It's the simple things

This week wraps up my project of following and documenting our wholesome, recreational, family activities.  I will end with a testimony of simplicity as I blog about our final activity....

We've never really had a table to serve as an official puzzle-building table.  So, we haven't built any in quite some time.  Just this week we finally got a table for our family room and we immediately pulled out one of the puzzles our family was given for Christmas last year.  I cannot even remember the last time this has happened:

This activity was completely unplanned and I was thrilled beyond explanation to see my kiddos cooperating on something!  Later, daddy and I joined in on the puzzle building.  If this was the only reason we bought a new table . . . well, it's the best reason!

This fun activity reminded me that there is power in the simple things!  As I look back on all the activities that I blogged about (and some that I did not) there is one thing I've noticed throughout--a pattern of simplicity.  It was an implicit goal of mine that I didn't realize would manifest itself.  Sure, fancy outings and crazy fun family vacations have their place, but don't wait for those times to experience wonderful wholesome activities that can happen everyday.

When planning and preparing for wholesome recrational activities to engage in, remember that it doesn't have to be complicated or involved.  These moments created around the puzzle reminded me that as parents we can encourage spontaneous wholesome activities for our families by creating an environment at home that allows for it to happen at any time!  The simplest family activities can and will create the greatest memories that foster greater relationships between family members and with our Heavenly Father.  

WRA, REL200, Post 10

Happy Birthday America!

This was perhaps one of the most memorable July 4th's our little family has had.

The day started with a garage sale that we hosted as a family.  Friday we sorted, labeled, and organized for much of the day.  We spent the first six hours of our Saturday morning manning the garage sale, right Robyn (keeper of the petty cash)!?

It was certainly a team effort as we learned and taught how to bargain, negotiate, and sell!  Anything we didn't sell we donated to a local Goodwill.  While our garage still isn't completely cleaned out, we are a step closer!  

For lunch we BBQ'd with a family who had just moved into the ward.  While I have no pictures of that great feast we enjoyed grilled chicken, steak, ribs, and even shrimp!  There was no shortage of food or appetites!

Then is was off to my brother's house where we enjoyed some traditional partying, complete with fun eyewear:

Roman Candles and sparklers.

 But of course the highlight of the day were the grand fireworks.  My brother can set up an awesome firework display that the whole family can certainly enjoyed!

Music:  Alex Boye's "Calling America" and "American Symphony" from Mr. Holland's Opus

When working in the garage sale we had to practice moral behavior by being honest in promoting certain objects and asking a fair price for them (my middle son had a hard time learning that principle).

We were uplifted and inspired by the new friendships we made and the opportunity to celebrate the birth of our country in a simple way.  As a family we could enjoy the art of salesmanship, the cooking and consumption of good food, and pyrotechnics as a family.  All of us were able to enjoy the time we spent together--sometimes that's not an easy thing to do!

Not to mention, it was great being home by 11pm this year.

WRA, REL200, Post #9

The Power of Reunions

There is no doubt the wholesome family recreation that we experienced these past few days spending time with my sister and her family visiting from Boise, ID were the best of times . . .  despite some physical ailments. 

 As a family we:

Went boating, inaguarating the "Hot Dog."

Played lots of games 

(namely "Wolf and Sheep", Monopoly, The Great Dalmuti, etc.)

Wolf and Sheep

Playing The Great Dalmuti

BINGO!

Went swimming. . . and swam some more

Enjoyed lots of company, food, and conversation.

Finally, it's a tradition to have a talent show!

A Talent Show is the easiest way for everyone in the family to show off whatever talent they have and there is no limit to what that talent can be!  If you aren't including talent shows as a tradition in your family gatherings, you should start right now to include them.

Demonstration of playing the Snare Drum

"It's Your Fault" from Into the Woods

We reminiscenced some and shared our dislike for cockroaches (pretty common in this home ;-) -- even killing a few throughout the reunion.

We finally got to take some updated family photos.  

This photo is just of the grandkids with their Gold grandparents.

But, quite honestly I also experienced the power of prayer and the Holy Ghost as we strived to be considerate and loving towards grandpa (my father) who is slowly recovering from medical ailments.  It was nothing short of incredible to witness the priesthood in action as our priesthood holders in the family gave him a blessing.

One of the criteria for wholesome family activities is for family members to grow closer to our Heavenly Father.  Being with our father during this time of healing allowed us to be more chartible and loving towards him, exemplifying more Christlike attitudes and behaviors.  Because he is immobile, he spent much of his time in bed.  Probably my greatest moment this weekend was when I first arrived in the home on a Sunday afternoon and spent some time with him and my siblings at his bedside just talking about anything and everything.  While there with him, I knew that they loved me.  I thought about how wonderful it is that I will be with them forever and that knowledge--that hope--continues to help me through these troubling times as my father recovers.

Being together as a whole family these past few days gave us opportunities to demonstrate just about all the purposes of wholesome recreational activities.

WRA, REL200, Post 8

Homemade bread, kettle corn, cards, movies . . . oh my!

This week was filled with both spontaneous and planned family activities.  

First up, I was in the baking mood.  While this is our favorite bread recipe I don't make it as often as I should.  It's not labor intensive, I just haven't made it a habit to make it regularly.  But, with the help of my daughter (who always seems the most interested in doing everything together), we kneaded out a batch of it.  It gave me the opportunity to teach some baking skills to a six-year old and I learned that I still can't divide bread dough into two perfect halves!  That's one skill I haven't mastered yet ;-P  In fact, my daughter said the loaf on the right looks like it has a "disease."  Thanks, sweetheart!  But, no matter how uneven the loaves are, they are still delicious! 

We spent Friday evening at my sister's house where we swam in the pool and enjoyed dinner together--all ten of us!  For treat we gorged on popcorn and kettle corn made by my talented brother-in-law.  We taught them how to play the card game Fluxx.  If I recall, the aforementioned brother-in-law won all but one round of that game.

Making the kettle corn

Dealing the hands for Fluxx

On Saturday, we took in our annual tradition of starting every summer off with a trip to the movies to see the greatest Disney/Pixar movie for the season.  This year it was . . . 

I cannot even begin to explain why this movie hit the spot for each one of us.  Just like the emotions we meet, I felt all of them throughout the movie (okay, maybe not Anger so much).  And any movie that can influence all my emotions is a good movie in my book!

I think the greatest thing this movie did was introduce a whole new selection of one-liners that we were quoting the next day all during our Father's Day dinner.  I will admit that some family mealtimes can be dull and lacking in meaningful conversation, but our interaction using scenes from Inside Out created a mealtime circus!  That silliness was top notch and much-needed!

A picture with Peanuts while we wait for Inside Out

I do not think that these activities require an explantion as to why they can be categorized as wholesome family recreational activities because I think it's obvious.  There was an element of "every good thing" in the activities that we chose.  They did an excellent job of growing relationships (being with cousins), developing skill (making bread, swimming, playing a new game), and fostering creativity (do you know how cousins play together).   Time spent with extended family certainly enriches our lives.

Inside Out uplifted and inspired our family.    It provided an opportunity to explain a very important gospel principle to our children:  there must be opposition in all things.  We experience sadness so we can feel joy.  In order for us to taste the sweet, we must taste the bitter.  The climax of the movie comes when Joy realizes that Sadness must be experienced if Joy was to be felt in its fullnes by the main character.  We learn of the importance of opposition and how vital it is that we have it in our mortal lives.  We recognize this as a part of our Heavenly Father's plan.  It was an opportunity for us to understand another aspect of that Plan.  And the more we understand, the closer we can become to our Heavenly Father--another characteristic that wholesome family recreational activities can exemplify.  

These past few days provided great reminders of what matters in life.  I'm glad that we were spontaneous and included my sister's family in our plans.  I'm grateful that we braved the horrid city traffic to see a movie that inspired and demonstrated a valuable part of what it means to be human--a child of God.  And we enjoyed it all together, as a family.

WRA, REL200, Post 7

Lycra Tube Activity

I was intriqued by this particular activity when I ran across a video in my FAML400 class on how to use this activity to demonstrate the Family Systems theory.  I thought how great it would be if we used it at a family gathering (which we have a lot of).  I searched online for how to purchase a lycra tube only to find out that they cost around $150 for one 5-yard tube.  I did not want to pay that amount.   Instead, I spent a fraction of that, purchased some lycra fabric and made my own tubes.

For FHE last week, my immediate family took it outside to try it out.  We were able to play it using family stories (like, what happens when one leaves to go on a mission, etc.).  The goal was to keep the tube up by keeping the pattern going as people exited or entered the system we created.  I did not get video of our immediate family trying this new activity out during FHE last week.  But, I did get video of when extended family joined us later in the week.   What you see it just a snippet of all that we tried.  We were the most successful in this video.

I have to say, we're still learning the best way to have the optimum experience with the lycra tube.  After looking at this video and other videos, I've compiled a list of things we need to try doing next time to make it even better!

Why would I consider this a wholesome recreational activity?  For starters, we were all learning something new and we certainly had to work together to make it happen.  Communication was very essential!  It "involved the mind and fostered creativity" in how we could accomplish the task at hand.

I hope that we can try this activity again in the near future after making some adjustments.

I can also report that we participated in our own bi-weekly family council this past week.  Lately they've become more intense as conflicts get a bit more serious.  Our regular family councils exemplify all of what needs to be included in family activities.  Perhaps councils are not considered recreational, but they sure bring us closer to our Heavenly Father and help us practice valuable communication and problem-solving skills, which requires thought and creativity most of the time.

WRA, REL200, Post 6

Ready Or Not!

If you know Southeast Texas you know that when it comes to hurricanes it's not a matter of if but when the hurricane will strike.  We survived Hurricane Ike in 2008 (the link takes you to my posts from 2008--just scroll through to Sept. 2008 until you see some posts about the hurricane).  We only had to endure two weeks without power.  Yes, it was somewhat uncomfortable, but definitely doable.   We learned a few things that year showing us that we weren't as prepared as we thought. 

So, for the first time ever, our family attended the annual Hurricane Preparedness Workshop here in Houston, TX.  Why did it take us so long to get there?  I can give two reasons:  (1) Our schedules never allowed us to attend before and (2) Our teenage boys took advantage of the Boy Scout Emergency Preparedness Merit Badge workshop (something that would have never been on our radar in previous years). 

One of five t-shirts that we "caught" throughout the day

My husband was quite fascinated with barometric pressure and why it's so significant in hurricane development.  While listening to some of the presentations, my oldest was interested in the actual position of Director of the National Hurricane Center, who spoke to us today.  There was a time when his dream job was to be the director of the NHC.  When he was younger weather (hurricanes in particular) were quite fascinating to him.  

Our middle child was thrilled to get "stabbed" in the neck with a piece of glass as he allowed them to create mock emergency situations.  We quickly learned that even the sight of "fake" blood makes him nauseaus.

Can you see the "wound" on his neck?

I learned all about the Wonder Oven and even purchased one of my own.  I'm sure it'll be one of those things I learn how to cook with as I work on a particular provident living plan coming up in Unit #4 of my class ;-).

We also learned how to make an A/C unit with a bag of ice, an old cooler, a fan, PVC pipe, and a battery.  It really was quite chilly to stand next to it.  

You can't see them, but our boys are participating in the Emergency Preparedness Merit Badge Workshop

Taking a break at the Emergency Response Team Ambulance

While we didn't win any of the 30 giveaway prizes (we never win anything), we walked away with a trunk full of reusable bags that were loaded with information, first aid kits, rain gauges, snacks, ponchos, flashlights, T-shirts . . . and the list goes on!  

We felt uplifted and reenergized to get better prepared for emergencies.  This was definitely a family activity that "involved the mind" and helped us "develop skill" together. 

We finished the night by eating dinner and just hanging out with my twin brother and his family.  We enjoyed outdoor recreation, playing video games, and just catching up.  It made for a long, productive, and fun Saturday for us.

Our youngest with her two cousins

WRA, REL200, Post 5

Dinner and a Movie

Friday nights are usually set aside as movie night for our family.  However, we really haven't had one these past few weeks for two reasons:  we've been too busy to and there just haven't been any worthwhile movies to watch that our whole family can enjoy.  Knowing that we haven't gathered as a family for our traditional Friday night movie in a few weeks, we decided to make sure it happened this week!

It's customary that dinner be takeout.  It's the one night a week we do order in and I don't make dinner.  It has given us the opportunity to try lots of different restaurants.  As a result, it takes some real cooperation to agree on where the food is coming from.  Sometimes it's majority vote and sometimes mom or dad just chooses the restaurant without a vote.  It becomes a "surprise" when that happens.  This same thing happens when we have to choose the movie which we choose from a wide variety of genres.  Sometimes they are old family favorites and sometimes they are new ones.

The main goal for this activity is to promote bonding and cooperation between us.  We strive to choose movies that are wholesome and teach a good moral.  But sometimes, they are just for fun giving everyone the opportunity to decompress, unwind, and just enjoy not having to worry about obligations.

Getting ready for the movie

This week we watched the newest version of Annie staring Jamie Foxx.  While it's not quite up to the musical standards of the original, it was cute and entertaining.

We ended the night with homemade oreo milkshakes.  Oreos are a family favorite, so they're regularly included in our treats.  I personally don't think I make these often enough.  It really is the easiest way to show my kids that I love them.  Sometimes the kids help too!

WRA, REL200, Post 4

Memorial Day Weekend

Every year, our Memorial Day holiday weekend includes a weekend at Grandma's house--or the home I grew up in.  Grandma lives in the countryside on Lake Livingston in Southeast, TX.  It's a time for our family to really enjoy some rest and recreation with aunts, uncles, in-laws and cousins.  There is never a shortage of things to do.  If you're bored . . . well, that's your own fault ;-P

This year was complete with a few firsts:

1.  Our six-year old really tried some "serious" swimming in the lake (which was higher and dirtier than usual thanks to lots of rain this spring).  Her dear cousin showed her how to "swing her arms" for freestyle.

2.  We spent the actual Memorial Day at the Houston National Cemetery.  Attending this very well-known and sacred service was a bit out of our comfort zone, but we knew it would be an uplifting experience.  The small Children's Choir that I accompany for performed during this particular Memorial Day Service.  It was our frst performance ever!  The link provided is the news coverage of the services.  When the author mentions that "We heard children sing patriotic songs "--it's our group that he was speaking of.  If you watch the news video, I'm actually in it about 10 seconds in (for a split second) standing on the left of the screen wearing a blue shirt--yep, mommy's little moment of fame :-P

Not having a military ancestry, participating in such services in not something we normally do or even think of.  But, we all agree that it was a unique experience to be able to rub shoulders with not only many veterans and soldiers but also many members of our local and state governments.  It provided us with the opportunity to remember what Memorial Day is all about.

Our weekend was also spent making pizzas, building puzzles, playing games, celebrating birthdays, swimming, fishing, watching movies, enjoying the outdoors, cleaning out my parents' garage,  and just enjoying the time together as family.

Preparing for a cousin's birthday celebration

 Chit-chatting with cousins

On the rope swing

Playing with water balloons in the water

(always more fun when there's more water)

Playing ping pong

Attempting a game of badminton 

(which is really interesting with a 6-year old)

 Brother-in-laws enjoying the outdoors together

So, why is this considered "wholesome recreational activity?"  This gave us the opportunity to exemplify many of the activities described in Widmer's definition that included developing skills and learning.

Develop skill and learn:  My daughter learning how to swim (and fish), learning a new game, building a puzzle, playing piano for the children's singing group
Build relationships:  Relationships were particularly developed between cousins and older siblings (like my siblings and I).

Elder Oaks defintions included activities that have the ability to inspire.  Attending and participating in the Memorial Day services was certainly inspiring and uplifting.

WRA, REL200, Post 3

Activity in Music

This past Monday, our family decided to all go to concert put on by the local high school orchestras. Our oldest, who will be joining this group next year, wanted to watch and listen to the group play.  In the past, we might have only taken him, allowing the other children to stay home.  But, we decided it was a great opportunity to expose the other children to orchestral music and give us time together as a family.  It did take a bit of effort convincing our middle child to join us.

What you see/hear is just one selection from the concert that the local high school performed on Monday, May 11, 2015.  They are playing a portion of The Moldau by Smetana.

Even if our younger children might not have fully appreciated the music, this picture taken is proof that the activity did what we needed it to:  Build relationships.

Our oldest has never, in the entire six years of his sister's existence, had the desire to carry or hold her in any way for any reason.  But, that night he invited her into his arms and he happily carried her to the car.  Yes, miracles do happen!

 It was obvious that this concert meant something to him and put him in the greatest mood because he did something that he wouldn't normally do.  You can bet that she will never forget this moment--the very first time her brother carried her!  Witnessing that small moment made that night a wonderful experience for me.

After the concert was over we enjoyed a family treat at the local Culver's--our go-to place for ice cream (okay, it's really frozen custard, but it certainly satisfies the same cravings).  We all indulged in the flavor-of-the-day:  Chocolate Marshmallow Oreo.

WRA, REL200, Post 2

Wholesome Recreational Activities

It's been a few years since I've been here on the blog.  That's pretty much what school does to me--resets my priorities!  But, for the next little while I will be posting various thoughts and documentation of our adventures in "wholesome recreational activities."  These posts correlate with a project that I'm doing in a Family Foundations class as I finish up my final year at BYU-Idaho.

I took this project idea from a passage that can be found in The Family: A Proclamation to the World that states, "Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities."  I will be focusing on the last principle--wholesome recreational activities.

First off, what qualifies as a wholesome recreational activity?  It is not something that is clearly defined, addressed, or straight forward.  In my search, I came across a few descriptions that helped me define appropriate activities for our family.

1. "Wholesome recreation provides opportunities to develop skill, learn, build relationships and grow.  The best recreational activities involve the mind, foster creativity . . . and promote moral behavior." 
-- Mark. A. Widmer

2.  "[Activities in] music, literature, art, dance, drama, athletics--all can provide entertainment to enrich one's [and the family's] life and further consecrate it." 
-- D. Todd Christoffersen

3.  "[Family] leisure time should be filled with activities that uplift, inspire, and draw individuals closer to Heavenly Father." 
-- Dallin H. Oaks

These broad but clear ideas leave the door open to a wide variety of qualifying activites that we can do with our families.  I particularly like Widmer's article because it does an excellent job summing up why such activities are valuable to the health of a family.  He states, 

"If we make an effort to engage in wholesme family recreation, the lives of our children, and our own lives, will be enriched.  May our children write in their diaries, "Went fishing (reading, hiking . . . ) with my family today--the most wonderful day of my life."

The most important aspect to me is that such activities will require EFFORT on my part as a parent.  For me, that means I might be put a little out of my comfort zone when planning and participating in these various activities.  I'll be the first to admit that I need a little bit of that!

WRA, REL200, Post 1