Just one of the reasons why I love my siblings...

If this isn't bliss then I don't know what is...

The above monologue is a mother's record of running errands with her little baby girl, Lily. I read it on a friends sister's blog and fell in love with the idea of it all: having the perfect little sidekick with you always.

Thank you inspiring women who prove that being a wife and mother is really one of the greatest blessings I can hope to experience.

Family

"The foundation of the Church and the hope of the future is the family, and there is no place of security like it. There is power in the family that we will find nowhere else, a power that spans generations and reaches across the veil." (Sheri Dew, Famous Last Words, BYU Women's Conference, 1999)

Sisters

So...I may or may not have discovered my Photo booth feature...

Katie & Paige 

Life comes at you fast...

Excuse me!

I have a very important question. 

Who had the audacity to say this little girl could grow up? 

Hanna 

Umm...yeah. I'm not OK with this. 

What happened to the little girl who used to sneak into my room at 6 am asking me to do her hair before she left for the bus? Or the one who used to sit so quietly on my bed and listen to me rant and rave about how unjust my life was in high school? Or the one who used to be the tiny 6-year-old gymnast jumping on and off 4-inch-wide balance beams?  

I forgot that life happens, that while I'm off chasing my adventures little sisters still grow up. They still continue to develop and become beautiful young women. At this moment I'm seriously regretting all the times Hanna would come to me with question or concerns and I--being oh so self absorbed--impatiently brushed them away. Or the times when she would ask to come with me and my friends to get ice cream or some chinese take out and I--feeling annoyed or pestered--told her "maybe next time." 

I hope I'm not the only big sister who's going through this phase: the one where you look back on your life and wonder what you did with your time while you were still at home, sharing a bathroom and a bed with the very girls who would one day develop their own interests and pursuits. It's a time when you reflect on missed opportunities, but also cherish and anxiously hold on to the few moments when you were a good big sister. When you did listen. When you did express love. When you did share advice, tips, and even testimony. 

Isn't it interesting how the tables turn? Now I'll be the one asking if I can hang out with them and their friends by driving them to all the places they wanna go on the weekends; now it's my turn to wake up at 6 in the morning, begging them to let me do their hair (Of course, now that their teenagers, they'll probably feel seriously disturbed if I do that...). 

Nelson girls, May 2010*

I sure my hope these little ones will give me another chance this summer to prove I really do love 'em. They're so wonderful and simply beautiful. My goodness...life comes at you fast!

*Photo by Rachel Reidhead

Much Ado about Nothing

This post doesn't have anything to do with me being in Jerusalem. But it has A LOT to do with things I think are very important and tender. And I think tender things should always be remembered :-)

See THIS POST from the NieNie Dialogues.

More updates on Jerusalem coming your way!

He will pour out His spirit upon His Handmaids

Random, Disconnected Thoughts on My Role as a Woman

Two weeks ago, I was browsing the church website and stumbled across a podcast channel called Conversations. The podcasts are conversations between Sheri Dew and someone in church leadership. I've never been one to listen to podcasts, but I was instantly intrigued when I saw the long list of past podcast participants: Elder and Sister Holland, Susan Easten Black, Julie B. Beck, and many others. I decided I'd give these podcasts a try, just to hear what church leaders were discussing.

Little did I know I have stumbled upon a gold mine of beautiful insights and inspiring words of wisdom from women in the church. Today I listened to a podcast by Julie Beck and her two daughters, all of who are full-time mothers and servants to the Lord. The discussion was almost entirely centered on the role of women in the church as wife, mother, homemaker, member, and citizen. I was deeply touched by the insights Sister Beck and her daughters shared. However, I was also intimidated by some of the thoughts and opinions they expressed.

There was thought in particular that has my mind churning. Toward the end of the podcast, Sheri Dew asked Sister Beck what final thoughts she would like to express concerning the role of women in the church. Siste Beck said the following:

"I was blessed to be reared by a mother who's motto was 'welcome the task that makes you go beyond yourself and you will grow.' That's what this gospel affords us. And that empowers us. I often think of the pioneers who were thrown out of Nauvoo ... and built a collection of humbles. What happened when they were in the middle of that most difficult time? [...] What did the women say? Were they just going to sit there and cower and feel sorry for themselves? They said no. You go ahead and do your job, we will meet you in the valley. And they did. That's the kind of feeling I have for the sisters of this church. Whatever is required, they can do it. They can round up their shoulders and do it. They can welcome the task that makes them go beyond themselves and they can grow. That's what the gospel does for us. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us."

 Have you ever really considered what it means to be a woman in this church? I want to believe the thousands of stinky diapers and sloppy meals we'll have to clean for our children will lead to a gratifying sense of responsibility and peace in motherhood. The nights when our husbands are busy with work or boyscouts will be the times when we might feel stranded or tied down by the tasks at hand. I imagine there will be many evenings when I'll sit teary-eyed asking myself what I've signed up for. I'll probably say something like, "I'm a woman of passion and intellect, not a handmaid or a slave." And then I'll pout for a minute or two. But I hope I'll remember the words of Sister Beck when she called us to be women of virtue, strong and purservering in our pursuit of happiness. I pray that in the future I will welcome the task that makes me go beyond myself so that I can grow.

I'm not sure why, but for the past several months I've been thinking a lot about my specific role as a woman in this church. Now more than ever, I am struggling to find peace in the fact that motherhood and family are the best investments we can make (if we are blessed with that choice). I'm tempted to believe that a career will be much more rewarding and fair as far as time commitments are concerned; or that life as a single woman really can't be as miserable as married people (or single women) say. What can be done to change my mind, or remind myself that family really is one of the greatest gifts God can bless us with?

I hope that I can someday be like Julie Beck and the other women leading our church today. They are strong, and they have their priorities exactly where they need to be. This is obvious because of the distinct power and influence of the Holy Ghost that radiates in their countenance. I want to be like them, a true handmaid of the Lord.


more on this later....

Thanksgiving was great!

I never wrote about Thanksgiving--mostly because I slept the majority of the break. No, really. I took a minimum of three naps ev-er-y- day. Don't ask me how that was possible. I still haven't figured it out. 

Anyway, I enjoyed the short time I had in Arizona. I spent time with lovely people who I love dearly. I ate delicious turkey, mashed potatoes, Grandpa's homemade pumpkin pie, and sheet cake. I rode horses for the first time in a long time. I also had the chance to spend some good quality time with cousins and siblings: some of my favorite people (Although, I didn't get to see all my favorite people....ya'll are first on my list when I get home over Christmas break!).  

Brad, Me, Josh at the arena riding horses and catching up. Brad just got back from his mission. I am VERY excited about this. I also saw Josh for the first time in a long time. VERY happy about that as well. 

Paige and I out back with the horses.

family. is. good.

To-do List

This weekend, I HOPE to do the following:

Heart Strings

I don't get homesick very often. But tonight, I missed them. A lot...

I miss being the big sister who is there. I miss deep chats with Tanner; random dialogues with Jake in 20 different accents; girl talk with Paige; Hanna's thoughtfulness; Sophie's random yet amazing advice; Dad's footrubs; mom's cars ( :-) ); Glen's hilarious and incredibly dry sense of humor; Tanner and Jake's quotes from Madagascar; movies down in the basement; late-night chats with cousins; warm Arizona monsoons; early morning hikes on Camelback or Windcaves; and so much more!