How Many SIGNS Do You Need to See?

Linking this week with Tuesday at Ten... the writing prompt phrase for the week: "If only..."

So, today I write about "If only... I had paid attention to all the SIGNS..."

One of my "recent passions" is administrating a "PAGE" on Facebook called When You're STUCKinindiana. Why such a passion at this time in my life? I HAVE NO IDEA. But, it seems to be something that I can't resist :) I believe that everything is for a season. And, I have no idea how long this season will last. As much as I'm enjoying it & feeling fulfilled by it at this time, I'm confident it will end at some point. But right now, I'm focused on sharing life with others through that page... by way of pairing up some of my photos with quotes, sayings, lyrics, etc. for the purpose of relating to, encouraging, inspiring, and affirming others.

When I find a quote or saying (or someone else's original post) that I like, I save it in a file. When someone sends me a favorite quote, I save it in a file. When I write a blog post and a certain "thought" stands out to me, I save it in a file. I pair these up with one of my photos & save them to post at a later date.

In looking back at my life, I noticed that there were a LOT of "signs" that I ignored as I rushed along from one thing to another. I began keeping a list several years ago of things which should have made me STOP to think before I proceeded. If you're interested in seeing that list as it's posted, check out the When You're STUCKinindiana Facebook page & watch for them to post. I'll organize them in an album as I post them too :)

So, how many signs do YOU need to see before you STOP and think before proceeding? Sometimes it's more than I want to admit.

Mean Parent Award?

As I've said TONS of times, parenting is NOT for the faint of heart!  Sometimes we have to make choices, set boundaries, say "NO", and other things that are not at all well-received by our children. 

How many times have you heard this... 

• the King James Version of Proverbs 22:6, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." 
• the New Living Translation of Proverbs 22:6, "Teach your children to choose the right path, and when they are older, they will remain upon it." 

I must honestly admit that my prayer has often been, “Dear God, Please let my children GET old.” Today I claim that verse & vow to continue to make the right choices for them - even when those choices are difficult to make & not well-received!

(written 10/08/11)

Parenting is NOT for the Faint of Heart!

In our adult Sunday School class a few years back, one of the couples (parents of 3 children) were beginning the summer after their oldest child's first year in college. She was coming in late, being noisy, not reporting where she was, requesting QUIET in the morning hours, and more! I remember my husband & I "giving them advice". While doing that, I was silently wondering what will we actually "do" if we faced that!!

I guess we learned that when our oldest came home after freshman year of college. When we began experiencing the same things our friends had told us about all those years ago, the LOML and I recounted the "advice" we'd given to our friends. We'd said something like this...