Be honest, we all struggle with mornings. Most children (under the age of 12) do not require alarm clocks.  Their eyes pop open before the sun rises, and sometimes all night long.

Mommas feel the weight on their feet as they pull back the soft covers, stretch the corners of their mouth into a morning greeting, and happily proclaim – “This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.”

I love seeing all of the fabulous groups for moms that encourage morning time in the word, daily exercise and being up and awake before the routines of the day begin.  What a wonderful resource for many!

This is obviously a mom topic that is sensitive to all of us and needed addressing.  Beyond waking up and finding the peace and sunny disposition in your day before your children arise - What are we doing to “make” for a happy morning for our children once they have our un-divided attention?

I don’t know about you – but some of my most favorite times of the day are the first morning sleepy snuggles.  As my children have grown into adulthood I have noticed that they like to peek their head in or call or message mid-morning to touch base with me.  I love this.

Mornings with our children will shape the atmosphere in our homes for the rest of the day. [Read more...]

We have all heard the cliche’d phrase, “Don’t cry over spilled milk…”   Some days I find this much easier said than done.

Raising 10 children… times 3 meals a day, for the last 21 years, would equal to about 4,600 meals when we could have and did have a glass ( or two or three) of milk, water or juice go over the edges of the table, onto someone’s food, or into a lap.  Leaving another item to be washed in the laundry (and those numbers I don’t want to try and re-calculate).

The funny thing is this: there comes a day, when all of those spilled glasses become a distant memory and every meal will bring something new – a surprisingly funny look into those days of spilled milk.  Your children will be old enough to laugh about those clumsy and irritating moments, and you will be able to laugh right along with them.  And this is what family is all about.  Investments of love.

We invest daily into our children.  We sow time and tears, toil and concern.  We invest prayer and trust in their growing up decisions.  And our investments will reap – what we sow.

What is Family?  This is where you can: Spill milk – together.  Laugh – together.  Cry, mourn and learn – together.  Grow – Together.

It is work to keep a family together.  In spirit and in truth and in time spent focusing on the more important things in life.

Our youngest son was baptized last weekend.  He is “number 7″ in our line-up of children.  Getting to church has never been a small feat, but we always manage to arrive on time, and with matching shoes.  Over the years, I have watched my older children become a part of the family of God.  Making their own decisions to follow Christ and to grow in His knowledge and grace.  To become a part of the family.  And now, my little Sam, was ready to show the world that he had made this same decision.  I will remember this moment  - always.

All of our children were present this baptismal evening.  Our son that lives out of town came home for this special  day and we were so excited to be together.  I remember carrying the camera back to the baptismal area, bending over to embrace my little boy, and he hugs me with all his boyish might. [Read more...]

The clock in my home seems to be different every day.  Teetering between not enough hours in the day for accomplish everything I would like, to the minutes ticking by so slowly that I am truly looking forward to tucking my little ones into bed at night.

Is it enough to read a book to our children, teach them their math and spelling, prepare dinner, run the laundry (folding can wait for tomorrow,) and taxi here and there?  Those are just tasks, minutes of doing and moving and keeping our home functioning.

As moms, we have the most priceless opportunities to make the most of our minutes, and what a blessing this can be.

I have discovered this truly beautiful habit of not keeping track of the time.  I use to wear a watch and keep track of the minutes while nursing my babies.  I always had a clock in every room, able to stay on schedule and keep my home moving in sync with the day.  Now, I keep track of appointments and bed times, but only one clock exists in my home, and it is not where I am able to see it throughout the day.  There is no argument that our children DO have to have a learning time, and dinner DOES have to be prepared and the children DO need their naps – but the beauty on the other side of the time-keeper, is this beautiful secret I want to share with you.  [Read more...]