September 12, 2010

I have to start off by saying that the rest of my week has gone much smoother since my September 8th post. It has been really nice to have Bryce back home and the "bodily accidents" haven't happened again. I am fighting off some sort of cold that is wiping my energy, but I will survive.

Yesterday morning Braxton had another soccer game and scored 3 goals! He was WAY excited. It is funny because he never plays around with a soccer ball and doesn't even really talk about soccer all week but he absolutely loves to go to practice and play in the games. I think that he is loving having something that he excels in. I think it is good for him to have non-stop running for an hour!

Today we were able to go to our regional stake conference. It is always a bit of a challenge to keep 4 little ones quiet and happy for 2 solid hours but I thought that they did quite well. (The starburst every 1/2 hour and a few random skittles here and there didn't hurt to keep them quiet.) Anyway, it was an inspiring meeting. I don't know the name of the guy who spoke first but he talked about remembering & renewing. It made me reflect on what kind of person I am trying to be and to remember to be that person in every situation that I am placed. To remember what I have been taught and to continue to renew my testimony cause if it isn't kept current it won't hold up to the challenges of today. I hadn't really thought about it in that way.

Julie Beck, the general relief society president, spoke about us understanding that we are "doing better than we think we are" and also that we need to do more. That was a bit confusing to me. It made me feel good when she reminded us how truly hard it is to be a mom and that it is a lot of work. I think that this is the "doing better than we think we are" part. Then she also told us that we need to not spend so much time on the computer or other technical devices. Our kids / families are needing us to nuture them and we could be doing more of that if we would unplug more. The computer needs to be a tool like our dishwashers & washing machines are. I don't feel like I have much of an issue as far as the computer goes but definately thought I could cut back a bit on being on my phone reading emails or texting.

Elder Holland then followed with some amazing pioneer stories. The faith, dedication & determination they had was amazing but he reminded us that we have to have more than they did to make it in these days. Am I focusing on the important stuff to be personally prepared and to prepare my family for the temptations of the devil? He is so sly and one of my biggest challenges he presents to me is to fill my time with unimportant things that seem important.

President Packer was the final speaker. What a sense of humor that man has! I was cracking up at all of his little comments. It was fun to see a little bit more relaxed side of him. He told some fun stories but also has such a great spirit with him and sense of love for people. You can't help but love him.

I walked away with a renewed determination to try harder to strengthen my testimony by prioritizing scripture study and personal prayer over facebook, bubble popper on my phone or tv. I also have a renewed determination to show my family how much I truly do love them with the time I spend with them, the tone of my voice, attitude in my repsonses, saying "please" and "thank you" more and overall having a greater sense of patience. I know that this won't happen overnight... and I won't be perfect at it... but I can improve and it is important to me to try.

Well, so much for my small entry. I was just going to type a paragraph or two and I always get a bit carried away. I am going to head to bed and hope my pounding headache will subside too. I feel a migraine coming on... I think I am turning into my mother! I have been getting more of them lately and I think it is from lack of good solid sleep. Anyway- here I am ranting again! Good night!!!