June 2010 Newsletter

June Lessons
Presiding Kaylynn Birch
June 6 RS Presidency/Group Leadership Kaylynn Birch
June 13 Gospel Principles #10 Scriptures
Myrna Clark
June 20 Gospel Principles #11 The Life of Christ
June 27 Teaching for our Times General Talk from April 2009 Conference – “The Power of Priesthood” President Boyd K. Packer
Ramona Ford

The Sister of the Month
This month we are spotlighting Sister Mary Gallagher. I want to thank her for giving us an insight into her life. I am hoping that knowing a little about each other will help us become closer.

Ancestor of the Month
Sister Gallagher has provided us with some information about her ancestor. She gave me a short paragraph with some important details. I did a quick google search and came up with a list of stories from those with the same name as Sister Gallagher’s ancestor. It included this person’s date and place of birth, his parents, brothers and sisters, wives, with marriage dates, and children, with birthdates and places. It also give a brief references to the building of both the St. George and Salt Lake Temple – something that Sister Gallagher had in her history. I have also found an article, from ancestors.com concerning how to locate our ancestors.

Father’s Day
As with last month, we have a holiday this month that, depending on our circumstances, may evoke different feelings from some of us. Also, as all of our circumstances are different, some of what I am including may be more pertinent to some than it is to others. However, regardless of our circumstances, Father’s Day is a holiday that is important to all of us. No matter what our circumstances in this life, we all have a loving Heavenly Father (I work with a woman who’s earthly father was so abusive she requested having Heavenly Father to be listed as her father on her Baptismal Record). Last month I mentioned that it is important for us to help our children respect and honor us as mothers. It is also important for us to teach our children to respect and honor their earthly fathers and ultimately their Heavenly Father. In our last conference the importance of fathers and their role in the family was emphasized. It was noted that his role is to be as the head of the family. This does not make the mother’s role any less important. Part of her role is to openly recognize and support her husband in his role in the family. Although I recognize that this is easy for me to say, as a single sister, I feel confident that this is a principle that will bless us when we follow it. I have included some fun gifts to make for Father’s Day.

Scripture Thought

For the scripture I decided the one that shows our Heavenly Father’s deep love for us. John 3: 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

June Recipes

There are a couple of recipes that would be suitable for Father’s Day. Also some fun recipes for the summer by Dian Thomas and some tips on Dutch Oven cooking along with some tips for summer safety. I have also included an article from Dian Thomas entitled “Twelve Ways to Make Dinner Fun.”

Health Tips

One of the fun parts of summer is being out in the sun. There are two sides to this – the good and the bad. On the negative side, exposure to the sun can lead to problems, including skin cancer. However, sun exposure can also be beneficial to us. I have included both the pros and cons.

Children and Summer

There are a few things that the combination of Summer and Children bring. As I was going through the June 2010 issue of Good Housekeeping, I found a section that deals with these issues – more time on the computer and more time lounging around (creating what Good Housekeeping calls the ‘Summer Slide’). The June issue also deals with money and children (which, given that summer can mean extra free time and boredom for children, can be a problem). In the section titled “Build Money Skills,” they write “If your kid is a video game virtuoso, make his playtime pay off by pointing him to The Great Piggy Bank Adventure (thegreatpibbybankadventure.com)”. This program, created by Walt Disney Imagineering and T. Rowe Price helps families talk about money and helps children gain crucial budgeting skills. As the children journey through the animated game, pick financial goals (i.e. a tree house), set savings goals, and learn to spend and earn money wisely. Since up to 4 people can play at one time (not to mention those watching, cheering, and advising), this could be a fun family home evening activity. They also give “4 New Facebook Rules” which include not using full names (use nicknames or first-middle name combos to maintain privacy), choosing tricky password and changing it every 3 to 6 months, Restricting access (using the “only friends” instead of “friends of friends”, and stick to the past (instead of broadcasting plans which give potential stalkers information on our children’s whereabouts) I have included the complete listing, along with suggestions on preventing the ‘summer slump,’ on the blog and in the email.