President Hinckley

We received the news last night that President Hinckley had passed away when Adam's grandma from SLC called. It has been a time of reflection. President Hinckley has been an amazing prophet and has had much influence in my life. I can recall the first time I saw President Hinckley in person. When he walked into the room, I felt an overwhelming and immediate confirmation of his prophetic calling. That has been repeated many times as I have attended General Conference, BYU Devotionals, and other meetings where he has spoken. My two little ones were born during his time leading the church. I am particularly grateful for the vision that he had in building temples across the world, making those blessings available to so many. His tireless service is an inspiration to me; it makes me want to do more, to be more. According to one article I read, Bruce Olsen (church spokesman) has said of President Hinckley that "He was speaking in public as late as two to three weeks ago and had a full schedule in his office as late as last week." The song that has been going through my head today, and that which reverberates in my heart is "We Thank Thee, O God, For a Prophet." And now, I am grateful that our beloved President is once more with his beloved Marjorie.

*You can see some touching photo tributes here and here.

Announcing the arrival of...

ISAAC TODD JOHNSON

That's right! My nephew was born today at 9:44am. Isaac weighed in at 8 lbs. 15 oz., was a whopping 21 inches in length, and has some blonde hair. Congratulations, Nathan and Jenny!

Spencer's response to hearing of his cousin's arrival was, "Is he coming to my house today?" Hmm...probably not, since the little fellow is on the other side of the country. When Emma heard the news, she gave a toothy grin and proceeded to clap, clap, clap.

What a family of bloggers...

Recently, my cousin Tona and my sister-in-law Katy have created blogs relating to their respective callings in LDS wards. One has recently been called as a laurel advisor in the Young Women program and the other as a Nursery leader. Here are the blog addresses to check out. Both have FANTASTIC ideas and are worth perusing even if you are not serving in either organization. I've gleaned a few parenting tips (that's what I went in looking for, I guess) and plan to run a very smooth play group next week when it is my turn to host.

Enjoy!

Beginnings New: click here
No Crying Nursery: click here

p.s. Okay, that was my first attempt posting a link. If this works, it was a WHOLE lot easier than I had imagined, and I should have done it a LONG time ago.

The secret's out...

I married the most AMAZING man. Just recently, he managed to get a $537 repair done on our computer for FREE (thank you, APPLE). And...the Christmas surprise that I nearly ruined when I unwittingly opened that envelope back in December was...a trip to NYC to see the Rockettes perform in their Christmas Spectacular. And it was just that - SPECTACULAR!!!


We drove up to NYC the day after Christmas, stopped in the Bronx long enough to drop off bags, kids, and sis-in-law Katie at Emily and Jorge Luis' apartment, and then headed off to Manhattan. If I had it to do again, I probably wouldn't have worn my vibrant red coat on the streets, bus, and subway from the Bronx, but I loved wearing it downtown. We stopped by Rockefeller Square to see the tree and gaze at the skaters. Gorgeous place!



Then it was off to Radio City Music Hall for the show. The precision dancing was impressive, and the orchestra pit raises and lowers at different points in the performance. There are three different levels to the main stage as well, and the show has Broadway style singers in addition to the famous Rockettes. Some favorite scenes included the toy soldier routine, the bus tour of NYC (amazing graphics and fabulous kicks), and the live nativity. There were 2 live camels, several sheep, and a donkey on stage for the nativity, and it was a remarkable experience to see this beloved story reenacted on such a large scale. Apparently, the animals reside for the season in the basement of Radio City Music Hall, and the caretakers walk the animals on the sidewalks of Manhattan in the wee hours of the morning, to the surprise of early commuters.


We couldn't pass up the opportunity to see the Apple store. Conveniently, it was situated right by the bridge and pond in Central Park, so we made a quick stop in there. It was dark, frigid, and raining, but we were armed with Starbucks hot cocoa and apple cider, so no way were we going to pass up on the opportunity to kiss in Central Park.


After perusing the merchandise, figuring out our subway route home, and drying off a bit, it was back to the Bronx for the night. A BIG thanks to Katie for spending about 12 of the 24 hours in this trip in a car and for watching our sick kiddos a good part of the rest. And thank you to JL and Em for offering their home - a little piece of heaven in the midst of the Bronx. I couldn't forget a little shout out to Spence and Emma for being such good sports when they were not feeling well (at all). Finally, Adam - you continue to amaze and surprise me. Thank you for a wonderful trip. You are the best, and I love you!