Sun filtered through the blinds as I blinked my eyes open. A new day loomed before me. Another day I knew I was not pregnant and I likely would never be again. My empty womb seemed to mock me and though it was empty it felt heavy with despair and longing. My soul felt heavy too. Burdened with a longing that would not be met, saddled with questions of why, and the pain of apparent injustice. As I shook my head to clear it, voices began to call to me from down the hall. Although I desperately wanted to stay …
Five Parenting Principles from The Prodigal Story
I’ve always loved reading the story of the Prodigal Son. There are so many lessons to learn from that power-packed passage of Scripture. Today, let’s look at what we can learn from the father : 1. The father loved his children equally. The one who stayed and did all the right things did not become his “favorite”. The prodigal was just as loved by the father as the one who remained by his side. Do you struggle with loving your difficult child as much as your easy child? Do your children know you love them equally? 2. The father met his boys where they …
Five Ways to Love Your Children Well
An excerpt from The Making of a Mom… “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach” These words may have dripped from the pen of Elizabeth Browning’s love sick heart, but counting the ways a mother loves her children is as endless as Elizabeth’s love for her man. Yet how do we love our children? What does that look like when it’s more than words on a page? We say we love our children, but do we understand what it actually means. Love is so much …
Say “Yes” to Pink Hair – Pick Your Battles Wisely
By Featured Guest: Kathy Howard Do you sometimes feel like “no” is the only word in your parenting vocabulary? If you have teens and preteens it certainly might be the word they hear most often. No, you can’t stay out until midnight on a school night. No, you can’t see that “R” rated movie with your friends. No, you can’t skip school to go to the mall for the big sale. No, you can’t jump off the bridge even though all your friends are doing it. Each phase of a child’s growing up presents unique challenges. Because …
Five Ways to Engage Disengaged Kids
By Featured Guest: Mary DeMuth In a world of Halo, iphones, and IM, how do parents strategically engage their tuned-out kids? How can we create the kinds of homes that are irresistible to our children, enticing enough to make them tune out from games, media and texting and tune in to the rhythms of family life? Five ways. One: Offer ‘em Something Better The most enticing thing to a kid is community—real, authentic, God-breathed community. To create this, learn to do the following: Say you’re sorry when you’re wrong and ask forgiveness. Strive to become the person you want your …
Rest
And on the seventh day God rested. Hebrews 4:4 My mother passed away ten minutes before Easter, April 11, 2009. To say I was close to my mother is an understatement. We spoke on the phone daily. She taught my son Latin; I took her to Disney World. Even during my tumultuous teen years, Mom and I were tight. I was there at her side with my stepdad Easter eve. We had to tell the EMTs to stop the CPR and let her accept heaven’s beckon. Life hiccupped but kept moving. My daily tears ceased after about a week, and …
A Mentor’s Role
Mentors, sometimes intentionally – often unknowingly, plant seeds of wisdom in the hearts of others. They teach with their lives. They are natural nurturers. Their very existence causes us to consider our own existence and to ponder the path of our feet. Mentors are heart shapers and life changers – not necessarily because they walk through a book with someone for a few weeks, but because they walk through life with someone for a season. In a world where young women desperately need to experience Titus 2 in real life, mentors are often hard to find. Perhaps not because women …
“Teacher Trouble: P.T.A. Assignment”
They take backpacks filled with folders, pencils, and hopes for a great year. When conversations begin creating a picture of your child’s school year, you may discover you’re assigned something you didn’t request. You may be scheduled for “teacher trouble.” “How could anyone be unkind to my child?” we wonder. “Why are they so harsh?” we ask. And “That didn’t seem like a professional way to handle that,” we mutter. We try to think positively, be understanding, and let the year get started. But once underway, parents may find they have, indeed, been signed up for “teacher trouble”. How do …
5 Ways to Help Kids Set & Fulfill Goals
As we enter a new year we find ourselves reflecting on where we’ve been and looking forward to where we hope to go. We make plans, develop lists and chart a course for the coming year. But what about our kids? Do you help your children set goals and then help them fulfill them? Do you help your children set goals and then help them fulfill them? Click To Tweet I remember when I was teaching my son to read more proficiently and I gave him his first real book. It was My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George. It wasn’t really …
Taming Your Toddler’s TV
It buys time to make dinner, but it can take over our toddler’s day if we aren’t careful. TV watching is an easy trap, but we can kick the habit and find meaningful ways to occupy our children. It seems impossible to fill a toddler’s day, but we can grow bright and busy toddlers without “plugging them in.” A 2010 University of Quebec study reported that 2 ½ yr. olds who watched TV have increased risks of health and learning issues. Additional hours of viewing directly corresponded with decreases in engagement and comprehension. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages limits …