interesting, fyi I don't reach for discrete chips much anymore, since the micro-controllers are so cheap and I have a better chance of debugging them.
There is a standard arduino example in
Arduino - ButtonStateChange
remove all the serial crap, modify it to divide by 24 instead of 4, and use the led pin as the output to the mpguino vss input.
If you have an uno, you can use it to program one of these (atmega w/uno bootloader, $1.98):
New ATMEGA328P PU with Arduino Uno Bootloader ATMEL Free Shipping from USA 2014 | eBay
and get the size down to one chip. I don't know much about flip flops, except that they leave me with a soft forehead.