written by Tricia » Habits for a Happy Home

The Christian Parenting Handbook

Apr 292013

Today I share with you a wonderful resource! The Christian Parenting Handbook is available for purchase this week. Not only that but when you purchase it you also are provided with $400 worth of additional parenting resources.

Practical. Biblical. 50 chapters of parenting strategies for all ages of children.

I received a digital preview copy of The Christian Parenting Handbook to help spread the word about this great resource. This post contains affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.

I’ve been looking forward to The Christian Parenting Handbook since I first heard about it. Remember our sister site, Passionate Purposeful Parenting? Melanie Robbins, owner of Passionate Purposeful Parenting, has a team of authors there. Included are my husband and me. But also – the co-authors of this parenting books – Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller, R.N. are fellow writers.

Take a few minutes to watch this introductory video about the handbook, then don’t miss entering the mega giveaway below:

Christian Parenting Handbook Video Trailer from Scott Turansky on Vimeo.

Bonuses For You:

Buy The Christian Parenting Handbook between April 29 and May 5 and get a package of free resources valued at more than $400.00. You can learn more on our website about the 8 items contained in the Bonus Parenting Package. In addition, you can get The Christian Parenting Handbook Companion Guide (This is a workbook with audio clips that will help you apply the material in The Christian Parenting Handbook.) for free if you purchase 5 copies or more of the book. Simply make your purchase from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, BAM (Books A Million), CBD or Parable.

To claim your premium, simply forward your purchase confirmation to Gift@biblicalparenting.org and we will email you your special product code for the $400.00 package. If you purchased 5 or more copies of the book, we’ll send you the PDF version of the Companion Guide as well as the audio package.

Now for the Mega Giveaway!

The giveaway includes the following prizes:

iPad mini
$200.00 Amazon gift card
$100.00 Amazon gift card
Wii with Sports game included ($199.99)
# 9 Kodak EasyShare Digital Frame with Music ($89.99)

Enter the rafflebox widget below:

Don’t miss out on your package of $400 in resources, get your Christian Parenting Handbook this week!

Five Apps for Heavenly Habits

Heavenly Habits, Technology Habits 6 Responses »

Apr 022013

5 Heavenly Apps at Habits for a Happy Home Technology can definitely be used for heavenly habits. Amy recently showed us how she uses the voice memo iPhone app to help with scripture memorization. Little Sanctuary shares encouraging and challenging links from around the web. Kendra talked about being light on social media. Sherri challenged us with stepping away from the habit of the internet. And my husband has shared technology habits frequently.

Today I’m sharing five apps for heavenly habits:

GloBible App – read Hodgepodgedad’s GloBible review at The Curriculum Choice. Available for Mac, PC, iPad and iPhone.
Bible Gateway – available for iPhone, iPad, android, Kindle Fire.
You Version – for use on many platforms.
One Thousand Gifts – iPhone/iPad and android “How do you find everyday, amazing grace in the midst of deadlines, debt, drama, and daily duties?” Count gifts wherever you are.
Instagram – well, this isn’t touted as a heavenly app but it can certainly be used for His glory! Capture all the blessings God has given you! A few of our authors are on instagram. Starting with the Jesus Team. We also have Hodgepodgemom, Amy Law, and Little Sanctuary.

**Bonus! 5 Totally Awesome Bible Apps for Kids

How do you use technology in a heavenly way? Or what is your favorite Bible app?

~ Written by Tricia

10 Helps for Building Habits

Habits for life 1 Response »

Jan 292013

January is the month so many are working on, hoping to and longing to establish new habits. And, yes, we are a website devoted to Habits for a Happy Home. So, here we are at the end of January. How are you doing? You may be wondering how do you make habits stick? Today we share all the best – from each of our authors – from the archives.

We invite you to pin, bookmark and save this post to your favorites. Come back and visit often! Because habits are not just for January but the whole year through.

Excellent post full of encouragement from Angie about Habit Formation Once something is a habit, you don’t even have to think about it, you just do “it”. Isn’t that a gift because if we had to think about every single action we took, we would be beyond worn out.

Forming Habits – The Ones We Shouldn’t Have are the Easiest to Form. Sherri says, “When I have formed a habit, it’s usually because I have taken the time to write something down on my calendar and keep doing so until I don’t think about it anymore. I just do it. If I think I might forget to do something, I’ll set a reminder on my cell phone like an alarm or I’ll send myself an email. I also write myself notes EVERYWHERE.”

Fight Fire with Fire – Kendra says Our lives are driven by devices. Devices that distract us so, so easily. So I guess I’m fighting fire with fire here, because I use those same distracting devices to help me with habit building. For me, this is the modern day equivalent of a string tied to my finger.

The Habit to Remember - Trisha shares a wonderful, visual way to build a habit of remembering.

Help for Making Habits Stick For me, over the years with babies, toddlers, stacks of school books, hungry mouths and now towering teens, these are the basic routes I’ve discovered for seeing results in building habits. The habits for building habits, if you will

Making Habits Stick: 31 in 31 …other avenues for habit building. One is making three goals to reach in 30 days. So, three habits in a month. 3 in 30. But this is the one that I really like…

In His Ways are not Our Ways Kim A. reminds of the basis of all. Put love first, and let everything else fall into place…schedules, schoolwork, chores. All important things, but remember “the greatest of these is love.”

Habit formation: What About Our Own Habits? by Angie includes a Getting Started Plan.

Psalm 139: 1O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
² You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.

Stuck? Try Micro Goals by guest contributor Cassandra Frear. “When I’m stuck in a rut or intimidated by a large project, this works like a miracle. It makes possible things I never thought I’d be able to do.”

And let’s not forget the Power of Prayer by littlesanctuary. “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.”

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. Romans 8:26-28

Bonus! Return of the Routine. Free ebook download through 1/31/13.

We invite you to subscribe so you won’t miss any Habits for a Happy Home.

~ by Tricia at Hodgepodge

How are you doing with forming habits? What are one or more things that have worked for you this new year?

How to Plan Individual Time with Multiple Ages

Habits for a Happy Mom, Habits for a Happy Wife, Habits for Happy Kids 3 Responses »

Dec 312012

Preschoolers, middle ones and teenagers. That’s where we are. With such a mix of ages it’s sometimes hard to have individual time with each child. Just how do you make a habit of planning individual time with each child? Today I share a few of the ways my husband and I accomplish that. The habits that help.

I don’t suggest that you incorporate all of these into your family life unless you want to. Rather pick one or two and add in what appeals to you, what seems easy.

Let it happen naturally

Lately I’ve found individual time is happening with the natural flow of the day. My youngest ones rise early, usually one at a time. My older ones stay up later and we enjoy some time after the littlest ones are tucked in. Early morning discussions about favorite cars and trucks with my youngest one. Late night talks with my eldest girl. Bedside ponderings with my littlest girl at sunset. This is not anything I’ve planned for, it’s just how the day happens. Right now. As each of my children grow and change, I’ll likely be adjusting and making changes to how the natural individual times happen.

Morning Room Time

This particular habit is one that helped me teach individual math lessons at the same time little ones were learning in room time. It’s exactly how I was able to be in two places at once. My husband and I set aside time to make room time CDs – recording our voices – for the children to listen to. We also included fun Bible songs, the ABCs, basic manners and more. A round up on all I’ve shared is included in How Morning Time Builds Learning Skills for Later.

Go to the Store Buddy

Kendra gives a perfect example of this in her post, Divide and Conquer. Children take turns going to the store, the library, running errands. Sometimes we even use a coupon and go to an inexpensive restaurant. Those drives around town are often the time my child and I have the deepest, most important talks.

Afternoon Quiet Time

Another long-time habit that is often the anchor of our days more than anything else is afternoon quiet time. The beauty of afternoon time is that a child can spend some individual time with a parent. This is when a child and I have practiced reading, worked on a project, painted toenails or simply sat quietly. Built in individual time. Five weekdays – five children!

Plus, when a younger sibling is napping, it’s simple to scoop up some reading and snuggle time on the couch.

Cooking and Baking

Time to toss the ingredients in the slow cooker? Call a child to help you stir it in. Need to rinse some dishes? I have one that loves the kitchen sink squirter. He can stand on the stool and rinse dishes and we can chat about the birds we see through the window. Invite your preschooler to be part of the action!

Other Household Tasks

Folding laundry together, teaching individual children how to load a dishwasher and even afternoons of car repair can be opportunities for individual time. Don’t discount these times. The simple truths my children and I have talked about over a huge pile of laundry amaze me!

Exercise

Sometimes one of the children will accompany me or suggest we talk a walk in the neighborhood. What great talks we’ve had on our walks! *Psst* This is also a fabulous way to get in a little quiet time with my husband – late night, neighborhood walks. And Angie shares how she starts her homeschool day outside in I Finally Did it! (this would be an easy way to fit in some individual time!)

Staggered Bedtimes

Our youngest two children go to bed at the same time each night. Hodgepodgedad tucks in one and I tuck in the other. The questions asked, the family classic quotes we’ve gathered at tucking in time! Next, our Middle Girl is tucked in. She and I sometimes play King’s Corners, draw a picture together or scan a Where’s Waldo. Then my husband and I spend time with our eldest two children. Kendra has a wonderful post on Bedtime Stories.

Ministering

Making cards, delivering a meal, making a gift. Not only can you have a little bit of individual time in creating something to bless someone else, but there is sometimes individual time to be had when making the drive over to deliver a gift.

In summary, planning individual time with each of your children can be a challenge. However, it can be much simpler when you look at the natural flow of your days. Also, be sure to simply leave room for spontaneity. But plan, so you can feel free to be spontaneous. Kerri explains this beautifully in her Planning to Be Spontaneous series. Basically, plan and have resources in place so that when opportunity arises you can take advantage of it.

Individual prayer time for each child with the Prayer Calendar at Passionate Purposeful Parenting
A handy planning resource we sometimes use – Doorposts’ Family Circles – making time for the ones you love
Our author, Kim Ashbaugh, shared a wonderful post at Passionate Purposeful Parenting: The Importance of Individual Time
7 Ways to Have Individual Time with Your Kids from Finding Joy
Time with Daddy! Daddy Destinations

Be sure to visit all the other ‘how to’ planning posts shared by iHomeschool Network bloggers!

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10 Thanksgiving Habits

Holiday Habits No Responses »

Oct 302012

Do you have Thanksgiving traditions, habits you turn to? We do and we’re sharing them today. We hope you will find some here to be thankful for as well.

1. Kendra’s Thankfulness Tree is a memory-making treasure for every year.

2. Kendra’s Note to Self makes such great sense. Adopt this habit this Thanksgiving and save yourself so much time in years to come. “In five minutes, without any brain-strain whatsoever, I was able to review and update what we did last year from what we ate to the centerpieces on the table to which bowls/platters/pots & pans I used to prepare and serve each item.”

3. There is just enough time to download and print the Thanksgiving Thankful Countdown Jar! A little something to pull out of a jar for every day leading up to Thanksgiving!

4. Little Sanctuary’s Yam Casserole is a classic holiday recipe.

5. Thanksgiving Tips I’m Thankful For from rinsing potatoes in the dishwasher to making dressing in the slow cooker. Hooray for practical!

6. The Habit of Tradition by Sherri. “Traditions are there if you look for them.”

7. Thanksgiving Homeschool Celebration at Heart of the Matter. “Each year at this time we share what we call a unit celebration of our homeschool. Basically, we show off the best of our school work and projects while the side dishes are still warming in the oven.”

8. Eight Free Printables for Thanksgiving from place mats to color to dinner conversation starters.

9. Fun ideas for the Kids Table at Skip to My Lou. So many cute printables for coloring and decorating.

10. Worksheets and Printables for Fall and Thanksgiving at Mama’s Learning Corner. A wonderful list of match games, journal pages, writing/grateful printables. You will want to pin this for printing!

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Habits for a Happy Home! (And we’ve got Christmas habits too!)