Subing already

I guess I won't be kicking back too much in R.S. I have been asked to teach the second Sunday in January. I am kind of looking forward to it. This will be the first class I will be part of with the Joseph Smith lessons.

Last week when we went to Temple Square, we saw the latest Joseph Smith movie. I loved it. I started crying before it even started. I even knew how the movie would end and was not disappointed at all.

Christmas in Utah

We had a great Christmas with family in Utah. We drove all night to see them and were so glad we did. We felt like we had an extra day.

Our favorite parts of the trip were:

**Christmas brunch at Grandma and Grandpa Alger's house
**Playing in all the snow (since Reno has no snow)
**Taking family pictures in a blizzard
**Going to Temple Square to see the Temple (no castle, no temple, no castle, OK temple - Thank you Kelsey)
**Taking a tour of the conference center
**Walking into Temple square just as the lights turn on (We could not have planned that!)
**Going to Toucano's (I was good and didn't eat too much! Amazing!!)
**An entire day of movies (Mama Mia, Bedtime Stories, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, High School Musical 3, Iron Man)
**Dinner at Olive Garden (I did eat too much, ARHHH)

**And the roads were pretty dry on the trip there and home.

We are already talking about when our next trip will be.

A release for Christmas

Now that it is official, I guess I can blog about it.

Just before Christmas, I was released as the Primary President in our South Meadows ward. I served in that calling for two years. That is two primary programs, seven counselors and/or secretaries, about 24 sharing times, 48 Sunday morning meetings, too many to count teachers, and even more Cub Scout leaders.

For as busy as I was, it was a great calling. Before this opportunity, I had been a primary teacher and a primary secretary, and was sure that was the extent of primary I would be able to handle. I have said this before, and I am sure it is why I was called, but I am not the biggest fan of other people's children.

It is amazing how much love I have for the children in our ward. Even when they are asking me questions that have absolutely nothing to do with the lesson. I found many times where they knew more than me. And then there were some children that wanted to know the deep doctrine that only one answer ever worked to appease their appetite for knowledge, and that was, "Go ask your dad".

I must admit the let down when I was told I would be released. I started wondering what I had done wrong, or what opportunity of service I had missed. The more I thought about it, the more wrapped up in myself I got. I was not given a new calling right away - in fact, President Chamberlain called Saturday night and asked to see both Jason and I before church. I thought for sure I would be getting a new stake calling. But it was Jason who got the new calling. He is now the Assistant Ward Clerk over membership. This only compounded the heavy feelings I had already been having.

Then as I was being released with a vote of thanks, the impression came to me that it was now my opportunity to work on myself and my family. I will be able to continue my school work and watch children during the week without feeling like I am forgetting to do something for Primary.

The Lord truly knows each of us and the things we are capable of accomplishing in our lives. I am grateful for the experience of working in Primary, but will miss the sisters I worked with the most!! I look forward to the next calling I receive, no matter how scary it may feel in the beginning. Or I could just go to Sunday School and Relief Society for a while and participate in the lessons.

Name and a verb

Thanks Tara for the fun idea. You go to yahoo or google and type in your name and a verb and see what comes up. You get some pretty funny results... Unfortunately for me, some hit pretty close to home.

Elizabeth has... No idea what "saving money" entails.

Elizabeth needs... the fashion police.

Elizabeth likes... air ships.

Elizabeth goes... to school.

Just for fun.

School

It's that time again. I am in the sixth week of my latest block of classes. However, my house is not so clean this time. I am really enjoying my history class. It is U.S. History since 1945. So when it comes to history - it is pretty much about yesterday. It has been fascinating to read about the U.S. after World War II and discover that everything that happens today, pretty much happened already, just with different players. I am always reminded of those Seminary lessons about the Nephites cycles of righteousness. How there is always good time followed by really bad times. And the pattern is the same now. Things go really good until they are so good we loose sight of what is important. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer, and we stop placing Heavenly Father first. After WW II the people were so happy to have their loved ones back that there was great prosperity and a baby boom. Then people got complacent and wanted - "Keeping up with the Jones". Anyway. I am enjoying this class. I could do without all the writing, but the reading is fun.

The Family

Just a few pictures.

These are just a few pictures from our last trips to Disneyland.

We will start saving now to get Annual Passes again in about 3 years.

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Allynn & Austin on California Scream'n.

Austin is the head to the right. He forgot to stretch for the picture.

Sydney on California Scream'n.

After going to California Adventure so many times this year, they discovered the "Single Rider line." This line was even quicker than the fastpass line. They just didn't get to ride together.

The Girls and some Fairies.

We stood in line for an hour to see these fairies. And it was worth it. Kelsey was so excited to talk to the fairies.

Mom and Allynn with Steamboat Willey during Allynn's birthday trip.

Allynn and Sleeping Beauty.

Tis the Season to be Jolly

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