Parenting Tips from Anne Frank

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I made a list of 24 books I wanted to read this year. "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank was number 1 on that list.

I read it once when I was young, but I've been wanting to re-read it for quite a few years now. I'm so glad I finally made the time!

When I read it the first time, I was a kid and I was reading what another kid wrote. This time I read it as a parent, thus I noticed this child's relationship with her mother.

According to her diary, Anne did not like her mother very much at all. Yet, at the same time, it appears that she put on a facade so her mom wasn't always aware of how deep Anne's resentment toward her was.

As the mother of an almost 2 digit daughter, I tried to analyze how I can do things differently, so as not to have a strained relationship with my own children.

I'm no psychologist, but here are some things I learned:

Do not trick then laugh at your child

Pretty common sense, right?

While in hiding, Anne relates an incident that had happened over a year prior. Her mom and sister took her to the dentist and they encouraged Anne to take her bike. After they left the dentist, the mom said she and her sister were going shopping downtown and Anne couldn't come because she brought her bike.

Anne got angry and when she did, her mom and sister laughed at her. In her diary, Anne says she could never forgive her mother for that incident.


Don't be your child's friend

Anne stated quite often that she wanted a mother who was like a mother. She couldn't quite spell out what that meant, but she knew she didn't have it.

At one point she says that her mom tries to treat her like a friend, but that isn't what she wanted.

She didn't even feel like her mother was worthy of the title mom, so she called her momsy. :(

Not sure how I could prevent this, because Anne wasn't quite sure how things could be different either.

No nitpicking

From what I can gather, Anne was quite the chatterbox. Always talking and apparently always getting scolded for everything she did.

There were several entries that Anne complained of how much she was reprimanded. She felt like she couldn't do anything without being told that she was being too loud or too clumsy or what have you.

I know I'm guilty of this one, but its something I'm trying to work on. Praise the Lord for His grace!

If you've read Anne Frank's diary and have learned a thing or two, I'd love to hear about it.

5 tips for stress free sicknesses

How are you holding up this fine cold and flu season? I know wintertime can be a doozy to get through, but with some planning it can at least be less stressful.

Let me know if these tips are helpful at all.

1. Stock up

This is a no brainer, but its easy to forget. Make sure you have your sickness staples on hand before your children are sick.

At our house the list of needs includes:

• Acetaminophen
• Ibuprofen
• Vicks vapor rub
• Nebulizer treatments
• A working thermometer!

2. Keep everything in its place

This year we had to buy a new thermometer. We had gone through three forehead thermometers over the past several years. They're not cheap either! $50 not cheap to be exact. I'm not really sure what happens to them. I think they get mishandled way too much.

So, when we bought one this time around I wanted to keep it safe for a little longer. I decided to make a "sickness" box. I put all of our necessities in one box. When no one is sick, the box is put away, when sickness strikes, I know exactly where everything is and its all intact.

3. Take notes

Did you notice the memo pads in both pictures? That's something new I started this year. I really like record keeping, so this is a fun thing for me (if I can use that word when talking about kids being sick!)

Basically, every time we've had fevers in the past I would write down the time-temperature-medicine given. Without these notes I would forget the times or type of fever reducer. So now each kid has their own little memo pad.

Other info I add to these memo pads are wellness check up info (this also goes in my calendar/planner), prescription info and other random symptoms.

I like having everything in one place so I don't look clueless when the doctor starts asking me when my child got sick! "Um, I think it was Monday night!"

4. Don't lose track!

Sorry about the horrible quality of these pics, but this is all I have right now!

Anyway, throughout the years there have been times when we've had two or three kids on different antibiotics. I do not trust my memory during these times (or anytime for that matter!).

This is a picture of my kitchen wall calendar. As you can see, we're at the beginning of the year and I have "A's" all over! When I picked up the Augmentin (antibiotic) I immediately marked 20 "A's" on the calendar. Two doses a day for ten days. Each time the medicine is taken I mark it off. I cannot stress how helpful this is.

5. Long term file

Do you have a home management binder? If not how about a file folder or a notebook? Whatever you have, one sheet of paper per family member should be sufficient for medical records (unless there is a chronic illness). Keeping each person's medical history in an accessible place is very useful during unforeseen times.

Good things to include would be birth information, major illnesses, surgeries and any allergies (food, seasonal and medical).

Please stay well this winter!

Christmas Clean Up (pictures and cards)

Now that we're well into the new year, its time we put away our Christmas stuff. Make sure you put all your decorations in one place, so you know where to find them next year!

Today I want to talk about all those wonderful cards and pictures you receive in the mail.

Pictures

I'm currently working on my third album (seen above).

Instead of clogging my fridge or having pictures scattered throughout the house, I found an album is the easiest way to organize holiday pictures. I love looking through as my collection grows. Its also fun to see how some families change from year to year.

This is also the place where I keep other pictures obtained throughout the year. I have pics that come with birthday invitations, save the date cards, prayer cards, etc. Here is a picture of a zebra that my sister-in-law took. She sent it to me as a card front:

These albums are very special to me. If you haven't come up with a solution to all the pictures you receive from loved ones, I suggest giving this oh so easy idea a try.

Cards

The Christmas card dilemma.

Instead of throwing them out, I simply set mine aside in a dedicated place for next year. It seems at least one teacher asks for old cards so the kids can work on a craft. I don't mind hanging on to them for that purpose.

What do you do with your old cards?

35 Snowflake projects

Ironically enough, I bought this snowflake in Florida, so there is no tutorial for it!

If you are interested in making snowflakes and want something a little more beautiful then the ones I showed you yesterday, check out this list. I tried to include only links that give actual tutorials.

Paper snowflakes:

1. Medallion snowflakes - Just one sheet of white paper to make these not-so-flat beauties.

2. Tinsel Snowflakes - Glue, glitter and cardboard (and a printer wouldn't hurt).

3. Wrapping paper snowflakes - good craft for preschoolers by Hands on as we grow

4. Reminds me of origmai only there's cutting snowflake.

5. Paper ballerina snowflake. So VERY beautiful.

6. Spool print snowflakes. Can you say "kid friendly"?

7. Foam stamped snowflakes. Made from the inside of an old bicycle helmet.

8. Cupcake liner snowflakes. Easy and pretty.

9. Cardboard snowflakes. Supplies: cereal box, glue and colored yarn!

10. Snowflake Suncatcher. Contact paper, cardstock, tissue paper and snowflake cookie cutter or template.

11. Snowflake resist watercolor grid. Need to use up some white crayons?

12. Toilet paper roll snowflake. It looks quite elegant.

13. Snowflake advent activity calendar. Looks sophisticated.

14. Snowflake craft. Made with six sheets of paper and a few cuts. I see this in classrooms a lot.

Other materials:

15. Snowflake ornament made out of puzzle pieces by Lisa's craft blog

16. Snowflake stones with bling. I love rocks!

17. Snowflake ornament made out of twigs and white yarn. Simple and elegant looking.

18. Rustic snowflake. Another one made with twigs. I love the look of this one.

19. Wooden snowflakes. Made out of various shaped wood pieces about the thickness of popsicle sticks.

20. Shrinking snowflake necklace made out of frosted shrinking plastic.

21. Last minute snowflakes. All you need is glue, wax paper and glitter or salt!

22.Borax crystals. Make a snowflake shape out of a chenille stem and grow crystals on top.

23. Pasta snowflakes. Made with wagon wheel pasta, glue and glitter.

24. Upgraded ball ornament. Use Cricut machine to cut metallic snowflakes.

25. Snowflake coasters from Dollar Store Crafts.

26. Melted crayon snowflakes. Make lots to decorate  a window.

27. Popsicle Stick snowflakes. Scroll to the end of the post for the how to and pics.

28. Snowflake Plate. Great for giving a plate of goodies.

29. Snowflake Motif Candleholders. Nice and colorful.

30. Crochet snowflakes. I'm sure I could make a long list of crocheted snowflakes alone!

31. Snowflake Wreath. Made with snowflakes from the dollar store.

32. Cinnamon snowflakes. Food item- kids cut their tortillas into snowflake shapes then they are sweetened.

33. Snowflake sunday school lesson complete with a snowflake picture frame.

34. Giant popsicle stick ornaments. Fun and easy to make. They range from 12 to 24 inches wide.

35. Painted snowflake pillows. What a nice addition to your home.

Snowflakes for Sandy Hook

"A day late and a dollar short!" That about sums it up for me.

If I want to put a positive twist on it, I guess I can say, "Its never too late".

Over the Christmas break I wanted to make snowflakes with my kids, so we could send them to the students in Newtown. The Connecticut PTA wanted the kids to return to a winter wonderland at their new school.

We did make the snowflakes and eventually get them glued onto heavier paper, but I'm just not quick enough. The rest of the country flooded the Sandy Hook Elementary students with snowflakes.

So now, we can display ours in our home to remind us to pray for those still suffering.

As you can easily see, I'm not an artist. Not even close. But that's ok, my kids still love me.

For our snowflakes, I chose to use tissue paper (its much easier to cut through).

I cut out a square piece of cardstock to use as a template.

These are the two websites the kids and I used for patterns and folding instructions:

• Triangle folding instructions and some patterns

• Fun square and circle designs

Since tissue paper is oh so flimsy we glued two snowflakes onto each piece of cardstock.

I saw other much more creative snowflakes floating around the web, but we'll just have to stick with ours!

Come back tomorrow for a fairly comprehensive list of snowflake tutorials that may be more appealing.

Happy New Year

Are you ready to burst into the new year? I know I'm looking forward to it!

Here are a few tips to help make a smooth transition.

1. Don't Make Resolutions... Set Goals

I gave up making resolutions several years ago. I never kept them and I felt like I was setting myself up for failure. This year, I decided to spend an hour or so setting up some goals I'd like to accomplish.

Some of my goals include:

• read 24 books that I've already chosen (that's 2 a month - definitely doable)
• knit 1 washcloth a month
• watch 1 Spanish movie a month
• complete the couch to 5k program with Tabitha and Seth
• run a 5k

I have a few others, but you get the idea. Nothing I chose is too hard, but it does take some effort on my part. I have them all in a google doc. When I complete each one I can highlight them. Nothing like a little color to motivate!

Even if I don't do everything, I know that I'll accomplish some and that is more than if I didn't plan anything!

2. Think Positive

Notice in my list above that I only have things I'm going to do. There's nothing I said I'm going to STOP doing.

Resolutions are almost never kept, because they usually are something you're trying to give up and that just goes against our nature.

Try and put a positive spin on something you want to accomplish. For example, you may be tempted to say, "I'm going to cut down on sweets" or "I'm going to stop eating junk food". Both are vague and discouraging. Why don't you try something like "I will eat fruits or veggies as a snack at least four times a week." Now its measurable. If you follow through you actually fulfilled a goal and you can rejoice!

3. Instead of Daily, Aim for Weekly or Monthly

Some resolutions seem fun. Here are some tempting ones:

• Take a picture a day
• blog every day :)
• try something new each day
• make a daily craft/piece of art

Where ever your interests lie, there are some commitments beckoning. Its really hard to do something every single day for a full year. After all, there will be sicknesses, travel days, or just plain old busy and tiring days.

Its more attainable if you give yourself a week or month to take a step on your goal ladder.

4. Don't Faint

Sometimes the beginning of a new year can seem daunting. There's a lot new things you want to accomplish. You want to be a better you by the end of the year! You want to start fresh and not mess it up.

That's not always possible. Please read this verse carefully and make a commitment to remember it.

Speaking of the Lord's mercies, the prophet Jeremiah tells us that, "They are new every morning."Lam. 3:23

Some days we will fail, but take heart, His mercies are new every morning.

Heeding Granny's Advice

My life was totally different when I was a teenager. I used to talk on the phone all day and hang out with friends all night.

I remember getting off the phone one day. My grandmom asked me who it was. I don't remember who it was, but I do know it was some guy. I told her his name and said, "he's just a friend."

I'll never forget her reaction. An old Irish woman, she stomped her foot down and in an exasperated, almost yelling voice, said, "Don't you know boys and girls can't be friends?! Either they grow closer together and become more than friends or they grow further apart and are no longer friends."

Me, in all my teenage glory, just rolled my eyes and said, "Whatever Granny."

A few years after that incident I actually believed her. And the longer I live the more strongly I feel that she was right.

I know of a marriage that recently ended because of an "innocent" friendship between the husband and another woman. While thinking about this split my grandmom's words ran through my head. Doesn't everybody know this? Don't they know that they can't just be friends??? I guess not.

So, I figured I'd take a moment to warn others out there. Please be careful. I wish I had a verse that said these words flat out, but I don't. In I Corinthians 6 it does say to flee sexual immorality.

Flee is a strong word. It reminds me of Joseph who was tempted by Potipher's wife (Genesis 39). When Joseph went into his master's house, no one was there except his master's wife. She said "Lie with me." At that moment he didn't try to reason with her like he did in the past, instead he fled, not even staying long enough to grab his garment which she had a hold of. After that Joseph was arrested because of the woman's lies, but he still had a clear conscience between he and the Lord. That is fleeing!

Now, I can't tell you where the line should be drawn. That should be done through your own discretion. I understand that there has to be communication between men and women for things like work and maybe other events. But please monitor your own actions and intentions. Feelings for those of the opposite gender can come on quickly and come on strong. Stand fast and flee if necessary!