The Thank You Experiment

So, I'm in the sixth month of my "Thank You Experiment". It has been such an interesting thing for me to do. Just to explain what this is... way back before 2014 began, I decided I was going to write one Thank You note or Love note every single day of 2014. The one rule is that it had to be a mailed note... not an email. I have sent plenty of email thank you's, but for this, I wanted them to be hand-written, received-in-the-mailbox notes. Did you know how many darling Thank You notes and cards there are out there? I think Target is my favorite for an incredible selection and great prices. It makes it even more fun to write the notes when they are on pretty cards.

I had no idea who I would write the 365 notes to.  As one friend wrote to me, "I don't even think I know that many people". You'd be surprised at how many people affect you as you go about your life:

-Family members. We have oodles and oodles of family members. And we rub shoulders with them often. There are always a few who, after the gatherings are over, stand out to me and have done something kind or noteworthy. Or who have touched me deeply through the years and need a proper thank you from me.

-Friends. So many good friends, both from the present day and from way back when. They continually love and support and I find many opportunities to write a thank you note for.

-Church friends, acquaintances, etc. We belong to a church with a very strong community, and there are so many experiences that I have found in which I can and should write a note of appreciation for. People are so good and do so many charitable things. And with my husband being a bishop, it seems we are the recipients of kindnesses over and again. And on another note... I have never (until now) written a thank you to a speaker in General Conference about a talk that touched me in a particular way. I've never even thought about it. But, after General Conference, when I was thinking about who to write a note to, I kept thinking about certain speakers who stood out to me. So, I wrote to them about how their talks were particularly meaningful to me. And do you know what? Some of them even wrote back! That is pretty amazing!

-And SO many others. Everyone else who touches me in such a way that I feel compelled to write them a note of gratitude.

Now, since January 1, I have learned a few things. I have learned that there are definitely things every single day to be thankful for. And many of them have to do with specific people in my life. Why not thank them? Why not let them know just how much something they said or did, meant to me? I'm surprised at some of the responses, and I'm even more surprised that there are some people who WRITE BACK to a thank you note (have I ever done this?... No):

"...I have never received a note like that about my singing. It was such a sweet surprise!"

"What a wonderful surprise greeting me in the mailbox after work..."

"The note meant so much to me... it made my week and I want to frame the note!"

"Receiving the note was such as sweet surprise and it made me cry."

"Just wanted to thank you for the kind note. It warmed my soul. Kind notes like that are examples to me of what can make one's day."

And here's the kicker... I know that I am not doing anything grandiose. This is what I should have been doing all along. I should always be showing gratitude to others. I have received much more from this little experiment than others have. I am sure of it. It is quite a thing, each night, to sit and reflect on my day, and my feelings and ALWAYS come up with someone to write a note to. I've wondered if it would be hard, as time goes on, but it hasn't yet. There are some people who have received more than one note from me throughout the months, but that doesn't matter. If they continue to stand out in that way, they should also continue to be thanked and noticed. It has made me think much more deeply about people and the services they do, and the time they put in to things. And how important it is to let them know my feelings of thankfulness. Why haven't I always done this? I mean, I've written the obvious thank you notes for gifts and such, but why haven't I written a note to someone who has worked so hard to do a musical number in church that touches me in such a beautiful way? I hope that I am bringing about change within myself... that I will ever more have that desire to let others know how grateful I am for their time, their service, their kindnesses.

School's Out! Time To Burn That Schoolwork!

This time of year brings back a flood of memories of when our kids were in school. I loved when summer finally hit! It meant more fun, more relaxation, and no pressure for the kids (and for me... let's be honest). 

We started a fun tradition when our kids were in middle school and high school. On the very last day of school, the kids' friends all came over for a huge water fight (balloons, squirt guns, you name it). 

That may or may not be my husband who has bypassed the water balloons and is just spraying with a hose. Hey, whatever it takes...

After they had all been thoroughly soaked, we started a barbecue and they all devoured the food in about 49 seconds. And then, the real fun began... we made a fire in the fire pit, and the kids would sit around it and start tossing in papers from the school year. It became almost cathartic for them. Some years they even painted their faces resembling warriors of sorts.

As they sat around and scrunched papers up and tossed them into the fire, they would all bring up certain assignments or really great teachers, or memories.

Yep. It's that time of year. Time to shake off the stresses and pressures of the past several months, and breathe deeply and find moments to relax and enjoy. If it means taking my "To-Do" lists and burning them in a fire pit, so be it. Hmmmmm. I think I'm on to something here.

Pear-picking and a temple walk

Bob and I picked apple-pears last Friday. They were at the perfect stage... huge and not overly ripe. We filled boxes and boxes, and then called it a day. We cleared most of the trees, but left a few for the birds.

We have a list of people that we deliver pears to every year, so we were anxious to get them off the trees and delivered to our friends and family. My mom and sister came a couple of weeks ago and picked to their hearts content. Many years, we make calls and have friends come and pick, too, but this year there were fewer pears, so we just decided to pick them ourselves. Plus, the yard isn't in the best of shape. I'd be embarrassed to have people roaming around my yard. To be honest, I am looking forward to snow blanketing my flower beds and hiding the weeds.

Considering Bob's hands are pretty big, these pears are huge! We kept finding extra large ones that we saved in a box called "the world record box". We had a few good world record contenders. The next day we went out and bought a food dehydrator. We want to try drying our apple-pears. Now I just need to find a minute to actually get some in the dehydrator. I'll keep you posted on that venture.

The next day, Whitney and I went on a stake women's walk from the Draper Temple to the Timpanogos Temple -- 13.1 miles. In these photos you can see the long line of women hiking across the mountains to get over to Highland. It was great! I loved being with Whitney, getting some good exercise, enjoying the amazing scenery, and now saying I have done a half-marathon (albeit mostly walking). Lindsay was going to come, too, but ended up not feeling that great the night before, so we let her off the hook.

We ended up running some of the last of it. Whitney is almost 5 months pregnant, so we didn't want to push that too much, but had also hooked up with Kristen and Megan, and Kristen was rarin' to go. She is a real runner, and she also had to get to the finish line so she could go to the BYU football game.

Wedding Photos - Part 2 - The luncheon

To see the rest of the wedding & reception photos for this wedding, click below:

Part 1 - The Temple

Part 3 - The Reception Entry

Part 4 - More Reception Details

Part 5 - Yard and Food

Part 6 - The Wedding Party

I have already shared the photos of Linds and Ryan after their wedding in the Salt Lake Temple. Today's post will include the next batch of photos -- mostly the wedding luncheon. 

Salt Lake LDS Temple

We had the luncheon just across the plaza from the temple, at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. 

At the luncheon, we just had a small display table (we were saving all our energy for decorating for the reception!). You can see the laser etching that Bob did of the front side of their wedding invitations. It turned out awesome, and was perfect for displaying at the luncheon and the reception!

I showed these in an earlier post... these were sitting at each place setting on the tables.

Whitney, Lindsay and I wrapped all of the little mint lifesaver rolls and put the final touches on them. I loved the way they turned out, and the guests all seemed delighted with the extra little thought for them.

The tables were all decorated with our book page centerpiece bases (which by the way, I am in love with and want to use all over my house), and then we just rented the topiaries from the Joseph Smith Memorial Building Caterer, and tied our own pink bows on them. Simple, but very sweet. 

Here are the guests all focused on the proceedings. Lindsay and Ryan were obviously already married in the temple by then, but since none of Ryan's family are members of the church, they weren't able to be in the temple. So, we had Bob conduct a little ring exchange for their benefit. Bob talked for just a few minutes explaining the meaning of the temple wedding, and why that is so important to members of the LDS faith. It really was perfect, and I think Ryan's family appreciated knowing more about that and also getting a chance to see the new couple exchange their rings.

The ring exchange

Bob introducing all of the guests

We decided it was best to get Lindsay out of her dress and into something else for the luncheon. The dress wasn't exactly conducive to dining, and I don't know what we would have done if there had been a spill on it!

If I look particularly intent on filling my plate (in the above photo), its because I WAS particularly intent on filling my plate! The food was delicious soups and salads, a roll, and dessert. We were starving and all of it tasted so good to me!

Bob and I as happy as can be!

Wedding Photos - Part 1 - The temple

To see the rest of the wedding posts for this wedding, click below
Part 2 - The Luncheon

Part 3 - The Reception Entry

Part 4 - More Reception Details

Part 5 - Yard and Food

Part 6 - The Wedding Party

I am finally getting around to posting the wedding photos. The photos you will see today are of just after the temple wedding. Linds and Ryan were married in the Salt Lake Temple on a gorgeous June day...

The bridal bouquet

Ryan and Lindsay leaving the temple and
seeing their awaiting friends and family

The lovely couple with the
Salt Lake Temple in the background

It truly was a perfect day! We couldn't be happier for them. We are lucky enough to have them living in our backyard. Literally. Their apartment is right across the back fence. Linds can stand on her front porch and I on my back deck, and we can have a conversation over the fence!

I'll be back soon to share more photos of the wedding day!

Youth activities and an elk sighting

We had the youth (14 and older) come up to our cabin for dinner during their youth conference. They didn't stay overnight, but just long enough for dinner and listening to an awesome guest speaker (there, on the right in the photo). We have so many amazing youth and also youth leaders. This is a great photo of all of them! 

The wildflowers were beautiful, and Bob and I spent a few minutes gathering some to put in a vase up on the deck. So pretty!

That same weekend, while Bob and I were out on a ride, we came across these 5 elk bucks. Not really sure if you call them bucks when they're elk, but it sounds right to me. They didn't stay around long for photos. In fact, just after I snapped this, they ran off. We so seldom actually see elk up there, that it was pretty great to see them, even for a brief moment!

We've had some other fun young women activities... For this one, we had a night where we learned about what we can do to be His hands, and to serve others, and then we learned how to do manicures. Lindsay (on the right in the photo) shared all of her nail art expertise with the girls. I love when we can do a fun activity, and also work on Personal Progress at the same time! I also love having daughters who are talented and willing to share their talents with me and the Beehives!

And this is another great photo of some of the young women just before going in to the temple to do temple baptisms. Courtney came up with the awesome idea to make fruit and donut hole kabobs for them before going in, so that they had some breakfast. Brilliant! They loved them and had happy tummies when they were doing their service in the temple.

Looking Back: Days of 47 Parade Float

I was just thinking about what we were doing almost exactly a year ago... and it made me tired to think about it! We were putting the finishing touches on our float to run in the Draper Parade, then to show it in the  Float Preview Party, and then to run it in the big event: Days of  47 Parade.

This is what we started with: a cruddy wood base attached to the skeleton of an old station wagon.

And ended with this beauty:

Since our stake is in Draper, we wanted it to be something to do with Draper. We naturally chose hang-gliders, the rodeo, biking, the historical park pavilion, and then we chose eggs to be the people on the float. Draper used to be known as the "Egg Basket of Utah", so we figured that would be a fun way to bring that in.

At the Preview Party, we had some posters around our float that described the process as being as easy as 1-2-3! (definitely tongue in cheek). The first poster talked about the research and history behind our float.

The next poster showed the team we gathered. 

We knew we had to begin with a great crew. They were amazing, and so willing to work hard and give up their time. You can see some of them in the photo below.

And the last poster showed the supplies and hours it took to put the float together.

Here is Bob, all decked out in his painters coveralls. They were handy for crawling underneath the float, but they were SO hot to wear! 

The back of float as it is running
in the Draper Parade

And the highlight of the Days of 47 Parade was seeing President Monson drive by, with a great smile for the crowds! The photo is a little fuzzy, but I love it!


That was definitely a once in a lifetime assignment (I hope!). We worked harder on that float than on any other project I can think of. We were called a year before the actual Days of 47 Parade, and then started attending meetings and classes, and then began physical work on the float in January. Some weeks we met every weeknight plus Saturday. Oftentimes a group of us gathered during the daytime, too. It was quite the project, and we learned a lot from being involved with it. One thing I had reaffirmed is that my husband can figure out a way to build anything I (or anyone else) can come up with. Its a great talent, and I may or may not take complete advantage of it!