Rome Italy Temple

A rare thing has occurred. Anna is down for a nap and Dan is gone for a while, and I haven't had a baby yet, so I have time to myself on a Saturday afternoon! So why not catch up on my blog!

I wanted to blog about the temple in Rome. I served my mission there from the fall of 2003 to the spring of 2005. I love Italy, I absolutely LOVE it! I feel so privileged that I was able to serve my mission there. I learned a lot about myself, the gospel and the Italians. They are such a loving and open people. While I was there, there was talk of a temple and how we were close, but it didn't seem like it would happen for a while.

In the October 2008 general conference, President Monson announced that there would be a temple built in Rome! As soon as I heard that, tears came to my eyes. What a blessing for the Italian people! They currently have to travel to Switzerland to attend the temple. And of all the countries that go to the Switzerland temple, the Italians are the most frequent visitors. For some of these members who live in Southern Italy, it's like a 2 day trip. Members who live on the island of Sardegna, have to take a ferry to the mainland, which is a 16 hour trip. They they travel a day or two to get to Switzerland. There's a lot of sacrifice involved for them to go to the temple. Now to think that they will have one in their own country is so awesome and wonderful! There are so many faithful saints in Italy.

The church has actually had the land for a temple for a long time. When I arrived in Italy, we were taken to the site, which is an old farm land, complete with an olive grove. We were able to walk around and imagine the day when Italy would have a temple! And now it's here.

The groundbreaking for the temple was today. President Monson flew to Italy to preside over it. Here is a video of what the temple will look like. There will also be a stake center, a visitor's center and an arrival center (a place to stay, for those coming long distances). It just makes me so happy that I was able to play a small part in helping to get a temple in Italy. Italy, of all places! I watched this video this morning and just started crying. :)

2 more weeks

I'm still alive! I can't believe how little I blog now. I should be better about it, but I guess I do have an excuse, being pregnant and all. :)

Well, I'm in the final countdown. 2 weeks from today is my due date. It's pretty crazy how fast this pregnancy has gone. Seems just like yesterday, I was just starting to show. My first pregnancy was definitely easier than this one, but so many factors have changed as well. With the first, I was working and basically sitting all day. We lived in an apartment, so there was less to clean and take care of. Now, I have a 2 year old to take care of. I'm home all day, so I feel like I'm constantly trying to keep the house clean. It's hard with Anna because she likes to take her toys everywhere-our room, the bathroom, the kitchen, the family room. I have to try and be sneaky when I put them away during the day, because the second she sees me with her toy, she wants it.

Ever since Dan went back to work, I have to water our garden every morning. While, it's now just a few tomato plants, we put some grass in our backyard, so I have to water that as well. It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for our hose. We bought a nicer/thicker hose, the kind that maybe workers would use. While it's more durable and better quality, it's not as malleable as the green ones and it's a pain in the neck to try and move around and put away.

And of course, I have just little discomforts that I never had with Anna. But it's all worth it, right? :)

I'm going to miss my one-on-one time with Anna. As many of you know, it's obviously easier with just one. And nice to have that time with just one child. I hope she adjusts well to having a baby. The last few months she's become more attached to me. She'll only want me to do something, not Dan. And lately, during the day, I'll go to a different room than her and hear her say, "Mommy? Where are you?" "Mommy?" She's not frantic or anything, she just wants to know where I am and be with me. It's cute and makes me smile.

I am looking forward to having a little baby again, though! I'm excited to see Anna as a big sister and to expand our family. I can't wait to hold my little baby and take care of him.

It's still kind of surreal to me that potentially anytime I could go into labor and have a baby. I think I definitely nested this time. Last time, I never felt like I did. But the last week or so, I've been cleaning, getting things organized and just wanting things to be in order. It could also be the fact that I've been putting stuff off, so now it's starting to bug me and I just want to get it done.

The next time I blog will most likely be about our little guy. :)