February 2012 Visiting Teaching Message handout

I have made up a very cute bookmark that goes nicely with this months Visiting Teaching lesson.  If you click on the link below this picture, you will be magically whisked away to the link that will take you to the printable bookmark post on my other blog, and from there click on the link and it will take you to the download site.  http://visitingteachingsurprise.blogspot.com/2012/02/february-2012-visiting-teaching-message.html
Enjoy!  Love, Katie G.

Bonnie White's Food Storage Booklet

Today in Relief Society, I mentioned to those sister in my ward who didn't get to go listen to Bonnie White's lesson on Provident Living/Food Storage and didn't receive the booklet that she gave to those sisters who were in attendance, that I got permission from Bonnie to post links to each section of that booklet, on my blog.  My purpose was that I thought it was so wonderful, that it needed to be shared. 
To find that particular post, scroll down a few posts or just click on this link below and it will open Provident Living - Food storage.

http://visitingteachingtips.blogspot.com/2012/01/provident-living-food-storage.html

HOw do you print it off????  Just save the pages to your computer, and then print.You can also print directly from the links as well.  If you have any questions email me at ktgauger@gmail.com Love, Katie G

Valentine Hearts

I wanted to share a tip with you that I have done in years past, with regard to using the "HEARTS" that are in the stores for Valentine Day.  Wait until Valentine Day is over, and the very next day, all the stores put their array of Valentine treats, cards, and decorations, on sale.  They usually start at 50% off, then they continue in the days following to lower their prices until sometimes I have seen them at up to 90% off.  (They do this with all their after holiday goodies!)

So why do I tell you about this in my blog?  Well ..... It's not that I love candy ( ha, ha) it is that the them of Hearts or Love can be used for so many different occasions, especially when we are talking Relief Society.  Everything that a woman does, is done with love.  Visiting teaching, compassionate service.... do you see where I am going with this???

So... I can see an entire evening of love and gratitude for sisters, using Hearts and valentine candy hearts as your theme.  Maybe a "Gratitude RS night meeting" or how about "If with all your HEART" ye truly seek him" theme, or how about "Women are the heart of the home", or how about the skit for a Visiting teaching and Home teaching conference or workshop or how about an evening of "HEART & SOLE" (play on words).  Here is the link on my blog to the rewrite that I did on that darling skit  http://visitingteachingsurprisedocuments.blogspot.com/2010/09/visiting-teaching-skit-heart-and-soul.html
The music is also included at this link, however if you just type in the words "heart and soul" and search using google images, lots of other images of variations of the music will come up as well.

There are so many scriptures that have the words heart or Love in them! Here are just a few, that I thought could be the theme for an evening, using all the cute and really cheap heart decor and candies.....

• Deuteronomy 30:6  And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. (This could be an evening focusing on raising a righteous family)

• Psalms 57:7  My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise. (This could be an evening or lesson focused on Fixing (or keeping your heart focused) on serving the Lord)

• Psalms 73:26 My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

• Proverbs 15:13  A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance.  (This scripture can be such a great one for lesson or evening meeting focused on being happy amidst trials, or happy homemaking, or the influence a mother can have on her children through her countenance, or on and on).

• Doctrine and Covenants 25:12  For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads. (This one is obvious and would be a wonderful theme for a night of music, or sharing talents through music, or inviting the spirit through music)

These are just a very few of the Scriptures that came up when I typed in "Heart" in the  scripture search bar at lds.org. I can only imagine how many talks and wonderful gospel messages would come up if I searched all of LDS.org.   So I did and look what came up first:

The Enduring Legacy of Relief Society

• Henry B. Eyring October 2009 General Conference

...and persistent is that charity is at the heart of the society and is to come... ...the society and is to come into the heart, to be part of the very nature... ...an effect of His Atonement working in the hearts of the members.  

Other talks that followed were:  A broken Heart and a Contrite Spirit, My Heart is Happy, The measure of our Hearts,  Opening your Hearts, and on and on.  (Go on lds.org and search for those words and they will magically appear before your eyes) 

Let me conclude, lest I begin to be way to redundant, There are so many ways that you can use the theme of "Heart" and I didn't even touch the word love. Can you see why I am giving your the tip to watch for the after Valentine sales, and get all the heart things you can, and you could even stay well within your budget by getting heart things so cheap!  You don't have to just do these things at Valentines day either, but you will have all these fun and cheap treats to make your meeting spectacular! 

OK, OK, more ideas:

• heart cupcake holders, would be darling filled with cupcakes iced with a cute gummy, cinnamon heart on top!
• A darling sugar cookie centerpiece of  wrapped, Iced heart shaped cookies in a vase.  The cookies could be baked on bamboo Skewers, so that would be the stem.  Each sister sitting at the table would take one home.
• Another centerpiece idea I have used is to have the card stock hearts that they sell,  inserted into some greenery that you already have.  You could mount them on bamboo skewers and have them as plant picks. 
• Sprinkle around some candy hearts on the table for the ladies to munch on as the evening progresses.
• How about an evening for husbands and wives focused on enriching marriage.  Maybe throughout the evening, different people could share the stories of how they fell in love, or what they do to keep their love light burning. For the decorations, you could use cupids, and serve "Red food like pasta with sauce, lasagna, and Salad with red tomatoes, or the yummy spinach salad with raspberries or strawberries and the strawberry or raspberry vinaigrette dressing, and of course dessert would have to be strawberry pie or cheesecake.  Oh how my mind works... I could go on and on about this one.
• I use to live in Alpine, Utah and there is a wonderful candy store in Alpine called "The Peppermint Place".  They always have seconds of all of their candies from chocolates, to candy canes, for a fraction of the price as you would pay for firsts. They have the sugared cake decorating elements and I have bought pink hearts to put on top of my cupcakes and cookies.  That is a really great place to check out for seconds.  Easter time they always have TONS and TONS of really great finds that have to do with that holiday.

I'm done now, I have to shut down my brain.  Hope you can use some of these ideas and enjoy the fun!
Love, Katie G

February 2012 Visiting Teaching Message

You can find this message at LDS.org at this link:
http://www.lds.org/liahona/2012/02/guardians-of-the-hearth?lang=eng

Visiting Teaching

I just had the loveliest visit from my Visiting Teachers today and I thought I would share my experience with you.  First of all, I need to clarify something with you. I have not always had the kind of Visiting Teachers visiting me, that I needed to have. I also have to admit that at one time in my life, I asked to NOT have Visiting teachers come to me for a variety of reasons, even though I have always been active in this church.  But this time, I do have them, and I am so grateful.  Today, we had a great visit just talking about different things, and one of this partnership had to go to work, and left. The other half of the partnership stayed and we visited and visited and I felt loved.

She sincerely asked me to tell her what I wanted in a Visiting Teacher. From the experiences that I have had throughout my life, both good and not so good, I shared with her many of them that led me to know exactly what I hoped for in my Visiting Teachers. With a tear in my eye and tender feelings surfacing,  I told her that bottom line with me was that I wanted to know that my Visiting teachers really want to come to my home each month to visit me.  I want them to actually care for me and develop a genuine friendship.  I said that when my Visiting Teachers left our visit, that when they said, "let me know if I can do anything for you", that they really mean it, and aren't just saying it.

I don't need all that I do for the ladies that I teach or even the things that I display on my blog, but I do need and want a trusted friend.  I am so pleased to say that I believe that these two sweet sisters, are what I have hoped to have as Visiting Teachers.  I  believe that they really do care for me, and that if I needed a listening ear, or if I needed to reach outside of my own family for help in any way, that I could call on them.  Now how nice is that?

I told this friend of mine, that I am the kind of Visiting teacher that I want to have, and that is important to me.  I believe that everyone wants and needs to be thought about and watched over.  I also know that unless women can understand just how important Visiting Teaching is in the lives of LDS women, that many will feel the way that I use to feel.  NOW, I hope that these sisters don't get reassigned anytime too soon, because I love to be able to look forward to their visits, and know that our friendship will continue to develop over time. 

Sisters, I have been very frank about my feelings and vision for Visiting Teaching.  I have opened my heart and expressed my feelings that have been hidden for years.  It's sort of like I told my Visiting teachers today, the reason I began writing my Visiting Teaching blogs, was because I hoped to promote the good efforts and maybe motivate sisters to understand the importance and vision of what this wonderful calling is all about.  I began my google group "Extraordinary Visiting Teachers" because of wanting sisters to share uplifting ideas and conversation and get the job done.  I hope that all of you will catch the vision and be the Visiting teacher that your sisters need in their life, remembering it isn't the numbers or percentages that really matter in this work, but it is the friendshipping, love and service that you provide.  Watch care, that is what it is all about and Sister Julie Beck said it all in the following quote taken from this months Visiting teaching message:

"Through visiting teaching, we provide watchcare by contacting each sister, sharing a gospel message, and seeking to know her and her family's needs. “Visiting teaching becomes the Lord’s work when our focus is on people rather than percentages,” explains Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president. “In reality, visiting teaching is never finished. It is more a way of life than a task. Faithfully serving as a visiting teacher is evidence of our discipleship.”

Lives can be changed  and hearts softened through Visiting Teaching! Many women who had fallen away are now back into this marvelous church because Visiting teachers kept coming.  The time that you take away in doing your Visiting teaching will come back to you again and again. I know too that when we meet our Lord one day and when he asks us the accountability questions, and in particular..."And how did you do with your Visiting Teaching", I want to be able to look Him in the eye and say .... Lord, I did my best, and I loved  and cared.  I can only hope that He will answer... "Well done, thou good and faithful servant, and inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my bretheren, ye have done it unto me. "

It is my prayer that you will become a disciple of Jesus Christ as you minister over the sisters that you teach.
Enjoy!  Katie G.

LDS Links

I just posted a whole bunch of activate LDS links, that I was thrilled to find. Some of them I knew about already but many were new to me. Don't you love the technology of today where you can get on your computer, click on a link and be taken there in less than a second? I posted these on my Visiting Teaching Surprise blog so go to http://visitingteachingsurprise.blogspot.com/ and you can find them. Enjoy! Katie G.

Provident Living / Food Storage Booklet

My ward has been having a series of Provident living Relief Society meetings that have been wonderful. This past weeks meeting was on Food storage and the amazing Sister in our ward, Bonnie White, who is our provident living specialist, provided to all those in attendance, this wonderful booklet of all she has put together over the years to get her family's food storage organized and ready.

I asked Bonnie if she would let me put her booklet on my blog to share as a wonderful resource and idea for all the Relief Societies all over the world, who stop in for an idea look see, on my blog. She was so gracious and sweet and I understood where her heart is, because she feels about what she does, the same way I do about sharing those things we have with others. Anyway... Enjoy all of these wonderful resources and thank-you Bonnie for all the years of hard work and effort. You are a wonderful example to all.

(Click on the links below each topic to be magically whisked away to where I have them stored)
Home Storage - Build on the Basics: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120116_084115.pdf
72 hour Checklist:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120116_092308.pdf
Directions for storing water:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120116_092341.pdf

Let there be Light:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120116_092430.pdf

One Year Supply Cooking Fuel - http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120116_092513.pdf

Waste/Sewage/Toilet:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120116_092541.pdf

Homemade Solar Ovens for cooking: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120117_100359.pdf

Homework
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/57771560/Bonnie%20White%20Food%20Storage%20Booklet/scanner%40gmail.com_20120117_100941.pdf

Bonnie has been collecting all this information over the years from different sources, and including a great booklet that you will see came from a prior ward that she attended, to give credit to them for their sharing as well. Also, the photos I have inserted all came from the basement of Bonnie's home. She practically has her whole basement dedicated to food storage, and it is so organized. This woman is AMAZING and so gracious for sharing her knowledge.

Enjoy! Katie G

I received an email from a reader telling me that the church now days encourages people to get a 3 month food storage supply rather than a years supply. Essentially telling me that a 1 year supply was outdated information.  My feelings are that yes, the church does encourage you to have a 3 month supply, but on Provident Living.org, they also say that the 3 month supply should be those things that your family would normally eat, but long term storage should also be stored.   This is exactly what they say copied from the website:

"Build a small supply of food that is part of your normal, daily diet. One way to do this is to purchase a few extra items each week to build a one-week supply of food. Then you can gradually increase your supply until it is sufficient for three months. These items should be rotated regularly to avoid spoilage"

If you scroll down further on the site, it also has a Longer Term Food Supply recommendation that reads as follows:

"For longer-term needs, and where permitted, gradually build a supply of food that will last a long time and that you can use to stay alive, such as wheat, white rice, and beans.  These items can last 30 years or more when properly packaged and stored in a cool, dry place. A portion of these items may be rotated in your three-month supply.

I have written a letter to Provident Living in hopes to clarify further this question of a 1 year food storage supply.  I have not yet received an official reply as of yet, however I believe that a 3 month supply is to get us by in a short term crunch, however if there were such a disaster that lasted longer than 3 months, and it took more time to get on top of the challenges that come from such disasters, those who have only prepared for the short term, maybe wishing that they had heeded the words of our prophets who have for years, told us to get a 1 year long term food supply for our families.  I hope that life as we know it does not ever require us to have to live on a wheat and water and the few things like the pioneers had to live on while they crossed the plains.  I hope we always live in a land of plenty however we already know of countries whose population lives with famine and starvation. 

I believe that if we follow the advice and counsel of our leaders to prepare a 3 month supply, as well as prepare for long term needs of at least one year, that we will be blessed and will be prepared in the event that we may need it.  If you disagree with this, and only prepare for 3 months, then that is your choice, but as for me and my  house, We will follow the council we have been given for years to build a 1 year food supply.