Help Your Children Find Their Inner Geek

  Let’s face it. There’s something about each of our lives that only we can get excited about. You know what I mean. You wait with baited breath to tell someone the most wonderful thing that has happened to you in weeks and . . . they meet your excitement with a blank stare and eyes darting for another topic. Maybe you’re a rare key collector, a plane engine buff, or someone who loves to discover how other people’s favorite color relates to their personality. Maybe you’re the world’s best Salsa dancer. Or pogo stick bouncer. Or plant whisperer. When …

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What No Mom Wants to Talk About

Don’t TV stations do a great job of pulling you to a must see show? I had seen the ads for Tyra and knew it was one I didn’t want to miss. In her very frank way, the talk show host was dragging all “private” issues out in the open as she interviewed a panel of teen girls. The topic: sexting. The surprise guests: their mothers. Wow were they surprised as these moms heard their thirteen, fourteen and fifteen-year-old girls talk freely of the explicit language and NUDE pictures they regularly exchange with their friends. The shock on the mothers’ faces proved they had …

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Brave Moms Raise Wildly Brave Kids

It’s no secret my siblings and I were raised by wolves. Being the product of a desert-raised dweller growing up in the 80’s, my mom’s philosophy to mothering was this, “Outside!” My five siblings and I spent hours on end out of eyesight, playing in the gullies and washes of our Arizona home. We only came home at dusk or to be fed or when someone needed stitches; and we didn’t return to the house until our wildly concocted stories matched of why Child A hit her head on a pipe. Besides, mom didn’t really need to know the reason why …

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Dear Moms: Guide Your Children Without Judgement

  Dear Lovely Moms, One of the most beautiful things about God’s love for His children is that it is unconditional.  Because of this unconditional love, we get to be close to our Father in Heaven. This close relationship helps us grow into who He wants us to be. Through careful direction and love from our Father, we learn how to walk in His ways and become wiser as a result, hopefully making less mistakes through His guidance. If God was harsh and unforgiving, our tendency might be to run from Him and not to Him. The same is true for our children. When we are harsh with our children, they …

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Six Suggestions to Stop Sibling Squabbles

Any mom with two or more kids has seen sibling squabbles… from the toy snatching of toddlers to the bickering of older kids. And even though these interactions between sisters and brothers are inevitable, they can sometimes be hard to deal with.  Here are six things you can do as a mom to stop the squabbles (and increase the love): 1. Get involved. Rather than yelling at your kids to stop fighting (or hiding in the other room pretending not to hear them), get in the mix. If you have little ones, kneel down and talk on their eye level …

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Getting to the Heart of Obedience

Our “With LOVE from MOM” week is here, and today parenting expert and MOM Mentor shares the BEST MOM TIP EVER!  TODAY’S GIVEAWAY IS…  The Making of a Mom by Stephanie Shott The Making of a Mom is an all-in-one resource that is written TO moms yet FOR ministry leaders. A heart to heart mentoring resource that gives moms 12 key foundations to biblical motherhood with practical help for their everyday journey.  The Making of a Mom also gives ministry leaders everything they need to enhance or begin a Titus 2 ministry in their church, ministry or community. Complete with questions …

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Treating the doctor’s office dilemma

Every mom knows the dilemma of being in a quiet waiting room with a not-so-quiet child. While other patients nervously occupy themselves with the latest travel magazines, hoping they’ll be called soon, moms do the doctor’s office dance, trying to get their little ones to act like grown-ups. Waiting rooms host people anxiously anticipating procedures ranging from dental fillings to chemo treatments, immunizations to ultra sounds. What do you do with kiddos when you’re in the doctors’ zone?   Don’t despair. This trauma is treatable. There are more ways to entertain a child while you wait than just plugging them …

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Can I Offer You My Fish?

“Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” (John 6:9) Hospitality is not my forte. I love to plan parties, decorate cakes and daydream about giving my mantel a trendy makeover—but when it comes to executing these crafty ambitions, my klutzy side takes over. I’ve always considered this a shortcoming. Until recently, when a children’s Bible story shifted my thinking. It was the well-loved tale of Jesus feeding five thousand people with one boy’s lunch. “What’s special about this story?” I asked my five-year-old daughter. “Ummm. …

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Just Do It!

By Guest: Lori Wildenberg Before kids – did you have a temper? I honestly didn’t think I had much of one. But…God has humbled me with my four blessings. Once I “acquired” children my false reality was shattered. I’ll admit it- I’m the not so proud owner of a temper. Parenting is the best-hardest job, filled with intense emotions. Because we are so passionate about and invested in our kids, we get annoyed and angry when they don’t do what we say. Cooperation is so much nicer than conflict. How come kids don’t get that?  Most parents are exasperated and …

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Stop. Breathe.

A misty drizzle spritzes the window while I relax in the recliner and listen to my children’s laughter. When what to my wandering eye should appear, but a miniature sleigh and…Oops! I guess I got too relaxed for a moment. It’s a rare occurrence these days to have time to daydream. I’m a freelance writer and editor, but I also homeschool my children. School’s in full session, as is all the busy-ness that accompanies this season of life. We have classes, gymnastics, Taekwondo, baseball games, church events and sleepovers. Not to mention deadlines, doctor appointments, Bible studies and holidays. Complicate …

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