My Sunday's have gotten a little more interesting lately. Instead of my usual 2 kids I have 4. ( a Foster care situation) I have my 3 year old boy, 11 month old boy plus a 4 year old boy and 20 month old girl, whew! This can sometimes make Sacrament meeting easier but most times harder. Especially since my hubby has to be at church at 7:30 for a meeting and it is my sole responsibility to get them fed, dressed, in the car etc. all by 9 am. Here are a few things that I do to keep Sacrament meeting reverent and most importantly Christ and "church" centered.
~ Car ride. On the ride to church (which is at least 10 minutes for us) we have no music, church music or classical music on. I also talk about church to the kiddos and ask questions. Where are we going? What are we going to do at church? Who do we think about at church? Are you excited for Primary/Nursery? What songs do you like to sing at church? All of these questions help get them excited for church and why we go.
~ Prep talk. Before entering into the church house we stop and talk about this being the Lords house and what we can do to show respect and reverence. This usually leads to Brayden (my 3 year old) folding his arms as we entered the building. It was a proud day for Mom when he did this all on his own with out any coaching from me *tear*. Now if only I could get him to walk more than he runs with his arms folded, we'd be in good shape. ;)
~ Seating. This is my husbands responsibility since h
e is there before me. We usually sit near the front giving the kids a clear view of the stands with there being few people in front of us to distract the kids. We also strive to find seats that are notaround any other kids. This is important to me because my kids get less distracted by others and less likely to try to "play" with them during Sacrament meeting. We also try hard to keep the kids facing forwards when on the seats.
~ Toys. We have a special Sunday bag that has toys just for Sunday. These toys are all some how church related. There are some that may seem a stretch but to me it works.
We have books: a Book of Mormon, Kid's Bible, Noah and the Ark, a busy book, The Friend magazine and some books by Van Chadwick Bagley that I and the kids love.
We also have a little magnet pen sketch pad, animal finger puppets, Noah and the ark boat with animals, Captain Moroni figurine, Noah and the ark puzzle books and other things we try to alternate each Sunday to keep them interested.
This is another reason for not sitting by other kids. The tendency for my kids to get upset is when they see someone else playing with cars, or airplanes or other non church related toys. Not because they don't have theres but the other kids will share, my kids in turn get too loud with them, get them taken away and then get upset. (My boys are very passionate about their cars and play cars LOUDLY. Revving their engines and crashing them, etc.) So to eliminate the problem we remove the temptation. Now that Brayden is older he will ask to take certain toys to church before we leave and I ask him if it's "church appropriate" he will look at it and say "no" them put it down and that's the end of it.
~Sacrament. This is something important to me. When we get to church and sit down the toys and snacks don't come out right away. We sit down and encourage the kids to sit reverently until after Sacrament. They are allowed to look at the hymnal, their Book of Mormons or the Little book about Jesus by Val Chadwick Bagley. After the Sacrament prayer we point out the Priesthood and what they are doing, we point out the bread and explain it's meaning, the same for the water. We try to get them to understand what is going on and who we should think about during this time. No snacks, drinks or toys are handed out until after the Priesthood has been excused to sit down. This can be difficult at first but has really made a difference!
~ Hallway = no freedom and no fun. If my boys act up they are taken into the hallway and are to sit either in our laps or we stand up and have them in our arms. They are not allowed to roam or play, it is like a time out. We ask them, "Do you want to stay out here where I hold you? OR do you want to calm down and go back inside where you can play with your toys and sit on your own?" Usually they will calm down with in a minute and then walk back to their seats with their arms folded. We usually don't have to take them out because they realize they have more fun inside.
~Take turns. My husband and I also take turns on Sunday. We switch off who will focus mostly on the lids and who will get to really listen to the talks. We just started this because we realized we were both barely hearing the talks sometimes. This way if one misses a bulk of the talk the other can fill them in after church and so we are both getting spiritually filled. HTe kids also get to see the example of a parent listening to a whole meeting. There are those "special" Sundays where neither of us get to listen at all but that's the life we get with young kids...
~ Ride home. On the ride home I do what I did on the ride there. Ask questions. Find out what they learned about, what songs they sang, what was their favorite part about church and it usually ends in excitement to go again the next week.
My Sunday routine may seem a bit extreme but it is what works for my overly energetic kids. When it is that consistent, they know what to expect and are ready for church. They also learn about religious things with the church centered toys since they are still too young to listen to the talks. Any opportunity we have to point out a spiritual truth with a toy or book or while the Sacrament is being passed we take it. These are things that help put family and I know they really don't differ from everyone else.
Please note, I tend to write too much...
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