For this week’s “Meet the Team” feature on WNZR, we shine the spotlight on RUC – Relationship Under Construction. WNZR’s Hannah Radke talked with RUC President, Catherine Wood about his amazing ministry.
Click HERE to hear more about what they do to reach out to youth in our community. Plus hear about ministry highlights from 2017 and goals for 2018.
For more information about RUC, click HERE.
The Morning Thing is always looking for inspirational thoughts and information to share each morning from 6am – 9am.
This morning, we shared some wonderful insight from speaker and author, Shaunti Feldhan. She shared some inspiration for Moms of boys recently in her blog “Helping you thrive in life and relationships”.
Here are 3 things every boy needs to hear from his Mom:
Click HERE to read the full article.
#1: I’m So Proud of You.
All males are powerfully moved by hearing these words, but perhaps none more so than the young, testosterone-laden boys who may at times act first, think later, and thus are more used to hearing (as they are stitched up in the Emergency Room) “What were you thinking?” If you make a point of finding and saying those things worth praising whenever they happen (like when they try out for a sports team, audition for a play or plow their way through a tough paper for Lit class), it tells a young man that this is truly who he is—not that buffoon who occasionally gets dinged for doing something dumb.
#2: Sure, You Can Try It!
I hesitate to put this phrase so soon after the act-first-think-later-then-require-stitches example used above, but this truly is powerful in a young man’s life—especially when he hears it from “Cautious Mom” rather than “Adventure Dad.” Dads (having been young men themselves) know how vital it is that a boy try to do something on his own. Yes, he might try and fail (see Emergency Room example above), but he might do OK. Better yet, he might actually shine! It is hard for us to let our boy take this risk—no matter how big and husky (these are our babies!)—it is essential for his confidence for the future that he be able to try and try again.
#3: It Was Just a Mistake. You’ll Do Better Next Time.
We women sometimes think that we have to make a point of holding up a mistake so our son recognizes that he failed and doesn’t do something that way again. (“See what happens when you don’t study long enough?” “You forgot your equipment for practice again? That’s why you kept getting benched last year.”) But the research with men and boys is clear: your son does recognize he failed at something. For a guy, a mistake or a way he didn’t succeed at what he tried to do, is a huge, huge deal. It looms large in a boy’s mind, condemning him oh, every five minutes or so. Your son needs to hear you say you believe in him and you know he’ll do it right next time. “I know you’ll be studying hard this next few weeks before exams and you’ll do great.” And if you say it, it builds him up to believe he can do it.
A boy will never be perfect at what he does. After all, we aren’t either, right? But approaching his actions in these I-believe-in-you ways makes it far more likely that he actually will do it right over time. In other words: by your words of affirmation, you are helping your son to actually become that great young man you know he can be.
Today is Spouse’s Day. This is a day dedicated to recognizing spouses everywhere. Be thankful for the fulfillment and security of a long-term relationship. Be thankful for the blessing of your spouse.
In honor of this day, The Morning Thing shared some easy date ideas from imom.com
Click HERE to read the full article and specific ideas to plan each date.
For our Morning Thing Fave 5, we talked to our parents! They have all been married 20+ years! Listen in for the secrets to a happy marriage.
Gary and Lisa Swisher (Daria Mom and Dad)
(from www.nationaldaycalendar.com) National Parents as Teachers Day is observed annually on November 8. On this day Parents as Teachers Organization offers educational services to parents across the country. These affiliates give all parents of young children support, and it also provides information so all children learn, grow and develop to realize their full potential.
The concept for Parents as Teachers developed in the 1970s when Missouri educators noted that children were beginning kindergarten with varying levels of school readiness. Research showed that greater parent involvement is a critical link in the child’s development of learning skills, including reading and writing.
We found an insightful article from www.parents.com
They highlight 5 values that parents should teach their children before the age of 5 (before they head to school).
Click HERE to see the full article.
Help Kids Find a Way To Tell the Truth
The best way to encourage truthfulness in your child is to be a truthful person yourself.
Insist That Children Make Amends
Encourage Them To Take on a Challenge
Teach Them To Think about Others’ Feelings
Be Generous with Your Affection
If you saw the news over the weekend, you know that we have another tragic story to add to our country’s history. A Texas church shooting leaves 26 dead, including 8 members of one family. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called the slaughter “the largest mass shooting” in the state’s history and ordered flags to fly at half-staff across the state Monday.
How do we deal with all the emotions that flood our hearts and minds when we see these tragic stories? How do we help our children handle their fears?
We found some wonderful advice from www.faithgateway.com (picture and content from www.faithgateway.com)
On Wednesday’s show, we focused on the desire to have a happy home. It is something all of us want, right?!
We shared more great advice from the wonderful website, wwwimom.com.
Here are 9 habits for a happy home from author Susan Merrill
Click HERE to see the entire article.
We also shared some tips from Focus on the Family on how to encourage family fun and humor at your house.
How can you turn your house into a place where the walls ring with laughter and where family members actually get a kick out of being together? We have a few simple suggestions:
Click HERE to read the entire article.
(Picture from www.imom.com)
Today, The Morning Thing focused on parenting. We shared some incredible insight from 2 great resources.
We shared 8 truths that every parent should know from Mark W. Merrill. Mark is the president of All Pro Dad and Family First , a national non-profit organization.
Click HERE to read the entire article from www.allprodad.com
We also shared 8 warning signs that your child is headed for trouble.
Click HERE to read the entire article from www.imom.com
Here are some of the common signs of a child who’s heading the wrong direction. It is important to recognize these and take the appropriate steps to guide your child back down a positive path.
(Picture from www.allprodad.com)
Today, The Morning Thing celebrated kids taking over kitchens all across the country. Today is a day when kids can use their favorite recipes and make a meal for their family! (Adult supervision and assistance as required for the younger bakers and chefs in the house!)
(from www.nationaldaycalendar.com)
The Young Chefs Academy (YCA) sponsors this special day. The objective of their mission is to empower kids and teens to become more actively involved in the planning, preparation, and cooking of meals. The YCA is fostering family bonds and actively fighting the battle against the many serious health and social issues related to youth’s eating habits in today’s time.
HOW TO OBSERVE
Let the kids cook for a change of pace. Try one of these kid-friendly recipes to get your children cooking!
Herbed Chicken Nuggets
Yogurt Sundaes
Cooking with your kids is a good way to help them build healthy eating habits.
You can show your kids how to help you prepare meals.
Here are ways that young kids can help in the kitchen, broken down by age.
Thursday’s show was a day dedicated to summer reading.
(picture from http://www.freepik.com)
We shared 10 fun summer reading ideas – even for the reluctant readers. We also shared more about the exciting reading program for the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County.
Click HERE to hear more about the summer reading program at the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County. Eddie Dilts talked with Jessica Horlacher, Technology Educator.
Click HERE to see the complete schedule for the summer reading program.
Jamie Martin is an author for Faith Gateway. She shares 10 Ways to Make Reading a Natural Part of Your Family Life.
1. Use the Library in a Way That Works for You
Our family has been through different seasons when it comes to library usage, including one in which taking my children there just didn’t work for me (because of their young ages). During that time I still used the library by going alone and choosing books for the kids. It became a special tradition, as they looked forward to the surprises in store upon my return. If you don’t have library access, think about what you can substitute instead. A book exchange with friends? Electronic books that you can download through a service like Overdrive.com? Making a wish list of books for relatives when they ask what to buy for holidays? Stocking up at garage sales? Do your best using what’s available to you in this moment.
2. Don’t Feel Tied to Bedtime Reading
Rarely in my life have I enjoyed bedtime reading with my kids, a fact I tried to hide for ages because it felt like the parenting police might show up and take me away. In all honesty, though, by the time evening arrives after a long day, I lack the patience to enjoy stories with my children. (Haven’t you ever found yourself skipping pages here and there to reach the end of a book? And has your little one ever called you out on it?) Bedtime isn’t the only acceptable reading time. I prefer mornings, when I have the most energy. Or you might try snack time with the kids around the table when they get home from school. For years now I’ve found our best time for reading aloud to be during a meal — when little mouths are busy chewing, giving me a captive audience. If you try and fail, don’t assume that reading aloud won’t work for you — just get creative with your timing.
3. Invite the Whole Family
I realized several years into reading stories to the kids that Steve missed out on most of them since he was at work all day. So we began a family reading time after dinner, while everyone was still at the table. (Keep in mind that we tried this only after the kids were around age eight and had the attention span to keep up with us.) Our most successful readings as a family have been short — no more than ten or fifteen minutes, even if that means stopping in the middle of a chapter. Better to leave them wanting more than to have everyone give a sigh of relief when you’re done. For families with children under eight, reading a short Bible passage or story might work well at dinner. We love the Jesus Storybook Bible for littles.
4. Drop a Book If It Isn’t Connecting with Everyone
At one point, we’d started reading the Narnia Series together, and we reached a title within it that just didn’t connect with everyone. I pulled out all the stops — doing crazy voices for characters, making the readings shorter, and taking time to discuss what we were reading. But it wasn’t much fun since not all of us were enjoying it. Family reading is about bonding, about deepening relationships. You need everyone “in” for it to work. So, I thanked that well-written book and returned it to the shelf for another season. I’ve found that when I’m willing to do that, we’ve gone on to an even better title next — a good exercise for me in letting go of control.
5. Talk about What You’re Reading Personally
Our kids need to see that reading isn’t only a child’s activity. Or worse — something assigned to endure until you can move on to something “fun.” Accomplish this easily by setting the example yourself. Keep your own books on a side table in the dining room or other high-traffic area, somewhere the children will naturally notice. Take a moment here and there to describe a suspenseful plot twist that captivated you, or read a short quote aloud that they might appreciate. No pressure to read from someone else’s list of official classics. Begin with your own interests, whatever they may be.
6. Use Audio Books
For parents with work commutes, for lengthy road trips, and for the auditory learner when Mom’s or Dad’s voice starts to wear thin, audio books save the day. Download one for yourself when you’re folding the laundry or making dinner, or find a collection for the kids to choose from during afternoon quiet times. Discover new titles at audible.com, librivox.org, and your local library. If you have a child with dyslexia or a visual impairment, you may qualify for a subscription to LearningAlly.org. Our family has found it invaluable!
7. Go with the Interruptions When You Can
At times I cannot even get through a paragraph of reading aloud without an interruption. A cup spill sends a child rushing to clean up, someone falls off their chair with a loud bang, or there are back-to-back questions about plot or vocabulary. It can make a well-intentioned parent throw in the towel. But don’t give up! Young kids’ interruptions may be merely logistical, but as children grow, their interruptions have more to offer — an insight someone noticed, a comparison to another book’s character, a deep meaning-of-
life question. Don’t skip these, even though they slow the reading down! Indeed, one could argue that these interruptions are precisely why we read: to learn how to think, to have new ideas and observations. Find a method that works for you to handle these moments. I taught my kids to raise their hands when they have a comment or question and wait until I can pause to listen to them. It doesn’t work flawlessly, but it helps.
8. Get Dramatic
I’ve been known to get a little crazy while reading. If a character leaps to her feet in a frenzy, I do the same — surprising my unsuspecting audience at the dining table. Reading aloud should be fun for parents too, right? So add in a bit of drama when you feel like it. Experiment with different voices and accents. Welcome a little silliness from time to time. We may find that those moments leave the best reading memories in our children’s minds.
9. Take Turns Reading
Don’t feel as though you have to do all the reading aloud yourself. As your kids begin reading confidently, add them to the process. Have each person read a verse during your Scripture reading, or one stanza from a poem, or a page or chapter of a story. Not only does this provide a natural setting for everyone to practice reading for an audience, it adds to the family bonding of reading together, leading to the feeling that “this is just what we do, part of who we are.”
10. Don’t Stop When the Kids Get Older
Our reading times have only become better as my children have gotten older. We now have more interesting discussions about the real world, its wonders and its challenges. We make deeper connections as books lead us to new levels of thought. You aren’t just reading to your kids until they can read to themselves. You’re creating a culture of words, meaning, and the power of story — one that will grow richer as the years pass. Enjoy it!
Excerpted with permission from Give Your Child the World by Jamie C. Martin, copyright Jamie C. Martin. Published by Zondervan.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. New Directions, the Domestic Abuse Shelter and Rape Crisis Center of Knox County is hosting a special viewing of the documentary “Audrie and Daisy” this Friday, 4/28/17. It will be shown in the Mount Vernon High School theater from 6:30pm – 9pm.
Click HERE to listen to a conversation with Marcy Rinehart of The Morning Thing and Lori Jones, Asst. Director and Delta Coordinator of New Directions.
There is power in knowledge and conversation!
Lori Jones said, “We want to start this conversation about sexual assault in our schools, around our dinner tables, and in our workplaces because this can no longer be a silent subject. It is important that our community is proactive, rather than reactive if and when we are faced with a similar situation. Parents and teens viewing this movie together will create an entry into a conversation that, otherwise, may never be discussed.”
The community showing of “Audrie and Daisy” is free and open to the public. For any questions or for more information, call 740-397-4357 or send an email to lori@newdirectionsshelter.org
For more information on New Directions visit www.newdirectionsshelter.org and Facebook.com/NewDirectionsShelterofKnoxCountyOhio
Rise and Shine 