Hi, I'm Melanie

I'm a wife and a mom of 3 little kids. I sew costumes, volunteer at school, tell bedtime stories, and am acquainted with grief.

About Me

I'm a homemaker of a sweet girl who is almost a first-grader, a rough and tumble four-year-old boy, and a smiley baby boy. With a new baby I struggle to find free time, but I always have some kind of project going on the side (or more like three or four that I rotate from one thing to the next). Right now, I'm sewing fabric quiet book pages to try to tame my children in church. After the birth of my daughter I experienced post partum depression. It was the hardest year of our ten years of marriage I think. A couple of years ago I lost my mother to cancer. She and my dad adopted me as a baby.

Why I am a Mormon

I've always been lucky to have Christ's church in my life being raised in the gospel. For me, it was easy to believe the truth that my parents taught me. What helped me to develop my own testimony and faith in the truthfulness of the gospel was actually doing the things my parents taught me and that I learned at church as a child. I found that when I did the right thing and lived according to the gospel, the Lord blessed me and I was happy. I have felt the Holy Ghost testify to me of the truthfulness of the gospel. I am so grateful for Christ's Atonement. Jesus Christ makes it possible to be with my family forever. I can't imagine not having my family around me when I die.

Personal Stories

What have you done successfully to shield your family from unwanted influences?

When we bought our first home a few years ago we decided not to pay for TV. It started out as a way to save money, but now it's a way for us to feel closer to the Savior.

At first, living without the TV was difficult. Over the course of a month or so something happened; we started to read more, work on projects around our home, and spend more time interacting as a family. As parents, we really liked that we no longer had to worry about a commercial we didn't want our children exposed to popping up on the screen or wondering what they might see if we changed the channel to something else. I noticed that I started to become more aware of inappropriate content that I may have been numb to. I find that I'm using my time more wisely and finding less excuses to sit down because I'm tired and watch a show.

On two occasions my husband and I have reevaluated our choice to live without TV. Both times we decided we really didn't want to get TV again -- not because we didn't want to spend the money, but because we really are happier without it. I think we are more able to feel the Spirit without it on in our home. My children are young, but I want to encourage them to "unplug" now so later they will be more likely to have those quiet moments to receive inspiration from the Spirit.

What is hope and what do you hope for?

Hope is optimism for something better. It is a result of having faith -- faith in Christ, faith in the power of prayer, faith in the promises of the Lord. It means being able to see the good in something even when there may be every reason for despair. I have hope in Jesus Christ's sacrifice that I will get to see my mother, who died several years ago from cancer, again some day whole and complete.

Why do Mormons do family history or genealogy work?

My father and I just started researching some of his ancestors. Some of them never met a pair of missionaries and were never taught the gospel before they died. It would be the most unfair thing if they were denied some of the best blessings Christ and Heavenly Father have to offer just because they were born in the wrong place or at the wrong time. The Lord's infinite love provided a way for these members of our family to have the same opportunity that I do for all of the blessings the Lord has to offer. We research our family history and do genealogy work so we can perform the saving ordinances of the gospel for these family members for them. I recently went to the temple so an extended family member could be baptized by proxy. Now she has the opportunity to choose whether or not to accept that baptism once she has been taught the gospel in the afterlife.

What has helped develop greater harmony in your home?

Having a family night has helped our family to grow closer together. We usually have a prayer together, sing a song, have a short lesson that usually involves some activity since we have younger children, and then we have another song, a closing prayer, and a treat to eat together. Our kids love it when it is family night. Usually their favorite parts are singing the songs and the treat. They love that they have our undivided attention for a short time and we love that we have a designated time to teach them about the gospel or whatever topic we want to go over with them. It doesn't have to be a long thing. With a very young children, sometimes our family nights are under 15 minutes. It is amazing that few minutes makes though each week. Sometimes if it has been a long day I just want to put the kids to bed, but if we do our family home evening the tension seems to melt and my heart is softened. As our children get older we will make the lessons a little longer and do a little more.

How I live my faith

Right now I'm working as the secretary for our children's class at church. We have a lot of children (over 100) so it can be a lot of paperwork, but Sundays are so fun when I get to sit with them and see their little smiling faces. I keep track of when it is the children's birthdays so we can sing to them and assign the talks, prayers, scriptures for the children's class. They are always thrilled when it is their turn to participate! It's my goal to help each child feel the love God has for them and help them to learn the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Why don’t women hold the priesthood in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? How do Mormon women lead in the Church?

Melanie answered...

Women don't hold the priesthood by design by the Lord. The Lord has designed a system so that all the members of His church can be blessed through the priesthood by the men of His church. Men are required to provide priesthood blessings to other men, women, and children of Christ's church and act in Christ's place when doing so. Fathers or sons in a family unit can provide priesthood direction, comfort, blessings, leadership, etc. for all family members. Home teachers are assigned to every family so if a family does not have a priesthood holder in their home they have a source they may claim for the blessings of the priesthood. Men do not bless themselves with the priesthood. It is a gift they bless others with.

Women are blessed to lead in Christ's church in many organizations -- the Relief Society, the Young Women, and the Primary at all levels within the church. They see to the welfare of those they are responsible for; they speak to the general body of the church with the prophet and apostles; they plan activities and program; they teach lessons; they inspire those in their charge; they work to achieve the Lord's will. Women also lead as mothers in the home and have been given the specific responsibility to nurture children. This responsibility extends to all women, not just mothers with children in the home. Women are also called to lead in their families in partnership with their husbands to accomplish goals together.
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Cynthia answered...

Family is very important in the church for more reasons than can be explained here. Holding the priesthood is just one of these reasons. Husbands act and bless their family with their priesthood, but wives benefit and honor the priesthood through their husbands. It is a symbiotic relationship. As I have participated in the church in various activities I have come to understand my importance as a woman in the church. There cannot be one without the other.

Why do some call Mormonism a cult?

Dan answered...

I grew up thinking, at one point, Mormonism was cult. I made this assertion based on nothing but hearsay, and didn't actually know any tenets of the LDS faith. Now, as a person who has thoroughly investigated the sincerity and divine truthfulness of this Church, I can resoundingly say that the Church of Jesus Christ is by no means a cult. I find that the major reason why people think Mormonism is a cult is simply due to a lack of understanding of the Church. For instance, not many people really know that Mormons believe in and strive to be closer to Jesus Christ we believe Him to be our personal savior and redeemer of the world. We read the Bible and know it to be the word of God. We take communion. We have an unpaid clergy. We live to serve others as Christ would have done.

When people take the time to understand what Mormonism is really all about, like I did, they will understand that Mormons are normal people with normal problems, and each of us relies on God to be a better, more Christlike person.