Mom vs. the Dot: Making it COUNT!

At our house, Legos are a favorite!  My husband is a lifetime collector, my kids love 'em, and gosh - you can built SO many things out of them!  Right now, my husband is working on an enormous Lego castle that the kids and any visitors that may go out to the Lego Hall of Fame (aka the garage) "Oooh" and "Ahhh" over.  I once had an elementary kid tell me he wanted to sneak a ride home in my trunk so he could see what was in our garage.  Legend.  Lore.  Cool stuff. So, in thinking about building, the most important thing we can build is our house.  I'm not talking brick and mortar.  I mean building our family from the ground up out of the stuff that matters most . Not the running around to events, practices, rehearsals, recitals, games, meets, and performances.  Not making an "A" or receiving a trophy for MVP.  The real stuff. Lasting stuff. I recently found this wonderful video about building your house on the sand vs. a ho...

So Phil Robertson's granddaughter took the bait .  She heard his prize offer and she aimed to win.  She held on to that sheep for dear life, and she made Papaw pay up. What did that say to you? To me, it practically screamed "Set the Bar High for your children!!!"  They can do more than we think we can.  We need to challenge them.  As a parent, I immediately think of board games I love to play with my kids because they are "team win" games.  I love these non-competitive games because everyone is happy at the end of the game, instead of crying because they didn't win. Has anyone else trying playing Candy Land with their children, ages "three and up?" It's a nightmare. A sobfest.  At least it is for my 3 and 4-year-olds.  If they win, they do the dance of joy.  If my boy loses, he sprawls out on the floor and cries a mournful, sobbing cry of defeat.  Agony.  The end of the world as we know it. After 10 minutes, I wan...