Julie Sanders, Author at The Mom Initiative

Election Day and empowering, enduring truths for moms

Every mom can be empowered by earthly elections. While the whole world isn’t voting for a leader today, it’s Election Day in the United States, and much of the world waits to see the outcome. No one watches our individual responses as closely our children. No matter the outcome in our process of choosing a president or electing a leader, today is a day to model strength and faith for our children. Future leaders learn from us today. Some moms will balance toddlers on their hip to watch them cast their vote. Others will snap pictures outside of polling stations …

Loving People: How Moms can Make Life a Lesson in Loving

People don’t love people much anymore, and those known for loving people don’t get much press. Jackie Deshannon wrote “What the World Needs Now is Love Sweet Love” in 1965, and over forty years later, we still need it. Meanness is a magnet for the media. So, is it possible to teach our kiddos it’s worth the time and effort and investment to love others in a world that often doesn’t? Moms can make their own lives a lesson in loving people. Loving people who are… Near you First of all, lessons in love begin at home with those we …

A Child’s Heart and the Hidden Treasure of Talking Back

“Don’t you talk back to me,” my mother said to me. “Don’t you talk back to me,” I said to my children. “Don’t talk back,” I bet you’ve said to your kiddos too. Every mom wonders what to do about talking back. Every mom knows what talking back looks like and sounds like. We move quickly to squash it in toddlers and teens. End it. Redirect it. But in my efforts to stop it, most of the time I missed the hidden treasure. The good God intended to come from the evil. Talking back may be a mom’s best opportunity. …

How to Teach Kids to Respect Police Officers

A lot of us learned about people in our neighborhood from Mr. Rogers. Fred Rogers used to say one of his life lessons came from his mom. “When you see something scary,” she said, “Look for the helpers.” Maybe that lesson inspired the character of Officer Clemmons, a black man who grew up in the 60’s and struggled with his own view of police officers. He turned his own real hardships into a force for good in the lives of children, becoming one of the “human helpers” on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. In our kids’ world, it’s more challenging to look …

The 3R’s of Making Memories as a Family

When you reach the place where your littles are bigs, you’re grateful for every memory. The good and the bad become part of your cherished family lore. Your one-of-a-kind memories are added to the story you share with generations who passed on your nose, eyebrows, height, and bunions. Bless their hearts. Now that my kiddos are grown up, I realize we were adding stories to our shared history without even knowing it. Making Memories as a family is easier than you might think. Whatever stage you’re in as a mom, being intentional about memory making will enrich the lives of …

The saving grace of summer reading

Not long after summer arrives, moms wonder how to fill the time and keep kiddos occupied in healthy ways. We may find ourselves held hostage by video games and Netflix, looking back at a lost summer of opportunity. For those looking for better options, most local libraries have summer reading programs as resources for families. Online options like Scholastic Summer Reading make it easy for everyone, rural and urban, to access tools for reading fun. If we can just get our crew to story time, rows marked “Kids Collections,” or a yard sale where kids left for college, summer reading …

10 Ways to Teach Kids to Sit in Church

We don’t know what the littles were doing when the first Christians met to worship. Maybe they played beneath an olive tree or asked for cold well water. Maybe they scooted from widow’s lap to widow’s lap or sat at the feet of the elders. However worship began for the early Church, in the centuries since, corporate worship has generally not become more kid friendly. While worship isn’t meant to cater to an age group, we want to cultivate a corporate culture that welcomes kids and creates a certain level of comfort. Sometimes we’re well meaning in the sanctuary or …

Kids, Costumes and Dressing Up for Sunday School

Are some battles reserved for Sunday mornings? Despite our best intentions and Saturday planning, it may seem the Enemy and all his minions move against us. It’s no wonder we give in on Sunday to what we would refuse on a weekday. While it’s still mid-week, let’s talk about kids, costumes, and sabotaging Sunday School. We don’t leave Sunday morning decisions in the back of the car. We bring them in and send them to Sunday School. Because of that, we can’t afford to hope for the best with costumes and kiddos at church. What healthy, costume-owning child hasn’t imagined …

What Kids Need to Know in Election Year

When political campaigns start to filter into our current conversations, moms take all kinds of approaches to managing the mayhem. Maybe you’re that mom who sends her child to Sunday school with a candidate’s button pinned on her dress. Or maybe you make popcorn and watch the debates with your toddlers and teens. What kind of mom are you? Do you know what your kids need to know in Election year? Are you flag-waving Felicia? This is a chance to feed your little patriots and capitalize on teachable moments about the Founding Fathers. #historylesson Are you kneeling Nancy? Every vote, debate, …

Lessons in LOVE in Eras of Evil

In a recent meeting in a children’s church class room, I read rules displayed on the wall. “Side hugs only,” it warned. Everything else was about what’s NOT allowed: secrets, piggy backs, carrying, tickling, lap sitting. Are these things all bad? So dangerous? Can’t we be affectionate without being evil? Can’t we use loving touch? Does modern love have to be sterile to be safe? More than ever, our children look to us for lessons in love. An era of evil is a hard time to for a child to learn what love is, and evil reigns today. It’s not the …

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