18 September 2016 - Stake Conference

   This week has been full of preparation, outside the house as well as inside.
Monday we called Susan for her birthday. Happy Birthday, Susan!!! They are finishing up their laundry room and it's going to be the nicest room in the house.

The crown molding is up.

Putting in cabinets and waiting for a concrete countertop.

 
   Tuesday was busy with yard work and volleyball. I filled the large container with garden debris and then pulled another large bag of weeds from the front. Stephen power washed and blow dried the front and I trimmed the bushes around the driveway for our next project.
  Wednesday was a solid day of working outside. It was dry and warm and maybe the last part of the "dry season" this year so we had to get out and "finish" the driveway. Stephen went toward Tacoma to buy some tar-like finish for the asphalt driveway. It was a mix, dip, pour and spread job that needed more than one person. It was a "Mom and Dad" job all day long. By the time we were done we were too tired to do anything else that day but Stephen still had to go to his meetings and work on his talk for conference. We tried to get ahold of Elizabeth for her birthday but settled for the next morning. Happy Birthday, Liz!!!

Carrying buckets of goop.

Dip and pour

Spreading the sealant over the black top.

 Thursday I volunteered at the Master Garden Tribal Life Trail. We're going to do more Elementary School tours and they need some docents to take the kids through the trail and talk about the native plants and what the native people did with them. It's fun to learn so much about the plants there and to realize that I have a lot of those plants in my own front yard. Of course the lady that planted them must have know they were native. It's pretty fun to see what I have as I clean out the weeds. That afternoon, Melissa Monroe came by with her cute little boy Elliot. I had to ask about the name and she said it was Elliot Ralph Monroe. "Ralph" is a family name on Jordan's side of the family but Melissa felt like it was a family name on her's as well...  :-)  We both thought it was pretty neat!
Thursday night was Stake Choir practice. It was a very good choir and we sang, "Ere You Left Your  Room this Morning" and "I Believe in Christ". They were the TAB renditions and we had some good enough singers in all the parts that it just came together like the TAB. Even the organ player has played the organ in the Tabernacle and he was very good.
   Friday, I taught the Seminary class and had to hurry to try to get through 2 lessons in the short time we had. I had created 2 posters to keep up in class and I wanted to have the students mark their scriptures with the new color coded marking system for Doctrinal Mastery. I still have to create some other poster for each of the scripture references. That night we were at the Temple to begin our Stake Conference. Stephen was assigned to prepare the agenda for the  Temple meeting and to speak at the 6:30 Assembly. We had a good turn out. The Temple Presidency counselor who spoke to us gave us some of the "rules" that should be followed while at the temple. They made sense and I'm glad that we got to hear them. He said that they can't talk about them outside of the temple so that was the best place to let people know the importance of endowment ordinance and when it starts (in the name booth) and how to act. It was a good reminder of the importance of each step in the temple ceremony.
   Saturday I had to work but  Stephen and Samuel were able to go to the Kozy home to celebrate Mary's 50 birthday even though it was in July. Since I wasn't there to fix food it was great that they got to go for lunch and eat well without going 'out'. That evening was the Adult session of Stake Conference. Stephen spoke in the Leadership session and President Stroud said he did a great job and it really set the tone for the rest of the meeting. I was very proud of him.
   I went to the building at 6:00 for a dinner for the visiting general authority and the stake presidency and their wives. Elder De Hoyos didn't bring his wife but it was so fun to hear him speak. He is from Mexico and he is learning English so his talk was in halting English and then after awhile another brother from  Argentina (but he's been in the states for 30 years) translated for him at the podium. There were also translators speaking Spanish for those who were using headphones from the Spanish Branch. Elder De Hoyos had a parable about a man he found a beautiful pearl and wanted to share it's beauty with others so he asked a man to build a box worthy of the pearl so that others could see it and people came from all over to see the pearl but what they noticed most was the box which held the pearl. He said it was like people who see the beauty in the church buildings, in the structure of the organization but don't see the doctrine in the gospel. He taught that we need to know the doctrine of the gospel and to stay firm in the faith. Before he spoke they had several new members and reactived members come and bare their testimonies. One young man, raised in the church, lost his way in his teens and got addicted and almost destroyed his life several times while doing significant damage to his family but he finally hit bottom and realized he was missing something. He found a Book of Mormon and began reading and realized what he needed to do. He is working toward finishing his GED, and getting himself ready to go on a mission. It was an incredible testimony. It was a good meeting.
   Today conference started with the choir and the mayor of Kent was in attendance and she was thoroughly impressed. (She said in her church we would have received a standing ovation). But she was focused on the "box". President Stroud spoke about being complacent in our membership and our need to progress spiritually instead of just saying "all is well". He spoke about about four areas he felt we should work on. 1) Understand and reflect upon the basic doctrines of the gospel - the plan of salvation. 2) Re-assess our daily actions and practices such as daily prayer, scripture study and Fasting, are we sincere in them. 3) Assess our relationships and friends -- are they uplifting and bringing us closer to Christ and our Father in Heaven. 4) Are we sacrificing? Do we pay our tithing, make the Sabbath holy, give of our time and talents to building the Kingdom of God? These were some great things to reflect on to make sure we are heading in the right direction.

Elder De Hoyos and the Stroud family

   After several other speakers including an 8 year old little girl who bore a sweet testimony and a newly returned missionary, who asked if we were "sleeping through the restoration" just as the disciples slept through the atonement in Gethsemane, the Temple President bore his testimony and stated that "only the home can compare to the Temple in sacredness." I thought that was profound and I want to make a wall hanging of that one. Elder De Hoyos spoke about miracles and the blessings we receive from the Lord. He spoke about repentance and our need to change or turn and come unto Christ. He said, "the issue is not what we have done, but what we have become." Another great thought to put on a wall hanging.
   I really felt the spirit in the meeting. From the music to the spoken word it was a beautiful experience. They did announce that we would be having a special stake conference in October with a visiting apostle. That was pretty exciting. Jon/Jenna and Liz/Austin had Elder Oaks come to Texas and Sarah/Michael and Jessica/Juan had Elder Bednar come to Provo. We don't know who's its going to be but it will be great. What an opportunity to hear an apostle of the Lord.
   I am going to ask if each of you would send me a note/letter about what you are doing each week and I'm going to post them in a new blog from the Ralph Kiddos. If you have better ideas please let me know but I'd like to share what others are doing and I'll provide a link to help you see what other families are up to. Thanks to those who sent some material already.
Love you ALL!!!