I've been reading The Mother at Home by John S. C. Abbott.  I found out about this book from Dawne on her wonderful blog.  I bought the book and finally had time to pick it up.  Today I began chapter 2 and realized how much good information is in it.  I'm going to begin to take notes and put my notes here on my blog.  I hope to have chapter 1 ready by tomorrow, and I hope it will help or encourage some of you.  As I was reading it today I began thinking of my own children and my step son and realized how lacking they all are with their obedience, and I began to feel terrible.  My husband is always saying the children should not argue with me when I tell them to do something and that they should have first time obedience.  As mothers, sometimes our heart takes over and we want our little angels to be happy and sometimes have a "say" in what they do.  In reading this book I realize what a terrible wrong I'm doing to my children to not expect first time CHEERFUL obedience.  My goal is to get the children to break their old habits and form new habits, hopefully having a good start before we begin school again.