Utah Trip!

]\Wes and I decided that we should take a trip before my Mat. Leave was up (Nov 1)....so, we decided to take a trip to Utah!...good timing, with conference just around the corner!  Olivia barely slept on the way down, but did SO GOOD! We took a few extra stops a long the way. What a little trooper she was!

Mary! I was so happy she was able to fit in a visit with us! I met Mary on my mission...she would come out with the Sister's a lot and ended up going on a mission herself. It was a great visit.

Emily was my 2nd-last companions on my mission! We had a lot of fun together and she was gracious enough to allow us to stay in her new home. It was fun hanging out and catching up.

Teaching Olivia about Emma and Joseph on Temple Square. I like how I'm pointing at one, and she's looking at the other. ha!

The Lion house...we ate lunch here.

An original accounting book used. If you look closely, you can see that Brigham Young purchased something for $9.00

Some of Brigham Young's (you can see his initials) original tools used to build the temple.

A letter Brigham Young wrote to his son.

Did you know Brigham Young created a new Alphabet? I had never known that! He did this as a way to help immigrants transfer from their first language to English. Pretty cool.

The room where the revelation regarding the Spirit World was received (recorded in D&C 138)

Olivia with her cousin, Morgan. I can't get over how grown up Olivia looks in this picture.

Taking a ride on the puppy!

Tracer is such a great fisher! He caught 3 in the few hours that we were there! So fun to see his enthusiasm...and skill!

Looking at a real fish for the first time. I can't remember if she actually touched it, but I don't think she did.

Eating her very first Oreo! She loved it!

 We had such a nice visit with Wendy Watson-Nelson. (that is who gave Olivia the oreo)

Beautiful backyard!

A visit to the pond with Adam and Brionna

This is a mural in one of the oldest chapels in Farmington.

Kisses from Daddy!

Olivia and her new friend, Kara.

Me and Marilee. I met Marilee when I moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma at the age of 13. Marillee, Rosalie (her twin), and I quickly became BFF's. So glad that we've kept in touch over the years!

Marilee and her mom, Tena. Tena invited us over for Cafe Rio.

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir

This is a view from our seat. Pretty close, considering the conference center seats 20,000 people.

We were so happy to be there!

Following a session...the First Presidency shaking the hands of the Apostles.

A view of the Conference Centre

Olivia trying to pass the time on the ride home.

This actually is from the way down...we stopped at the Idaho Falls temple...and, they had a Visitors' Centre.

Idaho Falls Temple.

A fountain on top of the Conference Centre (directly above the pulpit) representing the 4 corners of the earth.

Inside the Tabernacle

Here are Adam and Brionna...they also let us stay with them for a few days! (this is an old picture). And, the even watched Olivia ALL day on Sunday so Wes and I could attend both sessions of conference.

So, let me tell you something amazing. In between Sunday sessions, Wes and I were just enjoying being in the centre and watching General Authorities come out and mingle with other people. They were in a roped-off section that we were not in. We watched Elder D. Todd Christofferson (still behind the rope) shake hands of people two rows ahead of us. We were standing up at the time. Wes told me to go up to him. He is a General Authority, not a celebrity, so I didn't feel it was appropriate for me to bombard him. I just stood there. Then, Elder Christofferson crosses over the rope and approaches the row directly in front of us. After shaking a hand or two, he looks at me and Wes, shakes our hand, and asks, "Do you two know each other?" (sort of jokingly)...Wes told him we were married.  He moved on, and to my knowledge did not approach any one else in the row we were sitting (just the row in front of us).  So amazing.

There's more....a few minutes later when we were sitting back down I remembered something: the night before as I prayed, I had asked Heavenly Father if I could meet an Apostle. I asked Him only once, and didn't even think about it again....hmmm

Could you say that it was coincidence? I'm sure you could, however, I've said it before and I'll say it again: "Coincidence it God's way of remaining anonymous".  That specific tender mercy reminded me that Heavenly Father hears my prayers, and is aware of the desires of my heart....big or small. He knows me. If that experience never happened, I would still be OK and still have had an uplifting and edifying time at conference. But, it did happen...my Father in heaven heard my prayer and blessed us both with that experience. These "tender mercies" happen in each of our lives...we just need to recognize them.

I know that Heavenly Father is there, He is real, He loves us, He hears our prayers, He knows the desires of our hearts...

Our entire week was fun, educational, spiritual, and amazing in every way.  I can honestly say that we came back with an increased desire to be more kind, more loving, more patient, and more like our Savior. We are better people because of the experiences we had there, and the spirit we felt.