Hard times....

The last few months we have been on an emotional roller coaster that I REALLY want to get off of, and if you know me I LOVE roller coasters so it must be bad to want to get off of. A lot of tears have been shed, sleepless nights, a LOT of hugs and kisses and some great family and friends that we have been able to talk to and have helped us with our trials.

Last night Johns and I were talking and he made the comment that we picked our trials, WOW what were we thinking? Hello, can I have a do over? Please?.....then tonight I was playing around on the Internet and found the following quote "even with all the many tears and pain that I have encountered there is always someone that is going through something more challenging." What a true statement that I really need to stop and think about when I am going through my trials. I am so blessed for so many things but especially so thankful that I have Dwayne by my side, he is my rock!!!!

God has a plan for each of us and sometimes we have to learn patience to see how this plan is going to unfold.

Life!

A friend of mine posted the following on her blog paraphrasing Elder Uchtdorf on his talk in conference:

"It is easy to be busy; it takes some real thoughtfulness to live simply and enjoy life's little pleasures."

I hope all enjoy life's little pleasures and treasure them each and every day!

Trials....

"Trials are not consequences of our disobedience, they are evidence the Lord feels we are prepared to grow more." Richard G Scott

Forgiveness

Please take a few minutes and watch the video below from LDS.ORG "Forgiveness" you can link to it by clicking on the word FORGIVENESS.

There is something that we can all learn from this man and his ability to follow our Savior and forgive even in his darkest moments. Sometimes things happen to us that we will not know the reason for a very long time but we must always remember that our Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us.

Forgiveness

Forgiveness

Sometimes God calms the storm. Sometimes God lets the storm rage and calms His child.

"True love requires action. We can speak of love all day long, we can write notes or poems that proclaim it, sing songs that praise it, and preach sermons that encourage it but until we manifest that love in action, our words are nothing but sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal."

--Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Faith

Faith makes things possible, not easy....

So true...

I want to belike this....

"I don't want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully, tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there with grass stains on my shoes from mowing Sister Schenck's lawn. I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbor's children. I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone's garden. I want to be there with children's sticky kisses on my cheeks and tears of a friend on my shoulder. I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really lived."
- Marjorie Pay Hinckley

What an amazing woman!

We can't get enough.....

This April Johns has the opportunity to go to Jacksonville for 2 weeks for training. We cannot pass up the opportunity of a free plane ticket and a vacation to Disney World. So, on April 30th, I will be flying out to meet up with Johns and then we will drive down to Orlando for a week. We are excited to go! We will also be there for 4 days with his parents, 2 sisters and 2 bils and our niece so that will be a lot of fun.

The 2 weeks that he will be gone are going to be TERRIBLE!!!!! We have not been apart for more than 3 days since we got married, sappy I know but I am going to miss him!

While we are there Epcot is going to have the International Flower & Garden Festival which looks to be amazing! Johns is going to go crazy with taking pictures, which of course I will post as soon as we get back!

MySpace-Countdown-Clocks

What is important?

Yesterday I found a blog of a little boy that is holding on to life after drowning in their family bathtub. Something that could happen to anyone of us, just a split second of turning your head and the lives of your entire family change. As I read this blog my heart was very heavy and sad for this tragic accident. However, as I read it I am amazed at the faith that this mother and father are displaying in this trying time. The mother wrote:

Faith can not grow where fear is allowed to dwell.

There is not room in my heart for both.
Fear is the paralyzing agent of the adversary.
A first line of his defense. And so I made a choice.

I must choose faith. Choose to believe. Despite the odds.
Despite the grim news. Despite the reality before us.

No matter how vulnerable and unguarded I let myself become,

I will not, I can not fear.

She will not allow this trying time in her life to sway her faith in our Father in Heaven and his plan for each of us.

As I have thought about this I have thought about things that Johns and I have been going through and the trials that we have been faced with and the fear of the "what ifs" and decided that I need to fully rely on my faith and believe in the plan that our Father in Heaven has for us, and not fear of what might happen. I have so much to be thankful for, I have a great husband, a great family, great friends, a great life, a good job and so much more! I have the faith that I need and will not fear what is going to happen.

SO, Sad News!

In less than 2 weeks my Sister, BIL, Nephews and Niece will be moving to Las Vegas. Now realize being the favorite Aunt this crushes me! I mean honestly how could they do that to me?

So, Johns and I decided to have a sleepover with 5 of the 8 nieces/nephews. We had SO MUCH FUN! These kids are great! We played the Wii like it was going out of style, can I just say I rock at Mario Kart, then we had Pizza, white chocolate popcorn and anything else we could lay our hands on. We watched movies, played games, puked and just ran around having fun.

Here are a few of the pictures we took that night:

Movie time - the kids were so cold

and Johns had already washed all the blankets

except this one so they all got under it!

Playing Cranium

Connor telling Brianna how to play

something on the Wii.


She is in to this!