Women Who've Mothered You: Call for Mother's Day Photos

Women everywhere can be mothers to someone, whether or not they have children themselves: mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts, Young Women leaders, Relief Society presidents, visiting teachers—the list goes on and on.

So this Mother’s Day, we’re honoring women who have mothered us, whether or not they gave birth to us. We want to see and hear about influential women in your life! Send us photos of these remarkable women and an explanation of who they are and how they’ve mothered you. We’ll feature them in our Mother’s Day photo gallery coming soon! 

Send photos to blogs@ldsliving.com by Thursday, May 2nd, with your name, place of residence, an explanation of this woman’s influence, and her name. Don’t forget to attach your favorite photo of her!

Jenny Spencer, Salt Lake City, UT

This dear woman, Dianne Donnelly, was my mission president's wife, affectionately referred to as our mission mommy. She never had children of her own, but her influence and love impacted over 300 missionaries--myself included. Her example of courage, hard work and faith got me through the hardest days of my mission in Madagascar.

Go Green (and Save Some Green, Too)

We all have a responsibility to take care of the earth (see D&C 59:18, 20). And as it turns out, being environmentally responsible not only helps the planet but our wallets as well.

President Spencer W. Kimball once said, “We recommend to all people that there be no undue pollution, that the land be taken care of and kept clean to be productive and to be beautiful” (Ensign, May 1975). It was an important charge then, and surely even more important now. Perhaps not every family is environmentally conscious yet, but far more of us are money conscious. Luckily, there are many instances where the two mindsets are complimentary. These ideas will help your family save not only a few watts (or gas gallons, or trees, etc.), but a few dollars while you’re at it.

In the Car

Ease off the pedal. Sudden acceleration, braking, and speeding wastes gas, lowering your gas mileage by approximately 33 percent.

The Mish: Mission Lingo 101

Mission jargon can be confusing for some members who aren't as quick to pick up on the lingo. So here's your crash course in Mission Lingo 101.

It’s understandable that members become a little distraught when they hear a missionary at their dinner table say that their last companion died, (or even worse, that the elder sitting across the table killed them). They may not realize, however, that the missionary is merely using mission lingo to say that their last companion had finished their mission and gone home.

If this ever takes place at your dinner table, you may become lost in translation. But take heart, though: it’s a common misunderstanding, given how often missionaries use lingo that’s a part of a subculture that naturally blossoms while they labor in the vineyard.

Wherever the source, returned missionaries from all over the globe attest that it was prominent in their service. It has drifted in the air of the southwest deserts of Arizona. It has run along the Gap River which gallivants through Daejeon, South Korea. It has turned the corners of oil-stained streets in Philadelphia and stirred in the City Bowl of Capetown, South Africa.

It was a new discovery for Sister Osanna Emrazian, who couldn’t believe her ears when she heard that her trainer had given birth—to her!  Soon she began to embrace the idioms, after she learned that she was, in fact, “the baby”— and consequently, she also had “sisters” (female missionaries who had also been tutored by the same trainer) and would eventually become a “mom” herself.

Favorite General Conference Memes

With so many Spirit-filled and humor-filled moments in general conference, we just had to share with you some of our favorites!

From LDS Living.

And a fan made this one out of our meme: