Biannual Boost

Last weekend we drove to Utah to stay with Brat (Britt and Pat's celebrity name) and see Ashley! She planned a mid-semester vacation and came out all the way from Georgia. We also spent time with the Terry family!

Saturday morning we soaked in the first session of General Conference LIVE!
I love this bi-annual spiritual recharge! I feel like our testimonies can continually grow from personal study and nurturing our relationship with the Lord, but it also helps to have an external boost. What better way to grow spiritually than praising our Father and Savior through music and listening to inspired leaders?

Here are my favorite highlights from GC:

1. President Monson wasn't sitting up on the stand when conference began so I wasn't expecting to see him during the first session. Then out of the blue, he popped up at the pulpit and said "Hello!" It just caught me off-guard. He's always making me laugh and I love hearing his testimony.

2. Finding out about the new temples! Especially Paris, the Congo and the new Provo Tabernacle temple. Brad and I went to church a few times in the old Provo Tabernacle! Last winter, the building caught on fire and was almost destroyed. You can see what the new temple will look like and read a miracle story about the Tabernacle here.

3. President Eyring's talk. I was touched hearing about the commencement speech he gave at a university (not sure which one.) When the ceremony director realized that as an apostle for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints his calling and purpose is to witness of Jesus Christ, she called him and said that he "wouldn't be able to perform his duty during the commencement speech." In an effort to respect all beliefs, including students who didn't believe in a Savior, the director didn't want Pres. Eyring to speak of Christ. He was so emotional about not being able to talk about our Savior during his speech. He cried as he shared this experience. Although he didn't blatantly bear his testimony during his commencement speech, he spoke of serving and humanitarian work and quickly (but respectfully) referenced that was how Jesus lived his life.






To counteract the spiritual side of the weekend, we also enjoyed ourselves (is that the right word, sis?) at a haunted house. The Haunted Forest in American Fork is by far the BEST I've ever been to. We spent over an hour screaming and sprinting our way through the dark, foresty trail.

Oh, and here's our Halloween costume reveal: We're going to be....Asian tourists! (Just because I feel the need to: I love Asians.) Half of my family is Asian. We just saw several fellow cruise-goers with giant cameras and Hello Kitty shirts and thought that it would be a fun costume idea!