Eventide

Well, it has certainly been a nice weekend. I always enjoy General Conference weekend, especially now that we have (a) our own comfortable home with (b) three TVs tuned into BYUTV--church in our jammies, four hours Saturday and four hours Sunday. Actually, Saturday we had lots of little chores to do and Rich went out to the ranch before each session to take care of business (we are getting ready to build our fence and we re-seeded our boulevards where our neighbor kids have been riding their bikes over our poor new grass). But it was truly a joyful experience to be folding and ironing clothes and making lunch for the extended family to the sounds of inspiring talks and the MoTab choir's serenade. It really made me think about making my "regular days" and chores a more joyful experience. The girls were even well-behaved and happy to have their grandparents over to visit (we really should have them in our home more often!!!) During Saturday's afternoon session of conference, Heidi napped while Addie sat on our couch between Grandpa Tom & Grandma Rosalie. She colored in her new Easter coloring book (thanks, NanaLyn) for almost a solid hour, then played quietly after that (four is turning out to be so much easier than two and three-years-old).

Last night I got a babysitter while Rich went to General Priesthood meeting and went out with my mom-in-law and some other women whose husbands were at the meeting. We went out for Mexican food (I had yummy tortilla soup) and then played Hoopla afterward. It was a lot of fun and a welcome break. I didn't feel very good all weekend, but good enough to eat food and take Tylenol for my aches and pains, so I feel grateful for that.

Today, my in-laws came for lunch again and brought Vivian Ellison (our adopted great-grandma who lives out at the ranch--we bought it from her). They brought two delicious pies for dessert (Swedish Apple and lemon) and Rich & I made a post roast with carrots and mashed potatoes, gravy, and some fresh bread. We had a really nice time together and played "Don't Eat Pete" with Addie afterward. Also between sessions, one of my former YW, Kim, who is in college now came over to visit and brought her roommate. They are on spring break from BYU-Idaho and it was so fun to Kim & meet her friend. Kim worked a lot on our house when the kids came over to do service here, so it was fun to show her the basement all finished out. She remembered scraping and sweeping the concrete floor about a million times, and now it's all SUPAH-DELUXE! I told her she could house sit while we are in Missouri in June.

There were a lot of things about conference that I wanted to remember and note here, but I'll wait until I can post actual quotes. I love Elder Hales' & Elder Holland's talks about making your way back and building your relationship with the Lord...I always love those messages because we are always on the mend in one way or another. I also loved the talks reflecting on missionary service, and how it was repeated--every good thing in my life today can be traced in one way or another to my choice to serve a mission. I got caught up in thinking about that and shed a few tears remembering my mission experience and all that it taught me. It put me on a whole new path, and even when I tried to stray, the lessons I learned there in the mission field kept me moving in the right direction and led me to the totally peaceful and blessed life I live today. The plans I had for myself pale in comparison to what God has given me since then. I have certainly learned that "he can make more of a [wo]man than any [wo]man without him ever can."

Anyway, I'm gettin' pretty rambly and I need to go love on my family some before bed time (bed time already??? Happy Daylight Saving Time!!). Have a great week, all y'all!