Indian food pyramid

10 Ways to Honor Your Mother Throughout the Year

by Rob Flood

Our appreciation for our mothers often experiences both ebbs and flows. When you were 5, your mother knew everything. When you were 9, you had your doubts. As a 13-year-old, you were certain—she knew nothing. In your senior year of high school, you thought you didn't need her anymore. And then all of that changed as you grew older. When you planned your wedding, you didn't want to make a single decision without her. (Well, perhaps one or two.) And then you had children. Whether your appreciation for your mother is currently in ebb or in flow, you certainly have a deeper appreciation for what your mother went through and what she had to endure as a parent. And, as Mother's Day approaches, pangs of "What should I do for my mother this year?" echo through the minds of adult children everywhere. Rather than settling for just an arrangement of flowers or a new pair of earrings, how about a gift that will keep giving throughout the whole year? How about giving the gift of honor? Cultivating a relationship of honor with your mother will be a priceless gift. But that's not all. God promises blessing to those that honor their parents: "...so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth." (Ephesians 6:3).Here are ten ideas to both give and receive a blessing.

1. Seek to understand her as a mom. Motherhood is not turned on and off like a light switch or a kitchen faucet. It is a calling that lasts a lifetime. You never cease to be her child; she never ceases to be your mother. When you scraped your knee on the playground, she was deeply concerned. When you were hurt by your friends in high school, she was deeply concerned. Now, as an adult, when things happen to you or around you, she will still be deeply concerned. Learn to appreciate it. Share prayer requests when appropriate. Keep her plugged in. Be willing to embrace the reality that Mom is still Mom, regardless of your age. Doing this will bring her honor.

2. Seek to understand her as a woman. God made your mom a mother. However, He also made her a woman. She feels the feelings other women feel. She has the strengths other women have. She has the needs found in other women. When communicating with her, don't relegate her to something less than she is. Treat her with the honor due to women. Think of her as a woman. If you are her daughter, speak to her in the same way you want to be spoken to: with consideration, with patience, with understanding. If you are her son, treat her with respect; do not raise your voice at her; give her room to process her feelings as you would the other important women in your life (your wife or daughters). Doing this will bring her honor.

3. Seek to understand her as a person. I remember well in elementary school any time I'd see a teacher in the grocery store or the mall. They just didn't seem to belong there. They belonged in school. In my view, I suppose I thought that teachers powered off when I left and powered up when I got there. I never realized that they were real people.Your mother is a person, too, with parents, siblings, friends, interests, hobbies, etc. Being your mother is important to her, but it is not all she is. She is a whole person who is just as multi-faceted as you are.Acknowledge and embrace your mother's personhood. She came from a home and a time period of history. She has been shaped by the events of her life. Encourage her individuality. Ask her to tell you about her parents. Ask her to share some of her youth with you. Give her room to express who she is and how she got where she is. Offer to join her in something that is important to her. Doing this will bring her honor.

4. Seek to understand her as less than perfect. We often have storehouses of grace for people in our lives. We extend it numerous times each day. At the same time, we often have a standard of perfection for our mothers that would intimidate Mother Teresa. When your mother falls short of that standard, many of us have developed the habit of harping on it and magnifying it. She, like you, is less than perfect. She has quirks in her personality and tendencies toward certain types of sin—just like we do. Lower your standard for her. Give her room to be less than perfect. And, when she is, consider taking a trip to your storehouse of grace and tossing some in her direction. Doing so will bring her honor.

5. Speak well of her. This does not mean excusing issues that need to be discussed. This just means when you speak of her, speak well of her. Do not slander her to friends, siblings, or your spouse. You do everyone a disservice when you slander your mother. You disobey God; you harm her character; you taint how others perceive her; and you further ingrain a rejection of her—all because of speaking negatively about her.Choose to speak well of her to others. Speak words of encouragement when they come to mind—don't let the opportunity pass. If no words of blessing come to mind, pray in silence until the Lord brings them to mind. Do not feign affection if there is none there; however, resist the temptation to slander her. Doing so will bring her honor.

6. Remember her. When we leave our parents and cleave to our spouses, a great union is created. However, we often fail to recognize that a great void is left behind. When you left home, you left a person somewhere behind you who poured her whole life into developing you and caring for you. Now you're gone. Don't forget to turn around regularly and share your love, your concern, and your gratitude. Call her. Be sure that you initiate some of the calls, not waiting for the times she calls you. Switch it up as well. Send a card or an e-mail (flowers never hurt, either.) Doing so will bring her honor.

7. Help her understand her role in your family. Many mothers need help in this area. Help her understand the importance of time alone with your spouse. Help her understand areas where her input is valued and welcome. Help her understand areas where it is not. Be sure to discuss this with your spouse, whose insight into your mother and your relationship with her can be invaluable. Sharing your desires for her role in your family may expand her involvement; it may reduce her involvement. This may produce short-term tensions and discomfort. In the long run, though, doing so will bring her honor.

8. Anticipate her concerns. For as long as I can remember, my mother has always been concerned about my security. Am I safe? Am I alright? To her defense, I was always the pitcher on the baseball team, the goaltender on the soccer team, and the quarterback on the football team. I liked the risk and responsibility, but she hated it.As an adult, I can expect her to have these same concerns for me. There are times she'll ask me about my well-being. There are other times when I anticipate her concerns and inform her of my well-being. Each time, she has appreciated my speaking directly to her concern, even before she asked about it. Your mom may have vastly different concerns from mine. But this much is sure; if your mother has children, she has concern for them. Anticipate them. Let her know that you understand her. Initiating conversation on her concerns will help validate her feelings and calm her heart as well. The little bit of effort can go a long way in expressing love for her. Doing so will bring her honor.

9. Help her be a grandmother. If you live close to your parents, this may not be as much of an issue. However, if you live away, there is little doubt that your mother wishes she could see your children more. Of course, make an effort to visit when possible. When it is not possible, there are still other ways to honor her as a grandmother. Send pictures (especially candid shots through e-mails.) Have the children create cards and send them. Train your children to speak to their grandmother—even the teenagers. Talk about her with your children often. Help them to think of her each week. These are little things that go a long way to bridge the gap that the distance has created. Your effort will be appreciated. It will help her connect to your children. Doing so will bring her honor.

10. Desire to honor her. The suggestions listed above will not be very helpful unless your heart desires to honor your mother. The tone of your voice will give you away. If you struggle with desiring this, then begin praying to God. Ask Him to place that desire in your heart. Ask Him to reveal His heart as it relates to honor. Confess the sin He brings up in your mind. Change your actions and attitudes to better align with His directions and intentions for you. Do not give up on this. Every step you take, no matter how small, better honors God Himself. Your walk with God will benefit. Your marriage will benefit. Your children will benefit. In the end and through the process, your mother will benefit. God will smile on the change in you. Doing so will bring Him honor.

7 good habbits

1) CleaningI wouldn't call myself a cleaning fanatic or anything, but ever since I got married my standards of cleaning skyrocketed. Maybe it was because I could finally control my environment without three roommates...I dunno. However, I also found cleaning keeps me very happy. I can be in the worst mood and I know if I go scrub my bathroom, that frown will be turned upside-down. As for the habitual part of it, I clean my house everyday; pick-up clutter, empty garbage, kitchen and bedrooms. I also have Saturday-morning chores every week (on Fridays if we're busy on Saturday). This includes deeper cleaning, scrubbing the bathroom, mopping floors, vacuuming, dusting and any other needed chores. The opposite also applies--if my house is dirty--I get VERY grumpy.

2) Eating an Apple a DayThis is something I have picked up recently. If there is an apple in the house, I will eat one, usually as part of my lunch or for a snack,when I really want left-over Halloween candy (usually I just end up eating both). However, it helps me get my needed fruit servings and the fiber doesn't hurt anything either.

3) Bedtime RoutineI also have a very detailed bedtime routine, that if not followed leads to severe consequences. It goes as follows: Remove contacts, wash my face with my Neutrogena soap bar, brush my teeth, put in my retainer, blow my nose, put on my glasses (which can be rather difficult if they weren't previously located before taking out my contacts) and prayers.

4) Smelly Good HouseAnyone who knows me well knows I have a thing with smells. Poor Phil, not only can he not smell (well, he can, but I have like this super-capacity smelling shnoz that usually leaves his smelling abilities by the wayside) but there has been more than one occasion I have called him at work because I couldn't pinpoint a weird/new smell. Basically it comes down to I LOVE good smells and completely disgust bad ones. What I find good and bad...well that sometimes surprises people...but having a smelly good house can be more difficult than it sounds. Every day it is my mission to make sure my house smells normal and clean and hopefully on most days, absolutely scrumptious. I put high-quality candles on our "Needs" list and can hunt down a bad smell like a dog.

5) ExerciseI don't know how long you have to be doing something for it to actually become a habit (I heard once it was like 21 times or maybe 11...I dunno) but I have gone running--scratch that-- jogging, every other day for almost three weeks. The first week was a little scattered, but I found a couple of gals in my ward who also just had babies and they're training for 200 mile run (between 12 people) next August and they're gracious enough to let me tag along. It's nice because they aren't totally in shape yet, but still ahead of me by quite a ways, so it's a great way to push myself. If you only knew how much I hate running and how bad of shape I'm in, you too would also consider this quite a feat for me, even if it's only been three weeks.

6) ScripturesI have this goal by like age 50 to be this awesome scriptorian. I say age 50, because if I start now and work hard, I'll be lucky to make that goal. I really try hard to be in my scriptures at least once every day. Sometimes that does mean staring at the same scripture for 10 minutes while my brain processes every thought not relating to what I just read, but I do try hard to spend quality time with my scriptures, particularly the Book of Mormon, on a daily basis. On a side note, I'm taking a Preach My Gospel class where we are color-coating certain scriptures in application to PMG...really fun.

7) FinancesI somewhere along the lines assigned myself with managing our finances. Anyhow, now that I'm able to stay at home I check and record our financial transactions daily along with adhering to a dedicated bill-paying schedule. Great habit? Yes. Whether I like it or not...all depends on the amount left when I'm done.

IMPROVING STUDY HABITS

Unfortunately, children are not born with the study habits needed for them to succeed in school. They must learn them. Very often children begin school without the skills they need to do well. Here are some things that parents can do to prepare their children for school as well as to improve their study habits.
*Start early. Although it is not recommended to begin formally teaching children before they start school, parents can begin to set a good example for their children long before they start school. This can be done by encouraging learning. Parents should try to read to their children daily. Reading skills are very important for success in school. Reading to children helps them develop a love for reading. Parents should provide plenty of interesting books for their children, too. Finally, parents can set a good example by reading often themselves.
Parents should try to encourage their children's natural curiosity about the world. Parents can do this by talking to their children, by listening to their children, and by answering their questions. Parents should also try to expose their children to as many exciting, stimulating things as possible.
*Get involved. Parents should take an interest in their children's education by joining the PTA or by becoming involved in other school activities. If parents believe their children's education is important enough for their involvement and attention, their children will take an interest, too. It is a good idea for parents to get to know and communicate with their children's teachers. Parents should give their children lots of encouragement, too. They should talk to their children about what they're doing in school. This will help to reinforce what they're learning.
Once the Homework Begins...
Once children reach the grades where homework and tests are part of the curriculum, there are many things parents can do to encourage good study habits.
*Set a schedule. Parents should decide with their children what time each day homework is to be done. While children are in the lower grades, one hour a day will probably be enough. As homework and responsibilities increase, more time will be needed. It is important that children take part in these decisions. Children need to know that they are able to make decisions about their studying. Once children and parents have decided on a schedule, they should stick to it. If there is no homework to be done on a given day, parents can have their children use this time as quiet time to read or work on long term projects. It's important for children to get used to studying every day.
*Provide a study area. Parents should provide a quiet, comfortable area for their children to study in. It's a good idea that studying be done in the same place every day. Parents should make sure their children have the supplies they need (for example, paper, pencils, a pencil sharpener). Sometimes children's bedrooms are not the best place to study. There are often lots of distractions in children's rooms.
*Help your children get organized. Parents should give their children a calendar on which to record assignments and to check them off when they're completed. Parents can also show their children how to keep their work and materials organized and how to prioritize assignments.
*Provide reinforcement. Parents should praise their children for working hard and completing assignments. Parents should keep in mind, though, that homework is not always fun. Don't expect perfection.
*Offer help. Parents should be available to answer any questions that might come up. They should try to provide information without actually doing the homework for their children.
*Give children the responsibility for their own homework. Parents cannot force their children to study. Nagging and threatening don't work. Children need to know that they are responsible for doing their homework and for studying. Parents should give their children the responsibility, and let them suffer the consequences if they, for example, fail to turn in an assignment. The parents' role is to provide support.
*If the schedule is not working, try a different one. If the plan parents and their children have come up with is not working, they should change it. Perhaps two shorter study periods per day will be easier to take than one long one. Perhaps an early evening study time will work better than one immediately after school. Parents and their children should work with the routine until they come up with one that works.
Remember, children must learn that they are responsible for their own learning. Parents can make the difference by giving their children the tools to do so.

How do you know Santa has to be a man?

No woman is going to wear the same outfit year after year!What do you call Santa's helpers?Subordinate Clauses.

Why are women's breasts like a train set a kid gets at Christmas?Because they were originally made for children but Dad wants to play with them.

Why does Santa wear red underwear?Because he's a man - he did all his laundry in one load.
What does Santa Claus like to do in his garden?Hoe, hoe, hoe!

Did you hear about the dyslexic devil worshipper?He sold his soul to Santa.
What do you call people who are afraid of Santa?Claustrophobic!

What do you call a teenager who doesn't believe in Santa?A rebel without a Claus!
Why is Christmas just like a day at the office?You do all the work and the fat guy in the suit gets all the credit!

Christamas tree

The Origin :

Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition in the 16th century when devout Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. Some built Christmas pyramids of wood and decorated them with evergreens and candles if wood was scarce.The Christmas tree custom gradually became popular in other parts of Europe. In England Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria made Christmas trees fashionable by decorating the first English Christmas tree at Windsor castle with candles and a variety of sweets, fruits and gingerbread in 1841. Of course, soon other wealthy English families followed suit, using all kinds of extravagant items as decorations. Charles Dickens described such a tree as being covered with dolls, miniature furniture, tiny musical instruments, costume jewelry, toy guns and swords, fruit and candy, in the 1850s.Most of the 19th century Americans found Christmas trees an oddity. The first record of one being on display was in the 1830s by the German settlers of Pennsylvania. They put one on show to raise money for a local church. In 1851 a tree was set up outside of a church. The people of the parish thought it such an outrage and a return to paganism and asked the minister to take it down.By the 1890s Christmas ornaments were arriving from Germany and Christmas tree popularity was on the rise around the U.S. It was noted that Europeans used small trees about four feet in height, while Americans liked their Christmas to reach from floor to ceiling.The early 20th century saw Americans decorating their trees mainly with homemade ornaments, while the German-American sect continued to use apples, nuts, and marzipan cookies. Popcorn joined in after being dyed bright colors and interlaced with berries and nuts.Electricity helped introduce Christmas lights making it possible for Christmas trees to glow for days on end. With this, Christmas trees began to appear in town squares across the country. All important buildings, private and public, signaled the beginning of the Christmas holiday with the tree ceremony.Early Christmas trees had, in place of angels, figures of fairies - the good spirits, though horns and bells were once used to frighten off evil spirits.In Poland, Christmas trees used to be decked with angels, peacocks and other birds as well as many, many stars. In Sweden, trees are decorated with brightly painted wooden ornaments and straw figures of animals and children. In Denmark, tiny Danish flags along with mobiles of bells stars, snowflakes and hearts are hung on Christmas trees. Japanese Christians prefer tiny fans and paper lanterns. Lithuanians cover their trees with straw bird cages, stars, and geometric shapes. The straw sends a wish for good crops in the coming year. Czechoslovakian trees display ornaments made from painted egg shells.A Ukrainian Christmas tree has a spider and web for good luck. Legend has it that a poor woman with nothing to put on her children's tree woke on Christmas morning to find the branches covered with spider webs turned to silver by the rising sun.

Legends of the Christmas Tree :

Many legends exist about the origin of the Christmas tree. One is the story of Saint Boniface, an English monk who organized the Christian Church in France and Germany. One day, as he traveled about, he came upon a group of pagans gathered around a great oak tree about to sacrifice a child to the god Thor. To stop the sacrifice and save the child's life Boniface felled the tree with one mighty blow of his fist. In its place grew a small fir tree. The saint told the pagan worshipers that the tiny fir was the Tree of Life and stood the eternal life of Christ.
Another legend holds that Martin Luther, a founder of the Protestant faith, was walking through the forest one Christmas Eve. As he walked he was awed by the beauty of millions of stars glimmering through the branches of the evergreen trees. So taken was he by this beautiful sight that he cut a small tree and took it home to his family. To recreate that same starlight beauty he saw in the wood, he placed candles on all its branches.Yet another legend tells of a poor woodsman who long ago met a lost and hungry child on Christmas Eve. Though very poor himself, the woodsman gave the child food and shelter for the night. The woodsman woke the next morning to find a beautiful glittering tree outside his door. The hungry child was really the Christ Child in disguise. He created the tree to reward the good man for his charity.Others feel the origin of the Christmas tree may be the "Paradise Play." In medieval times most people could not read and plays were used to teach the lessons of the bible all over Europe. The Paradise Play, which showed the creation of man and the fall of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden was performed every year on December 24th. The play was performed in winter creating a slight problem. An apple tree was needed but apple trees do not bare fruit in winter so a substitution was made. Evergreens were hung with apples and used instead.Another story comes from Germany about spiders and Christmas trees. Long ago families allowed their animals to come inside and view the Christmas trees on Christmas Eve. Because the Christ Child was born in a stable, they felt that the animals should take part in the Christmas celebration. But spiders weren’t allowed because housewives didn't want cobwebs all over everything. of course the spiders were unhappy about this, so one year they complained to the Christ Child. He felt sorry for them and decided that late at night He would let them in to see the trees. The excited spiders loved the Christmas trees and all night long they crawled about in the branches, leaving them covered with webs. On Christmas morning the housewives saw what the spiders had done. But instead of being angry, they were delighted. For in the night the Christ Child had turned all of the cobwebs into sparkling tinsel. And even today, tinsel is often used to decorate Christmas trees to add that same sparkle the Christ Child gave the cobwebs long ago, in Germany.

Decorating the Christmas Tree: A Timeless Tradition:

Enter any department store from now until New Year's and aisles packed with plastic ornaments, glistening garland, and blinking lights will greet you at every turn. What was once a simple family tradition has become a multimillion-dollar industry with decorations becoming more elaborate and costly each year. Where did this tradition begin and how did it become such an integral part of the holiday festivities?ike the majority of practices associated with Christmas, the tradition arose from the intermingling of ancient Roman beliefs and the spreading Christian religion. Early Christians believed certain trees flowered unseasonably on Christmas Eve as homage to Jesus' birth. This belief combined with the Roman practice of decorating their homes with greenery for the New Year formed the basis of our modern fascination with icicles and fancy angel tree toppers.The decorating of various structures and trees has been recorded in Europe from the 17th century on, but the first written account of a "Christmas tree" did not appear until 1605. According to John Matthew's The Winter Solstice, an anonymous German citizen that year recorded trees being decorated with "roses cut out of many colored paper, apples, wafers, gold-foil, [and] sweets". What about chaser lights and oodles of wrapped gifts? It was more than 100 years later when Professor Karl Gottfried Kissling of the University of Wittenburg wrote of people adding candles for decorations and placing children's wrapped branches around the bottom of the small indoor trees.Even though the practice was initially condemned by religious leaders, it spread from Germany to Finland through Norway and Denmark. In 1840, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of England endorsed the tradition by displaying their own ornately decorated tree at their palace. By the early 1900s, decorating the tree was as much a part of Christmas as Santa Claus and opening presents.Of course, the early trees were decorated differently than today's evergreens. Early ornaments were usually hand-crafted or edible. Nuts, candies, fruits, and pieces of colored paper were the most common. The average modern tree is decorated with a combination of store-bought ornaments and family memorabilia with several strings of lights strewn over the branches instead of candles, but no matter how the tree is decorated it still symbolizes a timeless Christmas tradition of families gathered together exchanging presents and love.

PEACE

Peace is a state of harmony, the absence of hostility. This term is applied to describe a cessation of violent international conflict; in this international context, peace is the opposite of war. Peace can also describe a relationship between any parties characterized by respect, justice, and goodwill.
More generally, peace can pertain to an individual relative to her or his environment, as peaceful can describe calm, serenity, and silence. This latter understanding of peace can also pertain to an individual's sense of himself or herself, as to be "at peace" with one's self would indicate the same serenity, calm, and equilibrium within oneself.