Archives for December 2014

I got a new phone a few days ago.  Although I didn’t touch it until today because I didn’t want to touch it until it was in a good solid case.  My luck it would get dropped and broken before a case was put on.

So a case is on and Jason has set it up.  I feel kind of like I have finally come out of the dark ages.  I will admit I really liked my Blackberry.   But it didn’t have the apps.  And what apps it did have just weren’t as good.   So I’ve abandoned the sinking ship.

However,  just before Christmas Jason found a deal that would allow us to upgrade for free and wave our remaining months fees.   So he did it.  Both our phones needed replacing.  His was hit by an inopportune wave this summer while boating and never recovered.   Mine is just old and slow and can’t do what I want.  Both didn’t hold battery charges and we’re just simply flaky.

So now I have a new toy to figure out.  It really is quite different from what I’m used to.  I admit I miss my keyboard.   But I’m up for the challenge.

And just to save the asking Samsung Galaxy S5.

At our old church a couple of my daughters would often join the group praying before church.

As I would get my lesson gathered and organized, they would sit and pray amongst a group of faithful believers who prayed for the requests given and just in general. They would pray for a number of families every week.

As it would happen, after going to Christmas Eve service there, my children begged me to go there again. They miss the people. They miss being known and loved by both young and old alike. They miss their family. We did go there for 12 years.

Yesterday, it was announced that the prayer journal from this faithful group had been filled and that anyone could take a look. The book contains the entry every week from 2011 – 2014 of the date and who was praying and what they prayed for.

As my girls looked through the book after church, they were thrilled to see their names so many times. They were often either a prayer or being prayed for. They enjoyed reading through and seeing answered prayers.

It was a great testimony for my children. A testimony whose only words were ones faithfully recording the activities of a small group of faithful believers.

So thank you Karen for being faithful in this ministry, it truly touched my girls deeply!

This past week one of our children finally confessed a blatant defiant behaviour that this child has been doing for months.

For months we have suspected it, but the denial has been fierce and adamant. This child had convinced themself that what they were doing was OK, because the rule was a bad one. Said child had come up with a whole list of reasons as to why the defiant behaviour was in fact a beneficial one. Frankly a bunch of…you know what.

We spent several days trying in vain to show this child what was faulty in their thinking and assumptions.

This child has been on a trajectory that we have been worried about for some time now. This child’s personality has changed.

This happened before; and we put strict rules in place to prevent it from happening again. However, with a new school year and new schedules our rules were now able to be violated.

I have always hoped to be the kind of parent that is approachable and whose rules aren’t written in stone; Who is able to loosen or change the rules, as long as the desired outcome from the rule is intact.

So, last night we had a LONG and very challenging conversation with this child. In the end I think it had a positive outcome.

But, it took a long time to get there.

At one point Jason went online on his phone and looked up how do you know if someone is addicted to gaming. He immediately had a 8 point list in front of him. Unfortunately this child hit every single one. Although this child began by denying and justifying each one, about half way through you could see the child’s face change and realization of the truth hit.

With some compromise on both sides and our trying to see this child’s perspective and allow the opportunity to change and assuming trust; we came to a resolution that all 3 of us can live with.

This sure doesn’t mean we are out of the woods yet. But the expectations are clear and well laid out. Now we just give the freedom and hope this child can stay within the expectations. So far, so good.

We have agreed to 1 hour of gaming a day, dependent on homework being done and an equal hour of either socialization or exercise. The child is doing the research to determine if they’d like a pass for swimming or a gym and where the child would like this pass to be to…if a pass is indeed what this child even wants.

If this doesn’t work, if this child can’t control their behaviour and thoughts and attitudes; well, it frankly won’t be pretty. The consequences will not go over well, but the consequences are known, so it’s all in this child’s own hands.