Remember when you used to have fun? I know, it seems like it’s been a while. Maybe a long while. Sometimes parenting can seem like a burden. Even reading about parenting can make you feel like you need to button down and master 5 more parenting skills—which, sometimes you need to do. But in the…
Splink 1: As Sure as the Stars Stay up late, go outside, put a blanket on the ground, look up, and count the stars. God made a promise to Abraham that his descendents (children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, etc.) would be as many as the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5). How many stars can…
My son attended a small, private high school. It was a wonderful school, that had a rule for everything, and many of their favorite rules had to do with uniforms. Students were required to wear their uniforms, and nothing but their uniforms, whenever they were on campus. As parents, we liked the uniform rule because…
I hadn’t known about it or seen it until yesterday. It was a text that asked if I knew about last Friday’s release of Fergie’s new single, “M.I.L.F. $.” And so, I watched. According to the counter on YouTube, the video’s had 20 million views as of this morning. The envelope keeps moving. And wherever the envelope…
Splink 1: A Gift…Just for You Buy a small gift for each child (favorite candy; small toy; gift card for fast food or ice cream; favorite treat; etc.) and put it in a gift box or bag. Give each child the small gift. What did you have to do to get the gift? (Receive…
A thought-provoking post popped up in my Facebook news feed yesterday that was brutally honest, gutsy, and representative of what most people think but never say out loud. . . and that’s why it’s worth pondering. Erin McClain is one of my young Facebook friends and the college-aged daughter of a pair of our youth…
*The following is excerpted from an online article posted on PsychCentral. Using the best available evidence on the impact of physical activity on children and young people, researchers find that time taken away from lessons for physical activity is time well spent and does not come at the cost of getting good grades. The statement…
Just kidding about that last part, but they could change a lot of things about how you talk about faith. If your house is anything like mine, the bath time and bedtime routine can often turn into a soul-sucking vortex of blood, sweat, and tears. All evening long, I feel like I’m herding cats. But…
I’m the first to admit it. We’re quirky. We have family meatloaf challenges and think finding a good parking spot is a competitive sport. The name Bob makes us laugh (I’m not exactly sure why but I laugh anyway). We make up names for each other, i.e. The Hair Monster (you know who you are),…
Splink 1: Do Your Part Stage a little competition to see how long family members can keep a balloon in the air (without it touching the ground). Give each family member a balloon. Blow up and tie each balloon. Time them to see who can keep it in the air longest. Then pair up…