Brimhall Babes Begininings

Brimhall Babes Softball!! Game Two...

2009-10-22T05:47:00.000-07:00

We rocked the softball field AGAIN.

We hit, we ran, we fielded the ball and chanted....

Thanks Fairfield Ward for sharing in our WIN!
We had a blast!

Also a BIG THANK YOU to Bro. Smith for being our cheering

squad and the MANY pointers he offered!!

Brimhall Babes Softball! Game One...

2009-10-08T07:33:00.000-07:00

YM / YW Iron Chef Activity!!

2009-09-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

Seminary opening social swim party, and glass etching activity!

2009-08-24T07:21:00.000-07:00

Mesa High's Seminary went all out this year as hundreds of modestly dressed youth got together for some good eats BBQ and some splashes in the wave pool. We had a great turn out and everyone had a great time.... other than the Bailey girl who was rushed to the ER with a concussion. Poor girl, we all had a chance to pray for her quick recovery. Thanks Sis. Bori and Brother Comerford for spending your Saturday night with the youth!

Also, glass etching. it was fun and the girls jars really did turn out great! We had cupcakes while the chemical etched out our cute figurines into the class. we had stars, circles, moons, and even a cute moose! Loved it, and we can only get better from here!

Cards for the elderly!

2009-08-10T07:08:00.000-07:00

Sister Farnsworth is the Martha Stewart in the YW's program. Really she is so prepared with all the best stuff a girl could want for for crafts. The Young Women this past week had such a great time making birthday cards for the seniors at the care center that Katie works at. Afterwards we had a yummy peanut butter treat and we hope that we can give just a little more happiness to those people on their birthdays!.

How are you topping your Sunday?

2009-08-09T12:05:00.000-07:00

Today in YW, we talked about ICE CREAM! Who doesn't love a good Sundae? As a reminder, the sundae we created in class had everything from chocolate syrup and crushed candy bars, to grated cheese and mustard on top of it. Don't forget garden tomatoes and a cherry on top, of course! What?? You don't like cheese? No Mustard? Those things are DELICIOUS!! Ok... maybe not on a Sundae. Some of the activities we do during our weeks are GREAT and SUPER COOL, but maybe not quite right for Sundays.

In Exodus 20:8-11, it says "Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. Six days shall thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it." When we keep the Sabbath Day holy, we will be blessed for keeping the commandments of our Heavenly Father.

Each girl received a cupcake ice cream cone to remind them that the toppings they put on their Sundae's reflect the things that you do on your Sundays. Remeber to top your Sundays with a cherry, instead of a tomato, and to smother it in the chocolate syrup of the spirit instead of in mustard or gravy!

I hope you each have a fabulous Sabbath and think of the Lord, our Heavenly Father, no matter what you are doing! Love you! ~Sis Bori

Girls will be girls.

2009-07-30T14:56:00.000-07:00

Well I had a great time coloring all over Sister Bori's face. Tonight we were able to learn some hair techniques and also makeup application. Jessi was kind enough to allow me to demonstrate and the girls had a great time with some fun laughs and yummy icecream with fruit afterwards.

grooming night!

2009-07-30T14:54:00.000-07:00

I thought that this was a great post, even as a leader.

2009-07-24T07:06:00.000-07:00

This is a post from a friend that I grew up with in the Sunny Mesa Ward. She is a fantastic mother!

The Teenager Mom....

I like clean surfaces. I like things in their places. I like walls without clutter. I like things my way. I am the mom. It is my house. My rules.

I am now a teenager mom. The once little child who was there for my molding and correction in all things now desires to be their own self. This has brought me to much inner thought and debate. As in all things in life....we are on a journey. We are not brought into motherhood knowing what we are doing. It is always a journey of trial and error. I really thought I figured out the little kids. I can mostly make them do what I want. They are mostly obedient. They get sent to their room if they don't. They keep their things where I want them to. They play with whomever I approve of, they come home before it is dark (mostly). I pack their lunches so I know what they are eating (mostly). I have control and if I loose control and they choose the wrong path, their consequences in life at this point are minor; a yellow light at school, a lost lunch recess or a call from another mom. All things that can be corrected.

Now, I am a teenager mom. I don't know what I am doing for certain. This is new territory. I do know for certain that with this job as teenager mom, the consequences are now real and life altering. If they choose the wrong path, it may mean addiction, early parenthood, jail, etc. The real deal. No missed recesses, no yellow lights. The idea of me having to help guide these teenage souls is overwhelming. It deserves great thought and much prayer. I have tried a few routes. I have tried to control. I have tried to demand and make my ideas and will the "way". I have realized now at this point that my job is now different. My job is not to make this child submissive to my will but obedient to His will. This child must choose for himself. This child must have an inner desire to be good because that is what he should do, not do what his mom makes him do. This child needs to find himself, his talents, his quest in life. This child needs room to wiggle, to stretch.

Thus....my intro picture. The dresser. The wall. Not my idea when I started to decorate the room. The snake skin from the real snake he skinned himself. The peacock feather. The art. Clutter. Dust collectors. However, this child has taught me something as I repeatedly asked him to clear the area.

"Mom....I want my stuff. I want the room to be me. I don't want it sterile and "you". I need space."

I thought..... That statement was bigger than he realized. He needed to be himself. Teenagers have a lot on their plates. They don't even understand half of their emotions and we make it worse sometimes. I realized I needed to back off a little and give him wiggle room. He needed to start to be on his own a bit. Make his own decisions and even his own mistakes. It is his life in the end. Not mine. I will not be there in college, in marriage.

I had wise parents in my growing up years. We had little rules. We had ultimate trust. We knew , more than anything, that if we broke that trust, the rules would be instituted. The reigns would be drawn in. We understood that if we did what we were supposed to do, we could have freedom. We could have car keys. We could stay out late. They knew we would do what we said we would do. I didn't understand what wise parenting this was until now. I see other teens with much restriction. I see their resentment towards their parents. Does this make them more obedient? Many times it only proves the opposite. They sneak behind parents backs, they rebel. They feel they are not trusted by their parents so why prove them wrong? I am not naive enough to believe that children will always choose good but I know that they need the opportunity to do so. They need room to be themselves . Decorate the desk. Hang up snake skin. When I let go a bit with my son, when I gave him a little less stress at home, the change was immediate. He was relaxed. He was happy and a pleasure to be with. Instead of making my home a place he escaped from, it became a place he was drawn to. He felt happy here. His friends feel happy here. Maybe they just like my food. I don't know but I love having him home. I love that he is happy that I am his mom. I love that he knows he can tell me about his girlfriends and what he did that night. He trusts me as much as I trust him.

I still don't know everything about being a teenage mom but I think I am getting it. If we examine how the Lord parents it is much the same. He told Adam and Eve to not eat the apple. He gave them the consequence. He left them alone and let them make their own choice. They chose the apple. He came back to them. He did not yell at them to go to their room. He did not tell them he did not love them and that they were dumb for making that decision. He showed love. He saw their choice and told them that they now needed to live the consequence that they chose. It was their choice.

I am sure He was sad as he sent them on their way. I am sure He wanted to fix it all but He couldn't . He could only teach them to make better decisions by the consequence that they now had to live.

I want to be this kind of parent. I am learning. I will make mistakes. I will pray. I will trust. I will hope.

Lake Trip- July 15

2009-07-23T09:46:00.001-07:00

Pannini and American Apple pie night

2009-07-23T09:41:00.000-07:00

We are having so much fun at our monthly cooking classes. This month was an American Themed class. Sister Willis allowed us to once again flour dust her whole kitchen. She taught us how to make seriously yummy panninis with Pesto and ham or turkey and amazing cheeses. Really you can't go wrong with butter, pesto, cheese and a crunchy hot roll. Sister Olsen also taught us how to make amazing pie crusts and how to make a fruit pie. We did a Make, Take and bake at home pie night. Tati's pie was specatuclar she did everything with extreme perfection and exactness.

Pannini and American Apple pie night

2009-07-23T09:39:00.000-07:00

Pool party- Joint Ym and Yw activity

2009-07-10T08:10:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time at this years annual pool party with the Young Men. We had the best food made my Sister Olsen- yummy salads and rolls. The Killians were kind enough to host the night at their home and the youth had a blast jumping off the board and shooting water guns.

Pool pary- Joint activity

2009-07-10T08:09:00.000-07:00

Pool pary- Joint activity

2009-07-10T08:05:00.000-07:00

Phx homeless shelter- Sack lunch activity

2009-07-09T08:36:00.000-07:00

We had such a fun activity this past Wednesday for mutal. Sister Willis made arrangements with a homeless shelter in Phx that allowed us to make lunches for people that are going through a really hard time right now. We made more than 50 lunches, with PB&J with chips, an appple and a water bottle. We also put handout cards from the church in them so that some great missionary oppurtunities can happen as well. The girls are now pro jelly spreaders! Thanks to Sister Willis who works so hard so activities can be successful!

Phx homeless shelter- Sack lunch activity

2009-07-09T08:33:00.000-07:00

Mind over Mattress

2009-06-04T08:12:00.000-07:00

Time

One thing that I look forward to in the next life is that I will not have to sleep. Sleep is something that I wish I could skip. It is just such a waste of time. I know we need it, I know I need more, but there is just so much to do in the little time that we are given here. To me, sleeping in is a waste of a perfectly good morning. I want my children to learn that. I want them to enjoy being early risers and learning the true value of time.

We had a great talk at our church conference this past Sunday. It was directed specifically toward the young men, teaching them the preparations for serving a mission. One thing specifically caught my attention with his verbiage. He talked of "mind over mattress." He advised the youth to not sleep in. To learn to get up early and work. He advised them to not "sleep away their summer."

I really liked this. He told us to hang a sign over their bed with the phrase "Mind over Mattress." That is a great slogan. It definitely is a mind thing. It is so tempting to stay in bed . It is so tempting to pull up the covers and turn on the snooze button. However, what is the reward? A loss of time.

Time is one of the few things that is limited in this life. Almost anything else we can get more of to some degree. We don't know how much time we have. There is only a certain amount of hours in everyday for everyone. No one gets more, no one gets less. It is up to us how we use it.

I love this quote by H. Jackson Brown Jr.

"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Theresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein."

As mothers, wives, employees, etc., we may not have the time to paint a masterpiece or invent something new and amazing, however, there is always ways we can use our time more wisely. Do we find ourselves sleeping in a little longer than we need to? Do we use our precious time given on this earth as we should? I remember one talk that I heard years ago that stuck with me. The speaker asked us to ask ourselves when doing an activity, "how is this benefiting my life or those around me?"

We need to ask ourselves this question on a day to day basis as we sit for hours on facebook, watch prolonged periods of TV, blog hop and other unwise use of media. Do we spend too much time worrying? Do we use our time too selfishly instead of thinking of others or using our time to develop talents?

I remember being a senior in high school and writing in my yearbook many of the things I wanted to accomplish in my life before I died. At that time in my life, It seemed I had nothing but time ahead of me. It was a blank slate. What I have learned is that time goes so quickly and that we have to grab it up. We have to be extremely organized and value each minute.

I am so not perfect with this. I do not use every minute like I should and I recognize that sometimes time is spent perfectly well sitting at a pool relaxing or reading a good book. We all need down time. But, I want my children to learn to seize the moments. To get up, get exercise to get their bodies and minds going. I want them to make plans, to plan their time, to use it up and enjoy life. I want them to develop all of their wonderful talents that they have been given in this life. This is one of the main reasons I detest video games so much. Such a waste of time. How many children, and adults for that matter will never know how much talents they have been given because they choose to waste time on electronics instead of developing their talents?

Another quote I love by Alice Bloch:

"We say we waste time, but that is impossible. We waste ourselves."

Let us not waste ourselves. Life is beautiful. I want to make a list with my family this week individually and as a whole what we want to accomplish. I want us to make a list of how to accomplish this and how to use our time wisely. My children are getting this. My 15 year old set his alarm for 6 am to go running this morning on his own. No prompting. He is learning the value of time. Now, if I can just get him to get his work done in a timely manner I will be greatly satisfied!

Seize the day. Do something great with it. Don't spend your time looking up past relationships on facebook or checking out old friends blogs; enjoy and develop the relationships you have today. Develop yourselves. Learn something new. I was just telling my husband the other day that I wished I had developed my musical talents more and he told me that I wasn't dead yet. So true. I have today. I will start there. I think I will go and learn a new piano song.

What are you going to do with your today? Make it a good one!

2009-06-01T06:56:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time this past week at Girls Camp in the Forest lakes area right outside of Payson. This year was Stake and it is amazing how big the wards are and how many gals showed. Our theme for camp... VIRTUE. The Brimhall ward were the Loyal Lepoards in the Joyous Jungle, so we were always decked out in lepoard stuff. Our skit went great, our chant was a redone softball chant with thrusts and everything and the food was awsome. Chimis deep fried and hawaiian haystacks. We had rain two days, and at night it was pretty chilly and we also had a whole day of activites that all the girls loved! A rockwall, human bungee, volleyball, a inflatable bull ride, spiderweb, dancing, a zipline and relays. The stake was awsome, classes helpful and wonderful, and the awards were lame~ Serious I so wanted FIRST place for our banner! With only having a couple dramas with a couple new beehives we survived and will wait another year till it will be on a ward level! whoo hoo.

Fun Activities at Camp

2009-06-01T06:53:00.000-07:00

Fun times

2009-06-01T06:50:00.000-07:00

Camp~

2009-06-01T06:49:00.000-07:00

Loyal Lepoards

2009-06-01T06:47:00.000-07:00

Joyous Jungle

2009-06-01T06:45:00.000-07:00

Girls Camp 09

2009-06-01T06:41:00.000-07:00

Missionary Mutal 09

2009-05-19T06:28:00.000-07:00

The YM did such a great job this past week planning a fun missionary mutal for our Joint activity. Brother Dayton a ward missionary came and spoke to us about missionary work and how we can share the gosple. We had a PB&J sandwhich eating contest, a trik riding race and a scripture mastery with tying ties activity. The few youth that we had that ACTUALLY particpated had a great time! Thanks YM!

Missionary Mutal 09

2009-05-19T06:26:00.000-07:00

Camp prep night!

2009-05-07T09:01:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time this past Wednesday for mutal. Since this year is stake camp we have been asked to make a ward banner, a sign for the girls as well as a lighted torch. We have finished our girls sign, almost have completed the Ward banner, have a cheer and most important all the girls are exctied to go! couple more weeks and we get to show off all our hard work~

camp prep night!

2009-05-07T08:55:00.000-07:00

Cooking class 101

2009-04-28T13:08:00.000-07:00

Fruit pizza's and poppyseed ham and swiss sandwhiches.

2009-04-28T13:03:00.000-07:00

Well up to Sister Olsens dog getting ran over during mutal, everyone was having a great time at our cooking class. Fruit pizzas are so easy with a sugar cookie bottom, a cream cheese top and all the fruit you could want! We had a great attendance and these girls are turining into little chefs! Thanks for all the leaders who came and helped and you gals are the best!

Girls camp is a comin! meeing with the parents!

2009-04-28T12:57:00.000-07:00

Jessi Bori amazes me as she truly is the female camp superwoman! We had such a great time at our camp mettig with the parents. We had choclate milk so what could be better! Fun activities , with ice, leader skits and some retarded attempt at burping from Sister Olsen made the night
oh yeah and dont forget the whistling cracker game!

Amber, Kayla and Bridget our this years YCL's they are amazing gals and we are so lucky to have them!.

Easter Pageant- 2009

2009-04-12T21:21:00.000-07:00

I love the Easter pageant, for one it is fantastic to see so many great members gather together to learn and be reminded of Christ, but second its a huge missionary oppurtunity and a testimony builders for some many people, including the youth. We had perfect seats thanks the the Willis's for going hours early to save spots and costco pizza with brownies added a nice touch as well!

Stake volleyball 2009

2009-04-12T21:17:00.000-07:00

Well we didnt take any places in the winnings, but the girls had alot of fun this year for our stake Volleyball games. We had some friends from other faiths attend which helped with our tiny numbers and overall it was a huge success. Thanks to the leaders who work so hard to organize and drive and make sure all the girls are there and happy. Now we just need to teach the girls not to be afraid of the ball!

Girls camp is a comin!

2009-03-24T09:59:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time this past week for our Girls camp certification night. The girls had to set a fire with out using matches and also had to learn something about nature, get to know the other girls and also two different ways to cook with fire and finally how to extinguish a fire. We got to do all of it and also enjoy some awesome tortellini soup and apple cobbler over the fire in a dutch oven.

Scottish Cooking class- Willis duo

2009-03-05T12:23:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time this Wednesday at the Willis home. Lauren and George were both fantastic hosts and Scottish informants for our YW's Scottish cooking class. George served his mission in this beautiful country and was so gracious in sharing some missionary experiences and also Scottish traditions. We made mince pie and enjoyed a perfect triffle that had peaches, cherries, pound cake and also strawberry jam topped with whip cream. Thank you again for all that we were able to learn and we hope some day we all can make a trip over to that beautiful place.
No! its not a dress.... never call a kilt a dress! Never!

Scottish Cooking class- Willis duo

2009-03-05T12:21:00.000-08:00

Ensign Poster girls.

2009-03-01T12:41:00.000-08:00

I just spent the past weekend up in Payson with both YW and YM for our 09' youth confernce- "Be thou an example". We had a blast! Hiking, eating, laughing and learning. I am always so impressed with the awesome spirits that are entrusted to me and my fabulous leaders. Really, I have the BEST to work with, which only means they make me and the program look the BEST.

A side note that I have been thinking about lately, is really how much more dramatic the world has become for the youth now from when I grew up just a few years back. They have so much on their plates and if it isnt excellence keeping the girls so crazy busy then it the worlds crap being thrown at them all the time. The youth are strong, really, I thought I was top notch in what was expected and the way I lived. Really, these youth already come hardwired for excellence and as leaders all we have to do is remind them and then point them in the right direction. My Laurel Amber, a few weeks ago calls me rather frantic and really wants to know what to do in her life. She was trying to figure out how to be in Cheer her senior year, attend cosmetology school, take weighted classes at Mesa High, and also how to fit in her few classes at MCC that is preparing her to get her associates. I just sat dumbfounded and I felt rather lame as I tried to give her advice on what to do and how she was going to fit in family as well as mutual Wednesday night. She wouldnt be able to attend mutual with all that would be going on next year for school. Honestly, how pathetic do I feel! She has made a right decision to keep attending mutual and has for the moment postponed a huge privilege to help her succeed in her future life. Wow, what a huge example to me! I have a few girls like this, that could be the ENSIGN poster girl. My life even with a crappy job and stupid math class some how has HUGE meaning because Heavenly Father has allowed me to be in the presence of wonderful girls.

Youth Confernce, Payson Feb 09'

2009-03-01T10:55:00.000-08:00

We had such a GREAT time this past weekend up at Payson. The youth were fantastic and we had fun playing games and having wonderful firesides and spiritual stuff plus the food was awesome! Thank you's to Sister Olsen and the Killians for the use of their cabin, and for the many leaders who were able to get away for an overnighter away from their family. The youth came away with a very positive reaction and we look forward to doing many great things down the road.
We had Chicken Luingini with french bread and a garden salad, A grandslam breakfast, and a BBQ for lunch, with a yummy stawberry shake. The youth went on their nature hike and had a 30 minutes in the woods pondering experience and with movies and games who has time for sleep! Amber skidmore, thanks for doing such a great job in planning and conducting everything. Really, she is one amazing gal! We had a great tunout, with 35 people!

Youth Confernce, Payson Feb 09'

2009-03-01T10:52:00.000-08:00

Youth Confernce, Payson Feb 09'

2009-03-01T10:50:00.000-08:00

Youth Confernce, Payson Feb 09'

2009-03-01T10:48:00.000-08:00

Chili Cookoff with Aspen 09

2009-02-16T07:35:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time this past Wednesday for mutal. Brimhall ward hosted a chili cookoff and square dance with the Aspen ward. We had enough chili to feed an army and the dozen or so pies were amazing. Thanks for all the youth that participated and for all the leaders who work so hard for events like this to turn out. We love spending time with other wards and learning how to dance and cook food!

Chili Cookoff with Aspen 09

2009-02-16T07:34:00.000-08:00

Chili Cookoff with Aspen 09

2009-02-16T07:32:00.000-08:00

Chili Cookoff with Aspen 09

2009-02-16T07:30:00.000-08:00

New Beginings

2009-02-05T08:36:00.000-08:00

We had such a BLAST at this years New Beginings. Love was in the air and on the walls as we celebrated a New Year with a fun dessert bar and good laughs. The girls worked so hard on their amazing fun videos each video was on a value that they were able to teach the group with. I have to say that the awsome leaders rocked the night as they in costume directed the evening with very insightful news and fun insights into this years upcoming events.Thanks to everyone for their attendance and help to make this evening such a great event!

2009-02-05T08:34:00.000-08:00

LOVE

2009-02-02T12:43:00.001-08:00

2009-01-26T09:43:00.001-08:00

Who says regular Mormon guys can’t compete with Edward?

January 11, 2009 By: Geoff J @ 4:46 pm Category: Life, Mormon Culture/Practices

There has been lots of talk about Twilight on the Mormon blogs over the last few years. The author of the series, Stephenie Meyer, is a practicing Mormon and it is not too hard to sniff out the Mormon influences in the story in my opinion.

One of the complaints occasionally lodged is that no real guy could possibly compete with the fantasy that is Edward, the romantic hero of the story. On some levels this is obviously true: As a vampire Edward has super strength and super speed, plus he is independently wealthy as a teen, plus he is magically handsome, plus he can read minds. But I’m not sure those are really the most important things that make Edward desirable. It seems to me that Edward has other things about him that regular guys (single or married) can compete with: (1) Tremendous self discipline, (2) a powerful moral compass, (3) a desire to understand the girl, (4) a drive to protect and defend his loved ones, and (5) skills at being a tease. Plus regular guys can take advantage of important attributes Edward lacks: (a) A sense of humor, (b) a tan, (c) the ability to intermingle comfortably with human beings, and (d) the ability to live in a sunny place.

Regarding (1) and (2) — As Ms. Meyer knows, there are a lot of Mormon men with tremendous self discipline and a powerful moral compass. For example, making it through the marriage engagement process with a temple recommend intact requires those things in spades.

Regarding (3) — Everyone wants to be understood. Duh. The need to seek to understand others is Basic Human Interaction 101. If she doesn’t believe he is at least honestly trying to understand her he’s got a serious problem. As Covey says in his 7 Habits: Seek first to understand and then to be understood.

Regarding (4) — Protecting/defending loved ones comes fairly naturally to many dudes but it is an attribute that can be honed as well I would think.

Regarding (5) — Skillz at being a tease are especially useful to single Mormon guys in courting. As a former accomplished flirt I can attest to the fact that nearly kissing a girl is often a much more powerful tool than actually kissing her. Edward-like teasing is a great way to reel them in. You know — the “I want to be hands on but I am refraining” schtick that Mormonism forces upon us believing males anyway. So Edward doesn’t have anything on a guy with skillz on that front.

Regarding (a) — If a guy can make a girl genuinely laugh consistently he might as well have super powers. Isn’t there scripture that says a good sense of humor covereth a multitude of other shortcomings? In any case, a good sense of humor must beat calling a girl “spider monkey” right?

Regarding (b) and (d) — Ummm… not sure how much value is really in these but perpetually living in Forks WA sounds kinda sucky to me.

Regarding (c) — This is related to (3) and (a). It is hard to overestimate the value of some charm and social skills. One need not be a vampire to develop these traits. A mission is a good place to work on them.

So there you have it. No need to fret over competing with Edward my fellow dudes. On the important attributes Edward displays you can compete and you can develop other important attributes he seems to totally lack.

Go forth and woo.

Stry Fry mutal activity with Melinda Peterman

2009-01-08T08:03:00.000-08:00

Really, we had such a great time learning some awsome techniques for cooking in the kitchen. This month we decided to work on our Chinese food receipes and the girls had a great time participating with the cutting of the meat and the peeling of veggies and everything else. We have some awsome master chefs with us in our group.

Stry Fry mutal activity with Melinda Peterman

2009-01-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

Stake Dances

2009-01-06T09:24:00.000-08:00

This upcoming Saturday from 8:30-10:30pm, the Saturday night dance
for all Youth 14-up is at the Maricopa North Stake Center

1718 North Date Street Mesa, AZ 85201

The Dance Cards for 2009 will be handed out at Roundtable this Thursday but we’re fully aware that the Youth won’t be able to get them in time.

Regardless of whether they have their cards this week, all will be welcome.

If possible, please let your Young Men and Young Women Leaders know this.

The Dances for this year will be alternated between our Stake, Maricopa North and the Salt River Stake.

The dates and times will be noted on the cards.

Tommy's Eagle

2008-12-18T15:56:00.000-08:00

Tommy was so kind enough to allow the girls an opportunity to serve and enjoy wrapping gifts for Christmas. Really it was so impressive that he was able to receive 80+ gifts for the less fortunate kids on the Yavapi reservation. We had a great time helping, and the caroling was also alot of fun. We had a great turnout with most the youth and the people that we were able to go and cheer on with some Christmas spirit really enjoyed us thinking of them.

Caroling and gift Wrapping activity

2008-12-18T15:54:00.000-08:00

Senior apprecation dinner 2008-

2008-12-10T08:03:00.000-08:00

So the youth in the Brimhall ward are some of the best youth in the church! We had a really nice program and the youth were so great with being the stars of the evening. They brought the food and Sang songs for our seniors. We had cheesecake, and Honey baked hams and salad with rolls and veggies. Thanks for all those who helped with invites and set up and cleanup.

Senior apprecation dinner 2008-

2008-12-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

A game of memorization and constant reflex skills.

2008-12-03T07:26:00.000-08:00

More fun.

2008-12-03T07:17:00.000-08:00

Amber rocked this game!

So I had a blast in this game.

2008-12-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

We are playing bipedy bop its a high enery, high paced game where all the leaders get out at the beginning except for Sister Bori who I guess still has the skills!

Yearly planning meeting sleepover.

2008-12-03T07:04:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time getting together with our class presidents. We played games had smores by the fire, planned activites and also had great trainings on what our responsibilities are
Thanks to Jessi for hosting such a large group and thankyou to the girls who have the desire and presidency fire to help teach and lead the girls.

Elder Wirthlin

2008-12-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, the oldest living apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, died last night, December 2, 2008, age 91.
Elder Wirthlin had gone to bed at his Salt Lake City home, and died peacefully at about 11:30 pm of causes incident to age. His oldest daughter, Jane Wirthlin Parker, was present. A member of the family had been staying and caring for Elder Wirthlin, whose wife, Elisa Young Rogers Wirthlin, died in 2006.
He had continued to work at his office right up until the Thanksgiving holiday.

A sign of the times. IT is important to see these experiences and make our choice on how we will live our lives. Will we choose the right and defend!

2008-11-20T08:09:00.000-08:00

Editor's Note: As some of you know, Meridian was hacked into last week, apparently by Prop 8 opponents, and in the place of our content was placed a homosexual pornographic film.

It has been an interesting week.

The Chinese homily, "May you live in interesting times," has its roots in a curse, not a blessing.

As I said, it has been an interesting week.

The controversy in California regarding Proposition 8 (the proposed amendment to the California constitution defining marriage to be strictly between a man and a woman) built to a frenzy in the days leading up to Tuesday's election and then exploded into anger and violence in the aftermath of Prop 8's slim passage into law.

Hard Choices

Working in such an environment, I found taking a position on Proposition 8 to be difficult. Even though I chose to follow the direction of our Church leaders in my voting decision, it was extremely hard for me to place myself on the line when it came to actively working to ensure the passage of Proposition 8.

Still, I watched in amazement as my fellow ward and stake members worked tirelessly, committing themselves full-heartedly to the cause – not out of homophobic hatred, but out of a love of Christ and a belief in the sanctity of traditional marriage. Their faith strengthened mine, and I committed to participate in a sign waving public rally sponsored by our stake to be held at a local intersection.

By following through on this commitment, I found I had a greater stake in the battle than I had ever thought. I learned a number of hard and harsh lessons. And in the events following the election and passage of Proposition 8, I felt great anguish forcing me to drop to my knees in prayer – eventually coming to a more personal understanding of the Love of Christ and what he expects from me.

During the Proposition 8 rally, as I stood with my wife and friends waving Yes On 8 signs and waving to the passing rush hour traffic, I learned several things. I learned supporters of both Yes On 8 and No On 8 liked to honk their horns. I learned the way to tell the difference is the No On 8 supporters usually accompanied their horn honking with an obscene gesture or a string of obscenities. They also liked to swerve their cars toward the children on the curb.

I learned when we didn't engage in argument with the No On 8 supporters who intermingled with us in the intersection, they became enraged, red faced, and fit to burst.

I have no doubt Yes On 8 supporters both from our church and other churches engaged at some point in the shouting matches during the numerous rallies and demonstrations across the state. However, on the evening of my participation, I was amazed by the cool and non-confrontational way the Yes On 8 supporters conducted themselves.

I learned at the rally several of our ward members had received hate mail after their names, religious affiliation, contribution mounts, and addresses were published on a website inciting No On 8 supporters to target the listed individuals. Their houses and cars had been vandalized, their campaign support signs stolen, and opposition signs planted in their place.

When I returned home after the rally, I had a huge headache and my stomach was in knots. I am not a fan of confrontation, and the noise of the horn honking, both pro and con, and the divisive atmosphere inherent in the volatile situation had taken its toll. Still, after praying with my wife, I felt calmer and was pleased we had chosen to participate. While our efforts were miniscule compared to the hours of service to the cause provided by others, we had at least jumped down from the fence and done something.

Then I saw the latest No On 8 television commercial.

Tolerance?

Supposedly produced by an independent group not affiliated with the official No On 8 campaign, the thirty second commercial spot shows two scruffy male white actors portraying Mormon missionaries who force their way into the well-kept home of a married lesbian couple.

"Hi, we're from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," one says.

"We're here to take away your rights," says his companion.

The missionaries then rip the wedding rings from the women's fingers and ransack the house until they find the women's marriage license, which they destroy.

"Hey, we have rights," one of the women says.

"Not if we can help it," answers a missionary.

Moving outside the residence, one of the missionaries smugly says, "That was easy."

Flexing his muscles, his companion asks, "What do we want to ban next?"

While I was appalled by the commercial, I was even more appalled both MSNBC and The Comedy Channel happily took money to broadcast this overtly hate filled vignette. I cannot imagine a similar commercial, targeted at any other religious or racial group, not being considered a hate crime with a civic outcry for prosecution.

My hackles were beginning to rise in a distinctly unchristian way. However, the fun was just beginning.

Election Day And Aftermath

Election day in California saw numerous No On 8 activists distributing literature and vocalizing at polling sites in clear violation of election laws. Police were called, 100 yard distances from the polling places were paced off, yet the agitation continued.

Despite these efforts, Proposition 8 obtained a slim majority (52.5% to 47.5%). Exit polls showed the proposition was supported by 7 of 10 Black voters, a majority of Latino voters, and by people with children under the age of 18 still at home. Clearly, it was supported by all people who believed marriage is a special and protected institution.

The day after the election, spontaneous protests sprung up in West Hollywood – a small residential community, with a large gay and lesbian population, located withinLos Angeles County , but just outside Los Angeles city borders. The protests did not have a particular focus or target other than outrage as they strayed outside the confines of West Hollywood and into Beverly Hills , Hollywood , and West Los Angeles . Several arrests were made, but the seething anger at the passage of Proposition 8 was not dampened.

On Thursday, however, two days after the election, rumors began to be picked up by LAPD of a large protest organized by gay and lesbian activists and their supporters to be staged outside the Los Angeles LDS temple on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Los Angeles.

LAPD has 22 geographic Areas divided between 4 administrative Bureaus . My investigative unit is attached to Operations-West Bureau – which has responsibility for the area where the Los Angeles temple grounds are located. We operate out of a squadroom across from the Bureau's administrative offices. In such proximity, I was in a position to observe the command post set up in the Bureau offices to monitor the actions of the field command post charged with keeping the already illegal (no permits) protest peaceful.

What I learned by watching and listening shouldn't have surprised me, but it did. During my 30+ year tenure, the LAPD as an organization has made great professional strides in the internal battle against sexual harassment, sexual orientation harassment, and racism. While there are still those in civil liberty organizations who contest we are still guilty of racially profiling on the streets (difficult to imagine when our department is so thoroughly integrated at this point in time), organizationally there is little or no tension remaining in these areas.

In the Bureau command post there was a large screen television displaying scenes from the protest outside the Los Angeles temple. Imagine my surprise, when angry protestors began rushing the closed temple gates, and I heard an officer in the command post say, "I hope they burn that place to the ground."

Imagine my even stronger surprise when another officer replied, "They better hope they don't get through the gates, because the Mormons have an army in a bunker under the temple that will come out and kill them all."

Really? My temple recommend must not be of a high enough clearance to get me into that part of the temple.

I'm now doing a slow burn. Not only am I watching a sacred building under siege from 2,500 angry people shouting, " SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND HATE," and carrying signs proclaiming MORMON HATERS and LOVE NOT HATE, I'm listening to other police officers who agree with the protestors or have the most imaginative fantasies about blood atonement armies hidden under the temple (exactly how do we feed them, drill them, get them in and out without anybody seeing, or are they all in a state of suspended animation until needed?).

I want to emphasize these were not officers or detectives from my own unit – who are all aware of my Mormon faith. Those in my unit who disagree with me over this issue are respectfully tolerant, as I am respectfully tolerant of their opposite beliefs. Tolerance, as Orson Scott Card recently pointed out, is indicative of disagreement. It is not a battle we choose to fight amongst ourselves. Most of us have known each other for a long time and are either embracing of, or oblivious to, our differences – divisiveness has no place in the types of investigations we conduct.

In the Face of Hatred (Part 2)

The Mob

The worst, however, was yet to come. The temple presidency made a decision to close the temple for the evening. The right decision, but since when do we as Americans stand by – no matter what our religion – while access to a place of worship is forced to close down because of aggressive outside influences?

The late local news showed scenes of several Hispanic females in tears outside the temple trying to remove the signs desecrating the walls and fences surrounding the temple. As these individuals – who according to a temple spokesperson were not church members – removed the hate-filled signs, the mob exploded and began beating the individuals to the ground. Police intervened and arrests were made, but the fact this was allowed to happen at all was appalling.

Other supporters of Yes On 8 drove slowly by the protestors with Yes On 8 signs attached to their cars and pickups sparking other violent confrontations.

A friend of mine, watching the same scenes play out on the television, called and said he felt like he wanted to go down to the temple with a baseball bat and begin swinging at the demonstrators. I must admit, the natural man in me agreed.

In actuality, the scenes on the television, literally drove me to my knees in prayer for the safety of the temple, the members, and our church. A lesson I have learned several times before, caused me to expand my prayers to include those who were opposing us for they are not our enemies – they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.

The Appropriate Response

In the face of hatred, how are we to feel about this focused attack upon our church? An attack launched not because we are the only supporters of Proposition 8, but because we have been the most visible and financially supportive entity in the battle. We are an easy target.

In a recent article on Christian Courage , Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles wrote, "I would say that one of mortality's great tests comes when our beliefs are questioned or criticized. In such moments, we may want to respond aggressively – to put up our dukes . But these are important opportunities to step back, pray, and follow the Savior's example. Remember, Jesus Himself was despised and rejected by the world. And in Lehi's dream, those coming to the Savior also endured 'mocking and pointing … fingers' (1 Nephi 8:27). 'The world hath hated [my disciples],' Jesus said, 'because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world' (John 17:14). But when we respond to our accusers as the Savior did, we not only become more Christlike, we invite others to feel His love and follow Him as well.

"To respond in a Christlike way cannot be scripted or based on a formula. The Savior responded differently in every situation. When He was confronted by wicked King Herod, He remained silent. When He stood before Pilate, He bore a simple and powerful testimony of His divinity and purpose. Facing the moneychangers who were defiling the temple, He exercised His divine responsibility to preserve and protect that which was sacred. Lifted up upon a cross, He uttered the incomparable Christian response: 'Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do' (Luke 23:34)."

We have often been instructed to love our enemies, and despite the current horror of our trials, this is no time to do differently.

As I write this (Friday, November 7, 2008), plans are being made by the LAPD to respond to another larger protest/demonstration being planned by No On 8 supporters to be staged in front of the Los Angeles temple on Saturday.

This is interesting since Saturday is my stake's day in the temple. For some weeks now, we have been encouraging families to come together to the temple on Saturday to participate in ordinances.

How do we respond to hatred disguised by the adversary as tolerance? Our stake president has talked to the temple presidency who has assured him the temple will be open for business as usual. There are eight weddings scheduled on the grounds. Will we be able to get to the temple without being molested or our vehicles vandalized? We must place our faith in the Lord and proceed.

Challenges to our faith are not new. Nor are they likely to go away anytime soon. But, as Elder Hales reminds us, "True disciples of Christ see opportunity in the midst of opposition. We can take advantage of such opportunities in many ways: a kind letter to the editor, a conversation with a friend, a comment on a blog, or a reassuring word to one who has made a disparaging comment. We can answer with love those who have been influenced by misinformation and prejudice – who are 'kept from the truth because they know not where to find it' (D&C 123:12). I assure you that to answer our accusers in this way is never weakness. It is Christian courage in action."

Lessons Learned

Clearly there are lessons to be learned from the current unrest:

Tolerance is not agreement and should not be a one way street. However, we must still remain tolerant of those who are intolerant of us.

Recognize the adversary at work here – making good seem bad and evil seem good.

We can only be disciples of Christ when we respond to adversity in a Christlike manner. To do less opens our actions to the influence of the adversary and hurts us even more.

We should never take for granted the opportunities we have to gather together in worship. We should never put off the opportunity to attend the temple. For these valuable things can be disrupted and possibly even closed to us – if not permanently, then at least on a temporary basis.

Pray. Often. Don't forget to include those who are set against you.

And finally, have no doubt President Monson knows where all of this is leading. He will surely reveal the knowledge to us on the Lord's timetable. Meanwhile, we must support and trust him, his inspired councilors, and our inspired local leaders in our actions. Their actions of Christian courage will be our examples.

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Have a Great turkey day!

2008-11-20T07:48:00.000-08:00

Girls, I think it is only appropriate to spend some time to think about all that we have and are grateful for during this time. Do me a favor and sit down and write down your thoughts of thanksgiving and also maybe even begin to list some of the blessings in each of your lives. Who knows! maybe it will could for Personal Progress. We love you and are grateful for each of you and what you add to this great program. Have the next couple weeks off for mutal and we will see you on Sunday. Love Sister Olsen.

Turkey flyers and Volleyball activity

2008-11-20T07:41:00.000-08:00

Every year the stake encourages the wards to participate in delivering flyers to the whole ward areas, announcing a turkey drive and also the annual Christmas lights. Last night we were the kids on the bloack running from door to door. After, we settled and had some Krispy Kremes and some intense Volleyball!

The Twins setting up the net. They helped alot!

Turkey flyers Cont.

2008-11-20T07:37:00.000-08:00

Kayla, Stephanie, Tori, and Kendall. They should go into bussiness delivering papers! These girls were running from door to door!
This is Tommy, he ran the whole neighboorhood without shoes. Crazy kid!
We had a great time! People better bring some frozen birds!

Evening of Excellence- PURSE-uit of Excellence!

2008-11-12T12:33:00.000-08:00

This past Tuesday was our evening of Excellence. Thank you to the parents and the girls that came and were so great with participating in one of this years big activities. Amber and Tori gave wonderful talks on Personal Progress and a huge thanks to the leaders who worked so hard to make this event so special and successful. The PUR-tato bar was yummy and the decorations were adorable. Personal Progress is a program that allows us to be prepared for what lies in our lives. It is an opportunity and privilege to be a part of.

Evening of Excellence- PURSE-uit of Excellence!

2008-11-12T12:30:00.000-08:00

Evening of Excellence- PURSE-uit of Excellence!

2008-11-10T13:18:00.000-08:00

Hi- Sister Olsen here.
This Tuesday is our Evening of Excellence night. We are meeting at 6p.m. at the Church to practice our musical number- "I am a child of God". Bring your parents, and also your value displays for a special evening for you! Love you and thank you for all you do!

Personal Progress

2008-11-06T12:31:00.000-08:00

Hey girls, I wanted to put a plug in for personal progress! I am off to a slow start, but Personal Progress is so different than it was when I was in Young Women's that I have been figuring everything out and I think I know where I am now! I am hoping that you can each bring your personal progress books to church Sunday so that I can take a look and see where each of you are, and what you need help with! PLEASE feel free to contact me at any time.

I can help you think of projects, help you accomplish projects, and help you incorporate things you already do in your lives into the personal progress program! It is such an important part of your Young Women experience, and I dont feel like it has been treated as such in the past. So here we are, starting fresh! We'll talk more in the coming weeks, and Ill give you a reminder call as well as this post, but REMEMBER!!: Personal Progress books to Sister Bori on Sunday!! Thanks gals!!

XXHUGSXX Sister Bori

Planning meeting Cont.

2008-11-06T07:04:00.000-08:00

Kaylnn Trying her luck with the balloons.
Cody can throw and model in his apron. He is definitely Bishop material.

Youth planning Breakfast!

2008-11-06T06:53:00.000-08:00

We actually had a really great turnout for our big yearly planning meeting. We fit nice and snug into Sister Olsens home. Bishop, and his two councelors, Brother Smith and Bingham came and made the best pancake breakfast for us! If anyone is curious how the spray pancake batter in a can is... Really, it was great. The youth got up and had a chance to throw some darts and also decide on the activities they wanted to do for the next year.
Blake and Cameron loading up on the grub. I think Brother Cumerford can be the next milk model.
Cute girls, Maddi, Tori and her sister Kayla. Eventually,after these girls catch on to my obbession for taking pix they will no longer shy from the camera!
Bishop's first cake off the pan. Cody saying " Bishop we are going to put you in charge of the bacon". Bishop just needed some time to warm up and he was a grilling machine!!
I had these awsome arprons and they were so perfect on these men! they modeled and had a great time!

Come and Plan!

2008-11-03T06:46:00.000-08:00

Okay girls I hope that everyone was able to attend Stake Confernce this past Sunday, it was a great confernce! We are so excited for our special musical number, we are going to be singing,"I am a child of God".This song was highlighted as a special hymn in a missionary story spoke of this past confernce. A quick reminder, this Wednesday mutal is at my home. Come hungry for some serious breakfast food. Hope the week is great for you!

2008-10-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

Also, a big thanks to Sister Bori for her darling and way easy pumpking craft. We had a great time with it and the girls loved having both a cookie to munch on and a craft to take home.

A BIG thanks to Melissa Lee, the cookie lady

2008-10-30T07:53:00.000-07:00

This mutal was alot of fun! The girls had a great time and we had a chance to hone in on our creative girly side. These cookies are not so much the traditional fluffy sugar cookies but we had a chance to roll some out bake them and have the whole house fill with that yummy fresh cookie smell. The dough once cut doesnt brown, raise or move really. It is a great combination of cookie and frosting if you want to do the really cute decorative smooth looking cookies.
A big thanks to Sister Willis for letting us cover her home with orange and green paint, and also a light dusting of flour on top of that! Serious we showed alot of creativity through the messes we made last night.

Happy Halloween Cookie decorating Mutal

2008-10-29T17:26:00.000-07:00

Okay girls, this Wednesday 7 p.m. meet at the church we are practicing our song and then going over to Sister Willis's home for the cookies.

2008-10-27T10:57:00.000-07:00

Thank you for the participation in yesterday's lesson! I enjoyed teaching you lovely ladies for the first time.

"We are particularly proud of our youth. I think we have never had a stronger generation of young men and women than we have today. For the most part they are true to the faith of their forebears. Surrounded by forces that would pull them down and tremendous pressures to pull them away from time-tested virtues, they are going forward with constructive lives, nurturing themselves both intellectually and spiritually. We have no fears or doubts concerning the future of this work."
President Gordon B. Hinckley

Remember, you are special!

love, Sister Willis

Bridget Scoggin

2008-10-24T22:32:00.000-07:00

So Bridget was so excited to do some of her Personal Progress this weekend she willingly came out to the farm with us and helped us prepare the land for a garden. This thing is huge it 60x60 with 3,200 Square feet. She is working on her 10 hour project of planting a garden. SO GO girl. Anyone else interested in helping and reaping the rewards of acomplishing goals and getting some veggies out of it let me know! Thanks Bridget for all your hard work, we made 6 rows tonight.

Girls this is what we have to deal with in the world.

2008-10-23T21:42:00.000-07:00

Caught My Attention...

A Real News Story that caught my attention:
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No Takers for Contest that Requires Abstinence
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A contest that would pay $10,000 to an engaged couple, as long as they abstain from premarital sex, hasn't gotten any takers. The deadline for the Marriage for a Lifetime contest is Oct. 31. The prize includes free wedding flowers, invitations, and other wedding treats.
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So far, organizer Phillipia Faust hasn't gotten any entries.
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She said, "In our society, it's going to be hard to find" a couple that hasn't had premarital sex.
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Faust has organized and carried out various pro-marriage activities through her Marriage Appreciation Training- Uplifting Relationship Education Program, a non-profit that isn't church-affiliated.

Softball 2008. Great memories and we did great!

2008-10-22T09:27:00.000-07:00

A HUGE thanks to my fabulous leaders who stepped up and ran with the last few weeks of softball. Thanks for making it fun and getting to know the girls, and for being great leaders. I appreciate all you do! Jess.

Softball 2008~ We one 2 out of 3!

2008-10-22T08:44:00.000-07:00

This was our girls end cheer for the Aspen ward. We beat them 20-4. They needed a cheer!

2008-10-22T08:40:00.000-07:00

Our cute girls in Verde.

Brad Olsen was such a great sport. He was our priesthood holder.... (man that was their to help in case someone died... or was hurt.... or anything else)!
Maddi on her way out to the field!

Softball 2008~ We one 2 out of 3!

2008-10-22T08:36:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been our stakes softball leagues for mutal. We had alot of fun and the girls were actually pretty good. The weather has cooled down and it was fun to be out playing other wards and seeing some of our good friends.

Lesson for Sunday October 19th.

2008-10-19T21:34:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday for those who were not there was a really great lesson. Emily Stapley gave a great talk on the confernce talk from Elder Oaks on choosing from the Good, better and Best options in our lives. We all know that time in our lives is short but as we center our lives on something that is the best then we can better be used as an instrument in Gods hands. Thank you Emily for teaching by the spirit and being an awsome public speaker!

Halloween, cookie decorating mutal Wednesday the 29th

2008-10-19T21:24:00.000-07:00

Okay girls, for our next mutal night we are decorating fall cookies at Laurens home and it will be alot of fun. Come for some sweet treats and great times. We will meet at the church 7 p.m and then go to Sister Willis's home. Hope to see you there!.

Mutal for October 21st

2008-10-19T21:22:00.000-07:00

Okay girls, one more night of Softball... same ole routine we will be meeting at the church Tuesday nightat 7 and then cruisin over to the Interstake center. After we will have yummys. Hopefully George will be their to be our manly coach. whoo hoo.

The importance of Family NIght... and mutal!

2008-10-15T08:42:00.001-07:00

I shall never forget the family home evening, years ago, in which the name of each member of our family was placed in a hat. The name you picked from the hat would be your “secret friend” for the week. You can imagine the love that filled my heart when I came home that Tuesday after work to sweep out the garage, as I had earlier promised, and found it cleanly swept. There was a note attached to the garage door which read, “Hope you had a good day—your secret friend.” And on Friday night, as I turned down my bed, I uncovered an Almond Joy, my favorite candy bar, wrapped carefully in scotch tape and plain white paper, with a note: “Dad, I love you a lot! Thanks, your secret friend.” Then to top it off, after returning home from a late meeting Sunday evening, I found the dining room table beautifully set, and written on the napkin by my place were the words “SUPER DAD” in big bold letters and in parentheses, “your secret friend.” Hold your family home evenings, for this is where the gospel is taught, a testimony gained, and the family fortified.
W. Douglas Shumway

Game Two... Well we can't win everything!

2008-10-14T22:13:00.000-07:00

Girls, if our ward won at everything we did some may think us perfect. Its okay to loose and its okay to have the opportunity to win next week. I am glad all is great and I will be meeting with each of you this week! Love you all. Jess Olsen

Tuesday night- Game 2

2008-10-10T23:21:00.000-07:00

Girls, Whoo hoo! Great playing this past Softball activity. Way to beat Sunny Mesa. This Tuesday will be the same thing. Meet at the church at 7p.m and dont forget to have your gloves and dress modest. Water is always a great idea. I hope that your weeks have all been great. Sister Olsen

Sugar Doodle

2008-10-08T20:49:00.000-07:00

Okay ladies. I love this website , it has some way cute stuff for our line of work! check it out if you ever need some lessons helps or neat graphics. http://www.sugardoodle.net/mambo/

Our first activity as a new presidency

2008-10-08T08:17:00.000-07:00

We had a blast at this weeks mutal night. We called it a Article of Faith Road Rally, we went and did service at almost 20 peoples homes. At the door we would recite an article of Faith and if we got it right then we could pick a service to do in the home. If not correct the adult in the home would pick. We picked weeds, washed windows, cleaned dishes and tons more. We had three groups so this picture above is just one third of our group. More pictures to come.