Joyful Quotes

The excursion is the same when you go looking for your sorrow as when you go looking for your joy.  ~Eudora Welty

Happiness comes from noticing and enjoying the little things in life.  I've counted at least 1,000 things to be happy about.  ~Barbara Ann Kipfer

Though Christ was called a "man of sorrows," that description refers to His bearing of our sorrows.  It does not describe His day-to-day bearing.  ~Neal A. Maxwell (1926-2004) Even as I Am (1982), 103

Because our choices have so much to do with our happiness, the phrase "men are, that they might have joy" (2 Nephi 2:25) could be considered an expectation.  Why would the Lord expect us to be happy?  Because He has borne our sorrow that we might have joy, and He blesses us when we are obedient.  The Savior atoned for our sins that we might be happy.  (Lynn G. Robbins, "True Beauty," New Era, Nov. 2008, 30-33)

The Christian Sunday should be a festival, gathering up all the life of the week and offering it to God in worship and then spending the day in a way which most truly promotes joy and  happiness and refreshment for oneself and for other people.  ~Olive Wyon

Our Father in Heaven expects all of His children to choose the right, which is the only way to lasting happiness and inner beauty.  We read in For the Strength of Youth that "wrong choices delay your progression and lead to heartache and misery.  Right choices lead to happiness and eternal life."  (Hugh W. Pinnock, "Beginning Again," Ensign, May 1982, 12)

I would like to have you smile because after all we must keep a sense of humor whatever comes.  I think of all the people in the world we should be the happiest.  We have the greatest and most joyous message in the world.  I think when we get on the other side, someone will meet us with a smile (unless we go to the wrong place and then someone will grin), so let us be happy.  But let our happiness be genuine--let it come from within.  ~Hugh B. Brown, (The Abundant Life [1965], 83)

We are surrounded by people who "have it all" and yet have nothing--no joy.  And there are just as many who have nothing, yet live in joy.  ~Laurel Bailey

One should not seek happiness, but rather happy people.  ~Coco Chanel

The hands of those I meet are dumbly eloquent to me.  The touch of some hands is an impertinence.  I have met people so empty of joy that when I clasped their frosty fingertips, it seemed as if I were shaking hands with a northeast storm.  Others there are whose hands have sunbeams in them, so that their grasp warms my heart.  ~Helen Keller

When you walk into a room, you either add to the room or take away from the room. ~unknown

Unhappiness is bad for the health.  ~Anna Greenwood

Happiness and peace are found when we are in harmony with ourselves, with God, and with our fellowmen.  ~Barbara W. Winder

The greatest determiner of human happiness is whether or not we have someone to love and confide in.  ~Dr. Joyce Brothers

To get the full value of joy, you must have someone to divide it with. ~Mark Twain

Many people think happiness is attained through self-gratification.  But it is really only gained by fidelity to a worthy cause.  ~Helen Keller

President Brigham Young said, "There is not a man or woman on this earth, whose peace is made with God, and who are associated with holy beings, and seeking after holy principles, but their countenances are lit up with a lamp of divine cheerfulness." (Quoted in "The Joy of the Lord is Your Strength")

If you want to be happy ... BE.  ~Leo Tolstoy

Oh, stop whining!  ~Paula Witteman

~President Gordon B. Hinkley

Tweaking the Ideal

My Grandma was a great example of a working homemaker.  No birthdays were forgotten.  Active at church.  No meals left unprepared.  Visitors were always welcome at a moments notice.  Her home was always clean and her garden full of tomatoes.  And she retired from working for the state as a secretary!  Sickening!  Though Grandma might have preferred to stay home (maybe?), she always put family first.


Barbara B. Smith, past general Relief Society president, explained that if need forces the providing role upon a mother, it is critical that she be able to work as few hours as possible to leave time for homemaking and the nurturing of her children.  “The counsel to all members to acquire training and knowledge as a hedge against a time of need is one of our best ‘storage’ concepts.”  (Barbara B. Smith, “Makers of Homes,” Ensign, Mar. 1979, 24)

Here's A List of More Homemaking Posts:
My Glamorous New Career
What do Homemakers Really Do?
Builders of Homes
The Resurgence of Homemaking in the Church

Chick Lit

I live in gratitude to my parents for initiating me--and as early as I begged for it, without keeping me waiting--into knowledge of the word, into reading and spelling, by way of the alphabet.  They taught it to me at home in time for me to begin to read before starting school.  My love for the alphabet, which endures, grew out of reciting it but, before that, out of seeing the letters on the page.  In my own story books, before I could read them for myself I fell in love with various winding, enchanted-looking initials drawn by Walter Crane at the head of fairy tales.  In "Once upon a time," an "o" had a rabbit running it as a treadmill, his feet upon flowers.  When the day came years later for me to see the Book of Kells, all the wizardry of letter, initial, and word swept over me a thousand times, and the illumination, the gold, seemed a part of the world's beauty and holiness that had been there from the start.  ~Eudora Welty

Summertime is a great time to go to the Library and join their reading program.  If you aren't going to read with your kids now, when are you?  Make it fun--and buy the books you really love to start your own home library.  Be sure to teach children the proper way to treat and store books.  Click here for wonderful summer "Family Reading Activities" ideas from the Friend, May 2005 31.  
Listed are books that YOU read to your child!!!  They are a small list of our family's home library.  Learn to read to your children--it will improve your own reading skills, (just ask my husband who read nightly to our children: Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, Charlotte's Webb, The Secret Garden, etc. and the kids' favorite story books).  Be sure to read a book before you read to the kids so you are familiar enough to use funny voices, etc.  The ISBN number is given after the book and author so that they can easily be found online or at bookstores.  I recommend Goodreads.
Summer Fun Ideas:   Late-night Reading Bookworms and night owls unite in this special literary treat.  Give your kids a flashlight and let them stay awake later than usual to read in the dark.  They'll start looking forward to bedtime, plus they'll get in some extra reading time.  Try ten minutes on weeknights and longer (or unlimited) time on Fridays.
Starting a Personal Library Scour yard sales and used-book sales and find about 50 books, then buy a date stamp and ink pad (washable), and purchase book pockets and book cards (the local teacher's store sells them individually or by the packet). Children will spend hours checking out books and hosting story time at the new "neighborhood library." 
A list of My Collection of Children's Literature to Read to a Child includes:
Preschool First books to read to little ones because they are repetitive and help your child predict what is next which helps them learn to read:

• Big Red Barn, Margaret Wise Brown 0694006246
• Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Bill Martin Jr./Eric Carle (Caldecott Award) 0805017445
• The Very Busy Spider, Eric Carle 0590937111
• The Napping House, Audrey Wood/Don Wood 0152014179
• The Caterpiller and the Polliwog, Jack Kent 9780671662813
• Pig Pig Gets a Job, David McPhail 0525446192
• Frederick, Leo Lionni (Caldecott Award) 0394810406
• The Runaway Bunny, Margaret Wise Brown 0064430189
• Goodnight Moon, 0064430170
• Leo the Late Bloomer, Robert Kraus 0590622706

Early Childhood

• One-Minute Bedtime Stories, by Shari Lewis 0385152922
• The Eentsy, Weentsy Spider Fingerplays and Action Rhymes, Joanna Cole and Stephanie Calmenson 0688108059 Great for teachers of young children--especially nursery
• Hedgie's Surprise, Jan Brett 0439224098
• Gingerbread Baby 0439137454
• Town Mouse, Country Mouse 059022297X
• Chrysanthemum, Kevin Henkes 0688147321
• Chester's Way 0590440179
• Julius, the Baby of the World 0590108964
• Shelia Rae, the Brave 059046406X
• Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak 0060254920
• George Shrinks, William Joyce 059045031X
• Imogene's Antlers, David Small 0590420267
• Hooway for Wodney Wat, Helen Lester 061821612X
• Hazel's Amazing Mother, Rosemary Wells 0590234005
• Five Minutes' Peace, Jill Murphy 0590443895
• Just Go To Bed, Mercer Mayer 0307119408 BEST BOOK EVER!  Love Little Critter
• Just Me and My Dad 3350081839
• The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter 051705079X
• The Tale of Benjamin Bunny 0517050803
• The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck 0517050773
• Bread and Jam for Francis, by Russell Hoban, illust. by Lillian Hoban 0590478435
• A Baby Sister for Frances 0590478451
• A Birthday for Frances 0590486918
• Best Friends for Frances 059047846X
• Frog and Toad Are Friends, Arnold Lobel, 0590045296
• Frog and Toad All Year 0590312073
• Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst 0590421441
• Miss Nelson is Missing, James Marshall 0590118773
• Red Riding Hood 0590449915
• The Bremen Town Musicians, Hans Wilhelm 0590447963
• The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, by A. Wolf, as told to Jon Scieszka 0590443577

Primary Grades

• Little House series, Laura Ingalls Wilder (winner of five Newbery Awards)
• Little House Theater Kit, Douglas Love 0439132320
• The World of Little House, Carolyn Strom Collins and Christina Wyss Eriksson 059022798X
• The Laura Ingalls Wilder Songbook, Eugenia Garson 0439048842
• Memory of a Large Christmas, Lillian Smith 0393000389
• The Polar Express, Chris Van Allsburg 0590998099 (Caldecott Award)
• Jumanji 0395304482
• The Widow's Broom 0590475436
• The Story of The Walnut Tree, by Don H. Staheli (about Pres. Hinkley) This is on the Friend Link above
• Sarah Morton's Day, A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Girl, Kate Waters 0590474006
• Molly's Craft Book, The American Girls Collection 156247118X
• Molly's Cook Book 1562471171
• Samantha's Cook Book 1562471147
• The American Girls Party Book 1562476777

Intermediate Grades

• Laura's Album (my personal favorite), William Anderson 0439062977
• The Time Machine, H.G. Wells 0816728739
• The Wind in the Willows, Home Sweet Home, Kenneth Grahame 1562933647
• D'Aulaires' Greek Myths, 0440406943
• Swan Lake, Margot Fonteyn (Parents' Choice Honors) 0152006001

Anthologies

• The Hutchinson Treasury of Children's Literature, Alison Sage 0091761441
• Favorite Poems for Children, Holly Pell McConnaughy 156619055X

Other Homemaker's Journal Posts with Book Lists

• Easter
• Summer and Patriotic
• Autumn and Thanksgiving
• Winter and Christmas

Take The Pledge

“The Library of Congress has 27,000,000 volumes.  If you were to read a book a week for 70 years, that would be roughly 3,500 books.  What does that tell you?  Don’t waste any time reading the wrong things, watching the wrong shows, visiting the wrong websites…there’s just not time for that.”  ~Joe J. Christensen  
Would you be interesting?  Read.  Would you know the best thoughts of the greatest people?  Read.  Would you know the earth and its peoples?  Read.  Would you know the gospel of Jesus Christ?  Read.  And with all your reading follow the advice of the wise Abbe Diment who said that we mustn't be content with reading good books; life is too short; we must read only the best.  ~Marba C. Josephson

What do Homemakers Really Do?

Florida House, Home School

What Did You Do Today  One afternoon a man came home from work to find total mayhem in his house.  His three children were outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud with empty food boxes and wrappers strewn all around the front yard.  The door of his wife’s car was open, as was the front door to the house.

Proceeding into the entry, he found an even bigger mess.  A lamp had been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against one wall.  In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a cartoon channel, and the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing.  In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, dog food was spilled on the floor, a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door.

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife.  He was worried she may be ill, or that something serious had happened.  He found her lounging in the bedroom, still curled in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel.  She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went. 

He looked at her bewildered, and asked, “What happened here today?” 

She again smiled and answered, “You know every day when you come home from work and ask me what in the world I did today?” 

“Yes was his incredulous reply."  She answered, "Well, today I didn't do it."   http://www.christysclipart.com/inspirational_stories.htm#What%20Did%20You%20Do

Yes, homemakers are rarely appreciated for all we do.  Just try leaving the little tykes at home to themselves for 15 minutes and see what they can get into!   One time, I had to run an errand that literally only took fifteen minutes.  As I returned and entered the kitchen door, there was three-year-old Bryce helping five-year-old Elise with a “cooking project” complete with very sharp knives!  Even with a houseful of teenagers and adults, I rarely leave my home to these rascals (spouse included) for fear of what I might return to. 

Frankly, if the “working class” were as efficient at their jobs as I am at my homemaking career, most folk’s work day would be done in a few hours!  (P.S. Just heard Dave Ramsey quote Lee Iacocca who basically said the exact same thing!!!!)  Doctrine and Covenants 88:119 instructed that Saints in Kirtland establish “a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God.”  These instructions pertained to the Lord’s temple, but the Bible Dictionary in the LDS edition of the scriptures points out that “only the home can compare with the temple in sacredness.”

Homemakers do much more than keep the household organized. “‘It is in the home that true gospel principles are learned and taught.’  …Children must be taught to recognize and seek spiritual enlightenment.  Parents must be consistent and persistent teaching, both by example and in formal instruction.  That way, the Spirit of the Lord will be able to bear witness of the truths parents teach, and it will touch the hearts of children who might be temporarily resistant.”  (“News of the Church,” Ensign, Mar. 1986, 83)

Teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in the home adds another layer of insulation to protect our children from worldly influences.  ("Mothers Teaching Children in the Home," Elder L. Tom Perry, Ensign 5/10)

Barbara B. Smith, past general Relief Society president, explained that God clearly placed importance “on the work he has given to women to bear and rear children.  He has not ranked the role of provider ahead of the role of bearing and nurturing, but has wisely divided these highest, most essential duties equally between men and women.  There may be exceptions but the pattern is clear:  an ideal home has both a mother-homemaker and a father-provider.” (Barbara B. Smith, “Makers of Homes,” Ensign, Mar. 1979, 24), (See also, The Family:  Proclamation to the World).

While circumstances do vary and the ideal isn't always possible, I believe it is by divine design that the role of motherhood emphasizes the nurturing and teaching of the next generation.  ~Elder L. Tom Perry

I Love Erma Bombeck!

I just read this quote from Erma Bombeck (she has soooo many!).  I have read at least one of her books and have read her quotes throughout the years, but I have committed myself to read several of her books, beginning with, Motherhood:  The Second Oldest Profession.  Sounds intriguing, right?  If I Had My Life to Live Over is a great writing prompt for a journal entry, or Book of Remembrance keep-sake.  I think I will work on writing something like this for myself.  I hope you enjoy this quote from Erma as much as I have.


If I Had My Life to Live Over, by Erma Bombeck

• I would have talked less and listened more.
• I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.
• I would have eaten popcorn in the "good" living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.
• I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather rambling about his youth.
• I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.
• I would have burned the pink candled sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.
• I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.
• I would have cried and laughed less while watching television, and more while watching life.
• I would have gone to bed when I was sick, instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.
• I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.
• Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment, realizing that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.
• When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later.  Now go get washed up for dinner.
• There would have been more "I love you's" and more "I'm sorry's."
• ...but mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute...look at it and really see it...and never give it back.