What a Beautiful Day!

Today was a wonderful and rewarding day filled with meaningful experiences. One being Conference, each talk so far this conference has been in---credible! I loved Elder Scott's on prayer and hearing the voice of the Lord in your mind and your heart vs. a stupor. Elder Holland on the use of the tongue and how it is as sharp as a sword that cuts like butter. Elder Bednar on being born again, and many others, plus our very good friend and neighbor Russ Osguthorpe was called as an Area Seventy! Which we are not one bit surprised about Russ.

The next thing that made the day wonderful was a group of Young Men came from Sacramento California which was sponsored by my friends brother. We were in charge of getting a couple of BYU Football Players to present to them the program at BYU, plus Bronco's philosophy and give them a tour of the IPF and the Student Athlete Building. It was awesome. Dustin Gabriel and Kayle Buchanan did it for us and they were so humble, so kind, so uplifting and so fun all at once that it will leave a lasting impression on those young minds of hard work and love of the Lord forever. It was incredible. And I'm still Mama Preston to all of them.
Then the second session of Conference was just as uplifting. Elder Packer was one of my favorites and of course THE MUSIC of the choir was something else. Of course, Come Thou Fount was my favorite.
Then off I went with Mike, Nate and Lowell to the traditional dinner before Priesthood meeting. Lowell is just like a son and it was so neat to be with them, since Lara isn't here and us girls can't go anywhere like we used to. But the guys now take me along. Very nice.
Off they went to Priesthood meeting and I went home to be with Daisy and work on my talk. This has been the hardest subject to give a 10 minute talk on. But onward and upward I guess I go, hoping it will come to me what to say.
Now, it's late and the boys who are staying with us will soon be here and we will have a great time with them tomorrow.
I'm so thankful for the small blessings that come into our lives through other people and through circumstance.
Happy Conference everyone!

Ohhhhh, those Easter Eggs!

Okay so Easter eggs, meaning candy Easter Eggs are the bain of my existence! I have been soo sooooooo good not buying them, not eating them, passing them up at the store, and, to be honest, the store has enough Easter Candy to feed all Americans for 3 years without ever making more!! I am not kidding in the least! You know... the thing is, I don't have any problems with cake, ice cream, cookies, pastries, or any other sweet. I don't eat any of that stuff at all! But, my downfall comes from chocolate once in a while. I try not to eat it because it just makes me fat and I fight the pound or two all over again and I quite like how I feel without it. So I don't eat it. But yesterday I bought an egg for each of my beautiful grandchildren and guess what, I had one, then two and now I would like more, but I am NOT going to do that to myself. Then I have to workout a couple of hours aerobically to work it off. It is just ridiculous I do this to myself.
Well, I did it, so now I have to repent. (You know like lent. That was when I was Baptist, or Methodist, or going to Catholic Mass) Anyhow, isn't it just funny what we do to ourselves?
Enough babbling about Easter Eggs. Except for the huge awareness of just how much candy really is in the stores for Easter. No wonder we have diabetes and obesity at all time highs. I hope you aren't like me and have some self-control. However, don't be too proud if you don't eat sweets, because the reality is you probably have another area that is the bain of YOUR existence, just like I do in the candy area. If I have one I have to have ten, so it's better I don't have any. That's all, period the end!! Glad when Easter is over, that candy goes away for another year, thank goodness!!!

Snowing again?????

Wow it's snowing again!!! I know we need the moisture, we are in fact in dire need! But, I think at this point of the year I am needing sunshine like never before. I have been analyzing things lately and notice that when we come out of the deep freeze and the sun shines, I really get happy! I hear the birds singing and I jump for joy! I get out there and start walking the roads again. I love being out of doors. As a little girl I would always run around outside with my collie, having a wonderful time, or go swimming in our built in pool with all of my siblings. It was such a simple life!! I would lay in the grass and look up at the sky, the blue blue sky and talk to God. I knew he was there, I knew someone was there, even as a little child before being introduced to the gospel. I would sit in the rain under the cabana and talk to God with my mother, she would pray out loud to Him, so I always knew there was someone who loved us close by. I still know that! But life isn't simple, life is full and busy and good. But sometimes not too. We all do! We all have wounds, we all have hurts . Or empty spots that haven't healed yet. To me the only thing that I struggle with is the feeling of rejection or being misunderstood. But the reality I can do nothing about it! So I go on looking at the sunshine and try to fill those empty spots with the balm that is promised us. I just glad I'm here, glad I'm on the journey, good and not so good. It is a roller coaster ride!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! So sunshine come on right back, I need you!!

Opposites

Here is food for thought! Are we the type of person who says things out of love or vindictiveness? Helps others or hinders them? Forgives them or holds grudges? Envys or rejoices? Withholds love or freely gives it? Is stingy or generous? Gives the benefit of the doubt to others or makes assumptions? And many more behaviors.......

Easter is one of those times that causes a lot of reflection. Yes? Grateful for the atonement, it is a miracle!

You are my Favorite Grand..............#.......

This afternoon I received a webcam call on the computer from a very special young lady named Chloe Diane Laakea Neves requesting my presence to her house right NOW!! She giggled and proclaimed she wanted me to come to her house at least 5 times in her cuteness and darlingness! I just didn't want to say I couldn't come so instead as Mamah's say " I really want to come to your house right now Chloe, really really bad, but Mamah lives so far away!! But I will come soon! " She told me all about school today and she taught me about the letter M and how many M's are in Mamah's name and how many are not in her name!

You know I was raised that it is best for your children to invite you to their home and you don't barge in on them, that they very much need their space. Actually that is still advised even today by Dr. Phil, Dr Laura and many others. I am so glad that they will invite me there. It makes a Mamah so very happy and frankly there is no such love as a Mamah's love. It is critical to the grandchildren's well-being to have all the love they can get from those around them. I just plain LOVE ALL my grandchildren!! They are all my favorites, and they will tell you, they are favorite granddaughter #1 or 2 or 3 or 4 or favorite grandson #1, or 2 or 3!! I am so blessed and I hope they will always want me to come visit!

Whate'er thou art, act well thy part.

Thoughts for today from my personal study:

Often we practice things so we have know them "by heart". What that means is when you know something by heart, you are comfortable with it that no matter what the pressure of performance is, you will do what you have prepared to do perfectly. If you get lost or distracted then you can pick right up and do what comes next. You also don't have to constantly watch what your doing nor worry about what is coming next. When you know something by heart, you have no need to be afraid. Does this sound familiar, when ye are prepared, ye shall not fear?

God's plan is that we come to know Him by heart. When I know what to do, how to be, how to act and then do it that my actions will be positive. That they will be what He would do if in my shoes.
When I know Him by heart I am not compelled or coerced it is a sweet feeling from being prepared. I love that.

If we know by heart what he expects of us, when we are called to do our part, we will contribute and feel good about it. It doesn't matter who you are, but how you are. Everyone has a different part, a different piece to play that Father would have us do and only we can do.

President David O McKay said " Whate'er thou art, act well they part." When we do our part by heart we will be at peace and feel very prepared. Doing what we know is the right thing will build confidence. Let confidence wax strong! The important thing is if we are comfortable with who we are even a the storms swirl around us we will not question what the right thing to do is or be.

"Quiet minds cannot be perplexed or frightened, but go on in fortune or misfortune at their own private pace, like a clock during a thunderstorm". (Robert Louis Stevenson).

When we come to know the Savior by heart, we not only come to understand what he would do but why he would do it. His motivation is always love. Then we can make the music he intended for us to make without having to watch ourselves and worry constantly about what is going to happen next.

Excellent advice, I think I will go and ponder this more!

Did I say yes to agency?

Okay so I always two to three books going at a time, as of right now, it is the Book of Mormon with Bro. Ridges, Why do my prayers seem unanswered, 40 Days to Transformation and If God Loves Me, Why This?. I am Highly recommending the book 'If God Loves Me, Why This?"to read for right now to those of us who said YES to agency and truly get confused by it!!! There are four truths that the author Kim Nelson brings out to shed light that will help us find happiness in God's plan for us and comfort when we ask things like,"If God Loves me, why this?" Have you ever thought this questions or pondered why bad things DO happen to good people? I have never questioned that bad things are going to happen to us, because it rains on the just a well as the unjust. I can see clearly the growth we experience when we go through hard things. How much more hardy we become when going through hardships. So that kind of question hasn't been a problem for me.

But the four truths he brings out are these.
1) Understanding our role in the plan of salvation is the first step to understanding our inherent value.
2) God is our Father, And as our Father, the depth of his parental love for us is boundless.
3) Satan is working to prevent us from feeling God's love. We must recognize the level of the adversary's commitment to blind us from the truth about God and ourselves.
4) We are here to learn to be like our Father. We have an unique, personal mission to perform during our earthly test.

Where I get confused so often, and it most likely because of the world's way or the opinion of others is where if we are working at trying to become like our Father, then we never stop parenting. So where is the line? I know once a parent always a parent, I am a mother for eternity. My children, will never be able to get rid of me, hahaha. So what I do come to concerning this is, that since Father knows what is best for us and he is perfect, he will know perfectly, there will be times that we as parents will know what we should or should not do for our children as they grow and progress. Since we are not perfect, it plain isn't easy to figure it out always. So I'm grateful for the Spirit of the Lord, or the scriptures, or inspired leaders to help and assist me in this all-encompassing role.

There are two models of love, and one is God's and one is the adversary's. God loves us, He is all about us, where the adversary is all about himself. BUT, here is one more aspect, and that is we can easily Love our children straight to hell. We must constantly be using agency, which by the way, is rules, consequences and rewards model. With lots of love. If we do rules without the consequences or rewards, we are not using agency. If we use just consequences, we are not using agency and so forth. So loving kids to hell means we let them do whatever they want under the guise of agency without any wisdom, without capability to make those choices at that time in their lives. So guess what, it's very tricky. Anyhow enough babbling. Get the book and enjoy his insights into agency and just what foder we are to Satan. We don't mean much to him, he is just trying to prove Heavenly Father wrong and himself right. That makes me want to fight harder and do the right thing. I hope all of this makes sense to you!!

So agency, well it's still difficult to get all of the way!