Okay, so I am finally back to posting...I think. ;)
I am sure that many of you have seen or done something similar to this at your homes but just in case I thought I'd share something we started last FHE at our house that would work just as great to start tonight or next Monday as well.
First, we told the story of the Ten Lepers and how only one came back to tell Christ thank you and how it might have made Him feel. We talked about how we feel when someone thanks us or maybe when they don't. We talked about specific things we could say thank you for and how we need to always remember to thank Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and others for all of the things we are blessed with in our lives.
And then we created this beautiful Thankful or Gratitude Tree. I had previously cut out all of the leaves (I'd highly recommend sticking with simple patterns or just cutting out free hand.) We created the tree on the spot. I cut out random shapes and sizes of branches and my husband and two little ones created this masterpiece of a tree. It was fun to create the tree together.
We each chose three leaves that night and wrote down something we are thankful for on them and shared them with each other. Since last Monday each morning as part of our Morning Devotional we have added a leaf or two to the tree.
It is fun to hear what my 4 and 2 year old come up with. We have things on the tree like,
When people say I love you.
Smiles
Temples
My little sister.
Friends.
Family.
Baby (doll)
The Priesthood
It has been good to stop each morning and think of something we are thankful for as we start the day. I hope we all can have an enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday and one filled with gratitude!
So I have been MIA for the last little bit and this my friends is why. Well, about a month back I had a lagging in posts because well, I was sick, not just a day sick or a few days sick, but weeks and weeks of sick, which turned into months. Then I started to feel a little better but not great but it felt good to sit at the computer and do something somewhat productive and thus posts began again. Then I got EVEN better and well, I could ACTUALLY leave the house, with kids in tow and everything.. What an amazing thing! And I could clean, yes I said could. I could do laundry. I could play and laugh with my children. I could go shopping. I could do anything I wanted and, well, blogging has taken a back seat to all of that. I am going to jump back in sometime. I do have a slew of Book of Mormon posts I promised. But it may take me a day or two or a week or who knows maybe sooner but for now I am going to enjoy this little one in my tummy and do anything and everything a not sick person can do. :) Are you with me? Hip-Hip-Hooray for health!
I was recently sent this information and thought it amazing how quickly these great sources could be made available to so many. I hope this helps some.
Archives for the General Relief Society Meeting have been posted in more than 60 languages. To choose your language, simply select it from the drop down menu on the top right hand side of the page, as shown below.
Also, PDF files for the book Daughters in my Kingdom are now available in 18 languages:
So I have much to share in preparation for the exciting event of General Conference that awaits us. Read through the whole post for a myriad of ways to prepare yourself and your family to hear the word of God:
Go into General Conference remembering that it has something just for YOU!
Elder Holland said, “If we teach by the Spirit and you listen by the Spirit, some one of us will touch on your circumstance, sending a personal little, prophetic epistle just to you.”
Enjoy this video and you may also enjoy reading THIS arcticle from the September Ensign about a Sister's experience in finding out that Conference had something just for her.
2. This week ponder about and write down some questions or concerns that you have and pray to receive answers and direction for those specific things during Conference. Answers will come.
3. Create new General Conference traditions or plan to carry out old ones. This can give something similar and concrete about each Conference for your children (and yourself) to look forward to. You can find one of our traditions HERE.
4. Play some games or watch this video sometime this week to get your kids thinking about what is coming.
You can find an Apostle Matching Game and Fun Fact Cards HERE. There are also a few fun online games from lds.org you can find HERE.
And there are so many other creations, ideas, and printables all over the internet. I hope you find something you like.
6. Think about joining in this fun Video Conference event, check out this video to learn more:
6. I was sent a document with many FAQ about Genereal Conference but don't know how to put the information on my blog. If you are in need of answers to any of these questions leave a comment with the question you'd like answered and your email address or email me with this information at becominglds@gmail.com.
How can I access General Conference?
When will conference materials be available?
What languages are available?
Can I put General Conference on my mobile device?
Can I download just the music from General Conference?
Is General Conference on Twitter or Facebook?
7. And finally, I know this challenge comes a little late but do you remember our semi-annual no tv weeks well since things have changed in that department quite a bit at our house we aren't holding an official one but if you'd like to try it out and turn your tv off for the week it really does make turning on the tv for Conference such a refreshing and wonderful experience. I dare you! ;)
Now let's all get prepping! What does your family do to prepare for Conference?
We are just a short time away from the Relief Society broadcast and you won't want to miss it. If you haven't been able to make it much in the past or just haven't made it a habit try to get there this time around. It really is worth our time.
You wouldn't want to miss another message like this:
"A young couple, Lisa and John, moved into a new neighborhood. One morning while they were eating breakfast, Lisa looked out the window and watched her next-door neighbor hanging out her wash.
“That laundry’s not clean!” Lisa exclaimed. “Our neighbor doesn’t know how to get clothes clean!”
John looked on but remained silent.
Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, Lisa would make the same comments.
A few weeks later Lisa was surprised to glance out her window and see a nice, clean wash hanging in her neighbor’s yard. She said to her husband, “Look, John—she’s finally learned how to wash correctly! I wonder how she did it.”
John replied, “Well, dear, I have the answer for you. You’ll be interested to know that I got up early this morning and washed our windows!”
Tonight I’d like to share with you a few thoughts concerning how we view each other. Are we looking through a window which needs cleaning? Are we making judgments when we don’t have all the facts? What do we see when we look at others? What judgments do we make about them?"
So determine to make it a point to participate this Saturday whether you watch/listen to it at home, head to a nearby stake center, or are lucky enough to sit in the Conference Center. The messages will be inspired. The Spirit will be present. We will all learn something about ourselves and this journey we are on. I am excited.
Relief Society sisters worldwide are invited to view the satellite broadcast of the general Relief Society meeting, which will be held on Saturday, September 24, 2011, at 6:00 p.m. (MDT) and will be broadcast to many areas of the world.
All sisters 18 years of age and older are encouraged to gather together in meetinghouses to view the broadcast.
Video of the broadcast will also be available live in American Sign Language, English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish at conference.lds.org. Additional languages will be available as a live audio broadcast at the same site. Archives of the broadcast will be available in those same languages at the same site within 24 hours. Live audio will also be available in English at mormonchannel.org.
Over the next several days I will be posting about what happens in the Book of Mormon (today), common questions about the book, how you can know if the Book of Mormon is true, how to study it, and lastly the formats it is available in and the devices you can access it on.
If any of you have any questions about the Book of Mormon along the way don't hesitate to ask. I am happy to help in any way I can.
The Book of Mormon begins with a prophet named Lehi. He warned the wicked people in Jerusalem to repent, but the people didn’t listen. The Lord told Lehi to take his family, including his wife, Sariah, and their sons—Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi—into the wilderness. (See 1 Nephi 1–2.)
Lehi sent his sons back to get the scriptures written on brass plates. These plates had the history of their ancestors and other things the Lord had told them to write. Lehi and Nephi took good care of these plates. They also wrote on metal plates what happened to their family. (See 1 Nephi 3–5.)
The Lord gave Lehi a compass called the Liahona to guide his family through the wilderness to the promised land. (See 1 Nephi 16.)
The Lord told Nephi to build a boat to take Lehi’s family to the promised land. Nephi obeyed his father and the Lord, but Laman and Lemuel did not. (See 1 Nephi 17.)
Lehi and his family sailed to the promised land on the boat they built. (See 1 Nephi 18.)
Laman and Lemuel continued to disobey their father and the Lord. Their descendants are known as the Lamanites. Nephi continued to obey his father and the Lord. His descendants are called Nephites. (See 2 Nephi 4–5.)
After Lehi and Nephi died, other people, such as Nephi’s brother Jacob, were in charge of writing important teachings and events on the plates. (See Jacob 1.)
Enos prayed to be forgiven of his sins, and he was forgiven. (See Enos 1.)
King Benjamin built a tower to teach his people the gospel. (See Mosiah 2–6.)
A wicked king named Noah had the prophet Abinadi put to death. But Abinadi’s teachings converted one of Noah’s priests named Alma. (See Mosiah 11–17.)
Alma escaped from King Noah’s court, taught other people about the gospel, and baptized them. (See Mosiah 18.)
Alma’s son Alma the Younger was not obedient. He and his friends, the sons of Mosiah, were wicked. Then an angel told them to repent. Alma and the sons of Mosiah repented and spent the rest of their lives preaching the gospel. (See Mosiah 27–28.)
Mosiah’s son Ammon converted many Lamanites after Ammon defended King Lamoni’s flocks and won his trust. (See Alma 17–19.)
Captain Moroni wrote the title of liberty and fought to defend the liberty of his people. (See Alma 46; 48.)
Helaman led an army of 2,000 righteous young men. (See Alma 53; 56–58.)
A Lamanite prophet named Samuel prophesied that Jesus Christ would soon be born. (See Helaman 13–16.)
Far away in Bethlehem, Jesus Christ was born. He taught His gospel, healed and blessed people, and set up His Church. Then He was crucified and resurrected. (See 3 Nephi 1; 8–10.)
After His Resurrection, He visited the righteous Nephites and Lamanites. He taught them His gospel, healed them, and blessed them, just as He had in the land around Jerusalem. (See 3 Nephi 11–28.)
A 10-year-old boy named Mormon was chosen to write on the plates when he grew older. At age 24 he began combining the most important stories from all the records onto a set of metal plates. (See Mormon 1.)
Before Mormon died, he gave the plates to his son Moroni. Moroni was a general in the army. He was the last Nephite to survive a great battle between the Lamanites and the Nephites. (See Mormon 6; 8.)
Before Moroni died, he buried the plates in a place called Cumorah. About 1,400 years after Moroni buried the plates, a 14-year-old boy named Joseph Smith prayed to know which church was right. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:5–16.)
Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ visited Joseph Smith and told him that none of the churches were true and complete. Joseph would help restore the true Church of Jesus Christ. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:17–20.)
Moroni visited Joseph Smith and told him about the buried plates. When Joseph Smith got older, he would get the plates and translate them. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:27–54.)
When Joseph Smith was 21, he went to the Hill Cumorah and got the plates from the place where Moroni had buried them. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:59.)
Through the power of God, Joseph Smith translated the writing on the plates. He published this translation. It is called the Book of Mormon. (See title page and introduction to the Book of Mormon.)
You can read the entire Book of Mormon online HERE.
You can also request a FREE hard copy of the Book of Mormon HERE.
