A Winter Day

Today is a big day for the Melissa Ward.  We are having our open house for the new chapel (yeah for not having to drive a half hour to church anymore!)  and we had a float entry in the Melissa Christmas Parade.  Surprisingly, we were the only church with an entry and the only one with anything having to do with Christ on it.  Some of the seminary kids were Mary and Joseph and they asked my in-laws to be a modern family gathering their family together for the holidays (the theme was "Home for the Holidays" though no one else's entry seemed to have taken note of that fact).  At any rate, they asked us to also be part of the float, as well as another family who looks like they could be Lewis's.  So I made Ellie a hat last night so she would be warm.  Here she is all ready to go!

Well, it got pretty windy and just too cold for Ellie, however seriously bundled she was.  So Ellie and I watched the 15 minute long parade and then waited in the car for Ben. 

She was completely worn out by the time we got home.  Don't worry, I picked up candy in her stead...yum!

Ellie, Conference, and the love of God

I haven't always loved listening to General Conference, in fact,  I didn't really "get into it" until I was in college.  But now I love it.  This October session was no exception.  I may have spent a lot of it rocking Ellie, but it was absolutely worth it.  In fact, having a child now gave additional meaning to my Conference experience.  I just want to share one example.

Elder Callister gave a wonderful talk on the restoration of the gospel, specifically about the truths restored about God and Christ in the First Vision.  One point he elaborated on was that God the Father and Jesus Christ are two seperate beings.  He explained how this is confirmed in the Bible and in the life of Christ.  Christ submitted his will to the Father's will, the ultimate example of obedience for us to follow, in taking upon himself the sins of the world.  And we are taught that "God so loved the world that he gave his Only Begotten Son."  If God and Christ were the same being, he would simply be offering up himself.  This really made me think. 

We all agree that it is a truly awesome thing for someone to give up their life for another.  But I think I better understand now, as a mother, what it must have been for God to sacrifice his Son.  I know that I would give up my own life for Eleanor, without hesitation.  But I don't know if I could do as Abraham was commanded, and offer her up for a sacrifice for others.  The thought breaks my heart.  How much then must God love each of us as his children to be willing to let Jesus suffer and die for our sins.  I know he did, and was resurrected because of his perfect obedience to the will of the Father, his perfect sacrifice for us.

I guess I had just never thought of the Atonement in this light.  I know that I will never be able to fully comprehend God and Christ's love for me in this life, but I see a small part of that now as a mother.  What a great blessing from my Heavenly Father to have the opportunity to be a mother and experience a fraction of what He feels for me.  And for that I am eternally grateful.

*I just thought this was too funny.  We packed a picnic and stayed in between sessions on both Saturday and Sunday.  It was rainy on Sunday, so we ate in a classroom off of the foyer, and Ellie took a little nap on the picnic blanket we brought.  Now if only she had napped more during conference.

A Good Story and a Sad Story

Which one do you want to hear first?  I'll save the best for last.

A Sad Story
Ellie had a doctor's appointment on Monday.  She's just a few days shy of 3 months and she was "supposed" to start immunizations at 2, but whatever.  I scheduled the appointment for 9, since usually she eats at 7, plays a little, then naps and then is ready to eat again at 10.  Silly Summer, of course the doctor's office is going to be running behind, I just didn't count on how much.  Here's how it all went down (with a little venting about mixing sick and healthy kids).
We arrived at 8:50 and there were two entrances-one for sick kids and one for healthy kids.  When I got inside, I noticed the lobby nicely divided by a wall, with a walk through by the window for check-ins.  There was a window on the sick side and the well side, but only the sick side was opening.  Initially irratating, but not a huge deal.  I got paperwork and sat down.  Ellie had woken up, but wasn't fussing too much so I let her be.  When I took the paperwork back, I got more paperwork (hurray), but Ellie was unhappy about staying in the carseat and clearly having her nap cut short.  So I worked on my one handed writing and baby juggling skills.  But I was starting to get irritated at the wait.  By now it was 9:30, and I had overheard that one of the doctor's was a half hour late, so they were behind.  Splendid.  At 9:45, Ellie would wait no longer, so I whipped out my nursing cover and she went at it.  As I was nursing I noticed that more and more sick kids were spilling into the well child area.  The lady sitting across from me saw a friend of hers and invited her to come sit by her, which meant that her son was sitting next to me.  Not a big deal till the mom said "Yeah, my daughter has been sick and then my son woke up with a fever this morning."  WHAT!  Why are you letting your feverish son sit next to a nursing mother, whose baby is perfectly healthy!  The flu season has started pretty early here in the Dallas area, and that is the last thing I need!  I fumed.  Then the nurse called us back at a little after 10. 
But Ellie is doing great.  She weights 12.5 lbs and is almost 24 inches long.  She's definitely putting more effort into growing tall than into getting chubby.  It's funny because a lot of her 0-3 month onsies are big enough, but not long enough for her anymore.  She was having fun at the doctor's until the nurse came into to do immunizations.  I thought Ellie had cried hard at her two week checkup with the PKU heel poke.  I was sorely mistaken.  The nurse was great, and very quick, but Ellie got a shot in each leg and was not happy.  I held her little hands and arms on her chest while the nurse did, and boy did she wail.  I almost feel bad at how cute I think she is when she cries.  I might as well enjoy it now, because I know toddlers aren't very cute throwing a tantrum.  The nice thing is, she took excellent naps all the rest of the day. 

A Good Story
It was General Conference weekend!  We watched all four sessions at our ward meetinghouse in Mckinney and thoroughly enjoyed it.  I particularly liked President Uchtdorf's talk on the love of God and Elder Holland's testimony of the gospel.  I also really enjoyed Elder Callister's talk, and it gave some new insight into the gospel truths restored that I hadn't really thought about.  But more on that in a later post (mostly cause Ellie is going to wake up any minute now).  Here is the cool story:
On Sunday morning a very short woman and her two sons walked into the chapel just a few minutes after Ben and I.  The brother that was in charge of the building greeted them and they sat down and conference started just a few minutes later.  There weren't very many people at our chapel, but it was also being broadcast to the stake center, and I think a lot of people get BYUTV and watched it at home.  Anyway, when it was all over the brother introduced himself again to the woman and asked her name, which was Arlene.  I was standing in the backe rocking Ellie and overheard the whole thing.  She commented how she remembered this church being built (it's a faily new chapel), so she and her sons decided to come here today.  The brother explained that this is a very different meeting than what normally happens and how wonderful it was that she could come.  Then asked if he could introduce her to the missionaries, who taught people a little bit more about the church. She agreed, met the elders, chatted with them and they set up a time to come visit them.  Ben and I grinned at each other the entire time because we both knew what was happening inside the elders' heads.  Then the family left, and the missionaries looked a little shocked at what had just happened.  The one turned to the other and said, "She said she lived by Walmart, right?"  "Yes."  He pumped his arm and said "YES!"  I laughed and said how wonderful it was to have someone just show up for church and I wished it had happened to me.  He asked if I had served a mission, and I replied that I had.  He said "Do you know how golden that is, to have someone show up like that, and for conference?!"  We were really excited for the elders, but even more so for the family. They had just picked a church to come to that day and happened to stumble in on the one day when the prophet of God was addressing the entire church.  It was awesome. I pray that they come to experience the same comfort and joy I feel from having the restored gospel. 

A Sabbath worthy post

I just laid little Ellie down to sleep, and Ben is taking a nap too (and so will I once I'm done here). Looking at my two favorite people sleeping away filled me with gratitude for the gospel, especially that I know that our families can be together forever as part of God's great plan of happiness for us, and how thankful I am for the Atonement of Jesus Christ that makes it all possible through repentance and his grace. So here I am expressing it. Enjoy.
Today I was nursing Ellie at church while the ward after us was having sacrament meeting and it was playing in the mother's lounge. I listened as a sister spoke about how her family was finally sealed together after each of the brothers and sisters had been married and sealed to their spouses. Just 10 days after the big family sealing, one of the brothers was killed instantly in a car accident. Obviously they were incredibly grateful for the powers of the priesthood that had sealed them together from time and eternity.
Even more interesting to me was that a few months later the mother decided to join a support group for parents who had lost children. She found a non-denominational group that specified that people shouldn't preach or discuss their own religious beliefs. She sat in shock listening to people whose children had died years, even decades ago, and they still hadn't pulled their lives back together. She desperately wanted to share her knowledge about God's plan of salvation, but was prohibited, and realized that she didn't really need a support group, that she had the best support possible through the gospel and the Atonement. All I can say to that is AMEN!
I remember one oft he two arguments I ever got into with an elder on my mission. He wanted us to set a date with a less-active woman's children for baptism. We had talked to the mom, and she wanted her children to have their own testimonies. I agree. The elder said (in essence), "C'mon. What kid really has a testimony that young." My reply was "I did. I knew when I was three." He looked at me in disbelief, but it's true. Now, I certainly didn't know everything, but I felt that it was true, and I remember that. My sister Sierra had died and my parents, being the wonderful people they are, taught us about the resurrection and that our family could be eternal. I knew it was true then, and I know it now. I have never doubted because of the teaching and example of my parents, and because of my own experiences in living and studying the gospel, in applying the Atonement in my own life and seeing it work.
I know God is our loving Heavenly Father, with infinite wisdom and love for us, his spirit children. I know he sent his Son to live a perfect example, to suffer for our sins, die for us, and be resurrected that we might enjoy the blessings of exaltation and eternal life. I know the priesthood and the fullness of the gospel were restored through God's prophet, Joseph Smith, and that he still has a prophet on the earth today, who teaches us and is directed by God. I know I am a daughter of God, with limitless potential and a divine calling.
It's kind of intimidating sometimes, to think about the enormous responsibility of being a mother; it's physical, emotional, and spiritual work. But then I remember that Heavenly Father is her Father too, and he has more vested interest in her well-being, and that I can turn to him for any kind of help. It's humbling. And awe inspiring. I love it.

Eleanor's Blessing

I just laid Ellie down to sleep after a few hours of fussing. And there is no better way to deal with the frustration of that than by remembering why I love her so much. So, here is to Ellie, in all her fussy, adorable glory...(being held by her Grandpa Brown)
We blessed Ellie on our last day in the Provo 4th ward-really our last day in Provo period. (as a sidenote, after living there for nearly 8 years, it is really strange to leave. I lived there longer than I ever lived in Pahrump, though not as long as Panaca). Because my Aunt Lisa got married the day before (yeah!), a lot of my Konold relatives were in town for the blessing. A tradition has developed in my family with the middle name Lee. My Grandma, Sunny Lee Konold was the oldest girl in her family. The middle name Lee was taken from her Grandmother Emma Lee. Liking the middle name of Lee, Sunny Lee named her oldest daughter Diane Lee Konold who named her first Daughter Summer Lee Brown (that's me), so I thought I would keep the tradition alive and name my first daughter Eleanor Lee Lewis. Below is the four generation of "Lee Girls" Sunny Lee, Summer Lee, Eleanor Lee, Diane Lee.

I had just finished nursing before we took pictures, and she wasn't too happy that she didn't get her normal rocking to sleep. Oh well, grin and bear it.
Don and Deon had driven their truck up from Texas to help us move down there. Here is a picture of them with Ben, Eleanor and I. It was wonderful to have family there for this special day. And my best friend Tiffanie came with her niece, Holly, who was in town for EFY.

The Things We Do On Faith

Eleanor is only 3 weeks old and so much has happened in that time! Ben flew to Texas for some job interviews July 25-28, leaving me at home with a two week old alone. It was good for me though, because I became a lot more confident in taking Ellie out of the house. Thank goodness for my wonderful cousin Crystal who let me spend a lot of time at her house.
While Ben was interviewing in Texas he discovered that most of the ews teacher trainings would begin August 5, just a week away! So we prayed and decided to pack up and move to Texas August 3. Ben's parents drove up their truck and we rented a trailer and packed them and our Corolla to the brim. To give you an idea of the insanity of last week, here's what our schedule was:
Tuesday July 28: Pick up Ben from the airport (I had to nurse Ellie in the Park & Wait and Ben walked to us. It was an adventure)
Wednesday: Ben's parents, Don and Deon, drive all day/night from Texas and arrive...
Thursday: We start packing, and get a lot of it done with Don and Deon's help. A farewell dinner at Olive Garden with Crystal and Aaron King (my awesome cousin). We even tried to go see Harry Potter 6, but Ellie only made it half way through before she was throwing a fit. I forgot how deafening movie theatres are.
Friday: More packing. Dinner in Sandy with Ben's grandfather, parents, and aunt and uncle who were in town also.
Saturday, August 1: (here's where it really goes nuts) I go to my Aunt Lisa's sealing at the Provo Temple (which was a beautiful occassion) at 11:30, and then Ben brings Ellie up afterward for pictures. Then we race back home to make sure we are set for loading up the trailer. Don and Deon arrive with the truck and trailer at about 2, along with some men from our ward who tackle the herculean task of loading all our stuff into such a small space. It was like a bad jigsaw puzzle, but they did it! At about 5:30 we head over to my Aunt Rachel's house for the reception. I discover that very rich chocolate cheesecake doesn't really agree with Ellie. Nor is she up for sleeping in strange places (namely my cousin's crib). But the reception was wonderful and was a great opportunity for spending time with my Konold relatives before we left.
Sunday: Eleanor's blessing. Surprisingly, she was the only baby blessed this week (our ward is notorious for 2 or 3 blessings every fast Sunday). She was cute adorable in her dress and Deon gave her some very cute socks and shoes. But more on that later...
After the blessing we went back to our house, and I loaded up my stuff with my parents to drive down to Vegas. And Ben and his parents loaded up the rest of our stuff and drove up to Sandy. They will drive back to Texas and I'll fly in on Wednesday. It's sad to be apart again, but we know it's short term!

So here is the faith aspect, we still don't have a job. But we feel that this is the right move to make. Things have fallen into place, and though the Lord hasn't let us in on the whole plan yet, we are certain that He won't leave us high and dry. I know each one of us are His children and he looks out for us. He may lead us in directions that we didn't expect, but as long as we follow faithfully, He will guide our steps.