By Guest Blogger Sherry Kyle Every mom has hopes and dreams for herself and for her child. The minute a woman discovers she is pregnant, her mind whirls with possibilities of who her little one is going to be. Maybe the baby will grow up to be a doctor, a lawyer or the next president. Maybe the child will be a famous singer, actor or Olympic athlete. Or maybe the child will be a humanitarian or inventor. As you stare... Read more
The following is an excerpt from my interview with Dara Lovitz on my podcast, You’ve Got This. Now, twins. Some people hear that and they think “Oh my goodness, I would just die if I had twins.” Did you feel that way when you learned you were having twins? Dara: No. I was thrilled. I was really excited. There aren’t twins in my immediate family. I had plenty of fears about being pregnant and going into labor, and I thought... Read more
New Year’s resolutions by design are made to encourage us to pick up new habits or kick old ones. And that can be a good thing (hello, treadmill!). But instead of resolutions to do better in 2019, let’s focus on making parenting less stressful and more joyful in the coming year. Here are my four easy ways to make parenting easier, plus three practical tips on helping your kids grow. How to Make Parenting Easier Because we all could do... Read more
In this week’s video blog, I talk about how obedience can bring about happiness for children. The most obedient children are also, not coincidentally, the happiest children, the more content children, the more relaxed children. By teaching our children obedience, we are giving them a valuable gift, one that God requires of us as parents to bestow upon our offspring. If you want the tools to have an obedient child, then check out my online course, The Obedient Child.... Read more
Are you a leader or a follower in your home? Sometimes, parents inadvertently stop leading when they interact with their children. They forget that kids, even teenagers, still need a strong leader in the home. That doesn’t mean you’re an authoritarian dictator who stomps out all opposition with an iron boot. It does mean that you are the one in charge, and that you make the tough decisions that are best for the family as a whole and for each... Read more
By Guest Blogger Kathy Collard Miller Our 15-year-old daughter, Darcy, was not only strong-willed but rebellious. She had begun talking on the phone with a 17-year-old friend from school about his girlfriend. At times, he would take her out to talk about his problems. Before we knew it, Darcy had become the new girlfriend, even though she wasn’t supposed to date until she turned 16. Whenever my husband, Larry, and I reminded her of our rule, she turned argumentative about... Read more
The following is an excerpt from my interview with Lance Miller on my podcast, You’ve Got This. Do you ever get the feeling that sports have taken over ever available time slot for many families? Where we live just outside of Washington, D.C., there are opportunities for sports every month of the year. Some families have their children in sports every season of the year, moving from football to basketball to baseball to swim. “It’s definitely easy to pack in... Read more
I had several hobbies as a Gen X child. I spent countless hours playing with my collection of Breyer horses, and drawing and cutting out clothes for my homemade paper dolls. I even had a very modest coin collection. I wasn’t an outlier, as many of my friends and classmates also had hobbies, from an extensive LEGO collection to building model airplanes to collecting stamps. “A hobby can help set the personality, character and actions of children by traveling out... Read more
The following is an excerpt from my interview with Amy Tol on my podcast, You’ve Got This. When my four kids were little, my husband often came home from work and asked about my day. As a stay-at-home mom who also works as a freelance writer, I would occasionally blank out on how I filled my hours. I knew I hadn’t sat down all day long, but where had the time gone? What had I spent those precious seconds, minutes... Read more
By guest blogger Susan G Mathis When Susan married Patrick, a widower more than twice her age, his nine-year-old daughter was none too happy. The little girl didn’t want a stepmother, and Susan wasn’t so sure she wanted to be one! The tension between the two made the couple’s honeymoon season none too easy and threatened to create a nightmare first Christmas. What would they do? In Christmas Charity, a new novella about just such an experience, the step-parenting dilemma... Read more
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