Parents often ask me if I think a specific consequence is appropriate for a given situation with their kids. They wonder if it is too harsh or too lenient or tied enough to the offense. Inevitably the conversation transpires into the “rules” that have been established and why they are there. The question I typically ask […]
Having had four teenagers under one roof at the same time, I know what it was like to literally feel as though every second was accounted for. I took my role as Mom seriously having given up a corporate job when my kids were little. For me, motherhood became a passion, a calling that I […]
Melanie lay across the university lawn excited yet tentative. She couldn’t wait until finals were over…one more to go and she would be finished with the semester. Yet she wasn’t ready to leave the university. She loved the comradery of being with the other kids not to mention the independence of doing what she wanted […]
I tend to be an observer of relationship interactions and the event gave me plenty to ponder. I saw it happening and wanted to call a halt in the middle of it, but it certainly wasn’t my place. I turned away–embarrassed for this young man and embarrassed for his father. It was intermission and Dad […]
Keeping our kids in church through the teen and twenty-something years requires many factors. Peer friendships, adult community, and relevance to our teen’s world being several pieces to the pie. Finding an accepting environment is also critical in the process. Shaunti Feldhaun’s research attempted to get into our teen’s head to understand them better. The information […]
As my kids get older, I’m realizing that I’m not quite as affectionate as I used to be. After all, they know that I love them–right? When they were younger, it was easy to give them a kiss on top of their head as I wiped jelly off their face, or hold them in my […]