St. George Get-away

The beginning of February we went down to St. George.  It was part of our Anniversary, since we never went anywhere in December for our 15 year.  And just another chance to play, have fun and grow closer as a couple and be with friends.

The weather that weekend was supposed to be amazing! (Of course, it was about as nice in the Salt Lake Valley that weekend too.)

Wednesday I got us all packed up.  The kids were being shipped out to different families.

Lily and Sophie stayed at Uncle Travis and Aunt Natalie’s house again.  On Sunday, they also got to stay with Grandpa Kent and Grandma Suzy.

Cedric was at his friend, Jacob’s house.  And Jeff was at his friend, Steven’s house again.

We left Thursday right after I finished preschool and we dropped the kids off.

We headed out with Chris and Nick.  We only had to turn around twice and get stuff from the house we’d forgotten. :)  We made a few stops on the way.

We arrived at my aunt and uncle’s vacation home in St. George around 9pm.  We went grocery shopping around 11pm, stayed up and watched a little TV, talked, then went to bed.

 

The next morning we slept in a bit and then went to the St. George Temple.  We thought it’d be funny to print some pictures off of us in front of the temple, frame them, and put them in Tiffany and Kenny’s room.  (they were coming down later that day).  Despite all the other pictures around the room, they immediately noticed when they got there.

   

After the temple, we went golfing.  Although I have my own clubs, this was only my second time golfing with them.  Needless to say, I got the most points! (yes, I lost)

 

After a good game of golf (with amazing weather, I might add), we stopped off at Swig’s again to get a snack.

That night, Tiffany and Kenny showed up!

  

We went to dinner at Don Pedro’s that night for dinner.  It was fun to have the CLAW Club all together.

Of course, we stayed up way too late going to the hot tub, playing games and talking.

The next morning we slept in a bit again.  By the time Tom and I got up, the others had already left.  We figured they’d gone for a walk, so we decided to go find them on our own.

 

After we started the walk, we realized they had done a different hike and were now back by the house looking for us.  Soon we met up and finished our hike.  We found these beautiful rocks and scenery not too far from where we were staying.  It was such a nice, warm day!

After our hike/walk we decided to try a place Chris had heard of called the Fractured Prune.  It’s a doughnut place that makes your doughnuts per request.  We ordered a half dozen and planed on cutting them into bite sized pieces and share them.  However, we were waiting quite a while and soon found out their doughnut machine was broken!  I told Tom he should go ask the three young girls if they needed help (they were on the phone with the manager with pure panic on their faces).  So the girls let Tom and Kenny go back and look at the machine.  They were able to fix it and the girls were so grateful!  We were then able to enjoy our doughnuts and free drinks.

 

After that, we went to the outlet malls to go shopping.

At one point, Tom, Nick and Kenny were all trying on clothes in the same dressing stall!  It was so funny to watch them coming in and out and us girls just standing outside the stall waiting.

 

We did our third visit to Swig and took a silly selfie.

Then we went to dinner at the Pizza Factory.  (Most restaurants were over an hour wait to get in, so we were excited we could just walk in and sit down there).

That night we went to the hot tub again, then watched a movie, “Mad Money” and played games, laughing so hard we cried!    Again, staying up way too late (we aren’t as young as we think we are).

The last day had arrived.  We slept in again, then cleaned the house.  Tiffany and Kenny took off (some of their kids were staying with relatives in St. George and they had to go get them).  Then Chris, Nick, Tom and I went to Denny’s for second breakfast.

 

 

We drove home.  Sad to see another fun, memorable weekend come to an end.

Look to God and Live

(Actually, I did post this years ago, but it's worth posting again. Tami 2/7/16)

Three years ago this month I was asked to speak at our Stake Relief Society Seminar.  I have been wanting to post that talk as a journal entry ever since.  It is part of my testimony that has grown through trials.  Little did I know at the time, I would be facing a similar trial less than three years later.  Losing a Mom and a brother has been two of the hardest things in my life.  But they have also been my biggest strengths.

"Look to God and Live" R.S. Seminar 2/21/12

In my favorite hymn we sing the words "I Believe in Christ, so come what may..."  This statement has become truer to me and my family in the past five months than ever before.  In the past five months my relationship with my Savior has changed. 

There are three principles I've developed a greater understanding of during this short time in my life than I've ever developed in the 30+ years I've been learning the Gospel.  These principles include...

 1) The Lord will always be there for us, no matter our trials.

2)  Our Savior is real.  He lives.  He is mindful of us.  Same with our Father in Heaven.

3) The Plan of Salvation is so simple.  Our time on the earth is just a small part of it.

Let me back up to my life a little over five months ago.  It was September 11th.  The world was mourning the sad tragedy that had happened to our country just ten years earlier.  Little did I know that by the time the day was over, I would be mourning a much more personal loss.  The night of that somber Sunday I received the tragic news that while my parents were driving down to St. George in a rainstorm, they lost control of the car and went off the road causing a terrible car accident.  My dad was okay, he had been taken to the hospital in St. George with just bumps and bruises.  My mom on the other hand had died instantly in the crash.  That night my life changed.  My mom was a healthy, young, beautiful woman.  To have her taken so suddenly from our lives was such a shock. 

However, as hard as it's been to lose someone I love so much, I have grown so much closer to my Savior. 

As I mentioned I've developed a greater understanding that the Lord will always be there for us, no matter our trials.    It doesn't matter if we are dealing with a trial as simple as trying to calm a fussy baby in the middle of the night.  Or a big 'Job'-like trial where we lose everything important to us,  He will be there.

The week of the funeral, and even weeks after that we could feel the prayers of others making us strong and able to get through the hardship.  We heard of people all over the world who were praying for us and including our names in the temple prayer role.  If you know of anyone going through a hard trial, pray for them, they will feel it.

The Lord will never give us more than we can handle.  My brother shared a story with me where he was having a discouraging time missing our mom and worrying about his career and future.  After praying, the spirit directed him to the scripture found in Mosiah 24: 13-15.

13 And it ^acame to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.

 14 And I will also ease the ^aburdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as^bwitnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their ^cafflictions.

 15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did^astrengthen them that they could bear up their ^bburdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with ^cpatience to all the will of the Lord.

  My brother felt so much peace and comfort knowing Christ would ease his burdens and was there for him as he went through his trials.  All of us have this promise if we keep our covenants with Him too. 

Another thing my family has realized is how adaptable humans are.  This is one of the great blessings we've been given as Christ's most intelligent creations, to adapt.  It is one of the ways we are able to handle life's trials.  Life has gone on since my mom passed.  As much as we wish her here, we've adapted.  We've learned to look to others for 'mom' advice, celebrate the holidays eating on paper plates instead of fine china, accepting her presence at baptisms and baby blessings as feelings instead of physically being there.  Even my dad has learned how to shop for grandkids Christmas and birthday presents, do the laundry and host family get-togethers.  We've adapted and it's helped us get through our trials.

The second thing I've learned is our Savior is real.  He lives and is mindful of us.  Same with our Father in Heaven. 

I've noticed that my prayers are different.  When I talk to my Heavenly Father, I feel like he is so much closer and real to me than he was before.  I feel that losing my mom has changed this for me.  I struggle knowing how to describe it.  I know my mom.  She is a real person.  I know without a doubt she is still a person, but in the spirit world.  I know she is still real.  Because I know this about her, it helps me grasp the understanding that my Father in Heaven and my brother, Jesus Christ are also real.  They are there too.  I know our Savior is a resurrected being who has a body.  I feel like my mom is just an arm's reach away, therefore I've felt my Savior and Father in Heaven are also just an arm's reach away.  When I pray, I feel them so close to me.  My faith has grown immensely.  In 3 Nephi 18:20 it says... 

 And ^awhatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.

 I've learned that when I've asked for righteous desires, he's blessed me with them.  Even asking to know that my mom is spiritually with us has been a great blessing. 

My nephew was recently baptized.  This was one of those events where we missed our mom.  Especially since the last time we saw her was at my daughter's baptism the day before the accident.  My sister prayed to know when my mom would be there, as we were sure she would be.  During the opening song the spirit was overpowering, I was crying and couldn't get through the song.  My dad and sister were sitting quite far from us.  Afterward, we were talking and my sister mentioned that she felt Mom's presence during the opening song, so had my dad (we joked it was just like Mom to come late to a meeting during the opening song).  This experience was a testimony to me that my sister's prayer was answered.  Even though we were not sitting together, we all felt her presence at the same time.

So many times I feel the Lord is using my mom to help answer my prayers.  There's been several times where I've heard in my head "be patient" or "calm down, it will be okay", but they come as my mom's voice, not my own.  I feel this has been a blessing that not only brought me comfort knowing she still cares for me, but it has also helped my testimony and faith of prayer increase.

Reading the scriptures has also become more real for me too.  When I read accounts in the scriptures about the Savior, whether it be when He visited the Nephites in America, or when he showed himself to the brother of Jared, my heart swells.  It burns with the excitement that these people were able to experience seeing the Savior.  I long for my chance to see Him too.

The third thing I've learned is the Plan of Salvation is so simple.  Our time on the earth is just a small part of it.

  When my mom passed away I was six months pregnant with our fourth child.  That life growing inside me was such a comfort to me.  I felt like I was dealing with the grief so much better than some of the others in my family and I think that baby was a big part of it.  I knew that my daughter was alive in the pre-mortal world, waiting for her turn on this earth.  At the same time, my mom was just entering the post-mortal world ready to take on her next assignment in the eternities.  Again, we knew my mom would be there when our daughter entered the world.  I remember when she was born the room seemed completely quiet and peaceful.  The spirit was so strong and it felt as though the room was full of people.  I know that not only was my mom there to bring this child into the world, but I'm sure many other loved ones were present also.  Knowing someone who has just started their time in mortality and someone who has just left it makes the Plan of Salvation seem so simple.  I long more now than ever for our Savior to come again.  To think it could be another 50 years or more before I see my mom again hurts, but at the same time I know, as it says in D&C 121:7

...thine afflictions shall be but a ^csmall moment.

 This life is but a small moment.  I have a testimony that we can be a family forever.  The knowledge I have of our Heavenly Father and Saviors plan for us has been the greatest blessing to me during these past months.  I don't know how I would get through it without the gospel in my life.  Looking to God has helped me live through the toughest five months of my life.

"I believe in Christ, so come what may."

-In the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen.