Sometimes Quality Family Time=Insanity

We have been wisely counseled in our church to hold a weekly night for just our families. "Family Home Evening" is a program that has been around for forever, and for very good reason.

We have dinner together, We sing together, We pray together, we have a lesson about a gospel topic or about manners or anything mom and dad feel needs teaching to their darlings, we have an activity together (our favorite is Hide and go Seek) and we eat treats together.

Family Home evening is a righteous tradition (and yes I do mean "righteous" in that teenage slang term kind of way. Its cool to spend time actually teaching and being taught by your kids and playing with them. Every week. Righteous). And I've fought to keep it alive in our family ever since the first Graham baby graced the halls of our home.

But sometimes, that heavenly spirit of love and unity that you would hope would attend such an evening just doesn't make it. contention, ill will, even mean spirited pokes at family members can sometimes attend instead.

And that is when Family Home Evening becomes Insanity.

It doesn't happen very often, which doesn't mean that most Family nights are full of unity and perfect harmony-a lot of the time there is a fair amount of tolerance and some eye rolling going on, and then of course we have the occasional visit of heavenly feelings of eternal love for one another. but Insanity happened this Family night and I've got the scars to prove it.

Exhibit A; the war torn remains of our lesson zone. Toys thrown across the coffee table, children hiding under the coffee table, other children trying to begin their evening's rest under the shiny throw blanket, and still others bouncing with their feet on the exquisite couches recently purchased for me by my darling husband, who is currently away for most every family night (sigh...)


Exhibit B; littlest Graham is "excused" from family night for throwing a fit when her mother set her down from her lap in order to participate in the lesson. Littlest Graham was asleep within seconds of this photo - her crocodile tears drying fast on her perfect little cheeks.

Exhibit C; One of the many children who, after enduring the evening's lesson feels entitled to the evenings dessert. But this child has not eaten his dinner. And its bedtime now and I'm cranky 'cause no one would joyfully participate in our lesson or even be nice to each other during its delivery. And so said child is given 3 minutes to clear his plate or miss dessert. He cleared it (sigh again)

Exhibit D; Two oldest daughters revel in their just desserts. Ice cream and cookies never seem so justified as they do after enduring a lesson they don't feel like listening to or participating in, eh? This photo was taken about 10 seconds before Madi hit the roof, and I spent 30 minutes unwinding her (friend issues at school and the general feeling of being unheard by the one adult in her life who is supposed to listen-me-and also she's decided that she doesn't want to move after all and why did people have to come look at the house last Saturday anyway?). By the time I got to my family night treat it was a melted mess on the kitchen counter...

We missed exhibit E; teenage boy who decides that he needs to contribute to his portion of the lesson with his ELECTRIC Guitar, which he escaped to his room to gather while his sister was doing her portion of the lesson, so then sister decides not to participate for Brother because brother skipped out on sister...

can you feel the love people? Can you feel the lunacy?

Really, it isn't usually like this. Lots of times its better, and believe it or not sometimes its worse.

But its worth it, I hope. I have promises pinned up on the bulletin board in my head; quotes from prophets which lay out for me an eternity of my children around me if i gather them to me each week and try to teach them things of God.

So, I'll chalk this week up to bad weather, or bad Carma or poor preparation (Heaven does know I could prepare a bit better for these events!) and I'll try again next Family Home Evening...

wanna come?