Crafty Night Owls: LDS

Guest Post: Shauna Lainhart with www.city2country.com

TOP 25 Best LDS General Conference Ideas great for kids, teens & the whole family!!!

General Conference is around the corner……..

Get ready now so your family (or just you) get the most out of it!
All you have to do is Click, Print and Distribute!!!! Easy Peasy!!!!

(For those of you Non-LDS viewers…..Conference for my church is a Semiannual event where our Prophet and Apostles broadcast messages to help us strengthen ourselves, families and each other. Check out www.LDS.org for more info)

I have a 9, 6, 5, and 19 month old kids. Keeping kids still can be a challenge and besides I want to listen. I have been doing games/activities the past 4 years & find them to be very helpful & fun for the kid. I recommend picking a few ideas and changing things up each day or each session. I was looking for some new ideas this year & decided to share my finding. I tend to be picky about my choices……so, I feel confident to say these are the
BEST 25 LDS GENERAL CONFERENCE IDEAS! ENJOY, SHARE & COMMENT!!!

CLICK ON THE LINK IN BLUE FOR MORE INFORMATION OR DOWNLOADS

1. Digital ideas….. Did you know that there a bunch of free or inexpensive LDS Apps…..Including Conference Bingo. Here are some links for you technical junkies. Mormon Apps 12 LDS Apps for Kids LDS Bingo Top 10 iPad Apps

2. Conference Bingo There are a few bingo boards out there, but I like this one due to the fact that you can print off at least 15 different boards which is great for the ENTIRE family……and in my case we watch Conference with lots of other family & the adults like to play too!

3. Book of Mormon Paper Dolls or General Conference Paper Dolls
These are super cute & my kids LOVED them!

4. Conference packets: Ultimate General Conference Packet by: Food Storage & Beyond age 5-12 2013 General Conference Packet by: SugarDoodle ages 10-adult Conference Packet by: Deseret Book ages 5-14 (this one may require some help from parents to read certain words, but kids just starting school would enjoy these activities
5. Conference Tree By the Johnson Family……She used a silhouette, but I bet you could hand cut it & attach it to a poster board. Apostle Sticky Notes is also another alternative to this…..have pictures of the Apostles on the wall & everyone has a sticky note pad to write notes during each talk. When the talk is over , everyone puts their sticky note to the according Apostle. Here is a link to print off all of the apostles pictures

6.King Benjamin Tent & What’s Your Guess By: Lady Create-a-lot Fun for kids to wake up to and the guessing game is great for teens!!!

7. Key Word Games……These have to be my FAVORITE kinds of Conference Games. Here are some suggestions for Keywords. I have put them in categories of how often they are said….this will be important when planning what keywords to use because if you make it too easy all your candy is gone or the project is completed too fast….plus you can cater it to the age group:

Common~~~Jesus, Love, Repentance, Scriptures, Prophet, Temple, Holy Ghost, Prayer, Testimony, Atonement, Church, Family, Joseph Smith, Pres. Monson, Faith & Missionary

Less Common~~~ Priesthood, Commandment, Nephi, Sacrament, Service, Tithing, Pioneer, Charity, Baptism, Hymn, Resurrection, Satan, Bishop, Home & Kindness.

Rare~~~Opposition, Potential, Salvation, Mortality, Glory, Establish, Fulfill, Angels, Celestial, Example, Protection, Obedience, Pride, Influence, Standard, Inspire & Heed,

Conference Store is a post I did last year on my sister’s blog. I used 2 wide mouth Mason jars with pennies & Keyword labels or you could use this great Conference Cash Printout By SomewhatSimple instead of pennies. Every time you hear the Keyword you take a penny (or CTR cash). At the end of each session you get to shop at the Conference Store. Get a variety of items like candy, coloring books, stickers, baked goods, soda pop, toys, and etc. Thinking back on last year…..this was AWESOME, but I would suggest doing one jar common keywords and the other less common/rare. Pres. Monson said “temple” about 100 times and the has A LOT of pennies to spend after the first session. You could also have more jars to spread it out as well.

Sweet Listening is another one that I did last year and posted about (new name this year) It was a great one. Who doesn’t like instant gratification. I highly recommend it for Visiting Teaching or someone you know could use help with conference, but isn’t good at preparing or maybe just moved. You can use mason jars, $1 store vase, recycled cans or pots/pails of some sort. You don’t have to use candy…..you could use fruit/veg, crayons/stickers, crackers/meat/cheese or whatever you can think of. Conference Bracelet……….Love this idea & most of us have a bunch of pony beads at home! Each bead color has a Keyword associated with it & when you hear that keywords you add that color bead to your bracelet. You could use pipe cleaners , yarn, fishing line or whatever as string.

8. Lego Temple By Cornelials Kid I have a few Lego Maniac kids at my house and I am going to use this idea & do a Lego Key Word Jar! You could just have loose legos and let them build at will. While I was searching for this ides I came across a gentlemen that does Extreme Lego Temples…….. you have to check these fun & extreme Lego Temples…I bet your kids would love to see them as well.
9. Conference Blocks…….tape a keyword to a block and when that word is said you get to start building with it. It will be fun to see what you are able to build by the end of conference. You may even consider stating over with each session. Cater your keywords to the age your kids are and don’t be afraid to duplicate certain Keywords!
10. Word Hunt By: Moms Have Questions Too. Fun to use a Bingo dabber with this!

11. Conference Jenga By: LittleLdsIdeas She has 3 versions of this game!

12. General Conference Matching Game By BeingLDS It is a great game to help kids get to know the apostles faces and facts about them!
13. Temple Memory Match ByA Little Tipsy She has 3 versions: Utah Temples, under construction & Readers Request
14. Apostle BagsBy: SugarDoodle & The Things I Love Here is a quick link to get pictures of all the apostle This is a great idea where you have a surprise bag to open during each speakers talk, You need to start shopping now to fill the bags. Possible ideas to buy are Coloring Books (or printed off pages), Crayons, Candy/treats , Popcorn, Playdough, Puzzles, kid Crafts, Notebooks, toys, quiet games, stickers & Blocks/Legos.

15. Dry Erase Quiet Books By: iCandy This is an idea that you can use all year round. Plus, it is a great way to upcycle old Friend Magazines. I made a few of these with all the fun color pages, Picture search, puzzles and word searches from old Friend Magazines BUT I laminated them. I punched 3 holes in them and used binding rings. My kids us Dry Erasers.

16. Coloring……One of my favorite ways of finding cool coloring pages is through Google images. Here are direct links to sites with Free coloring pages to print.
Coloring Pages: Google Search  LDS.Org   A Year of FHE    Color by Number: Google Search   LDSclipart (3 page)  LDS Lesson Ideas
Word Search & Puzzles: Google Search (word Search) Google Search(Puzzle) LDS Splash  LDS Research
Dot 2 Dot: Google Search Salt Lake Temple Liahona   Gold Plate   Girl Praying

Toddler Activities:
17.pipe cleaners Pringles can By: Moms Have Questions Too Quiet, fun & great for motor skills
18. Lacing Cards By: A Girl & A Glue gun These will be good for anytime & make a easy gift!
19. Craft Stick Picture Puzzle You could make these out of old Friend/Ensign magazines……cut pictures just slightly smaller than stick & use modge podge to glue them on & as a top coat! Bits of Everything used 5×7 cards. If you don’t have any pictures on hand…..here are printable pictures of all the apostles.

Visiting teaching Ideas
20. Conference Day Surprise This is a post I did on my sisters Blog TheCraftyNightOwls
21.M&M of General Conference By: Makoodle Free Printable
22. General Conference Goodie Bag By: Everyday Food Storage

23. Cinnamon Roll Recipe Cinnamon rolls in the morning….YES mam!!! I did this last year and I think it will become a Conference tradition……..who wants to slave over the stove Conference morning….Not me! It’s chewy and makes the house smell great which in turn will help everyone wake up. Make a unbaked batch of Cinnamon Rolls (put frosting in a zip lock bag) and deliver them to the girls you visit teach, neighbors or whoever you love the Friday before conference (make one for you). Attach a note with bake time & instructions (tell them they can keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days) Smile as you think of them putting it in the oven Saturday/Sunday morning carefree and loving you with every bite. Now that is love and service!!!

My Cinnamon Roll Recipe is By: the Pioneer Woman. Note……I do not eat cinnamon rolls unless they are moist and chewy……these are the BOMB! Plus I have made many of friends with these bad boys. The best part of this recipe is you can refrigerate them for 2-3 days OR freeze them. I use the deep throw away metal pans.

This recipe did 3 1/2 pans of 12 rolls per pan.

I make a few alterations to this recipe: 1. when putting the butter on top of the dough before the sugar & spice……
I used half the amount of butter & I DON’T melt the butter…..
I simply spread soften butter with my bare hands (my kids love doing this).
2. I only add 1 cup of sugar on top of the dough instead of the 2 cups she recommends.

3. I don’t drink coffee & found the frosting too sweet for me so I do a
simple Cream Cheese Frosting that I like better:

24. My Favorite in between Conference meal……. Crockpot French Dips!!!! OK, I LOVE LOVE LOVE Homemade French Dip Sandwiches…….Who doesn’t really….well I guess vegetarians & Vegans wouldn’t. They are super simple to make, taste great, but can be a little pricey. We are making Crock Pot French Dips for this Saturday “between” session meal.

25. The Changeable Table has a bunch of Conference Food ideas. Including Breakfast, snacks, in between sessions and Sunday night!!!

Well, I hope you found something to help you prepare for General Conference! Thank you to all the great people that made this post possible with sharing their ideas!

Leave me a comment and tell me what YOU do for General Conference!!!!

Ok, Hoots.... I am Sorry this post is the night before Conference, but you can still get ready tonight and I am sure most of you have a printer. For those of you Non-LDS viewers.....Conference for my church is a Semiannual event where our Prophet and Apostles broadcast messages to help us strengthen ourselves, families and each other.

I am posting links to: 1) fun, printable activity books for all ages 2) a yummy Cinnamon Roll Recipe and 3) a cute idea for family or for your girls you Visit Teach.

1 -----fun, printable activity books for all ages
So, FYI......I have a 8, 5, 4, and 7 month old owletts. Keeping kids still can be a challenge and besides I want to listen. So the past few years I have done the conference bingo. It was fun, I enjoyed getting the candy for the Bingo cards.... BUT I am bored with it (so are my kids). SoI have been looking for new ideas. My favorite packets so far have come from Sugardoodle.net This is a great church website for many things. Here is the link to get you to the October Conference packets and other ideas

http://www.sugardoodle.net/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8786%3Aoctober-2012-general-conference-packets&catid=3834&Itemid=200001

2) a yummy Cinnamon Roll Recipe

I saw a great idea about taking cinnamon rolls to the girls you visit teach the Friday Night before Conference so they could bake them in the morning and get the house all yummy smelling and lively. So, I decided I wanted to do that this year, but I really haven't ever made Cinamon Rolls before. NOTE: I don't eat cinnamon rolls unless they are super moist and chewy. I like to make things from scratch and I found a great recipe at the Pioneer Woman. PLUS you can refrigerate them OR freeze them. HOOT HOOT!!!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/cinammon_rolls_/ Original Recipe
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/10/notes-on-cinnamon-rolls/ This link has additional notes for the recipe

They turned out YUMMMY. I personally thought it needed less sugar when rolling them, but chewy and moist yes, yes, yes. The original recipe calls for 1/4 cup of brewed coffee.....weird, but I didn't use that. The second link I posted above has alternatives. I used those deep throw away metal pans. This recipe did 3 1/2 pans of 12 rolls per pan.

3) a cute idea for family or for your girls you Visit Teach.

One of the girls I visit teach just moved into a new house and I knew she would not have stuff ready for her kids for conference. SOOOOOO, I made a package for her.

The activity packets are from the sugardoodle site I mentioned, the cinnamon rolls are from the above recipe and the jars are an activity for her kids. Each jar has 2 "Keywords" hanging on a tag. Everytime they hear one of the Keywords during conference they get to pick a treat from the jar. This is a great instant gratification activity for anyone.....even adults.

The KeyWords are: Repentance, Scriptures, Prophet, Temple, Holy Ghost, Commandment, Prayer, Testimony, Faith and Priesthood. Hee Hee Hee I love how I found the devil cinnamon heads. I put Repentance and Priesthood on that jar. These jars I found at Walmart for .50 cents each. You could use mason jars...but just make sure it is a wide mouth top so it is easy to get the candy out. I used twine and actually hot glued a dot on the front and back as I was wrapping it. I added the tags before I knotted it. The tags are just printed out avery 5160 labels and I just put them on a design paper. I did make a stencil tag and used it to trace out all the other tags them punched a hole. HOOT HOOT. Easy and no machine needed.

I also did another fun spin off this idea for my family. The "Conference Store".

You use the same "keyword" tags, but I used 2 jars with 100 pennies each ( I didn' have enough pennies to fill it up) and each time a keyword is said during conference they pick a penny out of the jar. At the end of each session they go to the "Conference Store" and buy stuff. Each item will have a price tag on it. I used things like stickers, pop tarts, mini oreos, Animal Crackers, mini hand soaps, bubblegum and such. I used

the garage sale stickers you can buy at the store....Note: they say $ on them but it is cents for this game.

I am excited to see how it goes. I will post a follow up on any tweaks or suggestions I would make after doing it live with owletts.

Enjoy your weekend!!!

BRINGING HOMEMADE BACK

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Top 25 LDS Conference Ideas & Activities for the Entire Family

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Our Etsy Shop is up and running~~~ Stick with us while we get things posted!

Friday, October 5, 2012

Conference Ideas and Activities for your kids/Family