Music - "The Lower Lights - A Hymn Revival" volume 2

The Lower Lights a Hymn Revival 

volume 2

Lead, Kindly Light

I Saw the Light

Calling You

Be Thou My Vision

I Stand all Amazed

Go Down, Moses

Battle Hymn of the Republic

Nearer, My God, to Thee

I Need Thee Every Hour

Where Can I Turn For Peace?

Where He Leads Me

The Christian Life

Where the Soul of Man Never Dies

We Are all Enlisted

God Be With You Till We Meet Again

If your missionary likes Country music (which mine does) then they will probably enjoy The Lower Lights version of these revival hymns.  My husband compares it to the same style as Lady Antebelum...hmmm, I'm not quite so sure ...maybe folksie-bluegrass?  Though all of these hymns are not in our hymnal, I'm sure they are in someones!

cRaZy Cards!

I don't know what they're really called but I call them cRaZy cards because they are just CRAZY and I think they're a HOOT!  You know...the cards that you open and they talk?  They're not the music ones...they talk...and they're funny!  We sent some to Mason when he was on his mission and he thought they were hilarious so we knew Matt would love them as well.  They are a little on the pricey side, for a card at least but he'll only get them once while he's out on his mission.  Gotta change things up for the next birthday!

I like to get comfortable (picture THAT in the grocery store! ...no, wait) and settle in for the long haul and read...every...single...one of them.  I have to find the absolute perfect card to fit everyone's personality.  So far I've always been able to do it.  There are a few companies that make cards but the only ones that I've been able to find that 'talk' as opposed to play music is Peek-a-Boo Innovations from Hallmark with Hoops and Yoyo (www.hoopsandyoyo.com)  

This one was the perfect one for Jeff and I to send...

(outside of card)

Remember when you were born?

No?

Let's review!

(inside of card)

basically, there was a little crying

and then

a whole lotta AWWWWW!

sigh, it was a good day.

Have an AWWWE-SOME

Birthday!

(audio)

This was our screaming - aahhhhh!

...then there was some crying - wahhhhhh!

...and a little bit of anger - You got me into this!

...then the weather broke, the clouds parted, and there were angels! - aaaaaaa!

...and little harps - brriinnng, brriinnng, brriinnng!

...and a little bit of confusion - What?!

...and then there was - Awwwww, look at the little baby, so cute!

Don't open until Christmas!

Matt and I had an "understanding" this Christmas.  He was to open every package that came to him from me.  If the contents were wrapped then he was to put them under the tree to open on Christmas morning. If the contents were not wrapped then he could take them out to enjoy during the holidays - like Christmas treats and decorations, etc.  I figured that if I wrote 'Do Not Open Until Christmas' on the outside of the box that would be a little too obvious that gifts were enclosed and someone might nab them off his porch before Matt got back to his apartment.

I put together a stocking for Matt and his companion and mailed them separately in the medium Flat Rate box from USPS.  I didn't want to wrap the stocking but I didn't want him to open it until Christmas morning either so I made a printable to put on top. 

1)  Line your box with tissue paper.

2) Place stocking and other 'Christmas morning' items inside.

3) Fold the tissue paper over the contents.

4) Place printable on top and tape box closed.

For step by step instructions on making the missionary stocking below, click here.
Note:  The tie can be removed for your missionary to wear

Christmas 2013

This year I told the kids that they all had to come up with a gift to send to Matt for Christmas.  The only criteria I gave them was that it couldn't be too big.  Then they each wrote a personal Christmas card to go along with their gift.  Here are some of their ideas:

Greetings from Europe!

My daughter Rebekah recently returned from a trip to Europe with her Aunt Cindy and a couple of other girls.  It was the trip of a lifetime!  Bek worked hard and saved enough to pay for her trip along with one year of college including room and board.  It took her a couple of years, but she did it.  They were gone for seventeen days and traveled to England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Belgium.  While there, Bek mailed a post card to Matt from every one of their stops along the way. Knowing that Matt has a sweet tooth, she purchased different kinds of candy from the various countries.  When she got home, she whipped up these cute bag toppers using Photoshop.  She also sent a deflated Rugby ball that she bought for her Rugby playing brother when she was in Ireland. Matt loved it!

Burnt offerings anyone?

I think Colin actually made the best personal/practical gift for Matt.  In his seventh grade Life Skills class they made aprons out of dishtowels.  They turned out so awesome!  Colin also included a bottle of our favorite steak seasoning with $20 wrapped around the bottle so Matt can go buy a steak for he and his companion.  Have you ever tried Spade L?  Man, oh man, oh MAN!  You will NEVER go back!  It is a meat seasoning with flavors for beef, pork, chicken and fish.  We have the one for beef in our food storage...yup, it's just that important to us.

(image courtesy of FDC Factory Direct Craft)

- click on above image to be taken to FDC for step by step apron instructions -

The aprons looked pretty simple to make - I was volunteering in the class the day they worked on them. I found a pattern for the exact one on FDC Factory Direct Craft (factorydirectcraft.com).  The instructions are for a child size and it tells you to cut the towel in half if it is for a 'small' child.  Don't cut it and it will be the perfect size for an adult. 

Choose the Right!

Maren decided that she wanted to send some CTR rings for Matt to give out to not only the children of investigators but for him to give to children when he's out tracting.  Her idea was this:  If Matt is out tracting and he can see that the person has children...even if the parent isn't interested in their message, he can ask if he can leave a gift for the children.  He can explain to the children that they are to wear the ring on their right hand (unless they're a 'leftie').  Whenever the reach out to do something, the ring will remind them to always choose the right!  What parent wouldn't want that?... AND this small, simple message will stay with the parent...and maybe, just maybe that seed will grow and be ready to harvest when the next missionary's come knocking.  

We picked up the CTR rings for $1 each at our local Distribution Center located in Deseret Book. Don't have a Distribution Center near you?  No problem...you can order them online by clicking here or visit store.lds.org and they'll be mailed right to your door...well, to your mailbox at least. You can even order them in 28 different languages if you're ordering online.  Cool huh?!?  We put them all in a little drawstring bag so Matt could just keep them in the pocket of his shoulder bag. Do you think they'll ever go back to backpacks?  Hopefully not for the next two years...those shoulder bags are pricey!

Family...

My gift for Matt this year was a framed family photo.  We had it taken two days before he left on his mission.  He took a photo with him but it was an older one...Matt is the tall one on the back row. Isn't he cute?

What did you send your missionary for Christmas?

Send post cards

Whenever you go anywhere that is different than where you usually are...grab yourself some post cards to send to your missionary.  If anyone else is going to be there that knows your missionary...grab some for them as well.  This past summer Jeff and I went on a business trip to San Francisco for a KFC convention.  My friends and family were great sports to write post cards to Matt.

Missionaries LOVE mail!  They don't care who it's from or the size or shape. They just want to know that they're not forgotten and what's going on at home. Make it easy on yourself and others by bringing labels (return and for your missionary), and post card stamps with you on your trip.  If you purchase the post cards and have them already pre-stamped and addressed, it is much easier for someone to just jot a few lines and hand it back to you and you can pop it in the mail.  Most hotels have a gift shop that sells post cards and they also have daily mail pickup. Just ask at the front desk.  Some hotels even have free post cards of the hotel.

Make a Photo Book!

Every year my kids look forward to the Bouwhuis Family Camp Out.  We've been holding it for years and years and it is one of the traditions that my kids want to make sure we keep on doing when they have kids.  I have ten siblings and we all take turns planning the event though everyone is more than willing to pitch in and help with the planning.  The planner gets to plan the where, the when and the food.  

I wanted Matt to feel like he was included and missed so I took lots of photos and had them developed into 3x5 size.  I took a pack of  3x5 index cards and some pens and markers to the camp out and had everyone write messages to Matt then included them randomly in with the photos.

Make a punch template using a spare 3x5 index card.  Use this template as a guide so that all your holes are lined up and your stack will be neat and tidy...yup, my OCD is always kicking in...OR your could take the entire stack to the copy shop and have them drill the holes.

Make a cover and a back for your Photo Book. 

Print it out onto heavy card stock and laminate it for durability.  

Add some large rings to the top and ta-daa....you're done!

The whole thing will fit into a small Flat Rate box with just enough room for a little treat...

Almond Joy's for my fellow coconut lover.  

There's only two of us in the family.  

Sad for them.  

Good for US.

We never have to share!

(insert evil, maniacal laugh here)

Primary - "Happy Birthday" Poster

In our Primary, the kids make a "Happy Birthday" poster for each of the missionaries serving from our ward. It is so much fun to put together and the missionaries and kids both LOVE it!  It takes only a bit of prep time to pull together and seems to get faster every time...because I never change the basic design. Call me lazy or call me smart. I choose smart.

I pick up 2 yards of butcher paper from the local craft store.  I usually buy enough for a few posters at a time and just put a rubber band around each roll and keep it in the closet until I need it. Depending on the butcher paper, you may need to cut it down the side to make it a little narrower so it will fit on a door at the church.

Using a wide tipped black marker I write my message at the top of the poster and then draw candles along the bottom edge.  Seriously this takes less than five minutes.

Now, using colored pencils, just scribble around the outer edge of each letter.

Any kind of colored pencils will work (although my daughter and I are partial to Prismacolor) or you could use crayons.  Don't use markers.  You'll go through at least one set with every poster you do!

Don't worry about being 'neat'.  It actually looks better a bit sloppy...my kind of project!

Color in the candles along the bottom edge...

You certainly don't have to do 'candles', I used to do 'cupcakes' but candles 

are much faster to draw and color.

I tape the poster onto a door just outside the Primary room and put a box of markers on a chair (just something inexpensive that won't soak through the poster and leave the birthday message on the door - like Crayola for example).  I also post a note on the other side of the door that says, "Please use other door" so the kids don't get bowled over when the Sunday School class that meets on the stage gets dismissed.

Quietly pull the kids out three or four at a time until everyone has written a message.  I don't usually pull out the Sunbeam's.  With the Senior Primary you can just instruct them that as one child comes back in another one can leave, row by row until they're all finished.  Anyone who walks by is more than welcome to write a birthday message and I always make sure that their family knows we're working on their missionary's birthday poster that week so they can write as well.

I purchase square mailing tubes from my local post office ($3.99) - round ones tend to be a bit pricey.  Call their moms and ask what the missionary's favorite candy or treat is and put in a couple of small bags.  Some missionary's like healthy snacks so you could add some protein bars or small bags of nuts or fruit rolls.  Before closing it up I like to write a quick note on a PostIt inviting the missionary to send a note or postcard back to the Primary.  The Primary kids don't know that I do this but they are THRILLED beyond THRILLED whenever a thank you note gets read to them in Primary.  Sometimes we even get a photo sent back showing the missionary with their poster.  Awesome!