Recently I came across a talk by P-J Smyth who leads GodFirst Church in Johannesburg, South Africa on training our kids to be godly. I found it to be very helpful. I hope you do too!
Click here to listen.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
The Alpha Marriage Course Coming Soon...
On Tuesday, September 16th, we will begin the Alpha Marriage Course. The course is available to all married couples whether they are Christian or not, whether they are a part of NCC or not. We will cover seven subjects over a ten week period: Building Strong Foundations, The Art of Communication, Resolving Conflict, The Power of Forgiveness, Parents and In-Laws, Good Sex, and Love in Action.
Please sign up on Sunday or send us an email to let us know you're coming.
When: Tuesday, September 16th 6:00 pm
Where: 711 St. Helens, Tacoma, WA 98402
Coffee/tea and dessert will be served. Childcare provided.
Please sign up on Sunday or send us an email to let us know you're coming.
When: Tuesday, September 16th 6:00 pm
Where: 711 St. Helens, Tacoma, WA 98402
Coffee/tea and dessert will be served. Childcare provided.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
The Best Playground in the South Sound!
So, you meet those people who talk non stop about something that was really amazing in their life, and you take it with a grain of salt, because who knows, they might not be too discerning. You know they might also be addicted to reality TV and encourage you to watch some show about some ex celebrity that's trying to loose weight, while raising money for a charity, all while being hooked up to a lie detector. And the show is awful, but they love it.
So, this guy says to me, you got to take Jeremy to the most amazing playground in the Puget Sound. So I did it.
Here's what I found:
1. Extremely creative place (kids can make music, play games, play in sand, practice their coordination.)
2. Very clean and well managed (lovely facility on all accounts.)
3. Great toys to play on (they had dozens of slides to chose from, Jeremy's favorite being a "tunnel slide" that circled around.)
4. An area for smaller children (when the big kids are too big, you can take your 2-5 year old to a gentler area.)
So, from a guy who likes to play and doesn't care too much for reality TV (except for in the 90s when MTV had "the Real World," San Francisco was my favorite) I want to encourage you to click on the following link, and take your kid(s) to the best playground in the South Puget Sound:
Fort Steilacoom Park
8714 - 87th Ave SW (at Dresden Lane SW), Lakewood
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Rewarding Paloma
I thought I would write a bit about what Malena and I decided to do last Friday night for our oldest daughter, Paloma.
Paloma has been an excellent student (and daughter) and once again proved this by getting straight A’s for the first semester of 6th grade. As parents, we thought it would be nice to take her out to dinner as a reward and express to her how proud of her we are. Paloma chose to go to Olive Garden so we went to the one in Puyallup on South Hill. Our friends were very gracious and offered to look after Alexa and Mia for us so it could just be the three of us.
We had a great time talking about school, family, friends, and future plans. Malena and I made a conscious effort to try to keep the topic of conversation about Paloma and not let it drift into talking much about her sisters or other “Mom and Dad” topics. As you know, it is very easy for us as parents, and spouses, to discuss topics of “business” rather than “pleasure”, if that makes sense. What I mean is that I feel it is very important to try to have fun when out on a date or out for something like we did with Paloma. We should make an effort to make it a special time and not just cover the same topics but in a different setting. I understand that there are times when it is necessary talk about a pressing family issue but we should try to make room for fun as well.
Anyway, back to Paloma. We feel that it is important for us as parents to make time to spend with her on her own without her sisters around. From time to time, Malena will take her out for coffee and a chat which has been very helpful. As our younger daughters get older, we will make time to individually spend with each one as much as possible.
Well, it has been a pleasure sharing with you guys. Look for further updates on the lives of the Swarthout family!
Paloma has been an excellent student (and daughter) and once again proved this by getting straight A’s for the first semester of 6th grade. As parents, we thought it would be nice to take her out to dinner as a reward and express to her how proud of her we are. Paloma chose to go to Olive Garden so we went to the one in Puyallup on South Hill. Our friends were very gracious and offered to look after Alexa and Mia for us so it could just be the three of us.
We had a great time talking about school, family, friends, and future plans. Malena and I made a conscious effort to try to keep the topic of conversation about Paloma and not let it drift into talking much about her sisters or other “Mom and Dad” topics. As you know, it is very easy for us as parents, and spouses, to discuss topics of “business” rather than “pleasure”, if that makes sense. What I mean is that I feel it is very important to try to have fun when out on a date or out for something like we did with Paloma. We should make an effort to make it a special time and not just cover the same topics but in a different setting. I understand that there are times when it is necessary talk about a pressing family issue but we should try to make room for fun as well.
Anyway, back to Paloma. We feel that it is important for us as parents to make time to spend with her on her own without her sisters around. From time to time, Malena will take her out for coffee and a chat which has been very helpful. As our younger daughters get older, we will make time to individually spend with each one as much as possible.
Well, it has been a pleasure sharing with you guys. Look for further updates on the lives of the Swarthout family!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
A Noonan Night Out
Alexis and I needed a night out. After the week of outreach and house guests we needed time to get back in sync. (Not the boy band. We definitely didn't need any more of that.) I called in on a new babysitter. We asked him just to watch Jackson from 5-7. We didn't want to have his first time babysitting consist of having to put Jackson to bed.
We really needed some time to talk and what better thing to do than to eat and talk! We went to Masa. A note about Masa... a little pricey! We unashamedly shared a meal, which by the way was plenty and very scrumptious. We had a corner booth and it was a great atmosphere for us to chat. The corner booth was helpful as I wasn't in immediate view of any of their flat screens. We really had a good time.
One of the main things we talked about was Jackson. With all the hustle and bustle in our house was needed to make sure we were on the same page as far as standards and discipline goes. We made some decisions and at the end of the day we felt back in sync... again, not the boy band.
We really needed some time to talk and what better thing to do than to eat and talk! We went to Masa. A note about Masa... a little pricey! We unashamedly shared a meal, which by the way was plenty and very scrumptious. We had a corner booth and it was a great atmosphere for us to chat. The corner booth was helpful as I wasn't in immediate view of any of their flat screens. We really had a good time.
One of the main things we talked about was Jackson. With all the hustle and bustle in our house was needed to make sure we were on the same page as far as standards and discipline goes. We made some decisions and at the end of the day we felt back in sync... again, not the boy band.
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