Christmas' Pirates, Treats & True Meaning

This crazy girl came to visit us this weekend!  Now, I know what you're thinking when you see these photos...

 Man. I wish that girl was my best friend. She seems hilarious and awesome. And really good with kids. 

And you would be right to feel and think that way.

 Kathleen and I have been best friends since high school.  We have shared tons of laughs-so-hard-you-need-to-run-to-the-potty moments, some tears, lots of advice and listening ears, lots of great conversations, and today, I shared with her my Riverdance skills as we tried our darndest to smash up candy canes for these peppermint cookie sandwiches we made...

 The original recipe is from my favorite cooking blog, Our Best Bites, but I was made aware of it yesterday by one of my all-around favorite blogs: 71 Toes.

 Two thumbs way, way up. These are way, way good.

 

Last weekend Santa brought a book called "The Gingerbread Pirates" to Julian at my dad's house. He really, really likes it.  But before he ever laid eyes on this book, he already really, really liked his classic "The Gingerbread Man" storybook.

 

 So today, instead of simply reading about gingerbread men coming to life, we made some of our own come to life...

 I love how his cars (and in the picture below, dump truck) are always close by...

And here we are with our very own Captain...

 What? You wanted to hire me to professionally decorate fancy cookies for you?  Well, it's gonna cost ya.  But, it will obviously be worth your money. I mean, look at that masterpiece... :)

 On another-ish note, I'm really excited for my Young Women lesson tomorrow.  I am using this idea: it is a silent Christmas lesson where the girls will follow along in a packet to read, write, listen to music, and watch videos all centering around the Savior's birth and life. Normally we encourage as much class discussion as possible when we teach in Young Women, Sunday School, etc...but tomorrow is different. Tomorrow is a special day...the Sunday of the week of Christmas! I've been wanting to do something a little different, and I'm grateful to have found this lovely idea.   Rather than print the packet the ideas' originator scanned in for download, I made and printed out a new packet for the girls to follow along and write in.  I changed some of the songs, and added my own personal testimony of the Savior at the end, and made more room for the girls to write their testimonies.  My 1st counselor, Caitlin, and I are going to sing "Angels We Have Heard on High", rather than me playing it on my iPod speakers like a couple other songs. I never really sing for people, but I do enjoy it, so that will be a new experience. I love singing because it brings the Spirit so beautifully. Plus, Caitlin has a beautiful voice, and that helps a lot, too. :) I am hoping that throughout the lesson, the Spirit will be strong and the feeling in the room will be one of reverence and love for, and from, the Savior in all of our hearts.
 Before we officially start the silent lesson, we are going to read a few quotes I found about the power of music in teaching the Gospel, including:

"We get nearer to the Lord through music than perhaps through any other thing except prayer."
- President J. Reuben Clark Jr.

"The most effective preaching of the gospel is when it is accompanied by beautiful, appropriate music."
-President Harold B. Lee  

It is so easy to get so busy at this time of year, that we never take a moment to stop and reflect on why we even have "this time of year" in the first place. I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to go to church tomorrow and teach this lesson, and reflect heartily on the birth of the Savior Jesus Christ, and what that means for me, my children, my family, and for all of us.
In the lesson, the girls will read this quote by our late prophet, President Gordon B. Hinckley (How I love President Hinckley!):

"We honor Him, we worship Him, we love Him as our redeemer, The Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New Testament. The entire thrust of the testimony of the Book of Mormon declares our living Lord before whom we kneel in humility and faith.

It is proper during this season when we commemorate His birth that we remember the Lord Jesus Christ in reverence and with love. He has done for us what we could not do for ourselves. He has brought meaning to our mortal existence. He has given us the gift of Eternal Life. He was and is the Son of God, who "was made flesh & dwelt among us" (John 1:14).

There would be no Christmas if there had not been an Easter. The babe Jesus of Bethlehem would be but another baby, without the redeeming Christ of Gethsemane and Calvary, and the triumphant fact of the Resurrection."

And then I added my testimony to his in a letter: 

I as your Young Women President echo the testimony of our beloved Prophet President Hinckley "of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Eternal, Living God. None so great has ever walked the earth. None other has made a comparable sacrifice or granted a comparable blessing. He is the Savior and the Redeemer of the world. I believe in Him. I declare His divinity without equivocation or compromise. I love Him. I speak his name in reverence and wonder. I worship Him as I worship the Father, in spirit and in truth. I thank Him and kneel before His beloved Son, who reached out so long ago and said to each of us ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.’" (Matt 11:28)

I love each of you, my sweet Young Women, very much.  I believe in you, and in your ability to accomplish your dreams and make the righteous desires of your hearts a reality with the help of our Savior. During this week of Christmas, and always, I want you to remember and hold in your hearts the knowledge and testimony of the divine truth that our Savior knows you and loves you personally. He came to this earth

for. you.

And because he did that, you now have the ability to return to live with him and our Father in Heaven, and your future eternal companion for time and all eternity. He loves you, and he will always, always be there for you.  He is never far away. He is always there, waiting to comfort you, and to fill your heart with his peace. Rely on him. Remember him.

For he always,

always

remembers you.

The girls will then have time to write down their own thoughts and feelings on the Savior and the true meaning of Christmas. Before they leave I will hand them each one of these:

My wish for my Young Women in the letter above this photo and also in this photo is the same for each of you. 

Merry Christmas week, my friends!