Hi, I'm Stephanie

I love to play and laugh. I believe we all need to make a difference. I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I am married to my high school sweetheart and still live in the town we grew up in. My favorite hobby is my six children. Two of our children joined our family as older children through adoption. People said to us, "I could never adopt an older child, how do you know what you get?" Well, you don't know what you get when you give birth to a child! One of the children we adopted has special needs. Uniting us all together as a family has been a lot of work but it's brought great blessings to our family. We love to go on trips. We load everyone up into our big van, throw in the tents, and spend over a month a year exploring. In order to finance our trips, we deliver a weekly newspaper. Everyone from oldest to youngest has a part in getting the papers delivered. Together with my husband, we've tried to create a dream home for our family. We have two zip lines, a "spinner", a giant slip and slide, and a tree house with a bridge and a slide that goes through a stump. We even have a fire pole inside our house! One thing we don't have is television. The kids spend their free time playing together instead of sitting in front of the tv. I love outdoor activities where the kids and adults can play together, including: skiing, mountain biking, hiking, geocaching, and orienteering.

Why I am a Mormon

Since I was a little girl, I felt the love of Jesus and believed that he knew me and was interested in my life. Through membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, my relationship with the Savior has become richer. I have come to know Jesus Christ. I have learned what it means to be a disciple of Christ. I want to be the best person I can be through learning about the Savior and trying to follow his example. I continue to be active in the gospel because I want to continue to improve and be better and better all the time. Through Sunday lessons, personal study, prayer, and church activities, I've improved myself in many ways. I've learned how to improve my spiritual life. I've learned practical skills that help my manage my household. I've met people who have been through the same trials I've been through and can go to them for advice and wisdom. I've had to opportunity to be stretched as I've fulfilled various responsibilities I've been given and have discovered interests and skills I didn't know I possessed. I love that I can reflect on how I handle trials and challenges in my life and see tremendous growth. I am a much more generous, loving and patient person today because of the restored gospel.

How I live my faith

As a follower of Jesus Christ, I believe it is our duty to serve our fellow man. I created and manage a community produce co-op. Every other Saturday, I get up at 5:30 am to meet the produce truck. With a handful of volunteers, we distribute over three tons of produce to participating families. People who come to the co-op say it's like Christmas morning when they learn what they're getting. I love providing the means for that Christmas spirit! For the past 10 years, I have been the program director at a cub scout day camp. I spend all year coming up with class ideas for the four day camp. It's wonderful to see the results of my effort when we run camp and I see boys happily engaged in what I created.

The most important service I engage in is within the walls of my home. With six kids, my days are spent serving them and trying to help them realize their full potential. I can't think of anything I'd rather do than spend time with the children I've been trusted with. They aren't perfect. Some of my children struggle with dyslexia, ADHD, depression, and developmental disabilities. None of them is a star student, star sports player or gifted musician. But as their mother, I can tell you that they are each amazing and extraordinary in their own ways. Being a mom has taught how much I'm capable of and has given me so much to smile and laugh about.

What is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' attitude regarding homosexuality and same sex marriage?

Joshua answered...

I am sexually attracted to other males. For awhile, I struggled with how a loving Heavenly Father could allow for me to be attracted to other males, and then ask me to abstain from same-sex relationships. However, as I have tried to deal with my attractions in a Christ-like manner, I have found that He really does love me. I have grown so much spiritually as I have learned to deal with my same-sex attractions. I now understand that everyone has challenges in this life. I am no different.

The Church has a high standard on morality. The only sexual relationships that are permitted are between a man and his wife. This may prove difficult for both people with same-sex and opposite-sex attractions. However, I believe that by obeying this law, we can gain greater peace and happiness. God does know what is best for us, and He gave us this law to bless us.

Same-sex marriage distorts what marriage is all about. It is based on the lie that because you are attracted to the same sex, you need to be in a same-sex relationship in order to be "true to yourself". Many members of the Church can testify that this is not true. Some have found peace and joy in celibacy, and others gone on to have faithful and fulfilling marriages. For a long time, I thought I couldn't get married, but the Lord has blessed me to develop a sexual attraction to a beautiful woman and we have a wonderful marriage.
Mike. answered...

First, I wholeheartedly believe in the "Official Church Answer" to this question. Homosexual behavior is, as the scriptures clearly state, against God's law, just as fornication and adultery are against God's law. There are no exceptions, but there is always repentance.

God loves all of his children. Christ died to redeem all of God's children. To these statements there are also no exceptions. I am firmly conviced that whether a person experiences same gender attraction or not, he or she is still a child of God. God's love for us is constant, but that does not mean that He will always approve of our choices or our behavior.

Through the atonement of Christ, all of our hurts and pains, all of our sorrows and anguish, will be taken away. All of our sins will be forgiven on condition of repentance. All these are His. He paid the price for them, and we have no right to hold on to them.

Why do some call Mormonism a cult?

Terry answered...

Mostly because of misunderstanding and lack of knowledge about the Church. It's easier for people to believe what they hear from other people (who heard it from someone else, who heard it from another person that read it on the Internet...) instead of making an effort to find out from the source.

In addition, there are small, secretive groups that are not part of our Church that use a modified form of the name of the Church for their own group, and have practices that are similar to our worship services and practices. These groups may be involved in illegal activities, especially polygamy, and when the media reports on them, they do not make an effort to distinguish between these groups and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.