It is back to school time; and, if you’re like me, you feel both excitement and dread. Excitement, that we made it through the summer with the children at home, bored, arguing, tracking in on my freshly mopped floor, eating a week’s worth of groceries in a day, and constantly there and underfoot. Then the […]
Change is difficult no matter your age. For children, change, especially involving divorce, can manifest feelings of insecurity and spur bouts of acting out. Since there is little else they can control in the situation, behavior often becomes a tool to express their opposition. One way children express opposition is through rejection. Rejecting the new […]
Over the years, my husband and I have established a few traditions with our family. Some were cultivated from our favorite childhood traditions and some have been established through new routines with our children. Things like opening one gift on Christmas Eve, Friday night family nights with games, movies, popcorn, and fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies […]
The number of children entering foster care each year is astounding. “On any given day, there are nearly 438,000 children in foster care in the United States.” (childrensrights). In the small state of WV alone (my state), there are 6,600 children in foster care as of August 2018 (WVKVC). And, as much as each child […]
Why the “Everyone Gets a Trophy” Manta is not ok. I want everyone to feel valued, especially kids, and nothing makes a kid feel more valued that receiving a trophy. Win or lose…show up or just signed up… everyone gets a trophy no matter how they played or even if they tried; but, everyone is […]
As a mom and former children’s ministry director, I know the joy of seeing kids excited about Jesus. I’ve also been at it long enough to know the heartbreak of seeing former students walk away entirely as they got older. Mark Batterson, a mega church pastor in DC, said this in his book, All In, […]
The most difficult and frustrating parenting task for my husband and I was figuring out the best way to discipline. Well, it wasn’t until child number two that we had questions. Child one was low key and compliant. All we had to do was talk to him and all was right with the world. Child […]
