It's a good day.org - a G or PG You Tube

I was driving home from Southern Utah and noticed a billboard that said Its a good day.org a G or PG You tube. So, I came home and checked it out. It's a great sight for the family and has the following subjects:

• 13 Virtues., by Benjamin Franklin
• Just for fun, online games and painting for kids
  
• Printables, right now there are scavenger hunts
• Motivational, includes quotes and book reviews
  
• Kids Korner, includes crafts and games
• Board game and DVD reviews
• Family Corner: Family vacation, family time and family reunion Tees
• Story Time: This is great, you can click on a book and listen to it online
• Recipes: Has a featured recipe, and also weekly meals already planned
• Our Life: Begin your own family web-site..powered by itsagoodday.org
• Videos/Pics: place to upload videos and pictures to share

Shhhhhh!

"At the library you will find books of every shape and kind! At the library, the librareeeeee!"
(I've recently been diagnosed with Sesame Streetitis)
When looking for fun family activities, try the library. They are always having storytelling, demonstrations, fun shows and activities for minimal or no cost. That's in addition to being able to borrow and take home anything you find there...for free! Books, movies, music, magazines games, etc. We went this morning and I haven't seen any of my kids all afternoon. Quiet, resourceful kids expanding their minds...priceless!

Halloween costumes on a Budget

A great way to get use out of costumes is to share them with friends. Every year my friend and I share "past" costumes and this year we are both not buying anything new. Another idea is to get together as a neighborhood or a ward and have a costume exchange night. Everyone brings costumes that they no longer use or need and they share with each other. The only rule you have is that you can only take a costume that you will use that year. You can also go to family fun.com and get ideas on homemade costumes.

Trick or Treat for the Food Bank

My sister shared an idea that the teenagers do in her area on Halloween. Instead of trick or treating for candy, they ask for food items. Things that each of us have in our pantry's; canned goods, cereal, pasta etc. and then they donate it to their local food bank. I thought it was a great idea. Older kids can get together to trick or treat...and fulfill a service in the process.

Serving the Hungry

One really good idea for family service is to volunteer at the local food bank. There are several ways to do this. You can always take in donations of canned goods, and even do a separate project to collect the food first. They also always need help sorting the donations at their facility, especially during the holiday season, as that is when people tend to donate the most. When our family went a few years ago, we put together a few orders for families with mobility issues and then drove boxes of food to four different families that night, all over the valley. Our kids were invited into each of these homes and were thanked profusely for the help. There was one lady we helped that night whom I will never forget. She was a Russian immigrant and insisted that we try some of her special cake. She was just so thrilled for the company, probably more than the food. You should have seen her face light up when my son (about age 8 then) said the only Russian word he knew to her (goodbye). It was so very rewarding for us and for the kids to step outside of our comfort zones just a tad and serve a few people who were strangers in need. If you decide to do this, call their number first to schedule the time. The Utah Food Bank is located at 1025 South 700 West, and their phone number is 908-8660. I highly recommend it!

It's that time of the year!

Here's a quick and easy family activity and treat rolled into one. Home made gourmet caramel apples. You know, like the one's you can buy, but better! Granny Smith apples work best. Just melt a bag or two of caramels in the microwave, stirring every minute or two until melted. We used waxed paper with pan spray on top to cool them on. Once the caramel has hardened, get the family involved! Dip again into chocolate (milk or white) which has been melted in a double boiler. Then just go to town with whatever toppings your family wants. The kids love this! We used crushed Oreo cookies, toffee bits, chopped pecans, mini Reece's pieces, and white chocolate to drizzle on top. There are so many other combinations that would be fabulous. Depending on how big the apples are and how many layers of decadence you coat them with, it may be a good idea to cut them up and share slices. Bon Appetit!

Family Home Evening's on the WEB

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints website has made it very easy to watch a talk or song from conference or a church video. And if you have a laptop..you can do Family Home Evening anywhere. Most talks average 8-18 minutes. What a great way to emphasize what our Prophet and leaders have shared over these next 6 months. The media player also has the following videos:

• The Life of President Monson
• Finding Faith in Christ
• The Mediator
• The Great Apostasty
• The Restoration
• Come unto Me
• Firm in the Faith
• The Good Samaritan
• World Reports April 2008 & October 2008
• Worldwide Leadership Training
• General Meetings for Relief Society & Young Women
• April 2008 General Conference Highlights (one of my favorites)

The new media player is wonderful, so easy to install and watch. It makes it very convenient to find a specific talk or song. What a wonderful resource the church has put at our fingertips. Enjoy!!

Utah Museum of Fine Arts

I have a friend that is a professor at the University of Utah and she told me that every 3rd Saturday the University has an activity for kids/families from 2-4 p.m. In October they are making masks and then in November it will be Holiday Cards. You can find the information here. I found it by looking up theUniversity of Utah Events Calendar. When you get there click on the category kids/family.

She says it is wonderful and she takes her girls every month.
I am excited to try it out. Oh, and the best thing is it's FREE!!
Let us know if you go and what you thought :).

Gardner Village

October is primo time to go and visit Gardner Village. The weather is great, the shops are so fun, and the witches are out! It's free, too. Everything is decorated for fall and Halloween. So many photo ops. The only down side is you will probably have to dole out a bit of cash at Sweet Afton's candy shop (not such a bad thing!).

Family Road Rally

Note: you must be a two car family to do this one!
Divide into two teams. Each team needs a list of things to accomplish around town, a bit of cash and a pencil or pen. One team should start at the bottom of the list, the other at the top (so you're not tripping all over each other). Each stop will require some sort of proof that the task was done, and you can't do more than one thing at one place. You can come up with all sorts of things, but here are a few suggestions:

1. Find an out of state car and write down the license plate number.
2. Have the driver put $5 worth of gas in the car while the others clean the windows. Keep the receipt as proof.
3. Find a stranger with glasses and have them sign the paper.
4. Go through a drive through and order some french fries. Eat them but save one as proof.
5. Buy a drink and share it. Keep the container.
6. Purchase some gum and have everyone chew a piece. Put the pieces together to make a mound of gum as proof.
7. Collect 5 leaves from 5 different kinds of trees.
8. Have the whole team sing a song for a stranger and have them sign the paper and write which song you sang.
9. Purchase 1 apple for each team member. Save them.
10. Collect some one's business card.
11. Make a copy of the list on a copier. Save it as proof.
12. Collect an information sheet from a house for sale.

When all of the tasks are completed, meet back at the starting place. The winning team must verify that they accomplished all of the tasks by showing proof. The winners each get a 100 grand candy bar. The losers each get a snickers bar.