Back To School Family Night

My dad always gave my brothers and sisters and I Father’s Blessings the night before school started and Chad and I have continued that tradition in our home at our annual Back To School Family Night. But last year, just as Chad was about to start the blessings, I had the idea to write the blessings down.  I grabbed the closest piece of paper and scribbled notes.

This year I wanted the kids’ blessings to be archived in a more special spot.  So I decided we would make school year journals.  The kids would get new journals every school year and I would record their blessings at the front of each journal.  Then the kids would have these journals to write in for the rest of the school year.

MAKING JOURNALS (Sunday afternoon):

I bought old school composition books at Wal-Mart (for 40 cents!).  They come in either a colored plastic cover or a thick black and white cardboard cover.

I love these notebooks for journals for a few reasons: 1. They are cheap. 2. They are uniform so all my kids can have the same size journal for years to come.  3. They will look nice stored on a shelf with all the black bindings showing. 4. They aren’t overwhelming to fill up with words. 5. You can personalize them easily.

I was excited to find Primary notebooks that had space for a picture on top with wide writing lines.  This layout will work much better for my 4 and 6 year old.

I gathered the supplies we needed to decorate the covers: Mod Podge, sponge brushes, scrapbook paper, scissors, and sticker letters. I used left over scrapbook supplies I had on hand.

We Mod Podged the covers with scrapbook paper for extra cuteness, but you could just add stickers to the front of the vinyl notebooks. I let the kids decorate their own as much as possible (can you say torture for this recovering perfectionist?)

My only requirement was that the covers had their name and their school grade. The journals actually turned out pretty cute.

BLESSINGS (Sunday Night):

Now that the journals are done, we are ready for Father’s Blessings.  This is where Chad gives each of the kids a Priesthood blessing.  It is always very sweet and I am grateful that my kids have this opportunity in their life because I remember feeling so special whenever my dad would give me a Father’s Blessing.

If Father’s Blessings are not an option for your family, you could still discuss goals with your kids and hear their concerns and offer advice for the upcoming school year.

We are waiting until the Sunday night before school starts to actually do the blessings.  And like I mentioned earlier,  I will record their blessings in their journals.  What better way to start out a year (and a journal) than a blessing from your dad?

TREATS (Sunday or Monday Night):

We plan to cap off our Back To School Family Night with Confidence Cookies.  But you will have to wait until tomorrow’s post for more details.

P.S.

Crew just couldn’t wait to start his journal.  I found him on the couch making his first entry.  I guess his Father’s Blessing will just have to be the second entry.