Courageous Resolution-For all Real Men!

My husband's dad rarely recommends a movie but he highly recommended all of his son's take the time to watch Courageous.  He said this.  

I would say that the movie "Courageous" is one of the most remarkable movies that I have ever seen.  It is a must see movie if you don't see any other movie this year.  If you didn't know any better you would think that it was produced by the church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints).  It has such a strong Christian theme that you will be really surprised by the message.  You know that it has to be good for me to make a strong recommendation. 

So we watched this movie a couple a weeks ago and I really loved it's message.  It's about four men who decide that they can be more then just average dads.  They wanted to be the best dad for their children that they could.  They sign a resolution and commit to the following:

I do solemnly resolve before God to take full responsibility for myself, my wife, and my children.

I will love them, protect them, serve them, and teach them the 

word of God as the spiritual leader of my home.

I will be faithful to my wife to love and honor her and be 

willing to lay down my life for her as Jesus Christ did for me.

I will bless my children and teach them to love God 

with all their hearts, all their minds, and with all their strength.

I will train them to honor authority, and live responsibly. 

I will confront evil, pursue justice, and love mercy.

I will pray for others, and treat them with kindness, respect and compassion.

I will work diligently to provide for the needs of my family.

I will forgive those who have wronged me and reconcile with those I have wronged.

I will learn from my mistakes, repent of my sins, and walk with integrity, as a man answerable to God.

I will seek to honor God, be faithful to his church, obey his word, and do his will.

I will courageously work with the strength God provides to fulfill this resolution for the rest of my life.

As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

I am Courageous!

I made a document of this resolution that I will put in our home as a reminder here is a link if you would like a copy.
I am grateful for the men in my life who are working towards fulfilling these same values.  Both my husband and I agreed that this resolution is very similar to the Family Proclamation to the world. Speaking to parents it says:  

 Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.

It's time for men and women to stand up and be courageous parents!

If you haven't seen the show you can get it on Red box and if you live close to Cache Valley, there is a showing in a couple weeks for free.  

Emmanuel Baptist Church is sponsoring a free showing of Courageous

February 25, 2012 at 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM

Location: 310 N. 800 E. Hyrum, UT 84319

Phone: 435-245-5898

Email: cholmes65@live.com

Free Movie, pop and popcorn for the family.

5 Simple ways to Create a Lifelong Reader

I think the most important thing our children learn in grade school is to become an effective reader.  If they struggle with reading it can effect the rest of their education.  We are our children's first teacher and our homes is where they begin to learn.  There are simple things we can do as parents everyday to help our children to become lifelong readers.  (Inspired by "Every Child Reading to Read @ your library")  

1. Sing- Can your child sing the ABC's (As a preschool teacher I have been amazed to know that only half of my preschool children come to school knowing how to sing their ABC's)  This is a simple yet a basic thing you can teach your child.  Other songs such as nursery rhymes folk songs can help with speech and hearing the syllables in words.
2. Talking--Talk with your child, but more important let them talk to you.  As they say things to you, you can increase their vocabulary by expanding what they say.  example: "Mom, I found money."  You  can expand by saying, "Oh that's neat, that is a penny and it's worth one cent."  
3. Read Everyday--let your children see you read everyday and then find a special time everyday that you read with them.  Have books readily available to play with and going to the library often will make reading part of your child's life.  
4. Writing--The Spalding Method book is called "The Writing Road to Reading"  Learning how to correctly form letters from the beginning and learn them with the sound is crucial to developing good writing habits.  When your child in under age 4 it's important to encourage them to write (call their scribbling writing), and draw.   If you have coloring books, crayons, markers and paper available they will be encouraged to create.  This helps their eye-hand coordination and develop their hand muscles.  
5. Play--Giving lots of playtime that is unstructured will build their imaginations and create stories about what they're doing.  Having dress ups, and puppets that they can create their own stories will enhance their playing time.

New Pages to check out!

For your reference.  I have made a Recipe for kids page (look on the top of the blog to click on the link) that features recipes I like to make with my kids such as Playdough, muffins and cookies.  I will keep adding to these once an awhile.  I also added a page that will give calendar items in Cache Valley for kids.  I have them listed by date.  There is story time, events at the Stokes Nature Center, and others I found.  If you have a calendar item to add please e-mail it to overlyactive11@gmail.com and I will get it on there.