Rachel's birthday

This post is a few weeks overdue. It has been one CRAZY month. I have had lots of things going on with church callings, and hosting two baby showers within 30 days. Let's just say I am exhausted and really need a vacation.

My birthday was a couple weeks ago. This year was pretty low key which was nice considering my crazy schedule for the month. We went out to dinner, ate some brownies (made by Nathan), and then enjoyed my new gifts.

Gift #1--a shepherd's hook.

Last year someone stole our shepherd's hook so I needed to get another one for my bird feeder. One of my favorite things to do in the spring and summer time is to watch the Iowa finches come and eat (picture here) . They are gorgeous birds. Besides, it provides some entertainment for Kronk.

Gift #2--A painting that I had framed--FINALLY. Now we just need to hang it up which I think will take a while because Nathan and I cannot agree on where to hang it.

This painting has a significant amount of family history in my family and I've been wanting it framed for years! There is a LONG story associated with this painting, but the main reason why it has so much history for my family is because my Granddaddy posed for the artist.

Double take

This morning on my way to work I noticed several dark/black objects in a field off the side of the road. At first I thought they were cows (we have a lot of cows in Iowa). But as I got closer I quickly realized they were too small to be cows. So what were they?

They were wild turkeys!

There were about SEVEN of them just sitting on the side of the road like it was an average Tuesday morning. The best part though was they had their feathers spread and fluffed. They were HUGE!

My first thought--only in Iowa.

Turkey picture courtesy of Google images

Easter and Conference

Happy Easter to all!

We had a very nice Easter Sunday. We finished watching General Conference (which was fabulous), and then we had an amazing dinner--roast beef, roasted carrots, cheese potatoes, and a tossed green salad. YUM!

And speaking of General Conference, here are the statistical results for what songs we thought would be sung:

Nathan: 37% accuracy
Rachel: 23.33% accuracy

We totally stunk! We were so surprised that many of the hymns of the restoration were not sung. That was probably due to the Easter holiday though. Oh well...better luck next time.

Pictures courtesy of Microsoft Publisher

Conference Time

This weekend is General Conference. I LOVE General Conference because not only do we get to hear from living prophets and apostles, but we get to listen to beautiful music sung by angelic choirs.

As many of you know from a former post I did 6 months ago, I like to guess which songs will be sung during the conference weekend (I know...I'm a total nerd!). In the October 2009 conference I did not do as well as I normally do--but I'm planning on making a comeback this time! I guess we'll see how I do.

Here are my rules:

*Pick about 30 songs (hymns or other musical arrangements).

*If those songs are sung during any session of conference (including Music and the Spoken Word) then I get to check them off my list.

Here is my list for the 180th Annual General Conference--April 2010:

1. #1 The Morning Breaks

2. #3 Now Let Us Rejoice

3. #5 High On A Mountain Top

4. #6 Redeemer of Israel

5. #19 We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet

6. #23 We Ever Pray for Thee

7. #26 Joseph Smith's First Prayer

8. #27 Praise to the Man

9. #58 Come, Ye Children of the Lord

10. #66 Rejoice the Lord is King

11. #83 Guide Us, O Thou Great Jehovah

12. #85 How Firm a Foundation

13. #92 For the Beauty of the Earth

14. #116 Come Follow Me

15. #129 Where Can I Turn for Peace

16. #134 I Believe in Christ

17. #135 My Redeemer Lives

18. #136 I Know That My Redeemer Lives

19. #141 Jesus The Very Thought of Thee

20. #156 Sing We Now at Parting

21. #198 That Easter Morn

22. #199 He Is Risen!

23. #237 Do What is Right

24. #249 Called to Serve

25. #254 As Zion's Youth in Latter Days

26. #301 I Am a Child of God

27. #319 Ye Elders of Israel

28. #323 Rise Up, O Men of God

29. Beautiful Savior

30. Consider the Lillies of the Field

By the way--I took this picture of the Salt Lake Temple 3 years ago. Nathan didn't believe me at first. Isn't it a neat picture?