Youth Conference

Megan and I went to youth conference this weekend.  It was awesome!  I was really hoping Megan and the other girls would have fun and they did!  Shannon and I had a blast too.  It was so fun watching the girls interact with the boys at the dances.  We also had some really funny experiences that provided for some fun memories.  I think we'll be laughing about these for a long time.  The weekend was full of ice breaker activites, devotionals, classes, free time, dances, a talent show, a Q&A session with the stake president, President Thomas, and a testimony meeting.  We also spent quite a bit of time practicing The Cup Song, which Michaela taught us. We practiced when we were waiting for lunch or dinner.  We even practiced at the hotel after breakfast.  We decided to stay at a hotel this year, and the amount of girls who wanted to go went from 2 to 7!  Some of our girls are really shy and we knew they would feel more comfortable if we went to a hotel, rather than staying in a host's home.  You never know who's going to sleep where and if they'll be split up, etc.  so anyway, it worked out great and the girls seemed to love it.  Shannon got us a good deal on our rooms, and it only cost our presidency less than $300.  We ended up with six girls, which I think was pretty good!  We had Megan, Michaela, Kiaya, Lexi, Courtney, and Bekka.  The girls' testimonies were definitely strengthened, and now they are all excited about the stake dances (well, most of them anyway).  We noticed a big difference between all of the youth during the first dance and the next dance.  They were so much more comfortable the second night.  The first night, they were all huddled in small groups by ward.  The second night, they were more like one big ward.  It was awesome! 

Okay, here are the funny stories:

• Kiaya needed a partner for this basketball relay race.  Lexi didn't want to do it, and Shannon was busy, so at the very last second, I had to do it!  I ran over to her, and linked arms.  We started sprining across the floor, and we realized noone else was running with us!  It was all over!  We were so embarrassed! 
• Michaela and Megan were showing off their moves at one of the dances.  Michaela had figured out what she wanted to do, and practiced it a few times out in the hall.  Everything went well, so she went out to the dance floor, where everyone was in a circle.  She started out with a split, and her pants ripped!  She was so embarrassed!  She jumped up, and the girls surrounded her so no one would see the hole as they inched their way to the bathroom.  We were all laughing so hard, even Michaela.  Adam, a boy that had been hanging out with our girls all weekend, gave her some pants to put on.  She tucked them into her stylish boots and went back out there to redeem herself!  She did an awesome job!  I was so proud of her for handling it so well! 
• I won't go into detail about the last incident because of the nature of the subject.  Let's just say we were all shocked to hear some noises coming from one of the doors at the hotel as we were walking to our rooms the second night.  The funniest thing was Lexi's face of shock!  The other funny thing was Kiaya's note, which she slipped under the door, suggesting that they be a little quieter next time.  She signed it, "Employees and guests of the hotel"  I couldn't believe she did that!  But at the same time, we were all laughing hysterically!

Anyway,  I'm so glad they all had a good time and seemed to really get a lot out of the classes and activities.  I hope this strengthened them enough to keep them strong when times get tough.  We heard several youth say that they were the only LDS people in their school, so I think the girls realize that they are not alone.  And they can be strong!