by Donna | Feb 15, 2013
We understand that you were nervous, afraid of the unknown and possible hurt…for Mom and Dad were afraid one day too.
We understand that once the answer was yes, you were giddy and seeing stars…for Mom and Dad are often giddy and seeing stars too.
We understand that as you got to know each other, you needed to talk for hours and hours…for Mom and Dad need to talk for hours and hours too.
We understand that as your love has deepened, the days between your time together have felt like forever…for when Mom and Dad have time apart, it feels like forever too.
We understand that you can hardly wait for the next time you get to spend time together…for Mom and Dad can hardly wait for the next time we get to spend time together too.
We understand that you need to hear each other’s voices, to have the restlessness in your souls calmed…for Mom and Dad calm each other’s restless souls too.
We understand that you just want to laugh, to sing, to play–and you need to do these things together…for Mom and Dad need to laugh and sing and play together too.
We understand that you await words of affirmation and love from each other every day…for Mom and Dad await those words from each other every day too.
We understand that you want to dream together of the future–think, talk, scheme, and hope…for Mom and Dad dream together too.
We understand that you think nobody else in the world feels like you do–that nobody else could possibly hold the love and feelings that you are holding…for Mom and Dad think that we are the only ones too.
We understand that you need more minutes, more hours, more days, more weeks to be together…for Mom and Dad need more time too.
We understand that you long for the day when you will not be apart, the day that your lives are joined as one and you no longer have separate lives….for Mom and Dad longed for that day for us too.
We understand that you wake up in the morning thinking of your love–and that is the last thought you have before you sleep…for Mom and Dad think of each other morning and night too.
We understand all of these things…we haven’t forgotten. We understand….we understand that you are in love….for Mom and Dad are in love too.
by Donna | Apr 26, 2011
I just cannot say enough good about our family’s new “read aloud” Bible for this year. It has excerpts from Lee Strobel’s books as sidebars and insets within the biblical text–so we read the couple of paragraphs about the passage that is referenced, then go right to the Bible passage (New King James Version) and read it. It is amazing!
Quick enough reads for 5-10 min devos–or on evenings that we have more time, we read a couple or few of the entries. I love not having to flip from a book to the Bible, etc. We love the “Case for” books–and love them even more having the Bible passage that it refers to right there in its entirety. Great for ten to twenty year olds! 🙂
https://www.amazon.com/Case-Christ-Study-Bible-Investigating/dp/0310938945
by Donna | Apr 8, 2011
“You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up” Deuteronomy 6:7
I have always been interested in those “One Year,” “One Minute,” “Daily,” etc. type of books! The titles just shout “organization”! We have done many of these types of books through the years, but one that I think is beautiful, appropriate for older kids and parents—and appropriate for this month of “National Poetry Month” celebrations is “The One Year Book of Poetry.”
The description for this book states its purpose eloquently: “This daily devotional of Bible-inspired poetry contains some of the most eloquent, inspiring, and profound poetry ever written. Readers will glean understanding, wisdom, and inspiration for life’s struggles and victories. But most of all, they will learn more about their Savior and be inspired to devote their lives to him wholeheartedly. Includes indexes.”
Another review said, “Containing some of the most inspiring Christian poetry ever written, “The One Year Book of Poetry” features 365 devotionals, each with fascinating information on the poet, insight into the poem, and a concluding thought for application.”
In keeping with our “quick reads” in the morning, this book really fits the bill. As the reviews mentioned, it has the poem, as well as insight into the poet, the time period in which the poem was written, what the author meant in parts of it, etc. It’s like a devotional and literature lesson all in one!
If you have only littles, I would stick with the “Bible Time Nursery Rhyme” or “Prayers for the Very Young” for read alouds. However, any parent who enjoys poetry and devotional material would like this for his or her own night stand.
Look inside this beautiful devotional at https://www.amazon.com/One-Year-Book-Poetry-Books/dp/0842337121#reader_0842337121
This book can be purchased from Parable books (and many other sources, but I like to purchase from Christian booksellers when possible) at https://www.parable.com/parable/item.One-Year-Books-The-One-Year-Book-of-Poetry-Comfort-Phil.9780842337120.htm
by Donna | Mar 1, 2011
Because I am chasing my tail trying to catch up after a long weekend visit to my daughter, I am going to run an old post–one that is appropriate to the character training tips we have been discussing. This post and the next one exemplify the concept of teaching our children all the time–and using everything around us to teach biblical principles and character. Thanks for joining us!
“You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up…”
We have recently spent some time in the Greenville, South Carolina area, first of all visiting our daughter who was working there at the Academy of Arts (and seeing her in the drama, “Little Women”) and then picking up our son from his summer drama ministry travels (and attending the closing ceremonies of the traveling drama teams). One day we had a little extra time and, like we often do, found ourselves at a local museum—the “Shoeless” Joe Jackson Museum. (For more about the Joe Jackson story and more about his little homeplace/museum, see the links at the end of this post.)
With three boys left at home, we try to go to museums and events that will be interesting to guys—robotic exhibits, football museums, IMAX theatres, baseball games, action movies, etc. So when we discovered that Greenville has a “baseball museum,” we headed out to it one afternoon.
As we had our little mini tour (they have “Shoeless” life-long fan club members narrating his story in this tiny museum and defending Joe Jackson against the accusations brought upon him), a myriad of spiritual, moral, and relational teaching was opened up to us with the boys.
I was reminded once again of how many, many opportunities we have to teach our children God’s Word and God’s ways.
Today I will leave you with the verse above that reminds us of teaching our children at all times—and the “Shoeless” Joe Jackson links—and tomorrow I will detail some of the lively discussions that resulted from a sixty minute tour into a man’s life and indiscretions. Truly, we have “material” everywhere to teach our children!
**Info about museum/homeplace: https://www.shoelessjoejackson.org/
**Story of “Shoeless” Joe Jackson: https://www.shoelessjoejackson.com/
https://sports.jrank.org/pages/2246/Jackson-Joseph-Shoeless-Joe.html
by Donna | Jan 12, 2011
“Our daily input into our three young adult daughters’ lives is like a continual healing balm to them.”
We can get so caught up in work, teaching, outside demands, and physical needs (feeding and clothing) that we overlook one of the most important things that we should do each day–tie heart strings with our children. Most parents have their children’s attention for eighteen years. Those are years that we can invest in them spiritually and build relationships with them.
It is so easy to get to the end of the day and discover that we have not squeezed our special squeeze, winked our special wink, or hugged our special hug. This is especially true as our children get older and no longer cuddle in our chair with us or have “rockies.”
In addition to the physical closeness that our children need, they also need our verbal affirmation and communication. My and Ray’s daily input into our three young adult daughters’ lives (ages seventeen, twenty, and twenty-one at the time of this original article) is like a continual healing balm to them. Two of them are heavily involved in demanding ministries–to the disabled and to the Spanish community (no English spoken!). One of them is searching for her place and working hard to prepare for her future. They need to connect with us. They need for us to tell them that we are proud of them and that we support their endeavors. They need for us to hurt with them when they are hurting. They need for us to say, “So, tell me about your day,” and “Give me details!”
Tying daily heart strings is more difficult than simply reading a morning devotional or being sure the laundry is done each day. It isn’t usually in the schedule. It is needed at the most inopportune times. The more you give, the more they seem to need. But it is essential. Our children need to have their heart strings tied to ours so that when the storms of life roll, they will have a safe haven of love and understanding—“Jesus” with arms and words of encouragement on this earth.
If you find that each day ends with no heart strings tied, try this little tip: In the corner of each day on your planner, put a little square. At the end of each day, write the initials of the child that you connected with that day in that little square. Purpose not to end a day without being able to write one sweet child’s initials in a daily square. Each week you can look back over your planner and see who missed out that week. (You know, the squeakiest wheel gets the grease!) Then next week, you will know who needs focused on more.
Or try this tip that I did for years and years when our older children were younger: have a “day” for each child. We milked this day for all it was worth. It was the child’s day to help me with dinner (or fix it herself as she got older); it was the child’s day to do extra chores; it was the child’s day to help teach some of the preschooler’s school. But it was also his day to pick two books for story time, sit in the front seat of the van if we went somewhere, and sit closest to Mom during read alouds. Heart-wise (and often unbeknownst to the child), it was his day to get a longer blessing during blessing time, to have a longer time with Dad at bedtime, and to get extra attention from Mom throughout the day. This is especially helpful for families with several children. Each child needs a day! 🙂
If you only do two things off my “eleven habits,” do Bible/character with your kids and tie heart strings every day. You can always get more organized, exercise, and work on projects later—your kids will be grown someday and these two things are not going to be on your “to do” list for forever.
Note: To start at the beginning of the “Eleven Daily Habits for ’11,” click on the link that follows: https://positiveparenting3-6-5.blogspot.com/2011/01/eleven-daily-habits-for-11.html
***Parts of this article were written in 2008 under the title “Eight Daily Habits for ’08” and published in Training for Triumph’s homeschooling newsletter (as opposed to the “Eleven Daily Habits of ‘11” in this blog).
