Is There Something High Schools are Leaving Out?

Sadly, with our first daughter it didn’t occur to me till her Senior year of high school, but I realized that one very important option was left out of my daughter’s array of choices for after high school career choices.


The idea of motherhood was never once mentioned as a possibility.  The recommended path is of course finish high school, go on to college and then on to your career and live happily ever after. 



What about children?  Why aren’t children in that path?  Why is the thought of, a plan for having children not in the equation?


So in my daughter’s senior year we began talks about what life after college could look like.  Most woman want children at some point.  We talked about how that might look in her plan. 


Did she want to work and have children?  Did she want to be a stay at home mom?  Did she want to work part time? 


I know you are thinking how in the world would an 18 year old know what she wants.  She didn’t completely answer those questions of course but it did get her mind thinking about the options and that was my goal.  How many of us wish that we would have thought about these things a little sooner that 2 months before our first child is born or worse yet the last 2 weeks of your maternity leave?


Now she is able to think about jobs that will work well with a family, careers that she can do from home or part time when needed.  It has even made her think about children and her relationship with a future husband, and what that may look like.

Hopefully those of you with future Mommies in your home, will prepare them with the knowledge that you have about being a mom and what it takes and the sacrifices that you very willing make for her.

Jeannie

Simple Faith

This morning while riding a bike along side my running daughter, we had a great discussion about talking to others about God.  I think that I gain the most wisdom as I am talking with my children.  It is so amazing how God uses my mouth to speak His wisdom to their ears.  My husband and I can not take credit for the great kids that we have.  The only contribution we have had is, being willing.  Being willing to be, do, or say anything He asks us to.

                                                                                                 My running Daughter and I.  I got this from Facebook
where she had posted “one of my best friends”  I agree.

Simply being willing goes back to the Simple faith that we discussed this morning.  She talked about having a hard time talking to unbelievers about her faith and what it means to her.  I told her that two things prevent us from doing that 1) Fear and 2) Our thought that we don’t know what to say.  She is a Sophomore at a Christian College, getting a ministry degree and minoring in Bible.  Obviously, it is not only head knowledge that is needed, to know what to say to an unbeliever about your faith.  If you have a willing heart and ask God to use you, then it doesn’t matter what head knowledge you have.

God created our way to Salvation to be simple, so that everyone could find Him.  He does not want that anyone should perish.  So in sharing with others, including our own children, we just need to have a willing heart, God will do the rest.  We can just sit back and be amazed by our great God.

Jeannie

Great to be back

We have been going and going for 2 weeks now and it is great to have a day a home.  It has been a great 2 weeks, very hot, but great.  The first week we worked at a camp.  Our whole family went to a YFC camp and spent the time with 100 elementary age kids.  Mike, Zach and Allie were all counselors, I was the playground supervisor and the little ones just played and played.


Here are Mike and Zach with a few of their kids and the camp director, the greatest lady I know.  Such a heart for Jesus and kids.

Zach with his shirt after crud wars, which is basically an outdoor food fight.  It was a visual for the kids to see mess and then we talked about how God sees our mess and wants to be in it with us helping us through.


Jacob and Bella enjoying the playground and other fun stuff. It was great because the speaker brought his family and their kids were my kids ages and they played together.

Mike, Zach and Allie with their groups, also after the crud wars. 

Then last week we went tent camping with two other families.  And I forgot my camera.  It was so hot that we were in the water most of the time anyway, and don’t we all love those swimsuit pictures.  I hope all of you are having a great summer, growing in the Lord and enjoying his creation.

Jeannie

How do you get connected?

This weekend I went on my first youth conference as an adult.  My teens have gone for years, but having little ones also, has made it difficult for me attend.
I had a blast,  I really didn’t realize how much I would enjoy the kids.  I love mine, but normally get irritated by others.  I think that God is changing my heart.

The theme of the the conference was “Connected”.  The speaker taught them all about staying connected to God, through prayer and about how that is as essential to our life, as plugging in our ipad is to its use.  If you don’t plug in the pad you have no power when you need it.  If we don’t plug into God, through prayer, we also won’t have the power when we need it.

It was so amazing, through the whole weekend the kids and leaders did 6 hours of prayer.  Not once did the kids complain or get tired of doing it.  One speaker said “We can bring in the best speakers and the best bands but nothing can change your hearts like God can through the power of prayer”.
Isn’t that so true.  We can talk and talk but only God can change the hearts of those we love.  I am going to set up a weekly time at our church for the kids to come as they are and have a quiet place to pray, starting this week. 

God also convicted me on my prayer life.  I pray almost constantly, daily but I don’t spend very much time waiting on the Lord.  I normally do all of the talking.  So, I am going to, next week present a prayer challenge for you all to join me in.  More details on that later.  But for now I just encourage all of you to take a look at your prayer life.  How well are you connected to the King of the Universe?

How Hospitable is your Home?

We received, what I thought was a great compliment the other day.  My oldest daughter asked if a few of her friends from college could come and stay with us for Easter since they lived so far away. 
During a late night talking session, one of them, who goes to a Christian college but grew up in an unbelieving home, said that our family was way more normal than they thought we would be.  I guess they thought that Christian homes were stuffy and unfun.




I took this as a compliment that someone would come to the realization that being a Christian can be a fun and “normal”.  We did have bunches of fun, going to the park to play basketball and tag, also playing games at home and just hanging out.  I hope that we gave them a good picture of what their family life could look like one day, in their Christian home.


I wanted to remind you all too, to have a home that has boundaries and rules to follow and yet is still a great place to be.  After all getting down and playing right at the stage that they are in is they best way to have the opportunity to teach them.

Jeannie

Hope you all had a great Easter!!

We sure did.  It was a different Easter than we normally have but great.

We did do our annual Easter Egg Hunt with Melissa and Family.  This year we did it at a park instead of one of our yards.

The kids collected tons of eggs, hidden by the Daddy bunnies.

   


That night Allie,my Dad, and two friends came into town.  So nice to have my big girl home it has been 3 months.  The next day, all of the kids colored eggs.  It was so much fun to watch a 16,18 and two 20 year old kids have so much fun coloring eggs. 







The next morning before church at 7:30am we went down to see what the Easter bunny had brought. 

I held the camera.  No way your going to catch me on camera at that time of the morning.  After that we went to church for a great Easter service.  Lots of praise and a good message.


This morning we had to say goodbye to my Dad and the kids left after lunch.  Dad left at 6:00am and these were the only kids that stayed awake long enough for a picture.  Jacob was so enthusiastic.  Nice face!  This was our Easter, post a few words about yours.  I would love to hear.
Jeannie

There Is Something More Painful Than Giving Birth!

Our first born was a beautiful 9 pound baby girl.  She was huge and two weeks early.  This being our first and me only being 5’3” it was painful.  Plus, you know on your first you want to be heroic, so no drugs for me.  Ouch, for me and her, she broke her collar bone on the way out.  But that was 18 years ago and I think I have experience a pain much worse.  Not to long ago we dropped her off at college.  It is not that I am scared for her, I know she will be just great.  When I gave birth to her the pain was worth it and forgotten quickly when I saw that beautiful face.  Then I got to take her home.  This pain stinks because there is no gain for me in the end of it, or is there?  For 18 years we have raised her in the best way that we knew and raised her to know her heavenly Father as well.  It is time to release her into the world to use the wings that we have groomed for flight.  In the Book of Proverbs in chapter 31 the word tell us of a woman that we can model ourselves from if we are to be a woman of noble character.  In that chapter at the end of the list of all that the woman does it says that her children will rise up and call her blessed.  This our reward for all of the thankless jobs and hours that a mother puts in and seeing your child fly on their own and succeed is where we are blessed.  She is only at the beginning of this flight but her faith is strong, our bond is strong and she is following her Lord and Savior.  I know that even if she does fall she won’t get too bruised up.   I on the other hand feel like a piece of me has been torn away.  I pray to be strong and courageous  right now.  If you know a family with one going off to college now you know how to pray for them and so do I now.

 

Love you Honey!!