A Heavenly Home

I took these two pictures of our home the day after the Cider Festival.

We borrowed the tractor and the wagon from our friends Lane and Tammy.

We are very grateful for our home and love living here in this wonderful neighborhood.

Having said that, though, it's not the house that brings happiness.  It is convenient, and gives us opportunities to grow and serve in many ways, like the Cider Festival, but it is not the source of our happiness.  I have lived in adobe houses with no indoor plumbing, taking sponge baths instead of showers for months, and been as happy as I have ever been in my life.  When we got married, Bruce often remarked that he didn't have to worry about where we lived, because I would think anything with hot running water was heavenly.  I have seen both extremes, and know that happiness comes from knowing I am a daughter of God, living up to that heritage, and keeping my covenants with my Father - that brings happiness.  Everything else is icing on the cake.  I already wrote about that here.  And I look forward to mansion above, the Heavenly Home, that I know my Father in Heaven is preparing for our family!

Peter's football team won their District Championship, and then they played in the Inter-Valley District Championship, and they won that too!  Peter's # 7.

And a hug from the Momma.  Good job, Peter!  (I love this picture)

After the game we went out and brought in the hay from the Farm.  Peter's friends Tyler and Taylor came to help us.  It's so nice just having to do the lower field!  Saves a ton of time!

Chet, Mary and Libby went to the Temple and took the traditional "group" selfie.  I love this picture too!

Mary, Chet, Nic and I went out to do some more senior pictures for Mary.  We had a great time, and we'll post more later.  Mary's friend Nic is an excellent photographer and I can't wait to see his work!  He certainly had a beautiful subject.  Thank you Nic for your great work!

Peter and Bruce went hunting this week. They didn't see any elk, but Peter shot a deer.

And here's the DOOZY of a bruise that Bruce got from "sighting" his gun before the hunting trip.  Sighting the gun means you shoot it a few times (he shot it five times) to make sure the "sight" you look through on the gun is lined up right.  When he came home form that, his shoulder was swollen up like a baseball.  When he came home from hunting 3 days later, this is what his arm looked like!  That is quite the bruise!  I have been applying Lavender and Helichrysum essential oils - they will help heal up the bruising quickly.

Peter and Bruce got home a day early, and we were so excited to see them.  They had a really hard time the first day.  Strawberry, one of our horses, got a bad cut on her foot in the trailer on the way up, so they weren't able to hike in and set up camp like they wanted to.  Instead, they tied up the animals and then took off hunting.  It was cold and snowy, and they went up and down thousands of feet of elevation.  When they finally got back to camp, which Bruce said was no small miracle, they pulled out their sleeping bags and slept in the back of the truck.  They didn't have the wood stove burning overnight in the wall tent, so their clothes were still frozen in the morning.  Bruce said he almost broke his pants getting into them in the morning.  I ask them all the time, "Now, tell me why you think this is fun?"  But they came home in one piece, with some deer meat to boot.  We're grateful for that!

Chet's farewell was today!  A farewell, in Mormon culture, is known as the Sacrament Meeting in which the missionary gives a talk before going out on his mission.  It is usually attended by a lot of family and friends, although his/her speaking is not the center of the meeting.  It is a regular Sunday worship meeting, and the Sacrament is the most important part of the meeting, and the missionary speaks on a gospel related topic, so the meeting is not about the missionary, but it is really fun to hear him or her speak and bear their testimony right before they leave to serve a full-time mission!  Mary and Chet sang God be With You for a musical number, with me accompanying them.  When they told me that's what they were going to sing, and they were singing together, I thought it was an extraordinarily bad idea, but then Mary told me that Chet felt a prompting from the Spirit that that should be the song, so I honored that.  And then I listened to them sing and gauged if they could really pull it off without getting emotional (or being sappy), and I concluded that they could.   And they did!  They sounded great, and brought the Spirit in.  And then Chet tied it in with his talk at the end, so that was cool.  Chet gave a great talk!  He said, "The Lord is waiting to pour down buckets of blessings on us."  I loved that imagery!  He delivered it so well - no stumbling on words, or external phrases, or mumblings.  I felt his love of the Lord and the work.  He will be a great missionary!

We also had fun FaceTiming with Joshua - meeting his roommate Dan, and talking with Walker.  I treasure every time I can hear Josh's voice, or see his face and talk to him.  After two years of not being able to do that, it is wonderful every time.

And we got to FaceTime with Jesse and her friend Stephen twice this week.  What a miracle FaceTime is, and other forms of video communication.  I'm truly grateful for it.  And grateful for the wonderful friends that surround my children!

I hope the end of this Sabbath day finds you happy and filled with hope.  I was blessed in a special way today, to experience the meaning of turning a problem over to the Savior, and having Him take my burden.  I was different from one moment to the next.  I know the Atonement in real, and that we have a Savior who loves us and wants to help us carry the burdens we are called on to bear.  It is REAL!  I testify of that, in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ.  He lives and He is real.