A Salute to Nature

May I suggest you take your family on a hike and have a picnic. For the picnic, use only those foods that come directly from the earth. Yes, that means fresh fruits and vegetables. My, they will taste good after hiking for a while. Be sure to have a happy conversation about the things you are able to observe around you while eating (Count your blessings.) If you love music as I do, be sure and sing some songs, too.

As far as the hike goes, make sure everyone that is able carry his/her own backpack with his/her food in it. Be sure to carry a sketchbook and art pencils, too. Then, after your picnic, allow everyone time to draw something they observe in nature. Thus the beginnings of your Family Nature Book. Be sure to date the drawings and give credit to each creator. Take time to find out "why?" the artist chose his/her subject.

Plan to do this in each season of the year. It could become a great tradition and part of your Family Home Evenings.

Oh, and one more thing, pass on the lesson that your parents probably taught you when you were young: "We always leave the picnic area cleaner than we found it."

"Caughtcha”

At my son-in-law’s work, his bosses have and incentive program to encourage workers to be at their best all the time. It’s called “Caught ya.’” Basically the bosses give out tickets when they see good work, extra effort, good attitude, etc. The employees then put their tickets into a drawing container. The bosses pick and choose when they want to have their “Caught ya’” day (no one ever knows when it’s going to be). But on that day there is great excitement because great prizes are handed out to those employees that have their tickets drawn.

Well, this got me thinking. Wouldn’t it be great fun to have a “Caughtcha” tradition in your family? Oh, it could really be BIG! Parents could brainstorm on what behavior, work, attitudes, goals accomplished, etc. that they wanted their children to focus on. Then, they could have another brainstorm session on prizes to be given at random drawings. These could be coupons for back rubs, an outing, a game of the child’s choice, help with a project or cleaning a room, etc. You get the idea. Even your children could submit prize coupons for things they would like to do for other members of the family that win. I guess if your budget allows, you could even purchase grand prizes of toys and games, books or art supplies, etc. Or you could have a prize bag with a coupon that gives the winning child a chance to choose from the prize bag. You would also have to decide how you wanted "Caughcha" tickets to be given—just by mom and dad. Could children suggest siblings that have done something nice? I first thought that everyone could submit tickets for their siblings but Rachael said the siblings would scheme and say, “I’ll put your name in if you’ll put my name in.” Rachael’s probably right. So, again, you can think all of these things through on your own.

I can see great benefits for this type of tradition. First, think of the service family members could give to others if they made up coupons to add to the prize box. Also, children may not get instant gratification for good behavior so they must learn patience. "Caughtcha" would get everyone focusing on the good of others. And, everyone would have something to look forward to on a regular basis. Anyway, it’s just an idea but I would love to try it if I were in that stage of life still. Oh and one more thing:

It’s “Turn off the T.V. Week.” I found a neat site to go to for more ideas for you and your family to investigate for good times together:

http://family.go.com/entertainment/pkg-tv-turnoff/