Family by God&#039;s Design

Mom: Buffering…Buffering

Sadly, our children witness many traumatic events. They may see them in person, on their screens, in the news…. It’s hard to protect them from everything that is going on around us. But a study published in Stress and Health suggests that parents (mothers in this study) play an important role in helping children learn...

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January 6, 2024

Dad Vs. Mom in Their Child’s Success

A study using a sample of almost 5,000 mother-father households found that parents play a unique role in their children’s academic success. Specifically, this study confirmed that interactive activities between a father and their three-year-old contributes to that child’s improved academic performance when they are five-years-old. And when a father is actively engaged with his...

Celebration Family Shepherds

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March 8, 2021

A Mother’s Power to Raise Generous Children

Would you like your children to become generous, giving people? A study of 74 preschool children and their mothers suggests that mothers play an important role in helping children become generous. In this study, 4-year-old children earned 20 tokens by engaging in a variety of activities. The children could then exchange all the tokens for...

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June 27, 2020

Mother and Child in Sync…A Husband’s Role?

A study from the University of Cambridge used EEG’s to look at mothers’ brains and their babies’ brains while they interacted. They noticed that their brain waves synchronized, especially during positive interactions with lots of eye contact. This sharing of positive emotional states allowed mother and child to connect better. It also stimulated the development...

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May 11, 2020

The Digital Bedtime Story?

I love to read. When my daughters were young, I loved reading to them at bedtime. I also loved lying in the bed with my wife and children listening to my wife read Little House on the Prairie or The Chronicles of Narnia to our children. We read physical books to our children…you know, books...

Celebration Family Shepherds

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November 28, 2017

A Mother-Daughter Relationship Boost

Watching my daughters grow up I noticed times when their relationship with their mother needed a boost. You know the times—stressful times, times when everyone seems to be on edge. It happens to everyone. Unfortunately, I didn’t know how to give them that boost. Now, thanks to research completed at the University of Illinois, we...

Celebration Family Shepherds

daughter emotional health intimacy mother parent child relationship

May 8, 2016

The Top 12 Duties of a Mother

Mothers have one of the most influential and important jobs in the world…and one of the most difficult. Just consider some of the duties a mother carries out on a daily basis. Chef: A mother cooks 2-3 meals a day. Sometimes, their children will love the meals you prepare. Sometimes, they will hate them. Most...

Honor

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May 11, 2015

A Dozen Phrases Every Child Needs to Hear

What parents say is powerful in the life of their children. Children hang their life, their very identity, on their parents’ words. Even the words said in passing have an impact on children. If children constantly hear their parents call them “stupid” or “a disappointment,” they will come to believe they are “stupid” and “disappointment.”...

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June 15, 2013

Avoid Pushing 5 of Your Children’s Buttons

I hate it when people “push my buttons.” Don’t you? Our children do not like to have their buttons pushed either. Effective parents learn to identify those buttons and avoid pushing them. I must admit, I still push a few buttons on accident; and, when I do, disaster ensues. So, I decided to look into...