I woke up at 10:05, rushed to the living room, turned on the TV to watch conference.  Conference wasn't always such a great thing in my mind.  Like probably most kids, I had a hard time sitting and listening for two hours, then another two, then to repeat it on Sunday.  However, the past week or two has been really hard for various reasons, so I was quite looking forward to the spirit conference brings.

The themes I noticed from Saturday morning's session were learning to hear, recognize, and follow the Spirit.  I also know I should be reading my scriptures.  Gotta start doing that :)  I liked that Elder Scott said we can learn to be consistently guided by the Spririt.  Not only can we, but I really think we need to.  Some may have a disposition to listen and follow more easily than others, but I still think there needs to be effort on our part.

I also found some teaching points - what we should be doing with our primary class that we aren't. 

Something else that stood out to me from L. Whitney Clayton's talk was this: Burdens become Blessings.  Maybe it's because of the alliteration, but I kind of want to make a cute sign to put in my house that says that.  Love is the other major theme that was witnessed in the Saturday morning session.  I also liked that he said the Plan of Salvation is for our own growth.

We also need to have confidence in others, and of course, love.  Learning and teaching aren't optional.

I really like Elder Bednar's talks.  He always seems to spell things out very simply.  This conference was no different.  He talked about being more diligent and concerned at home by 1) expressing love and showing it.  When he said to never assume they know how much we love them, it made me think of Jeff Dunham and Walter, (is that horrible?) and how Jeff asks Walter if he's told his wife lately that he loves her.  Walter of course says no, because she knows it.  Jeff asks how.  Walter replies, "Because I smile a lot."  LOL For those of you who are completely lost, you must now go find this clip on youtube.

Ok, so I found it for you.  For this part only, scroll over to 2:23:


Right, point 2) Bear testimony and live it.  It shouldn't come as a surprise to your family what you bear testimony of on fast Sunday because they should hear it and see examples of it often.  And 3) Be consistent!  If you're a poor example, your kids won't learn well.  If you're a hypocrit, it's destructive.  It's important to be consistent in the seemingly small things.

I love President Uchtdorf, too.  He was the general authority who came to our stake conference right before he became an apostle.  He talked about love.  "Love should be our walk and our talk."  With love, obedience becomes our joy, not a burden.  He also pointed out that God doesn't need us to love Him, but we need to love God because what we love becomes our focus.  Love is the measure of our faith and motivation for our obedience.  He talked about how love is the defining characteristic of a true disciple of Christ.  If we are to become true disciples, then we must keep the commandments.  We need to prioritize.  The first commandment is to love God, and the second is to love thy neighbor.