Happy Birthday Binana!!!

I am such a slacker! My little Briana turns 5 years old today, and I just realized this morning that I didn't get my post done in time to have it ready for her birthday! So please forgive me, Binana! I have a few pictures here at work, so I'll put those up, and watch for a post tomorrow morning with lots more pictures of my sweet baby Binana. (I just have to call her that, because she's such a little pixie girl, with her sweet voice and dark eyes). I love you, Binana!

My Draper Temple miracle

Tonight I went to the Mount Timpanogos temple with some girls in my ward. We met Jan for dinner, and then did a session. It was so fun to see all of my friends from my former shift! I love them so much, and miss working at the temple, but I love my job so much that it is worth it. Still, I love seeing my friends again--everyone is always so nice to me and excited to see me. It was also fun to see Jan in her "Assistant Coordinator" role. I love the temple, and felt the spirit so much.



Which brings me to the title of my post. I realized tonight at the temple that I never blogged about the little miracle I had Sunday at the dedication. It's just a little story that shows that Heavenly Father does hear our prayers. I got tickets to go to the temple for the dedication because of my job. I was going to take Jan, but she had to work, so Emilee came with me. Emilee was willing to put up with my leaving really early because I wanted to get a good seat. I've never been able to attend a dedication inside the temple, and was really excited.

Well, since we had to take the buses, and were assigned to one of the farther away churches, even getting there early didn't help. Ems, thankfully, helped me to overcome my obsessive worrying about not being close enough--especially when we had to wait until the third bus to even get on. Then they asked us to move to the back, and I said, "Maybe we should just sit in the front," but she reminded me that we would be blessed for being obedient. Thankfully she's patient with my idiosyncracies.

We ended up being way far back in the chapel waiting to get into the temple. As we were sitting there waiting, I said a little prayer to Heavenly Father, just asking him if it was His will that maybe someone would come up to us and say, "Oh, there's only two of you? Why don't you come over here," and take us to a better place so that we wouldn't have to sit in a closet. Of course, I would have been grateful to be in a closet because it would still be in the temple. But I just thought I'd ask Heavenly Father in case.



As we walked into the temple lobby, I smiled at one of the ushers, and he smiled back, and then stopped me and said, "Are there only two of you? Come with me. I've got a really good place for you." I couldn't believe it. I looked at Emilee in amazement. He took us to the chapel and said, "This is a really good spot, because the Prophet and others will walk through here on their way to the Celestial room, and then will walk back through here on the way back after it's over."

It was such a beautiful place to be for the dedication, with a picture of Jesus and Mary Magdalene in the front (I tried to find a picture of it online, but couldn't). But, as the usher said, the best part was when the Prophet, his daughter Sister Ann Dibb, President and Sister Uchtdorf, and Elder and Sister Bednar walked in, smiling, waving, and shaking hands with the kids. We were on the other side of the chapel, but could still see them, and on the way back out, President Uchtdorf waved and smiled in my direction. I love our leaders! What a blessing to get to see them! I also felt the spirit so strongly at the dedication. I love the temple! (Obviously, since that is the name of my blog). What a blessing to be able to go to the temple and feel so strongly how much God loves us and wants us to return to Him.

I'm just so grateful that Heavenly Father answers even little prayers. I know sometimes the answer is no, but sometimes the answer is yes, and He is so good to give us the desires of our hearts.

Well, this post is long enough, and I need to get to bed.

This and That

I realized tonight that the last few posts I've done have been about Grandma--which is great. But it's probably time to update on what has been going on with me. So first of all, I have to say Happy Birthday to my brother Jon! He turns 36 tomorrow (March 26). I'm guessing he probably won't read this, but I'll say Happy Birthday to him anyway! He is such a great brother--always kind,laid back, and funny, and will do anything for anyone. He is so cute with the babies--here is a picture of him holding Emilee's little Matthew.



The main thing I thought I would write about is work. I've had a big change at work, where they decided to move one of my co-workers over to a different part of the office, and combine our jobs, so now I'm doing both jobs. I understand why they did it, and totally support them, but it has made me MUCH more busy at work, and I miss talking to Melody every day! I can already tell that it is going to be a good thing though, because I wasn't always as busy as I would like to be, and it is helping me to be much more involved in what is going on in the office. And I love the other two men I am working for. I certainly won't be bored at work!

There were three of us secretaries that worked closely together, me, Melody and Donna. The three of us went to lunch at the Garden restaurant last Friday to say goodbye. Even though Melody is still in our office, I won't get to talk to her all the time.

The lunch was really nice. We walked over to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building (remember last week when the weather was nice?) I had my camera and got some pictures on the way over. I love the sun shining through the water in the fountain. We got to sit right by the window overlooking the temple, and had a really nice lunch. The last picture is the three of us (actually, the last picture is one of the flowers--watch to see more pictures of the tulips when they come out. I love spring)! I'll miss you Melody!









Well, I got up at 5:00 am this morning, so I'd better get to bed! I'll try to post more often.

Grandma's brag book

I finally finished scanning in the pictures from Grandma's brag book, and decided to put the pictures to music. I think it turned out really sweet. I uploaded it to You Tube, and hope it will work to put it here on my blog...I'll write more soon!

Grandma is free...

It's been way too long since I posted, but I have been so busy that I haven't had time. I finally have a little bit of time tonight, so I thought I would do a quick post about Grandma. Grandma was finally set free on Saturday morning, February 28. She died very peacefully, and my mother was able to be with her at the end, which was such a blessing. Janice and I got to the care center 30 minutes later, and were able to see her and spend time with her and our aunts and uncle. She looked so peaceful, and I felt so grateful that she was finally able to be released from her suffering. It was bittersweet too--I will miss getting to talk to her and learn from her sweet example. But I love to think of how excited she is now to be with my Grandpa, and to think of the joy and happiness she is experiencing now. Here are some pictures of her:

This is when she was a young mother. Isn't she beautiful?

Here she is in her early forties. This is the picture we used for the obituary and the front of the funeral program.

This is a picture of her and my Grandpa in their sixties.

The viewing was Tuesday night, and the funeral was yesterday, and they both turned out to be so beautiful. I was privileged to get to create her funeral program, which is part of what kept me so busy the last few days. It turned out really nice, and I felt like I had extra help doing it. (I wish I could figure out a way to upload it to my blog).

I love the spirit that I feel at funerals, and the feeling of family and togetherness. My aunts and uncles gave such beautiful talks about Grandma, her life, and especially the Plan of Salvation. Grandma wanted all of the great-grandkids to sing, and so we had them sing "Teach Me to Walk in the Light." I got to lead them in singing, and it was so precious. Janice got some video of them singing, and I put some snapshots from the video below. I'm so grateful for the spirit that attends when a loved one dies, and that assures us that we will see them again!

I took tons of pictures of the viewing and funeral, but thought I would just put a few highlights below:

This is me, my Mom and Janice at the viewing

This is me with Kate, Lizzie and Sabrina. We didn't plan to match, but it sure turned out cute!

The picture above and below are pictures of the great grandkids singing. They were so cute, and I know Grandma heard them and felt so happy!

You can see my Dad in the background, sitting on the stand with Uncle Joe, who was conducting.

And finally, this is a picture of my Uncle Joe, my Mom, my Aunt Eileen, and my Aunt Annette at the graveside. My uncle Larry is on a mission in England, so couldn't be there for this picture. But he sent a talk which was read by his son at the funeral.

I am so grateful for my grandparents, and for their faithfulness. They have 27 grandchildren, and 62 great grandchildren, and left us all a legacy of faith that we can strive to emulate. I am so glad they are together again, and are on a new mission to continue to bless the lives of others.

Jennerbug's birthday!!!

Note: Make sure to read the post below this one with an update about Grandma.

As usual, I'm writing this the night before Jenni's birthday. My little Jennerbug turns 6 years old tomorrow on February 27. I can't believe my babies are growing up right before my eyes! So, here is my post dedicated to Jenni.

On Feburary 27, 2003, I was at work wondering and wondering how it was going with my baby sister Michelle having her first baby. I finally got a call from Steve telling me that the baby had been born, it was a girl, and all was fine. But he wouldn't tell me her name, and told me I'd have to wait until I got to the hospital. I have to admit I was grumbling about it a little bit. I mean, really, why couldn't he just tell me her name? But when I walked into the hospital room, Michelle said, "Jennifer, we'd like to introduce you to our daughter...Jennifer." I was floored--I had never thought I would have anyone named after me. Both Chelle and I got teary eyed, and it was a special moment. Ever since then, I've just been absolutely in love with my sweetest little Jenni-bug.

I have searched my computer, and I can't find any pictures of her when she was a baby. I know they are here somewhere, but are ones I would have had to scan in (I really should have bought a digital camera before 2004. It makes things so much easier). Anyway, so this is the first picture I have of her. I love this picture, and kept it on my camera card forever because I loved to look at it. Our little Jenni ended up being a little blue eyed red head--except that for the first year and a half, all she had was peach fuzz on her head. But she was the cutest little thing, and her sparkling personality was already showing before she was even a year old. Here she is crawling up our stairs toward me:

Here she is in October of 2004. Notice her hair had finally started to grow, and it was such a beautiful red gold. I love this picture of her reading her scriptures--she was getting started early!

Here she is with me on Halloween of 2004. Notice she is starting to get little curls. So cute!

And here's another stair picture with cousin Brianna. Notice that her hair is really starting to come in. I tell Jenni all the time that she is a great example of how Heavenly Father sometimes has us wait for things, but then blesses us in abundance. She had to wait so long to get her hair, but when it came in, it was SO beautiful, and just got more beautiful and curly as she grew.


This picture below is one of my all time favorite pictures of Jenni. We had gone up to Salt Lake for our birthday, and were in the JSMB looking out at the Salt Lake temple. She put her face up to the glass, and the reflection was perfect--my sweet girl looking toward the temple, so darling and innocent.


This is actually the same night, but I love it too, so had to put it in. She was and is such a good cuddler, and gives the tighest hugs I've ever gotten. I love my "Jenni hugs."

This was in August of 2005 when I met Chelle and Jenni at the Provo Temple for lunch. I still remember this day, seeing Jenni running full pelt toward me with her arms outstretched and hair flying, and of course giving me a huge hug when she got to me.

This is Jenni in November 2005 with cousin Emma. She loves cousin Emma, and was so good to help with her when she was a baby.

Here she is again with cousin Emma. Another thing I love about J-bug is her sparkling smiles. She is so beautiful! You'll notice this same type of smile in many of her pictures.

Here she in April 2006 when her baby brother was born. She was so excited to be a big sister!

And I had to put this one in, of her holding her brother for the first time. So darling!

This is another one of my all time favorite Jenni pictures. It just shows her personality so much! I think it was close to this time that we were in the car together and she told me that there were two Jenni's in the car--Aunt Jenni and Princess Jenni. She is a princess!

This is in October of 2006. We met at a restaurant for dinner, and Jan snapped this picture of Jenni sitting on my lap with her hands on my face. I love her! (did I mention that already? Well, I'm sure you'll hear it again).

This was at the family February birthday party, near her 4th birthday. Chelle had a little makeup session with her, with us all looking on, and she looked so darling.

This was in April of 2007, with cousin Brianna again. Jenni had short hair because she had cut a huge chunk out of her hair with the scissors. But it sure looks darling short!

I know, tons of pictures. I just couldn't choose between them. We're getting close to the end. This is Jenni with her little brother Joe-Joe. She loves him, and is so protective of him.

Here she is on Halloween of 2007. I love the splits. She really could be a cheerleader someday! She's cute enough, that's for sure. Of course, I'm biased...

Here she is on her first day of school in August 2008. She just looks to little to be going to school!

Okay, here's finally the last one. Here she is last Thanksgiving with four of her cousins--Sabrina, Lizzie, Kate, and Briana. They all have so much fun together.

I really could go on and on about Jennerbug, but it's late and I need to get to bed, and this post is probably already long enough. But I just have to say how grateful I am for my sweet little namesake. I never get to see enough of her, and always love it when she still runs pell mell to see me, and give me one of her signature hugs. I am so excited to see the sweet woman she will grow into. Thanks for being you, Jenni! Happy Birthday!

Update on Grandma

Just an update on Grandma. I've been there every day this week except for Monday. On Tuesday she was still talking quite a bit, and was so sweet. Jon and Dave came up to visit her, and she was so excited to see them and their kids. Then later I was sitting with her with my hand on her arm, and giving her ice chips when she asked for them. She took my hand in hers, and I said, "What can I do for you, Grandma?" She said, "I'm just saying thank you." She is such a good and gracious woman! What an example for me.

Yesterday I was there with Aunt Annette, and we were talking about when Annette was a child, and then when Annette met Mike and then got married, and Grandma was making comments and remembering things that had happened. Her mental acuity is just amazing. She was having a harder time talking though, and more trouble breathing.

I went and visited her this afternoon, and she slept the whole time. I don't know if she is less alert in the afternoon, but she could hardly wake up to talk to us. Jan and I really think the end is near. She is really laboring to breathe at times, and she isn't able to hardly see any more. Oh, I hope it is soon for her sake. It is so hard to see her getting weaker and weaker. Thankfully, she is not in much pain. Part of me wants to stay there all the time so that I can be with her until she goes, but we still don't know how long that will be yet. We did wake her up before we left, and kissed her and told her we loved her. She said very weakly that she loved us too. As I was walking out, I wondered if it is the last time I will see her in this life. It makes me sad to think that, and yet I hope that she isn't here much longer.

I have been having a lot of insights into the Plan of Salvation during this process. There is nothing like facing death to help you realize what life is all about. The other day I turned from my computer at work, and as often happens, caught sight of the Salt Lake Temple outside the window. I thought of Grandma, and suddenly realized anew that because Grandma and Grandpa were sealed in the temple (in that temple, actually), that they would truly be together forever as husband and wife. What a blessing to know that even though I am about to lose my Grandma here on earth, she will always be my Grandma, and I will see her again.

Then yesterday when I first got there, Aunt Eileen had a Tabernacle Choir CD playing in the background. Suddenly I heard the words:

When I leave this frail existence
When I lay this mortal by
Father, mother, may I meet you
In your royal courts on high...

It was so touching to be sitting by Grandma, who is about to depart from this world, and to hear those words. There really is meaning in all of the suffering that we must endure. I truly believe that it will all be made up to us when we go back home and meet our Father and Mother, and find the great things that they have prepared for us. It is just around the corner for my beloved Grandma!

Watch for Jenni's birthday post tomorrow!