GFCF Banana Coconut Muffins

Here it is, the long-awaited recipe that I made up off the cuff.  Enjoy!
(It is still somewhat a work in progress. If you have any ideas for improvements, let me know!)

And my breakfast-picky kids LOVED them...

GFCF Banana Coconut Muffins
Makes 12-18

2 cups GF all-purpose flour (I used Giusto's)
1 Tbsp baking soda
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 cup flaked coconut
2/3 cup brown sugar

3 eggs, lihgtly beaten
1 tsp GF vanilla
1 cup coconut milk

2-3 ripe bananas, mashed

Preheat oven to 350* F.  Prepare muffin tin by greasing lightly.

In large bowl, mix first 5 ingredients together.  In another bowl, combine next 3 ingredients.  Add wet ingredients and bananas to dry mixture, and stir until combined (can still be lumpy).  Spoon batter into muffin tin evenly.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until tops are browned, and toothpick comes out clean.

Top with powdered or coarse sugar, and serve. Delicious warm or cool.

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

That's right. That's it. Here are some side notes:

*Not all GF all-purpose flours are created equal.  You may need to adjust the recipe to the one you use.  Judge it based on the batter result: You want it a medium thickness, so that it holds its shape for just a few seconds when you move it around.
*The riper your bananas, the sweeter and more banana-flavored they are. Adjust recipe accordingly, to your tastes.
*I find coconut milk adds more flavor to the recipe, but I have also used almond milk to good effect.

Now go try it, and let me know how it turns out for you!!!

I still can't believe I did this out of hand!! :D

Goin' Courtin': Relationship Girl Vs. Dating Girl

You should not date until you are at least 16 years old. When you begin dating, go with one or more additional couples. Avoid going on frequent dates with the same person. Developing serious relationships too early in life can limit the number of other people you meet and can perhaps lead to immorality.  --For the Strength of Youth

I think I did this backwards.

It wasn't long after I turned 16 that I had my first boyfriend.  If I cared to look, I could come up with an exact number of days, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't more than a month.  And that's how it was. I pretty much went from relationship to relationship.  I can count the number of guys I dated just once from my high school days on one hand, and it wouldn't take all five fingers.  I had a few months in between each relationship, but it was purely a recovery period, and I didn't date much in the interval.  This led to me having a total of five boyfriends before I got married (the fifth being my husband).

Back then, that also meant I had only kissed 5 boys, because kissing was something that didn't happen unless we were exclusive or on the road to being so.

To quote my favorite TV show, "I have boyfriends, not escorts." (Name that show!)

My, how times have changed.

Okay, maybe it didn't start out any differently post-divorce.  I was still in my old patterns.  An admittedly stupid attitude of, "If I'm not exclusive with a boy, I can't have fun with him."  And I had one boyfriend under that premise.

Enter "online dating."

I tried doing dating like I was used to doing it, and it was just depressing. It's my own fault, I know.  I would get excited that a guy liked me, and my imagination would get all tangled up in the possibilities of the future, only to find out he "wasn't that into" me, ha ha.   I realized this probably wasn't an attractive quality to quality men, either.

So I decided I could flirt with a lot of guys.  I posted some new pics, flirted a little, and answered most flirts that came to me (which started coming in at what was to me a startling pace).  It was fun for a while, having several guys telling me I'm cute/pretty/beautiful and great/amazing/wonderful.  And I figured that they would all just naturally fall away if they weren't right. A Utopian ideal, perhaps.  I'm not unused to being the one to end a relationship, or end the possibility.

The problem came when more than one progressed to levels that in my former life would have meant exclusivity.  At one point, that number was as high as five.

I started to be wracked with confusion. What was wrong with this picture? Was I acting inappropriately?  Maybe my definitions were off, and I was actually okay doing what I was doing?  I didn't know. I still don't know.  I've never done this before.  How far can you go, how close can you get with a guy before it's wrong to be that way with more than one at a time?  Were my limits before reasonable, or just set up by circumstance? I can honestly say I didn't have more than one pursuing me at a time in my younger years. I only learned much later that it was because most of them were following the counsel cited above prior to missions or life in general, which we have already established I did not do. LOL.

If this is standard events for a Dating Girl, I'm not sure I'm cut out for it.  When I do it, I just end up feeling guilty, which leads me to detach myself from feeling anything, which obviously prevents me from attaching to anybody, which defeats the whole purpose of dating in the first place.

So, Dating Girls: What are the limits? When do I start to look like a whore, or some equally unflattering adjective applied to women?  What's okay, and what's not?  Help a sister out here.

P.S. If you men out there have any advice to offer, please feel free.

P.P.S.  If you are dating me, and this idea offends you, I'm sorry.  This wasn't intentional. And I think it should count for something that I'm trying to figure it out. Right?

Needles don't scare me!

A few weeks ago, I took the kids to get some blood drawn for lab work for our new doctor.  All four were going to set in the big chair. I think the hardest thing was that they had to be fasting. They get so cranky when they don't eat!

This was not how the kids were!

We didn't have long to wait for our turn.  I'm sure we must have been quite the sight, mom and four kids skipping, running, and walking down the hallway.

Kael volunteered to be first.  He hopped up in that chair with a big smile on his face.  The staff were amazed! He answered all their questions with aplomb and enthusiasm. They were shocked! When they poked him with the needle, all he said was, "Cool!"  They gushed!  Then they gave him stickers.

Next was Lorelai, at my insistence because she was really suffering from lack of food. (I had brought snacks for them to have after.)  One of the staff held her in her lap.  When they poked her with the needle, there were no tears, no hysterics. I believe the best way to describe the look on her face is something like, "Are you done yet? I'm hungry."  They began to be astonished!

Next came Tristan.  He'd done stuff like this before, so he jumped in the chair with much energy, and stuck his arm out like a pro.  The staff just couldn't get over it.  Again, no tears.  He didn't even need to look away.  He got his stickers, and he was happy.

At last it was Elizabeth's turn.  She was the only one who managed to get a little worked up.  She insisted that I hold her on my lap, so one of the staff took Lorelai again.  When they poked her, she gasped, and then started to giggle, I think because she realized it wasn't that bad after all. They gave her stickers, and she was happy.

This whole time, all four staff members talked to each other and to me, remarking how amazing it was that they weren't freaking out, how they had never seen kids like that, and how wonderful my kids are. (No surprise on that one, just a new facet of their wonderful-ness.)

Today, we went back, this time just Tristan, Lorelai and me, and only Tristan and I were getting blood drawn.  The lady in charge called us back. She seemed surprised at Tristan's happy attitude.

"Has he done this before?" Yes.

"Does he know what's happening?" Yes.

We had one of the staff from the last time, a young man. While Tristan was in the chair (which he once again climbed into most happily), he said, "Remember a few weeks ago, when I told you about that big group of kids that came in, and none of them was scared?"

"Those were my kids," I said with a smile.  I loved that they had been talking about my kids after we were gone! So much fun!

They kept asking me how I'd gotten them to be that way.  I honestly don't know. I'm pretty sure Lorelai was born that way.  Also, I never freaked out about it.  However, I am relatively certain it's either part of who they are, or a product of the environment they live in. I do try to keep things happy and peaceful, and welcome the Spirit in.

All I know is, needles don't scare us!  And if that makes my kids remarkable, then that's super.

Just more of what I already knew.

The Goin' Courtin' Series

Yes, we're "Goin' Courtin'" now.

This series will mainly be a self-therapy method.  I've had quite the time trying to figure out dating this time around.

Questions I have in mind already are:

Why can't we be "just friends"? Is it really impossible?
Should I be Relationship Girl, Dating Girl, or is there a balance to strike?
How can you like more than one guy at a time?
How is dating now different from 10-15 years ago?

And hopefully at the end of this, I'll have some kind of answer to:

How do you know it can last forever?

Do you have any questions you'd like resolved?  Even if you're married, are there some things that still mystify you?  Are you wise and sage-like, and just want to give me something to ponder?  Let me know.

I realize I'm taking my dating life in my hands with these things, as several of the men I'll be referencing have access to this blog.  But it must be done. (I won't be using names, or even much description, but they know who they are.  And for those who are just finding out that I've been "seeing" more than one man at a time, I'm sorry.)

An Unexpected Turn

This is an essay I wrote for my English class. I like how it turned out, so here it is!

 *****************************************************************************

Phew.

Finally, I had a moment to relax. Running around like a chicken with its head cut off for three weeks had left me exhausted in every way. The kids were in bed. Most of my earthly belongings precariously perched on top of one another in teetering towers of boxes clinging to the walls of my new apartment. I flung myself onto my newly-acquired (from my parents) very large couch, closed my eyes and sighed.

How did I get here?

A little over a year before this, I had divorced the father of my children, sold practically everything I owned, and moved in with my parents. About nine months later, I started feeling it might be time to move on, but I resisted because I didn't know what I'd do, or where I would go. The pressure I felt kept growing, heavier and heavier, until I could hardly breathe, and I started to lash out at the people around me. So at the end of July, I scheduled an appointment with my bishop. I knew with absolute clarity that if I needed to leave my parents' house, I would need divine guidance. That week, my life took an unexpected turn.

I walked into Bishop's office with not a little trepidation. My hands fluttered like leaves in the breeze, my heart threatened to beat out of my chest, and my head swam like a fish. As I sat down and poured out my soul, relating how I loved my parents, but it would be best for everyone if we moved out, and how I felt it was time to move on with my life, I felt a little lighter. That feeling didn't last long, though, as Bishop started talking about the possibility of me going back to school. I had completed an Associate of Arts degree about 6 years previously, but it wasn't going to get me a job that would support my family. I decided nursing sounded fun, and that I'd like to go to school again, a place I'd always loved. However, the only place I could think of was back in Idaho, and the thought of moving so far away from my family again sent a wave of panic through me.

“Have you considered EA?” asked Bishop.

“Um... no. What's that?”

“It's a school in Thatcher.”

“Uh, sorry, never heard of that before.”

And with that he set out to tell me all about Thatcher, and Eastern Arizona College, and how many people in our ward had gone to school there, grown up there, or had family there. A strange mixture of peace and excitement flowed into me, making my hair stand on end and my blood pump faster. As I took his advice and spoke with some of the people he had mentioned, I felt like a snowball that had been pushed off the top of a tall mountain, rolling slowly at first, but getting faster and faster, and bigger and bigger, until it was unstoppable, and I knew moving was what I needed to do.

There was one problem. School started in three weeks.

Holy crud.

It was a flurry of activity from there. I applied to the school and got in. I applied for financial aid. I signed up for classes. I made several trips from Tucson to Thatcher and back again, looking for a place to live, moving things, and getting things situated. By some miracle I was able to find a two bedroom apartment for a good amount, one block from school, that didn't mind that I had four children coming with me. By some miracle, financial aid came through. And, by some miracle, I packed everything in my parents' house that belonged to us, and found someone to help me take it over there. I even got my best friend to come live with us for a week while I found babysitters for my class times.

One might have thought getting into school and moving a family of five in three weeks was improbable, if not impossible. I proved that notion otherwise, but I know why it worked. It worked because it was right. This was where I was meant to be. I would spend the next few weeks getting that confirmed over and over again, as free furniture showed up on my doorstep, and mystery people anonymously donated gift cards and a microwave.

Sigh. Everything will be just fine.

Mom, PLEASE find a man!

The other night at dinner, the kids and I were talking about moving.  I guess they've picked up my move-once-a-year rhythm, drat it all. Anyway, so I was telling them that we wouldn't be moving this year, because I had one more year of school left. And then I told them that I wasn't sure where we'd go after that - maybe closer to Granmama, or who knows.

"Or, if I find a man, then..."
"Oh, Mom, PLEASE find a man!" exclaimed Elizabeth.
"What?!" And I burst out laughing for at least a minute.
"Mom, I really want you to find a man! You need a husband, and I want another dad, and it would just be a good thing."
"So if I met a man and liked him enough to marry him, but he lived far away, I have your permission to move?"
"Yeah. That's fine." To which the boys also gave their approval.

So I guess I need to find a man. I can't disappoint my kids!

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...

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

Goodbye, Sucker!

Okay, I have been a horrible, no-good, lazy bum of a blogger for the last few months. But it's only because I have been the exact opposite in my real life. More updates on that later. That said, I just had to blog about this!

You know that feeling you get when you've lost something? Something really important? Something so important you can't imagine how life will go on without it? Remember that panicky, short-of-breath feeling as you imagine the horrors that will ensue if you don't find it? Yup. That was me tonight.

Why? We couldn't find a pacifier at bedtime.

Most parents of little ones can tell you the importance of pacifiers. They're miracle workers, really. They give you 5 extra minutes to get food ready, shut off the crying that happens for unknown reasons, and enable you to be by yourself for 3 minutes to use the bathroom.

But eventually, you have to get rid of them.

There are "nice" ways to do it.  There's the pacifier fairy, who takes old pacifiers, recycles them somehow and gives them to new babies who "really need them."  There's having "the talk;" you know, pacifiers are for babies, and you're a big kid now, it's time to move on. Or sometimes you just have to bribe them.

Or sometimes you just lose the last one, and there is no other option.

Bring on the panic.

This is not the first time I've done it this way. With my first girl, who has now successfully made it to 8 sans pacifier, this was how we did it too. One major difference? She was a whole year older.  Baby L is just 1 year old! She probably wouldn't understand the concept of Paci Fairy, "the talk" is useless, and you could bribe her, but she probably wouldn't make the connection.  (Although I have to say, I'm fairly certain she's one of the smartest babies ever, as her list of accomplishments thus far include: saying "tut tut" to which I have to reply, "Looks like rain;" saying "ma-nah ma-nah" and then giggling; and rushing for the bathroom the minute I make eye contact with her, laughing maniacally all the way. So if any baby would understand, it would be her.) So what do you do?

Let her cry a little.

Oh, how I dreaded it. I had one child (4-T) on the couch already asleep, and one more wishing she could go to bed too.  I was SURE, absolutely POSITIVE, she would be crying for at least an hour.  Oh, the tears, the agony, the suffering!  But she was so tired... So I put her to bed, and proceeded to go over the house as with a fine-tooth comb, looking in every nook, cranny, bucket, and drawer, likely or unlikely. I told myself, if I find it before she stops crying, I'll give it to her. If she stops crying before I find it, she'll just be done. And of course, what happened?

She cried.

For 5 minutes. MAYBE.

All 4 children are now in bed, sound asleep.

It's entirely possible that a mid-night awakening could be more drama for me.

Then again, maybe not.

And thus we learn that pacifiers are not essential to bedtime, like we tell ourselves. Nope. Our babies are amazing, and part of being a good parent, is learning when to let go and let them be amazing.

Good night, sweetie. You're amazing. I love you. -Mom

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: #301 I Am a Child of God

I am a child of God, 
And he has sent me here,
Has given me an earthly home
With parents kind and dear.


I am a child of God,
And so my needs are great;
Help me to understand his words
Before it grows too late.


I am a child of God,
Rich blessings are in store;
If I but learn to do his will
I'll live with him once more.


[Chorus]
Lead me, guide me, walk beside me,
Help me find the way.
Teach me all that I must do
To live with him someday.


I love that our hymnbook has a few children's songs in it.  There are such beautiful, simple truths in songs written for children, and as children of God, we are never truly all grown up in this life. We all need to help each other, young and old. Everyone has something to teach.


How have you helped someone to know they're a child of God? How did you get your testimony that you are a child of God? Or is this a new concept for you?

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!