Family Time and Joy at Church

This week has been exceptional. I went into work and got a lot of things done, alleviating the anxiety I've been feeling. I went to lunch with my good friend Annie Oswald. We haven't seen each other in a long time because of our summer travel schedules. Friday I went walking with my friend Danelle. We hadn't walked in weeks and it was great to catch up. 

Sunday we had dinner at Kamiko and Bekki's new house. Friday we went again and had dinner there. I fixed dinner both times. Their house is so beautiful. When we sit in their sectional in the family room, surrounded by windows with a view of the trees outside, I feel like we are in a cabin. It's so wonderful. We've had great times there. Friday was a celebration of Bekki's birthday on the 9th and Kamiko's birthday on the 12th. We had Indian food and chocolate chip pound cake with ice cream. Kamiko had been going through is save box and we had so much fun reading some of his assignments from 3rd grade. Oh my gosh...we laughed so hard at a story he wrote about our family getting sucked into the TV and back in time to pioneer days. According to his story, we met pa, ma, Mary, Laura, and baby Carrie. He was referencing "Little House on the Prairie," a show that I watched as a kid and still enjoy. Evidently, my kids watched it a lot too. 

Saturday morning I picked up Mel and we hiked to Timpanogos Cave. OH MY GOSH. That hike is hard. I hadn't done it in at least a year. Mel was so patient and slowed down so we could stay together and talk. She encouraged me and I made it. I plan to go again next week with my neighbor, Rachel. She goes up there a lot. It's steep, with a lot of switchbacks. I was so proud of us getting to the top. Mel is a sweetie to go with me. Her co-worker, who is a Jehovah's Witness, was there with his wife, in their church clothes, proselyting. I was happy to meet him and tell him how much Mel likes working there. On the way home, Mel mentioned how much she loved the Trumps and my friend Amy Christensen from our old ward. Those friends always treated my kids like people, not just like Dana's kids. They still love my kids. 

After hiking, I took a nap, then went to a baby shower for Emily Dana, one of the presidency members in SFLSA. Kourtney Glenn, Abby Richardson, and Ethan Lloyd, all presidency and board members, were there. We had a great time. Since I was in West Jordan, I went to Allison and James' house to visit with them. I had some stuff from Kristen to deliver to Allison. It was a fun short visit. It was a wonderful day of family and friends. 

During general conference, I took notes by writing an impression of something I could do based on each talk. I focus on one or two post it notes with my impression each week. The note for this week said to "Find Joy at Church." Hmmm. What was that going to look like? I decided that I would have a good day at church. Well, a new sister in the ward, Jessica Carter, spoke and she is pure joy. I quickly figured out that she is divorced. She has 4 kids, ranging from 12 - 3 years old. Her talk was soooo good. I'll try my best to summarize it. Jessica told about a video that has gone viral. In the video, a woman is going to free jump. In the jump, she is attached to an expert, and they jump and release a parachute. Before the jump, the expert asks her what she's feeling. She likened that to the Lord wanting to know what we are feeling. Pray and let Him know. When they jump, she is attached to him. He has experience and will get her to the ground safely. In fact, before they jump. she says that she is scared and he says that she won't go anywhere without him being there with her. That is so much like our Savior. He is with us. Jessica said she can't imagine cutting the parachute strings, or breaking covenants and separating herself from her Savior. The guide got the woman down to the ground safely. 

What a great analogy. I introduced myself after church and she said people had told her she should meet me. I look forward to getting to know her. Joy at church. Starlyn and I went to mom's to play 5 Crowns this afternoon after my nice nap. I also went on a walk as the sun was setting and weather was cooling off. What a week. Here's to another week!

Jenny and I are going to Disneyland soon. I think I"ll wear this shirt. 

Can we just appreciate how cute Tomo is!?