Samuel, my ten-year-old, came into the kitchen and held out his hand. “Look Mom, I’m double-jointed!” He went on to make motions and wave his fingers around my face in comical ways.
I tried hard to keep a straight face, while visions of Spock and Captain Kirk danced in my head.
“So, what exactly does that mean, son?”
Looking up at me, he stared straight in my eyes and said in all seriousness. “It means that no one can ever break my fingers.”
After he left the kitchen, I busted a gut.
Now, there’s a difference between laughing at your kids and laughing with them. But, in order to laugh with them you must begin to see the humor in every day moments.
Our almost nineteen year old son was getting ready for a job interview, yesterday. I reminded him, “Son, don’t forget to use your ma’am’s and sir’s.”
He looked surprised, “Thanks Mom. I was going to use my dawg’s and homies’.”
Kids who laugh become adults who can Laugh
I grew up in a family of hopeless comedians. My husband is a really funny guy, too. Laughter is heard in our home every day. I know it’s not very funny to say we’re funny…but we’re funny. Our family is not without the heartaches of the world. We’ve been dealt a few painful blows. Still, laughter is a God given gift that we’ve leaned on to help heal the hurts.
When you raise your children to seek humor in their daily routine,
you raise adults who can laugh even when life is hard.
Laughter in Your Home?
What about your home? Do you laugh with your children? Do your children hear you laughing with your husband? Here’s a few ways to encourage laughter in your family, no matter what your comedic skill.
Watch a movie/TV together. Our family loves to rent a DVD and laugh out loud. Some of our favorites? Finding Nemo. Summer Rental. Scrooged. Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The Princess Bride. Favorite funny TV shows? Duck Dynasty and Drake & Josh.
Watch home videos. At least once a year I’ll bring out some home movies. The kids think it’s hysterical watching each other when they were small.
Get a joke book. The library is full of funny books and joke books for any age. Some of the funniest are the ones written for children. When Samuel brought home 101 Jokes and shared a few with us. The punch lines were so pathetically horrible we couldn’t help but crack up.
Look silly every once in awhile. Make faces, dance around the kitchen, talk in a funny voice when you read a bedtime story. Our family recently moved from California to Tennessee. There have been days I announce, “Everywhere we go we’re talking with a southern twang.” The kids crack up listening to their father and I try to pull that one off!
Laughter and joy go hand in hand. Maybe that’s why God included the verse in Nehemiah; The joy of the Lord is our strength? Where Christ reigns in our life joy isn’t far off.
Remember, God gave us our children as a gift. Children bring incredible joy into our lives. It’s a fair trade off when we can bring a little laughter into theirs.
By, Joanne Kraft
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