Precious Moments

I love children; I love spending time with them, learning from them and especially hearing the cute things they say.

Last week I had a couple of really cute children moments.

The first was when I went to dinner with some friends that I haven't seen for ahwile. They have two kids, a five year old boy and  a three year old girl and they were both so cute all night long. Even though it had been awhile since I had seen the kids, they soon warmed up to me and were talking to me, sitting on my lap, giving me hugs etc. So cute.

After dinner, we went to their house and put the kids to bed. The five year old boy said the prayer by himself and it was actually quite long and involved, and very sweet. Here is an excerpt:

"Thank you for the chapel because Jesus lives there, and please bless God, and please bless...(silence, then an aside to his Dad) what's her name again? Oh yeah, please bless Janice."

It was so cute. I couldn't help smiling during the prayer. I am sure Heavenly Father just loves these wonderful prayers from these little children. 

I asked  my friends afterward why he said, "Please bless God." They said that in his mind the Godhead has four members: Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, God and the Holy Ghost. So cute!

The other moment was with my sweet niece and nephew. My sister invited us over for dinner and after dinner, my niece Emma wanted to make cookies. I love making cookies with my nieces and nephews; we do it every time we have a sleepover at our house. It is so fun to have them help and see them get so excited about it (and of course to help them eat the cookies afterwards...)

So, we got the stools out for them to stand on and I proceeded to make cookies with my four year old niece and two year old nephew. All was going well until I pulled out the mixer to mix it. There was only one beater! I asked my sister where the other beater was and she said it had broken and they didn't want to buy another one because it still mixes just fine. (They are very frugal.  I need to be more like that.)

So, we started mixing the cookie dough with the one beater. Of course Emma had her hand on mine, Matthew had his hand on the mixer, and then Emma decided her pink dolphin needed to help as well.

So, I am trying to mix with one beater, two kids (and the dolphin of course) and feeling like I am doing a pretty good job considering the circumstances, with only a few little pieces of dough flying around onto the recipe book and counter. Then Emma, noticing that it was a little messier than usual says, "Janice, you are not a very good cookie maker..."

It was so cute. I couldn't help laughing! I love the perspective of children. Here are a few pictures:

The mixing process, right before Emma's comment. Notice the slightly concerned look on my face, the one beater, and of course, the pink dolphin.

Putting the chocolate chips in. Emma has the cutest look on her face in this picture! Matthew was helping put the chips in and of course, helping to eat a few chips as well.

Well, we had fun, but Dan made me take all but a few of the cookies with me so that they were not in his house tempting him.

So, I took them to work the next day and told my coworkers the story. Later, one of the girls asked me for the recipe.

I told her I wasn't sure if she really trusted my recipe, after all, I am not a very good cookie maker, and besides, she would have to get a pink dolphin...I am SURE that is why they turned out so good :).

You Never Know...

I worked a clinical shift on Monday. It was supposed to be a 12 hour shift but it ended up being 15 hours. I got there at 6:00 am and did not walk out until 9:00 pm.  I normally really enjoy my clinical shifts, even though the hours are long and even when it is busy, because I feel like I have made a difference and I love working with the darling little children.

But Monday was different. It was busy from the moment I walked in and it seemed like I couldn't keep up or do anything right. I felt like I was off all day long. Things that normally come easily for me were difficult. And on top of that it seemed like everything that could go wrong went wrong.

It was a very frustrating and stressful day. As I walked out the door that day, I was fairly discouraged. I knew I had not made a difference that day for anyone. I am sure part of the reason I was feeling that way was due to the fact that I was tired and hungry (it was so busy I had not stopped for lunch or dinner; I had a few snacks on the run, but I had not really eaten anything substantial.)

But even the next day, with sleep and food, I still felt bad about how the day had gone. I kept thinking about it and wondering what I could have done differently to help my patients more. Later, as I was telling my sister about my day; how so many things had gone wrong and how I felt like I had failed my patients, I thought of a talk by President Hinckley.

President Hinckley tells of a time he went to a stake conference that he felt did not go well at all. In fact on the way home he tells of feeling like he had not touched even one person for good. He then goes on to share an experience he had years later. I thought I would share an excerpt of his talk:

Then, some years later, I was at another conference in California. At the conclusion of the meeting a man came up to me and said, "You were at a conference a few years ago in such-and-such a place."


"Yes," I said, "I was there, and I remember the occasion."

The man said: "You touched my heart. I came to that meeting out of curiosity. I really had no interest. I was on the verge of leaving the Church. But when it was announced that one of the Twelve Apostles would be there, I decided to go.

"You said something that started me to think. It touched me and stayed with me and stirred me. I decided to alter my course. I turned my life around. I am now living here in California. I have a good job, for which I am grateful. I hope I am a good husband and father. And I am now serving as a counselor in the bishopric of my ward. I am happier than I have ever been at any time in my life."

I thanked him, and when I left him I said to myself, shaking my head: "You never know. You never know whether you do any good. You never know how much good you do." (Gordon B. Hinckley, "To the Women of the Church," Ensign, Nov. 2003, 113)

Isn't President Hinckley wonderful! The whole talk is very good, I will put a link here.

Well, yesterday I was working in the office and went in to see one of the patients I had cared for. That particular patient had a rough day on Monday and I did not feel like I was as available as I wanted to be. I apologized to the Mother that I was not more available that day and she suprised me by saying that she had appreciated my care.  At the end of our conversation she said, "Thanks again Janice."  I walked out of that room and I couldn't help thinking, like President Hinckley, "You never know..."

So, on difficult days or maybe even difficult weeks or months, I offer this experience and President Hinckley's words as a solace:

Now, my dear sisters, that is the way with you. You are doing the best you can, and that best results in good to yourself and to others. Do not nag yourself with a sense of failure. Get on your knees and ask for the blessings of the Lord; then stand on your feet and do what you are asked to do. Then leave the matter in the hands of the Lord. You will discover that you have accomplished something beyond price.

My Wonderful Parents

I spent a lot of time this weekend with my parents. It was my Mom's birthday on Friday, and so Jen and I spent time with her that night.  Then on Saturday, we went to dinner with both my parents and then went to their house and visited. It was so nice to be with them and afterward I was thinking about how much I love and respect them and how grateful I am for good parents.

They are not perfect, they made mistakes along the way in raising our family, but they taught us well, and I always knew they loved me. I always knew they were there to help me and they are still always there for me! Even now, I often call them for advice and counsel.  I treasure the Father's blessings I have recieved. I love that I have learned so much about the gospel from both of them.

The reason I am thinking so much about this today is that I had an interesting dream last night. In the dream, my youngest sister and I were together in a room when we realized that we were locked in. Just as I realized the door was locked, I heard my Father's voice on the stairs outside the room, and I was filled with relief. We knocked on the door and called out so that he would hear us and know that we were there. He opened the door and both my parents were there, and I knew everything would be all right. After I woke up, I thought about that dream and how grateful I am that I trust my Father and Mother so much and that I always know they are there to help me in difficult times.

Last week when I was there I went in for family prayer before I left.  Family prayer used to be much larger when I was younger, but that night it was just me and my parents. My Dad said the prayer and it was so good. As I listened to him pray for each family member, I thought of how glad I was to be there for that moment, and how someday when they were gone, I would treasure these kinds of memories.

I am grateful for them; for all they have done and continue to do. Thanks Dad and Mom!

Beauty in Every Season

My very favorite season is spring. I love the first green on the trees, the beautiful spring flowers and the warmer days.  In fact, at this time of year I always long for spring.  After spring my favorite season is fall, then summer and last of all winter.

That said, I have been enjoying this winter more than normal. There have been some very beautiful moments (and not a lot of snowy roads, the thing I dislike the most about winter.) I wanted to share some of those beautiful moments we caught on camera last week. Jen actually took the photos, but she has been busy with a big journal project and has not been blogging lately, so I thought I would post them.

Jen and I were driving home one night last week after a snowstorm. It was late and the storm had passed, and it was the most beautiful night. Everything was just so peaceful and covered in white. We kept commenting on how beautiful it was as we drove. When we got to our condo, we decided to take some pictures of the trees.  We were amazed at how the snow had outlined every branch in exquisite detail!

The next morning, it was still just as beautiful, so we took a few more pictures. I love the row of trees, all perfectly outlined!

I have been thinking of this as an analogy to life. Even in the darkest seasons of my life, there are beautiful moments to be found.

I love the beautiful earth that we have been given!