Category Archives: Family
Family Time
We’re going to be heading up to a state park to hang out with some friends today. The video below is a game that our family played a few weeks ago. Make sure you take time for your family today and make memories together.
Open House Dinners
This summer our family opened up our house for dinner with some of our middle school families. I had gotten the idea from Tim Schmoyer, and we decided to give it a shot this summer to see how our church family would respond.
It has been one of the best things that we have done for our families this summer. Many times in youth ministry we only get to talk with the parents when they are dropping their student off or picking them up. The conversations are usually really quick and only cover a few topics. By having some of these families into our home it gave us the opportunity to talk with the parents, hear their stories, laugh with them, and just get to know each other better. I have learned so much about some of our families by having them into our home. This is something that I think we will try to do on a regular basis.
An additional benefit that we have seen is that these dinners have allowed some of our families to meet each other for the first time. At every dinner our families got the opportunity to meet, talk, and get to know each other. This has helped our church feel a little smaller for some families.
Happy Anniversary
Today is our anniversary! It was 9 years ago today that Wendi and I said yes to living our lives together. It has been a GREAT 9 years and I am looking forward to many more years together.
I love you Wendi!
Repost: An Insider’s Guide to Teen-Speak
This is a repost of a popular post from 2008. Just about everyday I have someone visit my blog because of this post, so I thought I would repost it for anyone that may have missed it the first time around.
I handed this article out to the students parents at our last parent meeting. It made all of them laugh, and I know that if you work with teenagers you will find this VERY FUNNY too! This is from an article in Reader’s Digest written by Michael Anania.
The words teenagers use with one another have a variety of meanings. The keys to understanding them are tone, duration, and pitch – a little like Chinese.
Most parents encounter the tonal dimension of teen language when dealing with the phrase, “All right.” In response to an ordinary request like “Take out the garbage,” “All right” can mean: (a) Don’t bother me; (b) Did somebody cut off your legs; (c) I deeply resent the authority you have over me, but I acknowledge it and will take out your stupid garbage; (d) Out of affection for you and respect for your age, I’ll take out the garbage; (e) Okay.
Depending on tone, a harmless response such as “Great” can mean (a) Great; (b) Not that again; or (c) You’ve ruined my life. The answer “Sure” never indicates simple agreement, as in regular English. Depending on duration, “Sure” means: (a) That’s just what I’d expect from an old person; (b) You don’t know what you’re talking about; (c) You’ve ruined my life. “Yeah” has the same range of meanings, but in this case the briefest version has the most devastating intent.
As exit lines, “Great,” “Sure,” and “Yeah” require punctuation. For example, “Great (slam),” “Sure (stomp),” and “Yeah (abruptly turned head).” When punctuated this way, all three expressions mean, “You’ve ruined my life.” But before you’re overcome with guilt, you should know that “my life” only refers to the next 45 minutes (or until I need cash).
Can anyone identify?
Family Fun Day Vlog
A couple weeks ago our family went on a short trip to Atlanta. Here is our adventure.
