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Read MoreAre your parenting batteries depleted?
Could you use some encouragement and inspiration to help you on the parenting journey? Would you like some tips and ideas for ways to have fun and to make memories with your child? Then you’re at the right place and we’re glad you’ve joined us! Eighteen years sounds like a long time—but you really have just 18 summers . . . and we want to help you make the most of them.
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Read MoreSo how did the Just 18 Summers® brand come about?
My pastor, Rev. Ralph Sexton, dedicated a baby at church one Sunday. As the parents walked off the platform, he said, “Don’t forget, you have just 18 summers. Take time to make some memories.” Whew, the poignancy of that slammed into me and I knew at that moment that God wanted me to do something with that thought.
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Read MoreWe want Just 18 Summers® to be about YOU.
We’d love to hear from you with your thoughts, ideas, and ways we can help you on the parenting journey.
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Read MorePlease help us spread the word about Just 18 Summers®!
Post about us on Facebook and Twitter. Tell your friends and family. Tell your pastors, family ministry leaders, and organizations about Just 18 Summers. Let’s encourage and strengthen families across our nation and the world!
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Recent From A Happy Home
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Most Recent Articles
Not for Tot
In my young twenties I had a fun task; I was the movie critic for my university newspaper. I was a huge movie buff, so this was a dream job. A job that required I watch all the mainline movies in the theaters had its lows and highs. Just as one strolling through an art museum has the potential of exposure to breath-taking masterpieces, there is also the prospect of being left scratching their head trying to determine how anyone could determine a piece was worth the cost of the picture frame. I recall one such low-brow movie. It was extremely violent with over-the-top tawdry action and it was just plain dumb. The body count was close to a death a minute for all ninety-seven minutes. I knew the genre, based on its rating and trailers but it dwindled below my low expectations. It was depressing and emotionally sickening. Over the years I have learned to avoid these types of movie—garbage in, garbage out. But at the time I was watching anything that hit the screens. “After-all it’s my job,” I’d say using my self-designated “spiritual gift” of rationalization. But even at that age, I knew this type of movie was not acceptable for young eyes. And yet, a few rows behind me sat...
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The Teaching of Kindness
The kitchen looked like a war zone because it had been. I stopped inside the doorway, my baby astride my hip, while I took in the collateral damage. I’d only left a few minutes earlier to pick up the crying baby from his nap, but in a few short diaper-changing moments, all mayhem broke loose. Subterfuge, scurries, and whispers halted. A silence aptly defined as “pregnant” filled the room with expectancy. Three pairs of innocent blue eyes looked at me in bewilderment, as if the carrots had flown alone, misguided missiles from an unknown origin. Hands quieted in their laps. Only a twitch of the cheek and an under-the-table kick gave any indication of guilt. A green pea slowly rolled to the edge of the table and dropped to the floor. Oh, dear mamas, the author of the book of James knew very well what he was talking about when he said “…no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” James 3:8; ESV. At that moment with guilt as thick as the peanut butter and jelly on my little girls’ faces, James could have been describing my tongue. You may have heard the example of a bumped glass of water. Does it spill because it gets...
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Ponder Your Path this Summer
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Proverbs 4:26 NIV Where has your summer path taken you recently? Has your family taken a unique vacation? Visited extended family? Traveled to the library frequently? Explored a new park? Hiked a new trail? For some families, a new school year is about to begin sometime this month, but the calendar still boasts of summer for several weeks. Take the opportunity to wiggle...
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3 Easy Ways for Moms to Say, “I Love You”
Showing love to our children comes naturally, right? Along with a warm hug and loving smile, “I love you” is easy to say. But while our children need verbal assurances, there are other powerful, yet subtle ways to shower our precious ones with love and tenderness. Here are three ways to wrap our children in unconditional love: Make eye contact and listen (Even when we’re busy) Yes, our schedules are hectic. And life may seem to be a swirling...
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Christ is Better
The music was so loud I could hardly hear myself think. I climbed out of my minivan and cast a sideways, amused glance at the car next to me. I remembered the days when I used to crank my music to ungodly levels. Something tells me I just wouldn’t look as cool today rocking out to “The Wheels on the Bus” in my minivan. I reached for the sliding door handle to unload my kids, and that’s when I...
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The Batting Cage
During my college days, my roommate and I took a break from our studies and headed to a local amusement facility. Part of their offerings was a batting cage. I had never been co-ordinated enough to make worthy contact between the bat and a ball, so I wasn’t too keen on entering the cage. After a number of laps in a go-cart, a round of mini-golf, and numerous sessions on some arcade games, my roommate said, “Let’s hit some...
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The Jerusalem Model: A Legoland for Bible Geeks
“It’s better than Legoland.” I heard someone make this comment while viewing a massive model depicting what the city of Jerusalem looked like in the first century. My wife and I were having a grand time exploring this huge, sprawling model—about the size of two tennis courts—at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. I’d have to agree that the model of first-century Jerusalem is far better than Legos, and this is coming from a grown man who still loves his...
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