Giving Thanks: Day 10 {Family} Part 2

So I have just spent the last 1/2 hour on the phone... funny 1 because I hardly ever answer my phone because I am usually in the middle of one child or another melt down or just running around and trying to get stuff done, kids happy, changing diapers, feeding kids, cleaning house, if I'm lucky I might have time to go to the bathroom that day J/K (kind of) funny 2 because I hate talking on the phone so a 1/2 hour is crazy for me. But for some crazy reason both of my kids were asleep at the same time... that never happens. I didn't know the number so I didn't really know what to expect. The voice on the other end of the phone said..."Is Lindsay there?" the girl went on to explain that her name was Sister Strong (one of my sisters old companions). My sister Cydne is serving a mission in Taiwan and has now been out just over a year. I miss her sooooo much she is always the life of the party and just has this electric personality. Did I say I miss her SOOOOOOOOOOO much! I think of her every day. Sister Strong and I talked Cydne talk and it was so fun to hear all of these amazing things. She told me that when the other missionaries talked about her they spoke of her with reverence. She talked about how she had salvaged many baptisms that were falling though, what a hard worker she was and how hard she had worked with her, and how much fun she was and how everyone wanted to serve with her... The funny thing is there was a sister just like her in my mission (Sister Hinckley, there were a lot of awesome sisters in our mission that I wanted & did serve with, all of them amazing missionaries. I just remember following her in to an area and I had only been out 6 weeks, but I had already heard of what a legend she was and I was scared to death to follow her. She had left me a little note that really helped me though those next 6 weeks.) I never was blessed to work with her, but as I though of my sister serving as Sister Hinckley did, I feel so proud of her and what she is accomplishing! She seems to do everything better than me and with more grace! I'm so thankful for her. Funny that I was just talking about how thankful I am for my family, and yesterday how thankful I am for my mission, and Sister Strong called me. She asked me about EFY and we talked a bit about that and the process. I just am honored to have such an amazing sister, one who is serving her country, family, religion, and God so well! What an amazing girl she is! I miss her so much and can't wait for her to be home, but I won't tell her that because It always made me cry when anyone would tell me that at the end of my mission. I love you Cyd! Thanks for the call Sister Strong I can't wait to go to lunch with you!

Ballerinas??????

So Molly has these cute pj's that my mom got for her from Costco and they have ballerinas all over them. She is able to say ballerinas quite clearly and it is so cute... Here is the funny thing. I few weeks ago she kept pointing to my spice cupboard and asking for ballerinas. What? I kept telling her that the ballerinas were not in the cupboard but in her dirty clothes. She kept asking and asking day after day the same sill cupboard. Finally Kris figured it out. Raisins! She has been calling raisins ballerinas! What? I know! How in the world would you come up with that? So funny that little one. She is always so thrilled when she asks for ballerinas and she gets her raisins. We do tell her every time

Kris or me..."you mean raisins?"

Marnie..."Ya! tank you! Oh ballerinas!"

She just really cracks me up!

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Giving Thanks: Day 10 {Family}

My family October 2007

Kris's Family November 2007

I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to grow up in a wonderful home with an amazing family. It was not all "Brady Bunch" happy, we each had our moments, but I feel blessed to have been taught so many wonderful lessons. I have so much fun with each of my family members and I just am thankful that we have so many wonderful influences in my life and my children's life on both sides of the family! How blessed we have been to have such great experiences and memories of growing up!

Giving Thanks: Day 9 {My Mission}

You know I was going thoug pictures of my mission this evening with Kris and so many memories came flooding back. People I love places I lived, experiences I had good and bad, but the thing that stood out most was how much I learned. I learned more about myself than I ever have before, what I want what I believe how to make a stand, how to stick up for myself. I have always known that church was true, I have never doubted even when my decisions didn't prove that, but my mission taught me what I want out of life, I want the eternal prize everlasting life. I feel for me I would never be the person that I am with out my mission what a guiding light it has been in my life! I am thankful for the up's and down's and everything in between that I experienced on my mission how blessed I feel that I had this opportunity!

Giving Thanks: Day 8 {Trials}

I may kick myself for this later, but while not ever thrilled to see a trial coming my way it's amazing that by the end I am able to look back and think of what I have learned and how grateful I am that the Lord has humbled me and has given me greater strength and knowledge. My brother has told us a story of his mission and how he had a companion that would always pray for trials my bother simply said "I never said amen to those prayers!" Another funny story is while my brother was on his mission I was also serving a mission and one night in family prayer trying to think of what she should say when it come us this was her prayer "bless them that they may have trials" THANK YOU CYD! apparently she had learned that you should pray for trials in seminary and rather than praying for herself to receive trials, she prayed for us, now she is in the mission filed and I wounder if she would like us to return the favor...J/K. But in all seriousness I'm so grateful for the lessons I have been taught though big and small trails. One of my all time favorite quotes was given by Elder Maxwell, he said...

The very act of choosing to be a disciple can bring to us a certain special suffering... suffering, when it is part of a divine tutorial, can be sanctifying in the sense of developing the very virtues a particular disciple needs to learn... if we are serious about our discipleship, Jesus will eventually request each of us to do those very things which are most difficult for us to do... Sometimes the best people have the worst experiences, because they are the most ready to learn"

I am grateful for those lessons I have learned though large trails and small everyday trails!

Giving Thanks: Day 7 {Our Home}

Not only am I grateful to have a roof over my head and heat in my house, but I'm so grateful for the spirit that is here in our home...Most of the time it's a spirit of chaos, but it's a place of love and I love the peace that it brings knowing that we have a place where we can simply such out the world and invite the spirit into our home! We are so blessed to have this amazing home, Kris has worked so hard to make it beautiful and comfortable for all of us and we are truly blessed.

Giving Thanks: Day 6 {Clean Kitchen}

So today what I am most grateful for is a clean kitchen. I worked all day to keep it that way, but it was so nice to have it completely clean and dinner almost done when Kris walked in the door from work. We were done eating and cleaning up by 6! That never happens, not to mention I did a full dinner as well I even got the salad, beans and bread sticks out! Again... That never happens! Hey I'll take what little victories I can!