A Family Night with the Alan Osmond Family
November, 2003

by Beka Osmond

Welcome to another night in the Osmond house. My name is Beka Osmond, and I’ll be your tour guide! Just kidding, but we thought we’d share some of our ideas and events to maybe help you and your family get together. Our family nights are all about sharing each other’s company. Stepping away from our busy schedules to take time out for our loved ones.

This month our family night fell so close to Michael’s birthday (that’s my husband, of course) that we decided to combine “family night” with “birthday party” all in one.

Michael and I also took our turn in being in charge of the whole event. If you read our last family night article, you’d know that each sibling takes a turn being in charge. I tried to think of Michael’s favorite meals and one of them is burritos, or anything Mexican. So Mother cooked up some delicious chicken, and sautéed some onions, peppers and mushrooms, and all the side fixins you enjoy in a burrito. Fixins, look at me I’m back in Oklahoma! Anyway, she also made the best homemade ice cream you could ever taste, and I baked a birthday cake for him. We all had this yummy dinner and then gathered in the family room to start our family night lesson.

We are still taking chapters out of the “Be” book that some of you might know about. This month I chose the chapter “Be Involved”. This chapter was all about being involved in good works.

Gordon B. Hinckley takes us down a historical road of his boyhood days when his father thought his boys should work all year round, always have something to do. He tells of coal shoveling, February orchard pruning, and how nothing of real substance comes without work. He also said something very interesting, something I had never heard of before. He said that through various periods of this earth’s history different ages have been denoted such as the age of stone, the age of fire, the age of industry and so on. Ours is known as the age of fun. Just because more and more money and time are spent in trying to satisfy the physical desire for pleasure. He says there is nothing wrong with a little play, but it is through labor that nations become stronger, cities more attractive, families more tightly knit and lives more robust. So Be Involved. Be Involved in good works. Be willing to work, for it will make all the difference in your life.

Before and after the lesson there was singing, prayer, and announcements for the family. We also had some special guests that night, Mike’s grandpa and grandma Pinegar, as well as an uncle and a great aunt. There’s nothing wrong with inviting extended family members and friends to join your Osmonday.

For our activity I bought a small 550 piece puzzle of Harley Davidson motorcycles for everyone to have a shot at. Everyone there had to put at least a couple pieces together before leaving, and let me say we were there for quite some time. But believe it or not, puzzles are something Michael really enjoys once in a while. I think we got it out of his system!

On your Osmonday, make it memorable. Be sure to make everyone feel involved and special. This is your time to spend together, where nothing else matters or takes precedence over what’s most important; your family.