The Polley Blog: General Conference

I haven gotten pretty behind in blogging recently. I don't often get a chance to sit at the computer, so we'll see how long it takes me to catch up.

At the beginning of this month was the General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It's always something I look forward to, as the messages that are spoken always help edify and uplift my life in some way. I mistakenly thought that Ann would be able to just play by herself like she has in the past while Tom and I watched. Especially since Ian has been born, Ann has only been able to tolerate being "ignored" (meaning, not getting enough direct attention) for so long. If she feels like she's not getting enough attention, she starts to act out. So Saturday was a pretty hard day for us. I liked listening to conference, but having an attention-seeking 3-year-old combined with an over-tired mom with very little patience led to some unhappy moments.

Sunday went a lot smoother. My mom gave bought Ann a package of M&Ms and the idea was that she would need to help listen for the speakers to say "Jesus", and then she could have a piece of candy. At first she just kept saying she heard them say Jesus even when they hadn't (the first speaker or two didn't say it much), but by the end of the first session, it was really cute to see her get all excited when she heard the speaker say Jesus.

One part of President Eyring's talk really stood out to me, as it has been going along with some things I have been thinking about recently. It was the part of his talk where he mentioned his mother, and the profound impact that she had on his life through simply chatting with him when he would come home late at night. It reminded me once again the significance of my role as a mother, and lasting impact I will have on my children. I felt really bad about how I had reacted to Ann's behavior the day before, and hearing and thinking about President Eyring's talk increased my resolve to be more loving and patient (even when I'm tired and just want to scream). I don't want my kids to grow up and remember me as an upset, frustrated person. I hope they think of me the way I think of my mom, or how President Eyring remembers his mother - with love.

Sunday morning - Ian napped really well that morning, so Ann and I were able to hang out and have fun. She wanted to wear Tom's sweater, and is sticking out her tongue because I had stuck my tongue out in an attempt to make her smile.