Summer of Sleuthing

Last month our ward family history consultant gave me a handout with the following information on it:

Family History Library Sponsors

SUMMER of SLEUTHING

"Are you looking for a fun activity to keep your children occupied this summer?" (my response was, ummm, yeah!)

"Would you like to learn more about your family?" (that would be cool was my thought)

"Do you need a kick start to organize your family records?" (I'm good on that front)

" 'Summer of Sleuthing - Save Our Ancestors' (SOS) is a family summer activities program sponsored by the Family History Library to introduce families to the fun of family history. With a series of weekly challenges, families can participate in activities that will help them learn more about themselves and their ancestors. The program materials are available online at wiki.familysearch.org listed under Activities for Youth."

- click on the following link to bring you to the exact page (https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Family_History_Activities_for_Youth)

I have to say this is looks like a very fun program and our family will have our first sleuthing activity tonight at our FHE. I personally love doing family research. I have a sister who is really good at it and she always finds the most difficult information. I love that we share this interest! What I'm super excited about is now involving my kids in the process of searching out our ancestors and getting to know them through the stories and pictures!

Happy Sleuthing to you and your family, Megan

FHE - Follow In His Footsteps

FHE - Follow In His Footsteps

This is a fun lesson but requires a bit of preparation.

We made our footprint paths about 4 years ago, but we have saved them so that we could reuse them and we have many times! I took several long sheets of butcher paper and laid them on the ground outside (on top of a tarp). I them painted my little one's feet with black paint and had him take a few steps and then I lifted him off and then reapplied more paint to his footsteps and put him back on the paper for him to make more footprints. I even made a few sheets with my own footprints. Let it dry completely and then use or roll up to save for a special lesson.

Setup:

1. Tape down your pathway making one straight and another one that branches off to the side.

2. Place a picture of Jesus at the end of the straight pathway. Place a picture of the world at the end of the crooked pathway (you could also use a tall lego building if you are talking about Lehi's dream).

3. Collect a handful of objects that will help you stay on the straight pathway (scriptures, hymn book, church magazines, a picture of the prophet, church shoes, a picture of your family, a picture of the temple, etc....). Collect a handful of objects that can lead us off the path leading to Jesus (like a remote control, an mp3 player, video game controler, a music cd, some computer gadget, a ball of some sort, etc...). Place the objects in a basket.

4. Obtain the story "Strength to Follow the Lord" from the June 2009 Friend magazine, pg. 8-9. (I will add the link to the article once it is added to lds.org)

Lesson:

Opening Song - "I Will Follow God's Plan" Children's Songbook, #164

Opening Prayer - family choice

Scripture: 2 Nephi 31:12 "...wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do."

Story - read the story mentioned above

Activity:

Have a family member stand at the beginning of the pathway (we will call that person the "walker" for ease of explaination). Have another family member choose an item (the "chooser"), from the basket, that would help the other person get closer to Jesus and have them put it on the straight pathway (just a few steps infront of the family member that is at the beginning of the pathway). After the item has been placed, have the "walker" take a few steps to stand next to the item that was placed. Discuss as a family how that item will help us follow Jesus.

Have the "chooser" pick another item from the basket that will help us follow Jesus and have them place it on the pathway just a few steps past the last item (this should be before the fork in the road). Have the walker move up to that item and again discuss how that item will help us follow Jesus.

Next have the "chooser" pick two items from the basket, one that will help us follow Jesus and one that could pull us towards the things of the world. Have the "chooser" place them at the fork in the path with the objects on the correct sides (the worldly object towards the path leading to the world and the spiritual object that will lead to Jesus).

Have the "walker" decide which pathway they want to follow. Once they have choosen discuss the two objects and how they will lead us down the path that they are on. (NOTE: If your family member should choose the item that leads to the world, don't deter them. Have them follow it for a few more objects and then you can teach them that through the gift of the atonement we can repent and then choose to do good and get back on the path that leads to Jesus).

Keep doing this until all the objects have been taken out of the basket. We were sure to teach our children that there are many things of the world that are good (good music that isn't church related, good tv shows, sports that help us physically etc....) but that too much can pull us from the better things that will lead us to our Savior and our Father in Heaven.

We used the example of baseball. That playing baseball is a good thing (you learn to play with others, grow physically, etc...) but the things that could pull us towards the world like bad sportsmanship, bad language, playing on the Sabbath, etc.... have to be avoided.

Bear your testimony of how following in the Savior's footsteps will lead us to great joy and happiness.

Closing Song: family choice

Closing Prayer: family choice

Refreshments: Build your own Sundae (it's all about the choices). Yummmm!!!!

FHE - Gratitude/ The Ten Lepers

We kicked off our season of gratitude with our lesson on the Ten Lepers. 

Opening Song: "Count Your Blessings" #241
Opening Prayer: Family Member

Weekly Scripture: "That ye contend no more against the Holy Ghost, but that ye receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ; that ye humble yourselves even to the dust, and worshop God, in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; and that ye live in thanksgiving daily. For the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you." Alma 34:38

Preparation: Print, cut out, and laminate the following pictures and write their cooresponding number on the back of it.

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

Read the following story, displaying the pictures at the corresponding time:

Show #1: Jesus went to a small town, where He saw ten lepers. These men had sores all over their bodies. Their skin was falling off. Luke 17:12

Show #2: Doctors could not help the lepers, and other people were afraid to go near them. The other people thought that they would get sick, too. Luke 17:12

Show #3: The lepers asked Jesus to heal them. They knew that He could make their sores go away. Luke 17:13

Show #4: Jesus wanted them to be well. He told them to go to the priests, so they did. Luke 17:14

Show #5: On their way to the priests, the ten lepers were healed. Their sores were gone. Jesus had healed them. Luke 17:14

Show #6: Knowing that Jesus had healed them, one of the lepers went back to thank Jesus. Jesus asked where the other nine lepers were. They had not come back to thank Him. He told the leper who had thanked Him that his faith had made him well. Luke 17:15–19

(Reference: “The Ten Lepers,” Friend, Jun 2002, 12)

We then talked about the things we are grateful for. 

Read the following story:

Pumpking Pie Surprise - A true story

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts … ; and be ye thankful (Col. 3:15).

“How many pies are we baking?” Jared asked. He pulled a chair up to the counter to help his mother make the pies. “A lot—one for Grandpa, one for your baby-sitter, one for Mr. Gomez next door, and pies for lots of other people. It’s my way of thanking them for all they do to help us.” “And we’re going to deliver them tomorrow, on Thanksgiving?” “First thing in the morning.”
Jared helped his mother roll out crusts, mix and pour fillings, and pinch the crust edges. Soon the kitchen smelled like pumpkin pies. “There’s someone else I want to make a thank-you pie for,” Jared said. “Who?” “It’s a surprise. Can we make an extra pie?” “Sure.” Jared rolled out the crust for another pie while his mother mixed the filling. In the morning, Jared and his mother carried the pies to the car. She drove very carefully to each house. “Thank you for everything you do,” Mother said to each person as they delivered the pies. Finally, there was only one pie left. “Where do we take your pie, Jared?” Mother asked. “To the fire station.” Mother looked surprised, but she turned onto the street that led to the fire station. “I want to thank the firefighters for being there to help us,” he explained. “They work even on holidays, when most people get to be home with their families.” “That’s a great idea, Jared.” He carried the pie into the fire station. The firefighters looked up from polishing their trucks. “What’s this?” the nearest firefighter asked. “It’s for you.” Jared handed the pie to the firefighter. “I want to thank all of you for being here on a holiday, ready to help everybody.” “No one’s ever done this for us before,” the firefighter said. “Thank you. We’ll really enjoy it.” “I think they liked the pie,” Jared told his mother as they returned to their car. “Yes, but I think that they liked your idea of thanking them best of all.” Mother hugged him. “And so did I.” “Let’s go home and bake another pie for us,” Jared suggested. “I think that’s another great idea!”

(Reference: Heather Klassen, “Pumpkin Pie Surprise,” Friend, Nov 2002, 10)

Closing Song: Family Choice
Closing Prayer: Family member

Refreshments: Ice cream - who isn't grateful for ice cream!

Free Giveaways from Pike's Pickles

You should mosey on over to Pike's Pickles to check out her free giveaway for today! She is putting together a Family Home Evening box that will include a lesson, a treat, and this game:

I have never played this game, but Stefanie says it's one of her families favorite games. 

FHE - Obedience

We've been having a slight issue of disobedience in our family, nothing major, but Ryan and I have been praying for ways to address the issue in a positive way. So as I was deciding what to discuss at FHE, Noah popped into my mind.

For our FHE this week I used GAK (Gospel Art Kit) pictures #102 and #102. The great thing about this kit is that on the back is the story and the scripture references. So I just paraphrased what was written there and asked questions that more specifically address the needs of our family! I think it was a good lesson. If we would have had time for a game I would have played "Simon Says" and we would have made a yummy treat! 

GAK #102 Building the Ark (The following info is on the back of the picture you see above)

Genesis 67; Moses 8
Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he. Genesis 6:22


During a time when almost everyone on the earth was wicked, the Lord called Noah to teach people the gospel. Noah told them to repent and be baptized or they would be destroyed by floods, but the people would not listen. Some of them were so angry with Noah that they wanted to kill him, but the Lord protected him. (See Genesis 6:5; Moses 8:1826.)

When the people would not repent, the Lord told Noah that He would "bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh" (Genesis 6:17). To protect Noah and his family from this great flood, the Lord commanded Noah to build an ark. The ark was to have three levels, many rooms, a window on the top, and a door in the side. Noah was to use pitch, or tar, to make the ark watertight, and the ark would be about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. (See Genesis 6:1416.)

Noah and his sons built the ark according to the Lord's instructions (see Genesis 6:22; Genesis 7:5). The Lord told them to take at least one male and one female "of every living thing of all flesh" (Genesis 6:19). They also had to take food for the animals and for themselves (see Genesis 6:21).

When the ark was finished and everything was ready, Noah and his family boarded the ark along with the animals (see Genesis 7:7). Noah was now 600 years old, and the flood waters were about to come upon the earth (see Genesis 7:6). Noah had obeyed the Lord in preaching the gospel, building the ark, and gathering the animals.
Summary

Noah and his family were righteous persons who lived at a time when nearly everyone on the earth was wicked. The Lord called Noah to teach the gospel to the people. Noah warned them that if they did not repent, floods would come to destroy them. When the people would not repent, the Lord told Noah to build an ark to protect his family and at least two of every animal during the Flood. Noah obeyed, and when the Flood came Noah's family and the animals were safe aboard the ark.

Artist, Harry Anderson

© 2002 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA

GAK #103 Noah and the Ark with Animals (The following info is on the back of the picture you see above) 

Genesis 6:1221; Genesis 7:211; Genesis 8
There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. Genesis 7:9


Because of the wickedness of the people during Noah's time, God caused a flood to cover the entire earth with water. Noah and his family were righteous, so God spared their lives. He commanded Noah to build an ark so they would not drown. He also commanded Noah to save the animals so that they would not be destroyed. (See Genesis 6:1219.)

Noah built an ark big enough to take at least two of every animal on board. He was commanded, "Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female ... and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth" (Genesis 7:23, Genesis 7:8).

Noah and his family lived on the ark with the animals for over a year (see Genesis 7:11; Genesis 8:14). When the earth had recovered from the Flood, Noah brought the animals out of the ark so they could "be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth" (Genesis 8:17).
Summary

Because of the righteousness of Noah and his family, the Lord told Noah to build an ark so that his family would be safe during the flooding of the earth. The Lord also commanded Noah to gather each type of animal, male and female, so that they would not be destroyed. All kinds of animals, birds, and creeping things went into the ark. The rains and floods lasted many days. When the water had gone down and the land was dry again, Noah brought the animals out of the ark to multiply upon the earth.

Artist, Clark Kelley Price

© 2002 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA

FHE - Fourth of July

Last night we gathered together to have a lesson about the 4th of July and why we celebrate it!

We started with a rousing "Star Spangled Banner" which was followed by a nice prayer.

Our scripture for the week is Ether 2:12 - "Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ..."

After we talked about the meaning of that scripture I then started asking questions about the 4th of July: What is Independence day? Do you know what the Declaration of Independence is? Can you recite the pledge of allegiance? etc... I was impressed that Dallin knew many of these answers.

We then talked about the American Flag and why we have a banner or standard to represent our country.

Did you know:

The United States flag has 13 stripes. One stripe to represent each of he original 13 colonies. There are 7 red stripes and 6 white stripes. the top left part of the flag is called the "field of blue." There are fifty white stars, one star to represent each of the fifty states in the USA.

As Americans, we honor and respect our flag. It is protected by law. It is not the piece of cloth that our flag is made out of that we respect. It is what our flag represents that is important and sacred.

The WHITE stripes stand for purity. We, as a country, want people to be honest in everything they do. We want the people of this country to do what is right, even if it is hard to do.

The RED stripes stand for courage. The courage of those men and women that have given their lives for this great country.

The BLUE SQUARE stands for freedom. Freedom is very important and we want all people to enjoy those blessings. That means that no matter who you are, what you look like, or who you believe in , you have the right to be treated like everyone else!

After we talked about the meaning for the different parts of the flag we talked about flag etiquette (when to fly it, how to display it, what to do if it touches the ground or is torn, etc).

We then briefly talked about how important it was for our country to become free! That by declaring it's freedom from the rule of England, we were allowed to worship how we believe. The stage was set for the gospel of Jesus Christ to be restored to the Earth! Oh how grateful we are for that!

We then ended with a game of "50 states" and then had a closing song and prayer.

Refreshments: Berry Sundaes from Sam's Club. So they don't exactly look like this, but all you would need to do is add some yummy granola and some fresh berries to the top. It was good nonetheless and they were only $1!

FHE- The Family - A Proclamation to the World

Tonight we gathered together and sang "Families can be Together Forever" to start our FHE. After the song and opening prayer, Ryan turned the lesson over to me. I have had this impression to talk about the Proclamation (which you can read here).

Note to reader- So this FHE may seem rather lengthy, but I condensed it and I asked a lot of questions. But for sake of recording it, I put my thoughts and things that I read while I was preparing it. Please don't think I read word for word what I have typed below - those are my notes, just in case my family had questions. Our lesson took about 5 minutes and then we played a fun game to sum up what we talked about. So don't let the length of this post through you off!

Back to our Family Home Evening: I asked my family what was the most sacred institution (place) in the Church? Dallin said, the chapel, then quickly changed his answer to the temple. I read the following quote:

"The center core of the Church is not the stake (center); it is not the chapel.... The most sacred place on earth may not be the temple, necessarily. The chapel, the stake (center), and the temple are sacred as they contribute to the building of the most sacred institution in the Church - the home - and to the blessing of the most sacred relationships in the Church, the family" ("That All May Be Edified" [1982], 234-35).

(This is my most recent picture of our home - Nov. 2007)

(Our happy family - Oct. 2007)

We then went on to talk about what the proclamation was and why the Lord saw fit to reveal it to our Prophet - the family is under attack is the reason given by our dear Prophet (President Hinckley, who passed away in January, revealed this doctrine at the October conference in 1995). He said "Why do we have the proclamation on the family now? Because the family is under attack. All across the world families are falling apart. The place to begin to improve society is in the home. Children do, for the most part, what they are taught. We are trying to make the world better by making the family stronger" ("Inspirational Thoughts," Ensign, Aug. 1997, 5).

Next we talked about how we can apply the principles and counsel in the inspired document into our lives:


1. Sons and Daughters of God. First, the proclamation declares our self-worth by reminding us that "all human beings - male and female - are created in the image of God." We are literally His sons and daughters. I asked Dallin how that made him feel and he said "Happy!" It should make us all happy, all human beings are loved.


2. Guidelines for everyday living. The proclamation offers valuable guidelines for everyday living. I asked my family what some of those guidelines were - Ryan remembered "wholesome recreational activities" and Dallin said "prayer." Both answers are correct. It also explains the plan of salvation and the principle of chastity. It states, "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ." One of the main purposes of the family is to perfect us as individuals. So some of the teachings of Christ that can help us strive towards perfection, as outlined in the proclamation, are: "faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work and wholesome recreational activities."

3. Family History and Temple Work. The proclamation upholds the significance of temple blessings. We are reminded that we as individuals must be worthy before we can return to God's presence. Preparing and staying worthy to enter the temple will help us to remember those sacred covenants. Temple attendance also helps us to think of our own families and our ancestors. As we think of our families (including our extended, many generations removed) we are reminded that we are an integral part of an eternal family.

4. The Law of Chastity. Another important proclamation principle is that "God's commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. That those sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife."

5. Marriage and Parenthood. The proclamation says, "Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God" and "Marriage... is essential to His eternal plan." Those who have not yet found an eternal companion should not give up hope and they should not give up trying to find that person. Marriage and a family of our own are to be worthy goals in our lives. President Ezra Taft Benson (1899-1994) reminded us that "the greatest responsibilities and the greatest joys in life are centered in the family, honorable marriage, and rearing a righteous posterity."

All people, whether married or single, young or old, have the responsibility to live the principles of "The Family: A Proclamation to the World."

I ended with my testimony that Jesus is the Christ, that the Book of Mormon is indeed scripture given to us from our Father in Heaven to be a companion to the Old and New Testaments. I know that if we strive to live the principles in the proclamation we can have joy and happiness.

We closed our FHE with a song and Carson attempted to say a prayer!

The game we played is called family baseball. On a piece of paper I drew a baseball diamond with the 4 bases. I had a bowl of chocolate chips to act as markers and our very simple dessert. I "pitched" questions to Dallin and Ryan from our FHE lesson and then determined if it was a single, double, triple, or homerun. We even had a 3 strikes rule (no one struck out though). It was fun and the best comment from the game was "Carson keeps stealing 3rd!" Carson couldn't resist sneaking the choc. chips that were being used to mark which base they were on. It was so much fun - definitely a game we will repeat!

Here is a great site that breaks down the Proclamation and explains the different paragraph's.

FHE - Family time together

So we decided to spend our Memorial Day FHE going to see a movie. We went and saw Horton Hears a Who! I know that there wasn't a spiritual element or gospel learning aspect to our FHE, but we enjoyed our time together.

FHE - The Holy Ghost

Wow, FHE last night was difficult! Carson is just at that, errr, fun age when sitting to sing a hymn say a prayer and have a 2 minute lesson with a game is challenging, to say the least!

So we sang "Love at Home" then Dallin gave a nice opening prayer.

Lesson:

Heavenly Father knows each of us. He loves us and wants us to be happy. He has given us someone who helps us choose what is right and helps us when we have a problem. He is the Holy Ghost. We do not see him or hear his voice, but he can quietly put ideas into our minds and feelings in our hearts. The Holy Ghost is a loving, friendly helper who helps us to choose the right. He can help us in many different ways.

Then I read this story while Dallin found the pictures that went along with it and put them on our flannel board:

"Jaime is Lost"

Jaimee was lost. He and his family had gone on a hike.

He saw a squirrel and started to chase it.

When he couldn't catch it, he tried to find his family, but they were gone.

Jamie was afraid. He remembered that his Primary teacher had told his class to pray if they were ever in trouble or afraid. So Jamie said a prayer and asked Heavenly Father to help him find his family.

Jamie didn't feel so afraid anymore. He felt as though someone was helping him, so he started walking down the hill.

Soon he hear his father calling his name.

He called back and his father came running. Jamie was glad that he had prayer, and he knew Heavenly Father had helped him.

How did Jamie get help? (He prayed)

Who helped him? (Heavenly Father sent the Holy Ghost to help him)

How did the Holy Ghost help? (He put thoughts into Jamie's mind, made him feel better, or helped him no be afraid. He also prompted other people to help).

We then talked about times when we felt the Holy Ghost.

I then bore my testimony about the Holy Ghost and we closed with "I hope they call me on a mission" and then Ryan offered our closing prayer. Our game was nixed once it became clear that the boys were done, even for the fun part. We also had to forgo our refreshments due to behavior issues during our FHE!

*I have to thank the ladies from the FHE swap group. This story came from one of those FHE packet's. I wish we had written our names on the lessons, but many thanks to whoever it was!

FHE - Receiving the Gold Plates

Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah! So taking our family home evening lesson from the May 2008 Friend magazine, we had a lovely lesson on...

Joseph Smith Jr. receiving the Golden Plates

We started with the hymn "Praise to the Man" and after our prayer we colored pictures of Joseph Smith to tell the story of him receiving the Gold Plates from the Angel Moroni under the direction of our Heavenly Father. (click here to get the coloring page). While they were coloring, Ryan and I sang a few hymns to keep the spirit with us.

Here are the figures that Dallin colored.

Carson colored some too!

After the figures were colored and cut out (thanks Daddy), I read "From the Life of the Prophet Joseph Smith: Receiving the Gold Plates" from the Friend magazine (you can click here to see the story).

So simple and even though it took a while to get the pictures colored and cut out, it all worked out well.

May you find joy in gathering your families together, once a week, to learn more about the gospel of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Refreshments: No Bake Cheesecake (from Martha Stewart)

Note: You can use graham crackers, butter cookies, chocolate sandwich cookies, or gingersnaps for the crust. Or you can buy a premade crust and skip step one with the ingredients that includes).

1 1/2 cups finely ground cookies (8 oz)
4 tbls unsalted butter, melted
1 cup plus 3 tbls sugar
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, room temperature
3 tbls fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup heavy cream, chilled (you can use whipping cream)

1. Stir together cookies crumbs, melted butter, and 3 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl. Press crumb mizture firmly onto bottom of a 9-inch pie dish.

2. Put cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add remaining cup sugar in a slow, steady stream. Add lemon juice; mix until combined.

3. Beat cream in a clean mixing bowl until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream with a rubber spatula in to cream cheese filling. Pour over crust. Freeze 1 hour. Refrigerate until ready to serve, at least 30 minutes.

Serves 10-12

FHE - The Prophet and The Apostles (Priesthood)

So here we are back to Monday - FHE! Tonight was a rather difficult attempt at FHE. The boys were content running in circles around our kitchen, dinning room and family room - they didn't want to be bothered!

Finally we got them to sit down (well at least be near us) and then Peanut #1 was being disrespectful so he was excused to sit in his room while we sang the opening song ("Love is Spoken Here"). What better song to sing while one child is pouting in his room and the youngest is screaming at the top of his lungs for his "DaDil" (Big D according to Little C). So after that lovely song, we invited Big D to join us again and we had an opening prayer. Following that I asked Peanut #1 if he knew what the priesthood was - nada! He was being stubborn and choose to not give an answer. I told him it was the power of God here on the earth!

So we talked about what it was for a bit and then I shared with our little family some pictures and tid-bits about our prophet,


his counselors, and the apostles. You can find the cool cards here !

I learned some new things about these men who were called by God to head His church on the earth! Here are some of the neat things we learned:

- President Monson was 22 years old when he was called as a Bishop.
- President Eyring likes to cook and water coloring.
- President Uchtdorf hobby is dancing!
- Elder Packer has 10 children! Wow! He also added a fourth-year Book of Mormon course to seminary, which became a standard in the seminary curriculum!
- Elder Perry is from the Sacramento area, in fact he was in our stakes Stake Presidency years ago.
- Elder Nelson is a well known heart surgeon!
- Elder Oaks uses this as his personal motto: "Work first, play later."
- Elder Ballard (loved his talk at General Conference) served a mission in England.
- Elder Wirthlin was born on June 11, 1917 and he played football at the University of Utah.
- Elder Scott developed nuclear power plants for submarines and aircraft carriers.
- Elder Hales memorized the names of all the apostles when he was a deacon.
- Elder Holland was ordained an apostle on my birthday (June 23) in 1994 (the year I was baptized).
- Elder Bednar baptized his father in 1979 (Elder Bedbar was 27 years old).
- Elder Cook played an important role in developing the new missionary guide, Preach My Gospel.
- Elder Christofferson served his mission in Argentina.

After we learned more about the apostles we talked about the Aaronic Priesthood and what responsibilities come with it, then we talked about the Melchizedek Priesthood and the responsiblities that come with that. I ended bearing my testimony that the priesthood is so important that Heavenly Father made sure it was brought back to the earth in the latter days. That his daddy was a worthy holder of the priesthood and that it was given to him from Jesus (through his line of authority). I challenged Peanut #1 to live his life always looking for ways to help and serve others to help prepare him to receive the Aaronic Priesthood when he turns 12.

We ended with a delightful version of "popcorn popping" (Peanut #2 was so cute doing the hand motions). With our closing prayer offered by Peanut #1 we then closed the evening enjoying a treat and then off to bed they went!

Whew - it was a good lesson. A little lengthy (like this post), but Big D had fun guessing the types of things that the apostles liked to do, or how many kids they had, etc... Even though it can be challenging, at times, to even have FHE, I definitly think it is worth the effort!

FHE - Samuel the Lamanite (Follow the Prophet)

Simplicity is the goal this week! So I made a choice to keep our FHE simple and to the point! I think it went really well!


We started with a rousing song from the Children's Songbook, then we had a nice opening prayer. Then I showed the picture of Samuel the Lamanite standing on the wall of the city of Zarahemla (Gospel Art Kit # 314),



and asked who it was? Peanut #1 said it was "Samuel the Lemucule" (so close). So I paraphrased the first few paragraph's from the back of the picture and then when we got to the part where Samuel climbed on the wall, Big D gladly took on the role of Samuel!



Big D then repeated the words I read (the things Samuel said to the Nephites while he was on the wall).



Some of the Nephites (aka. my husband and Little C) ....




...started throwing wadded up newspaper at him! Amazingly non of the wads hit him!!! (the hand of mommy was protecting him)!



Here is Little C having a turn being Samuel! He was so cute!



Big D got a turn being a Nephite and throwing things at Samuel!


We had a nice time and after our closing song and prayer we went bowling (in our family room, Wii bowling is awesome)! I love my family!

* We usually will do this FHE during the summer and we follow the lesson with a water balloon launching contest. I fill a few buckets with water balloons (you have to plan ahead for this, because it takes forever to fill up 100 balloons). We then have one person be Samuel up on the top of the play structure and then we see if we can hit that person! Another idea would be when talking about the Stripling Warriors you could have a water balloon war! We have done both and they are a blast. Definitly a fun thing to do with another family too! So be friendly and invite another family over!

FHE - The 10 Commandments

Tonight we had our Family Home Evening lesson on the 10 commandments and it went all right. This is how it went, not all quotes are accurate, I didn't record them, but this is what I remember:

Ryan (my hubby): "Oh good let's have FHE here" (good idea seeing that the boys were sitting on my lap in my favorite leather chair - I wasn't about to move). "Dallin can you please get the Children's Songbooks for us?"

Dallin: "Why do I always have to get the hymn books? Every day I have to get them." (Well I guess to a 5 year old, Monday seems like everyday)

Megan: "Because you are so good at it!"

Dallin: "Why are you guys always telling me what to do?" (He said what? So I'm trying to see things from his perspective, but wow! Oh the lesson I picked was so gonna be good).

********A 2 minute discussion over how being part of a family is like a team and we need to help each other out ensued! Finally - with loud stomps and a pouty face, the Children's songbooks appeared. He only had to take all of 10 steps, round trip, to retrieve the books from the piano!!!************

So back to FHE:

Ryan: "Thank you Dallin. Mommy what's our lesson on tonight?"

Megan: "We are going to talk about the 10 commandments." (I passed the folder, with lesson and games in it to Ryan - as it was his turn to give the lesson. In my head I was saying oh good, Dallin will see that we aren't the only ones telling him what to do!!! We have some reinforcements on this!!!).

So after we sang our opening song and began the lesson, we were able to talk about what it would be like at school, on the roads, and at home if we didn't have rules. We explained that even Mommy and Daddy have rules that they must follow each day - the laws of our country, the rules of our house, and the rules/commandments our Father in Heaven gave us.

Ryan made the comment that Jesus gave us 2 more commandments which are: to love the Lord with all of our might, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor like unto ourselves. If we remember to keep these two commandments then we will also keep the others. (He always has a way of simplifying things - I love that about him).

We played a few games about the 10 Commandments that were given to Moses and then talked about other commandments we have been asked to keep. By the end of the lesson our happy boy was back and he was thrilled to help make our refreshments: Commandment Chip Cookies! It was a great night!

Commandment Chip Cookies

1cup butter

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 1/4 cups flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 lrg box instant vanilla pudding or 2 small boxes

1 cup nuts, chopped (optional)

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup sugar

1 package of chocolate chips

This is important - mix all wet ingredients together first with an electric mixer (butter, eggs, and vanilla).

In a separate bowl mix the remaining ingredients together. Slowly add the flour mixture into the mixed wet ingredients. Mix thoroughly. (You may choose to add the chocolate chips now or you could add 10 chips to each dropped cookie to represent the 10 commandments).

Spoon out cookies on baking sheets and bake in a 375* oven for 8-10 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack for another 10 minutes.

Then pour yourself a glass of milk (I wanted one even though I don't like milk) and enjoy these

yummy cookies!