Penny Stones Blog
Posts Tagged ‘family’
Sunday, June 20th, 2010
I’ve been keeping a little journal of quotes. Whenever one of our kids (one girl and two boys) gives us their version of the English language, I write it down so we can remember it. Here are some of my favorites:
“No comments from the popcorn gallery, please.” ~ 10-year old daughter
“You wanna piece of me?” ~ five-year old son as he’s playing a video game
“”I was really starving for my blanket last night.” ~ five-year old son
When our five-year old son was complimented for reading a hard word he said “Oh, I just rememberized it.”
“I’m just like a dinosaur oncologist! I have five books on dinosaurs!” ~ six-year old son
“What’s a time frame? I’ve never seen one before.” (thinking it’s like a picture frame…) ~ six-year old son
When asked how God made a woman, our six-year old son said “He pulled a ribbon out of his pocket.”
“I want to play ‘Corn in the Cobs’” (instead of Corn Hole) ~ six-year old son
“I’m full. Can I have some ice cream?” ~ six-year old son
“We only learn stuff so teachers have somethin’ to do.” ~10-year old daughter
Out to lunch with Papa, Mommy asked her sons to share their sundaes. The older brother replied, “You can have one bite of mine, but you can have as many as you want from my brother!”
Tags: communication, conversation, family, kids, parenting
Posted in Uncategorized, children, communication, family, family relationships, favorites, kids, parenting | 1 Comment »
Monday, January 11th, 2010
My family had so much fun last night playing a game around the dinner table. It’s called Goober Goat and it’s out of a box of game cards from the Original Dinner Games box by Family Time Fun. My daughter started the game with a word that has to do with a farm, “farmer”. The next person has to say a word that is related to it “overalls”. You go around five or six times and see if the final word traveled far from the farm.
The funniest connection was “hawk”, ”eagle”, “bald” – to Daddy. There are lots of fun games, this is is our favorite so far.
Tags: children, communication, conversation, family, family relationships, Games, parenting
Posted in Conversations, Games, children, communication, communication skills, conversation starters, family, ice breakers, icebreakers, parenting | 4 Comments »
Monday, December 28th, 2009
I wrote a guest blog for Abbey Fatica while she was busy having a baby (congratulations!) and it just posted on her site for mom entrepreneurs.
Here’s an excerpt:
What I find most rewarding are the Penny Stones stories I get to hear. Customers have shared memorable conversations that were started by a Penny Stone. They have connected with their family on a deeper level. Or they found out something they never realized about a loved one. And whenever I hear those stories, I know that Penny Stones are helping people develop deeper relationships. It’s the most satisfying feeling! So, when someone asks me “Is it worth it?”, I say “Absolutely!”
Here’s the direct link: http://livingmymoment.com/2009/12/is-it-worth-it-wtammy-from-cmd-gifts
Tags: communication, conversation, entrepreneur, family, family relationships, parenting, Penny Stones, relationships, social media
Posted in Games, Gifts, Penny Stones, conversation starters, entrepreneur, family relationships, hostess gifts, ice breakers, interviews | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
Thanksgiving Tree on November 30, 2009
Here’s our Thanksgiving Tree, in all of it’s glory. We had much to be thankful for this year! See this link to the previous post about our Thanksgiving Tree.
Tags: children, conversation, family, family relationships, parenting, Thanksgiving craft
Posted in Photos, children, communication, family, family relationships, parenting | 3 Comments »
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
I’ve been thinking a lot about relationships lately. It may just be that time of year, but, for whatever reason, I’ve been thinking about the difference between how I communicate in this stage of my life versus when I was younger. Today, as a wife and mom, I seem to talk more about the goings-on of everyday life – schedules, meals, appointments, and all that. It’s more on the surface and the goal is to maintain the relationship and the activities we share. When I was in high school and college, I/we talked more about values, opinions, preferences and the future. Conversations were longer and were building, not just maintaining, relationships.
I remember calling a few of our new neighbors after we had moved into our home in Ohio in 1998. Each time, I expected to talk to the ladies like I did with my friends in California. But each time, after a few minutes, I got the impression that if I wasn’t calling for a specific reason, the conversation was ending quickly. They were busy and didn’t have time to chat on the phone. So I adjusted my expectations and my phone calls.
While maintaining a relationship is good and coordinating schedules is necessary, I think it misses out on “the good stuff”. Until recently, I wasn’t aware that I’d become like my neighbor ladies. Upon reflection, I’m afraid I’ve slipped into the mom mode of talking about surface stuff.
I want to really know what my kids are thinking and how my husband is feeling. I like to share stories and dreams. I want to hear about wishes and fears. But those things take time to share. There has to be a level of trust and time to let the conversation flow.
From now on, I’m going to be more intentional with the conversations I have with my loved ones. I’m going build, not just maintain, my relationships.
Tags: children, communication, communication skills, conversation, family, family relationships, friendship, interpersonal skills, moms, parenting, relationships
Posted in Conversations, children, communication, communication skills, family, family relationships, friends, friendship, interpersonal skills, parenting, relationships | No Comments »
Saturday, November 21st, 2009
Games for Educators newsletter reviewed Penny Stones today. Here’s an excerpt:
It was delightful for all of us to get to know one another better. One student remarked,
I have known my friend since kindergarten, but I never knew that she. . .
We loved getting to know others and at the same time telling about ourselves. It was fun for us to discuss topics that maybe we would have not imagined without the aid of the category, such as naming a superpower one would like to possess. We agreed that Penny Stones is fun and is a great tool to use at the beginning of the school year or for any icebreaker activities.
Click here for the full review: http://www.g4ed.com/index.php/game-reviews/307-penny-stones-a-game-of-conversation
Tags: communication, communication skills, conversation, family, Games, ice breakers, icebreakers, interpersonal skills, Penny Stones, reviews
Posted in Conversations, Games, Penny Stones, Quotes, children, communication skills, conversation starters, ice breakers, icebreakers, publicity, relationships | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
Sometimes I think I really blow it as a mom. And today was one of those days. I had to go into Cleveland and pick up 150 Penny Stones. My kids came home from school as I was packing them to be shipped to customers. I had promised them that I would be done with Penny Stones when they got off the bus but I’ve been working more days than not recently.
My daughter asked me if we could get our gear ready for our Girl Scout camp out this weekend. I said “Of course! As soon as I finish this I can work with you on that.” So she patiently waited as I stuffed and taped and labeled.
Because my son’s basketball practice time was changed, we had to leave earlier than planned. And I couldn’t help my daughter. The look in her eyes let me know I REALLY disappointed her. How is it that I can renig on promises I’ve made to my kids, something I would not do to a friend?
I love my kids more than anything but I don’t think my actions have spoken those words to them today. Tomorrow I’m going to be at the bus stop and the computer will be off.
I’m thankful tomorrow’s always a new day.
Tags: children, family, family relationships, interpersonal skills, parenting, relationships
Posted in children, entrepreneur, family, parenting, relationships | 5 Comments »
Sunday, November 15th, 2009
Thanksgiving Tree on November 12, 2009
To help us remember what we’re thankful for, my husband and I started making a Thanksgiving tree on our refrigerator when we were newlyweds. It’s become a wonderful tradition over the years. I always enjoy seeing what friends and family are thankful for during the month of November.
To make the Thanksgiving Tree, we cut the tree trunk and limbs out of paper grocery bags and cut the leaves out of construction paper. We keep the leaves and markers in a basket on the counter. We each try to write at least one a day. And we invite any visitors to write one too.
On Veterans Day, my father and and old friend came to visit and they added to the tree. Then it was my turn to watch the other leaders’ children during the Girls Scout meeting. Each of the siblings made three or four leaves. So in less than a week it’s already looking pretty full! I’ll post a picture from Thanksgiving to show the tree in all its Thanksgiving glory.
Tags: children, family, family relationships, friendship, parenting, relationships, Thanksgiving craft
Posted in children, family, family relationships, parenting, relationships | 1 Comment »
Monday, November 2nd, 2009
Last year, we asked our three kids if they would donate some of their Halloween candy to Operation Gratitude. This program sends candy to soldiers in places like Iraq. The soldiers enjoy it themselves and give it to local children to generate goodwill. We paid them $1 for each pound of candy. I think they gave about 11 pounds altogether.
This Halloween, they were really focused on out-gathering each other. They all came home with their pillowcases loaded down. We talked about Operation Gratitude and two of the three were interested. I let them know that if they gave all of their candy, except a few pieces, they’d get a bonus dollar. They were thrilled with their huge cache and weren’t about to give it up too quickly.
Sunday we brought up the topic of candy after lunch. We asked the kids what they thought of it: it’s yummy, it gives them energy, they like it, it’s fun to eat for breakfast, it’s sweet. We shared our opinion: while it’s all of those things, it’s also bad for their teeth, when their body is processing sugar (takes about one hour to process one tablespoon of sugar, according to a dietician friend), it can’t do anything else. If they have a cold, their body processes the sugar and then fights the cold, so they stay sick longer. And we talked a little about diabetes and how lots of people in America have diabetes today who weren’t born with it. We asked them why they think we’d like them to give away their candy. They said because we love them.
Ultimately, all three decided to give all of their candy and kept their favorite five pieces. We paid $25 for 22 pounds of candy! The bonus dollar ended up being enough motivation to go from “most” to “all” of their candy.
Tags: communication, conflict resolution, conversation, family, family relationships, interpersonal skills, parenting, relationships
Posted in Conversations, children, conflict resolution, conversation starters, family relationships, interpersonal skills, parenting, relationships | 3 Comments »
Sunday, November 1st, 2009
These tips for talking to teens are from come from The Partnership, http://www.timetotalk.org/
Start Early
“If you’re thoughtful and open and expressive, and you’ve developed good communication with your kids all along, it’s going to be an easier ride.”
— Neil I. Bernstein, Ph.D., adolescent psychologist and author
Talk Daily
Make time to talk with your teen every day, so it becomes routine. That way when you have an important topic to discuss, it will be more comfortable and flow more naturally. Chat it up regularly — about celebrities, classmates, the news or anything to help maintain open lines of communication.
Become Digitally Savvy
Bone up on the latest technology online social networks like Facebook and MySpace and status update services like Twitter and you’ll gain a better understanding of your teen’s world. Texting your teen is a great non-confrontational way to check in, show your support and stay connected.
Tags: children, communication, communication skills, conversation, family, family relationships, good listener, interpersonal skills, parenting, relationships, talk, teens, tips
Posted in Conversations, Uncategorized, children, communication skills, conversation starters, family, family relationships, interpersonal skills, parenting, relationships | Comments Off
