May we always Remember Sept. 11th.

'MEET ME IN THE STAIRWELL'

You say you will never forget where you were when you heard the news On September 11, 2001. Neither will I. I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room with a man who called his wife to say 'Good-Bye.' I held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the peace to say, 'Honey, I am not going to make it, but it is OK..I am ready to go.'
I was with his wife when he ca lled as she fed breakfast to their children. I held her up as she tried to understand his words and as she realized he wasn't coming home that night.
I was in the stairwell o f the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to Me for help. 'I have been knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!' I said. 'Of course I will show you the way home - only believe in Me now.'
I was at the base of the building with the Priest ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He heard my voice and answered.
I was on all four of those planes, in every seat, with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring them that their faith has saved them. I was in Texas , Virginia , California , Michigan , Afghanistan .
I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news. Did you sense Me? I want you to know that I saw every face. I knew every name - though not all know Me.
Some met Me for the first time on the 86th floor. Some sought Me with their last breath. Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the smoke and flames; 'Come to Me... this way... take my hand.' Some chose, for the final time, to ignore Me. But, I was there.
I did not place you in the Tower that day. You may not know why, but I do. However, if you were there in that explosive moment in time, would you have reached for Me?
Sept. 11, 2001, was not the end of the journey for you. But someday your journey will end. And I will be there for you as well. Se ek Me now while I may be found. Then, at any moment, you know you are 'ready to go.' I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.
God
During the next 60 seconds, stop whatever you are doing, and take this opportunity. (Literally it is only 1 minute.) All you have to do is the following: Stop and think and appreciate God's power in your life, for doing what you know is pleasing to Him. If you are not ashamed to do this, follow the instructions. Jesus said, 'If you are ashamed of Me, I will be ashamed of you before My Father'
'Yes, I love my God. He is my fountain of Life and My Savior. He Keeps me going day and night. Without Him, I am no one. But with Him, I can do everything. Christ is my strength.'

Here's some pics from our Idaho trip.

We did some fishing. Mitch caught this Trout on Rigby Lake, while my Dad was stuck rowing the boat in high winds...


We went to a girls camp the Church owns and went down this awesome slide. My Dad recently rebuilt the frame underneath the slide.

















We helped my Dad and a neighbor finish hauling in his hay. Mitchell was having a good time with his allergies. We did have air conditioning in the truck though. I never had that when I was working on the farm.

These are a couple pictures from our drive. Which one is from North Dakota, and which one is from Idaho????

FAMILY REUNION

3:27 PM by Serena 1 comments
My family had a family reunion in July. We were not able to attend but thought you might enjoy some pictures of my family. My younger sister Lorinda took the pictures and created the slideshow. Thanks Lorinda for all of your work!!
Click on the following link to watch the slideshow:
http://secure.smilebox.com/ecom/openTheBox?sendevent=4e4455784d7a6b784d673d3d0d0a&campaign=blog_playback_link&blogview=true

Driving to Idaho...


We are leaving for Idaho soon to take Briana to BYU. I look especially look forward to driving through the stretch of North Dakota and Montana.







Mitch and I plan on doing some fishing on the Snake River with my Dad and spend some time with Serena's family and mine. Then we will leave Briana behind to begin college life.

Open House/Farwell Party

1:23 PM by Serena 4 comments














I just wanted to say Thank You to all who attended Briana and Melanie's open house. We feel very blessed to have such great friends who love and support our family. We had a great time and enjoyed having a house full of friends.

Jackie and Nicole



Briana, Melanie and the Elders

Memories....

Memories...
So, this is my first tag. Sometimes these are intersting, sometimes...not so much. My sister recently posted this tag on her blog and I commented. So in order to play along, I'm supposed to repost the tag on my blog...so here's how you play:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave a memory you and I have had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a lot or just little, anything you remember, good or bad, but please be nice! (And Clint keep it clean.)
2. Next, repost this on your blog. If you don't want to play on your blog, or don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments.
So, I think that I may be sitting here...all alone with my memories...since I don't think anyone in my family understands how to do this blog thing, if they have even managed to teach themselves how to use the internet. With one exception (Lorinda). Seriously people, most of them are in Idaho...just a little behind the times. But I love 'em!
Here's to some memories...CHEERS!

Motivate ME!! Why do you exercise?

9:25 AM by Serena 2 comments
Can someone please help me? I don't want to have a spare tire around my waist. But I also LOVE to sleep. What is it that pulls you out of bed early in the morning to exercise? I know I do feel better after I exercise, but I can't seem to jump out of bed at 5:30 a.m. when the alarm goes off.
Should I post this picture on my mirror to daily remind me of the beautiful, strong woman I could become with a little work??? (Just Kidding) Although I could kick your butt!!