This is one amazing picture book! It’s by Rita Lorraine Hubbard with pictures by John Holyfield. It tells the inspiring true story of William “Bill” Lewis. I didn’t mean to pick it as an Easter book, but it turns out it is, in a way. I’m so glad that I happened to find it and read it aloud to my two youngest kiddos the week before Easter. How positively Providential! I saw it at the public library and it just drew me in so I checked it out.
It tells the story of a black man who was a slave in Tennessee. He is definitely a Christ-like figure. He was so enterprising that he asked his master to “rent” him out so he could make his master more money. He then asked the master if he could have some of this extra money. He saved and saved his earnings and eventually bought the freedom of his wife, his child, himself, his parents, and his siblings. I thought of how amazingly loving and selfless this man was. It almost brings tears to my eyes. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. The story is fabulous and the pictures are lovely.
The author probably didn’t intend it to be interpreted with a Christian worldview but I immediately thought of the Christian symbolism. If you or your children are having a hard time feeling Christ’s love maybe this book will help if you read it and then realize that what Bill did gives a glimpse of how much our Savior Jesus Christ loves us. Jesus “hammered out his soul,” so to speak, both body and spirit, to overcome sin and death, so that we can have our liberty. May we always praise His name and receive this gift with full eternal gratitude and fierce intention to become all that God wants us to be.
Wow, Easter was especially meaningful this year. We got to have a full house with my three big boys who don’t normally live here. Really they are my adult sons. They will always be my boys though. One is going on a mission to Texas soon, as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This is my third son to serve a mission. He’s been doing home-based MTC (missionary training center) at his cousins’ house but came home for the weekend to do it here. He brought his TX flag with him for the weekend so we hung it up on the front door as a backdrop for watching General Conference over the two days.
The night before we had a hilarious game night with these games. Poetry for Neanderthals was especially a hit!
My oldest child flew in to visit and say goodbye to his brother. He actually lives in TX and will just be one mission away from his brother, but their paths will probably not cross. Then we had my third adult son come visit as well to see the brother from TX. I love these happy family times! Every moment was full of memory-making times. All my kiddos were here but my married daughter. We definitely missed her, so to ease the ache we FaceTimed over Easter dinner.
These are a few pictures of our time together. It’s interesting that because of the times, with the MTC closed, and home-MTC in place (the training is done online) my son got to be with us on his breaks.
He did all this fun stuff with us: a family game night, football with his brothers, watching Conference with us, going out to eat, having s’mores with my new fire pit outside, an Easter egg hunt, Easter dinner, and going on a family hike.
I thought a lot about how much more Easter means to me now. Just like Christmas, the Easter holiday becomes more precious to me each year. I have a dear friend who had a granddaughter die back in January of SIDS. The grand baby was only 2 months old. My girlfriend lives several states away form her son and daughter-in-law, the baby’s parents, so she never got to see her granddaughter, what with all the restrictions going on. So I’ve been mourning with her. I know that because of Jesus Christ’s suffering, that He paid the price for this tiny baby to come alive again. Because of Him, this baby won’t be gone from her family’s arms forever. My friend will someday get to hold this baby and bond with her. This baby is part of her eternal family. Elder Dale G. Renlund’s talk in General Conference about the unfairness of life being made up by Jesus rang true to her.
Doing puzzles during General Conference has become a tradition. I wish I had started doing it sooner! We did our world puzzle plus this Eric Dowdle one of Noah’s Ark below. I just picked it up from the thrift store for only $2!
I also thought of this book I just read to my two youngest children, pictured below. I didn’t mean to pick it as an Easter book, but it turns out it is, in a way. The main character is a Christ-like figure. I saw it at the public library and it just drew me in. It tells the story of a black man, a real person, William “Bill” Lewis, who was a slave in Tennessee. He was so enterprising that he asked his master to “rent” him out so he could make his master more money. He then asked the master if he could have some of this extra money. He saved and saved his earnings and eventually bought the freedom of his wife, his child, himself, his parents, and his siblings. I thought of how amazingly loving and selfless this man was. It almost brings tears to my eyes. That, my friends, is just a glimpse of how much our Savior Jesus Christ loves us. He hammered out his soul, both body and spirit, to overcome sin and death, so that we can have our freedom. May we always praise His name and receive this gift with full eternal gratitude and fierce intention to become all that God wants us to be.
Happy Good Friday everyone! Oh how I love springtime and Easter! I’ve compiled a few of my favorite pieces of Easter-themed speeches and music here. They remind me of my new favorite recent scripture I found in the Book of Mormon Another Testament of Jesus Christ:
“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved. Wherefore, may God raise you from death by the power of the resurrection, and also from everlasting death by the power of the atonement, that ye may be received into the eternal kingdom of God, that ye may praise him through grace divine. Amen.” – 2 Nephi 10:24-25
I’m so excited to teach this class written by Paola Brown! It harmonizes with my belief in what Dr. Christopher once said, “There are no incurable diseases, just incurable minds.”
He taught that in order to heal, it’s important to cleanse and nourish the area that is ill. This is in line with terrain theory.
Did you know that Louis Pasteur, creator of the germ theory, stated on his deathbed, that his opponent, Michael Beauchamp, was right? Beauchamp was the creator of the terrain theory. Beauchamp came up with the terrain theory, which was in opposition to Pasteur. Joel Salatin tells the story this way in his book, Sheer Ecstasy of Being a Lunatic Farmer:
“Terrain encompasses many things: hygiene, stress, immune response. The two scientists argued throughout their careers, but Pasteur was handsome, flamboyant, and did better Good Morning America interviews. Besides, Pasteur’s germ theory was more acceptable because all of us would rather be victims. Beauchamp’s terrain idea meant the responsibility was ours to create an immunological terrain to keep the bad guys at bay.”
Interesting!!!!
But like I just said, on his deathbed, Pasteur recanted. His last statement before his last breath was ,”Beauchamp was right. It is all about the terrain. “
Here’s a great video Paola made about that! Go here to watch! She takes you right into her family’s garden and shows what she did to nourish the terrain of the garden to overcome the bad bugs.
Then here’s a video here she did on how healing works. I watched it and understand more how true, real healing works, on a deeper level, and how we can help it happen.
If these videos resonate with you, you will love this class!
I’ve extended the regular registration deadline to April 1! Register by tonight midnight April 1!
If you register after tonight, a late fee of $100 is charged. Pay $200 instead of $300 for this 16 week class for your whole family to take online. The first 8 weeks is this spring, then after the summer break, the next 8 week cycle is in the fall.
This curriculum is inspired by Classical Conversations and Charlotte Mason principles. Paola Brown, a homeschooling mom of 3, loves both those philosophies. She designed the curriculum to involve the whole brain. Here are some of the features::
-nature journaling (each student buys own blank journal, not part of the bundle)
-art activities
-science experiments
-read aloud stories, in print and audiobook format (audiobook format extra cost)
-catchy music (bought separately)
-flash cards
-fun games
Please go here to read all the details and then sign up by tonight, midnight April 1! Classes begin online next Tues. April 6 and Thursday April 8! You choose which day works best for you!
Read the Book of Mormon story of Easter and see lovely accompanying pictures, to the harmony of beautiful Easter music. I’ve reviewed the book for that here.
Follow the prophet with his Easter challenge. Go here to watch.
Check out LaDawn Jacob’s Easter ideas from her Fun Family Traditions. I have it in ebook form on this page. Scroll down and click on the Fun Family Traditions link.
Get my list of Easter songs, poems, and stories here.
This is the perfect book to start reading during winter, when home life sometimes drags because of the letdown after Christmas and the dreariness of winter. I read it this past winter and just finished it, listening to it in Audible. It was amazing! I loved it!
I listened to it every Saturday as my kids and I did housework. The book felt like diving into a world where The Food Nanny meets the Bobbsey Twins meets the Duggars meets the March family. The Food Nanny because of the doctrine of the family dinner vibe. The Bobbsey Twins because of all the adventure and outdoor activities, the Duggars because of the strong Christian homeschooling overtones, and Louisa May Alcott’s March family, because of their emphasis on old-fashioned seasonal activities. So if you are into all those things, you will love this book!
The co-author, Sally Clarkson, is a homeschooling mom vet. I remember getting her magazine for her organization, Whole Hearted Ministries, when my oldest child, who is 27, was 4. So she’s been around for a long time. She wrote the book with her daughter Sarah.
I’ll be doing a full review sometimes in the next few weeks, but I just wanted to share a little bit about what the book shares about Easter, since Easter is coming up.
Here’s what the Clarkson family does for Easter:
-Attends church on Good Friday ( my church doesn’t hold services on Good Friday. May I suggest watching the concert pictured below…)
-enjoys an Easter breakfast with chocolate Easter eggs. (I have a recipe for DIY chocolate, sugar-free, here.)
-holds a Christian Seder Dinner, in honor of the Jewish Passover dinner.
-attends church on Easter Sunday
-holds an Easter Feast after church services, complete with deviled eggs (or angel eggs, as the Duggars call them), baked ham, vegetable casserole, drinks, and desserts. They invite lots of people over.
-has an Easter egg hunt after the lunch with a different color of egg for each person. The eggs are plastic and filled with candy, small prizes, or gift cards, with one big egg that is the grand prize, up for grabs by anybody.
I love all these ideas! We’ve done most of these through the years. Something I like to do as we gather to eat the goodies found in the plastic Easter eggs is to open up a set of Resurrection Eggs and tell the gospel story, wrapped around the Easter story. You can go here to Jennifer Flanders’ site to get instructions and printables to make your own set.
Would you like to read this book for free? If your public library doesn’t have it, you can read it for free by trying out scribd.com, a treasure trove for bibliophiles. Go here to learn more and sign up for a free 60 day trial.
Want more Easter ideas?
Follow the prophet with his Easter challenge. Go here to watch.
Watch this concert below…
Read the Book of Mormon story of Easter and see lovely accompanying pictures, to the harmony of beautiful Easter music. I’ve reviewed the book for that here.
Check out LaDawn Jacob’s Easter ideas from her Fun Family Traditions. I have it in ebook form on this page. Scroll down and click on the Fun Family Traditions link.
Get my list of Easter songs, poems, and stories here.
Here’s a lovely Holy Week timeline with visuals and scriptures for each day this week created by a neighbor, Alexis Belliston. Use as a banner, with some pastel yarn, or as coloring pages. Go here to get it and check out all of the other beautiful offerings from Alexis. Thank you Alexis!
Want some other Easter resources? Go here to get my list of Easter poetry, songs, and stories.
This book isn’t new but I just discovered it. If you want to have a book that portrays the Book of Mormon Easter story, with sacred text, beautiful pictures and glorious songs, this is it!
This book starts with the Book of Mormon scripture, from 2 Nephi 25:26, “And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”
Then it tells the Easter story from the Book of Mormon perspective, starting with the great earthquake and the darkness that happened when Christ was crucified. It then tells of his visit as a resurrected being at the temple in Bountiful, citing his healing and teachings. The teaching includes his instruction of the sacrament ritual.
All of this is interspersed with beautiful paintings and excerpts from hymns about the Savior’s love. It also comes with a CD of beautiful Easter music. I highly recommend it! 5 out of 5 stars!
A friend asked me why I decided to teach this class, called Teach Me Health and Homeopathy.
Here’s my story behind that.
I have had several magical experiences with homeopathy (HP). You can read about my time using HP to heal my flu here, then using HP with bed bug bites here, and then using it after my attack by the seemingly killer AZ cactus here. Ever since experiencing all those wondrously timely and powerful healings of acute cases, I’ve been wanting to teach my children homeopathy. So when I saw Paola’s course available, I was intrigued. Here are two reasons why I fell in love with her curriculum.
When I saw this video above (click on the link to watch in Vimeo) by the curriculum creator, Paola, it so resonated with me. Especially the part where she gives an analogy. She says that HP gives the body instructions to get to the root of the problem and uproot it. It does this by showing the body something that generates “like” symptoms. Her analogy is about teaching her little boys to be quiet so they wouldn’t wake up their sleeping baby sister. They didn’t understand that instruction until she gave them an analogy by telling them to “be quiet, like a mouse.” Ahh, then they understood. So Paola says our bodies are the same way, they need an example to follow to understand the instruction. So HP gives the example with something that generates like symptoms. It’s just so fascinating to me! I sensed Paola’s gift for teaching and making complicated things simple, which is what I need. She definitely has a gift and passion for teaching. I just love her gifts!
Here’s a video interview with Paola from the Weston A. Price Wise Traditions podcast below, so you can hear her story. It’s so amazing that HP healed her from a few chronic autoimmune conditions. If she had opted for one of the drugs that her medical doctor had prescribed, she could be involved in a class action lawsuit today against the drugmaker for the drug’s side effect of blindness!
2. I read the introduction to Paola’s Teacher’s Guide to the course. In it she shares her dismay that some children of amazing, rock star homeopaths she knows have not gone on to follow their parents’ choices. She asked these rock star healers if their children don’t just kiss the ground they walk on for preserving their health with HP. Amazingly, these homeopaths said no. They said that their children don’t. One said that his/her adult child just did a round of antibiotics instead of HP. That made me realize, “Oh, I may have a passion for HP, but if my children don’t understand why it works, or learn critical thinking skills as related to questioning the tactics of Big Pharma, they may not catch my passion and vision of HP, even if it works on them. They may not choose HP for themselves once out of the nest unless they get educated now.” Now is the time for me to teach them and not assume they will learn by osmosis.
Do you want to sample Paola’s curriculum for free? You can do so here.
Come take the class on Zoom starting April 6 or April 8! Go here to learn more!
It’s spring! It’s a time for new beginnings and that includes healing! We’ve had the blossoms pop out on our neighbor’s apricot tree. That’s something I missed when we lived in AZ, seeing the “popcorn” on trees. I love the new growth of spring! This new growth is such a promise for hope in all areas of life.
I also love the growth that comes from healing. I’ve been healed from my insomnia recently, thanks to homeopathy. Here’s my story. I am just loving healing and learning about homeopathy! I love the video below with homeschooling mom Paola Brown. Paola is the creator of the family-based homeopathy curriculum, Teach Me Health and Homeopathy. I’m so excited about teaching it! You can watch the video below with Paola telling her story behind the curriculum.
If her story inspires you to think about taking the class, go here to read more and get the link to register. Classes start online next week, April 6 or 8, depending on if you want Tuesday or Thursday, in my Zoom room! This is for ages 6-96, for moms and children to take together. But you don’t have to have kids to take it. If you are holistically-minded, this is the health and wellness curriculum you’ve always wanted!
If you want more healing information from Paola you can go to her site here. You can get the following classes for FREE. Just click on each one to put in your cart:
Flu Season: Let’s Get Ready!
Colostrum & Cavities: Paola’s Story
Colostrum for Gut Health
Then check out by creating your own account, and “purchase” the classes for free. To watch and learn from each one, just go to the top of the website (if you are logged in with your account) and click on “My Classes” and start learning!
*Full Disclosure Note: In these classes, Paola promotes a product called Anovite Colostrum 6. I have no financial affiliation with that company. I do receive compensation if you register for the Teach Me Health and Homeopathy Class.
Tree of Life Mothering 