Wars and rumours of wars

The Bible speaks of wars and rumours of wars in Matthew 24, that will precede the second coming... and oh are we seeing these things come to pass. It was just six months ago that we saw the withdrawal of the US troops from Afghanistan, leaving them to fight their political unrest alone. 

Now we have seen Russia invade Ukraine and the situation continues to escalate. I know, exactly how blessed we are to be in a country where these things do not affect us personally, but the possibility of World War III looming on the horizon is very real and something that is causing horrendous amounts of anxiety for so many people. It is scary that this could in time, affect the entire world. Not just those countries, not just Europe, but eventually, all of us.

In these times, there seems that there is little and really nothing we can do. Thinking of it non stop only creates more anxiety for those prone to it. Reading the news articles and watching the reports has the same affect. I felt so hopeless and lost, as to anything I could do, when it seemed like even praying for relief and peace for these people was not enough. When my anxiety was at its worst, I saw this post on Instagram and it changed my thinking. It is the truth. Praying is the most we can do. The Lord hears us and understands us and knows of our pleas for ourselves and others. It is the best of all the things we can do to help, whether the world sees it that way or not.

So when I attended the temple on Saturday, I focused my thoughts to those suffering due to the issues in Ukraine at this time. I know the temple is the closest place to heaven on earth, so the best place to pray and be close to Heavenly Father. I always feel like the veil between heaven and earth is thinnest there and our prayers must be heard so much more clearly. 

Rosemary M Wixom once said that, "In the temple all feelings of inadequacy and imperfection begin to fade." I feel certain that the more I attend, the more my feelings of anxiety will too. The Lord knows our needs and will direct us when we try our utmost to be closer to Him. ❤ 

A baptism photo shoot for Joseph

For "the boy who never smiles," we had no problems today. I wanted to get some lovely shots of Joseph for his baptism invitations and set aside some time to make it happen. We got his hair cut nice and neatly to make sure Grandma would have been happy, that was so, so important to her. After I finished work on Wednesday, I took him home for a shower and neatened his hair up, put on some nice church clothes and dropped Madeline at dancing (Alex was at Nannaleahs) so we could go to the temple and get some shots on the grounds.

I was so proud of him. I told him, the sooner you smile and pose nicely, the sooner we can go home. It'll take fifteen minutes if you work with me.

And that is all it took! Done and dusted and on our way home in 15 minutes flat.

I honestly believe it was because none of the other kids were there with us... it was him and I, with all my attention focused on him, just the way he likes it. He is honestly best with one on one situations, so I thought it out ahead and made it happen.

I can't wait to see the invites made up and ready, the shots are great! ❤

 

temple saturday

when we moved into our house in aveley, i made a goal of attending the temple once a month. i am proud to say that i have nearly always managed to keep that goal steady. sometimes i have scraped in on the 1st of the following month due to something i couldn't control and then gone again later that month... but the point is, i have tried my hardest and as president nelson said, "the lord loves effort, because effort brings rewards that can't come without it."

i have tried so hard to keep to my commitment and i know that blessings have flowed because of it. i love being at the temple and being able to feel close to my father in heaven in his holy house. i am especially grateful to those who have helped make it happen. for the times i slide out of bed early on a saturday (like this morning!) leaving doug home with the kids, or the times i fly past the pinkers and throw alex at them on a thursday so i can make it in time. 

i am just so grateful to be able to make it happen - and for a temple right out on our doorstep. ❤

temple lego

it's june... and we just got this christmas present out of the box and finally put it together. hahaha. there's been a lot going on for us and everyone and somehow it just got put to one side until now. but anyway to showcase it now... i bought this amazing "small temple design" lego set for the kids for christmas, which meant of course that joseph thought it was his... 

doug and him got it out and spent a few hours putting it together and it is so perfect. i love it! perfect design - and they even made the married couple out the front us, as there was hair options... he's a red head and i'm a blonde. it is such a cool set and my favourite bit is the name of the company that makes it: brick 'em young. classic. it will look gorgeous on display in joseph's room. 

president spencer w. kimball said, "it seems to me it would be a fine thing if every set of parents would have in every bedroom of their house a picture of the temple so the [child] from the time he is an infant could look at the picture every day and it becomes a part of his life. When he reaches the age that he needs to make this very important decision, it will already have been made." 

i'm all for it. i can't wait for the day my children get the chance to enter the temple. ❤

temple - alone

i went to the temple today by myself for the first time in a long time. i have been taking dougs mother with me each time for months and i felt so lonely there today. i felt peaceful and a real assurance that she is okay, but i missed having her there with me.

i thought about this moment a lot today. this was the first time dougs parents met alex and i have never seen them so happy as they were in this moment. i imagine that they are this happy again. he was straight from heaven bringing them the joy they will be feeling there, together at last. what a sweet reunion they would have had. ❤

temple with oli

oli and i went to the temple this morning and it was so nice to see her there and now she was feeling peaceful. it's been a rough week for her, the chemo that worked before is no longer working and her dr has started her on one final option, which he has told us is much more aggressive than the other options and may be the last chance there is. she decided to go ahead, in her words, "i want to try everything they have. if i don't try it, i won't know, it could have been the one that helped." 

while we were sitting in the session waiting our turn to go through to the celestial room, she leaned in close to me and said, "i keep imagining i can see stephen there waiting for me behind the veil." i love that she knows that when her time comes, that he is there and will be waiting for her to take her hand as they spend eternity together. what a blessing it is to know that because of the sealing power in the temple, we know that families are forever. 

i have loved that we have been able to attend the temple so many times together over the years. ilove the time we get to spend together and seeing her so at peace in the house of the lord. what a blessing.

 

temple with kerri

i had the most wonderful blessing today, being able to be the escort for my beautiful friend kerri as she went through the temple for the first time to receive her endowment. for those of you not of my faith, the prophet brigham young explained it as such: "your endowment is to receive all those ordinances in the house of the lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to enable you to walk back to the presence of the father, passing the angels who stand as sentinels, being able to give them the key words, the signs and token, pertaining to the holy priesthood, and gain your eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell."

you have to prepare and be found worthy to enter the temple as it is literally the lords house here on earth. such a feeling of peace and love is found within the walls. rosemary m wixom put it beautifully when she said, "in the temple all feelings of inadequacy and imperfection begin to fade." once inside we are all equal and there to feel closer to our father in heaven, not ever to compete.

seeing kerri so happy and being able to share this experience with her was a wonderful blessing. i am so grateful for the choices she made that led her here today.

♥

above all else, i am so grateful to have a temple so close and to be able to attend regularly. what a wonderful blessing it is in my life and in the life of my family. 

a picnic at the temple

my gorgeous friend ash messaged with an awesome suggestion last week - to meet at the temple so the kids could have a wander around looking at everything and then a picnic afterwards. the kids (especially alex!) were thrilled to see her and we had a great day.

the perth temple is in such a perfect spot... tucked away behind a main road, yet so peaceful.

i love taking my children to the temple, i always think of that scripture in proverbs 22:6 "train up a child in the way that he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it." 

i know from personal experience that my parents faith has certainly helped myself and my siblings remain strong, so i only hope my own can do the same for my children.

it was such a beautiful day to be there, the sun was shining bright, the flowers were blooming...

and our picnic was delicious. fruit and homemade banana bread? perfect!

so lucky to be raising these three cuties.

kids chilling with aunty ash.

then out to the back of the temple for a wander...

this little one kept making an appearance in all my photos, but the more the better... i am in denial but he'll be one in just a few days, so the more shots i have to showcase the better.

there is nothing better than being at the temple with good friends.

foil temple pics with the young women

for our young womens activity recently we made these foil prints of the temple for the girls to take home and put in their rooms. as president spencer w. kimball said, “it seems to me it would be a fine thing if every set of parents would have in every bedroom in their house a picture of the temple so the child from the time he is an infant could look at the picture every day and it becomes a part of his life. when he reaches the age that he needs to make this very important decision, it will already have been made.” i love this quote so much and while i think it's really important to have temple pictures on display, i think it's even better when it's something that the girls have made themselves and put effort into so they have pride in displaying it.

i have made these prints many times since the first ones i did (you can find a tutorial here!) including at a ward relief society activity and i love that they are so effective and look amazing, but they are so, so easy to do! the girls seemed super keen to do them and got to work quickly... then were thrilled when i brought out frames for them. I find personally that if the girls make something and have to buy anything for themselves to complete it, it just doesn't happen, so we are very careful to provide e v e r y t h i n g. that way they go home and get used! 

i love our girls and love that they are finally starting to chat with me. yay! 

twas a good night. 

temple time

i made a promise just a few months after we moved into our new house, that i would make it to the temple once in each calendar month... and i have managed it. so far, so good. i love that i am able to serve and be in the lords house and make time for the temple.

"There exists a righteous unity between the temple and the home. Understanding the eternal nature of the temple will draw you to your family; understanding the eternal nature of the family will draw you to the temple." —Gary E. Stevenson

i know that by making time for the temple, i am being the example that my children need. by seeing their parents attend the temple, they will want to make the gospel of the highest priority in their own lives and to make it a goal to attend themselves one day.

"Prepare now for the temple, the mountain of the Lord. Never allow the goal of the temple to be out of your sight. Walk into His presence in purity and virtue, and receive His blessings—even 'all that he hath.'" —Elaine S. Dalton

make the temple a priority in your own home, for as long as we can see the temple, we will never be lost. ♥

a place of peace

it has been one of those weeks. alex isn't sleeping, i have been feeling so anxious it's ridiculous and am struggling big time. there have been lots of tears and not just from the baby. sometimes it's just really hard to do life. i am sure anyone with kids (and especially with a baby) can sympathise. but, my week got better, when my husbands sister came over yesterday afternoon and looked after the kids so i could go to a temple session.

in her april 2014 general conference talk: keeping covenants protects us, prepares us and empowers us, rosemary m wixom, the primary general president said: "temple ordinances lead to the greatest blessings available through the atonement of jesus christ. they are those ordinances necessary for our exaltation in the celestial kingdom. as we strive to keep our covenants, our feelings of inadequacy and imperfection begin to fade, while the ordinances and the covenants of the temple come alive. everyone is welcome to walk that path to eternal life."

i am here to tell you that's true. in the temple itself, all those feelings i carried began to fade and when i left that evening, i felt like i could actually do it again. how unbelievably lucky we are to have a temple close by. we are seriously so blessed. 

back to young women’s we go...

there i was, thinking i was home and free without a church calling, when the lord decided otherwise... and just before new years, i was set apart as the second counselor in young womens. oh my word. i've never tried to hide the fact that i am not good at all with teenage girls and struggled the last time i was in young womens (as the president i might add!) so i'm a bit nervous about this time around too!

upside is that i get to serve alongside one of my best friends - and another good friend, so i should be able to stumble my way through it! i really hope i can be some influence for good on the girls.

tonight we had youth temple baptisms and i got to (finally) have my turn as the towel angel (handing the towels to the youth as they come out of the font) which i loved. i love seeing them dressed in their whites ready to serve, it's amazing. maybe i can do this!

so here's to 2019 and a new start... young womens here i come! 

temple time

almost three years ago i made a commitment, to attend the temple at least once a month... sometimes it's been easy. sometimes it's been hard. sometimes i have ended up there multiple times in one month, sometimes i'm scraping in on the last day just in time. but i have managed it! today i scraped in for october on the first day of november, but i'm still proud and am totally counting it, because i had a baby not even three weeks ago and somehow still got there. woo!

i am so grateful for a wonderful friend who came with me, went in first while i fed baby and then snuggled baby alex so i could go in and do just one initiatory. it doesn't matter that it was just one, what matters is that i made it there. baby steps... especially with a new baby! i love to be at the temple and was so glad we made it work. here's hoping i can pull off november and december as well. 

letitia + jordan are getting married!

our great friends the fepulea'i's are marrying off another one of their kids at the end of this year and this past weekend was allllll about it. on friday night we got to be there as letitia received her endowment in the perth temple - which was such a special experience. it's always so nice to be there with someone as they take it all in and remember my own first experience at the temple. afterwards all of us had dinner together at a local chicken place... yum!

then the following evening, i headed down to mandurah (kid free thanks to my amazing mother in law, with my personal minder darrio... grandma kendall and nanna pinker are petrified i'm going to deliver this baby at any time, i'm sure of it) to help set up and then attend jordan and letitia's engagement party!

tay hired this amazing flower wall to have photos in front out throughout the evening, which looked so cool! ♥

and a family friend put together this cool engagement cake for them!

i arrived with tablecloths, runners, vases, flowers and these gorgeous birdcages that we originally sprayed for dominiques wedding (almost 2 years ago now - where has the time gone?!) set up looked great, and the party went off without a hitch! i love this time of year for free flowers... i grabbed all these from a local spot, with a set of secateurs... what a laugh though, i was almost home and heard a buzzing in the car. even though i'd been careful checking, there was a couple of bees flying around the back of my car. i pulled over quick smart to get rid of those!

tay did such a good job of prepping everything... she had organised a video with people answering questions about jordan and letitia which was an absolute crack up... i could not stop laughing! especially seeing as wade (the bride to be's oldest brother), was "working out" for show, through the entire thing every time the camera was on him. it was hysterical.



and as an added bonus, one of my besties melinda was there, so i got to hang out with someone awesome all night. score!

thanks for a great night guys! ♥

though storms may rage...

i love to go to the temple, it always feels like a place of refuge, somewhere safe from the outside world. as rosemary m. wixom said, "in the temple, all feelings of inadequacy and imperfection begin to fade."

tonight was an incredible experience, there was a storm absolutely raging outisde, so loudly in fact, that at certain parts of the session, we could hear the rain beating down on the roof above us. it was incredible, that the elements could do that, on a building that generally is soundproof. wow!

it just reminded me, that although storms may rage, peace will always be found within the walls of the temple. ♥

temple saturday

saturday morning started the best way possible by going to the 7am temple session with my mother in law. this picture was taken at 6:43am... after getting up at 5:45am, which for me was a trial in itself because i am not a morning person... at all.

but it was worth it, of course and it made the rest of my day a breeze.

"When a temple is conveniently nearby, small things may interrupt your plans to go to the temple. Set specific goals, considering your circumstances, of when you can and will participate in temple ordinances. Then do not allow anything to interfere with that plan. This pattern will guarantee that those who live in the shadow of a temple will be as blessed as are those who plan far ahead and make a long trip to the temple.

I encourage you to establish your own goal of how frequently you will avail yourself of the ordinances offered in our operating temples. What is there that is more important than attending and participating in the ordinances of the temple? What activity could have a greater impact and provide more joy and profound happiness than worshipping in the temple?" (quote found here)

since i made a commitment to attend the temple once a month in january 2016, things have been different. i know where i am meant to be and throught making a commitment, making sure i am there is easier. ♥

one step closer to heaven

my sweet friend aniwa made it one step closer to heaven yesterday as she went through the temple for the first time and received her endowment, before being sealed to her parents along with her brother. it was such a beautiful moment to share with her and be a part of... she asked me to be her escort (the person who sits with you and helps you through). it's the first time i've had such a privilege and i felt so loved to be asked.

watching this sweet girl come back to church, be married just over a year ago and now this, has my heart bursting with love! there is such joy to be found from the blessings of the temple and i know she is so happy to be closer to her father in heaven.

some of the lovely girls from our ward... there to support our girl! ♥

tobiassen sealing

just after christmas, we were lucky enough to be there when our friend ryan and his lovely wife lindsay and little baby boy hayden were sealed for time and all eternity.

as members of the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints, we believe that through sacred ordinances performed in holy temples, we are able to be with our family and loved ones not only for this life, but throughout the eternities. 

and so, when when our friends are sealed, we feel so blessed to be there and share that joy with them

♥

it was an amazing day... 

filled with so much love ♥