The Reason for the Season

Lately, I have been reflecting quite a bit on the birth of Jesus Christ, His life and ministry, and the Atonement. I love the Christmas Season. So many lights everywhere, wonderful music, beautiful decorations, the spirit of family and giving, and the celebration of the greatest birth in history.

Simply put, I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior. I know that He lived a mortal life and died for all of us. I know that He was resurrected and that He lives today. I know that He knows and loves me personally. I have felt His endless love countless times throughout my life.

As we are spending time with our families and exchanging gifts I hope that we will all take time to remember the man who gave us the greatest gift of all. And maybe think of a gift we can give back as we start the new year.

I love you all. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas. And I hope you enjoy the following posts about different people and parts of the birth of Christ.

“I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12).

"A Raisin in the Sun"

Disclaimer: I'm not trying to lecture anyone other than myself in this post. I needed to write it to clarify my thoughts. I did feel the need to post it just in case someone else got anything out of it. It is not meant to make others feel bad or make them feel like they need to do better. I am the one that needs to be better and I hope I can.

‎"Child, when do you think is the time to love somebody the most? When they done good and made things easy for everybody? Well then, you ain’t through learning – because that ain’t the time at all. It’s when he’s at his lowest and can’t believe in hisself ‘cause the world done whipped him so! When you starts measuring somebody, measure him right, child, measure him right. Make sure you done taken into account what hills and valleys he come through before he got to wherever he is." ~Lena Younger, "A Raisin in the Sun" (3.1.113)

"A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry is one of my favorite plays. I read it my senior of high school for my Diversity in Literature class at Normandale Community College. I have a tendency to like depressing stories and this one goes right in that category. It makes me realize just how lucky I am. I have every avenue opened to me and I don't have to worry about not being able to attain my dreams because of where and when I was born.

Chad and I watched the newer filmed version of the play with Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs and Phylicia Rashad just the other night. I wanted to see how it compared to the one with Sidney Poitier (Sidney Poitier is way better). As we were watching, I was really struck by the quote I wrote above. It's constantly been at the back of my mind since we watched it. And I'm not exactly sure why. My guess is that I need to be better at what it says but I can't really figure out why. Or maybe it's just that I finally found my philosophy in life put into words. For whatever reason it has stuck with me, I'm glad that it has.

With Christmas fast approaching, I can't help but think of the Savior's example when I read this quote. I know that I feel the Savior's love most when I feel the most downtrodden. Why? I'm sure there are many reasons. I think it's mostly so I can feel hope again. Hope that all the hard times will pass and I will see the light once again. Hope so that I can hang on a little longer and make it through. Hope so I don't give up. Why does the Savior not want us to lose hope? Because it is one of only 3 principles (faith, hope and charity) that will help us make it back to Him. His greatest joy will come when we enter His presence once again.

So how does that all apply to us? We all need to exhibit more charity and restore others' lost hope. Easier said than done, I know. When someone has lost all hope, they tend to act selfishly and forget about those around them. I know it's hardest for me to love someone when they are acting like that. What a world it would be if we look beyond a person's behavior to the root of the problem. We can't expect them to act better by punishing them and getting on their case. They need charity, the pure love of Christ, and they need it from more than just our Savior. I'm not saying the Savior's love isn't enough. It is. More than enough. But imagine what it would be like to have that love from others around you. Think about the people in your life. Who can you love more? Who has lost all hope? Give them that love. Give them that hope. I'm sure you and I will be amazed at how it changes ourselves.

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Christmas Update

A lot has been going on since I last posted. Jarek is now almost 3 months! Time sure flies.

Anyways, we finally got a dog! She's a little Chihuahua and we named her Coco.

She has quite the personality. She's fairly stubborn and doesn't like to be told what to do. She is a complete momma's girl and follows me everywhere. She's been a lot of fun and we've loved having her around. We just wish we had a fenced yard right out the door so we didn't have to walk her. She takes forever to go potty.

This past weekend was a very busy and fun one. We went to the annual Big Phelps Christmas party down in Grantsville, Utah. It's for my father-in-law's siblings and all of their families. Tons of people and lots of kids running around. We went down Friday night and had fun at a little Christmas party with some of Chad's cousins. We had more fun Saturday with everyone. Lots of chatting, good food, and Christmas Spirit. There was a little program and some of the kids acted out the Nativity Story. It was all way fun.

Here is a picture of just SOME of the babies that were born this year. Jarek is on the end on the right.

It was quite the fiasco to get them together and all sitting up and what not but I think it still turned out cute.

Santa comes to visit the Phelps Christmas party every year so of course we had to get a picture of Jarek meeting Santa for the first time. He wasn't the happiest with us because he was getting hungry but I think the picture turned out great!

After the Big Phelps Party, we did our Little Phelps Christmas Party since most of Chad's siblings we all together, except for Clark and Kristy because they had their baby (congrats!) and Nathan and Tiffani because they are in Minnesota (missed you!). The adults did a White Elephant gift exchange and then Chad's parents handed out the gifts. They got all the adults some food storage. I thought it was a wonderful and thoughtful gift! I've been telling Chad all year that we need to get started on that so I was really happy with the gift. And Jarek came away with this little number:

It says, "All mommy wants for Christmas is a Silent Night." I love it! It's very true. Although, I can't complain much since he only gets up once during the night.

We headed home Saturday night. On our way, we made a stop in Ogden to visit my sister and brother-in-law. It was the first time my brother-in-law had met Jarek. It was a really nice visit with them. Jarek fell asleep in the car on the way there and had the perfect timing to wake up right before we got there so he put on quite the show. I'm pretty sure he stole their hearts. It was great to have a little time with my family. I've missed my family so much this year.

It was a wonderful weekend with Chad's side of the family. It's great that they do their parties a little earlier so we don't have to worry about missing it when we go to MINNESOTA for Christmas this year!!! I am so excited! I'm really grateful that we were able to get the money together to go. And I'm really grateful to be spending some time to celebrate Christmas with both sides of the family. We are so blessed to have such wonderful families!

JP is 2 months!

Jarek turned 2 months on Monday. He is getting so big. I want him to stop! We took him in for his 2 month appointment and here are the stats:

Weight: 10lbs 5oz (20th percentile)

Height: 22 3/4in (45th percentile)

It was a good appointment. The doctor was happy to see how alert and responsive he is. It was sad to watch them give him his shots but he did pretty good.

He really is growing so much. He smiles a lot and loves to tell stories. I just wish I knew what he was saying! He is very responsive and so alert. It's just so fun to watch him grow!

Here are some recent pictures:

We sure love our little guy!

Halloween

I know, this is coming a little late. Better late than never, right?!

Our Halloween was fairly low key this year. The Friday before Halloween was Chad's work party. They do a costume contest every year and Chad gets really into it. He won best costume 2 years ago as a pirate. He really stewed about what to be this year and finally came up with an idea a few days before. We went all out and really got him dressed up and he did win an award! He got the cutest costume! What was he, you might ask???

A woman! Yes, that is my ever so handsome husband. I was happy to see that he made an ugly woman!

I went along with the theme and dressed up as a man. Everyone got a kick out of us at the party. I think we make a cute couple!

Jarek was our little skeleton. He konked out after crying inconsolably for about an hour after we got home. I think he looked way cute!

Anniversary Weekend

Chad and I have officially been married for one whole year! Boy, what a year it has been! Here are some of the highlights:

-Honeymooning at the North Shore in Minnesota. I loved being able to show Chad my happy place.

-Moving into and setting up our first apartment together.

-Finding out I was pregnant. And everything that comes with pregnancy...baby appointments, ultrasounds, hearing the heartbeat, feeling him move around, etc.

-Taking a marriage class together.

-Spending so much time with Chad's family.

-Attending a wonderful marriage retreat.

-Spending so many late nights playing games and watching movies.

-Staying up until 3am talking and snuggling in bed.

-Chad's promotion at work.

-Setting up house for the baby.

-Gaining deeper respect for one another as we saw how each other handled childbirth.

-Becoming parents to one beautiful baby boy.

There are so many other things that aren't really coming to mind. It has been an awesome year for us. Being young with one income, we've definitely had our struggles, but the Lord has really watched out for us. It has been so great for us to see His hand in all things. We've had our fair share of fights, but have learned so much from each one. We are each other's best friend. I couldn't ask for a better one. I can't believe how much my love for him has grown just this weekend!!! And with that, I will give you a recap of our anniversary weekend:

Saturday was our one year anniversary. Chad took the day off. We spent the day getting ready for our planned over-nighter Sunday night. We were getting really excited and did a lot of things to make sure it would be really special. That evening, we dropped Jarek off at my wonderful friend, Claire's, place and then headed to the Rexburg temple where we were sealed. We got there just in time to do sealings. It was so wonderful. We haven't done sealings since before I got pregnant. I'm getting teary eyed just thinking about the experience we had. What a wonderful way to celebrate our anniversary by kneeling across the altar from each other once again. And I'm pretty sure we were in the same sealing room! So wonderful!

After that, we picked up Jarek and ate dinner at Applebee's before we headed back to Idaho Falls. This is when things start to get interesting. I noticed as I was finishing my Oriental Chicken Salad that I was starting to feel queasy. Not a good sign. I was really not not feeling good when we went to bed. I woke up at 2:30am still feeling icky. I went to the bathroom and sure enough, I threw up! I got a little more sleep and then continued to spend the rest of the morning in the bathroom. So not fun! Luckily, I was done throwing up by about 10am but felt horrible the rest of the day. So, we couldn't head to Salt Lake! What a bummer! But, the hotel was kind enough to change our reservation for this coming Sunday. Hopefully nothing else happens so we don't have to cancel again.

Chad was so great all day long. I knew he was really bummed we couldn't go to Salt Lake but he didn't really let it show. He just concentrated on helping me feel better and making sure Jarek had everything he needed all day. I am so lucky! What a wonderful man I have! It really stunk being sick on our anniversary weekend but it really helped me appreciate just how awesome my husband. That's what an anniversary is all about!

Monday, we spent most of the day watching movies in bed. I was feeling a lot better but still had a sore tummy. By 2pm, Chad and I were both tired of being inside so we went for a drive, which was nice. While we were dating/engaged, we spent so much time in the car driving here and there which was a great opportunity to talk and get to know each other. We still love driving for that very reason. When we got back, we hurried to get things ready to have a former roommate of mine and her fiance over for dinner. We had a lot of fun with them. I am so happy for them! They are so great together and so fun! I'm excited to get together with them again!

And time for the pictures. We carved pumpkins with Lyndsi and Dustin last night. Chad and I have been so excited for it. We got a pumpkin for each of us and a little one for Jarek. We didn't get a picture of Lyndsi and Dustin's. Chad and I decided to choose really hard patterns and hadn't finished by the time they left! Anyways, here are our beautiful creations!

The whole family!

This is Chad's, the Headless Horseman. I think it turned out great!

This is mine, the hardest pattern in the book. Pretty ambitious for never going off a pattern before. I was really not happy with it until we lit it up. Now I think it looks great.

This is the other side of my pumpkin. After having a difficult time with the other one, I wanted to do an easier one to make me feel better.

And here's Jarek's! Jack, the Pumpkin King. I got really excited when Chad found the pattern online. The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my favorite movies!

So, as you read, our anniversary weekend had it ups and downs, but it really was a great weekend! I love my husband and I love my little man! I am so lucky to be the wife and mom to two such wonderful boys!

Jarek's Birth

Here I go. After my little rant about my frustration with the reactions I was getting about my decision to go natural I'm sure you're all wondering if I did it. And the answer is:

YES. Was it easy? Not at all. Was it worth it? Yes, it was. Will I do it again? Most likely.

Now for the story.

I started having contractions at about 11pm on my due date, Sept 6th. By 4 the next morning, they were 10 minutes apart. I had a scheduled appointment that morning so we went to that to see what was up. I was about 4 1/2 centimeters and 90% effaced. The midwife was confident that I would be having the baby that evening.

We went home to keep waiting. By about 1pm the contractions were 5 minutes apart and fairly hard. They had been that way for about an hour so we decided to head to the hospital. My mom and I speculated that I had made good enough progress since the appointment. When we got to the hospital, we discovered that I was still at 4 1/2 cm. The nurse talked to the midwife and she wanted to just send me home but we figured we would just be back in a couple hours so we didn't want to do that. They had me walk around for an hour to get the contractions going to see if I would start making progress. I got to 5 centimeters so we had the midwife come in to break my water.

After she broke my water, contractions got stronger and closer together. I was able to handle it for a few hours and then it became more than I could handle. I really wanted to ask for an epidural but I was about 8 or 9 cm so it was too late. My only option was to hang in there.

I started pushing at about 11pm. I wasn't making much progress just laying in bed so they had me up and about trying different positions. If it weren't for the fact that my body just automatically did the work, I don't think I could have done it. I was so exhausted I was at the point of delusion. Finally, we found that squatting really worked while I was pushing but at that point I had been pushing for about an hour and a half and was convinced that I couldn't go any longer so I asked to have him vacuumed out (a decision that will probably always haunt me but, as I will discuss in a minute, might have been the best decision).

Once I had been pushing for 2 hours and his head was low enough, the midwife called the doctor in. Just as he was getting everything set up, the nurse said the baby's heart rate had dropped during one of my contractions (his heart rate had been doing great up until then). Then during the extraction, we found out why I had pushed for 2 hours and the baby had a hard time progressing. He was transverse (sideways). Baby's are supposed to be facing down.

After a few more big pushes, Jarek finally arrived! They laid him on my stomach right away to check him out and do the various procedures they needed to. He was only there for a minute before one of the nurses noticed he was very blue and whisked him away to put him on oxygen. Once they got a bunch of gunk out of his airway and got him weighed and everything else, they brought him back over to me for some skin on skin time to warm him up. The minute he was laid on my chest and I started talking to him he stopped crying and just looked around for a long time. It was one of the happiest moments of my life. One that I will never forget.

Looking back now, I am very grateful for the birthing experience that I had. If I had had an epidural, I wouldn't have been able to up and moving while I was pushing. Because he was sideways, I most likely wouldn't have been able to push him out laying in bed. That means I probably wouldn't have been able to have a vaginal birth. And if I hadn't asked for help with the vacuum when I did? With the way Jarek's heart rate had dropped, he probably would've been put into a dangerous situation before something was done about it. I know that is true but I think I will always feel a little guilty about that decision.

Despite that, I am very grateful for Jarek's safe delivery. These last 3 weeks have been the best 3 weeks of my life. I love my little guy so much. I feel so blessed to have a wonderful husband and such a good baby. They make my life so much richer. I thank my Heavenly Father everyday for both of them.

And now a few pictures:

Chad and I getting settled in the labor and delivery room right before the midwife broke my water. Chad was so amazing through the whole thing! I wouldn't have been able to do it without him! He stayed calm (well, on the outside) and was so encouraging the whole time. My mom kept trying to get him to eat but he wouldn't leave my side. The midwife kept going on about what an awesome team we were. My mom kept bragging about him to everyone she talked to. I am so blessed to have in by my side for the rest of eternity!

Jarek right after he was born. Notice the swelling from the vacuum. He had a nice bruise for a couple days. I feel so bad I put him through that. You might be able to also notice how blue he was.

Jarek on oxygen. I'm so glad it was just gunk blocking his airway. Luckily, it wasn't something worse.

All cleaned up. He's such a handsome little guy!

It was a very hard delivery but I think I would like to go natural again. The midwife said he really paved the way for any more children we have. She was very confident that I would only have to push a few times with the next one. I sure hope so!!!!

Introducing....

Jarek Andrew Phelps

Born: September 8th, 2010

at 1:18am

6lbs 12oz

19in long

(That's a yawn...he's not crying :) )

We are totally in love with our little man. He is such a calm, sweet little boy. We love being his parents and are so incredibly grateful that he was placed in our lives. Our lives have completely changed for the better and we wouldn't ever go back!

Welcome to the world, Jarek Andrew! We love you beyond words!

(I'm sure a lot of you are curious about his birth. I'll post that story later!)

No Baby Yet...

So Chad's and my prediction was wrong. It is now August 31st and we don't have a baby yet. Who knows...I could go into labor today and still have an August baby but we're not counting on it. The last week has been a roller coaster for both of us. Probably more so for me than Chad. I've tried as hard as I can to not fix my mind on having the baby. But it hasn't worked so well. I have woken up every morning hoping that "today will be the day!" and then ending up extremely disappointed every night when it isn't.

Sunday was the worst. Saturday night, I was feeling a lot of pressure in my pelvis (as I do most nights) and had a contraction or 2. And then between 4 and 6 in the morning I had 2 more contractions. And all through this I just felt nauseated pretty much constantly. All of that really got my hopes up that my contractions would become more frequent until I went into labor but the only other one I had that day was at about 1:30 in the afternoon. And I haven't had anything since then. Needless to say, it was very disappointing for me.

We did get some good news at our appointment yesterday. I am dilated to a 3! So progress is being made! We did talk about different options with our midwife because my mom found a really good deal on a ticket to come out this Saturday and stay until the 15th. My due date is next Monday so my mom was nervous about the baby being late and missing him altogether. The midwife talked about scheduling an inducement for next week and this and that. It was so tempting to go ahead with the inducement next week but I just didn't quite feel right about it. So I had to resign myself to more waiting. Which I wasn't happy about and had a little meltdown over.

But once I had that meltdown, I started feeling a lot better about things. I really started to humble myself and trust that he will come when he comes. And we will be so excited whenever that happens to be! And until then I am so excited to work on a blanket I have all planned out for him! I just need to remember that I will be able to shower him with kisses soon enough!

Our Happenings

Life has been pretty busy. Lots of coming and going. Chad has been working hard. Last Friday, his work put on a luau for the residents and the community. Chad worked almost 12 hours that day. Needless to say, he was pretty exhausted by the time he got home. I was able to join him at the luau for a little bit and eat dinner with him. I love visiting him at work. It's so fun to talk to the residents. There are a few that I've gotten pretty close to that I love seeing every time I go. It's just so fun.

Chad is also just starting his new calling as Cub Scout Master...of 3 wards! He is still very nervous about his ability to do the job but I know he will be great. He was never that into Scouts when he was young so he'll be learning lots along with the boys.

Saturday was another big day. My lovely sister and sister-in-law threw me a baby shower on Saturday. It ended up being very small, just me, my sister, 3 sisters-in-law and my mother-in-law but it was so fun! It was very relaxed. We just sat around a chatted for few hours, mostly about babies. I loved it. It was fun to hear their stories and it's gotten me even more excited for the challenges and joys of motherhood. Thanks, all you galls, for making it so fun! And thank you for the lovely gifts!

Later on Saturday, Chad and I went to a tri-stake dance festival put on by the youth of the Church. The youth of our stake and 2 others have been working hard all summer to put this together. They've had practices almost every week and it was so amazing to see all their hard work pay off. They all did a wonderful job! Even though they were doing fun dances like Hoedown Throwdown, Napoleon Dynamite and Thriller, I was almost brought to tears several times as I was watching. The youth of the Church have such a special Spirit about them. Our Heavenly Father really watches out for them and I know He was very pleased with their hard work and performance. What a wonderful way to do missionary work through dance! I just love the Youth Program. I am so proud of all who performed!

We are now down to less than 2 weeks on our countdown for the baby! Chad and I have just been anxiously waiting for the day he decides to grace us with his presence. We found out at our appointment yesterday that I am dilated to about a 2. So we are making progress! No sign of any real contraction yet. I did wake up Sunday feeling very nauseated. I kept getting waves of nauseousness mixed with a little bit of cramps. I'm guessing those might have been contractions but they didn't turn into anything. So we'll just have to wait and see how it all turns out within the next 2 or 3 weeks.

That's it for now! We'll try to keep the blog updated but things will be getting pretty hectic here soon. Hope everyone has a good week!

Just a Coincidence?

We're down to less than 4 weeks until our baby's due date. So, of course, Chad and I have been talking a lot about the upcoming birth of our baby boy. The due date is September 6th, Labor Day. As the time has been drawing closer, whenever I or others have talked about having the baby in September, I seem to have this voice that automatically tells me, "You're going to have an August baby." I kind of shrug it off but I still have this crazy feeling that he will come in August. And I don't really know why.

I was explaining all of this to Chad last night and this is the conversation that ensued:

Chad: "So, when do you think the baby will come?"

Laina: "I keep thinking about 2 weeks early. That puts the date at...(walks over to calender and checks the date)...the 23rd of August, or there about.

"Why? When do you see the baby coming?"

Chad: (points out the 21st through the 25th of August) "I was thinking the exact same time period. Christy (his boss) keeps telling me that the baby can't come on the 20th because that's when the luau is at work and she really needs my help. My reaction has always been that the baby won't come then but it will be right after that."

We then proceeded to talk about how crazy it is that we are always on the same wavelength like that. That's exactly how we picked out our wedding date. We're really excited to see when the baby will decide to come now. We are not counting on him to come when we feel he will at all, but it will be fun if he does! Knowing us, because of this whole situation, he will be a week or so late. :)

We are very excited and anxious to meet our little guy!

P.S. If anyone has any guesses as to when our boy will enter the world, please comment! It will be fun to see who is closest!

Some Thoughts on my Mind....

1. Dogs. Chad and I have been talking a lot lately about how much we would love to have a dog. But, we don't have the money for vet bills and things like that and we don't have a lot of room. And we have a baby on the way. A baby is going to be a HUGE adjustment and I don't know if adding a dog to that would be a good idea. So for now, we will keep talking about how much we want one and prepare for the day when we can make it happen. That isn't as easy as it sounds when you see a poster for a free Australian Shepherd. An Australian Shepherd would be perfect for us....

2. Childbirth. Yesterday marked 4 weeks left of my pregnancy. We've officially entered the "waiting game" stage. Who knows if the baby will wait the whole 4 weeks. He might come early, or he might decide to be stubborn and wait more than 4 weeks. Either way, I've started preparing myself for the experience that is childbirth. A huge part of that preparation is for the goal I set to go natural. You read right. I am determined to birth my baby without an epidural. My mom did it. Women do it everyday. Yet, people I have told around here make it seem like it's impossible. They give me a raised eyebrow of disbelief and a fairly discouraging "good luck." It has become rather irritating but every time I get it I become that much more determined to do it. I know I don't know what it's like but like I said, women do it everyday so I know it can be done. I know I have the strength to do it and I'm so grateful for a husband that supports my decision 100%. I am excited for this upcoming adventure!

3. Chad's Job. I am so grateful that Chad has a job he loves. And that his new position as supervisor came at just the right time. He was getting to the point of giving up a job he loved to find one that pays more money. Now, he has the best of both worlds! I love visiting him at work and watching him with the residents. They all love him and he sure loves them. And he has learned so much as supervisor. It has been so fun watching him fill that role, even if it is a little inconvenient at times. He is a wonderful provider and I am so grateful for that.

4. Chad Andrew Phelps. I have such a wonderful husband. He is so humble and so willing to correct his mistakes and take criticism. He is always asking how he can do things better both at work and at home. What an example that is. He is so caring and gentle with me. He is always willing to do anything and everything for me. Including letting me be my stubborn, independent self when he would much rather do it for me. :) He is honest. Completely honest. Something that means the world to me. I witnessed how dishonesty can tear a family apart and it is such a relief that I don't have to worry about that in my own family. And he has a simple, strong testimony of the Gospel. Something that rejuvenates my testimony everyday.

5. The Mission I Didn't Serve. Last night, Chad spoke at Family Home Evening held at the retirement center he works at. He was asked to talk about his mission. I love hearing about Chad's mission. I love the way his face lights up when he talks about it. I am so grateful that he was able to have that amazing experience. But I must confess that I am jealous of it, too. I have always wanted to serve a mission. I wanted my mom to be able to send one of her children out on a mission. I always wanted the opportunity to have the Spirit constantly with me like only missionaries have. And to share the wonderful message of the Gospel with the people of whatever region I would serve in. And to see the wonderful miracle of a life changed by the Gospel. But, alas, that route was not meant for me. At least not at this stage in my life. Later on, when my children are all grown and Chad and I are old and grey, we will serve a wonderful mission together. :)

6. My Alternate Mission. As the laptop sits on my tummy, being kicked and bumped by the tiny life inside of me, I can't help but look forward to the other mission the Lord has in store for me. A mission that is bigger, more far-reaching and nerve wracking than the one I gave up. He has given me the solemn and joyful responsibility to be a mother to this spirit and other spirits to come of His. Instead of being a missionary, I will raise up missionaries. I will raise sons and daughters of God. I will teach them the Gospel, how to be good citizens, how to treat others with love and respect, the concept of consequences for their actions, and the list goes on and on. A pretty heavy responsibility that I hope I can live up to. What a crazy and exciting journey it will be. I can't wait. :)

Camp Courage: All For One and One For All!

Girls Camp...who doesn't love girls camp?! It's a week you get to spend away from the distractions of the world amongst wonderful people. It's a week to act wild and crazy and gain testimony through the Spirit that is felt. Spirits are brought together and connected through the many opportunities to feel the Spirit and work together. Ask anyone that is able to attend and I'm sure they will tell you that they always come away feeling their Spirit renewed and a better person than they were before.

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend Girls Camp for the Idaho Falls North Stake (Camp Courage) this last week. I was able to spend time and get to know some wonderful people from the Idaho Falls 7th Ward that Chad and I have been blessed to live in since we got married. What a wonderful week it was! There is nothing else like feeling the Spirit and strength of the youth of this world. We have awesome girls in our world and I am very grateful for the chance I had to get to know them a little better than I did before.

We had a great week of fun, hard work, team work and testimony building. The theme for the stake was Camp Courage. The theme for our ward was "All for one and one for all." Patterned after the brave Musketeers, we became the brave "Valueteers", standing for the wonderful Young Women Values; Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice and Accountability, Good Works, Integrity, and Virtue. I, personally, was strengthened as I was able to share my testimony throughout the week, listen to others' testimonies, and see the wonderful example of courage each of our girls displays in each of their lives. I remember listening to my own Young Women leaders talk about what an example us girls were for them and I never understood how that could be until I became a leader myself. I am so blessed to be able to work with some amazing and very brave young women. Their example helps me to be better everyday.

I love my calling. I love girls camp. I love and adore the wonderful young women I am able to serve. I love my Heavenly Father and I know without a doubt that he loves me. I know my Savior lives and that His Atonement is real and encompasses me daily. I know that I am a divine daughter of God and that He has a plan for me. And I strive to live up to that knowledge everyday.

And with that, I would like to leave you with some pictures! I was a bum and didn't take any so I stole these for Sis John, our wonderful Young Women President.

Setting up camp: We had these wonderful reminders posted to help us be kind to one another and bond together.

This is Makayla, Pati and Maria back from their hike. They hiked 10 miles and were exhausted! What troopers they were! Two of our other girls, Katie and Krystal, hiked 18 miles! They started bright and early before the other girls and were the last to get back. What an example of strength and courage all of them were. I am so proud of them.

Pati, Maria, Sis John and I with Makayla and Jammie in the background, waiting for flag ceremony to start.

Krystal, Jammie and Pati being silly.

Pati going down the slide.

Skit night! This is Queen Stucki and our courageous Valueteers. "We are the Valueteers and we're here to conquer fear with courage, Courage, COURAGE!"

This is Katie and Makayla waiting out the thunderstorm. It started raining during skit night and soon turned into thunder and lightning. Luckily, it didn't last long.

We enjoyed some yummy Smores nachos during the storm.

See that tiny spot of chocolate underneath her nose? Well, I told Makayla that she had a spot of chocolate there and instead of wiping it off, she took a smores nacho and smeared it all over her face! What a crazy girl!

This is me, Katie, Makayla, and Kyrstal on Bishop's Night after our testimony meeting.

All of the girls with our beloved Bishop Johnson. Our one Youth Camp Leader, Jamie, is in front between Jammie and Katie. She was such a great leader. She really was a big help with the girls. 3 of them were at camp for the first time and she was great at showing them the ropes and getting them involved. Thanks for all the help, Jamie!

Brother Droegemuller and Brother Heeding, our awesome counselors to the bishop. What goofs! Brother Heeding was one of our priesthood leaders the whole week at camp and what a great help he was. We all loved having him around.

Me (2nd Counselor), Lonnie Graham (1st Counselor) and Susie John (President). Our Young Women's presidency minus our secretary, Heather Kunz (who was missed!). What a blessing it has been to work with these strong women. I have learned a lot from them and I am very grateful for their example. Due to work, Sis Graham wasn't able to be there for the week but we were very happy to have her at our Bishop's Night and share such a great testimony.

And last but not least, our fearless camp director, Mary Jo Stucki. (Sorry it's not the best picture) I am so grateful I was able to serve with her this week at camp. She is so wonderful. She did a great job planning for camp and getting things together. She really made girls camp the great experience it was. We owe it all to her. Thanks, Sis Stucki for doing a great job and loving our young women the way you do!

Camp Courage 2010 was an amazing week and I am so grateful for all the things I was able to learn and experience. Here's to hoping that we are still around next year so I can enjoy camp again!

7TH WARD VALUETEERS! ALL FOR ONE AND ONE FOR ALL!

Just a little something to make you Smile...

This is a picture of two of the residents that live at Lincoln Court where Chad works. We put this up on our fridge and it makes me chuckle every time I walk past it. Enjoy!

Surprise!

This morning, Chad and I went to a baby appointment in Rexburg. When we got home we found this on our doorstep!:

I couldn't believe it! A sewing machine! And in the bag were these goodies!:

It was such a surprise! I still can't believe that someone was so generous. There was no card or note so I don't who was our (I guess I should say my haha) Santa in July. I am so excited to have my very own sewing machine! I can't wait to get started on a project for our little boy. What a blessing this is! Heavenly Father has blessed us so much the last 9 months and throughout my life that I can't believe He is giving us another big blessing. Life is good! I am so happy! Thank you a thousand times over to the wonderful person who gave so much to get us this!!!!

Pregnancy Update

Today marks 32 weeks! Only 8(ish) weeks left! Getting really anxious to meet our little man!

Experiencing pregnancy for the first time has been quite the adventure. So many things happen that I had no idea about. Like the fact that I got 2 cold sores in one month! And that I've gotten 2 charlie horses in the middle of the night when I've never had one before. Never realized those things were common during pregnancy until they happened and then everyone tells me, "Oh yeah, that happens a lot." Other than that things are pretty normal, things you would normally expect like adjusting to a growing tummy. Which isn't as bad as I thought (not yet anyways). The hard part about this pregnancy is dealing with the heat. I hate it and can't wait for it to be over. And I still have a week of girls camp to look forward to later this month. Wish me luck.

Now on to the best part about this period of pregnancy...the baby! He moves like crazy all the time and I love it! Sometimes I feel like I'm on a roller coaster when he flips over because my stomach goes up and down. I love watching my tummy move all over the place when he's moving around. The best is when my stomach suddenly goes lopsided. It's just so fun to see! And I love feeling his hiccups. It always makes me smile. There really is a baby in there! And it's MY baby! (Oh yeah, and Chad's too ;)...).

Our little guy is already is so much a spiritual and emotional part of our family that I can't wait until he is a physical part! I can't wait to start this new, very life-changing part of our lives! I just can't wait! :)

Thank Heaven for Little Boys

I can't wait to hold my little boy.