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Deep Diving in Shallow Water
I was standing in the 3 foot end of our neighborhood pool, when four-year-old Cole said, “Mommy, look what I can do!” From the pool deck beside me, he did a perfect dive that arched straight toward the bottom of the pool. Horrified, I yanked him up from...
Lecturing and Listening
My lecture resembled a 'seek-and-destroy' mission, in which I had locked on certain targeted attitudes--ungratefulness, being hard to please, spreading negativity-- and blasted away for ten straight minutes. The following interchange happened...
When trouble comes knocking--Literally.
I know I’m contradicting myself. In the same day I might say to my child, “Make sure you include everyone,” AND, “Choose friends wisely.” These can be two completely opposing sets of instructions. So, which is the right set? Consider my friend’s neighbor...
Cade's Letter to God
The upcoming movie, Letters to God (from the creators of Fireproof and Facing the Giants ), is about a stack of undelivered letters, addressed to God by an eight-year-old boy battling cancer. At the end of the private screening which we attended last...
Look, Mom! Two Hands!
These are the eight remaining mittens in the bottom of our closet. Some are black, others navy. Some are large, others small. Thankfully, there are a couple of left-handed ones in the bunch. The two on the bottom right actually match each other, but their...
A Map Home
Last Saturday, Lindsay babysat until Heidi's inlaws (who were from out of towm) could get there and stay with the kids. Since no one would be home at our house, the plan was for Heidi's father-in-law to give Lindsay a ride home. So, at the end...
Oversimplified Prayers
When I was expecting our first child, Ken and I spent a weekend caring for our friends' three-year-old twins and two-year-old. I thought, "This will be a good opportunity for Ken to practice his soon-to-be-employed 'Daddy' skills."...
L'il Sinners in the Hands of a Harmless God?
Any readers of Homeschooling Today? Check out my article on p.42 of the Nov/Dec. issue, entitled, "L'il Sinners in the Hands of a Harmless God". Here's an excerpt: They huddled together, horrified by the rain pounding on the roof like...
The 5:30 Rule
Now that it's dark before dinner, we've reinstated the 5:30 rule. No screen time (ie: computer, TV, video games, etc.) before 5:30 pm. Even on Saturday. Guess who has had the hardest time with the rule? ME!! (The Mom.) Screen time means nobody's...
Are you more thankful than a 3rd Grader?
Cole defined thankfulness this way: "It's when you don't really like something... like your dinner... and your dad says that you should be thankful for it." Hearing this, it dawned on me that the only time we talked about thankfulness...
Ashlei's 'Growing' Fingers
Ashlei’s left fingers are basically tiny stubs off her bone. Since she was born in China, our friends who adopted her have not only given her a home and family, but most likely have saved her life. Our kids just love little two-year-old Ashlei. We had...
Jesus vs. The Cheesiest
Me: "Why did Jesus die?" Cade: "To save us from our sins." Me: "Have you sinned?" Cade: "Yea, like when I scratched Cole last night." Me: "What is God's punishment for sin?" Cade: "He says we...
Brotherly Love Bootcamp
When the bickering between Lindsay and Cole recently reached an all time high, Ken and I decided to enlist them in brotherly/sisterly love bootcamp: We made them share a room for a week. Lindsay had to descend from her private upstairs princess suite...
Cathletic
Cole told me that his new friend from third grade is 'cathletic'. I said, "Oh. Can you remind me what 'cathletic' means?" He said, "You know, they do that thing where they draw a cross on themselves." Ahhhh. Yes, now...
Posted: Jul 20 2009, 03:04 PM by Shannon | with 4 comment(s)
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Watch Where you Point
How would you feel if someone followed you around all day, scrutinizing your every move? Every time you spoke with an edge in your voice, or ate food with negative numbers in its nutrition facts, or flicked on the TV in stead of the iron, this person...
Posted: Jul 03 2009, 03:08 PM by Shannon | with 4 comment(s)
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