Consider the Blessings

I loved General Conference, and where better to start than with the prophet's talk entitled 'Consider the Blessings' for our FHE tonight.

We started by singing the obvious choice of song, 'Count your Many Blessings' (Hymns #241).

I asked the children to listen carefully as two verses from the scriptures were read and to share with us which verse showed someone who was counting their blessings and someone who was not.

First we read 1 Nephi 2:11

11 Now this he spake because of the ^astiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did ^bmurmur in many things against their ^cfather, because he was a ^dvisionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness. And this they said he had done because of the foolish imaginations of his heart.

Followed by 1 Nephi 2:13

 16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the ^amysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did ^bvisit me, and did ^csoften my heart that I did ^dbelieve all the words which had been spoken by my ^efather; wherefore, I did not ^frebel against him like unto my brothers.

We discussed theses verses and decided that Laman and Lemuel were doing alot murmuring and complaining whilst Nephi who was also in the same situation chose to pray and gained a grateful heart for the situation they were in.

Then we read the following quote from President Monson's talk -

My beloved brothers and sisters, this conference marks 49 years since I was sustained, on October 4, 1963, as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Forty-nine years is a long time. In many ways, however, the time seems very short since I stood at the pulpit in the Tabernacle and gave my very first general conference address.

Much has changed since October 4, 1963. We live in a unique time in the world’s history. We are blessed with so very much. And yet it is sometimes difficult to view the problems and permissiveness around us and not become discouraged. I have found that, rather than dwelling on the negative, if we will take a step back and consider the blessings in our lives, including seemingly small, sometimes overlooked blessings, we can find greater happiness.

I then showed them the poster with the title of the talk on and an outline of a body (that is somewhat misshaped, haha!!), and we took turns writing in the body how we would feel if we didn't see, notice or consider any of the blessings in our lives.  We had answers like, grumpy, unhappy, unthankful etc.

I told them that the 49 colourful circles around the edge of the paper represented each year that our prophet has served as in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the First Presidency...and that from today each FHE till next General Conference we would decide on 2 specific blessings that had happened during the week to place in our empty body, so that by the time April comes it would be full of lots of colourful blessings.

The children chose coats (as two of the children had just got new ones) and Sister Win (who is a lovely lady in our ward) and wrote them on 2 circles and stuck them inside the outline.

A bit of cheese now, but I'm so grateful for General Conference and for the spiritual uplift that I receive from listening to the General Authorities of the Church that helps me and my family, and I'm also grateful for this blog, it's helped me in so many ways especially being more confident on the computer...I know I still have a long, long way to go yet but I'm getting there post by post xx

Keep Calm and Enjoy Christmas

I designed this last night....sometimes with all the hustle and bustle leading up to and during Christmas we can forget the true meaning of it all.

Christmas songs from the New Era Magazine

Christmas will soon be upon us so I've been looking through the December issues of LDS Church magazine the 'New Era' for some festive songs for our ward to sing.  

Two of the songs below aren't particularly 'Christmassy', but I have included them anyway (I've put ** next to them to make them stand out). 

Thank Goodness for Christmas! - Watkins (1977)
In Bethlehem - Tietjen (1978)
Shining Star - Madsen/Rasmuson (1979)

To My Saviour (Duet) - Newman/Carter (1980)**
What Does Christmas Mean - Carter (1981)
Carol to a King - Larsen (1983)
Carol for Christmas Morning - Sowby (1984)
Learn Wisdom in Thy Youth - Jorgensen (1985)**
Little One (1986)
When Love Came Down - Gabbott/Moody (1987)
A New Star Shines Tonight - Cahoon (1988)
Room in the Inn - Gardner/Watkins (1989)

A Gift of Love - Francis (1990)
The First Christmas - Wolford/Wolford (1991)
In a Stable - Jones (1992)
And Mary Pondered - Gardner/Watkins (1993)
Hope Was Born - Romney (1994)
This Is Christmas - Gabbott/Moody (1995)
As with Gladness -Carter/Dix (1996)
Christmas Time Is Here  - Rix/Ferre (1997)
Little Child - Wright (1998)
Christmas Bells Are Ringing - Manookin(1999)

Let It Come Quietly - Gabbott/Moody (2000)
Arise and Sing This Christmas Morn - Gardner/Watkins (2002)
Would I Know My Saviour?  - DeFord (2005)
Soft and Pure - Cook (2006)
From Father's Arms To Mother's Arms - Pearson/Perry (2007)
Little Baby - Law (2008)
Mary, Sweet and Tender Maiden - Staheli/Kasen (2009)
Christmas Comes Again - Staheli (2010..the hyperlink for this sheet music is not available)

Softly Falls the Evening Light - Hatch/Perry (2011)

Can't wait to print off some of these and get singing, I love this time of the year!! :)

I have also compiled a list of 50 songs from the 1970 Friends...enjoy.

Preparing for General Conference #2

I had every intention of posting this before General Conference, but didn't get around to it!!...at least it will be ready for the next one or for when you watch sessions you missed this time :)  So here it is....

It's that wonderful time of the year again, and so I thought I better whip up something different for my children to do during General Conference.  For all the sessions we are still using our Conference Journals but with a twist this year for the kids.

I thought I'd give my kids journals a little tweak this year and make some photo stickers of the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles including names so that they can stick them in their books....I don't know why we didn't think of this one earlier!!

I don't know if it's the same in anybody else's house, but in ours it's usually a frantic rush when the name of the speaker comes on the TV screen as all the kids scramble to get it written down correctly before it disappears...except more often than not, one or more of the kids doesn't get it down on paper, so we end up with lots of questions (and sometimes tears) until we have helped them by spelling it out, or writing it down for them, which results in us missing the beginning of the talks...sound familiar??!?

I copied the pictures from the Conference Ensign April 2012 and just added the names of all the Prophets and Apostles and printed them on sticker paper (you could just use paper and glue)...if you would like a copy of my outlay, just let me know and I will get one to you via email.

My kids have really enjoyed the stickers so far, they used the centre page of the last Conference Ensign to sort their stickers in order with the right name and then put in their books...I'm hoping this activity will also help my children to become more familiar with the General Authorities names and faces.

**And because I'm late posting this I can tell you that this idea worked really well in their journals :) ...and don't stop reading when you see the conference jars below, because I tweaked that too!!!  It was really, really lovely and would definitely recommend it to everyone that has younger children to do for a session or two**

To change things up a bit, during one of the latter sessions, we are going to use the idea of the key word treats, mmmmmm!!  I'm looking forward to this one :)  I used old jam jars and my DIY Mod Podge to stick the images on, and included an image to help my 2 and 4 yr old remember the key words.

As I was doing the shopping for the treats I suddenly thought I'd try to link the treat with the theme of the jar....some are very loosely connected, but hey, you get the idea.

"I am that bread of life" John 6:48 = breadsticks

 When we serve, we generally use our hands which have....fingers :)

I really wanted something that was seed like, but unfortunately my kids don't like pumpkin seeds :( ...and poppy and sesame biscuits were too big to fit in the jar, so I went for....pistachio nuts, huh!!!

I was let down by my local supermarket as they had no jelly babies, so instead, I bought.....goldbears (they kinda look like little people)

There were lots of things I could have chosen for the 'love' jar, but I decided to go with these = jammie dodgers mini

And finally, for the 'Obedience' jar (aka Choose the Right), I chose.....chewits!!  Do you get it, chew the right.....I don't know if my kids will either, but they will understand the whole listen for these key words/principles during Conference and when you hear them you get a treat.  Wahooooo!!!

Because of the time difference where we live, we watched some of the sessions later on, so we could pause the session...this came in handy for these jars.  We all continued to take notes, but after EVERY talk we would pause it and get one jar down at a time and discuss whether we had heard this word or principle being taught in the talk....it was really lovely as we shared and heard each others experiences, and were all strengthened from it.....and of course we got to get a treat from the jar too :)

Hope you enjoy(ed) your Conference weekend.

Two Beginners Tips for using your sewing machine

I'm three weeks into a dressmaking course, and I'm loving it.  I'm learning so much and it's already teaching me how to control my machine better....as all I used to do was straight lines and full steam ahead, lol!!

Anyway, in our first lesson our teacher handed out a driving test for our sewing machine, we didn't use thread and had to manoeuvre our needle round sharp corners, curves and wiggles...we were allowed 3 mistakes and surprising I only made one, so I passed first time!!  Below is one that is similar to the one I did in class.  I might let my girls have a go at this too, so that they get use to the feel of my sewing machine before I let them loose on it :)

                                                                      St Bedes RC School 
                                                                Sewing Machine Driving Test

Our teacher then suggested that we make a stitch book for our machine, so that we could see what they look like on fabric and be able to choose the right stitch for the job in hand.  Up till now I've just stuck to the same old stitch for everything, so I felt like a bit of a dare devil trying out the new stitches, haha!!  As I did each one, I referenced the stitch with the number on my machine.

I will let you know of anything else I learn in class that might help a newbie like me :)

Raspberry and Blackberry recipes

Berry picking will soon be upon us and I can't wait!!!  I made jam for the first time last year and loved every minute of it, even the two and a half hours I spent walking round the local countryside trying to find berries on bushes (my husband says I do anything to save a penny or two, I just can't resist a bargain!!), it was soooo worth it :)

This year I thought I'd still like to make some jam but also something else....and that 'something else' is what I have been on a quest for.  I only have wild raspberry and blackberry bushes growing near me, so obviously I only found recipes that include these, and oooo it was hard to pick!!  But here's my collection of fruity delights, so now when the time arises I can easily peruse through and let my taste buds decide on my 'something else' mmmmm..............

                                                                         Raspberry Pie

    Raspberry Streusel Bars

Raspberry Syrup

Freezing Raspberries

Blackberry Coulis

Blackberry Honey Creams

Blackberry Crumb Bars

Now come on berries and hurry up and ripen!! ;)

50 Songs from the 1970s LDS Friend magazines

Yep, the photo above is of me from the '70s...moving on quickly then!! :)

Well I've recently been called as our Ward Music Chairman and have been rooting around the internet for some additional songs that our choir or smaller groups could sing, and I thought where better to start than the Church website.  I've been at it for 3 hours and I've only managed to list the songs in the Friend magazine from the 1970s!!...and three of those years didn't even have any songs!!!

Some of the songs listed can now be found in the Hymn book or the Children's Songbook but I have still included them as sometimes they have different piano arrangements, there's even a piano duet for 'I Hope They Call Me on a Mission'.  

Key
simp. version = simplified/easy version
1v = one verse to the song, 2v = two verses and so on.

1973
The Golden Plates (2v) Jan 
Saturday (1v) Mar
I Know That My Redeemer Lives (simp. version, 1v) April 
Oh, How Lovely Was the Morning (simp. version, 1v) May                 
Father, We Thank Thee For The Night (1v) June 
Come, Come Ye Saints (4v) July 
Come, Listen to a Prophet's Voice (1v) Aug 
Come, Ye Thankful People (2v) Nov 
Christmas Song (3v) Dec 

1974
I Am My Heavenly Father's Child (2v) Feb
In Humility, Our Saviour (1v) Apr
I Hope They Call Me on a Mission (2v, secondo and primo) May
I Pray to My Heavenly Father (1v) June 
My Country (2v) July
Come, Follow Me (1v) Aug
Repentance (1v) Sept
A Child's Prayer (3v) Dec

1975
Word of Wisdom Promises (3v) May
Fathers (3v) June
My Flag, My Flag (1v) July
Come, Ye Children of the Lord (3v) Aug
Keep the Commandments (1v) Sept
When He Comes (2v) Oct
Children All Over the World (1v) Nov
Lullaby (1v) Dec

1976
Have a Very Happy Birthday (3v) Jan
Our Easter Song (1v) Apr
My Father Taught Me (3v) June
Blessed America (1v) July
Lullaby (3v) Aug
We Thank Thee (3v) Nov
Who Is the Child? (2v) Dec

1977
Other Sheep Have I (1v) Jan
Did Jesus Really Live Again? (3v) Apr
Repentance (2v) June
When Jesus Christ Was Baptized (2v) July
When Jesus Was on Earth (3v) Aug
Love One Another (1v) Sept
When Joseph Went to Bethlehem (3v) Dec

1978
Easter Day (1v) Mar
Hear the Raindrops (3v) Apr
When Mother Bakes (2v) May
Pioneer Children (3v) July
Hymn of Thanks (3v) Nov
Have a Very Merry Christmas (3v) Dec

1979
Come, Follow Me (piano duet) Apr
Building a Temple (1v) May
My Evening Prayer (2v) June 
Thanksgiving Song (2v) Nov
Little Jesus (2v) Dec

 These songs can be great for FHE, ward choirs, or as musical items.  I will hopefully get around to finding and listing the other songs from the magazines too....but feel free to do it and if you do, pleaseeeee let me have the link, thank you :) 

Choose The Right FHE

Tonight we did a bit of a reminder of the Primary theme for the children...and us, which is 'Choose the Right'.  This was one of my quick, it's FHE night what can we do!! 

So I taped several pieces of card together and drew a 'strait and narrow' path down the middle and glued the picture of the Saviour at the top.  I also cut out some little green strips of card that fit in the path (you'll see these later).

We started our FHE by singing Choose the Right #239, then after the prayer we talked about ways we could stay on the strait and narrow path so we could get back to live with Heavenly Father and Jesus.  One by one a member of the family wrote down on the card (pictured above) our answers and explained why we had chosen it...they wanted to keep writing down answers but we'd never finish the lesson if they did!!

We then turned to the scriptures and read the following verses from 1 Nephi chapter 8 -

 19 And I beheld a ^arod of iron, and it extended along the bank of the river, and led to the tree by which I stood.

 20 And I also beheld a ^astrait and narrow path, which came along by the rod of iron, even to the tree by which I stood;

We talked about the story of the tree of life and how people had to hold on tight to the rod of iron so that they wouldn't stray from the path.  Then we turned to 1 Nephi 15: 23-24 to find out what the rod of iron represented -

23 And they said unto me: What meaneth the ^arod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree?

 24 And I said unto them that it was the ^aword of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would ^bhold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the ^ctemptations and the fiery ^ddarts of the ^eadversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.

Next we handed out the little green strips of card as we discussed how we could hold fast to the word of God, and different ways we could hear/read/see/feel the word of God...and shared our thoughts as we wrote down our ideas.

During the week we are going to stick these green strips on our path as we do them, so we've already done our Family Home Evening one :)  So hopefully this week we will all get stuck into our scriptures, the Friend, Ensign etc. and work towards drawing closer to the Saviour through the word of God.

Refreshments was a biscuit with icing on that we all decorated with sweets to make happy smiley faces on....because when we choose the right we feel happy :)  Especially with all this sugar on just one biscuit!! ;)

I really like the FHE lessons where we have a reminder of what we've learnt during the week, I know it helps me to stay on track and I hope and feel that it helps my family feel the same.

Tuna Pasta Salad

I like to have a nosey at the salad bar for inspiration for dishes I can  make at home for cheaper and in bulk!!  So this recipe is the product of one such nosey :)  This dish is great for hot days (and/or stressful ones) as it doesn't take too long to cook, so we always have this a lot in the summer.

Ingredients
500g pasta
2 cans of tuna (185g), drained
1 can of sweetcorn (325g), drained
1 green pepper, cut into small chunks
1 cup of salad cream

Cook pasta and drain...just a note - I like to add a dash of olive oil to the water while the pasta is cooking, I have no idea if this helps it not to stick together, but I do it anyway lol!!

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well, it's ready to be served :)  If you are going to eat it cold, let it cool down first before covering it and then store in the fridge.  Just before serving, add a little more salad cream to 'freshen' it up.

Enjoy!!

Fruity Croissant Pudding

My brother-in-law made this for us at Christmas and it was so delicious we were all fighting over seconds, it was not a pretty sight!!!  You just need croissants, custard and fruit but don't underestimate the yummiest of this simple combination, mmmm mmm mmmm :)

Ingredients
6 croissants
1 1/2 - 2 cup of soft fruits e.g. raspberries, blueberries
1 pint custard
sugar or caster sugar for dusting

Preheat your oven to Gas Mark 4/180C/350F.

Tear up the croissants into bite-size pieces to cover the base of your dish...my dish measured 12"x 9". 

Scatter on your chosen fruit over the croissants....blueberries and raspberries work well together or I used a frozen summer fruit mix this time.

Pour your custard all over, making sure that everything gets covered.  Let it sit for 5 mins before cooking, so that the croissants get a chance to soak up some of the custard. 

Sprinkle a little sugar all over just before putting in the oven...I just used granulated, but caster or brown sugar should work just as well.

Put in the oven for 25-30 mins...now enjoy with anything creamy :)