New Beginnings '09

The theme for this year's New Beginnings Program was.....

We had SO much fun with this program! Here are some highlights of the night:

1. Seeing most of the parents brave the attire for the night (modest PJ's). However, when I called the Branch President out for choosing to wear his suit over PJ's, he assured me that that is what he sleeps in....hmmmm...not too sure about that one! LOL!

2. We really got to see in the minds of the YW in our branch when we asked them to make and think of future dreams and hung them all over the room. Here a just a few that they made:

3. Reading the "bedtime story" and using pictures of the YW to represent princesses and who else but a picture of Robert Pattinson (aka Edward Cullen) as the prince who was looking for a queen. SO funny to see and hear the reactions to the pictures!

4. Highlighting the YW who moved into the Branch this last year!

5. Our own little piece of "heaven".....refreshments, of course!
6. Kami looking at me so excited and knowingly when she realized that one of hymns that was sung was "I am a Child of God" and she could sing all the words! (This was the only time she sat still the entire night)
7. Another realization that I CAN actually sew! I had a last minute thought to make "Prayer Pillows" for the YW. And it must have been meant to be, because not only did I find this super easy pillow case tutorial , but I also found this adorable and most perfect poem to go along with it!

....and on a separate note - sort of, here's a little idea I did with the Activity Day girls the very next week after New Beginnings. Okay, to back up a little, I few months ago as I was getting ready to talk to the YW Class Presidencies about what we were going to do for New Beginnings, I had been hearing and reading conflicting data that some Wards/Branches include the 11 year-olds who would be turning 12 years-old that year in their New Beginnings program. For some reason this bothered me that there would be so much conflict. So, I set out to research church manuals and http://www.lds.org/ for guidance. No where did I find that the 11 year-olds were to be included in New Beginnings. In fact, every where I looked stated that New Beginnings was for Young Women who have already turned twelve, moved into the Ward/Branch or new to the church in the past year.

I guess since most everyone else around the world included the 11 year-old girls, it would have been easily justified. But, since I had gone out of my way to research the answer for myself, it would have felt wrong to do so knowing what I knew. But, not wanting to leave the younger girls out of the excitement of turning twelve and advancing from Primary to Young Women, I knelt in prayer looking for a solution. Everything after that prayer just kind of fell into place. I talked with the Primary Presidency and asked if we could go to them. So, for one of the Activity Day activities, I talked with the girls about the YW's program using an excellent article from the July 2006 (I think that's right) Friend magazine. Then we split into teams and played a Jeopardy-type game. We had a good time and I thought it was a great comprise. And of course, I left them with candy bars with the YW theme on it. This idea was of course a last minute idea and there is a typo.

OH! FUN! I just got an idea! Let's have a contest! Be the first one to comment and point out my mistake and I will send you one of these super yummy, ultra cute candy bar w/wrappers!! Good luck!! :^)