The Last One

As I drove to a Stake Priesthood meeting with my husband and four of my sons I reflected on how far my children have come. Why was I going to a Stake Priesthood meeting you might ask? My youngest son Michael was being ordained to the office of an elder in the Melchizedek priesthood. His brothers were coming to support him and participate in the ordination. Lanny was unable to make it because he was sick, but his dad, Sam, Seth, and Jacob were present along with the members of the bishopric and our high councilman representative Brother Iba. The blessing that Pat gave him was very inspirational and full of rich promises, as he keeps his covenants. I am so humbled by this young man who has grown so much in the gospel of Jesus Christ and been such an example to his peers. He will make such an amazing missionary in a few short months.

I feel a little melancholy when I think of him going on his mission and then coming home because things will just never be the same. It happens every time one of the kids leave home for school or work etc. They come home, but it's just not like it was before they left. Life goes on and we all change and I know that is supposed to happen. I love my sweet young man for his diligence and desire to serve the Lord and be an upstanding member of society. I love you Michael.

Insurance

How many of you have health insurance? Probably 99% of you do. So when you have to update your insurance you do it very quickly so there is no lapse in coverage in case something happens to you or your family.

Shouldn't we look at our temple recommends in the same way? When your temple recommend is about to expire do you "take care of business" to keep it current? Are you as diligent in keeping your "spiritual insurance" up to date as you are with your health insurance? Which one of these will keep you stronger and take you further?

If you have not yet had the opportunity to attend the temple, I would strongly encourage you to set a goal to receive that "spiritual insurance" that we all need to be with our Father in Heaven again. I love the temple and I had the privilege to be the escort for my daughter-in-law yesterday to see her receive her endowment. It was a wonderful experience for her and for me. I especially enjoyed listening to the instructions given to her as a first time temple visitor. It was good to hear once again how sacred and important the endowment plays a role in our salvation.

With the new temple being built in Kansas City, Missouri it will make temple attendance so much easier and I hope all of us who have had to travel hours to the nearest temple, will be that much more appreciative of the new one that will be only an hour or so away. May you all be blessed as you attend the temple or work towards attending very soon.

Do I Know You?

Almost 2 years ago our ward and stake boundaries were reorganized and our family was put into a new ward and stake. To say the least, it was quite a culture shock to our whole family but we have survived.

A few months ago, sitting in stake conference waiting for it to start, I was watching people come in and out, getting set for the meeting. I didn't know very many people but I kept seeing people I felt I should know. As this phenomenon continued on it dawned on me that I probably do know them from another time and place.

Pondering this, I have come to the conclusion that I know these faces because of our preexistence experience. Your faces were the ones I knew before I came here, and as I have grown in the gospel and it becomes more clear to me, and the veil that has been put before my eyes thins, and I see you as I did before in Heaven.

Moving from one ward to another gives us the opportunity to reunite in spirit with those we might have known before. The Lord always has a reason for giving us the opportunity for change and it is truly amazing what change can bring.

I wait for the time when I will fully remember our experiences together and we become great friends again.

The Joy of Working

Saturday's at our house is "work day." Most families probably use this for their fun day, but with a husband who is out of town all week long, a list of "things" is always created which needs to be done on this day. In my quest to teach my children the joy of work and to hear less of the whiny noise that always follows the request, I have always tried to capitalize on their strong points.

Michael is a great outside worker with his dad and will put all his efforts into the job as long as he knows Tashua (his girlfriend) may be waiting at the end of the job, or the possibility of a paintball party is in the makings, or even just a game night with the family. He looks forward to a fun time at the end of work time.

Then there's Amy, she's my outdoor Sheerah. Give her a job that takes place outside and she's with you. She is usually carrying a big stick and looks like she is ready to go on a safari. She loves to mow the lawn and help take care of the chickens which includes cleaning out the coop. She helps in the garden and loves the "fruits of her labors." But give her an inside job and she will take at least a week to complete it and even then it doesn't look much different than when she started.

On the other hand, we have Emily, who in real life (her real life) would be upstairs with about 3 good books to read (I'm not kidding either), but in my real life she is my indoor woman. Give her the choice of working outside or inside and she will choose inside every time. She even likes to clean the bathroom (which I detest).

Now here comes the learning on my part. I thought to myself in order to make the day a happier one and maybe have less of that unearthly sound we here when we say the words "its time for chores", I could just have them all do the things they are best at and make everyone sort of happy. But then I began thinking (yes I do that once in a while) what if Emily only knows how to clean a house and not clean a chicken coop and she marries a chicken farmer or what if Amy only knows how to work outside and not clean a house and she marries and lives in a city and doesn't have the outside chores to do that she knows how to do, or even Michael what if he never marries (that would be sad) and doesn't know how to clean a house (I know, he and Amy can room together and live in a pig sty) OK back on track .... My point is this, Amy needs to learn how to clean a house just as much as Emily needs to learn how to clean a chicken coop because in real life we have to learn how to work in every situation. Maybe Michael will never need to know how to fix a lawn mower or build a chicken coop door, but we just never know what situations may arise. Remember the Lord said that whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection.

I was reading a friends blog the other day (yes don't faint, I took some time and read someone's blog) and it inspired me to pick up mine again, not that I ever really got started. I think that blogging can be therapeutic for the writer and hopefully for the reader enjoyable and maybe even inspiring. Today in seminary I taught about the thought of being in a dark pit and there was no one to help you get out. Our lives would be that way if we did not have the Savior who atoned for our sins. So when you are feeling like your are in a deep, dark pit and it looks like there is no way out, remember the Savior is always there with a light and hand to pull us out.

Life is a roller coaster

When you have 9 kids life never slows down. You get one situated and happy and then another one comes to you with a problem. Then they start getting married and the problems double. But through it all I love my children dearly, because usually there are more calm times than rough times and we all have a good time together.

My Blog is stupid

I had to create a whole new blog (actually Sallyann did it for me because I was very frustrated with it). I would like to fine the other one because I liked my background before but this will do until I change it. I also liked the name of the other blog too but maybe someday I will find it again. So anyway, I must get back to work and will fill you in on all the fun stuff later.