conference weekend!

In our church we have what we call "General Conference" twice a year. It is a time we get to listen to many of our spiritual leaders and I'm so grateful for the opportunity. I love the reminders that help me keep in mind what is really important in life. These messages help me become a more dedicated friend, sister, daughter, student, and daughter of God.

Conference takes place at the conference center in Salt Lake City, UT. Thanks to modern technology, these messages are broadcasted worldwide and can even be streamed via the internet by clicking here. Growing up, I’ve always watched it at home with my family. My mother would catch up on ironing and we would always draw portraits of the speakers and take notes on the spoken words. 

However, this year I was lucky enough to be able to attend conference live at the conference center!! I’ve always wanted to & was beyond excited for it. My friend, Kyra, got us tickets and we were on our way to UT on Friday. 

Her sister, Crystal, picked us up in SLC on friday and we were headed to her apartment in Orem. We were really hungry by the time we started to unpack so Kyra drove us to Panda Express for a late dinner. She hadn’t driven since January and was a little apprehensive, but she was a great driver! That is, once she figured out how to turn on the lights....haha. We slept well & were really excited for conference the next day.

Saturday

We had tickets for the afternoon session, so we had plenty of time in the morning to get ready. Kyra’s friend, Jade, kindly drove us in the busy traffic to salt lake city. There was a HUGE line of people waiting to get in the conference center outside & somehow in the crowd I spotted a family from my home ward.  It was wonderful seeing them!! I love any small reminder of home, even if I’m thousands of miles away. Since we arrived later than expected, they gave up our nice floor seats:( However, I was still so excited to just to be there-even being on the highest tier. One of my highlights was that BYU-I combined choir provided the music for the afternoon conference session. It was awesome to know several of the students who were singing. 

Afterwards, I met up with several of Hunter’s friends from California that he got to know very well on his mission. They were all coming for the weekend to attend conference & I thought it was a perfect opportunity to meet them, since I would be in town too. We ate dinner at Red Iguana, which was incredible!! It was Gina & Amanda's birthday, so we got the awesome musicians singing for the lovely twins. 


We then went to a friends' house for a surprise birthday party for the girls. I spent a lot of time just talking with Lisa, Gina, Mandy, and Amanda. The way they talked about Hunter was so kind, they respected him so much and had the same kind of love that I have for my bro. I'm so glad I got to meet so many awesome from California! 

Sunday

Kyra & I were also able to attend the afternoon session of General Conference on Sunday. It was wonderful! We went to our friend Mckay’s house after and enjoyed a delicious meal with his family. I love General Conference & felt so fortunate that I was able to spend a wonderful weekend with Kyra! 

After we got back to Rexburg, my roommates welcomed me home with delicious red velvet cake. I love life!