A Grateful Heart

Light flooded the room as hands were laid on his head and increased priesthood power was bestowed. This evening Connor was ordained an Elder by his father, David O'Leary. Tender feelings flooded my heart as I tried to bear a testimony that isn't always well expressed in words. Years of Priesthood blessings have stengthened, restored and guided this family. Now, Connor too can be a conduit for God as he lays his hands on heads and tries to find words that will express the spiritual impressions he receives from God in behalf of the faithful seeking blessings. Blessings that will bring peace, guidance and insight. Blessings that will direct, comfort and heal. Grateful. A small word to express a huge feeling in my heart for the many times I have been blessed by this Priesthood power. Grateful. A small word to express the tender feelings of a mother as she sees a worthy son. Grateful. A small word, a huge feeling today.

Dedication

As I sat through the dedication of the Oquirrh Temple this morning at our Stake Center, my heart was filled with the sweet tenderness of a time past when I sat with my mother in the Nauvoo Temple as it was rededicated. This morning when we sang, "The Spirit of God", I recalled sitting in the sealing room of the Nauvoo temple singing that same song, filled with the Spirit. It was as if there were angels singing from the rooftops, so full and rich was the sound in that small room. I don't doubt that that is possible as truly those now living, those who have lived and those who will yet obtain an earthly body have reason to rejoice in another House of the Lord. I had the distinct and strong impression that we were not alone in celebrating this joyous occasion. Today I find myself needing to rededicate myself to regular temple attendance. Sweet is the Spirit that teaches us and inspires us to be better! Such a sweet, holy day! Grateful to raise my kerchief in a shout of praise to the Lord. Oh, How I Love Him!

Summer Lovin"

This summer has been a wild one. My dear friend, Linda Barker suffered a mild stroke and upon examination it was discovered that she had a whole in her heart. Heart surgery was necessary and was followed immediately with a bout of shingles. I have loved watching how friends "rally" when needed. It is great to be a member of the
Fairy Godmothers. What on earth would I do without girlfriends? Life would be grim indeed! Here's to Friends!
We rallied to help Linda put on a great wedding dinner for Cody on the sport court. Check out the fun!

"Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps

a singing bird will come."

Chinese Proverb

My heart must be green because the summer of 2009 has been full of singing. The summer of 2009 has been:

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  A Summer of travel: 2 trips to Europe to watch Connor cycle with the US National Team, a trip with Jennie to France, Switzerland and Germany to see the sights and once again relish Connor's last year as a Junior cyclist. A 2,600 mile road trip in the "View" from Quebec, Canada to Bend, Oregon where Connor competed in a Nation's Cup and then US Nationals. Dave's "Where in the World is Dave O'Leary" experience continues to top the list of exciting adventures for 2009.


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  A Summer of Nesting for Jennie: Jennie moved into a new apartment on Foothill Boulevard where she will nest with her old roommate Marsha. It is always fun to place her cute things in a new spot. I love the nesting part, minus the moving part. This time movers moved the furniture and that was such a luxury for all of us.


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  A Summer of change for Katie. She was recruited by another management company to come and be a manager of their Bountiful property. What a compliment. She has been a shining light at AMC and they will be missing her skills and temperment. A fun new job and MORE pay!


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  A Summer of working on the cabin and knee Surgery for Mike: He hurt his knee on our last fling to Grand Cayman Islands. His upcoming surgery will surely put an end to a beautiful summer.


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  A Summer of Book Tours and job changes for Sarah and Grant It was perfect for her "boyfriend" to accompany her on her tour for "Boyology". Who will accompany her next year when she tours with "Girl World"? Chronicle Books has expressed an interest in this fun new, yet to be written book and now the negotiations begin...and the writing.


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  A summer of new pursuists" Little Bird Publications was just a thought and dream but on September 3rd it will become a reality for Sarah. She has left Harper Collins to become an independent publicist and spend more time on her writing. We will all watch as Little Bird Publicity takes flight. Fly Girl, Fly!


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  A Summer full of Bike Racing. AHH the smell of sweat on lycra! My nose has grown allergic to even the thought of this smell. Over the years, Connor has given us hours of suspense, fun and bragging. Although he has hated the bragging part, we can hardly resist. It has been a Junior's Career that he can be proud of. We know he can "dig deep", continue to the end, cross the finish line no matter what! He certainly knows how to "Live Strong".


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  A Summer full Gourmet Meals: Annie has probably cooked 90 or so gourmet meals this summer, sandwiched in between workouts and entertainment for the children, she has managed to out do herself. Connor seems to find his way to Annie's house around supper time no matter what or if I am cooking. She continues to amaze all of us who hate to cook.


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  A Summer that continues to be full of "New Businesses and Jobs": Erik has started a 3rd job, he, Curt and John have started a new packaging company and of course Erik will be the one to keep it a float! WOW, what a hard worker.

I feel such gratitude for the blessings we enjoy as a family, especially over this past summer. Truly our wildest dreams have come true. Dave has worked so hard over the years to provide these opportunities for our family and it has been pure joy to watch him take a break from work, enjoy his hobbies and travel to exciting places. I feel like a squirrel gathering nuts so that we can weather the winter. Hopefully that will mean literally the cold weather, but if storms of a different sort come our way, I feel like we have woven the fabric of our family and our faith so tightly that we will be able to keep warm.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Tingey

Happy Birthday Grandpa Tingey. We celebrated in style as the whole family (minus a few) gathered in Midway, Utah. We ate, laughed, golfed, swam, ate some more and basically celebrated the wonderful life of a man we all love. Oh how our lives have been blessed by Grandpa Tingey. As we shared our love in words, we all realized that all of this time we have all thought that "we were his favorite". It is a wonderful quality that Grandpa has, the ability to make us all feel so special that we think we are the apple of his eye. But, just for the record, "I am His Favorite". Oh how I love this man, he has brought blessings that will change things for generations. Although we are the ones "grafted in" to the family, we feel likel we are blood relatives. We couldn't love him more if our names were Tingey.

Connor's performance at the Nation's Cup Race in Val d'Or, Canada was impressive.

His contributions to the US National Team were valuable in helping them take 2nd place in this difficult 7 stage race.

Go Connor, Go USA!

Love Your Life

Life has taken me places I never dreamed I would go. The other night Dave looked at me and said, "Did you ever think that you and I would be traveling around in a motor home, staying in Walmart parking lots?" Well, my answer was a resounding "NO". But you know what? Walmart parking lots are just fine. We just finished a 2600 mile trip from Quebec, Canada to Bend, Oregon. Life is a wild ride and you might as well buckle up and enjoy it. Actually, I love my life. Since March Dave and I have traveled to Europe twice, beached on the Cayman Islands, been spectators at a Nation's Cup race in Canada and then driven across the country to watch Connor compete at Nationals. What a thrill and oh how happy it makes me to see Dave doing something he loves. I'm lucky to be his partner in crime. I'm lovin' life.