Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

Ok, I'm a sap.  Tears are pouring down my cheeks as I write this post.  This week my mom and Bill are signing papers and officially selling the house on Shaw Avenue.  This is no ordinary house.  This is the house my family lived in for almost 35 years.  This is the house where we rode mattresses down the stairs, jumped on the trampoline, played "adventure" in the backyard.  This is the house where wedding open houses took place, grandchildren came to live, where cars literally blew up in the driveway.  This is the house where friends snuck into the basement while parents slept upstairs, where when Emma was a little kid and told everyone that mom said she was pretty after putting on lipstick and Don told her she was still ugly and she collapsed on the ground in tears.  This is the house that has been toilet papered so many times neighbors could only imagine the type of family that lived there.

Deer on Shaw Avenue

Fall on Shaw Avenue

Christmas on Shaw Avenue

New Year's Puzzles on Shaw Avenue

Spring on Shaw Avenue

Winter on Shaw Avenue

I love Maryland.  I love everything about it, and having mom and Bill leave to move out west is so exciting and painful at the same time.  I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to live there, to grow there.  I will miss it and even though my bedroom belongs to someone else, I will always call 218 Shaw Avenue home.

A Conversation With Tatiana

Me: Sweetie, I am so tired of you not obeying!  You need to obey.
Tatiana: I don't like to obey.
Me: Do you even know what obey means?
Tatiana: No.
Me: It means you need to listen to mommy and do what she tells you to do.
Tatiana: Hmmm.  I think I need some lessons in that.

Crafts All Around!

So, I found out that our RS hadn't planned any home decor projects for Super Saturday and that was completely unacceptable so I made it my mission to find simple, easy to do activities.  Thanks to google and THIS awesome blog, I made this last night.  I'm soooooo excited about it!  I have a few other projects that aren't quite finished yet but as soon as they're done, I'll post!

Thoughts on Conference

So this weekend, like every other first weekend in October was General Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Usually I try and watch all four sessions, but this time it didn't quite work out that way because of prior commitments, i.e. football games ;)  However, I was not disappointed with the things I was taught, not by the leaders themselves, but by the promptings of a loving Heavenly Father who knows my needs and my desires.

Experiences over the past few weeks have led me to not necessarily question my testimony, but wonder if it was "good" enough - if I had somehow missed something over the years and I was getting it wrong.  As I watched each apostle get up and speak, I was reminded how different each one was - different in their experiences, their political views, their opinions - and yet they still have a testimony of the Savior and His church. It doesn't matter if my experiences have led me to vote differently, believe differently, to interpret differently. My testimony is mine and just because it's not the same as another, it does not make it any less valid nor does it mean that I need to look inwardly and figure out how to make it match. It is mine and it is sacred.