Weekend Kindness
Reaching Others Through Kindness

As the mother of a spunky, active, never seeming to sit down for even a moment toddler, my days are often spent averting minor disasters, cleaning up messes, and keeping my lively little girl out of harm’s way. Throughout all of this chaotic activity, I have quickly learned that rolling up my sleeves, putting us both in old shirts, and making messes is *the* guaranteed way to keep my daughter giggling for hours and to let her know just what a valued and special treasure she is to me. In recent months, we have done a whole host of crafty, messy, wet, sticky, and slimy activities together, but there have been a special few that she has loved the most.

Fingerpainting- Although many of my friends have called me brave for breaking out the fingerpaints with a one year old, I have absolutely had a blast alongside Peapod in our painting adventures. (more…)

In a fast moving society like today, it can be easy to go through the motions of life without thinking much. Wake up. Get the kids off to school. Pick the kids up. Go to soccer practice. Eat a quick dinner. Head off to a church activity. Go home and get to bed, so you can do it all over the next day.

As parents we need to make sure we stop frequently to really connect with our kids. It’s not enough to make sure they’re in the right schools, on the right athletic teams, and going to the right church activities. Kids crave interaction and attention from their parents, even if they don’t act like it.

(more…)

When I dally with memories of childhood, it’s not music lessons, or time spent “on the go”, or birthday and Christmas gifts that come to mind. It’s all the simple things. Helping my grandma rake leaves into big piles, riding my bike to the library with my dad, enjoying my mom’s fresh baked breads and the feel of her hands playing with my hair during church…

I think sometimes organized activities take away more than they give. In making each moment count for something, we lose track of what’s sacred. We fill our lives and our minds, but what about our souls? Sometimes you have to have *time* to stop, in order to recapture the magic of “appreciating the ordinary”.

Here are some places to start, a word of warning though: Plans very often need adjusted, and sometimes the best memories are messy. (more…)

Life as a railroad family can be a little hectic. My husband comes and goes with the trains, sometimes staying for as little as 6 1/2 hours before being called away again. And of course, somewhere in there he needs to get some sleep. It is his job that allows me to stay home with the children while also not having to worry too much about personal finances. Children, however, tend to be very concrete. They only know that the train is what takes daddy away. And daddy knows that “I love you” over the phone doesn’t mean as much as wrestling on the couch. While nothing can quite replace that, my husband has found ways to tell the children they are special and that he is thinking of them despite the separation.

Their favorite? Gifts, of course!

These gifts, however, are not generally items that you could find in a store. In fact, it is rare that they have any real material value. A lump of coal or interesting rock found while walking the tracks, a menu from the restaurant he ate breakfast at, a brochure from the hotel, a map, a penny, and a walnut have all become treasured possessions. While they are frequent, they are not quite routine…and my husband does not even necessarily bring something for each child when he does bring something home. Our oldest stores away her treasures, as she calls them, to draw out when she misses her father. The younger ones tend to drag them around until they are worn to nothing or finally lost, which has been the fate of all of the postcards he has sent thus far. So much for the album I was trying to make for them!

These simple gifts do not represent anything of material value. Instead, they demonstrate that their father thinks of them while he is away in a very tangible way. And while they cannot give him a hug every day, they can clasp a walnut, flip a coin or recite the lines off the back of a postcard while they wait for his next phone call.

I didn’t even see it coming.Daniel and I had met in early April on the internet. Never thought we’d develop more than a friendship, but really enjoyed talking to each other about our faith and theological matters. We met in person on April 24, 2004 and hit it off right away. The close, Christ-centered friendship we’d enjoyed soon turned into a romance.I was just finishing a year sabbatical from dating, so Daniel and I had to wait until June 1 to truly become boyfriend and girlfriend. On the last three days of my sabbatical, we fasted and prayed, asking God for direction about each other. We wanted to be sure He meant the two of us to be together before we ever started dating. On June 1, we broke our fast at Old Chicago and he asked me to be his girlfriend. I accepted. On the first of every month, we celebrate by having lunch or dinner at Old Chicago.A few weeks later, Daniel got some free passes to Six Flags, so he treated our family to a day out. I knew that part of his plan was to pull my dad aside and ask for my hand in marriage. (Yeah, we moved fast. But God was so definitely in it!) It wasn?t going to be hard to get alone with my dad, as they?re the only two people in my family who like roller coasters.My mom and brother joined me in line for the Spider, while my dad and boyfriend headed to the Sidewinder. They were only gone for a few minutes when they?d returned, lamenting the fact that the ride was closed. Needless to say, I was disappointed.
(more…)

Gary Chapman has made millions from the sales of his book The Five Love Languages. Thousands of couples appreciate what he has to say about the different ways we demonstrate to and receive love from our spouses. Just in case you don’t remember, he writes that the five love languages are receiving gifts, words of affirmation, quality time, acts of service, and physical touch.

Much of what Chapman writes is good and helpful, however, I am afraid that his five love languages are backfiring on us. The idea that we have one or two languages with which we can demonstrate and understand love is too narrow, in my opinion. Far too many couples use “You’re not speaking my language,” as an excuse to discount their spouse’s efforts to show love. The ways and means by which we can demonstrate love and affection are only limited by our own imagination, creativity, and how well we have gotten to know our significant other. Likewise, the ways we can receive love from others is only limited by our own hearts and minds.

(more…)

There’s a verse in Scripture that says faithful are the wounds of a friend.  A true friend is someone that not only does the easy things, but the hard things. A true friend is there with you through trials, and tells you what you need to hear. Those that show you the most love are those that do something– not because they’ll enjoy it, but because they know that it will make you happy.

Take, for instance, blogging. My wife tolerates my blogging, she reads a few of the blogs that I’ve found, and she’s not as into computers as me. And yet, she wrote a post and a comment on my blog– not because she wanted to or because she enjoys writing, but because she loves me.

That’s a small one, I know, but think about how much your spouse does for you every day. If it helps, make a list of the common and uncommon things– but focus more of your time on what he/she does for you without being asked every day that she could be, instead, doing something that they enjoyed.

Don’t take your relationship for granted, and thank them for even the ordinary things!