Inspirations

One of the things I have felt I need to put on my list of things to do (as referenced here) is praying to know who and how to serve then listening and following through. I have been at it a few months and have had some tender experiences. The aren't many feelings as good as being an instrument in God's hand and the peace one feels and the confidence that comes because you feel more acceptable before God.

Sister Bonnie Parkin gave a BYU devotional called Personal Ministry that I've linked before. It is an amazing talk that has had a great impact on my life. She talks of discovering our personal ministry and shares many wonderful stories of prophets who minister personally. She concludes:
"Our personal ministry is sacred and precious. It allows us to become an extension of the Lord’s love. It embraces all who cross our path. What are those things you can do for another person that only you can do? I invite you to find out. "

Elder Don Clarke gave this talk in conference in 2006. He tells about his grandfather nearly losing the mortgage on his farm and how an old crippled man sent him a note one day telling him that he had $200 that he could have if he was in financial difficulty. The mortgage was $195. What a wonderful blessing to that family because one man followed the spirit. Elder Clarke says this at the end of his talk: "I have a little book that I carry with me, where I record the inspiration and thoughts that I receive from the Spirit. It does not look like much, and it becomes worn out and needs to be replaced from time to time. As thoughts come to my mind, I write them down and then I try to do them. I have found that many times, as I have done something on my list, my action was the answer to someone's prayer. There have also been those times that I didn't do something on my list, and I have found out later that there was someone I could have helped, but I didn't. When we receive promptings regarding God's children, if we write down the thoughts and inspiration we receive and then obey it, God's confidence in us increases and we are given more opportunities to be instruments in His hands."

I have found this to be true. Yesterday as I was preparing myself to make this post I had to run to the grocery store. I prayed before that I might be able to help someone there. I was on the look out the entire trip. Nothing. When I was checking out I noticed the lady behind me. In her cart were very minimal items and her clothes were well worn. Suddenly I wanted to pay for her groceries, but that is not something people usually just let you do. I checked my purse and I didn't have any cash that I could just leave with the checker and I didn't know how to do it with a credit card without her overhearing what was happening. I just could not figure out how to pull it off. And then my transaction was complete and I had to move on.

On my way out I saw a lady I knew. . .well, sort of knew. I really only know who she is. I've never talked to her and I wasn't confident she knew me. But I went up to her and put my hand on her shoulder and called her by name and asked her how she was. She started bubbling over with news about her kids and things she has been doing this summer.

As I left I was struck with how Heavenly Father really wanted me to serve while there. It was such a simple, simple act. And although it put me way out of my comfort zone (paying for that lady's groceries would have fit my personality so much better), I felt so elated afterward because I was an instrument in God's hands. Things like that just have a way of boosting you.
So now for another little inspiration I've had. . . I'm inviting any of you who want to join me to start recording inspirations and acting on them. I've made 6 little notebooks to give away. If you would like one, just read one or both of the talks linked above and leave me a comment stating your desire to join me. On July 1st I will send them out to you (if more than 6 want to join, I'll put your names in a drawing as to who to send the notebooks to). Thanks for reading my blog!

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

Yesterday we went to the temple open house. It is such a pretty temple!

Hold your compliments on the family photo. You get what you get and you don't throw a fit! (at least I took my camera this time)
The girls did great most of the tour. When we sat down in the sealing room Tess couldn't stay quiet any longer. Tom took her out of the stroller and held her and whispered in her ear. He must have been telling her what happened in that room because suddenly she burst out "NO! My don't want to get married!" We always get noticed with that girl. . . (on the other hand, without her you'd have a mighty boring blog to read!)

Lacrosse and Comfort Zones

We signed Chan up for lacrosse this year. . . when we did, I knew nothing about the sport except you played with some sort of stick. Well, I've learned a few things. . . . First you need some gear: shoulder pads, elbow pads, ginormous gloves, a helmet, a mouth guard and a stick. . . .not just any kind of stick, it has to be metal. Also, in lacrosse it's okay for a mom to yell from the sidelines "Hit him!" "Check him!" and it's okay for the boy to do it! And a smart mom puts red tape on her son's helmet so she can tell which one he is. (I haven't been smart yet!)But it's been a very fun sport to watch. The first game was especially fun because Joe and Kelsie joined us and the weather was great. Another bonus was the nearby playground for Tess. . . however, she still needed to be watched!! This is what we noticed from a little too far away; in my opinion, she is a little too little to be doing that kind of ladder; apparently that opinion is not shared by her.The second lacrosse game was also awesome because there was a rainbow (that should clue you in as to how dry we were not), it was Chandler's birthday and he scored 3 goals. Awesome for him! Too bad I forgot my camera. Aside from not getting those goals photographed, I wish I would have had my camera for Tess. Since there was not a playground close by, she had to make fun some other way. . .and so she went up to everyone on the side line and touched their knee and stared in their faces until they talked to her. She asked one older man "Are you a grandpa?" When he said he was she said, "My grandpa lives in Preston." After talking to them for a while, (it was a couple) she moved on. One stop she insisted that a baby take his binki. Another spectator had to hold her water bottle. Finally she found a nice little family who gave her enough attention that she decided she could join them permanently. She climbed on the mom's lap (she already had 2 other kids on there) while the mom held a blanket over their heads to keep them dry. Tom and I can't figure out where she comes from. Her sociality is NOT our mold! I blame his dad. He blames mine. Cache says she should join Facebook. In the mean time, her parent's comfort zones are being challenged and we are meeting people we otherwise would not. I guess this is a good thing.

The Almost-Perfect Changing Pad

With Greta being the blow out queen that she is, I have been on a search for a perfect changing pad. I don't like the plastic ones because after you wipe the back up, the baby sticks to the pad. But cloth ones don't keep the mess from soaking through to the bed, couch or floor (I've never had a changing table) and a cloth over a plastic one always seems to slip and slide around. So with a little trial and error, (sorry Aubrey for giving you some of my not-so-successful-trials) I've come up with one that is flannel, has plastic inside, washes well, folds well and works great at home and on the road. It's easy enough to make that you can make a few so when one needs to go in the wash, another one is ready. Here's what I came up with:

You need a large plastic bag and 1/2 yard of flannel. Wash the flannel and trim off frays.Fold the flannel in half; right sides together then pin it to the bag. Put the seam of the bag (bottom) along the fold.Sew up the sides. Trim the excess off the bag.
Turn inside out and pin top together and sew closed.Machine quilt in the middle of the pad to keep it from shifting during washing. (I just did a random square pattern.)It's the almost perfect changing pad because my sewing skills are not stellar so final products rarely come out looking very decent, but it is perfect in function! If you are any good at sewing, they would make a great baby gift.

You can make them with a smaller bag too, but I like the entire baby to fit on the pad. You could also cut your bag and get more changing pads out of one bag, but that was just a bit more effort than I wanted! I haven't tried other kinds of plastic like from a regular garbage bag so I don't know how those would wash up. Just remember since there is a plastic bag inside, the pad is not a toy.

With this post, I think I'm 1st in line to receive the nerdiest blogger on the net! (But maybe someone can benefit from this, if not, I've spent way too much time earning a title I don't really want, but probably deserve with or without this post!)

After Picking Her Nose. . .

Tessa said, "Can my feed a booger to Greta?"

I guess I'm thankful she asked???

Look Alikes

Part of our daily scripture study includes reading a section from 'For the Strength of Youth'. One day Chandler said that one of the boys pictured looks like a kid in our ward. So now whenever we are on that page Tom says "Open to Alex Andersen." . . and we all know which page! After a few times through the pamphlet, Tom started finding look alikes for at least one person on each page. Most of them are VERY far stretches, but it always gives us a good laugh or a lively discussion such as "No WAY does that look like _____!" "I think the one in red looks like _______. " or "How in the world did you get that?" (as you can see we get into some heavy gospel discussions when the FSY pamphlet is pulled out!!) I'm posting this to record one of Tom's very lovable quirks and to share who we've matched up. Many of you will know a few of the people he's tagged. Like I said, most of them are very far stretches, but they are household names about once a month! (if you know any of these people, go get your FSY pamphlet and laugh out loud!)

Page:
5 Chalon Keller Priestley
8 Steven Koch and Matt Bowler/Matt Cattani (I suggested Allen Macbean for the top left and got booed by everyone!)
11 Raul Elbaba, Marla Sorenson
13 Ryan Gardiner, Dallin Hucks
14 Brandon Woolf, Alex Andersen
15 Heather Bingham Lott (my suggestion), a black Carson Hatch (Chan's suggestion), Greg Chandler, Callin Osborn
18 Maren Hatch
20 Dawnya Seamons
21 Dallin Anderson, Dorothy Rich
22 Curtis Hendricks
23 Jason Rich/Jerry Olsen
25 James Warburton, Mary McKenna
33 Nikki Mather, Rex Lee
35 Wendy Golightly
37 Bishop Pack, George Bush Sr.
39 Hyrum Nelson

Can anyone guess which ones we are talking about??

Time to Prepare to Meet God

This has been in my drafts box for a long time. I think it is finally time for me to finish it up and get it posted.

Right before Christmas my to do list was a mile long. I was weighed down and feeling so stretched. All of it was good things. . . gifts for neighbors, service projects, cooking and cleaning for company, planning and preparing memorable Christmas traditions etc. Amidst all those consuming things, I snuck off to the temple. Admittedly my mind had not entirely left my to do list at home. As I sat waiting I was reading in Alma and came across a scripture mastery verse, so the verse was familiar. . . in fact I could quote it. However, the impact it had on me at that time was different than ever before. The verse was Alma 34:32: "For this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." The next verse talks about repentance and so I've always associated this verse with not procrastinating repentance. But the direction my mind was taken that day was 'with all of these lists and preparations you are making for Christmas, what preparations are you making to meet God? Doesn't that preparation deserve to be on your to do list?' Gulp. I hadn't specifically been planning for that. Obliquely, of course, I planned on meeting God, but not in a way that it ever made appearance on my to do list. I was quickly humbled.

So what would 'preparing to meet God' look like on a to do list? Surely, things as prayers and scriptures have a place on such a list, however since those are pretty standard in my life, I feel the need to search deeper for *exact* things that I need to do. In a footnote from my favorite talk (Elder Christopherson's) this past conference it says "When we truly understand, we seek more commandments, not fewer. Each new law or commandment we learn and live is like one more rung or step on a ladder that enables us to climb higher and higher." This seems to be where Heavenly Father is gently prodding me to go. I've had a lot of thoughts floating through my head lately as to ways to improve weak areas of my life. Some of them seem painful because they require change and a time commitment. (After all, I've got a blog to write!) But as I've learned in the past, we are usually much happier when we commit and actually make changes. I need to put a plan into action.

What would you put on your to do list? How would you go about it? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Blessing Dress

Here is a better picture of Greta's blessing dress. The white fabric was quite sheer and the slip was made from a silky turquoise fabric so the whole look was a very subtle turquoise. It has 3 small turquoise beads sewed in the center of each of the flowers on the trim. (the bottom picture shows the beads the best, you can click to enlarge if you so desire!)My sister-in-law, Julianna, made a cute bracelet to match. We thought we were going to bless her earlier than we did and in the mean time she chunked it on so it barely fit. I made the beady socks.Here is a comparison of the two girls on their blessing days. Greta was 3 months 5 days old and Tess was 2 1/2 months old. Tom has teased me about going too traditional with Greta since I was VERY rebellious on tradition with Tess. But I loved both dresses and they seem to match their personalities. (My mom made Tessa's dress too; and Julianna made her anklet.)

Watch Out! They Grow!

And it feels like overnight. Amazing.

Of Course

Personal scripture reading is changed up often at our house with different incentives offered to keep everyone motivated. At the end of April we started anew with a conference talk thread. We each have to read one conference talk a day and look up two scriptures referenced in the talk. We are doing this until school starts up. No requirements were set as to which conference the talks had to come from. Just as long as they were given at General Conference, they count. The oldest teenager in the house didn't meet the idea with a lot of enthusiasm. But because he's a good kid, he'll do it anyway. . . .but in his own way. Click to enlarge to see his reading selections. The circled item was the day he had to present the hometeaching lesson :). I love this kid!!