insults, and disruptions. My children are not perfect. Each has done their share of complaining, whining and sadly insulting one another. Children are egocentric so they rarely think of how their words affect another person. However, if this behavior continues without proper guidance it will become habitual. Soon the only thing holding your children together is a bond of insulting behavior. Kids are exposed to sibling rivalry in the shows they watch on TV. Often siblings flinging insults are considered a source of comedy.
Due to my frustration over my preteen not being able to control her mouth toward her younger brother and seeing this same behavior demonstrated from him to his younger sister, I decided to take action. Discipline was a temporary fix until the next time one annoyed the other. I realized that the heart and thought life needed to change in order for a real transformation to take place. I want my ugly little ducklings to be beautiful swans.
These thoughts and concerns gave birth to the Journal of Thankfulness and Loving Thoughts. Each child has his or her own journal to list things they are thankful for daily. I started out with three items and continually challenge them to increase the list. They are also instructed to list their siblings and write one nice thing about him or her. If I hear them complain about someone or insult someone, that person is then added to the mix. I also add other family members as reminders of why they love them.
How do you make your own?
Supplies needed:
composition book or notebook
printable provided
scissors
tape
Simply print out the printable here. Cut it out to fit the cover of your composition book or notebook and attach with tape. I taped over the label to ensure it would not come off.
If you have a child too young to write, have her draw pictures of what she is thankful for and tell you one nice thing about her siblings a day which you will add to her journal. It is important to write it down for her as you can remind her of what she said during rough times.
This is just one step that needs to be followed by prayer and properly modeled behavior.
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