For many of us, summer means big vacations, a series of camps, summer sports leagues, pool days, amusement parks and other excitement to make it memorable, meaningful and fun. While all those activities are wonderful, parents feel a lot of pressure and wonder: “How do we sustain the ‘fun’ on a day-to-day basis for the rest of the summer?” Fred Rogers once said, “Play is really the work of childhood.” What we often forget as [...]
There is an element in human nature that struggles to appreciate prosperity, wholesomeness, progress, and success. Why that is remains a mystery. As parents, we aspire for our children to fulfill their God-given gifts and capabilities. When we pause to consider the incredible material and personal blessings many of us enjoy today, it truly is remarkable. We, Lis and Dave, own our home and raised our children in it. We made this house a place [...]
Last week, in Part One, we explored the first four principles from The Father’s Mandate from Growing Kids God’s Way, a teaching that has had a profound impact on our marriage and family. We discussed how fathers can build connection and trust by: Cultivating a strong family identity Regularly demonstrating love to their wife Respecting their child’s private world Giving their children the freedom to fail This week, we’ll wrap up the remaining four practices [...]
With Father’s Day coming up, we thought it would be a great time to revisit a teaching that profoundly impacted our family. The Father’s Mandate, from Growing Kids God’s Way by Gary and Anne Marie Ezzo, outlines eight intentional practices to help fathers connect and build strong, trusting relationships with their children. This teaching became an important catalyst in our marriage and parenting journey. It provided Rich with practical ways to be more purposeful with [...]
Often, it’s not the big issues that determine direction, but the small ideas we choose to adopt along the way. And occasionally, one small idea can compound into something transformational. That was our story. Our kids were very young, and our marriage had barely begun by our 10-year anniversary. We were “happy”, but in our mid-30s, we were just figuring things out. The arguments, the snipping, and the frustrating power struggles were a function of [...]
Have you ever explained something clearly, only to be asked a question about the exact thing you just said? In that moment, you realize your message never truly landed. We’ve all experienced it—and it can be very frustrating. The truth is, active listening is often a blind spot, not only for the people we speak to, but for us as well. And if we’re honest, when was the last time we intentionally listened to truly [...]
If you haven’t seen WALL-E, the 2008 Disney Pixar film, you should. It’s a surprisingly thoughtful animated movie about a lonely little robot living on an abandoned Earth centuries into the future. At one point in the film, humans are living aboard a spaceship where every aspect of life has been automated and optimized for comfort. The humans are entertained, fed, transported, and protected—but disconnected, passive, and disengaged. Their comforts have quietly consumed their humanity. [...]
Loving intentionally is one of the most influential things we do as human beings. The love we give today carries into the future through our family. It can be expressed in many ways, yet it remains the greatest gift we can offer our spouse and children. With that in mind, we want to share a few practical ideas to help you express love within your family that are meaningful and lasting. Here are three specific [...]
What does it mean to be a Marr? This became one of the most important questions we faced as a young family. It wasn’t something we thought about when we got married. Coming from different cultures—Lis from Sweden and Dave from California—family identity wasn’t a concept either of us grew up with. But as we raised our three children from childhood into adulthood, we discovered that family identity played a significant role in our children’s [...]
Parenting is a year-round journey. However, we discovered that summer can be an especially productive and meaningful season in this journey. With school obligations and hectic schedules dialed back, the excitement of sunshine, family vacations, and backyard barbecues naturally brought our family together and created a more relaxed, receptive environment to address — or revisit — important areas in our parenting. Certainly, kids need downtime, but we decided to take advantage of our summers rather [...]