Happy Thanksgiving!

Fried turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, deviled eggs, jello/pear salad, rolls, and two kinds of pie!

Costco makes a yummy vegan apple pie. Yay for Costco!

We made a second dish of rolls for leftovers... And look what happened to them. (William)

Scott and the kids put up outdoor lights... A first for us.

Random

Celebrating good report cards:

Thanksgiving feast for preschool:

Heidi and her friend from the ward, Sister Johnson:

She brought Heidi some nice gifts for her birthday

Heidi took Sister Johnson some brownies for her birthday

Singing to baby sister:

More Fun with Grandma Miller + 1 Month Old

The kids spent yesterday afternoon making crafts and goodies with Grandma:

They say it's a gingerbread church and natural history museum

Can you believe she's a month old already?

At the movies:

And this picture was taken at the kids' sleepover on Saturday night:

Devotional with the Prophet

President Nelson, Elder Bednar of the Twelve, and Elder Ochoa of the Seventy came to San Antonio with their wives this weekend and held a special devotional at the Alamodome. There were 14 stakes and districts from San Antonio and Austin invited, with an additional 5 stakes and districts from outlying areas "welcome" to attend. There were between 20,000 and 25,000 people in attendance. Scott and his mom took the three older kids, while Emily stayed home with William and Emma. (We were able to listen to the audio stream from home.)

Here's the summary of President Nelson's talk that he posted on Facebook:

This evening we had the remarkable opportunity to speak with tens of thousands of valiant followers of Jesus Christ in the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. We will long remember this historic meeting.

Each person in attendance—in fact, everyone—lives with challenges. They are part of life. This period of our mortal probation is studded with challenging issues. Some challenges come to us from accidents beyond our control. We live with countless risks every day, some of which result in changes that seriously disrupt our lives.

For each of us, there may be a really serious storm sometime in our lives. Or there may be a tragedy. But with faith in a loving God and trust in His divine plan, the pain of such a tragedy can be endured. And if we truly understand who we are and why we are here, we can face the future with faith in God and His eternal plan of happiness. Our understanding is broadened when we realize there truly will be another life after death.

Thanks to the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we will live again in an eternal realm. We can be absolutely certain that after this life, we will be resurrected and be restored to our proper and perfect frame—yes, even glorified. We will have a second chance. Truly and mercifully, Jesus was “born to give [us] second birth.”

And here's Elder Bednar's summary of his talk:

Susan and I were blessed to be with President and Sister Russell M Nelson at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas last night. It truly was an historic gathering of members and friends of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

At President Nelson’s invitation, I spoke briefly at the devotional about the principle of being “all in.” “All in” is a short, simple statement that denotes deep commitment and a strong willingness to be involved.

Elder Marvin J. Ashton, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for over 22 years, once related a story about a little boy who fell out of bed and came crying to his mother’s bedside. To her question, “Why did you fall out of bed?” the boy replied, “I fell out because I wasn’t in far enough.” Apparently, the little boy was not “all in” his bed.

The principles of sacrifice and consecration provide the essential foundation for becoming “all in” disciples of the Lord. Sacrifice is a commitment to offer anything and everything we possess for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Living the principle of sacrifice increases our desires to obey God’s commandments and for the “things righteousness.”

Consecration encompasses sacrifice and much more—even a commitment to become dedicated to and developed for holy purposes. We pledge to make ourselves fit for use and fully available in accomplishing the work of the Lord. Living the principle of consecration increases our desires to serve, bless, and love others.

I invite all of us to ask ourselves this important question: Am I “all in” as a disciple of Jesus Christ? 

More here: https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/president-nelson-addresses-life-challenges-during-texas-devotional 

Heidi's Baptism and Emma's Baby Blessing

On Heidi's eighth birthday:

In her special baptism dress trimmed with pearls from Grandma Heidi's wedding dress

In her beautiful new dress from Grandma Miller

Emma's first family picture

This is a dress that Grandma Hadley made

With the Bakers

With Aunt Sarah

With Grandma Miller

With Grandma Ellsworth

With Dad

With Mom and Dad

With Mom

With Grandma Ellsworth

With Grandpa Ellsworth

Lunch after the baptism and blessing