The Adventures of Broads at the Broadcasts: Part 2

(Part 1 is below, so you may want to read that before this one.)

Sunday morning started early. Most of the girls had not slept very well. They stayed at a friend's house and had to leave there around 7:15 to get to their next destination on time. You see, Cassie is a member of the Orchestra at Temple Square and had to be at rehersal early that morning. While she was in rehersal, the other three walked around Temple Square and took pictures. Below are some of the pictures they took.







Reflecting at the Reflecting Pond



The next step was going to the Mormon Taberbacle Broadcast to see Cassie perform. It was an amazing experience and the spirit was there so strong. The pictures below may be a little fuzzy.



After the broadcast, the girls returned home and made it back in time for church on Sunday afternoon. They had a fun and exciting weekend!

The Adventures of Broads at the Broadcasts: Part 1

Once upon a time there were four girls who got tickets to the General Relief Society Broadcast. Their names are Andrea, Cassie, Stacey and Whitney. They decided to make a fun weekend of it. The adventure started on the drive to Salt Lake for the broadcast. It took a while to get out of town because important things were left and forgotten. Once they got on the road, the trip to Salt Lake was uneventful. It was full of good conversation and fun.
The girls arrived at made it to the conference center with enough time, even though they were running a little late. Another girl met up with them for the broadcast. It was amazing being in the broadcast. Whitney enjoyed watching it in person because the strongest sermons were taught by actions. Before Sister Thompson spoke, Sister Beck reached over and patted her leg will a warm and reassuring smile. She watched and President Uchtdorf did the same thing before President Monson spoke.
There were many great sermons shared during the broadcast. President Monson told a story about a woman who judged her neighbor because her laundry was never cleaned the right way. One morning she looked at her neighbor's laundry and saw that it was clean. Her husband told her that he had finally cleaned the windows and that was why the laundry appeared clean. It was a great lesson on judging.
After the broadcast, the girls left the conference center and decided to find somewhere to eat before going to the place they were going to stay. They ended up getting to know the area they were staying really well. In other words, they went up and down streets and turning around, trying to find certain places. It was great.
There were numerous other adventures had that night. These include "milking cow videos", cats trying to jump up on beds and keep them awake, and staying up late talking with random stories being shared.
The girls tried to sleep that night and prepare for the next day.

Let's Brainstorm

Welcome to our brainstorming session. I hope you all brought some fabulous thoughts. This is going to be like those kinds of exercises you used to have in school or church activities where you are presented with a problem and you have to work together to find a solution. Are you ready??? Here we go.

There once was a girl. She had never been a good sleeper. She cannot takes naps, it has to be dark when she sleeps, and many others things like that. This girl has been struggling getting a good night sleep for a while now. Recently her sleeping situation has gotten worse. There was one night where she did not get any sleep at all. Another night, she was unable to get to sleep until 4, and one night she even tried sleeping in her car (YIKES). She has tried to find ways to make sure she gets to sleep at night including getting the right temperature (She can't sleep if it is too warm), pain control, eating a small bit so the hunger pains don't keep her awake, using ear plugs and not eating chocolate after 9 p.m.

She is at her wit's end and is now looking for some helpful ideas on how to get some sleep. What are some things that may help this girl sleep? Let's make this a lively discussions so that this girl can get some sleep as soon as possible.




PLEASE!!!

Angels

According to the Bible Dictionary, under Angels,it says, "that there are two classes of heavenly beings who minister for the Lord: those who are spirits and those who have bodies of flesh and bone." Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the many different angels in my life.

"When life held troubled times, and had me down on my knees. There's always been someone there to come along and comfort me."

I have the greatest friends and family ever! I cannot imagine life without any of you and your kind words of love and support, along with the sweet spirits and life lessons I have learned from you. Recently, my life has not been a bowl of peaches and cream. However, when I have been going through rough times, someone always steps up and makes me feel loved. Thanks! ~You are all Angels to me!

"And ain't it kind of funny that at the dark end of the road, someone lights the way with just a single ray of hope."

Things have gotten better daily and I know that comes through the blessings of the Lord. Like the Bible Dictionary mentioned, I know that there are spirits that also serve as angels for us. Thanks to a lesson from an inspired institute teacher back in February and some personal pondering and praying, I have come to understand that angels have been given charge over us and will run to us in our moments of need. There is no way I could have overcome some of the trials in my life by myself. There was definitely more help and strength then my own.

"They grace us with their mercy, in our time of need. Oh, I believe there are angels among us, sent down to us from somewhere up above. They come to you and me in our darkest hours to show us how to live, to teach us how to give, to guide us with the light of love."

Life is a wonderful thing, and it truly helps to know that we have angels watching over us, whether they be a neighbor, friend, family, or a spirit. Thank you for all you do. I love you all and you are all my Angels!

(The portions in the parenthesis are taken from the song "Angels Among Us" by Alabama.)

Ch Ch Ch Changes

They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom. ~Confucius

Life is to have joy, and if, as Confucius said, that requires change, my life must be fabulous right now! There have been some pretty interesting changes.

On Sunday, there were a lot of changes made to the Student Wards here. They are now called YSA wards. The other changes that they made are great and it will be exciting, but change always bring a little bit of trepidation. Because of the change, they created new stakes and wards for the YSA boundaries. Both my stake and ward have different numbers now, but I still have the same priesthood leaders. However, I was not as lucky with the rest of the leadership in the ward. Our whole Elders Quorum and Ward Mission are gone, I am the only one left in the Relief Society Presidency, and only about 25 people in the ward are from the old or "original" ward. On the plus side, we gained a lot of people and I have had the opportunity to get to know some of them and I already knew others. I am so excited for the change, even though I will miss those who aren't in the ward anymore. These next couple of weeks will be interesting as callings are extended and friendships are made.

Also, in other changes, my health has had some interesting potholes recently. I went to the doctor and am trying to get some help with the problems. The doctor and I both thought it could be one thing, but after two tests, we found out it is not that. It was strange because I was hoping for some answers and got none. I allowed myself a couple days to be upset and now I am focusing on the positive. Thank goodness for a Bishop who is a doctor and helped me to see some huge positives in the situation. I am so blessed.

Speaking of changes, I have changed my music at the bottom of the blog. Lately I have realized how many songs really relate to my life. Some of the are more directly than others. It took me some time to read lyrics and listen to songs before it got to the point where I wanted to post it.

Change and Whitney have not always been friends. I learned to like change a little more a few years ago and, although it still can be scary, it is super-exciting. It adds spice to life and also allows you to learn and grow. That is what I hope happens. I want to be able to learn new things, have new experiences, and grow stronger physically, socially, mentally and spiritually. I am so EXCITED!!!!!