As4Me

We picked out another Helen Lester book at the library the other day, called Me First. I thought it would be a good conversation starter, and although it has been, I realized that the moral of the story is actually selfishly polite. Why should we share? Because sometimes being first isn’t desirable for my pleasure [...]

Popularity: 14% [?]

This post is a result of a discussion about destructiveness. I made the statement that young children do not by and large understand the value of property. This statement was challenged, so I’ve been reevaluating what I think.
I still stand by my statement, with a qualifier that perhaps my own children uniquely do not understand [...]

Popularity: 12% [?]

My two children were happily eating a midmorning apple at the table, while I sat and tried to concentrate on writing the next Pulitzer quality blog post. After awhile, I became aware of a curious noise of something small hitting the kitchen floor. A child must have found some dried piece of food on the [...]

Popularity: 16% [?]

I spent some time with my Nave’s Topical Bible looking at thankfulness verses. Nave’s is a cool book that organizes Bible verses by topic. You can find it online, but I like the paper version better. Guess I need to spend more time reading, because while I read a lot about thankfulness to God (Psalm [...]

Popularity: 12% [?]

David was given a belated birthday gift. It was a good gift, one that I was sure he would enjoy, but he refused to say thank you for it. When I was growing up, this was not an option. If you didn’t say thank you, you didn’t get the gift. But when I informed David [...]

Popularity: 11% [?]

The probing question in chapter one of my mom’s book, Parenting with Wisdom (formerly titled Teaching Children Precept upon Precept), is “What distinguishes a godly Christian parent any other parent?”
It’s a good question. I’ve known a number of excellent mothers who were unsaved. Their children were respectful, obedient, modestly dressed. It isn’t spanking, going to [...]

Popularity: 16% [?]

When do you say “thank-you” to your children?

 When they do something kind unexpectedly, without prompting.
When they respond to a polite request, like “Please pass the broccoli” or “Please bring me a diaper for baby.”
When they do something they are supposed to be doing: “Thank you for playing so unselfishly with your sister” or “Thank you [...]

Popularity: 13% [?]

In Romans 1, there’s a description of a rebel against God. In the midst of a truly terrible picture, one phrase seems out of place, apparently benign in comparison to the rest of the description. This arrogant rebel is unthankful.
Unthankfulness is more than simply poor manners. It is a symptom of the pride that plagues [...]

Popularity: 12% [?]

Birthdays are great teaching occasions, especially birthday parties of moms who love big crowds and are brave enough to invite a large number of preschoolers. You have the opportunity of testing manners (“Please may I have more punch” four times), you have the opportunity of getting along with other children, and opportunities for obedience and [...]

Popularity: 11% [?]

Awhile back, I mentioned that since Bethel was using only one word (never two), I didn’t require her to say please when she asked for something. (i.e., I had her say what she wanted: “Milk”) As long as she wasn’t whining for it, or crying, that was sufficient. I usually repeated her one word along [...]

Popularity: 12% [?]