Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

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How to teach responsibility

September 7, 2022 by Kristin Leave a Comment

This week I had all sorts of things on my to-do list: Schedule an oil change for my van. Set up daughter’s online banking access. Run these errands. Text certain people. Have kids mow the grass. Order a birthday cake. Get paint off the dining room table. Do laundry. 

Yes, that’s life. But it’s also being responsible. It’s a lesson I definitely want my kids to learn. I want them to take care of their hygiene, their mental health, their physical well-being, their spiritual lives, and even their belongings. While documenting real life, I want to teach them real-life responsibility. 

Encourage responsibility 

Teaching kids about taking care of things is an important life skill that should is taught throughout the years at home before they have homes of their own, where I’m not going to make morning routine lists and chore charts or offer incentives for being responsible. 

At our house, two of our kids have routine lists to go through each morning and evening. It’s certainly not a perfect process, but it helps me remind them of what they need to do every day. Included in their routines are cleaning up after themselves. I want them to care for the house we have and the things that belong to them. I want them to clean up their dirty clothes so I can wash them and then they can put them away. 

Encourage kids to take some ownership. Let them put away the silverware, even if it’s messier than you’d do it. (Yes, I’m totally talking to myself here!) Give them chores they can do regularly. 

Teach value of belongings & people

There are many ways to teach children about the consequences of being (or not being!) responsible. My husband and I have tried all sorts of strategies in this area – some more successful than others. Recently, my son broke his Gabb Watch. Honestly, not being able to communicate with him when he’s not with me is a little inconvenient for me, but I’m not replacing this broken item. Taking care of this smartwatch was his responsibility. 

It’s okay for our kids to do without luxuries when they have all they truly need. Their toys, extra clothes, band instruments, technology devices, and sweets are all treats. 

More important than things are the relationships within our household. I want my kids to value each other. The other morning one child was calling another child mean names, so the consequence was to clean two of the toilets. Our home is a safe place so sometimes people’s reactions are unfiltered, but I still want us all to strive to love one another well. 

Lead by example

My oldest child, who is a sophomore in high school, recently opened a checking account. I want to teach her how to balance an account, have healthy spending habits, and understand the value of earning money before she’s living on her own. Teaching responsibility like this is important while children are still under our roofs. In our house, we talk about money in a context that hopefully helps our children understand God has been gracious to us, my husband works hard, saving is important, and belongings and experiences have a monetary value. They know about grocery shopping, eating out, and sharing what we have with others. Experiences, like being part of a soccer team, also encourage character traits, including responsibility.

My husband is an entrepreneur and his ideas have rubbed on me after 20 years of marriage. And now my oldest daughter has started her own business, Backroads & Blooms Photography. She’s been selling some flower photographs she took. I’m helping her promote it online, but she does the printing of photos and ordering frames. She keeps track of income and expenses on a spreadsheet. So many lessons on real-life responsibility right there!

My husband and I want to live these ideas out in our own lives so our children witness responsible living. We do our own chores around the house, but we’re always grateful to include them – in both the lessons and the work!

Purging items is good

When it comes to being responsible for items, another important lesson is purging is good! We can’t hold on to every piece of paper that comes home from school, shoes that don’t fit anymore, or toys that they have outgrown. Sometimes we throw things away; other times we give them away to someone who can use them. When my children were younger, I would rotate toys in and out of their closets so they would often feel like they had something new to play with on a rainy day. We wouldn’t open every new birthday toy on the same day, but wait for another day to spread out the joy. 

Sometimes when children are having a hard time figuring out what to play with, try taking away some of the clutter in their room and see if that helps. It’s important that parents help their children develop their creativity by giving them space to play and explore. Plus this helps them appreciate what they already have. 

How do you teach responsibility in your home?

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God always finds them

August 1, 2022 by Kristin Leave a Comment

Bedtime is always full of shenanigans around here – and most of the time, I rush through the bedtime routine with my youngest two kids because I’m ready for my own bed. But I have a different story from a recent night. 

I was tucking in my 6-year-old Rachel. And by “tucking in,” I mean getting the blankets right, praying, singing, and answering 85 million questions. She asked if I’d read her story. That’s usually her daddy’s job, but he wasn’t home that evening, so I said okay. She had “The Jesus Storybook Bible” by Sally Lloyd-Jones sitting right here, so I told her to pick out one of those stories. 

“I want to read the pig sty one,” she said as she was already flipping the pages to find it. 

When I saw what she meant, peace washed over me. “Oh, I love this one.” I read “Running Away,” which is retold from Luke 15, better known as The Prodigal Son.

A boy starts thinking he will be happier if his dad wasn’t telling him what to do. He wanted to look after himself. His father was sad, but he didn’t want to force him to stay. So the son went and did whatever he wanted to do until he runs out of money and gets a job feeding pigs. Being in this low spot, showed the boy maybe his dad’s home wasn’t so bad after all.

Then Lloyd-Jones writes: “The dad leaps off the porch, races down the hill, through the gap in the hedge, up the road. Before his son can even begin his I’m-Sorry-Speech, his dad runs to him, throws his arms around him, and can’t stop kidding him.” The father proceeds to have a party to celebrate his son’s homecoming. 

“Jesus told people this story to show them what God is like. And to show people what they are like. So they could know, however far they ran, however well they hid, however lost they were – it wouldn’t matter,” Lloyd-Jones writes. “Because God’s children could never run too far, or be too lost, for God to find them.”

I was teary when I finished. While this Bible story was retold for children, the words brought to mind when I decided to follow Christ on Jan. 20, 1996, after hearing someone speak about The Prodigal Son during a Chrysalis weekend. I nailed some sins to a wooden cross in the sanctuary, representing surrender. I remember thinking of the beauty of the father welcoming his lost son home, understanding how the younger son thought he could hold together his own life, and relating to the older son who stayed and did what he was supposed to and found himself not quite willing to celebrate his brother’s homecoming. 

I told Rachel an abbreviated version of that story of being a 16-year-old girl hearing that story and making a decision that truly changed my life. Here more than 26 years later, I’m thankful God welcomes me home over and over again. I’ve surrendered and squandered and sulked, and God keeps opening his arms, which led me to salvation initially and continually prompts surrender.

*****

If you don’t know about “The Jesus Storybook Bible,” I definitely recommend it for the kids in your life. Let’s be honest, I love reading too and I’m thankful it’s back in the rotation around here. 

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5 skills to raise kids well

July 25, 2022 by Kristin Leave a Comment

Parenting is a broad job that doesn’t really fit on a resume. Life lessons pop up at various moments throughout the day. Adventures can lead to conversations about all sorts of topics. And skills are learned all along the way. 

Often I wish I had a manual for my kids. We all know that’s not how life goes, though. Some days I do better as a mom than others. Regardless, I consider motherhood my greatest and hardest job.

Here are five skills that help parents raise children well:

Cooking

Being able to cook for yourself is one thing. But having the ability to prepare meals for the whole family is quite another. Crafting recipes that offer everyone sufficient nutrition that also taste good requires a lot of skill and is much more challenging than you might imagine. I know it’s a winner if nobody complains! 

The good news is that cooking skills are something that you can develop quickly. Once you’ve followed a dozen recipes, you soon get the gist of it, and your creations improve tremendously. I say this from personal experience! When Greg and I were first married, I hardly knew how to cook. Now, two decades and three children later, I’ve gotten to the point I can make up some of my own meal creations and get excited when I find a recipe I think my family will enjoy. 

Stress Management

Stress is part of life, but it can be managed. The idea here is to reduce the pressures and burdens of life on everyone, helping them to relax, and accept whatever happens as just another challenge. 

For kids, keeping the stress of school work and social relationships under control is important. If stress levels rise too high, it can impact bodily health and physical strength over time, leading to all sorts of issues in the future. Some of the ways we manage stress around here include talking through events, listing things for which we’re thankful, reading scripture, praying, remembering life isn’t all about one person, and preparing for the next time a similar situation arises. 

First Aid

Being a medical professional may be a good career background to bring into parenthood! My kids are always getting injured or sick. I’ve learned a lot in this area as a mom! Of course, investing more in learning first aid could, according to MyCPR NOW, could save someone’s life.

First aid, for instance, teaches you what to do if someone gets knocked out or has a cardiac arrest. It also teaches you what to do in the event one of your children gets injured or has an open wound. Little tidbits of information like this make it easy to save a life and avoid catastrophe. 

Love

Love is an emotion and a skill. Sometimes it’s hard to find outlets for love. Parents bring their own emotional baggage with them and don’t always take the time to work through underlying issues, possibly from childhood. As parents, we are always able to learn and grow. We can become better versions of ourselves as we go along.

All sorts of resources are available for parents on how to love children better. Considering children’s love languages is always important in this area. 

Conflict Resolution

Conflicts inevitably arise in families. You’ve got multiple people with different personalities and preferences living under the same roof and sharing daily life. 

Learning a set of conflict resolution skills that work is vital in family life. This helps parents avoid the yelling and hurt feelings that so often accompany family relations. Conflict resolution skills prevent a parent from losing their temper or trying to get their own way. Many of them start with working on yourself and looking for ways to feel understood and not offended. 

What’s another skill that’s important to your family life?

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About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our high school girl who never forgets, our middle school boy who has no fear, and our joy-filled first-grade girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

Learn more about my story here.

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I know, “everyone” is reading “Spare” by P I know, “everyone” is reading “Spare” by Prince Harry. But I also keep hearing different opinions about it. So here’s mine!

I am intrigued by the royal family and I liked watching “Suits,” just so you know my very loose interest. I had also watched the @netflix documentary Harry and Meghan released. 

Short answer: I really enjoyed listening to this book. 

An heir, then a spare. Deep grief as a child when his mom dies that he doesn’t really confront until he’s older. An institution that governs every decision in his life yet doesn’t protect him when he felt like he needed it. That’s some heartbreaking makings of a good story. And I appreciate Prince Harry telling it — even though I’m sure parts were incredibly difficult. I also appreciate why he and Meghan did what they did and are trying to establish new, different roots. 

Ultimately, this book is about death and life and all the moments in between. I’d recommend listening to it because his voice is a good one. 

One minor, silly complaint: There are 232 chapters, although they’re numbered starting with one in each of the three sections. That makes the audiobook not flow quite as well as it would otherwise because most of them are just a few minutes long. 

I give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and I’d love to hear what you think because, you know, everybody is reading it! #KHTreads #bookstagram #booklover #readersofinstagram #audiobooks #audible #princeharry
We are all in for basketball season! Tonight was @ We are all in for basketball season! Tonight was @murraystateuniv Spirit Night at the @memgrizz game. We had some pre-game fun with friends, watched the Grizzlies come back from 19 down to win, and witnessed Ja Morant’s triple double.

#memphisgrizzlies #basketballseason #NBA #TeamTaylor #bettertogether #weekending #favoritethings #RacerNation #MurrayState #WeAreRacers
Cheering for our Racers — and, really, most ever Cheering for our Racers — and, really, most everything in life — is more fun with friends! What an awesome atmosphere at the CFSB Center today with a Murray State win, Ja Morant in the arena, and more memories.

#RacerNation #MurrayState #collegebasketball #basketballseason #bettertogether #WeAreRacers
I’ve worn a favorite sweatshirt that says “Let I’ve worn a favorite sweatshirt that says “Let heaven and nature sing” twice this week. I may not be singing Christmas carols anymore, but I still felt the depths of winter this week. The sweatshirt seemed right. 

The sun didn’t shine much this week, although seeing on Friday as we wrap up the work and school week was welcomed. It’s mostly been cold and gray. It’s felt like winter. 

A lingering tension needs resolution and understanding, but honestly the gap between seems so vast. I crave slow time at home and meals around our table. I miss some friends and was reminded of the heartache that can come with community, but I also felt the deep appreciation of friendship and remembered the beauty of sharing this life with others. I was excited for an invitation and easily accepted it. I started a new habit (hopefully) walking with a friend. 

While driving through my days, I remember how uncertainty is what makes me look up. I remember my Creator when I am slapped in the face with the reality I’m not actually in control. I remember (again) to surrender. 

Goodness happens in the gray of winter. Life may look and feel different, but new life is always preparing to break through the cracks of the ground. The gloom that tempts us to look down doesn’t last long when we believe the sun will break through the icy trees and the fog will lift. 

This is hope. Even in winter. Thank God for it all. Let’s let heaven and nature sing. 

#countryliving #latergram #livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #reallife #weekending
I heard mixed reactions about this book from two d I heard mixed reactions about this book from two different friends, but I enjoyed it! 

I liked the backward timeline, although I was uncertain about how it would work until the end. Some of the twists and connections were so good! 

I also liked the bigger ideas Gillian McAllister tackles: We miss things when we are living our life at our normal pace. What if we could go back? What would be notice that would change our reality? And, of course, perhaps, there would be unintended consequences. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ It did get a little slow in the middle, but the end and beginning are quite good! #KHTreads #bookstagram #booklover #kindlebooks #kindleoasis #readersofinstagram
This about sums up motherhood: My teenage girl in This about sums up motherhood: My teenage girl in the middle rebounding and playing hard and little sister photobombing the moment! 

Honestly, parenting has been hard lately. Nothing major. But so constant and always adjusting. 

Even so, I love watching them on the court and in life. There is so much excitement and goodness among the repetition and exhaustion. 

This is real life. And those are our 10-0 Lady Lions out there. 🦁💛

@ncca.lions #momlife #reallife #basketballseason #momconfessions #livingfaithfully #girlmom #firstborn #thirdchild
I finished studying Colossians today with my Prece I finished studying Colossians today with my Precept group. Paul wrote this letter to an established church that was still growing and learning and maturing in the faith — like us all.  I really loved this study because it spoke right into my life with encouragement for knowing Christ, walking in wisdom and truth, praying continually, letting peace rule, and giving grace. Plus Paul deeply loved his people. 

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” — Colossians 2:6-7

Too often I step out of God’s presence for two minutes while are loading up the van in the morning or I’m rushing kids to bed. Too often I don’t surrender my fleshy desires and feelings to the One who holds this whole wide world in His hands. Too often I think my plans are worth holding onto tightly. Too often I think I can bring peace to my household, minivan, or dinner table. 

But real peace passes all my understanding. It rests in God’s wisdom and knowledge alone. How amazing we have access to that, thanks to Jesus. How easily I forget where I’m rooted. 

I want to let peace rule — in my home, in my head, and in my heart. 

Today while I was driving, I noticed how lovely the road, land, and sky looked. But today was really windy, like feel-it-move-my-vehicle and knock-over-trash-cans windy. It almost felt deceptive with the beauty before me, but, really, that’s like life. 

Sometimes it seems I have it together. People know my gifts of organizing information and people. I show up on time and am responsible. But so many thoughts and feelings are swirling in my mind. I replay conversations and fight against the same insecurities from the previous day. 

I feel both lovely and like my swirling mind could knock me over at any moment. And that’s why I needed God, particularly through His words through Paul to the Colossians. 

#livingfaithfully #faithlife #churchlife #reallife #countryliving
This girl has been complaining of a sore throat th This girl has been complaining of a sore throat the last couple of days, but she hasn’t had a fever or any other symptoms so I kept telling her she was fine. Truth be told, she a bit of a hypochondriac and generally happy, so it’s hard to tell if she sick sometimes. 

The folks at Aligned Health took care of her this afternoon and are treating her for strep or whatever bacteria is making her throat look and feel rough. 

I’m thankful for access to medical care and an unexpected night at home.

#momlife #thirdchild #reallife #momconfessions #livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #sickday
I really loved this book! “Life is the stuff th I really loved this book!

“Life is the stuff that happens in the cracks between your plans and expectations.” — from “One Night on the Island” by @josiesilverauthor 

The writing is excellent, the setting works well, and the story unfolds in some predictable but sweet ways. I also think it was the right book at the right time for me. 

#KHTreads #romcom #romcombooks #bookstagram #booklover #librarybooks #readersofinstagram
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