On August 15th Dustin's dad was able to receive his endowment in the Jordan River Temple! It was such a nice session. It was nice to be able to witness this important occasion. I am so happy for him and his family. Dustin's birthday was the following day. He got a few gifts, but I think was the best birthday gift of all!
On September 9th, their 37th wedding anniversary, they will be sealed for time and all eternity!
Through the summer I have had my older kids enrolled in swimming. I realized when my 11 year-old couldn't swim and would be expected to in scouts, it was time to let go of my maternal fear inside and let them do it. They all started out at level 1. Ryan and Aaron are level 4 swimmers and Grace is at 3b.
It was a test for me to sit and watch my kids learn to swim! I was never afraid of the water, but once I had children a sense of panic struck me anytime my kids stepped near water! (it happens with so many other things too, what is this crazy thing? I would really like to know) Watching them tread water and go off the diving board were torture for me. I was shaking the first time and had to turn away. The next time I told myself I was being ridiculous and forced myself to calm down and watch.
Grace struggled in 3a. The fear of going in 12ft really stopped her progression. They had the sweetest teacher and he worked and worked with her. He even gave her a couple of private lessons free of charge to help out. She finally did get in the deep water! We were so proud of her! The boys were naturals! Ryan still has a hard time kicking, but Aaron is a fish.
We are done until next summer! We do have a rec membership, so they will get lots of practice all year long in the indoor pools. Yeah for me to have to get in a swimming suit in the winter! (can you sense my sarcasm?)
This morning me, Dustin, Ryan, and Aaron had the privilege of taking part in the dedication of the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple. What a neat experience! I was really excited to have my boys be part of it.
We were not able to be in the actual Temple. Way too many members in UT! They broadcast it to our stake centers, they become an extension of the Temple. I was a little bummed at first, I thought it might not be as neat, boy was I wrong. It just goes to show that a Holy Place can be anywhere where the followers of our Savior gather.
This was my 2nd Temple dedication. When I was 12, I was able to take part in the dedication of the Las Vegas Temple. Although I don't recall much of it, I do remember sitting with my family in a sealing room (I think, mom help me out) and catching a glimpse of men in white walking by and waving at me. I had turned around at the right moment to see them. I said, "Mom, Dad I saw the prophet and he waved at me!" The prophet would have been Ezra Taft Benson, but he did not dedicate the Temple, Gordon B. Hinckley did, I really don't know who it was that waved at me all I remember was the feeling that those were important men and they waved at me. I still feel it was a tender mercy because I turned at the right time and everybody else missed it, a testimony building experience just for me! I believe the Church keep the Dedicatory prayers on record, it would be neat to go back and read it.
At the Oquirrh Temple we had quite a few speakers, I wish I would have written them down. Sister Liffer(sp?) spoke. She is the General Primary Pres, I think (bad, I know, wish I would have written this stuff down) she talked of learning to listen to those things that matter. Then two men of the Seventy spoke. I really enjoyed their talks. An don't be surprised I can't remember their names, I think the second was Spencer V. Jones. Elder David A. Bednar was next. He compared the contrasts of the world and the Temple. In a world of confusion we can find the exact opposite in the House of the Lord. Pres. Uchtdorf spoke of the pioneer heritage of this part of the valley. Bingham Canyon is not far from this Temple and it was settled by the Binghams. I had never heard their story, so it was neat to hear. They witnessed life in Kirkland, Nauvoo, and Salt Lake. He and his brother discovered ore in Bingham canyon, but were counseled by Brigham Young not to mine. They didn't, they were obedient. It is now the site of the world's largest copper mine. They never saw ant money from the mine, but they are blessed much more in Heaven I'm sure.
Pres. Monson offered the dedicatory prayer. Though it was long, I was able to pay attention. I took comfort as he asked for blessings to be upon those who enter it. That will be me! He also asked to bless those who took part in the open house. I had deep feeling of gratitude because I was one of those people. I t will be neat to be able to read it again.
I just wanted to write down my feelings I experienced to day. The Spirit was overwhelming! I was thankful to be a part of it. For family night I plan on having all of us journal about our experience with the open house and for the boys the dedication. I think it will be neat to have those on record. I just hope it's not too late.
I have had the busiest month ever! I wish I had time to fill you all in, but I don't. I will try to update this soon! Why is it that a mother's work is never done? I need a break! I plan on going to Time Out for Women next month! I so desperately need a time out!
One of the cons of having year-round school is the short summer breaks. Don't get me wrong I absolutely L.O.V.E them, but I feel like they never got a true break from school.
I planned to do LOTS of fun things during their time off, and we did, but not as much as I wanted. We spent the time mostly going swimming. I decided this year to forget how I looked in a swimming suit and just enjoy time with my kids. I got a membership for our rec center and we spent a lot of days at the pool. And on the bright side, I did get a pretty good tan, even my legs are dark again! Almost as dark as they were in Vegas! Impressed? Me too!
I attempted some projects, but all they wanted to do was play with each other. Rather than hearing them complain the whole time, I decided to let them play. We did manage to get half a paper mache project done. And they invented their own game. Oh well.
Last week my kids started back to school. Ryan is now in 6Th grade, Aaron is in 4Th, Grace in 2ND, and my little Kate started kindergarten! I can't believe it! I have Becca home during the afternoon. She is not alone, I have started watching Dustin's sister's kids, Malori and Noah. She enjoys the company. I enjoy it because it keeps her entertained.
We were put on one of the worst tracks this year. Boo! I have begun to feel it is a blessing in disguise, however. My kids have really good teachers. We came back to our neighborhood school for Ryan. He will not continue on in the ALPS program because Jr. high is in River ton. There is no way I will be able to transport him everyday! We came back a year early so he could make friends before Jr. high. The teacher that he has, he LOVES! He is preparing them well for next year. He also has kids in his class that will also be in the accelerated classes next year. A true blessing for him. It is a big change though. He is having a hard time concentrating because kids choose to goof off and swear. I told him he needs to learn to work inspite of it. There will be those type of people the rest of his life. A good life learning opportunity for him!
I'm excited for the new adventures that await my kids this year. It seemed to be a rough start, especially getting the track that was my last choice, but we all decided to change our attitudes and look for the positive. You can't always have it your way, unless you're at Burger King. Change is always good!
