The House of the Lord

I may be kind of biased, but I love these pictures.

A great man once said,

"When you come to the temple you will love your family with a deeper love than you have ever felt before. The temple is about families" (R.H. Winkel).

I couldn't agree more.

When we arrived in Mesa two weeks ago, I made it a goal to attend all three temples--Gilbert, Phoenix, and Mesa--before continuing on to Kansas. I knew it would require effort because of their holiday closures, but I knew I could do it. Luckily I had a handsome man by my side for each trip, and we had the pleasure of my parents' company at the Phoenix Temple.

On Tuesday we drove 30 minutes and attended the Gilbert temple, which was dedicated March 2014. It was absolutely stunning.

On Friday, we all drove 60 minutes to the Phoenix Temple, which was dedicated in November 2014. Attending the temple with family, especially parents, is really special. I am glad we got to take advantage of this opportunity.

Finally, on Tuesday of this week Marshall and I drove a short 10 minutes to the place we got married--the Mesa Temple (Dedicated October 1927). We hadn't been back to the inside of it since we got married three years ago, so this visit was special.

When we lived in Fairbanks the temple was a 6 hour drive away. We made it a priority to attend about every 2 months, which we nearly did, and we saw blessings from doing so. Now that we are closer to more temples, we know we must take advantage of such a privilege. Each time we attend the House of the Lord together, our bond as husband and wife (as well as best friends) is strengthened. I've never been really good with words, so I have compiled a few quotes about the Temple that really touch my heart and explain in more eloquence how I feel about such a Holy place.

"As we touch the temple and love the temple, our lives will reflect our faith. As we go to the holy house, as we remember the covenants we make therein, we will be able to bear every trial and overcome each temptation."-Thomas S. Monson

"The temple was a place of learning for the Savior when He was on the earth; it was very much a part of His life. Temple blessings are available once again in our day." -James E. Faust

"To you who are worthy and able to attend the temple, I would admonish you to go often. The temple is a place where we can find peace. There we receive a renewed dedication to the gospel and a strengthened resolve to keep the commandments." -Thomas S. Monson

"And ye are to be taught from on high. Sanctify yourselves and ye shall be endowed with power, that ye may give even as I have spoken."-Doctrine & Covenants 43:16

"At the temple the dust of distraction seems to settle out, the fog and the haze seem to lift, and we can 'see' things that we were not able to see before and find a way through our troubles that we had not previously known."-Boyd K. Packer

"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."-Malachi 4:5-6

Hoping for a Rainbow

I'm really not sure if I ever thought this day would come. The day that I made it past 13 weeks pregnant without losing the baby. #miracle. I know I am not out of the woods yet, and honestly, when are we really? I am just trying to live every day with gratitude for the life inside of me, living with hope for the future. Part of me wanted to wait until next week, when I was past 14 weeks and officially in the 2nd trimester, but I couldn't wait any longer. I've been getting a little thick in the middle, which is getting more difficult to hide, and I feel like I haven't been able to be completely honest with friends when they would ask, "how are you doing?" All I wanted to talk about was how nauseous I was or how nervous I felt. So now, the news is out, whether or not you already suspected something was up. Seriously though, the 1st trimester is not for the faint of heart! There were many instances when I thought I would lose the baby, but dee...

Grandpa is Always Right | Gender Reveal |

I was hanging out in our rental apartment in Salzburg, Austria with my sister when my dad walked out of his bedroom and announced that I was having a girl. I was only 11 weeks along at that point and while I was wishfully hoping for a girl, I was preparing myself for a boy. His strong conviction of the gender of our child without any hints from an ultrasound surprised me. My dad seems to always be right about things, so I secretly hoped he was right this time too. Today during my scan, my favorite sonographer announced that we were having a girl. Grandpa is always right. I never imagined our family starting with a baby boy. I don't know why, but a baby girl seems to fit just perfectly. Now I just have to keep calm and stay healthy for 19 more weeks.

Learning to Speak Like an Alaskan

Denali in the background No one wants to feel like a newbie, so a common practice before traveling to a new city or country is to learn the language of that particular place. Well, when my Aunt Joan picked me up from the airport last December when I first arrived in Alaska, one of the first things she told me was if I didn't want to sound like a tourist, I needed to refer to Mt. Mckinley (the tallest mountain in North America, located some 120 miles south of Fairbanks) as Denali . Denali is the native Athabaskan name for the mountain, and means "The High One." So, from day number one in Alaska, I refered to that majestic mountain as Denali instead of the name I had learned growing up. This is just about what it looked like yesterday morning! Another thing I learned recently is how to say the temperature. I was saying "Gosh it's cold outside because it's negative 30 degrees." But luckily, a kind skating mom...

Tender Mercies

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