Oh... so that's why.

Elder Orson F. Whitney wrote: “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude, and humility. … It is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire.”

This quote makes everything sound so easy! It was somewhat of a revelation to me when I first read it the other night. We all go through pretty crummy things now and again, and I feel like I've had my fair-share of heartbreak and sorrow. However, looking back before the whirlwind of trials came through, I was immature, selfish, and impatient... and probably a bit naive. It wasn't until reading through Kent F. Richard's entire "The Atonement Covers All Pain" talk that I realized I have been schooled through my own difficulties that I've (basically) been forced to overcome.

So, in a way, I'm grateful. If I could go back and change some circumstances would I? Honestly? Probably. But, I would still be very selfish and prideful right now. I would also be very ungrateful.

Here's another paragraph from Elder Richards I especially liked:

Much of our suffering is not necessarily our fault. Unexpected events, contradicting or disappointing circumstances, interrupting illness, and even death surround us and penetrate our mortal experience. Additionally, we may suffer afflictions because of the actions of others. 3 Lehi noted that Jacob had “suffered … much sorrow, because of the rudeness of [his] brethren.” 4 Opposition is part of Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness. We all encounter enough to bring us to an awareness of our Father’s love and of our need for the Savior’s help.

Birthday Budget

My family includes:
Dustin and I
Our 2 children
7 nieces
6 nephews
5 Grandma's
3 Grandpa's
9 siblings
8 in-law siblings

Total: 42
times that by $20.00 for each Birthday present per year...

$840.00

(and that doesn't even include baby showers, Mother's Day, Father's Day, or Christmas, or the few friends I still exchange gifts with)

So, I've decided to tone things down a bit. Back in 2006, when Dustin and I had no children, and only 5 nieces and nephews combined, $20 wasn't a big deal. But let's be honest- now it kind of is.

Don't get me wrong, I really do love giving gifts. Do I expect to receive them myself? Not really. But it's a pretty universal tradition (especially in both of our families) to wish other's a Happy Birthday, and if you're close (or related, for that matter) to give a gift to brighten their day and let them know you love them and care about them. I love thinking about each person and figuring out what they really would like. It's a game for me that lets them know that I really care about them and that their Birthday wasn't an after-thought.
I suppose I just need to be a bit more creative with my gift finding to keep things on budget.

Only Seeing the Rocks

I had a huge wake-up moment last week.
I left my husband and kids Wednesday night and left for a slow, 4 mile run. I got to my 2 mile mark, and as I turned around to run back, I, for some reason, decided to stop and walk. I took off my headphones that were blaring Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" album, and for once, noticed how quiet everything was. (*que cheesy music*) I could hear rustling of trees, and water rushing down a canal, and the sound of a calming, easy breeze. I looked all around me. I could see the magnificent Grand Teton Mountains, rolling brown foothills, and never-ending fields of newly growing alfalfa, hay, and barley. The landscape was broken up by small, antique farm houses complete with clothes lines and tulips. The sun was setting, there were a few white clouds above me, and the sky was blue. It was almost too perfect, how serene it was.

The weird thing about this cheesy, obvious observation was that I run on that road 4 times a week. It shouldn't have been anything new to me. I guess I'm always looking for cars ahead, or for rocks, or for intimidating, scary canines. It wasn't until last week that I realized there was an infinite amount of acreage of pure, simple beauty surrounding me. I've been blinded by the obstacles of running, and have been missing out on everything else breathtaking.

So it is with my life. I've become obsessed with everything that's wrong. I need to start looking around at everything that's perfectly beautiful and right.

The not-so-religious part of Easter

Every so often, Dustin's Birthday is on Easter Sunday. It was a full, chaotic day of many celebrations! In lieu of a cake this year, Dustin requested his favorite childhood dessert- "Million Dollar Dessert." It's essentially chocolate pudding, cream cheese, and cool whip on top of a nutty crust. And since there are certain family members that are unable to eat it due to nut allergies and extreme dislikes of cream cheese, there were also mini cupcakes available. We had lots of family over for an awesome Easter Egg Hunt and ham dinner. Happy 29th Birthday, Mr. Dustin!! I love you.

The Living Christ

A couple weeks ago, our Relief Society had a meeting centered on The Living Christ. They divided it up into 23 parts and had each sister bring a picture that went along with their part.

My part was: "He was arrested and condemned on spurious charges, convicted to satisfy a mob, and sentenced to die on Calvarys Cross."

This was the picture I brought:

The entire meeting was centered on ways we can teach our children about Christ, even at very young ages. In the September 2010 Ensign you will find a very inspiring talk about a mother who wanted to teach her children about Christ, and did so by memorizing it in it's entirety herself, then teaching her family. In the end, all of her children, even her 4 year old, had memorized it. http://lds.org/ensign/2010/09/bringing-christ-into-our-home?lang=eng

As a result of that R.S. Meeting I attended, I went home right away and began to memorize those words. I've never been great at memorizing, but I have a determination to know this declaration. After 1 1/2 weeks, I have memorized all but the last 2 paragraphs. I find myself constantly whispering through it many times each day to make sure I can still remember what I've spent hours studying. And to be honest, I've only spent 3 hours total memorizing. That's only 1 1/2 episodes of The Biggest Loser!

I've already seen many great things come to pass since I've started this journey. I can already tell that I have the Spirit with me more. Every time I begin reciting paragraph after paragraph, I feel a small burning within me, testifying that all of these words are real and true. I've noticed that I begin to contemplate the meaning of each paragraph, and how things are worded. The past 11 days I've felt noticably closer to the spirit and more patient with my children.

I encourage you to read the article, and print out your own copy of The Living Christ. I wrote out each paragraph on a 3x5 card and put them next to my bed. Every night I spend about 15 minutes memorizing another line or another paragraph.

You've got nothing to lose, really.

Let's do that again!!

Recognize the quote?! It's from Shrek and it sums up entirely how I feel. Our honeymoon/5 year anniversary celebration was nothing less of incredible. I remembered what our life was like before we were caught up in the busy lifestyle of child-rearing. I don't know if I need to explain every picture from our trip. Just know that we had a remarkable, relaxing time- especially knowing that it would probably be at least another 5 years before we do something this liberating again.

"Step aside, Randy Quaid!" and Bubba Gumps

These next pictures were taken at my sister's house when she was watching the kiddos.

... oh yeah. Did I mention that while we were away our baby Jack came down with a double ear infection, strep throat, and pnemonia?? We didn't even go to dinner that night that we found out because we were so heartbroken. It was very comforting to know that our children were in good hands.

I'll try posting more often! I'm in a bad habit of being extremely lazy, computer-wise.

My only tip is that if you've been thinking about it, you should make a way to do it. It's worth it.

My last entry... for a while.

Well folks, I'm writing to say goodbye for a while!

Tomorrow Dustin and I are flying to California and are going to be gone for a total of 10 1/2 days to celebrate our honeymoon/5th Anniversary. We're leaving our kids behind with family. I think (or... I hope) they'll have a lot of fun playing with their Aunts and cousins and Grandma and Gramps. I made them a picture cube full of pictures of our family so they can look at it if they start missing us, even though I'm sure we'll miss them more than they'll miss us! This is by FAR the longest we've ever been away from our children, so naturally I'm freaking out a bit.

Aside from that, this vacation couldn't have come a day sooner. I can't wait to act like newlyweds and pretend that our lives are perfect... just for a little while. We're planning on visiting Hollywood Boulevard and the Santa Monica Pier before we board our Mexican Riviera Cruise. We're going to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. It should be a lot of fun!

We fly into Idaho Falls at 7:10pm on Monday. Dustin has an interview in Omaha, Nebraska the next day at 11:00AM!! So after debating on flying or driving, we chose the cheaper route and Dustin's going to drive 1,007 miles to save us $600.
Don't worry, we already have a case of Red Bull.

So come April 1st, everything will be back to normal. I'll post pictures and updates then- so for now, Goodbye!!!!!