Oct. 17, 2008 - To Raise a Boy
I just finished reading That's My Son by Rick Johnson. The subtitle is "How Mom's Can Influence Boys to Become Men of Character". Just the book for me, being a mom of 3 girls and 1 boy! It's too easy for me to treat the boy the same as the girls - majority rules!
My husband has been a great source for steering me in the right direction. But when I stumbled upon this book by Johnson, I was excited to dig in! Here are some things I learned that boys need in order to grow into men of character:
1) Don't protect him from risking failure.
2) Mistakes are ok. Help him learn from them.
3) As much as possible, don't say "you might get hurt".
4) Don't smother him with love.
5) Teach him to do things he doesn't want to do when he doesn't want to do it.
6) No quitting!!!
7) Don't solve all his problems for him. Allow him to figure it most out for himself.
8) Explanations should be brief and to the point.
9) Expect him to see every task through to completion.
This is just a sampling of the ideas contained in the book. These are the ones that stuck out to me the most on my first reading.
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Just tonight, while I was preparing dinner, I was listening to my 5 yr old boy describe to his 2 yr old sister, how to make dinner. He was saying, "You stir the carrots. Then you lift the steamer - just like how mommy did. You have to do it exactly the same way as mama!".
Do you think he will be saying those same words 25 years from now to his new dear sweetheart? Wonderful as that may be to my ears, I don't think that would be good!
Comments
Oct. 17, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by foxvalleyfamily
I like all of them except #4. ;-)
I just can't help myself with that one.
Michelle
Oct. 17, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by 40winkzzz
Those sound like good principles for raising boys AND girls.
I think the difference between raising boys & girls gets a little broader when they hit adolescence. All those principles would still apply to girls as well, but there *is* a lot to be said for keeping in mind that a pre-teen or teenage son is a "young man" and not a little boy anymore. This is something I really did not think about when my older son was in his adolescent years, but I have really been trying to apply it for my 2nd son. It just helps me to mother him from a different perspective. (This is in the future for you, of course; yours is still a little boy for another 6 years or so. Hooray; enjoy that.)
Oct. 23, 2008 - Hey!!!
Posted by Ally78
Hey girl, you've been tagged, check out my blog to get the info ;o)
Oct. 24, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by RebeccaC
I had to chuckle at #3. I have to say it sometimes, simply because all 4 of my boys think they are indestructible. I don't generally say, "You might get hurt!" I usually say things like, "When that board kicks up in your face, you're liable to break your nose." or "If you don't put your shoes on, you're gonna end up with metal shavings in your feet." Sometimes they just don't think stuff through. :^)
Those are great guidelines, though. Boys are just so different from girls!!!
-- Rebecca@ http://whatbeautifulfeetyouhave.blogspot.com
Oct. 28, 2008 - Come What May!
Posted by SchoolinRhome
Thanks for the book recommendation! I just got the book entitled" Preparing Him for the Other Woman" by Sheri Rose Shepherd. It looks good! I've paged through it and the small quotes are great! (i hope to read it after the large book I am currently reading!)
I thought you might like this awesome new movie! It is called Come What May! It supports the fight for life, inspires the Godly marriage and encourages purity. You can even veiw it free today and tomorrow yet! It is so worth the time. I am trying to get the word out before everyone goes to vote, too!
It was made by over 40 homeschoolers! Way to go homeschoolers! A+
Check out my post here:
http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/SchoolinRhome/611224/
Please leave me a comment if you were inspired and plan to pass it on to others. I'd love to hear that!
In Christ's love,
SchoolinRHome
