10, 9, 8, 7, 6…

The countdown has begun! Yesterday my mission papers were finally submitted to Salt Lake! I met with the Stake President & off they went. The meeting went great, and I was on a high all day (I still am) knowing that my papers were finally finished! It has been such a long process, but now I’m done. I just wait. Two to three weeks… I’m really hoping I’ll have it the end of next week. Then once I have my call, I’ll go through the Temple! Then a few weeks later I’ll be off to the MTC. So many changes are coming so fast. I’m ecstatic! I still can hardly sit still with anticipation & it is two weeks away!

I love to see the Temple…

Yesterday the Mesa Temple reopened after being closed for cleaning & renovation, so I got to go after having not gone for over a month. Oh, how I missed it! It was really busy, so there was a long wait, but it gave me more time to ponder, and mostly to feel at peace. Life has been really crazy with my new job, mission papers, preparing spiritually, scripturally, physically, and clothing-ly (that is super hard because nothing is long enough!). Problems arise, or in the case of my ceiling, fall. The ac leaked somehow and collected until the ceiling was soaked & bubbled, bit by bit it has started to fall down. The ac is fixed now, but we have to dry it out and get it repaired (and by we I mean Wayne, but I spotted it, so I helped right?). When I’m in the Temple, everything melts away. I can focus on spiritual things and see things more clearly. I feel at peace, but not just peace like when a problem is solved, or when you climb into bed and close your eyes to sleep, or when something great happens, it is more than that, different. The thesaurus lists harmony, tranquility, serenity, and stillness as synonyms for peace, and I think a combination of all of them is the peace I feel in the Temple. I am for that bit of time in harmony with Heavenly Father’s will, I am undisturbed by the world, I am free of stress and doubt. I still have my problems, but they don’t worry me, they don’t cloud my thinking, I am at peace. I am so thankful to have one so close to my home and to be able to attend often. I love to see the Temple…

Oh Barf.

So the activity went well on Saturday. We had about 200 people come, and while only about 130 actually went through all the rotations, there was a lot of mingling. A few people in my ward actually got phone numbers and even dates. I received several compliments and feel really good about all of it. It really was an inspired idea and I was thankful to receive that inspiration. I’m also very glad it is done. I got home Saturday night around 12 and my body just gave up and started to tremble a little. I slept very well (and in very late) that night. Sunday I was released as Stake YSA Rep. I didn’t know how it would feel, and I’m still not sure how I feel about it. It was great to be able to make a difference and help get the new YSA program going in my area, but is really nice to not have to worry about it anymore. This is the first time I’ve been released from a calling & I didn’t feel like I was fired. I might be sadder if I wasn’t going on a mission.
Speaking of missions… my medical paperwork is finally done! I went to the doctor before work yesterday and dropped it off to Bishop Jones last night. On Sunday Brother Garner and the rest of the bishopric gave me a blessing and it is already coming to pass. I’ll meet with President Hall this week (hopefully) and have my call in a few weeks! I’m excited that it is finally coming.
Since Satan couldn’t stop my papers anymore, he went for a different approach. I’d been feeling a little sick to my stomach the past few days, but I chalked it up to stress from the activity. Last night I woke up at 3 with a horrible headache and my stomach nauseated. I took some Tums & Tylenol, but neither helped. When we got up for scriptures I asked Wayne for a blessing, which he gave me after we read. Before we started reading though, I started dry-heaving. It was miserable! My mom set me up with diet coke and lots of crackers to help me get through the day. I’m super hungry, but every bite/sip makes me want to barf. The blessing did help, especially with my headache, and I also didn’t throw up on the bus or in the car. I am thankful that mom knows so much and took the time early this morning to help me feel better and get out the door on time.

Bumpity Bump Bump

This week has been full of bumps, but I am a very blessed person. The hard part is those blessings often come because of trials & aren’t always apparent...

My car broke down Tuesday night. I went to start it to go home and nothing happened. I turns out it was my battery cables were damaged & I needed new brakes. I also needed two new tires, so nearly $700, two days, and one emotional break down, I have my car back & it is running beautifully. It is a blessing that it didn't break down until now, when I have a great job & can actually afford to pay for it. It was also a blessing that my cables went before my brakes or tires were completely dead so there wasn't more damage done.

My papers still aren't in. They got lost. My blood work & immunizations are all done, so I have an appointment at 7 am Monday morning to have another physical (technically a first for this doctor, but not my first in an attempt to get my papers done), and then I should be able to give them to my bishop that night, but at the rate everything has been going, I'm not holding my breath. It will be good though because my insurance changed so I need my perscriptions written for 3 months & I didn't know when I would find time to get that done, so Heavenly Father provided a way for that to happen. I also know that I will be able to turn my papers in when I'm supposed to, and that the delay has been for a reason. I was able to meet with Bishop Jones Wednesday night & I filled him in on everything. It was good to meet with him. He encouraged me to be patient & to not worry about things I can't control. He also offered to have the Bishopric give me a special blessing on Sunday. That will be a big help too.

The multi-stake ysa activity that has consumed my life the past few weeks is tomorrow. There have been bumps for that too... For the service portion I was going to have them color ABC books, but the humanitarian center no longer uses those, so I had to change it last minute to feece blankets. Mom & I were able to get the fleece last night, which had just gone on sale. If I had decided earlier I wouldn't have been able to get the cute ones we did because they weren't on sale. I have also been scrambling to find someone to run the room on physical touch- I haven't quite found the blessing in this one yet, but I'm sure it is there... Maybe I just haven't asked the right person & the blessing isn't for me at all.

Other than that, the activity planning/prep has gone very well. I even invited my neighbors to come (4 single guys, one is LDS). That was easy though because they came over to borrow something & saw all the stuff for it & my mom told them about it. All I had to do was take them a flyer. I also ws super excited because Sister Jones called me last night & told me that they had a call from a guy moving into the ward that saw the activity on-line & wanted more info. I was so glad that the website that I've put so much time & effort into has actually brought someone to an activity, well hopefully, he hasn't come yet...
My week has been full of ups and downs, but it is coming to a close & it looks like it will actually all work out...
Bumpity, bump, bump. Bumpity, bump, bump, look at lissa go!