Obey Right Away, All the Way, With a Happy Heart!

Yesterday, I mentioned something that we learned from Growing Kids God's Way. Another thing that stuck with us was the definition of obedience. For a child to truly obey an instruction, they must complete it:

• Immediately
• Completely
• Without complaint

We liked this definition, but those are pretty big words for a 2-year-old to grasp.

Then, one day, I was having dinner with a group of ladies. One of the 2Moms mentioned her version of this concept, and I thought it was fabulous. A 2-year-old can understand this! Obedience is:

• Right away
• All the way
• With a happy heart

If any one of the three elements is missing, you don't have obedience. I'm glad we learned this early, because we have used it a lot! That third point is where we spend most of our training energy.

Parenting Tip: "Do You Understand?"

When our oldest children were very young, we went through a parenting book called Growing Kids God's Way (GKGW) by Gary and Anne Marie Ezzo of Growing Families International. They published a similar book for the secular market called Child Wise.

One of the suggestions given in GKGW was to teach your children to respond, "Yes, Mommy" or "Yes, Daddy" whenever you give them an instruction. While we liked that concept, it was just a little more than we cared to enforce. We noticed that most of the time we were giving simple instructions when the children were directly at hand. It was easy enough to be certain the child complied or to make an immediate correction when necessary.

However, there are definitely moments when we would like a response. Perhaps we are in another room, and we want to be certain the child heard the instruction. Or, maybe we are aware that the child's mind is elsewhere, and the instruction could be quickly forgotten. Sometimes we use this technique to place a special emphasis (e.g. "Do not ever chase your ball into the street. Do you understand?").

Requiring and receiving a verbal response from the child is beneficial in several ways. First, it helps him or her to focus on completing the task. Second, when responding in this manner, the child is affirming in his or her own mind the intention to obey. Third, the parent can be certain the message was heard and understood. Fourth, the child is showing honor to the parent and acknowledging the parent's authority by giving this polite, positive response.

When we are within line of sight, eye contact accompanies the parent's question and child's response. This helps to engage the child's mind and prevent an unthinking, rote response. Do not let them ever ignore your "Do you understand?" question. Not even once. Even as they have grown older, we have not allowed them to shorten it to "Yes." They still respond with "Yes, Mom" or "Yes, Dad".

We began teaching our children to respond in this way while they were very young--certainly prior to 18 months of age. They were not even speaking fluently, but it was being trained into their hearts and minds. At this age, the conversation goes like this: "Ross, pick up your ball and bring it to Mommy." Pause. "You say, 'Yes, Mommy.'" He responds with a beautiful baby talk "Yes, Mama." (And then you may have to repeat the instruction about the ball). This should quickly become a habit, probably by the time they are speaking fluently. They may go through stage here and there where they drop the response, and you will need to give them a reminder.

This simple technique has been a great parenting tool for us, and probably the thing that most stuck with us from GKGW. If you are interested in GKGW, you can take a look at it on the Growing Families International website or at Amazon.com:

Storage for Settlers of Catan

Settlers and Cities & Knights	Seafarers

I've mentioned that our favorite family game is The Settlers of Catan. We have the main Settlers gamealong with the 5-6 player extension. We have found that our favorite way to play is with the Cities & Knights expansion and the 5-6 player extension for Cities & Knights. In addition, we also own (but use less frequently) the Seafarers expansionand the 5-6 player Seafarers extension.

Consequently, we have many little game pieces to keep track of. We found that setting up and putting away the games was rather time consuming. We'd rather spend our time playing the game than gathering and organizing parts. So we come up with a storage solution. We have two Sterilite large clip boxes from Target. They measure 3.25"X11"X14". Inside the boxes we placed small, round, plastic containers each 2" in diameter and 2.75" tall. The round containers also came from Target (in the craft section). Unfortunately, Target does not have the clip boxes or round, plastic containers on its website. You can see them in the pictures, though.

In the first box, we put all the pieces for Settlers and Cities & Knights together since that is how we play most often. Inside are nine round, plastic containers. One container holds the number chits for a 2-4 person game, another holds the number chits for a 5-6 person game, a third holds the dice, robber, merchant, etc. The remaining six containers hold each color's pieces. Filling the remainder of the box are the land and water hexes, water frame, calendars, and cards. The instruction book lays on top.

The second box has all the pieces from Seafarers. Similarly, the second box holds eight containers with Seafarers pieces. Here are some more pictures:


The solution, of course, is only as perfect as the operator. In our case, the kids frequently play without us. So the setup and clean up are less than perfect. But, they do pretty well getting things in the right places.

I have some ideas to improve the system. Ideally, the clip boxes would be just a half inch taller. I'd like to find some sort of round container that would just match the diameter of the number chits. That way, we could put them away in order, and they would come out already in order when setting up the next game. Finally, I'd love to find a perfect size outer box that would hold both of the clip boxes inside of it.

Interested in Settlers of Catan, Cities & Knights, and Seafarers of Catan? They are available at Amazon.com. Here are the 2-4 player sets:


Here are the 5-6 player extension sets:

Video Review: Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion

Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion
From The History Channel

Several months ago, we joined NetFlix with the intention of adding more educational videos to our homeschool curriculum. I soon learned that not all documentaries are completely family friendly, even if they are educational. This one, I am happy to report, was very family friendly. I noted two instances of the "D-Word" used in a historic quotation.

Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion is a two-DVD set. The first DVD covers Roosevelt's life up to the beginning of his presidency. The second DVD covers his presidency to his death. Richard Dreyfuss voices Teddy Roosevelt. At first, I thought Dreyfuss was an odd choice because I imagined Teddy Roosevelt with a loud, booming voice. At some point in the film, mention is made of Roosevelt's high-pitched voice. Richard Dreyfuss gave an excellent performance.

Our kids were very interested in the first disc, but the younger ones (ages 7 and 4) lost interest with the second disc's discussion of Roosevelt's presidential policies. We all learned a great deal about Teddy Roosevelt as well as the nation and world that he helped shape.

Book Review: Winged Watchman

The Winged Watchman
by Hilda Van Stockum

Set in the mid-1940's, this is a story about a family living in Holland just prior to the end of World War II. We learn of the hardships faced by the people of Holland as well as their bravery in the face of Nazi occupation.

The story is told mostly from the point of view of Joris, a 10-year-old boy. Joris's father tends one of Holland's windmill's, the Watchman, and that is where the family makes their home. His family has little, yet shares what they have to help others. Ultimately, they become involved in the resistance movement at great personal risk.

The Nazi's are the villains, of course, but there are also traitorous Dutch who work with the occupiers to suppress their own people. There is always the threat of running afoul of someone wanting to curry favor with the Nazi's.

There are many disturbing scenes. Neighbors are found harboring fugitive English pilots, and they are carted off by soldiers. A Jewish family in the village is taken, with only the mother and baby daughter ultimately surviving. People from the cities are literally starving, and children wander the countryside in search of food. However, these ideas are presented gently and are mixed with the pleasantries of Joris's family life. We are shown repeatedly how faith sustains the family and guides their interactions with others.

Product Review: Coleman Thermoelectric Cooler

Coleman 40-Quart Thermoelectric Cooler - PowerChill

This weekend, we will be headed out for our first camping trip of the season. It got me thinking about my favorite camping item. The Coleman Thermoelectric Cooler has been wonderful for our family. It works great for both camping and road trips! It has paid for itself many times over because we have lunch from the cooler instead of a restaurant when we're on the road.

This cooler fits just right in the back end of our Dodge Grand Caravan and plugs into the van's nearby power supply. We keep it horizontal (with the door opening on top), but it also works vertically, if you want it that way. At the campground, we leave generally leave it in the van but plug it into the campground electricity. When we're staying in a motel, it's easy enough to carry into our room to plug in.

You will want to make sure you get the optional power supply so that you can plug it into a standard electric outlet. It comes with an removable/adjustable shelf, but I always leave that at home. This cooler doesn't hold as much as our old Coleman Green Steel Belted Cooler, but we can pack just as much (maybe more!) since we don't need to have room for ice. And, there is no more yucky water in the bottom of the cooler making our lunch meat and Hershey bars soggy!

The cooler keeps the food about 40 degrees below the ambient temperature. So, most of the time that is plenty cool enough. Once in awhile, if we are camping when it is really hot (above 90 degrees), I take a little extra care with the cooler. By mid-morning, when it is really starting to get warm, we put the cooler in the shade and cover it with a couple of towels. Also, if I know it is going to be a hot weekend, I start out with some things frozen (like hot dogs, scrambled eggs, water bottles). They help keep the cooler chilled, and they're thawed by the time we're ready for them.

It is so great not to have to worry about keeping enough ice and dealing with the water mess. We've owned our cooler for more than 5 years, and it is still going strong.

Book Review: The Prince of Darkness

The Prince of Darkness
By Robert D. Novak

Just last night I finished reading through the 600+ pages of the memoir of Robert D. Novak. Novak is a fellow Illinoisan and U of I alum. He has been one of my favorite political writers. If you are a political junkie, and you have an avid interest in the politics of the last half century, this is a great read. If you have only a mild interest in politics, this book will bore you to tears.

Robert Novak has been a figure on the national stage since the early 1960's. He has had contact with all the presidents and other national political figures since that time. Although he is known as a solid conservative today, he hasn't always been a conservative. This book chronicles in parallel his journey to conservatism along with the nation's political realignment.

My political memory begins with the Republican National Convention in 1976. At the height of the Iran hostage crisis in 1979, I was in sixth grade and hooked on politics. My sixth grade teacher required each student to have a subscription to U.S. News and World Report, and I actually read mine. It was fascinating for me to get Novak's behind-the-scenes look at the political world I have been watching from the outside for the past 30 years.

Being in his late seventies, Robert Novak's political memory goes back much further than my own. He personally knew John and Robert Kennedy. His wedding reception was hosted by Lyndon B. Johnson. Talk about having an inside track. I found it strange that he gave only passing mention to the assassination of JFK. With all that has been written and speculated about that event, I expected him to given his take on the matter. It made me wonder whether he knows some really interesting details that are not public knowledge.

The politics of the 1950's and 1960's have always been somewhat murky to me. It is hard for me to imagine a Republican party that was not conservative. I learned a lot of the history of that time period.

Novak is a newspaperman and a television pundit. He gave a great many details about newspaper and television colleagues over the years. A major theme of the book was the political realignment of the country, culminating in the historic 1994 elections. However, I noted another strange omission from his memoirs. There was not one word about talk radio in general or Rush Limbaugh in particular.

He was strikingly honest about his personal life. He lived in a world so different from my own. He notes his regret at being absent a great deal while his children were growing up. He entertained sources on a lavish expense account, consumed vast amounts of alcohol, and traveled all over the world for weeks at a time.

If you are interested in more of what Novak writes, here are some links:
Novak's newspaper columns (the Sunday column is my favorite with its political tidbits)
The Evans-Novak Political Report (weekly)