Already 2012 is flying by. Spring is fast approaching. It seems as if there are never enough hours in the day to get everything done. Dishes and laundry and dusting and vacuuming and bathrooms to clean….it is never ending. And then there are the trips…to the grocery store, the doctor, the dentist, the grocery store, ballet lessons, karate, piano lessons, the grocery store, Awana, church and so many others. That doesn’t even count recitals and games and parties and sleepovers and on and on and on.
How did life get so busy? Where did the simpler times go, the slower pace of yesteryear? Are all these things important to your children? Of course, the trips to the grocery store are because they are the ones eating you out of house and home! And since nothing is more important than your child’s health, both spiritual and physical, the trips to church, doctors and dentists are certainly important. But is it truly important for the house to be spotless and are all the other things we get involved so important that it will adversely affect their lives if they don’t participate in them.
What is it that a child craves? I want to tell you a little story from the book God’s Devotional Book for Mothers. “A father called his young son while out of town on business and asked, “What would you like for me to bring you?” The two year old whispered, “Come out clock.” The father wasn’t sure he had understood him, so he asked his son to repeat his request.
Again the boy said, “Come out clock.” The man thought this fairly odd, but the next day on his way to the airport, he bought a large toy clock for his son. His son happily played with it a few minutes, and then returned to doing what he had done virtually nonstop since his father had walked in the door: tugging at his pants. The man looked at his wife as if to say, ’What’s going on ? I don’t get it.’
At that moment their cuckoo clock began to strike the hour and, on cue, figurines of a woodcutter and his wife popped out chasing a little boy and girl, then all four retreated into their cottage.
The little boy looked at the clock and then beamed at his father. The mother suddenly understood. “Each time the clock has struck the hour,” she explained, “I’ve been telling our son, ‘It’s about time for Daddy to come home.’ I think he must have been waiting for you to come out of the clock and chase him around the house!” The father promptly did, to glees of laughter.
Children soon learn how precious time is – that’s why when a parent gives it to them they feel so loved!”
Ephesians 5:16 (TLB)
Don’t be fools; be wise: make the most of every opportunity you have for doing good.
Before anything else that we do, our children need us. That is why we homeschool after all. Here is a list of the top 10 tips for making more time with your kids.
1. Be available for them, even after the school day is over.
2. Turn off the TV and talk.
3. Set boundaries when it comes to your involvement in outside activities.
4. Block out times on your calendar to spend specifically with one child, like you would when you made a date with a friend.
5.Try to find a good routine for your family so the kids will know when you will be around for them to talk to.
6. Make one big grocery trip once or twice a month so you aren’t running to the grocery store all the time.
7. Plan for family outings where you can spend time together.
8. Engage your kids in conversation that is meaningful to them.
9. Set up some ground rules for family interaction, so it is pleasant.
10. Make time to pray with your children and show them that you make time to spend time with your heavenly Father.
I pray that February is a month full of love and joy in your households. God bless you all!
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