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A Day in the Life, FHE, Life Lessons, Spiritual

2024 Just One Verse

Keira

I have a confession to make. Come Follow Me has always been hard. I don’t like it. I’ve never liked it. I’ve missed years of yore with studying prophets and 3 hour church and all the stuff that seems to have been an easy tradition shift for most. I’ve harbored guilt for these feelings and often felt like if I would just get on board, I’d gain a testimony of the program; but every year comes and goes and I don’t implement any kind of come follow me manuals into our lives. We’ll pick it up occasionally but since I haven’t really planted the seed into my own life, it never really grows for my family. And then a wise friend was talking about what she did for her family and an idea spurred. She said that she’s always struggled to make habits stick until she realized that it’s easier to piggyback habits instead of create from scratch. She said her family struggled with reading scriptures until she piggybacked the habit with bedtime prayers, something that they’d been able to keep consistent for a long time. She says you don’t have to master a gospel foundation from day one, just take a baby step every day. Find some goal that doesn’t feel lofty. When she said they only read 1 verse a day, I thought, “I think maybe we could handle 1 verse a day at bedtime.” And then I came home and looked at the book and realized it’ll be pretty easy to find 1 verse for each sub-category. So I went through the book and picked 6 verses for each lesson, based on what is already marked in my scriptures and what is highlighted in the manual. I only picked 6 because I still want to follow with our own Family Home Evening lesson schedule. Also, I’m an all-or-nothing type. If I make the list now, I’ll stick with it. If I wing it, I will drop the habit. So It’s all done now, while I’m thinking about it. (The scriptures in parentheses are because I know myself. If I miss a day, this is the verse I’ll skip).

So if you’re stuck on Come Follow Me, feel free to use my pre-selected scripture list of 1 verse a day:

  • Jan 8-14
    • 1 Nephi 5:21
    • 1 Nephi 2:16
    • 1 Nephi 3:7
    • 1 Nephi 4:1
    • 1 Nephi 4:6
    • (1 Nephi 5:22)
  • Jan 15-21
    • 1 Nephi 7:21
    • 1 Nephi 8:11-12
    • (1 Nephi 8:30-31)
    • 1 Nephi 9:6
    • 1 Nephi 10:4-5
    • (1 Nephi 10:18-19)
  • Jan 22-28
    • 1 Nephi 11:20-22
    • 1 Nephi 14:7
    • 1 Nephi 13:37
    • (1 Nephi 14:14)
    • 1 Nephi 15:11
    • 1 Nephi 15:25
  • Jan 29-Feb 4
    • 1 Nephi 17:13
    • 1 Nephi 16:29
    • 1 Nephi 17:3
    • 1 Nephi 17:13
    • 1 Nephi 19:23
    • (1 Nephi 20:10)
  • Feb 5-11
    • 2 Nephi 2:26-27
    • (2 Nephi 1:15)
    • 2 Nephi 1:23
    • 2 Nephi 2:7
    • 2 Nephi 2:11
    • 2 Nephi 2:14
  • Feb 12-18
    • 2 Nephi 4:19-20
    • 2 Nephi 3:13
    • 2 Nephi 4:34-35
    • 2 Nephi 5:27
    • 2 Nephi 2:10-11
    • (2 Nephi 5:15-17)
  • Feb 19-25
    • (2 Nephi 7:7)
    • 2 Nephi 9:10
    • 2 Nephi 9:23
    • 2 Nephi 9:28-29
    • 2 Nephi 9:39
    • 2 Nephi 10:23
  • Feb 26-March 3

More to come… if I don’t get sidetracked…

A Day in the Life, Educational, Homeschool

Kitchen Chemistry Unit for November

Keira

This is a rough draft post. I’d love to say I’ll fluff it out but… my track record suggests otherwise. If you’re seeing it in this state and it’s not November, my track record holds. What can I say, I’m consistent! haha.

Below, find a schedule for semi-weekly primary-school science lessons for the month of November. A homeschool unit for November about – you guessed it – food.  Note that this could easily be spread out to 4 or 5 days a week instead of 2! But we only do science twice a week in order to have time for social studies and extra curriculars.

  1. Intro to Chemistry
  2. classifying matter:
  3. states of matter: Solid, liquid, gas
  4. What is a mixture
  5. Suspensions vs Solutions
  6. Colloids
  7. emulsions
  8. Adding heat
  9. Acids vs Bases
Life Lessons, tutorials

All I know about pruning apple trees

Keira

2 springs ago I finally convinced my super busy friend to come teach me how to prune my apple trees. They always overwhelmed me and I just ignored them. They were overgrown when we moved into this house and I didn’t even know where to start. I’ve learned so much since then and have even more things I learned this year as well, so I decided I’d try to write down and recall all I’ve learned in one place (better recall!)

Year 1: the basic rules of pruning.

  • Cut out anything that is dead or diseased (duh).
  • Cut out everything that grows toward the center. There are a lot of reasons why this is a good idea. First, it keeps the air flowing throughout the tree and therefore keeps pests and diseases at bay. It also allows sunlight to reach more apples. Plus it makes it easier to get into the tree to pick apples and not *have* to climb up so high to reach apples.
  • Cut out anything that is taller than you can reach. I didn’t mind climbing into the tree; I thought that was part of apple-picking. But my friend informed me it was a waste of resources for both me and the tree. And honestly not having to climb on top of a truck and into the tree was kind of nice! Plus the tall branches shade the apples too much.
  • Cut out branches that cross other branches (more on this in year 3)
  • Cut as close to the joint as possible to allow for the tree to create new bark over the cut and seal itself back in. She showed me some branches on my tree that were cut correctly and some that weren’t. The correct ones did have bark sealing them in. The incorrect cuts had dead little sticks poking out that suck up water and can’t seal.
  • Don’t cut away more than 1/3 of the branches. Some trees (sigh… Mine) need more than 1 year to get back into shape. I’m pretty sure my friend cut half of the one tree away this year (she got excited about re-taming it, I think) and it looked good but we only got 1 apple and lots of water sprouts to show from it. It gave us amazing apples the next year though!

Year 2: trying to apply my knowledge

  • Once you prune the tree it gets all excited and shoots branches straight up. They’re called water sprouts and don’t help the tree at all. Instead they take nutrients that could go to building better apples. I only cut half of mine off because I was too chicken to cut them all off. They didn’t produce any apples and they got tall and unruly. Cut off all water sprouts.
  • My friend told me 2 of my trees wouldn’t produce decent apples because they were not from the trunk but the roots. So I didn’t prune them. And I wish I had because the tiny little apples actually tasted pretty good! So don’t give up on a tree too soon.
  • Invest in a hand saw, a pair of loppers, and a pair of little nippers (hand pruners?). They all come in handy. Sometimes a chainsaw, too, but you risk cutting at weird angles too quickly or dropping big branches on yourself by going so fast. And the adjustable pair of sheers are bound to un-tighten as you’re trying to trim and warp funny and are just a pain.
  • Add a basic rule that anything that can bend and that hangs down will drag on the ground when the tree is full of apples and cut anything under waist high.

Year three: oh, so that’s why…

  • Those low branches I didn’t trim last year were also perfect grazing height for deer and voles (eyeroll) and now I have a few branches that are chewed all to bits. Good thing they were already getting trims… It’s just a little higher up than I would have done if they hadn’t been chewed on.
  • This year I’m pruning all the extra water sprouts. Except since I left half last year they’re thick and a pain. So that’s why you should just cut anything that grows straight up as you see it, even if you don’t think it’s gonna harm anything to leave it.
  • I see some spots where the bark is not healthy on one of my trees. It’s all mostly in the middle. The damage is done and I remember my friend talking about it in year 1 but now I understand why it’s important to clean out the center of the tree.
  • I can see how in just 2 years, the bark is enclosing the first year of cuts and it’s amazing to me! I feel like patting the trunk and saying, “oh what a good little tree.” Although I bet the tree is as old as I am…
  • Going to cut branches out of an overgrown tree and I have to keep yanking and pulling and unwinding crossed branches. It’s way easier to cut small crossing branches than thick intertwined branches. As you’re pruning, don’t just think about what the tree will look like when you’re done pruning, but what it will look like in a few years. Stop and consider the direction the branch is heading and if it will need pruned in a few years. Then you can save yourself the strain of cutting a thick branch then by cutting one that only takes nippers now.
  • Put a cage of fine mesh over baby trees. Chicken wire is not enough (though I didn’t even have that). I now have a stick coming out of the ground instead of my little yearling tree. Pesky deer and voles!
  • Have more than 1 apple tree if you can. In more than one variety. I knew this before (the best applesauce comes from a blend of apples) but it stood out more this year because I really don’t want to entirely tame one of my trees. It’s the one that has apples on the ground by fall. I’m definitely trimming some of the branches but I can’t bear to totally cut it into submission. It’s just too magical of a tree. It creates a little tree hideout in the summer where the light twinkles through the branches and the rest of the world hides away behind leaves and apples. My kids and kitties love it. I’m willing to sacrifice a little on the apple quality and quantity in order to keep the magic, because I have other trees to get apples from. I’m pruning the branches that are just too tall (although the birds might wish I hadn’t, as I have to leave the apples up that high as some sort of offering to nature), clearing out the chewed and unhealthy branches, and letting the rest stay kinda chaotic.
  • Oh, and add a baseball cap to the list of supplies. My hair was caught waaaaayyyy too many times today.
A Day in the Life

Goals 2023

Keira

Here it is, halfway through February. As you know (you don’t know. I have no followers), I refuse to set goals in January. I take January off, mentally. I survive and mend in January. Perhaps because it’s “always Winter and never Christmas.” This year, I’ve needed a few other weeks, too. But I’m here. I’m feeling the need to set goals. It’s time. (Cue crazy Rafiki).

So… What goals do I have?

1. Finish the basement. It’s 4 years overdue. It’s sooo close. If. we. can. just. cross. the. finish. line…

2. Get chickens. Yeah. Totally did that. Blame the ADHD impulse and my Mama. But on the flip side have you seen the cost of eggs lately? And I already have half a coop, a rundown run (pun intended), and help with them on the way. So I guess the goal isn’t “get” chickens. It’s keeping them alive when they get here.

3. Homeschool a girly that is struggling socially in school. She has some body delays, and socially it’s becoming awkward for her. So I wanna give her a year to recoup, stay on track, and then we will evaluate how she’s doing. Kinda hope she loves it because it’s always something I have wanted but it’s a serious commitment and I don’t wanna mess that up. We’re talking a kid’s wellbeing here. I don’t wanna take that lightly. I intend to send the other 2 to school. Mostly because it eases the transition for those that have always discouraged me and because that gives one-on-one time to the one that needs it.

Man I sound all domestic and homey!

4. Find it in my soul to pick up the dropped ball of FHE lessons instead of hasty find a picture and talk about it lessons. And when that is done, work on a scripture study guide. That I also started and set down. Man my ADHD is killing me. Actually I always just thought it was a personal failing. It wasn’t until I was 36, had newborn twins and was drowning in exhaustion and Dr Pepper that I asked for help. And that was because I zoned out while driving all my precious cargo because the car in front of me had shiny rims. No lie. Clearly meds don’t fix everything, though, because I am dreading picking up these juggle balls. Not because I don’t want to do them but because I don’t want to drop them. Or any other ball. Am I ready? I can barely do dishes and laundry. But part of that is because I’m lagging in the motivation category. And when I’m lagging on motivation it often helps to add something new. That’s why I love gardening in the spring. It’s something new. It’s a new garden. But it’s -4° today and my driveway is drifted over with snow and wind and I’m not ready to think about spring yet.

That being said, 5. Keep up with a garden. Back to domesticity, haha. I was debating about the 2 rows of tomatoes. Or maybe cutting back carrots. But, as I’ve hinted at, life seems to be changing in my family of origin and the extra garden space will probably be a blessing. And if I keep chickens it will both rock the mouse population (hopefully in my favor but who knows. They might all move further into my garden) and they can eat the shrivelled carrots I didn’t get to in time.

5.1 grow onions from seeds. Which means I need to get started soon. But as I said, it’s snowing outside! It’s cold in my house. I just can’t bring myself yet. Soon.

5.2 try lavender again. Pray we can fix the watering “sitch.” Pray they get enough light indoors. Pray they *finally* grow bigger than an inch high.

5.3 don’t make my tomatoes struggle this year by inadequate potting soil and starting them as early as I’d like to. I’d love to get my greenhouse here and ready to install, but it’s gonna cost me a pretty penny to transport it around a mountain range. Long story. Probably too much personal information. I inherited it but it isn’t near me. Let’s say that.

6. Figure out how to be a better neighbor when I’m a hermit. World peace. I have awesome neighbors. I wanna be like them. And I wanna be better at helping them. And my husband. And my kids.

Anyway, I usually publish these goals here to keep me accountable. And then I look at them in January and evaluate myself. But I don’t feel like looking at last year’s so, … Moving on.

Canning/Harvest, Recipes

Bbq barbeque sauce 2022

Keira

***disclaimer before you think this is a real recipe, it is not! It is notes on what *I* did on a scientific basis in order to create my own safe bbq sauce recipe from tomato skins. It has not been tested by any official source and I completely created it myself instead of using my knowledge to safely tweak someone else’s. Use this recipe and this blog post at your own risk.**z

Once again I decided I’d re-try a recipe I had in the past and it’s been so long that I have no idea what that recipe even was or where it came from. I would hide in self-pitty but I’m too stubborn. I’ve been looking for days and I am just going to have to do my own digging on what makes a good and bottle-able sauce! So here goes:

First of all, I struggle with a lot of the recipes on the world wide web because they start with whole tomatoes! Since I use tomato skins to get my tomatoes, this is an impossible measurement. So for my recipe I started with 3 gallons of tomatoes and tomato skins that I have heated, blended, heated some more, and run through the victorio. It’s pretty tedious to run that much tomato through the victorio since it likes to just kinda hover and not run through with the entirety being soft and small, but some tips I re-learn every year should help the process: first, when things stop moving, do a turn or two backwards. It loosens everything back up and gets things flowing again. Also, if things get unproductive, grab a scoop/handful of the already processed skins and push them through. After that process, you’re left with smooth tomato juice, no seeds, no skins (or at least very small shreds of it. Not gonna lie, some seem to always slip in).

Then reduce that down by about half (so 3 gallons becomes 1 1/2). Upon further reading after it was too late, I wish I had added onion before reducing, because even the ball recipe adds diced onion, which is odd to me because I was told to never add vegetables. But I had onions and my guess is that they’d be obsolete as a pH-affecting entity in such a reducing process. I pH tested my tomatoes at this point just for scientific reasons and my particular tomatoes (I used all the interesting colored heirlooms, so a lot of Cherokee green and brandywine yellow and Valencia and German stripe. I also threw in all my unripe ones, about 3 pounds) simmered down this far had a pH of 4.3. just in case you were curious. I don’t know what they started out as before simmering down so this info is pretty worthless. But it gave me a starting off point for how much it’s safe to play with a BBQ recipe.

After it simmered down I added:

  • 1 cup apple cider vinegar (5%)
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 6 tbs molasses
  • 5 tbs prepared mustard
  • 3 tbs lemon juice
  • 5 tbs salt
  • 4 tbs onion powder (I think I was happier at 3)
  • 3 tbs garlic powder
  • 3 tbs chili powder ( I would have been happier at 2.5)
  • 1 tbs sugar
  • 4 tsp cinnamon (I wish I had stopped at 3)
  • 4 tsp paprika
  • 3 tsp nutmeg
  • 2 tsp coriander

I let it summer about 30 minutes (I bet 15 minutes would work, I was testing flavors), put it in jars and pressure canned for 15 minutes. Only to discover that there aren’t any pressure canning guidelines! I’m guessing that pressure canning is just overkill? I intend to call the extension office tomorrow to find out if I need to reprocess them, but for now, they’re sealing easily as I type this [I called. Without hesitation they told me I was fine to have pressured it and probably overprocessed but for bbq sauce it wouldn’t matter]. And the pH is 3.97 so they’re acidic enough I easily could have waterbath canned them. It’s just I pressure canned the tomato sauce right before this and the sauce starts out the same way so I didn’t think about it until it was in the canner gaining pressure.

As far as flavor, I wish it were sweeter. My husband wishes it had more heat. But we could mess with it the whole time and end up ruining it in entirety, or bottle a decent sauce that is pretty basic and therefore can be tweaked for what preparation I intend. For instance, I will probably add some liquid smoke and a tablespoon of brown sugar when I use it to make pulled pork. But I will also probably add a dash of ketchup when I give it to my kiddos for dipping fries or chicken strips. And I’ll appease my husband and add some hot sauce and a little clear gelatin when I’m basting some ribs.

Also, I read during my research that you could add applesauce and the more we talked about it, the more Ranger and I agreed that would have helped it. Applesauce should fall safely I’m the pH range, too. We both think we might take one bottle and experiment with it that way.

FHE

Follow the Prophet FHE

Keira

Purpose: to get ready for conference by learning about why Heavenly Father gives us prophets


Possible scriptures: Numbers 12:6; Isaiah 62:6; Amos 3:7; Matthew 16:19; Luke 1:70; Revelation 19:10; 1 Nephi 22:2; Doctrine and Covenants 1:14-16; Doctrine and Covenants 1:38; Doctrine and Covenants 20:26; Doctrine and Covenants 21:4-6; Doctrine and Covenants 43:1-7; Doctrine and Covenants 68:3-5; Doctrine and Covenants 107:65-67, 91-92 (scroll down); Doctrine and Covenants 132:7; Bible Dictionary Prophet

Possible Songs: We Thank Thee, O God, For a Prophet, Hymn 19; Come Listen to a Prophet’s Voice, Hymn 21; We Listen to a Prophet’s Voice, Hymn 22; Follow the Prophet, Children’s Songbook page 110; Sixth Article of Faith, Children’s Songbook page 126; Latter-day Prophets (click here if you need to updated lyrics to include Russell M. Nelson and here if you can’t read sheet music or want to hear it.)

Possible Materials: Pictures of Noah, Moses, Paul (best I could find were these scripture figures or one from the Little Reader series), Alma, and Joseph Smith, as well as the current prophet (Russell M. Nelson)


Preparation: Begin with prayer. Read the suggested scriptures, Genesis 6-9 (the arrow will take you to the next chapters), Moses 8, Exodus 11-15 (remember the arrows), Acts 22 and 26, Alma 18, and Doctrine and Covenants chapter 1. Also read through the most recent conference addresses given by the Prophet. Read through the lesson, including any links, and carefully select the most relevant material for your family. Children: watch this video about Why We Have Prophets, and then as many of the following videos as you can: ancient prophets testifying of Jesus; Paul serves a mission; Noah and his family; Moses and the Passover; Alma teaches and baptizes.

Lesson:

Discuss how last week’s challenge went.

Introduction:

Tell your family we are going to play a game called Follow the Leader. Start with the oldest child that is still in Primary (or any member of the family that will have the most enthusiasm while still understanding how to play). Ask them to pick an action and have the family all repeat the action. it could be any thing from hopping and skipping to clapping or blinking. Continue until everyone that would like a turn being the leader has had a chance.

Tell your family that there is a leader in our church. He is called the Prophet. A prophet is a man that speaks with God. God tells the prophet what to say and then the prophet tells us what we need to hear or do. If we follow the things he tells us to do, we can return to Heavenly Father and Jesus and be happy forever. We can follow the prophet when we do what the prophet tells us to do. The prophets speak to us through scriptures.

Now ask the family what we consider scripture. As each is spoken, take the following actions:

  • for the Pearl of Great Price, hold up a picture of Moses. Ask your family what they know about Moses. Listen to the responses, then tell your family that Moses helped free his people. Heavenly Father told Moses that his people, called the Israelites, needed to follow specific instructions in order to be safe. He warned his people and gave instructions on how to protect their families from danger. The people that listened to and obeyed Moses were freed from Egypt and taken to a better land.
  • For Old Testament, hold up a picture of Noah. Ask the family what they know about Noah. Listen to the responses, then tell your family that Heavenly Father warned Noah about a great flood that would cover everything in water. Heavenly Father told Noah to build a boat. Noah tried to warn the people, but only his family would listen. Because his family listened and got into the boat, they were blessed and kept out of danger.
  • For New Testament, Hold up a picture of Paul. Tell your family that Paul taught many many people. Some believed him and some didn’t, but because he wrote down his teachings and he wrote lots of letters, we still have his messages in our scriptures today!
  • For the Book of Mormon, hold up a picture of Alma. Ask your family what they know about Alma (the Elder, not Alma the Younger). Alma believed the words of Abinadi and left his wicked life to teach others about Jesus. Heavenly Father gave Alma the authority to baptize and to make a church. The people that believed Alma were kept safe from all of the wicked leaders around them. His followers became strong. They were blessed by listening to Alma the prophet.
  • For the Doctrine and Covenants, hold up a picture of Joseph Smith. follow the same pattern of asking what your family knows about Joseph Smith. When you’ve heard your family’s answers, tell your family that the people that listened to Joseph Smith joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and given promises and promises in the temple.
  • Tell your family that there is another source of scripture. Hold up a picture of Russell M. Nelson. Tell your family that that we have a prophet today! His name is Russell M. Nelson. Have your family say, “Russell M. Nelson is a living prophet.” Ask the family why we need a living prophet today. If people were blessed because they listened to the prophets in the scriptures, will we be blessed by following the prophet that is alive with us today? When do we get to hear messages from our prophet? As a family, make a list of ways we can hear what Heavenly Father wants us to do because the prophet has told us. When Conference is mentioned, break down ways that we can watch, read, or listen to conference. If you are giving this lesson as a precursor to conference, remind your family that Conference is coming and we will get new messages from Heavenly Father very soon!

Ask the family why Heavenly Father has given us prophets? Prophets can warn us of danger, get us to better lives, and help us know what Heavenly Father wants to tell us. Share with your family that prophets have lived on the earth to Guide Heavenly Father’s people. They speak with God. If we listen to what the Prophets are telling us, we will be protected and blessed.

Further Discussion:

read the 2nd paragraph of Gospel Principles chapter 9, and as a family answer: What is the job of a prophet? List some jobs that are found in the reading.

What other words are used to talk about prophets? Read the following scriptures with your family and create a list: 1 Samuel 9:9; Mosiah 8:16-18; Doctrine and Covenants 21:1; Jeremiah 6:17; Isaiah 62:6; Ezekiel 33:1-7; Doctrine and Covenants 107:92 and Doctrine and covenants 124:125.

Read the following quote and then ask your family how we can know that what the Prophet speaks is truth. What does it mean to be “moved upon by the Holy Ghost?”

President J. Ruben Clark once asked how we would know if the Prophets were speaking as themselves, or as one speaking for God. In answer to his own question, he said, “’I have given some thought to this question, and the answer thereto so far as I can determine, is: We can tell when the speakers are ‘moved upon by the Holy Ghost’ only when we, ourselves, are ‘moved upon by the Holy Ghost. In a way, this completely shifts the responsibility from them to us to determine when they so speak.”

“When Are Church Leaders’ Words Entitled to Claim of Scripture?” Church News, July 31, 1954, 9

Recent Conference talks to consider in your discussion: click here for recent conference talks on prophets.

Challenge:

If this lesson is for the October session of conference, invite and challenge your family to watch conference and pay close attention to the message the Prophet has for us this year. At the end of conference, review how we can turn what the Prophet said into something we can do to follow him.

If this lesson is not a conference lesson, ask your family to reread the last conference talks that were given from the prophet and pick something to focus on throughout the week. Ask if anyone would like to share what they decided to do to follow the Prophet and what they learned from it.


Giving due credit: as usual, I read and learned from the Sunbeams Manual Lesson 43 (Nursery Manual lesson 24), Gospel Principles Chapter 9 and Chapter 17, and Gospel Topics from Gospel Library on Prophets.

FHE

Abrahamic Covenant FHE

Keira

Purpose: to help family members understand the importance of the Abrahamic Covenant and that because God kept his promises to Abraham, we can know that He will keep promises with us.


Possible scriptures: Genesis 28:14; Genesis 35:11-12; Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 7:6,8-9; Deuteronomy 26:16-19; Deuteronomy 28:9 (or any part of the chapter); Psalm 47:7; Psalm 95:3; Isaiah 32:1; Hosea 3:4-5; Matthew 2:1-2; Romans 9:27; Galatians 3:7-9; 1 Timothy 1:17; 1 Timothy 6:14-15; 1 Peter 2:9; 2 Nephi 30:2; 3 Nephi 5:21; Doctrine and Covenants 1:22-23; Doctrine and Covenants 35:24-27; Doctrine and Covenants 54:4-6; Doctrine and Covenants 133:57-60; Moses 8:3;

Possible Songs: Choose the Right, Hymn 239; How Gentle God’s Commands, Hymn 125; Come Follow Me, Hymn 116; Come Let Us Anew, Hymn 217; Press Forward, Saints, Hymn 81; I Have Work Enough to Do, Hymn 224; Keep the Commandments, Hymn 303, Children’s Songbook page 146 ; Choose the Right Way, Children’s Songbook page 160; Seek the Lord Early, Children’s Songbook page 108, The Lord Gave Me a Temple, Children’s Songbook 153;

Possible Materials: 5 popsicle sticks for each member of your family plus 10 more. Scripture figure or picture of Abraham. A picture of an angel saving Abram, a picture of Abraham and Isaac (I like this one better but it isn’t as traditional as the other), and a picture of Abraham kneeling. This picture of the scattering of Israel. A map of the world.


Preparation: Begin with prayer. Read the suggested scriptures, along with Genesis 12-17 and Abraham 1-3 (remember you can use the arrows on the right of the screen to go to the next chapter). Read through the lesson, including any links, and carefully select the most relevant material for your family. Follow this video to make a 5-point star out of popsicle sticks. On 5 other sticks, write the following: “Land of Inheritance,” “Kings from Thee,” “Priesthood,” “Salvation and Eternal Life,” “Posterity fills the Earth.” Children: Watch either this video or this one for younger readers and this video about Covenants (which is also great for adults!)

Lesson:

Discuss how last week’s challenge went.

Introduction: Hold up the popsicle stick star you made before the lesson. Talk about how it holds itself together without using any glue. Where are stars? How many stars are in the sky? Show this picture of stars or one like it. Talk about how there are more stars in the sky than we can count. Heavenly Father once promised a prophet that his family would grow so big it would be like the stars.


From the Scriptures: hold up a picture or scripture figure of Abraham. Tell your family that this is Abraham and God loved him. Abraham tried to always make the right choices. When he was a kid, he was called Abram. Abram’s dad did not make good choices. He wanted to sacrifice Abram to a false god. That means he wanted a wicked priest to kill Abram for a not-real god. Abram prayed to Heavenly Father to protect him and an angel came and saved him. Hold up the picture of an angel saving Abram. Abram grew up and followed Heavenly Father’s commands, even when they were really really hard. Heavenly Father promised Abram a son and changed his name to be Abraham. It took a very very long time before Abraham and his wife Sarah had any kids. Sarah was 90 years old when she was pregnant with Isaac. Think about your oldest relative that your family knows. Compare how old they are to Sarah’s age. Then Heavenly Father tested Abraham and asked him to sacrifice Isaac. Hold up the picture of Abraham and Isaac. Abraham did not want to sacrifice Isaac, but he trusted Heavenly Father. Before any harm came to Isaac, Heavenly Father said the test was done and provided a lamb to sacrifice. Heavenly Father knew he could trust Abraham because he listened and followed the commandments, even when it was hard. He made a special promise with Abraham. Hold up the picture of Abraham kneeling. Tell your family that a special promise with God is called a covenant. Pull out the 5 popsicle sticks that have writing on them. Ask your family if they can remember one of the promises given to Abraham, the prophet (we talked about it in the intro).

For older families, read all the scriptures listed below and place the popsicle piece into the star as you finish each one. For younger families select 1 scripture for each stick. Talk about how God’s covenants are strong and work together, but if we want to break covenants, those promises come apart. He leaves that up to us. Read Doctrine and Covenants 82:10. We can trust that if we keep our promises, God will keep His.

From World History: show this picture and tell your family that Abraham’s family grew and grew and filled the whole land of Israel, just like God promised. But then the people stopped listening to Him. Heavenly Father promises Abraham that his posterity would inherit a blessed and fruitful land if they would be obedient, but He also promised that He would use his posterity to bless the whole world. When the people forgot to listen to Heavenly Father, the promise that they could stay in the promised land was undone, and God used the disobedience of the Israelites to fulfil another promise: the promise that Abraham’s family would fill the whole earth. The posterity of Abraham, called the tribes of Israel, were scattered 4 different times, spreading their influence further and further. First, half of the tribes were scattered, then the other half. Then some of Abraham’s people, then called Jews, began to move back to Israel. Jesus Christ was born during this time. Jesus is also a descendent of Abraham. He is, in a sense, the most important king that came from Abraham. But lots of people didn’t follow him, so the people were scattered again! 2 different times, the people were mixed into the Roman empire. The Roman Empire was large, and the people were scattered throughout most of Europe. Show a world map and point to Europe. From there, they spread to all the world. Heavenly Father kept his promises to Abraham! He gave him a big family that started and filled all of the promised land, and then spread throughout the whole world. Lots of kings fill the family tree of Abraham, including the King of Kings, Jesus. Abraham was given the priesthood and promised that he could be with his family forever after he died. God kept and continues to keep his promises to Abraham.

From Church History: Because God kept his promise to Abraham, we can know that he will keep his promises with us. What covenants do we make with Heavenly Father? We covenant with Heavenly Father when we are baptized, when we take the sacrament, when we go to the temple, when we receive the Priesthood, and when we are sealed to a spouse.

Further Discussion:

As you read the following scriptures, ask your family what we are promising to God and what He is promising to us.

Recent Conference talks to consider in your discussion: Click here for conference talks about Covenants.

Challenge:

Have everyone make their own stars and help them write “God keeps His promises.” Tell them to keep them somewhere they can see them this week. When they look at their stars, ask them to think of any promises Heavenly Father has made to them and to remember that it is up to us to keep those covenants intact.


Giving due credit: as usual, I read and learned from Gospel Principles Chapter 15 and Gospel Topics from Gospel Library on the Abrahamic Covenant and Covenants. As there was very little information on Abraham in the sunbeams manual I had to resort to newer material, and pulled some information from Come Follow Me Primary for Feb 7-13 I also drew much more heavily from the topical guide and the bible dictionary (Blessings of Israel; Abrahamic Covenant; Earthly Kings; Jesus Christ, King; Abraham, Covenant of; Seed of Abraham, etc). Another helpful resource was the July 1987 Friend,

Recipes

My own sliders recipe

Keira

I have to keep reinventing this recipe because I never write it down so this is me, writing it down…

  • 1/4 c dried onions (more if desired. Dried helps soak up some liquid)
  • A handful of pickles (depends on your pickle preference)
  • 1/4 c mayo
  • 1/3 c ketchup
  • 1 T mustard (optional)
  • 1 lb regular beef hamburger
  • 1 lb buffalo burger (to make it without buffalo, cut back in a little mayo and ketchup)
  • Your favorite steak seasoning
  • Slices of cheese to cover the whole set of patties
  • A set of rolls that are 9×13 (if another size, adjust meat size below)
  • Very softened butter

Mix all but the cheese, rolls and buter together to make a meatloaf. Flatten it out to a giant patty, sprinkle steak seasoning on top, and bake in a 9×13 pan at 350° for 20 minutes.

While the patty is in the oven, slice the rolls in half to make buns. Spread the butter evenly over the buns. Place butter-side-down on a cookie sheet.

When the patty is done, pull it out, place sliced cheese over the top and place it back in the oven just long enough to melt the cheese. Then let it rest until you can remove the patty. Discard the grease. While the patty is resting, toast the buns until buttered side is golden. Let cool long enough to handle safely, and stack the buns and patty to form mini burgers.

May serve with extra pickles, sliced tomatoes (Romas make a good choice based on size), lettuce, grilled or fresh mushrooms and onions, and any other burger toppings your family desires.

FHE

Pioneers FHE

Keira

Purpose: to celebrate ancestors and those who paved a way for a better future.


Possible scriptures: Abraham 2:10-11; Genesis 17:7-8; Deuteronomy 30:1-5; Isaiah 11:12; Isaiah 29:14; Jeremiah 16:14-15; Jeremiah 23:3; Ezekiel 20:34; Malachi 4:5-6 (3 Nephi 25:5-6, Doctrine and Covenants 128:17-18); Matthew 24:14; Galatians 3:26-29; Hebrews 11:40; 2 Nephi 9:2; 2 Nephi 30:2; 3 Nephi 20:13; Doctrine and Covenants 1:30; Doctrine and Covenants 38:33; Doctrine and Covenants 97:21; Doctrine and covenants 128:15;

Possible Songs: Come, Come Ye Saints, Hymn 30; For the Strength of the Hills, Hymn 35; They, the Builders of the Nation, Hymn 36; Carry On, Hymn 255; Pioneer Children Sang As They Walked, Children’s Songbook page 214; Pioneer Children were Quick to Obey, Children’s Songbook page 215; Little Pioneer Children, Children’s Songbook page 216; Westward Ho!, Children’s Songbook page 217; To Be a Pioneer, Children’s Songbook page 218; The Oxcart, Children’s Songbook page 219; The Handcart song, Children’s Songbook page 220; Covered Wagons, Children’s Songbook page 221; Whenever I Think about Pioneers, Children’s Songbook page 222;

Possible Materials: any picture you have of an ancestor, preferably one that was a pioneer. If you need pictures, the history section of the church website has a category for pioneers, including photos of historical sites and artifacts. You may also wish to use these scripture figures of pioneers. This game board (if you can’t print it for any reason, make a simple gameboard and make a puzzle of a picture with pioneers. Then on every third square, write a fact about the pioneers followed by a question about how we can be like our ancestors), and a game die to go with it, as well as a bean or token for each member of the family. The scripture figures of Lehi’s family.


Preparation: Begin with prayer. Read the suggested scriptures, including 1 Nephi 2; 16; and 17 as well as Doctrine and Covenants 136. Then follow this link (if you have a Family Search account, log in) to quickly look up if you had any ancestors that came to Utah as a pioneer. If not, it will take more digging, but look up which ancestors were the first to join the church. Read any stories associated with them. What is a pioneer, to you? For the sake of this lesson, I choose to define a pioneer as someone who does something hard because he knows it is right. Is that how you you would define a pioneer? Read the article and watch the video on Church History Topics: Pioneer Trek. Was there anything new that you learned? Read through the lesson, including any links, and carefully select the most relevant material for your family. print the gameboard and cut out the puzzle. Collect a game die and a token for each member of the family, Children: watch the videos about the saints leaving Nauvoo and Pioneers going to the Salt Lake Valley (you can watch the videos in between and the video following, as well). Then watch this video about Lehi and Nephi and the promised land (if they need more context, start here and follow the chapters). Ask a grownup to help you print and cut the game, and to find the other game pieces you’ll need.

Lesson:

Discuss how last week’s challenge went.

Introduction: Ask your family what is so important about July 24th. It’s not a holiday that is celebrated at many schools or at work, but it is important to us. It is a chance for us to celebrate our ancestors that joined the church or did hard things because they believed it was right. Ask your family if they know what “ancestors,” means. It means a member of our family who was in our past. Someone older than our grandparents that lived their life so that we could be born. Set out the gameboard and it’s corresponding puzzle pieces. Tell the family we will be playing a game and learning about pioneers. Pioneers are a special kind of ancestors. They did something hard or new because they knew it was right. Some pioneers came across the plains in wagons so that they could be safe from people that did not like that they were trying to be good people. Some brought wagons and some brought little carts that they had to pull along. Tell your family we are going to build the little puzzle wagon and fill it with things that pioneers might have needed to walk so far. Then explain the rules of the game (“Take turns rolling the die to move forward from the square marked ‘start.’ When you land on a square with words, follow the instructions or answer the question written on the square. If you can follow the instructions or answer the question, put a puzzle piece in place. If not, it’s the next player’s turn. If a player lands on the same square more than once, he or she can choose another player to follow the instructions on the square. Continue moving around the circle until the puzzle is completed.” copied from the game)


From Church or World History: Share some stories from your own ancestors. Show any pictures you may have, and talk about any family resemblances or how their clothes or hair are different styles. If you don’t have any stories to share, here are some shared in various church articles: Albert Dickson (July 1995 Friend), Anna Anderson (July 2015 and August 2015 Friend), Thomas Giles (August 2006 Friend), Agnes Caldwell (October 1997 Friend), Peter McBride (November 2006 Friend), Mary Wanlass (July 2017 Liahona), Margaret McNeil (August 2007 Friend), Heinrich Eyering (July 2016 Friend), Arthur Parker (May 2004 Friend), Priscilla Mitchell (February 2005 Friend), and Jane Manning (September and October 2017 Friend). If your family doesn’t have many “Utah Pioneers,” the story about Gaby’s Different Kind of Pioneer would be helpful a well. Tell your family that the pioneers in the stories did hard things and they were blessed for making good choices. Ask if there is something we can do that will improve our future or make the world a better place.

From the Scriptures: Hold up the figures of Lehi and Nephi and their family. Ask your family if they remember who the people are. Tell your family that Heavenly Father told Lehi to go to a promised land, too! Lehi and his family were obedient and listened. That made them pioneers, too! Read 1 Nephi 2:2-4 and 17:1-3. How did Heavenly Father bless Lehi and his family? How will we be blessed when we do what Heavenly Father asks of us.

Further Discussion:

Watch what Dallin H Oaks and L. Tom Perry had to say about being like the pioneers. What stood out in the videos? What can we learn from the pioneers? How are we being pioneers ourselves?

Recent Conference talks to consider in your discussion: Let Doing Good Be Our Normal, by Rafael E. Pino; Follow Jesus Christ with Footsteps of Faith, By M. Russell Ballard; We Each Have a Story, by Garrit W Gong

Challenge:

Find something about your ancestors that intrigues you. Study more about them and their lives this week. Think about what their life was like. Get to know them a little closer. At the end of the week, be prepared to share what you learned or how you grew closer to your ancestors and how it impacted your week.


Giving due credit: as usual, I read and learned from Gospel Principles Chapters 17 and 42, and the Family Home Evening Resource Manual on Cultural Heritage and Family History and Gospel Topics from Gospel Library on Pioneer Trek.

FHE

I Belong to a Family FHE

Keira

Purpose: To help your family remember that Heavenly Father’s plan involved coming to earth to a family that will help us learn and grow. Families are the main structure of the church.

*** Disclaimer: I purposely have left this lesson pretty broad, because not only is every family different, but the concept of belonging to a family is a HUGE concept. In fact, it’s pretty much everything. This lesson will take special prayer and consideration in order to be adapted to what you and your family and me and my family will need at any given time. Therefore, adapt as needed ***


Possible scriptures: Genesis 2:24; Proverbs 1:8 (6:20); Proverbs 10:1; Proverbs 22:6; Proverbs 29:15,17; Ephesians 6:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:1-2; 3 John 1:4; Mosiah 4:14-15; 3 Nephi 18:21; Doctrine and Covenants 68:25; Doctrine and Covenants 83:2,4; Doctrine and Covenants 88:119; Doctrine and Covenants 93:40; Doctrine and Covenants 121:41-44; Moses 2:27-28;

Possible Songs: Love at Home, Hymn 294, Home Can Be a Heaven on Earth, Hymn 298; O My Father, 292; Families can Be Together Forever, Hymn 300,Children’s Songbook page 188; I Am a Child of God, Hymn 301, Children’s Songbook page 2; A Happy Family, Children’s Songbook page 198a; Fun to Do, Children’s Songbook page 253; When We’re Helping, Children’s Songbook page 198b; We’re all Together Again, Children’s Songbook 259; The Family is of God

Possible Materials: a stick (about 2-3 feet high, perhaps a yardstick) with one yarn or rope or ribbon tied to it per member of your family at about 2/3 height. A white board or strips of paper and a writing utensil. Pictures of families (the link didn’t work when I checked links 3/1/23 but it looks like it should so I’m leaving it. I’m sorry if it still doesn’t in the future). A picture of Moroni and the title of liberty.


Preparation: Begin with prayer. Read the suggested scriptures, as well as Alma 43, 46, and 48. Read through the lesson, including any links, and carefully select the most relevant material for your family. Children: Watch this video on Families, this video about Captain Moroni, and tis video about Amanda Barnes Smith. Ask a grownup to help you get a stick and some rope, ribbon, or string.

Lesson:

Discuss how last week’s challenge went.

Introduction: Bring out a stick with one ribbon/rope/string/yarn tied to it for each member of your family. Hand one rope to a member of your family (probably one of the older family members). Ask them to stand the stick on end without touching the stick itself, just the string. It’s nearly impossible! Ask if they’d like some help. When they agree, hand another string to a family member. They may be able to get the stick to stand on end, but it will be wobbly and weak. Now hand a string to each member of the family. Make sure that little kids are spread between older family members. Have everyone pull their strings tight until the stick is able to stand because of all the counterpulls.

Discuss what made the stick stay upright. What was different than when only one person tried to hold up the stick? Why was it so much easier when everyone worked together? Tell your family that when we work together as a family, our tasks become much easier. Heavenly Father sent us to earth as families because in families we can learn and do things we couldn’t do on our own, just like holding up the stick. Discuss with your family why Heavenly Father chose for us to come to earth in families.

Ask the questions listed below and discuss what blessings we get by coming to earth as families. As each idea is listed and discussed, write it on a white board or a pieces of paper. You could use some pictures of families as needed. As you are talking about families, make sure that this lesson stays upbeat and friendly. Remind your family that no one is perfect and we (even the grownups) can all improve in different areas, but with Heavenly Father’s help, our families can still be the best thing for us.

  • Why is our house special? In our home we can and should feel safe. It is a protection from the dangers and temptations of the world. When we are home, we are with those that we love. We can set aside the outside world and enjoy spending time with people that know and love us. How can we help keep our home a sanctuary? How can grownups help us feel safe at home?
  • Why does Heavenly Father give us parents? Parents care and provide for children. In a family our basic needs of food, clothes, and shelter are provided. Babies can meet almost none of their own needs! They need loving families to help them multiple times a day.
  • Think of the line in I Am a Child of God that says, “lead me, guide me, walk beside me.” What does it mean? Parents are charged to give direction and to help their kids make good choices. What do parents teach us? We learn to take care of ourselves because loving parents teach us how. Parents teach us to brush our teeth, clean our bodies, wash our clothes and dishes, and how to do chores. They teach us how to use a fork and to go potty and get dressed. they teach us about the gospel and help us to grow our own testimonies. Read Mosiah 4:15.
  • What would happen if no one taught you what was right or wrong and you did something against the law? We learn to follow rules before rules become laws. We also learn that there are consequences for breaking rules before we have even bigger consequences for breaking laws. Read Ephesians 6:1-4
  • Who are the first people to give you love? Families give us love. This is perhaps the most important part. We learn to love because our family gives us love. If a family is broken and children don’t feel love they spend the rest of their lives looking for it. They are more likely to get involved with crime and people who choose evil. They are more likely to seek out gangs or drugs. A loving home is a basic human need.
  • What are some things we learn from our siblings? We learn to play and have fun in a family. Siblings are and can be built-in friends. We learn how to get along with others because we have had to learn to get along with our siblings. Even though we fight with our siblings, they’re more likely to forgive us when we make mistakes or say mean things because they love us and are our family. We learn conflict resolution. We learn how to say sorry and how to forgive. Have your family read Ephesians 4:32. We also learn how to control our own emotions within a family. We learn and watch our parents and siblings and learn how to be okay when things are hard. We learn from loving parents about how to deal with sadness and frustrations. Our coping skills are learned at home.
  • What other interpersonal skills do we get from our families? We learn how to work together. Greater things can be accomplished than if we were to only work by ourselves. We learn teamwork. Cleaning the house is easier together. Yardwork is more fun together. We learn how to talk to one another to be understood. We learn how good it feels to help others within a family. When we help our family members we strengthen our relationships with them and learn how to help ourselves and others better.
  • When we’ve got our family are we ever without help? With family, you’ve always got someone in your corner. Your family should and does want the best for you. Heavenly Father wanted us to be with our families so that we knew that always had help when we need it. Even if we can’t talk to our families, they can remind us that we can always talk to Heavenly Father and Jesus.
  • What about grandparents and aunts and uncles? Not only are we given a basic family but we are also given extra help. Some families need grandparents because parents can’t be there as much as they need to be. Sometimes grandparents are the extra friends we need. Or they can help us learn different lessons than what we learn from our parents. They’re older and wiser and not usually as busy as parents have to be to meet all of our other needs.
  • What can our grandparents teach us? Grandmas and grandpas can tell us what life was like before we were born. They can tell us about our family history. Read Malachai 4:6. They, along with our families, can teach us about the traditions of our cultures. Family life teaches us the traditions of our cultures. What are some traditions in your own family? Why are traditions important?
  • What was our life like in Heaven? Did we have a family there? We mirror our eternal family within our own family. In Heaven, we all lived with Heavenly Parents and with brothers and sisters. And now we live on earth in families, as well. By living with families on earth, we can learn more about our Heavenly Parents and how to return to them. Our families will be eternal, outlasting every other unit in society, because Heavenly Father teaches us they can be together forever.


From the Scriptures: Hold up the picture of Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty. If you have already talked about Moroni in the America the Beautiful FHE lesson, ask your family what they remember about Captain Moroni. Remind your family that Moroni lived in a time that people were fighting. Some people didn’t like the freedom of the government and wanted to have a king instead. But Moroni knew that if people lost their freedom it would hurt families. He wanted families to be safe, so he reminded the people that freedom meant that we could choose what was best for our families. He wrote on a piece of his coat and hung it up like a flag. Have someone read Alma 46:12. People remembered that what they were fighting for was important. Now read Alma 48:7-10. How did Moroni help protect families? How can we strengthen our own family?

From Church History: Now hold up a picture of Amanda Barnes Smith. Tell your family that Amanda was a brave woman that took care of her family. Amanda and her family were living in a tent at Hawn’s Mill [I always thought it was Haun, but the Church writes it as Hawn. Both show up in a google search, however]. People in Missouri were not happy with the Saints. They built a mob (a group of angry and dangerous people looking to hurt others), and attacked the people staying at Hawn’s Mill. Amanda lost her husband and a son, and another son was really hurt. He was missing part of his hip. How do you think Amanda felt? When she saw how bad Alma’s hip was, she prayed to Heavenly Father to help her care for him. Heavenly Father told her how to help Alma’s hip to get better. She said lots of prayers and treated it with the herbs that she felt inspired to use. Her family was protected while Alma’s hip healed. Heavenly Father helped Amanda protect her family. Heavenly Father can help us in our family, too. We can pray to Him and ask Him for help, and we can be guided to do the best things for our family, even in hard times. [sources: Blessings Amid Tragedy, The Reminiscence of Willard Gilbert Smith, Amanda Barnes Smith in Church History]

Further Discussion:

The Nephites learned that fighting to protect their families was important and was a better motivator than fighting to gain power. Read Alma 43:9, 30, 45, and 48 (scroll down). Why do you think fighting to protect our families is a better motivator than fighting for power?

As a family, briefly look over the Church’s article 5 Keys to Raising a Strong Family. These “keys” are pretty basic and are probably unsurprising. Why are they so important? How do they help strengthen the family?

Recent Conference talks to consider in your discussion: Click here for the latest conference talks on the family.

Challenge:

Each night during your personal prayers, think of one way you blessed your family this week, one way your family blessed your life, and something you can do tomorrow to help strengthen your family. At the beginning of next Family Home Evening, you may choose to share any impressions you feel or how your understanding of families has changed this week.


Giving due credit: as usual, I read and learned from the Sunbeams Manual Lessons 23, 24, and 25. (Nursery Manual lessons 11 and 13), Gospel Principles Chapters 36 and 37, and the Family Home Evening Resource Manual Lessons 21, 22, and any part of the section on Building a Strong Family, and Gospel Topics from Gospel Library on Family. I also read Promoting The Family as the Fundamental Unit of Society, from the Institute Teacher’s manual, Organization and Purpose of the Family, from the Family Guidebook, Balancing Truth and Tolerance, by Elder Dallin H Oaks, and Why Marriage and Family Matter – Everywhere in the World, by L Tom Perry