Dangerous day

On the day after my birthday last year, Scott had an appendectomy.

This year, it was Ben who needed the trip to the ER.  During a particularly competitive racquetball game, he ran into a wall, first with his shoulder and then with his head.  He came home nauseous, so I took him in to get x-rayed.  Thankfully he did not break anything.  The doctor thought he might have torn his rotator cuff, though after several days of improvement, we now think it was just traumatized and bruised.

So, family, you have been warned.  I don't want a 3-peat of ER trips following my birthday.  Got it?  Good.

Hippo Birdie Two Ewe (Me)

I had a pretty sweet birthday this year.  My kids were more excited for it than I was (and this will probably be the case for several more years).  They were still in school, so Ben was going to take me to breakfast after the older four left--but I decided after being awake with Benson through the night I'd rather take a nap. It was lovely.

I hosted my preschool music class in the morning, and then was surprised when Ben came home and we were able to go out for lunch.  So yummy!  Then I got to play with my new phone, which Ben got for me since he felt sorry for how long it took me to text on my old one, while wearing my new slippers, since my old ones were holey.  (I know, my trials are a-heavy.)

For dinner, Ben made me a lasagna soup that I had seen on Our Best Bites.  We have declared it our favorite soup of the year.  Or decade.  My cake was angel food with raspberries and chocolate ice cream.  Yes, it was a sweet birthday.

But wait--the best part was the 6th Grade Band Concert we got to attend that evening!  And it truly was a treat.  The place was packed, but we found a spot for our crew right behind Scott!  And while the other instrument groups garnered comments like, "Well, that's decent for only four months of playing the instrument...", Scott's percussion group was actually pretty good, and even had some actions to go with their songs.  He played the jingle bells for one song and the snare drum for the other.

I know this was my first child's first band concert--I hope that I enjoy my last child's first band concert as much!

A Very Merry Christmas!

Joy to your family from ours!

 Benson--8 months

 Tessa--3

 Caytie--5

 Gracie--7

 Emma--9

 Scott--11

 The Momma--one year older, and wiser too, we hope.

The Dad--debated his age for ten minutes before accepting he was a year off.

(No family shot this year; just individuals by the tree.  But I think it does the job.)

(I believe that 50% of our ornaments involve popsicle sticks.  I love it.)

(My house has exploded.  I think that I'm the only one who has noticed--everyone else is busily playing and playing.)

(We had a surprise White Christmas!  While it was absolutely beautiful, Ben was on call, and had to go in to work on Christmas.  I made him go after breakfast before the roads got too bad.  He made it home safely for a cozy afternoon.)

(Ben and Scott left the day after Christmas for a winter Scout camp.  All winter the weather has been surprisingly warm, until this week.  Brrrr!)

(I got a tablet for my Christmas gift, and a smarter phone for my birthday the week before.  I never knew how handy they are.  Ben is anxious for me to get my fill so he can play, too.)

(I caught a cold.  I need to go to bed.)

Rise, All Loyal Cougars

At school every week the kids have "Think College Thursday," when they are encouraged to wear a college t-shirt.  The three girls, in particular, have asked repeatedly for shirts from BYU, which we could have easily picked up this summer had we known about this new program, but...we didn't.

I was thinking about ordering some recently when I remembered that I had a stash of plain clearance shirts I'd picked up a few years ago for $1, just waiting for someone to grow into them.  I pulled them out, and found a couple just the right size.

I'd known about doing potato stamping on paper projects, but had seen someone do it on shirts with acrylic paint, so we decided to try it.  I only had a sweet potato, but it worked out great.  I printed off some letters, traced them and carved them into the potato, and got out the blue and white paint.

Let the fun begin!

 After ironing on a few sparkles and stars, the girls were ready for the next Think College Thursday as happy mini Cougars.

Not too bad for $3 and a potato.

I love it

I'm pretty sure I saw a bald eagle fly over our yard when I was outside with my girls.  At first I thought it was one of the black vultures around, but then I saw its full white head.  It made me feel all proud to be an American and everything.

I like it here in our little corner of the world.

Hot dog!

Halloween was here, oh, a month and a half ago--so it's about time to post some pictures, right?

With it being his first Halloween, Benson had to take a few days to get in the mood.  These glasses really helped.

 (Despite how it appears, Emma does have clothing on.)

The night arrived with beautiful weather.  Our group included a princess, a lazy person, a ballerina, a black cat, a hot dog, and a werewolf.

 We have limited pictures of the evening, unfortunately, because these kids were ready to go RIGHT NOW. The little hot dog got to have a close up, though.

My friend let us borrow this costume, and Benson thanks her profusely, since he didn't want to follow the tradition of our last four children and be a pink bunny for his first Halloween.  Scott just wore some pumpkin pajamas for his first year.  My friend and her husband were ketchup and mustard to match their baby hot dog last year, and  did the cutest Up costumes this year. Do you think that someday we can pull off a family theme?  Ummm, how about Up?? :)

A letter

Dear Blog,

I like you.  Do you like me?  (Check the box "yes" or "no.")

I still believe in you.  I know we can do great things together.  Please be patient while my brain sorts itself out, and I download some pictures.  That may take a while (for both things).

Love your friend (I hope),
me

Decor

I'm not a decorator.  I'm not a "pinner,"  and I'm not someone with ideas that people would pin, either.  But the walls need things on them, and I generally like what goes up, so I thought I'd share some recent additions.

I saw these as a giveaway on a blog, and liked them so much that I purchased the files and printed them.  They're from Alexis Merrill's etsy shop.  She was great to work with--I wanted specific people, and she created a special order for me.  If you can't read them, the ones I got say, "Obedient like Samuel," "Steadfast like Abish," "Happy like Eve," "Brave like Esther," "True like Hannah," and "Faithful like Alma."

 They hang in the hallway by the kids' bedrooms, so they get a daily reminder of heroes I'd love for them to emulate.

For Halloween I had hung some skeletons from little hooks on our mantle.  After we took them down, I thought we needed some Fall colors, so Tessa and I took a walk and collected some leaves.  Then I laid out a thin rope, got out my glue gun, stuck them on, and hung it up.  It is a rather temporary decoration, but it was so easy, I would happily do it again next year.

After our summer focus on the 13th Article of Faith, I wanted to have it printed out nicely, to hang in the same place where we had hung up the wordstrips.  I tried printing something from someone's website, but it came out all pixelated, so I thought I'd just make one myself.  I took this picture (below) that Scott had taken on our trip to Salt Lake this summer and put it into Photoshop.

 I have absolutely no experience in using Photoshop (as evidenced by all the photos on my blog), so I just blindly played around with it, until I made it do some things I thought I wanted--and then printed it out and stuck in in a $3 frame.  And I really like it.  (The angle is odd because I wanted to avoid the glare of the flash on the words.)

And then there's Charlotte.  She's a spider.  She showed up the day after Halloween, and is still here, to the delight of my children.  She lives OUTSIDE only.  I haven't looked up her scientific name, but she's called a banana spider (because her legs are yellow and brown) and a zipper spider (because she makes a zipper pattern in her web).  Those with delicate insect constitutions should probably avoid looking out of that window for the next little while.

In the clear

Look who's sitting now!  At least for a few seconds...

Before Benson was born, he was diagnosed with hydronephrosis, which is excess fluid in his kidneys.  Two of my girls also had it, and it cleared up on its own for them, so I wasn't worried.  Sure enough, we had his final checkup, and his kidneys are now extra-fluid-less.  Hooray!

A couple funny things from the trip...  The doctor used a little ultrasound wand to check out Benson's kidneys.  Tessa was with me, as always, and, after observing the doctor's actions, asked, "Is Benson going to have a baby?"

As we drove past our local Chili's, we saw that they were getting new signs.  They were the large chili pepper with an apostrophe and a large S.  Tessa's assessment: "Look, a big strawberry...with worms!"  Mmmm.

Things I forget

My mind is muddled.

I have noticed that I regularly forget things that used to be automatic.  My hope is that if I write them here, I'll be able to remember them again!  (I would be depressed about this list if I didn't know that most of these things are just being pushed out in between a much longer list of good things that I do remember to do.) So here's a list of my forgetting:

*I forget to shave my legs.  Hooray for winter and covering them up, and for fewer embarrassing moments when I discover what I've not done.

*I forget to vacuum my stairs.  I do well with the downstairs, OK with the upstairs, but the middle part somehow fails to make it onto my list.

*I forget the names of my children.  Of course, I really know them, but it takes me three tries to get the right one out of my mouth.  The kids in Primary have no idea how lucky they are when I get their names right!  I have to apologize to my own kids, and reassure them that I really know who they are!

*I forget to make dinner.  Well, I forget until about 4:30 pm-ish, and then my recipe options are limited in order to get it made in time.  I then resolve again to start earlier the next day...and forget again.

*I forget to have my kids do their evening chores.  They do not remind me.  I for sure get the one assigned to set the table to do that, but the other assignments are regularly overlooked until small heads are resting on pillows, and I have time to look around the house.

*I forget to clean my windows and mirrors.  I am really surprised how easy it is for me to not see how dirty they are--especially my kitchen door, with its full window--when I look out of them daily.  It's a chore I actually enjoy, but it just doesn't often happen.

*I forget how fast time goes by with a baby.  Each day I find myself wishing for the next milestones (currently: "If he could just sit up in a shopping cart..."), only to look back and wish I had enjoyed the little-bitty baby stages a little more.

*I am forgetting details from my mission.  I am so thankful that I have my journals, pictures, and letters home to help!

*Oh, I forget to write in my current journal.  I am in a perpetual state of catch-up.

That's enough for now.  I'm sure there are more that I forgot...

Perfectly cast

If you lived in a town that had an acting group for children,

and if that group was doing a play,

and if that play was "A Charlie Brown Christmas,"

and if someone was needed to play the part of Schroeder,

and if possible, that someone could actually play the piano,

then you would have to look no further than our house to find a perfect candidate.

(Picture him with a striped shirt sitting in front of a toy piano.)

This is the first play that Scott has been involved in, and if his experience so far is any indication, it will not be the last.  The performances will be at the beginning of December.  We'd be happy to house any out-of-town visitors who'd like to come see it! :)

Inventory

1 upright Weber piano--family
1 Thomas electric organ (1979 Expo series!)--me (and kids)
1 3 octave practice marimba (rental)--Scott
1 1/4 size violin--Tessa
1 1/2 size violin (rental)--Emma
1 full size violin--Ben (and me, a bit)
1 viola--Ben
1 mandolin--Ben (and me, a bit)
1 banjo--Ben
1 small guitar--Scott (and me, a bit)
1 amplifier (no electric guitar)--Scott's guitar teacher
1 flute--anxiously awaiting a musician
4 ukuleles--Scott, Emma, Gracie, and Caytie (though Caytie doesn't yet)
2 music stands--family
1 practice drum pad--Scott

I suppose if you're going to go overboard on something, it could be worse than with musical instruments.

Party at my crib!

Please indulge me.

There is a six-month old in our house, and I have to post pictures.

Honestly, Benson--how did you end up such a heartbreaker?

 It is a change to have a friendly, mellow little man, and I love it.

(Scott requested that I get some "boy" toys out for him, instead of the pink flowery ones Benson generally plays with.)

 In a mere six months, this kid has bulked up to almost 17 pounds.  His eyes have changed from blue to brown, and he only has a few wispy long strands of his original hair, with lots of fuzzy new hair.

 His fingernails could probably be trimmed daily, though (unfortunately for his face, which regularly has scratches), it gets done about once a week instead.

 Did you know he has slept through the night (like really all night) since he was four months old?  He is my only child to do it, and I believe know it is a tender mercy.  I know I don't have comparatively a lot on my plate, but that uninterrupted sleep really, really helps to keep me, well, not angry.

He loves looking at books, until he remembers that his goal in life is to eat everything in his vicinity.  Library books are not allowed as teethers.  (PS--no teeth yet, and I don't expect any for another five or six months, but that doesn't stop him from gnawing on everything.)  He is a happy, healthy, smiley, momma-loving boy, and I'm so glad he has spent the last six (plus) months with our family.  Here's to many, many more!

Wait, What?

It's October?

I suppose I should move on from posting about our summer.

My children started school!  As great as our summer was, we are a family that works well on a schedule, so we were all happy to get back to one, even if it requires getting up at 6 am to catch the 7:10 bus.  Unfortunately, someone (that's me) forgot to check if the camera was charged (it wasn't), so our Back to School pictures are from Ben's phone.

Scott started 6th grade at the intermediate school, and my girls are still together at the elementary--Emma in 4th, Gracie in 2nd, and my Caytie in Kindergarten.

 As ready as Caytie was to start school, she still seems so little to me!  (Maybe that's what happens when a tall Daddy takes pictures.)

I was a bit worried that she'd have some separation issues as she has in the past, but, despite several offers for me to drive her on the first day, she really wanted to get on the bus with her sisters.  She climbed right on, waved goodbye, and had a wonderful day.  I now believe that I was the one with the separation issues.

They're all doing well in school.  Scott is starting to have challenging classes, which he is getting used to, and is loving his percussion class.  Emma has another man teacher, and is making a lot of progress in reading.  Gracie has had to make a lot of new friends, but loves every minute of school.  Caytie sings the praises of her teacher each day, with good reason.  Ooh--they just got home.  Let the wild rumpus begin!

13 for the 13th--Praiseworthy #13

We seek things that are Praiseworthy: ACTIVITY #13

For our final activity, we first talked about how we are blessed with so many gifts from our Heavenly  Father.    Each of us is unique and of great worth, and our talents and abilities should be strengthened and celebrated.  So...we had an "Awards Ceremony" for each other to celebrate!  

 I had my kids draw names for each other, and then we went to the store and each chose a candy to present to their person.  (This concept was a little hard for Tessa to understand--she REALLY wanted to choose a candy for herself!)  Then we came home and they made certificates to go along with the candy.

For the ceremony, I first gave each child a shining star award, which was a construction paper star with something specific that I appreciate about each of them.  Then they presented their awards to each other.

Emma gave one to Tessa,  

 Scott gave one to Gracie,

 Gracie gave one to Caytie,

 Caytie gave one to Scott,

 and Tessa gave one to Emma.

It was really sweet, and a nice way to end our summer celebration of the 13th Article of Faith.

13 for the 13th--Good Report #12

We seek after things of Good Report: ACTIVITY #12

And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.

--2 Nephi 25:26

We have been asked to be a record-keeping people.  I believe that making note of the good things in our lives helps us be a happier people, too, as the blessings in our lives are at the forefront of our memories.  There is also a lot of value in learning from past mistakes.

For our activity, we talked about ways we can record good news.  We decided that we wanted to make a newspaper.  We voted on a name, and I told them about typical sections in a newspaper and they signed up for what they would like to write about or illustrate.  (I wrote a couple as examples.)  Then I typed it up, glued it all on large sheets of construction paper, and covered it with contact paper.  They still pull it out to read a month and a half later.

For those who are interested and can't read the small print in the photo, here are the articles:

Front Page (by Mom)
"Tessa learned how to spell her name.  She is now learning to write it.  She does a great T, a many-lined E, and some pretty swirly S's.  She is still working on the A."  (Writing sample by Tessa.)

"Daddy is getting his Lancaster ready to fly.  He hopes to do the maiden flight on Saturday.  Hopefully everything will go well so that he can take it to Bomber Field in September.  Good luck, Daddy!"

"Yesterday Benson tried a pear for the first time in his fruit net eater thing.  When questioned about if he liked it, his reply was, "Ahhuhhhmm."  He repeated the feat today with a peach. (Illustration of Mommy holding Benson by Caytie.)

Weather
"The weather today was rainy.  There was thunder and lightening, and the lights turned off for a few seconds.  Tessa said,'It was not scary for me.'  Tomorrow it will be sunny and hot again."

Page 2
"Gracie made a hair salon.  She put braids in Caytie's hair.  Then she took them out and it made Caytie's hair wavy.  Caytie liked it, so Gracie sprayed it with hairspray and added a blue headband.  Emma created her own hair design, and also put ponytails in Tessa's hair.  Gracie made Benson look handsome with the hair he still has left.  (Illustration of Caytie by Caytie.)

Music--by Emma
"In our family, Emma is playing the violin.  Do you want to play too?  Gracie plays the piano and Scott plays the guitar and the piano.  He's about to play the marimba.  Daddy plays the banjo and the viola.  He is Emma's teacher.  He is good.  Mommy is a beginner with the violin.  Tessa is starting, too.  Benson shakes a rattle.  Caytie sings.  We are a musical family."  (Illustration of Emma with violin by Emma.)

Cooking
Good Eats with Gracie
"We made a key lime pie.  Big, green and whipped topping!  When we were done I got to lick the bowl.  Yum!  Yum!  Yum!  (Illustrations of pie by Gracie.)

Cooking by Caytie
"Tessa, Mommy and I made a key lime pie.  We blended the ingredients and put them in a pan.  Then we put it in the fridge to let it get hard.  Yummy!

Smoothies by Scott
(Scott recorded the recipes for Kiwi Honeydew, Raspberry, and Peanut Butter Cup smoothies that he had copied from a magazine in the waiting room at his eye doctor!)

Page 3
Book Review
"Sleeping Beauty" by Caytie
"She was born and the fairies gave her wishes.  Merryweather didn't get her turn because Maleficent came.  Then she grew up and it was her 16th birthday.  She put her finger onto a spinning wheel, the sharpest thing. Then she went into a deep, deep sleep too, even the king and queen, except for Prince Philip.  Then Prince Philip came, and he had a sharp sword and a shiny shield, and he kissed her.  Then she came alive, and they all woke up.  I like this story because I like pink."  (Illustration of Sleeping Beauty by Caytie.)

Art
"We did pictures with pastels and glue.  We went to the Art Gallery first.  Emma said, "It was great because we got ideas."  (Illustration of horse by Gracie; illustration of lion by Emma.)

Page 4
Sports
"The Olympics" by Scott
"The Olympics started on the 27th of July and they have been awesome.  My favorite thing has been the swimming.  Gracie liked the gymnastics, and that seems to be popular because Emma, Caytie, and Tessa liked it too.

"We all wanted to do the Olympics too, so me, Emma, Gracie, and Caytie did our own and at the end we each got Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals.

"Gabby Douglas from Team USA won the gold medal in gymnastic and Gracie is pretty happy about it.  I'm really happy that Michael Phelps won Gold in swimming.  It was cool Michael raced right next to Ryan Lochte and he won.  It was awesome."  (Illustration of Olympic symbols by Scott.)

By Emma
"This week we are having a bounce house.  We are having it for Primary.  It's on Saturday from 10-11:30.  We're also going to have a popsicle walk and games outside.  NO trampoline will be allowed."

"Mommy's church volleyball team has advanced to the finals.  The final games will be next Thursday. Go, 1st Ward, Go!"  (Illustration of volleyball by Mommy.)

By Gracie
"Scott and me (Gracie) go on bike rides every day.  Each day we get longer and longer which means we get more exercise!  There is one part where we get better and better because there is a steep hill.  When we come home we get a nice glass of water."  (Illustration of bike path by Gracie.)

13 for the 13th--Lovely #11

We Seek Lovely Things: ACTIVITY #11

Ecclesiastes 3:11 "He hath made every thing beautiful in his time."

There is so much that is lovely in this world.  When Heavenly Father was creating this earth, He didn't have to make it so beautiful, but He did.  It was nice to take some time to celebrate that.

I took my kids to a tiny local art gallery.  I wanted them to get some inspiration for the project we'd be doing, and, though a bit stressful for me (maybe from saying "Don't touch ANYthing!  I'm not kidding!  That means take your hands off of the item they're currently touching!  Now!" repeatedly, though as quietly as I could so as not to alert the gallery lady), I think they really enjoyed seeing the art so closely.

When we came home, they got to make some art themselves.  First they sketched their design on black construction paper, and traced the sketch with glue.  After the glue dried, they used pastels to fill in the colors.

Here are the final products.  Emma's lion, Gracie's horse, and Caytie's ballerina were inspired by the artwork from the gallery, while Scott and Tessa went with their own designs.

Then, we had some LOVELY homemade angel food cake with whipped cream and fresh pineapples.

(I see I need to get back to regular blogging soon--Gracie lost her first tooth in August!  It only took her until she was 7 years and 4 months to lose it!)

13 for the 13th--Believe, Hope, and Endure #10

Believe, Hope and Endure All Things: ACTIVITY #10

(This is a large section of the 13th Article of Faith, but we only did one activity, since we had some trips across the country to attend to...)

I couldn't think of a better example of believing, hoping, and enduring all things than the pioneers.  My sister-in-law Angi put together a children's book of some of our family history, and it was perfect for our lesson.  We talked about how these courageous people gave up practically everything because of the belief in the gospel and the hope for the future, and with a willingness to endure all things that were thrown at them.  Here is one of the stories that we read:

Once upon a time there was a young girl named Maria.  When she was just 17 years old she had some friends who taught her about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and she was soon baptized.  Her family was not happy about her joining the Church.  Maria had to make a very difficult decision--she had to choose between staying with her family in Sweden, or leaving for America with other members of the Church.  The Spirit told her that the Lord wanted her to leave her home and join the Saints in America.

Maria had to cross the ocean on several boats before she got to America.  The voyages on the ships were very scary.  Sometimes high waves would cover the boat and one time all the people on the boat had to be tied down, so they wouldn't fall out into the ocean!

Maria's journey did not end there.  She crossed the plains with other faithful pioneers to get to the Salt Lake Valley.  Maria's pioneer company was attacked by Indians many times.  Although many were hurt, the Lord protected and watched over them...

Maria was a very brave woman, who was happy to serve the Lord and do whatever He wanted her to do.  Through all of her trials on the plains, she was happy and sang the hymn, "Come, Come Ye Saints" all the way to the Salt Lake Valley.

This is a poem written by Maria (Olivia Maria Lofdahl Andelin) as she crossed the plains:

With Bleeding feet crossed desert woes,

Through wind and rain and bitter snows,

Kneeling on the barren sand,

Asked Father's blessing from His hands.

And on the ground lay down to sleep,

Foot-sore and tired, and nothing to eat,

Only the heavens for covering.

My sleep was sweet, while angels hovering.

(I thought that was pretty great, for writing in a second language!)

For a Pioneer Day treat, we put together some Covered Wagons.  We used graham crackers for the base, marshmallows for the cover, animal crackers for the oxen, string cheese circles for the wheels, and frosting and toothpicks to hold it all together (for those patient enough to actually put it together before consuming).

I also thought it would be fun, for Pioneer Day, to camp out in the back yard.  Ben had to work late that night and early the next morning, so we took it upon ourselves to set the tent up, and let the Daddy sleep inside.  Well, I guess we learned why no one goes camping on July 24th in Texas.  It was so hot and so humid that night, that the excitement of being in the tent lasted for approximately 15 minutes.  Then extreme whining and longing looks from the tent windows into the house began in earnest, and I decided our lesson on enduring had endured long enough.  We all slept comfortably in our own beds that night.  The end.

13 for the 13th--Benevolent and Good to All Men #7, #8, and #9

Benevolent and Good to All Men: ACTIVITY #7

Giving in the Community

Benevolent is a Latin word, formed from the stems "bene" (well) and "volens" (wishes).  We read the story of the Widow's Mite  from Luke 21:1-4 and learned that even giving a little can mean a lot, especially if you don't have much to begin with.  We, however, have much more than we need.  I had my kids go up to their rooms with sacks to collect toys and clothes that they were willing to give away.  We also got a box full of baby clothes and supplies together.  Then we took them to our local children's medical clinic for them to distribute to those who might need them.

Benevolent and Good to All Men: ACTIVITY #8

Kindness in our Family

I was excited to present this activity.  After half a summer with most days with all the kids together, we were ready for some kindness reminders.  Certain children know the buttons of other children, and cannot seem to resist pushing them!  So we read from Doctrine and Covenants 136:23-- Cease to contend one with another; cease to speak evil one of another.

All of my school-aged kids have learned about bullying since Kindergarten.  Generally, they are taught what to do if they are bullied and how they can stop others from doing it.  I don't think, though, that they recognized that the way they were often treating their own siblings was bullying.  I didn't want it any more.  I decided to do an activity that they used in school a couple years ago called "Rachel's Challenge."

From the FAQs on the website: Rachel Joy Scott was the first person killed in the Columbine High School tragedy on April 20, 1999. Immediately after the tragedy, her father Darrell began to speak and used writings and drawings from Rachel’s diaries to illustrate the need for a kinder, more compassionate nation.  Today, Darrell and over thirty presenters honor Rachel’s life by reaching the nation with Rachel’s simple but profound message.

The kids sign a pledge that they will fight bullying by reaching out to be kinder to those around them.  So we signed a pledge that we would be kinder to each other.  Also, like at school, I had paper strips available, and when someone did something kind to another, the recipient could write what was done and add it to our paper chain.  The goal was to make it across the window in a week.  They did it--and more!  (I have not been able to get myself to take this one down yet, because I love what it represents.  I also love all the cute things they wrote about on each link!)

Benevolent and Good to All Men: ACTIVITY #9

Giving Thanks

We had two scriptures to introduce our activity on this day.  Luke 6:31 taught us the "Golden Rule."  (Really, wouldn't life be much nicer if we could all live this principle in all we do?)  Matthew 25:40 reminded us that when we serve others, we are serving God.  We discussed how many people serve us each day.  The list is very long.  We got out some thank you cards, and I had everyone write three thank you notes--one to each set of grandparents and one to anyone of their choice.  My kids were able to see the blessings that they have in their lives because of the people who love them and serve them.  I think this needs to be a recurring activity, and I need to join right in.

13 for the 13th--Chaste and Virtuous #4, #5, and #6

Chaste and Virtuous: ACTIVITY #4

"I will keep my mind and body sacred and pure, and I will not partake of things that are harmful to me." 

--My Gospel Standards

The "My Gospel Standards," included on the last page of the Faith in God Guidebooks, have several standards that apply to the topics of being Chaste and Virtuous.  The definitions found in the scriptures agree--being chaste and virtuous means to keep your mind and body free from things that would prevent you from entering the temple, and thus from entering the Celestial Kingdom.  On this day, we focused on the Word of Wisdom (Doctrine and Covenants 89).

One of the suggested Faith in God activities is to "Read D&C 89.  Discuss how Heavenly Father blesses us when we faithfully live the Word of Wisdom.  Help plan and conduct an activity to teach the Word of Wisdom to others."  Since Scott and Emma both had not done this requirement, they agreed to do this for their younger sisters. 

They decided that they'd print off pictures of healthy and not healthy foods.  Then they helped the girls put them in the correct groups.  Something we found from this activity was the color difference in the healthy and non healthy foods--rainbow versus brown.  We had known that before, but it was glaringly obvious in the pictures they chose.  Then we had some fruit salad.  Yum!

Chaste and Virtuous: ACTIVITY #5

"I will dress myself modestly to show respect for Heavenly Father and myself."

--My Gospel Standards

As I was planning this activity, I thought it would be fun to buy some paper dolls with some modest clothes, or make some for them if they didn't come with any.  Then I realized it would be much more fun (and meaningful) if we just made the paper dolls, too.

I had the kids get into their swimsuits and then took a full body picture of them.  Then I enlarged the pictures to fit on cardstock, printed them, and cut them out.  Then, after our discussion (Genesis 3:7, 21), they got to work making clothes (or decorating the clothes I helped them design).  It was a really fun thing that kept them all busy for the morning.  Gracie, in particular, made a whole wardrobe for her paper doll, and will still pull it out to design something new on occasion.

Chaste and Virtuous: ACTIVITY #6

"Your mind is a cupboard, and you stock the shelves."

I found a great activity (here) that taught the principles from a talk by President Monson:

 I like this thought: “Your mind is a cupboard, and you stock the shelves.” Let us make certain that our cupboard shelves, and those of our family members, are stocked with the things which will provide safety to our souls and enable us to return to our Father in Heaven. Such shelves could well be stocked with gospel scholarship, faith, prayer, love, service, obedience, example, and kindness (April 2005 General Conference).

I labeled a packet of seeds "Faith" (faith grows like seeds), a large can "Prayer" (we need to pray always), a large can "Love" (we need to have no bad thoughts about others), a cake mix "Obedience" (for success, follow the directions/commandments), a bottle of oil "Service" (story of the widow and Elijah in 1 Kings), a soup can "Example" (courage to say you won't watch, do, or listen to bad things), a small can "Kindness" (even small acts of kindness make a big difference) and a bag of sugar "Temple Worthy" (keeping our minds filled with sweet things).  Then, as we pulled each item out of the grocery bag and placed it in the cardboard box cupboard, we talked about how these things will help us return to Heavenly Father.