Search Results for: blog the value of conversations

Respect Your Teen’s Values and Beliefs

Sometimes when my 16-year-old talks, especially when it’s about political or moral issues he sounds like me. Now don’t get me wrong, despite his environment obviously influencing him he definitely has his own mind. He is not one to go along with someone else just because. He is his own thinker. The older he gets the more I chuckle at some of his insights, inwardly that is. He is beginning to really sound grown up. He has strong opinions about things and has no problem voicing them. He shares things that are always very interesting. Now some may think that … Continue reading →

The Value of Conversations

Something struck me yesterday while doing a spell check after writing an article. I’d meant to write ‘conversation’ but because I’m the world worst typist – dyslexic fingers, it came out not even close. As a result spell check suggested I meant ‘conversion.’ But that error actually made me think. How often do conversions of family or friends or neighbors come about because of conversations? Statistics in Australia show the majority of people are invited to church or church activities by a friend. It also shows that most people come to know Jesus and commit their lives to Him, which … Continue reading →

The Value of Playing Games

Have architects and house designers had a negative impact on family life? Yesterday Mick and I went out for the day to look at some exhibition homes in a display village. Not that we have any plans to up and move from where we are, but often it is away to pick up decorating ideas and we did come home with one or two. However the thing that struck me most and saddened me was the idea of parent’s bedrooms often with large parents retreats where they can sit and relax are well away from children’s bedrooms, being at opposite … Continue reading →

Technology is a Poor Substitute for Social Interaction

Posted on by

Are your kids addicted to the internet? How much time do your kids spend looking at a screen instead of interacting with family? Parents might want to consider taking steps to limit the amount of “screen time” that their kids are getting. The New York Times has an article by Jane Brody in which she discusses the negative affects that countless hours of playing video games can have on children. It’s not just teenagers, either. Younger kids can also behave as if they are addicted to “the internet”. How does this happen? There is a Kaiser Family Foundation study that … Continue reading →

Plugged In Parent?

Are you a plugged in parent?  I’m talking about the kind of parent who is involved in your teenager’s life…in such a way that you would recognize signs of bad behavior.  Things like drinking, drugs, oh, even prostitution. Can you imagine not knowing that your teenager was not only sexually active but had been with married men?  Had prostituted herself out in order to get ecstasy? That was the situation in a recent Dr. Phil show I watched.  I would have to say this was probably the most clueless mother I have ever seen. The specifics of the show don’t … Continue reading →

Election Lessons

On the way to school yesterday morning, I had the radio on. A caller from Kentucky mentioned that when parents go to the polls to vote, they can take their kids along and they get to participate in their own election. They even get a real ballot and the kids’ votes are tallied. This gives them the opportunity to see who their peers are voting for. My 13-year-old son spoke up and said that they are probably just going to vote for the same person as their parents. In other words, they are swayed by the influence of them. This … Continue reading →

Inappropriate Birthday Party?

So I’m watching “The View” last week and one of the conversations surrounded a mother arranging her 13-year-old son’s birthday party at “Hooters.” Now I just about gasped. The segment also included a picture of the new teen posing with a well-endowed worker there. Cute? Um, not in my humble opinion. Appropriate? Call me a fuddy-duddy, but I find it highly inappropriate. So there weren’t better options out there? I mean, what is the point? The mom’s argument was supposedly that teens are exposed to this kind of stuff and much more anyway. Okay, so that means we take it … Continue reading →

Morality in America

Do you really want to know what you are dealing with, when it comes to raising children today? Have you considered the morality of America…where we came from, where we are at and where we are heading? A Gallup poll was recently conducted on “Values & Beliefs” in America. The findings will help you better understand just what you are up against when it comes to the raising of your children. This isn’t meant as a way to make judgments but simply to enlighten parents. And hopefully with this enlightenment, there will be conversations with your children about what you … Continue reading →

Facebook Party Know How, part 1

When I was first invited to a Facebook party I thought the world had gone insane. What could one possibly do at a Facebook party? How does it benefit the person having the party? I also wondered what etiquette rules dictated about what one would bring to a Facebook party. Seemed there was no etiquette made for Facebook parties. Have you been invited to one yet? If so, have you considered the benefits of planning a Facebook party for your business? What is a Facebook Party? A Facebook party is when individuals get together on a particular page during a … Continue reading →

Teaching Your Children Your Morals

Not all homeschooling families are religious, but many are, and have chosen to incorporate their values into their homeschool curriculums. This is true of me and my family. We are Latter-day Saints, and we choose to make our religion an integral part of our lives. This overflows into everything from our interactions with each other to the way we approach certain subjects—creationism rather than evolution, for instance. The other night, I had an experience that made me sit back and look at my daughter in a new light. She has been taught from infancy what we believe, and I know … Continue reading →