[cesalima]

Hi Everyone,

I'm wondering if you guys have any great FHE ideas. Ones that will keep the children and parents interested and involved. In addition, if you have any ideas for couples without children -- I really am curious to know.

[babydawn]

We have FHE every week (most of the time) but I ususally just pick a story out of the Friend and read it and we talk about it. It works really well for us now because our kids are small and my 4 year olds attention span is about 2 sec. I suppose as my kids get older, I will move up the church magazine line. There are always FHE ideas in each of them and they get across what the Prophet wants us to know that month. I know it seems kind of slacker like, but it is what has worked the best for us for now.

The craft group leader in our ward is going to be doing almost a years worth of FHE kits on the Proclamation to the World. Although I am not a big fan of crafts, this one I plan to attend. I will let you know once I find out more about it.

[cesalima]

Thanks, babydawn. I'll look forward to hearing about the enrichment idea.

I don't think that using the Friend makes you a slacker at all. My hubby and I don't have kids so I didn't know about the family home evening ideas in that magazine. That's good to know.

I wonder if the church still does a family home evening manual like they used to? I'll to drop by the distribution center and see. Your comment on the Friend reminded me.

[LadyElizabeth]

Dear Candace,

It is very important to analyze your aim in what type of FHE you want to have and adapt your FHE to your needs.

For example, my parents gathered us ten children together every week to critise us and tell us what we had done wrong that week, then they gave us refreshments and called it FHE.

Needless to say, that was not FHE!
Everyone left with a bad feeling and family unity wasn't formed.

When looking at planning your FHE, whether there are children in the home or not, first consider what you are trying to accomplish by having FHE in the first place. What are your family's specific needs?

One of the main goals is to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a manner that can be assimliated on each age level,
but it is also important to develop certain family attributes and meet family needs while you are having FHE.
These attributes can include:

to promote loving, family unity,
to increase each family member's self esteem,
to bond family members so each of them knows they always have people who will love, support and care for them, not matter what mistakes they may make in life. (They need to learn that they will always have a soft place to fall when the world gives them hard days.)

Teach them to care for one another, not just to come to parents for help.
Small children can be taught when their sybling has a problem, and asked, "what can we do to help him?"
Passing out an odd number of jelly beans, for example, and pointing out that one sister has less than the others, and helping the other children solve the problem by sharing theirs.
Including the syblings in problem solving creates an emotional investment for them and increases their love for their syblings and their sense of belonging as a family unit.

I did this with my children, and now that some of them are grown, they naturally go to each other for help, (as well as their dad and I) this way I know that when their parents are old or passed on, the kids will all be taking care of each other emotionally, and physically. They are also a close, loving group of syblings from all the help and love they have given each other. They freely sacrifice to share with each other.
Values like this can be taught in FHE and will greatly impact a lifetime of relationships.
My children learned the Gospel and about their Savior, but they also learned family values that they still retain.
For couples without children, I'd apply the same principles:
learn the Gospel and promote family unity.
My husband and I study and discuss Gospel topics, increasing our understanding of the gospel.
We also encourage bonding by experiences that bring us closer, whether that is a quiet evening at home or a night out on the town.
We also dicuss how we can meet our extended family's needs, our married children, our grandchildren, etc.
We know that their experiences are problems they need to solve for their own spiritual growth, but we discuss what we can do to support and help them while they are going through their trials.
We are a soft place for them to fall, and on occassion, some of them have had to move back home with us, while they sort out their finances.
These things comprise our FHE when our children are not around. This meets our needs.
FHE should be adapted to the needs of each family. It should teach the Gosepl of Jesus Christ and promote family values that will affect their lives and create family traditions for generations to come.
These are my thoughts...

[cesalima]

Hey Lady Elizabeth,

Would you please go post this reply as a comment on my blog regarding Quality Family Time vs. the World? Hopefully it will be posted sometime today by the manager of the site. I did a little section on FHE and I think your thoughts are great.

Baby Dawn, will you do the same please?

I think both of your comments will really help people reading my blogs. Just click on http://members.families.com/cesalima/blog and it should be one of the top three in the next few hours.

Thanks, Ladies. I think you'll really help some people.

Candace

[LadyElizabeth]

Hi Candace,
I didn't see the blog you mentioned, up yet, but I posted on the Profectic Promises of FHE.
I hope that helps.

[whitlarson]

I have a few ideas on my site http://lds.mycityport.com - just click "family" and then "family home evening lessons." I have added resources from issues of church magazines to go along with the lessons from the FHE Resource Book.

[cesalima]

Thanks, I'll check it out.

[Mim23]

I've been posting various ideas in my blogs. I also think that it is important to plan according to your individual needs. As a couple it can be as simple as a reading an Ensign article together, or you could invite another couple over and teach a lesson and play a game together. You can still get the Family Home Evening manual from the church distribution center, and there are some available through different LDS publishers. There are also many ideas available online. I plan on giving at least one idea each week for Family Home Evening. Hope that helps.

[Mim23]

Also, if you have any areas in which you want FHE ideas, just let me know, and I'll try to come up with some. I love planning and getting the activities together.