15 YEARS

 

...and I love him more than ever...

 

"Let marriage be held in honor among all."

Hebrews 13:4

JESUS ACT STICK DATES...LATELY

I've shared before about our Jesus Act Stick reward system.

We've used it for many years without wane and truly it's been a tremendous blessing for our family!

All of the kids down to our 2 year old earn sticks when we observe that they've exhibited selfless love or sacrificial behavior with a genuine heart. It's an honor to reward their kind actions. We display our Jesus Act Stick jars on a focal point table in our home where they can be visibly built into our daily life. I enjoy seeing with my eyes and allowing our children to notice tangibly the benefits of a loving heart. The jars serve as a reminder.

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another:

just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another."

John 13:34

We believe in the power of positive affirmation and encouragement and find that when we stop to point out our children's good fruit, they grow even more. Of course, parenting requires we also contend with the difficult, employ discipline when needed, and correct wrong behavior. But, when we emphasize the positive in others, we perpetuate more positive. Children and adults alike believe what's spoken into their lives (both positive and negative). This is why we are intentional to point out and reward Christlike actions with Jesus Act Sticks and one-on-one dates with Mom or Dad to follow.

Kids are built up and quality time memories are made...it's a win, win!

Here's to documenting just a bit of our Jesus Act Stick dates...lately.

 . . . . . .

This go around, Olia knew JUST what she wanted to do...

Although I adore this precious child and would have LOVED the opportunity to go on a date with her, considering it was a bit cooler than "chilly" that day, I'm glad she chose her great-sport-daddy for her big pool/BIG CHILL date!

They had a (canon) ball!

What a special time for Olia and her daddy.

I LOVE goggles. :)

Olia, you're the sweetest!!

. . . . . .

 Next up was Noble, one of the most naturally thoughtful children I've ever met.

Having a "thing" for hamburgers, Noble and I went to get a kids meal at Wendy's which is BIG deal

to him and extra cool because not only does it come with a toy, but a FROSTY too...for only$3!!

SCOOORE!!!

Noble has such a dear heart. I set the stage as we do on our dates with the kids by asking him questions like, "Do you have any questions for me?" and "How are you doing?" We talked about Congo a bit, but really he has very few conscious memories other than "going on the airplane with Daddy" so it seems that our deeper conversations about such things will be reserved for years to come. Nevertheless, it's always good to start young and he reciprocated well with answers to my questions. It was very sweet.

Mostly, I just loved having the special time with my son to talk and share and just BE together.

It was a great date!

. . . . . .

Elka is like me in that she's not a huge fan of "restaurants". The whole waiter/waitress thing makes

her uncomfortable (she feels bad that they are serving her) and she just prefers simple, homey things.

(Hmmm...I wonder where she gets that from?!)

That being said, we have had a couple of Souplantation dates (and let's face it, a date is the ONLY way to go with Souplantation when you have 8 kids!) and that's what she decided she wanted to do this JAS time around.

Lucky me...I got to go with my girl and we had a great time!

Not only is Elka an excellent conversationalist, but she also LOVES salad like her mom. Bonus! Seeing kids eat vegetables always makes me happy, especially when they are actually savoring them! Elka is very cute like that!

I love this girl. She's spunky and fun, affectionate and encouraging.

She LOVES people and people tend to love her.

Elka, thanks for being one of my BEST friends in the whole world!!

. . . . . .

Nova, our little "Mommy, what can I do to help you?" girl, she's growing more and more in her

desire to love, obey, and serve. It's a blessing to reward her and make her feel as special as she is.

Our little Nova is so sweet and simple...and easily enamored.

(Which makes her fun to watch.)

I'm not surprised that her sweet daddy held some tears back as he watched his little girl delight in princessy things. It is captivating to watch a child light up and Nova is such a bright little ray of light in our lives. I'm not sure who had more fun...Nova or Daddy??

What a special Daddy/Daughter time together...Daddy and his girl. :)

Great job serving and loving others, Nova! It's so fun to honor your gentle, tender heart!

. . . . . .

 For Boden's latest "dake" we ventured off to the pet store to buy a blue fish.

That was the request.

Being that his favorite color is blue, and our blue beta fish named Blue recently found himself sailing off to the ocean,

this was the perfect Jesus Act Stick "dake" for our hard working little guy.

There was a bit of a discrepancy when he decided to name the fish Michael in a spur of the moment decision.

Upon second thought and arriving home however, Blue it is (again). Funny boy.

He was so cute. He walked around the whole store with Michael/Blue,

checking out all of the animals, careful not to spill and very proud of his fish.

Aida got to join her little buddy for this outing as an honorable mention reward from one of our recent Buddy Competitions and she had lots of fun photographing our time together...a rare occurrence on our dates and such fond memories. Thanks, Aida!

Boden, your servant heart inspires us all. I'm sure your next Jesus Act Stick "dake" will be sooner than later.

. . . . . .

For the sake of documenting the fact that India doesn't miss out on all the fun,

here are a few of her most recent outings as well:

Out with Daddy on a Home Depot run.

(She loves carts and people...which entirely eliminates anonymity when she comes along for errands.)

She also scored an ice cream Buddy Date with her big brother Brodie after winning a recent Buddy Competition.

Yummy, fun, messy...that's our girl! :)

And, that's a wrap on our Jesus Act Stick dates...lately.

 "Know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind,

for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought."

1 Chronicles 28:9



PLAYING HOUSE

 

They're always playing house, these kids. They practice what will be. I sense the responsibility.

Feeeel the task at hand...to model well what God's Word says. Their play will soon be real.

 

"They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled. Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned."

Titus 2:3-8