It Takes A Village To Raise A Child

I was sitting at the table and happened to glance over at my kiddos and this is what I saw:

Cute picture sure, but look even a little closer.  Look at what each one is reading.  Shortcake is reading a Book of Mormon stories lift-the-flap book, E. Mae is reading The Book of Mormon, and K. Rae is reading a Book of Mormon reader.

I thought to myself, wow, they must be learning something at church.  Their teachers and leaders must be telling them to read their scriptures. 

Now I consider myself a good mother, but FAR from a perfect one.  I am well aware of my shortcomings and family scripture study is one of them.  In the past few months I've been trying really hard and found ways to get back into my own personal scripture study.  (I watch my scriptures in sign language while I do my stretches.)  But those efforts had not yet spread to a family level.  My children also rarely see my "good example" in this cause I do these things long before they wake up in the morning.  Like I said, shortcomings, I got 'em, and that's why I assumed it must be the influence of others. 

All this made me think back on my younger years and the influence of others on me.  No matter what trials may or may not have been happening, my parents took us to church faithfully every week.  No matter how discouraging life got at times, "let's skip church" was NEVER part of the equation.  I am so grateful for that.  Because it was those people at church that helped me to learn to love my scriptures. 

I look back on groggy early morning scripture study with my family and I smile and treasure those sweet simple memories, but it was not those half-conscious mornings that made me want to pick up my scriptures on my own.  It was Young Women's leaders that said anyone who read their scriptures for 100 days in a row would earn a little ceramic young women statue. 

I'm not sure what it is with kids and parents, but no matter how hard a parent might try, sometimes kids just need to hear it from someone else.  I am so grateful that I grew up surrounded by a ward family that helped my parents point me in the right direction and gave me my precious stepping stones that have helped me throughout my life.  I am even more grateful that as a parent I too have others that love my children and are there to support me and back me up and surround my children with their Heavenly Fathers love.