Weekend at Grandma's

We got to go to Grandma and Grandpa's house this weekend. Since the weather was too crummy to do any yard work, Neil was okay with missing a Saturday of "fun" work at home. We got together with cousins, and rode on Grandpa's new toy- the Razor. He bolted two car seats to the back of it, so we could strap in two kids, which Kortney and Taylor loved riding in, even in the cold wind on Saturday. We took it up all the horse and 4-wheeler trails behind Neil's parent's house, and it is so much more comfortable than a 4-wheeler! Emmrie fell asleep on my lap while we rode. Sunday morning we all went to the Salt Lake broadcast for our regional conference, and the kids spent the rest of the day outside- it was so nice! I felt bad, though, because Kortney and Taylor each got sunburned. I didn't even think about the sun! But they loved it! Any time we get to go to Grandma's house is a vacation for them. I'm grateful for wonderful in-laws who love their grandchildren and make their time there so enjoyable.

"This is Idaho..."

Last week.....

Today.








You know, when I moved to Idaho, my mother-in-law told me, "This is Idaho. If you don't like the weather, just wait ten minutes. It'll change."

Yeah, that's pretty much it.

Neil's Theme Song

Brad Paisley's "I'm Still A Guy"

Hershey

Well, Kortney finally got what she's been waiting for the whole extremely long, cold winter. Hershey is our (her) new little puppy, and Kortney has learned a lot of responsibility in a very short time. She loves the little guy. He's not exactly what we had been looking for, but he won us over. When Neil and I got back to Soda Springs after our anniversary trip to Logan, Mom Price had her neighbor's last little puppy there waiting to meet us. Kortney, Taylor and Emmrie had been playing with him all day, and were so excited to ask if we could keep him. He's part pug, part labrador (a "pugador", they call him), and is only supposed to get about half the size of a lab. I think I can handle that size (I say that now, of course). Neil and I both liked him at once. He's pretty mellow for a puppy, and he was less expensive than the other kinds of dogs we had been looking at! Our boxer, Kali, loves him, too, and they play so good together. I just can't wait until he's potty-trained. It would help if it would quit snowing here so Hershey would actually like going outside in the early morning! Kortney is so good about cleaning up after him when she can, and about feeding and watering him. She even takes him out in the middle of the night to go potty. We'll see how long that lasts. It's been good so far! So, as if we aren't crazy already, we just thought we'd add one more to our family!

Our Seventh Anniversary

I was so excited to surprise Neil for our 7th anniversary this weekend! I have to admit, I got the idea from my friend, Heidi in AZ, and threw it all together this last week when I finally decided to just do it. I got some family names to take to the temple from my aunt, and told Neil that we were going to go to the Logan temple with his parents (that's their temple district) last friday. His sister would watch the girls while we were in the session. Then I would surprise him by sending the girls home with his parents and taking him to a bed and breakfast. Well, the whole part with his parents didn't pan out, so we ended up taking the girls to their house after Neil got off work on Friday, then just the two of us went to Logan. We kept our "plan" without them, because I also wanted to visit my neice, Brianna, who is going to school at Utah State, since it was her birthday that day, but we got into town too late to see her before she went out with friends, and I was kinda bummed. It was hard to get him to hurry up at his parents' house, and I didn't want to blow the surprise. When we finally did drive into town, instead of turning to the temple, I told Neil to just keep going. He was so confused. He thought we were still driving on to Brianna's apartment, and when I had him stop in front of the Providence Inn Bed and Breakfast, he said, "Is this her apartment?" I wouldn't answer, and just had him go inside with me. It finally dawned on him that we were staying there when they asked us if we wanted breakfast in our room, or in the parlor. So we took our bags up to the room, and he just laughed because I completely surprised him! I loved it! We stayed in a room called the Victorian, and I whipped out chocolates and Martinelli's, and we relaxed. It was a cool place, and they took us around to show us all the old building, and the new additions and things. It was so fun to just have the time for ourselves, and know our girls were in good hands. In the morning we finally did make a temple session at the beautiful Logan temple, and got back to Soda Springs to get our girls later that afternoon.

The Lord's Hand in My Life:
I've been blessed with a wonderful husband, and fantastic in-laws who are such a big part of our kids' lives. Thanks, Mom Price, for working with my changing plans the whole week, and for always being willing to take the girls! They had a blast at Grandma's house, as usual, and didn't even miss us at all. It was so nice to enjoy some individual time with Neil this weekend!

General Conference Favorites

Wow! Is it just hormones, or was Conference this last weekend a tear-jerker for the rest of you, too? I was glad to be able to watch it and really feel the Spirit in so many of the talks that were given! Even though I only really heard about half of it, what I heard was wonderful! I didn't write down too much, especially from the Saturday sessions (that day was mostly spent trying to get Kortney and Taylor excited about the fun little Conference packet my cousin Edith emailed me. It was a hit, by the way! Even though they didn't pay attention to the actual talks, every time a new speaker stood up, Kortney would say, "Mom! What color tie is he wearing?" and color the picture of the tie on the page to match. So fun!), so, looking back now, I really mostly remember the feelings I had listening to each one.
I loved Elder Oaks' talk about gaining, strengthening and bearing a testimony, and Sister Tanner's talk on miracles that sometimes we don't see until the "4th watch", or after we've done all we can do. It helps me remember that I may have to put forth all of my effort before the Lord will come in and help me through a trial. I loved Elder Holland's strong testimony of the scriptures, and knowledge that God still speaks today. I always like his talks, and the power and conviction with which he gives them. I also liked Elder Bednar's talk on having more meaningful prayer, to do the Father's will, for faith to do His will, and to accept His will. I need to really work on having my prayers get past the ceiling most of the time. Elder Zwick of the Seventy also touched me with his talk on standing firm to the truth. The youth of the Church today have such hard spiritual trials, and I was glad that he talked about not lowering our standards- which is really for all of us, not just the youth. And then, of course, I loved Elder Ballard's talk directed to young mothers. That one really brought on the tears, because I love my kids so much, but sometimes I get so frustrated and underappreciated, that I think I'm failing. I like that he mentioned that moms need a break every once in a while to replenish ourselves, and fill our own well (not with soap operas or the internet, he did mention- I need to work on that!), so we have enough to continue giving. I was grateful to him for that.
Of course, I know all these wonderful speakers were led by the Spirit in each of their talks, and really all the messages are from the Lord through them. I'm so grateful that God does still speak, and that we have the opportunity to hear His will for us twice a year in special conferences focused on helping us know His will for us in our day. I'm grateful for a prophet who guides us through these times, so we know what direction we need to steer our lives to make it back to our Heavenly Father.