Increase in Learning

My Rating: (5/5 Stars)

Have you read this yet?! If you're my husband you're probably saying, "NO"
I kinda, maybe sorta stole it from his nightstand and haven't given it back yet :)

The mere fact that this book is by Bednar means you already know it's a great book, so I'll just quickly point out the things that make this book unique.

This is not a guidebook or a step by step on how to "increase in understanding." Bednar simply expounds on doctrinal teachings and basically teaches you how to learn on your own. Sorta like the "teach a man to fish" principle. It's kinda like a textbook. But a really interesting one! You learn about the subject matter, but then you actually have to go and do the homework if you wanna get an A in the class.

I also LOVE that every page has extra wide margins for you to write notes in! And after each chapter there are related readings from the Ensign and the Scriptures on the content contained in that chapter.

And did I mention it comes with a CD which includes a Q&A with Elder Bednar and a group of young adults and an in-depth interview with Elder and Sister Bednar?

Yup, my husband will never be getting this book back...

Of Grace and Chocolate

My Rating: (4/5 Stars)

You know the old saying, "Don't judge a book by it's cover"? Yeah, well I totally do. So major kudos to whoever designed the cover of this book, because that's why I picked it up and brought it home with me. Sadly, chocolate is my Kryptonite. And before I go gett'in all nerdy, maybe we should just move on to the actual review...

To be honest my first impression of Jill (main character) was that she was so rude! Who wouldn't want some sweet, handsome guy doing something clever like stealing your cell to ask you out? Romantic right!? By the end of the first chapter she started to grow on me though and I ended up really liking her.

I felt like her character had depth. Krista Jensen did a great job at explaining how Jill's past had affected her character and made her who she was. It was believable. Plus, I really liked the ending. Sweet and perfect, just like chocolate!!!

Oh Happy Day!

Why is it such a glorious day?
Because this month our son turned 18 months, which means!...


He's officially Nursery Age!!


And before I go any further, I have to give a big THANK YOU to all Nursery leaders. What Amazing woman, and men, they are!

So, instead of struggling through 3 hours of church we only have to keep him entertained through 1! However, spending 1 hour trying to keep a rambunctious toddler happy during sacrament, can seem like days in "normal time"

Here are some Do's and Don'ts I've learned to surviving Sacrament with a toddler:

Do NOT bring a messy snack. (Unless you want to spend the rest of the day wiping sticky hand prints off the walls and pews. Or unless you want to pick tiny morsels out of the carpet, your hair and yes, the hair of the poor lady who sat in front of you)


Do NOT bring any type of ball to sacrament unless you want to stare horrified as the ball fly's through the air and smacks into the head of the person two rows in front of you. (believe me, lesson learned)


Do NOT, and I repeat DO NOT wear your new, never been worn, $24 blue pastel top to church. Because 5 min. after sitting down in the pew, your son will just happen to find the only ball point pin in the bottom of the diaper bag( the one that you can NEVER find
when you need it) and draw on you. But I'm not bitter or anything...


Do pack your child an extra pair of clothes. On the day that you don't, I can guarantee that will be the day you need it most.


Do make sure you have plenty of diapers and wipes BEFORE you leave home. Unless you want your son sporting a pink diaper with princess faces on them because you had to bum a diaper from another mom...yeah, try explaining THAT one to your husband
when you get home...


Do buy the "Color Wonder" markers and coloring book if you have children under 4. The markers will only show up when you color on the special paper! This will save you a lot of embarrassment and a lot of Shout, trust me.


Now, Collin is our first and only child at the moment so I have NO idea what I'm doing and do not claim to be a professional on this subject at all! However, there are a few things that Michael and I have done during sacrament that has worked for us so I thought I'd share the ideas...


We have two different Sunday bags: Each bag has toys and activities in them that Collin is only allowed to play with during Sacrament. Each Sunday we rotate bags so that he is seeing different toys every Sunday.


We saved money by making homemade toys: Now before you go getting any ideas about awesome toys I made by hand, let me explain what I mean by "homemade". I'm not crafty, but I noticed Collin really liked playing with my plastic measuring spoons and cups when he was smaller, so instead of going out and buying new toys I looked around the house to see what I already had. We continue to do that today and have been known to bring some pretty weird stuff.( ex: thermometer, medicine syringe, and an empty tennis ball canister.) But whatever works right!?


We try to make Sacrament more fun than the foyer: When we do have to take Collin out of Sacrament we don't let him get down. We carry him around to all the pictures in the hall until he calms down and then take him back to the chapel. That way he doesn't associate the foyer as a play area. This method was hard for us at first because Collin fought us, but now he knows the drill and it's actually worked! Now he begs us to take him back into sacrament because that's where his toys are. (one thing we learned though, was that if there are other children out in the foyer playing then Collin would fight us even more to get down. So even though it's awfully tempting to stay and chat with the other parents, we opted to go to a place in the building where no one else was. That way Collin had less temptation.) Also, both parents have to be on board since it takes persistence and dedication.

And finally, for those days that nothing seems to be working and we are convinced aliens really do exists and are now residing in our child, we just play tag team during sacrament and immediately consume a bag of chocolate chips when we get home.

Here are some of Collin's favorite Sacrament toys that can be found at Boyd's!:

Felt boards:

These might require a little effort to put together, but Collin loves his felt board.


Not in to the felt boards? What about these?
Magnetic Tins
only $6.95

Board Books

Collin really enjoys looking at books and I especially like these because they are rip resistant and drool resistant!

Puzzle Books