Summer Feaver

Okay I must admit that my vacation has been wonderful, but enough is enough. It's time for me to put my nose back to that grindstone and I can hardly wait! I am still hoping the apartment works out but I need to get back to practicing and studying. I know I'm going to be crazy homesick for the first little bit, but now that I have an apartment I like and a ward I love I have a lot to get back to. Everybody in Tempe, I'm almost there!!

Mother and Daughter

Today I once again had the rare privilege of sitting with my mother in relief society. This is still a new thing for me because until December she was everywhere but RS. Primary, Young Women, Nursery, all those places. Now I get to sit next to her and be a partner with her in learning the things of the gospel.

Recently I've thought a lot about the legacies mothers pass to daughters. Maureen, a new friend of mine, discussed with me what it meant to her that her mother taught her how to sew. Even though parents eventually pass on the skills we gain from them keep them in our lives. I want to use this space to say thanks to the mothers in my life

My Aunt Dorthea wrote this song in memorial of my Grandma Christensen.

One Loaf of Bread

There is one aroma that fills my mind with memories of home

It comes from out of the blue, like the lines of a lyrical poem

Learning to serve one another in our kitchen sweet and warm

Daily reading the scriptures on our small family farm

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When Mom is busy in the kitchen, cooking up service and love

Lifting the load of another, like a ray of sun from above

Quietly leaving a treasure at the door of a neighbor in need

A little act of kindness, a cheerful word or deed

All of her life she has taught us

How the Savior fed more than 1,000 people

With one loaf of bread

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There were thoughts, pictures, and poems to read, decorating the walls of home

We loved flowers and trees, butterflies, music filled all our lives with a song

A garden full of vegtables, a picnic in the park

Old mem'ries flood my mind with peace, sing on as a bright meadow lark

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When Mom is busy in the kitchen, cooking up service and love
Lifting the load of another, like a ray of sun from above
Quietly leaving a treasure at the door of a neighbor in need
A little act of kindness, a cheerful word or deed
All of her life she has taught us
How the Savior fed more than 1,000 people
With one loaf of bread

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My cousins and I have often discussed how we remember her best when we smell bread baking. She passed away when I was 15 but one day I hope to be the hopemaker and type of woman she was.

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My Grandma Terry died over the past labor day weekend. I miss her, but I think I have her with me a lot. Our personalities were shaped by similar circumstances because she had a stroke that left her left side paralyzed when she was 49, and that was well before I was born. Whenever I complained to my mom about it not being fair that I had my disability she would say "talk to your grandma" and when I did Grandma would say "You're telling me! Well since there is nothing we can do about it why don't we just enjoy a game of cards instead?" She taught me that life has challenges and the sooner we accept them the sooner we can be optimistic about them. No use complaining about what you can't change

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When I first moved away from home I missed my family terribly. I needed a mom more than anything, but I had moved away to get away from home and learn to live without her. Fortunately Heavenly Father knew I had that need and placed me in a ward with loving Relief Society Mentors. One in particular opened her home and life to me. I think she is the most gracious person I have ever met. I still lived in my own place and enjoyed being on my own and making my own life, but I always had that safe haven and someone to steer me back on track when I felt lost (and no, I will not comment on how often I get lost.)

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I don't know even where to start talking about Kathy Christensen, my real mom. We tended to butt heads when I still lived at home, but now she has become the best friend I could possibly have on this earth. She taught me to cook, manage money, get along with others, do laundry, and take care of my hygiene. I would not have survived without her and that is a fact.

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All of these things are important but the most important things I know I learned from all of them. One of the hardest for me, then and still, is loving my self even with my faults. I am so greatful for the time that they watched me make unwise choices (sometimes with sorrow and sometimes with amusement) and loved me through my tough time. This is true charity. The most important lesson I have learned from any of the aforementioned people and all of them combined is a love of the Savior. I have seen every one of them open the scriptures and reverently study the pages. I can't count the times I have seen any one of them with their heads bowed in sincere prayer. At every juncture in my life each of these have steadily pointed the way to the Savior. Heavenly Father gives us mothers (in my opinion at least) because they are close enough to the veil to do His work in guiding us home. That is the true legacy of motherhood and I am greatful to have shared in it thus far.

Wedding Day!

So I have something to talk about now. I went to the wedding of Jessica McMurchie and Ethan Eager. This has been anticipated since I talked to her on 1/19 and it finally arrived. The only problem was that we had to get there first. The best solution? Party it all the way up to Denver. Caralee, Shalee, Kalene, Megan, and I rode in a van together for the 12 hour drive and alternated driving. It was long, but the dvd player and catchphrase made it barable and even fun. When we got there I was dead on my feet and did not here the others say they were going to help Jess. I was selfish and slept.

The next morning I got to see my buddy Jeff for the first time in a few weeks and we went as a group to help Jess and Ethan set up the backyard for the wedding. But first we must get manicures and pedicures, how could we work with chemical cleaning agents without those!?! After much work (and play) we went to the Olive Garden and then home to take a nap before the rehersal dinner. I didn't go to that since I was not in the wedding party (Kalene, Caralee, and Jeff were, the rest of us were just enjoying the ride) but I was okay with that since I needed more sleep anyway.

The next way we got up and did our hair and tried to keep Ethan calm as he was with us at the time. When we got to Jessica's house we blended right into the chaos. There was Jessica's hair to be finished and everyone's makeup to be done. Thre was the bridesmaid and wedding dresses to be put on. Ethan was a nervous boy on the biggest day on the biggest day of his life so far, but he was nothing in comparison to Jess. She had dreamed of this her entire life and now just a couple of hours had to live up to a lifetime of dreaming.

I had tears in my eyes several times that day, but the first was when I walked in to find Jessica wearing her wedding dress. She was beautiful. Then I started to cry as Ethan teared up at the sight of his bride. The ceremony was very simple and heartfelt. First Ethan walked in with both moms, one on each arm, then the bridal pary, and finally the radiant Jessica attended by her sister and lifelong friend Allison. They wrote their own vows and in simple words expressed eternal love and devotion to one another. The unity candles were lit and the march back down the aisle was set to the song "I Got You Babe" by Sonny and Cher.

Now enough of the teary stuff (mostly) and time for the fun stuff! We had an outdoor lunch and I got to meet a lot of Jessica's family and enjoy their company, their humor, their wisdom, and their hospitality. Jessica changed into a t-shirt and blue jeans and still looked as gorgeous as ever. After I had been outside long enough to have the life sunburned out of my arms and neck we went inside to open presents.


They got the pots and pans and housewarming stuff and the vaccum that Jessica must now learn to use. (Just kidding, she knows how to use cleaning materials.) The most important part was that it was fun and that all the presents were stuff the couple enjoyed having. The last teary moment of the day for me was when Jessica's younger sister Allison hugged Jess goodbye. They were both in tears and that got me going. I enjoyed the sweet relationship those two have. It is a good thing family relationships extend in to eternity, because they are one of the few things it is worth having for eternity.

That night I went to spend time with my cousins John and Charlotte. I had not had a real chance to talk to them since they moved from Phoenix three years ago. They are both fun, funny, and caring. I enjoyed getting to know Eden and Miles, the two little ones and being out of the hotel room for a few hours and in a real home. Good food, good company, who can ask for more? I hope to go back to Denver and visit all these people again soon!

The ride home was more than we had barganed for. We got all the way to Albequerque before the car overheated. It was Sunday, but thank goodness Safeway was open to buy some coolant. We overfilled the compartment and it boiled over not ten minutes later. Shalee, the brains of this particular operation, instructed us to turn on the heater so the coolant would circulate better and roll down the windows so we didn't die of heatstroke. We didn't die, but we did sweat our rear ends off, litteraly. I'm sure we each lost some water weight. But the important part is that we all made it home safely. Next Caralee and I git to head to Phoenix. I can't tell you how much I dreaded the idea of another 3 hours in the car after the 12 we had spent, but again we got there safely and that's all that matters. We rolled in at 10:30 and I promptly made my bed and got in it.

Now I'm back in Tucson for the next little bit and enjoying the kid's birthday season. This is more than enough for one post. I'll type more later.