Gratitude

What Did the Prophet Ask Us To Do?

October, 2013

Here's a list of "to dos" I gleaned from President Monson's five talks of this last conference:

Saturday Morning Session, Welcome to Conference

1.      “Now is the time for members and missionaries to come together, to work together, to labor in the Lord’s vineyard to bring souls until Him.”

2.     Contribute, as you are able to your ward missionary fund or the general missionary fund of the church.

Priesthood Session, True Shepherds (Home Teaching)

1.     Let us reach out to those for whom we are responsible.

2.     The Aaronic Priesthood holder should take part in the teaching.

3.     Make  appointments to home teach.

Sunday Morning Session, I Will Not Fail Thee, nor Forsake Thee

1.     “May we have a commitment to our Heavenly Father that does not ebb and flow with the years or the crises of our lives.  We should not need to experience difficulties for us to remember Him, and we should not be driven to humility before giving Him our faith and trust.”

Sunday Afternoon Session, Till We Meet Again

1.     May your homes be filled with love,  courtesy and with the spirit of the Lord.

2.     May you constantly nourish your testimonies.

3.     May the spirit we have felt here be and abide with us as we go about those things which occupy us each day. 

4.     May we show increased kindness toward one another.

5.     May be ever be found doing the work of the Lord.

General Relief Society Meeting, We Never Walk Alone

1.     We would do well to ask ourselves daily: “Did you think to pray?”

2.     Take time to read the scriptures.

April, 2013 Conference Report

“Let’s make sharing our faith online more a part of our daily life.  LDS.org, Mormon.org, Facebook, Twitter- all provide opportunities.”  Elder Neil L. Anderson

I am pleased to use my blog to share my faith.  This quote from Elder Anderson is similar to one from Elder Ballard, who said we must stand for truth and online is a great place to do it.  (That is not a direct quote, but is the essence of what he said in his Education Week talk.) 

I love General Conference.  I recently finished studying the talks from the April, 2013 general conference.  I found so many things that uplifted and inspired me.  I read all of the footnotes and look up all of the scriptural references.  For the first time this conference, I used my ipad rather than my paper scriptures to do this.  I was slow to convert, but I LOVED it!  It was so easy to just touch a reference and it would go there.  I could touch to tag it by subject or to write a note by that scripture.  I also referenced lots of scriptures back to the talks.  I have always written in the margins of my scriptures references to the conference talks, but now I can write as long of a note as I want.  There’s plenty of room.  Then, when I’m reading the scriptures, I can just touch the reference and it will take me back to the talk that enlightened me on that scripture.  I am so excited about that!   I thoroughly enjoyed studying. 

One gem I found in the footnotes was in Elder Quentin L. Cook’s talk.  Footnote 25 was from the Complete Poetical Works of Greenleaf Whittier:  “Heed how thou livest.  Do not act by day which from the night shall drive thy peace away.”   Is that not a great quote?

Some highlights of the conference talks:

I loved President Packer’s “Unfinished Composition.”  It included a beautiful testimony.  I hope he makes it to age 98 for the next addition to the poem.

Marriage: Watch and Learn was one of my favorite talks of the whole conference.  I loved it.  It was given by Elder L. Whitney Clayton.  I would love to teach that talk.

I always love Elder Holland’s talks.  “Lord I Believe” touched me deeply.  It’s okay not to know for sure.  Just keep trying and learning. 

Statistics

Here are the number of times each of the following were used in the references:

New Testament- the most with 228.  That is a remarkably high number- the most ever.  It was followed closely by

Doctrine and Covenants- 217.  This is something new- at least since I have been doing this.  Always The Book of Mormon and the New Testament are the two highest. 

Book of Mormon-131 ( it wasn’t that the Book of Mormon was quoted less, it was that the New Testament and Doctrine and Covenants were quoted way more than usual.)

Latter-day Apostles-66

Old Testament- 49

Pearl of Great Price-23

Church Handbooks- 9   I just started noticing as I was going through that they were quoting from the handbooks a lot, so I counted them.  I don’t know if I just didn’t notice before, or if this is a change.  They say that if you want to keep a secret, put it in a church handbook because no one ever reads them.  Maybe our leaders are trying to change that!

Hymns-13

World Literature-8

Proclamation on the Family-6

The speaker that used the most references was Elder Craig A. Cardon of the Seventy.  He had 154 references, including 71 from the Doctrine and Covenants and 41 from the New Testament.  So, he alone, made those numbers higher than usual.

As always, I express my gratitude for general conference. 

My Favorite Things- Frog Trouble

Though they all live far away, we've been blessed to see all of our grandchildren in the past month.  I gave each of the families this book/ CD as we've seen them.  I am a Sandra Boynton fan.  She writes and illustrates the cutest children's stories AND she writes music for children.  This book/ CD consists of some great songs that really appeal to children.  She has fabulous Nashville guest artists perform the songs on the CD and they are so well done.  I love  "Alligator Stroll."  The book teaches you how to do this simple line dance to the music.  I also love " Broken Piano" performed by Ben Folds (I'm a Ben Folds fan.  He is such a great musician.)  Blues-style "The Heartache Song" is another favorite as it so captures the heartaches of children.  It starts "They make me clean up my room . .. "  It was fun to sing and dance to these wonderful songs with my grandchildren(ages 2-8).  Each quickly developed a favorite song on the cd.  It was amazing how fast they knew their favorite.
Brielle, age 8 likes "The Heartache Song" the best.
Nathan, age 6 LOVES "Trucks."  He knows every word of the chorus and sings it will all his little heart.  It is so dang cute.
Gabbi, age 4 also has memorized every word of her favorite, "Copycat."  She had it completely memorized before she asked her mom, "What's a copycat?"  I hope Michelle's answer was, "What's a copycat?"
Caleb, age 3 loves "Trucks" and "Alligator Stroll."  He's intrigued with the picture of that one because with all of the alligators, there is one lone chicken.  He says he wants to be the chicken.
Jacob, age 3 fell in love with "Frog Trouble" the first time he heard it.  As soon as we'd get in the car, he'd ask for "Frog Trouble."  Frog trouble, bad, bad.   He also loves "Broken Piano."
Cute Lily, age 2, is so very polite.  When she gets in the car, she gently asks, "How 'bout we listen to to the Truck song.?"  When Mommy doesn't respond, she asks just a little louder, "How about we listen to the Truck song?"
And Jaron, age two, loves to look at the pictures in the book.  "They have a guitar."  He says over and over.  His dad has one, so he knows what that is.  "Trucks.  They driving, Mommy.  They going."
To hear short clips of the songs, click here.  You can order this great collection here.

Sandra Boynton's "Frog Trouble"- one of my favorite things!

To view more of my favorite things, click here.

My Favorite Things: Rubbermaid Food Storage Containers

We love these little rubbermaid food storage containers.  After we eat dinner, we divide the leftovers into them.  They are the perfect size for a little "t.v. dinner"  They have a vent in the lid that you can open and heat the meal in the microwave.  It works perfect for Ken to grab one out of the fridge in the morning to take to work for lunch.  He heats it and eats it right in the container.  I got them at Walmart.  This is the 27 oz. size.

We have one shelf in the fridge that is reserved for these little dinners.  When it starts to get empty, I know it's time to cook again!  

27 oz. plastic, microwavable food storage containers- one of my favorite things!
Click here to see more of my favorite things.

The Prince Family Comes For a Visit

Brian and Michelle and family came from Virginia for a short visit.  Brian's brother got married this weekend, so they came out early and spent a few days with us before.  It was so fun to have them in our home.  Michelle was thrilled to be home as it had been a couple of years since she had been here.

They arrived late Sunday night.  Both kids were asleep, so they woke up in a strange place the next morning. Early the next morning, two-year-old Jaron and four-year-old Gabbi went into the room in which their parents were sleeping.  Jaron was disoriented and said he wanted to go home.  Brian teased, "So what do you think Gabbi?  Should we just go home?"  Gabbi's response, "But I haven't even seen Grandpa and Grandma yet!"  We're so glad they stayed.  We had such a fun time.  Michelle went to my Aqua Zumba class with me and to my Keynote rehearsal.  The Keynotes loved her and were even joking about chipping in so she can come back and sing with us for our Christmas concert.  We are short a soprano this season, so I think it's a great idea.  We didn't get pictures, but we had a fun FHE with the kids.  On Tuesday, Ken took off some time from work and they went on a hike (Pictures below) while I made a nice dinner for everyone. Then Ken and Brian took the kids on another hike while Michelle and I were at Keynotes on Wednesday.  We went out for spicy authentic Mexican (the hotter the better for Brian) and we watched the video of old Hinton family memories put together by Ken's brother, Jim.  Michelle and Brian loved seeing that.  

Dancing is always on the agenda when Michelle's around!

Grandpa and Jaron have a special bond.  

Grandma and Gabbi read a lot of books together.  

And joy of joys!  The garbage truck came!!!  Does life get better than this?

Jaron wanted to hold a grasshopper.

For about one second.

I love this artistic shot!  Good job, Michelle!

The kids helped harvest the garden.  Simple pleasures are the best.

Just like old times with our girls:  I read stories while Grandpa brushed out Gabbi's hair.  

We loved having the Prince family!  Hurry back!!!

Down By the Bay

Gabbi and Grandma Kay rocking out to that old toe stomper, "Down By the Bay."

DSCF0356 cut 1 from Kay Hinton on Vimeo.

Walk Two Moons

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is the best book I’ve read since, . . . since Up a Road Slowly by Irene Hunt. I LOVED this book. I wish I could give it 7 stars. It is funny, it is sad, it has mystery and intrigue, and it’s characters are real and oh, so very loveable. I was somewhere in the middle of it when I took a break from reading and went to the grocery store. I found myself thinking about it as I walked up and down the grocery aisles, and found myself crying for Sal and Phoebe. I was literally crying in the grocery store. This book moves you, and believe me, if you don’t cry at the end, something’s seriously wrong with you. It is powerful and moving and, oh how I wish I had written it. I don’t care what age or gender you are, you need to read this powerful book. It will help you understand people better. It will make you more compassionate and caring. And it will entertain you. You’ll have a hard time putting it down. If you know a young person (or an old one) who doesn’t come from a traditional, caring, two-parent family, you need to read this book and maybe give them a copy. The author is most deserving of the Newberry Medal she won for writing it in 1995. This one goes on my "need to read it again sometime" shelf.



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Dreams of Joy

Dreams of Joy by Lisa See

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


Well, I’ve done it again. I started a book and didn’t finish it. I just can’t stand reading this book because the main character, Joy, is so stupid. Every page, I’m thinking to myself, “Stupid, stupid girl.” Joy, of Chinese descent, but born in America, thinks she has to return to her roots- now Mao Chang China. She immerses herself in the culture, only to realize too late that she is stuck. The worst part, though, is that because of her great love for her daughter, Joy’s mother also returns to China, and I assume also gets stuck. I don’t know for sure, because, like I said, I didn’t finish the book. I would keep reading if I thought there might be a happy ending. But I’m afraid it will just be sad and frustrating and . . .sad. So the book sits on my shelf with a bookmark marking my place somewhere in the middle of it. I’d like to think someday I’ll get back to it, but I’m afraid I never will. I’ll let you know if I do. Stupid, stupid girl.



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Hinton Sibling Reunion, 2013

Last weekend was our annual Hinton Sibling Reunion.  This year, we stayed in the Dixie College Cabin in Pine Valley.  Though Mark and Kathy are not shown in this picture, all eight of the Hinton siblings and their spouses were in attendance.  Jim was in charge and planned some exceptionally fun activities.  

Since we're all grandparents, we all shared ideas for being better grandparents.  

We each brought a recording of a favorite song and shared it.  It was so fun to hear everyone's favorites and especially to hear the stories of WHY they were their favorites.  I feel like it gave a personal, sweet insight to each person.  

Kathy:  Lord, I Would Follow Thee

Mark Hinton:  The Sound of Music

Ada:  Lullaby sung by Tiffani

Don: How Great Thou Art

Mark Grant:  Theme from A River Runs Through It

Lorene: The Light Within

Sherrie: One More Day

Rick: Theme song from Hooziers (Best Shot)

Leslie:  Jerusalem (anthem of England where they served their mission)

Jim:  Those Were the Days

David: Hope of Israel

Gerri: Search for Me

Clark and Nan:  Learn How to Pretend ("their" song)

Ken: I've Been Working on the Railroad

Kay: I Will Sing with the Spirit

We divided up stacks of letters written and saved by Lavar and Leora (Ken's parents), and each read some and then reported their contents to one another.   Lavar and Leora fell in love as teenagers when Leora would go to Hurricane in the summers to stay with her sister.  When Leora would go back to Salt Lake, they would write back and forth.  This went on for several years.  Then they wrote to each other during his 2 1/2 year mission.  After their marriage, Lavar was in the military and war and they were often separated. They wrote to each other nearly every day, so there are many letters from this time period.  I read letters from when he was stationed in Bedford, Massachusettes and she lived in Springfield.  During this time period they were expecting their first child.  It was so fun to read and feel the love they had for each other.  This was a sweet highlight of the reunion- reading these letters and sharing with each other.  We are embarking on a project to digitize all of them.  There are four big plastic boxes full of them, so it will be a big project.  

We played fun games and the winners got prizes.  This is the front porch of the cabin where we did the football throw (Rick throwing/ Ken catching).  

We ate delicious meals and you had to fight to get to help clean up after.  Literally.  I'm just saying I saw Rick use his power hips to push his brother Clark out of the dishpan.  Those Hintons are basketball players and they know how to box out.  

We played Ancestor Jeopardy and watched an intense movie.  

We each brought an object- a treasure to share with each other.  I liked them all, but my absolute favorite was Rick's bobble head.  It looks just like him!  

Jim put together and showed a video of Lavar Hinton family reunion footage from the 1980/s.  Uncle Jim always had a video camera at the Hinton reunions and was a master at interviewing the little grandchildren on camera.  It was so fun to relive memories of the skits and meals and happy times of those reunions, and to see those little ones, who are all grown up now.  

On Sunday, we attended church at the historic Pine Valley chapel.  It was so fun to be in that historic building and see so many St. George people that we know that have retired and moved up there to live.  It got me thinking . . .

So, another successful and fun Hinton Sibling reunion is in the books.  

Miracles on Maple Hill

Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This sweet (no pun intended) book is written from the point of view of Marly, a young girl. She and her family move from the big city (Pittsburg) to Maple Hill where life is more simple and where good people and the wonders of nature help heal her war-damaged father. I loved reading the detailed and beautifully written descriptions of nature and the characters and the happenings on Maple Hill. I loved Marly's attitude in seeing the beauties of nature and goodness of people as miracles. I loved learning about the process of "sugaring" and making maple syrup from the tree sap. The book made me long for a simpler time when family and friends and the wonders of nature were the center of life and truly were a miracle. It's a delightful book, but I must warn you of one thing: it will give you an overwhelming desire to eat pancakes smothered in maple syrup!



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The Rest of the Story

I'm sure you're dying to find out what happened in the story that Caleb was reading.  Here's the end:

Sorry about the fingers.  Oops.

Caleb "reads" a story

Caleb "read" me this whole book.   He had almost every word memorized.

Trip to Logan for Conference Weekend

We took our 2nd annual trip to Logan for conference weekend.  This year we had added fun as Blake and Shonna treated us to tickets to the BYU/ USU game on Friday night.  It was so fun to be there with them.

The fall colors in Sardine Canyon were beautiful.  

As soon as we walked in Blake and Shonna's home, little Caleb announced- all in one breath:  "There's a baby in my mommy's tummy do you want to come and see the guest bed we set up for you?"  Whoa!  Say what?   Shonna is expecting our 9th grandchild!

Though surrounded by Utah State fans, we cheered loud for our Cougars.  Everyone was congenial and we had a wonderful time!  

Pre-game warm ups.  

We enjoyed pre-game hamburgers.  We got there really early.  

These kids LOVE books.  

During conference, Grandpa, Shonna, and Lily chopped and bagged (Lily was the official bagger) green and red peppers from our garden to put in Shonna's freezer.  Blake froze peaches from our tree.

Lily loves her Marshmallow boots.  

The view from Shonna's house.

We went on a nice drive between sessions.  

Okay, men, have you ever wondered what the women and children do during the priesthood session of conference???

Blake's Spanish Omelette was our Sunday morning breakfast.  Yum!

Lily insisted on wearing her fluffiest dress and finest hat to enjoy conference.

Again, Lily mistook Elder Eyering for her Grandpa Ken.

Lily helped lotion my feet.  

Lily didn't pay much attention to conference until the choir started to sing.  Then she would find her little card that her Aunt Kristen sent her (her hymnbook), open it,  and sing along at the top of her voice.  

If she really loves you, she lets you wear her pretty hat!

It was so fun to be with the Camerons.  Thank you for a fun weekend!

All done!!!