Halloween/October
The beginning of October always means General Conference, which we love celebrating with our General Conference Stuffed French Toast. This year we decided (per Savannah's asking) to go to the church for Sunday morning session, instead of just watching it on the computer like the other sessions. And it was really nice, and helped put us in the right mood for the day.
One of my favorite talks was by Elder Oaks about protecting children. He taught, "Children are highly vulnerable. They have little or no power to protect or provide for themselves and little influence on so much that is vital to their well-being. Children need others to speak for them, and they need decision makers who put their well-being ahead of selfish adult interests....We are speaking of the children of God, and with His powerful help, we can do more to help them. In this plea I address not only Latter-day Saints but also all persons of religious faith and others who have a value system that causes them to subordinate their own needs to those of others, especially to the welfare of children."
This fall we also got the chance to go to the zoo and Deana Rose with friends. One blessing of a super hot summer, is that there is usually a nice mild autumn right around the corner!
We had a hard time deciding what to dress up like for Halloween. Should we go as Kung Fu Panda characters? Bakers? Baseball players? Clowns? In the end, we chose to be African Royalty (although Todd said he would be the court jester), because we already had all the necessary attire. I only spent $1 on a small accessory for Savannah. We enjoyed the Halloween festivities this year. At the ward party, they had some little games for the kids, with prizes. Out of a choice of a bracelet, chocolate, or scary teeth, Savannah chose scary teeth. By the time Halloween actually rolled around in the middle of the following week, it felt like we were all Halloween-d out. But we did take her Trick or Treating a little, just to a few members' homes in the area and down one street.
So, now we look forward to Thanksgiving. One of our favorite November traditions is writing things we are thankful for each day leading up to thanksgiving, and taping them to our door. This year, since Savannah is working on learning the letters, we are also doing a thankful book for her. Each day there is a different letter, and we draw a picture of something she is thankful for that starts with that letter. (Since she doesn't know what begins with what letters, we just give her a few choices each day). So far, she is thankful for airplanes, babies, cookies, Daddy, elephants, fruit, grass, our house, and ice cream.
One of my favorite talks was by Elder Oaks about protecting children. He taught, "Children are highly vulnerable. They have little or no power to protect or provide for themselves and little influence on so much that is vital to their well-being. Children need others to speak for them, and they need decision makers who put their well-being ahead of selfish adult interests....We are speaking of the children of God, and with His powerful help, we can do more to help them. In this plea I address not only Latter-day Saints but also all persons of religious faith and others who have a value system that causes them to subordinate their own needs to those of others, especially to the welfare of children."
I also loved Elder Scott's talk on Family History. He said, "But
what about you? Have you prayed about your own ancestors’ work? Set
aside those things in your life that don’t really matter. Decide to do
something that will have eternal consequences. Perhaps you have been
prompted to look for ancestors but feel you are not a genealogist. Can
you see that you don’t have to be anymore? It all begins with love and a sincere desire to help those beyond the veil who can’t help themselves.Check around. There will be someone in your area who can help you have
success. This work is a spiritual work, a monumental effort of cooperation on both
sides of the veil, where help is given in both directions. Anywhere you
are in the world, with prayer, faith, determination, diligence, and some
sacrifice, you can make a powerful contribution. Begin now. I promise
you that the Lord will help you find a way. And it will make you feel
wonderful."
In the middle of the month, we hit up our favorite pumpkin patch: Powell Pumpkin Patch in Louisburg, Kansas. And, of course, you can't go to Louisburg without stopping at the Cider Mill for some fresh cider doughnuts and apple cider. Yum, yum! We only get a few pumpkins at the pumpkin patch, and then we wait until after Halloween to get the $1 pumpkins...so now we can have the great pumpkin slaughter fest of 2012. We love fresh pumpkin for breads, pancakes, soup, and pie, of course. In fact, we just used our last bag from last year to make pumpkin muffins.
This fall we also got the chance to go to the zoo and Deana Rose with friends. One blessing of a super hot summer, is that there is usually a nice mild autumn right around the corner!
We had a hard time deciding what to dress up like for Halloween. Should we go as Kung Fu Panda characters? Bakers? Baseball players? Clowns? In the end, we chose to be African Royalty (although Todd said he would be the court jester), because we already had all the necessary attire. I only spent $1 on a small accessory for Savannah. We enjoyed the Halloween festivities this year. At the ward party, they had some little games for the kids, with prizes. Out of a choice of a bracelet, chocolate, or scary teeth, Savannah chose scary teeth. By the time Halloween actually rolled around in the middle of the following week, it felt like we were all Halloween-d out. But we did take her Trick or Treating a little, just to a few members' homes in the area and down one street.
So, now we look forward to Thanksgiving. One of our favorite November traditions is writing things we are thankful for each day leading up to thanksgiving, and taping them to our door. This year, since Savannah is working on learning the letters, we are also doing a thankful book for her. Each day there is a different letter, and we draw a picture of something she is thankful for that starts with that letter. (Since she doesn't know what begins with what letters, we just give her a few choices each day). So far, she is thankful for airplanes, babies, cookies, Daddy, elephants, fruit, grass, our house, and ice cream.
She is also in the midst of potty training! Yipee! There were a couple of rough days, but that was mostly due to my own anxieties, and thanks to Todd's counsel, Savannah is doing much better.
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