Christmas Advent Calendar

This is a fun project I found at Splitcoast Stampers. Click here for the project directions. You can count this for your make a holiday craft RSU goal. :) Have fun!!

Super Saturday Project Directions

These are the links to the directions for some of the projects we did for Super Saturday. Now you can do the projects at home too! I don't have all the links yet but will edit this post as soon as I get them.

Glass Etching

Wooden Pumpkins

Chalkboard Plate

I don't have a picture of the chalkboard plate so just click the link to see it. ;)

Wooden Christmas Tree

Hint: This web site has one of the play list players on it so if you don't want to listen to music while you are on there, either hit your mute button for your speakers or you can scroll all the way to the bottom of her blog and hit the pause button on the player.

Temple Block

You can also find more temple pictures at the Idea Door.

Glass Tile Necklaces

Paperback Christmas Tree

Have some crafty fun!!! (and remember to look through your RSU goals to see if you can mark one off for this.)

RSU Help

Today, Jessica Sprague announced on her web site that she is doing a free online class for All crafters! It's called Inspiration Everywhere. Here's the information for it if you want to read more about it or register for it. You can only count this for ONE of your goals but this is a list of some of the goals it would apply to (all of these are in Personal Development): #12 Learn a new skill. #28 Take an online class for something that you want to learn. Under Homemaking: #8 Make a holiday craft (if you attended Super Saturday and made either one of the Christmas trees or the pumpkins, that counts for this goal too!!). Usually she includes a digital scrapbook page in these types of classes too. If she does, then #26 Learn how to make a digital scrapbook page under Homemaking will work for this too. So you have a lot of different options with this one class...just remember you can only count it for ONE of your goals though so choose the one that works best for you.

Jessica is also starting a blog hop today. When you finish it, you will have a complete Christmas digital kit. The girls making the kit just finished her Art in Design class so they will be really good!! You can use this kit to make a holiday craft, do any of the scrapbook or memory book goals,or make cards (#3 under Homemaking).

If you have any ideas for completing any of the goals, let us know and we'll post them. You may think of a way of accomplishing something that the rest of us haven't thought of yet!!

November Announcements

Don't forget about the RS Monday service project! If you can go, please contact Susan Holder and let her know.

The weight-loss group has been canceled until January. We will let you know when it will start up again.

The ward will host a Thanksgiving Dinner on Thanksgiving Day. I'll post more information when I get it.

We are still collecting recipes for our recipe book. Please turn in at least one so we can have a really good book. :) If you came to Super Saturday and took my pie crust class, you already have a preview of what the book is going to look like. ;)

This is the last call for the memory books for Bishop Bardin, Brother Blaty, and Brother Hubbard. Please have your pictures, letters, or stories turned in to me by Sunday.

We'd like to thank Lindsay Anderson, Melissa Holder, Steph Gibson, and Sam Moss for organizing and putting together Super Saturday!! And thank all of those who came and supported them! It was a great time.

October Newsletter

The October newsletter is now available. You can either click the link to it on the sidebar or click here to download it.

Super Saturday

Super Saturday is going to be on November 6th. Sign-ups and money are due on Sunday October 24 so all the supplies can be bought. Be sure and write your email address on the sign-up sheets...some projects require some prep work that will be emailed to you. Here are a few of the projects that are available to sign-up for (there are a couple more that have sign-up sheets too). Keep in mind some of these will qualify for a RSU goal (make a holiday decoration, learn something new, etc). ;)











Hope to see you there!

October Desktop

I was playing the other day and made this for my laptop. I still had April on there and Ali was giving me grief over it. So I thought I'd share. This is for a 1280 x 800 screen but I can make it smaller if you want. To find out what your screen resolution is go to your desktop. Right click and go to Personalize. Then, choose Display Settings. There will be a picture of a monitor on there and you should see something like the 1280 x 800 or whatever numbers yours is...it'll be under the slider that has Resolution on top of it. These instructions are for Windows Vista. It's been a long time but it seems like you went to the Control Panel to get to the Display Settings in Windows XP but I can't remember for sure. I have no idea where to find it in Windows 7 so if anyone knows, please comment so others can figure it out too. Let me know if you need a smaller size and I'll work on it! The supplies for it came from the Shabby Princess, Harvest Spice kit. It's a freebie one if you are interested! You can download the 1280 x 800 pixel one here.

You will need to have some type of photo-editing software to add your pictures (one that will support .png files). If you need help with this, let me know and I'll write a tutorial with screen shots and help you out.

Relief Society University 2010-11

RSU has begun again!! We had 12 people that completed enough goals to "graduate" and we hope to have even more at the end of our RSU year (next September). More goals have been added to each area and the requirements for each degree has been raised a little. So read over the introduction so you can figure out what you need to do to earn a degree. If you have any questions about any of it, contact someone in the RS presidency. Here's a link to the new RSU program.

This year's graduates are:

Lindsay Anderson (Associates)
Doriana Burnham (Associates)
Julie Emms (Associates)
Kim Hackworth (Associates)
Susan Holder (Associates)
Liz Johnson (Associates)

Steph Gibson (Bachelors)
Jen Houston (Bachelors)
Diane Hubbard (Bachelors)
Susie Loveless (Bachelors)
Karen Ness (Bachelors)
Chrissy Sweeney (Bachelors and Salutatorian)

Sam Moss (Doctorate and Valedictorian)

Congrats to them and to those who accomplished some of the RSU goals!

September Charity Chatter

is now ready for download! You can download it here or click the link to it on the right sidebar.

Food Storage Challenge

INCREASE YOUR FOOD STORAGE WITH $5 a WEEK

Set aside $5 a week and then buy specific items each week. You have a kitty set aside that you put the $5 in and you can't touch it for any reason but to buy the food storage item for that week. You put in whatever remaining change you have back into the kitty. It is not on the list but you can also add 6 lbs of dried yeast and 6 lbs of shortening. For every two additional people you have in your family try to add more to the amount that you buy each week.

WEEK 1......1 JAR PEANUT BUTTER AND 1 JAR JELLY
WEEK 2......8 CANS OF VEGETABLES
WEEK 3......6 CANS VEGETABLES
WEEK 4......10 POUNDS OF RICE
WEEK 5......10 POUNDS OF BEANS
WEEK 6......5 CANS OF TUNA
WEEK 7......6 POUNDS OF MACARONI
WEEK 8......6 BOXES OF MACARONI AND CHEESE
WEEK 9......6 CANS OF CREAMED SOUP
WEEK 10.....SALT/BAKING POWDER/BAKING SODA
WEEK 11.....10 POUNDS FLOUR
WEEK 12.....1 JAR PEANUT BUTTER AND 1 JAR JELLY
WEEK 13.....8 CANS OF VEGETABLES
WEEK 14.....6 CANS OF FRUIT
WEEK 15.....10 POUNDS OF RICE
WEEK 16.....10 POUNDS OF BEANS
WEEK 17.....5 CANS OF TUNA
WEEK 18.....6 POUNDS OF MACARONI
WEEK 19.....6 BOXES OF MACARONI AND CHEESE
WEEK 20.....6 CANS OF CREAMED SOUP
WEEK 21.....10 POUNDS OF FLOUR
WEEK 22.....10 POUNDS OF SUGAR
WEEK 23.....2 TUBES OF TOOTHPASTE
WEEK 24.....1 JAR PEANUT BUTTER AND 1 JAR OF JELLY
WEEK 25.....7 CANS OF VEGETABLES
WEEK 26.....6 CANS OF FRUIT
WEEK 27.....10 POUNDS OF RICE
WEEK 28.....10 POUNDS OF BEANS
WEEK 29.....5 CANS TUNA
WEEK 30.....6 POUNDS SPAGHETTI
WEEK 31.....6 BOXES OF MACARONI AND CHEESE
WEEK 32.....6 CANS CREAMED SOUP
WEEK 33.....20 PACKAGES OF RAMEN NOODLE SOUP
WEEK 34.....8 CANS VEGETABLES
WEEK 35.....6 CANS OF FRUIT
WEEK 36.....6 POUNDS SPAGHETTI
WEEK 37.....8 BARS SOAP
WEEK 38.....6 ROLLS TOILET PAPER
WEEK 39.....8 BOXES OF PUDDING OR GELATIN
WEEK 40.....4 CANS OF MILK
WEEK 41.....3 BOTTLES OF SHAMPOO
WEEK 42.....2 BOTTLES BLEACH
WEEK 43.....LAUNDRY DETERGENT
WEEK 44.....SHORTENING OR OIL
WEEK 45.....6 ROLLS TOILET PAPER
WEEK 46.....4 CANS OF MILK
WEEK 47.....5 CANS SPAGHETTI SAUCE
WEEK 48.....2 BOTTLES LIQUID DISH SOAP
WEEK 49.....LAUNDRY DETERGENT
WEEK 50.....3 BOTTLES SHAMPOO
WEEK 51.....8 BOXES PUDDING OR GELATIN
WEEK 52.....6 ROLLS TOILET PAPER

You can increase your food storage by using just $5 dollars a week. The food reserve will grow even faster if you are able to increase the money you can spend. By changing your food habits you can find extra money for your food storage.

Some ideas are:
1. Have meatless dinners 3 times a week such as:
waffles
omelet
pancakes
beans and rice
meatless spaghetti sauce
casseroles you currently use, just leave out the meat

2. Don’t eat out or reduce the number of times you eat out each month.

3. Use all of your leftovers. Don’t let any of your food go to waste.

4. Reduce or eliminate meat completely from your casseroles.

5. Use coupons

6. Shop sales

7. Omit expensive extras from your recipes such as mushrooms, bell peppers, bacon, etc.

8. Eat the basics

9. Don’t buy chips, sodas, powdered drinks, etc.

10. Have a garden. Even planting just a couple of plants can help your food budget. If you do have a garden, don’t let anything go to waste. If you produce more than you can eat or preserve share it with others.

This is also available as a pdf download...click here.

July/August Charity Chatter Newsletter

...is now ready for download. Click the link on the right side of the screen under "Charity Chatter--RS Newsletter".

Link List

I just put a list of web sites that you may want to visit on the right sidebar. They are already linked so all you have to do is click on them. If you find a web site that you think may be beneficial for the other sisters in the ward, let me know and I'll add it to the list. Thanks!

July 18 Announcements and Lesson Link

Please let Susan Holder know if you can help out today with the sandwiches. It's at 1:00 at St. John's (6th and B).

July 24th is the FS Stake Pioneer Day celebration. Parking will at East Side Baptist with the activity taking place across the street at First Luthern School both of which are on Massard.

Girls' Night Out will be canceled this month.

Instead we encourage you to attend Andrew Hubbard's Missionary Farewell Party on the 27th at 6:00 at the Stake Center. He is asking that Relief Society bring finger foods.

The Stake Women's Conference is August 14th. Our ward has been asked to have a table of talents. Start thinking about what talent you want to display and let one of the RS Presidency know.

Steph Gibson taught our lesson yesterday on Priesthood Organization. Please click the link if you are interested in reading it.

Weight-loss Group

Our weight-loss group is going on summer vacation too. :) We'll let you know when we start it up again.

Mother's Day and Girls' Night Out

Sunday, the Relief Society will meet in the chapel for a short lesson and then move into the gym for a reception by the Priesthood. They are providing refreshments for all the sisters.

On the 18th is our Girls' Night Out. It will be held at the Hubbard's home at 6:30.

Happy Mother's Day!!

Newsletter links

The links to the newsletter have been down, giving you an invalid link message if you clicked on them. They are fixed now so try again. Happy downloading!! :)

May 4th Relief Society Meeting-6:30

This month we are focusing on the goals in the Family Relations section of the Relief Society University goals. Number 5 is "start a memory book with stories, pictures, family traditions, etc. Compile stories of ancestors to add to your book. Record your memories of your relatives and invite others to also do so." We are going to help you get started!! We have cut out the mini-books and have them ready for you to decorate and put together. All you will need to do on your own is to put your memories in them.

This is what they will sort of look like...I painted the inside cover of mine but we actually have paper to use on yours.



And see that lovely wrinkle in the cover on the top photo?? You won't have that either. I got a little Mod Podge and paint happy but I'm over that now. :D

We'll have extra paper for you to use if you want to decorate the inside pages. We'll also have some decorative scissors and paper punches for you to use. You are more than welcome to bring anything you want too!!

If mini-books aren't your kind of fun, then you can bring another project that you want to work on too. Just come and have fun!

One of the other goals is to complete 6 scrapbook pages about your family. We won't have time to work on those too so I'm putting a link for you to help you get started. There are 6 scrapbook page sketches plus a sample for each sketch to give you an idea of what you can do. If you want to bring your own supplies and work on these instead of the mini-book, you can do that too. You don't have to use the sketches to complete the goal though...these are just to help you if you need it.

Scrapbook Page Sketches

We will start at 6:30. Hope to see you there!!

RS Sunday Lesson and Announcements

Steph Gibson did our lesson using Elder Bednar's talk from the October 2009 General Conference, "More Diligent and Concerned at Home."

Announcements:

Tuesday, May 4, is our next Relief Society meeting. It will be at 6:30 at church. More on that in the next post. ;)

The Fort Smith missionaries are needing beds. If you have any to donate, please contact Susan Holder.

Our next Girls' Night Out will be on the 18th. We'll have more information later.

Friday, the 7th, the Elder's Quorum is having a volleyball and dodgeball activity at the church.

Don't forget the special Stake Conference on the 16th...it will be from 10:00-12:00.

And as usual...if you can help make sandwiches on Monday afternoons, please let Susan Holder know. And the weight-loss group will be meeting on Wednesdays at 6:30 in the RS room.

Have a great week!!

April 18th RS Lesson and Announcements

Today's lesson was taught by Sister Armstrong from the Gospel Principles manual. It was Chapter 8: Praying to our Heavenly Father.

Girls' Night Out will be Tuesday, April 20th at 6:30 at Liz Johnson's house.

If you can help make sandwiches tomorrow for St. John's, please let Sister Holder know.

The weight-loss group will meet Wednesday at 6:30 in the RS room.

May Newsletter Question of the Month: How do you save money/cut costs in your family? Send responses to Kim Hackworth to be included in the May newsletter.

Gardening and Weight-loss

Susan Holder found these two web sites that you may find helpful: Garden Guides and Meals Matter.

April 6th Relief Society Meeting

From Samantha Moss:

Please mark your calendars and plan to attend our monthly Relief Society meeting next Tuesday, April 6 at 6:30

We will be having mini classes on the following subjects:

Gardening 101

72 Hour kits

1st Aid

3 Month Supply

We will also have an encore performance from our Relief Society Cheerleaders.

Compete dinner will not be provided- only finger foods and samples.

If you would like to bring something, please bring a finger food or receipe that we can sample using items from your food storage if possible. Please come even if you don't want to bring anything.

Please contact Samantha Moss if you have any questions. 479-414-2369

Young Women's Pancake Breakfast

The Young Women are trying to earn money for Girl's Camp this summer. They are having a pancake breakfast on April 10th from 8am to 10am. They would really appreciate all who can come!

Calorie Link and Sunday's Announcement

Want to know how many calories are in the food you are about to eat?? Look it up on Calorie Connect. Thanks for the link Susan!

Now for the announcements...

Volunteers are needed at St. John's (6th and B) to help make sandwiches tomorrow at 1:00. Please contact Susan Holder if you are able to help and with any questions.

The ward activity is Wednesday night at 6:30. The Cub Scouts will be showing off their pinewood cars as they race them in the Pinewood Derby.

Be sure to get your Visiting Teaching done this month so we can reach our goal of 100% the Stake Presidency asked us to make. If you are unable to finish it, please let someone in the RS Presidency know by Monday so it can be done for you. If you do have it completed, Sister Condren will love to get a phone call from you! ;)

Don't forget about General Conference next weekend! Check your email for a ward email with a conference packet for your kids.

Our next Relief Society meeting is April 6th at 6:30. We will be doing mini-classes to help out with our Relief Society University goals.

Beginning with the May newsletter (Charity Chatter), we will have a Question of the Month. May's question is this: How do you save money/cut costs in your family? You can email or write out responses to Kim Hackworth.

Family Search and a Yummy Recipe

Susan Holder found this on the Family Search website. It's online classes to help you learn how to research your family. It looks like an easy way to get started! Family Search Education

Now to the yummy recipe! I made this for Becky Bowman's baby shower last night and Jen Houston asked me to post it to the blog. You can also find it on the packaging for Hormel's Real Crumbled Bacon.

BLT Dip

1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 (4.3 oz) package of Hormel Premium Real Crumbled Bacon
1 cup diced tomatoes
1 cup shredded lettuce
Assorted crackers, for dipping

In bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, bacon, and diced tomatoes. Place in large pie plate or on platter. Chill until serving time. Before serving, place shredded lettuce around the edges. Sprinkle with additional bacon or tomatoes, if desired. Serve with assorted crackers for dipping.

Ok...that's what the package says but this is what I do to mine. I put mine in a bowl, not a messy pie plate. Also, I mix the shredded lettuce up in the dip instead of placing it around the edges. And I just use whatever looks right with the lettuce instead of making sure it's a cup. I really love using the flavored crackers with this (like Ritz's vegetable crackers). I also don't substitute Miracle Whip for the mayo and I don't substitute the fake bacon bits either. If you use the real bacon bits instead of cooking your own and crumbling them up yourself, it will be less fattening.

If you are someone who hates mayonnaise and/or sour cream by themselves, you will still like this! I hate both of those but I eat this dip up like it's going out of style. So give it a try!!

Scripture Reading

I found this site today while I was working on finding a handout for our March Visiting Teaching Message. It's called Read the Scriptures. If you sign up, then you will receive reading schedules from any of the Standard Works, Preach My Gospel, the Gospel Doctrine schedule, or the Seminary schedule. You can also make your own customized schedule. After you complete your reading assignment, then you click the Completed button at the end of the email and you will be sent the next one. I'm hoping this will help me with my reading! You can also have teams to help motivate and encourage each other on it. If any of you have any ideas on how to motivate ourselves to read our scriptures like we are supposed to, please email me and I will post them here on our blog.

Fun Blog

I found this blog somewhere...probably linked off of Sugardoodle. Anyway, it's a fun blog full of fun craft ideas including some precious scripture totes. You can find it here...Brown Paper Packages. Have fun!

March 14 Announcements and RS Lesson

Announcements:

Volunteers are needed every Monday at 1:00 to make sandwiches at St. John's (6th and B).

The weight-loss group will meet Wednesday at 6:30 in the RS room. Men are welcome to attend too!

Visiting Teaching interviews are being held this month. Emails have been sent out with your time. If you need to change your time or find out when it is, please contact Kim Hackworth.

Be sure to get your Visiting Teaching done this month and reported to Sister Condren or Sister Holder. The Stake Presidency is asking for 100% completion this month.

Our Ward Temple day is March 20th.

Don't forget to work on your Relief Society University and/or Personal Progress.

Steph taught our lesson on the Creation out of the Gospel Principles manual. You can access it here.

Fort Smith and Spanish Missionaries Need Help

If anyone has any spare twin-size beds and/or some decent mattresses, please contact the missionaries. They would really like to have them! And they deserve a good night's sleep for doing the work they do. :) You can also call Kim Hackworth at 646-7638 and I can pass the information along. Thanks!

FHE Lesson Plan Sharing Project

As part of the R.S. we are putting together this wonderful project.

Those interested will be responsible for putting together two complete FHE Lessons 'kits' and make copies for all other participants.

Example: 10 participants=10 copies of each FHE kit per participant=a final product of 20 FHE kits for everyone to have for future use.

Depending on the interest we may have to do more than one group.

We will be taking interested participants through March 7th. I will pass sign-up sheets at church and accept sign-ups through email.

Our first meeting to give instruction will be on March 13th. It will be a 'brunch' type meeting at my house.

It's a lot of fun and SOOO helpful to have a ton of FHE's already planned out.

This is obviously something geared toward sisters with small children (around ages 2-10) but not exclusive to those sisters.

If you have grandchildren or you know someone who would benefit from this resource feel free to participate!

If you are interested or have questions please email me: gibsoncasa@gmail.com

Personal Progress with the Young Women

"The Young Women of our ward are so excited several women and mothers in the ward are interested in participating in the Personal Progress program along with them! We have additional books on order, and are excited to work together."

"Should I do Personal Progress with my mother? - You are invited to participate in Personal Progress with your mother. Both of you are constantly doing so many good things. You can encourage each other and recognize the good things you are doing and you can even approve each other’s projects and sign each other’s books! Have fun together, and if your mother does not desire to participate, you may also do Personal Progress with an older young woman or another righteous woman who is working on her Personal Progress. You can also ask for the help of your leaders when you need it."

(all from Sister Dalton, general YW Pres., Jan. 2010 New Era)

Here's an article from the Church News on the new Personal Progress program.

The Church is also developing a new website just for Personal Progress. You can access it at personalprogress.lds.org.

For information on what our ward is doing you can contact Jen Houston or Kira Gustin.

This is a great opportunity to get to know our Young Women better and work on your own spiritual growth at the same time.

Email Subscriptions

If you have signed up to receive email updates and haven't been getting them, try signing up again. I changed the email subscription. It's still Feedburner and you still follow the same steps, but it's been updated. Please let Kim Hackworth know if you are still having problems receiving updates. Thank you!!

"How do you know when your prayer is answered--when the answer is from the Lord and not from your own warm, earnest, and even well-motivated desires?"

Marion G. Romney, “Q&A: Questions and Answers,” New Era, Oct. 1975, 34–35

Answer/President Marion G. Romney

The way I know when the Lord answers my prayers is, in most cases, by the way I feel.

The Lord’s explanations to Oliver Cowdery on this subject are very enlightening. They are found in the sixth, eighth, and ninth sections of the Doctrine and Covenants.

At the time these revelations were given, the Prophet Joseph Smith was translating the Book of Mormon. Oliver, who was acting as his scribe, was concerned about getting a sure witness to the truth of the work in which they were engaged. In response to Oliver’s prayer, the Lord gave him, through the Prophet, the following:

“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, blessed art thou for what thou hast done; for thou hast inquired of me, and behold, as often as thou hast inquired thou hast received instruction of my Spirit. If it had not been so, thou wouldst not have come to the place where thou art at this time.

“Behold, thou knowest that thou hast inquired of me and I did enlighten thy mind; and now I tell thee these things that thou mayest know that thou hast been enlightened by the Spirit of truth;

“Yea, I tell thee, that thou mayest know that there is none else save God that knowest thy thoughts and the intents of thy heart.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.

“Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?” (D&C 6:14–16, 22–23.)

From these statements of the Lord I know that an answer from the Lord to my prayers enlightens and brings peace to my mind.

The Lord confirmed this fact when a few days later He said:

“Oliver Cowdery, verily, verily, I say unto you, that assuredly as the Lord liveth, who is your God and your Redeemer, even so surely shall you receive a knowledge of whatsoever things you shall ask in faith, with an honest heart, believing that you shall receive a knowledge concerning the engravings of old records, which are ancient, which contain those parts of my scripture of which has been spoken by the manifestation of my Spirit.

“Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.

“Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground.” (D&C 8:1–3.)

In the revelation containing these verses the Lord authorized and gave Oliver the power to do some translating. Because he did not proceed to translate but continued to act as scribe for the Prophet, the Lord withdrew the commission and spoke to Oliver as follows:

“Do not murmur, my son, for it is wisdom in me that I have dealt with you after this manner.

“Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.

“But behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

“But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me.” (D&C 9:6–9.)

In praying, I try to follow the teachings of these scriptures. When confronted with a problem I prayerfully weigh in my mind alternative solutions and come to a conclusion as to which of them is best. Then in prayer I submit to the Lord my problem, tell him I desire to make the right choice, what is, in my judgment, the right course. Then I ask him if I have made the right decision to give me the burning in my bosom that He promised Oliver Cowdery. When enlightenment and peace come into my mind, I know the Lord is saying yes. If I have a “stupor of thought,” I know he is saying no, and I try again, following the same procedure.

In conclusion, I repeat: I know when and how the Lord answers my prayers by the way I feel.

When we learn to distinguish between the inspiration that comes from the Spirit of the Lord and that which comes from our own uninspired hopes and desires, we need make no mistakes. To this I testify.

Fun Valentine's Day Project

I found this cute little project on www.splitcoaststampers.com and thought I'd share. These would make cute little teacher gifts or fun treats for your kids or grandkids. Looks like I'm going to have to make a Wal-mart run to get the safety can opener. Shhhh...don't tell my husband!!

Pop Top Can

Jan 31 Announcements and Spiritual Thought

Sorry...forgot to add these to the last post!

This is the last day to do our VT for January. Please make sure that your sisters are contacted this month.

The new Visiting Teaching routes are available today. You can find them on the round table outside the Relief Society Room. If your route is not there or if you have any questions please contact Susan Holder, 452-0600.

We need volunteers to make sandwiches tomorrow at St Johns at the corner of N. 6^th and B. We meet at 1pm. If you have any questions please contact Susan Holder.

Our weight loss support group meets every Wednesday evening at 6:30 at the church. It is open to everyone who wants to attend.

We will have our Girls Night Out in February. More information will be available next Sunday.

Obedience opens the door to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. And the spiritual gifts and abilities activated by the power of the Holy Ghost enable us to avoid deception—and to see, to feel, to know, to understand, and to remember things as they really are."

David A. Bednar

5th Sunday Combined Priesthood/RS Meeting

I wasn't able to attend today...sick kiddos...but Brannon said that Bishop Bardin taught the lesson this week. He told me that it was about forgiveness and reaching out to less active members of the Ward. He also showed a conference talk by Elder Bednar. I think this may be the link to the article out of the Ensign (November 2006). Somebody please correct me if this isn't it! The article is called "And Nothing Shall Offend Them".

The group was also given a handout outlining the goals for the Fort Smith Arkansas Stake for this year.

Proclaim the Gospel

--Follow President Hinckley's admonition to double convert baptisms (120 stake wide)
--Pray daily to have opportunities to share testimony of Jesus Christ.
--2 Missionary referrals per family

Perfect the Saints

--Increase faith in Jesus Christ by studying scriptures and having personal and family prayer each day
--Be a 100% Home Teacher/Visiting Teacher-THEN RETURN AND REPORT
--Maintain a healthier lifestyle by better adherence to the Word of Wisdom as per Section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants
--March and September-100% Home Teaching/Visiting Teaching months for every unit in the Stake


Redeem the Dead

--Schedule and participate in Ward Temple Days
--Participate in Stake fill the Temple Day and submit a minimum of 5 names for family file work
--60% of endowed Adults with Temple Recommends

Fun Family Home Evening Blog

I found this link on Facebook today and thought I would share. It's a blog for 52 Family Home Evenings by Emilie Ahern...scrapbookers may recognize her from some of the scrapbooking magazines. It looks like a fun web site! http://ayearoffhe.blogspot.com/

Sunday Lesson--Jan 24 and Announcements

Susan Holder did our lesson today in Relief Society. She used Ann Dibbs talk from General Conference (October 2009) called Hold On. It was a great lesson!!

Here are our announcements for this week:

Volunteers are needed to help make sandwiches at St. John's on Monday.

The weight-loss group meets Wednesday at 6:30 in the Relief Society room. Men can come too!

The new Visiting Teaching routes will be available next Sunday.

Don't forget to finish your Visiting Teaching for January! Please let Sister Condren or Sister Holder know when you are finished. There are VT reports in the folder that is passed around on Sundays that you can fill out and give to them too.

If you would like to complete your Young Women in Progress and receive your medallion, contact the Young Women's Presidency. They are letting the Relief Society work with the girls to accomplish their goals. This is a great opportunity to get to know our future Relief Society sisters and to strengthen our own spirituality at the same time!

Spiritual Thought:

"The purpose of Relief Society, as established by the Lord, is to organize, teach, and inspire His daughters to prepare them for the blessings of eternal life.

"To fulfill the purpose of Relief Society, the Lord has commissioned each Relief Society sister and the organization as a whole to:

"1. Increase in faith and personal righteousness.

"2. Strengthen families and homes.

"3. Serve the Lord and His children.

"Each one of these responsibilities supports and reinforces the other two. When we increase our faith, the result of that effort strengthens our family. When we serve the Lord and His children, our faith and capacity for righteousness increase."

Julie B. Beck, "Fulfilling the Purpose of Relief Society," Ensign, November 2008, 109

Ultimate Turtle Cheesecake

I found this recipe on a box of Philadelphia cream cheese several years ago and was in the mood to make it today. It is way better than the one you buy at Sam's!!

2 cups Oreo Chocolate Cookie Crumbs
6 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
1 bag (14-oz) Kraft Caramels
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup Planters Pecan Pieces
3 pkgs (8-oz each) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla
3 eggs
2 squares Baker's Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate

Mix crumbs and butter; press onto bottom and 2 inches up side of 9-inch springform pan. Place caramels and milk in small microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high 3 minutes or until caramels are melted, stirring after each minute. Pour 1/2 of caramel mixture into crust. Refrigerate 10 minutes. Set remaining caramel mixture aside for later use.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Pour over caramel mixture in crust.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour 5 minutes to 1 hour 10 minutes or until center is almost set if using a silver springform pan. (Bake at 300 for 1 hour 5 minutes to 1 hour 10 minutes or until center is almost set if using a dark nonstick springform pan.) Run knife or metal spatula around side of pan to loosen cake, cool before removing side of pan.

Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

Top with remaining caramel mixture and pecans just before serving. Melt chocolate as directed on package; drizzle over cheesecake. Store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator. Makes 16 servings.

Ok...I don't buy the Oreo crumbs. I buy a package of Oreos and break them up in a food processor and then eat the leftovers. Sorry weight-loss group but that's what I do!! :D It only takes about 1 1/2 rows of cookies to make two cups.

Enjoy!!

Weight-loss Group

Bree Watson is starting a weight-loss blog to help keep her motivated and us too! Here's the link if you are interested...Goings On At The Reducing Salon.

January 17 Announcements

The weightloss group will meet Wednesday at 6:30 in the Relief Society room.

The new VT routes will be available January 31. Keep your current route for January.

Volunteers are needed every Monday to make sandwiches at St. John's (6th and B). If enough show up, then it only takes an hour.

Emailed RS announcements are now going out via the Ward email. To sign up, either sign the sheet being passed around in RS or send an email to fortsmithward@gmail.com.

January 30 is the Young Women's pancake breakfast. It will be from 8 am to 10 am. This will be the YW's fundraiser for Girl's Camp. There will be a Primary activity later that morning also.

We are now doing a newsletter for Relief Society. Copies were sent out via Ward email. Hardcopies will be available outside the RS room also. You can also access it by clicking on the following link: Charity Chatter. You will need Adobe Reader to open the file. Most computers have Reader already but if yours doesn't, you can get it for free at www.adobe.com.

January 10 Announcements

The weight-loss group will meet at 6:30 pm Wednesday in the Relief Society room.

The new Visiting Teaching routes will be available on January 31. Please keep your current routes for January's visits.

The Ward Temple trip is next Saturday, Jan 16 at 10:15.

Please remember to sign up for Ward email to continue receiving RS announcements by email.

Relief Society Announcements

The weight-loss group is meeting again on Wednesdays at 6:30 in the Relief Society room.

Updated Visiting Teaching routes will be available next Sunday, Jan 10th.

Visiting Teaching reports need to be made to Sister Condren or Sister Holder.

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