The Parenting Adventure

I started a bible study called "The Parent Adventure" It has been wonderful and surprising. Surprising because I love being affirmed that for all the not so great things I do as a parent... yelling for instance... I do a lot of things right!

I am a firm subscriber in saying yes more than I say no and I don't mind the mess when we want to play. We love to make messes and be creative. I believe that if you tell a child no too often about the little things then by the time you need to tell them no about the BIG things, they will have learned how to tune you out. The one thing that I do wish that we could do more of is spend more time outside. I try to make my schedule free enough to where I can devote my time to just them in the evenings but I still have to cook which means that after a few minutes we are inside again. I think that is what makes me want the rock climbing wall or the rope ladder wall in the family room. I am also going to get a mini trampoline for the room too. If you have boys you know that they are an active HANDFUL lol... I have three 7 and under.. It is always a flurry of activity at my house.

One of the other things that the study discusses is how often you talk to your children. Since at this point I am not able to home-school anymore (I was able to for a year) we use the time to and from school to discuss things. Sometimes I let the conversation flow naturally and we may pray for a good day, other times we let the conversation evolve from one of the devotionals or awanna CD's we are listening to. A favorite CD of the kids is "The Jesus Storybook bible" if you haven't checked it out then I strongly encourage you... the accents are AMAZING.. the only fault I have with it is at one point it calls someone or something stupid.. and I did not like that.

One idea that I am taking away from the study in the "talking" section is the idea of having family meetings, even at the young ages that my children are. I can remember as a child trying to get my parents to have family meetings, we never did. I think that is one of my favorite parts about being a parent~~~ you can take all the things that you loved about your own upbringing and enhance them with things that you wish that you would have had or done. I can't give my children a complete family (something I beat my head against brick walls trying to force to happen) but I can give them the best that I have to offer and I can give them a promise that I will always be looking for ways to improve my parenting of them and within reason I will always be willing to work with them as we navigate life together.

I know that this may seem absurd but I have always made it one of my own parenting mottos that I am not raising just children, I am raising future men and fathers and husbands... I am raising little adults.