Memory Verse: February

As I mentioned last month, I am doing a series of posts with memory verses this year! Since I am reading through the Bible with my Bible study group, I am encouraging my kids to memorize Bible verses with me. I plan on presenting the verses to them creatively each month, to encourage them to memorize!

I just finished writing letters to my kids, and I mentioned Valentines Day. I said that we have a holiday here on February 14 that celebrates love. I tell them that school children often give each other small cards, and sometimes share candy with each other, and that married people sometimes give each other flowers! I also told them that my parents were married on Valentines Day!

Going on with the theme of love, I chose a verse from the Bible about love! This month's verse is Matthew 22:37.

"Jesus said, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and 

all your soul and all your mind.'" 

This month, I decided to make bookmarks for the kids! I started with plain, colored printer paper. I would have preferred to use red, but the closest I had was fluorescent pink! I opened up Microsoft Publisher and made heart shapes with the shape tool- three per page. I then put text boxes inside each heart, with the verse. I printed them out, cut out the hearts, and laminated them! If you don't have access to a laminating machine, you can use clear packing tape instead. There are also self-stick laminating pages available at office supply stores, and most stores that have a decent office supply aisle (like Target or Walmart.) The hearts were cut out again, and I punched small holes in the top of each one. I found some ribbon and looped two pieces through the top of each one. If I had wider ribbon, I would have just used one piece. I know that small pieces of ribbon are acceptable to Compassion, but I always include a note saying it can be removed if necessary. Tasya made me some bookmarks last year (that's where I got the idea!) and put a little bit of ribbon through those, so it should be ok! Just as long as you keep it short and unobtrusive, it should be fine. 

Here's the result: 

I hope everyone likes them! Even the boys.   : ) Because I am including stickers with the bookmarks, I put each one in an envelope and then wrote our names and numbers on there. I had originally planned to send the bookmarks by themselves, and if I had, I would have put that information on a blank label, to make sure they got to the kids!