Genealogy + General Conference

This week I had a pretty cool genealogy experience. Monday morning I was doing some work on my dad's father's side, and ended up stumbling across a line of our tree that had been missing for AGES. My uncle had hit a dead end working on that branch years ago, and I ended up coming across it totally by accident! When I added it to my tree, something amazing happened: I discovered how far back the line had been worked on. Whoever it was that had been working on this line was INCREDIBLE, because they had worked the tree back to the year 100 A.D. Yes, you read that right. 100 A.D. I'm related to King Louis II from France, Charlemagne, and many more other amazing people!! I could hardly believe my eyes as I was looking over the huge chunk of family that my little discovery had added to our tree. Family history work is AWESOME!!

Zoe is just SO CUTE. I can't handle it!!

Tuesday morning Jake and I went to the temple, which was another special experience. On Wednesday, however, the day started out a bit rougher than most: Jake accidentally elbowed me in the eye HARD. I thought I was going to have a black eye, that's how bad it was! Thankfully my eye was just a little swollen for the day, but I definitely teased Jake about it quite a lot.

On Friday Jake got off early from work, and we discovered that we had received our tax return in the mail! It was perfect timing because we've been needing to go to Idaho Falls for a few weeks, but haven't had the money to make the trip worth it. Not only did we have the money now, but we had the time to go, since Jake was off work earlier than usual. We scrambled to get ready and headed out the door. Zoe wasn't too thrilled about being left home alone for several hours, but it was well worth the trip! 

General Conference this weekend was AWESOME! 

Saturday morning I made homemade cinnamon rolls (check out the Kitchen Adventures tab for the recipe) and settled in on the couch with a notebook and pens, ready to have my questions answered and to learn more about why the gospel is so wonderful. My favorite talk from Saturday was Elder Bednar’s; it was just so cool to hear all that doctrine about baptism and the Holy Ghost being linked to the sacrament. I’d never looked at things in that way, or known all that stuff. So cool!

Jake watched the Priesthood Session that evening and I tuned in a bit, and caught some of Brother Owen’s talk and I’m so glad that I did, because something he said is my all-time new favorite quote about Christ, and probably my new favorite quote from General Conference:

"Christ is the greatest leader because He is the greatest follower." 

Not only is this an awesome thing to learn about Christ, but I’m planning on applying this into my life as a teacher. If I want to be a great teacher, I need to be a great student, and show that to my students. I need to model for them how I learn, to show them that not only is it possible to learn from the books we read and the writing we do, but that you should be learning throughout your life, even after you're done being a student in school.

Sunday's sessions of conference were amazing as well of course, and I'm really just so grateful that I had the opportunity to hear from our church leaders and really absorb their counsel. I tried a new method of taking notes this time around, and I really love how much it helped me truly listen to what was being said! My favorite talks from Sunday were President Uchtdorf's and Elder Holland's, which is really no surprise because they are always incredible speakers.

 I'll be sharing my notes from General Conference in another post, so stay tuned!

The Final Countdown + Priesthood Blessings

This week was finals week for Jake and I, and we made it through! Jake did very well in his class, and I'm hoping to at least pass all of mine since this semester was extremely difficult. The hardest one I've had in college, I think. We managed to get through the mountains of homework both of us had, and I didn't explode from stress, so it was a solid finish for the semester!

On Thursday night, I was really having trouble falling asleep. I had an exit interview with one of my professors the next morning that I was very nervous about, and it was affecting my ability to just relax and allow myself to get some rest. I tried all my usual tricks that help me fall asleep, and nothing was working. Finally, feeling pretty guilty, I rolled over and woke Jake up to ask him for a priesthood blessing. A priesthood blessing is using the power and authority that worthy young men receive in our church, which allows them to do things like bless and pass the sacrament on Sundays or give blessings to anyone that is sick spiritually. physically. etc. A blessing is a prayer given to one specific person. According to our church website, which I went to for help clarifying what I mean, it is: "given...by the laying on of hands and by inspiration, to one who is sick or otherwise in need of special counsel, comfort, or healing." For more info, you can watch this two minute video here. Jake got out of bed groggily and shook himself a bit to wake up, and then came over to my side of the bed, placed his hands on my head, and gave me a blessing. I don't remember everything that he said, but I could feel the Spirit so strongly, and tears were streaming down my cheeks after a matter of seconds. I know that he blessed me with the ability to feel comforted and let go of the tension I was feeling so that I would be able to sleep, and that I certainly did. The second my head hit the pillow, I was out like a light! My meeting the next morning went well, and it was my last thing to do for the semester, so as I walked out of the building I could feel even more weight being lifted off of my shoulders.

I'm so grateful that at a very young age I knew I wanted to marry a worthy priesthood holder, and that I stuck to that decision as I got older. Having someone who supports me through thick and thin and can give me extra spiritual strength and blessings when I need them is something that I hope I will never take for granted!

A Busy Week + General Conference

This week was another hectic one with lots of homework, classes, cleaning, and of course spending time together with Zoe. The weather in Idaho right now is still pretty wonderful, so Jake and I have enjoyed taking Zoe on walks almost every night this past week!

This past weekend was General Conference, and I loved every minute of it. Jake had to work on Saturday so he wasn't able to watch those sessions with me, but Zoe and I cuddled up on the couch together and enjoyed hearing from church leaders and being inspired. Over the past few months we've lost three apostles, and over the weekend three new ones were announced! I can't wait to learn more about the three great men that have been called to help lead our church. Hearing them bear their testimonies on Sunday morning was so touching!

My favorite talk was given by Sister Neill Marriott, one of the counselors in the General Young Women Presidency. Her talk was so sweet and I felt the spirit so strongly as she testified to us of the power of pressing forward in difficult times, and shared her own personal experiences with trials that have tested her faith. I can't wait to go back and read her talk again once it's online!