B+C+B+C+B+C: Proof I have too much free time:

Monday, January 4, 2010

Proof I have too much free time:

A 20-hour Smith Family Calendar project.
Created 8 copies from my computer and my printer and $95 worth of ink, paper, and binding supplies.
Every single family member is featured on every single month (so no one can complain about over- or under-representation).
Click to enlarge.

The quotes around the photos are selected from a previous family calendar quote project done by Meg and Steve in past years. They have everyone submit favorite scriptures, quotes, jokes, memories, etc and compile them into a "daily thought" flip-calendar.
The bottom half (I can't upload that on here because it's a Word document - anyone know if it's possible to upload Word docs onto a blog post?) is a regular monthly calendar format, with each family member's name on their birth date. No excuses to forget to call each other on that day!

The main thought going through my head during the 2 weeks I spent obsessively working on this project was, "THESE PEOPLE BETTER APPRECIATE THIS!"

Much thanks is owed to my patient, tolerant husband. He helped me deal with the several setbacks and mistakes I made that caused me so much weeping and gnashing.
His advice: "maybe next year you should start this project in August or September..."

11 comments:

Crystal and Jordan said...: looks awesome! what program did you use?; January 5, 2010 at 7:59 AM
Megan Smith said...: hopefully you saw my note on FB, but if not, I just wanted to tell you how much I love the calendar this year! Each month is a lot of fun to look at--you did a great job. The kids have liked looking at the pages too (they can only look at it, I won't let them touch it). Thanks for all the work you put in to make it!; January 5, 2010 at 9:23 AM
Unknown said...: That is awesome! It looks so time consuming too! I bet that your family loves it! If they don't, then you can become and honorary member of the Morris family! :)
As for the word document. I would just pdf it and then upload it as a picture.; January 5, 2010 at 11:24 AM
Crystyne said...: Be thankful for that free time now! Having two makes a mom 10 times busier.; January 5, 2010 at 12:28 PM
Carolyn Quebe Williams said...: Wow. Wow. That's amazing.; January 5, 2010 at 5:36 PM
Malerie said...: Wow! I'm totally impressed! Can I hire you to do that for my family? ;); January 5, 2010 at 6:55 PM
Becky and Brian said...: Thanks for the calendar! You did a great job this year and all the pictures look great and the time you spent is appreciated!; January 6, 2010 at 7:25 AM
Dan and Anne said...: Way to be creative! And you do not have too much free time... you're just way to productive! :) Sorry I didn't tell you about the baby earlier... we wanted to wait and tell our families in person over Christmas so it just had to wait!; January 6, 2010 at 8:41 AM
DeAnne said...: you have a really cool family!; January 6, 2010 at 1:32 PM
chelsea mckell said...: This was such a GIFT!; January 13, 2010 at 8:12 PM
chelsea mckell said...: oh geez.... that last comment was from my mom. I wasn't commending myself, in case you were thinking that...
I need to teach her how to sign OUT of my name.; January 14, 2010 at 10:02 PM

Quotes I want to remember

"The Lord knows our bearing capacity, both as to coping and to comprehending, and He will not give us more to bear than we can manage at the moment, though to us it may seem otherwise. Just as no temptations will come to us from which we cannot escape or which we cannot bear, we will not be given more trials than we can sustain."
- Neal A. Maxwell

"It is a fundamental truth that the responsibilities of motherhood cannot be successfully delegated. No, not to day-care centers, not to schools, not to nurseries, not to babysitters. We become enamored with men's theories such as the idea of preschool training outside the home for young children. Not only does this put added pressure on the budget, but it places young children in an environment away from mother's influence."
-Ezra Taft Benson

“Perhaps there has never been a time when we had greater need to pray and to teach our family members to pray. Prayer is a defense against temptation. It is through earnest and heartfelt prayer that we can receive the needed blessings and the support required to make our way in this sometimes difficult and challenging journey we call mortality.”
-Thomas S. Monson

“Live the gospel as conspicuously as you can. Keep the covenants your children know you have made. And bear your testimony! Don’t just assume your children will somehow get the drift of your beliefs on their own.
-Jeffrey R. Holland

"We hold in our arms the rising generation. They come to this earth with important responsibilities and great spiritual capacities. We cannot be casual in how we prepare them. Our challenge as parents and teachers is not to create a spiritual core in their souls but rather to fan the flame of their spiritual core already aglow with the fire of their premortal faith."
-Neil L. Andersen

"Certainly there are times when getting the family together to read the scriptures does not stack up as a spiritual experience worthy of a journal entry. But we must not be deterred. There are special times when the spirit of a son or daughter is just right and the power of these great scriptures goes down into their heart like fire. As we honor our Heavenly Father in our homes, He will honor our efforts."
-Neil L. Andersen

President Hinckley admonished both men and women to be nurturers. He said, ‘How much more beautiful would be the society in which we live if every father . . . and . . . mother regarded [their] children . . . as gifts from the God of heaven . . . and brought them up with true affection in the wisdom and admonition of the Lord.’ ”
-Susan W. Tanner

"Children are like trees. When they are young, their lives can be shaped and directed, usually with ever so little effort. Said the writer of Proverbs, 'Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it' (22:6). That training finds its roots in the home. There will be little of help from other sources. Do not depend on government to help in this darkening situation. Barbara Bush, wife of former U.S. president George Bush, spoke wisely: 'Your success as a family, our success as society, depends not on what happens at the White House, but on what happens inside your house.' "
-Gordon B. Hinckley

“I give counsel to husbands and wives. Pray for the love which allows you to see the good in your companion. Pray for the love that makes weaknesses and mistakes seem small. Pray for the love to make your companion’s joy your own. Pray for the love to want to lessen the load and soften the sorrows of your companion.”
-Henry B. Eyring

“Reverent behavior is not a natural tendency for most children. It is a quality that is taught by parents and leaders through example and training. But remember, if reverence is rooted in love, so is the teaching of it. Harshness in our training begets resentment, not reverence.”
-Margaret S. Lifferth

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else."
- M. Russell Ballard

“As parents, we should remember that our lives may be the book from the family library which the children most treasure. Are our examples worthy of emulation? Do we live in such a way that a son or a daughter may say, ‘I want to follow my dad,’ or ‘I want to be like my mother’?”
-Thomas S. Monson

“Security for our families comes from learning self-control, avoiding the excesses of this world, and being temperate in all things.”
-Kent D. Watson

Monday, January 4, 2010

Proof I have too much free time:

11 comments:

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