The Crayon That Did Not Work – Learning To Understand Your Child
Crayons are such an amazing invention! Amazing because a set of crayons and a book of yet-to-be-colored pictures will keep my daughter’s attention for extended amounts of time. Needless to say, my daughter loves to color. However, she has gotten a bit frustrated lately with a particular crayon…a crayon that just does not work.
The other day I heard the voice of my confused two-year-old daughter exclaiming, “Daddy, the crayon doesn’t work!” She desperately wanted me to fix it; so, she held the crayon out to me with great expectation. I examined it. Everything seemed to be in perfect working order. I mean, it is a stick of wax – what can really go wrong with it. I told her that it did work and proceeded to show her as much.
She was still confused. The colored stick of wax still didn’t do what she wanted it to do…
Dad Didn’t Know I Was Watching
Today I have the privilege of guest posting for KC over at SomeWiseGuy.com. KC’s blog is all about life and leadership for dangerous dads and manly men. So, I thought I would share a story about my dangerous and manly dad…and some things that I have learned about being a dad (parent) from watching my dad.
Here is an excerpt from the post. Be sure to check out the complete story on SomeWiseGuy.
I watched my dad a lot while I was growing up. I know, we all watched our parents, didn’t we? Sometimes my dad knew I was watching and sometimes he did not…like the time that he apparently gained clearance from the FAA to perform as a low-flying aircraft.
When I was in 7th grade, my dad took me on a camping trip with our boy scout troop. We pitched a tent. We hiked. We chopped firewood. We built a campfire. We cooked food over the campfire (including smores). It rained. We had fun. And we had to leave early so that I could be back home in time for a soccer game.
We were supposed to leave really early Saturday morning. However, we overslept. We hurried to get things settled and into the car. We left late; really late. And, as my custom was, I sacked out while my dad drove.
Now for the low-flying aircraft part…
Click here to check out the rest of the story and to learn the Four Roles Children Need From Their Dad. You may even want to leave a comment and engage the conversation while you are there.
Photo Credit: Remco Donselaar
I Never Knew My Dad Was A Lion Tamer
My dad has always been a hero to me. I have always seen him as a man to respect, a man of authority and a man to fear (fear in a good way). But, I never knew that he was a lion tamer!
Several years ago, my dad was introduced to a group of young boys as a lion tamer. Pretty exciting, huh? I think there was some mention of the chair and whip that he used and the narrow escapes from certain death. The young boys were captivated. They hung on every word and wanted to hear every detail.
Interesting side note, though, is that my dad has never stepped foot into a cage with a lion (like a circus hero), into a den of lions (like a favorite biblical hero) or into a pit with a lion on a snowy day (like some other biblical hero).
My dad has done many things in his life, and 4-legged beasts have never been a match for him (he was a dog-whisperer before there ever was The Dog Whisperer). But, I have never known him to be in the circus or even to have gone on an African safari. Needless to say, I was a bit surprised at this new twist. read more
What To Do When Your Child’s Feelings Are Broken
Recently, one of my young sons got into a bit of an argument with some other kids. Afterwards, I could tell he was upset. But, this was not the normal upset. I have seen my son get angry in these situations and then respond in that anger. This time, though, was a bit different.
Like the good father that I am (or, at least, want to be), I tried to talk with my son. Initially, he did not say much to me. However, as I watched him and his reactions to the unfortunate incident, I recognized a look of sadness.
After some time, my son was my son finally spoke a bit with me and used some words that I had not heard him use before. Instead of words about how mean the other kids had been or what he wanted to do to get even with them, he said to me, “Dad, my feelings are broken.” read more
How To Keep Your Attitude From Erupting Into A Bad Attitude
Your attitude affects everything you do and everything you experience – from work to play, from friendships to marriage and even to (or especially to) parenting. Positive attitudes help make boring days fun and difficult tasks rewarding; while bad attitudes can destroy everything in your path.
We know all of this; but, it is still so easy to get stuck in a bad mood, to respond to situations in anger (like I did once) and even to disconnect from everyone and everything. And, just when we are having our own little self-pity party, we have the privilege of experiencing everyone else reflecting our attitude back toward us.
So, how do we keep the awesome good attitude and fend off the evil bad attitude?
1. Identify your stressors.
Know what things put you on edge and make you more susceptible to a bad attitude and bad responses to other people.
When You Thought I Wasn’t Looking
Do you ever feel like your children are oblivious to the hours and effort you spend doing everything in the world for them? I do.
I know that my kids do watch me. In fact, I often-times think I am training parrots as my kids mimic everything they see and hear. And I quite often think I am looking at a mirror when I see how my children reflect attitudes, mannerisms, words and actions.
But, sometimes, it seems like my children just don’t notice, understand or appreciate read more
Everything You Need To Know About Prayer Can Be Learned From A Kid
Kids will say some of the most interesting things. Sometimes it makes you cringe, sometimes it makes you want to laugh and sometimes you are just left speechless. But, when it comes to prayer, I am often in awe of what children will say to God.
I have the awesome privilege of working with children – at home, of course, and at church. Some of the most amazing experiences I have in these roles come when I pray with children.
Kids may say the darnedest things at the worst possible moments; but, I have also heard them say some of the most
5 Key Ingredients For Managing Chaos
Leading, moving and managing a large group of people is a lot like HERDING CATS! This is especially true in the context of a big event; and especially true when two-thirds of those in the group are children.
[This is part of the Why We Cannot Wait For Summer Series. Have you seen the other posts yet?]
Think about it, the task of simply moving a large group of people, in a short amount of time, from one place to another is just like trying to move a few dozen cats from the café serving tuna-surprise to the store down the street that claims the world’s biggest ball of string.
The Essential Traits That You Need To Be A Leader Worth Following
Sometimes it seems like leaders are like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re gonna get. Some leaders are great motivators and can inspire you to accomplish more than you ever thought possible. Other leaders seem to be in over their heads and struggle even in leading the way out of their cubicle.
Think, for just a moment, about the leaders you have had? Which leaders stand out as the most influential? What is it that you really remember about that person? What made you want to follow in the footsteps of that person?
There are few people I remember as being leaders worth following. For those that I do remember, I don’t recall many specifics of what they said; but, I do remember their personality, how they treated people and how they lived their lives. read more
How Your ReActions Reveal Who You Truly Are
Actions may speak louder than words. But our reactions tell an interesting story that reveals our true character.
Many people try to manipulate the perspective of others through their actions. They try to portray a specific desired identity with the things they say and do. But, our re-actions reveal whether or not our actions are honest.
In his book, Wild Goose Chase, Mark Batterson writes that “our reactions reveal who we really are” (p.99). I have also heard similar thoughts though the years. I was once told that it is not the hard times in life that define who I am. Instead, it is how I respond to those hard times that will define who I am.
Growing our reaction muscles (reflexes to what happens in life) takes intention. Mark also writes about these instructions that Jesus gave to condition those reflexes:
- Pray for those who persecute you.
- Love your enemies.
- Bless those who curse you.
- If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
- If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
It is not enough, though, to just know how we should respond. We need to be intentional about our responses; and, we need to practice.
We can’t just give up the first time we hit trials and hard times. We have to keep working at it, keep learning from our experiences, and keep striving to do better.
So, how are you known? What do your reactions reveal about you, your character, your attitude, your view towards others? Maybe a better question is how do you want to be known?
Question: Have you had an experience where your reaction to a situation caused others to see something different in you than what the initial situation would have shown? You can share your story by clicking here.
Welcome
Get Posts by Email
Recent Posts
- The Crayon That Did Not Work – Learning To Understand Your Child
- Dad Didn’t Know I Was Watching
- I Never Knew My Dad Was A Lion Tamer
- What To Do When Your Child’s Feelings Are Broken
- How To Keep Your Attitude From Erupting Into A Bad Attitude