Peace

 I woke to Oliver singing in his crib. A few minutes later the two little boys ran across the hall and jumped onto my bed for a morning cuddle. Hyrum tip-toed into Ollie's room and played with him until I got out of bed. We kissed and hugged Daddy good bye, turned on the furnace and headed into the kitchen. Everyone was in good spirits and it felt good to start the day that way. 

Shortly after breakfast an entire glass of cranberry juice was splattered all over my kitchen floor. Despite wiping it up well, my socks stuck to patches of the floor all day long after it dried. 

I threw my hair in a pony tail and loaded the boys into the van. We had to get groceries since I absent mindlessly left the milk on the counter for an entire day over the weekend. There were fits, fights, and craziness (there always is), but we made it out with everything we needed and headed home. As we were driving Joe said, "I miss Great-Gramma. I wish she could come back to life." Then he sweetly added, "Jesus is with her now though, he won't leave her alone." His words touched my heart. It will be one year tomorrow. 

As I cleaned up the kitchen I happened to glance out the window and notice the start of a gentle snowfall sprinkling Christmas magic all over. I watched the snow falling soundlessly and started to feel giddy and excited. I've been dreaming of a white Christmas and it looks like it might still happen yet! 

My heart has been hurting this week for a family in my hometown who lost two girls over the weekend in a car accident. They lived very close to us growing up and I frequently babysat them when they were younger. The snow brought me such a feeling of peace. As I kneaded out two batches of bread and played with the dough between my fingers I cried, and laughed and felt so many different emotions. I finished my afternoon with eight loaves of bread, four dozen buns and a double batch of big soft ginger cookies. 

At this time of year I can't help but think about the reason for the season. I am grateful for our Savior who atoned for all of our short comings, and for all of the seemingly unfair things that happen. He knows our hearts and our hopes and is always there when we need Him. I am grateful for the plan of salvation and the knowledge that I have that I can see my loved ones again someday. As I get ready to cozy in for the night, my heart is filled with peace, because of Him.