We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice In Christ

Read Your Scriptures

2012-02-24T14:06:00.000-05:00

I have said this before, but I'll say it again:

Blog posts are not scripture.

Scripture is scripture.

READ YOUR SCRIPTURES.

Inspired by my friend Marla, I have decided to read the entire Standard Works this year.

There just so happens to be a website that sells a very convenient guide to help you do this.

It's http://readthestandardworksinoneyear.com/

I found them while searching for a guide to help me reach my goal. I bought the guide for $4 and so far it has been completely worth it.

It directs me to read four readings per day that come from four different books of scripture. What I love about it is that unlike other free reading schedules that I had seen online that tell you to read up to a certain page each day, this reading guide is very smart in that it directs you to read a full story or section of a story (down the the verse), so that you aren't left mid-thought when you reach your scheduled page requirement. I love that.

I also love reading in each book daily...It allows me to see how consistent the Lord is, what a big part the Abrahamic covenant and temple covenants play in the history of God's dealing with man, and ultimately the truthfulness of the gospel. These are things that you will not get from any blog post....so please...put your laptop down and READ YOUR SCRIPTURES!!!

You'll be so glad you did.

Family Proclamation Video: We Need YOU!

2012-02-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

Pin It

Montserrat of Chocolate on my Cranium and I are gearing up for our Family Proclamation Celebration (already!)

This year, we will be joining forces with YOU to bring the world a video presentation of The Family: A Proclamation to the World!

Watch my v-log above for more details on how to contribute a video clip for this special Family Proclamation video project. (Also check out Montserrat's v-log below with a lot of great detailed info or scroll down to read the details!)

How to participate:

Basically, we are asking you to take a video of yourself saying your favorite line from the Family Proclamation. (It can be you, your family, alone or in a group.)

Upload your video clip to DropBox.com. You'll need to create a free account.

Then send an email to familyproclamationvideo@gmail.com from that account with a link to your uploaded video. Please indicate what section of the Proclamation you recorded.

We will edit the clips together and present the finished product during our celebration in September.

Here are a few other technical things to keep in mind:

1. Eliminate background noise

2. Don't shoot into the light, but shoot with natural light on your subject. (or on yourself)

3. Wear colors that compliment you. Brush your hair. If you own lip gloss, women, use it.

4. Be just slightly more animated than you are in real life...it translates well on video.

5. Leave a few seconds (about three) before and after you deliver your "lines."

6. Speak slower than you normally do and enunciate (pronounce your words clearly and completely).

7. Sit still...don't wiggle if you are doing a close-up....(like do the opposite of what I was doing with Guy behind me!)

8. Keep your hands away from your face (unless you are signing.)

9. Speak in your native tongue...We welcome and hope to receive videos from people of all nationalities and countries.

10. Try, try again until you get a video that you are happy with. It doesn't have to be perfect, but you might have to do a few takes to get it right!

We will try to use as many videos as we can, but can't guarantee that we will use all of them!
The deadline for submitting videos is March 31st.

The video used in this post was my first take and I did a lot of things wrong. I tried a few other times, but in the end my first take was the best/most complete one! Go figure! You can watch some out-takes here and here!

For those reading in reader, you can watch the vlog of this post here.

Now get to work everybody! We need you!!

Be the first to grab a Family Proclamation Celebration Blog Button:

The first button below links to Montserrat's Main Family Proclamation Page.
The second button will take you to my blog.

30 Christ-Centered Easter Traditions & Crafts

2012-02-22T07:44:00.001-05:00

Pin It

Christ-Centered Easter
Crafts & Activities

Paper Plate Tombs

Resurrection Rolls

He Took Our Sins Upon Him

(Carnation Experiment)

Stone Could Not Hold Him

Jesus Christ Ascending Craft

The Best Easter Books for Young Children

Symbols of Easter in Nature (Strawberry Birdie Treats)

Showing Kindness to Others (Bird Craft)

Tell the story of Easter using Jelly Beans

Bunny T-shirts (Family Love)

The Resurrection Plant

Hand-print Lillies

Palm Sunday: The meaning behind the Palms

Walking Children Through Holy Week

Bird Nest Treats

Easter All-Week Booklet Download

The Living Christ Flashcard Download

Resurrection Eggs (aka The Twelve Days of Easter)

Chocolate Tomb Easter Treats

Christ-centered "Egg-stuffers"

The Egg Tree

The Sympathetic Soldier

Faux Stained-glass Crosses

Secular Saturday, Sacred Sunday

Easter Every Sunday

Leading My Children to the Cross

Testimony Egg Hunt

Of the fish and honeycomb...He did truly eat!

Hold an Easter Sunrise Service

How to Host a Passover Meal

To my friends celebrating Ash Wednesday today...Happy Ash Wednesday!

We now have 40 Days to prepare our hearts and minds for Easter...the most Holy of holidays! I hope this list of activities, traditions, and crafts will help you and your family do just that!

20 Minutes, Every Monday, to a Better Life

2012-02-21T08:23:00.000-05:00

Have you guys ever read my post 20 Minutes, Every Monday, to a Better Life?

Well, you should. It explains my whole philosophy on FHE in a nutshell.

Speaking of nuts...This is what we ate for dinner last night: Thai Peanut Noodle Salad.

It pretty much ruled. Can't have FHE on an empty stomach, now can we!

Now there is one thing that I didn't get a chance to explain in the aforementioned post.

And that is one core principle that I try to stick to: Don't cheat yourself of the valuable experience of planning your own lessons for your kids. I love that there are ideas galore online to help inspire us, however, when it comes right down to it, I have learned and grown exponentially in the last few years because of the process of preparing myself to teach my children. The actual act of reading, praying, seeking the spirit, and then testifying, answering their questions, and completing the task is what has helped me to grow.

Don't get me wrong, I get plenty of ideas from others, but I take a craft or lesson suggestions and I say, "How does this apply to my family? What will make this come alive for my kids? How can I use a simple recipe or craft to teach a lesson that WE need to learn?"

I think that this is most certainly the example that the Savior set for us as he took everyday scenarios and applied them to the people he was teaching.

Now last night was a pretty special night. I had the rare opportunity to see what my life would be like had I had children at the rate I had wanted to. We had five kids, ages 7, 6, 5, 4, and 3 in our house for FHE last night.

It was loud. It was rambunctious. It lasted more than 20 minutes.

It was a bit of a challenge for me to plan the lesson, because I had never even met the kids before, but let me tell you these were some of the sweetest boys I have ever had the privilege to interact with. (Oh yeah, and I got a taste of what it'd be like if boys ruled the roost around here!)

Since I wasn't sure what type of gospel knowledge the kids had to start with, we reviewed what prophets have taught us using images from an FHE manual that someone had passed on to me. Things like "respect your parents, Learn to work at home and do a good job, plant a garden, smile and be kind." These pictures were hidden around the room and the kids had to find them and read and discuss them all together.

One of the admonitions from a prophet was to "be a friend to the friendless" and to "choose good friends." Tonight, we had a chance to do just that. And I was reminded that sometimes FHE isn't so much about the lesson, and sometimes FHE isn't just about your family...but about serving others by sharing your blessings of family with them.

Remember to check out Catania's FHE post today!

Happiness in Troubled Times: a Book of Mormon Truth

2012-02-20T07:00:00.000-05:00

obedient. brave. strong.

These are the kinds of attributes that one is encouraged to develop by reading about the prophets of The Book of Mormon. And I am so glad that my kids are growing up with this sacred text as the basis for their life-education.

Words are important to me. Actions are too. But words, the kind that we think and read and say are so important. My son asked my husband before bed last night if he could ask him questions...a nightly ritual really. He said yes. "Even about bad words, daddy?" Yes.

So Guy proceeded to ask Steve about bad words he had heard and wanted to know what they meant.

The world is full of bad words. The Book of Mormon (and other scriptures) are full of good words. These words are God's words to his children. We are so lucky to have them, and the more that we make room in our lives for them, the more power we have to become brave, obedient, and strong.

I had an online acquaintance recently complain to me that he felt The Book of Mormon was full of unnecessary violence. There is violence in the book, just as there is in the Bible, because we live in a violent world, and both books chronicle a portion of the history of the world. But unnecessary? Nah. The lessons taught by the war chapters are very necessary.

I read the following in Bad Guys of the Book of Mormon by Dennis Gaunt tonight. He says:

"The war chapters are filled with lesson after lesson for us today...One of the best lessons in all the war chapters was one I found tucked away inside a couple of small verses, which was easy to overlook. In the course of detailing all the bloodshed and wickedness of that time period--which so closely resembles our own war-filled society--Mormon pauses to make this observation: "And those who were faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord were delivered at all times...But behold there never was a happier time among all the people of Nephi, since the days of Nephi, than in the days of Moroni" (Alma 50:22, 23)."

I think that understanding that happiness is possible in the middle of difficult circumstances might be one of the most important lesson we can learn.

"Elder Robert D. Hales said, "The fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ brings great comfort in stressful times of mortality. It brings light where there is darkness and a calming influence where there is turmoil. It gives eternal hope where there is mortal despair. It is more than just beautiful doctrine. It is reality."

"No matter how bad our world might seem at times...our personal righteousness can still bring us happiness and joy. Elder Richard G. Scott said, "Despite pockets of evil, the world overall is majestically beautiful, filled with many good and sincere people. God has provided a way to live in this world and not be contaminated by the degrading pressures evil agents spread throughout it. You can live a virtuous, productive, righteous life by following the plan of protection created by your Father in Heaven: His plan of happiness." We can still choose to be obedient to the Lord, even if most people around us refuse to do so. No matter how out of control our world feels, we still have control over our agency, and we can choose to be happy in the middle of troubled times."

Thanks in advance to everyone who comments and links-up this week. Please leave a comment on this post when you do so, and you will be entered to win this three-print set of Book of Mormon heroes from the Etsy shop Peuxican Designs. (Check out her blog too.) You can also enter by commenting on the posts that are linked up and sharing the link-up on your blog. Grab the code below and just leave a comment on this post telling me what you've done to be entered. I will announce the winner on Friday.

Introducing Young Readers to the Book of Mormon

2012-02-19T10:01:00.002-05:00

Pin It

I stumbled upon this great little activity while searching for Book of Mormon coloring pages this morning for the kids to color before church.

It's a great way to "introduce" young readers to the Book of Mormon!

Basically, you just print out the free download called "Books of The Book of Mormon" at LDS Notebooking. It gives you a simple list of the titles of each book. I had Guy cut out each title and put them in order. To do this, I encouraged him to thumb through the Book of Mormon page by page to figure out what order the books should go in on his paper. As he put the titles in order, he glued them to a little worksheet that is part of the download.

What I like about this activity is that it is so simple and it's right on Guy's level.

He can do it all by himself and it gets him flipping through and exploring the book on his own (outside of regular family scripture study time).

There are a lot of good things on this site. I'll be going back often.

PS - Just wanted to throw this in there as an afterthought:

Underlining is a great way for kids to get acquainted with scriptures. Guy has taken to underlining words that he knows and recognizes. He is mimicking what he sees us do and also building a relationship with words and their meaning in scriptures.

Do you remember?

2012-02-18T21:15:00.001-05:00

It's Pop Quiz time again:

Do you remember the five things that President Uchtdorf asked us to "Forget Not" last fall?

If not...better brush up!

Here are some hints:

FORGET NOT:

1. to be ______ with _______.

2. the difference ________ ____ ___ ________ __________.

3. to __ _____ now.

4. the ___ of the ______.

5. that the Lord _____ ___.

Watch the talk...or click here to see if you got the right answers to tonight's Pop Quiz!

Good luck!

By the way...the page with the graphic that I created to help us remember President Uchtdorf's words has been viewed over 23,000 times. So you guys better not forget! :) That talk was about way more than flowers!

(Don't worry, I needed a refresher course too!)

Articles of Faith Puzzles

2012-02-17T10:00:00.000-05:00

Pin It

Melanie of Sugardoodle mentioned these Articles of Faith puzzles by Heather Baer last week.

I'm so glad that I printed them out and compiled them, because they are awesome!

I like the "spacial awareness" aspect of the puzzles and they are fun for young readers to decipher the familiar phrases mixed with words that they already know.

My kids and I are enjoying them--Guy is enjoying reading them, in particular.

I had a cute video of him reading #9, but it won't come off of my camera, so you'll just have to settle for this very satisfied look on his face.

Have a great Friday!

Cyber-Minutes and Light-Years

2012-02-16T10:12:00.001-05:00

I wrote this post six days into Service Boot Camp...but I've been busy posting about other stuff, so you are finally getting it today.

Here you go:

My husband is so funny.

I told him I needed "10 minutes" to "jot" down some thoughts for a blog post, before meeting him upstairs for a little "couples time." He handed me his watch set for 15 minutes and said, "This is to make sure that cyber-minutes don't turn into light-years." (Which, as you can imagine, happens a lot when I am blogging...)

So here goes...in 10 cyber-minutes.

If only you guys could see inside my brain as the blog posts tick past. It's like mid-experience I can already see the finished post published on my blog. If only I could type as fast as I think...

But that's not what I really wanted to say.

What I want to say is that it's six days into Service Boot Camp, and my entire idea of Service has been redefined. And it's a beautiful thing.

Since I decided to spend Service Boot Camp focusing on serving my family, I've learned a lot about what service is and learned to see the love that is involved in the work I do for my family.

So what is service?

So far, I have learned that service is:

Knowing that paper cups are not just for drinking.

Service is:

Answering angry cries with loving words, even when your first reaction is to yell right back.

Service is:

Running back upstairs to tuck your children in AGAIN, and instead of scolding and shutting the door on their requests...re-entering their room and spending 30 more minutes singing songs with them...songs that they want to sing...tickling them until they giggle.

Service is:

Realizing that although you told yourself that you didn't have an ounce of energy left to tell another bedtime story, you found out in the end, that you really did...and you actually felt energized for doing it.

And by doing these acts of service for my family...I keep the cyber-minutes from turning into light-years in the blink of an eye.

And there's the buzzer...

So that was the post...and I'm adding this for you today:

I received a question from a good friend of mine who I knew in a singles ward that I'd happily call my "home singles ward."

She said this: "I adore you. Your blog, the message delivery. Many of your lessons have entertained and taught my children. But I just need to know something. Something personal. Do your kids ever drive you crazy? Just a little bit? I know you aren't perfect...I know you personally and I have read your post about your kitchen floors (very funny)...you work so hard with your children, all the crafts, lessons, activities...but I just need to know you are human. I don't know why, but it would really make me feel better. :)"

And this is what I wrote back to my dear friend: "Uh, yes, they do. They annoy me [an embarrassingly high percent] of every day, because I am NOT a perfect person. ...in fact I am a vain, selfish, impatient person. When I work really hard at loving them and taking care of their needs and wants first, I am happier and I tame the inner beast. My depression also makes me want to sleep and not do dishes and not wake up for scripture study and not be kind. So I have to fight that every day. So if I seem perfect on my blog...it's just me doing my very best to not be a tyrant. And it works...a lot...but I still yell. I still smack little bottoms...I still say DON'T TOUCH ME!!! And I still end up apologizing to my kids when I do so, because I'm usually the wrong one. They are...well, they're just kids. And I...I am also still a child with a lot of growing up to do."

I am grateful for the role that the Savior and his Atonement plays in helping me to grow up. His example of serving and loving others is the perfect tutorial for imperfect people who want to do better.

The Hero Inside Each of Us

2012-02-15T08:53:00.001-05:00

Today's Service Boot Camp thought comes from Rachael of
It's Our Life and Life is Good:

"I think deep down there is a desire in each of us to be a hero." -Jamie Lawson

What does it mean to be a HERO? I think Arhur Ashe said it best:

"True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic.
It is not the urge to surpass all others  at whatever cost,
but the urge to serve others at whatever cost."

The hero within all of us is a lot closer than we think.

There are plenty of ways we can be heroes to family members, neighbors, and strangers on the street. Aside from rescuing someone from a burning building or freeing them from an evil villain, you can help a new neighbor move in, make dinner for a sick friend, open the door for someone as they enter the same store as you. Even a smile can "Save the Day'. Opportunities to serve are all around us, if we will just take a moment to look for them.

Keep up the good work that you are doing in Service Boot Camp. You are a hero, and not just on the inside!!

When I See You Smile

2012-02-14T07:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, was my son's first "sick day!" (Woo-hoo...yeah!) Now I understand why, whenever we stayed home sick from school as kids, which happened soooo rarely, my mom basically made a full-blown holiday out of it. She'd buy us McDonald's for lunch (a rare treat...shhh, don't tell the other kids!) and bring us 7-up "to settle our tummies." See that smile on my face? Yeah, I was happy to spend time with my little man! All of us back together again!

So family home evening basically lasted all day. I love it when that happens.

We played games and made Valentines for each other and for friends.

After dinner, with Steve home, we cut out hearts together around the kitchen table.

For the lesson, we cracked open our scriptures and looked up verses about the heart & love.

We read aloud to each other things like: God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son...and ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit...and I will tell you in your mind and in your heart by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you...It was fun. And Guy was so proud to be able to read verses aloud to the family.

After we'd cut out enough hearts, we went on a secret service adventure together to continue the time-honored tradition of "heart-attacking" someone for Valentine's Day. The kids thought it was a blast and we had written some scripture references on some of the hearts.

Good times.

Another extremely simple but totally enjoyable FHE that ended with ice cream.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY FRIENDS!

PS - Remember to check out That Good Part's FHE report today!

Also, our Secret Service Notebook idea is being featured on The Friend website today.

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

2012-02-13T07:00:00.000-05:00

Pin It

Our wedding day, on the bench where he proposed...

I had a singular experience while speaking on Eternal Marriage in church this week.

It was unique and special to me for a few reasons: a. I received special insights while studying. b. It gave me the opportunity to solidify what I know and believe about the covenant and purpose of eternal marriage. c. It is also one of the only times in my life that I have prepared thoroughly to speak and still walked up to the stand without a clue as to what was actually going to come out of my mouth. You'd better believe I was praying.

Some of you have asked to see my notes, so I will attempt to replicate what I said here. The talk felt special and right to me, even though my perfectionist self was not 100% in control of the delivery and it wasn't as polished as I like to be! :) (Yes, I stumbled over my words...more than once...gasp!)

First, I greeted everyone and explained that while I had prepared well, I still was not exactly sure what the Lord wanted me to say, but that I prayed for the Holy Ghost to guide me and help us all to learn what it is that the Lord would have us know about Eternal Marriage.

I praised the youth speaker for her excellent words on agency and asked the congregation to think about how agency relates to eternal marriage. I asked them to hearken back to the words of the hymns that we had sung previously in the meeting (Hymn #240 "Know This, That Every Soul is Free" and #171 "With Humble Heart") and mentioned that the Lord is always inviting us to live a higher law, but he will force no one to do so.

Then I gave one more excuse that speaking on eternal marriage for just ten minutes was a challenge...(there's just so much to say) and then I dove right in:

"In the next ten minutes, I am going to tell you about the greatest love story ever told....but first I am going to tell you about my love story! :)

Steve and I met while we were living and working in Washington, DC. We were both happily enjoying single life in a big city. However the Lord seemed to take a special interest in getting the two of us together, and when gentle persuasion didn't do the trick, he dropped a tree on my car. (I explained this in more detail, but let's keep moving.)

The weekend that my car was smashed to bits by a tree I was supposed to leave town, but instead Steve and I ended up going on our first date, which lead to our first three dates, which lead to an engagement about three months later.

Steve took me up to the DC temple to propose. I remember how beautiful the world was at that moment. There were birds and butterflies fluttering around us. I kid you not, I even saw a family of bunny rabbits hopping in the grass.

Hopefully, anyone who has ever been in love remembers that feeling...the feeling that the whole world surely must have been created just so that two people could fall in love.

Well, in fact, the world was created so that two people could fall in love. Fall in love and form eternal families.

The Bible tells us that after the Lord created the world he "created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them."

So after creating the Universe, the very next thing that God did was place a man and a woman together and married them to each other for eternity.

Genesis 2:24 "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife and they shall be one flesh."

This is significant: The very first marriage performed on earth was an Eternal one! (No, "till death do us part" nonsense. Death had not yet entered the world!)

The Family: A Proclamation to the World states that "Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of his children."

In Saturday's Leadership Training Session, Elder Nelson reminded us that it is stated three times in scripture that without the power to seal families together, the earth would be utterly wasted or cursed at His coming. Further proof that the purpose in creating the earth was for the formation of eternal families.

(Here are two more quotes that I worked in there at some point:)

Robert D. Hales has said, "The family is not an accident of mortality. It existed as an organizational unit in the heavens before the world was formed; historically it started on earth with Adam and Eve. They were married for time and all eternity by the Lord, and as a result their family will exist eternally."

The eternal covenant of marriage has blessings attached to it. And like all of God's blessings, they too are attached to a law. Scripture tells us that the law of eternal marriage exists to bless us. It also existed as a law from before the foundation of the world: For all who will have a ^ablessing at my hands shall abide the ^blawwhich was appointed for that blessing, and the conditions thereof, as were instituted from before the foundation of the world." (D&C 132:5)

This is key:

The eternal family unit is only made possible by the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Moses 1:39 - "For this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

What was the work of Jesus Christ? To bring about the Atonement. And the Atonement was two-pronged. The first part is the gift of immortality. This means that every person who has ever lived will be resurrected. This is a free and unconditional gift to the entire family of man.

The second part is the blessing of eternal life with God, to live in his presence enjoying our families and having eternal increase...having children of our own in eternity and the happiness that comes with being part of an eternal family unit. This blessing is conditioned upon our accepting Jesus Christ and applying his Atonement in our lives and in our marriages. It also involves accepting his gospel ordinances, repenting, and forgiving each other.

And as some point...not sure when, I shared D&C 132:7

And verily I say unto you, that the ^aconditions of this law are these: All covenants, contracts, bonds, obligations, ^boaths, ^cvows, performances, connections, associations, or expectations, that are not made and entered into and ^dsealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, of him who is ^eanointed, both as well for time and for all eternity, ...are of no efficacy, virtue, or force in and after the resurrection from the dead; for all contracts that are not made unto this end have an end when men are dead.

When I read this verse in preparation of the talk, it really struck me. I wondered: Why did the Lord use so many terms to describe the various contracts and conditions that men and women would enter into?

And then I understood. It's as if the Lord was saying, I see your day. I see how men will try to redefine the covenant of marriage. And so be it.

You have your agency. You can enter into contracts and associations of every kind and condition.

And you can call it whatever you like.

But if you want to experience the blessings associated with the law of eternal marriage you must enter into it by one who is in authority and it must be sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise.

So this is the greatest love story ever told. It is the story of the creation of the world. It is the story of Adam and Eve. It is the story of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Jesus' life was the story of the giving of the Atonement, which would bring man back into the presence of God. Adam and Eve's life is the story of the receiving of that Atonement.

As we follow the pattern set for us by Adam and Eve, we too become part of the greatest love story ever told....A story that includes the extension of family relationships into eternity. It is the only story in history that rightfully owns the phrase..."and they lived happily ever after."

PS - Again, I apologize for not being polished here. Even now, my need to deliver a perfect message is sneaking in. There is much that I was not able to cover in ten to twelve minutes but I spoke as the spirit dictated and focused on sharing the most basic truths.

The rewarding thing for me in letting go of "control" of the talk was that I know that there was definitely someone in the audience who this talk was especially prepared for. And although my delivery of it was far from perfect, I know that the spirit delivered it as it was meant to be understood by that person. I hope others reading this after the fact will feel that spirit as well.

R2-D2 & Fulfilling Our Callings

2012-02-12T18:38:00.003-05:00

Pin It

Greeting, Service Boot Campers! I know I've been a little busy this month talking about other things, but rest assured, my little brigade and I have been doing our small part to serve others in our little corner of the galaxy. And from what I hear, you have too...

Today, I am pleased to introduce you to my new friend Steve Dalton of Mormon Wookiee, who has dropped by to share a bit with us about service in the church.

I love the Star Wars-laced testimonies that Steve shares over at his site. Thanks to Steve, I can make a lot more cool Star Wars references while teaching my son about the gospel...I can also now spell the word Wookiee. I am totally not doing him justice in this intro, but trust me, this Mormon Wookiee is a Force for good in his own right!

Please give an intergalactic welcome to the Mormon Wookiee:

First, I want to thank Jocelyn for the opportunity to guest post on her blog.

I discovered Jocelyn's blog early last month while researching about the new "Friend" magazine website on lds.org. Since then I have become a huge fan.

I started my blog Mormon Wookiee after listening to Elder Ian S. Ardern's talk at General Conference back in October. In his talk, Elder Ardern encouraged us to stop spending so much time playing video games, surfing the internet, and checking Facebook, and instead use our time to serve others and spread the gospel.

His talk really impacted me, and I felt that one of the best ways I could spread the gospel was by starting a blog. I realized that if my blog were going to truly reflect my personality, it would need focus on two of my favorite things: the gospel of Jesus Christ and, well, Star Wars.

Weird combination, you say? I agree. BUT it works for me, and hopefully it has introduced some people to the gospel who otherwise wouldn't be interested.

I know Vader's a bad dude, but he sure makes for some great object lessons.

Currently, my Church calling in my ward is to teach the 11-year old Primary class. I absolutely love my calling because it gives me a chance to share my love of the scriptures in addition to having fun with the kids. However, sometimes I think Primary callings get a bad wrap. This may just be my own perception, but it seems to me that sometimes, we, as members of the Church, consider Primary to be a "lower calling" when compared to more visible ones like Bishop, Relief Society President, or even Ward Chorister. But I think that no matter what our individual callings may be, we should always strive to fulfill them to the best of our abilities. Every calling in the Church is significant, and you never know what kind of impact you might have by simply doing your best. As I pondered this thought, I realized it is ironic that one of the greatest heroes in all of Star Wars was someone who you could also argue had a much "lower calling" in life. He was not a Jedi nor a Sith, not a pilot nor a soldier, not even a Jawa nor an Ewok. Nope, he was just a simple little droid who always went above and beyond his calling: R2-D2 (Artoo-Detoo), the lowly astromech. I'd like to give you a few examples of Artoo going above and beyond and how we can apply his example to our own lives (despite the fact that none of us are droids in a galaxy far, far away).

Just another droid? Not a chance!(Images found at Wookiepedia, the Star Wars Wiki)

#1: Repairing the shield generator of Queen Amidala's starship:The first time we meet Artoo (accordingn to Star Wars movie chronology anyway) is during Queen Amidala's brave escape from the blockade of Naboo in Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. As her ship comes under fire, Artoo willingly risks his life (droids have lives too!) by crawling on top of the ship and repairing the shield generator. Artoo could have chosen to stay inside the ship and let the other droids take care of it. But, of course, he didn't. And, as a result, he saved the day. How can we apply this to our lives? Just like Artoo could have hid in the corner or pretended to have a malfunction, we all have the chance to make excuses and give a half-hearted effort in our callings. For example, we could ask ourselves, "Is it really going to matter if I skip my hometeaching this month?" In the grand scheme of things, probably not. BUT if you don't go, you may miss an opportunity to make a difference in someone else's life. There have been many times as a hometeacher that I have been asked to give a blessing or deliver a needed spiritual message to someone who was struggling. If I had decided to stay home, I would have missed out on these opportunities to serve.

Shield generators never work right when you need them to!

#2: Fighting the battle droids:A great scene from Episode III: Revenge of the Sith occurs when Artoo runs into some high-powered battle droids on General Grievous's ship. Being just a lowly astromech, the battle droids should have easily been able to destroy Artoo. But against all odds, Artoo believed in himself. Instead of running away, he courageously confronted the battle droids, sprayed them with oil, and lit them on fire with his booster jets! In our own lives we sometimes face challenges that can seem overwhelming to us. Perhaps you were just asked to give a 15-minute talk in Stake Conference but you have a terrifying fear of crowds. You could tell the Stake President that you refuse to speak, OR you could pray for help to get through it. You can conquer the "battle droids" in your own life if you believe in yourself, have courage, and go forward with faith.

We may not have booster jets, but we can still believe in ourselves!

#3: Shutting down the trash compactor.

My personal favorite R2-D2 moment occurred in Episode 4: A New Hope after the Millennium Falcon was captured aboard the original Death Star. After rescuing Princess Leia, our heroes Luke, Han Solo, and Chewbacca become trapped in a trash compactor (#3263827, in case you were wondering), which suddenly begins to compact. In desperation, Luke frantically calls for the help of Artoo and C-3PO (Artoo's best friend, who is a blog topic for another day). Artoo quickly responds, manages to splice into the Death Star's computer systems, and shuts down the compactor moments before the heroes of the rebellion are killed. Without Artoo's quick actions to respond to his friends in need, the good guys would have been killed, the empire would have won, and....well, the movie would have been very short. Artoo sets a great example by recognizing that his friends were in peril and responding to their aid without a moment's delay. In our own lives and callings, we too should respond without hesitation to those in need.

Uh-oh.

#4: Deactivating the shield generator door on Endor.

In the final moments of the rebellion's battle with the Empire in Episode 6: Return of the Jedi, the rebel heroes must shut down the shield generator on the moon of Endor to enable the rebel fleet to be able to attack the second Death Star (if at first you don't succeed....). Artoo is the only one capable of unlocking the generator's doors by splicing, once again, into the computer panel. As he successfully unlocks the door, Artoo is shot by an Imperial Stormtrooper, completely damaging his circuits. Fortunately, Artoo is later repaired and is able to celebrate with his friends. Artoo's example shows that sometimes we will have to make deep personal sacrifices to be successful. Often our callings require us to sacrifice our time, energy, and resources in order to accomplish what needs to be done.

Hang in there, little buddy.

Throughout Star Wars, there are many other examples of Artoo's heroism in the face of overwhelming odds. And just like many people (Jabba the Hutt, anyone?) underestimated Artoo as simply another lowly astromech droid, sometimes we may not feel like we are very special or important. We may think we can't make a difference or that our contribution really doesn't matter. But the truth is that we ALL matter. And just like Artoo, we all have the opportunity to make choices: Will I give my best effort or will I sit on the sidelines? Will I respond to a friend in need or will I let someone else take care of it? Will I face challenges with faith and courage or will I give in to doubt and fear? And just like Artoo, the results of our choices can quite literally "save the day" in someone else's life. Until next time, may the force be with you!

At the Speed of Light

2012-02-11T09:37:00.001-05:00

I've got a short, albeit acute list of things that make me cry on the spot.

I've mentioned them here before. Things like parades and marching bands.

Now I've got another bit of kryptonite to add to the list: school gyms, loud music, standing ovations, and my son running with his classmates.

Yesterday, I went to cheer Guy on during his school's big "Dragon Dash" fundraiser. I walked into the gym and saw My Baby Boy having the time of his little life...running, and laughing, and sweating, and smiling, among the crowd of cheering parents and blaring music.

And the whole world was moving just a little too quickly for me.

I could feel the hot lava of tears starting to bubble up inside of me. (Ok, fine, I was practically bawling! But I did my best to rein it in!) I yelled out Guy's name. He turned to look at me as he sped by...and I took this picture.

Even the camera showed him moving at the speed of light. Then I just laughed at myself and thought, yup, this is really happening.

He's growing up.

I suppose I'd better start moving at the speed of light too, so I can keep up with him!

As a side note: I'm never going to survive Parenthood.

(At least not without a really good waterproof mascara!!)

Valentine's Day is for Family Love by Edye

2012-02-10T07:00:00.000-05:00

Today, I'd like to introduce you guys to my neighbor Edye!

(Here she is with her husband Paul...cute couple, huh!)

Some of you may recognize Edye's name from our FB discussion the other week. Edye is as full of questions as she is answers. She has been very generous in teaching and including our family in her family's Jewish traditions and faith. And we are excited to learn and experience more of that with her.

Today, Edye will be sharing her thoughts on Valentine's Day with us...Please give Edye a very warm welcome! (And, as promised, I will announce the WINNER of this week's giveaway at the end of this post...) Here's Edye...

I remember Valentine’s Day fondly…

The excitement of picking out those special cards for your classmates, how much we looked forward to going to school that day to get our “mail” from the rest of the class…

By far, the best memory of all was created by my Dad. My brother, sister and I would always wake up to a card and a treat left for us on our dressers. My Dad, a big teddy bear, always went out of his way to get us a card and buy us a small token that let us know that we were loved. We knew it all year but it was nice to feel the glow that morning too.

As my world expanded to include my husband I passed on this tradition to him. Although we try to appreciate each other all year, we always make sure to get each other a card and a small treat on Valentine’s Day. Many comment that Valentine’s Day is a “Hallmark holiday” but I don’t agree because I love to make someone else smile and this is just a good excuse to appreciate another person.

It wasn’t until we became part of a synagogue that new questions were raised about the holiday.

As a new stay-at-home mom in Pennsylvania I told my husband we should join the temple. It would help us become part of the small Jewish community and it was also a way for me to gain a social network of other Jewish moms.

We learned that the Rabbi in our new congregation frowned upon “celebrating” St. Valentine’s Day. When I mentioned creating cards in religious school and getting each student a small treat there was awkward silence. I was astonished that it was taken so literal (and again later in the year when it was Halloween…but that’s for another blog another day).

In all the years we had been welcomed with surprises from my Dad we had never once thought of it in a religious context. I didn’t want to challenge the Rabbi, but I also didn’t want to give up on the idea of creating the same special memories for my children as my Dad had done for me.

I talked it over with my husband, who as he always does, argued both sides of the coin. He showed me that it was OK for us to take a different view and create our own rules in our household without going against our faith.

In our house it’s a love free-for-all not a day to observe a saint!

As my kids have grown I love to go to the store with them and help them pick out the cards they will give out in class. As they get older and this tradition ends, they still come with me to pick out cards for each other and for their Dad.  I also make time on my own to go and pick a special treat for them and find that “perfect” card that expresses how their Dad and I feel about each of them. 

I can only hope down the road that they pass on this tradition with their own families and tell their kids how they used to love waking on Valentine’s Day morning. 

So what does Valentine's Day mean to you?

Please share your family's V-day traditions below for others to read!

Thank you, Edye!

And thanks to everyone who entered to win the book "Bad Guys of the Book of Mormon" this week.  The winner was Courtney Wilson!

(Email me your mailing address, Courtney!)

And thanks to everyone for reading and entering this week!

Have a wonderful weekend!

How beautiful were their feet?

2012-02-09T21:15:00.001-05:00

"Oh how beautiful upon the mountains were their feet."

Please send shoes.

Be My Valentine...FOREVER.

2012-02-09T08:41:00.003-05:00

I'm sharing my thoughts on the Mormon Moment today over at Meridian Magazine.

Come say "hi," won't you?

I was happy to work in a shout-out to Elder Cook's soliloquy on the Doctrine of the Father from this month's Ensign....It is an AWESOME truth that anyone interested in standing up for traditional family, or anyone wondering why we do so, needs to understand....don't know what I am referring to? Then you'd better head on over there and check it out. It's good stuff, I promise.

God Gave You a Body

2012-02-08T02:27:00.002-05:00

Pin It

I read this amazing post by Stephanie at Diapers & Divinity last night about the shattering effect of pornography and couldn't help but feel the need to create something that would help me teach my young children how to defend themselves against these harmful images that surround us.

I will be using this "story" to teach my children how to keep their minds and bodies safe and to teach them the truth about who created their bodies in the first place.

Feel free to use this story to springboard into a discussion with your precious children.

Teach them today to flee from the pernicious tide of pornography. They are not to young to learn these important truths. Click below to download and print the story. There is also a link in this document to some "modest" paper dolls to help facilitate your discussion.

God Gave You a Body

Kid Interview Questions FHE

2012-02-07T09:57:00.000-05:00

Pin It

I've kind of alluded to it before, but I'll say it again. Family Home Evening works best when you tailor it to the needs of your family.

In our family, time is of the essence. If Steve gets home from work on time then we have at best one hour to eat dinner AND have FHE, then it's off to bed. So, if he gets home late, like he did last night, we only have 30 minutes to do both and that means FHE and Dinner have to merge!

Yesterday, we had two items on the FHE agenda: "Sibling Appreciation Night" and Kid Interviews.

First up: Sibling Appreciation...Scarlett-style! I created clues to help us guess who we'd be talking about. I wrote the clues on sticky-notes and stuck them to the bottom of our dinner plates. That way it was sort of a scavenger hunt, but we didn't have to leave the table!

The first clue was a scripture: "Remember the worth of [this soul] is great in the sight of God." We took a moment to talk about what a soul is and to talk about the fact that EVERY person is of great worth in the eyes of the Lord. When Guy read clue #2, "This person shares well and is a good friend," he knew immediately that we were talking about Scarlett, but we proceeded through the five clues anyway so we could hear that: "This person knows how to love others, cares about animals, and chooses the right."

Scarlett was pleased to hear that she was the spotlight child at FHE last night. We lauded her for getting 100% correct on her evaluation in preschool that indicates how well she knows her letters and numbers. (According to her teacher, she was the only kid to get 100% on her evaluation! Smartypants!) We also went around the table saying what we love about Scarlett and gave her "three cheers!" Then we ate a special dessert in her honor: strawberry short-cake.

The second part of FHE was conducting our yearly kid interviews. Since we were strapped for time, Steve took Guy upstairs and interviewed him, and I took the girls. Click here to print off the Kid Interview Form that we used to get you started. (Or scroll down to find it at the bottom of this post!)

I LOVE doing interviews with my children. It gives me a rare, quiet, few minutes with them ALONE to really listen to their hopes, dreams, desires, etc. Knowing the secret thoughts of their hearts (and writing them down) helps me to be a better Mother to them.

Here are some gems that came out of last night's interviews:

From Guy:

What makes you most proud? "Family, Family, Family!"

What do you love about yourself? "My eyes because I can see everything!"

What do you want to be when you grow up? "A Scientist...a discovering, testing...see new things kind of Scientist."

What is your testimony of Jesus Christ? "I believe the scriptures and Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father and all of the prophets."

From Scarlett:

What do you love about Guy? "He says everything that I color is beautiful."

What do you like about Mom? "I like that you sometimes give us soda or milk or water or hot chocolate. Sometimes you play with me or my baby dolls...(I'm just saying that so you'll do it tomorrow because you didn't do it today, ok?)"

From Autumn:

Who is your teacher? "Mommy"

What is your favorite thing to do with Mom? "tickle"

What is your favorite thing to do with Dad? "play with him"

What do you love about yourself? "Mousie boy and blankie"

What do you love about Mommy? "She gets me Mousie boy & blankie."

Be sure to check out That Good Part's FHE about LISTENING from last night.

Read about more of our adventures in FHE here.

2012 Kid Interview Form

a Thing for BAD GUYS...

2012-02-06T08:16:00.001-05:00

It's true. I've got a thang for Bad Guys.

No, not actual bad guys...Bad Guys of the Book of Mormon...

The book...by Dennis Gaunt.

I love it so much, I'm marking pages (almost every page actually).

And I want you guys to have a thing for Bad Guys too...

SO...If you'd like to WIN THIS BOOK...do any of the following:

1. Be a FOLLOWER on Google Friend Connect (must do first!)

2. Then, TELL ME what you've got a Thing for today...

3. or TELL ME why why you love being a member of

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I will choose a winner on Friday.

Good luck and have a great Monday!

Fathers Are People Too

2012-02-03T14:38:00.000-05:00

This week, I had neglected some of my duties at home (in order to blog), and it was starting to show. The dishes piled up obscenely on the counter top for days until my poor husband had to break down and tackle them before work one day. And dinner was less than stellar because I just threw something on the table and ran off to mutual on Wednesday night.

Normally, Steve puts up with my shenanigans without complaint, but I guess he was feeling rather neglected himself (and who could blame him?), and when he left for work the next day, he just looked really displeased, which is not a look that I am used to seeing.

So, I decided to spend my day catching up on my chores yesterday, making the house look nice, and doing extra special things to serve HIM, hoping it would be enough to smooth over the hard feelings that I had caused. I worked really hard. But as the day passed, and his return approached I started to feel annoyed and resented the fact that he would get annoyed with me. (At Moi? How dare he!?)

I thought to myself, "If he says one word about the house being a mess, I'm going to blow up, I swear!"

Realizing, that my spirit was not right, I went to my bedroom and read my scriptures until Steve returned.

I was reading silently to myself in Luke 23 about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, but my mind was still swirling with my negative feelings about the situation at home, about my failure to fulfill my duties, and about that look that was on Steve's face when he left the house.

But how to reconcile it? I did not know. I only knew that I should not open my mouth! At all...but just be quiet.

Steve had gotten home late from work, which was probably good, because it gave me extra time to read scriptures and try to change my attitude. We put the kids to bed almost immediately, and then I went back to my room to read scriptures. Steve came in with his Book of Mormon so that we could read aloud to each other from its pages, which is how we try to always start off our 8pm hour (the hour we reserve for each other!)

I did NOT want to read it. I did not want to say those words out loud. I wanted to stay mad! But as soon as I started to read the words of 1 Nephi 11, the rebellious and angry and contentious spirit that was housed inside of me that afternoon immediately vanished. And then the Holy Spirit came instead and so did my tears.

32 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God, that he was ^ataken by the people; yea, the Son of the everlasting God was^bjudged of the world; and I saw and bear record.

33 And I, Nephi, saw that he was ^alifted up upon the cross and^bslain for the sins of the world.

Suddenly, everything was different. I was no longer angry, and suddenly all that mattered was what Nephi saw, not what Steve or I saw. And what Nephi saw was the Savior of the world being slain for our sins.

Now what was different about reading the words of The Book of Mormon that caused me to finally give in and feel peace? Was it the familiarity of those words? What it the juxtaposition of the two books of scripture? Was it reading the verses aloud? Or is it possible that there was just more power in the description given by Nephi? I don't know, but I do know that I felt more peace enter my heart in five minutes of reading The Book of Mormon aloud, than I did in reading for 30 minutes quietly to myself.

And once again, that book changed me.

Now this morning, I wanted to blog about...stuff...and I remembered this book that my Mom had brought to me over Christmas called "Fathers Are People Too." It came from my Grandma's stash of books that my Mom was purging, and she thought I might like it. Steve and I both chuckled about the title when she gave it to us, but put it on the shelf without even opening it.

So today, I finally pulled the book out and opened it. This is what I found:

This inscription was a note from my Grandmother Gladys to my Grandfather Roger on Father's Day 1985. She wrote:

"This Father 'Roger Arthur' is not only a person but the very best in the whole world.

"All his children 'should rise up and call him blessed.' He should be acknowledged every day and especially today.

"I am so grateful for his influence in our lives, and grateful my children love their Dad and grandchildren their 'Bon Papa,' and 'Wild Indian."

"Mizpah, GMO (Gladys Mae Osborne)"

As I read the inscription, I could hear her voice instructing me. She might as well have written, "Jocelyn, one day you will read this, and when you do, I want you to remember that your husband is not only a person but the very best person in the world for you. You would be wise to 'rise up and call him blessed.' You must acknowledge him every day and show him that you care. Every day, not just on special days. You need to be grateful for his influence in your life, because he is a good father to your children and will be beloved by your grandchildren."

It seems like every time I turn around, I am getting a long lost message from my Grandma (who has been gone nearly eight years now!) Who knew that all of her letters, book inscriptions, scripture markings, and personal histories would play such a valuable part in my personal growth, but they have! And I am glad and so lucky to have these timely messages come to me from beyond the grave, as it would seem...from both my relatives and the prophets of old.

The church is true. God lives. The scriptures are power on paper. And I am so thankful for the wisdom that they hold and for the calming influence of the Spirit that they bring into my life. Have a great weekend! And remember that Fathers and Husbands are people too...and they need our love! :)

PS - The girls and I visited Daddy at work today...
and we didn't even say a word about how messy his desk was...ha ha! :)

Fall In Line, Service Boot Campers!

2012-02-02T08:20:00.000-05:00

Just a quick thought today.

As I was embarking on Service Boot Camp yesterday, I had a bunch of false starts. It was a busy day, and I thought any number of my activities could qualify as "my act of service" for the day, but I decided that all of it was just in my regular call of duty, and I wanted to go outside of that.

It was later in the day, and I still hadn't figured out who I was supposed to help.

As I drove to school to pick up Guy, I was thinking about Dana's service for the day "to open doors for people." I thought, ooh, I could do that, but I don't really go through any doors with people. I just go stand in line and pick up my son. Then the thought popped into my head: "You could give your place in line to the person behind you."

Eh? Come again? This was a foreign thought to me, I have to admit.

In the past, I've seen people give up their place in line to others at parent-pick-up, and to be perfectly honest, whenever I see that, I think, "Aw, what a sucker!" I have never let someone go ahead of me, because when I'm in line, I just want to T.C.B. and get out of there!

So, I knew that this idea to let someone go in front of me did not come from me.

But still I pushed it to the back of my mind.

When we arrived at school, I hopped in line. I was about the fourth parent in line.

I stood there quietly reading my book with about three feet and obvious silence between me and the people on each side of me. I sighed to myself and thought, "put your book away, Jocelyn, and be a good neighbor."

So I decided to ask the woman behind me what time she had and we made small-talk about the fact that school seemed to be getting out late over the last few weeks. Then she launched in to how pressed for time she always is after school anyway, because she has to rush her daughter home to change and eat with only ten minutes to get her to the meeting place for the car pool that takes her to swim practice 30 minutes away. If they are delayed, they miss their car pool. She wasn't really complaining, but I could hear the stress in her voice. Just then, I threw my hands up (in my mind)...I turned to her and said, "Since you're in a rush, and I am not, why don't you go ahead of me? Please..."

She protested a little, and I insisted, and off she went, ahead of me in line...as predicted by the Spirit just a half an hour earlier.

Now I don't know that that act made a huge difference in her time crunch, in fact, I'm pretty sure that I still made it out of the parking lot in front of her! :) But I do know that the Lord was aware of this mother and her desire to get her daughter where she needed to go and the stress that she felt in completing this daily duty.

I also know that in Service Boot Camp the size of the service is inconsequential compared to our mission to hone our abilities to follow the promptings of the Spirit. Because of that, Service Boot Camp could just as easily be named "Following-the-Spirit Boot Camp," because THAT'S what it's all about.

PS - And yes, another major purpose of my service mission yesterday was to recognize that I needed an attitude adjustment and to teach me that my purpose in standing in that line every day is NOT to TCB (take care of business) but to TCP (take care of people).
Lesson learned.

If you missed yesterday's post, check it out for some great service prompts and sign the Service Boot Camp contract from Dana Storrs!

Eat your heart out, Pinterest!

2012-02-01T22:27:00.003-05:00

I came home from New Beginnings tonight and this is what I found:

Guy's backpack...jammed full of "Valentines" that he made for his Kindergarten classmates.

He was chomping at the bit to make them, ever since his teacher sent home the list of names and instructed the children to make cards for each other.

I pleaded with him to wait until I could look for some "cute ideas" on Pinterest, but instead, he waited until I left for the evening and he went to town.

(Pretty sweet hearts, huh?)

When I returned home and found this...

...and that...

...and most of all this...

I just smiled to myself and thought..."Eat your heart out, Pinterest!"

This is a true Valentine...no frills, no instructions, no tutorials...

Just straight from the heart...the way that it should be.

Way to show us adults what's up, GUY!

(...Hmmm...I think I need to Pin this!) ;)

Service Boot Camp: Welcome New Recruits

2012-02-01T13:24:00.000-05:00

Pin It

I had the most bizarre thought today. I couldn't believe I even thought it.

I caught myself thinking, "Gee, I'm glad it's February. I just love February."

Now, you need to understand that February can be a really wicked month around here: freezing, below zero temps, sometimes for weeks at a time and absolutely no sun.

So what has changed my mind about February this year?

Well, beside the fact that Winter has graciously forgotten to show up in Central PA (it was 60 and sunny here yesterday!), our family is also embarking on our third year of Service Boot Camp in February.

This mandatory, month-long training exercise in serving others has really changed my outlook to the point that I have actually grown to love this time of year and all of the promise that it holds.

And what is even more exciting? We've got some brand-spanking new recruits in Boot Camp this year who are taking this challenge pretty seriously!

ROLL CALL!

First up, we have the Young Women of the Arvada 3rd Ward! Their platoon-leader Dana Storrs has really got them all riled up for a month of service. She created the fiercest little recruitment letter using this post and adding her own flare and the message to "Arise and Shine Forth". She layed it all on the line for her soldiers and even had them sign an enlistment contract!!! Reportedly, as soon as Dana read the words, "Are you IN or are you OUT?!" one of the girls hollered out enthusiastically, "I'M IN!!!"

Next, the girls created a paper-chain (in YW value colors) with service prompts to guide them in their efforts to serve others each day in February. (Click here to download the paper chain/service prompts and here to access the Service Boot Camp Contract! You can download it in Word and change the ward name!) The YW also made journals and cookies to have on hand while they serve.

I am inspired! Dana has done a beautiful job with this, and is allowing me to share her work with you! I am going to make a similar chain to help keep me marching to the service beat as well! Thank you, Squad-leader Dana!

Next up, we have Lieutenant Lexie, who along with her children, kicked off their month of Service Boot Camp by throwing a "Feel the Love" party. They even invited their entire ward to participate! I am looking forward to hearing updates from Lexie, Dana, and the brave YW of the Arvada 3rd Ward as the month progresses.

So what do you say? Are you ready to serve your cares away in Service Boot Camp this month? Well what are you waiting for??? Grab a button and sign on the dotted line...or just leave a comment and remember to report back every once in a while to let us all know how its going! We're all in this together!

Service Letter & Contract

Oh, oh, it's Magic.

2012-02-01T08:55:00.002-05:00

I was pleasantly surprised during GCBC yesterday to discover this little bar code at the end of one of the General Conference talks!

Guy is always on the look out for these. At restaurants he is always asking me to scan the ones on the back of ketchup. My response is always that I don't need to learn how to use ketchup. I'm so old, huh?

But a bar code on the pages of the General Conference edition of the Ensign...I can get into that. So here's how it works, if you don't already know or have never tried it. (I'm sure many of you have but for those who haven't...)

Click on the app on your smartphone that looks like a bar code.

Then the camera function will start looking for the code. Hold your phone over the little square until it registers. Then your phone will look like this...with a link to the talk online.

The three buttons across the bottom allow you to open it in a browser (so you can watch the talk immediately), share it via email, or share it via SMS (text, Twitter, etc).

And since I've got this song stuck in my head now, I've just gotta say: I had no idea that they installed a pool in the Great and Spacious Building! Did you?

Secret Service FHE

2012-01-31T08:23:00.000-05:00

Pin It

Shhhhh...

We have a secret.

We are going under-cover during the month of February as part of "The Secret Service!"

During a multi-family FHE last night, we held our annual "Bring Back Summer" Party, ate cool & crunchy tacos, and discussed King Benjamin's sermon in which he taught that "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God."

Then we enlisted the children in "The Secret Service." (An idea that I found in a past issue of the Friend!)

We gave each child a notebook (like the ones pictured above), and instructed them to identify someone to serve. They are to write down that person's name and what they'd like to do to serve them in their notebook. They'll keep track of their own efforts to serve others during the month of February, as they fulfill their top secret service missions!

I had been chatting with my friend Wendy a few weeks ago about what I'd like our family to do for Service Boot Camp this February, and she suggested that a focus on serving family members could be a worthy goal.

So, this morning, I instructed the children that our Secret Service mission didn't just extend to friends, but that we would need to also serve people in our home. We each drew the name of one person in our family to serve each day in February. Here's the name that I drew:

Shhhh! She doesn't know!

But I have been doing some recognizance of my own...and I think that she has me too.

(Plus, she "served" me a tray full of gum this morning!)

If you'd like to make similar notebooks and enlist your children in the "Secret Service," I have included a download of the image I used. Just print it off, and glue it to the front of any notebook. (There are two sizes provided here.)

Secret Service Notebook Graphic

Please check out That Good Part for her recap of FHE too today!

You can also read the rest of the FHE Chonicles here...and our other FHE ideas here.

(Perhaps I need to merge the two!?)

REKINDLE Your LOVE of the Scriptures

2012-01-30T06:53:00.000-05:00

Pin It

I received a question on my FB page from reader Deanna last night. She says this:

"Hi! I came across your blog last night and I'm so glad I did. My husband was born and raised in the Church and I am a convert. We had fallen away for about a year, and are just now starting to bring ourselves back to the Church in hopes to be sealed together [in the temple], etc. I have a difficult time studying/reading the Book of Mormon. Do you have any tips that may help me? I would greatly appreciate it, and I really enjoy reading your blog."

First of all, I want to say, "Good for you, Deanna!" There is no nobler goal than that of being sealed in the temple to your spouse and forming an eternal family. (I can see that your family will soon be growing too! Congratulations!)

I have to confess that I am not the fastest reader in the galaxy. I would much rather listen to someone lecture than read the exact same things, because I enjoy hearing their inflection, and I guess I'm just a people person. Reading, to me, is sort of a lonely sport. For instance, I can't hold a conversation with someone and read at the same time, so I suppose that might be my issue! :)

Anyway, just off the top of my head. This is what I would suggest to you, and to anyone else who wants to grow spiritually, but is having a hard time developing a love for scripture study.

First: PRAY for guidance. Ask the Lord to tell you through the Holy Ghost what method will bring YOU the most success in your desire to gain a love for the scriptures. (I'm assuming you've already done this.)

Also pray every time you read. Before. During. After. And remember that The Book of Mormon has a built in promise that if you pray about it, you will know of its truthfulness. You can do this more than once! :) (And there are many more promises that you can read about in the link above.)

Second: If you are finding it hard to read your scriptures, my first suggestion is to READ THE WORDS OF MODERN DAY PROPHETS. Look up talks from recent General Conferences which talk about scriptures...and in your case, talk about temples, families, sealing, testimony, and returning to activity. (Click here to study by topic.)

Read one talk a day and then scroll down to the bottom and look up EVERY scripture referenced in the talk. Keep a journal and record your thoughts about what you read every day. It might help to write out your favorite verses in your journal or to READ ALOUD to keep you focused.

Third: I love the Doctrines of the Gospel Student Manual. You can access it online, but get yourself a hard copy if you can and start studying it. I firmly believe that everyone needs to GAIN A TESTIMONY OF THE BASICS. If I were you, I'd start by studying every concept taught in this manual. Again, read EVERY scripture referenced in each lesson.

3.5: Select scriptures to MEMORIZE - Click here for a manageable list of Book of Mormon verses from A-Z. Your daily study could consist of just memorizing a scripture. Post your favorite verses in places you can see them (and ponder them) throughout the day. But don't just read them off the paper, look them up in your scriptures!

Fourth: I never really became passionate about reading my scriptures until I read it because I REALLY wanted to know and understand its message...like my life depended on it.

When I was in college, I read The Book of Mormon at the beginning of each study session, and I would often find myself studying my scriptures well into the time I should have been studying Portuguese (can you blame me?).

What had changed? My desire. Make sure that you are hungering and thirsting after righteousness. Perhaps if you trained yourself to read a few verses of scripture EVERY time you wanted to watch TV, you'd start to RETRAIN YOUR DESIRES.

Fifth: READ IT LIKE A NOVEL. When I challenged myself to read the Book of Mormon in 30 Days, I found myself having to read 20-30 pages a day (depending on how far behind I got!) Instead of getting bogged down in the "And it came to passes," I blew through stories rather quickly. I might not have caught every intricate piece of doctrine, but I started to get a better feel for the storylines and personalities in that book, which I didn't internalize as easily when I was reading only a few verses at a time.

Sixth: TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TECHNOLOGY. We live during a time when reading is not your only option for obtaining the word of the Lord.

I listen to the scriptures sometimes in the car, and almost always have General Conference playing while I clean the kitchen. We aren't like Tangled...living in a tower, with hours a day at our disposal to read, and bake, and play puzzles...but you can do yourself and your family a favor by choosing uplifting music and listening to scriptures and making those the permanent soundtrack for your home!

Technology can help us to absorb good messages all the time if we use it correctly. (Click here for links to different scripture formats.) And if you do read your scriptures online, it makes reading footnotes and cross-references much easier.

Seventh: USE A SCRIPTURE-MARKING TUTORIAL like the ones at The Red Headed Hostess to bring a fresh perspective to the way that you study.

Ultimately, what will relight the fire of your testimony is the influence of the Holy Ghost, which you will be most open to as you spend time in the scriptures every day! Even if you only read a few scriptures each time, open your book and JUST DO IT! :)

So those are the suggestions that immediately came to mind, that have helped me to gain a love of the scriptures. Now, I'm going to go take a dose of my own medicine.

Do you have any suggestions to add to this list? Please speak up and add your thoughts below. I am sure that we will all appreciate it!

Planning FHE

2012-01-29T14:00:00.000-05:00

Pin It

I have two pieces of exciting news to share with you today:

First, I am happy to announce that I am now writing for the Friend's new blog of "Weekly Thoughts and Tips". On my allotted week, I will be offering up a new tip to help you teach your children the Gospel of Jesus Christ...using resources from the Friend. Click on over there right now to find out about our simple method for planning tons of great Family Home Evening lessons...quick and easy! You know...like I like it!

Second, I have a beautiful new blog layout, thanks to my very generous and talented friend Courtney of My Ordinary, Every Day, Happily Ever After! She dedicated many hours to updating my blog, and I love it! The purpose of the redesign was to make it easier for everyone to navigate and find content on my site. It is also easier to Pin and share stuff that you like! Check it out, but pardon the dust as I make a few more renovations! Let me know what you think, and please give Courtney a big THANK YOU for her hard work! Thank you, so much, Courtney!!

Two Weapons in this War

2012-01-28T21:32:00.000-05:00

Last Tuesday, during General Conference Book Club, we discussed Elder Holland's talk "We Are All Enlisted".

In his simple, yet powerful way, Elder Holland declared that we are at war--a war between good and evil. He said that in this "war" the Lord needs people who will "take as their weapons 'every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God.'"

He then quotes Elder Packer when he says that Satan's "effort to stop the work will be reasonably well served if he can just bind the tongue of the faithful."

I too believe that we are living in the middle of a struggle between good and evil. I do what I can each day to prevent my friends from becoming casualties of that war and to bring them to a safe place where they can enjoy the peace and love of the Savior.

So, let's review:

Our weapon: "every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God."

Satan's weapon: "to bind the tongue of the faithful"

Sounds pretty straight-forward, right? I wondered, "How can we unbind our tongues here in Central PA?"

Later in the week, I was given an opportunity to "unbind my tongue".

After reading 8 different articles in mainstream media that day suggesting that many people are not sure what Mormons believe, I decided to let my friends on Facebook know that I would gladly answer any questions they might have about the Mormon faith.

Sixty-nine comments later, we had ourselves a pretty good discussion. Among other things, my friends learned that, yes, Mormons like tacos, celebrate birthdays, worship God in the name of Christ, perform baptisms for our loved ones, and wear garments as a sign of temple covenants. It was a good exercise in answering questions about our faith.

And I realized how easy it can be to "voluntarily bind our own tongues," if we do not seize every opportunity to "sign on and speak up." What will you do this week to voluntarily UN-bind your tongue and to take as your weapon "every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God?"

PS - If you'd like to read the entire discussion, you can access it on my personal FB page.

Little Eyes Are Watching You

2012-01-27T16:32:00.000-05:00

Pin It

Little eyes are upon you

and they're watching night and day.

There are little ears that quickly

take in every word you say.

There are little hands all eager

to do the things you do.

And a little girl who's dreaming

of the day she'll be like you."

-Little Eyes Upon You

LDS Lacing Cards

2012-01-27T08:07:00.000-05:00

Pin It

I pinned this super cute idea for LDS lacing cards on my General Conference Idea board.

And I was all pumped up about it, until I realized there wasn't a nice neat download associated with this pin! (Booo...)

But that's OK! I scavenged around to find these cute bits of clip art to make into lacing cards for my kids. Sunday morning is a long time when church starts at 11am.

I found the images at the following sites:

http://www.freeldsart.com/book-of-mormon.htm

http://www.sugardoodle.net/Temple/index.shtml

http://melonheadsldsillustrating.blogspot.com/2011/05/missionaries.html

If you use images from these sites, please use them for your personal use only, or according to their usage terms.

(And please let the rest of us know if you have found other cute free LDS clip art that could be used for lacing cards!)

The kids were pretty intrigued to find these waiting for them at the breakfast table on Sunday morning. Sunday is a special day. I like to make it feel special in whatever way I can!

Thanks everyone for linking up in The Book of Mormon Blog Hop this week!

The winner of the Customized Family Tree from Shabby Ladybug is:

Karmen of Karmen's Kreations!

Thanks for linking up and commenting on other's posts, Karmen!
Please email me, Karmen, and special thanks to Shabby Ladybug for supporting our efforts!

To Know, Know, Know Me...

2012-01-26T07:00:00.001-05:00

A couple of you pointed out that I didn't say what I like about myself in my FHE post earlier this week. And Darlene said I don't share enough about myself on here, which makes me laugh because I think, hello, I'm sharing my raw feelings with you guys every day (sometimes twice a day). Is it not enough for you people?! :) Kidding. Anyway, DeAnn from The SIP Project tapped me for a little Q&A session on her blog, so here are my answers for your reading pleasure. I mean, if you have absolutely nothing better to do...

If you have any other burning questions for me, feel free to drop me a line and I'll do my best to answer them! (jocelyn.christensen@gmail.com)

1. If you could live anywhere, where would you live?

In Central Pennsylvania where I live now, except maybe on a property with a lot more trees. It's THE SUN that I would move and my family to be closer to me! I'd also like to live closer to a temple.

2. What keeps you going back to a blog time and again?

Jealousy. I'm kidding. Um, a unique voice and sincerity.

3. What are your top 3 favorite places to shop?

Any place with good make-up and well-made suits.

I also love needlework stores and Amish/Mennonite stores.

And discount outlets.

That's a very weird mix, I know.

4. What gadget are you drooling over at the moment?

No gadget, just my new BIG print scriptures. We are slowly getting to know each other.

I like them better than reading on any device, that's for sure!

5. What do you hate about blogging, if anything?

That I can't do it 24 hours a day. I wish I could clone myself so I could be living my real life while simultaneously documenting my thoughts about it on my blog. I also wish I could blog while running on the treadmill. I fear that I'm getting "blogger's tush."

6. What tech skill do you wish you were better at?

Website design/HTML, so I wouldn't have to bug friends to help me!

7. What makes your heart smile?

My children.

8. What is your dream job?

I am doing it. Motherhood has always been my dream job, but I also wanted to be President of the United States, CEO of a major corporation, a lawyer, a teacher, a country singer, and the next big name in TV news. All of those occupations seemed enticing to me until I experienced the love of a child. Nothing else compares to that.

9. What is your biggest pet peeve?

People who have pet peeves.

10. What is the post on your blog you're most proud of?

That's a toughy...Maybe Osama, No Longa, or A Note from My 80-Year-Old Self, or The Real Lesson of September 11th or Too Beautiful to Bake or the article that I wrote about Doing My Dream Job, but definitely ALL of my Family Proclamation Lesson posts!

(I just asked my husband. He says, "That is an impossible question.")

Basically out of 880-some posts, I absolutely love at least 860 of them. So take your pick. To me each post represents an important experience that has helped shape who I am...I love them as life lessons more than as "posts".

11. Best piece of advice for new bloggers?

Take it slow. Be true to your inner voice. Do it because you love it and for no other reason.

The Abundant Life by DeAnn

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

Hello, I am DeAnn from The SIP project (Service Is Painless).

I started my blog a few months ago as a way to hopefully reach out and inspire anyone who comes across my blog. I wanted to find a way to use my talent (photography) to serve others and was not completely happy with anything I saw out there. While there are many worthy causes, they are all very narrow in their reach, which is fine, don't get me wrong, it just doesn't fit me. So I started the SIP project.

Here's how it works: I pair up with someone and take their photos and in return they do a service project of their choosing. Then I post some of their photos and service project experience is on my blog. I offer this service in hopes of inspiring others to use their time, talents, and hobbies to serve others. Being a wife and a mom are my first priorities. My life would be empty without them. A big motivating factor in starting The SIP project was my kids; I want them to know how to serve. I want it to be a very natural part of who they are.

I am excited to be here today! I was so excited when my sister sent me a link to Jocelyn's blog. It's so refreshing to have someone like Jocelyn, (an intelligent and wonderful Mom), have her blog totally focused on sharing and encouraging us to live the Gospel. When I saw her service page I was stoked and knew I had to talk to her. Come on, leave her a comment and tell her how much you appreciate her hard work. It will make her day, I promise :)

I love that in the First Presidency message in the Ensign this month, President Monson breaks down "The Abundant Life" in three simple steps. That's how I like it...tell me exactly HOW you get from point A to point B.

He Breaks it down into what he call's the ABC's of an Abundant Life.

President Monson, well he is just remarkable, isn't he? Have you read his biography To The Rescue? If you haven't, you should. He is intelligent and and he follows the spirit. I imagine he is much like our Savior; he doesn't yell at us or get mad at us...even if sometimes we feel like we deserve it. President Monson points us to our Savior because he KNOWS it is through the Atonement and living the gospel that we can return again to live with our Father in Heaven.

As I think about the above message, this story from Elder Carl B. Cook in the last General Conference comes to mind. I feel this is what he is ALWAYS saying to US; it exemplifies Pres. Monson's character and his desire to have us look to our Savior.

Elder Cook shares this story in his talk, "It is Better to Look Up". During his first week as a general authority, in the elevator as he was leaving the office of the seventy he was pondering, "How can I possibly do this?" As he stared blankly at the floor, someone came in the elevator. The person asked, "What are you looking at down there?" He recognized the voice to be that of Pres. Monson. "Oh nothing," he responded. Of course Pres. Monson could see that he was having a hard time and said, "It is better to look up!"

Pres. Monson could have said many things at this point like, "oh..it will be okay," or "don't worry you'll figure things out." How many times do we hear ourselves and others saying stuff like that to others? I do. But what we need to do is do as Pres. Monson did - point people to the Savior.

It is in Him we will find our comfort and not in food or blogging, or TV, etc. If we seek to be comforted by anyone or thing but Him it is wrong.

Why don't we look to Him more? Because praying is work! And the natural man is LAZY. It's EASY to shove something in your mouth or go shopping, but will we find our solace there?

President Monson is the prophet after all, don't you think he could have shared some grand advice? He simply said, "it's better to look up." We could all learn from that. People don't need those kinds of empty words no matter how good our intentions. We need to keep it simple, say what we feel inspired to say and let the spirit work on them and bring them comfort. This will turn them to our Savior.

Elder Cook continues, "As we parted, the words of a scripture came to my mind: 'Believe in God; believe that he is...; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth.' As I thought of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's power, my heart found the comfort I had sought in vain from the floor [or cookie, or home goods] of that descending elevator." The spirit spoke to him. All because of Pres. Monson's simple words, "It's better to look up."

Thanks for letting me take over your blog for today Jocelyn :)

Thank YOU, DeAnn! As you guys may or may not know:

FEBRUARY is always Service Boot Camp around here.

You can participate in a number of ways, which I am talking about today over on

DeAnn's blog The S.I.P. Project.

Please come on over and say hi!

Secret Service Handshake FHE

2012-01-24T10:18:00.000-05:00

I love this girl. She loves to wear dresses and suck her thumb...and wear the nightgown that I made for her for Christmas and snuggle. Makes me so happy. She also loves drawing pictures of our family and jumping off of high places while saying "I'm flying!" on the way down.

And this girl. I love her too, lots and lots. She is is precocious and silly and spunky and loves to be the "little mama". She is learning to cook and loves to care for others. Last night she baked cookies for our FHE treat in her Easy Bake oven. We all enjoyed it while taking tiny bites. They were the size of a quarter! :)

And this one...what a character. The other night he read the entire book "The Best Nest" to us. After each page he jumped up and down with excitement. His goal is to earn money to buy more Legos this year. During quiet time at school he drew a poster of Angry Birds and informed me that he plans on selling them to his classmates to earn extra cash, but that I need to contact the company that makes Angry Birds and get their permission to do so. Wise and enterprising.

Oh and can't forget this one. The Renaissance Man: bikes, bakes, fishes, fixes, reads, travels. The glue that holds us all together.

Together, we are...the ThunderCats! NO not really, I just felt like saying that. But when I look at each member of our family and recognize them for their amazing super powers, it inspires me to find more effective ways to help each one of them "fly" in their respective areas of interest and talent. (When was the last time that you sat down and spelled out in detail the special talents and contributions of each member of your family?)

During Family Home Evening last night, we talked about Captain Moroni and how he wrote down the things that were important on a banner so that others would remember what they were working toward/fighting for.

After reviewing our personal and family goals for the year which we keep recorded in a family goals journal, I asked the kids to come up with a phrase that would help us to remember our family's goal for the year: "Serve Others" is the oh-so clever phrase they came up with! :)

Then the kids decided to invent a secret family handshake that coincides with our goal to "serve others." That way we can have a cool little secret service "club" that is just for our family. ;) It's fun to have things as a family that are all our own!

FHE ended with about an hour until bedtime. Since Steve is out of town, we decided to chill out together in the living room just doing whatever we felt like doing. Autumn colored. Scarlett played computer games on the Friend website. Guy worked on his Angry Birds poster. And I practiced playing the new Primary song on the piano. It was real nice and down-homey feeling to just hang out together like that. Very relaxing.

As you might be starting to realize...I don't try to get too fancy during FHE. Having fun together, making memories, reading some scriptures, and leaving with a good feeling in our hearts for one another is one of my main goals for our time together in FHE. And we certainly did that last night.

Please check out my pal Catania's Family's experience in FHE too today...
they discussed the sacredness of homes and temples!

Family Tree Giveaway & Link-up

2012-01-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

Here's some GOOD NEWS for a Monday morning! :)

One of you faithful readers WILL WIN this custom family tree in digital format from

Shabby Ladybug on Etsy!

As you know, I'm hosting a link-up for The Book of Mormon Forum this week.

Everyone who links-up a post or comments on a post in the link-up this week will be entered to win. Also, all followers of this blog will be entered to win.

To ENTER: Simply leave a comment on this post telling me if you:

a. FOLLOW my blog on Google Friend Connect (see sidebar)

b. LINKED-UP a post about The Book of Mormon below

c. COMMENTED on any of the Book of Mormon posts in the link-up
(You can enter on this one multiple times...)

Please leave a comment on THIS POST for each entry.

I've copied the link-up below to make it easier for you to link-up and comment!

(Or you can GO HERE TO LINK-UP.)

Have a great Monday!

Bad Guys of The Book of Mormon

2012-01-22T07:00:00.000-05:00

This book is dangerous, I tell you!

When my Mom told me about this book, I ordered it immediately. When it arrived in the mail, I opened the box and lifted the book out backward.

This is what I read: "Your enemy is smart. You can be smarter."

(I like it already...continue...)

"Warning! This book contains information about a deadly enemy's top secret plans of world domination and total destruction. Your mission--should you choose to accept it--is to learn what the enemy is planning as well as what his weaknesses are so that you will be prepared to defeat him."

Seriously, sign me UP!

Admittedly, I am a slow reader, and I get distracted EASILY in my home.

HOWEVER: I am loving this book.

It's full of thrilling tales from The Book of Mormon and words of wisdom from our prophets.

Now last week, MMM asked us to find the moral in his story about a blind man who directed his seeing cab driver through the streets of San Francisco, safely back to his home.

In the second chapter of Bad Guys of The Book of Mormon, in discussing the "great and spacious building" in Lehi's Dream, the author quotes Elder Packer as saying:

"At your baptism and confirmation, you took hold of the iron rod. But you are never safe. It is after you have partaken of the fruit that your test will come...

"The mist of darkness will cover you at times so much that you will not be able to see your way even a short distance ahead. You will not be able to see clearly. But with the gift of the Holy Ghost, you can feel your way ahead through life. Grasp the iron rod, and do not let go."

How does this relate to a blind man finding his way home through the busy and winding streets of San Fran? Each one of us walks this life with uncertainties. There are things that happen in our lives that cast a mist of darkness to cloud up the way, making it difficult for us to see the way home or to see anything at all very clearly.

Instead of groping around in the darkness, if we receive the Holy Ghost, he will help us to "see" through the mists that blind us, so that we can return home safely.

The Book of Mormon is the word of God. It is the "iron rod" to which we must grasp and never let go. It teaches us about the "good guys" in life and the "bad guys." But most importantly, it teaches us about Jesus Christ and about the tactics that Satan uses to separate us from the Lord and from his love, which is manifest to us in the Atonement of his Only Begotten Son. By reading The Book of Mormon and abiding by its teachings, we can see past the cares of this world and find the path back to our heavenly home.

Saturday Night Pop Quiz

2012-01-21T21:23:00.001-05:00

I know, it's not fair to spring a pop quiz on you on a Saturday night, but it just might do you some good. So be brave, put in your thinking caps, and begin:

Name the following priesthood officers who serve you:

The President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: ____________________

__________________, ________________ (bonus points for naming the other two Presidency members)

Members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles ________________, _______________, ______________, __________________, ________________, ________________, ________________, __________________, _________________, _____________, __________________, ________________

Your stake president ______________________

_____________________, ___________________ (bonus points for naming his counselors)

Your bishop or branch president _______________________

Your home teachers ________________________, ______________________

Who is your immediate priesthood leader? ____________________

Now, next to each name that you have listed, write down a principle that that person has taught you in the last year.

This questionnaire is part of the Young Women lesson #13 that I am teaching tomorrow.

In preparation for the lesson, I decided to take the quiz myself, curious to see how I'd do. The lesson just asks you to name the priesthood officers, I added the bit about writing down their teachings just for fun! I have to admit though, I had to really strain my brain to come up with all of the names.

But don't worry if you have blanks on your test...It's pretty much open book!

General Conference will be coming around again soon...in 69 days actually.

Yep, I'm counting...

Family Proclamation Images

2012-01-20T00:02:00.000-05:00

Pin It

The Family: A Proclamation to the World spells out simple, universal truths that make up God's plan of happiness for all of his children.

Lines such as "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ." and "All human beings--male and female--are created in the image of God," are just a few of the profound truths found in this inspired document.

I believe that knowledge of these simple ideas could bring a lot of happiness to families that I know. That is why I want to make sure that anyone who is looking for these basic truths can find them easily.

To that end, here is a small collection of images that I have created using both my own (humble) original photos and royalty-free images.

Feel free to use these images in blog posts about The Family Proclamation or

to Pin the Family Proclamation from the church's website.
(In fact, I've made it easy for you...All of the "Pin it" buttons on this post link directly to the church's Family Proclamation page. So Pin-away!)

If after looking at these images, you want to know more about what we believe about families, please read The Family Proclamation here.

Pin It

Pin It

PS - If you have created similar images,

i'd love to see or share them here!

Pin It

The Messy Process of Progress

2012-01-19T09:55:00.000-05:00

I asked my good gal pal Misha to come hang out with me in blogland today. So glad I did.

Read this, and you'll see why I like having Misha around...as a real-life, flesh and blood friend! (And not just because she always comes bearing gifts!) Here's Misha:

It's all about decision making. Life. It's becoming more and more evident to me. Decisions. Hard ones, easy ones, complicated ones, necessary ones, you name it.

The other day, a friend of mine was over and she was talking about the changes in her house after the death of her grandmother. See, they lived in the same house but on separate sides. She was able to pass through to her grandma's side on her way to her parent's house. Yeah, they all lived right there with each other. In a perfect world, that would be my living arrangement too. Family unity, is one of the keys to a happy life and longevity. Of this, I am a firm believer. Anyway, she and her family are in the process of moving grandma's stuff out, cleaning the rooms, finding which items they want to keep and which they don't mind giving away or selling. "Our house is such a wreck, it doesn't look like we're making any progress!" I smiled. She had just given me my blog post. HAH.

Please, don't tell me I'm the only one who has made serious decisions in an effort to move their family forward (well, my husband and I). It's almost like "cleaning up". You sift through all your options, categorize them, weigh the pros and cons, sometimes you let them sit there a while, while you munch on your lower lip and poke it with your toe. But eventually, that moment comes when it (those options or choices) becomes either: a keeper or a tosser. But in the mean time, everything seems like such a mess! Recently, our family had to make one of the toughest decisions to date. I cried, and cried and wept the night through, but I knew it had to be done. It was time. The situation we were leaving wasn't horrible, we were not being mistreated, in fact, we were loved, but our time there was done. For our family, the path had moved a little to the right, taking us away...and we needed to stay on course.

That's the thing about progress. It's perpetual. It's a forward motion, albeit slow, that can not be stopped. So, either go with it or be dragged along kicking and screaming. Usually, the kicking and screaming would indicate poor decisions are being made. But even if you're making the right choices, sometimes things can get messy. People don't understand, they take it personal, they don't agree...stuff like that. Relationships are either ruined, or not quite ruined but changed just enough to make it uncomfortable to be in close proximity :( Not everyone is moving along the same path, what is best for one family may not be what is best for your family. And, do I have to say it? Family, FIRST. At all costs, at the cost of frowns and judgmental stares, at the cost of relationships...the progress, the choices, the outcome of your family -- it rests on your shoulders. Not everyone will agree, but that's ok.

Progress is a process, and it's messy. No doubt about it.

But if it involves the well-being of my children, I can handle the messes. It's worth it to me.

Misha shares these and other wonderful insights at Mommy Hobbies.

Go check her out and give her a Follow for me, won't you?

Little hands are...

2012-01-18T14:28:00.000-05:00

...the reason why I have to be quick in the morning.

How the Holy Ghost Makes Us Feel

2012-01-17T07:00:00.000-05:00

Of all of the things that Family Home Evening is good for (i.e. togetherness, building memories, having fun, teaching, solving problems, creating family bonds) I am gaining an understanding that the most important reason for family home evening is that, as a family, we experience the spirit together.

Last night's FHE was a beautiful example of this.

First let me back up to earlier in the day.

As a Mama, I take my role of "Lioness at the Gate" quite seriously. I don't like to let unvirtuous influences invade the peace of my home.

So you can imagine how perturbed I was early in the day when I sat down with my kids to watch a show that came highly recommended to me, only to be caught completely off-guard by a brazenly smutty interaction between two characters in the show. And I mean, completely caught off guard. Boy was this Mama lion roaring. (Internally, of course.)

It wouldn't be until much later in the day, during FHE, that I would recognize the role that the Spirit played in somehow making sure that my children decided to run off and play just moments before the offending scene flashed onto the screen.

I immediately turned off the show. I felt spiritually drained by this unexpected attack on my quiet day at home with the children.

We left the house seeking more wholesome adventures together and were justly rewarded for our efforts. We played on a playground for four hours, made friends, and had a wonderful day.

Then on the way home, we followed through with part A of FHE which was to visit some residents at an assisted living community near our home. We had spent a great deal of time there last Christmas season, and I was pleased to see that some of the residents remembered us.

While we were there, we listened to a Russian church's children's choir that was performing, (coincidentally, we knew many members of the choir!) It was very sweet. They sang Christmas carols in both English and Russian (Yes, it's MLK, Jr. Day today, but whatever!) Most of them knew only as many English words as made up the lyrics for Silent Night. When they sang, I could really feel the Spirit returning to my heart.

When we finally returned home, Steve was back from work. We ate dinner and commenced with part B of FHE, which was for Steve to give each of us a Father's blessing for the new year. Steve explained or rather reminded us that because he holds the priesthood, he holds the power to give us special blessings, admonishments, and words of comfort as he places his hands on our heads and receives promptings and words from the Holy Spirit.

Before he started we sang, I Am a Child of God. Then I prayed. Then Steve asked us to pay special attention to see if we can tell when the spirit enters the room.

I felt it. And I think that the children did too.

As Steve pronounced blessings upon each of us, naming our specific needs, and assuring us of God's love for each one of us individually, we felt a spirit of peace rest upon our family as a whole.

The feeling was in complete contrast to the evil spirit that had invaded our home earlier. That spirit made me angry and upset, and left me feeling violated and helpless and frustrated.

The feeling that entered our home while we prayed and sang and were blessed together during family home evening, caused us to feel calm and whole and empowered and loved and unified and strong.

I am so thankful for the priesthood, for a husband who is able to bless our family, and for a home where the Spirit can dwell. And I am thankful for opportunities to learn about the Spirit and to help my children understand how to recognize and appreciate the power and the influence of the Holy Ghost.

PS - Check out another great FHE Chronicle at That Good Part.

He Knows You

2012-01-15T16:41:00.000-05:00

Pin It

Some people are not sure that God exists. The term these people typically identify themselves with is "agnostic".

It's hard not knowing things. And by nature, in this life, there are many things of which we are unsure. But we do not have to be ignorant of the existence of a Heavenly Father. If we want to know that He exists, all we have to do is ask.

In 2003, I was jobless, living in Washington, DC. I was trudging through my second excrutiating month of being unemployed. My tiny stash of savings was depleted, and the bills were piling up. One particular day, I was on my way to what would surely be yet another painful job interview--ending in rejection.

Dressed up, but feeling very down, I sat in the metro station waiting for my train.

The world was moving so quickly around me. It seemed like everything that could go wrong in a young life pretty much had--and in a very short period of time. With no job and no money, I was starting to wonder if one day I might just simply disappear. Would anyone even notice that I no longer existed? I was beginning to wonder.

As my train approached, I said a quick silent prayer, "Please, Heavenly Father, I need to know that you know I am here...please help me to share the gospel with someone today..."

My prayer was suddenly interrupted by the sound of my train's doors opening.

I quickly boarded my train, and since it wasn't very crowded, I sat in one of the roomy seats usually reserved for the elderly. I had made a habit of reading my church institute manual during my commute, so I started reading where I left off in a chapter about the nature of God.

At the very next stop, a woman boarded and sat to the right of me. After a while, I noticed that she was reading over my shoulder! She then asked me what I was reading. I told her that it was a church book about the basic beliefs of my religion. Before she left the train, I gave her my book, and she gave me a religious book she had been reading. It was a nice exchange.

As she walked away, I was stunned by how quickly and completely the Lord had answered my prayer. I was filled with the realization that he was aware of me and cared about my concerns enough to answer a simple prayer whispered in the corners of my mind in a dark lonely subway station. He let two of his children know that He was aware of them that day.

Some people might rationalize away that little story, but for me, it was no small miracle. It's something that I try never to forget.

The Lord takes all of us through difficult times in order to demonstrate to us that he is aware of us and that he loves us.

Just last night, I was reading scriptures with my children. Before I began reading, I said a prayer that I would feel his love for me. As I read a certain passage I gained even more understanding about why I went through that particularly difficult time in my life.

This is what I read, "...I will also be your ^alight in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the ^bpromised land; and ye shall ^cknow that it is by me that ye are led.

Yea, and the Lord said also that: After ye have arrived in the promised land, ye shall ^aknow that I, the Lord, am^bGod; and that I, the Lord, did ^cdeliver you from destruction..."

The words "I, the Lord, am God", "it is by me that ye are led," and "I, the Lord, did deliver you" really stood out. They were no longer just words on a page, but a message from the Lord spoken directly to me. I knew then that the Lord lead me through difficult times so that I would know that He is God.

The Lord, God, Our Heavenly Father does exist. Not only is he aware of us, but he is deeply interested in our lives. You don't have to just take my word for it...You can ask him yourself.

------------------------------