It's Been Awhile

But during the lull I've been thinking about what I want to do with this blog. Maybe since I called it {The Journey}, it can be about my progress as I work on different projects. And things I've learned. But I still want to do themes :). I am still going to do themes. And pictures.

Purpose

September's theme is Purpose, from the general purpose of life to our own individual purpose of life. Of course, the reason we are here and exist is our general purpose in life. We are here on earth to be tested and to prove that we will choose to follow God. We are also here to receive our physical bodies.

Our own individual purpose is much more personal. Only we can decide what that is (with God's help). I touched on this a little in my last post about writing a mission statement. I suppose writing a mission statement would fit better with this month's theme. I will be writing about how to figure out what our purpose is in a later post. So for now, let thoughts of purpose tickle the back corners of your brain.

Back to My Binder

Here's my take on how organizing relates to light. The more organized (maybe not necessarily organized, but efficient?) we are, the more we are able to serve others, develop Christlike attributes, serve the Savior, learn things and develop our talents. As we serve others, we are following the Savior. This allows us to follow the "light". Also, we have more time to give to learning the gospel, etc. which allows our light to increase. And learning and gaining knowledge allows our minds to be "enlightened". Also, as I've tried to become more organized, I've been given ideas of how to make things work better for me and led to other people who have good ideas that are along the lines of how I think.


I posted awhile ago about the cover I made for my binder. The next thing I have in there is my mission statement. I've been reading a book by the "Slob Sisters" called Get Your Act Together. One of the steps they give for getting organized is to find a reason. Under this topic they talk about mission statements. Stephen Covey says in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, to make a statement in writing that defines our calling. (Highly effective people know what their calling is.) The "Slob Sisters" say that a person's calling or mission in life will not be clear unless they are organized. I wrote my mission statement before I got organized. I'm still not organized or highly effective, but I feel like my "mission" or "calling" is clear to me and I remember the moment when this calling was made known to me. So, I guess I went about things backwards. Anyway, I feel like a mission statement gave me something to aim for. It was my "reason" for wanting to be organized and my motivation for getting things in order. I actually wrote my mission statement after reading Sidetracked Home Executive by the "Slob Sisters".


I would like to give anyone who reads this a challenge to write a mission statement, or if your mission isn't clear to you then just think of a reason to get organized. It doesn't have to be a lofty reason, it could be to shove it in the face of a know-it-all, condescending relative or neighbor (according to the "Slob Sisters").

I started by writing down things I value. I looked at the Stephen Covey or Franklin Covey website and they had a mission statement builder. So that helped too. I already knew what I wanted to achieve and accomplish so I just needed to put it in writing. Also, to help write a mission statement, Stephen Covey or the mission statement builder, said to determine what you value. The things I value are: God, family, self-improvement, developing talents, learning and truth, church, and keeping the commandments.


Anyway, so here's part of my mission statement.

I want to be organized at home and in my time so I can concentrate on what is most important. I want to be able to "free myself to be able to do the things I was created to do" (Sidetracked Home Executives, p. 57).

I was going to post my mission statement but it opens myself up and I didn't feel like doing that on the world wide web for the whole world to see. My mission statement basically says how I want to make my home a sanctuary for my family and grow as a person and take care of and teach my family.

So anyway. Have fun coming up with reasons to get organized!

Family Home Evening

I wanted to introduce the topic of light so we mainly talked about physical light and why we need it/why it is important.

Song: On A Golden Springtime (Children's Songbook)

Attention Activity: (from FHE Manual, lesson 12)

Turn off all lights and/or use a blindfold. Have a member of the family

perform a difficult task such as writing a sentence or getting something.

Then turn on the lights or take off the blindfold and show how easily the

same task is done in the light.

Lesson: We are going to talk about light and why it is important.

*Show a picture of the sun.

*Ask ~ Who made the sun?

*Show a picture of the moon and stars.

*Ask ~ Who made the moon and the stars?

These things give us light.

Read Doctrine & Covenants 88:7-13.

So light is in all things and comes from God. Light gives life to things and helps us understand truth and enlightens our minds.

Light is important because we cannot see without light. Plants need light to grow and animals and humans depend on plants. Humans also depend on animals. (We then talked about what would happen to the earth if the sun didn't rise. It would be cold, no light, plants die, etc.)

We need light to have energy and to have food and warmth. We also need light to understand things and to learn and see.

We are more comfortable in the light and we seek light. Plants also seek light. They will grow in the direction of the light. (We talked about the flowers on the porch that are growing towards the light. We also talked about how sunflowers follow the sun across the sky, wherever the sun is, they turn toward it. That is why sunflowers are called sunflowers.)

Testimony.

This was geared more to a three-year-old. We talked fast ;). We don't follow a strict lesson outline, but this is basically what we did.

Visiting Teaching Gift Idea

There is a cute Visiting Teaching gift kit being sold on Etsy. It has the message, a recipe, and a little composition book that will fit in a purse or scriptures for writing things down. It is in a little decorated lunchbag. The store is Sassy Girl Shop and here's the link:

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6929247

Storage and Emergency Tips

I have collected a few home storage and 72-hour kit packets over the years. I have a couple that show things to focus on storing each week of the year and I have a couple that give suggestions for each month. I'm going to share what they say for August.



One of the monthly packets is called "The Noah's Ark Project". The storage goals for August are:

~ 100 quarts fruit and/or vegetables per person
~ 24 pints of jam or jelly per person
~ feminine needs
~ school supplies
~ pet supplies

There are also suggestions for provident living and being spiritually prepared. These suggestions are:
~ have family home evening every Monday night
~ fathers can give a Father's Blessing to their children before school
starts
~ learn to preserve food in a way you haven't tried before

For 72-hr kits:
~ the focus is getting enough food for everyone in the family (remember to
rotate every 6 months)
~ also, getting disposable plates, cups, bowls, and silverware
~ pet supplies - dishes, leash, extra water

August's Theme

Well, I guess I am skipping July since it is now over and we'll start with August!

For August, the theme is light. (Most schools resume in August, so gaining knowledge is gaining light ;).

Light is an interesting topic as far as spiritual things go. I think it is interesting how the Doctrine and Covenants talks about how light is the law by which all things are governed and how that
light gives life to all things. This light is the light of Christ and is the power of God. This "subtopic" of light is something I definitely want to know more about.

In the mean time, this is from the LDS Church website under the topic of the Light of Christ:

The Light of Christ "proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space." It is "the light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed" (D&C 88:12–13; see also D&C 88:6–11). This power is an influence for good in the lives of all people (see John 1:9; D&C 93:2). In the scriptures, the Light of Christ is sometimes called the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, or the Light of Life.
The Light of Christ should not be confused with the Holy Ghost. It is not a personage, as the Holy Ghost is. Its influence leads people to find the true gospel, be baptized, and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (see John 12:46; Alma 26:14–15).
Conscience is a manifestation of the Light of Christ, enabling us to judge good from evil. The prophet Mormon taught: "The Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God. . . . And now, my brethren, seeing that ye know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge ye shall also be judged" (Moroni 7:16, 18).

http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?locale=0&sourceId=46519daac5d98010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&vgnextoid=bbd508f54922d010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD