Family Friday

Welcome to a new feature on my blog – Family Friday.  I’m beginning this weekly post because one great passion that I have is for the HOME.  Home isn’t the structure in which you live, it’s the people – your family that makes it a home.  But the truth is, there are lots of hard things in every family.

• Strained marriages
• Financial woes
• Parenting stresses
• Busy schedules
• Miscommunication
• In-laws
• Rebellion
• Sin

How do we keep home a happy place?  Is it even possible?  Home will never be a perfect place, but yes, a happy home is possible.  I know that it is, based on God’s Word.

So, I’m dedicating Friday’s to Family issues.  From fun date ideas to parenting issues, I am going to strive to give you some encouragement.  It’s not because my home is perfect – as I said earlier, none are!  But based on the fact that home is God’s gift, and His Word is our manual, we can learn what He says about creating a happy home.  Let’s open God’s Word each Friday and get some practical helps that we can apply to our families.

There’s no better time than the present, so let’s start with an idea that will encourage your marriage.

Fireplace Date – Cold winter nights need a fire.

• Find somewhere where you can sit by a fireplace – Home,  Starbucks, Panera – anywhere there’s a fireplace!
• Fix/Buy a hot beverage and a baked good to share
• Have some fun with one of these activities:
  • Take a game with you to play -Dice for Farkle, Card game, Scrabble tiles for Bananagrams,  etc.  Some Starbucks have board games available for you to use in their store.
  • Before the date night, write up a list of questions on 3×5 cards.  Flip one over at a time and ask your spouse to answer. Here are 25 to get you started!  I found these  great questions on the Internet – one place was Intoxicated on Life. 1.       What are some books you’ve really enjoyed?

    2.       What books would you like to read sometime?

    3.       What are your favorite foods?

    4.       What did you want to be when you grew up?

    5.       What are some of your favorite memories from your childhood?

    6.       What are some of the more difficult memories from your childhood?

    7.       What are your favorite hobbies?

    8.       What did your parents teach you that you appreciate now?

    9.       What did your parents say or do that you found difficult?

    10.     Who is someone that inspires you?

    11.     What do you like us doing together?

    12.     What would you like to do together in future, just the two of us?

    13.     What would you like to do together in future, all of us with the kids too?

    14.     What is your favorite passage of Scripture?

    15.     What is your favorite memory verse?

    16.     What are your greatest strengths?

    17.     What are your greatest weaknesses?

    18.     What overwhelms you?

    19.     What is concerning you?

    20.     What are you fearful of?

    21.    What is the best marriage you’ve ever seen modeled?

    22.    When did you first know you loved me?

    23.    Who are the heroes you look up to?

    24.    What is your earliest childhood memory?

    25.    What is your greatest regret?

  • Make a list of things to do on future date nights
• Dress in a way that will show you care.  Add a little makeup.  Fix your hair.
• Hold hands, snuggle up and create a little fire of your own!

I’m open to topics for future Family Friday posts!  Do you have a suggestion or request?  I’d love to hear your ideas, or if this was helpful today.

Keep your marriage refreshed by having a date night!