“Why don’t you just grow up? You’re thirteen. Act like it.” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. “How can I act like it?” my daughter said in desperation. “I’ve never been thirteen before!” I took a deep breath and sighed. My daughter was right. I was expecting a lot… [Continue Reading]
The Better Mom
Prayers for the School Year
It’s the beginning of the school year, and I have so many hopes and desires for my children’s year. I want it to be a year of learning, yes, but I also want so much more. I want this to be a year in which my children grow spiritually, not just physically and educationally. I… [Continue Reading]
How Parents Can Handle Teen Emotions
You can read the first blog post of the series here ~ What You Really Need To Know About Emotional Teens. On the top of my to-do list, today was writing this blog on how to handle emotional teens. It’s easy to make that a goal and spout all types of wonderful advice on a… [Continue Reading]
What You Really Need to Know About Emotional Teens
I have three children beyond their teen years, and I currently have four teens in our home. Let’s pause right now as I ask for prayer. Do you also have a teen—an emotion-filled creature—in your house? I’ll pause and say a prayer for you too. One thing I’ve learned with these teens is that their… [Continue Reading]
7 Tools for Calming Angry Kids
In the past three years, John and I have adopted seven children from foster care, which means we’ve had to deal with a lot of angry kids. Anger displays itself in many ways. I’ve had children yelling, screaming, kicking, fighting, and throwing things. I’ve seen looks of pure hatred directed at me. (I know the… [Continue Reading]
16 Ways to Offer Yourself Grace As a Mom
I don’t know about you, but I don’t need anyone to point out my flaws … because I’m a tough enough critic all by myself. It’s easy for me to see another mom and want to tell her, “It’s okay, you don’t have to be perfect. Don’t stress yourself out trying to be.” Yet I… [Continue Reading]
Staying Calm When Dealing with Angry Kids
Why is my child so angry? My heart pounded as I asked the question. It thumped with fear. What if this doesn’t change? My mind raced with worry. What if I can’t control my child? Just as bad: What if—because of their anger—I can’t control myself? With each scream of my child’s lips and the… [Continue Reading]
10 Ways to Help Your Family Fill February With Love
I remember as a child sitting down with my mom the night before Valentine’s Day and filling out the small Valentines for my class. Later, after I was married, Valentine’s Day was a wonderful excuse for dinner out with my husband … that’s until we realized that the restaurants were too crowded, and we chose… [Continue Reading]
18 Ways to Jump Start Your Quiet Time in 2018
Recently I was talking with a friend about spiritual growth. Out of everything I’ve done in my journey in drawing closer to God, the one thing that has brought me closer to Christ than anything else was spending daily time in God’s Word. Yet as mom it’s not easy to do! The wonderful thing is… [Continue Reading]
Embracing the Every Mess of Life, Of Emotions
My kids are a mess. And they are messy. Let’s start with messy first. With six girls and one little boy still at home, there are dozens of projects around the house. There are crochet projects, needlework, half-finished paintings, Lego creations, and puzzles that were started and forgotten. There are two alternatives to having creative… [Continue Reading]
The Easiest Way to Find God’s Will For Your Family
When I first started following God I assumed that “His will” involved finding a career or ministry that was right for me, and then pursuing that with everything in me. The thing was, God brought many different areas of serving others into my life: writing books, speaking, volunteering in a pregnancy center, and mentoring teen… [Continue Reading]