Search Results for: blog what should a good parents priorities be

Priorities 1

Posted on by

When I started high school I was told that I’d have to prioritize my life. I was handed a planner (along with the rest of my class), I sat down with my academic counselor, and I was repeatedly told that I needed to keep track of things better than I ever had before. So I dutifully wrote down my assignments in that planner and completed them as they were assigned, right? Well, partially. I sort of worked out my own little system and made it all work. So I moved on to college. When I started college there was an … Continue reading →

Characteristics Of A Good Mother

There are many mothers in the world, both good and bad. I have seen mothers that I wish that I could be more like and those that I think should never have had children in the first place. But what exactly makes a woman a good mother? Anthropologist Margaret Mead has spent years studying children, parents, and the methods used by mothers raising children all over the world. When asked what she considered the most “valuable capacities for a mother to have.” She replied by giving five qualities that she feels every good mother must possess. 1. Treats each child … Continue reading →

What Should A Good Parent’s Priorities Be?

I asked my husband “What should a good parent’s priorities be?” His first response was “The well-being of their children.” Yet many leading experts say that a parent’s first priority should be to their spouse. Why? The reason is simple if you have a good marriage you are more likely to be a good parent. Counselor Peter Gerlach found that in consulting with over 1,000 couples that those who do not make their marriage a priority ultimately fail. We all know what divorce does to kids. So a parent’s first priority should be to their marriage. Andrew Mullins, author of … Continue reading →

Estate Planning and the Step Family

For too many of us, estate planning is the thing we’re always going to get to but often don’t. It’s like flossing, but with exponentially greater potential for harm. I understand why we procrastinate, believe me I do, but a failure to act in this department can have a devastating effect on your family. Our financial planner had been after us to create an estate plan for a year; as we began preparations for an extended trip through Mexico, it seemed irresponsible not to have something in place. We contacted an attorney who came highly recommended, and blithely scheduled an … Continue reading →

Parental Rewind

How many times have you wished that you could turn back the clock to avoid making poor parental decisions? I would guess that most parents have daily thoughts of rewinding their lives in an effort to overcome regrets, mistakes and missed opportunities, especially when they involve their children. Woulda, coulda, shoulda… don’t make it your mantra. Rather, take a look at the following topics that were covered in the PARENTS blog this week. The material could help you avoid wishing for that elusive parental do-over. November 3rd—–A Parent’s Favorite Day. We aren’t all afforded do-overs in life, but as parents … Continue reading →

You are Not Their Best Friend

Here is where things can get confusing—we want to have good, bonded, respectful relationships with our children, we want them to trust us and tell us what is going on in their lives, we may even want to be friendly with them when they are adults—BUT while we are the responsible parenting raising a minor child, we still need to have the authority and we can get into trouble if we try first and foremost to be their buddy or their best friend… Whenever I hear a parent says something like “My child and I are best friends” or “My … Continue reading →

Boredom? You’ve Got to Be Kidding Me!

You can say what you will about life as a single parent of three teenagers, but the one thing I cannot lay claim to is boredom. It is always a bit strange for me when I hear adults my age complain of being bored—I cannot even imagine what that might feel like! I can remember vague feelings of boredom when I was a kid—growing up in the country several miles outside of the nearest town could get somewhat dull for a child with my temperament, but it has been years and years and years since I have experienced true boredom. … Continue reading →

God’s Blueprint For Life

Since we are now saved by grace and by what Jesus did for us by dying on the cross, are the Ten Commandments irrelevant? I believe we can learn a lot from God’s blueprint for life. Exodus 20:1-17 1. God prefaces His commandment not to have other gods, verse 3 by reminding the Israelites of who He is and what He has done for them in the past. Given their spectacular rescue from Egypt, the Israelites had reason enough for them to trust and worship God. We also have ample reason to trust God and worship Him. It is good … Continue reading →

True Friends

How important are the friends we make? Friends can shape our lives to a certain extent. During formative years friends are particularly important as children can so easily be led astray by peer pressure and the wrong kind of friends. When we were houseparents to a group of boys, we had one boy in our family who tended to be heavily influenced by the company he kept. To a certain extent I suspect it can be true of all of us. You can tell a lot about a person by his or her friends. As the Spanish novelist Miguel de … Continue reading →

The Week In Review in Education: December 24

Merry Christmas to all! If you’re anything like me, last minute shopping, baking and present wrapping took over your life, and reading blogs fell to the back burner. To catch you up, here is this week’s education blog in review. We began by taking a look at whether or not there are any reasons under which your child’s school library should ban books. The most current debate seems to be over the popular Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. While some feel strongly that there are things that are simply inappropriate for a school library, others point out that our … Continue reading →