For those of you who have been reading for the entirety of this short blogs life, I thank you for sticking by me as the blog goes under construction. I've been praying about a vision and purpose for sharing my heart and have been granted clarity. So now I'm in the process of revamping the visual image and reorganizing to that the blog fulfills its purpose. Stay tuned........
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Sunday, January 11, 2015
Motivate Your Child Giveaway!
So I mentioned that I'm on the launch team this new book Motivate your Child in my last post. I'm a bit further into the book and already have gathered useful parenting tips that have had a big impact in our family. My sweet boisterous boy loves to talk his way out of doing what is asked of him and struggles with obedience. After reading about action points, or rather that seemingly magical point our children know that let's them know we mean business (in my house it was use of your full name), we decided to make a change. Kevin and I had noticed that our action point usually came at that moment of frustration. Now, most of the time (I'm still practicing), I prime Hayden that an instruction is coming by telling him I'm going to ask him to do something right now. Then I give the direction again using the word now. Most of the time he does it right away. If he doesn't, instead of getting frustrated, I simply remind him that he is being disobedient and move uncomfortably close to him. That has sent him off to his task every time. Our home is a bit more peaceful and I have lots more opportunities to praise my little guy!
I can't believe the changes in our family, and I still have 2/3 of the book to go. If you're looking for a way to help your children develop their conscience and internal motivation I would strongly recommend this book. And if you like free stuff, do it sooner rather than later (1/31)
To enter into this amazing giveaway, just join the Facebook Launch Party on 1/29 at 9pm ESTI can't believe the changes in our family, and I still have 2/3 of the book to go. If you're looking for a way to help your children develop their conscience and internal motivation I would strongly recommend this book. And if you like free stuff, do it sooner rather than later (1/31)
To celebrate the release of Motivate Your Child: A Christian Parent's Guide to Raising Kids Who Do What They Need to Do Without Being Told, members of the Launch Team are sharing a wonderful giveaway filled with a Go Pro Camera, $50 Mardel Gift Card, $25 Amazon Gift Card, and book bundles from both the National Center for Biblical Parenting and Thomas Nelson Publishing! Three winners will win prizes with a total value of nearly $800!
Here’s what you could win:
GRAND PRIZE ($500+ value)
Go Pro HERO3+ Silver Camera ($300 value)
HERO3+ Silver captures gorgeous, professional-quality 1080p60 video and 10MP photos at speeds of up to 10 frames per second. Built-in Wi-Fi enables you to use the GoPro App to control the camera remotely, preview shots and share your favorites on Facebook, Twitter and more. Compatible with all GoPro mounts, you can wear it or attach it to your gear for immersive POV footage of your favorite activities. It’s waterproof to 131’ (40m) and built tough for all of life’s adventures. Combined with stunning low-light performance, high-performance audio and an ultra wide-angle glass lens, HERO3+ Silver makes capturing and sharing your life easier than ever.NCBP Book Bundle ($115 value)
The Christian Parenting Handbook and Companion Guide Parenting is Heart Work God's Awesome Story Hero Training Camp Children's CurriculumThomas Nelson Book Bundle ($90 value):
The Best Yes by Lysa TerKeurst Desperate by Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson Say Goodbye to Survival Mode by Crystal Paine All Pro Dad by Mark Merrill The Passionate Mom by Susan Merrill***
FIRST PRIZE ($165 value)
$50 Mardel Gift Card
NCBP Book Bundle ($115 value)
The Christian Parenting Handbook and Companion Guide Parenting is Heart Work God's Awesome Story Hero Training Camp Children's Curriculum***
SECOND PRIZE ($115 value)
$25 Amazon Gift Card
Thomas Nelson Book Bundle ($90 value):
The Best Yes by Lysa TerKeurst Desperate by Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson Say Goodbye to Survival Mode by Crystal PaineTuesday, January 6, 2015
Wow! Only a few pages in and this book is awesome!
Do you like a good deal? Check out this awesome book and if you order before 1/31/15 you get $150 of freebies!
I am excited to share with you about a new book I’m reading this month Motivate Your Child: A Christian Parent's Guide to Raising Kids Who Do What They Need to Do Without Being Told. Doesn’t that sound amazing? Isn't that what you want for your kids?
God's Word gives us a better way to parent, one that builds strong internal motivation in children. When parents change the way they parent, kids change the way they live. Motivate Your Child is a practical book that explores a theology of internal motivation and then gives parents real-life solutions to equip their kids for life.
This is the newest book by parenting experts, Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller, RN, BSN from the National Center for Biblical Parenting (NCBP), also authors of The Christian Parenting Handbook. In order to motivate parents to Pre-Order the book, the NCBP is offering a $150 package of resources for FREE! There are video, audio and print items that can be used on a variety of devices. You can learn more on the book website.
You can Pre-Order the book now from any retailer, and then follow the instructions below.
INSTRUCTIONS: Purchase the book. Email the receipt to gift@biblicalparenting.org. The NCBP will send you the link and a special code to access these downloadable products. This offer is good until January 31, 2015.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE GREAT BIBLICAL PARENTING RESOURCES
I am excited to share with you about a new book I’m reading this month Motivate Your Child: A Christian Parent's Guide to Raising Kids Who Do What They Need to Do Without Being Told. Doesn’t that sound amazing? Isn't that what you want for your kids?
God's Word gives us a better way to parent, one that builds strong internal motivation in children. When parents change the way they parent, kids change the way they live. Motivate Your Child is a practical book that explores a theology of internal motivation and then gives parents real-life solutions to equip their kids for life.
This is the newest book by parenting experts, Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller, RN, BSN from the National Center for Biblical Parenting (NCBP), also authors of The Christian Parenting Handbook. In order to motivate parents to Pre-Order the book, the NCBP is offering a $150 package of resources for FREE! There are video, audio and print items that can be used on a variety of devices. You can learn more on the book website.
You can Pre-Order the book now from any retailer, and then follow the instructions below.
INSTRUCTIONS: Purchase the book. Email the receipt to gift@biblicalparenting.org. The NCBP will send you the link and a special code to access these downloadable products. This offer is good until January 31, 2015.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE GREAT BIBLICAL PARENTING RESOURCES
Friday, November 21, 2014
A Hop, Skip and Jump
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| Part of our number lines. |
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| Jumping by 10's |
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| Racing the 100's line. |
We had a ton of fun jumping, running, spinning and racing around the patio while shouting out the numbers on our line. And at the end of it all, Hayden looks at me and says, "I love math! I'm an excellent mathematician." It makes my heart happy to see him loving to learn so much.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Lessons Learned from Soap Flake Slime (and more fun)!
Our soap flake slime sat around for a few days with it's lid on stewing away. Then one particularly beautiful afternoon, the kind too nice to stay inside, we ventured out to the yard to see how the slimed turned out. Lots of lessons learned on this afternoon, in addition to some fun:
Lesson 1: The slime really did almost solidify. The bubbly froth was no longer there, though it could be whipped back up if needed. What was left was a true slime that just oozed in and out of everything that was played with it. The kids and I had a ball trying to capture it into various containers and "build" things with it.
My favorite treat of the afternoon was the slimy popsicle I was served up!
Lesson 2: My dog likes the taste of soap flake slime. As the kids flung it around the yard, she would rush to it to try and lick it up. As I had visions of seeing the slime leaving my dog at a later date, I ran around chasing the flung slime too with a hose hoping to dissolve it away before the dog could get to it. Yes, the mental picture in your head is probably hilariously close to the reality that was.
Lesson 3: There is a reason the recipe recommended boiling water to dissolve the soap flakes. As I was attempting to dissolve the soap slime in my yard, I quickly discovered that it took quite a lot of water and the most direct sprayer on my hose nozzle to actually get the slime to break apart and begin to dissolve. I ended up pouring most of the bucket into my front yard where it was safe from our dog with the hopes that it would dissolve through lawn watering and due. (It did not. I ended up hosing it down pretty good a couple days later). My words of advice for those of you sliming after me; go with the directions from the website Slime Recipe and don't take your slime outside. Instead use it in small portions in your laundry.
Lesson 4: Sadly slime will not be returning to our house. After Day 1, Alice developed a rash on her back. No other symptoms, and it really didn't seem to bother her. Further investigation lead us to thinking it was mild hives. After Part 2, she showed up with the same rash confirming my theory that she was allergic to the soap flakes. BUMMER! Turns out she has some of the same soap sensitivities her Momma had as a kiddo too. So the soap flakes have moved onto our cousin's house where we hope they will have as much fun as we did.
I would highly recommend this activity as a great warm weather sensory play! My kids loved it and it was so much fun watching them explore something new.
Lesson 1: The slime really did almost solidify. The bubbly froth was no longer there, though it could be whipped back up if needed. What was left was a true slime that just oozed in and out of everything that was played with it. The kids and I had a ball trying to capture it into various containers and "build" things with it.
Lesson 2: My dog likes the taste of soap flake slime. As the kids flung it around the yard, she would rush to it to try and lick it up. As I had visions of seeing the slime leaving my dog at a later date, I ran around chasing the flung slime too with a hose hoping to dissolve it away before the dog could get to it. Yes, the mental picture in your head is probably hilariously close to the reality that was.
Lesson 3: There is a reason the recipe recommended boiling water to dissolve the soap flakes. As I was attempting to dissolve the soap slime in my yard, I quickly discovered that it took quite a lot of water and the most direct sprayer on my hose nozzle to actually get the slime to break apart and begin to dissolve. I ended up pouring most of the bucket into my front yard where it was safe from our dog with the hopes that it would dissolve through lawn watering and due. (It did not. I ended up hosing it down pretty good a couple days later). My words of advice for those of you sliming after me; go with the directions from the website Slime Recipe and don't take your slime outside. Instead use it in small portions in your laundry.
Lesson 4: Sadly slime will not be returning to our house. After Day 1, Alice developed a rash on her back. No other symptoms, and it really didn't seem to bother her. Further investigation lead us to thinking it was mild hives. After Part 2, she showed up with the same rash confirming my theory that she was allergic to the soap flakes. BUMMER! Turns out she has some of the same soap sensitivities her Momma had as a kiddo too. So the soap flakes have moved onto our cousin's house where we hope they will have as much fun as we did.
I would highly recommend this activity as a great warm weather sensory play! My kids loved it and it was so much fun watching them explore something new.
Soap Flake Slime
About 2 months ago a friend posted a really cool recipe to make soap flake slime. I thought the kids would love it and promptly added it to our shopping list. And for 2 months I looked for soap flakes in every store I went to. Wouldn't you know it, in our convenience packed world soap flakes are a dying thing; replaced by pods and such. I found them on Amazon but they were crazy expensive. But just when I'd given up the search, another errand took us to Walmart. And after a happenstance walk down the soap aisle just in case, we found them!
Well, you'd better believe we made soap flake slime as soon as we got home. It's pretty easy. Dissolve soap flakes into part boiling water with 1:3 ration. (Soap Flake Slime Recipe) Beat with electric beaters until foamy on top and start to thicken. I added a few extra flakes along the way to make it even slimier. This kids had a ball watching the bubbles form little mountains.
After laying out all of my towels that needed to be washed and gathering any and all kitchen implements and measuring cups that looked like they could aide in the fun, I let the kids loose on the slime and watched them all smiles, messes and full of creativity over what to do with this new experience.
As a bonus for Mommy, by using all of my towels that needed washing anyway, clean up for this activity was a breeze. Soap kids got a middle of the day bath where they become the source of the bubbles, extending the fun as they watched bubbles form all around them. While they had lunch and wound down for afternoon naps/chill out time, I mopped up all the soapy puddles with my towels, tossed them directly into the washing machine and crossed my days load of laundry off the list.
 | |||
| the elusive soap flakes |
Well, you'd better believe we made soap flake slime as soon as we got home. It's pretty easy. Dissolve soap flakes into part boiling water with 1:3 ration. (Soap Flake Slime Recipe) Beat with electric beaters until foamy on top and start to thicken. I added a few extra flakes along the way to make it even slimier. This kids had a ball watching the bubbles form little mountains.
After laying out all of my towels that needed to be washed and gathering any and all kitchen implements and measuring cups that looked like they could aide in the fun, I let the kids loose on the slime and watched them all smiles, messes and full of creativity over what to do with this new experience.
 |
| Exploring the Slime |
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| It was everywhere! But how cute is this photo! |
As a bonus for Mommy, by using all of my towels that needed washing anyway, clean up for this activity was a breeze. Soap kids got a middle of the day bath where they become the source of the bubbles, extending the fun as they watched bubbles form all around them. While they had lunch and wound down for afternoon naps/chill out time, I mopped up all the soapy puddles with my towels, tossed them directly into the washing machine and crossed my days load of laundry off the list.
And if you want the fun to continue for another day, simply put a lid on your soap flakes and leave them over night. The directions I followed indicated that this would somewhat solidify the mixture and turn it into a more solid slimy mass. And so we commenced phase 2 of our science experiment!
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Time, Talent and Treasure
We've talked a lot in church, in our life group, and in our own home about giving God the best of our time, talent and treasures. I love how God often uses my children to show me the lessons he wants me to know.
Last weekend, we bought Hayden a new Bible. He had outgrown is toddler bible in his capacity to understand and when we saw this one we knew he would love it. He's been carrying it around all week, asking for stories from it, and telling almost everyone he encounters how he got a new Bible.
This morning he asked to read the story of the Greedy Guy (Luke 12:13-21). It's a story about sharing, which is fitting for a home with two small children. Alice, Hayden and I sat and read the story together and talked about things we could share with God. Then Hayden decided we should play the "Greedy Guy Game."
So we acted out the story several times, taking turns playing the roles of the guy and God, using treasure found within our playroom. It lead to great discussion on what happens to all of our treasures once we are no longer on the Earth, and Mommy suggested an alternative ending for the Greedy Guy in which we imagined what would have happened if he had obeyed God and shared his treasures. Needless to say, Mommy's happy ending did not appeal to the boisterous sense of my 4-year-old who preferred the action of dropping dead the very night when you choose not to share.
Even Alice got in on the fun, walking around calling a toy that had been basically cast aside in our play room a treasure. And while Hayden and I were acting out the story, she picked up his Bible and flipped through other stories.
It's been so much fun, so much learning, and an incredible blessing to be given the gift of time so that I can take advantage of these precious learning situations. Hayden has so many questions that could easily be brushed aside in the midst of the fullness of life so I'm learning to savor these quieter mornings and pour into both of the kids and answer their questions (often while praying for the answer) to the best of my ability as my children learn to the love the Lord and understand his role in their own little lives. They are our greatest treasure and I am blessed that they are integral in shaping my own personal talents in raising them!
Last weekend, we bought Hayden a new Bible. He had outgrown is toddler bible in his capacity to understand and when we saw this one we knew he would love it. He's been carrying it around all week, asking for stories from it, and telling almost everyone he encounters how he got a new Bible.
This morning he asked to read the story of the Greedy Guy (Luke 12:13-21). It's a story about sharing, which is fitting for a home with two small children. Alice, Hayden and I sat and read the story together and talked about things we could share with God. Then Hayden decided we should play the "Greedy Guy Game."
So we acted out the story several times, taking turns playing the roles of the guy and God, using treasure found within our playroom. It lead to great discussion on what happens to all of our treasures once we are no longer on the Earth, and Mommy suggested an alternative ending for the Greedy Guy in which we imagined what would have happened if he had obeyed God and shared his treasures. Needless to say, Mommy's happy ending did not appeal to the boisterous sense of my 4-year-old who preferred the action of dropping dead the very night when you choose not to share.
It's been so much fun, so much learning, and an incredible blessing to be given the gift of time so that I can take advantage of these precious learning situations. Hayden has so many questions that could easily be brushed aside in the midst of the fullness of life so I'm learning to savor these quieter mornings and pour into both of the kids and answer their questions (often while praying for the answer) to the best of my ability as my children learn to the love the Lord and understand his role in their own little lives. They are our greatest treasure and I am blessed that they are integral in shaping my own personal talents in raising them!
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