a-ha moments......

I've been doing a lot of reminiscing lately about different events in my life, and although there are some things I would change, most I wouldn't. :) It did help me decide, however, that I not only need to be thinking about the future, but to prepare as well. Now, I'm not necessarily one for just living in the moment, but whenever I look at Hazel, I think that there are so many things that I want to do for her to help her live the best life.

We had the missionaries over last night, and we were talking about contacting and sharing the Gospel with friends and neighbours. I remember as a missionary how easy I believed it was to share something that I loved so much. I've discovered, however, it's a little more daunting than I remembered! Anyway, Quenton and I have decided that we need to make more of an effort, especially so we can show our kids how important missionary work is. I want them to love the Gospel as much as I do, and I really feel like this year will be a great year for us and missionary work :)

I've also dealt with post-partum depression, and feel that being around friends and performing service will help me to overcome some of the obstacles that come with PPD. I know there's a lot more that I can be doing (whether it's meds, councelling or whatever), but I want to see what I can do about preventing some symptoms before they happen. I know some girls who have had PPD with their pregnancies as well, so I'll probably turn to them for advice. :)

I need to say, too, how much I love my family. Not just my own little family, but my siblings and parents. I have felt for a long time that I'm different from my family members, and that I don't have as much in common with them as I used to, but all of that aside, I love them. There have been some things that have happened recently that have made me really think about what's important, and family is right up there. I haven't always felt that I could forgive past wrongs, but I read a talk President Faust gave in May 2007 called "The Healing Power of Forgiveness" that has really struck a chord with me. I think sometimes it's harder to forgive and move on than I would like, but if the goal in this life is to be as happy as we can, we need to do the hard stuff. Family is worth it. Eternity is worth it. Our happiness depends on it.