Dad Marchant sharing thoughts from the address Joseph Smith Prophet of the Restoration

I enjoyed reading this talk for a variety of reasons. First it applies to all of us. He talked about Peter the Apostle and how he did some things he is not proud of, but overcame all obstacles and became one of the greatest High Priests of all time. He also talked about four fundamental truths not taught by most of the Christian world. These truths are very powerful and provides each of us with an "iron rod" to hold onto.
First truth is that the Father and the Son are two distinct beings. This gives me great strength knowing I have a loving Heavenly Father and a Brother I can always look up to for help and guidance. Second the Father and the Son have glorifed bodies of fesh and bones. This is something that gives us great happiness and hope, because each of us will someday have glorified bodies of flesh and bones and the pain and suffering of this world will go away. The third truth is that God speaks to man today. I know the heavens are not closed and I know the more obedient we are to the teachings of our Saviour the more we will be guided by the promptings of the Holy Ghost. The fourth truth is that the full and complete Church of Jesus Christ was not on the earth and the Lord was preparing the world for the fulness of the Gospel. This truth leads us to the doctrine providing all the ordinances of the gospel to everyone, the living and the dead.
Through Joseph Smith all the powers, keys, teachings, and ordinances necessary for salvation and exaltation have been resored. You cannot go anywhere else in the world and get that, it is not to be found in any other church. I know this is the only true and living church upon th face of the whole earth and I know that God loves us and wants us to have peace and happiness in this world and eternal peace and happiness in the world to come. Love Dad

Battle of the Bands/Bake Sale Fundraiser for Haiti

Tonight our stake held a fundraiser for the victims in Haiti. There was a silent auction, with everything from framed photography to skis and ski boots; a bake sale, which I did my best to contribute to; and battle of the bands, which bands were comprised of talented musicians from each ward in the stake. For the bake sale I had very little time to prepare something to contribute, so I called my little sister Lindsey and she gave me the brilliant idea of making homemade oreo's. They were quick and easy to make and if I can make them anyone can make them because I am no baker! I enjoy baking, but if I were to include it on my resume it definitely would fall under the category of hobbies and interests, not talents :) The cookies were delicious and sold moments after we placed them on the table! Thanks Linds!

Cupid...?

I think my brother thinks I need some help in the dating department cause I received this less than attractive Cupid in the mail today...great drawing Tracy! I didn't know you are an artist ;) Along with the cupid was a little note which reads, "Happy Valentines. You better find your own man soon because this ain't your typical cupid and he is coming your way... beggars can't be choosers. Love Tracy" Tender moment and thoughtful expression of love from my big brother on this day for celebrating love! Tracy you crack me up. Honestly no matter how grotesque this little rendition of cupid may be it means a lot to me that you took the time to draw me a picture for Valentine's day. You are so sweet. I love you so much brother. Hope to receive more drawings in the future :)

A Valentine's Surprise...

I received flowers at work on Friday for Valentine's Day... from a guy for the first time ever...! How it all happened was actually pretty embarrassing, because I am not a person that likes attention and this definitely attracted alot of attention. I was at work sitting in the front office area with a client and her Support Coordinator when a guy walked in with a bouquet of flowers. He walked up to the Secretary's desk and then glanced back over his shoulder to where I was sitting. When he looked at me I realized it was Weston. He pointed to the flowers and mouthed to me, 'these are for you,' with a pleased smile on his face, noticing my shocked expression. I got up and went over to talk to him for a minute. He handed me the flowers after telling me he was just going to leave them up front for me, not expecting to see me when he came in to deliver the flowers. I thanked him and he walked out the door as quietly as he had entered.

I asked the Secretary, Tara, if I could keep the flowers at her desk for the day, not wanting to be questioned or to make a scene by carrying them back to my office. Well it was too late for that... immediately Tara asked, 'is that your boyfriend? I didn't even get a good look at him.' I replied, 'no, he is not my boyfriend. We have only been out on two dates and I hardly know him.' Then Dana, the accountant, stepped out of her office to inspect the flowers and the hand written note in the bouquet. She quickly put her hands on her hips and looked at me inquisitively to pose this half question/half statement of accusation 'I thought you were dating Chad?' I replied 'no we were dating, but he and I are not dating anymore.' Then Bill, the residential coordinator (and a friend of Chads) poked his head out of his office after watching the whole scene and remarked, 'Chads going to be so jealous,' with a smirk on his face. Wow talk about being the center of attention... I was so embarrassed! I think my face turned six different shades of red during that extended inquisition, but that was very thoughtful of Weston and the flowers are beautiful! What's life without little surprises every now and again... :)

Julie's Surprise Party!

Surprise! A friend of mine from work (Mikel) and I threw a little surprise party on January 31 for Julie, who another girl that we work with. Julie was very surprised and delighted when she walked into Mikel's house with Debbie and everyone yelled 'surprise!' We were not expecting them to come in when they did because Debbie didn't give us any warning, but it all worked out. Mikel's little 3 year old girl said, 'we got the party ready,' to Julie as she was walking up the stairs to the living room where we were all waiting, but I don't think it registered with Julie that the little girl was talking about a party for her. It was cute and Julie was laughing throughout the party so we know she enjoyed it.

Mikel's kids are adorable too! They were the life of the party. I miss being around little kids; they are so full of life and everything is fun and exciting to them. They kept asking me to blow up balloons for them and while I was blowing them up they would ask if they could help me. I would hold onto the end of the balloon and put it in their mouths and just as they would get ready to blow I would release the end and air would blow in their faces... they loved it and laughed hysterically every time! Too cute :)