In my church, there is a song in the hymnbook called "Count Your Blessings". I love this hymn because it sings the truth of living a life full of gratitude. Whenever my life feels too tough to bear, I can count my blessings and be thankful and when I do, help and comfort come from my Heavenly Father. I hope that you can take the lyrics of this hymn into your heart and then truly count your blessings, because I know you will find that you have many. I'm going to take this opportunity to write down my blessings in my journal today and I hope you do too! Count Your Blessings Text: Johnson Oatman Jr., 1856–1922 Music: Edwin O. Excell, 1851–1921 When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed, When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, Count your many blessings; name them one ... [Read More]
family
Book ClubZ | Intro
INTRODUCTION I'm excited about this new blog series! Reading is another favorite thing of mine and I love it when I can share that love with my family and/or friends. Each month, I'll choose a book to read, then I'll plan out a fun night for my family/friends, and then share that night with all of you! I hope that you will be able to use the ideas to have a great night with your book clubs! Each month will include: a book review with questions themed dinner or treat ideas themed activity ideas some new products, inspired by the book So this blog series will be on the 4th Saturdays of each month - starting in January! I hope you will join me in this new adventure filled with books and fun! What do you think? Join me in January for the book: ... [Read More]
Movie NightZ | Intro
INTRODUCTION I'm excited about this new blog series! Movie nights with my family are one of my very favorite things and what makes them better is when I take the time to really plan them out! So that is what this is going to be. Each month, I'll choose a movie to watch, then I'll plan out a fun night for my family, and then share that night with all of you! I hope that you will be able to use the ideas to have a great night with your own families! Each month will include: a short review with likes/dislikes themed dinner/dessert ideas themed craft/project/activity ideas photos/info about my own family movie night some new products with quotes from the movie So this blog series will be on the 3rd Saturdays of each month - starting in January! I hope you ... [Read More]
Family Tree TuesdayZ |Passion
My Journaling: My passion lies in my tagline. Live Life. Tell the Story. I am passionate about telling our stories and leaving them as our legacy. I also truly am passionate about using your talents to serve others and I try to do that everyday. I feel like this passion came from loving to create and the talents that I have developed came from my Heavenly Father. He gave them to me and it is only right that I use that talent to bless the lives of others. I 110% believe that and I have strived to live it. I have a journal card for you today. I want you to just write about your PASSION! DOWNLOAD LINK Journal prompts, Journal CardZ, and other ideas to help you tell YOUR story and discover your family history! Tuesdays ... [Read More]
Family Tree TuesdayZ | Times of Struggle
My Journaling: I'm going to be very vulnerable today and share a particular hard time in my life, a definite time of struggle. I've talked about this with others, but I don't believe that I have ever written it down, so maybe its time. This memory is definitely a time when I didn't know if I would make it through, but I did and I'm still here and I'm so grateful that I am. The teen years are tough for everyone. It's a time where you are trying to figure out who you are and what you want out of life. Unfortunately, when you mix that with everyone else's emotions and feelings, it becomes a mess. When I was in seventh and eighth grades, I experienced an extreme amount of bullying and torment from my classmates. It was everyday and as I didn't grow up with great communication in my ... [Read More]
Family Tree TuesdayZ | BYU Family History Technology Apps
My daughter has been getting into family history lately and that excites me because that is about the age that I began being interested too. She's started a project of collecting family stories and I think its going to be great fun to collaborate together and discover more about our genealogy! In this newly-found quest, my daughter found out about a local Family History Fair a few weeks ago and so we went and had a great time learning through some classes. One of the classes that I attended talked about some great family history apps from BYU, that make family history come alive for families! I'm so excited to share these with you today and I hope you will try them out with your families! The Family History Technology Lab, sponsored by the Department of Computer Science at Brigham Young ... [Read More]
Monday Magic | Kid, You’ll Move Mountains Initiative
Every Christmas season, I like to find a service project that my family can participate in. Usually, its something small and crafty-oriented. But this year, I have something else in mind. My nephew, William has been in the N.I.C.U. for over 2 months (we are hoping he gets to come home before Thanksgiving) and during my daily visits with him, I have been reading Dr. Seuss books to him. The book, "Oh, the Places You'll Go" has been especially poignant, as Will has had a bit of a hard time, but he's a fighter. As we edge closer, to healing and getting him home, I have thought about this book many times and what an inspiration it is and I have came up with an idea that I just love. I have decided to purchase the book and get all the doctors and nurses that have worked with William to sign ... [Read More]
Merry Christmas 2016 from the Smith Family
MERRY CHRISTMAS! LOVE FROM THE SMITH FAMILY I LOVE how my Christmas card turned out this year and I just wanted to share it with all of you! It is a tri-fold card, so the digital version doesn't quite show how fun it is, but I love it! Thank you to Cheapshot Photography for taking our photos this year and to Pro Digital for the printing of my cards! J.J. is 14 and is in 9th Grade at Spectrum Academy. He is so excited to be in high school this year and has loved participating in the Occupational Track, where he has been able to experience lots of different career options and go on lots of field trips. J.J. is always at his happiest when he is watching movies and playing on his tablet! Beth is 11, in 6th Grade, and her last year at Spring Creek Elementary. She still excels in reading ... [Read More]
Choose Happiness
I tend to be extremely naive about the world and actually I like it that way. I don't get caught up in politics or much of what is going on in the world around me. I like to live in this little world that I have created for myself that revolves around my own family and friends. I like to focus on the things in MY life. It's not always a good thing. I do feel it is important to take a stand for the things that you believe in and really I should be more proactive about building the future. I do feel that it is so important to vote and to take responsibility for the world - but most of the time, I just like to leave that to my husband or others who are much more political than I am. I do vote and try to figure out what I believe and do my best to live it. It's not really a good ... [Read More]
Jolly Holiday Surprise Adventure | Planning
I'm so excited to finally be scrapbooking my family's Disneyland 2014 trip. It is so fun re-living these moments! Today, I scrapbooked a spread about the planning of our trip and I loved how it turned out! I also love the Project Mouse Collection that Britt-ish Designs & Sahlin Studio are doing. They are amazing and I plan on using them a lot for this album! I used the Project Mouse Collection by Britt-ish Designs & Sahlin Studio I'm so excited to share my family's magical Christmas adventure of 2014 with you! To see all the postings in this series go HERE. ... [Read More]
