Gather your family together and make a pledge to join the Putting Family First Challenge starting on March 5th! Promise to spend 21 minutes together each day and get the kids to bed on time.

We have assembled an amazing array of fun family prizes. There will be opportunities to visit a Grand WaterPark, have fun at Pump It Up and share family dinners at local restaurants. Shop for groceries or prepare meals at My Girlfriend's Kitchen and Let's Dish.

Every family that enters will receive a Mystery Pass to the Park at the Mall of America. It may be worth a one time ride or a pass for unlimited rides for an entire year!

Go to our home page and follow the link to the Challenge entry. You are in for some great family memories!!

Posted by Barbara at 2/20/2007 05:51:00 PM | Link

 
Thanks Stacy for sharing your favorite hobby! I applaud you for keeping up the tradition of sending cards. Many believe that writing notes is becoming a lost art. If we take time to connect, it seems easier to do it on the phone or to send an email.

My Mom usually wrote letters to keep in touch and I cherish those letters. Dad didn't write as often but now that he is gone, seeing his handwriting brings back so many warm and happy memories! A phone call or email just isn't the same!! Consider starting the new hobby of writing notes to those you love!

Posted by Barbara at 1/30/2007 06:40:00 PM | Link

 
I just had to tell you about card making. I also do scrapbooking, but making cards has helped me stay in touch with my family. I find reasons to send my homemade art to those I love. I have always sent thank you notes, but my son has done so reluctantly. I think letting him chose from my homemade cards has at least made it a little more interesting for him. I do not have much spare time, but when I do, I like to express myself by making cards. Now if I could only curb my "hobby" of BUYING the stuff to make cards!! I wonder if MAKING cards is really my second favorite hobby!?!

Posted by Stacy at 1/29/2007 05:55:00 AM | Link

 
Do you have a favorite hobby? It might be baking, scrapbooking, woodworking, stamp collecting, knitting, reading...the list is endless. If you don't share it with the children, try it. You just might find it more fun when everyone is involved!

Posted by Barbara at 1/28/2007 06:32:00 PM | Link

 

Posted by Barbara at 12/23/2006 10:46:00 PM | Link

 

Posted by Barbara at 12/20/2006 06:53:00 AM | Link

 
I celebrated my birthday recently. For the past 3 years we have gone to the same place to eat. I realized how excited my family was to just do the same thing and experience something familiar. A new tradition born! I think families take comfort in traditions. It is one less decision to make about 'what do you want to do this year?' for special events. I certainly love that!

Posted by Stacy at 12/11/2006 07:54:00 AM | Link

 
December is here and with it comes the shopping, baking, wrapping, cooking, cleaning, decorating, running, more shopping and wrapping!! Before it all begins, take a moment to think about: What is REALLY important in my life? What are my priorities?

Perhaps this year I might want to run less, slow down and take time to be together as a family. What if I ask my children if they would like another gift...or more of my time? I'm betting they will say time! It truly is my choice!

Posted by Barbara at 11/30/2006 10:04:00 PM | Link

 

Posted by Barbara at 11/23/2006 12:16:00 AM | Link

 
When you decide to make a Thanksgiving tablecloth, (see previous blog) you will want to put a plastic cloth under it to make sure the markers don't go through to your table. (You may not want them THAT permanent!) I'm going to start this tradition this year with our children and grandchildren!

Posted by Barbara at 11/21/2006 06:30:00 PM | Link

 
Here is a holiday idea I wish I had heard about when our kids were little....
Buy a plain white, inexpensive tablecloth for your Thanksgiving table. Put out lots of permanent fabric markers. Have each person at the table write down one thing they are grateful for this year and mark it with the year. Use the same cloth each year and you will have a running history of your family's Thanksgiving thoughts. Very young children will need help.

Posted by Barbara at 11/21/2006 06:22:00 PM | Link

 
About a week before Halloween when the kids and I were running errands, they noticed and commented upon the fact that every store we visited was already prepared for Christmas - even Home Depot! Our oldest lightheartedly stated, "Poor Thanksgiving! No one even notices it any more!"

This spurred a grand discussion at our dinner table that evening and instigated a family challenge...to give thanks everyday for the month of November. To make it easier for our kids, we suggested they thank someone everyday. It is amazing how much happiness is bestowed by two simple words...Thank You. We discuss our success at dinner every night. The stories could fill a book!

We encourage all of you to take the Thanksgiving challenge too!

This fun story was shared by Anne N., a member of the Putting Family First Board

Posted by Barbara at 11/11/2006 05:59:00 PM | Link

 
I was encouraged to journal as a young girl. When I look back at my teenage thoughts, I can't believe we are even the same person! Just think how your children will enjoy looking back at their teenage parent's musings. Your history is a very important link to the past and future. Take some time to write down your thoughts. Keep a journal in the car to write things down while you are waiting for the kids to finish soccer. Keep a scrapbook of the fun things you to pass down to your kids. I even keep calendars so that I can look back at what our daily lives were like while raising our young son. There are many ways to contribute to your family history!

Posted by Stacy at 10/23/2006 07:29:00 PM | Link

 
Since October is Family History Month, I thought I would share some websites .
www.familysearch.org ,www.ancestry.com,
www.rootsweb.com ,www.ancestry.com/search/nameorigin.aspx ,
www.vitalrec.com ,www.genealogy.com ,
www.cyndislist.com ,www.dmarie.com/timecap/step1.asp,
www.worldgenweb.org .

You can also use Heritage Quest accessed through the Public Library. Some of these websites have a subscription fee. If you visit a Family History Center located at the local LDS Church near you, you may visit those websites for free. Thank you to Lori Roth for compiling these sites.

Posted by Stacy at 10/11/2006 01:46:00 PM | Link

 
I have to admit I rely on my mom to do the family history work for our family. She has traced some of our relatives to the 1200's! Some of the work I have done has been to take a year long calendar with questions, and pose them to my 91 year old Grandma. We have made it through the July questions. Every time I go to visit her in the nursing home, I bring that calendar booklet. She can even remember the names of children she went to school with! In starting your search for your family history, you start by writing down the things you already know. My dad asked me to find out some facts about his mother, and by knowing the state she died in, I was able to find her. I had to tell my dad that he had been spelling her name wrong! Thank goodness for the internet. The website www.familysearch.org offers several search options and links to other websites. Have you had any luck finding your ancestors?

Posted by Stacy at 10/05/2006 03:40:00 PM | Link

 
I have discovered that researching your family history is second only to gardening as a popular hobby! My mom has researched ours by using The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints(LDS) Family History Centers. You can find them in your local phone books. They provide computers, free websites(even those you need to subscribe to), and helpers. I guess I have taken the craftier route and have started to make scrapbooks for future generations. Through out the month, I will share some websites and projects that will focus on family history. Have a fun Family History Month!

Posted by Stacy at 9/28/2006 02:40:00 PM | Link

 
Hi Everyone!
I just have to say how wonderful the Board members of Putting Family First are. With life being so busy, it is such a nice thing to sit across a table from these special people. We discuss how life passes by so quickly. We discuss if children and families are getting enough sleep. We wonder how other families are faring in this competetive world. Is the family dinner a thing of the past?
Since there are so few of us, and many of you, we would LOVE to hear from you! Are you up to your eyeballs in activities? Let us know your thoughts.

My son always asks me to pitch baseballs to him in the driveway. I am not fond of going out in cold weather and pitching. I often hit him because I am a rotten pitcher. Yet..he still asks. Do I think he will remember that his mother was a terrible pitcher when he was 8 years old? I hope so...

Posted by Stacy at 9/20/2006 10:35:00 PM | Link

 
As you get into your car to go out and enjoy the Labor Day weekend, it is important to know that one in ten drivers admits to falling asleep at the wheel at least twice a month. Some suffer from untreated sleep disorders or have work schedules that leave too little time for sleep. Too often, however, many people work, pack, get food and fuel, and then hit the road with no thought of how little sleep they have gotten and little or no understanding of the risk they pose to themselves, their passengers, and everyone else on the road.

FIND THE REST OF THIS STORY AND TIPS FOR SAFE DRIVING FROM THE NATIONAL SLEEP FOUNDATION http://www.sleepfoundation.org/nsfalert/index.php#item614

Posted by Barbara at 8/29/2006 09:42:00 PM | Link

 
For many children and teens, summer vacation is synonymous with staying up late and sleeping in during the day. In a few short weeks that habit will be changing!!

The National Sleep Foundation urges parents and children to make sleep a priority during the school year and they offer tips for back-to-school sleep schedules. Find these tips and more at:
http://www.sleepfoundation.org/press/index.php?secid=&id=334

Posted by Barbara at 8/22/2006 09:29:00 PM | Link

 

Posted by Barbara at 5/02/2006 05:34:00 PM | Link