By Nurture Mama, on February 16th, 2012 Since February is the month of love and hearts, of course we had to have a Family Home Evening lesson tied into the theme. The Heart Healthy Exercise game shared by Marie at Make and Takes was the perfect activity for my kiddos: making hearts strong and healthy by exercising in a fun way.I followed her instructions and found some clipart online of the various heart healthy actions I wanted to include and I made some very simple posters. My poster included the following actions: sit ups, kick, stretch, roll over, push ups, jump, jog in place, and jumping jacks.
I also followed her suggestion and made a heart bean bag to use as a throwing item. Cut two hearts out of red felt, hot glue 3/4 of the edge of the hearts, fill with beans, then glue the rest together. A simple project that took just a few minutes, but my kids loved playing with it.
Lesson Plan
Lead a very brief discussion about hearts. Do you know the word “heart” is found 1473 times in our standard works of scripture? Obviously, hearts are important! It is important to take care of our hearts and keep them healthy and happy.
We can keep our hearts happy by…. (reading scriptures, following the prophet, praying, keeping the commandments, etc).
It is also important to keep our physical hearts healthy. We can do this through regular exercise and activity.
Play the heart healthy game: Take turns throwing the bean bag on the posters, and do the action it lands on. We also had some other hearts to choose from to let us know how many of each action we should do (5, 10, 15, or 20).
End the evening with a discussion of our favorite “heart”scriptures and eat heart shaped cookies for dessert!
Favorite Heart Scriptures
Matthew 22:37 “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind”.
2 Nephi 4:15 “For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them”
Alma 45:7 “Yea, I will keep thy commandments with all my heart”.
By Nurture Mama, on February 13th, 2012 “A happy marriage is not so much a matter of romance as it is an anxious concern for the comfort and well-being of one’s companion.”
Gordon B. Hinckley, “What God Hath Joined Together,” Ensign, May 1991, 73.
Quoted in Douglas Brinley, “What Happily Married Couples Do,” Ensign, January 2012.
By Nurture Mama, on February 9th, 2012  This little mailbox is a new addition to our family’s annual February festivities. When I found it in the dollar aisle at Target I picked it up without hesitation. The mailbox is our “love box”: anyone who would like to can leave message inside for another family member. The girls get pretty excited when they notice the raised flag and know that there is a message inside. In the picture you can see some of the messages that have been sent (and received).
Writing a note just takes a minute, but it is a nice way that we are showing love in our family. I was also inspired by the idea of a 14 Acts of Love countdown to Valentine’s Day, shared at Make and Takes. We haven’t been able to do it every day, but it has helped us to have a more service/other oriented mindset.
I have found so many great ideas online this year for Valentine’s Day. Thank you, Pinterest, for keeping it all organized for me! You can view the ideas that have sparked my interest on my Valentine’s Day Pinterest board. I also have a great set of links that I shared last year.
By Nurture Mama, on February 1st, 2012 Every year Groundhog Day sneaks up on me, but this year we are actually doing something to recognize it! I hosted the Sweet Bee’s preschool group today and we had some groundhog themed fun.
After our usual introductory stuff (some free-play time, welcome song, talk about the calendar and the weather) we read Animals in Winter. The book details, briefly, what various animals do to survive the winter: migrate, hibernate, or adapt. I previously found images online of each animal mentioned in the book, and as we read the book we added the animal picture to the appropriate poster. This book was a really great way to bring a little science into our lesson, and the activity as we went along kept the attention of the children.
Then it was time to focus in on the groundhog (aka the woodchuck). The children colored a groundhog and decorated a cave (toilet paper roll) for it to pop out of.  Snack time: Edible Groundhogs! I originally found the idea for this groundhog here and I thought it was so cute. I modified the instructions slightly based on the amount of supplies I was willing to purchase (I left out the cookie frosting and just used chocolate pudding to stick it all together). Here is the breakdown:
-chocolate pudding for the body
-vanilla wafer for the head
-edible eyeballs (I found some at Walmart in the cake decorating aisle–the kids thought they were the coolest thing ever!)
-butterscotch chip for the nose (or you could use a chocolate chip)
-mini marshmallow for the teeth
-vanilla wafer broken into pieces for the ears and the front paws
The children were very enthralled with this little edible critter!
To conclude our day we ended with a few songs and a game.
(sung to the tune of 10 Little Indians)
One little, two little, three little groundhogs.
Four little, five little, six little groundhogs.
Seven little, eight little, nine little groundhogs.
Sleeping down under the ground.
(sung to the tune of I’m a Little Teapot)
I’m a little groundhog, furry and brown.
When winter comes, I sleep underground.
I’m curled up, as cozy as can be.
When it’s spring please wake me up!
I brought out my laundry basket and the children took turns laying inside, with a blanket thrown over their heads. I would sing the song and the child would pop up when I said “wake me up!” The kids loved it and wanted multiple turns, so I sang a lot! A simple game, but perfect for the 4-year-olds (and the the almost 2-year-old) in our group.
If I have time tomorrow, I plan to make this footprint groundhog with my children. Image courtesy of The Educator’s Spin On It
Here are the other books we are reading in honor of the furry little groundhog:
Geoffrey Groundhog Predicts the Weather by Bruce Koscielniak
Gregory’s Shadow by Don Freeman
Happy Groundhog Day!
By Nurture Mama, on January 30th, 2012 Yesterday I attended a stake conference meeting. It was one of the satellite broadcast meetings from Salt Lake City. I spent most of the meeting dealing with my almost-two-year-old son, so I unfortunately didn’t hear too much of the meeting. But what I did hear was this:
“The lessons learned in the home are those that last the longest.”
The quote was given in a talk by Sister Esplin of the Primary General Presidency. The words stuck with me, and I know that is the lesson I needed to hear right now. I came home from church and did a little digging to find the original source of the quote. The words are from President Monson, and you can view a short video of his address discussing the importance of Family Home Evening here. The text is below. So the question I am pondering, and what I invite you to consider, is “What lessons are you teaching your children?“
“I begin with family home evening. We cannot afford to neglect this heaven-inspired program. It can bring spiritual growth to each member of the family, helping him or her to withstand the temptations which are everywhere. The lessons learned in the home are those that last the longest. As President Gordon B. Hinckley and his predecessors have stated, “The home is the basis of a righteous life, and no other instrumentality can take its place nor fulfill its essential functions.” 2
“Dr. Glenn J. Doman, noted author and medical authority, wrote: “The newborn child is almost an exact duplicate of an empty … computer, although superior to such a computer in almost every way. … What is placed in the child’s [mind] during the first eight years of life is probably there to stay. … If you put misinformation into his [mind] during [this period], it is extremely difficult to erase it.” Dr. Doman added that the most receptive age in human life is that of two or three years. 3
“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.”
Thomas S. Monson, “Constant Truths for Changing Times”, Ensign, May 2005.
By Nurture Mama, on January 23rd, 2012 Just a few scriptures that I have been thinking about recently…they help me to remember to find joy in the daily moments of being a mother.
Happy Living and Seeking the Good
“And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily…” Colossians 3:23
“And we lived after the manner of happiness” 2 Nephi 5:27
“…men are that they might have joy” 2 Nephi 2:25
Further Reading:
Marlin K. Jensen, “Living After the Manner of Happiness”, Ensign, Dec 2002.
Small and Simple Things and Living the Abundant Life
“…by small and simple things are great things brought to past” Alma 37:6
“Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.” D&C 64:33
Further Reading:
Thomas S. Monson, “Finding Joy in the Journey”, Ensign, Nov 2008.
Thomas S. Monson, “Living the Abundant Life”, Ensign, Jan 2012.
I am not busy, I am enjoying abundance from Northern Cheapskate.
By Nurture Mama, on January 18th, 2012 The theme of January at our house is always winter and snow. We have yet to have any snow flurries land on our doorstep in Florida, so we have to make our own fun with snow. Now presenting: our collections of snowy projects undertaken in January!Our winter art wall!
These three . . . → Read More: Winter arts and crafts (and books to read in January)
By Nurture Mama, on January 16th, 2012 “Some uses of individual and family time are better, and others are best. We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our families.”
Dallin H. Oaks, “Good, Better, Best, ” October 2007 General Conference.
. . . → Read More: A few quotes about priorities
By Nurture Mama, on January 9th, 2012 “Asking for and receiving daily bread at God’s hand plays a vital part in learning to trust Him and in enduring life’s challenges. We also need a daily portion of divine bread to become what we must become. To repent, improve, and eventually reach “the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Ephesians . . . → Read More: Keeping resolutions is a daily task
By Nurture Mama, on January 2nd, 2012 “I believe you can train yourself to become a positive thinker, but you must cultivate a desire to develop the skill of setting personal worthy and realistic goals. I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don’t set goals in our life and learn how to master the technique of living to reach our goals, . . . → Read More: Setting goals
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My poster included the following actions: sit ups, kick, stretch, roll over, push ups, jump, jog in place, and jumping jacks.
