Stake Conference with Elder Oaks

Such an exciting weekend! We had our stake conference today and yesterday, and Elder Dallin H. Oaks was our visiting general authority. I even got to shake his hand and find out that he has a great sense of humor. Too, too cool! He mentioned some really great things that pertained directly to our stake, and they called a new stake presidency. It happened to be particularly serendipitous because Elder Oak's daughter, Jenny Oaks Baker, will be here next weekend playing with the symphony, but more on that later.

Above all, conference just reaffirmed my commitment to living the gospel to the best of my ability everyday. The bottom line is, that when I live the gospel, I am happy. When I start to slide with my commitment, life just doesn't seem to go as well. Living in an LDS-minority area, I get asked a lot why I would choose to live the commandments when, to an outsider, they seem so restrictive. There is not a commandment out there that does not bless my life beyond any sacrifice it may take to keep it. Following the word of wisdom keeps me free from all addictions. Paying tithing has spiritual blessing attached, but it also makes me more aware of and responsible with my money. Keeping the law of chastity helped me find an amazing husband and still continues to bless my marriage and family. Attending the temple helps me receive spiritual insight and helps me stay on the same page with my spouse. Magnifying my calling allows me to serve my fellow man, which in turn makes me feel good about myself. All of Heavenly Father's commandments are for the blessing and safety of His children, and I am truly thankful for the boundaries He, as a loving and kind parent, sets for me.

So, going on from today, I'm going to try a little harder to read my scriptures, think a little more about my prayers, and try to find some more people to serve. I know what I get out of living the gospel, and to be honest, I wouldn't want to try and live my life without it. I think that's what true conversion is all about- wanting to live the gospel day by day because you've developed faith in Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father's plan for you as an individual. True conversion is knowing that you don't have all the answers, and submitting your will to the Father for further direction. It's a concept that's so hard for so many, but it has the power to bless and change lives.

Halloween: Part 2

We continued with the awesome weekend yesterday, Saturday. Darreck and I had the opportunity to attend the Cardston temple yesterday for the first time since we got married there. Dad and Kayla took Max and, while it was a fast trip up and back, it was wonderful to spend some quality time with my husband. We had a great talk on the car ride up and back, and I loved being back in the temple, our temple, with him again. It was beautiful.

When we got home, we turned right around, donned 1950s outfits, and went to a Halloween party. Our friends had the inspired idea to host an adults-only party and, after attending a string of toddler birthday parties, it was a welcome change. We were so tired after the long day in the car, it was hard to find the motivation to go, but it was so worth the trip once we got our butts in the car. So many things work that way; seem like more trouble than they're worth until you actually go. At least, I feel that way about some social functions (sad but true!). Anyways, the party was great, and I'm thinking about hosting a Christmas one at our house. Parents need play dates too!

Halloween: Part 1

Tonight was the ward trunk-or-treat and potluck! Good, good times! Max has been excited all week to debut his elephant (pronounced ephelent) costume. He's going as Dumbo this year, and he was the cutest kid there- in my slightly biased opinion.

To prepare for the grand event, we carved our pumpkins this morning. Darreck takes pumpkin carving very, very seriously, and they turned out great this year. The cutest part about Max was how well behaved he was. Whenever he gets around big groups of crazy kids, he really goes inside himself. He said "trick-or-treat" and "thank you" at every car, but it was so quiet no one could hear him. It makes me laugh how loud and nuts he can be at home and then how reserved and quiet he can be when he's out. I guess that could be said of a lot of kids, however. Audible or not, he was still adorable.

Max Update

My camera is officially dead, so I've been putting off posting. However, Max is changing so much and so quickly that I have to share a few of the cute things he's been doing lately:

• Kayla is playing on her middle school basketball team, and Max is obsessed with going to the games. Only problem is that he wants to play when he's there. He must get so tired of hearing, "once you're bigger!"
• Max can count to 10 with no problems and sing his entire ABCs. We've stopped counting his sentences in words because he can carry on an entire narrative himself. Actually, it's getting him to be quiet that's the problem, especially in church. 
• His favorite past time is reading books, whether it's with us or just hanging out by himself. He has a remarkable talent for memorizing books, as a matter of fact. 
• I've learned the meaning of "terrible 2". Screeching, screaming, throwing, and hitting are daily occurances. So are frequent time-outs. 
• Max-man is going through another growth spurt so he's eating EVERYTHING in sight. Somedays it's hard to keep up. Favorites include cheese sticks, yogurt, goldfish crackers, chicken nuggets, ice cream, and any type of fruit. 
• He likes having TV on in the background, but rarely sits to watch it. We watch a lot of Veggietales in our house, and Max knows a lot of the songs. He also sings along with a lot of the songs from nursery.
• Everyday Max asks to play with his friends. He lives for play dates, and nursery is his favorite time in the entire week. He's a really social little guy, and he can tell you all the names of every little kid he's every met. 

We love our little man so much. He's 100% boy, and he can get a little crazy at times. However, he also has a very sweet, lovable side. He's thoughtful and inquisitive, even when it gets him in trouble. A friend was looking at pictures of him from when he was younger and from now, and she commented that he's lost all his baby looks. I realized that he's lost most of his baby traits; he really is my little man now. Hopefully we'll have some updated pictures soon!