Who's Staying Home ?

When you have seven kids, the odds are much higher that on any given Sunday at least one of them will be ill and/or need to stay home from church.

When you and your spouse both have callings (responsibilities at church) it can greatly complicate the otherwise simple discussion about who is staying home to tend to said sick or otherwise needy child.

This is when it becomes very convenient to have the rest of the other seven kids!



A picture of Spencer from his
birthday a few months ago.
He looks sad like this when he's sick.

Yesterday poor Spencer (14 months old) was the "sick" kid and both of us parents had responsibilities during the 3rd hour of church (I was teaching the lesson to our Deacon's Quorum, while Karen was conducting for the Relief Society).

Enter "compromise" and "cooperation" ...
and Brooklyn.  :)

I stayed home with Spencer during Sacrament meeting while Karen took the other kids and then helped Catalina give her talk in Primary.  Immediately after that, Karen brought Brooklyn home with her to watch Spencer.  Karen and I then headed back to church (so glad it is only about 5 minutes away now that Dublin connects to Peterson) for our respective responsibilities.

I just wonder how other families deal with the "who's staying home?" dilemma.  Does one parent always trump the other?  Does everyone just take turns?  Is it based on who is feeling the need to go to church that day?  Or are there other factors I'm not considering?


Song Of The Day:
On a sad note, yesterday afternevening we received the very sad news that the daughter and sister of one of the families in our ward had passed away.  She has been in the news here in the Springs and in Utah, where she suffered a fatal blow at the hands of an avalanche.  My heart weeps for her loving family, which includes a young man about my oldest son's age who I have worked with for years in Boy Scouts and other church related venues.
Today's song is "It's Not Heavy" which comes from the Batdorf and McLean CD titled Look Inside.  Sady the version I have linked above only has the first 3 minutes of the song (I'll have to upload my own video later because this one gets cut off before the inspirational conclusion to the song).  The burden of a lost loved one would make anyone's heart heavy, but through our Savior Jesus Christ we can have those feelings of sadness replaced with the joy of knowing that we will see that loved one again.  This is the most important part of our Heavenly Father's plan!  And I am so grateful for my knowledge that this family is sealed together for time and all eternity through God's Priesthood power and their Temple Marriage.  Tears will still flow and the days will be difficult, but in the eternal scheme of things I know this family knows they will see their beloved daughter and sister again.

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