10 Ways to Show Your Family Love

      With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I want to write a few posts that focus on love.  Today I want to focus on how we can love our families.  As a mom, I know how much I love my husband and children, but do I set out to show them how much they are loved and cared for? 

      Let's talk about 10 ways to show our love to them.

1.  Get up a little earlier than usual and make a special breakfast for your family. They will enjoy the sweet surprise.
   
2.  Take time to sit down and talk with them.  Listen with intent to learn more about them.  Ask them fun little questions so you can get to know them better.  Everyone loves to be heard. 
   
    
3.  Smile at your husband and children!  This let's them know that  seeing them makes you so happy. 
4.  Make a point to ask each family member what their favorite  meal or dessert is and try to cook it for them at least once a  month.  
   
5.  Set aside one night a week to just have some fun as a family.  No interruptions!  Turn off the old ringer on the phone, shut  off your computer, and make some memories! 
6.  Put some post it notes in places your husband or children can  find them.  Tell them how much you love them and what is special about them. Encourage them!
   
7.  Curl up on the couch and watch a movie together.  One you know they love.  It's a good time to just sit and relax as a family.  Make it special by having some popcorn and their favorite drink available.  
   
8.  Be involved in their lives.  Know their hobbies and favorite things to do.  Try to be active in some of these so you can become closer.  Recently, I have taken up playing some video games to get closer to my hubby and boys.  My daughter and I love to work on our Bible journals together.  
9.  Give lots of hugs and kisses!  What better way to show your family that you adore them.
10.  Take care of yourself.  If you are not feeling well, you won't be able to care for your family like you want to.  It's important to take time to keep yourself healthy.  
    

     I hope these little ideas will help you show your family how much you love and appreciate them.  Have a blessed day! Remember to enjoy the little things! 

Free Valentine"s Day Alphabet Tracing Pages

     Today we have a special PDF for toddlers, preschoolers, and kindergarten age children.   Valentine's Day is coming up so that is our theme for these upper case alphabet tracing pages.  I hope you enjoy them.  

     To download this adorable PDF, just click on the link below the image.  

Valentine's Day Fun with Letters

Do They Need Limits?

     There are many reasons why we should limit our children's screen time.  I think our main reason in our home is family time.  If we are all engrossed in looking at a monitor, we won't have time to talk with one another, play games,  and just enjoy each other's company.  

      I also believe that we should restrict device usage because it can keep our children from exploring other things.  They need to use their imaginations.  Their bodies need to move and play.  They can get so absorbed in watching TV or playing video games that they sit in one spot for hours and hours.  That is not healthy.  

       Do you have any behavior problems in your home?  Do you know that the games they play or not moving around can cause some issues in our kiddos? Do you know it can cause them not to sleep well at night?   I had no idea that using these devices too much could cause so many difficulties for kids. Now we have implemented limits so we can resolve  some problems we were having and it has worked for us. 

       

       I think there is balance in everything, so device usage is just another issue we need to fine tune until we feel comfortable with our choices for our family.   We should never push our opinions onto others.  We need to realize every family has different needs and they should make these choices for themselves.   

      In our household, our children earn screen time.  They have to complete tasks in order to get "tickets" to play on their gadgets.  It was not a popular idea at first, but they have fun with it now.  Mom and dad just had to resolve not to back down.  We do have special allowances for family movie nights or family game nights where we need to use the TV or video games.   Our new van also has a DVD player that they enjoy so we don't have restrictions on it.  

       I wanted to share our plan of attack to reduce the usage of devices in our home and give you an idea of how you can do it too if you feel this would be right for your clan.  We have our list of  ways to earn tech tickets. These are not difficult jobs, just ways to reinforce good behavior and manners.  They know if they do what they are suppose to do, it will be easy to acquire their tickets. They can earn up to  3 1/2 hours daily.  The tickets have to be used the day they are earned.  You may be thinking that is a lot of time, but being homeschoolers, 3 1/2 hours is only a small part of their day at home.  They usually spend an hour watching TV and then they have video games or computer time to use up the rest of their time.  Our daughter also has a tablet that she uses to play videos for her DIY projects so she loves having time on it. 

  

Our list!

We have fun tickets we print and laminate so we can reuse them daily. 

      You can also take away tickets throughout the day if your child behaves improperly.  They need to realize that screen time is a privilege not a right.  We never want to allow our children to have an attitude of entitlement.  That is why this system works well for us in many ways.  

        I hope this has been helpful for you.   I would also like to share a PDF copy of our system for you to use in your homes if you think it would be a good fit for your family.  To save and print, just click on the link below the image 😊

Limiting Device Time

      

       

It's Monday.... A New Start

       It's Monday and a new day!  Each day we are given can be considered a fresh start.  We can do things better than we did them yesterday.  We can be kinder, listen more attentively, and love more than the day before.  No matter what is in our past, we can start anew with the rising of the sun.  When God wakes us up, it is an opportunity to begin again.  Put the past behind you and allow God to use you for His purpose.  

       Satan will always try to remind us of our past mistakes in order to keep us from growing in the Lord.  He will use man's harsh words or that word of gossip behind our backs to suppress us from doing the work that the Lord has placed before us.  My daddy always said that if the devil is not messing with you, you need to worry, because he only attacks those who he worries is doing good for the kingdom of God.  

I have this little note hanging on my wall next to my bed.  It reminds me to enjoy each day to the fullest!

       This week we have some deep cleaning planned.  I love to organize and refresh our home.  We clean areas that are forgotten week to week.  We let go of things that we no longer use.  We make room for new and exciting things.  When I thought about deep cleaning our home, it reminded me of what we need to do in our spiritual lives everyday.  We need to have a time of refreshment for our souls. We need to spend time in God's Word and praying each and every day.   We must choose to forget what lies behind and press forward to what lies ahead of us.  We must let go of any guilt and condemnation that the devil throws our way.  God has made us new!  We must remind ourselves to "clean" our mind and hearts on a daily basis.  

       Today I want to encourage you to give God your past.  Don't allow Satan to use it against you one more day.  Today is a new beginning!   God has a good plan for you!!!!  Let your children see you live a life of freedom in Christ.  Let them know that they too can be free in Him.  

Inauguration Day! A Free Study of the Inauguration

Soon we will be welcoming a new President and Vice President into office.  Here is a little study to help you understand the process. 

  To download it, just click on the link below the image.

Study of the Inauguration

HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW: OUR REVIEW OF SchoolhouseTeachers.com

 

\

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

     Our family has been using an amazing curriculum over the past few years. We are using it again this year and this is our review of the Ultimate PreK-12 Annual Membership from SchoolhouseTeachers.com.  We were given a one-year subscription to this online curriculum and even though we have used it yearly, I am still blown away at all the wonderful classes, planners, and videos that are available for members of this site.  If you homeschool or plan to homeschool, you really would be encouraged by checking out what this site has to offer. 

     

     Currently, we are using a few programs from SchoolhouseTeachers.com and I would love to share how we incorporate them into our homeschool day. The first way I use this site is for planning, With your membership, you will be given the Smart Mama Planner.  It is just full of wonderful planner pages that will help you plan out your school year.  From a budget planner to yearly goal sheets, it has all you need to be organized during your homeschool days, months, and year.  My favorite part of the planner is the Homeschool Minute Devotionals.  They help you focus on what is important as you homeschool your children.  They are so encouraging!  

     Our daughter and son are both working through Advanced Music Theory.  They felt it would help them to play their instruments better and with more knowledge of music theory, they will be able to go farther with their lessons. They both play the guitar and ukulele, and our son plays the piano and organ as well.  These lessons they are going through have advanced their reading and understanding of music and they are playing with more confidence. 

     Another class that my daughter enjoys is Art.  She loves being creative.  Drawing, painting, and even sculpting helps her to express herself.  The Achieving Art Success Level V classes have been a wonderful addition to her extracurricular classes.  They not only incorporate art but Language Arts and History lessons into her curriculum.  They are so much fun, she forgets she is learning! 

     I have been homeschooling for over 23 years and I can say that I have never had a site with so many resources all in one place for a homeschooling family. Each course can be customized to fit the student, and I know that they will be getting a quality education no matter what class they are taking. From planners to educational videos, they have it all, and best of all it is all included in the one-time yearly membership price.  No hidden fees!!!  We have a strict homeschooling budget and I would invest it all in this site, only I don't have to because of the low membership price.  I encourage you to go check it out for yourself.  

     If you would like to learn more, I would check out their site and social media pages listed below.

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

PINTEREST

YouTube

You can also read more reviews of the resource over on the Homeschool Review Crew site.  Just click on the link below.