Intentional Parenting

Such a large topic with so many references and ideas.  It can seem overwhelming, but it is a MUST for us to fulfill the Biblical purpose of parenting. . . something Michael and I want to pursue with a passion.

Over the past few weeks, we've been attending a parenting class at our church based on the study The Parenting Adventure by Rodney and Selma Wilson.  Little did we know when we signed up that it was aimed at parents of elementary age children.  We're just getting a head start *smile*.  Although we are not currently in that life-stage, we will be soon enough and want to be prepared for what lies ahead.  We want to establish a present environment in our home centered around Christ, His love, and His joy.

Some basic truths we've come to embrace throughout this study have been:

1.  You are the exact right parent for your children.  No one can do a better job - the Lord entrusted them to YOU!  Psalm 139:13-14

2.  Understanding the true purpose of parenting - to connect our children to God (therefore we must be intentional).  Deuteronomy 6:5-7

3.  Focusing on the word 'known' - creating an environment for our children to KNOW God, OWN their faith, and make Him KNOWN. 

4.  Parenting is an adventure.  We must keep our expectations high!  Never lose sight that this is to be an abundaant life - even when parenting is tough.  John 10:10 

Cole is only three, but it is astounding to me what he can already understand and comprehend about the Christian faith, Biblical truths, and God's love.  Although he will be raised in a Christian home, without intentional parenting, his love for the Father and his Word will not be nurtured to its fullest potential and we cannot expect it to grow and bear much fruit.  

In no way am I limiting the power of the Holy Spirit to guide and direct, but we must be intentional about what we say, the activities we do, things we watch, people we socialize with, and the way we portray Christ's love to family, friends, and strangers.  

A few ways to begin to be intentional with your kids are. . .

* Encourage your children to pray out loud

* Talk about your faith in everyday conversations - encourage your children to do the same

* Let your children see you share your faith and talk about God's love with others

* Teach that Scripture has POWER!  Apply it everyday

* Portray that God is REAL and in our lives everyday

Above all, remember that the foundation of parenting and for your children's lives must be Jesus Christ with God's Word as our first resource.  Matthew 7:24-27 

What are some ways that you are intentional with your kids?

Weekly Menu

This little spout of warm weather has me itching for the great taste of farm-fresh fruits and vegetables.  I see many natural, unprocessed foods and great salads on the menu in the next few weeks as we inch closer to summer, but for now here's what's on the menu. . .

Homemade pizza w/ garden salad

Baked chicken, okra, northern beans, french baguette w/ pesto spread

 Slow cooker pot roast w/ carrots and potatoes

Grilled steak nachos (actually pretty healthy - as long as you go light on the cheese and sour cream and add yummy grilled peppers/onions)

If you are local, make sure you stop by Hendersonville Produce for all your farm-fresh produce, nuts, organic milk and cheeses, and other yummy specialties - all at a GREAT price!

Goin' Green

Literally.  

Happy St. Patty's Day everyone!  We've made it a tradition around our home to do all things green (or at least a few) on this Irish holiday.  Here are a few of our fun activities this year.

Cheers!

* Monday is usually a craft day for Cole and I so we went ahead with our Irish them and made a picture collage.  A handprint shamrock, painted rainbow, and fingerprint pot of gold added a nice holiday touch to the fridge :)  

My favorite thing about this craft was explaining a little about St. Patrick to Cole.  He understood quite a bit and loved how we can use a shamrock to illustrate the Trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  We talked about how even though they are all different petals, they still come together to create one flower.  We also talked about the heart shape of the petals. . . how that demonstrates God's unconditional love for us.

We went on to revisit the promise of the rainbow and God's faithfulness and how God purifies our hearts like gold (of course all in three year old terms) and finished with the verse "For great is your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the sky" Psalm 108:4.  I'm amazed at how much his little mind can comprehend.  I see some interesting discussions in our future!

Today's activities were: 

* Lucky Charms for breakfast (we are not fans of sugar cereal, but hey - gotta have a little fun!)

* Wearing green

* Having a green scavenger hunt around the house (it's amazing how many green toys and knick-knacks little hands can find!)

* Hunting for shamrocks in the yard

* Making a shamrock sun catcher

* Reading some St. Patty's Day books  

* I had taco soup planned for tonight, but I'm thinking I may change that to baked chicken with pesto sauce, green beans, fried okra, and salad.  That's tentative seeing we have to BE at church by 6:00 :) 

Shamrock Sun Catcher:

1.  Cut a shamrock shape out of green construction paper.  

2.  Cut a hole in the center to let light through - I cut out the majority of the inside.  We wanted a lot of light to shine through :)

3.  Tear two pieces of wax paper slightly larger than the open space in your shamrock.

4.  Place your shamrock onto one piece of wax paper and trace around the edge of the opening.

5.  Fill the shape with shamrocks from outdoors or green crayon shavings. (You can remove the shamrock from the wax paper since you've traced it, but I left it there to give better boundaries for Cole)

6.  After all items have been placed on the wax paper, trace the pencil outline with glue.

7.  Lay the second piece of wax paper on top and press together.

8.  Glue the shamrock shape onto the wax paper.

9.  Cut excess wax paper around the shamrock shape.

10.  Punch a hole, string with yarn, and hang in a sunny spot.  Enjoy!

(Cole loved it. . . even on a cloudy day!)

Prayer Box

While reading through Impress Your Kids last week, I came across a post about a prayer box a mom had made for her young daughter.  I had been wanting to do something similar with Cole - this was just the jumpstart I needed.

Cole loves to pray and it's been amazing to see how his prayers have transitioned from repeating mom and dad to sincere thoughts and words from his own heart.  He prays for family members, friends, orphans, and Haiti.  He gives thanks for our home, clothes, food, books, nightlights, etc. . .this list can get quite lengthy at times :)  It's so precious to watch his belief when he prays healing for the sick or comfort for those hurting.  How I wish we could all recapture such innocent, childlike faith!

Although Cole prays for many things, I thought it would be great to create a prayer box where we can put pictures of people/places that he prays for regularly.  The contents will change as he gets older and as new requests arise and others are answered.  We decorated a shoebox with paper, markers, glitter shapes (Cole's request), and Scripture verses about prayer (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Matthew 6, Ephesians 6:18).  On the lid, Cole wanted to put sequins of things God had made so we added birds, butterflies, moons, and leaves.

  

Inside, we placed pictures of family members, friends, our home, etc.  Some have specific requests and others we are simply thankful for.  On the back of each photo, I taped an index card with specific prayers for that picture.  Although Cole usually comes up with his own, it's a great lead-in if needed.

   

This box is also a great way for his little mind to connect his prayer with a tangible object.  He prays for the orphans, but has no real connection to what that means.  To help, I've printed pictures of little children - specifically those in Haiti where he sent a few of his toys and clothes and where our church is in the process of constructing an orphan village.  Seeing the faces and places where these boys and girls live has given him a connection; therefore his prayers have changed.  He's even given the children in the pictures names :)

We use the box all throughout the day.  I keep it in plain sight and if he wants to look through it while we're playing, it's fine with me.  What better way to teach an attitude of constant prayer?  At mealtimes, he can pick a special picture from the box to add to our prayer and we leave it open for bedtime prayers as well.  He's already told me that I need a picture of his friend Ansley (a 3 yr. old battling cancer) and a picture of the Saharawi tribe.  Guess I better get working on that!

Monday's Menu

Why is it that I can never seem to get this post typed?  I'm on the ball today, but have missed the last couple of weeks.  I thought I'd give a quick rundown of what we've been cooking at the Johnson home. . .

Last week:

Southwestern Chicken Salad (made with my new Pampered Chef Deep Covered Baker - I absolutely love this piece of stoneware!  And to add to the excitement, I got it FREE!)

Crescent Roll-ups, green beans, baked potato curls

Slow cooker Chops and Beans, garlic bread

Sicilian pizza

Baked potato and salad (hubby loves this for an easy dinner - suits me!)

This week:

Monday:  Chicken pot pie, strawberry salad

Tuesday:  Baked spaghetti, garlic bread

Wednesday:  Taco soup, Mexican cornbread

Thursday:  Crunchy chicken casserole, okra, creamed corn

Friday:  Guy's night for the hubby, date night for little man and I!

Recipes:

Southwestern Chicken Salad

Dressing:

16 oz. bottle of Ranch dressing (I suggest starting with 8 oz. and then adding more to control the heat)

1 jalapeno pepper

1 lime

4 tsp. taco seasoning mix

Pour ranch dressing into a mixing bowl.  Cut jalapeno (remove seeds and membrane), chop into small pieces, add to bowl.  Cut lime in half - juicing half directly over bowl.  Add taco seasoning and mix well.  Set aside.

Chicken:

1 small yellow onion; chopped

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 clove garlic; minced

remainder half of lime

* I used my baker in the microwave (yes. . . juicy, yummy, tender cooked chicken in 15 minutes! I love it!), but this could easily be adapted for the stovetop or oven.  You are basically just cooking the chicken until done on a bed of chopped onions and garlic.

Salad:

lettuce (any kind you prefer)

3 Roma tomatoes

1 cucumber

1 green bell pepper

1 14 oz. can black beans; drained and rinsed

shredded cheddar cheese

tortilla chips

salsa for garnish

Chop lettuce and place in a bowl or on a large platter.  Slice tomatoes, cucumber, and bell pepper.  Add to lettuce.  Layer beans, chicken, and cheese.  Serve with dressing, tortilla chips, and salsa.  YUM!

Received from my Pampered Chef consultant upon purchasing the Deep Covered Baker.  She sent over about 50 recipes ranging from meats, veggies, and desserts.  Yay!  

 

It's Begun. . .

More than ever, I'm beginning to see traits of Michael and I manifested in Cole.  Certain looks, the way he laughs, the way he walks, and how he learns just to name a few.  It's amazing, scary, and humbling all at the same time to see how your character has been passed to your child.  

This past weekend was gorgeous and we spent most of our free-time outside.  It was a welcome reprieve from our indoor play.  Watching Cole use his imagination with simple toys, rocks, sticks, and sidewalk chalk was such a joy to watch.  

I must say though, that I was quite surprised by the sight that greeted me as I ventured from the deck to the yard. . .

Those character traits I was speaking of - well, I think my child may have inherited my OCD (I mean organizational) habits :)  Love it!  

Even as a three year old, Cole loves things to be in order.  He has never liked messes and always makes sure that his toys are organized and in their proper place.  Tools have specific shelves on his tool bench, cars have specific buckets, his little kitchen is immaculate (no dirty dishes ever left in the sink!) and his train set is always in tact.  I know he gets it honest - I'm just waiting to see if this will stick around for his teenage years :)

I am Sam. Sam I am. I do not like green eggs and ham...

Today, March 2, marks one of my favorite dates - especially when I taught a roomful of first graders.  It commemorates the birthday of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss.  It is also celebrated as Read Across America day - what teacher doesn't love that!?!?  

During my teaching days, our first graders would celebrate this day with a Storybook Parade.  Each child would come to school dressed as their favorite storybook character (along with a book about that character) and we would parade up and down the halls for all the school to see.  We had Clifford, Franklin, Amelia Bedilia, Tom Sawyer, Junie B. Jones, Max & Ruby, Alice in Wonderland, and many other fun personas over the years.  I always dressed as the Grouchy Ladybug (complete with wings and antennae) from an Eric Carle book - a favorite author of mine.

Being out of the classroom, I sometimes miss these special days/activities, but this year I'm so excited!  Cole is now old enough to understand and take part in this special day - woohoo!

Since our week will be busy with errands and consignment sale shifts/shopping, I decided to spread out our Seussical activities over the course of the week.

Here's just a taste of what we'll be doing to celebrate reading - got any ideas to share?

* The Cat in the Hat - making a 'hat' snack to share with his MDO class (Oreos, white frosting, and red gummy Lifesavers).

  

Don't you love the hat!?  It's from storytime at FBC Hendersonville.  They celebrated Dr. Seuss's b'day last Friday - complete with balloons and cupcakes!

* The Foot Book - tracing Daddy's, Mommy's, Tank's, and Cole's feet.  Using them to enhance vocabulary such as largest-smallest and comparing/contrasting the size, shape, etc.  

Make a foot painting by letting Cole step in different colors of paint and walking across butcher paper.

* Green Eggs and Ham - making green eggs and ham for breakfast.  Read the book while eating.

* Are You My Mother? - puzzle match with mom/baby animals (vocabulary and pictures)

* Bartholomew and the Oobleck - make oobleck (water, cornstarch, and food coloring - such a cool substance!)

* Mr. Brown can Moo!  Can You? - make our own book of sounds that we can make and hear

* One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish - practice graphing with a bowl of rainbow goldfish.  

* Playing Rhyming Memory with our own cards (find rhyming clip art, print, and glue on index cards)

* Coloring free printables, dot-to-dots, and word searches

* Watching Dr. Seuss books on video (found at the library) and finishing out the week with Horton Hears A Who for movie night.  

I hope that you also take this wonderful opportunity to reinforce with your children the love and joy of reading.  It makes a world of difference!

Handy Manny in the Making

One of Cole's new favorite shows is Handy Manny.  In my personal opinion, it's much better than Bob the Builder (sorry PBS!) and even teaches him a little Spanish in the process.  With this new love for tools and building, Michael and I thought it was the perfect time to take him to the Lowes Build-n-Grow workshop for kids on Saturday.

Let me preface by saying I had no idea how popular these free projects have become.  I knew I needed to register online (thanks Jamie!) so I looked on Friday and the Hendersonville store was already full!  That means 50 kids were in attendance!  WoW!  Luckily, the Gallatin/Madison stores were still available.

Saturday morning, Cole was so excited to hear we were venturing to Lowes.  To say he loves the store is an understatement.  He literally runs inside and heads straight to the lights and ceiling fans.  The door dept. is next and then it's off to all the other aisles to explore :)

As we entered the store, we weren't really sure what to expect.  With Cole being so young (the 'recommended' age is first-fifth grade - after our experience, ages 3-4 are fine with a Mommy/Daddy helper), we hoped that it would not be a 'let's all work together at the same pace' type of instruction.  Lucky for us, it wasn't.  There were kids and parents everywhere working on their project - a race car that turns into a robot.  

We turned in our registration form, picked up our packet of parts, a hammer, and a new Lowes apron for Cole that each child receives on their first visit.

Let's get to work!

Mommy helped a little too :)

Stickers!

His finished product - so much fun!

Each child receives a certificate along with a patch to sew on their apron.  A few kids had 8-10 patches on their aprons.  We hope that will be Cole soon (of course Mommy has to actually sew them on :))

Of course we had to explore the store a little. . .

Say Hello to Lowbot!

Michael and Cole will be heading back on March 10 (workshops are usually offered every other Saturday).  Such a great, FREE, Daddy-son outing :)  Come join them in making kaleidoscopes!