A Mother’s Heart…The Smell of Freshly Sharpened Pencils

“It’s wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it!” (Eccl. 11:9a TLB)         Those of us in, ahem, our later years were deprived. Deprived? Yup. We didn’t have things like… air conditioning computers videos or DVDs chat rooms and social media big screen TVs (or color for that matter) games like Wii text messages iPods cell phones – ‘cause the only blackberries we had came out of grandmother’s garden! Forced to be outsiders, we actually got exercise by running around playing tag, kick ball, or roller skating. We circled the neighborhood subdivision on our bikes until …

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eBabies + iTeens + YouToo: See Mommy Text & Day 6 Giveaways

 Today’s Great Giveaways! 3 CD Set, Let’s Get PURSE-onal!, Personality Puzzle for Parents of Preschoolers, and Raising a Reader By: Cheri Gregory In these 3 power-packed CDs, Cheri not only helps moms be better moms by understanding themselves but she also shares the primary goal and two major needs of each Personality type so moms can understand and relate to their children better. She also presents 2 parenting DOs and 2 parenting DON’Ts for each one personality type. And in Raising a Reader, Cheri helps moms develop a love for reading in their children. Just Enough Light for the Step I’m …

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eBabies + iTeens + YouToo: Questions About Kids and Technology

I first heard the term “Generation M” while reading the 2006 Time magazine article “The Multitasking Generation.” The explosion in technology, I soon discovered, brought with it dozens–even hundreds!–of new questions I needed to be asking as a parent. It’s easy to mistake kids’ technological sophistication for maturity.  Parents and teachers often back way off because they feel like kids are so far ahead of them. But kids have no idea the kind of firepower they’re playing around with. Adult guidance and wisdom are not obsolete. Kids need us now more than ever. As part of an ongoing series called “eBabies …

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A Mother’s Heart…Spiritual Rearing

In 1956, he was a young preacher at the age of 37. He preached twenty-six services over four weeks in Louisville, KY. My parents and grandparents held a large reception for him when he came to town and I vividly remember meeting Dr. Billy Graham. I remember shaking his hand and looking up as he towered over my tiny body. I stood in awe. I don’t know that any words came out of my mouth. As I looked into his crystal blue eyes, I thought I had just met Jesus! I don’t think my parents took me to the crusade. …

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To Homeschool or Not to Homeschool in the Summer

The theme song to a popular kids’ television show sings, “There’s a hundred and four days of summer vacation and school comes along just to end it.” That may or may not hold true for us homeschoolers. Since we have freedom to work with a much more flexible schedule than those in traditional school systems, we have a choice: to homeschool or not to homeschool during the summer months. I have been homeschooling since 2000. Over the years, we have worked our calendar a variety of ways. In the beginning, I worked an office job, so our dedicated school days …

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10 Ways to Win the Whining War

It has a way of grating on your nerves. Whining can drive a momma up the proverbial wall. How do you stop a two year old from whining when it’s time for bed, when you take her favorite toy away or when she doesn’t get her way? What do you do when your 5 year old whines about what you feed him for lunch, when you make him play outside or when you make him take a nap? Somehow, whining is a universal language for children between 1 and 18… and if it’s not dealt with before they become adults, …

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Facing our Fears

What’s a mom to do when her child who never minded being passed around a room of eager relatives freaks out at the sound of a flushing toilet? Are childhood anxieties real? The day my four year old screamed from the back of our mini-van in the Hobby Lobby parking lot, I hoped everyone around me believed childhood worries are real. Fears are not because of anything moms do wrong; childhood fears are part of being a child. Instead of finding the quickest way to squelch a panic, a wise mom knows fears are not only normal, they are the …

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The Happiest She’s Been in 45 Years

a poem about mothers, daughters, and Alzheimer’s Disease (to view as a video, click here.) She was happy once upon a time long long ago. Then, all changed. She birthed a baby girl. She moved 3,000 miles to an unknown land: California, where women wore white after Labor Day. And she tried. Oh, how hard she tried to make everything just right so I could be happy. I didn’t care about leveling off the measuring cup with the back of the knife whether the salad fork went on the left or the right if dinner was served precisely at 6:00 …

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Season of Growing

A walk to my mailbox yesterday revealed a rose about to bloom. A clematis vine winds its way up the porch, hanging with purple blossoms. Even the fungus on the stump has gone from espresso cup to soup bowl size in a matter of days. If growth is the symphony of springtime, our children take center stage.   It’s time for mommies everywhere to set aside their ironing baskets, resist spring cleaning, and turn off technology in favor of embracing this season of growth with our children.  Including these 7 essential ingredients in your spring will help you make the …

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When parenting means… having a gentle answer

Some days, parenting is hard. That was my exhausted thought as I drove my daughter home from swim team one night. The whole day had been a battle. I can’t even remember as I write this what the issues were, but it just seemed like everything was a challenge that day. Maybe it was because we had a busy schedule and I was being impatient. Or maybe it was because she’s a pre-teen and she’s becoming more independent. Whatever the reason, I was frustrated. She was mad. And it was one of those days. There we were, driving along on …

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