Fingerprint Friday: The Right Words At The Right Time

By MAD21

This was a stressful week for our family. It started out with hurt feelings. Soon followed by angry words, some crying, more words, and more crying. It's never a good way to start a week.

However, within this rush of emotions and hurtful words was also a huge opportunity to grow, for both my kids and myself. It provided a time when we could all talk about why it's so important to love and respect each other. An opportunity for us to talk about how the words made each of us feel, and how God feels when we hurt each other.

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The God of All Comfort

Updated on Thursday, January 14, 2010 at 9:14AM by MAD21

By MAD21

There are so many people I know that are in the midst of healing in one form or another. Whether it's from a death of a loved one, a life-threatening diagnosis, abuse, depression, neglect... it's all around us. Have you noticed?

Even if you are living the life of your dreams, you will still have days that come crashing down around you. You know the kind. When you heart just literally aches. Someone hurts your feelings, you have a bad day at work, something you were looking forward to gets cancelled. Couple all of this with the compassion you may feel for your friends or family going through some serious hardship. It makes for a very emotionally draining time.

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YOB: #13. Go Gambling in Atlantic City

By Beth

When I was 16 my Great Aunt Nancy got married in Las Vegas in one of those little wedding chapels that are so prominent out there. Before you ask, no, she was not married by Elvis, it was not a drive through chapel and the only theme was "wedding." It was a second marriage so they wanted to skip the fuss of a big church wedding and they actually lived in Vegas. My mother and I flew out for the wedding and stayed for a few days. I remember being very impressed, not only with the shortness of the ceremony (it was maybe 15 minutes, and the recessional was "Tea For Two;" there was another bride waiting outside when we came out, too) but with all the sights Vegas has to offer. It really is a beautiful city and it is still on my own personal list to go back and see again. Somewhere in a shoebox I have pictures of all the dazzling casinos, hotels, resorts and theaters out there. I also have a picture of my grandfather getting ready to pull the lever on the slot machines in the airport. It's one of my favorite poses of him.

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Love Songs

By Sarah (Living Between the Lines)

In life, there are these rare but brilliant moments in time when you know that you have experienced something special and unspeakable…  Sitting on the porch of a cabin in the woods, listening to the raindrops slapping the leaves.  Watching snow fall during the quiet dark of the middle of the night.  Swinging in a hammock with your eyes closed, feeling the hot breeze move across your face while the crickets and frogs screech and scream at each other…

One day last August, I came home from work at the end of one of the hottest days of the year in Eastern North Carolina. It was the kind of heat that could almost melt your tractor tires, but the local farmers had spent the day harvesting and so I could see the dust lingering in the almost-breezeless air.  As I pulled into my driveway, the sun sank behind the trees, leaving behind only a faint puff of pink afterglow.  I sat behind my steering wheel, watching the pink fade to dark and I felt like a child who had been told a secret.  But what was the secret?  It was at the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t quite reach it. 

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Works For Me Wednesday: Who Goes First?

By MAD21

Picture, if you will, two sisters going into rest time. They always get a story before having to turn the lights out and be quiet. All of the things that need to be done before retreating to the bedroom get done. All is calm until... "It's MY turn to pick it out!" "NO! It's MYYY turn!" "NO! My turn!" ..... "MOoooOOOOMM!!"

It only takes so many days of this happening before you have no patience left and realize you need to find a better way to help your kids get along, and learn to take turns and share. (And be happy about it-HAHA!) Something needs to happen both for them, and for you.

Our girls are finally both old enough that they can do a lot of the same things, have a lot of opinions, and almost always want to go first or be the one who gets to choose something. I, like any parent, am always on the look out for fun ways to get things done. And this situation is no different.

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