This month....

This month is half over and yet I am just barely getting the blog updated.  BIG SIGH.  Oh, the good intentions that I have, that just don't always come to fruition!!  So, it is now updated almost all the way. 

I just wanted to thank Sister Lester for her work on our activity last week, we really had a great time, though our numbers were few, the food was great and we were able to gain new recipes and ideas to take home.  We definitely plan on having more of these throughout the year, using different recipe themes.  What is better than food and friends and a little time out?  I must admit, at 3:00 that afternoon I was ready to sit down and not get up again, and the thought of doing hair, face, decent clothes, plus making dinner for family and to take, was not a very happy thing for me to face.  Yet, I got up and did it and really, really enjoyed myself.  So, I understand how hard it is sometimes to get up and get there, plus there has been so much sickness going on and so many sports, etc.  Hopefully we will see more of you  next time.

Also, I wanted to thank all of you who were willing to sign up to help out with Sister Williams, but, for the time being, don't expect any phone calls from her, she had a serious fall last week and is currently in the hospital in Caliente for an undetermined amount of time, depends on her rehab, when they will have her up and going again.  If you had a chance to stop in and say Hi-I am sure she might appreciate that, and we will let you know when she is home again.

Congrats to the Bradfield family on the arrival of their daughter, Andrea almost two weeks ago.  Dad said both are doing well after a little bout of jaundice, and they like having a little pink around.

We also have the Beckstrands home again from their mission to the Phillipines--they will be reporting the 16th in sacrament, while Elder Ben Baker will be home THIS week and reporting his mission to Peru on Sunday!  Next month brings home a few more--we'll keep you posted.

I wanted to thank our visiting teachers for their great job lately, since we adjusted routes a couple of months ago we have really seen some GREAT things coming through on the reports, we are also getting some GREAT feedback on some of those changes, and that really helps us as a presidency feel good and that we are gaining th inspiration we need to direct the visiting teaching, though it is a constant work in progress.  My one concern is that though our numbers were reported as 100% for the month of December, we did hear of a few discrepancy's from that report and so we just want to remind you to please make sure you are reporting and to make sure that your sisters know who you are and that they also know that you have contacted them.  Sometimes just saying "HI" in the store might be about all you can do that month, but often times they don't recognize that as a visit????  So, please help them to know that you have actually made contact with them, checked on them, and most of all--pray for them!  We thank you for all that you do and for the great service you give--PLEASE remember to report to Sister Perkins if you know of any concerns or if there are any meals we can be providing or any other help, sometimes I feel like so much goes without my knowing and you are my link to the sisters so feel free to call, even if I may already know.

Jan 2012 PRESIDENCY MESSAGE

(Our Focus this year in Relief Society is: CHARITY NEVER FAILETH )
Dear Sisters,

A new year often represents a clean slate, a new start for many in the world. Resolutions are made, goals are set, and the plan is to somehow become better this year than you were in the last. As members of the church, we know that this opportunity is available to us everyday through the gift of repentance. But, yet, it is also kind of nice to have a time to set down and evaluate where we are in our progress, and to recognize that we always have room to improve.

I think that the greatest source of improvement we can have as Heavenly Father’s children is gained through the development of CHARITY. It is through Charity that we truly come to know and understand our Savior and His plan for us. It is through Charity that we become like him. We hear so much of Charity, and yet are we sometimes overwhelmed by trying to have it? Are there so many aspects to it that we feel almost helpless to truly achieve it? Sister Jeannie McAllister wrote, “Living a Christ-like life doesn’t mean that we must single-handedly save our spouse, the office, the ward, or the world. It does mean we can aid our brothers and sisters with love and encouragement as we progress through life. It does mean we must care for and replenish ourselves regularly so that we are fuller, purer vessels from which others may draw sustenance.”
If we take a little more time to love, spend a little less on judging, fit in more personal study of the gospel, we will truly develop the character of Charity bit by bit in our lives. May this be our goal not just this year, but every year.
Love,

Jamie, Cindy, Loree, & Kathy