General Conference Kits {FREE printable}

I was browsing Pinterest today (as per my usual), and I saw the cutest General Conference Kits from Snippets and Pretties. I have seen General Conference Kits in the past (my visiting teachers have made them for me), but I liked that this one is a bit simpler than some of the others.

I decided to put some kits together for the ladies I visit teach (more about visiting teaching here). General Conference is almost here, so it's a perfect time to pass out kits like these.

I didn't have 6"x 8" cellophane bags on hand, but I have a stockpile of 4"x 9" bags. Because of the change in size, I needed a new bag topper. You can see what I made below. It simply says "General Conference Kit" across the top (fold in half and staple over the cellophane bag). I included a quotation about General Conference from Jeffrey R. Holland's talk "An Ensign to the Nations." I put the quote inside the bag with the rest of the goodies.

 You can add whatever treats you like to your General Conference kits. Below are some suggestions.
- notepad
- pen or pencil
- gum
- snack size candy bar
- pocket pack tissues
- snack-sized crackers
- small bag microwave popcorn
- small bottle scented hand sanitizer
- small bottle scented lotion

I didn't include all of these things in the kits I made, but these are just some of the possibilities.

Click here to download topper for 4"x 9" bags (pictured above).

Come, Follow Me - What is the Atonement of Jesus Christ?

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At my church, we teach the youth (ages 12-18) from a curriculum called Come, Follow Me. Each month, we teach lessons centered around a particular topic. The topic for March is the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The first lesson outline this month is "What is the Atonement of Jesus Christ?" For this lesson, I created the worksheet/handout you see below.

Each fill-in-the-blank answer comes from the section "Atonement of Jesus Christ" in True to the Faith. We read this as a class and filled in the answers as we came across them. I like the visual and the simple format. If you would like this for your class, click the link below to download.

Download here 


Thanks for stopping by!

Personal Progress Bingo

In my church, we have an organization for young women ages 12-18. In this organization, we have a program called Personal Progress to help these young women develop character and life skills. This program is also intended to set a pattern of goal-setting and -achieving in young women's lives.

To help the young woman (yes, there's only one) in my congregation, we are introducing Personal Progress Bingo!

I originally got the idea from this blog. I tweaked it a little to fit the needs of the young woman in my ward. We (myself and the other leaders) chose value experiences that we thought would be helpful to this young woman. Most of these value experiences require 2-3 weeks to complete. Since school's out, this seems like a perfect opportunity to work on these experiences. Here's what we came up with:

Click here to access a pdf for download

The directions read

1. Select a square above.
2. Read the Value Experience requirements in your Personal Progress book* & complete the worksheet.
3. Show worksheet to your YW leaders and have them sign your Personal Progress book.
4. Get a sticker for each completed Value Experience worksheet.
5. For each BINGO (four squares in a row), you will earn a reward!
 *Refer to worksheet for the Faith #8 requirements

The worksheets came from this website. I took screen shots of the value experiences I needed and printed one per page. I put everything in a folder and gave it to our young woman as a packet. (Your YW might not require worksheets, but our young woman isn't very motivated without specific instructions).

The value experience for Faith #8 is an optional write-in. We (the leaders) came up with a value experience that we thought would benefit the young woman we mentor. This is what we gave her:

---
Faith #8

We are all children of God. He loves us and knows our needs, and He wants us to communicate with Him through prayer. Make an effort to pray correctly: beginning "Father in Heaven" or "Heavenly Father," expressing gratitude to Him (“I thank thee…”), asking Him for things you need, and closing in the sacred name of His Son, Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus Christ commanded, “Ye must always pray unto the Father in my name” (3 Nephi 18:19). Our Heavenly Father is always ready to hear and answer our prayers. Make your prayers meaningful. The prophet Mormon warned that if anyone “shall pray and not with real intent of heart … it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such” (Moroni 7:9). To make our prayers meaningful, we must pray with sincerity and “with all the energy of heart” (Moroni 7:48). We must be careful to avoid “vain repetitions” when we pray (see Matthew 6:7).

Practice praying clearly, respectfully, and with sincerity for 2 weeks. Use language that shows love, respect, reverence, and closeness. Always give thanks to Heavenly Father. Remember the needs of others as you pray. Pray in your YW meetings to help you with this goal. (When praying for a group, say “We thank thee,” “We ask thee,” “We say these things in the name of…,” etc.). Write in your journal the change you feel and share with your parent or leader your feelings.

Check the boxes as you complete the following requirements: 
☐ Carefully read the paragraphs above.
☐ Pray in the correct manner. 
☐ Practice praying clearly, respectfully, and with sincerity for 2 weeks.
 Start date: ________________________ End date: ________________________
☐ Say prayers in YW meetings to help you meet this goal.
☐ Write in your journal the change you feel.
☐ Share with your parent or leader your feelings as a result of this experience.
---

This might not fit the needs of your young women, so you might tailor your own value experience. You could also make your own bingo grid and fill it in with the value experiences that best suit your young women.

We spoke with our young woman at our activity today, and these are some of the rewards that she would like to earn:
   • roller skating
   • ice cream party
   • chocolate fondue party

We'll come up with more ideas as she achieves more bingos. You could also do candy bars, pens, small notebooks, nail polish, or any number of items for rewards. The young woman in my ward responds better to events as incentives, so we will oblige her.

I hope you and your young women get excited about Personal Progress this summer!

Free Ebook

I just love the word "free."

I don't know how many of you out there are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka LDS church aka Mormon church), but I thought I'd share this little gem anyway:

Today through Monday (Oct 21) DEAR JEFF by J Washburn is available for free! It's a book about preparing to enter the temple.

If you would like to know more about the temple, this video can shed some light:


Here is the book description directly from Amazon:

You know, Jeff, even baptism can seem weird—someone dunking you while a bunch of people watch. 

That's what happens when you view an ordinance as an isolated act. It can seem weird. And a lot of people feel weirded out by their first temple experience—even people who've taken the official temple prep course. 

That's because people are afraid to talk about the temple because it's sacred. It's good to be cautious—I won't argue that. But sometimes our fear can lead to people being shocked and frustrated by the temple—and that's something that definitely shouldn't happen either.     

The antidote is simply understanding. This book reveals the deeper tradition and the host of symbols, demystifying the temple experience so that you don’t find yourself saying, “What is it you’re not telling me?” Because I don’t want you to feel that, I’ll explain as much as I can, as well as I can. 

I don’t expect this to be the last book on the temple you’ll ever read. Prophets have written on this topic, and if I were trying to rival them, I’d be doomed. Instead, I have—well, not the advantage, but simply—the vantage of being lowly: I’m just your brother. And not having the mantle of apostleship lets me speak less formally—and I won't be afraid to mention Star Wars or Indiana Jones. I’ll also echo what prophets have taught, and I’ll speak candidly—not in a watered-down way, but in a milk-before-meat sort of way, giving you easier access to one of the best things we mortals can have.

I had the opportunity to read this book before it was available for purchase. I've got to say, it is really good. I'm not the only one who thinks so, either. From reviews on Amazon:

"The style is very casual, as if it were a conversation with a younger brother or sister which is why the author wrote it. I have never read a book about the temple that covered every aspect of our Temple ceremonies as this book does. He is never inappropriate and quotes from prophets and scriptures."

"This is the most Candid temple book I have ever read that was still reverent and respectful."

"I wish I'd had it before I went through the temple because it helps you know what to expect and, even more, you could start to see what it all means your first time through. I had so many questions afterwards, which I think I could have understood BEFORE going! I highly recommend this to anyone who'd like to understand the temple better."

"Excellent read for those preparing for the temple or people, like myself, who just want to understand it more! I sure wish I'd had this BEFORE I went, especially the first half. I think the book description is very accurate. It increased my understanding and my desire to seek after righteousness and understand things even more! I love the way it is written, too. It's a letter from a friend or older brother who sincerely wants to help the reader."

For a more comprehensive review, go here.

Really, I can't say enough about how wonderful this book is.

Go download it. You've got nothing to lose.

Download here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWTY4JO/ref=cm_sw_su_dp

YW Value Signs & Class Signs

For those of you who don't know, I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes known as the Mormon Church).

In our church, we have a program for Young Women that starts when girls turn 12. Part of this program is an event called New Beginnings that usually takes place at either the beginning of the calendar year or the beginning of the school year. This event is intended to welcome new young women and introduce them to the Young Women's (YW) program.

This year, we had our New Beginnings in September. We decorated our Young Women's room with a colorful banner, and signs about Young Women. I had fun designing signs that represent the Young Women Values (Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice & Accountability, Good Works, Integrity, Virtue) and the YW classes (Beehives, Mia Maids, Laurels).

I would love to share my designs with you! Each sign is designed to fit a standard 8 1/2 x 11 inch piece of paper or cardstock.

For the YW Values, I printed each one, then cut a 1-inch border on each of the sides (leaving me with a 6 1/2 x 9 inch paper). I then mounted each of these on an 8 1/2 x 11 inch piece of colored cardstock. For the value of virtue, I found some really awesome sparkly gold poster board. We covered our bulletin board with it, and we happened to have a piece left over that measured 8 1/2 x 22 inches. I cut it in half, and voila! gold border for my Virtue sign. How serendipitous.

The background pattern extends to the edges of the page, if you would rather not cut and mount them. You could also cut or print these to be 8x10 and display them in picture frames.

Find the YW Value signs here (this is a link to a google doc, which you should be able to download).

I printed the YW class signs on white cardstock. There is no special background for them, and the text extends closer to the edge of the page than the YW Value signs. These also could be printed and displayed in 8x10 inch frames if you so choose.

For the YW Class signs, click here (also a google doc).

Even if you aren't having New Beginnings at this time, I hope these will be helpful to you for YW room decor. Our girls loved the new decorations and asked that we leave them up.