my two cents

@person0 - I would normally advise to make getting and staying out of debt a priority (the economy can't keep up forever) so my thoughts on this:
1 - My parents raised a lot of kids in a very small home. It can be done.
2 - If you're feeling like this is what you're supposed to do and since you have the resources, plan on having family move in and/or being in a ward that needs you for certain reasons.
Congrats on the growing family!

Okay, here's my experience.  I had a house and I thought it was too small so I went and bought another house.  The Spirit was very clear - not a good idea.  I bought it anyway even knowing logically the house is a whole lot of scary debt money.  The housing market crashed a few months after we closed on the deal which swallowed the equity we had with our downpayment.  I love my house.  My kids love the house.  We've had great memories with this house.  But things would have been much easier if I listened to the Spirit and not bought the house.  Because, as it is right now, we would have made off like bandits if we would have just rented a house and bought a house a few months later after the crash.
But yeah, this is the opposite of what you're trying to do. 
If I were you, I'm going to do either one of these things:
1.)  Build that basement.
2.) Rent the house and get a mortgage on a new house that can be paid off by the rental proceeds of the other house.
But that's just me. 

?? Dude. A woman who is being physically abused is vastly different than saying "hey I fantasize about other women outside of my marriage, I wonder what would happen if I said something".
Two totally different things.  Don't compare yourself where you are committing sin to one who has sin being committed upon them, you don't get to claim the victim here. No the 2nd great commandment is getting fulfilled.  "Love they neighbor as thyself".  I would be telling a younger me the same things I'm telling you-not b/c I hate you or anything of that nature but b/c if you don't watch yourself now, if you don't start guarding yourself now you are in for a lot of pain down the road.
Consider it a warning based on of love for my fellow man.  (Something sadly today's society has forgotten about . . .sometimes love requires a stern tone). 

Take your advice.  Start changing this attitude:
I have  a husband and 2 sons.  You basically just called them degenerates.  I also have a brother who is a doctor and you basically just accused him of being a sexual predator.  Yes, you CALLED THEM DEGENERATES because you applied the sins of SOME MEN to MEN IN GENERAL in that statement.  And when your default thinking leads to these types of generalizations it means you have a VERY LOW OPINION OF MEN.  And that's what rules your attitude towards modesty.
I don't remember if you're married or not or have a boyfriend or if you're in charge of raising boys.  If you are, you are doing all of them a disservice and I hope this toxic attitude is not near any of the men in your sphere of influence.  Were you the one that accused the SLC Temple of displaying pornography?  

SAY WHAT????????
 

Ok, here's straight-out answers from a wife married to a former runway model.  He's a 12 on your scale of 1-10.
In your entire post, you only talked about your sister-in-law.  Never said anything about your wife except that you have one.  You should be concentrating your thoughts on your wife.  LOVE YOUR WIFE WITH ALL YOUR BEING.  Everytime you wake up, think of your wife.  When you brush your teeth, think of your wife.  When you put on your shoes, think of your wife.  When you get to work, think of your wife.  Everytime you start thinking of another woman, refocus on your wife. 
Do you know why I've never worried about my husband and all these women chasing after him?  Because he's always talking about me.  Especially to these women.  He flashes them his wedding ring and if they don't get the hint, he talks about me.  My husband talks about me like I'm this goddess or something.  It's not some made up talk like he's just saying it for show.  That's really how he thinks about me.  And he likes to brag about me to everybody including these flirty women.  He talks about me to my kids in the same way.  My kids thinks I'm this amazing woman, even with all my major flaws, because they learned it from my husband.  My sons are now teenagers and sometimes say something sarcastic to me and WHAM!  My husband is on them with fire and brimstone.  Nobody disrespects Mother.  That's just the way it is.  Heck, if somebody insults me on just stupid Facebook even, he's out there defending me.  
Stop flirting.  That's it.   Stop thinking about women, keep thinking about your wife, and you'll stop flirting.   If you don't know you're flirting, then you're not flirting.  There's no "hidden signal" or whatever.  If the women think you're flirting even if you have no intentions of flirting, that's on them.  You thinking that you'll get tempted to cheat on your wife because the women are flirting means you're not thinking of your wife enough.  You should be able to stand in the middle of a brothel and not get tempted because YOU LOVE YOUR WIFE that much.  Take your wife with you everywhere as much as possible.
Why would you tell your sister-in-law?  I know the answer to this.  You're hoping you can put the burden on her to tempt you out of your marriage.  That's just despicable.  GO LOVE YOUR WIFE AND STOP THIS CRAZY TALK ABOUT YOUR SISTER-IN-LAW.  If you can't get yourself to do that, GO GET HELP FROM THE PROFESSIONALS AND GET SOME COUNSELING!  Or go move your family at least 2000 miles away from your sister-in-law.
 

So you froze your assets

I am not a member of the Church, but have been reading about it, studying the BOM for about 25+ years now. This should be understandable since I am an avid genealogist and have been for about the same amount of time. I spent literally hundreds if not thousands of hours in our local Family History Center scouring books, Microfiche, microfilm, etc. I have traveled thousands of miles in this pursuit, spent countless hours in court house record areas, scouring church registries, corresponding with clergy, etc. in Europe, Eastern Europe and the list goes on. I did also tap into Ancestory in its early days and in fact uploaded GEDCOM files early on. It is virtually impossible to avoid encountering the Church in such a pursuit. At times I have felt mission driven almost as if being called upon by ancestors to record their lives so their memories are not lost. So, here is my question, silly as it may seem.
Unless things have changed I know it is/was possible to load ones data on a specially designated computer in the FHC locally and run down each ancestor to determine whether or not they have  had any or all possible ordinances completed. My major interest, and the basis for this enquiry, is whether it is possible for a non-member such as I to arrange for someone else (Church member with valid recommend) to actually do proxy baptisms for those ancestors eligible? Thinking maybe young missionaries in return for some assistance with their mission expenses? Also, would wonder if such activities are limited to simply direct line ancestors or are collateral line predecessors eligible as well.
You might find all of my interest rather odd. I don’t think so really. Although I have not been “moved” to attend the local stake, explore conversion, etc., after reading the BOM several times and researching quite a bit about the history, traditions, and  beliefs of the LDS Church, I think “why take a chance?” Proxy baptisms do seem sensible to me and would seem to offer “spiritual insurance” in a sense. An effort to look out for those who have gone before us.
So, is such a thing possible? If so, what would be the process to affect such temple work?
Michael

Post Columbine, take a look at the thousands of stories of bad guys with guns out killing people.  The vast, vast, overwhelmingly vast conclusion to just about all of those stories, is they were stopped by a good guy with a gun.  
If someone comes up with a "wave my magic wand and all the guns disappear" thing, I'll reconsider my opinion.  But until then:

As an investigator, take this with a grain of salt.   The LDS I know spend a lot of time talking about their testimonies.  As I look into the church, I’m not so much impressed by the words of their testimony as I am by the testimony of their life and actions.  You live to be more Christ-like, correct?   
I submit that the Gospel certainly does not need defense.  A defense by nature is off-putting.  The Gospel needs expression.  It needs to be embodied.  I fail at this daily.  My carnal nature is strong.  I’m often rude and argumentative.  Defensive.  I struggle to be better, though.  
It’s the delivery, content, and attitude of your words that presents the best “defense”.  I see some of you attacked here and your beliefs diminished, yet you respond with kindness, understanding, and clarity.  I’m in awe of some of the people on this forum.  You just seem to be genuinely incredible people.  
In my opinion, that is the best defense you could have.  

I"ll take a stab at this - Instead of spending 2 hours listening to the upteenth talk on whatever you can actually spend that time *doing* what we've been asked to do. For instance, hastening the work includes indexing and other family history. Given how many talks there have been on this and to see how few participate, dropping a meeting allows more time to pursue these critical endeavors. Hence, simplifying can enhance hastening.

I"ll take a stab at this - Instead of spending 2 hours listening to the upteenth talk on whatever you can actually spend that time *doing* what we've been asked to do. For instance, hastening the work includes indexing and other family history. Given how many talks there have been on this and to see how few participate, dropping a meeting allows more time to pursue these critical endeavors. Hence, simplifying can enhance hastening.

This was not produced by the Church but from what I remember (saw it some years ago) it's pretty good. If you have an amazon prime account, you can watch it for free. https://www.amazon.com/Emma-Smith-My-Story-Createspace/dp/B004TJFT1S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509849634&sr=8-1&keywords=emma+smith+my+story

Here's one article - https://www.lds.org/ensign/2008/09/my-dear-and-beloved-companion-the-letters-of-joseph-and-emma-smith?lang=eng

40 minute video - https://www.mormonchannel.org/listen/series/legacy-audio/emma-smith-episode-4

Thank you I really appreciate this.  I googled Emma Smith and, well lets just say there is a lot of anti-mormon stuff out there I'd rather not poison my brain with!  So I really appreciate all the advice and information I am getting from the forum members.  I don't want the perceptive of ex-mormons, I mean if you wanted to learn about life in the ARMY you wouldn't go to a deserter! Any links you can give me on Emma is greatly appreciated.
I also don't want any of you to think that because I don't understand everything that I don't see the beauty and love in this church.  I can FEEL the spirit of God when I am in an LDS church, I can see it in the faces of the members.  Yes of course there will be problems, there are problems and things that don't make sense in every religion.  I just hope you all know how sincere I am.  I do have partial testimonies of truth in the LDS Church, for example; the pre-existence, I KNOW without a doubt in my mind that this is true, and eternal progression, I KNOW this is true, it's kind of ridiculous to think that when you die you just stay in that state forever and don't learn anything anymore or progress spiritually. And the Word Of Wisdom, following this has made such a difference in my life it must be a revelation from God.

More like she had been through an awful lot.

I"ll take a stab at this - Instead of spending 2 hours listening to the upteenth talk on whatever you can actually spend that time *doing* what we've been asked to do. For instance, hastening the work includes indexing and other family history. Given how many talks there have been on this and to see how few participate, dropping a meeting allows more time to pursue these critical endeavors. Hence, simplifying can enhance hastening.

I had another thought - There's a sifting going on and we knew this would happen. It can be difficult to watch but just make sure you're not part of it. Stay in the boat!

@Blossom76, I am sorry to say that you are going about this completely wrong.
YOU CAN'T ARGUE SCRIPTURES.  Apologetics is well and good but apologetics IS NOT THE WAY TO CONVERSION.  
I am born and raised Catholic - went to Catholic Schools from Kindergarten through 5 years of college - very devout and active in the faith.  I'm LDS now.  I did not become LDS because my husband showed me scriptures.  I know my scriptures backward and forward and upside down.  The Catholic interpretation of such scriptures is solid.  The Catholic faith in Priesthood Authority is solid.   There is NO WAY you can convince a devout Catholic to see the truthfulness of the LDS restored gospel by "proving" that the Catholic faith is wrong.  That is impossible.
The only way to soften your husband's heart is through the Holy Spirit.  And this can only happen if you HONESTLY, DILIGENTLY, PATIENTLY, AND HUMBLY seek the Truth to all things.
For example:  The Catholic claim to Priesthood Authority is Apostolic Succession from St. Peter, Bishop of Rome to the next Bishop of Rome, Pope Linus.  A Catholic believes that Apostolic Authority was handed down from Peter to Bishop Linus.  The LDS do not believe this.  The LDS do not believe that Apostolic Authority can be handed down to Bishops.  The Authority of an Apostle is separate and different from the Authority of the Bishop.  Therefore, Pope Linus has the authority of a Bishop but not of an Apostle.  Joseph Smith, on the other hand, was given Apostolic Authority by Peter, therefore, Joseph has the proper keys to lead the Church.
Now, WHICH ONE IS TRUE?  Can you "prove" that Apostolic Authority transferred to Linus?  Can you "prove" that Apostolic Authority transferred to Joseph Smith?  NOBODY can prove this.  This is a matter o FAITH.  Faith questions can only be answered by the Holy Spirit.
Another example:  Matthew 16.  Matthew 16 deals with Revelation.  For a Catholic who doesn't believe in ordinances for the dead, Matthew 16 holds a different interpretation than an LDS.  A Catholic believes that the "gates of hades shall not overcome it" means that Satan cannot overcome the Church built on the rock (revelation) of Peter which to them then interprets to the infallibility of the Catholic Church.  To an LDS who believe in salvation past death and the great apostasy, Matthew 16 holds a deeper interpretation.  The gates of hades means DEATH cannot stop revelation so that even the dead will know that Jesus is the Messiah.
Now, WHICH ONE IS TRUE?  Can you "prove" the proper interpretation of these verses?  NOBODY can prove this.  This is a matter of FAITH.  If you have faith that Pope Linus is the true Apostle and Joseph Smith is not, then you would put your faith on the Catholic interpretation.  But if you have faith in the authority of Joseph Smith, then you would put your faith on the LDS interpretation.  
So, as it seems that at least your husband is supportive of your choice to seek the truth of the restored gospel, then I suggest you DON'T WORRY about debating scriptures with him.  This is futile.   What you need to do is build a testimony of the restored gospel FOR YOURSELF and seek and pray that the Holy Spirit will guide you and your family to the TRUTH.  Learning happens line upon line, precept upon precept.  You first have to exercise faith before learning can happen.  You first have to gain a testimony and a solid understanding of scripture before you can teach it.
Be extra patient with your husband.  For a Catholic, leaving the faith after having learned of the Catholic teachings is a straight ticket to the fires of hell that would make it very difficult for Christ's mercy to save.  This is a very frightening thing, especially for the people you love.  I took this leap, not because my husband (who is LDS) showed me the truth of the restored gospel, but because I sought the truth for myself.  I sought the truth because my husband testified of what he believes to be true and I saw how my husband was a great husband and father and did his very best to live as a good Christian.

I"ll take a stab at this - Instead of spending 2 hours listening to the upteenth talk on whatever you can actually spend that time *doing* what we've been asked to do. For instance, hastening the work includes indexing and other family history. Given how many talks there have been on this and to see how few participate, dropping a meeting allows more time to pursue these critical endeavors. Hence, simplifying can enhance hastening.

I"ll take a stab at this - Instead of spending 2 hours listening to the upteenth talk on whatever you can actually spend that time *doing* what we've been asked to do. For instance, hastening the work includes indexing and other family history. Given how many talks there have been on this and to see how few participate, dropping a meeting allows more time to pursue these critical endeavors. Hence, simplifying can enhance hastening.

Welcome! Happy to have you here and so excited for your baptism!

First, welcome to the forum. I'm so glad you found the Church and you should be applauded for your willingness to serve and for how much you care about the health of your ward.
- You definitely have a lot on your plate and adjustments need to be made. Until your bishop officially releases you from some of it, I suggest you find solutions yourself. Ask the parents of the seminary kids to teach 2 or 3 times a week, teach EQ every other month instead of every month, make sure you're fully utilizing the ward missionaries, spend 20 minutes at ht assignments instead of 45, etc.
- As far as how you envision the future and don't want to be in ward councils the rest of your life, what came to my mind was the Quorum of the 12. They have a lot of meetings and will until the day they die. Just some perspective on that.
- As far as what's going on in Sacrament Mtg, since you can't change their behavior, sit somewhere so you don't have to see as much of it happening.
- Instead of waiting for the bishop to talk to his counselors about how to reinvigorate the ward, how about you start a thing that when people sign up to feed the missionaries they also invite someone from the ward. This could help bring the ward together as well as fellowship those who are fading out. Also, make sure the ward council schedules activities and gives assignments to some of those who are slipping away. It will get them involved and give them a reason to participate.
Unfortunately, some wards are great and some are awful and I know how frustrating it is to be in one of the latter but I encourage you to do what you reasonably can until things improve or you move. 

Bingo!