Happy New Year!
With Christmas behind us, we wish you the Very Best for this coming year!
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Utah Gets Serious About Protecting its Children & Future

Nationwide “Half Hour 2 Empower” campaign launched in Utah will rally up the business community to help elementary schools and parents teach their children how to be safe and good citizens.

A generation of children left unattended at the computer, as well as our country, are being taken hostage by excessive chat, gaming, gambling, predators and pornography. Just last month, the prime suspect in the murder of little 5-year-old Destiny Norton, later admitted that it all started with his addiction to Internet pornography.

“Let’s stop this rapidly growing trend of young people becoming addicted to the dangerous and pernicious aspects of the Internet!” says Scott Dow, Director of Children’s Way, “It’s our responsibility to teach our children how to use this great learning tool responsibly--we must take aggressive and decisive action to teach our young children not only what not to do, but also what to do while using the Internet.

Community, businesses, schools and government are uniting to bring the “Half-Hour 2 Empower” program to families. This program encourages and assists parents in their role as a child’s first teacher, to spend more time with that child at the computer, learning together how to be a safe and responsible citizen. “Getting the parents to sit down with their children at the computer is a critical step to solving this problem”, states Alan Osmond, Chairman of One Heart Foundation, “Our young children need to be taught the correct way to use the Internet for good.”

“The Internet is a powerful tool. As with any tool, we must instruct our children on how to use it safely. Our elementary school systems are a critical part of this program to support the parents of this young generation”, states Carmen Snow, President of the Utah PTA.

“Government, schools and the business community are here to support parents in their role as teacher of their children of these critical life skills”, states (Governor Jon Huntsman and Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert), “These principles must be taught at a very early age now in our society.”
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For those who are struggling, in pain, or feeling hopeless and trying hard to raise a good family in these crazy and confusing days. . . don't despair! Let us remember:

"While anguishing over the wickedness and lack of faith among so many in his home area, the Savior voiced His prayer of gratitude for the humble and plain people who did hear his teachings and did believe. These lowly learners needed Him, and they needed His message. They demonstrated that the humble, the needy, and the sorrowing would hear the word of God and cherish it. With reassurance to these new believers and concern for those not choosing to follow Him, Christ issued a profound invitation in what is appropriately called 'one of the grandest outpourings of spiritual emotion known to man.' These are the words of the Master used in making this appeal:

" 'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest.

" 'Take my yoke upon you, and
learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto
your souls.

" 'For my yoke is easy, and my burden is
light.' (Matt. 11:28-30.)"

REACH OUT ! ..... for A Treat from Suzanne Osmond!

Chocolate Chip Chocolate Cake

Way to go Dads!
A report released by the U.S. Department of Education, based on a survey, substantiated 25 years of research showing par ent involvement to be important to the success of a child’s academic performance. What was remarkable about this study was the high impact a father’s role made in the academic success of their children.

The survey showed that children whose fathers were involved in their education were more likely to get report cards with mostly A’s and were less likely to repeat a grade. The report suggested the reason children with involved fathers performed academically higher was the focus most fathers put on achievement.

A telephone survey of 1,000 teens, ages 12 to 17, and 829 parents of teens last spring was made to identify factors that increase the risk of adolescent use of cigarettes, alcohol, and illegal drugs, including marijuana.

Confirming a more statistically rigorous study at the University of Minnesota says that the protective nature of regular family meals in tempering risky behaviors. They discovered that teens who are home for dinner at least five times per week - relative to teens who have no more than two family meals per week - are also more likely to rate their family dinners as high quality.

Of teens that dine infrequently with their parents, 45 percent say the television is usually on when they do eat together, 29 percent say the family does not talk very much, and 16 percent lament that their dinners are often cut short. But, among the teens who frequently eat with the family at home, only 34 percent say the television is on, only 12 percent say the family does not talk much, and only 5 percent think that their dinners do not last long enough.

New Year's Resolution Song!
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Don't get a Heart Attack! . . . .

Get a "Fit Attack"!