Writing Prompts

These journal writing prompts were found here.

1. Write about going back to school after summer vacation.

2. Write a thank you note to a friend who gave you onion and garlic-flavored chewing gum.

3. Draw an imaginary constellation. Write a story such as ancient people might have told about it.

4. Describe a real made-up dream or nightmare.

5. Write about your favorite childhood toy.

6. Write out the best or the worst day of your life.

7. Finish this thought: if I could change one thing about myself (if you can't think of anything, you might want to consider telling how you got to be perfect!)

8. If and when I raise children, I'll never...

9. I have never been more frightened than when...

10. Persuade a friend to give up drugs.

11. Five years from now, I will be...

12. Write about a day you'd like to forget.

13. Invent and describe a new food.

14. Describe an event that changed your life forever, or make up and describe an event that would change your life forever.

15.  Describe someone who is a hero to you and explain why.

16.  Write about a time in your life when you struggled with a choice and made the right one.

17.  Imagine yourself in a different century and describe an average day in your life.

18.  Which character from a book would you most like to meet and why?

19.  Three goals I have set for myself are...

20.  What would you do if 300 mice had just gotten out of their cages in a pet shop where you worked?

21. What would you do if you were locked inside your favorite department store overnight?

22.  What would you do if you woke up one morning to find yourself invisible?

23.  What would you do if you were able to communicate with animals?

24.  What would you do if you could travel into the future?

25.  What would you do if you could travel into the past?

26.  What would you do if someone just gave you $1 million?

27.  What would you do it all the electricity in the world just stopped?

28.  What would you do if you could travel free anyplace in the world?

29.  What would you do if the dinner served to you in a fancy restaurant came with a fly in the mashed potatoes?

30.  Write a list of at least 50 things that make you feel good.

31.  Describe the perfect day.  Put in as many details as you can.  Make it a possible day, not a "dream day."

32.  Who is the person from history that you would most like to meet and talk to?  Why?  What would you like to ask?

33.  Who is the person from literature that you would most like to meet and talk to?  Why?  What would you like to ask?

34.  Compile a list of words that describe you as a child.  Compile a second list that describes you as you are now.  How are these lists the same?  How are they different?

35.  Compile a list of inanimate or animate objects to which you might compare yourself metaphorically.  (I am a windmill.  I change direction or my thoughts whenever someone talks to me...)

36.  Tell about what triggers anger in you or someone else.

37.  Invent a monster and describe it.  Tell where it lives, what it eats, and what it does.

38.  What is your favorite kind of weather?  Why?

39.  What is the best book you have ever read?  Why did you like it?  Did reading the book change you in any way?  What way?

40.  Write about what you didn't do this weekend.

41. Think about an incident that happened to you and exaggerate in the telling. Make it into a tall tale.

42.  If you were ruler of the world, what things would you banish absolutely for all time (rain on weekends, eggplant, and so forth)?  Make a list.  Use your imagination.

43.  If you could go back in time anywhere and "anywhen," where/when would you go and why?

44.  What law would you like to see enacted which would help people?  How would it help?

45.  What commercial on TV do you dislike beyond all others?  What about it is particularly annoying to you?

46. Design some gadget, machine, building, or other creation that might enrich the future. What does it look like? What does it do? How does it function? In what ways might it benefit people?

47. What current fashion in clothing do you particularly like or dislike? Explain.

48.  Convince someone why music or art or computers are important in your life.  Make them appreciate your viewpoint.

49.  If you had $100,000, how would you spend it?

50.  Be a building you know well.  Talk about your life and memories.

51.  You are to tell a person from a distant planet or from another era what pollution is.  Make that person understand what causes it and why it is bad.

52.  If you could do something that you never have done before, what would it be?  Why would you want to do it?

53.  Begin a list of questions that you'd like to have answered.  They may be about the future or the past.

54.  What do you consider your greatest accomplishment to date and why?

55.  Write one characteristic or habit about yourself that you like and describe it.  Or write about one thing you don't like about yourself.

56.  What is your hobby?  Why do you enjoy it?

57.  If you could go somewhere where you've never gone before, where would you go and why?

58.  What's, if anything, would you be willing to fight or even die for?  Explain your answer.

59.  If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?  Why would you make this change?

60.  Is there a machine you feel you could not live without?  Explain.

61. Write about what you think you will be like and what you will be doing 10 years or 20 years from now.

62.  Did you ever stick up for someone?

63.  Describe your neighborhood bully.

64.  Write about a baby-sitting experience.

65.  Describe a great fort you built for a great game you played as a child.

66.  Write about an enemy who eventually became your friend.

67.  Write about a time you cheated and got caught.

68.  Write about a privilege you earned.

69.  Write about the stray animal you brought home.

70.  Did you ever send away for something that turned out to be a disappointment?  (Or order something over the Internet)

71.  What is it like to go shopping with your mother?

72.  Write about a time you performed in front of an audience.

73.  Write about a difficult decision you had to make.

74.  Write about learning to skate, to ride a bike, to climb a tree, or to turn a cart wheel.

75.  Did you ever get lost in a strange town?

76.  Were you ever locked in or out?  What did you do?

77.  What was it like to spend your first night away from home?

78.  What was it like to come back home after a long vacation?

79.  Write about a disappointment.

80.  Write about something minor that turned into a big deal.

81. Did you ever win or lose a contest? Tell the story about what happened.

82.  Write about something you desperately wanted when you were younger.

83.  Did you ever know someone who had "everything"?

84.  Write about the time as a child you played in one of the following: treehouse, a cornfield, a construction site, a junkyard, an abandoned house or barn, a stream, a cemetery, a swamp, a pasture, railroad tracks.

85.  Did your mom or dad ever make you wear something you hated?

86.  Write about a time you were talked into something and you regretted it.

87.  Were you ever in a helicopter, limousine, racecar, hot-air balloon, submarine, or horse-drawn  carriage?

88.  Did you ever forget something really important?  What happened as a result?

89.  Write about an experience in a hospital.

90.  Were you ever accused of something that you didn't do?

91. Write about a disastrous trip or vacation.

92.  Were you ever given a responsibility that you couldn't handle?

93.  Were you ever in a fire, flood, tornado, or hurricane?

94.  Describe the best concert you ever attended.

95.  Write about a window you broke or something valuable you lost.

96.  Did you ever catch fireflies?  Crickets?  Frogs?  Snakes?

97.  Write about a time you tried to help and ended up making things worse.

98.  Did you ever break an important promise?

99.  Write about moving to another city or neighborhood.

100.  Describe an outdoor game you used to play in the summer time.

101.  Write about building sand castles or mud pies.

102.  Did you ever meet a famous person?

103.  Write about mowing the lawn, burning leaves, or weeding the garden.

104.  Describe the club you organized as a kid.

105.  Describe a car or bicycle accident you were in.

106.  Write about being a misfit.

107.  Write about a day spent in another country.

108.  Write about a time you out-smarted someone.

109.  Write about going shopping for new clothes.

110.  Did you ever turn someone in or tell on someone and feel bad about it later?

111.  Imagine that you are an animal in the zoo.  What type of animal are you?  How do you feel about being caged?  How do you feel about people that visit and watch you?

112.  Write about a time your parents embarrassed you.

113.  Describe learning something from a friend.

114.  Write about a time you gave someone good advice.


115.  Write about the funniest thing that ever happened to you.

116.  If you had to escort a visitor from outer space for a 30-minute tour of your community, where would you begin and end?

117.  Be a grape that becomes a raisin: describe how it feels to shrink, to shrivel, to become dry and wrinkled.

118.  Be an icicle that becomes water.  Describe how it feels to be cold and firm and full of beautiful crystals but only to melt and lose your shape.

119.  You go to the store with your parents and baby brother.  Your parents go into a store and tell you to watch your brother.  You take your eyes off your brother for just a minute and you can't find him.  You...

120.  I really hate it when my mother/father/sibling...

121.  What if the use of robots in school becomes a workable reality?

122.  What would you pack in your suitcase if you could not go home again?

123.  You have just met an alien from another planet.  He wishes to take a student back to his planet.  Convince him you would be the perfect specimen for him to take.

124.  If you could change one law, what law would it be and how would you change it?

125.  How forgiving are you when a friend lets you down?  Explain.  Give an example.

126.  What if you were named principal for the week?  What would you do?

127.  If you could only speak twenty words for the rest of your life, what words would head your list and why?

128.  It started out as an unusual Monday morning, when I...

129.  As I approached the deserted house at the end of the road, I saw...

130.  Do you think girls are raised differently from boys?  If so, in what ways?

131.  Do you think you are treated differently because you are a boy or girl?

132.  Do you think men and women are equal in today's society?  Why or why not?

133.  Do you think a woman will be President of the United States in the near future?

134.  Two men or women have it easier in our culture?  If so, why do you think so?

135.  Have you ever wished you were either older or younger?  What would you consider to be the benefits?  The problems?

136. Describe what you think of as the typical mother.

137. Describe what you think of as the typical father.

138. Do you think women should take men's last names when they marry? Why or why not?

139. Would you rather have a brother or sister? Why?

140.  Describe a fight you had with your mother.  Now tell it from her point of view.

141.  Write a short biography of your mother.

142.  Write a short biography of your father.

143.  Visualize a time when your mother was laughing.  Recall a time when you two shared a good laugh over something.

144.  Write a physical description of your mother.  Write as if you were looking at a movie rather than a photograph.

145.  Concentrate on a particular habit that your mother has and write about it.

146.  If you had three wishes, what would they be?  (Do not ask for three more wishes)

147.  What is something special and/or different about you?  Why do you think it is special or different?

148.  Write about two things that your family has taught you.

149.  Write about some of the things that you worry about.

150.  Describe a happy memory of your family.

151.  How do you know someone loves you, even if he or she doesn't say it?

152.  Name one thing you like about yourself and why you like it.

153.  Imagine yourself as a teacher.  What type of student would you like to teach and why?

154.  Name and describe a teacher who made a difference in your life.  What did that teacher do that was so special?

155.  What makes you proud to be an American?

156.  Describe the one thing that gives you the most comfort.

157.  If you could be a character in any book, TV show, or movie, who would you be and why?

158.  If you had to work in any store at your favorite mall,  which store would it be and why?

159.  Describe the most difficult thing about being your age.

160. Describe one possession that means the most to you.

161.  Who is the most important role model in your life?

162.  Describe your best personality trait.

163.  If you could study one subject in school that wasn't offered, what would it be and why?

164.  If you had a chance to live anywhere you could, where would it be and why?

165.  Write about the pros/cons of year-round school or a four-day school week.

166.  Write about your favorite sport.

167.  Is the school year too long?  Too short?  Why?

168.  What does your summer usually consist of?

169.  Who should be paid more, professional athletes or teachers?  Why or why not?

170.  What class do you enjoy the most and why?

171.  Write about the worst fight you ever had with a friend.

172.  If you had only one month to live, what would you do?

173.  Describe your dream house.

174.  Who is your favorite person to be with?  Why?

175.  What would be your ideal job when you grow up?  Explain.

176.  If you could guest star on any TV show, what would it be and why?

177.  What do you think your life will be like in 10 years?  20 years?

178.  Describe how you would manage your own radio or TV station.

179.  What is your definition of success?

180.  The saying goes, "Money cannot buy happiness."  Do you agree or disagree?  Why?

Harvest Poppy Seed Salad

Traveling doesn't afford a lot of opportunities to eat fresh.  We try to keep some fruits and veggies in the car to snack on, but even with good intentions, we don't get a lot of fruits and veggies in on the road.  Once we stop for any amount of time and we have the opportunity to buy groceries and cook for ourselves, we try to eat a lot of salad.   Even if we're not traveling, we can all use more raw fruits and veggies in our lives, right?

Here is one of our favorite fall salads:

Harvest Poppy Seed Salad

Ingredients:

4 slices cooked bacon, diced
2 large hard boiled eggs
6 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 apple, diced
1 pear, diced
1/2 cup pecan halves
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese
sliced red onions

Poppy Seed Dressing:

3/4 Tbsp. poppy seeds
1/3 cup white vinegar
3/4 cup oil
1/3 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. mustard
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. grated onion

Directions:

Chop and wash the lettuce, add all of the other yummy ingredients and and top each individual serving with poppy seed dressing.  To make the dressing, combine everything and whisk together.  It's as easy as that!

I've been making this poppy seed dressing for years and LOVE it!  Sometimes I've been in a pinch and had to buy store bought poppy seed dressing.  I haven't liked any of the poppy seed dressings I've bought at the store.  They're all just too sweet.  So if you're out of time and brave, you can use store bought dressing (or if you have one you already know you like).  But it's always better to make this recipe at home.

Delish!

5 Lessons We've Learned in Two Months of Travel

Today is November 7, 2017.  We left Utah on Thurs. Aug. 31 and have been on the road for 68 days - 2 months and a week.  Wow!  It's flown!  But at the same time, we've seen so many things and been so many places that I feel like I've lived several life times!

We've gone around 8,800 miles and have driven through 24 states!

Here are some of the things we've learned along the way:

#1 - Canvas tents don't like humidity and condensation

During our first month on the road we were taking our time getting from Utah to the East Coast.  We planned to visit family along the way and camp a lot.  We bought a wonderful spring-bar style, 10 man canvas tent.  It was easy to put up and easy to take down.  It fit the 6 of us perfectly and we loved camping.  Then we got to Ohio.  Our first night in Ohio was clear and beautiful.  We woke up
the next morning and our tent was soaked!  Had it rained in the night, I wondered?  Nope.  The canvas tent had just absorbed humidity and condensation from the air.  We were still cozy and dry inside, but the canvas was soaked!  It took direct sunlight until 2:00 in the afternoon for it to dry out enough for us to pack.

Our goal with camping was to have an inexpensive way to sleep and then get up early the next day, pack out and get back on the road.  A tent that takes more than half the day to dry wasn't going to let that happen because if you know anything about canvas tents, you know that they have to be completely dry or they mildew when you pack them.

After only 3 nights of camping, we had to quit.  We were only moving into more humid areas and we didn't have time to let our tent dry out.  Bummer!  We adjusted and stayed in hotels instead.  But we're still packing around a tent, sleeping bags, blankets, pillows and air mattresses that we don't use any more.

#2 - States in the Northeast have toll roads

We started hitting toll roads around Pennsylvania.  Almost every interstate
freeway is a toll road in the northeast.  No biggie, a dollar or two here and there wasn't bad and it keeps the roads in good condition.  But after a few weeks of slowing down and paying our toll at a toll booth, we realized that an EZ Pass would have been much easier.

I was introduced to EZ Passes when my sister moved to Cambridge, MA.  She has one and can zip right through toll areas and she's billed for the toll.  So I  knew that an EZ Pass would help us in Massachusetts.  What I didn't know was that all of the states use EZ Pass.  If we'd bought the EZ Pass before we left, it would have saved us quite a bit of time stopping and paying cash at the toll booths.

You can use the EZ Pass in all of the following states: Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia and West Virginia.

Here is their website if you want to check it out before traveling in the Northeast.  EZ Pass

What was the most expensive toll we've paid so far?  The New Jersey Turnpike.  We drove on it for about 2 hours from New York City to the Pennsylvania state line near Philadelphia.  It cost us $29.45!!!

#3 - Ranger Presentations in National Parks are the Bomb!

If you can time it right, try to listen to presentations by the park rangers in National Parks.  We were able to do that twice, at Mt. Rushmore and at the Wright Brothers in Kitty Hawk, NC, and it made all the difference in what we experienced at the National Parks.

It's one thing to briefly read the brochure and look at a monument, but when someone tells you a story of what happened there and why it's important to them and to America, it's amazing!  You get all kinds of details that you'd never get in a brochure and the rangers LOVE what they do and are excited to share it with others.

At Mt. Rushmore we heard the ranger in the Sculptor's Studio and learned so much about how the presidents were sculpted.  She explained things I never would have understood if I'd just been looking about the museum and trying to figure it out myself.

In Kitty Hawk, the ranger did an inspiring 40 minute presentation on why what the Wright Brothers did there changed the world forever.  He passionately reviewed what happened there on that momentous day of the first flight and told us that that day represents the death of impossibility.  Nothing would ever truly be seen as impossible again because man had learned to fly that day.  I'll never look at the Wright Brothers the same again.

Without the rangers our experiences would not have been the same.  We will always try to attend ranger presentations from now on.

#4 - Hotels often have rooms that will sleep 6 people if you look for them

Once we had to give up camping and stay in hotels we were trying to do it as inexpensively and conveniently as possible.   With 6 people we don't fit in a regular room with 2 beds.  So we would get 2 rooms, one for the boys and one for the girls.  Occasionally we would happen up on a room that would sleep all of us.  We finally realized that there were plenty of rooms for 6 if we looked hard enough.  Usually it was a suite with 2 beds and a sleeper sofa.  Not ideal, but for one night, totally doable.

Most of the large chains have the family suite rooms.  We would typically pay $70-$80 a night each for 2 rooms.  But once we started looking for suites, we could find them and sleep all 6 of us in the same room for around $120-$130.    Not a huge savings, but a savings.  And it was much more convenient to all be in the same room instead of having to go back and forth multiple times at night and in the morning when you realize that the toothpaste is in one room and your tooth brush is in the other.

#5 - I really do LOVE the ocean

After spending some time near the ocean, I have realized that I do really love the ocean as much as I thought I would.  I've never spent a lot of time there and thought that after a while I would get used to it or even get tired of it.  But neither has happened for me.  Hearing the waves and seeing the endless stretch of water still makes my heart happy and is every bit as healing and grounding for me as it was the first time.  I really need an ocean in my life for the rest of my life!

***Bonus lesson - Bug spray gets permanent marker out of clothes

With a 9 year old boy, you don't even need to ask why I know this!  But yes, it really does work.  Spray the bug spray all over the Sharpie mark and blot the Sharpie right out of the cloth with a paper towel.  Then wash like normal.   Abracadabra!  Good as new!

Insights on Contention from the Words of Mormon

The Words of Mormon in the Book of Mormon is often skipped over or read through quickly with the thought, "I know what he's saying.  He's telling us that he's made an abridgment of the Plates of Nephi and added in the Small Plates and then he tells me again where the plates came from and then lets me know that he is passing the record down to his son, Moroni. - Got it."  And in the first 11 verses, you're right.  But starting in verse 12 and through the end - a mere 6 verses - we find a wealth of gold in dealing with contention!  Once this lesson popped out to me, I've reread it many times.  I am so grateful for the lessons learned in this short 6 verses.  Words of Mormon has become one of my very favorite books in the Book of Mormon.

Let me explain why.

We read in verse 12 that King Benjamin "had somewhat of contentions among his own people."  This contention come from two places:

• from outside the kingdom - the armies of the Lamanites came down to battle (vs. 13) 
• from inside his kingdom with "false prophets, and false preachers and teachers among the people" (vs. 16).  

King Benjamin loved his people and wanted their safety, both physically and spiritually, so he had to end the contentions.   He was successful and we read in verse 18 that "by laboring with all the might of his body and the faculty of his whole soul did once more establish peace in the land."

How did he fight the contentions from both the outside and inside of his kingdom?

Against his outside enemies, the Lamanites, we read that he "gathered together his armies, and he did stand against them; and he did fight with the strength of his own arm.  And in the strength of the Lord they did contend against their enemies." (vs. 13-14)

Against the internal enemies seeking to destroy them spiritually, "with the assistance of the holy prophets who were among his people, [the false prophets, and false preachers and teachers] mouths had been shut, and they punished according to their crimes" (vs. 15-16)

What allowed King Benjamin to accomplish these things?  In verse 17 we read that King Benjamin was a "holy man, and he did reign over his people in righteousness; and there were many holy men in the land, and they did speak the word of God with power and with authority; and they did use much sharpness because of the stiffneckedness of the people"

So how does this apply to me and my home?

We also have enemies on the outside trying to harm our families spiritually.  Through scripture and the words of the prophets we know who the adversary is and what he is trying to do.  Elder Marion G. Romney said, "We need not be, and we must not be, deceived by the sophistries of men concerning the reality of Satan. There is a personal devil, and we had better believe it. He and a countless host of followers, seen and unseen, are exercising a controlling influence upon men and their affairs in our world today."  (link here)

His goal is to “destroy the souls of men.” (D&C 10:27.)

“… he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him.” (Moro. 7:17.)

At the last supper just prior to his ordeal in Gethsemane, Jesus warned Peter: “Simon, Simon, … Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.” (Luke 22:31.)

How do we take what King Benjamin taught us about outside enemies to fight the adversary today?  We FORTIFY AND FIGHT!

We fortify and fight by doing the basics: FHE, family scripture study, family prayer and family fun times.

We also fight against contentions inside our homes.  In my house those things look like: yelling, arguing, bullying, teasing, sarcasm, insults, speaking unkindly and basically anything that tears us apart instead of bringing us together as a family.

We can replace those behaviors with: soft voices, keeping calm, obeying rules, giving service, treating others the way we want to be treated, forgiveness, apologizing and respect.

What kind of people do we need to be to accomplish this? 

We need to be like King Benjamin, righteous and holy, speaking the word of God with power and authority.  Sometimes as parents we, like King Benjamin, need to also use sharpness.  Doctrine and Covenants 121:43 tells us how this should be done, "Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy."

In Mosiah 1:1 we read the end of the story.  "And now there was no more contention in all the land, among all the people who belonged to king Benjamin, so that king Benjamin had continual peace all the remainder of his days."

We must be like King Benjamin and "laboring with all the might of [our] body and the faculty of [our] whole soul" against contentions inside and outside our homes and by following the example of King Benjamin, we will be successful.

LDS Church History Tour

We couldn't travel across the country without stopping at LDS church history sites along the way.  Ideally you would do the trip from east to west because the church started in New York and as it grew, they moved further west eventually ending up in the Salt Lake Valley of Utah.  But we were driving west to east, so we did the trip backwards.  For timeline chronology, I will share our stops with you from east to west.

Birthplace of the Prophet Joseph Smith - Sharon Vermont
(here is the link to the official site)

We drove up to the birthplace of the prophet Joseph Smith on a sunny Sunday afternoon.  It was a short drive from where we were staying in Killington, VT.  It was a beautiful drive in the early fall.  The leaves were just starting to think about changing colors.

The site is beautifully landscaped and a visitor's center gives you an opportunity to find out more about the Smith Family and the prophet.  The monument is a beautiful smooth polished obelisk shaft that is 38 1/2 feet tall, one foot for each year of the Prophet's life.




Palmyra New York


During our visit to Palmyra New York we saw the Smith Family Farm, the Sacred Grove and the Hill Cumorah.  Upstate New York is beautiful!  The Palmyra temple is also in the same area.  The temple is stunning and has stained glass windows of the Sacred Grove all around the outside.   It was a sunny, warm Sunday and after attending church in one of the wards in the Palmyra Stake, we toured the sites.

Smith Family Farm
(here is the link to the official site)

 The Smith Family Farm is, of course, right next to the Sacred Grove.  In his early teen years, Joseph Smith lived in this home with his family.  A religious revival was taking place in that part of the country and he was confused over which church to join.  He read in his Bible, in James 1:5 - "If any of ye lack wisdom, let him ask of God."  He decided that the only answer he could get would be from God.  So one morning he went out into the woods near his home to pray.  The answer he got changed the world when he saw God, the Father, and Jesus Christ and they told him not to join any of the churches but that through him they would restore the true church of Jesus Christ back to the earth.  (you can read the full account in his own words here or watch a quick video about it here)

The Smith farm consists of two homes and several out buildings that have been restored as they would have been in Joseph Smith's time.  We loved seeing how they lived in the 1800's and we loved hearing the stories the missionaries told us about the events that happened there.

The Sacred Grove 
(here is the link to the official site)

The Sacred Grove is a beautiful piece of forest that has been left untouched other than the addition of walking trails, rest rooms and benches.  We walked in expecting to walk TO something, but finally realized that the entire grove was where we were going.  There wasn't a place to get to.  The trails lead all over the grove and allow for a peaceful, contemplative walk through and around the woods where Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ.

Hill Cumorah
(here is the link to the official site)

The Hill Cumorah is about 5 miles up the road from the Smith Family farm and Sacred Grove.  There is a beautiful visitor's center there with videos to watch about the area and missionaries on hand to answer any questions.  The monument to the Angel Moroni giving the plates of gold to Joseph Smith is at the top of the hill and can be driven to or walked to.  We opted to drive up because it was late in the day and we were tired.  We love this area of New York and could have sat in the peaceful forest for hours.

Kirtland Ohio
(here is the link to the official site)

You want to start your journey through old Kirtland at the visitor's center.  They have a film to watch about what happened in the church during the years the church was headquartered in Kirtland Ohio.  The grounds now include the Newel K. and Elizabeth Ann Whitney Home, the Newel K. Whitney Store, the John Johnson house, a saw mill and several other period homes that have been restored.  We took a great tour with fabulous missionaries telling us stores as we went.  Most of the Whitney Store is original!

Up the hill from the visitor's center is the Kirtland Temple, the first temple built in this dispensation.  It is currently owned by the Community of Christ church and after watching a short video on the history of the area, we were taken on a tour of the interior of the Kirtland temple.  It has been fully restored and is so much bigger than I thought it would be!  We were able to sit in the main chapel and sing "The Spirit of God", the song that was sung at the temple's dedication in 1836.  That was one of the coolest things I've ever done!


Independence Missouri (we visited here in May 2017)
(here is the link to the official site)

Independence Missouri was the headquarters of the church for a short time and has been revealed to be the place where Zion - The New Jerusalem will be built when Christ returns to earth.  The dedicated temple site is a grassy field near the visitor's center.



Adam-ondi-ahman - Missouri
(here is the link to the official site)

Adam-ondi-ahman is a beautiful piece of land in northern Missouri.  It as been revealed that this is the place that Adam blessed his righteous posterity before his death.  The acres and acres of land are farmed and beautifully landscaped.  It is very peaceful there.  Our friends, Kathy & LaMar Losee, from Payson are missionaries there.  We loved meeting up with them and having them show us around their mission.




Carthage Jail - Carthage Illinois
(here is the link to the official site)

Carthage Jail is in the middle of the bustling town of Carthage Illinois about 20 miles from Nauvoo.  It was here that the prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were martyred by a mob.  Every time I'm there I'm surprised that life can go on like normal in the town where the prophet was killed.  I don't know what I expect, exactly, but I just feel a little surprised every time.  There is a very special spirit on the grounds of the jail that can be felt walking around and touring the jail.

Nauvoo Illinois
(here is the link to the official site)

Nauvoo was headquarters of the church and home of the members for several years.  They built a beautiful, thriving community out of swamp land on the banks of the Mississippi River.  Most of the old town has been restored as it was in the 1800's.  The modern part of the town is up on the hill behind the temple.  There are many homes and shops you can visit in the old town.   Start out at the visitor's center and go from there.  There is a Family Resource Center that teaches about rope making, baking, weaving, coopering and several other every day activities in the life of a pioneer.

Our favorite shops to visit were the bakery where we got a gingerbread cookie, the brick yard where we got a Nauvoo brick, the blacksmith shop where we got a "diamond ring".  We also visited the Browning gun shop, Red Brick Store and Smith family cemetery.

We love Nauvoo!  We could spend a week there, but sadly we only had a day.  We also walked down Parley Street to the Mississippi River where the members of the church crossed into Iowa to get away from the mobs and persecution.  This is the closest you can get to the Mississippi River in town.  You can walk right up to it and stick your feet in.  But don't stick your feet in!  I did and got "swimmer's itch" also known as duck mites and wanted to claw all of the skin off my legs for the next week!  So whatever you do - DON'T stick your feet in the Mississippi River!   

Mormon Trail Center at Historic Winter Quarters - Omaha Nebraska
(here is the link to the official site)

Going to Winter Quarters Nebraska was a little bit out of our way, but we were excited to see the Trail Center as well and the temple there.  It was well worth our time!  The Trail Center is very informative and is right across the street from the temple and the old pioneer cemetery.  We loved the spirit of the area and loved the stories the missionaries told us about the people who wintered over there on their way to the Salt Lake Valley.

All of the visitor's centers are fabulous.  Most have a 20-30 minute, very well done, video that we watched about what happened in that area and why it's important.  They are also staffed with missionaries there to tell us stories, take us on tours and answer any questions we had.  Several even have hands on activities to make the learning fun for kids.  I love that the church has preserved all of these sacred spots and that we can visit them now to deepen our understanding of what they early members of the church endured so that we can have what we have today.  I love this quote from Maureen O'Hara:

"My heritage has been my grounding, and it has brought me peace."

We truly found our heritage and felt it's peace as we visited these sites.  We also had some very special experiences.  Afton told me one day as we neared the end of our church history visits, "I think the most important thing I've learned as we've visited all of these spots is what the Spirit feels like."    That is a happy mom moment! 

We didn't get to all of the historic sites.  Some were just a little too far out of our way.  And for some, there just wan't enough time.  The places we didn't get to visit will have to be saved for another trip.
They are:

Far West - Missouri
Liberty Jail Historic Site - Liberty, Missouri
Book of Mormon Publication Site: Grandin Building - Palmyra, New York
Peter Whitmer Log Home - Waterloo, New York
Priesthood Restoration Site - Oakland Twp (Susquehanna), Pennsylvania

Why we visit temples as we travel

In April 2009, Elder Gary E. Stevenson gave a talk about the temple that reached me to my very core.  You can find the full talk here.  He said,

"You are never lost when you can see the temple. The temple will provide direction for you and your family in a world filled with chaos. It is an eternal guidepost which will help you from getting lost in the “mist of darkness.” It is the house of the Lord.  It is a place where covenants are made and eternal ordinances are performed.

The First Presidency has invited 'adult members to have a current temple recommend and visit the temple more often' where time and circumstance permit... They also encouraged 'newer members and youth of the Church who are 12 years of age and older to live worthy to assist in this great work by serving as proxies for baptisms and confirmations.' Even our young children have been encouraged to visit the temple grounds and touch the temple. President Thomas S. Monson once counseled, 'As we touch the temple, the temple will touch us.'”

I immediately knew that we needed to make it a priority for our entire family, not just those over 12, to visit the temples.  We made a goal that before the end of the year we would visit all of our local temples in Utah to walk the grounds, read something about them and touch the temples.  It made a great Sunday afternoon activity for our closest temples.  As the year progressed we had other activities further out of town and made visiting the temples in those parts of the state a priority.   We reached our goal and by the end of 2009 had visited every temple in Utah other than the St. George and Monticello temples.

That year set a habit in our lives of visiting temples.   After that, whenever we travel, we go out of our way if necessary to see the temples in that region.

As of today, October 19, 2017, our family has visited 36 of the 81 temples in the US. 

We LOVE visiting temples.  We see the temple and feel it's spirit.  We are truly never lost when we can see the temple!

Why do we build temples?

Ogden Utah temple

St. George Utah temple

Nauvoo Illinois temple

Palmyra New York temple

Ft. Collins Colorado temple

Kansas City Missouri temple

Raleigh North Carolina temple

Washington DC temple

Louisville Kentucky temple

Nashville Tennessee temple

St. Louis Missouri temple

Denver Colorado temple

Principles: What they are and where to find them!

I've spent a lot of time in the last several years learning about principles and how to find them.  Stephen Covey said, “Our behavior is governed by principles. Living in harmony with them brings positive consequences; violating them brings negative consequences.” I also read from Elder Richard G. Scott, “It is worth great effort to organize the truth we gather to simple statements of principle.” and from Pres. Ezra Taft Benson, “The most important [thing] you can do...is to immerse yourselves in the scriptures. Search them diligently... Master the principles.”

I wondered, "what are these principles and where do I find them?  And once found, how do I use them in my life?"  I wasn't liking the results I was getting in my life, so a study of principles ensued and I'm excited to share what I found!

We can find principles in everything we're reading, watching and learning.  They're all around us!

Once place we find principles is in the literature we are reading.  As we look for principles in the things that we read, we grow and become better and have principles from which to live our lives.  As we read, we come across the principles that the characters live their lives by.  They may not (and usually don't) make an outward statement of the principles they are living, but we can make a pretty good guess by their actions and the results that they get.  Sometimes they are true principles, sometimes they are false.

Javert in Les Miserables, for example, lives his life based on the principle that "once someone is a criminal, they will always be a criminal and can't change".  That is a false principle and we see that the results of living by it brought him nothing but frustration and sorrow.  We know that it is never too late for us to repent and change and that we are progressing and changing every day of our lives.

Or from Jane Eyre, "doing the right thing by God is always the right thing to do even if society and circumstance allow doing the wrong thing".  That is a true principle.  Even though she risked loosing her love, she found peace doing right by God.

 So how do we know when the principles we find are true principles or not?  We can run the principles through a few tests and ask a few questions to determine whether the principles we see others living are true.

To be a true principle, it will be a natural law, a law from God, and it will be true at all times for all people.  What was true for Jane Eyre would also be true for the ancient Egyptians as well as for us in our day.

Here are a few benchmarks we can look for to judge the principles we find by:

From Elder Richard G. Scott:

• Principles are concentrated truth, packaged for application to a wide variety of circumstances.
• A true principle makes decisions clear even under the most confusing and compelling circumstances.

From Audrey Rindlisbacher of the ten Boom Institute:

Characteristics of True Principles:

• Foundational idea upon which behavior is based (it’s not an application)
• True for all people, all the time
• Creates greater freedom for the individual and society
• Enlightens the understanding, enlarges the soul, expands your mind, brings new connections and ideas
• Empowers and gives hope
• Increases desire for good—in thoughts, behavior, environment and relationships
• Generates growth, enlivens
• Increases health and wholeness
• Creates win/win situations

Audrey’s Principle Checkpoints:

• God and/or Natural Law
• Your scripture or standard of truth
• Conscience
• Common sense
• Your experience—long term
• The experience of others—long term

One of the most important places for us to find principles is in our scriptures.  Of course when we find them in the scriptures (or in the words from the prophets) we don't have to evaluate them as true or false, they are always true. 

I find that it helps me and is really powerful to find principles and then rewrite them so that they apply, ("liken the scriptures..".).  It also helps to write the principles in a "If...then..." format.

"If I do something, then something else will happen." 

Author John Hilton III teaches us this in his book, "Please Pass the Scriptures: From Reading to Feasting" chapters 9-10.  He gives us three tricks to use with principles.  He says:

• Principles can be easier to find and apply when you write them in an “If ....then” statements.
• Rewriting principles in your own words helps you find, remember, and apply them. A great place to  write principles you find is in the margin of your scriptures or other books.
• If you ask “What is the author trying to teach?” it can help you find principles.

Once we find the principles we can then decided how to apply them to our own lives.  Principles are the foundational truth, and the application will be different for everyone.  Stephen Covey said, “If you want to achieve your highest aspirations and overcome your greatest challenges, identify and apply the principle or natural law that governs the results you seek. How we apply a principle will vary greatly and will be determined by our unique strengths, talents, and creativity, but, ultimately, success in any endeavor is always derived from acting in harmony with the principles to which the success is tied.”

For example, if I would like to be more physically healthy, a principle would be: "If I eat healthy foods, then my body will be healthy."  That is the principle, we can go down the check offs and know that it is truth.  The application is then how people choose to live or apply that principle.  So for the food principle, some applications could be: not eating meat, not eating dairy, or not eating gluten.  So while the application looks different for each of us, the principle is the same for all of us.

Another example would be the principle "parents are responsible for the education of their children".  Applications of that could be home school, public school, private school, charter school, trade school, etc.  Whatever they, the parents, feel is the best way for their own children to be educated.  So while the applications are different for everyone, the true principle is the same.

Here's are some examples of principles in the scriptures...

In Helaman 3:27 we read: "Thus we may see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name."  So we can rewrite the principle to be "If I call upon God's name with sincerity of heart, then the Lord will be merciful to me."  We then can apply "calling on God" it many different ways.

or

Helaman 3:28 "Yea, thus we see that the gate of heaven is open unto all, even to those who will believe on the name of Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God." would be "If I believe on the name of Jesus Christ, then the gate of heaven will be open to me."  Then we each can decided what "believing on the name of Jesus Christ" looks like to us and how we want to apply it.

Make sense?  So I decided to try it with my Patriarchal Blessing.  Wow!  Amazing.  I made a copy and have marked it all up.  It's amazing to see patterns and words that show up numerous times.  My patriarchal blessing is only 1 and 1/4 pages long.  Super short!  But I found 12 principles in it!

As I've made a study of principles I have found many that I try every day to live in my life.  I have seen myself change and am seeing different results in my life.  I have truly found what Stephen Covey promises, “Peace of mind comes when your life is in harmony with true principles and values and in no other way.”

For additional learning, here is a video from the ten Boom Institute on finding principle in what we read: