So, another change that took place in January was the new "Come Follow Me" curriculum of the church where we study the scriptures as a family (New Testament this year) and then our Sunday lessons support what we are learning at home. It's taken a little adjusting from how we used to do our family scripture study, but in March I decided to shake things up and I ultimately think it's for the best. I really wanted my girls to take part in the teaching and leading of discussions to prepare them for teaching and bearing testimony as future missionaries, mothers, teachers, in church callings, etc. I really appreciate my girls getting involved, and they say that they like it better too (because it's not as boring when Mom's not the one doing all the talking.😅) On Sunday we try to read the assigned reading as a family and assign out topics for discussion. Then on other nights of the week, I let the girls lead the discussion on what we've learned. They can lead it in any way they would like and they have come up with some very creative lessons. Anything from singing songs to playing games to a simple question and answer approach. It's been good! |
| Kylie had us play a "board game" that showed us how repentance and the Light of Christ would lead us to eternal happiness |
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| We all have heavy loads to bear, but being yoked with the Savior makes our burdens light. |
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| Kate taught us about the parable of the sower and how the different types of soils are the state of our hearts. |
Right before Spring Break, Kylie had her Field Day. She is very athletic and came in as one of the top runners in the 500 m. Her class also scored a couple of 1st place ribbons. Way to go Crusaders!
The girls were also excited to spend time outside as the weather started to improve. Hooray! Spring is here!! How much fun do you think you can have with a couple of USA flags, a pool noodle, a color guard flag, and some sidewalk chalk? Apparently quite a bit!
This year for Spring Break we did a STAYcation. We found quite a few things to keep us entertained around town, as well as playing with friends and just relaxing. It was great! (Aly also spent a few days up in Gatlinburg with her friend Paige and her family.)
First off, Lise and I rode bikes to the local gas station for some Fro-Yo. I felt like I was in Junior High again. 😁 We also went to Publix to get some pie, because, well, it was 3/14 of course!
Spring Break is also a great time to go through the girls' clothes and see what they're going to need for the summer. Well, Kate, who is growing like a weed, had outgrown all her dresses so I took her shopping for some new ones. We found some winners at Ross, and even one green dress which was fortuitous as she was giving her first talk in church the next day on St. Patrick's Day. She looked great and gave a great talk, too!
Even though it was spring break, it was still a bit chilly outside (highs in the low 60's, lows around 50.) So we did pretend camping out in our backyard. The girls set up the hammock (that provided hours of entertainment for a couple of days!!) and then we had a fire with hotdogs and s'mores. This was the first fire I'd built on my own and I was a bit nervous, but it turned out great. Hooray!!
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| Look at those awesome coals! |
One day we went to see "How to Train Your Dragon 3" and then played on the playground for a bit. Loving the sunshine!
Another day we rented some kayaks to go out on the bay. It was a lot of fun paddling around, but the wind makes it a little tough to make it back!!
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| L2R: Lise, Charity, Lillian, Melissa |
Another fun thing was that Lise's friend from Ohio was down here for her spring break to visit. So we had Lise and the other girls over for a movie and just to hang out and catch up. It was good to see them together as another one is moving this summer as well.
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| Lise and I, pretending to take pictures in a photo booth. Lise was not amused. |
And finally, last but not least, Aly, Lise, and I went to see the movie Captain Marvel the night before school started (and arrived home at 9pm, just in time to jump in bed 😴). We pushed spring break to the limit!
On the last Saturday in March, our Stake had a Women's Day of Service for all girls/women ages 8+. There were many service projects options. From creating mats for the homeless using plastic grocery sacks, creating placemats for a nursing home, and painting rocks to display around the community . . .
. . . to diaper/underwear drives for the Children's Advocacy Center & Cinch sacks for the children there, a blood drive, writing letters to people who are deployed or on missions, or doing family history work. We also got Kate her own FamilySearch account set up and found some names for her to take to our upcoming youth temple trip. Awesome!
The activity day girls in our ward went shopping for supplies to make "birthday bags" for the local food bank containing cake mix, frosting, etc. Super cute. Lots of great services done!
And finally, two quick pictures and a funny story. I took Aly and Kate to the doctor for their face; Kate had some weird rash going on and Aly was having acne issues. Anyway, when we get there, Aly filled out the form for the little kids, where you indicate your "pain level" by circling whichever smiley face reflects how you're feeling instead of on a 1-10 scale 😃😊😐😟😢😫. She picked 😐 because she said, "My acne causes me emotional pain." 😂😂😂
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| Kate loves pickles so much that she didn't want the juice to go to waste! Mmm. Salty. |
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| Kylie went to great detail creating a home for her little fuzzy koala bears. Kate created a ladder out of toothpicks for her, and if you look closely, you can even see a cat poster on the wall of the bedroom. ;) |
