PayDAys come in so MANY forms, BuT today's PayDAy was the BEST!!!

I just had what I call a PAY DAY!!  I did not get any money, I did not even get anything of monetary value.  However it was a LARGE PAYDAY!!  This special day happened December 10, 2011.  As you know Kelsey, my only daughter is preparing for a mission. For those who may not know, when missionaries get their mission call they are then able to go through the Temple.  Maybe now you can guess what happened on December 10th.  Yes, you are right, Kelsey went through the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. 

This is our Temple (not really, but we like to call it ours), and it is special to our whole family.  We LOVE Temples and here are some recent Temple opportunities:

• First of all this is the Temple Tyler and Amanda were married in, almost one year ago.
• I had the opportunity to help write a third verse to the song "I LOVE TO SEE THE TEMPLE", for our Cobble Creek Stake which the Primary children love.  
• There is a Sacred Temple, That I can call my own. A Beacon on a hillside, And its nearby my home.  The GREATEST BLESSINGS CAN BE MINE, as I LEARN to LIVE the GOSPEL. We'll sing and shout in GRATITUDE, The OQUIRRH MOUNTAIN TEMPLE.   
• This Temple is only 5 miles away from our house and it is the one that we as a family visit the most, in fact as I used to run one of my longer runs was to the Temple and back, and I loved it. 
• Braydon has set a goal to go to the Temple weekly, he has done this for nearly 2 years and this is the Temple he most often visits. 
• Kelsey also has some great Temple traditions that she has established.  One is when conference week  rolls around you will often find Kelsey each day at the Temple so she can be better prepared for the message on Saturday and Sunday. 
• Devyn also goes to the Temple often, he likes to visit once a month.  Devyn has been the one in our family that has visited the most Temples in Utah.  He has been to 9 of the 13, soon to be 15 Temples.  Some of those he went with groups and some just he and his mom went to visit.
•  Quinten is following the examples of his older siblings and he is going to the Temple once a month.  In fact that was his gift to his Savior in 2011, that from his birthday on he would go to the Temple once a month and he has already completed his goal for the year. 

So yes Temples are of great importance to the Gish family.

Anyway, I guess I did get sidetracked on the Temple theme because I love them so much.  Now back to my PAYDAY.  First of all scheduling for anything can be difficult.  It was not different here.  We wanted our whole family there, but since Tyler and Amanda live in Logan and finals were looming and Amanda is teaching, it was difficult to match schedules.  We decided we would just schedule the earliest appointment we could and have Kelsey her grandma Tirrell, Joe and I go through with her.  It would be a small group, but she wanted to go, so she could keep going.  So, that being said, the Tuesday before we went we tried to schedule an appointment.  Kelsey wanted as soon as she possibly could, however with her work, and when the Temple could schedule a time it ended up being Saturday evening.  That is a busy night typically being date night, but this is the time that worked best overall.  Well we decided being a Saturday night maybe aunts and uncles could come.  I could not believe the desire of my brothers and their wives and Joe's brother Merle and his wife.  They all were so excited and wanted to be there.  Not all could make it for various reasons.  I thought it was an amazing turn out for last minute.  Kesley had many there that she loved and she was ready.  That is one thing that a Temple worker that was with her and helping her most of the time said to me.  She is really ready for this.  Yes, Kelsey was prepared.  Because of this the spirit was felt very strong, not only for Kelsey but I am sure for all that knew here and were there with her.  Thank you Kelsey for your LOVE of the gospel.  I sure do LOVE being a MoM, have I ever said that?  It is also pretty sweet being a wife!  So, there were sweet experiences at the Temple, some that will be in my heart forever.  So, no money can give me what Saturday, December 10th gave me. 

We'll SING and SHOUT in GRATITUDE The OQUIRRH MOUNTAIN TEMPLE!!!

I HOPE THEY CALL ME ON A MISSION TO....

Its here, Its HERE...

No way it was just submitted 9 days ago...
and it is HERE...

There are so many tender mercies (blessings) that sometimes we are not even aware they are there.  Our Heavenly Father LOVES us so much and he wants us to be happy!!!  Of this I know.   I want to share some insite to this very special day.  I will start with October 26, 2011.  This day was really no different than most other days at the Gish home.  In fact it was really quite typical.  There was one thing that set this day apart from other days.  This happened after I went to pick up Kelsey from work at Deseret Book.  We might have gone for a drive after because this is something I love to do with my children.  I do know however we pulled into the driveway of our house and just kept talking.  We knew Quinten was in the house and would love to see us come in, but we kept talking.  While talking we saw the mail man go to our house with some type of package (probably for Joe).  I wondered quickly what it might be, then it left my thoughts just as quick.  We decided to go in and as we entered Quinten had an envelope that he was examining.  He said something like Church of Jesus Christ and this is for Kelsey.  It didn't take long to realize that it was Kelsey's mission call.  It continued with Quinten and me screaming and Kelsey in a mild form of shock.  We did not even plan on it coming on that day.  We knew most mission calls came on Wednesday, but this was only the 9 days from being submitted.  So now what....where do we open it...when...we really were not to prepared.  Really, how hard can this be to open a Missionary Call.  We did want family there and Kelsey had already asked her Uncle Jason if she could open her mission call at his house when it came.  So we just made a few calls to invite family and friends.  We also had to wait for Braydon to come home from his important BYU basketball game. 

So we waited and waited and at about 10pm we had all that were going to come there.  WAITING....and EXCITED about what this letter held.  We knew this would change Kelsey's life and ultimately the families lives.  

Joe, Devyn, Quinten, Ryan and Jason Waiting Patiently

Two of Kelsey's Best Friends Cicely Fabiano and Melissa Eisert

So HERE WE GO....ARE YOU READY FOR THIS....

  

Opening...Wait first is everyone on the phone? 

OK... 

 

Now watch the next three pictures really close and you can almost see her mouth the words...

TO

MOSCOW

RUSSIA!!!

Did you see that we caught her words.



...and then a BIG HUG from mom...



What a special day.  This is a day Kelsey has been preparing for, for the last 21 years.  She has always wanted to go on a mission.  ALWAYS...and now it is her time to serve.  There are some interesting points that may or may not have lead up to this mission.  I do know however that there is someone greater at the head and we often are prepared for things before they happen.

• It started back when I was in the 6th grade I took Russian from my Uncle Howard.  I also participated in a Russian Dance Group where we danced and I also played the accordian.  This group performed all over.  This definitely brought back a flood of memories, and was one of my favorite childhood memories 
• Kelsey had a cute Russian friend who lived next door to us in Glendale.  They looked  like twins, it was amazing.  We loved this family, who now the children are all grown up and making their own way.
• My mom and dad befriended a Russian couple shortly after coming to America.  I believe they were the Russian Family that I met.  
• One interesting point was when my father guessed that my son Tyler was going on his mission to Russia.  My father passed away before he was able to witness where Tyler was going, and Tyler was called to the Belgium, Brussels Netherlands Mission, so he did not guess right.  My father might have known something however because now Kelsey is going there.   
• Kelsey guessed Braydon's best friend (Austin Argyle) was going to Russia just weeks before she opened hers.  He is going to Spain.  
• Since she has opened her call we have found and met several Russians, or people who have gone to Russia.  Our very own neighbor 2 doors down is a Russian lady.  She is not a member of the Church, but she is very sweet and she is helping Kelsey with her Russian.  Mostly by reading in the Russian Book of Mormon. 

Really there is a bigger hand in all of this, and we can see it.  

Sister Gish is going to the Moscow, Russian Mission

she will report to the Provo MTC on February 1, 2012.   



Surprise!!! Your mom’s a bLOgGer!!!

Everyone needs to start somewhere and this is me starting a blog. I know...I know, I am shocked too. It reminds me of something that happened about 3 years ago. I think I frightened my oldest child. At the time he was serving a mission in the Belgium Brussels/Netherlands Mission, and I FORGOT to tell him Happy Birthday. You see this might not have been a problem, but I could only e-mail him once a week and that moment had just slipped by. What kind of mother was I to forget my oldest son's birthday of whom I had not seen for almost two years. Well…I had an idea. This is where it gets a little spooky. I had just really started dabbling in facebook. I also had just recently met one of Tyler’s missionary friends Nathalie Van Emple from his mission in the Netherlands, who had since moved to Provo. She quickly became a facebook friend, which really ended up blessing my life more than I could have imagined. Nathalie had a sister in the Netherlands. Maybe you can guess the rest of the story...I will share anyway, because to me this was a MIRACLE!! So, I contacted Catherine (Nathalie's sister) via facebook and was able to send a card to my oldest son ON his birthday. How in the World. This could not have happened even two years before. Anyway not for me =D So Elder Gish (Tyler) was in definite shock. MY MOM HAS A FACEBOOK...what has the world come to.

Well family, your mom has gone one step further...she has started a blog. Not sure how good I will be or if I will become famous, can't guarantee I won't embarrass anyone. Mostly myself with my FaNTasTiC writing skills. But, none the less I am starting a blog. Because....We definitely have GiShuEs!!!