Religious Freedom - Wonderful speech by Elder Dallin H. Oaks

Religious Freedom - LDS Newsroom

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Wow! I should blog more!

So... apparantly I haven't blogged since APRIL! Oh my! Well, we have been pretty busy! I just read the last few months's entries for all the blogs I follow!

Okay, so I still enjoy blogging, but I have to confess that I prefer Facebook... it's so much easier to post pictures! Sooo... here's a link to a couple of my Facebook albums... check 'em out!

Brianna's 1st Birthday: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=19269&id=1393027139&l=7c0a975a85

Easter: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=19477&id=1393027139&l=a4cfd14c48

Ashley's Prom & BOYFRIEND pics: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=21211&id=1393027139&l=c65142205f

Summer: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=26651&id=1393027139&l=9f311b4ee7

Hawaii: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=29159&id=1393027139&l=55ee1fca11

Tyler on the news

Tyler went on a Scout campout this past weekend and he ended up being interviewed on the NEWS when they had to be RESCUED!! Here's the link to the story... http://www.abc15.com/content/news/centralsouthernarizona/other/story/Weather-strands-Boy-Scouts-leaders-at-lake-east/Vu_-OY2Wh0OGeNFDNoKCEQ.cspx

Tyler is sitting to the left of the shirtless guy, be sure to watch the video, they actually interview him!

Disneyland!!

So it's the wedding season and that means that I disappear for about 3 months because I'm working a lot! I had 12 weddings in the month of March!! Now, i'm not complaining, but I am TIRED! So is Kelly, he had weddings every weekend too plus overtime at Intel and editing the pics at all hours of the night! So what did we decide to do? We took off to Disneyland the first weekend of Spring Break a couple of weeks ago! Kelly got done with his wedding at midnight and we packed the car and left at 2am! We got to Disneyland at around 8am and cleaned up and went straight to the park! Here are the highlights...


We hadn't been to Disneyland since we were first married and we went with Ashley, Tyler & Niels... they were 7, 5, & 4 at the time!

It's a Small World was our first ride! Now it's updated with new characters and it's more politically correct.

Fun in Toon Town!

The 2nd day we started in California Adventure, it was awesome! I loved it! It's the perfect blend of little kid and big kid stuff!

You have a much better chance of getting pics with a character in California Adventure.

There's a Bug's Life section that makes you feel like you're in the movie! It's so detailed!

Our little Disney princess!

California Adventure closed at 6pm, so we went back over to Disneyland...

Here we are waiting for the fireworks...

Yes, I look like I've totally had it in this last picture... I came down with bronchitis on the trip and that was horrible! After the fireworks we went back to the hotel, took a nap, and then drove all night again and Kelly got to work late at about 10am... we were soo tired & I was really sick! I still LOVED it and we all had a great time!!

Raising a gentleman

I've made it a priority to teach my boys to be respectful to the opposite gender and I'm sure their wives will appreciate it someday. I'm happy to say that I'm already beginning to see the fruits of my labors... The other night when William said the family prayer he ended with "Amen", and then added "... and women!"

Today I am grateful...

Each day brings it's joys and challenges, there are people I know who are struggling financially, some emotionally, some have physical ailments. Today I feel very blessed and I am grateful for my children, my family, and my friends. I also pray for those who have great challenges to overcome. Today I read about one family in particular who needs prayers, read here about little Cora and her parents, and how their lives changed so drastically in two weeks time...

http://themcclenahans.blogspot.com/

A Violinist in the Metro

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces in about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work. The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on. In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition. No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars. Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100. This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context? One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?