Bring your children to know the Savior

“We have the account in 3 Nephi of a people who actually saw the face of the Savior in this life. And while we may not see Him now, perhaps we can learn from their experience. After the Savior’s death, He appeared to these people, taught them, and blessed them. And then “it came to pass that he commanded that their little children should be brought” (3 Nephi 17:11).

“It is our sacred responsibility as parents and leaders of this rising generation of children to bring them to the Savior so that they might see His face and the face of our Father in Heaven as well. As we do so, we also bring ourselves.

“Now, I would ask you to look around you at those you love. This is what matters most—our families. I am sure that more than anything, you want this family to be yours eternally. The account in 3 Nephi can help us bring our children to Him because it gives us a pattern to follow. First, we must love the Lord with all our hearts, and we must love our children. Second, we must become a worthy example to them by continually seeking the Lord and striving to live the gospel. Third, we must teach our children the gospel and how to live its teachings.

“Brothers and sisters, we are the angels that Heavenly Father has sent today to bless the children, and we can help them to one day see the face of the Savior as we teach the principles of the gospel and fill our homes with the joy of living them. Together we can come to know Him. We can feel of His love and His blessings. And through Him we can return to the presence of the Father. We do this as we are willing to be obedient, faithful, and diligent in following His teachings.

Cheryl C. Lant, “That Our Children Might See the Face of the Savior,” Ensign, May 2010, 81–83

Princess Hyacinth: A floating book review

At the library a few weeks ago, this book caught my eye.Princess Hyacinth: The surprising tale of a girl who floated by Florence Parry Heide, illustrated by Lane Smith

Since my girls love everything princess-like (and fancy and fairies and cats and…) I picked it up for a closer look. The inside cover reads

“Poor Princess Hyacinth! If only she could run and play with the other children on the Palace Grounds. Why can’t she, you wonder? Well, because Princess Hyachinth has a problem…She floats!”

A floating princess? I was hooked, and my girls have been hooked too! And I don’t think this is a book just for girls, but I don’t have a boy old enough to try it out on.

This is a delightful story about a not-so-typical princess, a mis-adventure with balloons, a boy name Boy, and of course-floating. There is also a kite, and royal underwear, and fabulously expressive illustrations. It’s definitely a keeper on our list.

FHE: Quickly I’ll Obey (and a great resource for FHE lessons)

Scripture of the Week
“Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.” Exodus 20:12

“Children , obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.” Ephesians 6:1

Lesson Plan
Follow the lesson plan Honoring Your Parents from A Year of Family Home Evenings.

I decided to change things up a bit, and I gave my girls the coloring page to work on while we talked about the lesson. I think it helped them to listen a little bit more, and at least they weren’t running around the room while we talked.

In addition, we also sang “Quickly I’ll Obey” (CS, 197). We then played a game I called “Quickly Obey”. Basically it was just a variation of Simon Says to teach the girls instant obedience in a fun way. We said things like “Quickly obey…touch your nose” or “Quickly obey…put your finger on your knee” or “Quickly obey…jump up and down 5 times”. The girls thought it was pretty fun.

Quickly Obey is one of our new family habits, to go along with Hands are for Hugging, not Hurting.

I need to put a shout-out for for A Year of Family Home Evenings. I just discovered this blog, and it is a wonderful resource for parents of young children. Emilie has plans for an entire years worth of lessons, complete with a scripture and learning activities and songs. Her children are the same ages as mine (nearly 6 and nearly 3, plus a baby), so it’s a really good match. Go check it out, and you might find your next FHE lesson planned out for you!

The reason I am tired

“In order to prioritize time wisely, I learned something from my father-in-law years ago. He was a steel-worker and spent his life working three different shifts. He either worked the day shift, the afternoon shift, or the night shift. As a young mother I realized one time that I was working all three shifts, and that’s why I was so tired. We can’t do all things all at once, and we have to be careful and safeguard our shifts. “

Julie B. Beck, Address Given at BYU Women’s Conference, Thursday, April 29, 2010

That explains why I am so tired!

Sister Beck goes on in her talk to explain how she prioritized her life, organizing her tasks by “the essential things, the necessary things, and the nice-to-do things.” She shared a number of the essential things, and I found that many are the things that should be on my own essential list. I am still pondering about this talk, and pondering about the talks I heard during General Conference this weekend. I am so thankful for a Heavenly Father who sends us messages that we need to hear–now I just need the faith to make the application in my life!