Saturday, March 30, 2013
Friday, March 15, 2013
My Family Tree
So why do I tell you about this? What does this have to do with Relief Society or Visiting Teaching? This past few years, I have really gotten into searching for my ancestors, and have had some amazing experiences in finding them as well as doing their ordinance work. Our church as really developed some wonderful programs for fining our ancestors, and add to it all the time. I wonder just how many people are taking advantage of the advances in research and genealogy that has availed us, within the past few year. Judging from my own ward, and the Family History class attendance, very few have taken advantage of the wonders of the Internet research made possible by our very own LDS church!
What if the Relief Society supported this effort to teach the sisters how to research their ancestors, and spent a couple of the night meetings, focusing on Genealogy. I feel pretty positive that the leaders in the ward who know and teach the Family history class would be very gracious about sharing their knowledge with the sister. I have come up with a few ideas of what could be taught, however I am sure you could do just the same by putting your heads together.
- Finding your roots - could be a night talking about how to look up and find your ancestors and know where your roots come from. You could serve things that grow on trees like Apple Pie, or other fruit tree pies, nuts or other tree related things. (my idea that corresponds is a bit of a stretch but I thought I would offer it anyway...)You could do a play on words "Roots" by bringing in a beautician to have an additional class, besides a genealogy class, teaching the women how to cover up their roots, about saving money and being thrifty, by coloring your hair yourself instead of at the beauty shop. (gray hairs).
- All ye of Royal Birth - could be a theme because most peoples genealogy on one line or another go back to royalty. My husbands Bennett line (his mother) goes back to the King and Queen of England. I can see the tables set for a dinner with the Queens of their homes, and each sister gets to wear her crown (from Burger King or found online) for the evening. You can have a couple of different classes offered, one focusing on finding the kings and queens in your family. Another could be talking about how to be the queen of your house, by honoring your King and encourage him to honor his Priesthood. I could even see another fun and learning lesson being how to make yourself feel like a Queen. ( teach how to make skin care products from the things you have around your house.) There are lots of websites that have recipes for masks, lotions, oils, bath salts, etc.
- Your Family tree - You could have the genealogy specialists in your ward show how to get on the LDS Genealogy site and show how to make a Family Tree Fan, right on that site. (See the examples below) Here is one link that you can see how to do this. Here is a link that tells about it http://ldsmediatalk.com/2011/12/28/family-history-fan-chart/ and here is a link to create your family fan or family tree.https://createfan.com/ Maybe everyone could make one to take home. You could do other classes on how to organize your genealogy and important family files, and even talk about the importance of knowing your family health history that date back as far as you can find. There are sites such as this one that can really help you. https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/fhh-web/home.action
I won't go on because it is almost midnight... why oh why do I get my ideas so late at night???? Hummmm? Good night and hope these ideas help you!
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Visiting Teaching Conference Idea
If you want to see or use the origin images from the story book, you can find them at Project Gutenburg and here is the direct link to the book: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18735 Once to the link, click on html, and you can see them in color and black and white. They are just darling, but of course you all know I LOVE vintage things. Enjoy!!!!!
General Conference Talks
General Conference Reports
Proceedings of Recent General Conferences
What shall we give?
An Apostles Easter Thoughts on Christ
This short video is an Important message from the mouths of our Prophets!
My broken wagon wheel, hath bit the dust!
July 6 - Pioneer Cooking
Click on this link to take you to the Pioneer Recipes:
http://visitingteachingsurprisedocuments.blogspot.com/2009/07/pioneer-recipes.html
I was also thinking that if you were to copy some of these recipes and print them off, that might be a fun handout for the Sisters you Visit Teach!
July 2nd - Diana Lucina Spicer Block
Visiting Teaching Tips, handouts and Ideas
For many years, I have been creating very cute and fun things to take to the ladies I Visit Teach. I have shared from time to time, my ideas with others and they have really appreciated them. I decided that since I do these anyway, I would start doing one every month and then post it on this blog to share with anyone for their Visiting Teaching. I do need to make a disclaimer.... the ideas, thoughts, stories, graphics etc. used are created by me and they are not in any way official LDS Church quotes, handouts or ideas. They are my creations or others as noted, except for the quotes that will come directly from the Monthly Visiting Teaching message found in the Ensign. Also, many thanks to the talented designers of the digital paper and elements that I use to create the beautiful artwork, and handouts you see on my blog.
You can go to http://www.lds.org/ and look up and even print the monthly message if you do not have your own Ensign magazine subscription in English or to choose to read the Liahona or Ensign in a different language go to http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=03103c7ff44f2010VgnVCM1000001f5e340aRCRD&locale=0.
For Spanish you can go to http://www.sud.org.es/
I highly recommend you get your own subscription because you will find a wealth of really good & wholesome, moral reading, that you can't find anywhere else. If you go to http://www.lds.org/ and click on "Gospel Library" then click on "Magazines" you can order your own Ensign, Liahona, New Era, or Friend magazines.
Posted by Katie Gauger at 10:41 AM 0 comments
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"Returning to the Past" A Relief Society Activity Idea
Dear Katie,
I just found your blog. It is so great. I love the idea of the Hearts of Angels. I am trying to figure out how we can use it for our VT conference and incorporate some of the things for our VT interviews. I am a new R/S president and all these things we have to do throughout the year are a little overwhelming. I love all of you ideas. So much work involved, thank you for being willing to share with all of us! I would love anything else you could pass my way.
WE had the thought earlier to use a theme of "Returning to the past" for our activities this year. So all of your old-fashioned pictures will be great to use as invites and handouts.
You might be interested in the idea we had for our B-Day dinner. We always have a progressive dinner in December to the homes of different sisters. We divide them up into about 5 smaller groups and go around to the different sisters homes in the ward. Because of the weather we cancelled it and had it at the church. We decided to do it for our B-Day dinner instead when the weather would be better. We are having the women bring a sack lunch with them and to wear something old, like a grandmothers broach or shawl, or to dress up in the time of the 1800's, and to bring a pint jar with a lid. We will have the sisters make lemonade at the first house and take with them in the jar that they brought, and then go to the next house. At the last house we will have and old fashioned cake to serve like apple walnut cake or something like that.
We still have some details to work out but at the end each member of the presidency will be at a different home and will share a prepared script. It will be written as if they were at the very first R/S meeting when the prophet Joseph Smith organized the R/S with just a handful of women.
Anyway, thank you for sharing what you have! You have a great talent!
Stacey McClellan - Blackfoot, Idaho
SELF RELIANT SISTERS BLOG HAS A GREAT ACTIVITY ABOUT GARDENING WITH KIDS - go to http://selfreliantsisters.blogspot.com/ It is well worth the time and a terriffic idea as Spring is just around the corner! Here is a tiny bit of information that you will see at the site.....
Gardening with Kids has great tips on getting kids started with gardening. Give your child some space; literally! Kids loving having spaces that are all their own, whether it`s their own desk area in the house, or the tent they've created with chairs and blankets in the family room. The same is true for gardening. Dedicate a small plot of the garden just for them. Put a fancy border around it, perhaps purchase one of the stepping stone making kits found at crafts stores in which they can mold their name and make their hand print.
Let them join you at the nursery. Let your kids know you value their opinion. Ask them which kinds of plants, flowers, and vegetables they like. Explain what will work well in your garden and what won't.
Give them (limited) choices. While you're at the nursery, ask them if they'd like pansies or petunias, marigolds or zinnias. This will give them the feeling of power without letting it get out of control.
Remind them money doesn't grow on trees. With older children discuss the budget. Let them help select seeds and blossoming plants at the nursery - and turn it into a math lesson. Let your child do the money calculations; they can tell you when the money runs out.
Let your child do what he will (especially if you have a preschooler). Let him dig, explore, play with bugs. You may be tempted to steer your child in another direction (like actually watering or weeding his garden), but this is a great way for your child to explore this exciting new universe.
Plan, plan, plan. If you have older children, say 8 or 9 or older, let them plot out their own garden on paper. Provide him or her with graph paper, pencils and seed catalogs. Give them a group of flowers and vegetables from which to choose, and then let them draw out their garden.
Get them their own gardening tools. Nothing will motivate your little gardener more than having her own little shovel, her own gardening gloves, and her own watering pail. And don't forget those bright colored rubber boots. You need to go to the site and explore all the rest of the links and ideas.