Keepsake Travel Journals for Children

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I love traveling with my family! To help remember adventures, I always try to squeeze in some journaling and encourage the kids to as well. (Some are more excited about this than others.) My favorite possessions from childhood are probably my travel journals!

On a recent trip, I brought along a mini photo printer that prints straight from your phone. Each person could pick out a photo they loved at the end of the day and tape it in their journal with a few notes. Such a wonderful little keepsake from the trip.

Watch the video for a little more information!

How to Enjoy Individual Time with Each Child

We started this several years ago in the summers and it’s still part of our rhythm. Moms at home with a houseful of young children might enjoy it too.

On weekdays, one child and I take 30 minutes away from everyone else, still at the house, to do something together. The name started out as a joke, “Moments with Mom,” said in a sing-songy way like a radio jingle, and it stuck.

When there are many children in a family vying for one mom’s attention, all parties benefit from some one-on-one time. 

Here are a few activities that we’ve done over the years, most several times. Sometimes I give the child suggestions, but often they have our time already planned out.

Lego-building 

Magna-tile building

Paint a picture 

Bake a treat

Playdough 

Draw digital art 

Tea Party

Origami

Learn animated drawing on my iPad

Handstands and cartwheels in the front yard

Jump on the trampoline (a frequent request)

Play basketball

Read a book aloud

Sketch

Learn a song on the piano

Play a board game

Paint nails

Play Dolls

Play Store

Create a comic strip

Listen to an audiobook

Play soccer

Create a stop-motion video

In the past, I’ve tried to make this a screen-free time, mainly because I fear if watching something was an option that’s all they would choose! I’ve adjusted this for the older ones now as they might want to look up certain videos they are interested in and we have fun watching a short something together.

A few practical thoughts on making this sustainable:

Typically, I only do one Moments with Mom per day, total. So ideally, in our family each child gets one time per week. 

I set a timer for 30 minutes. This might seem insensitive at first, but I’ve found it’s a good thing. When I’ve gone over, things in other parts of the house can start getting out of hand. Also, if I subconsciously feel like this is a major hours-long undertaking, it’s harder to mentally fit it into the day. You might even need to start with 15 minutes instead of 30. This will largely depend on the capacity of the other children in the house to occupy themselves. (Also, when the timer signals that Moments with Mom is over, it’s the bad guy, not me!)

When we used to do this with four much younger ones, it was HARD to manage, but we stumbled through and I continually saw how it was worth it. I tried to set the others up for success by having them all play in a room with the oldest “in charge” or having them all play in the backyard while I watched from the window as I had time with the fourth. If sitting everyone else in front of the TV to keep them in one place feels like the only option, I’ve utilized shows that are maybe a little less enticing, like a nature show or something educational. Easier for the fourth child to pass on, but still captivates a young, otherwise into-everything audience.

This is not meant to be a stressful burden, but a blessing! When days are missed, as they often are, we just pick back up again in a few days with the next person in line. Rather than constantly feeling I’m struggling to fit everything in for everyone, I know there’s an upcoming time slot for it, which relieves an emotional burden. 

Moments with Mom will be one of those memories I will really cherish from my children’s childhoods. Just the other day one of them asked when we were going to start back up again for the summer, so I think they will too!

Peaceful Home Hack: Weekly Prayer Cards

“Mommy, wasn’t this morning the special morning you prayed for me?”

My youngest son asked that the other day as he ran off to play.

It took some trial and error to find a rhythm that worked for me, one that ensured I would schedule in time to pray for each of my family members the way I really wanted to. But a consistent pattern clicked into place a number of years ago and has worked well ever since.

You might feel like I have at times? The swirling concerns and to-do’s for each child…

The guilt of intending to pray for your spouse consistently but not actually taking much time to do it…

This might help.

During my time in scripture and prayer each morning (the top tip I would offer to any young mom), I added this rhythm:

I assigned each member of my family a day of the week. 

My husband is Monday, our oldest son Tuesday, and so on. It stays the same week after week.

During my morning quiet time I set aside a few minutes to pull out the assigned person’s card and pray for them. This is simply an index card with a list on the back of requests, concerns, and praises. (Though maybe soon I will switch the lists over to vintage postcards!)

I pray for that child in a detailed, focused way and then leave it all with the Lord.

Often the prayer leads to something else, like an appointment I need to schedule or a playdate they’ve been asking for, or a special plan to meet a need for them. I usually take a few minutes to follow up on scheduling those items when I’m through. 

We pray for our children every day at meals and as they are going to sleep, but this set-apart time allows for a little more depth and helps create space to listen to the Lord as well.

In all, this usually just takes 3-10 minutes but here’s all it accomplishes:

It relieves mental fatigue of carrying around long to-do’s for all my children. I know the day is coming each week when I will tend to that child’s needs and seek the Lord’s guidance.

It allows me to go deeper in prayer for all kinds of issues my child or husband might be facing or concerns for the future. 

It helps move me toward obedience in handing over burdens to the Lord consistently, creating peace.

It creates quiet space to not only to make my requests known to God, but to also listen to how He might guide me in parenting or marriage. 

It has deepened my appreciation for my husband and all the many balls he juggles as I consider them all in prayer.

It helps relinquish all the control I try to hold onto so tightly.

It helps shift focus to what matters.

It builds the ability to not always respond reactively, but proactively. 

So, if this sounds like your style, grab a few notecards and jot down your little lists. You’ll be ready to go by tomorrow morning!