Lela is incredibly well-rounded. She’s always learning and always so happy to teach what she learns. She is a service oriented individual who is eager to help in every way she can. She is a delightful mother who embraces her daughters differences. I am so glad to feature her here, it is your turn to get to know her!

What is the greatest life lesson you’ve learned?
That life will never be easy. It wasn’t meant to be easy. I was put here in Earth to be tested and tried. I am here to prove myself, struggle, and grow but I am not alone. I will always have help.

If you had 5 things to teach your children, and only 5, what would those be?
I don’t need to teach my children five things I only need to teach them two things, two things that will make them happy and take their lives in the best path that they can possibly go. Matthew 22:35-38 “Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him saying, Master which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy self. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” If I can teach my children to love the Lord and love their neighbors then they have everything that they need. If they love God, they keep His commandments and if they love their neighbors then they do their best to not harm them in anyway. That pretty much covers everything I want my children to know.

Are you happy and satisfied with where your life is today?
I am what I decide to be. I decide to be happy and satisfied and so I am. If I am not satisfied with something I change it or I change my attitude about it.

You’re exceptional at so many areas, sewing, gardening, mothering, and really so many more, what are some things you’ve done to grow so much in these things?
I don’t know if I would say I am exceptional at anything, I think I am just unrelenting. When I want to do something I will figure out how to do it. I think the Lord blessed me with the desire to learn. Most of the things that I do are not things that I had talent in but are things that I wanted to learn and I didn’t give up until I learned how to do it. When I decided to learn to sew I didn’t just sit down at my sewing machine and suddenly I could sew a prom dress. I read patterns, I asked questions, I called my mom (who is a wonderful seamstress), I tried, and I failed then I tried again. I sewed some seriously ugly stuff but I didn’t give up until I could sew the things I wanted to and I am still learning. If I come across something I don’t know how to do I research and find out how to do it. I still do this, about six months ago I decided I wanted to learn Spanish, so I got programs and books to teach me and I try to do a lesson or something in Spanish every night. If you want to do something, don’t let discouragement get in the way, don’t expect to be perfect at it, just ask questions, try it out, and don’t give up.

You put on puppet shows, what first inspired you to do this?
I have a wonderful friend who I work with at the Springville Library. We are storytellers and she suggested that we start doing puppet shows. I was against it, I thought it was silly and childish but I finally agreed to it. I had fun doing it and I saw how the kids loved the shows and how they responded so well to the puppets. I enjoyed it so much that it became one of the things I love to do.

In all of your different adventures, what have you learned about people?
Everyone has sorrows and struggles just like me. Most of us are just trying to live our lives in the best way we know how and are trying to be good people.

You’re an Arizona girl, what are 3 things you wish Utah had/didn’t have that AZ does/doesn’t?
Arizona and Utah are almost completely different worlds. I wish that you could grow citrus trees in Utah, I love the smell of orange blossoms, the smell of the leaves on the trees, and the road side stands where you can buy boxes of oranges that where just picked that morning. I love citrus! I miss swimming in my own pool, not a public one, I loved having a pool in my backyard where I could swim whenever I wanted and it was warm enough to swim from April to October. Here in Utah unless your pool is heated most of the year it is just too cold to swim! I love Utah in so many ways. Things grow here – trees, flowers, gardens. In Arizona everyone has small lawns and few plants because it is so hot and cost so much to keep them alive. But with the wonderful springs, summers, and falls here in Utah come the winters. I have the hardest time in the winter. There is no sun and it is so cold! I would love to have Utah’s springs, summers, and falls with Arizona’s winters! That would be perfect!!

What are some of your favorite things?
I have so many! My husband and my girls, my chickens, puppets, sewing, books, oranges, laughter, friends, flowers, learning, singing, and exclamation points just to name a few!