Moondrops

'Sup, homies?  Again, sorry for the delay in posting. I've been a busy little bee.  I've had some card orders lately that had to be made.  My aunt wanted me to make some birthday cards.  I think they turned out so cute:

Oh, how I love turquoise and brown together.

My friend, April, works for a company called Bright Side Crafts.  One of their products is moondrops, small plastic thingeys that look like this:

She's used them in lots of fun, different ways.  And they come in lots of different colors, all translucent.  She asked me if I could make some cards incorporating them so she could put them on Bright Side Crafts' blog.  I was more than happy to.

So my idea for these moondrops is to use them wherever I would normally use brads, eyelets, or sticky mosaic tiles or pearls.  As you can see on the card above, I used mosaic tiles (with sticky backs) on the "Happy Birthday" plate and faux pearl halves (with sticky backs) to anchor the ribbon at the bottom of the card.  I decided to try these moondrops in place of both types of embellishments.  Here is a card without any hard embellishments:

There is a little nubbin sticking out from each moondrop; I think it happens in the production process.  I used (per April's brilliant suggestion) fingernail clippers to trim the little nubbin off each moondrop:

Then I just used plain old Elmer's glue to glue a drop on the flat part of each moondrop:

Then I carefully placed gluey moondrops wherever I would have normally used a brad:

Elmer's glue dries clear, so no worries; the white didn't show after a couple of hours.

 The final product:

 This just really turned out so cute.  I'm excited to try them on some other projects.

CN Tower

So that huge space needle-type thing in Toronto is called the CN tower.  I'm not sure what it stands for. I'd like to think that it stands for Cartoon Network.  :)  After we got sick of watching the Blue Jays lose, we headed over to see if we could still ride the elevator up.  And we could!!

My ears were popping like crazy as we rode up.  I was reminded of, 15 years ago, riding up the Eiffel Tower.  My friends and I were in the same elevator with a bunch of Europeans, and then there was this little group from New York City.  As we were riding quietly up (my friends and I learned the art of quietness from living in England), the group from New York City was sooo loud!  This one short dude kept going, "Oh my guosh, oh my guosh, oh my guosh..."  The Europeans were rolling their eyes at one another, and my friends and I were like, "Tourists."  Haha!

The CN tower is the second tallest tower in the world.  The Burj Khalifa in Dubai is taller.  And did you know that Toronto is the second largest city in North America, second only to New York City?  That was something new that I learned.

This is the top of the stadium where the Blue Jays play, all closed up.

There's this glass floor on part of the top of the tower where you can kind of look straight down.  It's a little scary.

It was kind of hard to see because it was nighttime and the area where we were had lights, so Mom got right on the floor to take a better look.

 Spence and I decided that was a good idea.

Very cool.  I'm glad we got to go do it. 

Child's Play.

Yes, the boy needs braces.  I just have to find some money somewhere to do it...

So I was quizzing Dylan on his spelling words one night last week.  I think the word I asked him to spell was "juice."

He spelled it out swiftly and correctly, and then smiled in a satisfied kind of way, leaned back, folded his arms, and said, "Child's play."

The Wars in Alma - Ben's Insight

A few months ago, Ben had to give a talk in his skype branch.  He sent the talk to me to proofread, and I really loved what he had to say about the wars in the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon.  I've been wanting to put his interpretation onto this blog so that, when I have it printed into a book, I can have it.  Here are his thoughts:

"When I was young, I struggled with getting past the book of Alma in my efforts to finish the Book of Mormon. I could not understand why there were so many war stories. Weren't those supposed to be in the “other records” mentioned so many times in the Book of Mormon? And, we've always been told that everything in the Book of Mormon is of great value. So after some pondering and likening, I came to a realization. I realized that, while I may not be swinging a sword, I am in a spiritual battle for my soul, and that I could learn a great deal from the Nephite-Lamanite wars in fighting my personal battles. Here are a few instructions I have gleaned from the book of Alma. 1) My armor must be better than my enemy's and strong enough to withstand attacks. 2) My weapons must be more deadly than my enemy's. 3) My city's fortification must be impenetrable to attacks. 4) It's easier to maintain a city than to retake it from enemy forces. 5) Look to the prophets when preparing for battle. 6) With great faith, obedience, and love for our mothers, our lives will be protected.

"If we are to look at these lessons in a spiritual light, we might see the symbolism in our own personal preparations. 1) For me, I see that my faith is my shield and armor. If it is weak or lakcing in any area, I'm vulnerable to the “fiery darts of the adversary.” 2) My knowledge of the word of God, both ancient and modern, is an arsenal from which I can draw unlimitedly in any battle. 3) My family is my place of refuge, but only as long as I do my part to maintain and strengthen each member. 4) My service in the church strengthens and blesses other children of my Heavenly Father and just may rescue a falling soul from the onslaught of the enemy. 5) My heeding the prophet's teachings, as well as seeking personal revelation, gives me much-needed insight to dangers that lie ahead and what preparation I can make in my life to ensure safety, happiness, and prosperity. 6) My mother really did know best. Her bestowal of love and setting the faithful example started me on the path to joy, love, and ultimately, the celestial kingdom. "

Ben is so smart.  And so spiritual.  I love that man.

The Lesson - How can I inspire others to keep the commandments? - What I Did

So the lesson kind of talks about how there are two ways to inspire others to keep the commandments - by being a good example, and by bearing your testimony to them.  So let's start with...

Being a Good Example

- Scriptures

Have the students look up, read aloud, and mark two scriptures about the importance of example:  Matt 5:14-16 and Alma 17:11.

- Stories

Three stories were shared in the talk and manual cited in this lesson.  Two stories, about two girls named Joanna and Karen, are found here.  And another story, one told by President Monson, is in the manual, Teaching, No Greater Call.  The story is here:

“At the funeral service of a noble General Authority, H. Verlan Andersen, a tribute was expressed by a son. It has application wherever we are and whatever we are doing. . . . “The son of Elder Andersen related that years earlier, he had a special school date on a Saturday night. He borrowed from his
father the family car. As he obtained the car keys and headed for the door, his father said, ‘The car will need more gas before tomorrow. Be sure to fill the tank before coming home.’

“Elder Andersen’s son then related that the evening activity was wonderful. . . . In his exuberance, however, he failed to follow his father’s instruction and add fuel to the car’s tank before returning home.

“Sunday morning dawned. Elder Andersen discovered the gas gauge showed empty. The son saw his father put the car keys on the table. In the Andersen family the Sabbath day was a day for worship and thanksgiving, and not for purchases.

“As the funeral message continued, Elder Andersen’s son declared, ‘I saw my father put on his coat, bid us good-bye, and walk the long distance to the chapel, that he might attend an early meeting.’ Duty called. Truth was not held slave to expedience.

“In concluding his funeral message, Elder Andersen’s son said, ‘No son ever was taught more effectively by his father than I was on that occasion. My father not only knew the truth, but he also lived it’” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1997, 22; or Ensign, Nov. 1997, 18). 

So with these stories, divide your students into three groups.  Give one story to each group.  Have the group read its story and then elect a spokesperson to share it with the class.

- Whose Story Is This? Game

On four index cards, write the names Samson, Daniel, Corianton, and Ammon.  Without using the person's name, tell each person's story.  After each story, ask, "Whose story is this?"  Here's my jpg of short, name-less stories:

- Visual Organizer

Read 1 Timothy 4:12 together.  Then go through the verse little by little, talking about each element of example - conversation, charity, faith, purity, word, and spirit.  As you talk about each part of the verse, add one ice cream scoop to the paper dish, until it looks like this:

Can you tell Sadie helped me color the scoops?  Haha!  So for instance, when you talk about "in conversation," you can talk about not gossiping or talking about naughty things.  I thought that, with "in word," you could talk about having clean language.  Etc.

Here are the jpgs for the dish and the ice cream scoops:

- Game - Example Drama or Draw

I got this idea from a family home evening book.  So you put several different examples of good or bad examples inside your container.

Here is the jpg for the label you put on the container.  It also has the rules of the game on it, which is handy:

Now, in this game, you are supposed to act out or draw good and bad behavior, right?  But some of the ones in the manual would be impossible to act out or draw.  Like, "contribute to the missionary fund."  How hard would that be?  Or "Borrow sunglasses but don't return them."  Whoa.  So I fished out the ones that I think you could feasibly draw or act out.  Here is the jpg:

- Example Quiz

I saw this in a different, very old FHE manual - a little quiz, not to be shared with anybody else.  Just to evaluate yourself and if you're setting a good example for others.  I tweaked it a bit.  Here's the jpg:

 - Quote

I didn't want the kids feeling bad after the quiz - the last thing I want is for them to feel like they're not trying hard enough, or that they're not perfect enough or whatever.  So I shared this quote by Harold B. Lee, about working on commandments one at a time:

 Bearing Testimony

So the second way we can inspire others to keep the commandments is by sharing your testimony with them.  First, we read Alma 4:19 together and marked it.  Then we did a...

- Testimony Activity

Split up your students into five groups.  Give each group one of these slips of paper:

After they've had a few minutes, have each group's spokesperson share what the group found inspiring about that particular testimony.

He's Blue, da ba dee da ba die...

 Tonight, Dylan earned his blue belt!

I actually really like going to Dylan's rank tests.  I think they're fascinating.  It's especially nice when I don't have to take Micah and Gage with me (thanks, Mom, for watching them!).  I also like going down because it means I get to kick it with my sis, Lex, who lives down there.  We always get sandwiches at The Works and chow down while we watch all the kicking and punching.

Lex played with Sadie's hair while we waited for Dylan's turn:

Sadie got this bow from her friend at school.  It doesn't match anything she owns, but she's thrilled about it:

Dyl did so great.  He's a really good kicker, I think.  He has fantastic balance.  Here he is, getting his new belt:

That gal who's tying his belt on is very, very good at Taekwondo.  She won first place in the women's division this last spring out of the whole northwest.  And she has like three kids.  So cool.

Here is Dyl with his class:

There are some really, really talented people in Dylie's class.  It's fun to watch them spar.  The guy with the fluffy hair in the back just started out, but I think he's going to really go far in this sport.  He's fast and really intense.

Look at Dylie, the only one still in his stance:

 Haha!  His ADHD meds had worn wayyyy off by this time.  He was super hyper.

Waffles

So Micah's preschool teacher taught them about dinosaurs today.  In fact, Micah was in charge of bringing treats, and I had him take some dinosaur fruit snacks to go with today's theme.  How cute am I??  Haha!

Anywaysssssssss, when I went to pick Micah up, he came bursting out of his teacher's house yelling, "Mom, we made waffles!"  I was momentarily confused until I saw that he was holding up some pretend fossils that they made in class:

He continued calling his fossil his waffle all day.  I haven't corrected him.  It's just too dang cute.