General Conference

If you will excuse me- I would like a minute to jot down my thoughts and feelings for the day. Conference can be so uplifting and so frustrating in my house. Some sessions we do better than others, of course. Lexie did fantastic- she even took notes in her journal. I was so proud of her efforts. Zack colored himself and Payton with a black dry erase marker during one session- he said he was coloring himself like a bad guy. OOHHHkay. We ate a lot of popcorn and made a lot of messes, but I'd have to count the day as a success. I hope my children felt the spirit of the meeting like I did.



I am always amazed at the spirit that comes with General Conference talks. It is yet another witness to me that my Heavenly Father knows and loves me. There is always a talk or two that I hear where the Spirit whispers in my ear that I should pay extra close attention because this is something I need to hear or improve on.



Since I made packets for my kids to fill out, I decided I was being a hypocrite if I didn't take notes of my own- and I am so glad I did!!! It really helped me focus and stay alert, but mainly I loved that after it was all over I could look back over what I learned and call to mind my favorite talks and quotes and stories. Here's just a few--



One of my favorite talks this conference was Saturday by (Elder or Brother- I'm not sure) Neil Anderson. Wow- what an amazing talk -it truly touched me. He spoke on our own spiritual conversions and how although we don't know everything there is to know about the gospel, we still know enough to know that God lives and Jesus is the Christ, and that he loves us. He also said faith is not only a feeling, but a decision. How profound! It reminded me of when they say love is not a feeling, it is an action. It just makes you realize that you cannot sit idly by and expect your faith to grow. If you want to have faith, then have faith!

I especially loved the story he told of the little girl who couldn't hear very well who told the little boy with no legs in the store that Heavenly Father made him special. Tear jerker.



I always love Elder Wirthlin's talks, he has such a sweet sence of humor that shines through his physical setbacks. He is such a cute old man! My kids listened well to his funny stories of how they learned in his family to laugh instead of getting mad. What a priceless lesson for anyone with 6 kids. I tried to remind Lexie of his message whenever Kobe started teasing tonight- but I think we need more time to perfect that idea.



I could go on and on about the many things that touched my heart today and yesterday- but wouldn't you know- the one I appreciated the most came from our Prophet. What an amazing man. I know he is inspired- he spoke right to my heart. I have a new resolve to have more gratitude- to appreciate life and the stages my children are in. I want so much to create a happy home- where there will be only pleasant memories. I just wish that something that sounds so easy and natural wasn't such a challenge for me. So many days seem to be filled with frustration. BUT- as the prophet said- pile up enough tomorrows, and you'll find you missed alot of yesterdays. I need to find a way to fill my home with joy now- not tomorrow.



I'm so grateful to have the gospel in my life. What a blessing! I don't know where i would be without it! I need so much the spiritual strength I draw from these amazing leaders who speak in conference. I know they are called of God. It is incredible to see all they give in service to the church. What an awesome responsibility their callings must be. I love my Savior and I am so glad he loves me enough to give me loving reminders of those things I should be doing - I am so blessed.

Is this supposed to be fun?

I'm not sure I quite deserve the title of a 'soccer mom'. Since Jeff has coached every sports team our kids have been involved in, he is the one at all the practices and meetings. I am meerly required to go cheer them on at their Saturday games. What is so bad about that- you may ask? Oh! that could be fun- you may say? Oh ho ho contraire. I don't actually get to WATCH, are you kidding? No, instead I get to juggle Lucas, Payter, and Zack for 3 hours while Jeff is on the other side of the field coaching.



Besides being bored and eating all the babies snacks, the older ones do okay. Lexie even thought to bring a book. Like how she is using Brooklyn as a foot rest?

Then there is Payters. Since Jeff is on the other side of the field, I chase her onto the field at LEAST 3 times per game- and sometimes pretty far on because she's sneaky and I don't move fast when carrying Lucas. Lucky for me, someone next to me usually clues in that I could use some help and chases her down for me. It almost seems like dejavu- only last season it was Zack I was running after. This season he is much better. He just likes to stand a few feet over the line to bug me.

It was fun however seeing how totally different my 3 little soccer players choose to play the game. I thought you might appreciate my observations.

First there's Kobe. He inherited his dad's drive and competitiveness. He is out there to WIN and trust me- he knows what the score is. He plays hard and takes pride in doing a good job. Maybe too much sometimes though- he knows he is good and likes to tell you about it. I just hope he doesn't tell his teammates too-

Brooklyn's game was so fun to watch- mainly because SHE was having so much fun! This is her first time playing and Jeff and I were both amazed at how well she picked it up. She even scored her first goal. She is tall and can run like a deer, but she doesn't. Nope. She SKIPPED the whole time!

Oh boy- now Zack- I am not sure you could say he actually played... At first I tried to be the back-seat coach and yell all that helpful parenting advice like, "Go get the ball!" and "Kick it!" but pretty soon I was saying things like "No, don't come sit by me yet-" and it was all downhill from there. I just had to tell myself to quit stressing and relax. So, instead I took pictures. He was actually very entertaining to watch. Here is Zack shoving the ball up his shirt and then running into the coaches legs-

Where is Zack? I'm sure that's what the other players were wondering right about now...

Here is Zack scoring a goal- oh wait, never mind. This is Zack CLIMBING the goal net while the rest of the kids are running down to the other end of the field...

This one makes me laugh- the guy in yellow is the assistant coach who I think Zack was giving an ulcer. He kept trying to yell to Zack "Hey- you can't just take yourself in and out of the game whenever you want..." Here he is trying to get Zack to follow the ball. It wasn't working. Good thing Zack's coach is his daddy who loves him enough not to strangle him...
Amazingly enough his team won even with only 4 active players on the field.

Although I'm not thrilled at the thought of 3 more hours of the Mower circus-I can't WAIT to see what Zack has up his sleeve for this saturday's game. I guess I'd better have my camera ready. After the way this season is going- I'm thinking it'll be a few years before I'll be buying him new cleats!