Thanksgiving 2020

I decided to record some of the things I am grateful for, as spoken in my prayer tonight.  I was discouraged today about some of the trials our family members are going through, and as crazy as people say this year has been for our country and world, I think what's even worse is the personal trials individuals and families have had to endure.  I'm rarely confused by or upset with the Lord, but in this case I was feeling frustrated.  Good thing I had heard President Nelson's "New Normal" remarks today from his last Conference Address and knew that the Lord wants us to be optimistic.  I also loved that President Nelson gave the message of hope to the world and that his tool for healing was gratitude.  I didn't connect all these dots together until saying a prayer of gratitude and feeling so much more healing, hope, optimism, and acceptance of the Lord's will.  

I am grateful for:

1) Our eternal family

2) Our warm home that protects us from the elements

3) Our freedoms and the country we were blessed to be born in

4) Being born in the covenant and having made eternal covenants ourselves

5) Living in the latter days where we can help build the kingdom of God in preparation for the Lord's coming

6) Christ, that he not only died for us, but lives for us and identifies with our insecurities, weaknesses, pains, sorrows, frustrations

7) Christ leading our Church and guiding us through His personal example

8) Living prophets who encourage us and help us through these troubled times

9) Our opportunity to spread the name of Jesus Christ and His gospel throughout the earth; our opportunity to index and come to know our ancestors better to bring the gospel and receive the gospel on both sides of the veil

10) Our friends, neighbors, and family members who have shown us support, especially this year

11) Having infant formula for Enoch that his needs can be met

12) Enoch's smile, fun giggle, and free emotions that teach us to freely feel and experience all the happiness, sadness, fear, and physical stimuli that we can

13) This Thanksgiving week where we can think on all our many blessings

14) What the pandemic has taught us (I would like to further reflect on this because I didn't write it down as ideas came to me)

15) The Pocock family who lives in our basement

16) Our sister, Jessica, and her baby "Noel" and the feeling that even though she will be born premature, everything will be okay

17) Medical professionals who are willing to care for others, often sacrificing their time, energy, and health

18) Scientists who are working around the clock to have a virus ready for COVID-19

19) Isaac and the wonderful father, husband, worker, and friend to me that he is

20) The scriptures that they teach me and help me feel better mentally and physically

21) Exercise and strength despite imperfect bodies

22) Being outside and getting fresh air 

23) The walks and hikes we've been able to do, especially this year, which started rough

24) The fact that I can stand as long as I need and walk as long as I want!!!

25) 18 months of physical and mental hardship with pregnancy and birth recovery seems to be ending!

26) Modern conveniences such as appliances, automobiles, heaters, running water, electricity, etc.

27) Picturesque mountains and awe-inspiring sunsets: I always love a stunning view

28) Technology that allows us to communicate, shop, learn, and work remotely

29) Working for the Temple Department and seeing the work of the Lord move forward quickly and more effectively; the leaders Isaac works with at Church Headquarters and their insights and strategies

30) Money and a nice lifestyle that is so uncommon for most people worldwide

31) Education and the information age we live in where we can learn so much

32) As President Nelson said, arts and literature that uplift us

33) Singing with Enoch to help him feel loved

34) Forgiveness, compassion, and charity

35) The Gift of Repentance

Hey BABY!

This post is all about pregnancy and baby plans, so if you're a guy/uninterested in the details, I won't be offended if you skip.  I thought I had answered all the right questions in our announcement post, but come to find out I've missed several!  Thanks for those who have asked; I am happy to oblige:

Q: Did you give in and find out the gender or decide you'd share your names?

A: No, Isaac says we're sticking to my remarks in our announcement post.  We aren't having any more ultrasounds, we didn't find out the gender, and we do call the baby by a name, but unless I let that slip, Isaac will decide for sure after the birth! 

Q: How can we buy anything for you if we don't know the gender?!

A: See the info on our wish list: babylist.com/blackhurst.  There are plenty of things there!

Q: Where are you registered/what do you still need?

A: Whatever is listed as "not reserved" on the link above is what we still need.  If you don't see something on the list, it's because we previously received it.  In addition, we could use more newborn clothes and fabric bibs.

Q: Do you have a theme or colors for your nursery?

A: Our theme is "lambs" and the colors are those pictured below (mint green, pink, pale yellow, and brown wooden furniture).

Q: Are you still struggling with the depression and is it getting better or worse as the pregnancy goes along?

A: Yes, and it's likely I'll have postpartum, BUT I'm doing a whole lot better!  I think the biggest thing has been that time is on my side and things are always better in hindsight.  Certainly the time with the counselors and practice I've been doing since them to help myself hasn't hurt and I do have a medication to take if needed.  As far as it relates to pregnancy, it's situational to pre-pregnancy, not hormonal, so I am getting more and more excited for the baby as time passes.  I think February will be perfect.  Before Christmas when we would have originally been due had the ICSI worked would have been a rush, but Valentine's should give us just enough time to get our ducks in a row.

Q: How are you feeling lately/are you still sick/what have your symptoms been?

A: Ironically, the hardest parts of this pregnancy have not been the pregnancy, just Amber stuff, which may be on steroids because of the pregnancy....like the mental health issues, and my piriformis syndrome (pulled muscle in my hip) which makes it virtually impossible to get anything done that can't be done from a chair.  I'm getting more used to it though and the intensity is less, or maybe it's just masked more from all of the upper back and rib aches I now have.  It's difficult because of the aches to sit and lie down too long, and yet I still can't stand still without pain or walk too far because of the piriformis syndrome.  For more details on that, see the end of the post on my other blog which outlines the symptoms I've had week to week. Other than that, the midwife is having me watch out for gestational diabetes and anemia because I'm borderline for both.  I'm not doing very well at this, but ideally I'd be eating more protein, vegetables, fiber, and iron, and not having flour and sugar. I'm also told though that it has nothing to do with diet and that even the healthiest people can have these issues.

Q: What is your plan for birth...epidural, unmedicated, home birth, hospital, induction, etc.?

A: I actually had a birth plan drawn out that I came prepared with during my first appointment with the midwife.  I wanted to make sure their practice would be a good fit.  Her response was essentially that none of my concerns would be concerns, because that's how University Hospital operated.  We saw this in action after taking a class there and being given this list from the group of midwife professors.  We're not saying it's the only way or superior to other's experiences, it's just where we'd prefer to start.  Let's just say we have lots of reading and preparation to do!  It will be scary for me but I think worth the effort.

Q: Are you going to keep tutoring and working for the Church?

A: We're hoping not.  Tutoring has kind of died down on its own, especially after not working daily with the homeschooling family.  I'm not opposed to doing it in small amounts under the right circumstances, but I'm not seeking students.  As for the Temple Department, the President's Secretary from the Salt Lake Temple is moving mid-January to work at the Bountiful Temple, so that relieves any guilt/strain my leaving would cause.  My managers (the Recorders) have been very supportive of me leaving to be a stay-at-home mom if that's what I want to do.  Technically once this other lady starts, I'll go back to being "on-call" instead of having a permanent position.  I will ask to take off until April when they are closed for cleaning this year, and then I will re-evaluate if I could make it work or if we can get by without the financial help.

Thanks again for your interest and support!  We'll keep you posted come Valentine's Day!

Thankful for 2019

Thanksgiving this year was a “small” gathering at Isaac’s parents’ home (maybe 20 people?) and one of my favorites because it was so relaxed.  Since it is so painful for me to be on my feet preparing food, I am so grateful for all the family members who pitched in.  Instead I enlisted a couple of the grandchildren to help me interview all the family members about Thanksgiving, which we used to play a homemade version of Loaded Questions.  On the question “What are 3 things you are grateful for in 2019?” Isaac and I had almost identical responses, which sum up some major parts of our year:

*We are grateful for our Spouse:

Isaac has always been a good husband and father, but has really blossomed this year!  He has worked on developing new habits, particularly since April Conference, acting in Faith in Jesus Christ, and is even more patient and forgiving of his wife and her circumstances (if that were possible)!  He was also a good sport when I signed him up for two classes this fall: Self Reliance through Personal Finance and Mindfulness for Men, both of which were helpful.  I can’t match any of that, but I do try to pack him a simple breakfast and lunch every morning, even if those ten minutes induce sciatic pain for the rest of the day.  It sure saves us a lot of money not eating out and he and my mom have been great to assist with many dinner meals.

*We are grateful for our new jobs this year: 

We both still work for the Church but changed up our roles (as well as our work emails which now read “ChurchofJesusChrist.org”, wahoo!).  In October, Isaac went from working for the Special Projects Department: Real Estate Division, to what I call “the best department in the Church”: The Temple Department (Planning Division). The difference here is that Special Projects plans the sites, gets the land, and constructs buildings, and Isaac was analyzing real estate and geographical data to help.  The Temple Department takes over after a temple is dedicated to the Lord, so now his focus is on the statistics of ordinances, operations, and worker data, such as how many people like me should get jobs! 

I went from being an “on-call clerk” in the temple to having a regular (job-sharing) position with the daughter of Isaac’s neighbor growing up (Sister Harrison) who has worked there for years.  The two of us coordinate the volunteers and act as a secretary for the paid Assistant Recorder in helping him and the Temple President interview new workers or release current ones.  I continue to schedule and meet with patrons who are coming for the first time to do an ordinance.  I have also been exploring different ideas for utilizing volunteers better and preparing for the busy season when the Salt Lake Temple closes.  I was able to interview some office managers in local temples as well as Cedar City and St. George (pictured).  We had a marathon day there the weekend it closed going through each of the ordinances chronologically and seeing how their temple organized it all. It was fascinating and made up for being worn out physically! 

Our jobs have their stresses and ups and downs, but we feel privileged to be involved in the work.  Now that we both work for the Temple Department, it’s been easy to get caught up in the locations, “flow”, and effectiveness of procedures in how temples run at our dinner table conversations .  So now our goal is to follow President Nelson’s counsel and instead focus on the true purpose of the temples: the covenants we make to keep the commandments of God (see this short poem that I love).  We’d be happy to discuss this part of our jobs with you any time! 😊

*We are grateful for our baby!

                There are several other posts on our journey to starting a family and in the Spring I talked about how our ICSI-IVF was a bust and our chances for having biological children essentially shot for the future.  As shocking as that was, we still believed the Lord’s promises to us and knew somehow things would work out when the time was right.  Within a couple of months, I was expecting and had several assurances to not waste mental energy fretting about miscarriage/stillbirth, etc.  Our baby is extremely active, big enough and strong enough, and you can read up on more of the details in the previous and following posts.  Thank you for your prayers and understanding in our behalf.  It’s still a rough road mentally and physically, but things are really looking up and of course we are very thankful for this blessing!

Other Blessings we are Grateful For: electricity, heat, a comfortable home, the Godhead and all our bounteous blessings from them and through them, helpful family members and friends, housemates to share the mortgage, flushing toilets, a variety of convenient, easy to prepare foods, scriptures, music, counselors and listening friends, mental and physical health/education, energy, sleep, a not-horrible pregnancy, warm showers, visits and discussions, interesting reading/listening, time to prepare for parenthood, church callings (which have changed quite a bit this year), ministering to others, being ministered to ourselves, pain-free moments, deadline-free moments, sunsets, stationary bikes, nature, and love.