"To give me opportunities to help my family now and in the future."

• PLAN A MEAL: With a set budget, plan a menu for a simple meal and go shopping to see if you can purchase the items within the budget. (You don't actually have to buy the food.)
• SOCK PUPPETS: Make puppets out of socks and go home and use the puppet to tell a story in Family Home Evening.
• NEIGHBORHOOD STORYTELLING: Gather young children from the neighborhood and have each girl read them a story.
• MAKE JAM: Have the children bring fruit in season and make jam.
• BANANA BREAD: Make banana bread in small foil pans send a loaf home with each of the girls, they will love you.
• BABYSITTING COURSE: Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo, Utah, offers a 3 hour babysitting course. They teach safety, and activity ideas. It is $3.00 per person and well worth it. If you live elsewhere, call your local hospital and see if they offer a babysitting course.
• BABYSITTING KIT: Have the children make a babysitting kit. Include, books on tape, crayons,simple games, finger puppets,water color paints, etc...(You can do the basics and they can go home and add things that they have) The children can take it with them when they go babysitting. The parents will keep calling them to baby sit when they realize that they don't just sit and watch tv the whole time.
• CAKE DECORATING: Make a small cake for each child. Teach them some basic cake decorating skills. This could be a birthday party, celebrating all of the birthdays for the year. It could be for Mother's or Father's Day.
• HOMEMADE BREAD: Ask an older woman in the ward to help teach the children how to make bread. It will be great for all involved.
• FAMILY HOME EVENING LESSON: Help the children to make a simple Family Home Evening lesson with a story and visual aids and/or game. The girls can then take them home and teach Family Home Evening.
• PIZZA DOUGH: Teach the children how to make pizza dough. You can make bread sticks or pizza.
• MUDDIE BUDDIES: One of the best meeting that we had was about a year after I was called. We were going to make Chex Muddie Buddies.We always met at the church and there was always someone there to open the building for me. Well, this one exceptionally hot July day, no one open the building. It was about 108 degrees and most of the mom's dropped off their girls, believing (as I was believing too) that someone would soon be there to open the doors for us. The longer we waited, the more restless the girls got SO... I had brought all of the ingredients for our treat, my own pot and wooden spoon, baggies ..I brought everything. I showed the girls how to use the heat off of the blacktop to melt the chocolate. It worked like a dream! We made our Muddie Buddies and the girls had a blast! As the mom's came to pick up their girls, however, they weren't exactly clean. We didn't have a water supply to rinse off our hands. The turn keys for the outdoor faucets had been removed so that no one could steal them. My girls still talk abut that today. the mom's were even impressed. That was 2 years ago and I haven't been able to top that one...I've come close though. Laura in N. Ca.
• RECIPE COLLECTION: Start your own recipe collection. Have each child bring a few easy and nutritious recipes that the children could learn to make at home. Let the children copy each recipe on an index card. Challenge them to keep them in a book or box (a small picture album works great, even the free ones you get when you get your pictures developed). Suggest that they try to continue to add to their recipe collection. Suggest that they cook dinner for their families using the recipes.
• MEND CLOTHES: Learn how to mend clothes. Have the children bring one or two pieces of clothing that needs mending. Teach them how to sew on a button and repair a torn seam.
• WASH CAR: Teach the children how to wash and vacuum a car. (Your car would be nice). Then they can go home and wash the family car for a service project.
• MOTHER DAUGHTER ACTIVITY: . Have each mother be at a station and have the girls rotate around in small groups. The stations could include, sewing on a button, ironing a small item, (bring a mattress) learn to make a bed, sweep or mop a floor, make an easy treat, fold clothes or towels, sorting laundry etc...make it fun and informative. You will be surprised how much they will like it.
• FAMILY HOME EVENING: On a Thursday night we plan a FHE activity for our families our girls picked the songs, who to pray, games and all other arrangements. Then on the following Monday the girls carried out the activity on the church lawn and each family brought a plate of treats. Because this activity was on two different days we counted the monday night activity as hospitality.
• REPOT HOUSE PLANTS: I taught the girls how to repot house plants. I purchased small terra cotta pots, four 3-inch pothos plants, and some soil. We took the plants and divided them so everyone got a part to repot. My total cost was under $10 for an activity that the girls (and their moms) really enjoyed! I also showed them how to make starter plants from existing plants, and the girls enjoy seeing how well those starter plants are thriving when they come to my home for activities! And the girls can bring their plants (hopefully still alive!) to use as centerpieces for Recognition night!
• "MOM THINGS" RELAY: I had a "relay" of "mom things" a button & thread with shirt piece of fabric & button next to it, iron & ironing board with men's shirt on it, card needed to be made for school, and a laundry basket full of socks to be put together. The "relay" started with them sewing a button on the fabric, then you went to the ironing board, then to the card needing to be finished, all the while I "talked & nagged" like kids do sometimes (more than we want them to :), Mom (total whiney voice) I can't wear my shirt to school I'm missing my button, oh heavens honey my shirt needs to be ironed for work, mom! I really need these cards for school and finally Mom, everyone always asks why I never wear socks. then lastly, your boyfriend/husband is coming home, you better straighten up & check your lipstick, girl goes to mirror, pretty frazzled (but hopefully laughing) we had so much fun and then HOPEFULLY the girls appreciated their moms more!
• TASTERS NIGHT: One month we decided to have the girls pick out one of their favorite recipes, something simple so they can make it themselves, and bring a sample to a "tasters night". We really encouraged the girls to make the dish themselves so that they could be fully involved in this. We also made copies of all the recipes ahead of time and compiled it in a girl's achievement recipe book. That was one of our favorite nights and the girls had a ball. K. O. Freeport, Illinois
• PERSONAL PIZZA: - use pita bread or tortillas for pizza crust and have the girls make their own individual pizza by putting on the sauce, cheese, and toppings.
• COOKING LESSON: -Learn how to measure ingredients using measuring cups and spoons. You can teach what the different cooking terms mean IE: stir, whip, blend, fry etc... (look in your cookbook for a page of terms) Teach them how to read a recipe and what the abbreviations mean. You could make up a fun game or quiz at the end to review the things learned.
• SEWING 101: Find a simple pattern that requires a small amount of yardage (an apron is easy). Spend a couple of activities learning how to read a pattern, cut, fit and sew it. Round up several sewing machines and specialists to make this a successful experience.
• FHE KIT: Make a family home evening kit for each girl to take home and share with her family. The kits we made includes specific instructions to help the girls follow a structured fhe. There was a simple game, a story with stick puppets to color, a recipe for a treat, suggestions for songs and scriptures to go with the principle being taught. The one we made was on being a good neighbor and friend to everyone. The girls each took kit home in a file folder to share with their family on monday night.
• YARN DOLLS AND FOLDING NAPKINS: We also did chore charts and I had a fun little quiz on table manners for the girls to do as a gathering activity. For the napkin folding, I used this website: www.fabulousfoods.com/features/tables/tables.html I like the simple designs in the 'napkins with pockets' section. These are four designs that can be done with the regular, paper napkins that you buy at the grocery store. For more exquisite designs, type 'napkin folding' into any internet search engine and surf around for a while. You'll be delighted with what you find. Try here: www.visatablelinen.com/html/fold.html For the yarn dolls, I used this website: www.worldplay.org/paw/kidscorner/yarndolls.html Here are the basic instructions- Materials Needed: 1. Lots of yarn 2. Scissors 3. A book of any size Directions 1. Take your book and wrap the yarn around it 50 times. This will determine how fat your Yarn Doll will be. 2. Slip a small piece of yarn through the top and tie a knot. This will be where you will hold the doll. 3. Slip the yarn off of the book and cut the ends so that they hang free. 4. Tie a piece of yarn around the top section of the yarn for the head. 5. Tie off two arms, the body, and two legs. Leave the rest hanging so that your doll has a little skirt to wear. 6. For an extra touch, braid or twist together some different color yard to make a belt. Again, by surfing around the internet, I found several different examples of yarn dolls that I liked. For the chore charts, I found a sample on the internet that I liked and I printed one out for each girl on card stock. They will take it home and complete it for two weeks, then bring it back for a prize. (I made sure to use one that stated it was not copyright protected.) I always have a gathering activity each time we meet. Here are the questions for the table manners quiz: 1. When is it acceptable to put your elbows on the table? Only between courses. While you are eating. Never. 2. During the meal you need to visit the restroom. What do you do? Announce to everyone, "I've gotta go to the toilet." Say, "Excuse me for a moment, I'll be right back." Say nothing -- just leave. Sit quietly and suffer until the meal is over. 3. When you are not eating, where do you keep your hands? On your lap or resting on the table. In your pockets. Keep 'em busy. Drum a little tune with your fingers. 4. Is it good manners to read the newspaper at the table? Only if you're willing to share the sports section. Yes -- as long as you keep it neatly folded. No. Reading or watching TV during dinner is a social no-no. 5. At dinner, when should you start eating? As soon as you are served. When everyone has been served. When the host or parent begins to eat. ANSWERS: 1. Contrary to popular belief, elbows on the table is acceptable between courses or after everyone has finished eating. 2. Publicly announcing bodily functions is crass. If you gotta go, you gotta go -- just leave with the minimum amount of fuss. A quiet "Excuse me for a moment, I'll be right back" is sufficient. 3. On your lap or resting on the table (with wrists on the edge of the table) is ideal. 4. Reading at the table is bad manners and something busy moms and dads tend to forget ;-) Ideally, dinner is a time for nourishment and conversation. 5. It's bad manners to dig in before everyone else is served and the host (or hostess) has begun to eat. In very formal settings the sign that it is OK to eat comes when the hostess unfolds her napkin and places it on her lap. I told the girls to go home and quiz their families and then set a good example at meal time. For our gathering activity on the second meeting of the month, I used this word search: www.tinyurl.com/4tpi If that link doesn't work, go to www.familyeducation.com, click on 'ages 9-13', and then click on 'online quizzes'. You'll get lots of fabulous ideas for quiz questions that can be used for a variety of subjects. As you can probably tell, I do a lot of my achievement day preparation on the internet. I think it's a great resource! I did spend quite a bit of time locating all the good sites, though, so I hope to save everyone else some time by passing along my ideas. Hope you like them. Lisa in Lindon, Utah
• SEWING BUTTONS: Ask the families if they have any clothing that needs buttons sewn back on . Have the girls practice sewing the buttons onto the clothing.
• learning about plants and gardening. we're planting tomato plants.
• COOKIE IN A JAR: The girls learned how to measure dry ingredients when each of them made a "Cookie in a Jar". We filled Mason jars with the dry cookie ingredients, and the different layers made neat colors (we used peanut butter chips, M&M's, etc.)Then when they were finished, they could give it to someone as a great Christmas gift. There are several recipes for this activity at Allrecipes.com (just search for "Cookie in a jar")
•