Visiting Teaching Handout June 2016

The month is more than half over! How has June flown by so fast? I thought things were supposed to slow down after the school year was over, but life is just busy, busy, busy! Have you had a chance to do your visiting teaching this month yet? Hopefully I can make it a little easier on you by providing a free printable download of a quote from this month's message, Temple Ordinances and Covenants.  I printed mine out on card stock and slipped a Crease-less Hair Tie on it. I like to use a paper trimmer to make the cuts perfectly straight.

Click the link below for a free printable download of this handout.

June 2016 Visiting Teaching Handout.

Just print it out on card stock, add a Crease-less Hair Tie and you are ready to go. Follow a quick tutorial to make the Hair Tie yourself, or you can purchase some cute ones here. Get free 2 day shipping with Amazon Prime.

I really love that the Visiting Teaching Messages this year have been focused on the Family. I chose this quote from the message because it reminded me of the covenants I made when my husband Anthony and I were married in the temple almost 6 years ago! We were not only sealed or "Bound" to each other, but were bound with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. We made promises to each other and to our Lord and Savior. Here we are on our wedding day!

We recently received some names of deceased ancestors that need sealing ordinances performed. My Aunt was kind enough to share them with us after doing all the leg work herself to find them! I look forward to going to the temple with Anthony and kneeling over an alter with him to perform these sacred ordinances as proxy. I wonder how long they have been waiting for this. I feel so blessed to be sealed to my husband for time and all eternity, and be able to participate in temple work to bless others. Every time I go to the temple I have a strengthened resolve to keep my covenants and be worthy of promised blessings. Because of Temple Covenants, Families can be Together Forever!

Here is a sneak peak of the July Visiting Teaching Handout! Check back soon for the free printable download!

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Disclosure: This post contains Affiliate links. To read more about what that means, click here to see our Affiliate Area.

Originally posted on June 23, 2016

Creaseless Hair Tie Tutorial

Have you tried using these Crease-less Hair Ties yet? They are awesome, especially in the Las Vegas Summer Heat! Today we had a high of 108 degrees Fahrenheit! Once you try these Crease-less Hair Ties, you will never wear an ordinary hair tie again.  I wear one of these bad boys in my hair or on my wrist pretty much ALL OF THE TIME!

When I am busy mopping the kitchen floor, or building blanket forts with my son, my hair goes up into a quick "Mom Bun" to keep me from over heating. When I give the kids a bath, up it goes again so my long hair doesn't get soaked. When I'm done I pull it out and my hair is as good as it was before. There are no ridiculous creases to deal with! I also put my hair up in a Crease-less Hair Tie every night before bed, and even after being in my hair for several hours, there is no crease! These things save you so much time straightening or curling out left over creases. You can purchase them online, or at the store, but in my researching, they are usually way over priced at $1+ per Hair Tie! They are super cute, but expensive, so I thought, "I bet I could make them for way less." I decided to try it, and was excited to be able to make my own Hair Ties averaging at $0.25 a piece. Here is a simple tutorial on how to make them on your own too.

First lets start with the supplies you will need to make these Crease-less Hair Ties.

You will need a ruler, fabric shears, fold over elastic, and matches.  You can purchase the fold over elastic here. That's right! You only need four supplies! No sewing or gluing!

Cut the elastic to 9 1/2 inches long.

Fold the elastic in half, matching up the open ends.

Fold the elastic over your index finger, almost in half again.

Wrap the elastic around your finger forming a "P" shape.

Pull the end of the elastic through the loop and pull lightly.

Pull the knot gently, working it toward the open end until the knot is secure.

To View a Time Lapse Video click here.

Use a match to seal the ends.

And then you have a beautiful finished product.

I hope you enjoyed this Tutorial! If you have any questions, feel free to leave me a comment below! Enjoy your new Hair Ties!

If you would like to share my content, please provide a link back to my website. Please do not use my images without permission.

Disclosure: This post contains Affiliate links. To read more about what that means, click here to see our Affiliate Area.

Originally Posted on June 22 2016

Balsamic Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry

Don't forget to pin it so you can reference the recipe later!

If you are anything like me, your summer is sprinkled with barbecues, receptions, showers, parties, and traveling. While I thoroughly enjoy all of the delicious food that comes along with these great events, my scale does not. And to be honest, I am eating a scrumptious Apple Fritter from Winder Farms as I type this up. Also tonight we plan on going to the World's Best Corndogs Food Truck for dinner. That's right, I have been known to splurge from time to time. Today is definitely not an A+ in the book of health.

In between the parties, and junk food however, I like to try to feed my family some healthy meals. But who likes health food that tastes like wood, or dirt? Nobody! That's why I love this Balsamic Chicken and Vegetable Stir fry! It is healthy and has a great flavor. So tonight come join us at the corndog truck, and maybe tomorrow you can make this healthy dish for dinner.(We had it last night!) Hope you Enjoy it!

Whisk together the Italian dressing, balsamic vinegar, honey and crushed red pepper in a medium sized mixing bowl.

Marinate the chicken in this mixture for a few hours or overnight. I have marinated it for as little as 5 minutes, and it turned out fine too.

Warm the coconut oil over medium heat before placing chicken evenly in the pan. Reserve the remaining marinade for latter.

Use tongs to flip chicken when it is done cooking on one side.

When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the pan and place it in a separate dish.

Add remaining marinade to the pan and let it simmer for 5-7 minutes until it gets nice and thick.

Pour in the frozen stir fry vegetables and coat evenly with the marinade.

Continue to fry for about 10 minutes, rotating frequently until vegetables are tender.

Place the chicken back in the pan and serve warm over rice or quinoa.

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Originally posted on June 15, 2016

My Mother's Handprints on My Heart

Today I want to talk a little bit about my favorite Stay at Home Mom, my sweet mother. She was the first person who left prints on my heart. There is a little part of her in me. When I was little, I wanted to be just like her. I wanted to be a mother. Being a Stay at Home Mom was my life goal and ambition. She was such a great example to me. As a Stay at Home Mom, she contributed much more to the family by being home than she ever could have by having a job and contributing financially. No amount of money, or elevated lifestyle could have replaced her. I loved having her there. I am so grateful for her sacrifice. When I was little she wrote this beautiful poem from a child's point of view.

Handprints

Through the years my hands leave prints
at first they're as cute as can be.
Until I climb upon your lap
and leave jelly prints on your knee.

You get mad at first, then look into my face
and cannot help but to smile.
You thank the Lord for your precious child
and wished you'd felt that way all the while.

I smile back at your loving face
That smile absorbs right through.
At that moment I know that you love me
and you know that I love you too.

Together we learn that material things
are not what matter the most.
even though your knees have been soiled
by my jelly and my toast.

My print on your knee will wash out you see
but the print that you leave with me
Will stay in my heart forever
and for all eternity.

My Mom has definitely left prints on my heart. I am glad that my mom taught me to be there for my kids through the thick and the thin, just like she was there for my siblings and me. Being a Mom is not always the most glamorous or clean job. But my mom instilled confidence in me. I have never once doubted my decision to be a Stay at Home Mom.

Being home has meant that I have been beat and battered by every tantrum, sickness and sleepless night. Although when I think of it, I wouldn't want anybody else there in my place for each of those moments. No one else could possibly love my kids as unconditionally as I do. I have loved them through their naughty fits, picked them up when they fell, kissed them when they were hurt, and cuddled them close through their endless whimpers.

It can be the most physically exhausting and emotionally draining thing you will ever do, but it can also evoke such strong feelings of love that you never imagined were possible. Being a Stay at Home Mom has also meant that I have been there to see my sweet son's very first intentional smile,  first words, first steps. I was there to see my daughter discover her hands, react to new foods with a funny face, and learn to pull herself up to standing position. I have been there for all of their new discoveries. I cherish those moments, and wouldn't trade them for the world.

Barbara Bush Gave a beautiful Commencement Address at Wellesley College on June 1, 1990.

At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, winning one more verdict, or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend, or a parent.

I will never regret putting a career on hold for my kids. There will be plenty of time for that when they are up and out, grown and gone. Right now they are growing and changing so fast. I don't want to miss out on their life, and I don't want them to miss out on me. I like to think they want/need me around.

My mom kept just about everything from school when I was little. I have several binders full of Memories from Elementary, Middle and High School. As I was looking through them a few years ago, I found a questionnaire from elementary school. As I read it, I was so proud of my 6 or 7 year old self.

Q:What do you want to be when you grow up?

A: A Stay at Home Mom

The desire to be home with my children has penetrated deep in my heart my whole life. I have never even considered my years as a young mother any other way. Before my now Husband and I got engaged, I had a conversation with him about it. I asked him what he thought about Stay at Home Moms without disclosing my opinion on the matter. I needed to know that my husband would be supportive of that decision without my convincing. If he said he thought that Mom's should continue to work, it honestly would have been a deal beaker for me. I remember exactly where we were when we had the conversation. We were drivingin his car  and I was super nervous about bringing up the subject. I really liked him, and I wanted it to work out between us. I gathered up my courage and we talked about it. I was so glad when he said that his mom was a Stay at Home Mom and he always liked having her home. He said that he would want that for his kids too. That was just one of the many reason's I married him.

I am so grateful for all Stay at Home Mom's out there making the world a better place by raising the next generation. I am grateful for the example that Stay at Home Moms set for me as I was growing up. I am grateful for my Mother in Law who raised my amazing husband, and I am especially grateful for my Mom and her dedication to stay home with us kids. We are pretty dang lucky to call her ours. Her influence didn't stop with us. Like I mentioned before, she left prints on my heart, and now I am leaving those same prints on my children. How lucky am I to be living this dream!

Hanging out on the grass with my Beautiful mom and daughter. I love spending time with my mom. I just can't get enough of it!

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Originally posted on June 14, 2016

New Logo

Did you notice my new Logo?

Isn't it amazing?

I just wanted to give a shout out to Bryson Seastrand for designing this for me! He is so good at what he does, and is so easy to work with.

Designing logos is really an art. I love how the BLOG Tag is tilted sort of like a SOLD sign on a house. It really matches up with the house theme I was going for. Look at his attention to detail too! Don't you just love that little door knob and door mat?

When I brought my sketch to him, he really helped to capture my vision. He was so good at improving my ideas while still honoring them. He took my vision and elevated it.

He is very professional and knows what he is doing. He did a great job asking me the right questions to pinpoint my hierarchy of needs in creating a Logo.  It is more complicated than you would think. There is a lot of problem solving involved, and he did it beautifully. I couldn't be happier. Thank you Bryson!

If you would like him to design a logo for your business you can contact him at editedforcontent@gmail.com.

If you would like to share my content, please provide a link back to my website. Please do not use my images without permission.

Originally Published on June 13, 2016

My Secret Weapon for Teaching Small Children

Some of the best conversations you will ever have with kids is sitting around the table. This morning as M and I were eating breakfast, he asked me:

M: Mom, What does save your voice mean?

Me: It means, if you are sick, you shouldn't talk too much, or sing or yell. You should rest your voice so you don't lose it.

M:  oh.

Then he sings a line from a primary song, If the Savior Stood Beside Me:

If I listen with my heart, I hear my save your voice.

I started laughing. The Lyric goes:

If I listen with my heart, I hear my Savior's Voice.

Did you ever get words mixed up in a primary song as a kid? My husband used to sing the song Love One Another and wonder what a shalmeno was.

By this shall men know (shalmeno), ye are my disciples.

I love Primary Music. We sing primary songs together at bedtime. We listen to primary music when we are feeling happy. It cheers us up when we are grumpy, and comforts us when we are scared. Big M sings it while he plays with his toys, and in Primary at church. It is a pretty big part of our lives. You can listen to it for free here.

I've had the opportunity to teach my son's Sunbeam class in Primary a few times over the past few months. I call it an opportunity because that is what you call something you don't want to do, but you do anyways because you know it's the right thing to do. Besides, I don't have a real reason not to, other than the fact that it is exhausting. Let me tell you though, It Is EXHAUSTING! I don't care who you are, or what special activities you have planned. By the end of class you have a headache, and need a nap. The kids probably do too.

Three and four year old kids are tricky. One cute boy  in my class today was almost in tears mumbling, "I want my mommy!" over and over again. I have had him in my class a few times before and he never had any trouble. To assess if he really needed his mom, I asked him a couple questions like, "Do you feel sick? Do you need to go to the bathroom? Do you want a hug? My son even sang Grown ups come back from Daniel Tiger to him. I finally got him to come back and sit down by bribing him with fruit snacks. He didn't say another word about his mom after that! Smart kid! He must have remembered that I always bring fruit snacks to class.

Since I have been subbing in Primary, I've come to find out how lucky these kids are. They have an amazing song leader. She always comes so prepared with the best activities to get the children involved in the music. She is so patient, and you can tell that she really loves the children she teaches. The kids kept raising their hands, she would call on them, and they would say, "I was just stretching."  There were a lot of kids stretching today. M was one of the lucky ones who got to participate today, and he loved every minute of it.

He was wearing a "Thinking cap."

After Singing Time was over, it was time to go to the classroom. Last night I had all these high hopes for an amazing lesson. I even took a picture of all the supplies I had gathered to help it go smoothly. I packed my secret weapon, and was ready to go. Every teacher needs one of these. Are you ready for it? drum roll please... A Magic Beanbag! This thing has super powers. Really, it does. It's saved me many times while teaching primary classes. Who ever has the magic bean bag can talk, and everyone else must listen to them. I ask a child a question, throw them the bean bag, they answer, and throw it back. Everyone wants a turn, and they know they have to be reverent to get a turn. Usually this works beautifully. USUALLY.

Kids are kids though, and 3 hours is a long time for them to sit still. When one of them makes a fart noise, they all make fart noises. Then you are surrounded by a chorus of tiny human fart machines, and you are trying your best not to laugh. You have to constantly outwit them. Sometimes it's just too hard to convince them that talking about scripture stories is going to be more fun than jumping, yelling, or heaven forbid, making fart noises. Enter in the snacks. This is the real reason I agree to Substitute for Primary. I'm in it for the Pretzels.

Sometimes, you think they didn't learn anything because they were so rowdy during the lesson, then they surprise you with, "When I am sad, I can pray to Heavenly Father and the Holy Ghost will help me be happy again!" Or one day when the lesson is about their Eyes, you ask them what they learned and they reply, "Walruses!" You get real creative and say, "Yes, You are right! You are thankful Heavenly Father gave you eyes, so you can see beautiful things like walruses!" Then there are the moments when you have these four little 3 year old boys tip toeing through the hall reverently with their arms folded. It doesn't get much cuter than that. Today the lesson was I have feelings. I experienced the whole spectrum of feelings today with these kids. It's always an adventure, that's for sure. It's a good thing they are so cute!

What things do you do to keep sane teaching primary? What is the funniest thing you have heard a student say? Please Share!

If you would like to share my content, please provide a link back to my website. Please do not use my images without permission.

Originally posted on June 12, 2016

Friday French Toast with the Family

This morning the boys requested French Toast for breakfast. My little helper and I got everything gathered and went to work. I am a firm believer in letting children help out in the kitchen. As long as you teach proper safety and cleanliness it can be a great learning experience for both you and your child. My son learns new skills each time we work together in the kitchen. Each age brings new abilities in the food prep process. Today Big M helped me with cracking the eggs. He does a much better job now than he did a year ago. Back then, eggs were cracked in some less fortunate places. Cooking with a helper definitely requires patience, but has created so many great memories for both of us.

This french toast is delicious. Here is how to make it. First mix the eggs, milk, vanilla and nutmeg in a shallow bowl.

Place your whole wheat bread in the egg mixture.

Coat it real good.

Flip it to make sure both sides are covered evenly. Little helpers may need some assistance with this part. We probably wash our hands 10 times throughout the whole process.

Once coated, place the bread on your skillet and top each piece with coconut oil (healthiest option), butter (tastiest option) or margarine (cheapest option).

Then sprinkle on some cinnamon.

Carefully flip the french toast so it can cook on both sides.

It doesn't have to be perfect the first time. They won't learn if you don't let them try. I am really proud of how good Big M is at this.

Now it is time to flip them onto the plate.

The perfectionist in me wants so badly to rearrange the french toast in a beautiful pattern on the plate. But what kind of message would that send to my son? That it wasn't good enough! I would never say that to him! So I shouldn't say it with my actions either. Actions speak louder than words, especially to children.

Besides, look how proud he is! Look at his beautiful accomplishment and creation. Little kids are capable of so much more than we give them credit for.

I have to refocus my perfectionism sometimes because my life isn't just about me anymore, it is about my family. Instead of perfecting things, I try to perfect myself. I can do this by being patient, loving my son unconditionally, and instilling confidence in him. This can be very hard at times, but I keep trying, and I like to think I am becoming a better person because of it.

Today, I just want to soak up the fact that he is interested in spending time with me. They grow up too fast!

Besides, I can make it look pretty on my own plate.

Baby B wishing she could try some of this delicious french toast.

Patience beautiful girl. One day you will eat solid food.

One day I will have all the time in the world to make my food perfect and beautiful. Today is not that day, but I wouldn't have it any other way. The smiles on my children's faces are far more beautiful than any food will ever be, and I know I will look back on this time and wish I could relive it. So right now, I'm just going to soak it all in. Life is good!

What funny cooking experiences have you had with your kids? You know the ones where you are forced to laugh so you wouldn't cry? We have these canisters on the counter that I keep all our baking staples in, flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking soda, cinnamon etc. One afternoon, I came into the kitchen to find a  chair pulled up to the counter, and Big M was no where to be found. I always get suspicious when there is a chair by the counter. I took a look at the canisters and all of them were empty, except for the large flour one. Yep, you guessed it! He dumped all the contents of all the canisters into the flour! When I asked him about it he said,  "I Mixa Mixa it real fast!" No Shame for that little guy! He kills me! Tell us about your funny cooking stories!

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Originally posted on June 11, 2016