A Better Normal: Are your kids bored yet?

As we reach mid-summer, some of the initial excitement of summer free-time has likely worn off and your children will say the dreaded words, ‘I’m bored’”. […]

From July 5 Newsletter Read Greta’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.

A Better Normal: Have emotions in your house intensified?

“One of the gifts (or challenges) of the pandemic was extra time with family. Without the usual distractions, family members were revealed to one another in a new, unvarnished way.” […]

From June 27 Newsletter Read Christine’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.A Better Normal: How are you relating to others?

“Mother Teresa was featured in Prayer, Praise and Painting yesterday. This is how we artfully interpreted her approach to helping people, one by one: Perhaps Mother Teresa’s ‘one by one’ approach resulted from her focus on relationships.” […]From June 21 Newsletter Read Christine’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.A Better Normal: Grace, Mercy, and Empathy Greta Connor writes:
“I used to think that the verse from Psalm 23, ‘surely goodness and mercy shall follow you all the days of your life…’ was ‘Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy shall follow you…’ when I was a kid.[…]From June 14 Newsletter Read Greta’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.

A Better Normal: Health and Nature Katie Nahrwold writes:

“What’s normal? It is hard to remember what we ‘used to’ think of as normal as we reestablish our routines and schedules today. During the pandemic, our college-age son came home and we were back to our family of six every day, every hour, every moment. […]

From June 7 Newsletter Read Katie’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.

A Better Normal: Health and Nature Julia Peterson writes:

“Our family is ready to say goodbye to many Covid related worries and pandemic routines. But one silver lining our family plans to hold on as we transition to the “new normal” is connecting to God through nature, no matter the weather! […]From May 31 Newsletter Read Julia’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.

Do We Manage Our Schedules or Do Our Schedules Manage Us? Chrissy Adams writes:

“When everything shut down in March 2020, I started slashing big Xs on the calendar at the end of every day. It was my way of claiming victory over yet another day stuck at home with a 2 and 5 year-old, and I naively thought that when lockdown would end after 2–3 weeks, those Xs would be the trophy I earned. […]From May 24 Newsletter Read Chrissy’s Blog Post in the “Re-entering the New Normal” series.

Family Bonding During the Pandemic: Reflections from Ryan and Lindsey Watson

“We have always been a close family committed to spending as much time together as possible. But the reality of our pre-pandemic world was that this ‘time’ was often limited to a rushed breakfast in the morning before everyone departed (kids for school, parents for work) and a quick dinner before bedtime when we all returned.

From May 17 Newsletter “Family Bonding During the Pandemic”

A Better Normal: Wisdom of the “J” Curve
Perhaps a better normal involves recognizing what to hold on to and what to release.

Each week through the summer we will share a short reading from the Parent Wellness Compass Book to invite reflection on the new patterns and rhythms of family life in the new normal; this week’s feature is “The J Curve,” a concept used to explain how change evolves. May God bless your family with new family practices that nurture body, mind, and spirit in this new normal.

From May 10 Newsletter “Wisdom of the J Curve” A concept used to explain how change evolves.

A Better Normal: What Is It?
The image in the link below, illustrates the idea that our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical well-being are interwoven. “Much like an ecosystem, each area is affected by the other areas of the compass…A change in one area of our lives impacts the other areas.”

We see this echoed in sacred scripture, especially in Jesus’ Greatest Commandment:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. —Matthew 22:37–39

From May 3 Newsletter “Living Compass” Outfitting individuals, families, congregations, and organizations with tools and training for the journey toward wellness and wholeness.

Re-Enter Your Community Intentionally
Many families are ready to return to “normal life” after the pandemic, but are seeking to reshape what “normal life” looks like. In the upcoming weeks, we will share articles and tips about how to re-enter your community intentionally so that your new normal is a better normal.

From April 26 Newsletter “Washington Post” How to create a better normal for your family.