Success and failure

So I blew it. Well, maybe not blew it, per se. Almost made it. I needed a 7 or higher to pass the final exam to get my QKA certification...and I got a 6. Almost makes me wish I'd never come close, like gotten a 3. But to come close and fail, that was a kick to the stomach. But I know now what I didn't know a few hours ago (meaning I know which things I didn't know, not that I know all about them). But yeah. Hopefully I'll get another shot at this when the next testing window comes around next spring, and even more hopefully, that I don't need to get another textbook. But even if I do, I have a better idea of what I need to study, and what I need to do to make time to study, even with a lovely wife, 2 great (if occasionally noisy) kids, a busy church calling, and a home that constantly needs tending.

Speaking of home, I had a minor success here tonight. Lisa's out at Relief Society Enrichment, so it was just me and the kids. I got them fed, played around with them for a bit, got Asher through a bath, got Leah to fall asleep in record time, had a great time reading Ash's alphabet book with him, listened to him say his prayers (he's actually saying his own now, even if it's just hello-thanks-amen) and laid him down, all by 8:15. When I came downstairs, I couldn't help but feel pretty good about the good evening I'd just had with my kids. And that's when it hit me - to paraphrase Harold B. Lee, no worldly failure can negate success in the home. It didn't matter to my kids that I failed my test. As long as I was where they needed me to be, that's all that mattered. And, when it all comes down to it, that's all that really mattered at all. Thanks Asher and Leah for teaching your old man something. :)

6 Random Things

Normally I don't post twice in the same day, but I got tagged reading a friend's blog. So here's 6 random things:

1. I've always wondered (since high school at least) if the whole 'coochie coochie coo' thing with babies comes from the fact that the Japanese word for mouth is kuchi (coochie)

2. Somewhere on this earth, there is a woman giving birth every three seconds. She must be found and stopped.

3. This guy is awesome ---------------------->

4. I spend WAY too much time on Facebook, I know that, but it's fun. You meet really cool people, get into interesting dicussions, and get to tell people about stuff you read on a 'social networking site' instead of crummy old Myspace.

5. I love looking at old documents - black and white family photos, ship passenger lists, census records, anything - that my ancestors appear in. It helps feel connected to them, and realize that they were real, living people, doing the same thing I'm doing - just living.

6. In a fight between Megatron and Gandalf, Megatron would win hands down. I mean, yeah, Gandalf has powerful magic and took on a Balrog, but I doubt magic could withstand a blast of concentrated energy from a fusion cannon.

7. I tag anyone reading this blog. You're it!!

Suffering

We were taught in priesthood/relief society a week or two ago from the Joseph Smith manual that suffering prepares us for the celestial kingdom. I got to thinking, if heaven is a place of peace, rest, and happiness, how would experiencing suffering and pain prepare me for that? I had two thoughts on it -
1. Suffering keeps us humble. It teaches/reminds us that we need God and each other to get through this life, that we can't make it home on our own steam.
2. It's part of the opposition of all things. The suffering we experience, and see others go through, shows us how precious life is, how rare true happiness is, and how great and plentiful our blessings really are. I mean, how often do I thank God for my health? Usually right after I get over a cold or flu or something, but then it slips my mind until I get sick again. Or for my home, or a fully functioning body, or even my family? I hate to say it, but it's probably my suffering that keeps me on the straight and narrow.

I hope someday to get to the point where I'll just stay on the path back home, without having to be dragged back on track kicking and screaming.

Where does the time go?

Can you believe it? My little girl is 4 weeks old today!! On Friday, she'll be a month! I still feel like she just came home yesterday. We had a minor miracle with her this week - she slept for 6 1/2 hours! I actually got to sleep from midnight till 6:30 without waking up once. Of course, the next night she woke up at 3, and last night she woke up at 2, but still! We're getting there. I still feel amazed and a little in disbelief that she's actually my child. I'm still trying to find that magic balance between family, work, church, and recreation, though that'll probably continue for the rest of my life at this rate. :)

Leah is here!!

Ok, I'm gonna try and post pictures of my beautiful little girl here. Wish me luck!



Let me know if this works and you can see them!

May I have your attention please!

I am pleased to announce the birth of the newest member of the Gibson family: Leah Michelle Gibson! She was born at 10:29 pm, September 3, 2008, weighing 8 lbs 5.6 oz, was 20 1/2 inches long, and looks beautiful! She has a head full of light brown hair and dark blue eyes. I've never posted a picture to my blog, so I'll try and figure out how to do that in the next couple days (I'll be off work until next Wednesday so I'll hopefully have the time, in between feedings and diaper changes, and taking care of Asher). Both mommy and baby are doing great, and we expect to head home sometime tomorrow. The birth went perfectly, and she is adjusting to life outside the womb very quickly. She only cries when she needs a diaper changed or wants to eat (both of which she has done plenty of in the last 12 hours!) and is just a quiet, peaceful little girl. Thanks to everyone who's offered congratulations and prayers for us, they are very much appreciated. I'm very excited to show off our cute little girl, so be prepared to be bombarded with pictures and stories about how great and cute she is!

Passage to Zarahemla - the review!

Well we watched Passage to Zarahemla, directed by Chris Heimerdinger. Honestly, the previews made it look almost hokey, and I went in (sadly) expecting something much less than it could have been. Boy was I wrong! The movie is exceptionally well done, well-acted, and the effects are very good. Even knowing the story (I read the book when it came out a couple years ago), the action sequences still had me in suspense (and I was more than a little surprised at the intensity of the action). Overall I was very pleased with the final product, and look forward to seeing more movies from Heimerdinger Productions. After the next Tennis Shoes book is finished, of course. :)

Veddy Interesting...

So I found this old online journal I started a few years ago. Turns out, I only ever made one entry in it, and it happened to be night I met my wife. :) How cool is that? Here it is, in all its glory:
Ok, so get this. I found out there was a dance tonight out in Tacoma, 15 miles or so south of here, starting after I get off work. So I went down, just to hang out. I was thinkin of just sitting it out the whole night, actually. I didn't really want to dance, just to be out around good, fun entertainment for a night. Then this girl Carol asks me to dance, and she's a total goofball, we had a lot of fun dancing. She intro'd me to her friends, we chatted for a sec, and then she disappeared with one of her buddies. So I walk around for a sec, and see a guy, Pat Hampton, that I knew back in high school. I went over to say hi, and he introduces me to the two girls next to him, Emily (his gf) and Lisa (friend of his gf). So Lisa and I started talking, and we just hit it off. We kept talking, and talking, the rest of the night. It was so fun, and so unexpected. I'd gone to this dance specifically wanting to avoid meeting someone, and BOOM I meet someone. We ended up hanging out the rest of the dance, and talking for an hour or so afterwards, then I drove her home (Pat and Em had to leave early). Lisa's 20, cute, and funny, a great dancer too. She goes to BYU-I, majoring in art, and even draws for Chris Heimerdinger! How cool is that? I got her number, and I'm thinkin of askin her to the Federal Way dance tomorrow night. So funny, how these things work out. You look and look and look for something, and the minute you decide NOT to look, you find it. So yeah, just had to get that down. It's late, and I'm goin to the temple with some friends from my ward tomorrow, so I better get some sleep. Till next time, g'night!

Testimony

I was reading the March issue of the Ensign (the magazine produced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) on my lunch break today, and was very impressed with the power of the articles and stories. Every single page was filled with testimony of the Savior, of His church, of His scriptures, and of His prophets. Over and over again, from apostles and prophets down to ordinary members, people bore witness of the Savior, of His divine mission, and His restored gospel in this church. I really felt the Spirit as I read, it confirmed my own testimony of my Savior, this church, of our current prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, and of Joseph Smith.
Then after work, I watched a few videos on YouTube the church has put up, where Elders Ballard, Cook, and Nelson talk about some of the questions people have about the church. Again I felt that same Spirit testify to me that what they were saying was true. Their testimonies were simply stated, but powerful. I hope, as I help others learn about the gospel, that I can bear testimony like they did - simple and yet powerful.

A God of Miracles

Last night I had one of the most amazing, humbling experiences in my life. The missionaries had asked me to come with them to visit a family in our ward who is currently hosting a couple of foreign exchange students, one of whom is Japanese. The prospect of sharing the gospel with someone in Japanese is always exciting to me, having served my mission in Japan some 9 years ago. The "visit" turned out to be a birthday party for Ayumi, the Japanese exchange student. It was loud and well attended, so I didn't try talking to Ayumi or her friend (another Japanese exchange student) right away (my hearing aids were magnifying EVERYthing so it was almost impossible to talk to anyone anyways). But after a bit, the mom kindly pushed me over to where they were talking, and we struck up a conversation. Now I haven't used my Japanese all that much in the last 6 years or so, so normally I would have been a bit rusty and stuttery at first. But last night, I was able to jump right into talking to them. It was amazing! We chatted about their experiences here in America, a car crash Ayumi's friend was in the night before (the car had rolled!) what they thought of American schools and people versus Japanese, lots of things. Later on, after Ayumi's friend and her hosts had left, the missionaries talked to Phillip (a German exchange student also staying with the family) about the gospel, and I interpreted for Ayumi. Again, normally my interpreting skills are much worse than normal conversation (the MTC asked me to interpret twice while I was in college, and I did horribly both times), but I was blessed to be able to keep up with them and translate for Ayumi, even when looking up scriptures at the same time. It was the same gift of tongues I was blessed with as a missionary. The Lord never took that gift away when I came home, as I had previously feared. When the need is there, and I am willing and humble enough, the gift returns. Now I know I need to keep up on my Japanese, not just for my own personal gratification, but because if these kind of situations come up again, the Lord can use me to teach others His gospel. I need to be humble and righteous enough to be worthy of the gift. I look forward to sharing the gospel more, it feels so GOOD when I do!