What Miriam in the Bible Can Teach Us About Positivity A few weeks ago I was talking with my friend, Joanna, sharing about some of my recent struggles, especially with my attitude. “I’ve always known you to be a positive person,” Joanna told me. I chuckled, “That’s because most of the time we spent together was before… [Continue Reading]
articles and blogs
6 Ways to Effectively Lead Young Children
6 Ways to Effectively Lead Young Children What does it mean for a parent to effectively lead a family with young children? The answer to that question has come to me through years of trial and error (mostly error). As a young mom, I didn’t give leadership much thought — I was just trying to… [Continue Reading]
5 Tips I Use To Stay Motivated as a Writer
These are 5 tips I use to stay motivated as a writer and to keep going when distraction or the business of life hit. I hope you find them helpful. I first started writing in 1994, I was only 22 years old and pregnant with my third baby. While sitting in the church nursery one… [Continue Reading]
25 Ways to Breathe Life Into Your Day
25 Ways to Breathe Life Into Your Day Do you go through your day drained and exhausted? As a mom of ten kids, I understand. There is always so much to do, it’s hard to slow down … let alone stop to catch a breath. But as moms we need that. We need refreshment. We… [Continue Reading]
Helping Kids Cultivate God’s Goodness in their Lives
What lessons did you learn in the garden as a child? Personally, I remember the wonder of seeing new sprouts poke through the dirt and green strawberries brighten to red under the summer sun. Gardening taught me about God’s good creation, and as I became a mom I understood that I could cultivate patience in… [Continue Reading]
One Brave Step Started My Road to Publishing
24 years ago I took ONE brave step. I was at the Mt. Hermon Writer’s Conference, and I’d taken a workshop on article writing. I’d attended the conference wanting to write a novel, but article writing intrigued me. I jotted down a few ideas for articles, but didn’t think much of it. Then, the next… [Continue Reading]
How to Balance a Busy Writing Schedule and a Busy Life
I’m a wife, homeschooling mom to ten kids (yes 10!) and best-selling author. I’ve had 60+ books published, and I lead a Teen Mom support group in inner-city Little Rock. The number one thing I’m asked by others is, “How do you do it all?” If you were to see the piles on my… [Continue Reading]
‘Always Faithful’ WWII Marines Meet Again
Today is National Medal of Honor day so I wanted to share a story my friend Connie Pettersen sent me. She is a freelance writer for a local newspaper in Aitkin, MN and wrote this amazing story about two World War II Marines. Enjoy! Two Marines from WWII were reunited on April 16th at Villa… [Continue Reading]
How to stop your child’s angry cycle
The flash of anger in my tween daughter’s eyes surprised me. We’d been camping, and Maddie’s 6-year-old sister, Aly, had just burned her finger on hot ash. As I treat the wound, Maddie strode up. “I hurt myself, too,” she said, with attitude. “Last night when we were making S’mores.” “Hold on,” I said. As… [Continue Reading]
10 Ways to Make Your Home a Place of Healing For Kids From Foster Care
John and I opened our home to foster care and adoption with a lot of hope and little knowledge of what the reality would look like. As a mom trying to help these kids heal, I learned a lot about children, trauma, myself, our mutual needs, and healing. Out of everything I’ve learned, the… [Continue Reading]
Top Blog Posts from 2016
The year is coming to a close and what a year it has been! To reflect on the year, I’ve compiled your favorite posts from 2016 below. Thank you for all your support and encouragement throughout the year!! Why Coloring isn’t Just for Kids! Kids are on to something and grownup are just starting to catch on …… [Continue Reading]