Hi, I'm Lani

I like to dance when I clean and sing with the radio. I chase my kids around the house for fun. I'm a homemaker and I'm a Mormon.

About Me

The yard with the dirt and weeds, yeah, that's my project (one of the many). You'll notice (hopefully) that I planted some perennials in the flower bed last year and even put in a garden out back. It's one of the things I try to keep moving in the right direction one small step at a time.

Making memories with my family is my favorite pastime. We always gather as a family for breakfast and dinner. As a girl who loves to try new foods and has a hearty appetite for anything from flavor-town, I love when I can get together with my extended family for a barbecue, Sunday dinner, or a full-on cooking competition complete with critical judges and a champion.

On any given day, you may find me doing some of my favorite things like reading, planning menus, cooking, creating, going on walks with my neighbor, doing family history work, visiting with my parents, video-chatting with my siblings, dating my wonderful husband, or playing with my kids.

Why I am a Mormon

Living the gospel of Jesus Christ brings me happiness. There is no greater motivation to keep the commandments and to live righteously than the hope for a better world to raise your family in. So, why did I choose the Mormon faith and not one of the many others available out there? I joined the Mormon church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) at the young age of 8 for the simple fact that it felt right. I could tell the difference between right and wrong, and being baptized felt right.

My experience with being a Mormon is kind of like a new household product that you might see on T.V. and wonder if it really works, so you try it out, and if it works then you can add your testimony to the those advertising. I tried to live the teachings of the church when I was a child, then as a teenager, then as a college student, and I continue even now that I'm a mother of 2. The simplest explanation I can give is that I've tested it and it works. Through each of the struggles in my life, I've turned to prayer and the scriptures and I've found answers and strength. I can testify that there are living prophets on the earth today that receive direct revelation from God for us. I can testify that living the commandments and gospel truths brings you nearer to God and supplies hope during seemingly hopeless times. I testify that I am a loved daughter of Heavenly parents. I believe that Joseph Smith saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in the Sacred Grove and restored the church that Jesus had established anciently. I believe the Book of Mormon and Bible to be true books that were written for our day by prophets anciently through the power of God for the eternal benefit of mankind. I believe that Heavenly Father cares about His children and that we can receive personal revelation and answers to our prayers.

How I live my faith

Said simply, each day I try to be a good example for my kids. It's always my desire to do what is right.

A more specific description of what that includes for me follows. I attend church meetings with my family and I teach 5 and 6 year olds every Sunday about Jesus Christ and his gospel. They always make me smile.

Once a month I get together with a friend and we visit with 3 other women that live nearby and bring a gospel-centered message. We always have a great time visiting and it is nice to get to know the people around us.

I research my ancestry and keep a journal. I've always liked that sort of stuff.

I spend time with my family and set aside every Monday night to gather my family together, have a gospel lesson, a fun activity, and of course a yummy dessert!

I volunteer at the local retirement home and bring my daughter to visit with one of the residents, a spunky 102-year-old woman, each week.

I try to remember to say my prayers and read my scriptures daily, as well as gather in family prayer and scripture study.

I teach my children to be kind and serve others.

I try to keep all of God's commandments.

I listen to the prophets speak at the semi-annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I take notes and a personal inventory of how I can more fully live the life God wants for me.

What is the Relief Society?

Lani answered...

The Relief Society is the largest women's organization in the entire world. The women are diverse in age, race, and backgrounds. They as members, seek to bring relief to others through service. For instance, when I brought my babies home from the hospital, the Relief Society had arranged to bring dinners to my family while I was recovering.

They also do humanitarian work by assembling school kits, and hygiene kits to go to other people that need them.

The Relief Society also gathers together on Sunday to have a lesson and build the faith of the women.

One of the objectives of Relief Society is to strengthen families and homes. Women do this by trying to live the gospel in their lives and serving their families in their homes.
Karen answered...

To me, Relief Society means friendship. It's an opportunity to know and love and learn from other women from so many different backgrounds and situations and ways of looking at life and yet they are truly my sisters! I can't tell you how many times I have been wrestling with an issue in my own life and there, during the course of our class or other conversation, comes the answer. I know that Heavenly Father so often works through others to answer our prayers, and to me Relief Society is a huge example of that. I'm grateful not only for those who reach out to me, but for the opportunies to reach out to others through Relief Society. It is an inspired program and a wonderful asset to my life!

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?

Leeny answered...

This is a question I had to really consider before joining the Church. My mother is a non-denominational chaplain, and both my sisters are pastors. Female leadership in church settings is very important to my family.

It is to me as well. I think many people become offended when they learn that only men hold the priesthood because they misunderstand it. The priesthood is a tool given to men in order that they might serve others more. It does not in any way give them power or dominion over women. Those people who suppose the priesthood is a way to control others are deeply mistaken.

My husband is a priesthood holder, this means I am too. I have claim on my husband's priesthood power. Even more than he does. If I am sick, discouraged, or in need of help I can call upon my husband to give me a blessing through the priesthood that he holds. I then recieve many blessings because of my husband's worthiness to work in behalf of Christ. My husband is never able to give himself a blessing though. If he is sick or discouraged he must call on other priesthood holders to administer to him. My husband holds the priesthood so that he can bless me and our child - never himself.

The priesthood is the power of Christ on the earth. It allows those who hold it to serve their families in the same way Christ served the Church. Did Christ do any deed for himself during his earthly ministry? No. Christ spent all his energy serving the people. This is what the priesthood does for my husband. It infuses him with Christ's compassion and ability to love, and then my husband is able to use that celestial love in our family.

Why don't women also recieve this special gift then? The simple answer is women don't need it. As women we are innately endowed with compassion, selflessness, and love. Think about the way a mother loves her child. I believe there is nothing more pure and similar to Christ's love for us, than a mother's love for her children. Women naturally have the ability to love as Christ does.

In an ideal situation, which is what God always intended for us, there are two partners in marriage. There is the husband and father, a priesthood leader who can be called upon to administer blessings and serve in Christ's name. And there is also the wife and mother, who is blessed with the ability to love as Christ loves and sacrifice for her family. These are two seperate and divinely appointed roles. Each complementing the other. Both make a complete home.

Women do not hold the priesthood because they do not need it. Women have other God-given powers that raise them up to the task they are called to. A man is appointed to serve his wife and children - it is the power of the priesthood that enables him to do this.

I am grateful to have a husband who is worhty to use the priesthood in my behalf. It has blessed me many times and I know that it is a special gift from God - not only to my husband, but to me as well.