“Sweetie pie, I hope you’re having a wonderful day so far. I just wanted you to know how much I love you. I am so proud of you. You always give your best effort and are such a great student. When I get back from work, you’ll have to tell me all about your day. I LOVE YOU!!!! Dad” The notes were short, handwritten, and hidden in their lunch bag, packed lovingly away by mom. [...]
Life is busy. With school, kids sports and activities, our daily life can easily be characterized as hectic and overwhelming. Picking up Chic-fil-a on the way from practice can easily become the norm, rather than the exception, for getting everyone in the family fed. However, we discovered that sitting around the table together at meals can actually make a significant impact on your family. Current research shows that having a shared Family Mealtime has huge [...]
Lis was coming out of the grocery store when she observed an altercation that seemed to be a sign of the times. A man was backing out of his parking space and apparently didn’t see a father and son walking behind him. The two were not in danger, but the father took offense at not being seen anyway and proceeded to yell at the driver. The driver took offense at the foul language and responded [...]
There is a significant link between the moral education of children and engaging whole brain learning that leads to greater emotional Intelligence and self-regulation. Raising morally responsive children can be a complex and challenging job, but it will not happen without intentionality on the part of mom and dad. To be intentional means you make the moral education of your children a priority by setting goals, establishing standards and a proactive plan. The significance of [...]
"This conference was a parenting gold mine!" "So many takeaways..." “A game changer…” “This will definitely help us…” These were just some of the comments we received from this weekend's GFI Parenting Conference. Over the course of two enriching days, nearly to 200 parents garnered valuable insights and fresh information for their parenting journey. Now, we bring to you a special opportunity. For a limited time, we are offering complete access to all conference presentations. [...]
Parenting is a year-round process, yet summer brings a unique opportunity to amplify our parenting efforts. The relaxed pace of the season, with its sunshine and family activities, provides an ideal backdrop for “supercharging” our parenting initiatives while enjoying the fun of the season together. We’ve always been proponents of goal setting and planning, as evidenced in our Tuesday Letters. That’s why we’ve crafted a Summertime Checklist—a guide to help you prepare or revisit parenting strategies [...]
To obey, to be obedient, gives an impression of subservience to authoritarianism. You can just see in your mind’s eye an image of an imperfect authority dictating commands and requiring mindless adherence. This totally offends the popular mindset of today. And of course, said that way, sure, mindless obedience seems like an intolerant, narrow-minded, prejudiced preacher, like in the movie Footloose. In fact, OneFamily was rejected by an online parenting app because we professed value [...]
Zig Ziglar said children spell love T-I-M-E. We remember how hard it was when our boys were young to carve out time for them as we juggled work, housework, working out, errands, quiet time, kids’ activities and the list goes on. We did a lot of things with and for our kids, but the truth is that’s not the same as giving them time. With the spring activities gearing up, it’s important that kids know [...]
In our Five Minute Opportunity letter, we discussed the idea of creating an environment that helps one successfully submit to parental instructions through offering a window of compliance. There is a mental and emotional shift that occurs during those five minutes. Similar to that idea, a dear friend of ours shared with us a pearl of wisdom she had heard in a sermon at her church and how she creatively applied it in her family [...]
Adventure. Doesn’t that sound exotic? Since Lis is from Sweden, travel is part of our family DNA. Adventure brings new sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and experiences. We traveled to visit Lis’ parents every other year and took the opportunity to explore other countries. The stresses of travel can be pretty taxing on young and old alike, so attempting a family culture of adventure-mindedness requires behavioral preparation. Our children were expected to participate in our life, [...]