Daily Thoughts
They Help Me Stay Active
By this point in this series you have likely realized that staying connected to my teens is one of the best ways for me actively to love our teenagers. The more connected we are to someone, or something, the easier it is to recall the positive things we appreciate...
They Are Still Children at Heart
As I have pointed out several times already in this series, my girls are a consistent source of inspiration and encouragement and I don’t believe that is merely a happenstance. I believe it is part of the way God blesses us as parents when we receive the children we...
They Rebel…Against Rebellion
The other day, when the girls and I had finished the first installment of our unschooling homeschooling time, the girls began chatting about different things, mainly music things, favorite characters from books, movies, and online series they’ve encountered, and...
They Are a Driving Force in My Life
I remember when our girls were babies, and into the toddler years, car rides were sometimes the saving grace for all of us: me for my sanity and ability to parent well, and the girls as a way to help regulate their out-of-control...
They Are Easy to Read…to
We are a family of readers and that is something I absolutely love about our family. While my 16 year old often will suggest she is not as much of a book nerd as the rest of us, she actually is more so than she thinks. While her sister may have what likely equates to...
They Can Be Puzzling
These cold months can make a person feel like not doing much of anything but snuggle under a blanket and cozy up with a good story, whether book or movie. There can also be a temptation to stare at a small screen and lose hours each day. To help us avoid falling into...
They Are a Perfect Reflection of my Imperfections
When you have kids, one of the side effects when around other people involves who your child looks like, you or your spouse. To be honest, no matter what other people have to say on this subject, I almost never see the resemblance to which they refer. In other words,...
They Are in Tune with Each Other (& Me)
Have you ever considered what kind of soundtrack your life might have if it were a movie? Or have you ever pictured your life as a musical where you and the people around you randomly break into song and dance? Personally, I’ve toyed with both of these ideas more...
They Test My Mettle
Nothing can cause me greater anxiety than my teenagers’ anxiety. Ironic, right? And yet this is a deeply true paradox for me and one I find myself facing way more often than I want to. It’s not because I feel inconvenienced or annoyed by either of my teens’ emotions...