Category Archives: Parenting

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A family that eats together stays together

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“Whoever makes home seem to the young dearer and more happy is a public benefactor.” – Henry Ward Beecher

A study revealed that children who ate at least two meals, five days a week with their families performed better in school and were better adjusted socially.

Mealtime can serve not only as a means of including veggies in the daily intake but as a forum where family can feel free to talk about the day, what lies ahead and possibly even joke a bit.

But more importantly in that short time together, you will be providing a heightened sense of family connectedness and investing in the future well-being of your children. You will be building a rapport of communication that will serve you well during the difficult times that come to every family.

So, make a difference today – eat together!

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A Mother’s Prayer

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Dear Lord,

It’s such a hectic day,
With little time to stop and pray,
For Life’s been anything but calm,
Since You called me to be a Mom,
Running errands, matching socks,
Building dreams with matching blocks,
Cooking, cleaning, finding shoes,
And other stuff that children lose,
Fitting lids on bottled bugs,
Wiping tears and giving hugs,
A stack of last week’s mail to read,
So where’s the quiet time I need?
Yet, when I steal a moment, Lord,
Just at the sink or ironing board,
To ask the blessings of Your grace,
I see them, in my small one’s face,
That you have blessed me
All the while –
And I stoop to kiss
That precious smile.

—–Author Unknown

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Parenting joke

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Dear Dad,

Thing$ are really $well here at $chool but they could be better. I need $ome thing$ mo$t de$perately. I $u$pect that you will $urely gue$$ what I mean and $end $ome $oon.

Your loving $on,
$teve

Dear Son,

NOthing is new here. I kNOw that you are doing better NOw than you did in November. Write aNOther letter soon. I want to get this NOte in the NOon mail, so I’ll sign off NOw. Aunt NOra send her regards.

Love,
Dad

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Make a difference today…

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“We have two ears and one mouth, so we should listen more than we say.”
― Zeno of Citium, as quoted by Diogenes Laërtius

Truly listening to another person is a gift but it’s a difficult gift to give. Instead of listening, we may be wondering what we should have for lunch or what we should say next. Most of us are simply too self-absorbed to be good listeners.

Listening is a gift that requires practice and determination. Becoming a good listener is hard work, but giving the gift of being heard can make a great difference in the lives of those around you.

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Keep Children Safe Around the Family Pet

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By Marie Willsey

Pets bring love and companionship to families. However, more than 155,000 children in the U.S. are bitten by pets each year, and most bites occur at home with familiar pets Every pet has the potential to bite, especially if he or she feels scared, threatened or overly excited.

Here’s how you can help keep children safe around your family’s furry friends.

• Choose a pet that suits your family’s lifestyle. Learn how much space and exercise a breed needs, and make sure you are committed to meeting those needs. An active terrier may need long walks and a yard to play in, while another breed’s needs for exercise and space are minimal. Some breeds are great with families, while others are devoted to a single master.

• Never leave your child alone with a pet.

• Spay or neuter your pet to help decrease aggression.

• Do not play rough games, wrestle or try to hug your dog.

• Teach children not to approach Fido when he is eating.

• Never try to take a toy, bone or treat away from a pet.

• Warn your child to stay away from an animal who is caring for its young, growling or showing its teeth, or acting strangely.
Teach your children these simple rules about how to behave around an unfamiliar pet:

• Ask permission before you approach and touch someone else’s pet

• If the owner says it’s OK, allow the animal to sniff your closed hand

• Stand quietly and back away if you see warning signs such as growling, bared teeth, ears thrown back or staring.

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5 Best Toys Ever

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Wired magazine ran an article on the five best toys ever. Wired is one of the most innovative, bleeding-edge publications you’ll read about all things technological. Which is why at first the list surprised me, but then I realized their angle and couldn’t help but appreciate their wisdom.

5 Best Toys Ever – Dr James Emery White

Here’s the list:

1. Stick

2. Box

3. String

4. Cardboard Tube

5. Dirt

Anybody want to argue with them? I doubt it.

It’s an important reminder that the best things in life – and often in ministry, leadership, business and family – are the simple things.

The dilemma is how our culture seems to refuse to give simplicity a place.

But think about when it insists on intruding and the wake it leaves behind.

For example, a snowstorm brings your town to a standstill. You went out and stocked up on bread and milk and a few other things you didn’t really need, and settled in. The power goes out, so you light the candles and gather by the fireplace for warmth. Board games that had been gathering dust for years are pulled out. You play them and have more fun than you can remember. You then go outside and actually play, throw a snowball, make a snow-angel, build a snowman.

It’s golden.

You talk, years later, about that magic night. You’d give almost anything to go back and relive it, and wish there was a way to recreate it in the here and now.

In a complex, “always on” world, perhaps what we need to remember is that we need to intentionally unplug every now and then.

Even if just to remember that the best toys in the world – like the best times – are the most simple.

And in truth, the most available.

That is my holiday wish for you. May you enjoy the simplicity and holiness that resides in the stillness between Christmas and the new year.

And maybe some fun with a leftover box or two.

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I believe

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I Believe

by Jane Daugherty

I believe in children’s laughter, the sweet perfume of a newborn baby’s skin and that every child is entitled to happiness, decent housing, health care, proper nutrition and good education.

I believe that our schools should be places of discovery and growth, not of danger, that teachers should be paid more than lawyers and that parenting should be a required course in every high school.

I believe that “quality time” is a phony notion that cannot substitute for substantial time spent with our children.

I believe that baseball and other children’s games can be magical and should be wrestled from screaming, competitive coaches and returned to play.

I believe that childhood should be a time of sand castles and celebration and that the defense of innocence is as important as the defense of our borders.

And I believe that our most urgent mission should be putting the needs of our children first.

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A Christmas Poem…

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…dedicated to my lovely daughters who have brought so much joy into our lives!

You’re the joy and the magic of Christmas to me,

You’re the sparkle of ornaments brightening the tree…

You’re the music of Christmas that sings in my heart,

You’re the hope and the happiness Christmas imparts…

You’re all of the things that make Christmastime dear,

You’re my gift of happiness all through the year!

Twelve years ago I received a Christmas card with this lovely poem from my better half.

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Memo from Your Child

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~Author Unknown~

1. Don’t spoil me. I know quite well that I ought not have all that I ask for, I’m only testing you.

2. Don’t be afraid to be firm with me, I prefer it. It makes me feel more secure.

3. Don’t let me form bad habits, I have to rely on you to detect them in the early stages.

4. Don’t make me feel smaller than I am, It only makes me behave stupidly big.

5. Don’t correct me in front of people if you can help it.

6. Don’t make me feel that my mistakes are sins, it upsets my set of values.

7. Don’t be upset when I say “I hate you”, it’s not you I hate, but your power to hinder.

8. Don’t protect me from consequences, I need to learn the painful way sometimes.

9. Don’t nag, if you do I will need to protect myself by appearing deaf.

10. Don’t make rash promises, remember I feel badly let down when promises are broken.

11. Don’t tax my honesty too much, I am easily frightened into telling lies.

12. Don’t be inconsistent, that completely confuses me and makes me lose faith in you.

13. Don’t tell me my fears are silly, they are terribly real to me and you can do much to reassure me if you try to understand.

14. Don’t ever suggest that you are perfect or infallible. It gives me to great a shock when I discover that you are neither.

15. Don’t forget that I can’t thrive without lots of love and understanding, but I don’t need to tell you that, do I?

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A Parent’s Prayer

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~Author Unknown~

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray my sanity to keep.
For if some peace I do not find,
I’m pretty sure I’ll lose my mind.

I pray I find a little quiet,
Far from the daily family riot.
May I lie back and not have to think
About what they’re stuffing down the sink,

Or who they’re with, or where they’re at
And what they’re doing to the cat.
I pray for time all to myself
(did something just fall off a shelf?)

To cuddle in my nice, soft bed
(Oh no, another goldfish–dead!)
Some silent moments for goodness sake
(Did I just hear a window break?)

And that I need not cook or clean
(well heck, I’ve got the right to dream)
Yes now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray my wits about me keep,
But as I look around I know,
I must have lost them long ago!