Kindness Stalker

I've mentioned before that I am working on my own Personal Progress as I serve as a leader to the Young Women in our congregation. I love that this program was developed to help girls learn their individual worth and grow closer to their Savior. One of the experiences is to observe a persons acts of service on a daily basis, record them, and learn why service is a fundamental principle of the gospel (without them knowing). In honor of Father's Day I decided to use Brett as my subject when I began the experiment last month. Here were my findings (copied from my journal so it's not in the best english, and I switched to directing it toward Brett about halfway through):

May 16th: He stayed with Hyrum in nursery because he's been having problems behaving.
May 17th: Brett did the dishes after dinner:)
May 18th: Brett got up with Noah at 6 am: changed his diaper, got him a drink, and put him back to bed. Did the dishes again too:)
May 19th: Brett's so helpful with the boys when I go to mutual. There are no complaints.
May 20th: Brett cleaned off all his electronics on our dresser. Thank you!
May 21st: Got up with the boys and played in the basement with them so I could sleep in until 8! Woohoo!
May 22nd: Gave me time alone to work in the garden by myself.
May 23rd: Watched Noah during Young Women so I could attend class with out interruption
May 24th: Brett came home from work early and took care of Noah who has been a really cranky teether all day.
May 25th: Helped make dinner, and let me sleep in until 8 again:)May 26th: Had a sick day today, so he went to the park with us this morning and no complaints about me leaving him with two VERY cranky boys for Mutual
May 27th: Got up with the boys this morning at 6:30, changed diapers, got them both drinks and put them back to bed
May 28th: I volunteered to clean the temple tonight. He got the boys all ready for bed, put them in bed, and cleared off the table.
May 29th: Today Brett made me a planter box, exactly how i wanted it for our front garden. He worked hard and helped me with my gardening too.
May 30th: Made smoothies for all of us and then washed the blender and put it away.
May 31st: Eight plus hours of work in the yard (check), finished the planter box (check), dug out 3 lilac bushes(check), began work on fixing the sprinklers (check), best husband in the world (check)June 1st: I was feeling sick this morning. he took care of the boys and kept them quiet so I could sleep in a little bit.
June 2nd: Cleaned out fish bowls.
June 3rd: Today Brett sincerely thanked me for all my work as a Mom
June 4th: On this day Brett was at work until 2:30 in the morning. Thank you for providing for us and supporting us!
June 5th: Another hot hard day in the yard. Brett fixed the sprinklers and re-fixed them when I changed my mind on where I wanted them to spray. Thanks for your patience with a picky wife.
June 6th: Brett helped me with dinner and then had a basement campout with Hyrum
June 7th: Even thou it was a long day at work and you were hungry for dinner; the moment you came inside you held and talked with the boys before anything else. This seemingly small thing made me fall in love with you all over again.
June 8th: This morning you snuggled with both of the boys before you left for work.June 9th: No complaints about having to put both of the boys to bed. Always supportive.
June 10th: You came home with an optimistic attitude and helped me have a sense of humor after a hard day with the boys.
June 11th: You took Hyrum camping. . . well for a few hours anyway.:) Hyrum LOVED it!
June 12th: A family trip to Costco. You helped me not feel bad for going over what I had budgeted.
June 13th: Family walk is YOUR idea!!!! Woa, huge breakthrough!
June 14th: After a long day at work you cam home to your 'second' job as gardener. Thank you!
June 15th: Tonight you spent quality time with the boys.
June 16th: Thank you for helping me get things ready for mutual tonight and putting the boys down.
June 17th: Three plus hours in the backyard again tonight. It's really starting to look good. Thanks for all you hard work in helping make our house (and yard) more of a home.
June 18th: The boys had a tough night and you took the 3:30-6:30am shift. I love you! Thank you!!

In James 1: 22-27 James teaches us the importance of service by saying: ". . be ye doers of the word. . " I read the verses over and over again to discover what it really meant to me. In Hebrews we learn that the Word is God. . . to be a doer of the word would mean to literally be doing the work of God. Service is so much more than just getting it done. To serve is to place ones own wishes and desires on the back burner while helping someone else reach their potential. Christ is the perfect example of this as He gave up everything for us. Being an observer of service was such a wonderful thing for me. I noticed myself being less frustrated with different less-than-ideal circumstances than normal. I had more patience. I saw more good in everyone. This gave me an opportunity to really see how much Brett does for me and our boys, which I may not have noticed or may have forgotten quickly. I think everyone should try it out.

Brett: Happy Father's Day. I love you!P.S. Did I mention that Brett decided to face the inevitable head on (literally) and shave his slowly dwindling hair? Now he may not be an Albert Brennaman look alike anymore, but I can say his hairstyle matches The Rock. :)