"Hey, look at that. I made a little Mormon!" (And so did Lindsay)

Two amazing things happened yesterday.

First, and most importantly, my Lindsay gave birth to Baby Bennett Roger Purdie (Benny.) I am off to go see them in a few minutes, and I can barely wait! Congratulations, Lindsay!

Also, Lindsay, I hate you ... for not taring at all and telling me you "feel great" this morning after delivering a nearly 9 lb baby just hours before. Love and and hate are very close, of course.

Secondly, and very special to me, it was my Mormon anniversary yesterday. I've been officially Mormon now 11 years, and as I told my big sister yesterday, I am going strong ... except for the maternity swearing, but I am only human, right?

For the first several years of celebrating my Mormon birthday, I would go to the Temple to renew my baptismal covenants (kind of.) But as we have been married for awhile now, we try to celebrate in different ways. Last year went to the Temple and did sealings for the first time. It was like getting married over and over again for an hour, and we loved it.

This year, I forgot to get a sitter, so the day was about to go by unnoticed, but instead we made a big night of it. We headed to SLC to meet up with Bridget, Ben and little Paige. Bridget was my very first Mormon friend, so I owe her a lot, and it was really cool to celebrate together. We didn't get all cheesy or anything, but it was nice to be together.

We met up at Temple Square in Salt Lake. Why not to do Mormon things to celebrate a Mormon day, right?




Tim, Quinn and I got there early and ran around the temple. Quinn loved it. I loved it too. I know she doesn't understand a whole lot about God yet, but it was a very peaceful feeling to see her enjoying her first visit to a place that has so much meaning to us as a family.




And I couldn't help but think, "Hey, look at that. I made a little Mormon!"

It is very comforting to know that this is one area of our lives that is always peaceful and agreed upon (within reason, of course.) Our marriage was created on this path, and our kids will get to feel that spiritual comfort and security forever... and hopefully go on to make little Mormons of their own some day. (Making Mormons is the best!)





(When you are out with Quinn, you have to stop for horses at all costs AND to say, "Hey, look ... a bus!" everytime one drives by. That is just our standard operating procedure. Here is our horse pics. We also saw a LOT of buses!)


After we met up with the Reeds, we went to the History of Church History and Art. We planned to go straight to the children's exhibit, but we probably could have skipped it because the girls loved everything at the museum so much. Mostly they loved running around and touching things they were not supposed to touch.


(The curator said they have to repaint Moroni's toes ALL the time because little Paiges and Quinns LOVE to touch him. Moroni is the name of the Angel who plays the trumpet at the top of most LDS Temples. He's important for lots of reasons, but mostly he helped preserve the Book of Mormon through history.)


(Looking at the Temple from inside the museum.)


My favorite was when tiny Paige climbed behind the bar of a big handcart and tried to push it. So funny!



And much like how I like to copy Bridget, Quinn had to give it a try. Look at our little modern pioneers!! (Large groups of Mormons used these handcarts to walk from the midwest to the Salt Lake Valley. They are a Mormon classic item.)




When we got to the exhibit, the girls wanted to stay in the first area, which was set up like a hospital baby nursery. It is supposed to represent the part of the song, "I am a Child of God" that says, "He has sent me here..." (like from heaven to earth...get it?) They loved dressing and feeding the babies, and putting them to sleep.






(She also fed herself with a baby's bottle...)

Quinn found some other Mormon things to do, too. She found a puzzle on the wall there you look at pictures of Mormons doing Mormon things. What could be more fun, right?









(Magnets help the family car get from the house to the church and the temple.... classic!)


She found the baby Jesus, too, but she preferred the baby sheep. (In the pic you can see her saying, "SHHHHHeep.")





And my personal favorite: She held on to this iron rod and walked on the "straight and narrow path" from Lehi's dream in the Book of Mormon. The path represents obedience to the gospel throughout your life. But she got bored quickly and had more fun jumping OFF the path. Should I be worried?




(Getting ready to jump!!!)


We ended the night with dinner at Tucci's in Salt Lake. The food was average, but the service was top notch and worth the money. They treated us like Kings and Queens, welcomed two 2-year-olds with open arms and gave us plenty of time and space to catch up and hang out.

Being Mormon is fun. You should try it.