Birthday and Blessing Day

We've had some fun Red-Letter Days for these 2 darlings!
Anne turned 6 last week, and had fun with new Barbies+car, new outfit, and even clipon earrings :).  Luckily, she thought it was exciting that she got to go to violin and the dentist on her birthday :).  We had Trix for her birthday cereal while she opened presents, and ate hamburgers, onion rings, and zuchinni before her Butterfly Birthday cake that we invited her dream family the neighbors over for quick cake and ice cream before Brent's basketball game, that she was also happy to attend.  We've promised Anne and Lucy a trip to see Frozen for a combined celebration once it gets to the dollar theater, but I have a feeling we're in for a bit of a wait!! Meanwhile, we hear all the music OFTEN with piano playing, youtube videos, and just singing :).
Anne is SO fun--her driving personality has begun to yield real payoffs, as she has learned the joy of doing jobs by herself, earning responsibilities like calling her own friends after memorizing their and our phone numbers, cleaning out rooms to surprise me, and regularly taking charge of her homework with enthusiasm (thank goodness!).  She also has a great love of, and ear for (!) music, and has got to be BY FAR the least shy of our children, as she befriends neighbors, teachers, and passersby w/ ease.  Just last week, as we gathered at Nate & Stacey's for a dinner together, she announced, "GUYS! GUYS!!" (and after commanding our attention)"I think you should all sing 'Happy Birthday' to me since my birthday is on Thursday!" (so we did).

Then, Jane was blessed by Brian today, and we enjoyed having Nathan's family, and Ron & Kathy join us for that and dinner afterwards.  Jane was a gem, and slept all through the rest of church, AFTER sleeping 10 hours last night!! She was given a beautiful blessing: of PEACE, of a knowledge that she is a daughter of Heavenly Father, and that she will hold tightly to that knowledge, and not allow the world to shape the image of who she is.  She was also blessed with patience, love and service.  She has brought so much peace to our home, and it was just a happy day enjoying her with family. 

I bore my testimony today of the power of covenants.  I had been studying Noah for Sunday School, and realized that our covenants bind us to God, which gives us access to his knowledge, power, and protection.  Covenants also strengthen us because they bind us to each other.  Being surrounded by all of the covenant people in our ward has really blessed our family and helped us through trials, and as I dressed Jane in white this morning, I knew we were being strengthened by all of the family, here and beyond the veil, we are bound to with covenants.  I also read a verse in 2 Nephi where Jacob quotes Isaiah by saying that the Lord will comfort His people, and make their wilderness as Eden, and their waste places as the garden of the Lord, which is a a beautiful picture of the beauty Christ can make out of our "waste places" and "wildernesses." We are blessed--it was so nice to have a day to soak in those blessings, and remember joy in our life.  Here is the next installment of baby adoration, and her updated nursery.