Our friends, Stephanie and Dave, recently adopted a baby boy! They've been married for 8 years and had been trying to adopt for the last 3 years. When I first got word that their baby was born, healthy, and now at home, my heart was so happy! This couple is so great and I always knew that they'd be great parents. Click HERE to view their latest blog post. CONGRATULATIONS, Clark Family!!!
My friend, Lauren invited me to attend Time Out For Women with her last month. It was fun to spend time with 2,100 women for a Friday evening and most of the next day. I was able to enjoy lunch at Fredrico's Pizza with my friends Lauren, Megan, and Linda.
Time Out For Women Theme: Seek the Good "And whatsoever ye do, do it HEARTILY..." - Colossians 3:23
Oct. 12-13, 2012
Kent Auditorium on Utah State University Campus
Receiving is essential in this life. Are you receiving the spiritual privileges you are promised?
Michael McLean - musician - WEBSITE
I wrote down some of his lyrics that stood out to me.
"Are we seeking the light that shines within us all?"
"A mission to be happy and rejoice."
"I'm not waiting for tomorrow."
"I'm going to find my joy today."
"I will follow YOU every day."
"God loves me more than anything."
McKenzie Turley sang with Michael
"Dreams provide insight into your own self."
Jason Wright - best selling author of Christmas Jars - WEBSITE
Talked about FAILURE
- The world and adversary make you believe that when you fail, you need to do more, wake up earlier, etc.
- Many times when we fail, we should STOP and LISTEN to what Heavenly Father wants to teach us and learn what He wants us to do.
- For many successful people, success came because they stopped and listened.
- Don't you think Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are homesick for us? There is no failure that will prevent us from having an open armed reunion after this life.
- We are given trials to learn what we need and to prepare us for what trials lie ahead of us in our lives.
Brad Wilcox - WEBSITE
- The Atonement compensates for any failure we may have in life.
- Acts 4:10
- We are commanded to do all things "in the name of Jesus Christ."
- 3 Nephi 20:39
- Jesus - Savior; God is help
- Christ - Anointed one; Messiah
- The Son of God - spiritual birth
- The Son of Man - physical birth
- God - Man of Holiness
- The Son of the Blessed - son of Mary (Heavenly Mother)
- Mary is the mother of my Savior
- Jehovah - Jesus' first name
The Bread of Life
The Living Water
- Bethlehem = house of bread from which came the bread of life (Jesus born in Bethlehem)
- How many people in today's world will bow and say that Jesus Christ is their king?
- You are a QUEEN.
- When you feel less than a queen, we are commanded to know Christ's name and He is commanded to know our name.
- The Atonement parted the veil and allows Jesus to peek through.
- God loves us just the way we are, but loves us enough not to leave us this way forever..
- We are his creations and He isn't done with His creative process with us.
- The minute we make covenants with God, a hand is extended (ex. receiving the Holy Ghost and when we are making temple covenants)
- God with us
- He gives us His name, His power, His divine help, His grace
- The Piata (spelling?) is a famous sculpture by Michaelangleo. Mary has Jesus laying across her lap. The artist signed his work.
- When you take the sacrament, He is giving you His name
Oct. 13, 2012
Chris Williams - Here is his story and notes from his talk on HOPE:
- There are trials that are tailor made for you 1. Faith in Jesus Christ - "Let it go." Buck up. Repent.
-Get busy helping/serving others = His yoke of charity. As we give our lives to Jesus Christ, we will glorify him.
-"No I have something better. You're just going to have to have faith."
Jericho Road - musicians - WEBSITE
I wrote down some of what they said and some of their lyrics that stood out to me.
song - Amazing Grace
Abe: intro to song: "As a father of six kids, my kids look to me for protection, love, etc. You too should turn to your Heavenly Father
song - "Like a Child"
- "I want to live my life just like a child."
- Mosiah 3:19
song - "Convictions of the Heart"
- "When you see God's love around you..."
song - "See The Light"
song written by Tyler Castleton (pianist) "The Love of a Woman"
"Don't hide your face."
"It is well with my soul."
song- "Homeward Bound"
Sara Wells and Kate Jones - authors of ourbestbites.com
- Make memories with kids. Enjoy the small things in life.
- showed several pictures and told about the realities of motherhood.
- Mothers need to give themselves a break.
- Nobody's family is perfect so don't compare your family to other families.
D. Kelly Ogden - WEBSITE
- Rinderceller (Cinderella story)
- Do something with all your heart
- SUMMUM BUNUM = "the highest good"
- Enoch = dedicated
- Daniel was 80 years old when he was in the lion's den. * Your assignment is to change lives. The position you have doesn't matter, just CHANGE LIVES.
- Success is how much good you do.
- You have to first SEE THE GOOD in yourself before you can SEEK THE GOOD.
- Ogden's son-in-law is an amputee and his name is Jarem. You can read Jarem's mormon.org profile here
- Stay away from the dark side and stay within the light.
- Unless you are fully living the gospel, you don't have enough spiritual light.
- Hebrew: Ani Bat Elohim = I am a Child of God
- You are HIS DAUGHTER. HE is the wealthiest and kindest
Merilee Boyak - WEBSITE - CPR = Caring Plus Response
- Split Second Kindness (ex. telling someone, "Great job."
- 5 Split Seconds a Day Pledge - costs no time and no money
- Matthew 24:40
- The Lord wants us to love. When we give we become more Christlike. You'll feel Christlike love for others and yourself.
- OPEN YOUR EYES TO SEE the needs around you.
- on Merilee's Facebook page, she has a list of things you can do to help/serve others.
- OPEN YOUR HEART TO FEEL
- TAKE ACTION... YOUR WAY
- If you can't do anything, you can always pray.
- You can donate money. Consider donating money to LDS Humanitarian Service
- Do something in your own unique way. (ex. make your front porch into a "magic porch" by collecting items for the homeless shelter or other organization)
- one hour of service a month
- "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." -Mahatma Ghandi
- Lead others in action by invitation
- song - "Love One Another"
- Merilee's testimony - "He lives, He loves, and we can love like He does."
- Time Out For Women Theme - Col. 3:23 - Pick one thing in your life that you can put a little more of your heart in to."
Emily Watts - WEBSITE
- video game - Super Mario Bros. - save the princess (princess is me)
- importance of questions to ask the Holy Ghost
- What is good? Chocolate. Toffee should be available year round, not just Christmas, found her own recipe
Hint #1 - Sometimes good needs a catalyst.
Ask.: What can I do to be a catalyst for good.
Hint #2 - Good doesn't always reside in your comfort zone.
Ugly swim suit story
-If you work too hard to try and stay in your comfort zone, everything will end up around your neck (like her ugly swim suit).
- If you're afraid to take the steps you need to get out of your comfort zone, you won't get anywhere.
Ask: How can I reach outside my comfort zone?
Hint #3 - Good often appears in disguise.
- The year 2011 for the Watts Family is referred to as the "Nightmare Year." Her husband was diagnosed with kidney cancer
Ask: What good might be hidden in this trial?
- All things work together for your good if you walk uprightly.
Hint #4 - Good takes patience
- Genesis 15 - Lord tells Abraham, "I am thy shield."
- Genesis 17 - Covenant to Abraham = Sarah will bare you a son, Isaac.
Ask: How can I increase my trust in the Lord?
- What blessing has been withheld form you? The spirit will tell you, "I will make it up to you."
Hint #5 (The hint that wins the game). Good is primarily other-centered.
-serve others (like Christ did) to become close to Him.
Ask: How can I bless someone else's life for good today?
We had a busy weekend filled with visitors. Sam and I both knew Celeste at BYU-Idaho. I worked with Celeste at Jacob Lake Inn and Celeste and Sam had a math class together. Recently, I ran into Celeste on Facebook and found out she lives not too far from us with her husband, Jason and their two kids, Kaylee (5) and Caleb (7 months). They had plans to come to our town for the day and it was fun having them come visit us for a bit. Brian and Kaylee got along really well. They played outside and watched the movie, "Bolt" with Tyler. We can't wait for their next visit.
Aunt Amy arrived early that afternoon. After lunch, Amy and I wandered around some nice stores on Main Street. I made Zuppa Toscana Soup for the first time and it turned out good. After dinner, we threw on our winter coats and went to our town's annual Pumpkin Walk. Each scene that is set up is filled with painted pumpkins. This year's theme was commercials.
Mario Brothers, L'eggo my Eggo, McDonald's, Where the Wild Things Are, Star Wars
Michael Jackson, Keebler Factory, Geico (with the Caveman), Fruit of the Loom
Green Giant's crops
Look at those corn kernels made out of pumpkins. Brian loved the cartoon head cut outs.
Doesn't Sam make a handsome Harry Potter? Tyler snuggled with Aunt Amy for a bit before heading off for bed. We watched "Confessions of a Shopaholic." It was a cute movie.Grandma Hallstrom is in our Stake. She saved us some cushioned seats in the chapel for Stake Conference. The broadcast was very good and I left feeling uplifted. We all came back to my place for lunch. We had soup, a pumpkin roll, and ice cream (an early 30th birthday celebration for Amy). Grandma, Amy, and I went to the river walk to walk around. The leaves were so pretty that day. It was fun for just the girls to hang out.
I've known Michelle since I was really little. We grew up in the same ward. I remember going to each other's birthday parties, babysitting her and her younger siblings, and invinting her over to play. She's a very sweet girl. I moved out in 2000 and have sent her birthday and Christmas cards every year. And whenever I go home, I have her over to visit. This particular visit was right after her 27th birthday. We both love ice cream, so we were glad we could enjoy some chocolate ice cream together. Michelle- I can't wait until our next visit!
We invited the Clarke Family over to play with their Wii on our big TV. In preparation for their arrival, Brian and I made some homemade rice krispie treats. The Clarkes brought some rice krispie treats too... how random. Needless to say, we had plenty of rice krispie treats for everyone! Anyway, it was fun to play Wii with this family. I definitely need more practice. As you can see Brian even got in on the fun:
It was snowing the morning of this shoot. I wasn't sure if the Clarke family would still want to follow through with our plans that afternoon. It was wet and cloudy that afternoon (cloudy weather is perfect for picture taking). The Clarkes were such good sports to brave the cold weather just for pictures. The kids were so good and I think I did pretty well for my quickest photo shoot ever. I took as many photos as I could in 40 minutes. Here are some of my favorites. I did some editing and I sure hope that the Clarkes like these. Enjoy!
This was taken in November 2002. Sam & I were on a group date (some BYU-Idaho dance). My friend, Brooke Peterson (the girl closest to the front on the right hand side), invited us to come. Brooke was one of my co-workers the previous summer at Jacob Lake Inn. She was the only person (besides Sam) that I knew in this whole group. We had fun with everyone before the dance. We ate hamburgers and played Clue Charades. We borrowed two of Brody's cowboy hats. My roommate, Lalove, let me borrow her crazy pants made out of patches that she bought in London. Too bad, the girl in front of me is blocking the pants I was wearing. They were awesome looking pants. Too bad that the back pocket ripped when it got stuck on the wooden swing I sat on :( I felt horrible and am really glad that Lalove wasn't upset about it. Anyway, Sam and I had been dating for awhile and this dance was just a few weeks before we were engaged to be married. What do you think...do Sam and I look the same? Lots of people tell us that we haven't aged a bit.
***I tag Jenny Olson, Michelle Clarke, Valerie Page, and Michelle Dunkley.
My neighbor, Rhenon's baby girl, Bela was blessed at church today. Sam was in the blessing circle. Afterward they had a reception at the club house. They had really good food. It was good getting to know my neighbors a little better. Oh, and here's a few pictures I took of Bela and her mommy, Rhenon. What a special day!
My friends, Lindsay and Bethany, helped me throw a baby shower for Beth. Beth is the Primary President in our branch. (Lindsay and Bethany are the two others that I served with in the Primary Presidency. This past Sunday, I was released as first counselor in the Primary Presidency. I will miss serving with these amazing women.) Anyway, as you can see, we had alot of food and alot of fun. Beth's first baby, a girl, is due at the end of April. She received alot of nice gifts for her little one!
Brad Wilcox - WEBSITE
We had a busy weekend filled with visitors. Sam and I both knew Celeste at BYU-Idaho. I worked with Celeste at Jacob Lake Inn and Celeste and Sam had a math class together. Recently, I ran into Celeste on Facebook and found out she lives not too far from us with her husband, Jason and their two kids, Kaylee (5) and Caleb (7 months). They had plans to come to our town for the day and it was fun having them come visit us for a bit. Brian and Kaylee got along really well. They played outside and watched the movie, "Bolt" with Tyler. We can't wait for their next visit. 
Michael Jackson, Keebler Factory, Geico (with the Caveman), Fruit of the Loom
Look at those corn kernels made out of pumpkins. 
Brian loved the cartoon head cut outs.
Doesn't Sam make a handsome Harry Potter? 
Tyler snuggled with Aunt Amy for a bit before heading off for bed. We watched "Confessions of a Shopaholic." It was a cute movie.
Grandma Hallstrom is in our Stake. She saved us some cushioned seats in the chapel for Stake Conference. The broadcast was very good and I left feeling uplifted. We all came back to my place for lunch. We had soup, a pumpkin roll, and ice cream (an early 30th birthday celebration for Amy). Grandma, Amy, and I went to the river walk to walk around. The leaves were so pretty that day. It was fun for just the girls to hang out.
I've known Michelle since I was really little. We grew up in the same ward. I remember going to each other's birthday parties, babysitting her and her younger siblings, and invinting her over to play. She's a very sweet girl. I moved out in 2000 and have sent her birthday and Christmas cards every year. And whenever I go home, I have her over to visit. This particular visit was right after her 27th birthday. We both love ice cream, so we were glad we could enjoy some chocolate ice cream together. Michelle- I can't wait until our next visit!
