Balancing Life: A Father's Perspective

By Kevin (Shooting the Breeze)

Being a dad can be a balancing act sometimes.

Actually, it is not just a balancing sometimes; it is a balancing act ALL the time!  On any given day my attention is being pulled in at least four different directions: toward my wife, toward my children, toward my job and toward myself. 

All these aspects of my life are important BUT they are not of the same importance.  I have to choose how I prioritize these different important aspects of my life.  I must be living with the right priorities in place in order to find a happy balance in my life.

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Part I - The Joy Of Budgeting (Seriously?)

By Renee, LSWA

Seriously. For too many people, the word budgeting leaves a bad taste in their mouth. Punishment comes to mind for many. It does not have to be that way. A budget is simply a financial management tool for the home. We plan our meals, our car tune-ups, our work week. Why wouldn't we plan our home money management? Bringing these areas under control relieves burden, worry, anxiety and stress. It maximizes our finances so we can be more effective in all areas of our life.

The goal is to live within our means. That is, we don't spend more than we make on a monthly basis. Ideally, this means that we don't use credit cards for daily living expenses and we practice self-control. It means we keep our needs, wants and desires in check.

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Fatherhood

By Roger

It seems like yesterday when my wife told me that we were expecting our first child. I was 27 years old then and I can honestly say I was elated and scared at the same time. I knew right then and there I was going to be a protector and provider for this gift from God.

In March of 1983 our daughter was born. My fatherhood began. As most new parents do, this child was given a lot of attention. We have hundreds of pictures of our daughter. From her first this to her first that, everything she did was recorded or a picture was taken.

In June of 1986 our second child was born. A boy. Somehow his first this and first that did gather the same attention as our first child. We have about half as many pictures of our son as we did our daughter. Why is that?

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Parenthood: The Gift That Keeps On Giving

By Renee

" Moooom! Where are my shoes?" "Moooom! She's looking at me." "Moooom! _____________." (you fill in the blank.) There are days when I ask myself, "What were you thinking?"and "Why did you think this was a good idea?" If you're honest with yourself, you do too. But alas, it is true. I am Mom and I'm glad about it! My children are truly a gift, really. But on those days when the kids are fighting or I've just said "brush your teeth" for the fourteenth time, I can lose sight of this pretty quickly. Then, my attitude about my children can take a complete turn from gift to burden. That starts the cycle of guilt for thinking they could ever be a burden and then that turns into resentment and so on. You get the picture.

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