The Baby Jesus Story

In 1957, Lafawn was working as an artist for the Children's Friend magazine, published by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She was trying to come up with an activity to tell the Christmas story. She had ideas for pictures of Mary and Joseph, the Shepherds, the Manger and the Wise Men, but spent days thinking and thinking about how to turn it into an activity. Then, she woke up in the middle of the night with an idea of making four windows to show the pictures and story through. She sketched out where the windows should go, and by the end of the day had most of the work done.

She often told me that the idea for and mechanics of the window sheet was an inspiration given to her from God. "I'm not mathematical," she said, "I never would have figured it out."

The activity was printed in the Children's Friend in December 1957, and was later reprinted, with new art, in a large (about 2 feet square) format, on heavy cardboard, for use in the Merry Miss (or some other iteration of the older girls' class) in Primary.