"Why I can't stop reading Mormon housewife blogs"

Emily Flinders found  a great article about non-members who love reading blogs written by Mormon housewifes.  It may be interesting to all you bloggers!  Check it out here.

Making Conference More Meaningful

General Conference is what you make it.

If approached like any other weekend, it will be just that. However, when one takes the weight of it seriously, that God speaks through his prophets, it becomes an entirely different experience.

This writer presents three ideas to consider for making conference more meaningful:

Make up your mind
Decide beforehand that you will watch or listen to conference. If you don’t, it’s much more likely your schedule will be, at least partially, hijacked by unplanned, last-minute affairs—distractions.

Come with a question 
President Henry B. Eyring recently said, “I loved this conference because I was able to receive personal answers to my questions. There had been a question in mind as I came into conference. And in the talk given by Elder Richard G. Scott, my question was answered.” What sin, fear, or difficulty are you facing or need help with?

Write it down
Jotting notes and writing impressions in a journal are infinitely more lasting than writing in a stray re-purposed notebook or on loose sheets of paper. ...And studies show that doodling alone while listening to someone speak increased a person's memory recall by 29 percent.

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Here are a couple of bonus ideas:

Dress appropriately
To get the most out of General Conference we always tried to invite the Spirit into our home and never allowed our kids to stay in their jammies or to sleep during the talks. We also chose one session and went to the church building to watch it.  We feel like when you are dressed appropriately then you are in the proper frame of mind. —Shellie Blake

Keep the kids involved
- The church has a new website for General Conference. Check it out.
- There are matching games for kids and more activities for children.
- Download the 2010 General Conference Youth Packet from Sugardoodle.
- Get more conference games and activities from About.com.

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Photo credit

I resolve to...

 ...what? 

Part 1 - Tell us what your plans for improvement are this year.

For some practicing more faith is a top priority in 2010. Which one attribute of the Savior would I like to emulate the most, that would have the greatest positive impact in my life?

For some it is a hot topic for much reflection.

Should you set a goal or a resolution? Which is better?

Does it really matter that you keep your resolutions? Turns out it does.

Be specific, write it down, review it often. These along with 9 other tips can help you stick to your resolutions.

Mine tend to remain the same from year to year...more sincere prayers uttered more often, to be more authentic, to practice more faith, hope, and charity.

Feel free to share a couple of yours in the comments below or e-mail me with a longer write-up.

Part 2 - “I resolve to write more”

I challenge you to resolve to do more writing in the new year. You are invited to write as a guest blogger for our blog!

This year I'm trying something different for our guest bloggers...assigned topics for each month. Choose from this month's topics:

- What are your 2010 New Year's resolutions? [telling us may help you keep them!]

- What are you proud of for 2009? Tell about your successes at meeting a goal or keeping a resolution.

- Tell about a New Year's resolution you didn't keep and why. We could all be instructed.

This could be a good way to record some stories for your personal history, so set a goal to meet my challenge.

Funny, serious, lighthearted or spiritual...I'll take them all. Also, if you have a photo or a photo essay to accompany your posting, please send that too.

Happy writing! and Happy Resolution Making!

Ellen
egkmail [at] verizon [dot] net

Photo credit

The Days Are Long, The Years Are Short

Like this girl who ran through my photo so quickly, our children grow up so quickly.

Enjoy this video by Gretchen Rubin The Years Are Short. It's a good reminder to keep your life in perspective.

Check out Gretchen's Happiness Project blog too. She has some great tips, busts some myths and generally helps you resolve to be happier. One of my favorite ideas is the One-Sentence Journal.

Ellen

Photo credit: eking2

Do You Love Diaries?

Do you enjoy reading about other's lives in their own words? Ever wonder if your missionary experiences were like others? See this BYU archive of Mormon Missionary Diaries, including the first woman missionary to serve independently of a husband.

From the website:
One of the great values that Mormon missionary diaries give us is the insight into the lives of ordinary people, missionaries and the people they labored among. We find deep religious insights set against cultural and social biases, often fermenting in misunderstandings due to language gaps of considerable proportions. But beyond the daily cares and cycles of the lives of common people are insights into the economic and political worlds they inhabited. Poverty, inflation, population mobility, family and community structure, as well as religious attitudes are just a sample of the knowledge that can be gained through the study of these missionary journals.