The Sealing

Heather, Ryan, and Ben Smith were sealed on Tuesday at the Timpanogos Temple. Monday night, just before going to bed, I had the thought, "You'd better just make sure your temple recommend is still in your wallet." This thought made me nervous, because why wouldn't it be? I opened my wallet, and sighed a sigh of relief. My relief soon turned to horror when I noticed the date on it... April 2006!!! WHAT?! I just got this recommend? There must be a mistake! How could I let this happen? Heather's gonna kill me! I frantically called my bishop, who pointed out where my confusion happened... I felt like I had just gotten a recommend when I got the new recommend with the barcode on it a few months ago. BUT, that didn't renew it. My kind, loving, accommodating bishop then agreed to meet me at the church the next evening at 5:30 (he would have to leave work early), so I could make it over to the Stake President right at 6 (which is when the stake normally does temple recommend interviews). The sealing was at 7, and I needed to be there at 6:30... in American Fork. My bishop also told me that with the new recommends, it normally takes a day or two to get the barcodes activated, so he wasn't sure they would let me in the temple with the new recommend or not. I figured I'd better take my chances. Tuesday morning, I called the temple, and told them the situation. The man on the phone told me that if I could get it renewed, they would just do a visual check, if the barcode had not yet been activated. So, with the help of Bishop Pearson, and with Heather having to push the time back a half hour to 7:30 because a brother's car had broken down, and he wouldn't make it until then, I was able to go to the sealing. It was a really neat experience. I have been to many sealings between a bride and groom- but I had never been to a sealing of a couple already married... and with a baby. Everybody in the sealing room held it together until they brought in that baby-- all dressed in white. It was priceless. It made the sealing ordinance a little more tangible in my mind, when the sealer sealed that baby to Heather and Ryan. I was glad I could be there for it. Ryan was baptized about a week before he married Heather. I went to Georgia to be her bridesmaid, and I'm so glad they were able to come to Utah to get sealed! Here are a few pictures I took outside of the temple.

The happy family.

Everyone who stuck around for a picture (L to R): Ryan and Kate, my mom, Heather's dad, Ryan, Heather, and Ben, Heather's mom, Claudia and John, me, Deb

Deb and I were SO happy to be there!!

You know who...

I had to include this picture because of how cute Ben looked.