4.20.2010

Stake Conference Shout-Out



We attended Stake Conference on Sunday.

We expected to see old friends from 5th ward. We expected to be uplifted by some great speakers and beautiful music. We expected to have sore buns after sitting for 2 hours on folding metal chairs.

We didn't expect Cara to be mentioned in a talk. Seriously.

Sister Gennell Jones was Cara's primary teacher in 5th ward when the stake realigned two years ago. Two years ago?! She is now the 1st Counselor in the Stake Relief Society. She prefaced her comments with, "I was teaching primary a few years ago and there was a young lady in the class who, I hope won't mind me sharing this..." My ears perked up and I thought, "Could she be talking about 5th ward?" She was speaking about testimonies and she said something to the effect of how she was impressed with Cara's ability to have a strong testimony even though she was the only member of the church in her whole school. You should have seen Cara sit up quickly and look around shocked that someone would remember her! People around us started turning around and pointing even. It was completely unexpected.

It reminded me again of how blessed I am to be the mother of these two sweet girls. It brought up a good discussion about how others ARE watching and paying attention to what we say and do. It was almost as if I watched Cara's self-esteem rising. Awesome.

Sometimes I feel that I don't deserve them. We'll see how I feel after we get through the teenage years. :) And actually, we sat on the last row of cushy chairs...

4.12.2010

Whirlwind Weekend

Many months ago I agreed to go on a scrapbook retreat with some of my oldest, dearest friends. The dates happened to fall on my birthday weekend and I figured that would be a nice birthday gift for myself. As the date came closer things started accumulating for the same weekend and I started regretting the decision to go on the retreat.

Here's a list of all the things I missed while I was gone this weekend:
  • Bryan got tickets to the Ranger's game Friday nights. Jordyn managed to make it through a whole game and they even stayed for the fireworks.
  • My school's Family Fun Day. Only THE best school carnival you've ever seen. Complete with ginormous rock climbing wall and Cara performed a flag routine with the Ensemble girls and a dance routine with some friends.
  • Cara's volleyball game where I'm told she was a rockstar.
  • Jordyn had a friend's birthday party to go to.
  • My dear friend's oldest child, Charlie, got baptized on Saturday night.
  • Both of my daughters bore their testimonies in church on Sunday. SO sad I missed that one!
Needless to say, Bryan had some serious running around to do to keep up with the weekend's activities...

While I did miss out on way too much family time, I did enjoy myself immensely.
  • I completed all the work I took with me. I honestly didn't think I would get as much done as I did so I could've brought more to work on.
  • I spent more time laughing this weekend than I have in a LONG time. My face hurt from laughing not long after I arrived.
  • I got a break from the hustle and bustle that each weekend seems to bring whether I'm ready for it or not.
  • Had many deep conversations about life and children.
  • I actually slept in until 9:30 yesterday morning. I can't remember the last time that happened!
  • Bryan made dinner Sunday and Cara baked and frosted a cake for me.
It really was a great weekend! Can't wait to do it again!