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Ten days left. That’s all I have left. Got to keep pushing – so the weights went on today. I know it seems silly, but do you have any idea how much those ski boots weigh? This is hard. The one I am taking skiing is the one that wrote the Hero paper. So, I don’t care how much my pacemaker has to kick in to get me up and down that mountain – I am motivated!
Read Post →Unless they are ready. I have taught three children to drive. It is not my favorite thing to teach. Not because my kids weren’t good drivers. No, I don’t enjoy it because it is contrary to my every instinct, as a mom, to put my child in a dangerous situation. And driving is dangerous! But, it is a part of life and we can’t sweat it. But we can think about it real hard! So, I did. Here is what I came up with. 1. My kids have to be “A” students and have their priorities in order before receiving the freedom that comes with a license. 2. They must demonstrate an ability to exercise self-control especially when there may be peer pressure or distractions. 3. They must have earned my trust by handling other responsibilities with excellence. 4. They must sign this driving contract from iMOM.com. The contract makes it very clear what I expect of them as a driver. Then I let them drive away and I do the most important thing – I pray… Dear Lord, Please watch over my son. Do not let wisdom and understanding out of his sight, preserve his sound judgment and discretion; they …
Read Post →And it was soooooo much fun! All of a sudden these girls are grown up – beautiful, smart, witty – and a blast to be with. I love my Meggie and I have loved every minute of the sweet privilege of 21 years of being her mom!
Read Post →Yep, the reality is its your mombligation to teach manners. And with all the reality TV out there if you don’t teach manners you will have a real mess of a child. Am I being harsh? Remember this is just me (or my opinion). And I think reality TV is often focused on rude, mannerless people. You may have found a show or two that are paragon examples of civility. Chances are those are not the shows that your children find entertaining! So you must teach manners (and limit reality TV). Manners are still important to your child’s future if you want them to find favor with their teachers and ultimately their employer. The earlier you start teaching the more your child will accept manners as a way of life. Here is a little song you can use as a manners reminder instead of nagging. We say thank you, we say please. We don’t interrupt, we don’t tease. We don’t argue, we don’t fuss. We listen when people talk to us. We share toys, we take turns. Good manners are never hard to learn. It is easy when you find Good manners mean just being kind!
Read Post →Yep, the reality is its your mombligation to teach manners. And with all the reality TV out there if you don’t teach manners you can be assured your child will not catch them from our culture. Am I being harsh? Remember this is just me (or my opinion) and it is my observation that much of reality TV is often focused on rude, mannerless people. You may have found a show or two that are paragon examples of civility but chances are those are not the shows that your children find entertaining! So you must teach manners (and limit reality TV). Manners are still important to your child’s future if you want them to find favor with their teachers and ultimately their employer. The earlier you start teaching manners the more your child will accept manners as a way of life. Here is a little song you can use as a manners reminder instead of nagging.
Read Post →Unless they are ready. I have taught three children to drive. It is not my favorite thing to teach. Not because my kids weren’t good drivers. No, I don’t enjoy it because it is contrary to my every instinct, as a mom, to put my child in a dangerous situation. And driving is dangerous! But, it is a part of life and we can’t sweat it. But we can think about it real hard! So, I did. Here is what I came up with. 1. My kids have to be “A” students and have their priorities in order before receiving the freedom that comes with a license. 2. They must demonstrate an ability to exercise self-control especially when there may be peer pressure or distractions. 3. They must have earned my trust by handling other responsibilities with excellence. 4. They must sign this driving contract from iMOM.com. The contract makes it very clear what I expect of them as a driver. Then I let them drive away and I do the most important thing – I pray… Dear Lord, Please watch over my son. Do not let wisdom and understanding out of his sight, preserve his sound judgement and discretion; they …
Read Post →Of course! But it isn’t always easy. Every child needs a friend but not every child is good at making or keeping friends. My friend Lauren Dungy has a tender and passionate heart for teaching and reaching children. She lives this out with her own children as the mother of seven! Recently, she began putting precious lessons that her family has learned about loving others in print. Her new children’s book You Can Be a Friend is a beautifully and amazingly accurate picture of a lesson her children learned last year with a new neighbor. Below are two of the free downloadable tools that go with the book from Lauren.
Read Post →I was asked today how I handled makeup with my girls. Here are my thoughts: 1. Talk about it way before they want it. 2. Play together with makeup (emphasis on together). Girls like makeup. When you play, use soft pretty colors so they will start to see the beauty in a more natural look. Put the dark stuff away so it is not even a choice. 3. Praise their natural beauty so they develop confidence in themselves without makeup. 4. Train their artistic eye and taste in makeup. As they near the age when you will allow makeup, casually point out to them appropriate and inappropriate uses. Stay away from criticizing women you know. You can use magazine pictures. You can say things like, “That dark color makes this girl look angry.” Or, better yet, point out the positive uses of makeup around you, “See how that soft color on her eyes makes her eyes look huge without taking away from her face?” 5. Practice with a professional. All the department stores have makeup artists who will do your makeup for free. Find a good one by asking around or trying one out on your own. Make an appointment …
Read Post →Tackling tough subjects really starts at age two. Let me explain, because I see this all the time. It’s cold and a two-year-old doesn’t want to wear a sweater. She pitches a fit and her mom gives in. Ten years later, the two-year-old is now twelve and doesn’t want to wear more than six inches of clothes. Mom wants her to wear more but the daughter pitches a fit. Chances are the daughter will win. “It’s just clothes,” you might say about the above. “How is that a tough subject?” Well, follow this progression: what she wears will determine the kind of dates she attracts. I consider dating a tough subject because who she dates will impact whether or not she has sex. And, well, I can go on and on about the consequences of that path. What to do? Three things… 1. Parent with the future in mind. Befriend women with older children or volunteer to teach Sunday school for teenagers. Be aware of what’s ahead. 2. Don’t give in when you know you are right. If you do, the child will think you really weren’t right in the first place, or else you wouldn’t have given in. Then they …
Read Post →We have the strangest of birth orders in my family. It has made life interesting. My husband and I started with an oldest (girl), middle (girl) and baby (boy) for nine years. Then we adopted a firstborn (girl) the same age as my middle—literally two weeks apart in age, and a first born boy, but middle child, the same age as my biological first born male baby! Are you confused? So were my kids. Looking back it was a comical competition for position. What I learned watching my two firstborn girls from different worlds (one raised in Russia, one in the U.S.) was that despite socioeconomic differences for the first decade of their lives—they were soooooo much alike. They both put a lot of pressure on themselves to succeed. I never really had to push them in anything. They were responsible, mature and at times bossy with the other kids. I often have to remind them to be a little more “others” centered. My middle biological and my adopted middle, one a girl and one a boy, would give me their last dime, and probably be the only ones in the family to notice if I was sick or having …
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