Why do you Think Abortion is your Only Option?

Hello my Dear Sisters of this World,

I was out running errands this morning and saw a sign at the St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Mango, Florida. It was talking about abortion and remembering the lives of the babies and their mothers. It made me think a little about this issue. I have participated in fasts and lots of prayers for this to stop but it's obvious that abortion is here to stay. I truly doubt it will ever go back to being an illegal practice, doesn't mean I will stop praying that it does, but I just think that it will never change.

However, a thought came to me, I call it inspiration, and it said we need to convince women that there are other options. If we can't make the practice of abortion go away then let's help women see the other choices they can make and why it is the best thing to do. Threats and making someone feel horrible about themselves hasn't worked, so there has to be a better way.

Lets look at this for a moment.  We should ask ourselves the question why does a women decide to do this? I can think of several reasons but I may not say them without it sounding hateful and I certainly do not hate these women who choose to do this. We can't walk in their shoes but we can show them that the other options can bring a sense of happiness in making a choice to let the baby live.

The Lord has commanded us not to take another persons life, it is a sin when we break a commandment and this is a commandment. But we can choose to avoid the sin by looking at the other options that are available when a baby is not the best thing for the mother at that time.

 “Thou shalt not … kill, nor do anything like unto it”  (D&C 59:6)

What are the options? Of course the best option is for the birth mom to keep her baby but sometimes that is not possible. So we have to think of other options with her. One choice is to have the child and give it up for adoption. Adoption is not a horrible thing. Have you ever seen a woman who is unable to have a child of her own. Her heart is so broken every time she see's a new baby. She knows that she may never hold a child of her own. Do you know that by making a choice to give her the baby will bring joy to so many people. It will bring happiness to the new mom, the baby, and giver of the life! That's a lot of good that is being done.

There are programs available where the birth mother can choose who she wants her baby to go to. That is awesome to be able to choose the home the baby will be raised. Some people are even good about letting the birth mother be involved in the child's life as well, now that is amazing. What a good heart on both sides.

 Life doesn't have to be filled with hatred and ill feelings towards one another, make any situation a good thing. The birth mom goes on with her life and still get's to see her child grow and the adoptive mom gets to raise a baby as her own. Peace (long sigh) of heart and mind. To me that is the only option. But there are other options, the key is to not make abortion an option.

We have to show love and not judgement to the birth mom, she needs moral support and sometimes financial support. What are we willing to do to avoid the decision of abortion? That is something that is between you, the birth mom and Heavenly Father. When we include Him in our decision we always choose the right one, doesn't mean life will be all wonderful and perfect, but it does mean it will be the right one and everyone will be blessed for it.

Now perhaps you are thinking about a very young girl, or a victim of rape, or even a mother who's life is on the line. Those are good examples of the fight today. People use those instances as a valid reason to have legal abortion options. But as I always say when we give in to something for the benefit of good, it gets abused and turned around so itis used for bad.

But even with those situations I would think the baby is worth fighting for as well. No, I have never been in that situation, nor have I known anyone that was ever in that situation but I would try to help the mom to see that the baby is a victim as well. We all experience challenges and trials in our lives but it's what we do with them that makes or breaks us. So if a person is raped, no matter the age, the mom can get help to get her through the tough times she will have in carrying the child. It will not be easy and it is a hard choice to make, but in the long run it can give the personal healing power to her soul.

As for the health of the mother, that is a tough one too. I think one of the saddest things in life is when a mother dies and leaves her young family. I'm sure it is one of the most unfair things in life. But God'd plan is one that we do not always undersand. The choice in all these situations is between the mother and God; we can not judge. We can only try to help no matter the choice.

I had a young friend who was pregnant and she did not want to be. I remember her calling me and asking for advice. I tried and tried to talk her out of the thoughts of abortion. She was a Christian but she was just so overwhelmed with grief. She had  broke up with the young man for a good reason but she did not want to raise a child alone. I was so heartbroken when she told me she had the abortion, but I couldn't let her see my disappointment in her decision.  I had made a lot of wrong choices in my life so I was not in a situation to judge her decision, all I could do is let her cry on my shoulder and be her friend.

I know she has her regrets but all we can do it try to help them make a good choice and if they don't , be as supportive as we can. I will not back down on my fight against abortion and the taking of a life. I believe woman should choice to save the life of the baby and then if she can not raise it , give it to a home where it can be raised in a good environment. Prayer and reflection on the situation will only aid in the decision. May God direct our lives for the good of everyone. And may He be allowed to direct your decision in the matter of abortion whether you are the birth mother or someone who cares enough to help someone make the best choice, and that is for all life.

Would Jesus have condemned the mother? No, he would have showed her love and support. He would have done everything He could to show her the best choices. And yes, he would have been disappointed if she chose to have the abortion. But we are given the gift of freedom of choice, and with that comes consequences of our choices. Not ones that are decided by people but ones that go with choices that are made.

We have to stand as righteous women and fight against evil. The person is not normally evil but the act of abortion is. I pray that God will direct your path to doing good in this fight for life. Love as Jesus loves and help build up His Kingdom.

All my love!!!

Stand as Light to the World

Dear Sisters,

Wow, what a mess this world is becoming. This wonderful country that we live in is supposed to be a place of righteousness and protection, but our own country is so filled with evil and hatred. My blog today is for you, as righteous women, to take a stand for God; become that beacon of Light for all to see. The world needs us now more than ever.

So many souls are lost and don't know where to go for help. As God's beacon we can illuminate the way back to God. As Christian women we shouldn't be fighting against one another saying who's religion is right or wrong, but we should take the good part of all of us and reach out to the poor of spirit, or those who are struggling with life or, those who are blind to the ways of God.

We have been blessed with much good in our lives and now we are to take that good and share it with others. Most will not want to see God's ways, and will turn away from us but even one soul in need can make a difference in the joy of our hearts and the glory of God.

I was reading the other day in the scriptures about what God's whole purpose is for us. It says, "This is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. (Moses 1:39)" That means His whole purpose is to help us gain eternal life, to live forever in joy with Him. That is awesome! It woke me up as I realized that God's plan is all about me, and everyone else, but it's all about me!!!

So, if that is God's plan, and I am in a good place right now, then aren't I supposed to take the blessings that God has given me and share them with others? And as I do, I realize that I am helping to build His kingdom by bringing souls unto Christ. What a concept, my goals in life changed at that moment of understanding.

So where do we begin? Look at this world, our own countries and towns. Instead of loving people we are learning to hate and kill them. What's wrong with that picture? It's not Gods way, it's Satan's way. He is laughing at us as we are destroying our brothers and sisters. Where is the peace on earth, goodwill to all men? Well, it has to start with us.

Righteous women we can no longer stand on the fence, it's time to choose a side and take a stand. We can all join together to fight against the evil one. So we start by committing ourselves to God and his plan, not mans. We have to say that we are willing to be instruments in His hands, then go and do.

There are a lot of battles going on over family, marriage bonds, and issues of race. There are issues of immigration, and child protection. There are so many places to take a stand and fight. The battle for God is not necessarily a physical one but a battle of the mind , heart, and soul. There are homeless people in our country, and those in abusive situation. There are those lost to alcohol and drugs. There are so many who are lost and can not find their way. They need us now.

We don't have to preach at them, but love them by helping them. Words are probably not going to make a difference with most people but our actions will. If we will stop and help our neighbor, or a person standing in line at the store, or volunteer to help at a hospital - we will see a big difference in the way people feel about the world around them; we can give them hope. And that is what we all need, hope mingled with faith will bring souls to the right place.

Never give up on a person, keep being a friend. Don't put yourself in a dangerous position but help where you can. Pray for guidance and listen for the answer, it will come. God loves you and will bless your life as you bless those for good.

There is a story where a man was walking on the beach and saw someone pick up a starfish and throw it back into the ocean, The man remarked that this person couldn't possible save all the starfish that washed up on the shore. The person smiled and said no, maybe not, and bent down picked up a starfish then threw it in the sea, and said but I just saved that one.

We won't be able to lead everyone back to God but maybe we can help with this one, or that one. All we have to do is try, and God will do the rest. Let's fix what we can, or at least stand firm in God's plan. He needs us to do our part now, before it's too late. Never give up, keep fighting for what we know is right and pleasing to God. We may find it exhausting but that's why we are here; to
continue the fight until our Savior returns.

All my love

Quiet Toys as Easy as 1-2-3

When my children were young I would sometimes let them bring one toy to play with during family church time but they still weren't very quiet. My son would make action  figure sounds, or my daughter would pretend out loud. Sometimes it was embarrassing, and we were always afraid of taking away from the spirit of the meeting.

But President Monson said once in a Stake Conference, "Parents, don't worry that your children are not quiet during meeting times, we have to remember that they are big spirits in tiny bodies full of wiggles." We all laughed. But we still wanted to teach our children that they needed to be quiet and reverent at church.


So we went to coloring books or reading books quietly. That worked but never lasted the whole time of the family meeting. Then one day someone behind us let my children play with a quiet toy that they had made. It was awesome and my kids loved it.

Creating a Sunday bag is a good idea that can be helpful in keeping little ones quieter. A couple of treats, mess free, are good starters. Some picture books are good during the passing of the sacrament.

You can create your own sacrament books by finding pictures of the things Jesus did while on this earth. Put them inside a clear page holder and then put them inside a small binder. You could even create a book of nature (animals, flowers, etc) doing the same thing.

Here are some ideas that I have found for making quiet time toys. I hope they are helpful and easy as 1-2-3 to create.

Make a felt play board, the instructions are as easy as 1-2-3:
1) find a small box with a lid.
2) glue a piece of felt to fit the inside of the lid
3) cut out different kinds of felt pieces to create pictures, they store inside the box

 Make a seek and find bag:
1) take a zipper pencil bag with a window in it
2) fill it with beads and misc shaped items, shake it up good, after it is zippered
3) make list of the misc items for your children to seek for, while looking through the window,  among the beads, make sure you put in enough beads in it to make it a little challenging for the kids to find.

Lace Cards
1) Create a few patterns like the one in the picture and create cut outs from foam squares
2) Use a single hole punch and spread wholes about an inch apart.
3) Get shoe string laces to guide in and out of holes.

This last one is a Popsicle stick puzzle:
1) Paint Popsicle stick several different colors
2) create designs on white paper squares using different colors to match Popsicle sticks.
3) have children try to create the design on the paper using the Popsicle sticks.

Well, those are just a few ideas, there are tons more that are so easy to make and helpful in quiet time needs. Have fun creating!!!

Family Search for Family History

Family Search is a LDS Church owned web site. Family Search has made leaps and bounds recently to create a better webpage and collection of data. Everyday they are progressing to create tools to help with your family history search. Here is the link, take a look and see all the new stuff. It's open to everyone throughout the world.

Familysearch.org

It was just announced that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will have free access in the near future to some paid websites like Ancestry.com and Myheritage.com. This is awesome. Family Search has also made deals with many places to give us access to important documents and even obituaries. That's even more awesome.

I can see God's hand in this work because of technology is rapidly changing for good, and it is making the search for ancestors more possible and easier. I love that and it should inspire many to want to seek for those who has gone before us.

With all this new research processes in place, we first need to turn our heart to our families.

The prophet Joesph Smith said,"The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead..." HC 6:312

Wow, that made an impact on me. I have thought a lot about this and found that he was talking to me. This is my greatest responsibility. When I started looking for names and putting together my family history, they were just names but when I started studying more about them and the times that they lived in, they started becoming more than just names. AND...when I took those names to the temple the true meaning of it all...God's purpose...began to unfold before me. My heart was turning to my fathers and I couldn't get enough of it.

Family History work is now my passion. I love this work and joy that comes with finding family and developing my tree. One thing that was an eye opener was when I started tracing the female side of the tree. It was easier to find the stuff on the male line but when I started working on the female lines I realized that there were so many more people to see.

I truly can see now how we are all related, as you do one line then the next and on and on.. your story never ends. And we are all connected, Family Search is trying to show us just that, we are all one big family.

I hope you will look in your hearts to see and understand this great work that God has entrusted to us. The work that brings us all together as God's family. Our ancestors need us to do this for them, the work that they can no longer do. And we need them to help us grow in understanding God's plan for us. I love my Heavenly Father for this great plan of happiness because I know the joy I get from doing this work.

Hasten the Work of Salvation

We have been commanded to hasten the work. What is the work; to progress the cause of God. Moses 1:39 says that His work and His glory is us! So how do we help in that? We build the Kingdom, which is to strengthen one another and to help people find Christ.

When we think about that we pretty much think of missionary work and helping in that area but it also means to help those who have passed on. We do this through family history work. We are running out of time and now is the time to get this work done.

I have just recently been called by our Stake at church to be a Family History Director, there are two of us. The other one focuses on the Family History Center, and I focus on getting people into the Family History Center to do their work.

I love this calling because I love this work. But I have come to realize that with that love and helping other to get busy in it, I have not done as much in mine as I should have by now. Genealogy has been a part of life for over 30 years. But I am still just barely getting it organized.And that is the key, getting organized. There are many ways to keep your records but you have to choose one or it can be time consuming just trying to...well organize.

Some ways to organize your records are by keeping a hard copy in binders, or filing cabinets. But what if you have a fire, flood, or storm that destroys those records? Keeping a soft copy is good, too.
You can store it on a SD card, a CD, or just on the computer in organized files, and even on an external hard drive.

But what if your computer gets fried or stolen? What if you lose those SD cards or CD's? The way modern technology keeps changing, those SD cards might not be able to be used in the near future.

Hmmm, what else can you do to save your records? I think one of the safest ways is to record this information on websites that specialize in family trees. This is one way people learn about their ancestors is by sharing information on the websites. Ancestry.com would be a great place a to share that info but it has a price attached. It's worth it if you use it a lot, but if you do it only once in a while, well it may not be advised.

Ancestry.com

Familysearch.org is an excellent place to store your information, its free!!!

Familysearch.org

They believe that we are all one big family and if we all submit our trees then we can see how we are related to one another. I thought that was pretty cool. There was a team of 150 people who submitted as many names in their tree as possible and they found that 148 of them were related within 9 generation, that is way cool.

Your ancestors are calling you, it's time to answer and find them. Time is short and technology has made easier than ever. Hasten the Work now!!!

Saving by Making Homemade Treats

This year I am trying to save as much money as I can but not everyone in the house understands that concept. So I tried to think of ways to save money but still meet the wants of my family. As I was browsing I found some cool recipes that keep the favorite treats in the budget. Yes, it may require more of my time to prepare them but this helps to keep up with two of my goals, savings and family fun.

Better than Krispy Creme Bites

Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

 Mini Banana Cream Cookie Pies

Chocolate Cookie recipe

Thanksgiving is For Showing Gratitude

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Thanksgiving seems to be a time we want to skip over quickly. In the stores we go from Halloween to Christmas in the blink of an eye, seeming to pass right over Thanksgiving but this holiday should be one that we focus on.

We need Thanksgiving, it's a prelude to Christmas. We focus on gratitude in our lives then show that gratitude during the Christmas season by giving to others.

Every year I have much to be thankful for. I try to reflect on those things, and this year is no exception. In May, we found out that my youngest daughter needs a new kidney. We learned that she has a genetic disease that affects the spleen, which she already had removed, her kidneys and liver.

She seems to be in  good spirits and as healthy as she can be. She is continuing to progress in her life and doesn't sit around feeling sorry for herself, so I am grateful for that.

We went from needing a new kidney in May to waiting for her kidney match, which is my sister, (God bless her), to be tested to see if she is healthy enough to be the donor in the new year. It just all came together so fast. There are so many that have to wait such a long time.

We have a lot of other things to be grateful for but this is the big one. Even if things had not turned out as they have we still can be grateful its not worse. There is always someone worse off than we are; and we pray for them.

So today, take sometime to really reflect on your life and all that you have been given, because all the blessings come from God . Be sure to thank Him for all those blessings and to help you to share those many blessings with others throughout your life. May God bless you always!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Christmas Shoebox Project

When we lived in Utah I had the great opportunity to work on Hill AFB, at the chapel, where I learned a lot about different religions. I loved participating in a few of their activities like the one I am going to tell you about today. This program is called Operation Christmas Child.

My family loved this one. As I was searching today for good ideas for family service projects this came up as an option, then I remembered how much we enjoyed doing this and asked my family if they wanted to do it again, they did.

So for family home evening, Monday night, we will be going shopping and filling shoe boxes with gift items for these children, who otherwise might not have a Christmas. It's a fun project and easy to do, especially for younger children, but your teenagers will love it too.

The only catch is the collection date runs from Nov 18th - Nov 25th so it has to be done like now. Here is the link to show you where the closest drop off place is and some great ideas to fill the boxes:

Operation Christmas Child

Prayer and Hope

Alma 58:10-11
"Therefore we did pour out our souls in prayer to God, that he would strengthen us and deliver us out of the hands of our enemies, yea, and also give us strength that we might retain our cities, and our lands, and our possessions, for the support of our people.

Yea, and it came to pass that the Lord our God did visit us with assurances that he would deliver us; yea, insomuch that he did speak peace to our souls, and did grant unto us great faith, and did cause us that we should hope for our ^adeliverance in him."

Have you ever felt like you were in the grasp of evil? Or that you felt so hopeless that you couldn't see the light ahead? I have, I remember a time in my life where I felt Satan around me. I was married to a man, my first marriage, who invited evil in his life. So I tried to please him best I could and that meant doing somethings I wasn't comfortable with. I could feel Satan laughing at me.

But I remember times being alone in my home, and feeling like I was being watched. I would walk past a darkened bedroom door and could feel a presence that scared the life out of me. I knew what I needed to do, so I knelt in prayer and begged for help, from the Right Source.

That peace came right away and I knew I had my answer. I needed to make changes in my life and invite the Spirit of Hope to be with me always. I couldn't change what my husband was doing but I could change what I was doing. My marriage eventually ended but I had hope that I was on the right track.

As righteous women we need to constantly have a prayer in our hearts for our families and ourselves so we can be protected against the evil that confronts us daily. We cannot shine the Light of Christ for others to see if it is hidden by darkness. The Lord will deliver us from the evil that surrounds us if we show that we have faith and hope that is so needed in a troubled world. He loves us and wants us to invite Him into our lives. So shine that Light high for all to see and have hope as you follow the path of righteousness!!!

Veterans Day, Show Them We Care

Many wars and battles have happened throughout the history for mankind. Many wars and battles have been fought over minor things. Many wars and battles have been fought for one of the most important gifts we can have and that is freedom.

What is freedom? Freedom is defined as: the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.

It's defined as POWER. We have power when we think of accomplishing goals in our life because we have been given the gift of freedom. We live in the most wonderful place in the world, the United States of America. The history of our country is so powerful when you think of its short span of time as a country. Good people have fought to give us this freedom to pursue true happiness in our lives. Our Declaration of Independence says:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

This gives everyone the opportunity to pursue these things that so many have fought and some have died so that we can have these gifts.

Monday, November 11

Veterans Day 2013

Today is Veterans Day, its not just another holiday on our calendar. It is a day to remember all those who have fought for freedom from tyrants and evil. Today is the day we should thank every current member of the military and all those who have ever served in the military, whether they fought in wars or not. A soldiers life is not an easy one. They are gone from their families a lot. They are put in dangerous situations a lot. They suffer through unmentionable things that we can never understand. 

We must support them and show them gratitude for giving their life to give us the freedom to live our lives. I am so grateful to the many who have the courage to be a part of the military and stand firm in their beliefs in God, Country, and Freedom for all mankind!!! 

Digitalize your Photos Now Before it's too Late!

Last weekend I went to the Central Florida Family History Conference in Orlando, Florida; second year for me, 17th year for them. It was just as good this year as it was last year.

Family Search

We learned a lot about the Family Search website and all the new tools that have been added since last year. I was amazed. Family Search is a free website hosted my The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On Family Search you can create your family tree, do research for your ancestry, they even have free online classes to help you build research skills.

At the conference last week the one thing that really caught my attention was being able to add your photos and stories of your ancestry online. This interested me a lot because I have tons of photos that I don't want to get rid of but are just stored in a container. So I took the class about digitalizing your photos.

The instructor told a story about some photos his father had left him, I hope he doesn't mind me sharing it here with you.

He was gone for the weekend with his wife and while he was gone his house caught on fire due to a bathroom light over the shower being left on. His bishop, who happened to live across the street, called him to tell him that his house was on fire. So he raced home.

On the way, all he could think about was the photos that his father had left him, 5 boxes full. His father had just passed away the year before so he felt like his father was dying all over again. When he got there he found several fire trucks and police cars all along his street. As he approached his house a fire man asked if he was the owner, at that time he saw all five boxes in the street. The fireman had told him he saw that it said dad's photos on the box so he saved them for him. What a hero.

Man, what a story, but it made me think of all the treasures I have in my home with photos. I new this needed to be taken care of as soon as possible. I work a lot so I don't have a lot of time right now to do this but I do have a daughter who has some time. We talked about making this her project. It was suggested in the class to get your kids involved because they seem to love all the new electronics.

He said if you have a smart phone or android that these were perfect for scanning pictures. Wow, I never thought about that. So there doesn't seem to be a need to go out and buy scanners to do this, no excuses. All you have to do is take the picture and lay it on a clean solid color, like white, and take the picture again with your phone then have your phone send it to your email address then save the photo in a file or a thumb drive, stored forever.

I loved it, I have two different kids of scanners at home so we will use that for awhile. One scanner is my printer and the other is a small photo scanner, both work good. I can use the printer for the larger pictures and the small scanner for the small photos. I kinda want to put everything else on hold and make this a family project.

That's my post this week, if you value those family memories you better start to think about how best to save them because you never know what disasters await you and then its too late.

Random Acts of Kindness

My youngest son will be turning 18 in January and then come summer he will probably be starting his mission for our church. My children have asked that we make this years holidays extra special. We talked about these like watching old Christmas movies, driving around looking at lights, and making goodies to snack on.

So I started looking for service ideas for my family to do this year as well and I came across an idea called "Random Acts of Kindness". I like what I saw and want to try this idea out this season. Take a look and see if is something that sounds fun to you.

Random Acts of Kindness

The website says this is for Valentines Day but you can do the same thing for Christmas. This is an easy project. Maybe an idea to enhance the goody bag is to add special messages attached to a few of the kisses. Maybe you can come up with another idea that would be more memorable to your family or to the families you service.

I'm going with this one as one of our projects this year!!!

Service Projects for the Family

Hello,

A this time of the year we start to feel a sense of excitement. The weather changes always get me excited not matter the season. But at this time of the year we are preparing for the holidays; fun times with family, gift exchanges, good food are only a few of the things that we get excited about.

I love spending time with my family, no matter the what time of year it is but at this time I feel the need to focus more on others than myself so I like to think about the kinds of service I can offer to others. I decided that in order to spend that time with my family and provide a need in the community that organizing family service projects would be a great idea.

SO, over the next few weeks on Saturdays I will offer some service project ideas that you and your family might like to do. I promise it will be a fun time for your family, great memories, and good teaching moments for your children as they learn to do for others.

Today, I would like to offer the idea of gift bags for kids who will be in the hospital on Christmas Day, no fun for them, but we can try to make it a little better for them by proving a bag of fun. Maybe you could even find a Santa suit and dad can dress up as Santa to deliver them. It doesn't even have to be Santa but maybe his elves. Looking for green and red costume ideas that time of the year should be really easy. Your kids could dress up as the elves, they would love it.

First, we need to make a gift bag. Here is how to make a paper gift bag.

I'm giving credit to the following link for the paper gift bags; Scrapbook Paper Gift Bags.

You will need the following:
1) 1 - 12X12 sheet of scrapbook paper
2) glue stick
3) scissors
4) tape
5) cardboard (cereal box)
6) ribbon
7) single hole punch

1. Start with a large piece of scrapbook paper (I used 12x12). Find a box around the house that is the size and shape of the bag you want to make. I used a box of spaghetti for one, and macaroni for the others. Fold  the scrapbook paper around the box as if you are wrapping a gift. Don't tape the paper to the box. Glue the edges together. (I added a couple of pieces of tape to the inside seam for extra support.)

2. Fold one end of the paper as if you are wrapping the edge of a present. This will be the bottom of the gift bag.

3. Use a glue stick on every fold of paper. I used a little tape for extra support.

4. Now remove the box from inside and pinch the sides of the bag to crease in the middle. You will be left with a little triangle on each side. You can fold the bottom over for easier storage.

5. Trim the top of the bag to whatever height you want the bag to be. I used fun scissors.

6. Punch little holes and attach ribbon handles. I also measured out a small rectangle of cardboard (a cereal box works great), and glued it to the bottom inside of the bag to make the bottom a little sturdier.

Now you have made some cute bags and an inexpensive cost. Now what are some good ideas to put inside?

1) coloring/activity books/crayons
2) reading books/comics
3) play dough
4) toys from the dollar store
5) stuffed animals
6) card games
7) movies
8) balloons
9) puzzles
10) drawing paper/pencils/colored pencils

These are just a few ideas that might be helpful. You can use your imagination and come up with some wonderful fun to keep their sweet minds off being in hospital during the holidays. Then, when they are made and delivered, pray for them and their families, then pray for gratitude that your child are not the ones in the hospital. We must always remember to thank God for what we have including our health.

Worldly Treasures

Matthew 6:21
"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."

I used to buy things for my kids when they really wanted something, which was all the time. My mom did the best she could in giving us what we wanted but she couldn't afford much. I remembered that there were things I didn't have that I wanted in my life so I wanted my kids to have what I could give them.

One day, I watched a video about children from third world countries who had nothing and were starving. I cried, a lot. But in those tears I realized that my children had a lot of things. So I committed to not buying tons of needless things for my kids. I talked with them about the video and why we needed to make changes. We referred to this scripture and made our changes. We took the money and gave it to programs to help these children have more. It felt good.

When we die we can not take worldly things with us so why do we need to buy so much now?
Through this scripture we can see that the things we can take with us are knowledge, goodness, and everything that we retain in who we are; our character.

Who we become is the most important thing we can take with us. God gave us the gift of this life and now, we in turn, give it back with all we become in hopes of it being returned full of goodness and knowledge. 

We, as righteous women can find great treasures to fill in our hearts through studying the scriptures and doing good deeds. When we return to our heavenly home the Lord will know where our hearts were by all the good that pours out of them. Remember to seek after the true treasures that you should fill your life with.

Simple Knowledge

Genesis 1:26-27
"And God said, Let ^aus ^bmake ^cman in our ^dimage, after our^elikeness: and let them have ^fdominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
So God created man in his own ^aimage, in the image of God created he him; male and ^bfemale created he them."

These verses are simply said and quite clear on a few issues that seem to plague mankind. 

1) God said let us make man in our image. Here we see that there was more than one person involved in the creation of man, meaning the Godhead, which consists of God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ,and the Holy Ghost. The information about who is part of the Godhead is found later in the scriptures. The point here is there is more than one was involved.

2) This verse also says that we were created in God's image and likeness, not an ape's or anything else's image. They created us to be like them. That makes us special.

3) This verse says that we, mankind, are to have dominion over everything on the earth and the earth included. What does dominion mean? It means responsibility, not dominance over things. We are to take care of the earth and it's inhabitants the best we can. 

4) God created male and female for a purpose, to be together as man and wife; to help one another through life. That's how our obedience to procreate works, it takes a man and a woman. That's simple.

God's wisdom is so much greater than ours. When we try to make sense of things from our point of view, we find  it hard to see things from His. 

As righteous women we need to stand up for what we know if truth and good. This world has too much man's wisdom and not enough of God's. When we listen to man we get confused, when we listen to the Spirit of God it becomes clear again, simple knowledge.

Homemade Costumes

My youngest son was always so creative with costume ideas for Halloween. He almost had to because I never really had the money to buy the costumes that he would have wanted. But every year he would ask for a certain costume, knowing the answer was going to be that I could not afford it so he started getting creative.

Here a couple of his costume ideas from the past. I'm looking for the pictures, once I find them I will add them to the post. Sorry about that.

Super Mario

Mega Man

So I thought that maybe there might be a few people out there that would be interested in ideas for homemade costumes. I have provided links with a picture of one from the link. Have fun and let the creative juices flow.

Spoonful.com

 

Brit & Co

DIY

 

parenting

These are just a few of the fun ideas you can make.  If you put your mind to it you can come up with many more. 

Plan a contest with your kids and their friends to see who can come up with the most creative costume from things found around the house. You will be surprised at what they will do. I certainly was with my youngest. See, Halloween can be lots of fun!!!