Hanukkah

People say "You are not Jewish. Why are you celebrating Hanukkah?" My answer is "Why not? Jesus did." Hanukkah is about bringing light to where there is only darkness. Hanukkah is about having the courage to stand up for what is right when others are willing to conform to what the world declares to be politically correct. Hanukkah is about rededication to that which is spiritual. Hanukkah is about one family that led others to follow the true God instead of obeying a man who declared himself to be "god." Hanukkah is about victory when it seemed improbable. Hanukkah is about how a few won over so many. It is about the "freedom to be" ---to exist with the right to protect your family and worship as you choose. It is about trusting God when the odds are against you. It is about having plenty when there was so little. It is about doing all you can to help yourself and with God's grace you are delivered from captivity. It is about the temple of God and keeping it sacred to be used for His purposes. There are so many lessons in the story of Hanukkah which will bring spiritual light into our homes as we rededicate ourselves each of the eight nights. I say "Why not Hanukkah? Doesn't everyone need more spiritual light? Don't we need to journey the path that brings us closer to God? It is the perfect opportunity to celebrate the Messiah and his return. It is about "The Light of the World." It is about having no fear to place the menorah, a symbol of the Holy Spirit from the first temple, in our front window for the world to see that we believe and want to have that Holy Spirit in our home and in each member of our family . It is having no fear to bear our testimony of a mighty God in heaven who is in control in spite of the chaos. So I ask again, "Why do you have to be a Jew to see the light and to believe in a "Jewish God" -----I believe He is THE ONE TRUE GOD. I believe that Hanukkah celebrates that fact. Hanukkah helps us to remember that He delivers those who remember Him.
Let your light shine! Hanukkah begins tomorrow at sundown. Clear the pigs off your altars and purify yourselves by trying harder to do that which He would have you do. Re-light that spiritual light that has dimmed in your soul and let it shine in your heart so that you will be worthy to serve the God who has always been there when you have sought Him in the past.
Happy Hanukkah! And pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
A great miracle happened there. Miracles are a gift from God to those who have enough faith to believe. That is the real meaning of Hanukkah.

Halloween and Pumpkin Time!

I remember when the music teacher came into my third grade class and in her scariest and deepest voice began to eerily sing: "Jack 0'Lantern,Jack O' Lantern, Big and Yellow! (she stretched her eyes open very very wide, spread her arms wide open as she sung this and then leaned toward us for the next line) "Jack O'Lantern, Jack O' Lantern,Funny Fellow! (She continued to quietly but eerily sing in a very deep voice and creep toward the front row of children) She continued singing and gradually increasing the volume..."Shining in the night...With your eyes so bright. Scaring all the witches with your "BOO!BOO!BOO!!!!"  We all loved it! (It must have made quite the impression on me for my old brain to still remember it!)
 There's something wonderful about the crisp air of fall in the South! I guess because it seems to take so long to get here in the sweet land of humidity where we live with our endless days of summer! Autumn is my favorite time of year with all of the beautiful colors that it brings. We love the days of October in particular here at our house. We look forward to carving pumpkins,jumping in great big piles of leaves, and sitting around the fire pit in the evening.The kids love to dress up for Halloween and go "trick or treating." They look forward to going to the pumpkin patch and the carnival at the Elementary School.For the past few years,Grand-daughter #1 and Grand-daughter #2 have had to enter the pumpkin decorating contest at their schools. We have worked on this year's two "masterpieces" the past two days. Tonight,we carved more pumpkins for our Family Home Evening and then sat around the firepit and read Halloween stories until time to get ready for bed.Everyone is exhausted from the hours spent cleaning out "pumpkin guts" as  Little grandson calls the yucky insides of the pumpkins.

Here is Grand-daughter #2"s entry for her contest.Introducing "Strutter the Peacock" pumpkin!

These 2 are brother and sister. He doesn't like the way the pumpkin feels on the inside so he is supervising the job until it's time to carve.

 "YUCKY! Nope, I'm not going to touch that stuff on the inside!"

Grand-daughter #1's pumpkin for the contest! Introducing, "Chester the Cheetos Cheetah" pumpkin!

 He even has Cheetos orange fingers!

Update: Strutter and Chester, both won 1st place at both schools!

Which Wolf?

  Today is the day that we give thanks for our many blessings. There are many who have lost all their worldly possessions as a result of natural disasters and may find it hard to see what there is to be thankful for. Today is a day about family and friends gathering together but perhaps you are alone and find it hard to watch the commercials that portray the happiness of the occasion. I was led to this scripture today which brought comfort to my spirit and would like to share it with those who may be hurting.

"Not that I speak in respect of want; for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound; every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."----Philippians 4: 11-13
"Ingratitude is one of the greatest sins of which the inhabitants of the earth are guilty of today."-- Pres. Joseph F. Smith
We are a generation who want what we want when we want it and have ceased to be thankful for that which we already have.We have ceased to be grateful and blame God for the circumstances in our lives rather than seeing how much we are already blessed with. Even if you have no material possessions whatsoever, you have life. As long as you breathe, you have opportunity to change your circumstances and to make choices that can bring happiness.
"Both abundance and lack (of abundance) exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities.It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend... when we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that's present-- love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature, and personal pursuits that bring us happiness-- the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience heaven on earth."---Pres. Thomas Monson
We want the fairy tale with the handsome prince on the white charger (or the princess in the tower) to rescue us from our dreary existence and anything short of the fairy tale brings us great misery. The devil is a miserable creature and wants us to be miserable. Why can't we just be happy as Paul learned to be "in whatsoever state" that we are in? Why do we have to make others sad or mad just because we aren't  happy?  Why do we let others rob us of our happiness? We can be "full" if we have the Holy Spirit in our lives. We can learn to "hunger" for those things that are righteous and ignore the things that are meant to hurt us. We can learn that we can "do all things" through the strength that comes with a testimony of the Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Today is the day that we celebrate with feasting until we can feast no more ( note to self....gluttony is a sin!)
Remember there are many who will go hungry this day. Find a way during the holiday season to contribute in some way to help those who are in need. It is not enough to just say "thank you" to our Maker but we have to "give back" by serving our fellow being. Learn to be kind. There are many who are hurting. Don't add to the hurt.
"An old Cherokee told his grandson, "My son, there is a battle between two wolves inside us all." One is EVIL. It is anger, jealousy, greed, resentment, inferiority, lies and ego. The other is GOOD. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy and truth.
The boy thought about it and asked, "Grandfather, which wolf wins?" The old man quietly replied, "The one you feed."

Today as you feast consider which wolf you will feed. Be sure it is the one that you can live eternally with.
Happy Thanksgiving. Rise and shine and give God the GLORY,GLORY !!!!!

One of a Kind!

The other day when I was at Dollar Tree, I had an idea for a craft project for the kids to do. It all began when I saw these little guys.

Yep,tiny nutcrackers but I see a Nativity set just waiting to happen! Soooo...I bought a bunch of them and got out some scraps of fabric, some ribbons and twine, and hot glue guns and the grand-daughters got to work on the transformation. While they worked, I gathered some sticks and the bark stuff that crepe myrtle trees shed in the Autumn and a few wooden blocks to make the stable.

Grand daughters #1 and #2 worked on the dolls.....

Then Grandson #2 helped glue a few blocks together to give us the basic shape for the bottom of the stable. We didn't have enough blocks to make the entire stable so we used some sticks. Grand daughter #3 didn't want to make the dolls so she  was in charge of the glue gun for the stick application. 

The blocks were just to help stabilize the sticks (and to give the little 4 year old grandson a part in the project.) You could use 2x4s or a cardboard box. I like how this thing turned out with the sticks and the weird bark that we gathered. We also used jute twine to lash the sticks together as well as the hot glue. When I was 17 years old, my grandmother and I spent many hours making clothespin dolls. That is what made me think of this project. By using these little nutcracker dolls, I didn't have to buy the wooden beads for the heads or make arms or buy wooden stands so that they would stand up. Plus I got 2 dolls for $1.00 ! 

 King #1 is all dressed now!

For the rest of the dolls, we decided to cut off the pointy hat.

 The girl dolls also got a nose job.

We didn't think they needed this nose.or the facial hair so we painted over the face after pulling off the nose and replacing it with a straight pin that has a glass bead on one end. We used wire cutters to clip the straight pin to the right length before hot gluing it in the hole where the old nose used to be.

 We tried a tiny pearl but it was too big.

 This old clothes pin is what we decided to use to make Baby Jesus,

 We sawed it off right above where the stick divides.

 Then we padded the stick with a piece of felt before wrapping it in a piece of linen fabric.

 We saved the "legs" of the clothespin to use for the bodies of our 2 sheep. We painted the pointed end with black paint and put tiny white dots for eyes. The legs were made out of some antique spindle shaped beads that I already had but you could make them out of tiny wooden spools or black pony beads.The ears were made out of a small piece of black pipe cleaner that was wound into a small spiral shape and hot glued in place. We used some chenille from an old scarf but you could use cotton balls or fleece.

 They needed to be cut smaller to be the right scale for the little dolls.

Grand-daughter #1's angel

Grand-daughter #2's Shepherd

I have many nativities that I have collected over the years but this "one of a kind" will be a family heirloom because it was made by my "angels."

Be Still.

The closer it gets to Christmas, the faster time seems to pass. There are school band recitals to attend and class parties to bake for, decorations to put up and family activities to plan. There are church programs to write and lessons to prepare. Not to mention, those hand-made items that you'd like to make in your fantasy of  "Christmas Perfect." But the most stressful part is the shopping! The thought of  manuvering through the packed stores filled with angry mothers pushing carts with screaming exhausted babies and who will use said carts to mow you down if you get in their way for more than a brief second, sends a chill of dread down my spine!!! However, the thought of not getting presents for the kids sends a sense of panic that tops even the fear of those PMS manic mothers on a mission to grab every possible bargain. I mean, after all, what's a little blood shed for the cause. Suddenly I feel the need for some peace and quiet...or maybe some chocolate ice cream to calm my anxiety that comes around this time of year when the money is scarce and the gift list is longer than expected.

             "Be Still"
"Be still," I hear Him softly say,
"Be still, lay all aside."
He who made the universe stoops down,
and gathers up my cares.

"Be still," He chides again.
His work begins within my weary soul.
"Be patient. In quiet stay.
Listen to me."

Though pressed on every side,
I clear my heart and mind.
In timid voice and heart,
I lift to Him my praise.

How quiet, His presence,
How healing, His words,
In hushed awe, I listen.
I savor each one.

My will, He bends.
My heart, He sweeps clean.
My strength, He renews.
My soul, He fills overflowing.

He teaches through His word.
I need what He tells me.
I stand and give Him praise.
Together we go forth and serve.
----author unknown

Why does Christmas bring so much stress? Perhaps it is because we listen to the wrong voice. The world says that you won't have a "Merry Christmas" unless you can get the latest fashions or newest gadget or that new toy that is the latest rage that every other kid is going to have and yours won't unless you stand in long lines with a load of money and a pair of boxing gloves on to beat down the masses that are fighting to get it before you can grab one. Perhaps we need to just slow down and re-think this entire Christmas thing. Will your kids die if they don't get everything on their wish list? Will the sun come up tomorrow? Wait....that sounds vaguely familiar. The sun will  come out tomorrow....bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow,there'll be sun.  So why spend your bottom dollar and be broke when tomorrow gets here. What is Christmas about anyway?

My Christmas Wish List:
1.  More Spiritual---Less Commercial
2. More Joyful---Less Sorrowful
3. More Forgiveness----Less Contention
4. More Peaceful----Less Stressful
5. More Gratitude----Less Selfishness

"Life's under no obligation to give us what we expect"--Margaret Mitchell


But Jesus promises,"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you, Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."--John 14:27

Even if there is no money for gifts, Christmas isn't about presents anyway. It is about HIS PRESENCE in our lives and in our homes. Let us teach the children this and pray that they learn the true meaning for the season. Maybe we need to remember the real reason for the season as well.
Let us listen to the true "Spirit of Christmas"  this year......the Holy Spirit.

"Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge." ---Psalm 46:10-11

"They Followed the Star"

It's not even Thanksgiving and tonight's Family Home Evening was about the wise men who followed the star in search of the baby Jesus. Yep, that's just how strange my mind works sometimes. But maybe it will be an idea someone else could use for Epiphany which is January 6th or someone could use it for a Christmas activity. I wanted to get the kids thinking about the gifts that the wise men brought to the Christ child so that they would think of giving instead of getting this season. The commercials on television have continuous adds for toys and electronics and all around our house the "old familiar carols" begin to be sung. Maybe you've heard the familiar chorus....."Look! Look at the T.V.!!!! That's what I want! That's what I want for Christmas! Did you see it? That's what I want!!!!!!"  Do your children know the same song that mine start singing in November when the "Black Friday" adds begin? Well that's why we brought out the wise men in November!
The Dollar Store had these giant cardboard stars so I bought several silver ones and one gold one. Each star had a "clue" attached to it and was then hung in a tree or on the front door.The clues that I added led from one star to the next as we journeyed to find the baby Jesus. I wrote some little rhymes for the clues because that is my grandchildren's favorite part of scavenger hunts. They like to solve the riddles as much as finding the treasure.

 I used a hold punch so I could attach the ribbon with the clues and scripture tags to the silver stars.

Each child had a glow in the dark stick but you could just use a flashlight.They love to play in the dark with glow in the dark necklaces and sticks so I just added that to the activity for fun.We also talked about how the wise men had prepared before setting out on the journey to find Jesus and how we needed to prepare. They prepared by making sure to  wear coats and warm clothing and I gave them each a new chapstick for their lips as a little gift. We also have to spiritually prepare to find Jesus by reading our scriptures,by saying our prayers,attending church and following the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
(You can use the flashlight to read the scripture that is attached to the tag on the star at each location or read them when you get back inside depending on the temperature outside. You could also use smaller stars and do the activity indoors.)

 They ran ahead of me in search of the next star but realized how dark it was around the back of the garage and got a little nervous about going without old MawMaw who was trailing along behind!

 These two liked the glow sticks better than hunting for the stars but it doesn't really matter. The main thing about Family Home Evening is just spending time together and hopefully learning about the Savior along the way. (and not killing each other in the process! what? So, is that just at my house?)

The little kid wanted to read (but he doesn't know how) so Sister is whispering the words in his ear so he can "read" the next clue and we can run gasping for the next breath....oh....that was me. They were skipping 90 miles an hour from star to star as I followed briskly (okay...crawled slowly behind....panting and gasping in the chilly night air!)

 They have found the star and are reading the clue that leads to a path of glow in the dark stars in the front yard.

 They follow the path up the front stairs to one last giant star which says.....

 "They traveled by camel. We'll go by car...
To a place that is not very far.
They went with haste so that's what we'll do...
True Joy comes when you serve
J     o   y  !!!!!
e     t    o
s     h   u
u     e                                     serve Jesus first,others next and
s     r                                        yourself last and you will find
      s                                            Joy!      

They figured out that the last star was in the car so we piled in  and ended this part of the activity by beginning our "Random Act Of Christmas Kindness" project and taking some pansies to a friend who recently had a stroke. I don't know if her family will find them or not since Grand-daughter #1 got scared and didn't ring the doorbell before "ditching" the potted plant on the front porch that the family seldom uses! Maybe,we'll have to figure out how to get them to find it before the poor little plant freezes! hahahaha! The kids were very excited about their first "ding dong ditch" adventure and are looking forward to serving some other people soon! (mission accomplished! They are thinking of giving instead of getting. At least tonight, anyway.)
The activity ended back at our house with a special treat.I found a small plastic crown at the flea market and hot glued some "jewels" on it.This is our cake topper. I bought some tiny plastic nativity charms and hot glued each one to a thin yellow ribbon on one end and glued a large "jewel" to the other end of the ribbon. I bought a small cake from Wal-mart and pushed the little charms into the sides then just squirted some canned icing to cover the holes where the charms were.

 The kids pulled the jeweled end of the ribbons to reveal the charms as they searched for Baby Jesus.

 And of course, you have to put the charms in your mouth and get all the icing off, right?

 And guess who found Baby Jesus!  MawMaw's baby!

That means he got to be crowned King and choose which piece of cake he wanted!

 I found some frankincense and myrrh incense to let the kids get an idea of what it smells like. Also found some chocolate coins in gold foil to represent the gift of gold that the wise men brought.

 We discussed that the gold was a gift for the King of Kings. The frankincense was used by the priest in the temple and Jesus is the Great High Priest. The myrrh was used for burial and although Jesus died and was buried,He conquered death and the grave and was resurrected so that we can also have eternal life.

The kids watched the smoke of the incense rise in the air as we talked about how the table of incense was placed  in front of the veil in the ancient temple and symbolized the prayers that were said and the "sweet aroma" that it is to our Heavenly Father when we remember Him and talk with Him in prayer. We know that it is important to say "Thank You" for our many blessings.....

But we also now know that frankincense and myrrh or now called "frankenmyrrh" by Grandson #2, is really kind of stinky to us!!!!! We had to put it outside when Daughter number#2 came inside and said that it was making our house smell like a nursing home. : (

Tomorrow, after school, we will continue with some crafts that we didn't have time to do tonight.As usual, things don't always go as planned on Family Home Evening and we don't always finish some of the intended lesson but the seed gets planted and the testimony starts to grow. Maybe they will remember some of it. I hope that they are making memories along the way!