Upcoming Cinderella Movie!

Two of my roommates and I are SO excited for the new Cinderella movie that is coming out in March! Right near my birthday. It's our plan to go watch it in celebration of my birth! It looks cute!

The Season of Giving

I know I already posted this, but it's still my favorite and now it's really Christmas time. :) Remember it's the season of giving - and that season lasts all year long.

Common Sense Media

All of a sudden I am obsessed using the website Dr. Coyne showed us today. There have been times when I wanted to know WHY a certain movie was rated the way it was. Often I would find little descriptions, which were helpful, but I always wanted more. There also have been times where I wanted to know what a book was like, whether it was "Kristi - Rated" or not. When Dr. Coyne showed us the website https://www.commonsensemedia.org/ I was enthralled and immediately looked it up to see what it was like. 

It gives you the rating for positive messages, positive role models, violence, sex, language, consumerism, and drinking/drugs/smoking. With each of these rating, it will give you a description of what entails under that category. Then it will give you more detail about the story, whether it's good, ect. I think whoever undertook this project was a genius as there are so many uncertainties in the media we have today. 

I remember in High School my English teacher gave us an extra credit assignment to go see a movie at the movie theaters. The movie was PG13 and sometimes, even those movies are a bit too much for me. So I tried looking up why it was PG13. Somehow I stumbled upon the small font that said there was nudity and sexual scenes in it. 

Anyways, the moral of the story is, I think it is important to censor what we watch, read, ect. Content is important to understand before embarking into media, to know whether it is appropriate for your children and yourself.

The Meaning Behind Holidays.

In my household of ten girls, there are several who have already started celebrating Christmas. Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas, but why forget the celebrations of Thanksgiving? From November 1st 3 of my roommates started listening to Christmas music. I remember one morning last week in particular. It was 9 in the morning. I heard Christmas music being blasted and girls and guys singing (yes, I think there were men in our house at that time...seemed unusually odd to me since that doesn't happen often). Then a few days later, on Saturday, I went to our upstairs living room and found a Christmas tree all decorated! And other Christmas decorations surrounding the room! It was cute, but where have the decorations and celebrations of Thanksgiving gone? Last night, I was talking to some of my other roommates and friends about traditions for Thanksgiving. Only one of us had Thanksgiving traditions. I am grateful for the way she was raised in remembering the purpose behind Thanksgiving, as they read the story of the Pilgrims. In thinking about this tradition, it has made me realize how commercialized all of our holidays have become. Forget why we do it! Remember the cute decorations and the gifts you'll be getting for Christmas! I wonder if one reason why we like starting Christmas so soon is due to the fact of being busy ALL the time that it gives us more time to fit it into the little bits of time we have. We are such a busy people. Too busy at times. Do we give enough time and attention to the things that are really important? But I am becoming distracted from the topic at hand! Anyways, I think it is more important to remember the reason we celebrate the holidays and stop focusing so much on the materialist parts of the holiday. And to give everyone their equal share! I'm all about equality.

...Although, I should admit, I have listened to some Christmas music...instrumental music. But I am also remember my songs of Thanksgiving...which they aren't much. And why not? ...

The Hope of God's Light

Here is a powerful conversion story about God's light of hope:

I just love his story. Very touching!

Anne of Green Gables

Anne is one of many heroines of young girls idealize. The last two weekends, my roommates have watched the Anne of Green Gables movies. My roommates and I just love Anne. She is a unique, spunky, individual who stands up for being herself. She is the model for being herself and not fear what everyone else thinks. Some else she teaches that she learns over the course of her life is: "Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?" Overall, Anne is one of my favorites, a story where good morals can be learned.

LOVE - "What Shall I Give?"

I am totally in love with this music every since I saw this Mormon Message. And it is such a beautiful message! I know it's not Christmas time, like the video shows, but it is the season of (Thanks)giving! So watch and feel the spirit of giving as you view this beautiful video!

"I am a Child of God."

President Dieter F. Utchdorf said:

“When we sing the song “I Am a Child of God,” the lyrics penetrate our hearts. Pondering this truth—that we are children of heavenly parents—fills us with a sense of origin, purpose, and destiny.

It is good to remember that you are always a child of God. This knowledge will carry you through the most difficult times in your life and will inspire you to accomplish remarkable things. However, it is also important to remember that being a daughter [and son] of eternal parents is not a distinction you earned or you will ever lose. You will always and forever remain a daughter [and son] of God. Your Heavenly Father has high aspirations for you, but your divine origin alone does not guarantee you a divine inheritance. God sent you here to prepare for a future greater than anything you can imagine.

The promised blessings of God to the faithful are glorious and inspiring. Among them are “thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, dominions, all heights and depths.” And it takes more than a spiritual birth certificate or a “Child of God Membership Card” to qualify for these incomprehensible blessings.

But how do we attain them?

The Savior has answered this question in our time:

“Except ye abide my law ye cannot attain to this glory.

“For strait is the gate, and narrow the way that leadeth unto the exaltation. …

“… Receive ye, therefore, my law.”

For this reason, we speak of walking the path of discipleship.

We speak of obedience to God’s commandments.

We speak of living the gospel joyfully, with all our heart, might, mind, and soul.”

I love this. President Uchtdorf simply states that if we are to live up to our heritage as sons and daughters of God that we will be obedient and faithful to His commandments. I was pondering the other day how I can better show my faithfulness to God. It’s by following with my whole heart, might, mind, and soul. I would like to remind each of you to ponder more deeply what it means to be a child of God and how you can live up to your potential.

(*I was asked to give the spiritual thought at FHE tonight and this is what I am going to share. So I decided to share with all of you as well! Hope you enjoy. Especially the video!)