John took Monday off and we went up the canyon early.  We were going to just take it easy and relax and enjoy our time together, instead of feeling in a rush to make the fire, cook the hotdogs, cook the smores and go.  It was very nice to be more relaxed about the evening.  When we got up to the picnic area, we built a fire and played around.  We had just gotten a new dog, so it was a lot of fun to take her with us.

Then we remembered that we needed hotdogs, so John took Caleb and James and Jeremiah and I stayed with the fire.  I took the opportunity to chat with Jeremiah about some of the things that are bad and that can lead our boats into the whirlpool.  We even practiced what he could say if he found himself in a situation that was bad.  Then he he played with the dog and I just enjoyed the quiet noises of nature.

Overall it was a very good evening, and the canyon is becoming like our second home!  I love taking the boys out, it is the perfect place for them to learn so much about life and enjoy doing it!  The new dog loves to go too!

Wholesome Recreation

We took the boys up the canyon tonight for hot dogs, and mallows.  It was tons of fun!  They got to throw things in the river, throw things in the fire- get covered in dirt and ash, and cheetos  :)  Towards the end of the evening I told Jeremiah that we had been talking about the things that we can do to keep our boats going the right way.  He mentioned some too.  Then I told him that we would now start talking about the things we need to be careful of that could pull our boats in the wrong direction.  His interest was piqued!  On the way home he asked me a couple times what those things are and he wanted to start talking about them right now- not next week.

I am so glad that he is enjoying this and 'getting' it.  I love to see him thirst for more and be excited about Family Home Evening.  Next week we will talk about peer pressure and making sure the decisions we make are our decisions and not our friends decisions for us.

Making time!

I am going to pick up John early today, so that we can have Family Home Evening together, instead of him talking to the boys while I finish dinner.  I think we'll go up to the canyon and have a campfire!  The boys love that and what a great way to incorporate nature into "wholesome recreational activities".  What do you do make sure your family has time together?  Post it here.

The Lookout!

Last nights family home evening was about people in our lives that can help us stay on the right path.  John pulled out the boats again, and called the boys to come inside.  Caleb went into the bathroom to wash his hands, and by the time we got to him the bathroom floor was soaking wet!!  So while John took care of that mess, I finished up dinner and set the table and talked to Jeremiah a little bit about the people in our lives.  Heavenly Father has given us people to help us make right choices and that we can go to if we ever need help.  Then I asked him if he could think of anyone that can help him, his first answer was President Monson, perfect!  His second answer was parents. 

After we discussed those two answers a little bit, we talked about other people, teachers, grandparents, etc.  Then once John was finished up with Caleb's huge mess, and even bigger fit, he talked about the 'crow's nest' of the boat, and how people stand in there and can see out farther and can see more then the person driving the boat, and can warn the driver if there is any danger ahead.  Jeremiah is really liking the boat analogy part of family home evening.

After dinner and family home evening, we were getting ready to read books for bedtime, Jeremiah chose his book called 'ships' and we were able to identify the different parts of the ship and how it compares to our lives.  Then we read the story about the titanic, and how it ran into the iceberg that wasn't caught in time.  I am loving this theme for our family home evenings!  So glad Pres. Monson shared that story in conference!   

Using The Scriptures To Keep Our Boats Afloat

So for the scriptures family night, we gathered around the table, dinner was still cooking, and got out our boats.  We reminded Jeremiah that the boats are like our lives.  He was excited to share what he remembered about the boats and how they are like our lives.  Caleb was, as usual, interested in other things.  My husband shared a little about the scriptures and where they came from and how we got them.  He also talked about the role they can play in helping us keep our boats on the right track.  How the scriptures are kind of like a compass or road map (which Jeremiah loved, he likes maps).  We discussed that the spirit is very strong in our lives when we read the scriptures, and when the spirit is strong, God can communicate to us which way we need to go on our map.

While Caleb doesn't have any interest in sitting down and listening right now, I am confident that setting up the pattern of family home evening will help him gain an interest in being involved more.  As we follow the spirit about what our family home evenings should be he will soon begin to understand and hopefully will have picked up bits and pieces, even though he is not sitting down and listening right now.