Mommycafe’s Weblog











{March 24, 2009}   Parenting the early years

The DVDs and other stuff is here!  So next week we can dig into some conversations and tips for being a great parent!  I just previewed the first session and it looks okay.  The first one is 20 min. It looks at the marriage as a foundation and then the next five look at children and parenting.  There are “workbooks” but I think that just conversation around the dvd would be good.  Although if you are interested in the workbook stuff for doing REAL devotions with your hubby I will gladly get you one. 

No I didn’t spell check or proof read this posting, I want to stay true to my normal standard!



{March 19, 2009}   Post pump party plans

Calling all moms, calling all moms….

Kirsten has been pumping for a year and is excited to celebrate the end of pumping (and many of us other moms are excited to be done pumping too!) In an effort to celebrate the separation of mom and pump we are having a party.

Meeting at EL Mezacal on Rib Moutain Drive at 6:30 on Saturday (March 21).  Please sign up below saying that you are coming.  This is a mom only event.  After the dinner there will be an “after glow” at Kirsten’s crib.  Contact her for more details.



Did it get your attendtion (the title post)? I know you all are so interested in our personal life (not really, that is a sarcastic comment).  But sometimes it is good to hear that others don’t do it right.  Over the last 4 years (starting with my first pregnancy) we have read hundreds of books and tried so hard to structure our lives in a way that would be conducive to raising two (well I have always wanted 8, but that is insane) wonderful children.  So where did we go wrong?

There have been so many wonderful times and even nights where Brian and I lay in bed in complete awe of our beautiful girls.  But there has also been too many volcanic erruptions, harh words, wrong punishments.  So I have been wroking hard on finding ways to correct and raise my girls without yelling or hitting or harsh statements.  It isn’t easy.  I know that when Maddy was only 1.5 years old I could understand correcting a child through spankings or yelling, but I admit she has experienced a spanking and I have raised my voice.   I don’t want to be that kind of parent.  I have searched the scriptures for help too.  Unfortunately there isn’t a lot of “how to” just a lot of raise up your children in obedience!  How do you do that?

Part of my master’s degree is pastoring families and raising Christian children.  I have to observe different methods, structures and the such.  So as I get ready to write papers and put together the “oh-so-fun” presentations how would you like to participate in exploring bibical ways to raise a child?  How would you like to talk about different ways to teach your child about God and what it means to be a child of God? 

I don’t have the answers, but I have a paper to write and children to experient on, do you want to help?  The first think I have to write on is a DVD series which is posted below, let me know if you wouldn’t mind doing these (like a 25 – 30 min commitment on Tuesdays) with me.

Six Video Sessions for small group:
Recently we’ve been working with Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott with some things for the parents of young children. They are best selling authors, who have sold over one million copies of their books. They are a very solid Christian couple that has been featured on Christianity Today, ABC’s Good Morning America, Focus on the Family, The New York Times and they’ve even made their way on to Oprah.
 
What we’ve been finding is that so many parents out there are wondering, “Do I have what it takes to be a good parent?” A lot of times parents need help, but nobody likes to ask for help. 
 
That’s why we’ve teamed up with Les and Leslie Parrott to create a new video-driven study called Parenting: The Early Years. Now, this goes deeper than any technique of just getting kids to eat their broccoli and clean their room. It takes a Biblical approach into the traits parents want their children to have and what traits they want their children to see modeled in them.
 
On this six DVD series our team took their cameras into the homes of 20 families and captured real-life parenting moments. Some of these are funny moments and some are just completely honest moments that every parent can relate to.

  •         Session One – Time (19 Minutes)
  •         Session Two - Affirming (16 Minutes)
  •         Session Three – Defiance (24 Minutes)
  •         Session Four – Authenticity(21 Minutes)
  •         Session Five – Worry (15 Minutes)
  •         Session Six – Legacy (17 Minutes)


{March 12, 2009}   Party rescheduled!

So lets try again!  Ollie will we a party animal with it being celebrated over 2.5 weeks! way to go Man!

This week lets get down and party with ollie. 

Also we hope to have Courtney and her girls joining us and maybe Jessica with little Matthew.  I am thinking I need a bigger home! :-) that is fun.  Or maybe I can buy fun stuff for the gym for the mommy group.  I am dreaming of slides, and ride on cars and all of those fun things! I wonder what Captain brian would say to all of this?  Not to mention we have pool table, ping pong and all we would need is a large flat screen for the men and we could really party into the nights!



{March 10, 2009}   TONIGHT CANCELLED

Hey all, many sick kids and bad roads = no mommycafe :-(

But if you don’t get the message and come we will take you out to dinner :-) (on us!)



Our last baby is turning 1 tomorrow.  So we will celebrate Ollie’s offical first birthday! yeay.

Also visited Rachel and Issy at the hospital today.  Issy is still pretty sick but is going home today.  keep the family in your prayers.  Don’t worry I will be doing an extra wash on the toys tonight to kill the germs all of the little ones have been carrying!

See ya tomorrow night!



et cetera