Parental Support

Tonight sleep eludes me.  I am tired, yet I cannot find the peaceful bliss of rest.  Mentally I calculate that if I go to sleep now I won't be too tired tomorrow, yet I am unable to fully relax.  I seem incapable of turning off my brain, despite my drowsiness.  A thousand questions loom on the edges of my consciousness; all beginning with the words, "What if..." "What if..."  Those two little words hold so much pent up emotion and anxiety.  They convey the very essence of uncertainty and concern.  Together, those words can cast doubt on every area of life and usher in sleepless nights and cold sweats.  Most of the time I ignore these two words shrugging them off while stating that, "It will all work out.  One step at a time."  Certainly, this is true.  Yet, there are times when the number of "What if's" become overwhelming.  It is during these times when sleeplessness emerges and restlessness sets in.  A few times in my ...

"Daddy, be the asteroids!!"  This was the plea of my son yesterday as he created his "Solar System puppet show."  This time of social distancing has provided opportunities to interact with my family more than usual.  We have played numerous games and are brushing up on Disney movies.  It has been a welcome opportunity to invest in one another more. Lately, I have found myself wondering what my five year old son will remember from this time of lockdown.  I have wondered if he will look back on it fondly, as a time when we spent more time together, or if he will even remember it at all.  Every night, while eating dinner together, my wife and I have asked our son what he enjoyed most about the day.  Invariably, his answers included activities such as fort building, baking brownies, eating cookies, painting, or playing games with "Mommy and Daddy."  As I contrast my son's answers with how I, as an adult, am processing this Pandemic situation, I am c...

Who would have imagined that we would be discussing the topics of quarantine and “social distancing.”   These are crazy times.   With the schools closed and many working from home, families are suddenly finding themselves spending more time together than normal.   This presents some great opportunities to grow relationships with one another.   It also means that, in the coming days, there will be many kids who find themselves bored.   Below are some ideas concerning ways that you can help grow your family and develop relationships while also giving your kids something to do (besides Xbox and Switch that is). The ideas below are grouped in terms of kids, older kids, families, and resources for more ideas.   While I have grouped the activities to be age appropriate, all of them can be adapted for different age groups if desired. Ideas for Kids Make Homemade Playdough – Here is a link to 6 playdough recipes: https://www.familyeducation.com/f...

Chaos and pandemonium are, perhaps, the two best words for the atmosphere that exist in our culture in the wake of the Novel Corona Virus.  Some people fight over toilet paper while others empty store shelves of hand sanitizer and soap.  Still others stock up on food items in preparation for possible quarantine while another group wonders what all the fuss is about.  As Christians, how should we respond to the threat of this situation?  While opinions differ, it is clear that we can all agree that the way we react today will effect our lives tomorrow. Everything we do teaches our children something.  The question is, what are we teaching them?  Events such as the threat of pandemic are moments where we have the opportunity to live out our faith in a tangible way.  In so doing, we set an example for our children concerning what faith really means.  As your family prepares to react to the growing concern of the Corona Virus, let me encourage you t...