Christmas At The Baadsgaard House 2014

Happy 15th Birthday Josh

January 24, 2015

Dear Josh,

            Happy birthday! I sure love being your grandma. I’ll never forget the day you were born. I just had Alisa and was still in the hospital. I wanted to be there when you were born even though the nurses told me to stay in bed because I just had a C-section.

I said, “I’m going.”

And I went. I’ll never forget the feeling I had when I saw you for the first time. You were my very first grandchild and I was overcome with the miracle of you and the love I had for you and your parents. I knew the miracle of love I felt for my family would go on forever.

            It has been so much fun to watch you and Alisa grow up together. You’ve been good buddies.  I was so excited when you moved to Spanish Fork because that meant I could see you more often. Thank you so much for coming over to visit me almost every week. I love to see you coming through my front door.

            You are becoming such an awesome young man. I am so proud of you and the way you are always serving others as you perform your priesthood duties. I notice how you always study and do well in school. I’ve also noticed how kind you are to the children around you. All your cousins know they can trust you to treat them with kindness and respect.

            I really love you Josh. It has brought me so much joy to watch you grow up. Thank you for being so good to your brothers and your mom and dad. Because you are the oldest, your younger brothers really look up to you and want to be like you.

It won’t be long until you and Alisa are in Maple Mountain High School. Just remember that I am just a block away; so if you need something just call me and I can be there in a minute or two.

            Josh thank you for always being so nice to your Grandma Baadsgaard. I love hearing what you to say about lots of things because you read a lot and study and you have lots of good ideas and information. I’m glad that you like to think for yourself.

Sometimes when I see you I like to envision your brother Caleb at your side. I think of you two as a righteous team like your namesakes from the Bible going into the Promised Land. Remember that Caleb is there for you and you can talk to him any time you want to.

No matter where you go or what you do -  always remember that your Grandma Baadsgaard thinks you are amazing and that I will always love you forever.  Someday when you have a grandson that brings you as much joy as you have brought to me, then you know how I feel about you.

            Thank you for always leading out and being such a good example for all your 25 nieces and nephews. You have an important place in this family that only you can fill.

God bless you Josh with all the desires of your heart.

I love you with all my heart,

Grandma Baadsgaarad

Happy Birthday Isabella

IZZY-THE SOFT GREY MONKEY

by

Grandma Baadsgaard

I love you Izzy. I hope you like this poem I wrote just for you.

Izzy is a soft grey monkey

Who lives up in the trees

And if you want some excitement

Just whistle if you please

For Izzy likes to dance and play

And swing from limb to limb

She smiles your way if you say

Monkeys don’t have to be prim

While some monkeys like bananas

Izzy would rather eat pie

So if you bring her a yellow bunch

Izzy rolls her eyes and sighs

Izzy likes to give big hugs

And lots of snuggles too

So if you’re ever sad or lonely

Just ask for one or two

 For monkeys have lots of energy

They simply can’t sit still

But if you need a pick-me-up

Izzy’s love is for real

If you’re looking for a boring monkey

who is quiet and holds still all day

You better look somewhere else

For Izzy’s here to stay

Baptism Letter From Grandma

Dear Isabella,

Happy Birthday! I’m so excited that you are turning eight years old this year because that means that you are old enough to choose to be baptized. I’m so happy you have made that choice.

I remember when I was baptized. I was baptized on my eight-year-old birthday on a Saturday night in a little white church across the street from my house in Union, Utah. My congregation had all the children being baptized sit on small wooden chairs and talked to us for a while. I don’t remember what they said, but I do remember what I felt.

I felt excited and a little scared before I was baptized. When I was baptized, the water was warm and I felt clean. After I was baptized and put my dry clothes back on, I walked out of the church into the cold January winter air. I remember looking up and seeing lacy white flakes of snow falling all around me. Even though it was cold outside, I felt warm inside. I knew God loved me and was pleased I wanted to come home to heaven someday.

I also knew that Jesus was my best friend and that if I tried to live like Him that I would be happy. When I was your age, they waited until Sunday to confirm me at church and give me the gift of the Holy Ghost. I felt protected when the men with the priesthood made a circle around me and put their hands on my head as my father confirmed me.

What I didn't know was that the man I was going to marry someday was being baptized on the very same day, January 6^th (my birthday) in a little town called Spanish Fork, Utah. He was a little scared and excited too. Because we both wanted to be like Jesus, we found each other many years later. We recognized that we had the same dreams and plans for life.

           When he got back from him mission to Samoa, we were married in the SLC temple and made special promises to God. We were sealed for time and eternity. Pretty soon your dad was born. Then he grew up and married your mommy in the temple and then pretty soon, you were born, adopted and sealed to them.

Being baptized was the beginning of everything wonderful in my life. Being baptized is such a special time because we are able to participate in our first saving ordinance and make our Heavenly Father our first official promise. You are a daughter of God, Isabella, and your Heavenly parents love you very much. They want you to be happy so they have made a plan of happiness for you to follow so you can return to them someday. 

Up until now, you have been a child who is learning, growing and maturing. You have made some mistakes; everybody makes mistakes. That is how we learn and grow. Now that you are eight, God thinks you are wise enough to know the difference between right and wrong choices. Heavenly Father knows that some of the choices we make will not be wise. Because He loves us, He wants us to know how to change so we will not be trapped by our mistakes and bad choices. So He invites us to make a promise to Him and then He makes a promise right back to us. When we make a special promise to God and He makes one right back to us, it is called a covenant. Heavenly Father never breaks a promise.

The promise you make to God is that you will remember Jesus, follow Him and keep His commandments. Heavenly Father promises you that He will forgive you if you make a mistake or do something that you know is wrong if you feel sorry and repent. He also promises you eternal life. He also gives you the gift of the Holy Ghost to help, guide, protect, warn and comfort you.

When you choose to be baptized you tell Heavenly Father that:

*You want to be a follower of Jesus Christ

*You will serve your fellowmen

*You will stand as a witness of God all the time

*You will obey the commandments of God

          God promises you that:

  *You are accepted as a member of Christ’s church

   *You can be forgiven of your sin if you repent

   *You can have the gift of the Holy Ghost

   *You can live in the kingdom of God

          Everybody makes mistakes after they are baptized so Heavenly Father gave us the sacrament every week on Sunday. That is when we remember the covenant we made when we were baptized. We think about our week and decide how to be better during the coming week. We think about our Savior Jesus Christ and how He atoned for all our sins, pains, disappointment and grief. We also think about Christ’s resurrection and that we can be resurrected too someday.

I hope you will write about how you feel in your journal when you are baptized. Never forget that you are a child of God and that you can inherit the eternal life God has planned for you. And never forget that your grandma loves you with all her heart.

Love,  Grandma Baadsgaard.    

I NEED YOUR HELP

I NEED YOUR HELP

I have been asked by the LDS church to write a history of the Payson Temple from 2010-2015. I only have a few months to complete this book. It will be a nice hard back book that will be placed in the cornerstone box at the temple and up at the church history department in SLC. This book will not be bought and sold - it will be the official history for the church.

I need stories/experiences/photos from all of you on:
when you heard the announcement about the temple and how you felt
personal experiences at the groundbreaking
temple site history or personal experiences
personal experiences watching angel Moroni being placed/lights go on
personal stories from neighbors who have watched the temple going up
personal stories from construction workers, artists, designers, etc (anyone who has worked on the temple in any way)
any information about general authorities with local ties to the area any church unit/community involvement personal experiences.

Then as the dedication nears I'll need your personal stories/photos about:
open house experiences
cultural celebration experiences
dedication experiences
your first visit to the temple when opened.

I will not be able to do a good job on this assignment without your help. Your story is of great worth to me and the history of this wonderful temple about to be opened on our area. Please get the word out for me.
Send your stories/photos to: janenebaadsgaard@q.com
If you have any questions please call me at:
801-798-8295

If you want to read a newspaper article about this history book click here.