Hilary Weeks

You’ve heard it hundreds of times.  I know I have.  You may have even sung it several times.  I have too.  But have you ever stopped to think where ”Amazing Grace” came from?  Who wrote those famous words? 

I’ve wondered at times and so today I took a few minutes to find out.  (I LOVE the internet…incredible amounts of information right at our fingertips.)

It was written by English poet and clergyman (though he was far from a clergyman earlier in life), John Newton.  He grew up without any particular religious conviction, but John’s mom had hopes that he would one day be a clergyman.  She died when John was six, and he took to a life of disobedience and defiance.  While he served in the Navy, John was described as the most profane of all the sailors.  Not only did he use vulgar language but he would invent new and more vile words than his shipmates had ever heard.  He denied there was a God and was relentless in persecuting those who believed there was. This is how he describes himself:

“How industrious is Satan served.  I was formerly one of his active undertemptors and had my influence been equal to my wishes I would have carried all the human race with me.  A common drunkard or profligate is a petty sinner to what I was.”

He might have kept God hidden from his view, but he couldn’t hide from God.  And eventually John was found.  He wrote “Amazing Grace” to illustrate a sermon given on New Year’s Day in 1773.  There was likely no music to accompany the verses and was probably just chanted by the congregation.  Those famous words have been sung to over 20 different melodies but in 1835 it was joined to a tune named “New Britain” and that is the tune which is sung today.

A few more facts:

• It is without a doubt the most famous of all folk hymns
• It is performed over 10 millions times annually.
• Over 5,500 versions have been recorded as of November 2009
• It has been played following national disasters such as the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, the Oklahoma City bombing and the September 11 attacks.

I just have one question. 

What makes this hymn so meaningful to so many?

It is true.  It is one man’s testimony from 200 years ago, and it is true.  God will save us.  He can find us.  He does have the power to change us - no matter how blind, wretched and fallen as we might be. 

John Newton believed this.  He felt and experienced it first hand in his own life.  I’m grateful he put on paper what he knew in his heart. 

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost but now am found
Was blind, but now I see.‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
We have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures.

Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine

Blog to you soon,

Hilary

Oh yes…again.  It has happened once more - I have cut a tag out of my clothing that makes no sense.  (It’s not like I’m trying to come across unusual tags…it is just happening to me.)

Take a look.  See if you notice the same thing I did…

It is the third line that got me.  “Dry flat away from…”  Away from WHAT?  Oh, you have to tell me!  Don’t make me guess.  Don’t leave me hanging!!!  AWAY FROM WHAT!!???  How do I dry my shirt flat, if I don’t know what to keep it away from? 

Come on. Tell me.  Is it away from…melted cheese? Chocolate frosting?  My kitchen countertops?  Strangers?  WHAT?  I already know that I shouldn’t bake it in a machine.  But seriously, how will I ever figure this out?

Life really is a mystery. 

Blog to you soon,

Hilary

I’m a total fan of those hopelessly romantic movies set in the 1800’s.  I can’t resist!!  Over the Christmas break, I rented several of them from our local library.  My mom, my girls and I had so much fun watching them.  We watched:

Jane Eyre (Masterpiece Theater version.  I also love the A&E version.)

North and South (Pretty good - not my favorite of the ones I’ve seen.)

Wuthering Heights (Masterpiece Theater version.  It is SO GOOD!  Beware: We had to fast forward in three places…)

And most recently I borrowed Bleak House from my neighbor.  LUCKILY, I was sick last week and so I had an excuse to stay in bed and watch the whole thing.  Otherwise, I’m not sure when I would carve out 8 hours to watch a movie!  I really was sick, I’m not making that up…I had strep.  It was awful!  I haven’t been that sick in a long time.  I don’t recommend getting strep just so you can watch Bleak House, though.  Well…maybe…

Also, if any of you enjoy watching Masterpiece Theater on PBS, you might be interested to know they are starting a 3-part series of Emma.  For more info:

http://www.pbs.org/search/search_results.html?q=emma

We “Jane Austen” sort of girls have to stick together.

Have a great week!  Blog to you soon,

Hilary

Don’t act like you know.  There are very few people who actually know what a shallot is let alone have used one. 

I only found out what it was about two days ago.  I didn’t know what a shallot was, but I knew I needed one.  I wanted to try a new green bean and bacon recipe which called for…well,…you know….shallots.  I thought they were similar to green onions or something.  I went to the grocery store and looked in the produce section near the green onions.  No shallots there.  I thought about asking a produce worker, but there wasn’t one to be found.  I decided my recipe would have to be shallotless.  (Bacon was flavorful enough, right?)

I left the produce section and turned into the frozen foods, when I ran into a woman in our stake…Lori Bennett.  Guess what she is?  A professional chef.  She teaches classes at Thanksgiving Point and other places - I took a class on crepes from Lori.  Anyway…we chatted for a while and then I got up the courage to ask her about shallots.  She said they are a cross between onions and garlic and told me what they looked like and where to find them.  Hooray!  The green beans will go on!

In case you’re wondering…this is what a shallot looks like. 

Don’t act like you already knew.

So…running into Lori Bennett…a coincidence? 

Nah. 

Tender mercy.  Sweet, unexpected and probably unnecessary, but appreciated none-the-less.

Blog to you soon,

Hilary

This was a year of ups and downs, goods and bads, happies and sads, easy and hards, struggles and miracles.  2009 was not one of my easy-breeziest years so far, but I have learned and grown and without a doubt I have felt the hand of the Lord in my life.  If there is one thing I know even better than I thought I knew, it is that the Lord is extremely aware of us and will be as involved in our lives as we want Him to be.  As it turns out, I needed Him everyday.

Wonderful things happened in 2009 and so let’s focus on those.  Here is my top 5 favorite things about 2009:

1. Our family enjoyed one of our favorite places on the whole earth four times! (of course, I haven’t seen the whole earth…but this would be hard to beat.  I just know it.)   It is Zion’s Ponderosa.   Visit the website, BUT GO VISIT THE PLACE!!  You won’t be sorry - I promise!  http://www.zionponderosa.com/

(Don’t be jealous of my hair in this picture.  Not everyone can be so lucky.)

2. I switched to digital scrapbooking!  I loved the “old-fashioned” way, yes I did.  But I get the same thrill from pointing and clicking as I did from cutting and pasting - WITHOUT the MESS!  My program of choice?  Memory Mixers.  And, they started a great program this year called “The Little Things.”  It is a way of focusing everyday on the little blessings that make our lives wonderful.  I am using the program to record how I see the hand of the Lord in my life each day of 2010.  http://www.memorymixer.com/

Here is a sample of one of the many pages I created this year.

3. We spent a week in Maui with my parents, my brother and my sister-in-law.  I drank myself silly with lava flows and we laughed until it felt like our spleens would split.  It was a great trip.

(Who is tanner…me or my sister-in-law?  You can tell the truth.  Come on, just say it.)

4.  I was able to be part of Time Out for Women again this year.  It was AWESOME…as usual, and I met so many amazing women and had fantastic experiences!  Thanks to all of you for attending and for making me feel so welcome and loved in:

Orlando

Seattle

Ogden

Billings

Cincinnati

Pocatello

Boise

Pleasanton

Richmond

St. George and…

Salt Lake City

PLEASE come if you can this year…and be sure to say “hi!”  (And bring gifts.)  JK - hee hee.

5. This year our family had the privilege of meeting two families that I can honestly say, have changed our lives - The Huishes and the Hickens.  The Huishes were highlighted through the “If I Only Had Today” Award program and the Hickens purchased the private concert that benefitted the Huishes.  Now…if only those two families could meet each other…the circle would be complete.  (If you follow my blog, you already know the stories.  If you don’t then…what’s up with that?) 

Here’s to a great year filled with great memories.  AND, here’s to a new year where new experiences and memories await!

Blog to you soon,

Hilary

I have been needing a little “refill” time.  You know how that goes…(I hope.  I’d hate to think I’m the only one who hits a wall.) 

So, in an effort to do some “refilling” - I made a cake!  I love to cook!  I love to just let my mind relax, follow a recipe and then EAT the creation!  I found this recipe in a Taste of Home magazine and it looked so fun to try.  I learned a few “what not to do’s” that I’ll remember for next time! 

I also love to digital scrapbook - it is my new addiction…well, at least, I’d like to make it an addiction!  So, I spiffed up the picture to make it look Christmas-ee for your enjoyment! 

I hope you can afford to take time to do a few things that refill your bucket! 

Blog to you soon,

Hilary

P.S. The cake tasted good - even though I’m not a huge chocolate fan.  I know, I’m weird. 

I love a good journey through the scriptures.  You know what I mean…those moments when you are studying the scriptures and you follow a footnote and it takes you to another reference, which reminds you of a quote you heard in a talk, so you read the talk and pretty soon you have learned and felt more than you ever expected.  I don’t experience that every time I read, but once in a very wonderful while I do.

Recently while reading chapter 53 of Isaiah, I decided to look up every footnote.  I’ve never done that before.  I learned a TON!  One footnote lead me to the Topical Guide under “self-sacrifice.”  I read every scripture reference - all 57 of them.  And I made a discovery. 

Meaningful and fulfilling self-sacrifice is tied to doing the will of the Lord.  When we freely and truly give of ourselves we are making that offering for the Lord.  Here are just a few examples of what I found:

“Put your trust in the Lord.”

“…for my sake”

“For my name’s sake”

“come and follow me”

“Lord, I will follow thee withersoever thou goest”

“For His name”

“But first gave their own selves to the Lord”

“If the will of God be so”

“Thou hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will.”

Sometimes life can wear us down.  There are times when there isn’t enough of us to go around.  (Hey, that rhymes…) Life can be overwhelming.  And it can feel that way even when we are giving of ourselves for all the right reasons. 

Nestled in the 57 references for self-sacrifice was one verse that brought me a lot of peace.  Alma 26:27. 

“Now when our hearts were depressed (overwhelmed, stressedout, tired, needing a break, needing “me” time) and we were about to turn back (complain, give up, quit) behold the Lord comforted us and said, Go amongst thy brethren the Lamanites (your families, friends, YW, YM, Primary children, RS sisters, fellow employees, neighbors) and bear with patience thine afflictions (stresses, to do lists, dissapointments, frustrations) and I will give unto you success.”

Now that is a great promise.  That makes the self-sacrifce seem more than worth the effort. 

I guess what I’m trying to say is - Don’t give up.  Ever.  Everything we do is worth it.  When you feel like throwing the towel in, then throw it next to the bathtub and take a bubble bath.  When you feel like giving up, keep your chin up instead.  It is all worth it.  The Lord knows. He cares.  He understands.  He knows we do what we do for Him and because of that, He is going to help us. 

And that’s a promise.

Last week, about 4:00 in the afternoon, I was making some orange rolls for dinner.  When I was almost done, I received the prompting that if I wanted a rotisserie chicken (which I would need for the soup I was also going to make) I needed to go to the store right after making the rolls.  I was about to leave, when I remembered an email I wanted to send.  What difference would 30 seconds make?  I sent the email and headed for the store.  Upon arriving at the store, I went directly to the rotisserie chicken stand.  I walked up just in time to see another lady stop in front of the stand, eye the very last chicken and then pick it up and put it in her cart!  I couldn’t believe it!  I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. 

If only I hadn’t sent the email.

Turns out 30 seconds did make a difference.

I went to the deli counter and asked if they had any more chickens.  The employee said “No.  For some reason the chickens have been going really fast tonight.”  I was able to find another option - and dinner went on.  As I thought about what had just happened, I was so grateful I had seen the last chicken snatched up.  If I had walked up and seen the whole stand empty I would have thought it didn’t matter how fast I would have gotten there.  But I was reminded instead, that I need to follow the promptings I receive with exactness.  Thank goodness Heavenly Father reminded me of that principle using a rotisserie chicken, allowing me to get it right in the future when it really mattered.  Maybe a week or a month from now, I will get a prompting I need to follow with exactness and maybe it will really matter to me or my family or someone else.   I hope I will be alert and ready.

I can’t help but be grateful that the Holy Ghost cares about every detail of our lives!  He cares about rotisserie chickens.  He cares about what we care about - including the smallest details of our lives. 

Speaking of gratitude, did any of you read the Monthly Message for November?  Here is a picture of the things we are grateful for.  (Marley wrote her name about 12 times - and kept saying, “Well….I’m grateful for myself.”  She’s popular too, remember…)

Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Blog to you soon,

Hilary

I recently taught you how to be popular, and today I would like to share with you my secret on how to be the hostess with the mostest.  It has taken me years of hosting countless parties to glean what I would consider a wealth of knowledge on the subject of hostessing. 

Fine. I admit it.  I know nothing.  I just got lucky by accident the other night at Tim’s 40th Birthday Bash.

I wanted to serve a delicious punch - I had the recipe and everything.  But the store didn’t have any of the ingredients.  So, I improvised.  Instead of Welches white grape concentrate, I bought Welches white grape raspberry concentrate.  Everybody loves stuff with raspberries in it.  How could that do anything but improve the punch?  Then, to my dismay, the store didn’t have grapefruit soda.  (I know, it is a strange item…but they’ve carried it before.)  So, I replaced grapefruit soda with pineapple soda.  Everybody like pineapple more than grapefruit anyway.  Seemed only a step up from the original recipe.

So, I combined the juice, the pop and a bag of ice in a lovely punch bowl.   It was a HIT!  I used all the punch supplies I had purchased (three punch bowls worth) and sent a friend to the store for MORE!!  Truly, if that isn’t a badge of honor, a medal of accomplishment, a hostess with the mostest trophy…then I don’t know what is.

Try it at your next party.  (And…don’t add any water…just those three things…juice, pop, ice.)

The party, or should I say, open house, was really fun!  We had great food and WONDERFUL friends and family come by.  Tim had a great time!  Here are a few pics from the party.

Tim with his fantastic parents.  I’m so grateful for the son they raised.  He is an amazing husband.

The spread.

More spread.  We had so much food left over!  I kept making plates for people and beggin them to take some home!  Always better to have too much than too little!

Blog to you soon!

Hilary

How?

Glad you asked. 

Write a blog or post on Facebook about my new Christmas Cd, Christmas Once Again, and I’ll enter your name into a drawing for a chance to win a free Cd! 

Three Grand Prize Packages - Includes all of my Christmas products: Christmas Once Again Cd, Christmastime Cd and God Bless Your Way book and Cd!

Seven Prizes - Includes: Christmas Once Again Cd!

There are 10 chances to win!  You can enter as many times as you’d like by blogging and Facebooking about the new Cd as often as you want.  (Don’t get on your friends nerves though…)  Each time you blog or post a FB, please inlcude the following link to my website or Deseret Book’s website. 

http://hilaryweeks.com/moreinfo.php?SKU=1021

http://deseretbook.com/hilaryweeks

 Feel free to include a picture of the album cover and any comments you think would help spread the word and get people excited about it!  Then send me an email at hilary@hilaryweeks.com with your name and address and your name will be entered into the drawing.  The contest ends November 29th - giving you enough time to listen to your new Christmas Cd if your name is drawn!  Anyone who wants to help spread the word is welcome!

One more thing - it would be great if you include a link to your blog so we can share in the fun post!  And if you post on Facebook and know how many friends you have - let us know!

Blog to you soon,

Hilary