Morning Sun

I love it when the sun filters through the cactus—it makes them glow…and they almost look warm and cuddly, friendly even.

My Corner

I continue to be grateful that I have a fun little corner of the world all to myself! I am grateful to God for the talents that He has given me, and the opportunities to share them. I am grateful for my sweet husband who supports me in all my endeavors-emotionally…and financially.

Glasses and Grace

I am grateful for my “cheater” glasses. I am grateful that I have had perfect vision my whole life and now that I am getting older there are glasses that help me read.

But really this picture shows something even more important, Grace and the smile that she puts on my face!

ASU vs. UofA

The Snells came over for the big rivalry game on Friday night. It was fun to spend the time together and eat leftover turkey dinner. We had both sides represented…a large contingent for the UofA—everyone except Maryn and her minion Grace, who rooted for ASU. Of course Grace was wiser than the rest of us in joining Maryn, since they were on the winning side!

Fear the Fork!

Earlier in the day Maryn tried to influence Tyler and get him to join the dark side, but he remained strong, despite her torturous ways…

…this is just a re-enactment…no one was hurt in the taking of this picture…

Thanksgiving Marathon

It grew from this….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

….to this

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What was so interesting? The Twilight movies. A marathon to catch up on the old ones so that they could go and watch the newest…and last…release of the Edward and Bella saga.

Yummy Food

So looking forward to our Thanksgiving feast tomorrow. We will have all of our favorites and even better we will eat with our favorite people--Our family and friends.

Made by Brianne

Sorena and her family are here and we are so excited to spend time with them. I am so thankful that my sisters share their kids with me. I love them so much and love the relationships we have developed. They are precious and priceless to me.

Maryn made “Ironman” hands for the boys. They are huge fans so they were more than excited. I think they became bigger fans of Maryn, too.

 

 

 

Millie and Lou Lou otherwise known as Camille and Lindsey

I’m a Mormon

I know It

I live it

I love it

So grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. So grateful for the leaders of the church and their inspired words.

Not so fun week

I spent this week pretty much in bed…sick. Not a very fun way to spend the week before Thanksgiving! My thankful posts took a big hit, but today, I did manage to take a picture of what I was thankful for anyway—all these items that lived on my counter and helped me find relief!

Btw…Kelly was out of town, so I didn’t get any pampering. On the bright side, I didn’t have to cook or take care of anyone but myself and drive Kelsey to school and work.

The Gospel in Action

Mormon Helping Hands :: Hurricane Sandy :: Rockaways, NY from Joshua Brown on Vimeo.

“This is really church. When the teachings of Jesus Christ sink down into your soul deep enough, you want to help your fellow men.”

I am so grateful to be a member of this church! I am grateful to be a part of a group who believes in Christ and pattern their lives after His teachings.

I wish I could be there to help!

Land of the Free, Home of the Brave

Thank you to the veterans for the duty they feel and live.

Gratitude Quotes

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures

                  ~Thornton wilder

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget

that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”

                  ~John F. Kennedy

Two quotes that have become some of my favorites for the season!

Today I am grateful for the Hymns of the church. I love music in general and the power it has in my life. Today in stake conference we say a hymn and it is one that I have sang many times. In fact I know the words by heart and can sing it without looking at the book. For some reason, the spirit taught me, like I had read the words for the first time what that song really means. The title of the song “How Firm A Foundation” gives the a clue so huge, it isn’t really a clue at all! While I sang the second verse today, I could see through the repeated words to the message that I guess was the message I needed to learn today:

As thy days, may demand so thy succor shall be

As I sat down, I whispered to Kelly, that after all the times I have sung that song, I finally got the message of that song. I love it when he is eager to hear what I want to share with him.

It matters not what difficulties I am asked to face. When I went back and looked at the other words it even says, “in every condition”. I don’t need to fear because:  His omnipotent hand will give strength, help, extend, hold up in whatever circumstance, equal to the demand that I face.

To show my gratitude for that principle and for the experience today, I am going to try my best to live in that way.

Can’t Stop At One

I have had so many gratitude thoughts already, just this morning. I decided to share the all:

Mascara—it makes a huge difference.

Weatherman predicts 10 degree drop in temps for tomorrow and again for Saturday, with near freezing at night for Sunday. Woot woot!

My husband is coming home today—early! I am grateful for that alone, but that is also why I am grateful for mascara. I haven’t worn it in a few days.

Glenn Beck made me laugh out loud this morning…and I was alone, so the laugh was purely for me. And it about politics. I haven’t laughed about politics for….well, for sure since Tuesday.

And, finally and more importantly, the blessing of scripture. I love the scriptures—particularly the Book of Mormon. Because of the recent election, I have been thinking a lot about deception and how to not only avoid it but combat it. So today, I studied about it and here is what my notebook now contains:

 

How to fight modern-day antichrists

2 Nephi 26:29

Gain can be many things, riches, power etc We must look at the "fruits" of those who we chose to follow or listen to

Alma 4:18-19

Alma's example of bearing pure testimony shows us that the only way to truly fight against modern-day antichrists is to have a testimony and to teach the gospel

Alma 1:16-17

Free society, no one is persecuted for their beliefs—same principle that we have

Jacob 7:23

We learn from this verse and from Jacob and Sherem that the scriptures will help us to not be deceived See also Elder Christophersen's talk "The Blessing of Scripture"

Jacob 7:10-11

Jacob uses the scriptures to prove Sherem's deception

Jacob 7:4

Being able to give a good speech is common thread among those Satan uses to "carefully lead down to hell"

Elder Packer-How to survive in enemy territory

You have been taught all of your lives about the gift of the Holy Ghost, but teaching can only go so far. You can and, in fact, you must go the rest of the way alone to discover within yourself how the Holy Ghost can be a guiding and protective influence.

For young men and young women, the process is the same. Discovering how the Holy Ghost operates in your life is the quest of a lifetime. Once you have made that discovery for yourself, you can live in enemy territory and will not be deceived or destroyed. No member of this Church—and that means each of you—will ever make a serious mistake without first being warned by the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

Life turns out to be a succession of trials and errors. Add “repent often” to your list of things to do. This will bring you lasting peace that cannot be purchased at any earthly price. Understanding the Atonement may be the one most important truth that you can learn in your youth.

Elder Christofferson- The Blessing of Scripture

Through the scriptures, God does indeed “show forth his power” to save and exalt His children. By His word, as Alma said, He enlarges our memory, sheds light on falsehood and error, and brings us to repentance and to rejoice in Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.

Nothing really new, just strengthening of testimony on how important the basics are. And a testimony of what we heard in conference—the Lord has called more missionaries to bear pure testimony to His children. He is using the same pattern that He used back then. He loves us. I can be a part of building His kingdom by preparing the youth, building my testimony and opening my mouth and “raising the bar” on my own life.

Pretty exciting stuff!

Sun and Son

I am grateful to the know the sun always rises—

especially after a difficult night.

The light of the new day bringing new hope for a better day.

 

 

 

I am also grateful for the Son—that He rose and lives. The Light of the World bringing hope everyday, for the rest of days. We will see loved ones again, we can receive forgiveness and hope for life with our Father and we can find the strength to endure--all because He first loved us.

Freedom

Since today is election day it wasn’t hard to think of what I am thankful for—it seems like a perfect day to express my love of this blessed country.Agency is an eternal principle, but freedom in this life is not a guarantee. It is hard to think otherwise because I don’t know anything else but freedom. My freedom was bought with a price, many sacrifices made because of the belief that agency is a gift from God. I believe this country was founded on divine purposes and will remain free only if we live by those divine principles. America is a gift from God and He will bless this land if we prove our love for the land and more importantly for our God.

Fall Treats

The temperatures aren’t cooperating with my desire for ALL things Fall, but I am not letting that deter me from cooking and baking my favorite fall foods.

We have already had soup twice. I have baked bread once. And…my thankful items for today I have already made some of my favorite fall treats. Yum!

Pumpkin swirl bread

Apple crisp

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies…with cream cheese frosting.

Okay, there may or may not have been more than one batch of these baked and eaten at this household. But we have shared!

Adult Children

I guess the argument could be made that you are grateful for adult children because that means that they (and you by default) survived long enough to make it into adulthood!

I have had adult children for a few years now, and I am just beginning to appreciate them-what they are teaching me. I have found these lessons difficult, with severe growing pains, so therefore it has taken me longer to get to the point where the pain isn’t overshadowing the good that is happening. In the last few years I have longed for the days when they were young-recalling easier, happier days. But time does not stand still, nor can we go back. By accepting  what is real, I have learned how to recognize the good and let the pain fade away.

I know we started on the journey many years ago, but just in the last couple of years, these two precious souls have taught me to repent, to forgive, and about the atonement. They have taught me through their example to trust, to be happy in spite of (fill in the blank), to work hard, to be honest, to be patient, to turn to the Lord, to trust Him and His plan, to walk in faith, to think out of the box, to accept difficult assignments that you don’t want to do, to make a difference by doing your best, to use agency as it was intended, to accept consequences, to do hard things-especially the hard things the Lord asks you to do, to keep your promises-especially those you make to the Lord, and to not quit ever…like never, ever ever. :) 

I love you with a heart full of love, because you taught me how to do just that.

Thankful for 30+ Years

I am thankful for this man. I am so blessed to be growing old with my best friend. We hoped for that when we were young. I could probably spend the whole month just giving reasons for being thankful for him, but just to keep things from getting too mushy around here, I will just name a few:

• He loves me so completely.
• He works so hard to provide for us-needs and wants.
• He loves the Lord and serves Him.
• He makes me laugh.

And obviously he is a good sport. I took these pictures when he was hard at work on the family room remodel. I walked into the room and here he was, looking like (what I told him) a mad professor. I grabbed the camera and took a picture. Then he looked up and let me take another one—just because he knew it would make me laugh. He is generous like that. And I don’t care what he looks like, as long as he keeps looking at me like that—like I am everything to him.

Blessed Beyond Measure

This says it all for today--

Have I Done Any Good

I have never liked this song better!

Check it out…

If you don’t want to watch the making of part, skip to the 3 minute mark

Thankful Month

I think it is important to count your blessings all the time. However, I don’t do it all the time, not formally, consciously, forming a list. I think for the most part I have an attitude of gratitude, but as with all things I can always do better. I know that counting my blessings when I feel the least like counting my blessings always changes my attitude for the better. When things are stressful around here and it seems like all I can see are negative things around me, if I start to think about my blessings, I start to feel hope. Some days it is hard to make myself stop the negative narration and think of the blessings, but I always realize that is when I need the change it will make in my heart the most.

First on my list this time is my knowledge of a Father in Heaven and His divine plan. Knowing that He has a plan for all of His children, a plan for me, gives me hope and purpose. It is simple for children to understand and yet holds such profound truths. As my knowledge grows, its meaning grows. It puts this life in perspective and a reason to keep trying to be my best self—to become. My knowledge of His plan shows me where to turn for help, how to fix my mistakes and gives deeper meaning to the principles Jesus taught and deepens my desire to choose the right.

drawing  from here