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How to Make Sunday School Class Journals

I'm a Sunday school teacher for the 13 year olds. It's become one of my favorite church classes to teach. In our congregation, we get a new class each January. As I thought about the upcoming year, I wanted to do something fun for my class. I took a few weeks to consider different ideas and finally settled on making Sunday school journals.

The benefits of class journals:

•    The kids have a place to write thoughts and promptings any time during class, rather than trying to remember it for later. My hope is that they'll develop a habit of taking notes on things that are important to them, as well as write down and follow through with promptings they receive.
•    If you have any kids with special needs in your class, the journal will help them remember topics when they return home and is a great visual for review.
•    I am planning to print out 3x5 cards with quotes to go along with the monthly themes and sometimes the individual lessons.
•    At the end of the year, the kids will have a book full of their own thoughts on gospel related topics.
•    And hey, no need to bring paper to pass out for writing activities. It does mean one more bag of stuff to bring to church. I let the kids decide if they wanted to keep the journal in their scripture case or leave it with me to bring each week. Half the class kept them and the other half preferred to have me keep them (as one kid said, to protect it from his younger siblings).

I'm not a crafty person, so I looked up several tutorials on Pinterest to find the best way to cover composition notebooks. This tutorial helped me the most, except I didn't use Modge Podge. A crafty friend of mine suggested Elmer's Adhesive Spray - which was seriously awesome.

A word of caution: It is uber sticky. Protect your crafting area. I covered my dining room table with a plastic table cloth from the Dollar Store. Then also used paper towels where I was spraying the glue so I could swap it out when it got too sticky. What I didn't realize is the spray kind of billows out. I ended up getting some residue on one of the chairs and had to do some clean up afterwards. Thank goodness for Clorox wipes!

Back to the journals.

I used 12x12 sheets of coordinating scrapbooking paper. 4 sheets (2 of one pattern, 2 of another). Then I cut an 8" wide strip, leaving a 4" wide strip. The 8" strips were the base pattern to cover the front and back of the composition notebooks. Then I added the 4" coordinating strip. 4 sheets will cover 2 notebooks. Then I added some awesome subway art scripture or church leader quotes. On the inside of the front cover, I also added a quote and our class promise.

Then I crossed my fingers & hoped the kids would like them. And . . .

They loved them! My hubby told me he even overheard some of the boys talking about them and showing them off to their friends. Score! If you decide to make some Sunday school journals, I would love to see pics of them & your ideas.

Surviving a Broken Heart

Broken hearts come in so many different ways. Hurtful words. Lies. Betrayal. Physical pain. Being left behind.

Each can rip at you. Tearing away pieces of yourself. Your love. Your self-esteem. Little bit by little bit until all that remains is a lump of a person you don't recognize.

Not every broken heart goes to that extreme, but they are almost always accompanied by tears and suffering.

Eventually the pain lessens and becomes easier to bear, but each time, a sadness has remained with me.

Watching a friend go. A relationship change. Saying final goodbyes to a loved one. Helpless as a dear one suffers. Pain and anger from gossip, lies, and consequences from choices.

Regrets.

Yesterday at church, we talked about loving one another. Serving each other. There was a beautiful quote read about how we should have a perfect love for each other. Never judging another. Always forgiving. It sounds so nice - but oh so unrealistic.

Or maybe I'm just too imperfect.

But I'm apparently not alone. A handful of ladies shared some perspective and thoughts about the quote read. One reminded us that while the gospel is perfect, the members of the church are merely humans, who make mistakes that may hurt others. Another shared how things someone says or does may not be related directly to you. Consider that there may be other things happening in their lives, frustration that has built up and unfortunately was released onto you with sarcasm, harsh words, or actions.

While I had heard these things before, today they came with comfort and consoled my heart.

A little piece was ripped away recently. I've been in tears, praying to find peace, forgiveness and how to handle the situation. How to let it go. How incredibly difficult that is. But today, the ladies who shared their insights, words I've heard before, sunk in and glued back together some of my heart. Yes, I still hurt and am sad, but have found a tiny bit of comfort and am holding onto it, grasping it with white-knuckled fists.

Because while it hurts, knowing relationships will never be the same, trust that will be slow to be rebuilt - if it is ever rebuilt - I will move forward. I will be kind, respectful, but I will also guard my heart from being hurt by the same person again.

It will require a little spiritual CPR, but I will survive this broken heart.

The Terrifying Blessings of Seminary and Autism

In August, our son turned 14 years old and entered high school. Just that transition alone is enough to stress out any mom – special needs teen or not. As much as I worried about my son moving to a huge school, I was more worried about his new morning routine.

Seminary.

I joined the church when I was 16 years old. My small branch didn’t have enough youth for seminary. So the whole early morning thing – wow. The more I thought about it, the more terrified I became. Would the loss of sleep cause melt downs? Would he be disruptive in class? Would he even understand the concepts the seminary teacher discussed? Would the other kids be nice to him? Would the new schedule of EVERYTHING overwhelm him?

Yes, I am mom. And yes, I worry, worry, worry.

I talked with the stake seminary leader, who suggested we try early morning seminary first. If that didn’t work out, we could sign up to be an online or home bound student. One thing I knew though was if we did an online class, it would be forgotten between all the craziness of sports, homework and youth activities.

So we prepped for early morning seminary.

We talked about the new routine. Wrote up a written schedule with items to do to prepare each morning (eating breakfast, shoes, scriptures, brushing teeth, etc) so nothing would be forgotten in those early hours when, honestly, mom is barely functioning. Even with all the prep, I was still terrified.

But then my son surprised me. He transitioned just fine. No bumps. No “holy moly get me outta here!” Not only that, but he LOVES seminary.

My son is one of those kids who doesn’t really talk about all the things wandering around in his head. Sometimes I think he isn’t listening during family night, then a few days later, he asks me more detailed questions. Seminary is like that for him.

My son is also a cross country runner. A few weeks into the school year, he started sharing his seminary thoughts on our drive home. It went something like this – "Today while I was running, I was thinking about Nephi and . . ."

It was the awesomest thing ever to have gospel conversations with my son. But he took it a few steps further.

He started outlining a story about a boy who finds an old arrowhead that allows him to see Nephi, who is still working here on earth to influence youth to make good choices. There are some awesome twists and turns he’s already plotted out. How exciting!

Then he shared his feelings about the gospel through his homework. For theater, he was given a bunch of wire and asked to create something. Isaac designed a snail. Now, we haven’t seen the new Turbo movie yet, but I thought it was probably inspired by that.

I was wrong.

As part of the assignment, he had to write a paper detailing why he chose that creation and what it symbolized to him. I was astounded as he described the snail and its symbols. That the outer shell symbolizes the armor of God and how it can protect us. That the snail is a good example because it moves slow, and how that if we slow down, we have more time to think and make better choices, which he then tied back to how choosing the right gives us protection from God.

What an amazing miracle seminary has been. I love that my son is absorbing the gospel, feeling Heavenly Father’s love for him, and the power of the Holy Ghost.

So, a note to moms and dads – it’s absolutely okay to worry about your children, but don’t let it hold your child back from exploring new things. You never know how it will help your child to grow and bless both of your lives.

Rapunzel and a Little Girl's Baptism

Today, I attended my sweet friend Sarah's baptism. Sarah is eight years old and loves the Disney princesses, especially Rapunzel. She invited me to talk about the topic of baptism and I decided to compose something special just for her.

I thought some of my blog followers would enjoy the talk & possibly want to tweak it for future use. In parentheses, you will see answers to questions I asked Sarah. Enjoy!

Princess Rapunzel & Princess Sarah's Baptism

Once upon a time, there was a princess who had forgotten who she really was. She was very kind and loved to read and draw. She also did lots of cleaning. Each year, she stayed up late into the night so she could gaze out her window as thousands of lights filled the sky.

Do you know which princess I’m talking about? (Rapunzel)

Like Rapunzel, we come to Earth and forget who we really are. We see glimpses of our divine potential, but we don’t remember where we came from before we were born.

Daughter of a King

Now, Rapunzel had a father. Do you remember who he was? (The king)

You have a dad here on earth. But did you know you have a father who is a King too? Heavenly Father is a King and you are His daughter. So that makes you a princess, too. And every princess needs something sparkly to wear. (Present sparkly headband)

Cleaning

Do you remember how I said Rapunzel did a lot of cleaning? Today you are going to do a bit of cleaning too.

When Rapunzel cleans her home, she dusts, mops and makes the windows shine. But when you get baptized, something much more important than dust gets cleaned away. What is it? (Your sins). That’s right. All of the mistakes you’ve made are washed away and you become clean and pure. It’s a beautiful gift from Heavenly Father.

After Rapunzel was reunited with her family, she had to learn to act like a princess. Did you know I met you when you were a little 2 year old toddler? Over the last six years, I’ve watched you learn about Jesus and Heavenly Father and how much they love you. I know your family and church teachers have taught you how to live like a daughter of God, which is another kind of princess.

They’ve taught you:

- to be kind to others

- to read the scriptures

- to pray to Heavenly Father

- to make good choices.

Today, you’ve made a very good choice that Heavenly Father is very proud of: to be baptized.

When you are baptized, you promise Heavenly Father that you will follow His commandments. In return, He makes promises to you, too.

He promises to

- always forgive you when you repent

- to give you the gift of the Holy Ghost to guide you

- and that you can return to live with Him forever.

Heavenly Father’s promises are very special. At church, you’ve learned about the things you need to do to return to live with Heavenly Father, Jesus, your family and friends. The opportunity to live together forever is your very own Happily Ever After. The first step to getting your happy ever after is being baptized.

Help Along the Way

Rapunzel has a dream to travel to the kingdom. Why does she want to go there? (To see the lights fill the sky). Is it easy for her to get there? (No). That’s right. She needs to find people to help her along the way. Like Rapunzel, your life here on Earth won’t be easy. There will be lots of happiness, but there will also be difficult challenges to help you learn and grow—but there will be people who love you very much to help you. Who do you think some of those people might be?

- Parents

- Sisters

- Friends

- Church leaders

- Heavenly Father

Did Rapunzel ever make mistakes? (Yes, she did). Sometimes you will make mistakes too. I’ll tell you a little secret (shh!)—Even though I’m an adult and a mommy, I still make mistakes every day. Right after you’re baptized, you are going to be clean, with no mistakes. But do you think you might make a mistake tomorrow? (Maybe) But if you do, remember that one of the things Heavenly Father promises is that if you repent sincerely, then he will always forgive you.

In Closing

Do you remember how Rapunzel loved to read? Well, there’s one book you can read that will help you live like a daughter of God. The scriptures. There’s a scripture I love that helps me to remember how to keep my promises so that I can be worthy to receive Heavenly Father’s promises. It’s in John 13:34.

In this verse, Jesus tells us that we should love each other, just like He loves us. I know that if you love others and treat them with kindness, and also love yourself and respect your body as a daughter of God, that you will stay on a good righteous path.

You are a beautiful daughter of God, Sarah. The things that make you beautiful are your smile, your laughter, your kindness to others, and your love for the gospel. I know that Heavenly Father is so proud of you and loves you very much. Today, I want to share with you that I know the gospel is true. That it can bring you peace, comfort, and joy throughout your life. I’m so grateful for our Savior Jesus Christ and that He was willing to both live as an example and also die for us so that we can have the opportunity to live and learn here on Earth and return to live in heaven with our family and friends. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

November Family Night Ideas

Some friends have been asking me to post about my family nights. Here's what the Ferguson family will be talking about.

Civic Duty & Election Day
Song: America the Beautiful

Veteran's Awareness Week
Song: The Star Spangled Banner

Kindness & Bullying Awareness
Song: Kindness Begins with Me

American Education Week
Song: ABC's

I'll try to post about the lessons and activities we do, but since it's National Novel Writing Month, I'll be busy typing away on my current work-in-progress. I'd love to know if you use these topics though!

Tour the Kansas City LDS Temple

You are cordially invited

to attend an open house of the Kansas City Missouri Temple

of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

from Saturday, April 7, through Saturday, April 21, 2012 (excluding Sundays).

The temple is a beautiful, inspiring, and peaceful place.

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I love going to the temple. It's a place I can go to find peace in this crazy mixed up world we live in. Heck, even in my chaotic house full of fabulous, rambunctious kids! The temple helps me find my balance, to remind me of who I am: A Daughter of God. And that these angels-in-training who destroy the house faster than I can clean it are children of God, too.

There have been many, many times in my life that I've been reminded that God knows exactly who I am. But most of them have occurred since becoming a mother. It amazes me how often I receive promptings or answers to prayer about one of my munchkins. If I follow those promptings or answers, then I discover they were spot on for what that child needed. Over the years, it's become more clear to me that motherhood is not a single woman job. It takes a team - and mine begins with Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost. Without those three in my life, I wouldn't be the partially sane woman I am today. =)

Seriously, the temple is beautiful. If you are not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and you live within a 2 day drive of a temple open house (the current temple opening is in Kansas City, MO), then I encourage you to go.

What happens on a tour? Well, first you should reserve a ticket. When you arrive, you'll wait to be assigned to a small group. During the wait there may be videos playing, music from the fabulous Mormon Tabernacle Choir, or volunteers to chat with. I'll personally be volunteering a few days during the Kansas City Temple open house. When your group is called, you'll be led through the temple. This is a reverent tour. You're welcome to ask questions, but please talk in soft tones to allow the spirit in the building to be felt. You'll visit our baptismal fonts, ordinance rooms, and marriage rooms. Gorgeous paintings, woodwork, and chandeliers. This is an opportunity for you to learn about your Mormon neighbors and their faith. At the end of the tour, if you'd like to learn more, you're welcome to fill out a missionary card. But I promise, there won't be anyone following you, hounding, heckling, or annoying you. The open house is a two-week window of time for members of my church to share their love for Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ and how we worship them in the temple with our neighbors before it is dedicated in May. After the dedication, the temple is only visited by members of the LDS church.

I hope that you live close enough to attend the Kansas City Temple open house. If not, I hope one day you'll be near another temple open house and take the opportunity to go. Click here for a list of temples being constructed around the world.

I've been published internationally!

Today, I received this awesome package in the mail . . .

It's the advance copies of my article, How Do I Help This Child: Seven principles for helping Primary children who have cognitive disabilities, which will appear in the international LDS magazine, Liahona, in February 2012. Six whole pages about how to help kids ages 3-12 during Sunday school classes. Six pages! That's huge in the magazine world!!! And the article is featured on the front of the magazine! We need more exclamation points!!!! =)

I was sent copies in English, Spanish, and French. But the magazine is sent world-wide and interpreted into all sorts of awesome languages, like Chinese, Portugese, and so many more. It's so exciting to realize something I wrote is helping people all over the world!

And isn't that an awesome picture of me and my son? Thanks to the fabulous Erin Jensen. Oh yeah, and our guest reader, Mr. Blue Rock Monster, courtesy of my son, Isaac. LOL!

What a WOW moment!

Helping Kids with Autism at Church

If you haven't seen it yet, below is my Good Things Utah appearance with Heather Gardner on how to help kids with autism at church. The tips highlighted are from both my book - (dis)Abilities and the Gospel - and from Heather's experiences as a mother with three special needs kids.

Unexpected Chaotic Fun!

I have an article coming out internationally for my church about how to help kids with cognitive disabilities at church. Late last week, I got an unexpected phone call. The magazine's art department requested a photo shoot with my son and I. They contracted with an awesome photographer - Erin Jensen - and an appointment was set for four days later.

I was super excited but then . . . questions and to-do list items started to pour in.

Contact Isaac's church Sunday school class and beg them to be in the pictures.

Pray, pray, pray for Isaac to have a good day at school, so he'd be in a good mood for the photo shoot!

What about clothes? What will I wear?

And oh my gosh, my gray hair is showing!!!

I quickly called Gina - a total hair genius - told her what was happening and asked if she could fit me in so I wouldn't look like Frump Mom. (No laughing!) She was awesome and not only fit me in, but also made time to style my hair the day of the photo shoot.

That Sunday, I asked Isaac's class to participate. Everyone was great! It turned out to be much easier than I anticipated. Whew!

Next item, clothes. Awesome photographer chick that Erin is, she took me shopping and we pulled together a simple, but beautiful, outfit.

Isaac had a great day at school (Thank you for answered prayers!) We finished his homework, had a quick easy dinner, then went off for the photo shoot.

It. Was. Awesome!!!

Erin was a blast to work with. She was fantastic with Isaac. She had him laughing, smiling, and totally at ease. I loved how she had us interact together as she took pictures. There were very specific pictures she was looking for. I liked how she put us together to fit those needs, but did it in a way that was so us - me and my guy Isaac. I can't wait for the article to come out just to see how they turned out! =)

The photo shoot was mind opening in another way too. I have always taught the younger kids at church and for the last four or five years, have not seen my son interact with the kids in his church class. While Erin was taking pics of them together, I got to stand back and watch them all goof around and talk together. They are one big bunch of energetic kids who joked with Isaac and each other. He just fit in - even with his quirkiness. It was one of those heartwarming, incredible Mommy moments when I realized the other kids like Isaac just the way he is. They accept him. They're his friends.

It was a wow-happy-tear-filled moment. Nothing makes a mom with a special needs child cry faster than seeing her child accepted and loved.

Isn't it awesome how something so unexpected and not-at-all normal can bring such great moments? I know it's one I'll never, ever forget.

*****

Now, I need your help with something. Awesome person that Erin Jensen is, she took a few pictures of me as a thank you. Wohoo! The following photos are the same pose, just different crops. I'm trying to decide which ones I want use for Facebook, Twitter, my blog, and website. It doesn't have to be the same one. For example, on Twitter you just get a tiny square, so I was thinking one of the closer cropped ones for there. Please tell me which are your faves and why. Thanks everyone!