Relationships with Children

I would love for you to print off a terrific piece by Doorposts entitled Making Relationships With Your Children a Priority. It is very short and easy to read (bullet style), but packs a punch with terrific ideas and practical application. Click here and scroll down to Doorposts on the left. Click the link to Making Relationships With Your Children a Priority. Thanks Tricia for posting it first!

Can 'O Paint

This is the bathroom in our little rental house. It needed a face lift :0)

BEFORE


AFTER

Your Marriage Needs Some More Resurrection

"The usual mark of all dysfunctional families is that they are serious. Very serious. Now, our problems are serious, very serious. God took them seriously and showed His grief in the Crucifixion. But the Resurrection is God’s laughter and God’s joy. And if our religion cannot make us joyful, and very light, and make us float with laughter, then it is not worth much. The Tea Party scene in Mary Poppins is a very Christian scene. That was a very Christian tea party. If we are not laughing often, then we do not have enough Resurrection in us.

Anxious, sexless, uncommunicative marriages need more Resurrection. Lots more Resurrection."

This is a quote from a terrific article about marriage by Rich Bledsoe (a pastor for many years). The entire article is great and can be found here.

P.E. at Home!

I was looking for something that could help me do a little PE with my boys at home. I found it! P.E. At Home is a DVD made by an actual P.E. teacher and his students. It has all of the things that I remember doing in my P.E. class as a kid. It is very physical and would be a workout for mom as well. I want my kids to play outside a lot, and the man on the video encourages that as well. But, for some structured physical exercise and work on coordination, this is a terrific video.

Ouch

Read this article about letting your husband lead and say it with me...ouch. Thanks again, Nancy.

Potty Training

Toilet Training in Less Than a Day. Impossible? Think again. We have used this method with all 4 of our boys and it has worked great! My husband does the 1 day of training while I take the other kids out for a day of fun. The little trainer loves having daddy all to himself and it is a fun day with lots of special drinks and treats for rewards. I will say that there might still be a few days of staying on top of it after that first day. I like to stay around the house for as long as possible after the first day to cement everything they learned. But for the most part they learned the system in one day and then we had a few days to work out the kinks. We still remind them to go at certain times of day. And, we used the big potty (with an insert) for some of the kids instead of a potty chair. But we love the training system these authors have put together. We have just tweaked it from child to child.

The authors originally put this method together to assist mentally retarded adults so that they could learn to live without as much assistance. They adapted their method to use for young children.

If you are in the market for something that will be quick, give it a try. Even if the child does not master potty training in one day, it is sure to be much quicker than other options and a fun day for the trainer and trainee!

Contentment

Jeremiah Burroughs said in The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment:

Though I have not outward comforts and worldly conveniences to supply my necessities, yet I have a sufficient portion between Christ and my soul abundantly to satisfy me in every condition.

and

The doctrinal conclusion briefly is this: That to be well skilled in the mystery of Christian contentment is the duty, glory and excellence of a Christian.

Let them bask in your smile

"Enjoy the children and cause them to enjoy you. Don’t ask anything of them that is not absolutely necessary to the stability of the home, give them something they want—not selfish demands, just ignore those. Give them your time, your attention, your laugh, your approval, your touch, hugs, reading, silly funnies, rolling on the carpet or yard, pushing in the swing, or pulling in the wagon. But most of all, let them bask in your smile until they need it like they need the next breath. Cause them to feed on your fellowship, to relax until they are sure you care only for their good, that you live to enjoy their company and would not be happy without them. Do this and you will have achieved what most Christian homes are missing."

Michael Pearl addressing a newly converted mother that is trying to establish some discipline in her home. Her children have been in foster care much of their life. I appreciated the reminder to delight in my children in all of these ways.

Scripture Music

This is a terrific way to saturate your home with scripture. Here are a few of my favorite musicians that have set scripture to music:

Jamie Soles
The Sterlings
Sons of Korah
Steve Green
The Harrow Family

If you have other favorites please post them in the comments. We would love to get them!

Weather

The guy being interviewed here talks about the weather and how global warming is a hoax. This man has predicted weather about a year out with alarming accuracy using a system that farmers have used for a very long time (farmer's almanac anyone?). Very interesting and informative!

Customize your copywork with your handwriting font!

I just bought something that is really nifty! Educational Fontware sells a CD that has handwriting fonts on it. For about $50 you can buy the CD and download the fonts to your computer. They offer many of the popular handwriting methods and print with rules and dotted lines, or outlines, or arrows. You choose. You could choose copy work from your history or science lesson and type it out using these fonts to use as your child's copy work and handwriting all in one! It could also be great for scripture memory and handwriting in one. Lastly, when you order the CD it has all of the fonts on it. You have access to them all. So, if you have used different methods with different children, that would be an added bonus!

Prayer Calendar

Thanks to Tricia for posting this Prayer Calendar. It has a scripture for each day of the month that you can pray for your children (and your self!). It's sort of like The Power of a Praying Parent, but in an at-a-glance format. Let's pray for our kids! If we don't, who will?

Time Management

I already mentioned the e-book Tell Your Time a few months ago. It's great! I wanted to mention one of the points that she makes.

We sometimes act like we have no control over our time. But, in reality, we have total control. We choose what we are going to do every minute. Granted that some things must happen, but even the things that must happen can be fiddled with a bit if needed. And many things, even good things, could be cut out or delegated. In 2011, take charge and tell your time what to do. Don't let your life go by feeling like you have no control over it. You can do it!

Take it off the top

My husband came up with a helpful little analogy. When we receive income we take the tithe off of the top and give it to God. That 10% is given first and then we figure out where the rest will go. When finding time to read God's Word, memorize it, and pray my wise hubby suggested that we should take it off the top as well. In other words, that time gets fit into the schedule first.

It does not have to be the first thing we do each day, but it should be the last thing that gets cut from the schedule. It can be worked in little slots here and there. But IT gets worked in instead of finding time for leisure reading, e-mail, sleep, Facebook, watching a movie, blogging, having the laundry totally caught up, getting the house deep cleaned, working on scrapbooks, or calling a friend. All of those things are good and to be enjoyed fully. But not at the expense of time in the Word and prayer. After all, if the Word and prayer are truly our weapons against the world, the flesh, and the devil, then we should keep them ready for battle. We should be armed and very familiar with our weapons. We want our kids to see first hand (by our lives) that we love and need the Word of God.

Job 23:12b "I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread."

A few ways to begin:

Set aside time to read a chapter of scripture per day. It will take less than 5 minutes. Put your bible on the back of the toilet if you must!

Or use Bible Track. It is a daily podcast. You can listen to it online or download it to an MP3 player or your computer. By listening daily (for an average of 30 minutes) you will go through the bible in 1 year (with commentary along the way done by the pastor reading the text). Fold laundry while you listen. We all have laundry to fold! *I don't agree with some important points in his commentary, but a lot of it is helpful.

Memorize 1 verse a month. You could do more of course, but start with something attainable. Print off 10 copies and put it in places that you will see it often. Just read it and repeat it aloud every time you see it. You'll have it memorized before you know it.

Make time for prayer. Make it a habit. When you are driving. When you are in the bathroom. When you have insomnia. When you are nursing. When you are thinking thoughts that you really don't need to be thinking...pray. Pray for your kids. Pray for your husband. Pray for the church throughout the world. Confess your sins and know that you are indeed forgiven! Give thanks to God for all of his wonderful gifts. Again, 5 minutes is better than not ever making time to pray. Start small if needed, but become a woman of prayer.

And, when that is a habit...fit in even more. It is your time. Spend it on the things that matter most.

Take this time off the top and you'll be glad that you did!

Dirty Dishes Cause Debt

I originally saw this post in an e-mail from Marilyn Moll. It is written by Jill Cooper from Living on a Dime.
~~~~~~~~~~
Dirty Dishes Cause Debt! by Jill Cooper
www.livingonadime.com

The other day I was asked one of the most common questions that people ask me: "Where do I start if I want to get out of debt?" After telling me of her huge credit card debt and how they eat out almost every night, the lady took a deep breath and said, "How do I save on laundry detergent and cleaning supplies?" Sometimes we can't see the forest for the trees.

Even though saving money on cleaning supplies does help and should be part of your plan, that usually isn't where the biggest problem with the debt lies. This woman never once thought to ask me how to stop eating out so much. Most people don't want to face the real causes of their debt because their biggest problems are the things they like the most. Going out to eat is one of the top five causes of debt.

Get those dirty dishes out of the sink!!

We go out to eat because we can't face a dirty kitchen. Keeping your kitchen empty of dirty dishes is the key to saving money. This is probably the #1 way to start getting out of debt. Most people are so overwhelmed with piled counter tops and dirty dishes that they would rather go out to eat than face a dirty kitchen.

Do the dishes after every meal and keep hot soapy water in the sink while you are baking or cooking. Clean as you go. If your sink is empty and the dishes are washed, your kitchen always looks good. This helps you save money because you have the time and space to cook.



To get in and out of the kitchen quickly, try these easy steps:

1. Put all dirty dishes in the dishwasher. Fill the sink with hot soapy water and put the hand washables in it to soak.

2. Wipe off counter tops and tables with hot soapy water. (This way, if you have unexpected company, at least your table and counters will be clean.)

3. Sweep the floor and shake throw rugs if needed.

4. Wash the dishes that have been soaking.

5. Wipe down the faucets and dry with a towel. (Be sure to wipe any sticky appliances, too.)

6. Put out a clean dish rag and towel.

7. Take out the trash.

These simple steps can help you start climbing your way out of debt. You will be amazed how much better you will feel just having the kitchen clean.

What you can do.

Sometimes it feels like we moms are really short on TIME! Well, even if you have one minute there are things that you can do to help the world around you. Check out this nifty little site called What You Can Do. Even if you don't like all of their suggestions, you might find one or two that you can do. Click the months on the right to see 1 minute videos with their ideas. This might be a fun thing for school.

Bible Overview

The Old Testament Made Simple and The New Testament Made Simple are two wonderful resources for gaining a terrific grasp of the bible as a whole.

The OT book provides "8 quick and easy ways to get a clear-focused overview of the entire OT". These include:
The 7 major moves of the people of the OT
The 20 key people of the OT
The 3 major divisions of the OT
The 11 books that contain more than 95% of the narrative of the OT
And easy way to remember the basic contents of each of the books of the OT
God's 7 major covenants with man
The 5 major time periods
The 50 major events of the OT

Each of these 8 overviews goes from the beginning to the end of the Old Testament and highlights certain things. So, when you integrate them all at the end of the book, they really work together to give a wonderful skeleton to the OT.

The New Testament book provides 8 outlines as well:
The 3 major divisions of the NT
The 8 major time periods
The 8 men who wrote the NT
The 25 major trips
The 3 "flurries" of NT activity
The transition from the OT to the New
The NT in 44 "bite-sized" pieces
An easy way to remember the basic content of each of the NT books.

These books are very simple, to the point, and not very long. They would be a wonderful addition to any family's library. Let's make 2011 the year that we get serious about knowing the bible inside and out!