What's good about Sunday....

Today, Sunday, began the usual way - at the crack of dawn (thank-you, Annie!) and with plenty of snarls and growls as everyone was compelled to get ready for church. And of course, despite waking up before the neighborhood rooster (presumably, since with the windows closed we don't hear him so much these days), we were 48 minutes late this morning! Yeah, that's pretty late. Maybe I should put this in a positive light and say instead that we were early for the second hour of church.

(We attend a three-hour block each Sunday, which is divided into three parts: (1) what we call sacrament meeting, which is where everyone - adults and kids alike - meet in the chapel to sing, pray, and listen to various speakers from the congregation who are generally randomly assigned; (2) a Sunday School hour, where classes are divided up by age, from 18 months to 18 years, and the grown-ups are given the choice of which adult class to attend, all classes focused on the scriptures; (3) Priesthood (a men's auxiliary)/Relief Society (a women's auxiliary) where the lessons presented focus more on the here-and-now. Oh yeah, after our sacrament meeting, kids ages 3-12 go to primary, which is like a children's Sunday school for the remainder of the time and kids aged 12-18 have their own auxiliaries also for the last hour.)

In our case (Ryan's and mine), after the first hour we serve in the nursery (for 18-month to three-year-old kids) for the remaining two hours. So that's what we were early for today. Today we had only 9 or 10 kids. Last week we had 17! (So why did I have a headache today and not last week?)

Yeah. Sundays. And right now, Annie is running around practically naked.....and is being sent to her room for yelling at me. Typical Sunday. You know, being a day of rest and all that. However, I am actually very thankful:

1. For Sundays. Despite the craziness that seems to have become the hallmark of the day, I do appreciate a day where I can rest(?) from the cares of school, work, shopping, laundry, fixing dinner - oh wait, I still have to do that, don't I....
   
2. For the opportunity to attend church each week and worship as I believe. It's perhaps not as much from the prepared talks and sermons that are delivered from the pulpit, but more often in the little remarks and gestures between friends at church and throughout the week, that I see what I believe, as member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, taking root in me and strengthening my life.
3. That I am able to enjoy (more or less) each Sabbath day with my family and many wonderful friends, who have become my family,too.