FINAL NIGHT FOR UGLY TIE VOTING!!

IMPORTANT NOTICE:  Tonight is the final night to cast your monetary vote for your favorite Ugly Tie!  Remember that the ties that make the most money will be worn by the Pastoral Staff this Sunday for the Graduation/Awards Service so get those final $20s in those cups before it's too late!  It's all for Missions!!

FINAL AWANA CLUB NIGHT FOR 2011-12 YEAR!

     This is IT!!  The final night of another great year of Awana clubs!  Have your kids finished all their verses and sections to complete their current book?  If not, they've got mere hours to make it so.  This Sunday we give out those book awards as well as graduation certificates during the 10:30am service so tonight is the deadline to finish!  It's also our big end of the year celebration night!

Of course, we have a final theme night for our final club night:  CLUB LEADER APPRECIATION NIGHT!!  Remind your kids to write up a nice "Thank You" note or card to their club director/leaders.  When they check in tonight they will get extra points for their color team for each card they show them at the check-in table.  I hope you will encourage your children to put some thought into these notes, not for points, but because their leaders are worth it and have given their all this year to make Wednesday nights full of fun and excitement!

Make Parenting Shifts

As children grow and mature, parents must make adjustments in the way they parent. Some of those changes are minor or subtle; others are more significant. In the same way that children go through developmental stages, parents must learn to adapt by shifting the way they interact, care for, and discipline their children. Just when you think you've got it all figured out, your child changes and you feel like you're starting all over again.

For instance, when that tiny newborn comes home from the hospital, the baby quickly becomes the focus of attention. The infant sets the schedule for feedings and for sleeping. Often both parents have to adapt their lives around one small child. However, as your baby begins to grow and develop, you change too. You no longer jump for every cry. You begin to set limits on a mobile child and determine a meal schedule for a toddler. One major parenting shift takes place when infants become toddlers.

A common parenting mistake happens when parents don't make the teenage parenting shift. They continue to treat their teens as if they were nine or ten years old. Parents who don't make the necessary adjustments, experience increased friction and frustration in family dynamics. As children mature, parents can now communicate with them in a more adult manner by listening and explaining. Change comes through compromise and mutual agreement rather than always strictly complying with the parents' instructions.

Teens need more discussion about issues and concerns. Discipline involves more explaining and talking rather than just requiring compliance. A parent may say, "I'm not going to make you give your little brother one of the cookies you made for school, but I'd like to talk about it. I'd like to hear what you're thinking because it seems selfish to me."

As your children grow, be ready to grow with them and make the necessary changes to influence them effectively.

This tip comes from the chapter on teens in the book Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes In You and Your Kids by Dr Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller, RN, BSN.

SPORTS Theme Night at Awana Clubs This Week!!

Remind your kids to wear their favorite sports team wear to Awana clubs this week!  It can be Football, Basketball, Baseball, Soccer, Hockey, etc.  College or Pro, either is fine.  And mixing sports and teams is fine too!  Wear it all from head to foot and have fun with it!  We'll be giving extra points for the team that shows the most "team" spirit.

Tweens Cell Phones: Does Your Child Need a Cell Phone?

More than 75 percent of teenagers have cell phones.  That doesn’t even include children as young as six who are getting phones.

We understand that the pace of life causes families to simultaneously run in multiple directions: work meetings, soccer practice, piano lessons, etc. It’s a wonderful convenience to be able to redirect or rearrange transportation on the fly with your kids. Other parents value the safety aspect of giving their children a phone. But moms must weigh these pluses against a growing list of cons to decide if having a phone is a good thing for your child.

1. Is it about status or need? Admit it: while we usually blame our kids for wanting what the “in crowd” has, we can also fall victim to that type of thinking. But just because the majority of her friends have something doesn’t mean that she should.
   We at iMOM highly recommend that you put off giving your child a cell phone with Internet access as long as you can.  Basically, a smartphone can be used as a distracting and addictive toy, and it opens the doorway to a hazardous world via the Internet. [How much phone does your child need?]
2. Does the schedule demand it? For working parents whose young children need to navigate a school bus drop-off or make it to an after-school activity alone, there may be a legitimate need. Just knowing that if something goes wrong your child can reach you or another caregiver can provide great piece of mind. But if you drop your child off at school and pick them up, and they can call you from the school office if they need you in-between, a cell phone is more of a social tool than an emergency tool.
3. Does your child handle other responsibilities well? How consistently your child obeys the rules regarding other types of technology she already has access to (internet, TV, video games) is a good indicator of how well she will respect and obey the rules you lay down for cell phone use. If you’re constantly having to police and correct your child’s use of other media, you’ll have an even greater battle on your hands with the cell phone, because she’ll be using it outside of your sight 99 percent of the time. Think long and hard before you open Pandora’s box.
4. Do you have the backbone to limit its use and take it away? Some parents find it really difficult to take back a privilege or gift once it’s given. Only you know if you have the resolve to do what’s best for your child—despite the tears and protests—if the phone becomes a problem. If you can’t honestly say that you’ll pull the plug, and set limitations, don’t buy the phone.

Team Color Night at Awana Clubs Tomorrow!

As we kick off our last month of Awana clubs, let's show some team spirit one last time by wearing our Awana team colors tomorrow night!  The more the better!  Don't just stop with the shirt.  Wear your team color in socks, pants, hats, accessories.  Make it look like someone threw a can of your teams color paint on you!

And call your fellow team mates and remind them to do the same.  PK might just keep teams on their proper colors for game time even if the teams are unbalanced... maybe!  (We'll see how unbalanced they turn out.)