Easter Weekend

It was a beautiful Easter weekend, complete with General Conference, extended family, and lots of good food. Conference was wonderful. I listened through the lens of a determined desire to know what I could do to strengthen our children, ways to help them feel the Spirit, and increase their testimonies. I was prompted to read the conference addresses as a family, with everyone having their own copy of the May Liahona they can read through and underline. It will be an added bit of reading on top of our Book of Mormon and Come, Follow Me reading, but I felt power, hope, and spiritual vigor as we listened, and I’m hopeful the children will feel those same things as we read together.

At the end of Conference, President Nelson announced 20 new temples. Twenty! Three new temples in Europe, three in Africa, one in Asia, four in Central and South America, and nine in the United States, including another temple in Utah. 

We gathered with the Barri on Saturday between the afternoon session and the Priesthood session. It has been 18 months since we were together and it was wonderful! The afternoon was glorious so we all sat outside as we ate, talked, laughed, and played games. Katie came with her children who are growing so fast and are funny and entertaining. Ethan and I played cards together, a game neither of us had played, but we won! We borrowed 9-Square from the Oylers and played in front of the house on the road. Sharon also brought eggs for Katie’s kids to find, and Brandt and Blithe did a bang-up job hiding them all over the front yard. They hid some so well even they forgot where they were hidden. Brianne was here, too. She is finishing up her freshman year at BYU and has come to our house for dinner a few times. She starts her mission on May 18. It felt so good to be back to our regular conference weekend meeting with Barri again after a long separation.

 

Sunday brought us together with the DeMartinis. We ate, we laughed, we hunted eggs, we talked about conference, we had cake AND cookies AND chocolate pavlova. Our dessert cup overflowed.

  

 

What a blessing it is to know Jesus Christ was resurrected, and that because of his resurrection, we’ll be resurrected too. The sting of death is lost in the joy of that supreme Sunday morning. I know He lives. I know I’ll see again those I love who have passed away. I know there is peace in Christ.