The passing of a prophet...

Prophetic Passing

I imagine he's running to Marjorie now,
Yes, running, not waving his cane.
I see him embracing his father and mother
While they keep repeating his name.

I see him now meeting his forebears,
Brother Brigham and Joseph are there.
Sweet reunion of prophets, united by service
That only such noble men share.

I see him embraced by the Savior
While Father says, Good and well done.
So faithful in stalwart endurance, I welcome
My noble, most excellent son.

I then hear the ripples of laughter
As he says the reception's just fine,
But he hopes that he'll get an assignment or two
Since theres no need to waste any time.

I can hear his clear voice in the stillness
At the close of this sweet Sabbath day,
Have faith and move forward - there's work to be done.
President Hinckley would want it that way.

Anna M. Molgard
January 27, 2008

One of the last talks President Gordon B. Hinckley gave before his life ended has been on my mind all week. It is called "Slow to Anger", and can be read here. I find his words consoling. I have been fighting the urge to confront someone in my family who has been neglectful and thoughtless and has caused a great deal of damage out of complete selfishness. I know, especially in this case, that anger is a legitimate emotion, one with which my Father can relate. I feel comfort as I try to work my emotions out in my mind and through prayer, because I know they've already been endured and the price has already been paid for these trials.

I'm learning that it is how you respond to anger that matters. Given that anger was misused in my home growing up, I struggle with an effective way of venting while staying in control. It's like a reflex to lash out as I've seen done time and time again. I think that's why I have tried to develop such a positive outlook, finding the good in everything. I find that if my mind is not already active with positive thinking I am more susceptible to losing it and letting the negative consume me. It's like working a muscle, I guess you could say - by exercising control and restraining myself/biting my tongue I am able to become stronger, even as "he that ruleth his spirit". (Proverbs 16:32)

It is primarily in honor of this great man that I share these thoughts with you, but also because there is indeed so much anger in this world. Misery loves company. Some unhappy people will not rest until everyone around them is also unhappy. It's sad how quickly it spreads, but we do have the power to stop it. We are blessed with agency - to choose how we will respond - no matter what our circumstances are. Peace is possible.

If you're a digiscrapper...

I am so excited. I've designed a font for Fontologie which is being sold at The Shabby Shoppe (aka Shabby Princess). It's called P.S. I Love You and was created with Valentine's Day in mind. But it's a very versatile font. So go check it out!

It's not too early...

... to share the love. These sugar cookies are my favorite. One of my Primary teachers used to make them every Sunday. After I got married, I asked for the recipe for the cookies I could never forget. They're called "Never Fail Sugar Cookies".

2 c sugar

2 c butter flavored Crisco (or butter/margarine)

6 eggs

6 t baking powder

7 c flour

4 t vanilla

Cream sugar and butter/Crisco together. Add eggs, vanilla and dry ingredients one a t a time. Mix thoroughly. Roll and cut/shape. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.

**I like to make these really thick. And this recipe is for a less sweet cookie (a la European sweets). You could add more sugar if you'd like.

Here is a frosting recipe I really like, too.

2 lbs. powdered sugar (boxed is better)

1 c Crisco

about 1/2 c water (or milk)

splash or two of vanilla

Mix with an electric mixer until it reaches desired consistency.

Enjoy!

My cat keeps me on top of my laundry

Our house has been on the market now for 2 months. 2 months of frantic cleaning. 2 months of interrupted nap time (realtors love to stop by in the afternoon). 2 months of laundry free floors.

Laundry is the one household chore I grow weary of. My husband is great about helping me push the loads through the washer and dryer, but I get to sort through the piles after they land on my bedroom floor, fold them, and stuff them into drawers and closets that are too small. It's my least favorite thing which I love to procrastinate. However, my cat begun peeing on the put off baskets of laundry a few months ago. Just in time for us to put our house on the market. I don't know if she was feeling the stress of us making home repairs or what, it just began happening out of the blue. After ruling out that she was sick, we began letting her outside more, to get away from the crazy stress once in a while. (Yes, we are still just talking about the cat) No help and the problem wildly increased. So I surrrndeed and began trying to stay on top of this thing I loathed most. And now our floors are laundry free. A realtor wants to stop by in 20 mintues? No need to shove them in the empty chest at the end of the bed or under the armchair. My cat no longer pees outside of her litter box and my husband no longer wishes to euthanize her.

He may, however, wish that she'd move on to the closets.

blogging for a higher purpose

Elder Russell M. Ballard of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints recently addressed graduates of BYU Hawaii, urging them "to use the Internet — including blogs and other forms of 'new media' — to contribute to a national conversation about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." The original transcipt can be read here. It was brought to my attention at Times and Seasons, one of my new favorite places to visit.

The thought occurred to me while reading this that there are a lot of LDS women bloggers out there. Just check the ongoing list here. I certainly don't hide the fact that I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but how often do I use my blog to help spread the gospel? Only occasionally. I like that I have a variety of readers. I learn so much form women of all different religious backgrounds. So I've not wanted to seem "exclusive". Still, I'd like nothing more than to help dispel any misunderstandings about my beliefs, and I welcome questions any time.

I encourage us all to find more ways to use our blogs to inform others of our convictions. The Lord has blessed us with a multitude of mediums in which to display our beliefs - art, music, literature and now blogging. ;) Lol. So who's with me?

I've received 2 awards from Angela. Thank you!

*The great blog awards originated here, and The Daily Dose originated here.

In order to share the love I'd like to pass the great inspiring blog award along to Seeds From My Garden, An Ordinary Mom and Nettie. And The Daily Dose to Scribbit , Crazy Bloggin'Canuck and my dear friend Zoe at Fresh Preserves.

Monday, I don't care for you.

You know those "Get to Know You" quizzes that flood your inbox every few months? Well, I am not likely to forward them because they're somewhat annoying. But if I'm in a time wasting mood I'll at least reply back to the sender.

There is one question I'm always interested in other people's answer to on these things, and that is "What is your least favorite day of the week?" A very telling question, I tell you. I dread Mondays, for example. (And sometimes Sundays. I know, I know - it's terrible. I'm a terrible person for saying it. But I feel like until all my children are a little older and have learned the importance of quietude on Sunday, I'm just not going to "enjoy" them much.) I'm thinking that what this says about me is that I have a hard time getting going. And really, that's every morning, not just Mondays. The difference is that on Mondays, it sticks with me all day.

It's not that I don't try. But nothing REALLY gets me going on Monday - not a fresh batch of cookies, my favorite book, favorite reruns. Not even the beats of JT and a good run. I try all day long to find just the right pick-me-up, tackling projects, running errands, planning a nice family home evening lesson. And so go figure, my least favorite day ends up being my most productive day. And consequently the most exhausting. Hmmm. So what this also says about me is that once I get going, it's difficult for me to stop. So true.

My bet is that most people actually like Mondays. It's the start of a new week. Your energy is (ideally) renewed. It seems more normal to dislike a day like Wednesday, which is smack dab in the middle of the week, the climax of one's busyness, the point at which you're simple enduring - far away yet so close to Friday.

But maybe I am wrong and I'm normal after all?

The best of friends, the worst of friends...

One day they are pushing all of each other's buttons. The next, they're more than happy to to show their affection. I'm glad this was one of those days... we had ourselves a little photo shoot Wednesday morning.

(I gotta photoshop the tree out of this last one. And I know the lighting is all wrong, but they just had to have this shot! If I don't hang it up in their room, they might be back to"worst of friends"sooner than I'd like!)