Farm Wisdom

 

fence-422990_1280Eighteen years ago we moved from bustling southern California to rural Utah and tried to learn to work the land, to plant an orchard, to raise animals—to live a country life. It didn’t come easy! But, we were blessed to have old timers as neighbors and their farm wisdom was profound.

One adage that I heard repeated was, “A plant in need is quick to seed.” Whenever you see a plant that is immature and small, but blooming, you can be sure it isn’t getting what it needs to thrive. It senses that conditions are dire, and tries to bloom and set seed as quickly as possible, or its life will be in vain.

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Stop Talking

milk-chocolate-271176_1280Yackety-yack! We moms sure love to talk. I sometimes wonder what we sound like to our little children! I wonder, if after the first sentence directed at them, they might catch a word here and there but not grasp the whole meaning of what we are trying to communicate. They love us, and they listen attentively at times, but I don’t think they always “get it”!

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Soak in the Joy!

archeskidsWe just went to Arches National Park for a quick sight-seeing trip. At the last minute, some of our grown kids jumped in too, so our 7 passenger van was full to the brim and scraped bottom if we went over a big bump. What fun we had, singing as we drove along! The joy in each other’s presence was wonderful! The scenery was majestic! All felt right with the world.

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Self-Sufficient Little Ones

rebekahpuzzle

My granddaughter Rebekah (4)

“I want to do it myself!”

Sound familiar?

Starting at about one-and-a-half years old, children yearn to be capable and strongly resist any attempts to do things for them. You can launch your little child into feelings of healthy self-sufficiency and capability by making life a little easier to manage for them. [Read more…]

Teaching Kids to Interrupt Politely

abigail_frowningYep, you read it right. This is a “how-to” for teaching kids to interrupt.

We moms love to talk, and sometimes it is hard to get a word in edgewise. A little guy that has to go to the bathroom needs a polite way to cut into the conversation. Here’s how!

Teach you little ones that when they need to interrupt, they should approach your side (not stand between you and the person you are talking to, but off to the side). Then, without speaking, just put their hand on your forearm and wait silently and patiently. No tapping. This signal tells you that your child needs to speak to you. When you can courteously find a break in the conversation, say “excuse me, please” to the person you are talking to, and turn towards your child. Now (and only now), he can interrupt.

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Gray Hair

abi_granddad

Abigail planted a lipstick kiss on Grandaddy’s cheek!

Respect for the aged. It seems to be going extinct these days in America, and yet it makes such a difference in society. It is a basic, important part of training children to teach them to honor those who are older and wiser. Gray hair is a sign of wisdom, and endurance through life’s trials. (That’s why I won’t dye mine!)

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Magic Words

Sweet Emily

Sweet Emily

“I’m sorry”
“I did wrong”
“Can you forgive me?”

These words seem to be getting pretty scarce these days!

I think the most important words a mother can say to her children is, “Can you forgive me?” We all make mistakes—parents especially—as the job of raising children is challenging indeed! What a peaceful, loving feeling comes into a home when a parent will admit they’ve been insensitive, impatient, or unfair, and humbly ask their children for forgiveness. It always stuns me how quickly and freely a child will excuse them when parents are actually willing to admit they misjudged. It opens children’s eyes to see Mom as a real person struggling to improve, instead of the “always-right-authority”.

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Chivalry, It’s Up to Us!

emilymay2007My daughter Emily (17) came home from high school thoroughly disgusted. Emily is a very upbeat, happy spirit and she loves everybody and everything, so it shocked me to see her upset. She only attends 2 classes at our local charter school, and is very studious and diligent in her homeschool assignments. She tells me regularly that she loves homeschooling best, which brings me great delight!

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