The Ten Commandments for Toddler Bedtime

I have three children; Isaac (3), Selah (2), and Anorah (6 mos). Isaac and Selah, being toddlers, share a room, and have a love/hate relationship with each other. They are the best of friends, and yet in less than a second they can become the worst of enemies. Every night, bedtime is a war. Mommy and daddy versus Isaac and Selah. Battles over band-aids, potty trips, and water are routine. I'm assured veteran parents that this is a short season and "goes by so fast". I'm sure this is true (in fact, my son will be 4 soon, and that's crazy to me!), but it doesn't feel like time is slipping away as Olivia and I make seemingly fruitless attempts to get our two crazies to sleep night after night. It must be a perspective thing. Olivia is leaving for a trip to Baltimore tomorrow with Anorah. In preparation, I am writing the Ten Commandments for Toddler Bedtime. Hopefully Isaac and Selah will heed these commands and we can all win. 

1. Thou shalt STOP TALKING TO ONE ANOTHER!
2. Thou shalt not go potty until the morning. 
3. Thou shalt not have one last drink. 
4. Thou shalt not climb into thy sister's bed to pinch, bite, or pull her hair. 
5. Thou shalt not try to frame thy brother for pinching, biting, or pulling hair if he is innocent. 
6. Thou shalt not jump on the bed. 
7. Thou shall remember the evening time and keep it holy so mommy and daddy can spend more than 30 seconds in rational conversation. 
8. Thou shall sleep through the whole night. 
9. Thou shalt not ask for any more band-aids, thou art fine. 
10. Thou shalt not covet thy sibling's teddy bear/dolly/horsey/blanky/pillow/sheep/panda/doggy

I do love my kids, and enjoy the heck out of them. I honestly look forward to coming home to them everyday after work and reading books, playing, wrestling, and riding bikes. It's awesome being a dad. The bedtime battle just comes with the territory I guess. I'll make sure to soak it in and enjoy it while it lasts. There are some pretty cute and fun parts of bedtime (they were holding hands earlier tonight). 

Why I Dislike Blogging and How I Plan to Change It

So I made it a goal in 2016 to blog at least once a month. It's not a ton, I know, but it's a start. I made the goal because I want to become a better writer, and be in the practice of writing a little more consistently. It's a good goal, and I'm glad I made it, but I've procrastinated two months in a row now. It's almost the end of February and I haven't written anything. I have a few ideas and topics written down, but I decided to pass on them this month. Instead, I would like to share some self-reflection. Anytime I find myself avoiding a known responsibility, I try to uncover what's behind it. There’s something in me that usually needs to change – either an unrealistic expectation, a misunderstanding, or something else that’s causing me to slow down. So, over the last couple of days I've been asking myself "Why do I not want to write that blog post? What about it is bugging me?" After giving it some thought, I believe my pride is at the bottom of it. 

I have some unrealistic expectations for myself and blogging. I have believed a lie that if I'm blogging, the content needs to be original, insightful, intriguing, or at the very least funny. Of course, I hope my writing has some of those qualities. But at its base, this expectation reveals pride. I want people to think I'm smart and wise and funny. This is yet another instance of seeking the approval of men. I need the gospel to speak to this area of my soul. While I hope to write quality posts that are worth a few seconds of somebody's time (if nothing else, my wife will read this, and maybe my mom...), my main goal is to sharpen my writing, not to get people to tell me I’m good enough, smart enough, and doggonit, people like me. My identity is found in Christ, not a blog. I am consciously dropping this expectation of myself. I intend the content to simply help me articulate thoughts on any given topic. Hopefully this will sharpen my thinking and writing skills. 

Additionally, I've felt like the blog post needs to be long. I don't know why, but I've always had this vague feeling that my blog posts need to be more "professional." I imagined them being really long, and include complex arguments and take a lot of energy to structure and write. Again, pride comes in. I have realized that I'm thinking more highly of myself than I ought to. I don't need to prove myself to anyone, and even if I did, a blog isn't the way I'd go about it. So, I've decided to set a reasonable length requirement that will keep me writing a decent chuck, but not too much. The requirement is at least 400 words. This sentence ends the post at 490 words. 

Goals in 2016

Blogging hasn't really been my thing. As you can tell by the sporadic method of posting, I'm on-again off-again when it comes to writing on this blog. However, I recently attended a conference on prayer and leadership in Jefferson Oregon (info here), and was encouraged and convicted to be intentional with personal goal setting. I want to become a better writer, which would require writing more frequently. So, I have made it a goal for 2016 to write one blog post per month this year. You can see this one is written on the last day of January, so procrastination wins this time. But no longer! Starting in February, I intend to write at least one blog post before the month is over. As an encouragement to you (and an added sense of accountability for me), below are my personal goals for 2016.

1.       I will read the Bible in 60 days during the months of September and October.

2.       I will write my final speech to be delivered at my funeral.

3.       I will read 24 books, and keep up with magazines.

4.       I will write a personal mission statement.

5.       I will go skiing 3 times, one of those times will be with Olivia and the babies.

6.       I will increase my prayer time to one hour every day by the end of the year.

7.       I will recruit two people (other than Olivia) who will agree to pray for me consistently.

8.       I will do the Wallowa Lake triathlon with Olivia.

9.       I will take each of my kids out individually on a daddy date once per month.

10.   I will call my little brother Conner once per week.

11.   I will write a blog post/article once a month.

12.   I will begin the habit of ending my day with a time of confession of sin.

13.   I will listen to at least one sermon podcast each week.

14.   If asked to preach, I will read the given passage and its context at least 50 times, and pray for a total of 1 hour during the sermon prep.

15.   I will pray with Olivia three times a week.

16.   I will write a prayer of daily commitment and start the habit of beginning each day with this prayer.

17.   I will memorize 24 passages of Scripture, writing each new passage down 10 times while also reviewing previously memorized passages.

18.   I will study and complete book overviews, including charts, for 8 books of the Bible.

19.   I will make a final decision regarding seminary, submit my application(s), and spend time looking for grants and scholarships.

20.   I will go see Brian Regan live in the Tri-Cities with Olivia on Valentine’s day.

21.   I will review these goals no less than once a week.