"I Think God Knows Something We Don't"

"He not only knows what is best for you,  He also anxiously wants you to choose what is best for you." -Dieter Uchtdorf

Well here I am. I made it ten days on my thirty day blog challenge. Yesterday there was too much laundry to do, to many dishes to do, scriptures that needed reading, a cello book that needed purchasing and required two trips to the store to finally get, parent teacher conferences that took two hours thanks to three coach teachers that didn't show up until an hour before the conferences ended, kids who needed the computer for homework all night, and violin practicing and homonym homework that made it impossible to concentrate when I did try with all of my heart to sit down and blog really quick. 

In other words, life happened, making it impossible to document life. I am now going to resist my normal urge to throw my hands in the air, and say, "Why try!?" I am going to try not to let the perfect get in the way of the good, and I am just going to keep on plugging along. Sometimes motherhood is just darn discouraging. That is why I am up a half an hour before the children. So that I can have a moment of peace and quiet, to collect my thoughts before the morning chaos begins. Perhaps I am not in the fetal position crying because of last weekend's Women's Conference.

Over thirty years ago, Mom sat next to Grandma Fellows in a little chapel in Taylorsville waiting for the Relief Society General Meeting to begin. Her mother had passed away a few years before. But as she sat on the bench, she could feel the presence of her mother so strongly that without thinking she leaned over to talk to her. It was at this time that she decided that this meeting was important, and that if her mother had been allowed to tarry that she would have been at my mom's side. She committed at that time to try to always attend the General Relief Society Meeting.

She began to invite me to these special meetings as a teenager, even though I wasn't technically in Relief Society. I have such fond memories of sitting in the chapel with my mother, grandmother, and aunts, listening to the words of the prophet and Relief Society leaders. The physical feast afterwards at the nearest restaurant rivaled the spiritual feast.

Now Mom has daughters and granddaughters of her own, and the yearly General Relief Society Meeting has evolved into the Semi-annual General Women's Meeting, where all women eight years and older are invited. We don't miss the Women's Broadcast...ever. We all look forward to it. Jessica even came home from Logan to attend with us. Our physical feast began before at Roosters, then we all gathered at Mom's Stake Center for the spiritual feast, because we all know that Mom's stake offers the best refreshments afterwards...cakes from the Lion House. Heaven!

My favorite speaker was the favorite speaker of I'm sure about 550,000 other Mormon women. President Uchtdorf always seems to resonate with me. He and his wife must have an amazing relationship, because he seems to really understand women. Me and my girls exchanged high-fives as soon as we found out he was the concluding speaker. From my 15 year old to this tired 40 year old, we knew he would speak words of truth and comfort. I don't know if it's his charming German accent, or the poetic nature of his talks, or simply his absolute in-tuneness with the Spirit, but as he begins to speak the words travel across the world, into chapels and living rooms and laptops, penetrating the hearts of women of all ages and cultures, reminding each one of us that we're loved, and that we matter, and to just keep doing what we're doing.

The children will be up in two minutes. So I will leave you with some of his words. The words that I needed to hear last Saturday. The words that I need to hear this morning as the chaos begins:

"God loves you this very day and always. He is not waiting to love you until you have overcome your weaknesses and bad habits. He loves you today with a full understanding of your struggles...

"He sees you clearly. He knows you as you really are, and He loves you today and always."

"Do you think outward attractiveness, your dress size, or popularity make the slightest difference in your worth to the one who created the universe?"

"You are loved. You are dear to your heavenly parents."

Knowing that, I can pick myself up and keep plugging along:)