Memorial Day Weekend...

“Success is not a place at which one arrives but rather the spirit with which one undertakes and continues the journey.”
-Alex Noble

I have so many ways that I want to start out this post... I think I will start by pointing out a flaw I have... I like to be noticed. Not in a flashy, "look at me" kind of way, but in an appreciative kind of way. I like to feel appreciated. And when I feel like credit is due, I like to give it. When people do things that I like, I like to point that out. I feel like everyone should be like me. (How boring would that be! Haha) I did a really big, in depth project that took a long time and I didn't get recognized. There was no criticism on either side of the spectrum. I think I would just rather have negative comments made about my project then nothing.
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Anyway. That was the negative. Now the positive.
This past weekend was amazing. My favorite part, as always, was going to the temple with my husband. We also went with my Paul's Parents, Grandma, and Aunt Cheryl. I love the temple and the feelings that I get there. I think of things that I haven't thought of in years, and feel emotions I didn't even know I could feel. It's such a peaceful, reverent place that I love to retreat to. We went to the temple Saturday afternoon after we were able to sleep in for a bit.

Saturday evening we went to Talisa and Blake's reception. It was so beautiful and made me wish that we had done something like that for our reception. I told Paul we had to do something fun and beautiful like that for our 50th anniversary. We have lots of time to prepare. :) Talisa and Blake looked beautiful and so happy. I loved seeing them together and getting to meet Blake.

Sunday we went to church... I was really excited to go and teach my new class. I was called to teach the CTR 6 class (5 year olds turning 6 this year) the Sunday before. There are 12 in my class, about 10 of which are active. I was a little nervous, but excited. Our church meetings are backwards from the way we grew up. It's Primary (For Paul, Priesthood, then Sunday School), then Sacrament Meeting. By the time I got to sacrament meeting I was warn out, beat down, and ready to give up. 10 little 5 year olds are tough to manage, much less teach. They are smart though and I really give props to their last teacher and obviously I need a few pointers... In sacrament meeting I was asked to give the opening prayer and I had a really tough time getting though it. I was so thankful for Paul after I got back to my seat to take the sacrament and listen to the talks because I couldn't hold it together anymore and Paul was there comforting and supporting the whole time even after church until I felt better. He's the best and I really don't know what I'd do without him as my husband.

Sunday night we went to my moms house for a little get together. Coen helped mom make ice cream and all the nieces and nephews were awesome. I love them so much and I can't wait to give them another niece or nephew to grow, play with and love. I'm so excited for them because they will have many cousins to grow up with, gain support though, and bond with... Something that I didn't have. My Mamaw and Papaw came over so we could all visit with them. I'm growing more and more thankful for our big family gatherings.

Monday we went to Jamie and Steve's (Paul's parents) house for lunch and games. There family is fun, big, supportive, and rarely dull. I'm learning to appreciate and get used to them and their ways as time goes on. It was fun to spend time with our nephews on that side of the family and see their fun personalities.

Monday evening Paul and I ate at yummy Houlihan's and then went and played volleyball with a few friends that we usually play with on Thursday nights. I love volleyball. And Paul. And since we both love to go play, and we both love that we get to do something we both love together... we play whenever we get the chance! :D

I'm glad we were able to have a long weekend to relax and enjoy out family and friends. Here are a few pictures from this past weekend. Enjoy!

"In life they were not divided, in death they were not separated." D&C 135:3

Amanda Johnson

Alexis Johnson

So many different things happened this past weekend that it’s hard to remember them all. Many different amazing experiences and miracles happened over and over in the previous two weeks that we can actually recognize. It makes me wonder how many hundreds of miracles happened in all that we don’t see yet. I don’t really know how to go about writing this post, so I guess I will go through day by day.

Not the whole week and a half, but the weekend while we were in Utah with the family. Steve, Jamie, Paul and I flew in Saturday morning before the funeral for Alexis and Amanda Johnson. Marc, Liz, and Jordan arrived an hour later and we all stayed at the same, beautiful house.

First of all, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is so amazing. This ward that Joel’s family is in is where I want to be when any tragedy or hard trial strikes me. The members were so accommodating and kind. When we arrived at the house we were staying, we all had our own rooms, and the kitchen was stocked with food and goodies from people in the ward: fresh, homemade bread, breakfast foods, and sandwich supplies, plenty of snacks, drinks, and water. Then, the owner, Brother Keats, handed Steve the keys to their van and said we could take it anywhere we needed to. Amazing!

After we settled in and changed for the funeral, we headed to the stake center for the family visitation (the caskets were closed. No one saw Amanda and Alexis but Joel, Evelyn, and Andy) and funeral. The visitation was really amazing. When we walked into the room, there were so many family members there to support one another. My favorite part of the visitation were these pictures. They are hand drawings made by a 16 year old young woman in the ward. She contacted Joel while they were still in Vegas after the accident and asked if she could draw Amanda and Alexis. Joel said sure thinking they would be something adolescent looking and he could just stick them in the back of a memory book. He told us that he thought they would be a Napoleon Dynamite type of picture. When Joel and Nikki first saw the pictures, they were awe struck. These pictures, to Joel and Nikki depicted exactly how Amanda and Alexis look now in heaven. They are beautiful girls.

The funeral was amazing. There were many beautiful talks and two amazing eulogies. I had two favorite parts. They were both musical, but my very favorite was when the youth of the Joel and Nikki’s ward sang the EFY melody. They started singing the part where the girls and boys sing together and the director turned and asked all the youth to stand. Nikki was sitting in a recliner this whole time because two vertebras’ in her back are injured and very painful, and she has a severely sprained ankle from being thrown from the RV in the accident. When she can get the opportunity to stand, she needs to because she’s constantly uncomfortable, so when the youth were asked to stand and sing a long, Joel helped Nikki stand and they both turned around with the biggest smiles on their faces. As Beth Johnson said, it was the ministering of angels when that happened. Seeing them smile let everyone, all 1000+ people there, know that everything was okay and they would get through this. This gospel is amazing.

At the gravesite, Steve said a dedicatory prayer then the cousins and friends and family all put flowers on Alexis and Amanda’s casket. After, the ward provided a dinner for the family. All 100+ of us. We watched a slideshow of the girls and visited. The whole day was beautiful. It was cold and sometimes rainy outside, but it was very spiritual and helped us all strengthen our testimonies of the gospel. More specifically the plan of salvation.

Sunday, we all went to church then to another luncheon provided by an old family friend. This was my favorite day. We ate then went up to the theater room where Andy, Evelyn, and Joel recapped the previous week from when the accident happened to the funeral. Some things they said were obvious miracles. One example: Nikki was thrown from the RV when it hit the semi. She was thrown/slid the length of a football field and was in the middle of the road. Just for a visual, when Andy (about 6’0, probably a little taller) holds his hands above his head, that’s still not as far up as where Nikki was thrown from. Even a straight fall down would cause potentially serious injuries. The fact that she was thrown the length of a football field is just crazy! The miracle is, she had no scrapes/bruises. How? Her injuries were two injured vertebras and a sprained ankle. That is still a lot, but when you realize what happened… It could have been a ton worse. As they went over the week, we sang hymns, laughed, cried, saw pictures of the RV, the injuries sustained by the 3 youngest kids and Nikki… it was my favorite part. The miracles shined through.

That night we went to the Gibson’s house and hung out for a while playing pool and air hockey. It was fun because I got to meet Jamie’s sisters and one of her brothers, along with some of Paul’s cousins that he talks about. I’m so glad we were able to go up there. The weekend was a great bonding experience for me with the Johnson family. I really, truly enjoyed it.

(This post was mostly written right after we got back.. but we just got internet again.. so better late then never, right?)