Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye
shall prosper in the land."
(2 Nephi 4:4)
From The Book of Mormon, this scripture has been a common
theme throughout its pages, and this particular saying is mentioned 34 times!
34 TIMES! It's important, and we know it.
Our little family has successfully read the Book of Mormon three times
together. In fact, we should finish up again in October,
and then we will start again!
and then we will start again!
I mentioned to the children that keeping the commandments
doesn't just mean keeping the 10 commandments
that was given to Moses in the Bible.
doesn't just mean keeping the 10 commandments
that was given to Moses in the Bible.
Although very important, the commandments are scripture and words
given to us by our Prophets and Apostles who lead
and guide us in our day and age.
and guide us in our day and age.
We trust our leaders, especially our Prophet, and we know
he is the direct mouthpiece of God.
he is the direct mouthpiece of God.
We know as a family, we will be blessed and "prosper" by doing our best
to be obedient and hold fast to the commandments of God.
During the feast, we talked around the table about how
we each wish and hope to "prosper."
we each wish and hope to "prosper."
Claire said she wanted to be able to get up in the morning and
be on time for school, she knows she will prosper in her schoolwork
if she is obedient to the commandments of God.
Jane mentioned she wanted to make new friends since
Claire won't be in Middle School with her this year.
She also understands that by keeping the commandments,
she will prosper by making new friends.
Oliver said he wanted to do well at sports,
and knows by keeping the commandments,
and knows by keeping the commandments,
he will prosper by having a strong and healthy body to play the sports he loves.
Nicholas was pretty quiet throughout the night
(I think a lot of that had to do with the fact that Lottie
spilled bubblie on his white shirt before dinner even started),
(I think a lot of that had to do with the fact that Lottie
spilled bubblie on his white shirt before dinner even started),
but he mentioned he wanted to up his reading level.
We agreed that keeping the commandments would help
him achieve that goal, and then he would prosper at reading.
him achieve that goal, and then he would prosper at reading.
while Claire starts her Freshman year in High School!
and Nicholas will be in 4th grade this year.
I made a big batch of homemade macaroni and cheese.
The Little Nies LOVE this dish.
Also on the menu:
Arugula and Orzo salad
Peach and Strawberries in coconut glaze
and fresh rolls.
(Which I burned. So then I called them
"blackened" rolls, which sounds exciting).
I had our new family theme made into a darling quilt.
Stitched is a company that creates customized creative quilts.
Lottie had so much fun matching them throughout our dinner.
The night was complete after indulging in the triple chocolate lava cake
Stitched is a company that creates customized creative quilts.
I worked with Alexa Zurcher, and it turned out beautiful.
We love it, and I hope to implement this darling new tradition into our
family themes for years to come.
Of course, what would our night be without our colorful glass stars?
In the center is etched each child's name, grade, and year.
My children have quite a beautiful collection.
This year, Piggy and Dirt created the coolest star I have ever seen for me.
It is HUGE!!!
It is HUGE!!!
I love it so much! It is hanging directly over our dining room table.
What a fun addition to my gorgeous stars!
You can request just about any size of star you want them to make.
They are so much fun!
I decorated the tables with photos of our
favorite memories of the previous year.
favorite memories of the previous year.
Dinners, swimming, parties, the ranch, family members, hiking,
skiing, laughing, eating, etc.
I had the photos made into a fun memory game from Pinhole Press.
Pinhole Press also framed our family theme
in a nice frame so we can add it to our
in a nice frame so we can add it to our
family wall of pieces.
Special thanks to A Vintage Poster for designing our theme!
Special thanks to A Vintage Poster for designing our theme!
This year BAN.DO sent the girls some wonderful back-to-school
items, like this 17-month agenda with awesome stickers included.
Justin comes with his beautiful assistant, Tia,
and take photos for us so I don't have to.
It's really lovely.
Then, we usually end up eating our dinner
in front of Justin and Tia, which I always feel bad about.
I made it in the crockpot. YES, and YUM!
