A Top Spot

God is good and continues to bless us beyond measure. The things He has done in our family over the years is incredible. As you can see, our daughter LiLi is very beautiful and is growing by leaps and bounds everyday. The rate of her psychological, emotional and spiritual growth continues to astound us, and we are as optimistic as you will find regarding how well children can and will grow and adjust according to God's plan in the home.

As we've noted in prior posts, she is spunky, playful and likes to tease. She is brave, tough and figures "if you can do it....then she can do it ! Did we mention that she's tough ! On the other hand she's gentle, loving and likes to snuggle. She's eager to please her Daddy & MaMa and continues to respond beautifully to loving guidance and training.

Eston is the incredible big brother that we knew he would be. He is gentle with her and always leads and guides, never manipulating, bullying or arguing with her.

LiLi helps her Mom out around the house daily and even helps Daddy and Eston with the rougher stuff outside once in a while. She sits in while Daddy reads to Eston in the evening and is beginning to memorize scripture right along side her big brother as well. We even have Eston read to her some in the mornings which we also believe will continue to improve her vocabulary and help understand concepts etc. It's amazing how easy it is for children to develop a love for learning, loving, helping and serving if we get them started on the right track early.

Before the pictures, we thought we'd take the liberty to throw down some tips for parents that we believe children everywhere would benefit from.


7 IDEAS ON HOW TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH OUR KIDS
by Mike & Melissa

Give Them A Top Spot
I believe all of us would agree that our children are one of our top priorities. However over time, our priorities can become jumbled a bit and even we can become confused about what's most important and why. Even more likely, we get going in a certain direction believing it's in line with our priorities when if fact it is not. If we’re not sure whether our life priorities are in their proper order, the following may help. We should write down the things that are most important in our life in the order of their importance. After completing the list, we should do a simple mental inventory of what we actually spend our time on. Many of us will be shocked to see how much of our time is spent on things that do not have eternal value and are not at the top of our list. Another idea is to take an inventory of the books, magazines, websites and programs that we’ve been reading/viewing. This will also show us what our priorities really are and could help us decide that we need to make some positive changes to how we spend our time. I believe all of us would agree that our children deserve A Top Spot. Let’s make the necessary adjustments and make certain that they know their place in our hearts and in God’s eyes.


Put Your Schedule On A Diet
If we were to take a look at some of our day-timers or schedule books, it would look like we’re trying to write a book on each page. It’s about time that some of us take a close look at our weekly and monthly schedule and amputate some stuff. If you really think about it, the time we have to spend with our children before they become adults is limited. Consider this, if we could share valuable time at home with our children every single day from the time they’re born until they turn 18 years old, that’s only 6205 times. How many sun-sets and sun-rises, tea parties or Lego building contests can we fit in during this time ? How many books can we read to them or scriptures can we learn together ? How much can we love, instill, guide, impart, share, train, instruct, talk and laugh ? How much can we squeeze in during those measly 6205 days ? I don’t know about you but I want to find out. If the stuff on our calendar doesn’t truly support the things that are most important to us then we should get rid of it. Think about how much more effectively we could focus on and impact our kids if we did.


Cut The TV Cord
Our kids need their parents not “Playhouse Disney” or “Game Boy”. Interaction with Dad and Mom is so much more beneficial to them than vegetating in front of a yak box. Even if the programming is wholesome (which most of it is not), children will grow and develop much more effectively by doing almost anything other than watching TV or playing video games. Some ideas on things you can do with your kids in place of TV include: exercise, read to them, play with them, enjoy games together, do puzzles, have them help you with a project, build a fort, take a country drive and talk about what you see....and the list go's on.


Let Them Help
How much of our week is spent on mundane tasks around the house ? Unless perhaps we are filthy rich, most of us spend several hours per week on such things as: preparing and cleaning up after meals, straightening up the house, doing laundry, managing our personal finances, bringing things in from the car, doing yard work etc. Sadly, these are hours that many parents miss the opportunity to impact their children. It doesn’t matter what age our children are, it is important for them to be involved with what we’re doing and for them to help. Admittedly it takes longer to get things done when they’re tiny but the benefit to them is well worth it. You’ll be surprised how much they love it and how helpful they can be at a very young age, particularly if you combine it with loving instruction and intimate conversation. Git-R-Done.

Exercise Together
We all know that regular exercise is important but instead of going solo, why not do it together. Instead of bouncing off the blab with 40 strangers in a colorful room down the road, why not walk it off with your family on a country trail. Instead of pumping up the triceps with sweaty, hairy strangers in a busy gym, why not do it at home. A good idea is to have your children work out at the same time that you do. There are plenty of great exercises that children of all ages can do safely (particularly if they have a Dad or Mom teaching them how). And you can use that time to teach them about the importance of regular exercise and proper diet. You can also teach them about setting and achieving goals, about thinking skills as well as lots of other things that are important for them to learn and have success at an early age. By exercising together, you will receive benefits that are much more valuable than a six pack.


Emphasize Sports And Other Physical Activities That You Can Do Together
Although there may not be anything wrong with organized sports, contrary to popular thinking, kids don't necessarily need to have some other child slapping them on the back or a strange coach in their life to teach them about teamwork or self confidence. This is the responsibility of the parents. Why not emphasize sports and activites that we can enjoy WITH our children. It doesn’t take $50,000 worth of gear and equipment to do this, all it takes is our time and commitment. There are so many types of sports and physical activities for us to choose from. Remember, this can and should be combined with loving, teaching, training, character building etc.


Choose A Career That Allows You To Be Home More
We all have to work to sustain our families but we should never let our work outside the home keep us from spending quality, one-on-one time daily with our children. So what if we can make an additional $25,000 more/year ? Will that really matter to us in 15 years when our children are grown up and living outside of our home ? (Besides, there are plenty of ways to accumulate wealth without having to be away excessively). We should try to never let a day go by without looking our children in the eyes and speaking to them in a way that only a dad or mom can. This is particularly important when our children are young. There will be time after they have left home to continue to make our millions, but when they are young, there is much more eternal value in being home where THEIR heart is.







Serving The Kids At Church










Ride Anyone ???
























Hiking In Iowa





Boating on Lake Murray

Asleep After Helping With The Yard Work

New Record For Consecutive Push-ups In A Single Set !!!

Adventure Trip To Colorado

Stealth Search & Rescue Mission At Altitude

As always, we want to say thank you to all of you who continue to offer your love, support and prayer for our family. God Bless.....