Reading is one of the most important life skills. Yet some children and adults will never know the joy reading can bring. So, how do we instill in our children the love of reading? Here are some steps that we can take to start fueling the desire to read even before they can.

My younger daughter came home from school recently with a library book. It was called “The Book with No Pictures.” She requested that I read it immediately, and I’m not proud to say that I tried to blow her off.

$81,000. That’s the projected average cost of 4 years of tuition and fees for a UW institution in 2034.  WOWZA.   And, you know how we say, “time goes by so fast.” Or, “Before you know it, they are all grown up.” It’s true. And, even more reason to start saving for college TODAY!

Like a hard slap in the face, it occurs to me that my phone not only distracts me from relishing in my fondest memories, but it also prevents me from making new ones. Ironically, the very device that stores and organizes much of my life simultaneously robs me of enjoying and being fully present in it.

“You’re going to speak French to the baby, right?” I would hem and haw and eventually agreed to it. Well, why would one hesitate? It’s a gift! You’re giving the gift of speaking and understanding a language! The benefits to your brain!

Someday, my daughters won’t pronounce “spoon” as “foon” anymore.  Someday, they might not want to sing loudly for an hour.  Someday, my son will be running through the house on his way to wrestling practice (yes, my husband made me choose that specific sport) rather than trying to play in the toilet. 

There were so many instances growing up when I just didn’t get it.  My mom would ramble on, and it just went over my head.  But now that I’m a mom, I’m starting to get it.  There are those feelings, reactions, and thoughts that only come with being a mom.  All of these expressions my mom used to say and things she used to do keep coming on like tiny light bulbs above my head — NOW I get it.  For example…

One of the ways that you might consider me “old-fashioned” is regarding thank-yous and showing gratitude.  I am a HUGE proponent of thank-yous, but especially written thank-you cards.  You might disagree.  Some of my close friends do.

If you were to ask me in college, where my kids were going to go to school, homeschooling would have been my last option. I had so many preconceived notions about what homeschooling was and the families that chose to participate in it.

A few years back, I had one of my most memorable “mean mom” moments. We have a rule that each morning, the boys are to clean their room. For a few months, they started pushing back and playing with toys instead of cleaning up.