Family Culture

2 03, 2021

Memorized Family Identity

By Lis and Dave Marr|2021-03-02T10:41:17-07:00March 2nd, 2021|Family Culture, Parenting|

What is an easy technique to establish family identity that you can come back to again and again that creates consistency in expressing family values, helps train your children’s minds, and provides countless hours of family discussions that will create an intentional family culture and firm family identity? Memorization. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are admirable, [...]

22 02, 2021

First Time Obedience – What it Looks Like

By Shelly and Rich Howard|2021-02-22T14:51:55-07:00February 22nd, 2021|Family Culture, Parenting, Relationship|

When we took our first parenting class, our boys' behavior was not characterized by First Time Obedience (FTO). In fact it was after the very first parenting class we attended, when we picked up our boys from childcare, that they immediately proceeded to run around in every direction away from us. Our embarrassed calls and pleading for them to come to us were definitely not obeyed. As parents, during that time, we relied on a [...]

16 02, 2021

Responsibilities and Freedoms

By Lis and Dave Marr|2021-02-16T07:30:32-07:00February 16th, 2021|Family Culture, Parenting, Relationship|

This is an actual (paraphrased) exchange Dave had with our 16-year-old son. If you are using the Funnel philosophy (Parenting from the Tree of Life – Gary and Anne Marie Ezzo) on how to provide freedoms to your children, this is how it played out at the Marr house. “A teen rebels not against authority, but against relationship” (Ezzo). As a child grows, parenting philosophy on why decisions are made should be transparent and spoken aloud so they [...]

8 02, 2021

What About Love

By Shelly and Rich Howard|2021-02-08T17:18:18-07:00February 8th, 2021|Family Culture, Personal, Relationship|

With Valentine’s Day coming up, we want to offer you some practical ideas regarding love for your family. Love can be expressed in a multitude of ways and it’s the greatest gift we can offer our spouse and children. Here are three thoughts we continue to focus on in our marriage and family. Being intentional with these things has changed who we are as a couple and who we’ve become as a family. Our Marriage and [...]

2 02, 2021

Learning The Ways Of Money – Part 3

By Lis and Dave Marr|2021-02-02T07:50:35-07:00February 2nd, 2021|Family Culture, Finances, Parenting|

A Three-Part Series to Help Your Child Learn The Ways of Money Teaching your kids about money – Pre-adolescent thoughts Gaining responsibility about money – Adolescent thoughts Paying for college and being an adult – College and beyond _________________________ College and Beyond Your parenting guidance doesn’t end at 18. It’s as valuable now as it’s ever been, just more nuanced. The relationship you’re building will create opportunities for you to share your hard-earned experience, particularly [...]

26 01, 2021

Learning The Ways Of Money – Part 2

By Lis and Dave Marr|2021-01-26T07:58:13-07:00January 26th, 2021|Family Culture, Finances, Parenting|

A Three-Part Series to Help Your Child Learn The Ways of Money Teaching your kids about money – Pre-adolescent thoughts Gaining responsibility about money – Adolescent thoughts Paying for college and being an adult – College and beyond _________________________ Adolescence Though your children may not be in this age category yet, there are benefits to looking down the road to not only contemplate this topic, but also get a feel for how all topics layer [...]

19 01, 2021

Learning The Ways Of Money – Part 1

By Lis and Dave Marr|2021-01-19T09:32:00-07:00January 19th, 2021|Family Culture, Finances, Parenting|

A Three-Part Series to Help Your Child Learn The Ways of Money Teaching your kids about money – Pre-adolescent thoughts Gaining responsibility about money – Adolescent thoughts Paying for college and being an adult – College and beyond _________________________ Pre-Adolescence What is money to a child? If not told, not trained, and not experienced over an early lifetime, a person might walk the road to ruin with lack of understanding about money and its successful [...]

12 01, 2021

Being God’s Face To Your Child

By Lis and Dave Marr|2021-01-12T09:01:42-07:00January 12th, 2021|Family Culture, Parenting, Relationship|

To your children, God looks and acts like you. They will come to define God’s love based on how they have experienced your love. Their self-worth will be based on that definition, a love that finds the right balance of words and actions to coax and mold appropriate behavior and effort. Their life is a divine journey of discovery guided by you. And for those parents who understand the depth of this blessing, they recognize [...]

29 12, 2020

Top Ten Parenting Tips

By Shelly and Rich Howard|2021-12-16T14:17:28-07:00December 29th, 2020|Family Culture, Marriage, Parenting|

"Be patient, be a good listener, be consistent..." these are just some of the more common “Top Parenting Tips” you'll find when searching around the Internet. And we would agree with many of those tips. However, we thought it would be fun, and encouraging, to provide you with our top ten parenting tips that have most impacted us over the years. 10) Have fun and enjoy your kids – It was very easy for us [...]

28 12, 2020

Creating a Thriving Family

By Shelly and Rich Howard|2020-12-28T09:46:50-07:00December 28th, 2020|Family Culture, Marriage, Parenting|

What does a thriving family look like? Certainly, there are many answers to this question, but we believe at the heart of a thriving family is a healthy marriage and effective parenting. It is an encouraging home environment where children are flourishing with everyone feeling emotionally and spiritually fulfilled in each other's company. Our marriage and family life is definitely not “Perfect.” Yet, our home life is characterized by our efforts toward being the [...]