Morality Monday--M is for Maturity

"The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature." (Luke 8:14)

"But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." (Hebrews 5:14)

"Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." (James 1:4)

This week focus on maturing spiritually. We do not want to be like the seed that fell among thorns and did not mature, but instead, we should strive to be as the Scriptures from Hebrews and James describe: mature enough to distinguish good from evil and to persevere in choosing good. This may be a hard concept to explain to young children, so use the Scripture from Luke as an inspiration and "show" them what it means. Plant 3 seeds (one in a cup with only rocks, one in a cup with thorns, and one in good soil), and watch which ones grow. Explain why the the first two plants did not grow and how we want our lives to be like the plant in good soil.

Where Do We Go Wednesday - L Week

Library: Go to the library and check out some books or movies. See if your library has story time. My younger son and I go to story time every Wednesday and listen to music and read a book. He loves it.

Lemonade: Make a lemonade and a lemonade stand and sell some in your front yard.

Lake: Go spend the day at the lake and play in the water or go on a boat.

Time Together Tuesday - L Week

• Leaves - Go outside and get as many pretty leaves as you want. Take leaves and past them on construction paper. Make a pretty picture with your leaves or place them on wax paper and cover with another sheet of eax paper and iron the leaves on the paper.
• Lions - Color pictures of lions or make a lion out of construction paper. Click here for some pictures: http://www.coloring.ws/lions.htm
• Light - Make a homade candle - get a craft kit from a craft store and make your own candle to be the light this week.
• Lamb - Make Lambs on construction paper. You can use cotton balls and glue them to the piece of paper. http://www.lucylearns.com/lamb-coloring-page.html
• Ladybugs - Draw ladybugs or color them as well: http://www.coloring.ws/ladybugs1.htm

Morality Monday - L is for Light

This week focus on the word Light. Explain to your children how they light up your world. Light is a good thing and brings an inner peace to us all. Jesus lights up our world and ask your children to think of ways that can happen. Also, ask your children to think of ways to make our light shine to others.

You can also light a candle each day and sing

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine, Let it shine.

Hide it under a bushel? No!

I'm gonna let it shine

Hide it under a bushel? No!

I'm gonna let it shine

Hide it under a bushel? No!

I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

Don't let Satan blow it out,

I'm gonna let it shine

Don't let Satan blow it out,I'm gonna let it shine

Don't let Satan blow it out,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

This little light of mine,

I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

Shine all over [name of town],

I'm gonna let it shine

Shine all over [name of town],

I'm gonna let it shine

Shine all over [name of town],

I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

Let it shine til Jesus comes,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine til Jesus comes,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine til Jesus comes,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,I'm gonna let it shine

Let it shine,Let it shine,Let it shine.

Once your done with the song, let your child blow out the candle. They will love it.



Read this Bible verse to your children:
Matthew 5:14
"You are the light of the world."

Fun Time Together Friday - Easter Weekend

Since it's Easter this Sunday, we wanted to give you some ideas of things to do to celebrate this special holiday. First of all, talk to your children about the true meaning of Easter. What does Easter mean to them? Easter is a celebration of Jesus raising from the dead on the third day. It is a new life for all Christians so we can rejoice in the Lord. We must remember that we can be saved because Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Explain this to your children so they can understand the true importance of this holiday. Of course it's fun to talk about the Easter bunny and egg hunts but it's good to give your children the religous side to this holiday as well. We hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend.

Here's a link with some fun things to do for Easter and some great info on the Holiday:
http://www.kiddyhouse.com/Holidays/Easter/

Here are some games to do for Easter:

• Easter Egg Hunt - This is the classic, you hide the eggs and the children find it. My kids love it. You can put money, candy, stickers and what ever you want in the eggs. The kids will have a blast.
• Egg Memory - Take several eggs and fill them with different items, jelly beans, m&m's, what ever you want but make sure there are only two eggs filled with the same thing. Place them around the floor and have the children take turns picking two eggs, if they have a match, they win.
• Egg Leap Frog - One player has an egg and places it on the ground then hops over the person in front of them and that person picks up the egg off the ground. They keep taking turns.
• Egg Spoon race - Place the egg on a spoon and try to make it past the line without loosing your egg. Who ever has the whole egg in the end and the fastest time wins.
• Egg Toss - Throw an egg to your partner and which ever pair has their egg in tact at the end wins.

One other cute idea is to set out jelly beans and have your children eat them while you read the following poem found on annieshomepage.com:

The NEW Jelly Bean Prayer

Red is for the blood He gave,

Green is for the grass He made,

Yellow is for the sun so bright,

Orange is for the edge of night.

Black, white, brown, yellow and red is for the children He made

All of these colors receive the grace He gave,

Purple is for the hour of sorrow,

Pink is for the new tomorrow.

Give a bag full of jelly beans,

Colorful and sweet,

Tell them it's a Prayer....

It's a promise..

It's an Easter Treat!

~~Written by Charlene Dickson~~

Scripture of the week: Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:3

Try It out Thursday - K Week

Books to Read:

K Is For Kissing A Cool Kangaroo (Hardcover)by Giles Andreae (Author), Guy Parker-Rees (Illustrator)

Let's Fly a Kite (MathStart 2) (Paperback)by Stuart J. Murphy (Author), Brian Floca (Illustrator)

Three Little Kittens (Jellybean Books(R)) (Hardcover)by L Obligado De Vajay (Author)

Products to Try:

Disney Winnie the Pooh 10" Roo Plush Doll

Kid K'nex Lots of Pals- 115 pcs

Fantasy Nylon Kites: 3D Butterfly by X-Kites

Where Do We Go Wednesday - K Week

• Kitten - Go visit a kitten. Go to a pet store or humane society. There are lots of kittens to see and if you are looking for one, maybe you can adopt one.
• Kitchen - What is a kitchen? Explore your kitchen and see what you can make.
• Kite - Go to a park and fly a kite.
• Kick Ball - Learn how to play the game and go play with some friends

Time Together Tuesday - K Week

Here are some activities to do with your children this K week.

• Kite - Make a kite. Use your imagination and construction paper. Cut out the shape of kite and have the children decorate it. Tie a string to the end and fly the kite.
• King - Make a crown out of large grocery bags. Cut zig zag edges. The crown should be the size of you child's heard. Tape or staple the ends together. Color and decorate with crayons, sequins, glitter and glue.
• Kleenex - Make pictures using Kleenex. Paste Kleenex on construction paper. Be creative.
• Knights - Make swords out of construction paper and shields too. Use your imagination.

Morality Monday - K is for Kindness

Try to work on kindness this week with your children. See if they can think of a kind word to say or a kind deed to perform.

Job 10:12 NIV
You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit.

God is kind and wants us to show kindness to others. Have fun making others happy by doing a kind deed.

Where Do We Go Wednesday - J Week

• Jungle - Pretend you are going on a jungle safari. What animals do you see? Or you can go to the zoo and pick out what animals you would see at the jungle.
• Jobs - Go to mommy and daddy's work and see what they do for a job
• Jewlery Store - Go look at the pretty jewlery and ask for a tour.
• Jewish Temple - Take your children to the Jewish temple and have them understand what it means to be Jewish. Jesus was a Jew/

Time Together Tuesday - J Week

• Jack -O-Lantern - Cut out shapes of pumpkin with orange constuction paper. With black construction paper. Cut out eyes, nose and mouth. Have children paste them on their Jack-O-Lantern.
• Jobs - Cut out pictures of people doing different jobs from a magazine. Have children make a collage of different jobs. Paste pictures on construction paper.
• Jesus - Draw a picture of what Jesus looks like
• Jingle Bells - Use them to make a tambourine. Take two paper plates and glue them together or staple them. Punch eight holes around the plate. Thread yarn in first hole and tie knot. Now, thread jingle bell and tie the knot again. Go to next hoe and do the same. Repeat at each hole.

Morality Monday--J is for Joy

"Do not grieve for the JOY of the Lord is your strength." (Nehemiah 8:10)

This week, talk about what it means to be joyful! Take turns acting out what joy feels like to each person in the family. Then, teach your children the following acronym:

J=Jesus 1st
O=Others 2nd
Y=Yourself last

Talk about how to implement this idea in your lives. How can you put Jesus first? What does it mean to put others ahead of yourself? How can you do all of this with a joyful attitude?

Fun Time Friday - I Week

• Insects - Learn all about insects. What is your favorite insect? How about a caterpillar?
• Sing the song - Ten Little Indian's, "One little, two little, three little Indians. Four little, five little, six little Indians. Seven little, eight little, nine little Indians. Ten little Indian boys (girls). " Now try to sing it backwards
• In and Out - Learn the difference. Learn what you say when you come In and what you say when you go out. Practice! "Hello" and "Goodbye".
• Inflate - Inflate a balloon. Let your child inflate the balloon by blowing it up.
• Interest - Talk about your interests. What interests you the most?

What to eat? Ice cream, icee,
Make your own ice cream sundaes
What to drink? Ice Tea

Impossible also starts with I. Luke 1:37 tells us that,"For with God, nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible to fulfill." Do you have any problems? Bring them to God. Remember with God, nothing is impossible.

Try It Out Thursday - I Week

Books to Read:

The Last Snake in Ireland: A Story About St. Patrick (Hardcover)by Sheila Macgill-Callahan (Author), Will Hillenbrand (Illustrator)

Ice Cream: The Full Scoop (Paperback)by Gail Gibbons (Author)

Angelina Ice Skates (Angelina Ballerina) (Hardcover)by Katharine Holabird (Author), Helen Craig (Illustrator)

Join the Herd! A Pull-Tab, Lift-the-Flap, and Pop-Up Book (Ice Age) (Hardcover)

Products To Try:

Don't Break the Ice by Hasbro

ICE AGE 2 THE MELTDOWN MAMMOTHS & PALS FIGURES by Mattel

Slice-a-Rific Food: Super Cool Ice Cream Set by Small World Toys

Scientific Explorer's Ice Cream Science Kit by Scientific Explorer

Where Do We Go Wednesday - I Week

Here are some places to go this I week:

• Ice Cream Parlor - Take your children to the ice cream parlor today and let them pick out a special treat.
• Indian Reservation - Go to an indian museaum if there is one near you.
• Island - Do you know of any islands? How about Hawaii? Discuss island and look them up on the computer. Look at a globe and show your child where the islands are.
• Ireland - Since St. Patrick's day is coming up, discuss Ireland and what it is to be Irish. Where green and look for four leaf clovers.
• Instruments - Listen to someone you know play an instrument. Would you like to play one?

Time Together Tuesday This I Week

Have your children trace the letter I and discuss the letter with them. Ask them to think of any words that begin with I. Cut out pictures in a magazine of pictures that begin with I. Here are some great projects to do with your children.

• Insect - Take a 1/2 egg carton. Insert pipe cleaners at each egg. Place the pipe cleaner on either side. Fork legs make an insect. Use your imagination. Don't forget the antenna. Paint, crayon will not stick so use paste and paper for eyes.
• Indian hats - Take a piece of construction paper, two inches wide length (length of child's head) Tape ends together. Cut out shape of feathers. Color of your choice. Tape one feather or two and then you have an indian hat.
• Indian Necklace - Take stove pipe shaped macaroni (rigatoni). Color each piece with different color paint. Then Get a 12 inch string or yarn and lace the macaroni onto the string. Then tie the string around your child so they can have a necklace.
• Ink prints - Cut out shapes using potatoes or carrots. Or you can use a cookie cutter. Press shape on ink pads or tempra paint. Then, on white paper press the designs down so you have a picture. You can make cards or wrapping paper. Have fun with it.

Morality Monday - I is for Integrity

1 Kings 9:4 NIV
"As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws, "

Moms, does your conscience only work when there is a policeman riding behind you? Teach your children to be people of integrity. Even when they are the only ones around. People of integrity try to make the right choice everyday all day long. Teach them that God not only sees the action but the heart behing the action. Pray with them today to be people of integrity. PS. If the first born is a person of integrity, the others will follow. Be good examples to your children. Work this week to show your children some examples of having integrity. Now would be a good time to read the Ten Comandments to your children in a way they can understand. There is a great video called, "Top Ten", that is a good way to teach them to have a formed conscience. Work on this today and it will bring good fruit.