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Summer Learning Schedule

May 26, 2009 by Tracey 7 Comments

Since this is the last week of school here, I decided it was time to get myself in gear for the summer. While I like to take it easy during these months, I also know that the girls still need a bit of structure to their days. When we have at least a general plan of things to do, it keeps both them and myself more focused and under control. Since swimming lessons aren’t being offered at our normal location this summer, the next few months are pretty low-key as far as activities go.

I wanted to do a theme for each week of the summer and plan our reading and other activities around it. Monday will be our library day. I plan to go online and reserve some titles ahead of time, but will also browse through the shelves while we’re there to get a good selection of books. If there is a related video or dvd to go along with our theme, we’ll check that out as well. Since my girls are six and eight, we will choose materials that they can mostly read by themselves.

The outings I’ve chosen each week are free or relatively inexpensive. For the few that cost a bit more, we will use the money we had set aside for those swimming lessons to cover the expense. I also have included a Bible verse for them to memorize each week that goes along with the theme we’ll be discussing. Again, they are old enough to read through the verse on their own and can practice it together.

The order of the weeks may change as we go along, depending on what other items are added to our schedule. Here’s the plan I’m starting with for now.

Week 1 Theme – Countries
Books: Each girl can choose five countries to read about
Outing: Grocery store (Since we will have just returned from our vacation, our outing will be to the grocery store where the girls can help me choose ingredients to make meals from some of the countries they choose to read about.)
Bible verse: Acts 1:8

Week 2 Theme – Ocean
Books: Ocean/Ocean Life/Sea Animals
Outing: Beach
Verse: Psalm 139:9-10

Week 3 Theme – Animals
Books: Each girl chooses five animals to read about
Outing: Zoo
Verse: Psalm 104:24

Week 4 Theme – History
Books: Each girl will choose one time period from world history and one from American history to read about
Outing: Fort Moultrie, SC
Verse: Psalm 77:11-12

Week 5 Theme – Flowers & Trees
Books: Encyclopedia or overview books about various types of flowers and trees
Outing: Middleton Place Gardens
Verse: Matthew 6:28-29

Week 6 Theme – Sports
Books: Three sports each
Outing: Bowling and/or minor league baseball game
Verse: 1 Corinthians 9:24-25

Week 7 Theme – Famous Americans
Books: Five for each girl – biographies or autobiographies (to include one native South Carolinian each)
Outing: Downtown Charleston, SC
Verse: Hebrews 12:1

Week 8 Theme – Missionaries
Books: Three for each girl – biographies or autobiographies
Outing: Service project (I would like to find some service project we can do as a family)
Verse: Matthew 28:19-20

Week 9 Theme – Health/Our Bodies
Books: Anatomy/Exercise/Healthy Eating
Outing: Local park (hiking trail) and/or farmers market to choose new fruit or vegetable to try
Verse: Psalm 139:14

Next week I plan to share what our daily schedule will look like. I will update throughout the summer as to what is (and what isn’t!) working for us!

This post is linked to Tackle It Tuesday and Talk About Tuesday.

photo courtesy Public Domain Pictures

Filed Under: Parent

Congratulations to Our Graduate!!

May 22, 2009 by Tracey 5 Comments

Today marks a special occasion in our family.

My “baby” is graduating from kindergarten.
 
She of the long blonde hair, brown eyes, fair skin, tall, slim figure and giant snaggle-tooth smile will walk across the stage in her little cap and gown to receive a diploma that allows her entrance into first grade.
 
Because she aims to please, she will follow directions exactly – sitting, standing and singing on cue. She will appear to be focused on the events at hand, but those of us who know her best realize that her thoughts could be a million miles away.
 
My dad, one of those people tremendously gifted with words, said of this granddaughter, “If her outside looked like her inside, she would always be in dress-up clothes.”
 
This is one of those many moments in life where happiness and sadness, exhilaration and melancholy coincide.
 
Happiness for her, for the excitement surrounding the evening, for all she’s accomplished in her little life so far; sadness for the years fleeing so quickly, taking her slowly but surely away from us one day.
 
With smiles on our faces, much love in our hearts and tears in our eyes, we watch her take these steps today.
 
This post is linked to Amy’s Finer Things and Family Friday.

Filed Under: Parent

Making Music

May 8, 2009 by Tracey 4 Comments

At our church on Wednesday night, my eight-year-old daughter played the hymn When I Survey the Wondrous Cross for the offertory.

It is amazing to watch her and see how much she has grown and progressed over the last couple of years. She sits and plays very calmly, while my stomach is churning.

Afterwards, she told me that she thinks about the words of the song while she is playing – and I hope that those words are sinking into her heart. This is why we budget that chunk of money for a piano teacher, drive her to weekly lessons and make sure that she practices her twenty minutes every day – so that she might learn to love and enjoy music and use it as a way to worship and serve God by ministering to and blessing others.

This post is linked to Real Life Blog, Finer Things Friday and Family Friday.

Filed Under: Parent

Book Review: Wisdom and the Millers: Proverbs for Children by Mildred A. Martin

April 20, 2009 by Tracey 1 Comment

As I mentioned in a post last week, our family has discovered a new book that we are using for our family devotional time.

I realize that families study the Bible together in different ways. What currently works for us is setting aside a few minutes after we are finished eating supper to have a devotional time.

We have done different things over the years – read from Bible story books, examined Bible characters, read brief biographies on various missionaries, studied character traits, and discussed particular Bible passages.

While researching some books that a friend recommended, I came across a book entitled Wisdom and the Millers. It is written by Mildred A. Martin and published by Green Pastures Press. We are so thoroughly enjoying this book!

The Miller family includes Dad, Mom and their four children. Each of the chapters tells a short story of an event that happens in the family which illustrates a verse from Proverbs.

One of my favorites so far is entitled “The Multitude of Words” and is based on Proverbs 10:19, “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.” In the story, Sharon, the oldest daughter, encounters several difficulties throughout her day because of her inconsiderate words and thoughtless speech. At the end of the day, her mom sits down with her and they figure out the root of the problem and its’ solution.

Most nights we do a brief review of one of our previous stories, and the girls remember well the lessons that were taught. I was out on the night my husband did the chapter on having a froward mouth, but the girls were able to fill me in on the whole thing!

I would highly recommend this book either for reading together as a family or for your child to read for themselves. It has been a great find for us!

Here are other books in the Miller Family Series.

  • School Days with the Millers
  • Storytime with the Millers
  • Prudence and the Millers
  • Missionary Stories with the Millers
  • Growing with the Millers

We are always looking for books or ideas for our family Bible time. If you have suggestions or resources that you enjoy, please let me know in the comments section.

Filed Under: Parent, Read

Our Bedtime Routine

April 8, 2009 by Tracey 4 Comments

We started bedtime routines with our daughters when they were infants. Thanks to my reading the book Babywise when I was expecting, I had a pretty good idea of how I wanted our evenings to look. Obviously that has changed somewhat as our girls have grown, but I have kept things in the same general order. So, with girls that are ages eight and six, who get up in the mornings at 6:25 A.M. to get ready for school, here is what our nights look like leading up to bedtime.

7:10 – 7:20 P.M. Pick up toys and straighten rooms.
 
7:20 – 7:30 P.M. Eat a small snack.
 
7:30 – 7:55 P.M. Take a bath or shower, put pajamas on, brush teeth.
 
7:55 – 8:00 P.M. Lay out clothes for the next day.
 
8:00 – 8:30 P.M. Read to each daughter; one chapter or section from a longer book we’re reading together, as well as one page or section from a devotional or Bible story book. Pray with each daughter.
 
8:30 P.M. Lights out (and fan on!)
 
Of course not every night runs like clock work, but this is the general plan from which we work. I have found that, for me, having a schedule to follow allows me to get the kids in bed without as much hassle as it might be. By 8:30 P.M., I am about out of steam for the day and am ready for some peace and quiet!
 
Having a nightly routine for the girls and I to follow works for me! See what works for others at Works for Me Wednesday hosted by We Are That Family.
 

Filed Under: Parent

Fan Solves Sleep Issues

March 25, 2009 by Tracey 3 Comments

Last summer one of my daughters began having trouble falling asleep at night. This is a noteworthy occurrence at our house because we have always been blessed in that both girls are good sleepers. She began stressing about lying there trying to go to sleep, but being unable to do so.

I tried everything I could think of – nightlight on, nightlight off; music on, music off; lying on the bed with her for a few minutes; letting her read in bed; staying up a little later – you get the idea. I asked friends and family for suggestions, but came up empty.

Finally, I called my pediatrician, who happens to be the father of five, and asked for help. His suggestion? Put a fan in her room and turn it on medium speed. He said that would drown out any noises, or lack thereof, she may unconsciously be listening for and the sound of the fan would also be soothing. Why didn’t I think of that??

Guess what – it worked like a charm! Almost nine months later and she’s sleeping well. I do occasionally worry that she’ll become dependent on that white noise for falling asleep. I guess she’ll be dragging the thing with her when she goes off to college, but for now – having that fan running every night works for me!

Check out Works for Me Wednesday at We Are That Family for other great tips!

Filed Under: Parent

5 Parenting Mistakes I’ve Made

March 23, 2009 by Tracey 6 Comments

Will the perfect parent reading this please raise your hand?

While we all want to be the best moms and dads possible, most of us freely admit to making mistakes in our parenting.  For those times when we know we’ve blown it, how thankful we can be that God made young children so willing to forgive us when we come to them in love and ask for it.

A certain event at our house over the weekend caused me to consider some of the mistakes I’ve made in parenting. Here’s a list of five, though I could certainly come up with more!  I’m sharing these today in hopes that I’ll recognize them more easily in the future and hopefully limit their recurrence.

1. Attempting to parent my children in my own strength without asking God for His help. I could probably avoid most of the other mistakes if I could remedy this one each day. Situations arise for which I have no answer, but if my first response is to ask God for His help and wisdom, I can be sure I’ll head down the right path.

2. Assuming I know what happened in a particular situation before getting all the facts. This is the good ol’ case of jumping to conclusions! It’s closely related to our latest incident. I hope this has taught me to be slower to react, to give as much thought as needed to the problem, and gather as much information as possible.

3. Taking my frustrations over an unrelated difficulty out on my children. This usually means I’m being short-tempered with them and not responding properly to their needs. Because my mind is preoccupied with other things, I don’t take the time to deal with my children as lovingly and gently as I should.

4. Talking about my girls to other people in front of them. I believe this starts when they’re infants; just innocent, casual conversations with other moms about our kids. However, as they get older and actually listen in, it can become something that makes our children uncomfortable. I was surprised when our older daughter had her feelings hurt because of things I was saying about her. They weren’t negative or embarrassing, but she did not like me discussing her with other moms. I am striving to do better in this area.

5. Putting other tasks ahead of spending time with my girls. I need to take time whenever possible to be with them, even if that means putting off other chores. Key times for us are when they come home from school and at bedtime. That’s when they seem to have a lot to communicate and I don’t want to miss that. I also want to take time just to do things they want to do, even if it’s as simple as sitting on the couch and reading a book together.

So now you know some of the mistakes I’ve made (glad I don’t have to share them all!) These are definitely areas in which I’m trying to get better. I hope by God’s grace to continue to grow in this area of child-rearing.

Filed Under: Parent

Things Our Kids Say

March 20, 2009 by Tracey 4 Comments

Oh, to be as honest and transparent as my younger daughter when she speaks!

On the recent occasion of having on a new outfit and modeling a new hairdo: “I just love standing in front of the mirror and admiring myself for hours.”

On being told she had a dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose: “I don’t think they add much to my complexion, so I want to wash them off.”

On being sent back to the dining room to finish clearing her place at the table, when she was trying to chat in the living room with dad and mom: “I don’t think I was invited, but I just slipped into the conversation.”

Being able to laugh and enjoy our children is one of the finer things in life!

For more of life’s finer things, visit Amy’s Finer Things Friday.

Filed Under: Parent

Book Review: On Becoming Babywise

March 12, 2009 by Tracey 2 Comments

As a brand-new mom over eight years ago, the most helpful book I read was On Becoming Baby Wise: Giving Your Infant the Gift of Nighttime Sleep by Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam, M.D. This was the book I turned to over and over again for practical advice on helping my infant sleep, eat and play well.

I’ll say upfront that I understand that not everyone is a “schedule” type person. I know Moms who have great success at just going with the flow, especially as the number of children you have increases.

However, I do happen to function at my best when I have at least a skeleton of a plan. Being a first-time parent, it gave me a sense of security to know what to plan for and expect at different times of the day. Therefore, I recommend to others to at least try a schedule, even if it’s just a basic one that includes having meals, naps and bedtime around the same time each day.

One thing I appreciate about Gary Ezzo’s books is that he begins by emphasizing the husband and wife relationship as the most important one in a family. I highly agree. So often, when a baby is added to the marriage, everything in life begins to revolve around the child and his or her needs. While a baby definitely has needs to be met and often requires a lot of attention, especially in the beginning, it is so important to continue to create time and space for the husband and wife to be together. (Speaking of which, a wonderful friend has offered to keep our girls so that John and I can go out on a date Friday night! Yay!)

On Becoming Babywise then moves on to discuss feeding philosophies, concluding the section by recommending parent-directed feeding, in which “baby’s life is guided by a flexible routine.” This leads into the following chapter on babies and sleep.

The only way I can judge the recommendations from this chapter is on how they worked for me. Both of my girls were excellent sleepers, sleeping at least six hours straight at night by the time they were between six and eight weeks old. Let me just say that I am one who needs my sleep and what a blessing it was to have them sleeping through the night very early. This chapter also mentions sleep props, one of which could be rocking your baby to sleep. I loved rocking my babies and would occasionally rock them to sleep, but most often rocked them until they were only very drowsy, then put them in their crib to actually fall asleep.

The book proceeds to talk about facts on feeding, another chapter that I found very helpful. I did nurse our girls, but was not one of those moms who love every minute of it and rave about what a wonderful experience it is! I nursed them because I was physically able to, personally felt it to be the healthiest option and, on the practical side, it was the most frugal choice. I understand that not everyone decides to do it that way and certainly respect each mom’s decision.

Chapters six and seven address what your baby’s routine might look like and includes suggested activities for baby’s waketime. If I had errands to run, I normally did those in the mornings as that seemed to be the best time for me and was also when my babies were awake the longest and seemed to be the most content.

Chapter eight talks about discerning baby’s different cries, something that it doesn’t take most moms very long to figure out. I had one daughter who, as a baby, went through a stage where she cried for a few minutes each night when I put her in her crib. It was as though she needed that time to let things out, then she went right to sleep.

After a chapter on having multiples (I was able to skip that one!), the book concludes with chapters on problem solving and “parenting potpourri.” Subjects range from baby equipment to pacifiers to teething. I found both of these chapters offered good advice. (There is a final brief chapter on introducing Babywise principles if your baby is a little older.)

I highly recommend reading this book if you are expecting a child or have a new baby. You may not use or agree with everything in the book. I find there are few, if any, books that I read and follow in total. However, I can almost always find something that is applicable to my situation and use it to help me be a better parent.

Filed Under: Parent, Read

Mom Goals

February 26, 2009 by Tracey 1 Comment

When it comes to being a Mom, it’s very easy to get wrapped up in the daily struggles and forget to focus on the big picture. God has given us the precious gift of children and we have only a certain amount of time to prepare them for life.

I was recently reminded by a post at Life as Mom how important it is to set goals for myself as a Mom and then find practical ways to work toward reaching those goals. Here are my initial thoughts as I considered the kind of Mom I want to be.

I want to be a Godly mom who is supportive of her daughters through

  • prayer;
  • time spent together doing fun and serious activities, realizing how quickly time goes by;
  • providing every opportunity for them to reach their God-given potential; and
  • open, positive communication about what’s going on in their lives.

I started with prayer because I have come to realize (what I have known all along) that only God can work in a person’s heart and spirit and help them to become all that He would have them to be. There are so many areas in which I can pray for my girls: health, friendships, right attitudes, finding God’s will for their lives, future spouse. I also need to pray for myself that I will continually give them over to God and allow Him to work and lead in their lives.

As for time spent together, I believe that takes planning and preparation. I want to find activities that we can do together as a family. For example, I have scheduled us to attend a free kids’ cooking class next month. A few weeks ago, we attended a Charlotte’s Web play, then went out for dessert afterwards. However, not everything has to be a “big event.” It could be something as simple as a family game night or a picnic in the backyard.

Another area I am exploring now that the girls are a little bit older is finding a volunteer opportunity that we can all participate in – a way to help others by working together. I want to keep in mind that they won’t be this age for long and I want to make the most of it.

With each girl, I am trying to keep my eyes open to potential gifts and talents they may have. One of them is currently going through a writing phase – “journaling” and writing little stories. Whether it’s musical or athletic ability, drama or art, I want to allow them to explore areas of interest to them and support them in it, even if it’s not something in which I’m particularly interested. The goal is to help them develop talents that can be used to serve the Lord and others throughout their lives.

Finally, I strongly desire to keep the lines of communication open. I think a large part of this is just being available – in the car, at meals, at bedtime. I’m hoping that being able to listen now to whatever they have to say and being interested in what’s going on in their lives will bode well for those coming teenage years.

As the weeks go by, I hope to keep these thoughts in the forefront of my mind that I might seek to meet the goals I have set and accomplish the purpose God has for me as a mother.

Filed Under: Parent

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Welcome! I'm Tracey, wife and mom to two teenage girls. I seek to help Christian moms raise children who know, love, and serve God by sharing Biblical wisdom, helpful tips, and practical advice. Read More…

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