Maybe the title of this post should be "Get Them Trying" because I can't make any guarantees, ha! But I have something to share today that I found in my recipe binders while cleaning out. It was a fun little experiment I did with my girls when they were young and I was trying to find healthy(-ish) recipes they could enjoy. I made these cards that I called "New Recipe Survey" and placed them on the dinner table anytime I tried a new recipe. I found that my girls were more enthusiastic about trying a new food if they could leave a review. It was fun for them and gave them the opportunity to respectfully offer their input. Above is what a blank card looked like and below are some of ... Read more
Kids in the Kitchen, Part 1: Get Them Cooking!
As I was cleaning out my cookbooks and recipe binders this summer, I came across so many sweet memories of my children in the kitchen and I realized wow, my kids really liked being in the kitchen! From an early age they were all eager to "help" and were proud to get the jobs of washing fruit, peeling veggies, stirring pots, adding ingredients, and setting the table. Let me just gush a second and say my kids were super cute in the kitchen! I remember that my first daughter at age 2 loved nothing more than to scrub things with the vegetable scrubber while standing on a chair at the sink (Do kids still stand on chairs?). She was so happy doing her scrubbing and I was tickled to have a cute ... Read more
You’re a Gooood Mama!
I was a new mama to a sweet baby girl and wanted to be the very best mommy I could be. I wasn't ever looking for compliments, just maybe a little encouragement. I remember walking into church one evening with a blanket wrapped around my baby when an approaching woman wearing a concerned expression commented, "Honey, you've got that baby too warm in that blanket!" I slid the blanket off my little one, tucked it into the diaper bag, and walked into the auditorium. As I was making my way to a pew, I started to pass another lady, this one displaying a warm smile. 'Ahh, a friendly face. This will be encouraging!", I thought to myself. As we exchanged pleasantries, she wrapped her hand around ... Read more
Teach Them Tuesday: Bonding Through Books
Reading is a family favorite in our house! When I was growing up, I spent more of my time outside playing and climbing trees than I did inside reading, so I wasn't a strong reader but now I've spent my entire adulthood soaking up all the books I can get my hands on (since climbing trees is out for me now, ha!). And I wanted my kids to be strong readers, so I started reading to them as early as possible...the womb. I had a little basket of baby books in the nursery just waiting for baby, so while pregnant, I'd sit in the rocking chair and read those little books to my bump. Sounds silly, I know! Read-alouds have probably been our favorite part of homeschooling. In fact, my son says that's ... Read more
Creating a Family Identity
Good morning, friends! As a follow-up to my post on the importance of family identity in a child's life, I'd like to share some ideas for creating that identity. I am in no way a trained expert; these are just some ideas that Joel and I have found to work for our family. And although I have given this post a lot of thought, I haven't been able to give it much time in the writing, so it's by no means polished and tidy. I'll just be speaking from the heart as if we're sitting here together over coffee or tea. Back when we went through foster care training, in one of the classes the topic of family identity came up as an important element to carrying your current family through the ... Read more
The Importance of Family Identity in the Life of a Child
As part of my ongoing (yet slow) series on adoption, I'd like to share today some about the idea of FAMILY IDENTITY. And if your children aren’t adopted, this concept applies to your parenting as well! Most of this post is taken from a speech I've given at some events for our adoption agency, so for those of you who may have already heard me speak on this, my apologies. Often when people find out that our son is adopted, a common question my husband and I get asked is, "How long did your adoption take?", meaning the legal process. The paperwork. Well, to answer that question I suppose I would calculate the time from the first day we filed a petition to adopt our son to our day in court ... Read more
Our Ornament Tradition
Having taken a little overnight getaway last week, I've been behind this year in getting my Christmas decorations packed up this year. But I'm almost done--woohoo! As always, I take a little walk down memory lane as I wrap and tuck away each item. This year I'd like to share our ornament tradition. Each year of our children's growing up years, starting with their birthyear, they get a new Christmas ornament for the tree-- something that represents their age, a special interest, or a trip we may have taken that year. After 22 years with our oldest, 18 years with our middle, and 11 years with our youngest, we have a very FULL tree! Plus, my husband and I will get a new ornament some ... Read more
Girls’ Club Autumn Teatime and Book Discussion
Cultivating female friendships is rewarding yet sometimes tricky. My friend, Kelli, and I have seen the difficulties that our teen girls can go through with making and keeping friends. We wanted to encourage and mentor our daughters in this area as they go about their high school activities with co-ops, sports, etc., and have been getting together every other Sunday for tea and sweets while discussing a book which covers the topic of friendship with meaningful and practical advice. Girls' Club: Cultivating Lasting Friendship in a Lonely World is authored by mother and daughters, Sally, Sarah, and Joy Clarkson and is certainly not written to one age group but to all girls and women who desire ... Read more