Monday, April 30, 2018

24 Fun Holidays to Celebrate with your Kids in May


I think I say this all the time but the months seriously fly by.  I can't believe its almost May!  For us that means school projects and activities, recitals, and yard work.  With a crazy schedule its easy to get in the mind set of just getting through the day.  That is one of the biggest reasons I love these calendars.  It helps me get out of that mind set and do something fun with my family.  There are so many fun holidays in May I kind of want to celebrate all of them! 

Download a copy of the calendar, print, and display.  You do not need to celebrate all of them (we probably won't) just pick and choose what works for you and your family.




I'll be posting ideas as I finalize my plans and also as we celebrate some of these holidays.  My hope is that this will be something fun for your family and a way to create some special memories.  I'd love to hear your ideas and see pictures of your celebrations!

Saturday, April 28, 2018

Precious Gifts from God FHE

We are working our way through April's General Conference talks for Family Home Evening.  This past week we picked President M. Russell Ballard's Talk "Precious Gifts from God." It has so much counsel that I didn't want to leave anything out.  (Find the talk here.)  This week for our lesson we went on a treasure hunt to learn more about some of the precious gifts our Heavenly Father has given us.

Going with a gift theme I made 8 presents, each with a gift that was mentioned in the talk. I did include a black and white set if you want to save on ink and color yourself.
 I also picked a quote from each topic and the are sized to fit behind the coordinating gift box.
Download the FHE pack below.  Cut around each gift and quote.  You'll need to match the quote with the coordinating present and tape it to the back.

They will look like this.
Hide the gifts around the room and let your kids find them.  We did one at a time and read the gift and the quote. 
This page is also included in the download.  I taped mine to a cookie sheet and we used magnets to attach the gifts to it.  You can also tape or glue them to make it more permanent. 
Continue until all the gifts are found.  Ask what are some other gifts from our Heavenly Father.
 

I always like to create a printable that we leave up all week as a reminder of our lesson.  This one is included in the download.

or you can find two other options here



You can find our other General Conference Family Home Evening here.


Friday, April 27, 2018

Superhero Day & Free Popcorn box Printables

Tomorrow is National Superhero Day.  Its one of those fun holidays I didn't know existed (you can find our fun holiday calendars here.)  Here are some fun ideas that would be perfect to celebrate this awesome holiday.  Don't forget to grab your FREE popcorn box templates at the bottom of this post.

Superhero Training Day-Fun day of crafts and activities
 



Dress up as your favorite hero

Have a photo shoot and use it to create a sweet Father's Day Gift.
It says "Some people don't believe in superheros, but they haven't met our dad."  You can create this using Picmonkey with the collage option.

Try out these superhero pita snacks.



Finish up with some superhero movies of course!  Add some awesome popcorn boxes and Hulk Punch (aka green koolaid)

I have four options for you.  Download the templates and print on cardstock.  

Here's a quick how to
Fill with popcorn or your favorite treat.


 I've noticed I don't need to go all out for my kids to be excited and have fun.  Honestly they would be happy just watching a movie but I love the look of  excitement and joy when I add a little something extra.  

Roll a story...Story Dice.



Today is Tell a Story Day, how fun is that! (find more fun holidays here)  This little activity was a hit with my 4 year old.  Roll the dice to discover your main character and setting,  the rest of the story is up to you.  If you happen to have a singer like I do make up a song instead.


There are two different character dice.  You only need one but it could be fun to roll both. 


One has animals, a monster, unicorn, and a robot.  The other has people like an astronaut, farmer, and princess.

You could have a princess on an island, a robot in space, or a superhero on a farm.  There are so many possibilities and such a fun way to stretch their imagination.  Use these for preschool, a bed time story, or take them in the car.  

To make your story dice download the pdf below.  Print on cardstock. Cut along the solid lines and fold along the dotted lines.  Glue or tape together.  I use tape because its easy :)

I also included writing paper in 3 fun colors to record your fun story.  Each color has 2 styles: 1 with a picture box (like below) and one with just writing lines.


Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Free General Conference Printables (quotes from President M. Russell Ballard)

These quotes come from President M. Russell Ballard's Talk "Precious Gifts from God."  (Find the talk here.)  Frame them, share them with a friend, stick them in your scriptures or on your mirror, there are so many possibilities. 


To Print:
Click on the picture.  Right click to save to your computer.
Print at home or send it to your favorite place to print pictures.
If printing at home I like to insert the picture in a word document.  Size and print on cardstock.
These are formatted as 5x7 but can easily be resized to fit your needs.





FHE Lesson for this talk will be posted later this week.

Sunday, April 22, 2018

Family Home Evening Lessons based on April 2018 General Conference Talks


As a family we've decided to use General Conference talks as the theme for our FHE lessons this year.  We are working our way though the talks from April 2018 and trying to get through as many as possible. We'll be sharing the plans with you as we go.  I'll also be updating this page with the links to each lesson to make things a little easier for you to follow along or find a specific talk.  Check back each week for new Family Night ideas.

"I exhort you to study the messages of this conference frequently—even repeatedly—during the next six months. Conscientiously look for ways to incorporate these messages in your family home evenings, your gospel teaching, your conversations with family and friends, and even your discussions with those not of our faith. Many good people will respond to the truths taught in this conference when offered in love. And your desire to obey will be enhanced as you remember and reflect upon what you have felt these past two days." 
-President Russell M. Nelson

Saturday Morning 

Precious Gifts from God By President M. Russell Ballard


Am I a Child of God?  by Elder Brian K. Taylor



Saturday Afternoon

"Young Women in the Work" By Bonnie L. Oscarson 




Sunday Morning 

"By Small and Simple things" by President Dallin H. Oaks talk 


(Find talk here)




Sunday Afternoon

Behold the Man! By Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf









Saturday, April 21, 2018

I am a Child of God FHE


For Family Home evening we are working our way through the April 2018 General Conference talks.  This week we used the talk  Am I a Child of God? by By Elder Brian K. Taylor.  

Here is the outline I used (it's included in the download). It's brief but there is a little more info below. Add or take away anything to fit your family and the inspiration that comes to you as you read through the talk.

The story of Jen is under the heading “The Most Powerful Knowledge I Possess.”

The Ask question and word strips come from the section under the heading "Seeking to Know God, Our Father"

I like to cut the quotes apart and pass them out for others to read.
I love the counsel Jen received to write "I am a Child of God" and repeat it 10 times every day.  This activity was inspired by that.

I also like to include a free printable that we keep on display for the week to remind us of our lesson.  A 5x7 print is included in the FHE Pack download  but if you only want the print click here for the 5x7 or here for the 8x10



Adorable graphics from mycutelobsterdesigns

You can find our other FHE ideas here.