Sunday Gratitudes

1. Today was Stake Conference - not to be confused with General Conference. For those who are confused, a Stake is made up of a bunch of wards (congregations) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Its run pretty much the same way as General Conference. The Stake Leaders speak along with a few others about a general theme. Today was all about Strengthening the Family. There is also a Stake Choir that sings (of course I was a part of that). Our stake is so big that we had to have two sessions. I enjoyed being able to listen to the different speakers from both sessions and also singing the choir songs and the congregational hymns. I'm grateful for the instruction given and the peacefulness that I felt during the conference. It fueled me for another week.

2. We've moved our Family Nights to Sunday to accommodate Firstborn's schedule (he has swim practice on all weeknights). Tonight we watched movie together and made sopapillas for dessert (at the request of Firstborn) while Secondborn made Orange Julius from a recipe he learned in his Family Science class. It was a fun night and a good way to end our Sabbath.

3. As it was my birthday last Tuesday, and I happen to share that birthday, I want to share my gratitude for the most wonderful twin sis. I will admit that we fought as teens over clothes, space in a shared room, and only one boy (neither of us married him so its all forgotten). But she was, is, and ever will be my best friend. She was the first one to tell me I had to marry Mr. Wonderful ( I knew that! Someone needed to tell him that!) She is my cheerleader. I am President of her fan club. Heavenly Father knew we would need each other. We must have been best friends in heaven.

4. I'm grateful that Thirdborn earned 100% on his spelling test! His teacher gave him a modified list last week and he nailed it. As soon as the school bell rang, he ran to the car and slapped his test on the window so I could see the score before he opened the door. The first thing he wanted to know was "When can we celebrate?", which means "Can we get a shake at Arctic Circle tonight?" Mr. Wonderful took the three younger kids to AC while I had a bit of quiet time. Thirdborn is excited for school this week and is already talking about the next test.

5. I'm grateful that Secondborn was put on another soccer team. I know that I was apprehensive about this. But this team he is on did not have anyone who liked to play his position and welcomed him with open arms. Secondborn is happy. We're still a bit miffed that the league didn't place him sooner as he has missed three games. But he played one yesterday and has at least one more next week.

6. I'm grateful that Firstborn has (finally) started calling around to make a decision on his Eagle Project so he can get it approved. Its past time to get that ball rolling.

7. I'm grateful that my brother called to arrange a time to come visit this week. I can;t wait to show our guests around our town. Well, actually they are going to have to do the self guided tour while I am at school. At least I'll have most of Friday and half of Saturday to play with them before they head back.

8. I had my AP Lecture exam on Thursday and I felt great about it! There were a few questions I was not sure on and based my answers on the Latin breakdown of the vocabulary. When I checked my text book after the exam I found that I got it it right. I'm eager to see my score. As I turned in my test, I thanked my prof. for helping me out with the organic chemistry and told her how much better I felt about this exam. The studying paid off.

9. I'm also grateful for my Art class. I have had fun trying to draw and I did better than I ever thought I could. Print making is coming up, which I am looking forward to. I spoke with my art prof. after class on Thursday. It turns out that she has a soft spot in her heart for Speech Language Pathologists as they have needed them with her boys. I hope I can get to know her better.

10. My parents are on their last twelve days of their mission. I'm so grateful for the time they have spent there. Check out their blog for the latest stories as well as the blogs of some of the other DR Congo missionaries. Links are to the right.