Celebrate

I love to throw a party. I love creating a theme, planning the decorations, food and games, and I love the looks on my kids' faces when they see the house decorated for the first time.

We throw parties around here all year long. We've had a spy sleepover for no good reason. We're having a traditional Halloween party in a couple weeks. We have big birthday parties, and every year we have a cookie decorating party at Christmas.

Those parties are a lot of work, but they are worth it. They bring the laughter and voices of my girls' friends into my home for an hour and a half. The kids spend that time enjoying each others' company, laughing and playing.

Yet, as many parties as we have during the year, it's only a few days out of 365. While we're really good at celebrating the big milestones -- birthdays and holidays -- we're not as focused on celebrating the everyday moments and accomplishments.

God wants our lives to be filled with joy. He wants us to let the joy of knowing Him bubble over into our everyday lives. That joy should help us celebrate and encourage our children. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." There's no better way to encourage our kids than to celebrate the little things.

When we encourage our kids by celebrating their accomplishments -- both large and small -- we make home a haven for them. Our homes become a place where they know they are loved and cherished.

I'm not saying you should puff your child up and give them an inflated sense of self-worth because that only leads to a prideful attitude. What I am saying is the world constantly tells our kids they aren't pretty enough, rich enough, smart enough or cool enough, and it's our job to counteract that with encouragement. Choose legitimate accomplishments to celebrate with your kids.

My oldest daughter struggles with spelling. She simply isn't the world's best speller. We make a big deal out of 100 percent on a spelling test with her. It's a small accomplishment, but one that requires a lot of studying on her part to get it right. Her perfect tests hang on the refrigerator, and we make sure she gets lots of praise for it.

Both my girls play sports. We celebrate goals and great play with ice cream after the game. It's not a reward for scoring; it's a celebration of a game well-played.

Look for opportunities to encourage your kids by celebrating the little things.

• Celebrate report cards. Don't have all A's? Celebrate the improvement from a C to a B. Celebrate improved behavior scores.
• Celebrate the fun days on the calendar. Did you know there's a National Ice Cream Day, a National Donut Day and a National Clown Week? Have fun with your kids and celebrate those days together.
• Celebrate good behavior. If your child is struggling with a particular behavior, catch her doing what she should and celebrate it. Let her pick dinner or dessert. Add an extra 15 minutes to her bedtime.

By celebrating the everyday moments and successes in your children's lives, you offer them encouragement and joy. And who doesn't want to live in a home filled with encouragement and joy?

Find something to celebrate today.

It's Movie Time

My days while my kids are in school are usually spent working, writing, cleaning and taking care of our household. Today, I'm going to the movies.

I started the movie tradition the year my youngest started first grade. It was my treat for getting my kids this far -- a little mommy celebration. It marked the end of one phase of my life and the beginning of another. I went from full-time stay-at-home mom to part-time work-from-home mom and from the mother of preschoolers to the mother of grade-schoolers.

I've continued going to the movies the first week of school every year since. Sometimes I go by myself and sometimes I go with a friend. It's become a ritual that marks the passage of another year for me.

Even more than the turn of the new year, the turn of the school year causes me to reflect on where I've been as a mom and where God wants me to go. It's a time to ponder my kids and how they are growing -- physically, spiritually and emotionally. After a summer packed with time together, it's a great time to evaluate how we're doing as a family.

And, my trip to the movies each year is my way of marking these moments in time. It's a fun tradition that reminds me to take a moment to celebrate the mommy accomplishments of the year and begin planning for the next one. My movie trip has become a reminder for me to continue to be intentional in the way I deal with my children.

In the Old Testament, people set up stone altars when God did something they wanted to remember. They used the altar as a physical reminder of what God had done for them. In Genesis 35:3, Jacob built an altar, saying "Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.”

You could say my movie tradition is like those altars. It's a physical reminder to me to take a moment to stop and reflect on what God has done in our lives in the past year.

The time flies by so fast when it comes to our kids growing up. It's easy for us to get so busy that we forget to celebrate the moment. We forget to praise God for the wonderful changes happening in our kids. We are so caught up in getting to the next activity or the next stage of life that we forget to stop and savor the moment.

So, as your kids head back to school in the next month, I encourage you to take some time out and mark the moment. Think about all the things you have to celebrate about being a parent -- the accomplishments and growth of your kids, the lessons you've learned and the hopes you have for the future. Set them all out before God -- praise Him for the good stuff and ask for help with the tough stuff. Create a tradition of your own to remind you each year of all that's gone before and all that's yet to come.

Mark the Moment

My kids get out of school on Tuesday. Soon, I'll be the mom of a 3rd grader and a 5th grader. I'm not sure how they've grown up so fast, but they have.

My girls have grown from tiny, fragile babies to strong, resiliant girls who will soon be beautiful young ladies. The days fly by and I find I'm not quite ready for this change. This time next year, my oldest will be waving goodbye to elementary school and be getting ready for the jump to middle school.

I sit here this morning and wonder where this school year went. It seems like just yesterday we were taking pictures and sending them off for the first day of school. Honestly, it seems like just yesterday that they were taking their first steps or saying their first words.

As the school year draws to a close, (I do know many of you have several weeks of school left. Come back and read this post when your school year is a few days from ending.) I find myself reflecting on the things my girls have learned this year and the ways they have grown. And I realize that the end of the school year is a milestone, one worth marking.

In the Old Testament, the Israelites marked significant events in their lives by building altars to God. The altars were a physical reminder of God's faithfulness. In Genesis 35:3, Jacob built an alter to remind him of how God had cared for him when he was at odds with his brother, Esau. He said "Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone."

Use the end of the school year as a time to "build" your own altar to mark the ways that God has taught your children this year. Point out the ways they have grown in their faith and their maturity. Write it down and give it to them. Make it a moment to reflect and remember before you let this school year pass into the pages of childhood memory.

On Tuesday, my girls have a half day of school. We'll come home and have a special lunch. Over lunch, we'll celebrate the things that they have learned this year and the things that God has taught them.

Here are a few of the things we'll be celebrating:

• My oldest learned that watching injustice happen and doing nothing makes you a part of the problem. Standing up for someone else makes a difference.
• My youngest learned that if you want something, you have to persevere and work at it -- even in the face of opposition.
• Both girls learned that putting others' first is of primary importance to God.
• My oldest learned that her body will be changing, and that's part of God's plan.
• My youngest learned that even kids who have learning disabilities or physical disabilities have some amazing talents.

There are more things that we will celebrate, but these are the ones that will start the conversation. Make a list for your own kids, and take a moment out of the hustle and bustle of getting ready for vacation or making plans for the summer to celebrate the year that has passed. Mark the moment and thank God for it -- because it will never come again.

Don't Miss the Empty Tomb

It's that time of year again when our schedule gets overbooked. I honestly think that this weekend in April is the busiest one of our year, including the holiday season.

My youngest turns 8 on Monday, so her birthday party is this weekend on top of her regularly scheduled hockey game, the AWANA carnival and an egghunt. My oldest is going on a church retreat, to another friend's birthday party and has a soccer game at the same time as my youngest's birthday party. We'll finish the weekend out with our second-to-last AWANA meeting.

I have freelance deadlines coming up and am in charge of planning and hosting the birthday party. It would be really easy to lose sight of the reason that we're celebrating this weekend and get caught up in the details.

You all know that I love to throw a good birthday party. I've made Super Mario decorations, planned games, including an obstacle course, a balloon battle and a question mark box pinata. I still have a lot of details to take care of before the party on Sunday, and I'm sure I'll be a bit stressed before it all comes together.

I'm trying not to let the details get in the way of enjoying the weekend celebrating with my daughter. It would be really easy to get so focused on the party and all the other things we have to do this weekend that I could miss the joy in the moment and the reason for celebrating -- my daughter.
As Easter nears, we don't want to get caught up in the details and the noise surrounding this celebration of Jesus' death and resurrection. What a joyful time of the year. We serve a God who defeated death and offers us life. When the women went to the tomb, it was empty because Jesus is alive. The angels told them "He is not here. He has risen, just as he said." (Matthew 28:6) That's an amazing message, and one to be celebrated.

Unfortunately, the world has commercialized Easter to the point that it's true meaning has been lost. It's easy for our kids to get caught up in coloring Easter eggs and egg hunts and completely miss the truth of Easter. Spend the next week helping your kids to focus on the reason we celebrate Easter.

• Starting Monday, check out the blog for a family devotion that will walk your family through Easter week, focusing on the events in Jesus' life in that last week. Each day will include a fun activity to do or an easy discussion to have with your kids.
• One of my favorite object lessons for kids during Easter are Resurrection Eggs. These are plastic eggs that have something inside each egg that tells the story of Jesus' death and resurrection. It's fun and engaging for kids. Let older kids open the eggs in order and tell you the events that go along with each object.
• Take every opportunity in this next week to talk about Jesus' death and resurrection. While there's nothing wrong with coloring eggs and going to egg hunts (we do), make sure your kids know that those things are simply fun. The true reason that we celebrate Easter is because Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave so that we could have a relationship with God.

Take time this next week to focus on the meaning of Easter -- Jesus. Don't get so caught up in planning for the family dinner or choosing the perfect Easter dress or even helping with your Easter services that you forget the reason for the celebration. Take time every day in the next week to spend some time focused on Jesus and celebrate the joy of Easter.

Memory Monday: Isaiah 9:6

The months before a child is born are a time of excitement for everyone involved. The parents-to-be anticipate the birth by getting a nursery ready, choosing names and wondering what the new member of their family will be like. Friends and family anxiously anticipate the new little person's birth. We give gifts and celebrate the impending arrival of a new person. For nine months, everyone involved waits for their special baby's birth.

Imagine how much the Jewish people were anticipating the birth of Jesus. Way back in the time of Isaiah, Jesus' birth was prophesied. Isaiah 9:6 says "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." For hundreds of years the Jewish people had been anticipating the arrival of Jesus. The birth of Jesus was the arrival of the hoped-for Messiah.

As you go through this last week before Christmas, take a moment to anticipate the celebration of Jesus' birth. As you memorize Isaiah 9:6, work to create a sense of excitement about celebrating Christmas. Channel your kids' excitement from the presents to the opportunity to celebrate Jesus' birth.

• Plan a birthday party for Jesus. Hang streamers, bake a cake and invite some friends to celebrate. Make the story of Jesus' birth a central part of the celebration. Let your kids help plan the party so it will build anticipation.
• Create a tradition of setting out a piece of your nativity set every day before Christmas. Build up to Chrismas Eve when you will place Jesus in the manger. This gives your kids the opportunity to anticipate Jesus' "arrival."
• Talk with your kids about how excited they are about Christmas. Compare that excitement to how excited the Jewish people would have been to hear of the arrival of Jesus.

Don't get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of this last week before Christmas that you forget to anticipate celebrating Jesus' birth.