New Beginnings

As YW President I get to experience all these fun things.... like being in charge of New Beginnings. Actually, it went FANTASTIC. We had a lot of girls there, a few moms, a bunch of leaders, stake leaders and a member of the bishopric. We had one girl present a slide show of photos from activities of the last year as one of her personal progress projects which added a great personal touch.

The new theme for the year is the 13th Article of Faith... so, we took a Pirate spin on it and talked about how we are seeking after treasure and can follow the treasure maps we've been given, and what the real treasure is. I think it went over alright.

We gave each girl a treasure box to take home with the scripture "Lay not up treasures on the earth but lay up treasures in heaven" or however that scripture really goes... We told them they could personalize them however they want to and use them to hold things that really matter to them, suggesting favorite quotes or scriptures or handouts from the year. One girl has told me that hers is full already, and another has said that she is putting all of her savings for college in it.

I brought a bunch of things from home to make it a Pirate-y atmosphere. I didn't realize how much pirate-y stuff I had at my house.

The pirate ship cake was made by a friend of my 1st councilor-- what a sweetheart she is!! Don't you just love the chocolate coins in the top of the cupcakes? And the treasure chest in the sugar-sand? My kids were sure happy that there was leftover cake the next day!

The punch was Virgin Bora-Bora which I highly recommend- yummy! Here's the recipe:

Equal parts Pineapple juice and Ginger Ale, 1/3 part Grenadine syrup, 1/4 part lime juice, lots of ice. Add lime slices and maraschino cherries to garnish.

The best part about New Beginnings? It's over for this year :)