Our Family Values

I can't remember exactly who, but while I was pregnant with Big Buddy somebody advised Jeremy and I to sit down and really talk about our parenting goals. What were our hopes for our children, what experiences did we want to give them, what values did we want pass on, etc? My knee jerk response was that I wanted to give them everything. But that is just a silly fantasy. Parenting, like the rest of life, is full of choices. You only have time and energy for so much. You have to choose where you want to focus your attention.

A little bit later on we heard Pastor James MacDonald share his family values in a sermon and we decided we wanted to create some for our family as well. We had a couple great conversations but then life got busy and we completely forgot about this goal. Until right after Little Lady was born and I was taking the bible study Entrusted with a Child's Heart (if you are a mom I can't say enough how much I recommend this study, it's packed full of biblical exhortation and encouragement) and we were challenged to dicuss our family's convictions/values with our husbands. This time Jeremy and I followed through and came up with five values that we want to define us, our family, and our children.

click here to view larger

Above all else, these are things we want to pass on to our children. These are what we hope will define them and serve as their internal compass.

Instead of rules, these are what we talk about when our children need correction/discipline. I am constantly asking questions like 

"is refusing to share with your sister loving others? are you giving much?"

"did your try your best when reading that story? how do Lindsey's work?"

"is it really all his fault? are you talking true?"

"are you seeking God's way or doing it your way?" 

This has made it easier for me to decided what's important and needs correction. Is it going against one of our values, or is just a little annoyance and therefore a battle not worth fighting - like Little Lady changing her clothes half a dozen times during the day.  Having these values has also helped Jeremy and I stay on the same page and gives the kids the security of knowing what is expected of them. 

For the longest time we just framed the pdf above but over the summer we got a little bit more creative with displaying our values around the house. 

jeremy made this with his work's laser cutter

the kids and i created some canvas word art.

Does your family have a set of values or a mission statement? If so, I'd love to hear. 

Sharing with these lovely link parties: cornerstone confessions, on your heart, hip homeschool hop

Follow my blog with Bloglovin