How to Set Curfews for Teenagers

There’s no greater DoAhead on the planet than raising good kids. It can feel like a daunting task when they are little but sometimes it can feel impossible when they become teens. One such example has to do with weekend recreation. You know the drill. It’s a Friday night and your beyond exhausted waiting for your teen to get home. Oh, it’s not that you have a bad kid. It’s just part of parenting teens. Years ago a mother who mentored me told me that there are two seasons in which a parent becomes sleep deprived. The first season is when the …

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How to Make Your House a Joyful Home

    ‘Wives should feel that home is their place and their kingdom, the happiness of which depends mostly upon them.*” Ouch. You mean the happiness of my family depends mostly upon me???    As much as I would love this responsibility to fall on someone else’s shoulders, the fact is I am the one with the responsibility of constructing a joyful home. So how do we intentionally design our “place and kingdom”? Fashion a home which glorifies God and as a natural result love, joy and rest fill each room?  This will not come naturally. By nature we are …

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Simple Change

“Say you’re sorry, Riley.” “Sorrrrrreeeeee.” “She doesn’t mean it! She’s not sorry.” A common exchange among siblings. a challenging situation for moms and dads.  Saying sorry is sometimes just saying words. Kids can spot an insincere apology a mile away.  My sister-in-law was once a member of a cult called Eckankar. The sect taught that Christians were all hypocrites; a believer could do whatever  he wanted, ask for forgiveness, and then do it again later. Hyper-grace.  Giving an  insincere apology is a lot like seeking  hyper-grace.  Giving an insincere apology is a lot like seeking hyper-grace. Click To Tweet So, …

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how to stand firm with your kids

Exhaustion can get the best of us sometimes as moms. Have you ever seen your child misbehaving and thought, “I’m going to let that go, just this one time. I don’t have the energy to fight that battle today.”? You’re not alone, mom. I’ve done it — too many times, in fact, as my kids were growing up. Here’s the danger: “One time” rarely ends up being just one time. The more we give in to weariness, temporary apathy or fear of our kids’ anger or disapproval, the easier it is to do it the next time. We may not …

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What I Didn’t Want My Girls to Know About Dating

  When it came to guys and dating as a young women, did you feel like you went at it alone? No one gave you any direction on figuring the whole thing out? My youth pastor tried. He told me to make out “my list” – …the one with all of the qualities I was going to look for in a guy. Wow, was that one long list! Faithful Honest Stable Hard-working Kind Funny… With my list in my head and in my heart, I began the search. What someone failed to tell me was when you’re 19 years old, finding …

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Praying Colossians 3:23 for Your Children

Do you want your children to understand the value of hard work but are finding it hard to teach them why hard work is so important? In a world where kids are growing up with an entitlement mentality, moms have their hands full with trying to counter the culture and instilling in their children’s hearts the value of hard work and why it is so important to be diligent and determined. There are a ton of practical ways you can teach your kids to work hard, but the best place to start is in prayer.  Prayer! It’s the greatest way …

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The Unique Struggles of a Special Sibling

“He gets mad at the smallest things and always causes a scene. I’m embarrassed to be seen with him.” ” I feel ignored and resent how much time he demands from my parents.” Click To Tweet “Why can’t I just have a NORMAL family like everyone else?!” “As much as I am embarrassed to be around my brother, I worry about if he is OK without me.” “It hurts when people are rude to him… but I feel guilty and ashamed because I am the rudest to him of all.” “Who will take care of her if something happens to …

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