Happy Birthday!

       
                                         
Our oldest son is 40 years old today.  He is a wonderful man and has been an example to all of our family about standing for truth no matter what the consequences may be.  He was named after both of his grandfathers and he has many of their good qualities.  I love and appreciate Bill and am so grateful that he is my son.

Judgement

"The Final judgement is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts--what we have done.  It is an acknowledgement of the final effect of our acts and thoughts--what we have become."  Elder Dallin H. Oaks

Movie

I did something that I have never done before--but know that I should have.  I walked out of a movie.  I sat there for way to long thinking it would get better and then realizing that I could not expect the Holy Ghost to remain with me while I sat in the darkness both physically and spiritually.  When that thought came to me I walked out. 

On Sunday I watched a rebroadcast of Women's Conference in which Sister Elaine Dalton and her daughter spoke.  Sister Dalton talked about the moral decay of the world and showed a graph of this decline.  On top of the world's decay she showed religious people were also experiencing a decline even though we were not within the world's moral compass.  Today I understood more about what that really meant as I came to understand that I am lowering my standards sometimes by accepting the standards of other people's ratings.  I would never watch an R rated movie but I worry that I am not spending enough time evaluating what a PG-13 rating means.  As long as we watch the junk that is often put out there we are condoning profanity, vulgarity, and mediocrity of filmmakers.  They need to offer so much more than we get and we need to expect so much more than we do.  Since I have retired I have enjoyed numerous wonderful movies and I am making a commitment to myself that I will not allow myself to be part of the worst of so called entertainment.

Ironing

I know this post will solidify what you already suspect--I'm crazy!  But I have to admit that I love ironing.  I always feel such a sense of accomplishment when I finish.  I often find myself trying to beat my record which is under 4 minutes to iron a shirt.  I remember when I was a little girl sitting on the floor by my mother while she ironed.  We'd talk, or I would read, or play jacks as she ironed down the pile of clothes.  She use to iron for other people to earn extra money for our family.  When I worked full time I did take Scott's shirts to the cleaners--so you see I'm not completely crazy.  Now that I am home full time I have remembered how much I enjoy ironing a crisp white shirt.  It is one of my simple pleasures!

Freedom

"We have implanted in our souls a desire to be free.  The Lord understood this when He granted us our mortal probation.  With that freedom, however, comes accountability.  We are instructed not to idle away our time nor bury our talents and not use them.  We are expected to make our lives better through our own initiative and effort."  Elder L. Tom Perry

Smile

Last night I was reading an article in the Deseret News about Mitt Romney and his family having a family picture made while they were on a vacation in New Hampshire.  I smiled when the reporter talked about the sons dancing around trying to get their kids to smile for the grandkids pictures.  Just two weeks ago we were doing the same thing and I was so touched by my adult children who were all dancing around behind the camera, calling their children's names and doing everything to make sure that the picture would be good.  For you who know my sons that in itself is quite remarkable!  I saw my daughter run back and forth when she was taking our family pictures after she set the timer so many times I know she had to be exhausted, but she kept a smile on her face the whole time. 

I think that experience made me think of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and all of our ancestors who have gone before us.  I know they are cheering us on in so many ways.  They want us to stay strong and to smile because great things are ahead for all of us if we just don't give up.   

Anniversary

Scott and I are celebrating our 41st wedding anniversary.  We are going back where it all started--in the Temple!  This time in the Redlands temple instead of the Mesa temple.  I read a quote by Mignon McLaughlin on Pinterest yesterday that says much about what our marriage is about.  "A successful marriage requires falling in love many times with the same person."  I am grateful that Scott has continued to love me these many years and I am grateful that I recognized the greatness in the man I married so I could continue to fall in love with him in the good times as well as the difficult ones!