I love General Conference. And not just because I get to have Couch Church. I love everything about it. We generally spend a couple of weeks in our family revving up for the semi-annual event. We’ve found lots of ways to make General Conference memorable. I love holidays. Every single one. Even Labor Day. I love the traditions and food and fun and family and music and memories. And Easter is a holiday that is filled with good things. One of my favorites was dreamed up by my mom when I was in late elementary school. She “decorated” our house for Easter by gathering gorgeous reproductions of events in Christ’s life, mounting them carefully, and placing them around the house in sort of a timeline — after our family night lesson explaining each story. Once again this year, Easter and General Conference collide. It’s always a downer for me because a big part of Easter is the act of attending church. From what I understand, Christmas (week) and Easter are the two most attended days in Christian churches — a time when even non-regulars make the effort to show up. And even though we attend every week, it’s part of the whole feel of Easter Sunday to me. Before we broke down and bought a home satellite dish (which, completely coincidentally, happened one day before a General Conference Sunday), we sat in the chapel one Easter Sunday in Boca Raton…
Author: Alison Moore Smith
Alison Moore Smith was born in 1964 in Provo, Utah, and handed over to her real, loving parents two days later in the Skaggs parking lot. That’s what we call a blue light special. In 1985 she married her dream man, Dr. Samuel McArthur Smith, in the Salt Lake Temple. She graduated from BYU in 1987, three weeks after their first child was born. They are now the proud parents of six children: Jessica, Belinda, Alana, Monica, Samson, and Caleb. Alison is now in her 20th year of homeschooling her children. Jessica is an official graduate of the Smith family homeschool, affectionately known as Oakwood Academy. She graduated from BYU majoring in film production with an editing emphasis and minors in computer science, graphic design, and ballroom dance. Belinda is a junior at BYU majoring in American Studies. Alana was just accepted to BYU and to the Music/Dance/Theater major to begin in the fall of 2011. The younger Smith children are equally brilliant, talented, and beautiful and still attending Oakwood Academy. Alison loves singing, writing, programming, blogging, reading, holidays, karate, and rice crispies with sugar free chocolate milk powder and skim milk. She ran (using the term loosely) the Top of Utah Marathon to celebrate her 40th year on earth. Her first book, The 7 Success Habits of Homeschoolers will be published this year — if she gets the charts done. She speaks at conventions for homeschoolers and women’s groups across the country. She is the founding editor of Mormon Momma and owner of PopCred. She would love to have you friend her on FaceBook so that one day she can claim more virtual friends than her teens!
What December Means to Me
December is my favorite month ever. Except maybe May 18. Which isn’t really a month, but could be celebrated all year long. Still, these are my favorite things about December. Mostly in chronological order.
Sister Missionaries and Opposite-Gender Attraction
A wonderful woman who served as my Education Counselor a number of years ago served a mission for the church around the time she was 19. She fell in the fabulous loophole. Her father was a mission president, so she was allowed to serve while he served, even though she was “underage.” But George Durrant was not just any mission president.
Pray Crazy
Don’t ask me to “bless the refreshments” at a ward (or any other) function. Just don’t.
God is a Bus Driver
This week I made the pilgrimage to Education Week at BYU, as I always do mid-August. No, I’m not live-blogging the event but, in light of Rory’s deist leanings, an instructor’s comment stuck out.
When Prayers Become Talks
Of all completely meaningless things that annoy me, high on the list is when Young Women is referred to as “Young Women’s.” I’d spend more time elaborating on that, but I really need to finish this post so I can get on to my Relief Society’s lesson.
Time to Reconsolidate?
I was only a teenager when the new-fangled consolidated schedule hit the church fashion scene.
The Gospel of Gluttony and Sloth
Some years ago, I noticed a trend among female general auxiliary leaders. With few exceptions, they all lean (no pun intended) to the slimmer side of the LDS population at large (ahem). Much as missionaries have a particular grooming code, is there an unwritten appearance requirement for “upper-level” service?
Why Mormons Build Temples
The church has a channel on YouTube called Mormon Messages. Yesterday they posted a new video titled, “Why Mormons Build Temples.” (Comments and ratings are not open on this video.) How do you think this will work as a response to the upcoming airing of recreated temple ceremonies (accurate or not)?
Be Mannerly
In the spirit of President Hinckley’s six be’s, I’d like to submit some suggestions for visiting/home teaching etiquette. Here are my 12 be’s of assigned teaching. Please add your own!