Sunbeams

I LOVE MY CALLING, I LOVE MY CALLING, I LOVE MY CALLING.....

Sitting in singing time I realized today would be a different day that Jessica and I have not had in quite awhile. It left me sitting and repeating the words above over and over again in my head.

Our lesson today was "I am Thankful for Animals." While the kids were a little more rowdy than normal, it was still ok, No worries! Nobody was crying, screaming, or running away so we were good! We could handle this. But oh were we in for a surprise!

The kids were great at telling us all about animals, the sounds they make, were they are from, who created them, and everything! But it seemed today we were not going to learn about animals, but about a "russian dolphin." Now, this may sound to you like an animal, but oh no, you would be wrong!


At our Primary Activity a few weeks ago Jess brought these dolls as one of her show and tell peices. Well, Aiden LOVES it, which means he wanted to play with it. So, if he wants to play with it, all the kids want to play with it. Hence the term dolphin comes into play. To Aiden, this is the Russian Dolphin, not russian doll.


Now, some of you might read this and think, "Oh, I know sunbeams, they can get distracted, that toy was not a good idea, I feel so bad, etc etc." But don't think that!


For today I learned something! Every week I teach I plan my lesson a week or two in advance with activities, coloring pages, object lessons, etc. I found today that these children like to learn on their own. You can make a lesson out of anything. The kids may remember the little wooden peices I used for Noah's Ark. They might even remember going on a safari to find different animals through the church hallways. But ultimately I KNOW they will remember that Russian dolphin. They will remember how to build it, they will also remember that they MUST take turns putting it together and taking it apart. I also know they learned they can't play with it unless they are reverent. I learned for myself today that these children are adorable! You can't help but look at them and smile! They have amazing spirits waiting to burst!

When God gives you a "Russian Dolphin" adapt your animal lesson!

So, I say again,

I LOVE MY CALLING, I LOVE MY CALLING, I LOVE MY CALLING.....

Salt Lake Temple Session

Christian and I had Thursday off so Wednesday we decided we wanted to go to the Temple. I was talking to my sister about it and she suggested we all go to the Salt lake Temple. We were sealed there, but we had never done a live session there. So we were excited! My Mom and Jeff got to come too!

We all met downtown on Thursday night. It was great because Jamie and Jon hadn't been able to go since before Owen was born so I was glad we were able to go with them! Being in the Salt lake Temple just reminded me again about getting sealed. Having my Mom and Sister right by my side the entire time! Answering all of my questions! And feeling the spirit and sharing their spirit with me! I LOVED it! Jamie and Jon were chose as the witness couple so we didn't get to sit next to her during it, but it was great to watch them!

The live session was amazing! It made the session so real for me! And of course moving from room to room was pretty cool! And each room was gorgeous!!! After we were done we got to sit in the celestial room which is so pretty! I hadn't been in their for 3 and a half years so I had forgotten how amazing it was! The architecture and the details they put on every wall and ceiling is outstanding!

It was a great experience! I am so glad I was able to share it with my family!

"I LOVE to see the temple!
I'm going there someday, to feel the holy spirit, to listen and to pray"

I am so grateful for the chance I have to attend the Temple WHENEVER I want!!!! I am also grateful for a Husband who wants to do the same thing! He LOVES the Temples! I Love to see him during the session. Nobody will ever look more beautiful than the day you see them in the Temple all dressed in white!!! I promise you! Anybody who has been there with their spouse will agree! It is amazing!

We have decided we are going to try to go to the Temple once a week. Anybody who wants to join us is MORE than welcome! My sister and I decided we should have a monthly Girl's Temple Night too! That would be awesome! I will keep you posted!

I'm excited to add to our list the Salt lake Session! Also, in two weeks we will be adding one more! Las Vegas! I have heard it is one of the prettiest temples inside, so we can't wait! I'm excited to take a break from our vacation and be able to attend the Temple! It was definitely the best day off we have had in a very long time!!!

Game Time!

After work on Saturday we had a Thorpe Family Party. We had to close and didn't get off work until 8:30, but Natalie called us and told us they were still partying! So, we headed out to Daybreak. It was great to see them again! the whole family couldn't make it, but we were there, with Christian's parent's, John and Nat's fam, and Tiff and Henry's fam. They were just finishing up their scrabble game when we got there, so we munched on food and talked and laughed with them until they were done. Then Christian picked the next game ~ Beyond Balderdash. It is a fun game and turns out to be a hilarious game, but man do i suck at it!!! So, I was very nervous, but I was on my game that night and kicked butt!!! that's right I won! I think I need to mark it on my calendar and all the Thorpe calendars because I won a game of Balderdash!!!

Christian's family is all about the games so normally I have a good time losing! But it is still fun!

We had a great time! I don't remember the last time I laughed so hard! We always have a great time with his family! And guess what I remembered to take pics, however, when I went into my purse to get my camera I realized I had left it home! So sad! Oh well, just picture us crying from laughing so hard! It was great! And actually while we were there we made plans to attend the temple all together in April!

So, we had a great couple of days! Now I am just super excited for Vegas and St. George! I get two vacations in two weeks! Woot Woot!

Perfect ending to a long week!

On Saturday night I was abe to go to an amazing Relief Society enrichment! We had Jenny Phillips come and perform her parable of the Princesses. If you have not heard this I suggest you go get it! If you have daughters 10 and older it would be an awesome gift! If you don't know who Jenny Phillips is, she sings for Deseret Book. She has 4 LDS cd's out and she performs at firesides and Enrichments all over the world! she lives here in Salt Lake City with her husband and 3 kids. Her husband actually performs with her on this one, he narrates the book. It was such an amazing show. Her songs and her talk was so powerful and such an amazing way to bring in the spirit!!! I was lucky enough to share it with my sister and my best friend Mandy. I have purchased the book from Amazon and would suggest any women do the same! It is an illustrated book that also comes with the narration from her husband and has a cd with the songs she sang along with it. It is great! I wish you all could have been there with me! So moving!

So, since Christian was the babysitter I convinced Jamie to leave him with them a little longer, cuz it had only been 2 hours. So, we went to Deseret Book and I bought one of Jenny's cd's it was fun! We listened to it while we got ready for church today.

It was great to hang out with Jamie and Mandy more. We came back to the house had a late dinner and then stayed up talking until 1 in the morning! It was great! I love how close the three of us are getting! I LOVE that Mandy is basically family and Jamie's kids love to be around her just like she was thier aunt too! It was a great night!

OH NO!!!!

It all started when Christian and decided we needed to go in and renew our Temple Recommend. I went first, then it was Christian's turn. It all seemed to go fine, until they came out of the room and Bro. Klegg said, well I had to add a question for your husband in there and now I need to ask you....... Will you speak in sacrament this Sunday?

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!! Seriously?

So, out of my mouth came, oh no, um, sure? And Christian said, "that's what i said!" He actually said in his talk today "I think the exact words I used when Bro. Klegg asked me to speak today was, OH NO! and of course he knew that meant, absolutely!" Wow! That is how they get you! Your meeting goes so well, he just gave you a temple recommend how could you say no? So, today we got to speak in sacrament. So, since Wednesday Christian and I have been stressing! But it went great! Our topic came from a couple scriptures, but it was basically to talk about the importance of following our Prophet and Apostles in preparation for General Conference. Actually it is pretty crazy we have lasted this long! We have been in the ward for a year and 4 months and are just now being asked to speak. Pretty cool! I really did enjoy it! I LOVED seeing and hearing my husband up there pouring out his feeling about the Gospel. I know he loves it, but it is not something we talk about a ton, so it is great hearing his testimony and having him tell the entire congregation how much he loves me and getting teary eyed while he says it. I LOVE IT!!! There is NOTHING sexier than a man dressed up in a tie and dress pants pouring out his love for you and the gospel! Call me crazy, but I'm serious! So, it went very well and I am so glad we were able to do it.

Jamie and the kids slept over at our house Saturday night so they came to church with us and I was able to have Morgan in my class. It was super fun! We had a great lesson "I am thakful for fish" I know sounds wierd, but the kids loved it! They got to go fishing and got little fish cookies! I LOVE teaching the sunbeams! Especially since I have such a great companion! Seriously Jess! thanks for being so understanding with my crazy schedules! You are an excellent teacher, I couldn't have asked for a better companion!

After church we came back home, had some lunch and then they went home. Now I am listening to my new AWESOME cd and getting ready for our hometeachers to come over. I LOVE Sundays! They are so relaxing! Going to church, then coming home, listening to great music, and just relaxing! Oh, and watching Amazing Race!!! Love that show! Hope you all had a spectacular Sabbath as well!

Good Times!

Last night we decided it was time to PARTAY!!!! Ok, so not really but we did have fun! I didn't get a chance to take any pictures, but oh well.

We had a manager's meeting early that morning so we were off early. So, Meghann, Christian, and I decided to go shopping. So, we started at Sears to take back some pants, which I found out later they forgot to take the security tag off, so now I have to go back to the store before I can wear them! Sad day! Then, we went to Sports Authority to check out their ellipticals, then to K Mart to look at their bed sets. Unfortunately, none of the stops were very successful, but it was fun!

After that Meghann met us at our house to play! We watched a little TV and talked for awhile and then started to play MarioKart!!! It was so much fun! I realized how bad I am at "Battle" I always lost my balloons first! We had a ton of fun though! That game is so addicting! After Christian kicked our trash we decided to watch the movie Mr. Brooks. It is a pretty good movie, but really slow and Meghann and I were so tired from working so early we almost fell asleep! So, as soon as it was over she headed home.

It was super fun! It was nice to stay in and just relax, but have fun with Meg Hann! We are pretty much inseparable! HAHA It's great!

Tonight I decided to go to my mom's in Layton. I have Monday off so I am going to hang out with her and Jamie and the kids. We had a great barbecue chicken dinner and then we had cookies and played games. Jamie is putting her kids to bed and then we are going to have a late night girl's night and do our hair. It is going to be super fun! Gotta go now! I will post pics later with the super cute kids!

SO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!

This is going to be a small, but exciting post! I found out today that my best friend Marie is pregnant!!!! Woo Hoo!!!

Congrats Marie! I am so excited for you and Lukas to start your family! I am so excited to go shopping and throw you a shower!!! I know you will be great parents!

So, today I get a text message, "Check your email!!!" So, I ran to the computer to check (I was thinking immediately that she was going to tell me that she was pregnant) So, I pull up her email and it is titled, "What is this?" And attached to the email are pictures of her ultrasound! It was awesome! So I imediately called her! She told me she is 7 weeks along and had her first doctor's appointment yesterday. It was great to talk to her about it and I am so excited to share this experience with her! We are growing up so fast! I am so excited to have our kids grow up together (no I am not pregnant, haha)

This was just a great day! I am so excited for my best friend!

Great Week!

We had a spectacular week this past week! Work went well, slow, but well. I was able to do a bunch of catching up which is always good! We had a fabulous girl's night on Wednesday! I love getting together with just girls every once in awhile! And the more girl's the more fun we have!!!

On Thursday I had a much needed day off and was able to get things done around the house, and Christian and I ran some errands. We have decided part of our tax return is going to a cheap elliptical, the rest is going in savings. Thanks to Turbo tax we are excited because we are getting a great return this year!!! Hopefully we can get a good "Baby Bank" going! If you have never used it and are wondering, YES!!! Buy it!!! WE spent $26 to get our taxes done this year!!! Can't beat that! It is super easy to use! We are grateful we can get money back without paying a "taxman." So, we went to Sears and Walmart to check out their elliptical. We found a couple that we like, but we are going to look around a little bit more so we make sure we get the right one! Any pointers would be greatly appreciated! I am just excited to work out from home on my FAVORITE piece of gym equipment!

Any who~ So Thursday night I met up with Meghann, Jenna, her daughter, and Leann. We started at Red robin at the District for dinner. I got their chicken tortilla soup, YUMMY!!! We had to save room for the theatre popcorn!!! It was great to hang out with Meghann and Leann again, and also great to finally meet Jenna! Meghann's long time friend from High School, whom she talks about all the time! She was a lot of fun and her daughter was adorable! So, after dinner we walked to the theatre to see Confessions of a Shopaholic. It was a cute movie, kinda strange, but cute. I would recommend seeing it, but wait for Redbox! I am glad I got to hang out with them and see that movie! It was a great night!!! (Pics were forgotten) I love this pic of her though, it shows how we all feel when we just HAVE to have that perfect item!!!

Friday was just a normal day of work, lots of phone calls, data entry, gift cards, dailies, coupons, more phone calls, and stupid Customer charges making me want to rip my head off!!! I HATE taking the spot of an Office Manager who was literally retarded and how NO CLUE how to do her job. This means I get to come in after her and try to clean up the mess. Our corporate office is being audited right now and they are wanting record of all of our old Gift Certificates that were hand written, well since I have been there, 2 years now, I have yet to find them. So, I have people calling left and right trying to get the numbers and I can't help them, that is fun, let me tell you!!! Anyway, it really was a good day at work, plus I got to work with Meghann for a little bit. She left to go shopping with Leann, but text me around 6 and told me she wanted us to meet her at Training Table for dinner, so we did! It was fun and really yummy! It was crazy packed! I didn't realize how popular Training Table was! Weird! Anyway it was fun and Christian was finally able to meet Leann. It was a good night! (Again, no pics)

Saturday we worked and it was a normal day, but unusually slow for a Saturday. Maybe it just went slow because I so excited!!! After work we were going to the Temple Open House!!! We were super excited! It was awesome! We met at Subway for dinner first. It was great because we were able to get so many people to come! Me and Christian, Jamie and Jon and their kids, Mandy, Troy and Nick, My Mom and Jeff, Cody and Shannon, and my Aunt and Uncle, Linda and Frank! We ate the cheap and yummy $5 foot longs at Subway and then headed over.

You park at a church and then take a bus to the Temple. We waited for about 45 minutes for the bus, but we made it fun by taking pictures, and laughing at Owen's new cheesy grin! They first led us into the Chapel to see a film about Temples which was a great beginning! Then we boarded the bus and headed to the Temple. It was awesome because it was night time so the temple looked gorgeous all lit up! It was great to go through with Mandy, who has never seen a Temple. She was so excited! And the kids LOVED it too! I am so glad I was able to be there with my Best Friend on her first time and be able to explain things to her and see her reaction to things! It was a great experience and I am so glad we went!

After the Temple Jamie and Jon and the kids were able to come back to our house and sleep over! We put the kids to bed and played games. We played Whoonu, I LOVE that game. We played a bunch of different rounds! It was great! The next morning they were all able to come to church with us! We had a special Relief Society Lesson so I didn't have to teach. We went into Singing Time where I got to have Morgan in my class and Jamie sat with us too! It was a good singing time, better than most. We only had one kid acting out, instead of 4!!! YAY! That night I cooked a dinner for all of us, and Mandy and Troy came over to Join us as well! I made a maple and brown sugar ham, au gratin potatoes, corn and rolls, Mandy brought a salad, and Jamie made a raspberry dessert and lemon dessert. It was a great dinner and fun to have them all over!

We had a good time with the kids, we watched a veggietales movie, played games, and Jon decided Owen needed a little ride. It was pretty funny because he loved it!

After dinner Mandy and Troy stayed to watch the Oscars! It was fun, but we realized it is a little boring. I actually felt asleep for a little part of it. But it was still cool to watch it, especially with friends over! Mandy decided it is a tradition. If anybody wants to join us next year you are welcome!!!
So, we had a lot of fun! I LOVE having Jamie, Jon, and all my cute little nieces and nephews over! I get to go to their house this week! I am going to stay over Wednesday over to Thursday, cuz I have Thursday off. I'm excited to play with them again. So, it was a great week, followed by a great weekend!