Tips for the Multitude: Taming the Clothing Monster

I have 9 (almost 10) kids.

And they are all REALLY close in age, and therefore size.

When I first married my husband, it was pretty easy to keep track of whose clothes belonged to whom.  I knew my own kids' clothes, and his 4 kids were all different sizes and thus easily sorted.

Then, as kids often do, they grew.

About a year ago I found myself confused about who had passed down which clothes, and I wasn't the only one!  The kids forgot what passed on or they thought that something would always belong to them even though they had grown out of it (mostly the younger set) and get all upset when a sibling was wearing what they thought was theirs.

I was frustrated.  They were frustrated.

So I came up with a system.

The Dot System.  (I can't be creative all the time...)

I thought some of you out there might also benefit from this system, so I'm here to share!

Here's how it works.

The oldest child of each gender gets one dot, adding one dot as you go down the line within the gender.  Generally speaking it's pretty easy to separate boys vs girls clothing.  (If you find there's a problem with a certain thing, say, jeans, you can either add a gender symbol on the tag or embroider a stripe of color to help you remember.)  You put the determined amount of dots on the tag or hem of each garment with a black permanent marker.  Nothing is exempt, though I try to be discreet with the dots.  Shirts, pants, skirts, dresses, even underwear and socks.  Sometimes it even goes to winter clothes and swimsuits depending on how confused we are.  Once everything is properly labeled, it's easy to sort!

Time to pass on the wardrobe to the next "generation"?  Easy peasy! Just add another dot, and you're ready to go.

So here's what it looks like right now in my house: (Stars represent dots)

* Elizabeth
** Julie
*** Katie
**** Mallie
***** Lorelai

* Kael
**Tristan
*** Layton
**** Joseph

This system has stood the test of time and several size changes. Joseph is a recent addition to the system, just because it was pretty easy to determine what was his until his socks needed to be bigger.  I still don't mark anything else.  But it sure saves me with the three older girls, the three older boys, and the two littler girls!  Whose is it? Check the dots! Wrong number?  Add one (or two)!  They can't argue with the dots like they can with size numbers.

Oh, and let me tell you, it saved Christmas!!  The kids ALL received new jammas, socks, and underwear, and a lot of it was VERY similar.  Even the jammies needed it, because I do not have the brainpower at this point to remember who received which ones. Solution? Dot them! Right out of the packages!  It went something like this: "Ooh! New underwear! Cool! Here, Mom."  Dot dot dot dot dot... "All yours!"  And then the socks and underwear were strewn all over the room.  No worries, just check the dots!  4 dots on something pink? Mallie!  3 dots on something navy blue or superhero? Layton! 2 dots on something boyish? Tristan! 1 dot on something frilly? Kael! No, I'm kidding. Elizabeth!  No worry, no stress.

There you have it! The dot system for keeping track of clothes in a large family.  Do you think it will work for you?  Any questions? Suggestions for improvement? Let me know in the comments!

The Country Bunny and Her Brood

Easter Sunday, our Relief Society President gave a lesson based on this book:

She did a fabulous job of relating it to this life and the Atonement in honor of Easter.

That's not what I took away best from her lesson, though. Sorry, Ashley!

The part that hit me most was where she teaches her little brood of 21 bunnies how to clean the house, cook, take care of themselves, and treat each other with respect. Here's one page:

 I don't have 21 kids, but I want that kind of order!  I pondered it the rest of the afternoon.  By evening, I had a plan.

I thought up 4 Helper jobs, one of which I can split up into three jobs for when all the kids are here; I came up with a list of things they should each do on their own every day; and I created a list of things that needed doing on a weekly basis.  I cut up one of those flexible fridge magnets that we get from every business ever created and glued each child's name on one piece.  Then I made a sign.  It looks like this:

What it looks like when everyone is here

What it looks like most of the time

<--personal day="" done="" every="" jobs="" p="">

<--important p="" question="">
<--weekly add="" chores="" everyone="" i="" may="" more.="" need="" one.="" p="" picks="" think="" to=""><--place current="" for="" in="" names="" not="" p="" rotation.="" the="">


Here's a description of each Helper's responsibilities:
Kitchen Helper: Empties dishwasher, fills it back up again.
Meal Helper: Sets table, clears serving dishes, wipes down table (all three meals).
Laundry Helper:  Does one load of laundry, start to finish, from washing to putting away.
Bathroom Helper: Swish the toilet (no cleaner), clear and swipe the counters, clear the floor.

Kitchen Helper is for all three meals when I have just four kids, and split up into three meals when I have more.

Part of getting dressed for bed is picking out clothes to wear for the next day.  They then place those clothes against the wall behind the dining room table so the clothes are accessible when the kids wake up in the morning.  To facilitate this, I made name plaques (marker on 8"x11" white paper in a sheet protector) for each child and posted them on the designated wall.

There were also some rules I established that aren't listed here, but I plan on posting them elsewhere soon.  Those rules are:

1) NO blankies, pillows, or animals out of the bedroom after breakfast.
2) Rooms must be clean before each meal.
3) Everybody helps clean up everything, without regard to ownership or who was playing with it. 

I am also working on a set of chores that they can do for money, like sort the sock bag and clean the patio door.

This week we had all the kids for Spring Break!  A perfect time to try my *evil* plan...Bwa ha ha ha...

Ahem.

Anyway, it started out great!  I introduced the plan to the kids on Monday at Family Home Evening.  There was no initial complaining.  I thought that showed promise.

I won't lie.  There was some grumbling on the first day of actually DOING the chores, but I think it helped that I was there doing it with them, and that almost everyone had a chore to do. (I only have 6 helper jobs at most, so two kids get a "weekend" from chores.)

I was actually surprised by how many of them were excited to do their chores!  I'm not kidding!  "I love to do laundry!" came out of at least two mouths, and "Hooray, I'm the meal helper!" was almost universal.  They took pride in their responsibilities!

Happy side effects:  One-on-one time with each child.  Cleaner house.  They made less mess to begin with.  There was less complaining because it was right there, on the list (I wasn't 'picking' on someone all the time).

They learn responsibility and important life skills.  I have more sanity and time for other projects, me time, and spouse time.  Win-win-win-win-win-win-win-win-win-win.  And the baby will have a system to grow up in.  Add another win there in a few months.

Happy mom, that's me!

To Donate or Not to Donate, That is the Question.

Hold on.

Hear me out.

Imagine with me for a minute...

It's that time again: Christmas, birthday, spring cleaning, your closet is overflowing, you can't afford the storage unit anymore or find yourself contemplating a bigger one.  You've decided it's time to get rid of some stuff.

You unlock the lock, throw open the doors and behold: the Mountain of Stuff.  Boxes and boxes of it.  Some of it is from last week, some from last year, some from 30 years ago, some from the Mesozoic Era.  Plastic boxes, cardboard boxes, metal boxes. Some black or silver or white garbage bags.  You well and truly don't even know what's there exactly.  What are you going to do with it?  Toss. Keep. Donate. 

You think to yourself as you open each box, Oh, I remember this!  What a great time we had together.  I guess I don't need it anymore.  But it must still be useful!  I'll donate it. Someone will want it.

Stop. Hold it right there.

What are you holding?  Clothing?  An old toy?  A book?  A piece of furniture?  An 8-track player?  A holey (that is NOT misspelled) shoe?  A sock with no mate?  An archaic piece of technology?

Is it REALLY going to help someone in need?  Or is it just going to get some treasure-to-you-trash-to-everyone-else guilt off your chest?  Will it help someone survive or live better, or will it just add to a pile of useless junk in someone else's closet or even the store because no one will pay money for it??

What brought this on?  It is natural to wonder.  I'll tell you.

My kids' toys.

It happens naturally enough.  They get a toy from a friend or family member.  They love it for a few hours, days, months, or the lucky toys even get a few years.  Inevitably, the toys lose their appeal and drift to sundry bedroom corners or sink to the bottom of the toy box.  Vital pieces go missing (or are eaten, ha).

"But!" you say.  "We have memories here!  I can't just throw our memories in the trash!  If this such-and-such is used by someone else, our memories will be preserved, honored, remembered!"

Um. Yeah. No. Not really.

They won't have your memories.  Your memories belong to you.  They're pretty much meaningless to most everyone else, and that's fine.

You know what that stuff is doing in your house, to your house?  To your psyche?  To your soul??

Who has heard the backpack/rocks/sin parable?  Raise of hands?  Great!   Well, it doesn't just pertain to sin.

The stuff we accumulate weighs on our minds.  It stops us in our tracks physically and emotionally and spiritually.  The more you have to keep track of, the less brainpower you have to dedicate to other (some would say more important) things or people.

So I'm going to get rid of these extra toys that the kids don't even ask about anymore, that don't have all their pieces, and even some that require batteries that I don't feel like spending the money to replace.  And seeing as how most of it got to us because someone else didn't want it either, I'm going to toss it in the trash and not feel even one tiny inkling of guilt about it.

Because sometimes, your trash is everybody else's trash too.

And you know what the kids are going to do?  Mostly nothing.   They won't even notice that stuff is gone.  If they do notice, it will be in passing.  I will answer honestly when they ask me if I know where it is, "No, I don't know exactly where it is."  Then they will forget.

Oh, and they'll be running around the house with huge grins on their faces because, unbeknownst to them, they were weighed down by all the stuff they had to choose from to play with, and suddenly they feel much better.  They won't know why, but they'll be happier.  And I like happy children.

So next time you find yourself getting ready to donate something, please ask yourself if it is truly worth donating, or if it is more honorable to take a picture (with a camera or just your mind) and let it rest in peace.



Arienne

Always reaching for the stars...

I'm taking one of my friend Shannon's ideas. I hope we are all trying to do our very best all the time. But I know sometimes, I get complacent, comfortable, and I need to stretch. So here's how I'm going to keep myself stretching for the next few years... It's called "101 goals in 1001 days." That's pretty self-explanatory. So I'm going to post my goals here, and you readers can keep me accountable! It's been really hard to come up with 101, but "76 goals in 1001 days" doesn't look as good!

1. Complete a kindergarten homeschool curriculum.
2. Write in my journal every day for at least a month.
3. Toss, give away or sell half of the stuff in my storage unit.
4. Get my 3 month food storage.
5. Become a Star Consultant.
6. Read through the entire Book of Mormon again.
7. Pay off my WF credit card.
8. Be more active in the next election than I've ever been.
9. Read a new book a week for 3 months.
10. Practice piano for 15 minutes every day for a fortnight.
11. Learn to waltz.
12. Complete a 1st grade homeschool curriculum.
13. Learn the first verse of every song in the Children's Songbook.
14. Lose at least 15 pounds before I get pregnant again.
15. Gain no more than 25 pounds with the next pregnancy.
16. Lose that weight within the first year of that baby's life.
17. Go to Seminar 2010.
18. Go to the temple 5 days in a row.
19. Go to the temple once a week for a month.
20. Connect with my family tree on New Family Search.
21. Grow a vegetable from seed to edible end.
22. Pay off car loan.
23. Pay off all credit cards. Then chop them. Or burn them. Oh, that sounds fun...
24. Learn to crochet.
25. Make a dress for myself.
26-28. Teach all my children to read. (Except if another baby is born, that baby is exempt.)
29. Learn to make a souffle'.

===================================================================

This is a post I started over 2 years ago.  I couldn't think of 76 goals, even, much less 101. However, I have accomplished some of these things! I copied the list below, and crossed out the ones I did.

1. Complete a kindergarten homeschool curriculum.
2. Write in my journal every day for at least a month. I've written a lot more often, at least.
3. Toss, give away or sell half of the stuff in my storage unit.
4. Get my 3 month food storage. Thanks, Mom and Dad!
5. Become a Star Consultant. I was, for one quarter!
6. Read through the entire Book of Mormon again. Still working on it. But I've read it every day, one chapter, for the last 2 months!
7. Pay off my WF credit card.
8. Be more active in the next election than I've ever been. Election hasn't happened, but I've become much more vocal about my political views. What, you don't know what they are? I said I was better, not perfect! Feel free to ask or engage in debate with me. :)
9. Read a new book a week for 3 months.
10. Practice piano for 15 minutes every day for a fortnight.
11. Learn to waltz.
12. Complete a 1st grade homeschool curriculum.
13. Learn the first verse of every song in the Children's Songbook.
14. Lose at least 15 pounds before I get pregnant again. Actually it was at least 30!
15. Gain no more than 25 pounds with the next pregnancy. Unrealistic goal... but I didn't gain more than 35, and lost most of it within the first 6 months after. See below.
16. Lose that weight within the first year of that baby's life.
17. Go to Seminar 2010. Life happened. Oh well.
18. Go to the temple 5 days in a row. Forgot about this one!
19. Go to the temple once a week for a month. I can do this one!!! I live super close to a temple again.
20. Connect with my family tree on New Family Search. I at least logged in.
21. Grow a vegetable from seed to edible end.
22. Pay off car loan. Getting it repossessed counts, right? I still had to pay off what they couldn't get back from the sale...
23. Pay off all credit cards. Then chop them. Or burn them. Oh, that sounds fun... I did it. Then I got one more. Will fix!
24. Learn to crochet.
25. Make a dress for myself.
26-28. Teach all my children to read. (Except if another baby is born, that baby is exempt.) She's not far behind, though!
29. Learn to make a souffle'. Oh, yeah! I'm confident in my abilities.

So, as you can see, I did pretty well! I may try to do this again. I probably won't come up with 101 again, unless perhaps I detail completing each course for the nursing program... We'll see.  But setting goals is important! And even though I wrote this and pretty much forgot it for two years, writing it down had enough impact to have most stick in my head and get done, even though it wasn't conscious complete-the-list actions.

Your turn! The classic time for setting goals is coming up... why not start now?  If you get to 101, let me know! I might borrow some ideas from your list!!

Arienne

The Hymn Project: #267 How Wondrous and Great

How wondrous and great 
Thy works, God of praise!
How just, King of Saints, 
And true are thy ways!
Oh, who shall not fear thee
And honor thy name?
Thou only art holy,
Thou only supreme.

To nations long dark
Thy light shall be shown.
Their worship and vows 
Shall come to thy throne.
Thy truth and thy judgments 
Shall spread all abroad,
Till earth's ev'ry people
Confess thee their God.

 A very happy joyful tune, full of sweet, simple yet eloquent praise of God. I love the music of the 3rd line the best. What, you don't know what I mean? Go find a hymnbook and a piano! Or go to http://lds.org/churchmusic/ to listen!

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #223 Have I Done Any Good?

Have I done any good in the world today?
Have I helped anyone in need?
Have I cheered up the sad and made someone feel glad?
If not, I have failed indeed.
Has anyone's burden been lighter today
Because I was willing to share?
Have the sick and the weary been helped on their way?
When they needed my help was I there?
Then wake up and do something more
Than dream of your mansion above.
Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure,
A blessing of duty and love.

There are chances for work all around just now,
Opportunities right in our way.
Do not let them pass by, saying, "Sometime I'll try,"
But go and do something today.
'Tis noble of man to work and to give.
Love's labor has merit alone.
Only he who does something helps others to live.
To God each good work will be known.
Then wake up and do something more
Than dream of your mansion above.
Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure,
A blessing of duty and love.


Will L. Thompson, the author of both words and music, was a determined fellow! He was turned down by other music publishers, so he started his own publishing company. What grit!


Now, for a personal gripe.  There are several common mistakes made in this song. One, in lyrics: You only get one mansion in heaven. Do you really need more than one?  One in music: Someone, somewhere, waxed creative with an arrangement of this hymn, I am sure, and in the second half of the verse, decided it would be awesome to add some ritardandos and fermatas. That's nice for a choir or small group, but those things DON'T work with congregations, unless your entire congregation is made up of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Everyone gets individual, and some are faster or slower, and it drags drags drags. It's a happy song! Sing it uptempo, and straight through as written. You'll see. /End rant.

It's a good song. Go do something like the hymn suggests! Report back and tell me what you did.

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #222 Hear Thou Our Hymn, O Lord

First, let me say, I have not been slacking. At least as far as hymn learning goes. But I've been too busy to blog! To reduce confusion, I will post date the ones I'm behind on, even though I'm doing all the posts in one day.



Hear thou our hymn, O Lord,
With thankful hearts we pray.
Help us thy will to follow now,
And walk the narrow way.

Keep thou our hearts aglow
With thy eternal word.
Give us thy S[irit ev'ry hour,
We ask thee gracious Lord.

Short, sweet and to the point.  Music and words by the same guy, Frank W. Asper.  He was a MoTab organist for a while (pre-Clay Christiansen?) and wrote 7 other hymns that I will be memorizing:

• 132 - God Is in His Holy Temple - music^[4]
• 176 - 'Tis Sweet to Sing the Matchless Love - music^[5]
• 189 - O Thou, Before the World Began - music^[6]
• 222 - Hear Thou Our Hymn, O Lord - words and music^[7]
• 245 - This House We Dedicate to Thee - music^[8]
• 257 - Rejoice! A Glorious Sound Is Heard - music^[9]
• 323 - Rise Up, O Men of God (Men's Choir) - music^[10]

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #34 O Ye Mountains High

O ye mountains high, where the clear blue sky
Arches over the vales of the free,
Where the pure breezes blow and the clear streamlets flow,
How I've longed to thy bosom to flee!
O Zion! dear Zion! land of the free,
Now my own mountain home, unto thee I have come;
All my fond hopes are centered in thee.


Tho the great and the wise all thy beauties despise,
To the humble and pure thou art dear; 
Tho the haughty may smile and the wicked revile, 
Yet we love thy glad tidings to hear.
O Zion! dear Zion! home of the free,
Tho thou were forced to fly to the chambers on high,
Yet we'll share joy and sorrow with thee.


In thy mountain retreat, God will strengthen thy feet; 
Without fear of thy foes thou shalt tread; 
And their silver and gold, as the prophets have told, 
Shall be brought to adorn thy fair head.
O Zion! dear Zion! home of the free, 
Soon thy towers shall shine with a splendor divine,
And eternal thy glory shall be.


Here our voices we'll raise, and we'll sing to thy praise,
Sacred home of the prophets of God.
Thy deliv'rance is nigh; thy oppressors shall die; 
And thy land shall be freedom's abode.
O Zion! dear Zion! land of the free,
In thy tenmples we'll bend, all thy rights we'll defend;
And our home shall be ever with thee.


Would it surprise you to know a topic for this hymn is Zion? Ha ha ha, I'd be surprised if you were surprised!  Doesn't this paint a great picture of Zion?  A place of refuge and safety, freedom and beauty. The worldly will dismiss and joke about it, but to the faithful, it will be most lovely. I can hardly wait!

Author tidbit: Charles W. Penrose almost spent more time serving missions in England than he did at home, but managed to parent almost 30 children, 15 of which lived to adulthood. Impressive!

The Hymn Project: #3 Now Let Us Rejoice

Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation.
No longer as strangers on earth need we roam.
Good tidings are sounding to us and each nation,
And shortly the hour of redemption will come,
When all that was promised the Saints will be given,
And none will molest them from morn until ev'n,
And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden,
And Jesus will say to all Israel, "Come home."

We'll love one another and never dissemble,
But cease to do evil and ever be one.
And when the ungodly are fearing and tremble,
We'll watch for the hour when the Savior will come,
When all that was promised the Saints will be given,
And none will molest them from morn until ev'n,
And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden,
And Jesus will say to all Israel, "Come home."

In faith we'll rely on the arm of Jehovah
To guide through these last days of trouble and gloom,
And after the scourges and harvest are over,
We'll rise with the just when the Savior doth come.
Then all that was promised the Saints will be given,
And they will be crown'd with the angels of heav'n,
And earth will appear as the Garden of Eden,
And Christ and his people will ever be one.

Another great by W. W. Phelps. He's super about writing hymns that talk about the Second Coming. Must've been on his mind a lot. Here's an interesting tidbit about his life: He was excommunicated and rebaptized twice. Never say the Lord doesn't give us second chances!

I like this hymn because it is so joyful, and positive. The early saints knew from personal experience what it was like to be "molest[ed] from morn until ev'n," and I'm sure the idea of any respite from that was lovely to contemplate. We don't always have the open opposition from people around us these days (though some do), but we each face opposition from the Adversary, and just from the basic challenges of mortal life, so we can find peace in that concept too.

Topics: Enduring to the End, Faith, Jesus Christ-- Second Coming, Joy (see also Cheerfulness), Millennium (see also Zion), Unity.

I think you can learn a lot from the topics a hymn relates to, especially if you haven't thought of it that way before. Try it! Then after you've discovered topics, you can find a scripture and start a chain for your scripture study.

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #227 There is Sunshine in My Soul Today

There is sunshine in my soul today,
More glorious and bright
Than glows in any earthly sky, 
For Jesus is my light.
Oh, there's sunshine, blessed sunshine
When the peaceful happy moments roll.
When Jesus shows his smiling face,
There is sunshine in the soul.

There is music in my soul today,
A carol to my King,
And Jesus listening can hear
The songs I cannot sing.
Oh, there's sunshine, blessed sunshine
When the peaceful happy moments roll.
When Jesus shows his smiling face,
There is sunshine in the soul.

There is springtime in my soul today,
For when the Lord is near,
The dove of peace sings in my heart,
The flow'rs of grace appear.
Oh, there's sunshine, blessed sunshine
When the peaceful happy moments roll.
When Jesus shows his smiling face,
There is sunshine in the soul.

There is gladness in my soul today,
And hope and praise and love,
For blessings which he gives me now,
For joys "laid up" above.
Oh, there's sunshine, blessed sunshine
When the peaceful happy moments roll. 
When Jesus shows his smiling face
There is sunshine in the soul.


I love this hymn. It has long been one of my favorites. The funny thing is, for the longest time I could never remember the first verse!  I knew all the others, but not the first. Ha! Well, I've fixed that now. I sing this song a lot. Sometimes I sing it because I have sunshine in my soul; sometimes I sing it because I want sunshine in my soul. :) And it rarely fails in making me happier, and sometimes, when I'm happy, singing it moves me to tears. Ah, emotions.

Here's an interesting tidbit for you.  These lyrics were written by a lady named Eliza E. Hewitt, who was an invalid for most of her life. And yet she continued to find joy through Christ! That is so inspiring. She also wrote a lot of other neat hymns. Look her up!

Topics: Gratitude, Joy, Music and Song

And it has an irregular meter! Yay!

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #340 The Star-Spangled Banner

What better way to honor the day than with a patriotic hymn and anthem?

Oh say, can you see, by the dawn's early light, 
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, 
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen thru the mists of the deep, 
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes ,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?  
How it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines on the stream;
'Tis the star-spangled banner!  Oh, long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!


Oh, thus be it ever, when free men shall stand 
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation!
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation! 
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, 
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust!"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!


I don't know about you, but growing up, I knew the words to this anthem, but I didn't really comprehend the meaning. It was just a bunch of words.  But you take it out of the music, and you can see there's a story in that first verse!  This wasn't written during the War for Independence, either. It was written during the War of 1812.  The American Patriotic Spirit had had time to soak in to every person who lived there; the flag meant something to them. They loved their country.  So to see it still waving over the fort in that early morning probably moved many people to tears, as this song still does today.

I have to say I also did not know the other 2 verses, and does that make me sad! They are so powerful and beautiful.  My favorite phrase I think, is in the 3rd verse: "Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just." Yup. No elaboration necessary, I think. (If you want some, tell me in a comment, and I will.)

So while you're having your party or picnic, salute that star-spangled banner, sing this song, and remember why we celebrate today, and think about how you would respond to a call to defend it once more.

Happy Independence Day!

And happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #38 Come, All Ye Saints of Zion

Come, all ye Saints of Zion, And let us praise the Lord;
His ransomed are returning, According to his word.
In sacred song and gladness They walk the narrow way, 
And thank the Lord who brought them To see the latter day.

Come, ye dispersed of Judah, Join in the theme and sing
With harmony unceasing The praises of our King, 
Whose arm is now extended, On which the world may gaze,
To gather up the righteous In these the latter days.

Rejoice, rejoice, O Israel, And let your joys abound!
The voice of God shall reach you Wherever you are found
And call you back from bondage, That you may sing his praise 
In Zion and Jerusalem, In these the latter days.

Then gather up for Zion, Ye Saints thruout the land, 
And clear the way before you, As God shall give command.
Tho wicked men and devils  Exert their pow'r 'tis vain, 
Since He who is eternal Has said you shall obtain.

Wow! Isn't that amazing! I figured out this melody without the piano, and it was powerful, then I played it and... just, WOW!  I couldn't stop smiling while I was singing, and it almost moved me to tears.  A couple of my favorite phrases:

"The voice of God shall reach you Wherever you are found."
"Tho wicked men and devils Exert their pow'r 'tis vain, Since He who is eternal Has said you shall obtain."

And the way the music is written, it makes me feel like there should be an exclamation point at the end of each verse.

 New favorite! Lost treasure! Beautiful!

Of course, it makes sense that a hymn like this would be written by a man like William W. Phelps, who wrote so many great hymns. And it's interesting to not that this was included in the first LDS hymnbook, put together by Emma Smith in 1835.

Go check it out!

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: #28 Saints, Behold How Great Jehovah

Saints, behold how great Jehovah
Hath his blessings on you shed.
Zion ev'rywhere is growing
As the gospel light is spread!

Out of all past dispensations, 
God is bringing into one
Ev'ry truth by prophets spoken,
For the last days have begun.

Rise and lift up Zion's standard;
Tell our Father's children now:
Heaven's blessed King approaches;
All men must before him bow.

 This hymn is in the section of the hymnbook called Restoration, which comprises hymns 1 through 61, also known as the Restoration Hymns.  These are hymns that were either popular at the time of the Restoration (or the beginning of our church in the latter days) or were written at that time for those saints.  I can only imagine that those already disposed to music would feel an increase of inspiration for hymns at that time, when there was such an outflowing, and it was so new.

The scriptures for this hymn are:
Doctrine and Covenants 64:41-42 For, behold, I say unto you that Zion shall flourish, and the glory of the Lord shall be upon her; And she shall be an ensign unto the people, and there shall come unto her out of every nation under heaven.
Doctrine and Covenants 133:37-38 And this gospel shall be preached unto every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.  And the servants of God shall go forth, saying with a loud voice: Fear God and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come;

Related Topics:  Jesus Christ--Second Coming; Missionary Work; Restoration of the Gospel; Truth; Zion.

I love this hymn! It's short and sweet, upbeat, talks about the Second Coming (one of my favorite topics), and is just happy! It was also a good start for memorizing, since it's so short. :)

Happy hymning!

The Hymn Project: A Beginning

Some of the greatest sermons are preached by the singing of hymns.  --First Presidency Preface to the LDS Hymnbook 

The other day, my mom showed me a hymn that she remembered from her youth that hadn't been sung in a while.  (It was miraculously sung in church a couple of weeks later... what are the odds? The Lord Works in Mysterious Ways...)  It got me thinking about how many hymns are unfamiliar to me.  So I figured it out!

The final count, known to unknown was: 221 - 120! That's almost 2/3 that I know.

I categorized that by whether I knew the tune without playing. It was kind of hard on several of them to decide which category they should be in. I probably should have had 3 sections. Oh well. Hindsight and what not.

Now, I know a lot. I also know that the majority of our church members don't know as many as I do.  I didn't include lyrics in my decision because as an organist, I'm more concerned naturally with the music than the words, and I started young on that (at age 14 I was called to be ward organist).  And I know that the number and which of the hymns people know is a lot based on their age. I bet for the average youth, the statistic would at least be reversed, if not totally skewed in the other direction.  That is a tragedy! There are so many great hymns, both in music and message (341, in my opinion, haha) and we're all missing out! (If you know all the hymns, up to and including at least the first verse of every hymn in the hymnal, speak now, and I will humbly honor you... no? Thought not.)

So I've decided to learn them all!  My minimum criteria is as follows:

-Be able to play the hymn through without mistakes
-Be able to sing the melody without accompaniment
-Memorize the first verse
-Know the number of each hymn, and the hymn of each number

For those songs which I already meet the criteria for, I will:
-Memorize all the verses
-Learn all the parts, and memorize the alto

Yes, I think that is sufficient.  I will do a hymn per day, and in this way should be finished in just under a year.

As a way of tracking my progress, each day I will post about the hymn I learned, including the scriptures associated with it, the topics it applies to, and any interesting stories that might go along with them.

I'm both incredibly intimidated and excited about my new project. You don't have to crazy like I am, but I encourage you to also assess where you are in hymn knowledge, and endeavor to expand that, even by only one hymn.

P.S. To my friends of other faiths: Hey! We share some hymns! Look for those, especially. But you will see that most of our hymns praise Christ in some fashion or other. And of course I welcome all comments!

Happy hymning!