Thanks to all of you who chimed in and gave ideas on how I can read to my wiggly son who has a hard time sitting in my lap anymore while I read to him.

It seemed like the main consensus among all of you was to continue reading to him, even if he’s playing while I read, because he’s listening and picking up more than I think he is!

It’s funny that you all said this, because only a few days after you all pitched in with your advice, I was reading Amy Carmichael’s biography "A Chance to Die" (by Elizabeth Elliot), and came across this while reading.

The children in Amy’s family were called to daily prayers each day by a bell. During that time, her father would also read the Scripture to them. Here is the quote that hit me:

"Amy remembered the sound of her father’s voice reading the Scripture, a "solemn sound, like the rise an fall of the waves on the shore." Her ear was trained in this way, from those earliest years when a child’s powers of memorization by hearing are nearly miraculous. For the rest of her life the majestic cadences of the Authorized Version of the Bible shaped her thinking and every phrase she wrote.

A child, even when apparently distracted, learns far more than adults dream he can learn. Amy did not by any means always attend perfectly to the reading. Once she found a mouse drowning in a pail of water just at the moment when the prayer bell rang. She fished it out, hid it in her pinafore, took her place at prayers, and hoped it would not squeak. It did."

How’s that to wrap up thoughts on the subject!?

Thanks everyone for your input!

Some of you are having trouble getting your child to take a bath. This isn’t for you. No, the bathtime battle I am referring to is trouble getting your child out of the tub! My daughter loves taking baths, so much so that often she does not want to leave it. One day (when she was 3) she decided that this time she was simply staying put. When it came time to get out of the bath, my daughter refused, and squirmed away from me when I tried to get her. It’s very difficult to get a wet, slippery child out of a big tub without falling in or somebody getting hurt! I quickly decided that I was not going to struggle with her. Instead, this is what I did:

Me : "Jada, it’s time to get out of the bath now."

Jada : "I don’t want to."

Me (graciously giving one more chance, only for this first training session.): "Jada, you are disobeying me. I’ll give you on more chance… get out of the tub."

Jada : "No." squirm squirm

Me : "Okay." I quickly turned on a cold water shower.

Jada : Stunned and utterly surprised, she hopped out of the tub as fast as she could possibly manage!

Jada : Crying. "Why did you do that?"

Me : "Baby, I’m sorry I had to do that, but I had to teach you a lesson. You were disobeying me. I told you it was time to get out of the tub, and you refused to do what I said. Now, you owe me an apology for disobeying me."

Jada : Tearfully "I’m sorry." "Mommy, I didn’t like that."

Me : "I know hunny. I won’t do it again as long as you obey me the next time I say it’s time to get out, okay?"

Jada : "Okay Mommy."

Now, when bathtime is coming to an end, and she begins to hesitate when I say it’s time to get out, all I have to do is reach for the water knob and she is out of the tub in a flash. It only took one training session; I’ve never had to do it since then. But if she ever tells me "no" again, you better believe that shower will be on before she can blink, and with no warning!

Now, I realize that this may sound mean to some of you, but a brief second of my child getting sprayed with cold water is nothing compared to the life lesson she is learning about doing what her parent’s tell her, and the consequences of disobeying. I love my child too much to allow her to disobey me, and breed rebellion in her heart. It is so crucial that training begins at the first sign of defiance, and if tub time is a struggle for you, I suggest you give this method a try. It just might be the solution you’ve been looking for!

I highly recommend this book!

“Mommy, you tell me when you see a bad stranger, okay?”

I laughed a little when 2 yr. old Jada said this to me one day while we were at the grocery store. I had just started warning my precious little girl about “mean” people in this world. If only we could simply look at somebody and know if they were good or not. Simple, innocent thinking like this from a child is precisely why it is so critical that we warn them of the dangers in this world, and the evil people in it. I urge you dear mothers, if you haven’t done it yet, don’t put it off any longer. Your children need to know how to protect themselves from those who are out to harm them. Don’t be afraid that you might scare your child, or worry him. It is time that you arm him/her with life saving knowledge using these practical tips.

• Have a heart-to-heart. This needs to be a sit down, face-to-face, serious conversation. A casual mentioning of strangers will not suffice. Your child’s age will determine the tone of the conversation, and how deep you get with it. I would suggest starting at age 2 ½-3 yrs. old, depending on their maturity level. This is how I would go about it:

“Baby, I want to talk to you about strangers. Do you know what a stranger is? A stranger is somebody who you do not know well. Now, there are lots of people in this world who are strangers to us, we do not know them, and some are good, and some are bad.

Most people are good, but there are some people out there who are bad. Bad strangers will try to hurt you. Sometimes bad strangers try to take children away, and keep them and do bad things to them. I want to tell you about bad strangers to teach you to be careful around people who you do not know.

Bad strangers don’t always look mean. Sometimes they act very nice. You can’t tell if they are good or bad just by looking at them. Bad strangers are tricky! They will act nice to you, but they are really mean. Sometimes they will try to trick you to get you to go with them. It is very important that you stay close to Mommy or Daddy while we are out, so that you don’t get lost from us. If you do get lost, you need to find a store worker, or a police officer right away and ask for help.

• Role Play. This is where you give your child some scenarios of what a “bad” stranger might try to do to get your child to go with them. It is really important to equip your child with the right responses for certain situations, and there is no better way to teach them than through practice and role playing. It’s just pretend now, but if it ever happened in real life, they would be able to recall their practiced responses. Do this often to keep it fresh in their minds.

Now, remember, bad strangers will try to trick children. They want to get you away from your Mommy and Daddy so they can take you. They might act really nice to you and say something like, “Hello little girl. What’s your name? Do you like candy? You do! Well, I have some in my car, you want to come and get some candy?” Let me tell you something… you should never talk to strangers unless you are with a grown up who you know. You should never take candy from a stranger, unless your Mommy or Daddy says it’s okay first. And you should never, EVER go to the car of a stranger! This is their trick! If they can get you to their car, they will put you in it and drive away. I would never see you again! Now, let’s practice what you should do if a stranger comes to you.

Here is where you roll play. Make up a few scenarios to lead your child through. Don’t act creepy. Don’t put on a mask or try to make yourself look mean or different. Strangers look like everybody else, your child needs to know that. Pretend to walk up to your child and begin a conversation:

You: “Hello. What’s your name?”

Child: “My name is Sarah.”

You: “Hi Sarah.” “How old are you?”

Child: “I’m three.”

You: “Oh! Wow, you’re a big girl!” “Well, Sarah, would you like some candy?”

Child: “Yes!”

Stop!! This is where you correct your child. Tell them again how they should never take candy from a stranger. Give them the correct response:

Child: “I have to ask my Mommy or Daddy first.”

Now begin another scenario.

You: “Hi little girl. Do you like puppies?”

Child: “Yeah!”

You: “Well, I have the cutest little puppy in my car. Would you like to see him?”

Child: “Sure!”

Obviously this is another big stopping point! Tell your child that if somebody invites them to his/her car, they should never go alone. Give your child the correct response:

Child: “I have to ask my Mommy or Daddy first.”

Become a little more aggressive in your approach as a stranger.

You: “Oh, come on! He’s really cute! I’m sure your Mommy wouldn’t mind. We’ll be right back!”

Child: “No thank you. I have to ask my Mommy first.”

Now, without acting it out (you don’t want to scare your child), talk to them about the possibility of a stranger trying to grab them and forcibly take them away. Tell them that sometimes bad strangers will pick a child up and try to take them.

“Sometimes a bad stranger will try to take you away by picking you up, or grabbing your arm and forcing you to go with them. Do you know what you should do if that happens? If somebody tries to take you away from me, I want you to fight them with all of your strength! Do you understand me? You kick, you scream, you yell “Mommy!!”, you hit, bite, and fight as hard as you can to get away. Do not let them get you to their car. If they get you into their car, I will never see you again. And baby, if I lost you my heart would break! I would cry and cry. I don’t want to lose you, so I need to teach you what to do if a bad stranger tries to get you, okay?”

Now remember, most strangers are good. But there are some bad people out there who want to do harm. The best way to keep safe is to stay close to me always, never run off or get too far from me. If you aren’t close, a bad stranger could grab you and run away with you. And if you get lost in the store, you find a worker to help you. Never, ever go with somebody out of the store. Okay?”

Make sure that you practice and talk about this often. Make up different situations to better equip your child. What you teach him has the potential to save his life! Some other scenarios you can practice:

“Can you help me look for my lost puppy?”

“Your Mommy told me to come and get you.”

“Would you like to make a little money helping me?”

“Your Mommy is out in the car. Come, I’ll bring you to her.”

Talk to your child about what his/her reaction should be for each circumstance. And I can’t say it enough, practice, practice, practice. Don’t let your child forget this very important lesson. Remind them often when you are home and in public. I have to warn though, this should not be used as a behavior tool. If your child is misbehaving, and wandering off, don’t threaten him that a stranger is going to take him away. This is an issue of disobedience that requires a disciplinary action. Teaching your child about “Stranger Danger” is a life lesson, not a disciplining method, so don’t confuse the two. You wouldn’t want your child to take this warning light heartedly.

• Question and Answer Time. Ask your child if they have any questions, and answer them the best that you can. Next take your turn asking questions. Quiz them about what they are going to do in different situations. Reinforce what you have just discussed. And make sure to give lots of praise for correct answers! Encourage your child, and give him confidence in knowing that now he is able to better protect himself if suddenly found in a compromising situation.

I hope that I have provided you with a good starting point to begin teaching your child about how to better protect him or her self. If you have a personal story about a “bad” stranger in your own life, or if there has been a recent news story about a child being kidnapped, don’t be afraid to share these with your child to better demonstrate the reality of this danger.

Here is a link to help you find some more “Stranger Danger” lesson plans and activities to do with your child.

I’d love to hear any suggestions, or personal stories about how you have talked with your children about this subject!

When you begin feeding baby solids, you will probably notice pretty quickly that he is not too fond of the whole bib idea. Most babies aren’t. If you use Velcro bibs he will soon realize that he is able to pull them off with a quick little tug. Don’t fret. It may become a battle of the wills for a few feedings, but if you are consistent in training he will eventually decide that he doesn’t mind the bib so much after all. So don’t go throwing away all your Velcro bibs just yet!

Both of my children went through this time of testing me. It is very important to stop the bad habit immediately. As soon as baby pulls the bib off, you should say in a very firm voice, “No”, and put the bib back on. Now, when I say “firm”, I do not mean raising your voice or yelling by any means. You should even soften your voice a little. Do not make a mean, or stern facial expression. You’re not trying to scare baby, just train him.

Now, once the bib is back on, he will immediately try to pull it off again. When he reaches for the bib again, lightly (and I mean lightly) flick his hand. It has to be felt though, so don’t just barely touch him, a good little thump is efficient. You may want to practice on your own hand first. It should only be felt; it should not cause baby to cry in pain. He may protest a little, but there is a difference in crying from pain, and crying because he didn’t get what he wanted. If you don’t want to “flick” his hand, then a firm tap with your index finger will do as well. As you thump his hand a simultaneous “No” should occur. Baby needs to associate the word with the thumping.

DO NOT allow baby to continue taking his bib off. If you are not 100% consistent he will keep trying. It may take several feeding sessions for him to finally realize that you mean business, but eventually you should be able to put a bib on him and he will not touch it at all. The bib should only come off when you are ready for it to. Even if you are finished feeding him, he should sit and wait for you to remove the bib. Don’t let yourself rationalize, “He took his bib off. Oh well, I was done feeding him anyways.”

If you let this bad habit “slide”, it will only lead to your own frustration. This is one of the first steps toward teaching your baby that your word is law. Don’t slack on this important training opportunity.

Doing devotions with your little one, even when they are really too young to understand, is great training for life. When your baby is really small, like before two years old, keep it extremely simple. A Bible picture book is good, possibly with one-word pages. Keep it to about a minute long, max. A good rule of thumb for how long your devotions time should be is the age-to-time rule: However old the baby is, that’s how long the time should be. If your baby is two, keep it to two minutes. If your baby is three, make your reading time about three minutes long, and so on and so forth.

When your baby is about two years old, he should be able to sit for two minutes and listen to a quick little devotion. You can even begin asking questions to get your child’s feedback, or thoughts.

I did a devotion yesterday with my little Jada about how God is like a shield for us. After the reading, we had a little discussion. I asked Jada what she could praise God for. She thought for a moment, then bowed her head and began to pray:

Dear God,

I want to praise you for my baby brother.

And my toys and books.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

I thought that was soooo cute that she was thanking God for her brother, and that she just began to pray without being asked to do so. Sometimes children may not seem like they are paying attention when you are reading, but when you follow up with one or two thought provoking questions, you’d be amazed at what comes out of their little mouths! And they may even come back at you with some excellent questions of their own, opening up a great conversation and discipling opportunity.

Another thought, at two years old children are able to start memorizing scripture. The first verse I taught my daughter was:

God Is Love. 1 John 4:8.

This is a great way to begin teaching them to hide God’s Word in their hearts! And believe me, they are quick to remember in relevant circumstances. I’ll never forget when Jada was 3 yr. old, she saw me eating a snack that must have been appealing to her. She came over to me and said, “Do not forget to do good to others, and share with them what you have! Hebrews 13:16.” How could I argue with that? I laughed, and of coarse shared my snack with her. How amazing are these little minds we teach!

(The above picture is of my sweet daughter in a “Terrible Two’s” rage.)

An opportunity to train presented itself in my home today, as it does every day. I thought I’d share this moment with you hoping that you may learn along with me.

I was talking on the phone, while trying to put baby Titus in the highchair to eat lunch. Titus began to whine, and put his hand to his ear like he wanted to talk on the phone too. “How cute” I thought. I handed him my old cell phone to occupy him while I finished warming his food. My first mistake was just giving him what he was demanding. I should have begun a lesson on signing “Please”; but that’s a whole other topic. Well, when the food was warmed, and I was ready to sit down to feed him I took the phone away from Titus. He didn’t like this one bit, and proceeded to tell me all about it! He threw his head back in protest and screamed and cried. Shocked, I made a face like “Excuse me!” and said firmly (but lovingly), “No”! Then again without as much emphasis, “No, no.” He continued to cry and reach back toward the table that I had placed the phone on.

Now, I could have said, “Okay, okay. Don’t cry! You can have it.” And out of sympathy, or for my own sanity’s sake, I could have done the easy thing and handed it back to him, just for appeasement. But I realized that this was a training moment. I do not want him to learn that he can manipulate me into giving him whatever he wants by having a fit. So, when he was in the middle of a big cry, I slipped a tiny bit of food into his mouth. Suddenly distracted by the new sensation, he stopped crying and chewed his food. He started to look back again at the phone, but I quickly gave him another bite. I continued to feed him and his mind slowly drifted from the object of his desire. By the time we were done with lunch he had forgotten all about it.

Now this lesson comes in many forms. Babies are incredibly smart, and begin manipulating at an early age. When you begin to lay your baby down in the crib, or for a diaper change, or to put him in his carseat, and he immediately stiffens, whines, cries or protests in other ways, he is trying to manipulate. You cannot give in! If, while lowering him into his crib, he begins to cry even before he’s touched the mattress, and you quickly bring him back up to you to console his crying, you are reinforcing behavior that is going to only get worse, and rear it’s ugly head in other circumstances. You are teaching him that he can get what he wants, and that your word is not the law.

So, I encourage you today to be strong. If you say it’s time to lay down, make it happen. Even if baby cries for a while, he will be fine. And you have begun teaching a valuable lesson, that there is an authority to obey (and it is not the baby!) And if you are about to lay him down, and he begins to protest, and you realize that it hasn’t been that long since he had his nap, don’t change your mind. Still lay him down for a few minutes. And when he is content, you can go and get him up again. He needs to learn to be content wherever he is. As long as he is not hurt, hungry, or wet, he will be fine.

I hope this has been somewhat helpful to you. Remember to be faithful and consistent. This is not only for your benefit, it is mostly for his.