Come what may, and love it!

I'm borrowing this from Holly's blog but it's definitely one of those sayings (the title of this blog) you hear, plan to cross stitch because you love it so much and then promptly forget it! Elder Wirthlin's talks always inspire me so much and this General Conference was no exception. He always talks about virtues like forgiveness, charity, being positive, overcoming adversity "One Step at a Time." I wonder if it is because he has had many occassions to face much adversity and learned to overcome with grace? I assume so, seeing that he's an apostle. Anyway, his words are always gentle and kind and patiently consistent, as seen in the recent conferences as his health has declined, conveying his message even more powerfully. You can tell he practices what he preaches in an non-self serving and unselfrighteous (is that a word?) kind of way. My mom's good friend has a neat quote on her fridge that basically says "How we treat other people is the reflection of our discipleship of Christ." I have a long way to go but I'm sure grateful for Elder Wirthlin's example, as well as those of other good people of many faiths that I meet. Borrowing from another friend's conference notes (thanks Tara - I don't know how I completely missed this) it gives me so much hope to think that the gospel is unlike other man-made institutions that ebb and flow, sometimes work and sometimes don't, and only work for certain people or even types of people. The teachings of Jesus Christ are all-inclusive, never exclusive and "work" for everyone. If it feels otherwise, it's imperfect people trying to live his teachings. (I'm adding on to this, by the way.) But whew, what a relief. Holly used the word unique in her blog referring to life's experiences. This is so accurate! And it struck me! We've definitely had a unique time, visiting for over two months with our families. It's been a blessing for our kids to be around some of their amazing Grandparents and Great-Grandparents and other relatives (they're all amazing, they just didn't get to see all of them:) . And there's nothing like the first year of a child's life to remind one that the time we have is so brief. My sweet little Peter! Sometimes I get frustrated when I'm the only one who can quiet him! What, am I crazy!? How lucky is that? And tonight I realized that Kevin and I are Jillian's favorite people in the world right now! How long will that last? Tonight she was "quietly" looking at a funny picture book while I nursed Pete to sleep and she kept tapping me on the shoulder to show me another hilarious drawing! What a girl! This trip has allowed me to forget other responsibilities and spend time with my kids. I feel like these past weeks have been such a progression and I have gained a whole new appreciation for them, and learned a lot of things about mothering them. (I think that's the first time I've used Mother as a verb and I like it:) I'm so grateful for this time. Come what may, and love it!