Our Baby Cora

So funny this morning Cora standing in front of the full length mirror with her heels taking pictures with her play camera.  So adorable she’s mimicking and role-playing all the photo shoots Tasha does with her. We couldn’t find the remote for the TV last night anywhere and then I remembered seeing Cora with Annie’s dance bag the day before and had taken her dance clothes out of it -so I looked in the dance bag and there was the remote control- funny little girl! 

Trips to St George / A long filled week-

Craig’s siblings are fast at working hard in clearing out Mom LaVon’s home.  The days and past few weeks have blended into one  -  we made 2 trips down the past two weeks- Criag and I didn’t want to deal with taking anything from her home until after the Funeral.  It was all happening too fast for me. The day after mom passed they were already moving things out and that is when Shelly blew up at me. Craig and I left to let things cool down and try to enjoy Conference weekend-  my heart was aching from the passing of Mom Lavon and then the unkind words from Shelly-  the conference messages spoke deep to my heart and in giving me direction to follow.  I needed to forgive- we drove all the way back from St George, the 4 hours.- Thursday the 31st - Friday Craig and I both feeling disgusted with his siblings behavior and sorrow in our hearts-   They were having a viewing in St George April 4th Tuesday evening and then transferring her body to Sandy to be buried at the Larkin Cemetery on Friday April 8th-  Craig needed a suit for both-  he went shopping on Friday and came home.  He was in no mood to buy a new suit. So we drove all the way up to the lake to get a suit for him.  It felt good to be in our own home and watch Conference at the lake.  The Conference messages brought healing to our hearts and learning we must forgive when others hurt us-  we drove back to our Draper home after the Sunday conference afternoon session-  We were so excited the prophet announced a temple to be built in Montpellier, Idaho in the Bear lake Valley. It brought tears to both our eyes.  I had to re-watch the closing talk of President Nelsen. Announcing 12 new temple to be built-  So exciting to see that temples are beginning to dot the earth.  We will be up to 300 temples.  It was nice to stop by Trisha & Buck’s home to be with family- We needed the comfort of our own family- the extended family is very stressful right now.  Monday I spent the day putting out my Easter decorations -I love this time of year. Tuesday we drove the four hours to attend the viewing-Craig’s siblings were surprised we had came- Craig didn’t want to miss talking with Mom’s friends that knew her.  It was awkward for me.  But glad we came.  We turned around and drove back to our Draper home that evening after the viewing. 8 hours driving in one day - up and back - Mom looked good-they had asked me to put Mom’s makeup on which I would have if I had been there. The funeral was Friday-  Craig and  I stopped by the funeral home on Wednesday to make sure the funeral arrangements were in order. We order boutonnieres for the pallbearers. While at the florist I found a pretty flower arrangement  I loved that Craig bought for me to cheered my soul- Craig drove back to the lake that evening after the funeral-  I stayed at our Draper home- I was beat from the emotional week.  I manage to clean up and get ready for Church on Sunday - I planned to attend our Draper ward.  I fell asleep on the couch and slept 4 hours - I’m just exhausted.  I had to take time to heal and rest -I didn’t go anywhere the entire weekend.  Craig needed to be back for his church meetings-  he drove up and back for the weekend. Finally Chris and Shelly said we could come down and help sort and pick things out from Mom’s house.  We drove down Monday morning April 11th -13 with our black truck- and spent two days there.  It was a awkward for me not feeling like I belonged.  We played the picking out game.  They piled things on the glass coffee table and then we each picked a number of our picking out order from off the table.  Mom has so much stuff In her home and most of it is breakable.  She loved the glass figurines of all kinds.  I had to wrap in paper and pack tightly so nothing broke driving back- we stayed at a hotel Monday night - I didn’t want to stay with any of his siblings- when it was time to leave none invited us to their home for the night- which was fine- we did get a hotel-  Chris said we could say at mom’s house but Craig didn’t want his siblings to accuse him of stealing anything- which we wouldn’t - it was better to just get a hotel.  We worked all day Tuesday sorting, picking things out and loaded up our truck.  We were beat by the end of the day.  Wanted to get another hotel but Marae Holman a friend from Bear lake who has a winter home in St George invited us to stay over at her home- she only lived about 5 minutes from Mom’s home which was nice.  We were beat and didn’t feel much like visiting.  But I knew If we didn’t stop by we wouldn’t make it over to see them- so we took the time.  It was very nice to have a place to lay our heads.  We were up late visiting-  so nice to spend time with them.  Wednesday we were back at it again.   I had the truck packed to the brim - don’t think I could put another thing in- By evening we headed back-  we did stop by Shelly’s home to pick out purses.  Mom had many things and she had over 100 designer purses.  She liked nice things- it was fun to pick out purses- from there we made the long drive back to Draper- we wanted to get back and enjoyed the Easter Weekend with our family. I spent Thursday and Friday unpacking what we packed in tightly.  I filled a few boxes for Bear lake-  by Saturday we had to head back to the lake-  we had our family Easter gathering at Natasha’s home- which didn’t end well with Sharlena ending up at the ER -just sick about it!! She is in bad shape- she was riding Bridger's new electric battery motor bike-  just road done the street- stopped at the stop sign- she gave it too much acceleration -it pop a wheely - her left knee hit hard- she was lying in the street with her leg going the opposite direction then it’s meant to lay- she was in extreme pain and knew she had broken something.  She is for sure going to need surgery on her leg- after waiting for x-rays - she had broken her leg in two spots - they were able to put her leg in a brace until she can be scheduled for surgery. We left the hospital to get back to the lake for our Church meetings Easter Sunday.  I was teaching gospel doctrine this week with brother and sister Menlove called to Poland suddenly to help with all the refugee coming in from Ukraine.  I had not had much time to prepare- the Holy Spirit quicken my mind and I was able to teach the lesson.  It was a very spiritual time for those in attendance. I thanked the Lord for sustaining me in my efforts.  I was beat afterwards we didn’t arrive home until 2am from the ER and I had stayed up late the night before so we were running on lack of sleep- it felt good to slow down on the Sabbath and rest from our very busy week of work and stress.  We had to stay at the lake till Tuesday evening- it felt good to rest at the lake for a few days.  I was in a cleaning mood which is a great stress release for me-so I dug into some spring cleaning at the cabin. I worked hard for a couple days and it felt really good to get things in some order and unpack the treasures from mom’s house that I thought would look good at our lake home and found special spots for them. It felt good to calm my soul from the stress this past week.  Jan was snotie to me when we were there picking things out-  things were awkward with Shelly too- but I tired really hard to be kind - to be forgiving - to move on.  Shelly was coming around by the end of the week - she was overwhelmed with all that her mother had collected and could see that Craig and I both needed to be there to help pick things out- pack it up and move it out-  it is too much work for one person- it’s taking us all working together.  I could see I had been pushed to the side and didn’t have much to say in the pecking order. Jan was right in there moving and sorting things around.  I was surprised when I got home from the 1st trip all the things picked out for us.  I was up late unpacking till 2am in the morning and excited to see what had been packed up for us.  I was pleasantly surprised on many things-  I didn’t see what there was to pick from -so I wasn’t missing out when I didn’t know what there was to pick out.  So far it seems they were being some what fair.  I’m sure if I was doing the picking I would  have picked differently. But it is just fine I’m not going to be picky.  I picked out things I like for Bear lake and our Draper home.  We set all the extra things on our pool table for the girls to have a pick.  Everyone came over- one family at a time Easter weekend and pick a few things from our 1st trip.  I don’t want to clutter up our Draper home with all the knickknacks. Everything mom has is glass so it breaks easily and is not kid friendly at all.  Our second trip down we took Mike Lynnhardt’s enclosed trailer-  we meet with them Monday night at Coopers for dinner- our game group with Hislop’s too-  we all had not been able to get together since fall.  Everyone has been traveling during the winter months.  Hislop’s bought a home in Mesquite Nevada.  It was fun to reconnect with our Bear lake friends. We left Tuesday evening to head to our Draper home to break up the drive time from the lake to St George which is an 8 hour drive.  We slept over  in Draper and then on to St. George.  We made our 2nd trip and last for me.  I didn't want to deal with the drama.  When we arrive Chris was there letting us pick things out that we wanted and not picking a number to choose it was less stressful.-  I just din want all the little trinket things left over.  When Shelly got there there later  that afternoon- we were back at playing the pick a number and each make a choice when it is your turn. It was a little more stressful with Shelly there she would crack the whip- Chris was much more laid-back which I appreciated Craig‘s older sister and then with Scott and Jan made it even more stressful.  Scott is so challenging to deal with- he drags everything out and over thinks everything. Jan was back to her snooty self. She scolded me for picking up a little set of twinkling lights off the counter. It was not part of the pick so to speak.  Earlier we were just picking what we wanted which I was being very generous I was picking very little because I didn’t want all the little stuff.  Jan was hauling out everything she could get her hands on and I was just trying to be selective in what I take- cause I know I’ve got to get rid of it. It reminded me of those days when we were young- she would gripe at me for taking food out of the freezer at Bear Lake which I had left from the weekend before. She acts like I’m stealing and taking something that doesn’t belong to me. I just can’t stand her rotten attitude. Well she already had a chip on her shoulder and it showed. We work till about 9 PM that night everyone was tired- Chris told us just to sleep over because we couldn’t be pulling the trailer around town. She had dumped a bunch of stuff on the bed and told me to clean it off and we could sleep in mom‘s king bed in her bedroom for the night. So I took the time to sort it and make separate little piles and organize the stuff that was in the bedroom for picking the next day I also tidied up the house it was a mess in the garage. I was trying to make some order out of the chaos of dragging things out. And I took the time to pack up all the stuff that they had picked last week for us in our corner of the garage I had to wrap it all so that it would travel without breaking -I ended up staying up till about 2:30 AM tinkering around. I had a hard time going to sleep- I laid down in bed and stared at the wall for almost an hour finally I fell asleep-Craig was out for the night. Everyone was back early 9 AM to start another day of work. Shelly Chris and I were out in the garage sorting the clothes when Scott and Jan arrived. Shelly told Jan to go sort the clothes in the walk-in closet in the house with a lot of the clothes a smaller size and would maybe fit Jan. We’re all working away in the garage sorting and picking out what we like from mom‘s clothes I got lots of fun winter clothes- they kept passing those on to me because it’s too hot in St. George to wear them. It was  89 degrees the two days we were there and it was hot -too hot for me -I like the cooler weather. Well the next thing I knew Jen had left mad because someone had moved the stuff off the bed which was Craig and I -I don’t know if she knew that or not but I assume so because she doesn’t seem to like anything I do. She didn’t have any more right to move the stuff off the bed than I did so I don’t know what she was complaining about and she didn’t come back all day or the next day so she missed out on the picking of mom’s clothing, the furniture and the pictures. She was mad at Scott that he didn’t get some of the pictures that she wanted. Scott called Craig complaining about one of the pictures hanging in the living room that we actually picked when it was our turn to pick. It was our third choice so Scott had plenty of time to pick the same picture. Jan wanted that picture. Craig felt bad for Scott so he told him he could have it. I like the painting too- it’s three women at the ocean thought it would look good somewhere at the lake- but I’m not sure where  I’d even hang it at this point so it’s not worth the bad feelings. We worked hard Thursday loading up our furniture picks the trailer was getting full.  We slept over another night and worked the day away on Friday. I have to say it was a lot less stressful without Jan there for all of us. I had a few tense moments on Friday when Shelly showed up. They had told us we could take the toolbox and I look through it and found some sheer clippers that I really liked so I put them in a separate box because I wasn’t sure we would really end up with the toolbox the rules kept changing. Well when Shellly was in the bedroom where I was storing stuff she was going through everything like making sure I wasn’t stealing anything and found those shears in the box and freaked out she put them in the garden tool pic which was fine- I didn’t care I told her they were in the toolbox. She made it very stressful and uncomfortable for me. When after all we did end up with the toolbox. We talked about mom‘s toolbox because she fur-lined it and she told Craig he could have it - Craig didn’t really care. It will be nice to have the toolbox at our Draper house cause we didn’t have any tools there. On our way out of town we  stopped at Shelly's to pick out jewelry again that she had organized there were lots of necklaces to choose from. Scott shows up without Jan and then started saying I think it should just be the siblings that pic no spouses involved. I spoke up and said, are we playing that game again? when it’s already been three weeks and you guys have had free reign of picking what you want. I just stepped aside and let Craig do the picking and I bagged up the jewelry. Craig told me I handled the situation great. Excluding the spouses is pretty rotten as far as I’m concerned- we all been married over 45 years and are family members. It’s just very petty of them to think that away. Craig said that was coming from Jan since she didn’t show up. She was still pouting about something -I’m not sure what it really was other than she was mad that we stayed at the house and move things around that she didn’t think should be moved- I’m just so done with her- I’ve lost all respect by her pettiness and disrespect towards me as a sister-in-law- I did nothing wrong.  This one is on her it's her problem. Craig and I only got four days- out of the whole four week process of picking things out for ourselves- everything else they picked and passed on to us and I felt like a lot of stuff was just the leftovers from the garage. It was stuff I wouldn’t of picked for myself.   I could see even Craig and I would take different things when the choice was made. We’re just done -we don’t care to even go back anymore- the process was stressful for me and not how I thought it would be. I don’t care to have any more breakable things to pass on to our kids- it's going to be a challenging to get rid of what we do have. Well I’ve been slowly going through the boxes picking through what they packed up for us and putting on our pool table for our kids to have a pic - What they don’t pic is going to be going to desert industries charity,  I have my work cut out for me now trying to figure out how to pull the furniture pieces together we brought back to place in our Draper home. I like some of the furniture pieces but they need to be repainted so that will take some time and work getting it how I want. I don’t want it to look cluttered like Mom home-  which it never would, but we do have to much in our smaller place now and I'm going to have weed it out.  Figure out what to keep and what to get rid of.  I don't care to go back to St George.  I'm totally disgusted with Jan!

Baby Sitting Thomas Grandkids -

I’m baby sitting this week the Thomas Grandkids - started my shift Saturday evening about 9pm after unpacking the trailer- with things we received from Craig's Mom's home.  I was beat Sunday and stayed home with the kids.  I didn’t have the energy to get us all dressed and ready for church this weekend. Craig headed up to the lake Saturday afternoon so he could be at our Bear lake ward for church.   He had to unpack the trailer with all the heavy pots we brought up for the lake and miscellaneous stuff from mom’s house that we thought would work at the lake. He was in charge of teaching leadership skills during Ward Council. President Roberts our Stake President was there - we have grown to love him so much - he is being released in May when we have our stake conference. He asked where I was ? Craig said I was babysitting grandkids for the week while their parents are in Hawaii. They had just went to Hawaii with the older kids during the week that grandma Lavon passed away they made it back in time for the funeral. A week later they are now in Hawaii again on a company trip for Tasha’s employees. They live a very busy schedule and are always up and going somewhere. They bought a lovely home in St. George and one here in Sandy - they could be possibly moving in the middle of the summer. Both are dream homes. Craig drove back Sunday evening and hung out with us - the grandkids love their Papa. Little Cora keeps calling Papa she wants his attention. Sunday night I went over late and spent time at our Draper house till about 2 AM in the morning unpacking stuff and trying to figure out what to do with it. We found places for all the furniture that we brought for our Draper home and it’s worked out really great. I just need to repaint some of the wood furniture pieces we got to blend in our home. Monday Craig had a doctors appointment early so I went over to the house and spent the afternoon with our little Cora -sorting things. I was so tired I had to come home and take a nap with Cora - staying up too late again I needed some sleep. Today I've just being lazy so far and taking the time to record my thoughts and feelings in my journal - we have had such a busy past two weeks and I haven’t taken the time to record anything.  Their parents get home early This Thursday morning- I have only one more day - the time has gone by so quickly.  My five day shift will soon be over.  I’m really tired today-  the kids all got up early.  Lincoln was up by 6:15- he wanted an omelet for breakfast.  We cleaned out the fridge last night.  It was really stinky.  Lincoln is a good helper with his baby sister and helping me.  He was right there helping put things away in the fridge after I had pulled it all out to clean.  I plan to go back to our draper home this morning after I get the kids off to school-  I still have about 5 more boxes to unpack-  just can’t believe how much stuff mom had in her small place and that is divided between the 4 siblings and we still all have more than we need or want-passing it on to our children-  Received her glass coffee Table and sofa table that matches, a glass end table that looks great with my living room furniture.  We also got a buffet table and another one that I placed in the entry way.  we got another coffee table we put in our basement and a very large silver mirror.  We received lots of knickknacks.  Mom loved anything that was made of glass, which is not practical.  The kids have taken some things.  I'm slowing finding places for things.   

Sharlena/ damage leg and Knee-

Our poor Shar has had such a long rough week- We stopped off Last Tuesday night on our way down from the lake to give her the ice machine that Craig used for all his knee surgeries. She was meeting with a doctor on Monday and she was supposed to have surgery on her knee on Friday. But the surgeons don’t know what to do yet -it’s so fractured and splinter they’re trying to figure out the best type of surgery so we’re entering week two now and she hasn’t had surgery yet.  Craig talked to her this afternoon.  She had a MRI and the report came back giving them a more clear picture of what needs to be done.  She is meeting with a surgeon tomorrow afternoon at 4pm.  Craig is going to go with them. Looks like she is going to need at least two surgical procedures - one to fix the the bone and another to repair all the ligaments and tendons in her knee. Her poor knee is just ripped right up.  It’s a mess!! Praying for her to be comforted in this challenging time! 

Shar sent this tonight - Aubrey took these pics of the back of my leg tonight. I haven’t stood up without the brace so I had no idea how bruised the back was.

The doctor told us today that I tore all four ligaments and the meniscus. 

I will probably need a couple surgeries

I am seeing another doctor tomorrow.

Shannon send her a sweet note - Dang That’s not fun Shar I’m sorry to hear that .. I can’t believe there just letting you hang out like that  waiting around on a severely bad broken leg🦵🏻🤔 .. 

I bet that’s a bit unsettling to hear them say that especially from Doctors that do this every day.. Haven’t they seen just about every worse case scenario by now ?? Guess not 😓 I’m praying 🙏🏻 for your healing  Recovery ❤️‍🩹 and the best options of healing and care will be presented sooner than later and you can rest easily with  little pain in the mean time . Hope they can get you in a cast or something more stable for the pain it will make a big difference for ya . Keep us posted on what you all find out tomorrow .. ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

Easter Weekend

We had a nice family gathering Saturday afternoon at Natasha’s home with our annual Easter egg hunt.  Nastaha fixed us all a yummy roast with all the fixin’s.  I made yummy deviled eggs we all

Love this time of year.  

Happy Easter 🐣 

Our darling Easter Bunny Annie

Getting ready for the big Easter egg hunt.  

The Chaudhry family wasn’t able to make it again this year.  Shannon has been having bad migraines again lately.  We missed seeing our darling little Ashtyn.  

The day did not end well.  Sharlena crashed on one of Bridger’s motor electric bikes and had to go Er.. 

Uplifting Quote

Lifting the clouds of darkness from my sorrow - I saw this quote 

God knows my heart and that I tried to be a good daughter- in-law despite what Craig’s sister said to me.  Yes I could have loved even more.  I have felt such sorrow and that I was not apart of the family or accepted by her after over 50 years.  I have been greatly saddened her unkind words took much of the joy for me out of the funeral services.  I felt a huge divide by her and very awkward-  I just had to take step back.  I do know God loves me 💕

This picture was posted on Facebook by one of my Bear Lake friends which brought me comfort in our time of sorrow and in missing Mom -  it was so funny when Craig was speaking at the funeral a Canadian Goose came right up to Craig and almost touched his pant leg.  We were all so surprised! Geese are not friendly at the Lake nor even come close to us. It was bringing  us a message of peace. Peace and love to us all!! I have tried really hard this Easter season to forgive and be a person of love and peace to Craig's siblings even when they have been very difficult.  My sister-in-law Jan is very challenging for me too.   She is unkind to me most of the time and doesn’t like me which is really hard- I’m just trying to be kind back to her.   She does annoy me and I used to let her hurt my feelings all to often-I have just had to pull away and be kind but we will never be good friends as I had hope for over the years.  This has been a fast pace week with all the funeral plans.  I’m exhausted!!  That night after the funeral and a healing lunch with our family at Chili’s - Craig took off to the lake.  He was in an early morning pickleball tournament.  I was not ready to head out and drive back to the lake.  I wanted to just stay home in our our draper home and rest.  And that is what I did.  We brought back things from moms home from the viewing last Tuesday evening. We drove down to St George for the viewing and back that evening- driving 8 hours- to be there only three hours.  Craig siblings were surprised we came.  They figured we would not be there after the blow-up.  I had to toughen up and just put a smile on my face and be loving and kind back to them despite the terrible behavior.  Shelly had the nerve after running us off- to let her daughter Jennifer come down the very next day to help sort and pick things out for us.  I couldn't be there but her daughter could.  Such a double standard.  I had no idea what was in our pile passed on to us.   I was up late till 4am unpacking to see what treasures the family had selected for us in their picking out game. I was offended that Shelly said I could not come to the house and help when the next day she let her daughter Jennifer drive down from Salt lake and she did the picking for Craig and I.  We were both just disgusted with his siblings behavior-  it was awkward for me at the viewing in St George - but I just had to smile and forget myself-  I went around and visited with all of Chris’s children and their spouses.  I hugged Shelly and let her know I love her even when she was cold and distant to me.  I know she was sorry for what she said to me.  It just took the joy out of the entire event for me.  I have cried many tears the past week.   With Craig back at the lake for the weekend I was able to just rest.  I didn’t go any where for two days just stayed in our draper home healing emotionally.   

LaVon’s Funeral

Friday we gathered as family to celebrate the life  of LaVon she was a bright, loving and exciting person to all of us in our lives as family and friends. it was a lovely funeral and very special to gather as family -Those we have not seen in a very long time was so nice to visit with.  Craig did a wonderful job conducting and speaking at the end of the funeral service - the phrase that stuck out in all our minds was - “ my mom wasn’t perfect but she was perfect for me!”   I was so proud of all our daughter’s they each participated in the funeral service.  Trisha gave a beautiful prayer,  Sharlena gave a very inspiring and up lifting talk.  She quoting President Nelson’s from a stake conference - grandparents are memory makers!!  Lavon was a memory maker in each of her grandchildren’s lives and I hope to be this kind of a grandmother to my grandchildren.  I have worked hard to create memories with our 20-and pray to continue.  Shannon and Natasha both gave beautiful tribute talks too.  So very proud of each of them and the example they are to each of us in our family branch.  It was a beautiful Sunny spring day. Prefect day for us to gather and celebrate her life of spunk and joy-  mom lived life to the fullest.  

She loved sparkling things-  when going to Natasha’s dress store at Christmas time- Bridger told her she could pick out any dress in the store.  She picked the most sparking dress they had.  She was going to wear it at Natasha’s award luncheon in January- but she was too sick to attend.  She said she wanted to  be buried in this dress.  Didn't know it would only be two months later.  She was indeed buried in her sparkling glitter dress.  One of the cousin put a darling magnet on her casket engraved our Glam-gram -  

My Memories Of Lavon

My first memory meeting her -I was 15 years old.  Craig her son and I had meet in Florida while Craig was living there with his father and Step-mother.  Craig talked about his mother and how fun she was.  I looked forward to meeting her. My family moved to Utah the summer of 1971- Craig made the long drive from St Petersburg Florida to Salt Lake City Utah with our family. I had never been there and so excited to come to Zion and live among the Saints as a newly convert to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Craig picked me up in his sporting 67 firebird and we went to the park to meet his mother.  She was delightful -full of life sliding down the slide and playing on the playground equipment like a little girl.  I love to swing and we had fun swinging and laughing in the warm summer breeze. She instantly made me feel loved and welcomed.  Craig and I never lived by each other in a five year time period -  he stayed in Florida. We wrote letters for five years.  In this time period I meet Lavon’s parents when Craig came in town for a visit.  Always kind and sweet to me in those early meetings as a teenager.  She moved to California and Craig served his mission.  Upon Craig’s mission return we made a trip to California to see his mother.  She was so delightful and excited to see us after being apart for over two years.  I went to the beach for the first time in California with his mother and rolling skating in 1976- We had lots of laughs.  Loved looking at all the souvenirs from around the world that Her and Henry had collected and displayed on the shelves.  It was all so enchanting and exciting to me -planting in me a love to some day travel the world too.  She was there for us on our Wedding Day- always a smile on her face.  I called her Mom instantly.   Our Frist Christmas we made the drive to California to spend time with her.  She gave us a very large garbage can -full to the top with all kinds of treasures.  It was so exciting to discover what was inside. She continued this Christmas gift tradition for many years. The treasures inside were the beginning of our décor in our home - that I greatly appreciated.   Our first child Sharlena was born March 27th, 1978.  Prior to her birth Craig had lost his job and we were struggling financially buying a home and baby on the way.  I had bought nothing for our new little one. Mom Lavon came in town the week before my delivery and surprised us with a brand new baby bed and fun things we would need for our baby girl -  I was in tears and so grateful for her generosity.  We gathered Easter Sunday at her mothers home Grandma Robert’s -just before I delivered.  I had Toxemia and was bed ridden the last month of my pregnancy.   She called me every day my last week to check on me.  I so appreciated her love and concern as I was fearful in delivery of our first child I had been so sick.  I had none of my family Leaving in Utah-  my own mother could not be here with me at this time. Mom Lavon helped me to have courage with her positive and caring attitude.  The day of my delivery she called to check on me-  I started to cry saying I’m hurting and I feel horrible- not knowing I was in the beginning stages of labor- She took charge and helped me to get to the hospital and in finding Craig while he was his mountain coin route collecting change from vending machine-   This was the days before cell phones.  She waited at the hospital during my very long labor-  she was very helpful the week after Our little Sharlena was born.  She gave us a silver spoon with her Name engraved in the spoon.  Lavon has always been so thoughtful to me and never an unkind word she spoke.  She was someone could call and confide in with the many challenges with my own mother.  She always cheered me up and gave me encouragement to carry on.  Life is bright and exciting when we with Mom Lavon, I love her and appreciate the love she showed to me.  She always thank me for taking such good care of her son, and she loved me for it.  

Saturday morning session: Summaries from Latter-day Saint general conference

This opening session was very comforting me as my heart has been aching feeling like I have not been loved by our extended family-  when all I have wanted was to be apart of a family here in earth-  feeling the dysfunction in my own family I had to leave home as a young teen to survive emotionally and spiritually-  my step-father who sexually abused me growing up and then in prison, my mother an emotional wreck who was not protecting me - I had no choice but to leave to live in a better environment.  It was hard and has left a whole in my heart-  I had the desire to create a family I did not have growing up.  There were so many Challenges out of my control- but now as a young adult I had the power to make changes.  The church of Jesus was my life and strength thru those turbulent years- and still is !! I’m holding on for dear life - literally holding on to the iron rod.  With Shelly’s unkind word to me -  I have been doubting myself and feeling I’m a orphan who has not been loved and honored in the family tree.  I was deserted by my birth father at the age of three years old.  I did not have a father that loved and protected me in this life.  My own mother very challenging in so many ways.  When I married Craig we promised each other to break the cycle of dysfunction of family life in both of our families-  we have worked hard to built a better family in the power we have control of with our own children.  

This Conference session has been uplifting for me to let go of my hurt-  The Lord loves me - this earth life has fallen short but the Lord makes up for it in time.  

I yearned to hear the prophets voice of direction for me at this season in life- to our surprise the Prophet was the first speaker of the conference which usually is not the case in past conferences.  His message was very powerful to me speaking to my heart of sorrow.  

President Russell M. Nelson — Preaching the gospel of peace

In his opening remarks, President Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of  Latter day Saints, encouraged conferencegoers and church members to focus on the gospel of Jesus Christ to help with difficulties in the world.

He emphasized that he prays for those listening every day, and invited people everywhere to pray for others, help others and ask the Lord to help end conflicts in the world.

"As followers of Jesus Christ, we plead with leaders of nations to find peaceful resolutions to their differences," he said.

President Nelson said that prophets have foretold there would be contention at this time.

"The gospel of Jesus Christ has never been needed more than it is today. Contention violates everything the Savior stood for and taught," President Nelson said that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only solution to finding peace in the world. He emphasized that every young man in the church should prepare to serve a mission. He also encouraged young women and senior couples to pray about serving a mission, though, optional.

"Dear young friends, you are each vital to the Lord. He has held you in reserve until now to help gather Israel," he said.

President Nelson echoed his theme from a previous conference, to "let God prevail," and said that the gospel of Jesus Christ should be shared with everyone willing to let God prevail in their lives.

"May this conference be a time of peace and spiritual feasting for you. May you seek and receive personal revelation during these sessions," he said at the close of his talk.

He said that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only solution to finding peace in the world. He emphasized that every young man in the church should prepare to serve a mission. He also encouraged young women and senior couples to pray about serving a mission, though, optional.

"May this conference be a time of peace and spiritual feasting for you. May you seek and receive personal revelation during these sessions," he said at the close of his talk.I loved how he said to repent and end conflicts in your family now !! This spoke loud and clear to me how to move forward even when it is hard to do-  end the conflict -  we need peacemakers in the world not contention -  

President Oaks Message - Sunday afternoon session

President Dallin H. Oaks — Divine love in the Father's plan

The gospel provides members of the church with "a unique understanding of Heavenly Father's plan," President Dallin H. Oaks, of the church's First Presidency, said in opening the final session of the 192nd Annual General Conference on Sunday afternoon.

That includes a unique understanding of what most of Christianity refers to as "heaven" and "hell."

"From modern revelation, we know that those mansions are in three different kingdoms of glory," President Oaks said. "In the final judgment, each of us will be judged according to our deeds and the desires of our hearts."

But little is known about two of those kingdoms, he added, while "the Lord has revealed much about the highest kingdom of glory, which the Bible describes as the 'glory of the sun.'"  "The covenants made and the blessings promised to the faithful in the temples of God are the key," he added. "This explains our worldwide building of temples.

"Some are puzzled at this emphasis, not understanding that the covenants and ordinances of the temple guide us toward achieving exaltation. This can only be understood in the context of the revealed truth of three degrees of glory."

Still, President Oaks said in making reference to Elder Quentin L. Cook's discourse Saturday, each of the three kingdoms "are more wonderful than we can comprehend."

Similarly, each of the church's teachings and policies can be best understood in the context of its reference to "our Heavenly Father's loving plan for all of his children," including its current emphasis on religious freedom, missionary work, parenthood and marriage.

"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is properly known as a family-centered church," President Oaks said. "But not well understood is the reality that our family-centeredness is not limited to mortal relationships. Eternal relationships are also fundamental to our theology."“God desires all of us to strive for His greatest possible blessings by keeping His highest commandments, covenants and ordinances, all of which culminate in His holy temples being built throughout the world.” @OaksDallinHFor that reason, the apostle said the church has been "required … to oppose social and legal pressures to retreat from his doctrine of marriage between a man and a woman, and to oppose changes that confuse or alter gender or homogenize the differences between men and women," and advocate for principles taught in the church's codified 1995 Proclamation on the Family.

| #GeneralConference

Staying on the Covenant Path

Elder Adeyinka A. Ojediran — The covenant path: The way to eternal life. 

Elder Adeyinka A. Ojediran, of the Seventy, taught members about relying on Jesus Christ to stay on the covenant path and receive the blessings of exaltation.

"Dear brothers and sisters, each of us is a prince or princess. We have been sent to mortality by a loving Heavenly Father to enjoy the blessing of a body that would become immortal through the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ," Elder Ojediran said.

He said Christ invites people to come unto him over 90 times in the scriptures.

"The Savior himself invites us to come unto him and take his yoke upon us that we may have rest in this tumultuous world," he said.

Elder Ojediran said those who keep covenants with God are promised peace now and eternal life. He said the blessings of exaltation are assured, although it is not known when or how they will come.

Elder Ojediran said enduring to the end and following Christ leads to salvation, and the doctrine of Christ is what helps people find and stay on the covenant path.

He said the Savior emphasized two things regarding keeping covenants: the Holy Ghost, who can guide church members on the covenant path, and the ordinance of the sacrament which leads to forgiveness of sin through repentance.

"We need the Spirit to help us navigate through mortality as we faithfully keep covenants, and the sacrament to energize our spiritual being," Elder Ojediran said.

He said church members should work to have the Holy Ghost prepare them to take the sacrament and partake of the sacrament regularly.

"A happy ending is assured as we prayerfully study and honor the Savior's invitation and enjoy his promised blessings," he said

Good Day to be Good !

Elder Jörg Klebingat — Valiant discipleship in the latter days

Elder Jörg Klebingat, general authority seventy of the church, encouraged members to use their agency to confidently follow the Savior and ignore the words of those who speak badly of the church.

While many voices might mock the faithful members of the church, Elder Klebingat told members that faith in Jesus Christ allows them to live their faith without fear. He asked them if their faith, covenants and love for the Lord outweigh "the praise of the world or the number of likes on social media."

He also addressed those who worry that standing up for their faith and teaching others the commandments might "be seen as an act of intolerance." He said it is possible for members to "accept and respect others without endorsing their beliefs or actions," and that they don't need to apologize for or hide their beliefs.

Members who put God's voice ahead of the world's voice may see persecution, but Elder Klebingat told members in this situation to ask if they are "firmly built on the rock of Jesus Christ and his servants."

He referred to the prophet and apostles as "the lightning rods for those unhappy with the word of God," but said they are not ashamed of their testimonies and are called to teach the doctrine of God, regardless of the views of the world.

"Don't be fooled or intimidated by the loud adversarial noises emanating from the great and spacious building," he said. "Their desperate decibels are no match for the serene influence of the still, small voice."

He closed by saying, "It's a good day to be good!"

GeneralConference

@ldsconf

“God won’t force us to do good, and the devil can’t force us to do evil. … It is our strength that is being tested, not God’s.” #ElderKlebingat

Love the Come Follow Me program

President Mark L. Pace — Conversion is our goal

As president of the church's Sunday School organization on the church-wide level, President Mark L. Pace spoke highly and heavily of the church's "Come, Follow Me" instruction resource for scripture study.

That resource seeks a miracle, the miracle of conversion, "when one person has an experience in the scriptures, and that experience is blessed by the influence of the Holy Ghost," he said. That miracle can occur over and over throughout life.

"Long-lasting conversion is a lifelong process," President Pace said. "Conversion is our goal."

Successful experiences with the scriptures must be your own, he told members.

"Reading or hearing about another person's experiences and insights can be helpful," he added, "but that won't bring the same converting power. There is no substitute for the time you spend in the scriptures, hearing the Holy Ghost speak directly to you."

President Russell M. Nelson promised four blessings to members as they were invited to "transform our homes into sanctuaries of faith and centers of gospel learning" while implementing the Come, Follow Me curriculum, which President Pace highlighted:

• Your sabbath days will be a delight.
• Your children will be excited to learn and live the Savior's teachings.
• The influence of the adversary in your life will decrease.
• These changes in your family will be dramatic and sustaining.

"When we study the scriptures, there is no spiritual famine in the land," President Pace said. "In ancient times, as the children of Israel followed the lord's direction, given through the prophet Moses, they were blessed with safety and freedom. Today, as we follow the Lord's direction, given through our living prophet, Russell M. Nelson, we are equally blessed with conversion in our hearts and protection in our homes."

This was a powerful message to me

Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf — Our heartfelt all

With the simple illustration of the widow's mite found in the New Testament, Jesus Christ taught how offerings are measured in the kingdom, said Elder Deiter F. Uchtdorf, of the church's Quorum of Twelve Apostles.

The widow submitted one lowly mite, compared to grand and large donations by much wealthier individuals at the temple treasury. But Christ praised the widow's mite, instead of the rich donors.

"In praising this faithful widow, the Savior gave us a standard to measure our discipleship in all of its many expressions," Elder Uchtdorf said. "Jesus taught that our offering may be large or it may be small, but either way, it must be our heartfelt all."

Balancing the time and aspirations to become like Christ can be like riding a bicycle, which takes time and effort to practice but can eventually become seemingly effortless, the apostle said.

"Whenever I watch someone learning to ride a bike for the first time, I'm reminded that it's not easy balancing yourself on those two narrow wheels," he said. "It takes time. It takes practice. It takes patience. It even takes falling down a time or two."

"Staying balanced is all about moving forward," he added.

Put another way — and in a much more relatable analogy, the one-time pilot and executive at German airline Lufthansa joked: "Discipleship, like most things in life, can also be compared to flying an airplane."

"If we want to find balance in life, and if we want the Savior to lift us heavenward, then our commitment to him and his gospel can't be casual or occasional," Elder Uchtdorf said. "Like the widow at Jerusalem, we must offer him our whole souls. Our offering may be small, but it must come from our heart and soul. Being a disciple of Jesus Christ is not just one of many things we do."

Balance and lift require focusing on what is important to get off the ground, just as lifting in the gospel sometimes requires sacrificing to become a disciple of Jesus Christ, Elder Uchtdorf said. Church members may not be required to sacrifice everything to God, but "all are invited to consecrate our lives to him."

Such consecration helps to realize what is important, and what matters most, he said.

"When we look at our lives and see a hundred things to do, we feel overwhelmed," Elder Uchtdorf said. "When we see one thing — loving and serving God and his children, in a hundred different ways — then we can focus on those things with joy. This is how we offer our whole souls — by sacrificing anything that's holding us back and consecrating the rest to the Lord and his purposes."… His talk spoke to my heart about understanding the temple ordinances more of the law of Sacrifice and the law of consent ration of my time and talents in building the kingdom of God on the earth-  look forward to studying this message more-  

Elder Randy D. Funk — Come into the fold of God

Following Jesus Christ and entering his "fold" can bring members "numerous, joyful and eternal" blessings, Elder Randy D. Funk, general authority seventy of the church, taught Sunday afternoon.

Elder Funk explained that as a shepherd calls sheep into the fold at the end of the day, so does God call his children to enter his fold and make covenants like baptism. In a sheepfold, the sheep are kept safe and tended to; similarly, in the fold of God people can "experience his watchful, nurturing care and are blessed."

Just as there would be only one entrance to a sheepfold, there is only one entrance to the fold of God: "By and through Jesus Christ".

As the ancient prophet Alma taught in the Book of Mormon, entering into the fold and following Christ's doctrine brings four blessings:

• Being redeemed of God. Elder Funk taught that the only way to be free from sin is through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
• Being resurrected. "After our spirits depart our mortal bodies, we will undoubtedly look forward to when we can again with a resurrected body embrace those we love."
• Having eternal life. Not only does eternal life mean to live with God, but it also means to live as he lives, which is "the ultimate purpose and objective of our lives," Elder Funk said.
• Having the companionship of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost provides guidance and comfort, he said.
  

Despite the sadness and trials of mortal life, he said being in God's fold can bring peace and the knowledge that eternal life with God is possible.

Elder Funk emphasized that to receive these blessings, members must choose to come and enter the fold. He also encouraged members to help others on their journey to the fold of God.  I loved this talk- spoke to me like putting the oil in my lamp-the light of Christ -  I have to choose and do.