Day 151 of 2014

I am grateful that I am married to a man who is not bothered by blood or vomit. I have been blessed many a times because he is here to clean up after our children when my head and tummy can't be in the room. The Lord knew exactly what I needed in a husband and gave it to me. Win-win.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 150 of 2014

Technical difficulties. This should have been posted last night. Sorry!

As I was typing out some more blessings I got from the church office today I just flew thru them and got them done very fast. As I went to read them to RJ so he could check to make sure I got everything typed right I kinda struggled thru them. That's when a truth came to my heart. The Lord has been helping me go thru these blessings and type them out. He has been helping me to understand the cursive and language used over a hundred years ago. He was granting me my own urim and thumim. That realization was awesome and a testimony to me that what I am doing is important. A tender mercy that I will cherish and I have faith will continue as I search for even more ancestors to find.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 149 of 2014

I love water. As I have come to appreciate and love jogging I love water even more. Such a very simple thing to be grateful for but I am. I am also grateful the Lord has let me be born in this time when we have clean, cool water whenever we want just by turning on our tap. This is such a miracle if you think about it. The thoughts and ideas and years of different ways of getting water and now we have it so easy. I am very grateful.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 148 of 2014

I have a healthy body that can jog 4 miles a day. That is a great blessing and a tender mercy from the Lord.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 147 of 2014

Today I am grateful for a wonderful and very capable husband. The days are getting hotter and today he got the swamp cooler up and running. Our house feels so much better now. So my post is two fold today- living in a time with A/C to cool off and having a husband who can make those gadgets work and stay working. The Lord has blessed my life with so many little comforts and great people. I truly am spoiled.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 146 of 2014

I am so grateful the Lord has blessed me to live in a free country, with so many valiant men and women who are willing to fight for their families and friends and even strangers like me. Thank you to all the troops, veterans and their families!

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 145 of 2014

Today at church a gentleman was sitting in front of us. He was a little worn looking and he had a heavy accent. Not one that the world would put high esteem on. When we first sat down he had a big smile for each of my children. He talked to each individually and when he spoke you could feel his soft, sweet spirit. He didn't worry about what others thought of him but he wanted the kids to know he thought they were great. He also talked to my sister in law, who has Down syndrome. He spoke softly to her and got her to smile. What a gentle soul. I am grateful the Lord had him sit in front of us today. I am grateful he talked to us and we got to feel of his kindness. The Lord loves all His children and He sent one of His children to encourage and brighten my children.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 144 of 2014

Good friends are priceless. I am grateful the Lord has blessed our family with many good friends. We had a firepit tonight and had some great friends over, who are awesome. It was a great night. Life is better with good friends.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 143 of 2014

I am so grateful for my family. RJ and I were talking and even though our kids drive us nuts sometimes, they are good kids. They love people, they love their family, they love to spend time with their family, they help out at home, they are wonderful with those who have special needs. They are great kids. I would say its because they have a great dad but I am a little bias. I have a great husband who loves his family with all he has and does his level best and beyond to take care of us. I think the kids are learning from his great example. If they turn out half as respectful and full of love as him then I will feel we did alright. But, getting back to how this is a blessing from the Lord - I know we did not begin to be a person when we were born on earth. We lived in Heaven and we had distinct personalities and we knew each other. I can't take credit for my kids being good kids too much because I believe they are valiant spirits and they were good there. I am grateful the Lord sent me such beautiful loving children, even when they act like toads. I truly am blessed with a great family and the very best for me.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 142 of 2014

I am not sick today because of a blessing that I received last night. I am very grateful that I did not get the illness I was blessed against today. I had symptoms of the stomach flu coming on but after the blessing and a good nights sleep I am in good shape. Priesthood power is real and thriving today. I know it.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 141 of 2014

I read back thru the Psalm of Nephi (2Nephi 4:15-end of chapter). It holds special meaning for me. I felt an out pouring of love from my Savior and I just know He loves me and all His children. He accepts you and all your faults as long as you are trying to do better. He is always there to help and lift and love.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 140 of 2014

So, to make your head spin a bit, ever feel prompted to pray for something in the morning and then find you really needed it more than you had imagined? I think it is so mind blowing that the Lord prompts you to ask Him for something He knows you will need so He can give it to you when you need it when you did not know you would need it. Example- today when I said my morning prayers I thought to pray for not only patience but to be calm with my children. This is in the morning and I have not really even got a feel for the day yet. I just felt prompted to ask for that. So today goes nothing like I had planned and the kids all find the most amusement in bothering each other. I was given patience and a sense of calm (not perfect, I am human but my voice was raised less than usual :) and I made it thru the day and the most important, so did my children. We even ended the day snuggled on the couch listening to scriptures and daddy played tickle monster and chased 3 screaming children around the house. Today could have been a lot worse if I had not prayed for a sense of calm. I am so grateful the Lord told me before hand what I would need so I could ask for it.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 139 of 2014

I am so very blessed to have a worthy priesthood holder in my home. I can have him give a blessing whenever one is needed. Tonight our third is running a fever and just generally looks like she feels crummy. She automatically knows that daddy can give her a blessing and that will make her feel better. She has that sweet testimony of the power of the priesthood at 3 years old. I am grateful the Lord has given my husband this power and has blessed us with such a good daddy.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 138 of 2014

What is one thing that gets stronger each time you give it away? Your testimony. I am so grateful that I have so many opportunities in my own little way to give my testimony to others. Whether they receive it or not is their choice but I love to give it. The Lord gives me so many opportunities, granted I probably miss some because of distractions but, I am grateful. Having a religious discussion tonight with RJ was wonderful and I am grateful the Lord granted us that time together. I think it is so important to bare testimony to your loved ones and not just those investigating. I love to hear RJ give testimony and teach and I hope he feels the same of me. The Lord made us such a great pair and I am very blessed. Blessed for my testimony, blessed for my awesome husband, blessed of  have the Gospel in my life, blessed to be happy and know I am loved. Truly blessed.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 137 of 2014

Today my brother-in-law and his brother-in-laws came and did us a huge favor. We had some stumps ripped up in our front yard (courtesy of our cousin's company, at the insistence of my sweet father-in-law) and they have been laying there, in the way, for two weeks because we no longer have access to a trailer to haul them away. So I was very pleased when Andrew and his two brother-in-laws offered to bring a truck and take them for us. They helped RJ load them up and took two trips to get all the stumps to the dump. It was very kind of them. I am so grateful that I was blessed with a great family when I married RJ. Whether Andrew felt prompted or not, I see it as a blessing from my Father. I am also grateful that those young men (I can say that as they were all younger than me :) took time out of their day to help a sibling. It meant a lot.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 136 of 2014

Today I got to go to a mother-daughter with my oldest. The girls were supposed to share a story about someone in their family. Sariah was the only girl who did it all by herself. She told of when her great grandma went to the temple to be sealed to our family. Grandma got to go through just over a year and half before she died. As I heard my little girl tell of us being sealed together and being a forever family, my heart was so touched. That's what life is about. Family. I am so grateful the Lord made families to be together forever and that my daughter understands that and finds comfort in it. I am grateful my daughter picked that story to share. I am grateful the Lord made it possible for us to go together tonight. I love my daughter and I am grateful for the journey we have together.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 135 of 2014

Today I went on a Teddy Bear Picnic with my son's kindergarten class. I can honestly say I had a great time. First we went to a farm, which I knew the farmers, and then to the park. The kids all behaved great and I really loved watching them be kids. The Lord reminded me today how much kids need to be kids and be loud and run and explore. We are trying to make our kids grow up too fast. I was grateful to watch them play. One little girl got to see the difference between a cow and a horse. Kids need that. They need to be able to see things first hand and touch. It was great. I loved it and I am so grateful that the Lord helped make it possible for me to go.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 134 of 2014

I am grateful for a loving doctor for my children. As I took my youngest for her check up today I was just reminded how much he cares about my family and about how good he is to us. Our doctor is not only our doctor but I consider him a friend. He offered to let me take his black powder rifle and shoot it :) The Lord blessed us with a good doctor, one who is also of the same religion as us. This fact alone has made me many times more comfortable with some topics. We are very blessed to have him. I know the Lord directed our family to him. I am very grateful.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 133 of 2014

As I was reading the Book of Mormon today a verse struck me- "Wo be unto him that shall say: We have received the word of God, and we need no more of the word of God, for we have enough!" (2 Nephi 28:29) I have never understood why anyone would think this. I love that we have so many books of scripture and we also have conference, where we get to hear our prophets and apostles speak every 6 months. I love hearing the voice of the Lord. So today I am grateful that I have access to so much of the Lord's word. I can even carry it with me everywhere on my phone. I am so blessed to be born in this time.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 132 of 2014

Today is a lesson learned post. The Lord taught me a very valuable lesson today I hope I hang on to. I did something really dumb. If you have followed my blog and if you know me personally, you know I am a very big picture/family video/memories and family history person. Not the family tree charts but the personality and life of family. I take pictures and video constantly at family things and with my children especially. I have a seperate hard drive that I back all this up to once a month so if something happens to my computer than I still have the majority of my families memories preserved. As I was backing up said hard drive (which has not been done in two months instead of one) I was not paying super close attention and instead of erasing the family video file on my portable hard drive I erased it off the computer hard drive. Yes, two months of video I had taken- gone. My youngest's 1st birthday was not backed up. My brother's 35th surprise party was not backed up. My husband's 30th and son's 6th birthday was not backed up. See some of the gems I erased with one click? So after I do this and realize my mistake, I immediately pray that I can get them back. I got a feeling of peace. Everything was going to be okay. So I assume that that means I will be able to get them back. I calm down and breathe. I let my husband know. I search the computer all over to try and recover the file. I can't find it. As I am frantically looking I still get a peaceful feeling. So I do all I can and leave it for my husband and think he or maybe my cousin can recover them. As the day went on was when the Lord started teaching me. Little bit by little bit He was showing me why it was okay if I did not recover the file. First, I still had the old file on the portable hard drive so I was only missing the last two months. Second, these moments of video I had also taken pictures of so we still had a physical reminder of the event to form a memory from to reminisce. Third, there are a lot of families who are not as blessed as we are to have the videos we have and to be able to watch them. We still have a treasure trove of videos to watch. So, line upon line, bit by bit, I was being taught. The Lord was answering my prayer but not anywhere near what I thought it should be. The peace meant I was going to get my stuff back, right? That's what my narrow sighted mind thought. The Lord works on a higher level and wanted me to appreciate more what I had and to realize something like this does not end the world. Life goes on and it is still good. He did not fix the problem, He fixed me. I am grateful that He helped me to see the bigger picture.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 131 of 2014

Today is an easy one. The Lord blessed me with such wonderful women and examples in my life. Today I got to celebrate them. My mother, who should not even be with me today accept through faith and prayers and the power of the priesthood the Lord let me keep her a little longer. I would be lost without her support. My mother-in-law, who has taken me in as a true daughter and made me feel loved. My Mimi, who is a saint. I am grateful for her wisdom and strength. My sisters-in-laws,  it took a while for me to get some sisters but the Lord finally let me have some. All these women have helped to shape me and to strengthen me. Women are powerful and today we celebrate their strength and their love. I am also very grateful to know I have a Mother in Heaven and today we celebrate her too. I know the Lord loves and cherishes women. I know He blessed me with great ones to share my journey with. I love them all.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 130 of 2014

Today I woke up not happy at all. I had not slept well, I had a migraine and I did not want to return to civilization but I did (major inner battle). I knew it was not fair to take out my mood on my family. I had already warned RJ to stay away for a bit while I woke myself up. I prayed. I told the Lord I did not want to end my camping trip this way. I told Him it was really unfair to RJ, as he had done nothing wrong. I also told Him I just hated being ornery and I did not like the way it ruled my mood. Did I immediately brighten and start singing? No. It took a few minutes of the Lord making sure I was serious but after a while I could tell the Lord was helping me to let go of the negative and see the positive. My day has gone smoother than it would have other wise and I am grateful the Lord answers prayers.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 129 of 2014

Today I am grateful for nature. I am in the mountains and I love the smells and the view. I am grateful the Lord loves His children enough to give them such beauty. Blows me away every time. I love the mountains. I love nature. I love the Lord.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 128 of 2014

Today I got two more blessings from my dad's side of the family. I am so grateful to a loving Father who gave the inspiration for the blessings to be done and then who gives each individual a little roadmap of their life. I am just speechless sometimes to read these and see the blessings and just feel the spirit whisper to me that these people fulfilled and are still fulfilling what I read. Yes, I cry sometimes :) It is such a joy. I highly recommend getting your ancestors blessings if they were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and reading their promises. You won't regret it.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 127 of 2014

Babies are great. I really recommend them. I am on my fourth, so I can speak from experience. If you want to feel just a touch of the unconditional love you will get in heaven, hang out with a baby. Granted, said baby must know and like you :) They have a way of loving you and trusting you that makes you want to be the person they think you are. I am so grateful that I get to experience such love, that the Lord trusts me with His own children. He has made my baby so sweet and gentle. She is so mellow. As she kept hugging me and putting her head in my lap today I thought of how blessed I am. The Lord loves me and I know that because He not only sent His Only Begotten but He sent me some of His children to have in my daily life to love and that love me. That is awesome.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 126 of 2014

Today I got to turn negatives into pictures with my scanner and iPad. I know the Lord prompted me to follow a link to a YouTube video that showed me. My treasure from this hunt are pictures of my dad's family I have never seen before and, quite possibly, neither has he. Family history is very important and for me, my passion lies in the pictures and memories of our ancestors. I am addicted to pictures and stories. I am so grateful that the Lord put these negatives in my hands and gave me the technology to make them pictures for me and my family.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 125 of 2014

I got to run! After not being able to for over a week I NEEDED my time to run off some steam. I love to run. My body may not look it but it feels the need to move all the time and running is the way it likes to express that. And karate but we won't go into that here as it .... Never mind. So, the Lord, I know, made it possible for me to get on the treadmill and pound out my recovery. I loved it! I love the Lord for giving me an outlet and for the ability to move. Some we not as blessed with a healthy body. I truly am spoiled.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 124 of 2014

I love to go to church. I love the ordinance of the sacrament. I am so grateful for the opportunity to repent of my sins, have the slate wiped clean and get to try again the next week. The Lord is full of grace and mercy and I am grateful He shares that with me. Today I got to partake of the sacrament and again renew my resolve to always remember Him.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 123 of 2014

I am on a patriarchal blessing kick. I think it is so great you can request you ancestors blessings and read them. Of course, you don't show them to anyone but family and hold them sacred. They did come from the Lord. But to read their blessings and see that they came to pass, to see the great things they were promised, it is AWESOME! You get to know them and you get to see a part of their lives that most don't see. It has been such a spiritual experience for me to read them and get to know my ancestors and my husbands ancestors. Today I got one for my great grandpa. We have a history of his family so I got to go back through that and see what was happening in his life when he got it and to see what happened after. I teared up at how awesome it was. I am so grateful the Lord gave me the opportunity to have this experience today.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 122 of 2014

I had one of those nights tonight where you just know there is a God taking care of His children. My in laws invited us over for a barbecue and it was very pleasant. The night was perfect outside. Not too hot or cold. The air was sweet and the colors so vibrant everywhere. We had such a great night and I know it would not have been possible if it were not for a loving Father that gave us such a beautiful world and such beautiful people to share it with.

God Loves You!

Heather

Day 121 of 2014

My oldest has a teacher who cares about her as a person not just as student. This teacher called me today to discuss a matter that has nothing to do with teaching and has to do with a situation with one of my oldest's friends. This has been very upsetting to my oldest. Her teacher has been so kind and thoughtful and has sacrificed her own time to help these two girls. I am so grateful that the Lord put her in that class with such a kind teacher. I am grateful the Lord provided us with a teacher we could work with. It has been great. The Lord knows my little girl and placed her where she needed to be.

God Loves You!

Heather