Temple Hopping

We had our first real snow!!!  It snowed pretty steadily all day on Friday after raining all night.  It is beautiful out here!  To celebrate the snow, we bundled up and went to Walmart to buy sleds.  We were deterred by the prices, though, so we improvised.  We all chipped in $5 to buy a few cheap sleds, some baking sheets, and tin lids to slide down a hill on.  (Mara, notice my beardo!)

I also got to brush up on my snowman-making skills!  The huge snowball is mine. :)

A while back, Erica had the wonderful idea to take advantage of living in Utah Valley and visit as many temples as possible in one day.  We've been planning our "temple hopping" trip for several weeks now, and it finally happened!!  It was incredible.  If I could describe the day in one word, it would be "breathtaking."  Not only were the temples and the snow and the mountains gorgeous, it is also a beautiful experience to spend time in the House of the Lord.  It was such a wonderful time of prayer and contemplation after a couple of challenging weeks. Check out this video about temples!  It's short and I love it. :)

We spent over seven hours in temples and did ordinances (baptisms and confirmations for the dead) for over 250 people.  What a neat experience!  Please enjoy the beautiful pictures. :)

Provo Temple

 Draper Temple

"Holiness to the Lord, The House of the Lord"

This is on all of the temples.

 Jordan River Temple

Oquirrh Mountain Temple

(look at the beautiful snow-capped mountains!!)

Salt Lake City Temple

(my parents were married here!!!)

Photo credit to Erica Ernenwein... She did a good job. :)

If you ask me, visiting five temples with someone pretty much makes you family.  Here are my beautiful hall-sisters. :)

I always thought that going into the temple should make me feel very different.  It made me feel a little guilty that I still just felt like my normal self when I was in such a holy place.  After having spent so much time in the temple this weekend, though, I've realized that it's a good thing to just feel like myself in the temple!  It means that I am living close to the spirit on a daily basis.  In the temple, I am just blessed with clearer thoughts and I feel closer to my Heavenly Father.  This time, I felt more sure than ever about my decision to serve a full-time mission next year.  I can turn in my papers in the spring and I'll know where I'm going sometime in April!  I am so excited to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others. It makes me so incredibly happy and it has made me who I am.