When Kids Ask Too Many Questions

By Barbara Rainey | October 18, 2021 | 0 Comments

  “What is hair made from?” “Do lizards go to heaven?” “Why do we stop at red lights?” “Who’s your mom’s mom?” “Why do I have to tell Jesus what I did wrong when He already knows?” In our house with six kids, a menagerie of outside pets, and two often exhausted parents, our kids’ […]

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Teach Your Children the Value of Work

By Barbara Rainey | August 30, 2021 | 4 Comments

  Do you know what values motivate you? Years ago Dennis and I made individual lists of what mattered to each of us. Then we combined those lists into one page of values we used to make decisions about how we raised our kids, what we taught them, and how we spent our time as […]

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50 Character Qualities We Hoped to Teach Our Children

By Barbara Rainey | June 21, 2021 | 7 Comments

You’re getting your child’s classroom syllabus for all the benchmarks he’ll be required to know over the next months for science, math, art, and history. Wouldn’t it be nice to know what you needed to teach him for knowing God better? Dennis and I made a list of 50 qualities we hoped to teach our children before […]

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Using Chores to Teach Your Children the Value of Work

By Barbara Rainey | September 7, 2020 | 0 Comments

Early in our marriage, Dennis and I discovered we had very different views on the value of work. Then we had children … and the conversation widened to include questions like, “How do we balance play time and teaching time? How much can we expect of our toddlers, our preschoolers?” Do you know what values […]

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Dear Barbara: How Can I Help My Children Learn Better Manners While We Are Quarantined?

By Barbara Rainey | April 20, 2020 | 4 Comments

  Dear Barbara: I remember reading about an etiquette dinner. We are planning one for our kids who are ages 10,8,4, and 2. Where do you suggest a list of manners to learn? I love this question because this mom recognizes an important part of child development; teaching kindness and respect for others using the […]

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