for the new year we want to try our best to strengthen and support each other, in privacy.

Bye for now!

LA Turistic Check List

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g32655-Activities-Los_Angeles_California.html

While living in LA, better take advantage of what's around. This list is To keep track of what we've done (and would want to do it again someday) and for the future, on Saturdays when we are bored :)

Things We've Done (and would do it again):

1. Walt Disney Concert Hall
2. Griffith Observatory
3. California Science Center
4. Staples Center (Lakers game)
5. IRIS by Cirque Du Soleil
6. Hollywood Bowl
7. The Greek Theater
8. Universal Studios Hollywood
9. Pantages Theater
10. Runyon Canyon Park
11. Venice Canals Walkway
12. Madame Tussaud Hollywood
13. Little Tokyo

Things that are in our Bucket List:

1. The Getty
2. The Getty Villa
3. Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
4. Hollywood Indoor Skydiving
5. Museum of Natural History
6. Skirball Cultural Center
7. El Capitan Theater
8. Petersen Automotive Museum
9. La Brea Tar Pitts
10. The Magic Castle
11. The Grammy Museum
12. Bradbury Building
13. Korea Town
14. FIDM Museum
15. LA Zoo
16. Heritage Square Museum
17. UltraZone Laser Tag
18. Ice skating in Culver City
19. Christmas Lights at the Temple

Bye bye Primary

To start off, I have to admit that this Primary calling has kind of been a metaphor for my life, and I'll try to explain myself as I go. If it gets hard to understand is because I have too much emotional attachment and can't get my words out right.

More than a year ago Kevin and I moved into our new ward in Los Angeles, CA and got called to serve in Primary as teachers. We were told that this was a special class, with special kids, and that they (the Primary Presidency) felt that we were fit to take these kids. That same Sunday 2 new kids were added to our class of 6, making our class the largest one in the whole Primary.

In CTR 7 the kids are turning 8 and getting ready to be baptized. In this class we had one kid who has special needs (a mild form of autism and speech ...; one kid who borders aspergers, one who has ADHD, one who really just rather be anywhere else but in church, one who doesn't have a family who practices the gospel at home, and the other ones try their best to not get lost in the shuffle.

I think I've stated in another post that went I started I knew nothing about kids that age. Kevin and I are the youngest of our siblings, we don't have younger cousins, and our niece and nephews are toddlers - that's all we know about kids. It was hard to adjust to having kids trying to run the show in class, not knowing how to discipline, not knowing how to reward, and basically freaking out every week as Sunday approached.

We started with our kids being in CTR 7, and as the year went by the PP asked us to keep up with them and move on to Valiant 8. By then, Kevin was already ready to move on to a new group of kids (the class younger than ours only had 3 kids and they were all very well behaved.) I loved our kids, but I think I was getting burnt out too. 8 kids to look after for 2 hours was exhausting.

But the new year came and with a new "class" (Valiant 8, same kids) we developed a new way of thinking, teaching, rewarding, and letting the kids take control of the lesson and not of the class. Every kid in class was involved in creating class rules and promised to try their best to obey them. We made a Valiant Leader game, in which the kid who obeyed all of the rules and was the best example that Sunday could be the Valiant Leader the next week and write on the board, hold pictures, read a verse of scripture and explain it significance to the class, and of course, get a treat and a sticker. What a turn around! Everyone wanted to be the Valiant Leader, and if the kids knew that a trouble kid was the only one left to be it, they would remind him of what was at stake, and he would return to obey the rules. I knew I loved those kids already, but now I was excited to prepare the lessons and see what would happen that week.

The boy who had special needs turned out to be the sweetest spirit I've ever met and in every prayer he would thank God for his teachers (I would tear up every time); the one who could've been aspergers was the most intelligent and helpful Valiant Leader and would take charge of teaching the class; the kid who would not stop talking and poking the other kids loved to read the scriptures and was the sweetest friend to the one with special needs; and the one who would rather be somewhere else... Still would rather be somewhere else, but he at least likes to be around the other kids in our class.

I don't think WE changed the kids. I honestly believe, and I know that sounds really cliche and cheesy, that the KIDS changed us. They changed the way I saw their world, they changed the way I saw my world. More than a year later we were released from our callings in Primary, and I still love those kids so much, and I secretly wish we get called to Primary or YW/YM again and we can be with them again.

Now forward with our new callings and what seems to be the Patty's Cycle of Change: surprise - feeling inadequate - a lot of crying and praying - being humble - achieving success in calling - being released and then called to something completely out of your comfort zone. Can't wait to see what's ahead :)