Long and Short: Parenting Beyond This Exact Moment
"Hey little brother, sneak into big brother's room. He has candy. Get some for us." What would you have done if you were around the corner from that discussion? Intervened? What a grea…
Parenting
Parenting Your First Kid Vs. Parenting Your Last
"I don't know what's more exhausting about parenting: the getting up early, or acting like you know what you're doing." -Jim Gaffigan My Sweet and I have seven kids. And because th…
Simple Ways to Keep Jesus the Focus of Christmas
The person who said they needed more things to fill up their December calendar was a liar. A fictional liar. Does your family need more to do this month? Yeah, no. Ours doesn't either. We want …
Your Kids Will Benefit from This One Thing for the Rest of Their Lives
It was a life jolt, one of the few experiences I can point to as a Game Changer. It rattled me then and it rattles me still, affecting all of the months and years in between. Out of the country for…
4 Ways to Get Scripture into Your Busy Life
The alarm clock rings. Feet shuffle and your day begins. Serve. Hustle. Grind. The alarm clock is set again. You lean into your pillow, exhausted by the day. Anybody? Once upon a time, I h…
4 Super Quick Tips for Surviving Busy Seasons
As parents of the 21 Century, Busy gets all up in our business. Like a nosy great-aunt. Slipping into survival mode is what saves us stout-hearted parents. We are smart that way. What sends one …
What Makes the Tween Years Fantastic
Did you know the word tweenager is a smash up of the words between and teenager? These kids of ours are stuck somewhere between teenagers and little kidhood. (If they can invent words, then who's t…
In Over Your Head? A Literal Story
Have you ever been in over your head? Or thought you were? Because I am going to show you how those are two different things. I've got a lot of kids and they all still live at my house. Therefore…
Things I Stink At and Why You Might Care
I have disappointed myself with my mothering too many times to count. I stink at a lot of things, these being the first on my mind: 1. I have a hard time finishing. I will organize my kids cloth…
Pros and Cons of the Big Family (According to the Parents)
Photo by Impressions Photography Married young and naive, my husband and I decided to go big or go home. After all, we loved Yours, Mine and Ours and chaos sounded like a great idea. We eventually t…