| The Birthday Picture | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on5/30/2008 8:37 PM | |
| | I recently went to Kentucky to celebrate my grandson's birthday. I was not the only one who came to the party--his entire family was there. We all had a great time watching him meat cake for the first time, play witht he boxes his toys came in and delight at all the atgtention he was getting. Near the end of the weekend, we all decided to take a picture of all of us who had come to the party. When I looked at it, I learned a powerful lesson about family and being the family of God! |  | |
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| Mother's Day | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on5/11/2008 6:56 PM | |
| | Today at church, we watched a brief "What is a Mom" video. It was very sweet! It described how mom's have unlimited patience, how they are always there to understand their children and there were all these images of mom's being so sweet, so kind and so wonderful to their kids. I have to be honest... | | |
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| Happy Birthday!? | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on5/4/2008 4:57 PM | |
| | It was my birthday on Friday and like most of us do on our birthdays, I looked in the mirror to see if I looked as old as my age indicated. And, sadly, I look my age! I was dreading the day, feeling old and wrinkled and then a little boy walked into my office... | | |
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| Finding Joy during Stressful Times | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on4/27/2008 4:58 PM | |
| | School is almost over! The kids are counting down the days until summer is finally here. And yet, my phone at First Steps is ringing off the hook with parents and kids asking for help. You would think that since summer is so close, kids and parents would be happy anticipating the fun of summer. But in reality the last few weeks of school are some of the most stressful! | | |
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| Holy Week...The Week Leading to Easter | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on3/16/2008 8:09 PM | |
| | Holy Week began today, Palm Sunday. During this week, Christians will remember the last days of Jesus' life. We remember how he entered Jerusalem on a donkey when people picked up palm branches and sang songs of praise to him. But then... the story gets sad! Many parents shy away from sharing the sad parts of this story with their children...but I think this is a mistake! | | |
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| A Gift for Your Child: A Prayer Journal | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on3/3/2008 4:07 AM | |
| | I am now, in addition to being President and Founder of First Steps, the Associate Minister of Children and Families at First United Methodist Church, Colorado Springs. In our children's area we have a little chapel for children. Each week, I am adding a new prayer tool for the kids to use... | | |
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| The Academy Awards | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on2/25/2008 1:34 AM | |
| | I confess...I am sitting here watching the Academy Awards while I write this blog entry and besides hoping all my favorite stars will look beautiful, I am thinking of our children... | | |
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| So Much Sadness...How Do We Help Our Children Cope? | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on2/13/2008 3:04 AM | |
| | My friends and I were talking about how many people we know who are suffering with illnesses right now...with cancer, with muscular dystrophy, with diabetes, and heart issues. We were trying to decide if we were just older, so we know more poeple getting sick, or if there is more illness in the world these days. Whatever the cause, as we care for those around us who are sick and as we discuss their illnesses, let us not forget that our children are overhearing our concern. This can be a time of great concern for them, or it can be a time of great spiritual growth. The way we handle the situation will make a huge difference in the way our children process and understand the sadness around them. | | |
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| Ash Wednesday: The First day of Lent | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on2/6/2008 5:02 AM | |
| | The season of Lent is a time set apart by Christians to prepare our hearts and souls for the celebration of Easter. The season begins on Ash Wednesday (February 6th this year) and lasts 40 days until Easter Sunday. It is a custom and tradition to give something up during Lent and is often misunderstood as a time to make ourselves suffer. What it actually means is... | | |
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