I'm Going There Someday

 Yesterday our primary kids at church had an activity at the Houston Temple and Elaina got to tag along with me since H was studying.  I know the activity is for the kiddos, but I had so much fun!  I was kind of dragging my feet about going. The temple is far away, I had to take Elaina in the middle of nap time, I had something going on for work at the exact same time and I didn't know which one I should go to, and honestly what I really wanted to do was stay home and do absolutely nothing. There were tons of excuses but, I decided to go help with the Temple activity and I'm so glad I did.  Not only did I have a lot of fun, it looked like the kids had a lot of fun, and even Elaina had a great time.

We split all the kids into three different groups and they rotated through four different stations around the temple grounds.

This was our little group at station #3: Temple picture.  Each kiddo took an individual picture in front of the temple that we will give to them when they get developed!

 Elaina was such a trooper and had a great time strolling about the temple grounds!

 Our little group at Station #2: Temple History.  Sister Nielsen and her sister wrote a book about the Houston Temple and she came and talked to the kids about how the Houston Temple came to be!  She had fun stories about inspiration and how the church decided where the temple should be built, and miracles because the man who owned the land didn't want to sell it but some special things happened that made him change his mind.  There was a cool story about a local landscaper who, instead of selling some of his plants, kept saving some of them in the back of his nursery because he felt inspired to.  The manager kept telling him  that he shouldn't do that because they would lose money.  And when it was announced that a temple would be built in Houston he was the one asked to landscape the temple grounds.  She told the stories much better than I can...

 Station #4: Family History.  Sister Mader came and talked to the kids about family history and how we can be with our families forever.  She had a family tree for all the kids to fill out with their parents, grandparents, and great grandparents.

 Station #1: Worthy to Enter.  Bishop Martinez talked with each group about making good choices and the things we need to do in our lives to be worthy to go to the temple someday!

 At the very end we got a group picture in front of the temple.

 and of course I had to get one with my little bit!

The name of the activity was a Temple Treasure Trip. A few weeks before the activity I made this invites and mailed them out to each of the primary kids in the ward.  It was a treasure map to the temple wrapped up in a treasure chest!

While they were at the temple they had a card (it kind of looked like a bingo card) with different things listed around the temple grounds - like a fountain, cars, people, a gate, flowers, angel moroni, etc. - and when they found each thing they had to put a sticker on it!  They had so much fun finding each thing and they were so proud when they finished finding every thing on the card.  It was so cute!  At the end of the activity they could turn their finished card in for a "treasure" of cupcakes, capris sun, and a picture of the temple on a wooden block to put in their room.

 the cupcake picnic

 Jess telling each of the kids about how President Monson has encouraged all of us to have a picture of the temple in our homes and that now they could have their very own in their room at home!

There were a few extra temple blocks so even Elaina got one to take home!

She was SO excited to put it up on her shelf!! :)

I don't usually get too personal on the blog.  I love having my blog, I love documenting my family, the things we do together, the things we experience, and how we grow.  But, I'm a pretty private person, at least emotionally, and it's not easy for me to share things about my testimony of Christ and his church.  But, I'll be honest, I got a little emotional on the way home thinking about putting the picture of the temple in my sweet baby girl's room and her first trip to the temple.  I love the temple.  I love knowing that my family can be together forever.  It means even more to me now that I have a daughter.  I love her so much and I love that I feel like I love Houston even more now that she is around.  I want that feeling forever and I want to be with them for eternity. I want my children to grow up knowing how much I love my Savior, how much I love the temple and how blessed and grateful I am because of the covenants I've been able to make in the temple. And, I want them to experience these same feelings of love and gratitude in the future for their little families and to our Heavenly Father for providing us with such a wonderful blessing.